Battle Tendency Paperback Vol. 4 (May 2002)
Interview Archive
Hirohiko Araki's afterword for the last volume of Battle Tendency in the paperback edition, published on May 17, 2002.
Commentary
First of all, what kind of films were being made? Sound effects and makeup had come a long way, but in spite of that, the number of great horror movies had decreased. Although the number of horror films I liked had dwindled, the number of books about real-life serial killers and the like were increasing. As far as music goes, I found myself fascinated by Prince, whose "black music" exuded a strange and exotic atmosphere in every song he wrote. In art and design, although fashion was usually thought of as beautiful and elegant, fashion designers like Versace and Moschino had begun to emerge. I wondered whether people saw their designs as "cool" or not, and whether European women actually wore clothes like theirs. Around this time, I realized that there's a big difference between how you see a place in books or on TV and what you actually see with your own eyes when you go there. For example, in Europe, there are many strange gardens and sculptures that have been carefully preserved. I went to some of these places expecting to be scared witless, but I actually found myself at ease and found that strange things tend to calm my heart. Strange things are eccentric at the time, but after some time they might turn out to be great things. I realized that both righteousness and darkness are part of a true "ode to humanity," and I decided to depict them both in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
The question that Part 1 and Part 2 of JoJo have asked, "How strong can a human being become?" shifts its focus from the ultimate body to the ultimate spirit in Part 3: Stardust Crusaders. I began drawing thinking the part would end after depicting 22 characters (since there are 22 tarot cards), and yet...[Translated by HudgynS]
まず、どんな映画をやっていたのだろフか？ SFXとかスペシャルメイクの技術はすごく発達して来たのだけれども、それに反してどういうわけか、傑作ホラー映画の数は減ってきていたよっに思う。大好きなホラー映画が少なくなって、実在の殺人鬼とかの著作物が増え始めたのだ。「音楽」では奇妙な異国情緒が曲の端々からかもし出されてくるブラックミュージック“プリンス”に夢中になった。「美術・デザイン」では普通、美しいとかエレガントとかいったイメージのデザインに思われていたファッションデザインで、“ヴェルサーチ”とか、“モスキーノ”というデザイナーが出現して来て、カッコいいとかこんのアリなの？と思われるよっな感動があって、ヨーロッパの女性はこんな服着たりするわけ？とか思った。「旅行」では、本やテレビで見るのと、実際行って自分の目で見るのは大違いだなという、あたり前の事にこの頃気がつき取材旅行の影響力を知った。たとえばヨーロッパには、怪奇な庭園だとか奇妙な彫刻だとかが大切に残されているのだが、さぞや恐ろしいだろっと想像して行ってみると、それは不思議に心の落ちつく所で怪奇なものとは心をおだやかにさせてくれると気づいた。奇妙なものとはその時点では変なものだが、時間がたつといいものなのかもしれない。正しいものも暗黒なものも全て「人間讃歌」なのだなと思い『ジョジョの奇妙な冒険』にはこれらを描くのだと決心したのだ。
ジョジョの第1部、第2部で追求して来た“人間はどこまで強くなれるのか？”という間いは、究極の肉体から究極の精神へと、第3部「スターダストクルセイダース」から踏み込んでいく事になる。これが、“主人公”VS“敵の数”――22人くらいで（タロットカードの数22枚）終わるだろうと思って描き始めたんだけど………。
