Long interview with Norimitsu Kaiho and Makoto Fukami, writers! (The "inside man" of anime and games, Vol. 4)

In this series, we interview creators active on the front lines of the animation and game industry to get a closer look at their work styles and personalities. In this fourth installment, we present a gorgeous conversation between authors Norimitsu Kaiho and Makoto Fukami. The two are well-known novelists and manga authors, and they talk about their influences, their own theories on creativity, and their works such as "PSYCHO-PASS Psycho-Pass," "Suisei no Gargantia," "Gakkou Gurashi! Berserk," and "Danganronpa 3-The End of Hope Gakuen," as well as their goals for the future.

It all started at the Nitroplus office.

───Thankyou very much for joining us today. First of all, could you tell us how the two of you came to know each other?

Norimitsu Kaiho (Kaiho): When Fukami-san was working on "PSYCHO-PASS: Psycho-Pass" (2012), I was in and out of Nitroplus, so we used to pass by each other and say hello. What do you think, Fukami-san?

Makoto Fukami (hereafter Fukami) Well... It's a bit of a blur, but around that time, I started greeting people at parties and such. I also followed Mr. Kaiho on Twitter and followed him. In any case, I was the one who wanted to "get to know Kaiho-san" first.

Kaiho I have always thought your novels are interesting, and I love "African Game Cartridges" (2007) and others.

Fukami Thank you (laughs).

Passion for American comics

Fukami: In my mind, Mr. Kaiho was an "American comic book guy" at first. You are famous as one of the translators of "Watchmen," aren't you? I like Garth Ennis, and you translated his "Hitman," didn't you, Kaiho?

Kaiho: Yes, that's right. Speaking of Ennis, "Preacher" is now being made into a live-action drama.

Fukami: "Preacher" is interesting, isn't it? America is very careful about religious and political matters, but it is amazing that news broke that Tom Cruise was killed in a bombing during a worship service.

Kaiho: America does have such egregious expressions in adult material and the like. Some Japanese people say that America is crippled, but that is not true. Both "Goddess Tensei" and "Persona" are very popular in the U.S. Preacher" is basically a story about the main character who goes and kicks God out of the house (laughs).

Fukami: That's a great story (laughs). (laughs) But Ennis does a solid job in "Punisher," doesn't he?

Kaiho Whether "Punisher" is solid or not is a matter of debate (laughs). Garth Ennis's American comic works started out as so-called "superhero" works, but gradually he began to draw works that were critical of superheroes, or rather, works with ironic themes.

Magical Girl Special Battle Asuka" was influenced by Mark Miller

Fukami: I am currently working on the original manga "Magical Girl Special Battle Asuka" for Big Gangan, and I think that this work is strongly influenced by Mark Miller.

Kaiho "Asuka" is very interesting.

Fukami Thank you very much. Mark Miller's works are rather oozing with political thought, and I can't say I approve of all of them, but I still like them. I think "Kick-Ass" is famous in Japan, but I also love "Civil War" and "Ultimates. In these films, superheroes and special forces acting together do not seem out of place, and there is a unique sense of reality.

Kaiho: Indeed.

Fukami: Even in "Kick-Ass," there was a simulation of what would happen if there were heroes of real real value. In contrast, "Asuka" depicts "a magical girl with real real value. It pursues a different reality than its predecessors such as "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" (2011).

Kaiho: There are many nuances to the word "realistic." For example, if American comic heroes existed in real life, they would naturally be used for military or political purposes. So the question is what to do about it.

Fukami: I recently read "Superior," a manga in which a Kyubey-like character appears to a boy who has been crippled by illness and says, "I'll make you a superhero. The first thing this boy does after becoming a superhero is to go to Afghanistan and kill terrorists. I think this is a development that is not so common in Japan.

Kaiho: It would be boring to leave such news and international situations in the background. In "Asuka," I love the fact that magical girls are recognized by society and that they cooperate with the Self-Defense Forces, etc., and in that sense it is like American comics.

Realism" is "the number and accuracy of simulations

Fukami: Earlier you mentioned the use of the word "realistic," but the word "realistic" that I am using now is "the number of simulations and their accuracy.

Kaiho: I see.

Fukami Zombies such as "Gakko Gurashi! and other zombie stories, I think one of the elements of reality is to simulate "what if zombies appear" more and more in one's mind, and to increase the accuracy of the simulation. If the number of simulations is high and the accuracy is reliable, we can create realistic zombies and scenes that ordinary people would never think of. The manga "Gakkou Gurashi! I was very moved by the scene in the manga "Gakko Gurashi!" where "Karera" is hanging a sign that says "Gohan to omizu wo sagasasan desu" (see Volume 6). I thought that was very well done.

Kaiho: I got the idea for that from a short movie called "Cargo," which is about a father trying to protect his baby in a zombie world.

Fukami: I also tried various ways to create the world of "Gakkou Gurashi! I think there was a lot of trial and error involved in creating the world of "Gakko Gurashi!

Kaiho: I was partly inspired by "World War Z". That work went through countless trials and errors, and I learned a great deal from it.

Fukami I see. Also, "Gakko Gurashi! is not just a zombie story, but a "bishoujo everyday life of the dead," but it is also amazing how you add something new to create something new.

It's in the post-apocalypse that we can see how people live.

Fukami: "Gakko Gurashi! is one such example, but zombie stories are post-apocalypse, aren't they? Kaiho-san, you must really like the post-apocalypse, don't you?

Kaiho: I think everyone around us, including Fukami-san and maybe even Kyubuchi-san, likes it (laughs). (laugh) It is precisely because it is in the post-apocalypse, in a world stripped of excess, that we can see the human way of life, and that makes it enjoyable.

Fukami: I really like Osamu Tezuka's method. When Tezuka tries to depict the importance of life, he uses immortal people as the main characters, and when he depicts the preciousness of human life, he uses robots as the main characters. In the same way, I think that depicting a world in which civilization has collapsed makes us appreciate the value of civilization more.

Kaiho: Yes, that is true. Also, when creating a new civilization or mythology, it is easier to come up with the idea once it has been destroyed. In that sense, "Mad Max: Death Road of Fury" was amazing.

Fukami: I heard that it was so shocking that some of my acquaintances and colleagues in the animation industry thought, "I should quit this job" (laughs). (laughs) "Mad Max" was a blast.

Kaiho: It's the end of the century, so chrome is worshipped as a symbol of immortality, and cars as a symbol of civilization, and it sounds like a lot of fun to create a new religion and culture one by one.

Fukami: Speaking of post-apocalypse, there is a manga series currently being serialized in Comic Alive called "Traveling with Her in the Post-Collapse World," in which I participate as a story collaborator (editor's note: the author is Brick Brick Kijima; the first volume of the book was published on July 23).

Kaiho: I see. I am looking forward to the book (laughs).