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Was Dr. House inspired by Black Jack from Tezuka? Is there a proof of that,
such as a quote from the author?

Many comments on the Internet state that the characters are very similar, some
were stunned by this fact when they first saw Dr. House, ...

The French Wikipedia says:

> Enfin, House est également inspiré du héros éponyme du manga Blackjack
> (ブラック・ジャック, 1973-1983) d'Osamu Tezuka, un médecin cynique, sombre, solitaire
> et sans diplôme accomplit de véritables miracles médicaux. Cette influence
> est confirmé par House lui-même, qui déclare dans un épisode que sa vocation
> médicale vient de sa rencontre avec un médecin marginal japonais.

which means:

> Finally, House is also inspired by the eponymous hero of Osamu Tezuka's
> manga Blackjack (ブラック · ジャック, 1973-1983), a cynical doctor, dark, lonely and
> without diplomas who performs real medical miracles. This influence is
> confirmed by House himself, who said in an episode that his medical vocation
> comes from his encounter with a marginal Japanese doctor.

What's funnier is that there was a very short cross-over between Dr. House and
Blackjack in the two promotional and official ads for the release of the
season 4 of Dr. House in Japan, but I don't know if that is related to my
question.


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black-jack
Was Dr. House inspired by Black Jack?


I have a few volumes of Blackjack and I can see the similarities, but nailing
down inspiration is difficult. We can compare the descriptions of the two. For
the tv show, House M.D., the IMDb says "An antisocial maverick doctor who
specializes in diagnostic medicine does whatever it takes to solve puzzling
cases that come his way using his crack team of doctors and his wits." Anime
News Network summarizes Blackjack like this: "Black Jack is the doctor Tezuka
wished he could be, one free of the constraints of the modern rules, who can
heal and help on his rules. He travels the world helping those who pay him,
sometime those he takes mercy on, and always those who move him. Despite not
having a valid license, he is still the doctor of last resort, the only man
who keeps the reaper at bay. Sometimes though, he's the one who brings the
reaper..."

They both have a healthy disdain for what they see as rules that keep them
from helping people. They both experienced crippling injuries, Blackjack was
blown up by a bomb that killed his mother and House has a knee/leg injury that
led him to a pain killer addiction. They both tend to "play God" because they
are so skilled. There are also differences. House is a diagnostic doctor and
Blackjack is a surgeon.

It is possible that because Blackjack is a much older show, it could have
influenced House M.D., but I doubt it had a direct influence. The crossover
you mentioned may have been because the characters are so similar, not because
of any influence.


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2014-03-30T22:55:00.513
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The producer David Shore
[mentioned](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXtfC9kZAc4) that Dr. House ins at
least partially inspired by Sherlock Holmes and partially on his own
experiences. Many connections and references [are
given](http://house.wikia.com/wiki/Gregory_House_and_Sherlock_Holmes_connections)
throughout the production an series.

This is most likely a advertising campaign by Generon Universal to cross
promote Dr. House and the Tezuka anime. Furthermore there is no citation on
the connection that Dr. House was inspired by the Tezuka series, just one
about the [showdown between the
two](http://lecomptoirdelabd.blog.lemonde.fr/2010/08/22/quand-house-rencontre-
black-jack/). With no mention of the former being inspired by the latter.


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