The Time-Traveling Manga From a Rising Black Artist

Texas has long been one of America’s most potent crucibles for Black anime/manga fandom. The presence of major dubbing studios like Crunchyroll, Sentai, and OkraTron 5000, as well as large Japanese pop culture conventions (including the recently ascendant Dream Con) helped build massive communities of fans in the major cities. Houston-born superstar Megan Thee Stallion has become something of a national mainstream anime ambassador for Black fandom. Black people make up only 14 percent of the American population but are 28 percent of all anime watchers.

And yet, Black characters are still rare in manga and anime, and Black creators even more so. Jessie Wilson, also known as Red F Manga, of Houston is proving that there is a market for stories from those creators. At just 24, he already has an indie hit on his hands, Golden Mist, a classic martial arts manga with a time-traveling twist.

“I grew up watching Dragonball Z, Naruto, and One Piece on Toonami,” he said in a phone interview. “Anime [led] me to manga, and I attached to that medium more than others. Over time, I asked why I couldn’t make someone feel the same way I do when I read it.”

Golden Mist (currently ten chapters) follows a young man named Kai who is part of a legendary martial arts dynasty destined to save the world. Assassins try to wipe the line from existence, ultimately leading to a modern-day Kai traveling 200 years in the past to fight evil ninjas. Punches are thrown, magical artifacts are acquired, and manga hijinks ensue.

There’s something familiar from a story perspective, but Wilson’s art is so beautiful, and his love of the medium is undeniable. The manga started when he was only 18 years old, mostly as a passion project to amuse his family. Wilson grew up watching old kung fu flicks with his dad in addition to anime, and he developed a love for them.

Wilson is a self-taught artist who had difficulty assimilating into the “normal” art classes. In fact, he says he was failing art in high school, mostly because he had little interest in other styles.

“I wasn’t liked by my art teachers because of the anime obsessions,” he said. “I didn’t rock what they were teaching me. I already learned what I needed, and it felt low-key useless, but I was always drawing.”

Golden Mist started to take off at the perfect time for a young Black creator. Not only was the world in lockdown and looking for new things to read; in Houston, a new hub of Black fandom was also growing.

Situated in Third Ward, Byron Canady’s Gulf Coast Cosmos, started life as a pop-up shop in the legendary El Dorado Ballroom, where many Texas blues legends played. From there it grew into a boutique store specializing in Black superheroes and books by Black creators. Naturally, this included a manga section perfect for Golden Mist.

Canady, a science teacher by day, remembers Wilson cautiously walking into Cosmos with an armful of copies of Golden Mist Chapter 1.

“He literally showed up on our doorstep,” said Canady. “Class Bookstore sent him over. It’s a tight community in Third Ward. We love manga here, and he has a great personality with a great story. The characters are well thought out, the story is tight, the art is super dope. It’s hard to say no to that.”

According to Canady, he sat Wilson down and immediately started selling books while Wilson was in the store. Within an hour, all the books were sold.

“It’s very surreal,” said Wilson. “I’m usually inside all the time. When I did bring my book to Cosmos, it was the first time I saw people enjoy my work right in front of me. It was a spark that showed me it was real.”

Since then, Golden Mist has made it into other stores and sold out several runs. Wilson’s publisher, Shrine Comics, is eagerly anticipating the second physical release. While Golden Mist isn’t putting up One Piece numbers yet, it’s found an avid and appreciative audience hungry for Black stories by Black creators in the manga medium.

Wilson plans to continue Golden Mist for quite a while. Long manga runs are nothing new, though he promises he does have an end in sight. Another book, Untethered, is in the works. As long as he’s creating, he’s also opening the door to the next generation of artists and authors. 

“We just have to inspire one another,” he said. “I have a decent presence on social media, anyone can make their own stories no matter how they look.  A lot of Black kids never felt like they belonged. Anyone can make manga.”