Foreword by Greg:
Takuya
Kimura - voted ‘Sexiest Man in
Special
Interview
Takuya Kimura x
Eiichiro Oda
One Heart
Kimura: So the
other day I was able to go to regions affected [by the Great Earthquake of
Oda: Wow, now
that really makes me happy. All of my hopes [for the series] are addressed in
that story. I honestly think it’s a manga author’s role to connect people. So
I’m really happy that some form of a relationship between perfect strangers can
develop that way.
Kimura: If
you’re thinking about something that connects people then, it’s like, One
Piece is unbelievable. So like, I was doing some filming for a television
drama where I was going back and forth between Nemuro in Hokkaido and Tokyo for
a few months and there was this lady who worked at the airport who would always
give me gifts like, “Here you go.”, and they were all One Piece cell
phone straps. She was all like, “They’re limited edition Hokkaido Choppers.”,
being all proud and stuff. I think that’s part of it but it [One Piece]
totally promotes 
motivation in all sorts of people.
Oda: Actually
you know, I’m really very grateful to you Kimura-san.
Because since you said you liked One Piece, as a manga, it really took
it to the next level.
Kimura: Come on
now, I don’t think that’s true.
Oda: No it’s
totally true. (laughs) When you said you liked it,
Kimura-san, people in society were able to say, “Oh, so, it’s okay to say I
like One Piece.” Especially the female fans who
went through the roof after that.
Kimura: You
think so? You sure the ladies weren’t just populating the fandom in their own
way?
Oda: It’s true
that they were there to begin with. They were there but they couldn’t admit it,
to those around them, that they liked One Piece. But because you just
casually mentioned how much you liked it both boys and girls realized, “Oh, it’s okay to admit that I like it.” And, that’s thanks to
you Kimura-san. Because you said it loud and clear that you enjoy it, [the
series] spread to so many people. You kind of broke the dam in the best of ways
and I’m very grateful for that.
Kimura: Even if
you say so, the manga itself is the biggest force. No matter what script I’m
reading I don’t usually cry but with One Piece out of nowhere I was
like, “Woah, what’s happening to me?” After I finish reading and come back to
the real world I think I can bring courage, friendships, real strength and
those kinds of things with me. I think that’s awesome. Anyway, the words, the
lines are amazing. The drawings are of course very moving but the words are
probably 60% [of the enjoyment] and the pictures are about 40%. Now if you’d
allow me to speak frankly Odacchi, oh, it’s cool to call you Odacchi right?
Oda: Absolutely
fine. I’m happier that way. (laughs)
Kimura: If you
wrote like scenarios for television dramas and movies, they’d be really neat.
Of course, as long as your serialization continues I’m sure you don’t have time
for that.
Oda: No way,
I’m flattered but I just don’t have the talent for it. You’re way
overestimating me. (laughs) Actually two years ago I
was cornered into writing the scenario for the One Piece movie and I
learned how scary that [kind of job] really is. Even more so, in my case, the
words only come to me with pictures. They don’t come to me separately so I
can’t see what’s next unless I draw out the pictures first. If I try to write a
bunch of words to string together [a story] the scenes just won’t mesh well
with the phrases. That’s something I learned painfully well.
Kimura: Awww.
Since you’ve got all those characters and you can create all that drama I
really thought if you wrote an ensemble production it’d be pretty cool.
Oda:
Kimura-san, you read it via the volume format right?
Kimura: Yup,
that’s ‘cause I wanna read it at my own pace. Speaking of that, there’s like an
author’s comment corner on the inside flap of the volume right. I’m like so
totally into that. I dunno if it’s okay to say this in front of the real deal
but what’s up with how hyper they are? (laughs)
Oda: Wha- you
mean you read them that closely!?
Kimura: That
part’s so important. When you write that much manga people might start calling
you ‘Oda-sensei’ but when you write stuff that hyper and stupid it’s like we
feel closer to you or maybe like we understand more about the real Odacchi and
that’s cool. How you spent your childhood and what you’re thinking about, we
can get a peak at that with just those few lines. So that’s why I personally
like that part more than the SBS. I mean look, SBS is you communicating with
the readers right? It’s like you saying, “Here’s how
I’d swing at a right underhand pitch.”, but [the flap comments] are totally
one-way. There you’re the one throwing the pitches.
Oda: Yeah, it
is kinda negligent of me, isn’t it. (laughs) Then how about my recent hyper
level? Are you into it?
Kimura: Yup,
it’s great. (laughs)
Oda: But I
never thought someone would be so interested in that section. Regardless, it
wouldn’t be right for me to take it seriously.
Kimura:
Absolutely. That hyper stupidity is really best.
Oda: But what
you said is right on Kimura-san, at least when it comes to the people [working]
closest to me, no one calls me ‘Oda-sensei’. Because that would create a
barrier between us and it would be difficult to forge friendships so I put a
stop to it. That’s the same kind of feeling being expressed on the section of
the inner cover flap. I guess it’s kinda like, if you’re a manga author and you
just shut-up and draw cool stuff, you create a kind of charisma for yourself.
But that’s not for me, I’d rather be a close presence to the readers so instead I came clean of my own
will and I show everyone how stupid I am. That’s why the readers really make
fun of me as much as they can. (laugh) Even when I got
married people kept saying a lot of stuff like, “I’m surprised someone like you
could get a wife.”
Kimura: Nah,
that’s ‘cause you wrote about how your wife looks like Nami.***
(laughs) Think about it from the reader’s perspective and they were probably
thinking, “This lucky bastard married someone that looks like Nami!?” Either
way, the fact that they think of you as so close is pretty amazing.
Oda: Well, I
wasn’t the one who wrote that. But many types of questions come into the SBS.
There are some questions I can’t answer and a lot that would be best not to
answer. (laughs)
Kimura: That’s
true. I mean, Odacchi, meeting you like this, the readers might want me to
delve into questions about the story more but I don’t play by those rules.
You’re the root of One Piece Odacchi. If I’m talking about it with other
friends it’s okay but asking ‘the root’ things I might be curious about is like
a scientist looking through a microscope, it’d become scientific. It wouldn’t
be a fantasy anymore.
Oda: Wow, I
really appreciate that. Everything you’re telling me today is just so wonderful
to hear. (laughs) By the way Kimura-san, do you often
get asked who your favorite character is?
Kimura: All the
time. I also get asked what my favorite line is.
Oda: And what
is your favorite line?
Kimura: I like
a bunch but one that motivates me in particular is, “See, it’s unbreakable.”
(Vol. 17
Oda: They’re
words that present Luffy in a straightforward manner.
Kimura: If I
[publicly] said which character I like best I get the feeling I’d have to carry
that burden 
with me. But let’s just say I did
kendo for many years when I was a kid so there’s a certain someone I’ve taken a
shining to. (laughs)
Oda: I see what
you did there. (laughs)
Kimura: For the
most part I view many of the characters the same gender as myself pretty much
equally. Not the same for characters of a different gender though.
Oda: So there’s
a special someone you’ve got a soft spot for huh.
Kimura: Yeah.
There’s someone I hold dear in my heart. (laughs)
Oda:
Kimura-san, this is a present for you.
Kimura: No way,
what the, what is this!?
Oda: I took a
shot at drawing you Kimura-san.
Kimura: Woooah,
awesome. Like, totally awesome. This is Luffy here right. And this Shanks, it’s
me right? But he doesn’t have a scar on his eye and he’s got his arm too.
Oda: When I was
drawing it I didn’t know who your favorite character was and I was worried
about choosing one on my own but in the end I decided on Shanks. How do you
like it?
Kimura: I’m so
happy. This is actually a huge coincidence ‘cause see there’s this old-timer
who’s one of my favorite superiors at work, his name’s Sanma Akashiya.****
Oda: Yeah okay,
Sanma-san. (laughs)
Kimura: Through
some means Sanma-san learned about One Piece and told me, “I’m gonna
catch up to you so hold up.”, so lately we’ve been caught up in talking about One
Piece stuff. So this one time I told him, “You don’t have a mustache but
you’re like a buck-toothed Whitebeard.”, which is
because in the world of [Japanese] comedians he’s never run away from anything.
So it’s like he’s a ‘buck-toothed Whitebeard’ without any scars on his back and
when I texted him that he replied, “I guess that makes you Shanks with an arm.”
So that’s like, one text I’ll never delete. (laughs)
Oda: Wow, is
that so. So I guess this is fine then.
Kimura: Oh it’s
PERFECT! I’m really happy. Thank you so much.
*
Likely referring to
** SMAPxSMAP is
a popular variety show in
*** Kimura is
confusing Oda with Nobuhiro Watsuki, author of Rurouni Kenshin. Nobuhiro
made a comment to that end in the JUMP table of contents page, not Oda. (Weekly
JUMP Issue 52 2004)
**** An
extremely famous Japanese comedian. He’s being humorous saying it that way.