Kawakubo Shintaro Special Interview “The Editor in Charge Speaks! The Shocking Unknown Stories of Shingeki no Kyojin” (August 11th, 2019)

As promotion for the newly published SnK tankobon Volume 29, Isayama Hajime’s Kodansha editor Kawakubo Shintaro appeared on the YouTube series hosted by virtual YouTuber/VTuber Sakuragi Kenji, the fictional protagonist of the manga Dragon Sakura, which was also published by Kodansha.

The two had in-depth discussions about the series’ birth as well as its current developments.

(Translation: @suniuz & @fuku-shuu for @snknews; Please credit if used)

The First Meeting Between Kawakubo & Isayama

Kawakubo: When Isayama-san was 19, I was 23, and it had been my first year working [at Kodansha]. Isayama-san submitted [Chapter 0 of Shingeki no Kyojin] to Weekly Shonen Magazine. In terms of manga magazines, we often have authors directly bringing their work to the publisher’s office, or they would call us and request an in-person meeting. The person who picked up his phone call back then - that was me. I felt that his story was quite interesting, so we aimed for the goals of winning the Kodansha award and getting serialized - and thus began our destiny together. Back then, [Chapter 0] won Kodansha’s Magazine Grand Prize. Isayama-san then practiced his drawing skills as well as story construction, and in the subsequent year, he received 4th place for Weekly Shonen Magazine’s Rookie Manga Awards [With the one-shot Heart Break One].

[T/N: Isayama recounts this same experience in his 2017 interview promoting the Kodansha Rookie Manga Awards]

Q: What he submitted initially to Kodansha and what he won the prize with - are both of them the original forms of Shingeki no Kyojin?

Kawakubo: The work he submitted first was titled “Shingeki no Kyojin,” so that would be the original form of the series we know today. But that one was a one-shot version. It starred different characters, but the concept was the same.

[T/N: Again, this is referring to Chapter 0]

Q: What kind of suggestions did you give him back then?

Kawakubo: The first thing I asked was for him to practice drawing action sequences, so I had him redraw Weekly Shonen Magazine’s Hajime no Ippo. He ended up redawing every punch and exchange during one of the boxing competitions. Also, since he wasn’t skilled at drawing clean lines, I had him redraw romance/shoujo manga that had cute female characters.

Q: What did you suggest in terms of the plot developments?

Kawakubo: Regarding the plot…I basically just kept asking him questions. Each time we met up, I would ask him anywhere from 50 to 100 questions, such as “What is this character thinking?” “If he/she was spoken to in this way, what would be his/her reaction?” “Why did this character say that?” “How will that world now change?” Then I’ll continue with follow-up questions: “The people of that world - what do they think about so-and-so idea/object?” All in all, I just posed a lot of questions. Anything he was able to answer, I would also share my own two cents. If he was unable to answer, then I would have him respond at our next meeting.

Q: I hear that the way you two meet up is also somewhat unique?

Kawakubo: Well, I think this is another special aspect about the series. For SnK, we had to consider how we will eventually conclude the whole story, and also take into account all the mysteries that have been created. The manga cannot end without wrapping up/resolving everything nicely. As much as the two of us are able, our monthly meetings always involve discussing the “long plot” [T/N: “Plot” here refers to the “plotting” of the developments prior to drawing panels] from the current point of the story to the very end.

Q: This kind of method is very rare indeed.

Kawakubo: Even though we do have other conversations during our meetings, the storyline we discuss for this month might receive new inputs and changes from Isayama-san in the next month. We’ve also experienced modifying details from existing chapters. Overall, the story of each chapter isn’t finalized within that month alone - we prepare and conceptualize them one year in advance. I feel like for works that involve solving mysteries, this style of planning is important.

Q: How was Isayama Hajime able to create Shingeki no Kyojin?

Kawakubo: Isayama-san came to Tokyo from Oita prefecture, so if the serialization of his work ends, he also loses his means of making a living - he’ll need to return to a lifestyle that depends on a dayjob until his next series. This is a significant fear, so he invested his all into figuring out things like, “How will I earn reactions from my readers?” “How can this become something everyone discusses?” “How can this be accepted positively?” Basically, he analyzes how he can draw what he wants while creating work that’s well-received - he’s an author with a pretty strong “producer” mindset as well.

I feel like he has a great eye, or perhaps he is just sharp. As an audience member himself, he loves to watch and appreciation films - not to mention play video games - and whatever he feels from these other works, he utilizes for himself. He absorbs a whole lot, so he’s able to remember such feelings from the experience of “If I put myself in my readers’ shoes.” Therefore, he’s someone who especially understands, “If I perform like this, the readers should be very satisfied.”

Q: How did Isayama sharpen his remarkable perception?

Kawakubo: This is just my personal opinion, but I feel that Isayama-sensei is the type of person who wants to live a life without shame. What I interpret from my conversations with him is that he doesn’t want to be a tacky or lame person. For example, some people wish to look cool, some want to win the favor of the opposite gender, and some want to become rich. But for Isayama-san, I feel that what’s most important to him is to not be lame - to not have others whisper about him behind his back. As a person, his attitudes and principles towards life are both quite clear - these are foundations to his creativity. In order for certain emotions to emerge within someone, or to prevent them from emerging, he understands what to do or not to do. And because his benchmarks are set so precisely, his exceptional eye is expressed through this ability to determine whether or not to stray from those standards.

Q: When the series first started, how far along had the overall story been developed?

Kawakubo: First of all, the secret roles of the characters in the first volume were all already finalized. Within the ranks of Eren and his fellow trainees, there were traitors, as well as characters from certain bloodlines. Those concepts had already been decided.

Q: What about which characters will eventually die - was that decided from the first chapter?

Kawakubo: We hadn’t decided who would perish, since there would be so many variables involved. But those who would betray the rest was determined, since their affiliations were different. On another note, the world that exists outside of the Walls was decided from the get-go as well.

Q: So the outside world was conceptualized from the beginning?

Kawakubo: Of course not all the specific details, but the idea that the protagonist’s world and the outside world treat history differently, and what both sides think about those within the Walls - these two points were set back then.

Q: Are there concepts that were interesting but ended up not being included?

Kawakubo: Well, I’m not sure if this counts as “interesting,” but around SnK volume 8 or 9, Sasha was already supposed to die in the original storyboards. The idea was that she would sacrifice herself in the process of pushing back the invading Titans. Isayama-san even already drew the rough draft. I then engaged in discussion with him, asking, “Should Sasha die here and now?” “Does she have to?” “What’s the purpose of her death?” After changing things up, he ended up feeling that Sasha could be utilized more after all, so he allowed her to live on. I’m not sure if that storyboard would count as “interesting,” but that period definitely left a deep impression on me.

Q: The new tankobon volume 29 also includes some pretty intense story developments. How will the plot proceed from here?

Kawakubo: I of course can’t reveal what happens after this, but the way volume 28 progressed was a bet for Isayama-san [T/N: Kawakubo didn’t say a volume number, but the subtitles say “28” rather than 29 here]. It’s as if he gave himself a challenge: from the storyboarding to the conceptualizing stage, even including how the original plot outline - at least some parts were slightly different from the final draft. Even though the differences are minimal, he kept saying, “This wouldn’t work,” “This seems too naive” until the very very end. That’s when he finally changed some of the details. Isayama-san has a kind of awareness: if it’s not something he personally felt was difficult or caused himself to feel troubled, then it’s not content that’s interesting.

Q: So how much story still remains to be told?

Kawakubo: A long, long time ago Isayama-san kept saying, “It’ll end in three years” - it has been five or six years since then. But recently he can finally say, “It’s almost time to end this well.” This time, I really don’t think we have much longer to go. Everyone please anticipate it.

Q: Shingeki no Kyojin just opened the exhibition in Roppongi. There are mobile games + Universal Studios Japan collaborations, and even a Hollywood film production in the works as well. Are there any other activities going on?

Kawakubo: What’s in progress now is the crowdfunded bronze statue project in Hita, Isayama’s hometown. With Hita as the center, we hope to borrow everyone’s power to complete this. Of course, I have worries that we won’t reach our goals in the end, but if it can manifest, then I think it would be a wonderful thing.

[T/N: No worries there, Kawakubo. The project only needed about 21 hours to reach its crowdfunding goal! Haha…]





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