Introduction
Ever since the end of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 6: Stone Ocean, the new series Steel Ball Run has been eagerly anticipated. Set during an epic race across the North American continent on horseback, the story centers around Gyro Zeppeli, a mysterious man exploring the full potential of the sphere, and Johnny Joestar, a former genius jockey who has become a paraplegic. A strange and thrilling adventure unfolds around the outcome of the race, as well as the greatest enigma in history hidden within. This work, which serves as a parallel world to Part 1 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, also features a variety of mysterious Stand users, and many characters bear a link to JoJo. From the 2nd Stage onward, where serialization begins in Ultra Jump, the mysteries gradually rise to the surface, and the story moves further and further. This is the situation in which we finally conducted an interview with Hirohiko Araki!
Interview
Interviewer: First of all, tell us what inspired the idea of a horseback race across North America.
Araki: Part 1 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure begins in 1888, and I had the idea that I wanted it to take place at around the same time. It doesn't have any deeper meaning, but I wanted to give off the impression of a parallel world. I also wanted to incorporate elements of an RPG, where people travel while engaging in combat all the while. At the time, locomotives had only just been invented, and horses still dominated the public consciousness. I thought a race would fit the RPG elements well, so I created a story where JoJo characters race across the American continent on horseback.
Interviewer: I understand. In general, the story has a Western feel to it, especially with Mountain Tim's cowboy-style costume and the image of riding horses through the desert. Is that also in keeping with the times?
Araki: That and my roots in Western movies. My debut work (Poker Under Arms) was also a Western, and I was more obsessed with Clint Eastwood than Star Wars in my youth. I also really love fashion. And just thinking about the view of someone standing alone in the desert brings tears to my eyes. I really like that outlaw flavor. This goes for Jotaro as well, but the sight of Babel II (from Mitsuteru Yokoyama's Babel II) standing on the desert's horizon in a school uniform is a really cool image. Perhaps it's because it set my heart on fire as a boy that it became my roots.
Interviewer: Are the characters' costumes also inspired by that Western image?
Araki: The fashion I create incorporates ethnic and natural elements without paying much mind to historical research or detail. Also, I adore the leopard print, fur, gun belts, boots, and so on.
Interviewer: Unlike in JoJo, Steel Ball Run doesn't feel centered around battles or connections to the past. At first, it feels like the main focus is the race.
Araki: You're right. At first, I wanted a story in which it was impossible to predict who would win, with the mystery gradually revealing itself as it continued. But as I was drawing it, the idea developed in such a way that Gyro and Johnny Joestar somehow became the main characters. I hadn't really planned for that.
Interviewer: Gyro and Johnny both have such charm to them! At first, I thought the two of them were working together to win, and fighting enemies was just part of that process, but it became clear later on that there was actually a massive conspiracy behind the race.
Araki: I wanted to depict something more than just a race. In particular, in Ultra Jump, the story and characters are more deeply explored. You could call them the greatest enigma in history (laughs). But it's not a good idea to draw the reader in with too many mysteries, so I like to give away some of the answers early on and show off the charm of the characters.
Interviewer: The duo of Gyro and Johnny is wonderful, isn't it? Unlike the previous JoJos, Johnny doesn't have any powers from the beginning, and in fact his legs can't move. He feels a little different from the past image of a protagonist.
Araki: Gyro is more-or-less complete, and has an element of mystery to him. Johnny, on the other hand, is the type who learns more and more from Gyro. The goal is to depict the charm of Johnny growing through racing, and to draw a comparison between the two. The process through which Johnny grows also reveals the mystery behind the race.
Interviewer: I see. Gyro uses a steel ball, and Johnny's Stand has the ability to rotate objects and people's bodies. Are the rotation and spheres the point?
Araki: There's always a theme to the ability of the main character. Bringing things back to life, for example, or Jolyne's strings. I decided on spheres because I believed they gave off the image of infinity, and because they were useful for a variety of purposes. I also think a focused theme is necessary so that when people see a sphere, they think of Steel Ball Run. It also connects to the theme of nature throughout the work.
Interviewer: There are a number of horses depicted in Steel Ball Run, and they are very dynamic and powerful. How do you feel about drawing them?
Araki: It's fun, but it's a bit tricky because the balance with the horse makes the person riding it feel small. I want to show their face, but I also want to show what it feels like to ride a horse. It would work out just fine if it was on a big screen, like a movie, but it's difficult when you only have a fixed area of manuscript paper to work with. But the drawings themselves are really fun and give off an aura of power. It's like a mechanic in a video game where your character becomes stronger when riding an animal.
Interviewer: Classical painters such as Leonardo da Vinci have created many works using horses as motifs, so there must be something worth representing in drawings as well.
Araki: It could also be because horses are so closely connected to history. They say horses served as a symbol of victory, and that they would make and display a bronze statue of one whenever it defeated an enemy. Of course, they also just make for interesting pictures. I think the way their muscles are built is beautiful. I wonder how they move their front and hind legs while running, how the joints bend and how they move differently to jump. Having to think about such things makes them interesting to draw.
Interviewer: Mr. Araki, just like with JoJo, you depict impossible scenes that are hard to imagine in such a realistic way. The first scene where Johnny's nails spin especially is depicted in great detail.
Araki: That's one of the charms of manga. I once drew a scene in JoJo where a stone transforms into a bug, and someone once said to me, "The drawings in JoJo are more realistic than CG images." I also like depicting how the body changes. It's fun to draw scenes where people's faces become distorted after they are punched. People might see it as a cruel image, but for my part, I draw the body as if it were a puzzle.
Interviewer: What kind of image do you picture in your head when you draw?
Araki: What I mean to draw. I picture it as a manga drawing, not a live-action picture.
Interviewer: While it's in motion?
Araki: That's correct. During the stage of development where the details haven't been decided upon and I'm still discussing things with my editor, I look at the main character from above in my head. As I gradually enter the world I intend to draw, I begin to see places and situations. And given the personality of the main character, I think about how they would act. For example, if they were caught in an explosion, how would they escape? I imagine it as it would be in the manga.
Interviewer: I see. The black-and-white drawings are wonderful, but the color illustrations are also really beautiful. The colors are very unique.
Araki: I'm a fan of Gauguin. He paints surfaces in vivid color, like painting the ground pink, for example. At the time, I imagine he must've received a lot of criticism and ridicule, but I'm very moved by the fact that he was still able to draw it. So I began to think, "It's alright if I paint it pink, too." That's why I also color lips in blue and add colors that would be unimaginable in reality. I think about colors based on the characters, so anything goes as long as it's appropriate at the time. I compare it with the color sample book, and if I think it matches, I go with pink. And once I decide on pink, I paint the entire surface. For that reason, the anime staff had to ask me what color Jotaro was. Even when I look through the artbooks, the colors are always different. So when they asked, I said, "Oh, any color you like." (laughs). In my case, I can accept any color as long as it suits the screen, but I can't make Jotaro's uniform a different color every time in the anime.
Interviewer: That's something you can only do in manga, isn't it? Araki compositions are all unique, but do you have any rules or preferred ways of drawing?
Araki: There are a few, but I prioritize the story. For instance, in this scene (above, left), Steel is necessary for the flow of the story, so I drew him very large. However, there are also many cases where the characters are each looking in different directions, like in this picture (right). I do this to create a sense of mystery and make the reader ask what each of these people are thinking. I also like to put things front and center, and that's why the characters are drawn so large. That's what gives it depth. Rather than stacking them horizontally, I stack them vertically to create thickness and make the person in front larger. As an example, try holding your finger a little bit in front of the image. That's the kind of thing I value.
Interviewer: Do you have any movements or poses that just feel good to draw?
Araki: I draw unique poses in hopes of leaving a lasting impression. Rather than just standing there, it's more memorable if the characters slightly twist, stick out their fingers, or bend their legs. I wonder whether this image of Gyro (below) had just been sleeping a moment before, but woke up to a feeling that something is wrong.
Interviewer: There are some young people who try to imitate JoJo poses.
Araki: I certainly know a lot about yoga (laughs). But the core of it is the twisting. Like with a masterpiece, even though you don't know what's so great about it, there's just something so peculiar about it that it sticks in your mind. I wonder if there's a secret there. That's why I study poses so much. In addition to yoga, I've bought a collection of Bruce Lee's patterns. I think I also studied sculptures at one point. Roman sculptures always have romantic twists and movements.
Interviewer: Even when a character is just standing there, because the art of posing has been so thoroughly studied, the picture is still somehow different from the ordinary, and almost has a perfect beauty to it.
Araki: Venus de Milo is just standing there, and yet there's something peculiar about it. That subtlety is what makes it a masterpiece and a miracle. I wonder how they carved that giant piece of marble, which stood three meters tall, into a piece so perfect from every possible angle. That's why so I'm particular about things like the facial tilt that I take an image I've drawn once, erase just the face, and then tilt it just a little.
Interviewer: I understand. It's been two years since your solo exhibition in France (the article was published in issue S3), but have your feelings towards paintings changed since then?
Araki: My feelings toward paintings haven't changed. The people over there didn't differentiate between manga and art, and I found that kind of reaction amusing. In Japan, people who like artwork tend to distinguish it from manga, but the people there see my drawings as paintings as well. It was certainly a unique feeling, I thought.
Interviewer: Are you planning to hold another solo exhibition?
Araki: I really want to. I feel like an exhibition carries special meaning for both the art and the people who create them.
Interviewer: Perhaps Italy next time? Is it that much more interesting overseas?
Araki: It's very interesting. In Japan, manga fans who know me come to see me, but overseas, the audience is completely different. Old people and passers-by walk in. I held the exhibition in a place that was lined with boutiques, so models and such also appeared. Paris also has a different atmosphere and customer base and such, so it was interesting how different it was from Japan.
Interviewer: Finally, it seems that Part 1 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure will be released in theaters next year. Please tell us about that as well.
Araki: I checked over the script right up until its completion. If it were just like the manga, the length of it would be unreasonable, and the film wouldn't be cohesive at all. I only made corrections so that I didn't deviate from the theme or what I wanted to convey. I hardly touched the storyboards, though. When it comes to anime, I don't have much insight into, say, voice acting. That much is up to them. But I think the script's good. It's a bit like Peony and Rose (laughs). It's about JoJo and Dio's connection, and it's really interesting.
Interviewer: I'm looking forward to it. The mysteries of Steel Ball Run are slowly being revealed, and I only grow more and more curious about what will happen in the future. Thank you very much for your time today.
[Translated by HudgynS]
