Interview with Joji Iida (original story, composition, screenplay) about the anime "NIGHT HEAD 2041" 30 years after the drama "There is justice for me and for the other side.

The TV anime "NIGHT HEAD 2041" is currently airing on Fuji Television's "+Ultra" slot. The story has reached its climax and will finally reach its final episode.

After 30 years, the TV drama "NIGHT HEAD," which boasted a cult following and was broadcast in the late-night slot for half a year starting in 1992, has been revived as the anime "NIGHT HEAD 2041. A new story has been spun.

The script was written by Joji Iida, the original writer of the "NIGHT HEAD" drama. When did the idea for the anime adaptation come about, and why was the future set in 2041? And how was "NIGHT HEAD," which still boasts strong popularity today, created? ...... There are also nostalgic episodes from the drama's broadcast!

We asked him about the appeal and highlights of "NIGHT HEAD" that will make you want to watch the anime, drama, and even the live-action movie again.

When did you start thinking about "NIGHT HEAD 2041"?　Why did you choose the year 2041 as the setting to depict the future and not an animated version of the drama "NIGHT HEAD"?

Iida I think it was five or six years ago that the idea came up. Who came up with the idea of setting the play in 2041?　I think the production side requested that the story be set in the "near future. But I don't remember exactly (laughs). (laughs) But I felt it would be different to bring Naoto, Naoya, and the Kirihara brothers directly into the present day. When I started to write the script, it naturally turned out to be in the near future.

T : So it was a natural progression. This time, not only the Kirihara brothers but also the Kuroki brothers appear.

Iida I had this idea from the beginning. I think those who have a good intuition can guess what kind of relationship they have with each other as the story progresses. But it is in the last episode (episode 12) that we clearly see the relationship between these two sets of brothers in the anime. Anime is also a fun way to find and follow your favorite characters, which is why I introduced the Kuroki brothers, partly to give you more options to find your favorites.

─ I found myself watching the drama "NIGHT HEAD" many times. I would watch it to make sure I understood it, or to repeat it when I didn't understand something. I would watch it over and over again for a variety of reasons, including the fact that it was considered a "cult favorite" at the time, and I wondered if I was seeing the real fun in it. I thought the videotape was going to wear out (laughs).

Iida There were many people who became addicted in that way. Night Head" was the first TV drama video to sell on-air. The trend of Kanto local programs spreading nationwide must have started around "NIGHT HEAD. I don't mean to speak for myself, but "NIGHT HEAD" is like a pioneer in many ways. The soundtrack of the drama sold well, novelizations of the drama were released, and other things that are commonplace today started with "NIGHT HEAD. Thirty years have passed since then, and now we are able to deliver "NIGHT HEAD" in the form of an anime. The words of the production team who said, "For sure, people today will find it interesting! I was really happy to hear the production team say that.

TM: How did you come up with the story of "Night Head," which became a pioneer in so many areas?

Iida When I was a child, maybe around 10 years old, I really enjoyed watching ESP specials on TV. Some people might think they were gimmicks or weird, but I was the type of person who believed in them, even though I was shocked by what was happening right in front of my eyes, even though it was on TV. I grew up without any resistance to such phenomena. ...... When I was in college, I had a drinking party with my local friends and the topic of ESP came up, and I realized that surprisingly not everyone believed in it. The idea came to me, "If a spoon broke in front of me, they wouldn't believe it," so I went back to Tokyo and wrote a 15-minute short story. That was "The Common Sense Bar," which aired on the "Seino Bizarre Tales" program.

Iida I guess that's how you came up with the idea for "NIGHT HEAD.

Iida If I had doubted the phenomena happening in front of me, it might not have been born. I had a chance to meet with Mr. Masayuki Imai, who played Naoto Kirihara in "The Common Sense Bar", and he knew a family head who had a prophetic gift. He made various predictions about me. After that, most of them turned out to be true. It started with the dramatization of "Night Head" (......). Every time something happens, I think that this is what he predicted at that time, and the pieces are falling into place. This animation is one of them.

T : I believe in that. If I had not believed in the first place, I might have forgotten the Iemoto's prophecy.

Iida Even though I want to believe, I understand why people don't want to believe, because if the future is foretold, people will be bound by a fetters. But I think it is important to "accept" that this kind of phenomenon exists.

I would like to see a live-action version of the "NIGHT HEAD 2041" animation.

Iida If I had the chance, I would love to do it. I think it would be possible to depict the near future well in live-action now. However, I am also interested in drawing a completely new story other than "NIGHT HEAD," so I am hoping that if the timing is right, I will be able to give it some form, just as I did with the animated version this time.　I hope that I will be able to do something with it when the timing is right.

I have a feeling that after watching the last episode of the anime, I will return to the drama and repeat the anime again (laughs).

Iida One of the prophecies I mentioned earlier was that "Iida-san is 10 years ahead of his time. To put it in a cool way, I feel that I am ahead of my time (laughs). (Laughs.) "Night Head" became a cult hit, but I think I was a little too quick to make it. If I had made it in the current era, I think I would have been able to use a lot more visual expression. So, in order to express the world of "NIGHT HEAD" as I envisioned it, I feel that it is just right to depict it now, 30 years later, in the form of an anime set in the near future.

Toward the final episode, what do you recommend?

Iida: Through the Kirihara and Kuroki brothers, I hope that the audience will realize the importance of understanding others in the environment they are in. It is very difficult for human beings to recombine the values that have been imprinted on us since childhood. There are "moments" when you can understand that the other person has justice just as you have justice. I think it is important for human beings to know how to accept those moments. I hope that the audience will have the sensitivity to question whether something is really good, right, or just, and watch the show until the final episode.

T : Even if 30 years have passed and the stage is set in the near future, the charm of "NIGHT HEAD" remains the same. I feel that it depicts an eternal theme that can be understood in any age.

Iida: I drew a new "NIGHT HEAD" with expressions that could only be achieved with animation, something that could not be done with live action. As for the animation, I left it to the visual ideas and had it done wonderfully. I hope that the new "NIGHT HEAD" will be widely accepted by drama and animation fans alike.

(Interview and text by Shinobu Tanaka)