The Eastern Edge

I haven't been doing much with manga lately other than reading Vagabond in Weekly Morning (when Mr. Inoue isn't to busy to give us hungry fans some episodes).
It was also nice to see my silly mascot post show up in the MangaBlog daily rundown.
I have MangaBlog on my RSS feed and it was nice to be noticed. Also, since I was mentioned on the "lighter side" of things, I decided to scrap (or just postpone, haven't decided yet) my rant about a person who shamelessly exploited the tragedy in Akihabara this past weekend to further his own petty little unrelated "social activist" causes.

Instead, I decided to talk about this!

I knew it was coming, but I finally saw the first teaser commercials for the upcoming 20th Century Boys movie. It looks like it's going to be unbelievable! I don't know if it'll ever see the light of day in the English speaking world, but if you understand Japanese, check out the comic and watch this movie!

I looks like an English translation will start to roll out next year (apparently, Urasawa originally requested that his work be released in sequence but things may have chaged).
The 20th Century Boys comic and the two part 21st Century Boys finale will be a serious challenge to do in English.

Part of 20th Century Boys charm, and ironically what might hold it back outside Japan, is the fact that it is just so Japanese (every fan over 40 here gets all gooey and nostalgic over the scenes of the characters as kids. That particular era seems to hold a special place in that generations psyche).
It's tough when translating or rewriting to really stick close to the original and still keep it readable.
Inubaka is a challenge that way sometimes because I think the humor and some of the situations the characters get into require that "Japanese" context. It's a story you just can't take out of Japan like you can with fictional worlds like with Dragon Ball or Bleach or something. I don't thing original work should be altered unless it's nessesary or the creator has given their blessing (assuming, of course, they are still around to do so). Besides, I think it's better to have a joke not go over because the reader didn't understand the context, than to try to go around it and write a new joke that just isn't funny.

It really depends on the tile, but that's my opinion and I think 20th Century Boys MUST be kept as close as possible to the original.
The story also throws constant curve balls at you so a missed translation or nuance in the wrong place and the whole thing goes off the rails. Likely, it's a finished series so everyone knows what happens and what things end up meaning.

Anyway, I can't wait to see the movie and what happens with the manga. It's going to be a challenge. But a challenge that any translator/writer who cares about Japanese comics should be salivating to get their hands on!