Kinnikuman

This is a digital illustration I created as part of the “M.U.S.C.L.E Memories” exhibition, a project inspired by the iconic pink “M.U.S.C.L.E” toys made by Mattel in the nineteen eighties. “M.U.S.C.L.E” stood for “Millions of Unusually Small Creatures Lurking Everywhere” and was a range of small pink wrestling figures made from plastic. As a child, I loved these toys as every figure looked so unique and I would play with them for hours, making up my own names and back stories for the characters.

I have since learned that Mattel’s American “M.U.S.C.L.E” toys were actually just a repackaged versions of a Japanese toy line known as “Kinnikuman”, a toyline based on a popular manga series about wrestling in which all the crazy characters actually did have names, back stories and even superpowers!

The more I have learned about Kinnikuman, the more I have come to love everything about it and this is my tribute to the main character of the series. The ultimate wrestler. The one and only, Kinnikuman!