Toshiki Inoue, scriptwriter of the "Heisei Kamen Rider" series, talks about the world of "Otoko! The way of life of a man comes to mind from his first collection of essays "Man and Fun

Toshiki Inoue, a scriptwriter who has worked on numerous Toei special effects films, including the Super Sentai series "Torijin Sentai Jetman" (1991) and the Heisei Masked Rider series "Kamen Rider Agito " (2001), "Kamen Rider 555" (2003) and "Kamen Rider Kiva" (2008), has published his first Toshiki Inoue has published his first collection of essays, "Otoko to play" (PLANETS).

In recent years, Toshiki Inoue has been known for his portrayal of characters with one or two quirks, as seen in the strong character of Yuko Kitajima, played by Yumiko Shaku, in episodes 35 and 36 of "Kamen Rider Zio" (2019), but he is also known for his own unrestrained and unrestrained personality that is no less than the characters he has created. He is also known as a person who is as free-spirited and openhearted as the characters he has created. In the Internet, Inoue is sometimes referred to as a "yakuza" with a certain familiarity, and such a character can be seen in interviews in previously published media, but in this book, Inoue's personality is brought into relief through his own words, which is one of the real pleasures for the reader.

The book contains 50 articles on 11 subjects that appeared in the "PLANETS" e-newsletter over a period of five years, from August 29, 2014 to November 27, 2019. For example, he writes about a dog he once owned and loved. For example, "Men and Pets 5" recounts Inoue's parting with his beloved dog; "Men and Injuries" tells the story of his failure at the gym, where he dropped a dumbbell and broke a tooth; and "Men and Boys," a series of seven episodes describing the wild lifestyle of producer S, whom Inoue met in his younger days. Half of the essays are on the theme of "men and food," and the author's insatiable quest for food, such as when he steamed seven abalone for one hour each at different times to see the difference in taste (*"Men and Food 10"), is unintentionally fascinating.

In addition, the book is more than just a collection of essays; it also contains elements of personal history, beginning with memories of his childhood, and then moving on to episodes from his early days as a screenwriter, as well as references to his father, mother, younger brother, grandmother, and "family. Inoue himself wrote on his " Toshiki Inoue 'Men and Fun' Official Account " that "I feel that essays reveal more of myself than screenplays or novels," and his descriptions are truly vivid. Inoue's father is the late screenwriter Masaru Inoue, who participated in all the so-called Showa Rider TV series from "Masked Rider" (1971) to "Masked Rider Super 1" (1981), including "Hidden Swordsman " (1962) and "Masked Ninja Akage" (1967), and his life style The author's father, who lived in such a household, saw the life of the late Masaru Inoue. The father I saw in this family was in his 40s, his talent had dried up, he was in a slump, he was addicted to alcohol, he was in love affairs, he was in debt, and he had endless fights with his wife. However, even amidst these memories, the author reveals her feelings toward her family as they are, such as the times when she had meals with her family, her father's worried look when she was hit by a car when she was in elementary school, and her nostalgia for her mother's "mother's taste," who loved to cook. He accepts his identity as "I inherited the power of writing from my father and the love of food from my mother" ("Men and Food 17"). This book is very valuable in the sense that it reveals a side of Inoue that we have never known before.

The book is currently available at bookstores nationwide and on the web at Amazon, as well as at the official PLANETS online store under the title "Toshiki Inoue: Otoko to Otoko-tachi" (Toshiki Inoue, The Man and His Men), which includes the Heisei Kamen Rider series, "Changelion" (1996), "Shock Go Raigan! (2013), and other tokusatsu works Inoue has worked on.

(Text: Tomohisa Toyota)