Interview with Shigekazu Ochiai
Translated by: Dylan Acres
Thanks to Mitchell for scans and transcriptions.
To be released in February next year by Toho
The shining star of TV anime, Urusei Yatsura, has finally been decided to be made into a movie! The movie to be released in February next year by Toho will be an original feature-length anime. If so, we can look forward to the appearance of new characters.
Interview with Shigekazu Ochiai:
The Anime: I've been asked this a lot by readers recently, but has it been decided how long it will be aired for?
Ochiai: No, it hasn't been decided at this stage. Or rather, with regards to this work, both the production staff and the TV station are doing it with the intention of continuing it as long as possible while we have the support of the viewers... [1]
TA: In other words, if the ratings are good, it will be watched forever, (laughs). By the way, this fall will be the last four seasons, but has the reaction of the fans changed from the beginning to now?
Ochiai: It has changed a lot. I can say this now, but at the beginning, I received a lot of postcards scolding me (laughs). For example, the image of the voice actors was different. [2] Well, this is the fate of doing something based on an original work, and I think it can't be helped to a certain extent...
TA: As for...
Ochiai: When there is an original work, there are people who are fans of the original work, and for these people, it is unbearable to have something that deviates from the image of the original work. It's annoying, you know. It's especially easy to feel that way at the beginning.
TA: How about these days, those kinds of brats?
Ochiai: No, they've almost disappeared recently. It's like they've been neutralized somehow.
TA: How about the postcards with opinions from mothers? It seems that at one point it was said to be the worst anime (laughs), but...
Ochiai: This was also at the beginning, but there were a lot of them. It was too violent, it was nasty, etc. (laughs) [3] ...However, I don't think that kind of criticism applies to this work. If you only look at the surface, you might say that, but if you look closely, all the characters that appear are cheerful, healthy, and kind-hearted. These postcards have almost entirely disappeared lately.
TA: You think they're gradually beginning to understand the creator's intentions.
Ochiai: I think so... and I think there's also a bit of a familiarity thing going on. It's the same with human relationships, you think someone is annoying at first, but after spending a while with them, you start to feel close to them.
TA: Are there any new elements that will be added in the future?
Ochiai: In terms of content, I'm planning to continue making it the same way as before. However, I'm thinking of adding more insert songs to make it more fun in the future. Also, although this hasn't been decided yet, I'd like to make a new theme song sometime.
TA: And lastly, I'd like to ask about the movie adaptation. Has the release date been decided?
Ochiai: No, it hasn't been decided yet. We're currently working on the movie, with a nationwide release date around mid-February. [4]
TA: As for the content, it's still...
Ochiai: I'm very sorry, but at this point, I can't announce what it will be like. However, I think that we will be able to include some information in the next issue.
TA: Are you planning any events to accompany the movie?
Ochiai: Actually , we are currently discussing a nationwide tour of Urusei Yatsura starting around October. I can't say exactly where it will be held yet, but we are hoping to make it a fun one by inviting voice actors as guests. Please look forward to it
- Pitter Patter, Summer Date (8/11) [5]
While watching a TV program, a psychologist said that it is normal for a person to have a dry throat and sweaty hands in front of the person they like. Lum began to suspect that her relationship with Ataru had been abnormal, and immediately tried to become normal, but... - So Long, Bye-Bye, Summer Days (8/18)
Ataru, Shinobu, and Mendo were lying on the beach and decided to break a watermelon to commemorate a summer day. So Ataru immediately went to a nearby watermelon shop. However, for some reason, the watermelon shop owner got angry as soon as Ataru said that he wanted to smash the watermelon, and said that he would never sell him the watermelon. - Panic in the Typhoon! (9/1)
When Lum and Ten hear the news that a super typhoon is coming, they are overjoyed that they will be experiencing a typhoon for the first time. However, Ataru and his friends are busy reinforcing their house. It is a rundown house, so it could be blown away by a strong wind. As night falls and the typhoon approaches, Ataru's worries become a reality. Ataru wakes up to the sound of a terrible wind... - Drunken Boogie (9/8)
- The Terror of Meow (9/22)
Footnotes
- [1] Shigekazu Ochiai (落合茂一) is officially known as the "Planner" for Urusei Yatsura a title that would align more correctly with what would now be known as "executive producer." He got his start as an assistant to Kazuo Koike (小池 一夫) and helped manage Gekiga Sonjuku, the training school run by Koike that Rumiko Takahashi attended prior to her debut. Eventually Ochiai left Koike and found himself working for Kitty Music as they transitioned into the anime business. Because of his connection with Takahashi prior to her debut he was able to use those connections to bring her on board with Kitty Animation. This proved to be a very fortuitious partnership as Kitty went on to produce Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku and Ranma 1/2. A later interview with Ochiai can be found archived here on the site.
- [2] It is hard to imagine there ever being criticism of Toshio Furukawa's performance as Ataru Moroboshi, however in a 2022 interview with jazz bassist Ryu Kawamura (川村竜 aka Meat Takeshi/ミートたけし), Furukawa discusses the negative feedback he got in the beginning of Urusei Yatsura. "I received quite a few letters and the director said to me, 'we're getting a lot of stuff like this, can you change your performance, or your voice, or the style of your acting?' I was really in shock at the time. I was so depressed that I thought I should listen, the general public's evaluation of your work can be pretty heavy." Kawamura comments on the strangeness of being sent a letter filled with criticism and Furukawa laughs that at least a telegram would only be a single line, but letters "could be seven or eight pages of nothing but swear words." They discuss comments on Twitter being similar, but Furukawa wonders if its better to be criticized rather than to be ignored completely. Additionally,in the 2004 book Innocence: The World of Mamoru Oshii PERSONA Revised and Expanded Edition (イノセンス 押井守の世界 PERSONA増補改訂版) Mamoru Oshii described receiving cassette tapes filled with abusive statements from fans as well as razorblades in the mail due to their displeasure with changes from the original manga.
- [3] Parent complaints have long been associated with Urusei Yatsura particularly the anime adaptation, but this appears to be the earliest known quote stating that fact in print.
- [4] As this issue was published in August of 1982 the first film, Urusei Yatsura: Only You was ultimately released on February 11, 1983.
- [5] After months of using a certain episode number count that divided a single episode into two separate ones, the production staff seems to have stopped numbering the episodes altogether, which will lead to the more unified episode listings that counted two fifteen minute episodes as a single episode.
ジ・アニメ 1982年 9月
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