“I want the existing Hokuto no Ken to be demolished”: Tetsuo Hara and Nekoi Yasuyuki before Rei Gaiden

In the spring of the year when Hokuto no Ken Rei Gaiden: Karei naru Fukushūsha appears in the Hokuto no Ken Tribute special issue of Weekly Comic Bunch, the editorial team arranges a meeting between Tetsuo Hara and Nekoi Yasuyuki, the pen name of an artist duo from Hyōgo Prefecture, to whom Buronson and Hara entrust Rei. The exchange, presented as a “Hokuto Chronicles dialogue” (北斗伝承対談), directly precedes the first chapter. Hara was then publishing Souten no Ken in the same magazine. Translated by us.

“I want the existing Hokuto no Ken to be demolished”

Nekoi. It is an honor to meet you today. Hokuto no Ken has been my favorite manga since childhood.

Hara. Thank you. It’s nice to hear that from an active author working at the forefront.

Nekoi. As a child, I read manga instead of doing my work, and my mother threw away my volumes of Hokuto no Ken twice. I repurchased them each time, so I ended up collecting the complete series three times. (laughs)

Hara. That’s impressive! With a child’s allowance, that’s a hefty expense.

Nekoi. Hokuto no Ken was well worth that expense.

Hara. You are going to draw Rei Gaiden. What is your impression of Rei?

Nekoi. Among the characters of Hokuto no Ken, Rei is the one who best suits my drawing style and the easiest for me to draw.

Hara. Indeed, your dense, fine-lined drawing style is perfectly suited to an elegant and flamboyant character like Rei.

Nekoi. Rei gives a completely different impression at his first appearance and just before his death. The duty-bound Rei of the second part has a certain presence, but I prefer the early Rei, the one who looks villainous.

Hara. At first I drew him as an enemy. If you build the story assuming he will join the hero’s side later, it shows in the art and the reader can tell. To deceive the reader, you first have to suggest it to yourself through your drawing.

Nekoi. I understand. What you have in mind ends up showing in the art.

Hara. That is why you must not draw a manga without understanding what you are drawing yourself. Even if you are wrong, you have to make a decision, tell yourself that it is probably like this, and draw from there. Otherwise nothing is conveyed to the reader.

Nekoi. With Rei Gaiden, we will strive to convey to readers Rei’s way of life as we envision it.

Hara. You are currently drawing. Are there any issues giving you trouble?

Nekoi. There is a gap between the world of Hokuto no Ken and my drawing style. I am looking for ways to bridge it.

Hara. On that point, draw freely. The best approach is to draw with your own sensibility, without being bound by anything. A work whose author isn’t having fun won’t be fun for the reader either.

Nekoi. Knowing that I can work freely relieves me somewhat.

Hara. Conversely, drawing by imitating me would be pointless. I would rather the existing Hokuto no Ken be demolished, frankly. What matters is combining the best of what each person has to offer to create something greater. By doing so, the result will certainly be good. I look forward to what comes next.

Nekoi. Thank you. I want to see Rei Gaiden through to the end, taking your advice into account.

Recorded one day in February, at Hara’s studio.

Reading note

Nekoi Yasuyuki is the pen name of a duo from Hyōgo Prefecture, according to the profile published in another special issue of the magazine, the Souten no Ken Tribute of January 8, 2007, in which the same duo draws a second Rei story. In the interview, a single voice speaks under this name. The editorial introduction presents Hara as born in Tokyo, author of Hokuto no Ken and Hana no Keiji, currently publishing Souten no Ken. The same issue announces on its cover a second “Hokuto Chronicles dialogue,” between Hōjō Tsukasa and Tetsuo Hara.

Sources

• Weekly Comic Bunch, Hokuto no Ken Tribute special issue (北斗の拳トリビュート号 増刊コミックバンチ, 4月5日増刊号), Shinchosha, 350 yen. Double page 北斗伝承対談 preceding Karei naru Fukushūsha. Full scan, April 5, 2006.
• Weekly Comic Bunch, Souten no Ken Tribute special issue (2007年1月8日増刊号), Shinchosha, 350 yen. Voice box and Nekoi Yasuyuki profile accompanying Rei Gaiden 2, for the mention of the duo. Scan.