.png)
When a Manga’s Hand Changes: Manchuria Opium Squad Returns October 5
Sometimes the biggest art news is not a premiere. It is a promise kept. Anime News Network reports that *Manchuria Opium Squad* (story by Tsukasa Monma, art originally by Shikako) will resume in issue 45 of Kodansha’s *Weekly Young Magazine*, shipping October 5, 2026. The series continues with successor artist Tsurushima, a former senior colleague of Shikako from their shared time as assistants on Yasuhisa Hara’s *Kingdom*. The human part (handle with care) Shikako died on November 8, 2025, from choroidal melanoma. Before dying, Shikako expressed hope that an artist from the *Kingdom* manga circle would take over the artwork. Hara publicly commended Tsurushima’s resolve in succeeding that wish. The magazine’s editorial note, as summarized by ANN, credits the restart to many people: Shikako’s family, Tsurushima, writer Monma’s desire to see the story through, assistants, and readers who waited. How the handoff works on the page Resumption begins with two chapters. Chapter 216 is 12 pages (originally planned at 16). Shikako completed 11 pages; Monma arranged a 12th page without characters; assistants drew the background. From chapter 217, Tsurushima’s art takes over. That is an unusually transparent accounting of a creative transition, and it deserves to be read with respect rather than gossip energy. The series began on Comic Days (2020 to 2021) before moving to *Weekly Young Magazine*. Volume 22 shipped in November 2025. English readers can find the series on Kodansha’s K MANGA app. Why this is a Creative Writing post on Art Life Because craft succession is part of art history, not only museum estates and unfinished canvases. Comics make the handoff visible week by week. A new artist inheriting a late friend’s pages is about lineage, labor, and love of the work. October 5 is not a hype date. It is a continuation date. If you read, read kindly. If you create, notice how communities carry each other’s unfinished sentences. Primary source: Anime News Network
Spooky Karaoke Round Two: 4 Halloween Songs From Drink & Draw
10/21/26, 1:34 PM
Round two of Spooky Karaoke: four Halloween songs from the October 15 Drink & Draw stream, from Spooky to Horror Movie.
Art World Weekly Digest — Art Basel Paris Week 2026x
10/20/26, 10:45 AM
Hey friends, London just packed away its Frieze lanyards, and the whole art world is now hopping the train to Paris for Art Basel. This week we've got the receipts from London (yes, including that Mondrian), a new art centre on an old car-factory island, Ibrahim Mahama taking over the Fondation Cartier, maybe the world's oldest shipwreck, and Monet's very relatable first London show. Grab your coffee (or your pumpkin spice potion) and let's go. Frieze week in London: the receipts Last week I...
Spooky Karaoke Setlist: 6 Halloween Songs From Drink & Draw
10/15/26, 10:00 AM
Six Halloween songs from the Spooky Karaoke half of my Drink & Draw horror art stream, from Monster Mash to People Are Strange.
Art World Weekly Digest — Mid-October 2026
10/13/26, 10:45 AM
Hey friends, It's Frieze week in London, so half the art world just packed a tote bag and boarded a plane. Before we join them, this week we've got a K-pop star turned curator, a Turbine Hall that hums, ten Van Goghs from one lucky collector, two stolen Renoirs coming home, and fresh numbers on who's buying art. Grab your coffee (or your cauldron) and let's go. RM of BTS curates a blockbuster at SFMOMA Installation view of RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art....
Art World Weekly Digest — Early October 2026
10/6/26, 10:45 AM