Here's part four of my translation of a discussion between Takehiko Inoue & Eiichiro Oda from the below magazine.
It looks like a few people are enjoying this translation series because I'm noticing a ton of hits from all over the web.
Thanks to everyone for reading, and extra thanks to those who took the time to send me a message or leave a comment. Sorry I haven't been able to respond to everything yet, but that doesn't mean I don't appreciate it because I really do! Thanks, again!!
I'll try and get the last two parts posted for you a little faster!
For those just tuning in, click the Takehiko Inoue category link at the bottom for the previous parts.
•••• I think one thing that you two have in common is that you strive to draw your comics to convey something you really want to say.
Inoue: That’s probably true. One Piece in particular is resolute in wanting to say something. It’s almost overflowing with that.
Oda: I know my images are extremely busy, but I really feel compelled to draw everything that's in there. Even if it’s in the way or whatever, it’s like, “This is the sound I’m hearing now!”
Inoue: Sounds ring out and people’s voices are everywhere; There really are a lot of things going on simultaneously in your images, aren't there?
Oda: That’s the way it always turns out.
Inoue: In One Piece, I get a strong impression of your feelings that there are all these sounds and people and feelings in the world. That axis in your work is strong and doesn't waiver, and I think that may be how you can sustain 12 long years of doing a serial.
Oda: Thank you very much. The thing I want to do most in my comics is really not stories, it’s character models. I think like, “Is this style of person possible?” The time I spend doing all kinds of different designs is fun.
Inoue: That's the complete opposite of me.
Oda: Things like how muscular the body should be to go with a certain facial structure is something that, in the end, I pay no attention to, though (laughs). The times where I have created a certain character silhouette that no one’s ever seen before – those moments make me the happiest. And, once I’ve created it, I want to use it as quickly as possible. I create episodes for just that reason... I do that over and over, so the story gets longer and longer.
Inoue: So that's how you've gotten all the way to 52 volumes?
Oda: Yeah (laughs). What are the fun moments for you?
Inoue: The fun moments are diminishing for me. The time I spend drawing wild hair is kind of fun, though. When I’m making exceptional progress, all the time I spend drawing is enjoyable, but recently I don’t really get that feeling very often. I feel a little as though I may have come to a point where I'm facing an impending crisis.
Oda: Impending crisis?
Inoue: Yeah. Comic creation is supposed to be something you do because you love it, right? Nothing gets you pumped up more than drawing comics, so you can keep going no matter how tough things get.
Oda: Yeah.
Inoue: However I’ve come to a point where, in the balance between the tough times and the fun times, if the pleasure in the work becomes diminished any further, I may not be able to go on. Right now I’m trying to somehow find my way through, because I know I have to get past this.
Oda: For me, I don’t think I really have any feeling of crisis with my work.
Inoue: That’s very apparent just from reading One Piece. I’m sure you have your own things to deal with, but I think it’s a long way from this kind of sense of crisis. For me, I think that I’m really being pulled in by Vagabond. It’s like the very nature of the work is affecting me. I spend so awfully much time thinking about things that have no answer. I think maybe this feeling would change if I drew some happier, simpler form of entertainment.
Oda: Do you feel any change of pace when you go back and forth between Vagabond and Real?
Inoue: Yes, I do. There’s a part of Real that rescues me. I can’t say it’s fun, but compared to Vagabond it is a lot easier to work on. I can get ideas just walking down the street.
Oda: You don't normally meet sword masters in the streets.
Inoue: Exactly (laughs)
----------
Oda: It might a little late to be asking this, but what made you what to do the story of Musashi?
Inoue: In the beginning it wasn't really a big deal. Someone recommended Eiji Yoshikawa’s “Musashi” novel to me, and it was a really good read. It was about a year after Slam Dunk had ended when I wasn't doing a serial. I wanted to get to work on something and thought I'd like to try making this into a comic. So, I made a proposal, everything went smoothly, and I got the okay to do it. At first I was completely clueless and didn't know what could be so hard about doing something like this. I just started doing it with almost no idea about the knowledge, energy and technique I would need to do an historical work. It was a real struggle.
Oda: If you don’t seriously research historical material and stuff you can’t do it, can you?
Inoue: If I couldn't have done that, I would have given up on it. We even floated the idea of having a specialist to check historical accuracy, but in the end decided that I would do what was within my own scope and create my own version of Musashi.
Oda: Are the characters the same ones as the original novel?
Inoue: The characters are pretty much the same ones, but their personalities are very different.
-------
Next up, Inoue and Oda discuss the epic battle in Vagabond between Musashi and all 70 swordsman of the Yoshioka School.
Part 5 is coming soon...
XML Feeds