Born on May 8, 1973, in Tokachi, Hokkaidō, Japan, Arakawa was born and raised on a dairy farm with three elder sisters and a younger brother. Arakawa thought about being a manga artist ever "since [she] was little" and during her school years, she would often draw on textbooks. After graduating high school, she took oil painting classes once a month for seven years while working on her family's farm. During this time, she also created dōjinshi manga with her friends and drew yonkoma for a magazine.[2][3]
Arakawa moved to Tokyo in the summer of 1999.[4] She began her career in the manga world as a Square Enix employee and assistant to Hiroyuki Etō, author of Mahōjin Guru Guru.[5] Her own career began with the publication of Stray Dog in Square Enix's Monthly Shōnen Gangan in 1999.[3]Stray Dog won the ninth 21st Century "Shōnen Gangan" Award.[2] She published one chapter of Shanghai Yōmakikai in Monthly Shōnen Gangan in 2000.[6]
In July 2001, Arakawa published the first chapter of Fullmetal Alchemist in Monthly Shōnen Gangan.[7] The series spanned 108 chapters, with the last one published in July 2010, and the series was collected in twenty-seven volumes.[8][9] Some reviewers say that the combination of Arakawa's art style and the writing in Fullmetal Alchemist contribute to its dark thematic elements.[10]Fullmetal Alchemist has been adapted into two anime series by Bones. When they were creating the first, Arakawa assisted them in its early development.[11] However, she was not involved in the making of the script, so the anime has a different ending from the manga, which she developed further.[3] The series won the 49th Shogakukan Manga Award in the shōnen category in 2004.[12] When the second anime adaptation was reaching its ending, Arakawa showed director Yasuhiro Irie her plans for the manga's ending, making both end in near dates.[13] Most reviewers distinguish between the manga and anime, which they attribute to differences in style and subject matter.[14][15] One review explains that the manga is more "emotional," whereas the anime is more whimsical.[15] Arakawa's simple, dark style and plot choices contrast with the anime's "cartoony," colorful rendering.[10][15] Reviews in general tend to ascribe the anime to children and the manga to teens and adults.[10][15]
Arakawa is married with three children.[16] She gave birth to a daughter in 2007 and had her third child in January 2014.[17]
She is currently living in Tokyo and has published more works, including Raiden-18, Sōten no Kōmori (also known as Bat in Blue Sky), and Hero Tales.[3][18][19] Arakawa has collaborated with the creation of Hero Tales with Studio Flag under the name of Huang Jin Zhou. In the anime adaptation of the series, Arakawa was responsible for the character designs.[20] She has also drawn the cover from the Japanese edition of the novel The Demon's Lexicon authored by Sarah Rees Brennan.[21]
^ abcdeSementelli, Arthur (November 14, 2016). "Applying Existential Philosophy and Popular Culture Images to Ethics: The Case for Fullmetal Alchemist". Public Voices. 14 (1): 28. doi:10.22140/pv.42. ISSN1072-5660.
^"Interview: Hiromu Arakawa". Animeland (in French) (189). Asuka Editions. January 2013. Archived from the original on October 22, 2015. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
