Masami Kurumada is a Japanese manga artist and writer born on December 6, 1953, in Tsukishima, a district in Tokyo, Japan. He began his professional career in 1974 with the serialization of Sukeban Arashi in the magazine Weekly Shonen Jump. This debut followed his early participation in manga competitions during high school and a period working as an assistant to established artists. He later founded his own studio, Kurumada Productions, to manage his creative output and intellectual properties.

Kurumada achieved his first major success with the boxing manga Ring ni Kakero, which was serialized from 1977 to 1981. This work established many of the themes and stylistic elements that would define his career, including intense rivalries, superhuman techniques, and protagonists who display courage and perseverance. He followed this with Fuma no Kojirou, a ninja-themed action series published from 1982 to 1983. The story follows a young swordsman from the Fuma clan and incorporates elements of historical fantasy and martial arts duels. Both Ring ni Kakero and Fuma no Kojirou were eventually adapted into anime, including the Fuma no Kojirou OVA series Yasha-hen, Seiken Sensou-hen, and Fuma Hanran-hen, as well as the Ring ni Kakero 1 Pilot Film.

Kurumada's most internationally renowned work is Saint Seiya, serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from December 1985 to November 1990 and collected in 28 volumes. The series follows a group of young warriors known as Saints who protect the reincarnated goddess Athena, drawing upon Greek mythology, Buddhist doctrine, and other global mythologies to frame their cosmic battles. Saint Seiya achieved massive commercial success and became a worldwide phenomenon, particularly in France, Spain, Italy, and Latin America. The initial anime adaptation produced by Toei Animation ran for 114 episodes between 1986 and 1989.

After a period of several projects that were cancelled or ended prematurely, including Silent Knight Sho and Aoi Tori no Shinwa, Kurumada found renewed success with B't X, a science fiction series serialized from 1994 to 2000. The story follows Teppei Takamiya as he bonds with an intelligent mechanical horse named B't X in a futuristic setting, blending mecha action with themes of brotherhood and sacrifice. This work was adapted into an anime series and the sequel OVA B't X Neo.

Kurumada has continued to create and expand his major properties. He published the sequel Ring ni Kakero 2 from 2000 to 2008 and began the manga Saint Seiya: Next Dimension in 2006, which serves as both a prequel and a continuation of the original Saint Seiya storyline. Recurring themes throughout his body of work include friendship, courage, redemption, sacrifice, and the pursuit of masculine virtue and honor. His drawing style is characterized by dynamic action sequences, a classic aesthetic reminiscent of 1960s and 1970s manga, and specific visual techniques such as the Kurumada-ochi (a head-first fall) and the use of blank pages to depict the extinction of a character. He has cited manga pioneers such as Osamu Tezuka, Hiroshi Motomiya, Sanpei Shirato, and Mitsuteru Yokoyama as creative influences.

Masami Kurumada's significance in the manga and anime industry is substantial. He is regarded as a pivotal figure in the shonen genre, known for popularizing the pattern of a hero being pushed to the brink before learning a new technique to defeat an opponent. His works have directly influenced numerous other manga artists, including the group CLAMP, who began their careers creating doujinshi based on his characters, as well as creators such as Yudetamago, Yoshihiro Togashi, and Tite Kubo. His influence has extended beyond Japan, with French film director Louis Leterrier citing Saint Seiya as a major inspiration, which led to Kurumada being commissioned by Warner Brothers to create promotional illustrations for the 2010 film Clash of the Titans.