The People’s Talk – My Favorite Mitsuru's World
I feel awake, but my stomach feels mushy.

Translated by: Harley Acres

Rumiko Takahashi
Together with Touch (タッチ), Urusei Yatsura created an era in the world of comics and anime! ^[1] Here is a message from Takahashi-sensei, who could be called a comrade. ^[2]



Both Takahashi-sensei and Adachi-sensei are manga artists, so it's natural that their views of Adachi-sensei's works will be slightly different from those of the average reader, but let's start by asking about how she first encountered Adachi-sensei's comics.

"Well, when you ask about when we first met, it feels like it just happened, but the very first time I met him was when there used to be a magazine called COM. ^[3] I used to read it when I was a kid, and it had a page for submitted manga called "Guracon", and I think he submitted his manga there. ^[4] COM was a slim, really minor publication for manga enthusiasts, but he published works with a very warm sensibility, something that I don't know but had a really major vibe to it. I could read his works without any sense of incongruity, and I felt like he was bound to become a major artist." ^[5]

As expected! Takahashi-sensei was aware of Adachi-sensei's works even before he became a professional. So, I asked her what Adachi-sensei's works were specifically about at that time, but unfortunately she said she had forgotten. Hmm, I would love to see them someday. So, let's ask about Adachi-sensei's comics from after he became a major artist.

"If I'm talking about works from that period, I guess it would start with Miyuki (みゆき). Hmm, how should I put it, that relaxed tempo is still as interesting as ever. Like how she continues to obsess over that black bikini. I also read Hiatari Ryoko! (陽あたり良好!). I think it was a little after I made my debut. Anyway, Adachi-sensei's works are the kind of thing that you just read naturally, you can read without it feeling too formal, so I remember not feeling like, 'I'm going to read this!' and just reading it smoothly without any hitches."

I see. It seems like Takahashi-sensei is a very honest reader of Adachi Comics.

But as a manga artist, does Rumiko Takahashi not feel influenced by his manga? "I try not to be influenced by others because it's dangerous (laughs), but there is that momentary pause in the close-up on a character's face, like when he turns around, and he doesn't take up much space, but he does something like a very important pause that lingers on the character's face. I think I was somewhat influenced by that kind of thing as I was reading his books."

Hmm, so that's how it is. What is Takahashi-sensei's view of Adachi-sensei these days?

"Ultimately, I think that's what I like about him. That type of person. He seems sober, but inside he seems to have something surprisingly thick and hot. He seems really straightforward, but he's quite particular. None of that comes across in his work, but when you see him in person, you can tell that he's really putting his all into his drawings. But I think it's extremely important, or amazing rather, that he doesn't convey that in his manga. In the end, I think there are very few manga artists who don't put pressure on the reader, and can make them relax as they read."

How sharp, how sharp! As expected, the eyes of a fellow professional can peer very deeply. By the way, does Takahashi-sensei have a favorite Adachi character?

"As a character, I like Ami-chan from Rough (ラフ). You can see that she's exactly my type... Adachi-sensei's drawings don't seem to change, but they do change little by little. And I really like Ami-chan's body type. And as for personalities, I actually prefer twisted characters over nice ones. Oh, and there's something I've always wanted to ask Adachi-sensei when I meet him, but I always end up forgetting, so I'd really like you to ask him about it here. All of Adachi-sensei's heroines have names that have 'mi' in them, right? Miyuki, Minami, Kasumi, they're all 'mi', right? I'd really like to know if this is a coincidence, or if it's Adachi-sensei's preference."

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Footnotes

• [1] The original Japanese of the article uses the term "comics" (コミック/komikku) rather than "manga" (漫画) so we have left it as "comics" here. Each "comic" reference in the article translation is usually the term as it was used in the Japanese original.
• [2] Rumiko Takahashi and Mitsuru Adachi were the two major mangaka active in Shonen Sunday in 1983, which is when the magazine had its highest sales peak. They are often thougth of as friends and peers due to their long tenure in Shonen Sunday and their background in romantic comedies. Mitsuru Adachi got his start in shojo comics before moving to Shonen Sunday which would be his primary publisher for the vast majority of his career. At Sunday he published alongside Rumiko Takahashi for three decades before he moved to Gessan, the monthly Sunday imprint. Adachi is well known for his romantic sports comedies such as Touch, Miyuki, H2, Katsu and Mix among many, many others. You can read a very early interview between Takahashi and Adachi here and another interview between the two here.
• [3] COM (short for "Comics", "Companion" and "Communication") was a manga magazine published by Osamu Tezuka's Mushi Productions from 1967 to 1971. Takahashi refers to it as a minor publication, meaning that it was not one of the major manga magazines such as Shonen Sunday, Shonen Magazine, Shonen Jump or Shonen Champion. COM was more avant-garde and was seen as a rival magazine to Garo. You can read more about COM and artists that published there in our article on Osamu Tezuka, "God as Man - The Egotism of Osamu Tezuka".
• [4] "Guracon" (ぐらこん/short for "Grand Companion") was a place for reader submissions in COM. This was in the earliest days of dojinshi, or self-published manga, and so this portion of the magazine was seen as an exciting venue and path towards a professional career in manga. Then unknown artists who had their work published in this section of the magazine includes Daijiro Morohoshi and Hideo Azuma. After COM ceased publication, Comiket, the major dojinshi market, soon emerged to replace it.
• [5] This was before Adachi debuted in 1970 with The Disappearing Explosion (消えた爆音/Kieta Bakuon) in Deluxe Shonen Sunday (デラックス少年サンデー). Takahashi and Adachi's memories differ about when they first met in person.

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