Interviews

This page will show the translations of interviews from ONE and Murata.

Weekly Shonen Jump Interview
Weekly Shonen Jump (WSJ): Since One-Punch Man was already a successful Webcomic, how did the collaboration with Murata Sensei come about? And was it strange seeing your work drawn by someone else?

ONE: Murata Sensei just happened to find my website and became interested in One-Punch Man. I had always been a fan of his, so I jumped at the opportunity to work with him. I get really excited seeing my work transformed into something with so much passion and amazing art.

WSJ: What inspired you to draw a bald average looking superhero like Saitama?

ONE: The world is full of cool looking heroes, so I didn't think that was something I wanted to write about. Plus, I believe that heroes coolness comes from their spirit and not their looks. I don't think how a hero looks is that important.

WSJ: Which would you rather be doing: saving a cleft chinned brat from a rampaging crab monster or getting great bargains?

ONE: If it's possible to save the kid, I'd rather do that.

WSJ:In the U.S., webcomics are already quite popular. How are webcomics received in Japan?

ONE: It used to be a small thing that was enjoyed by amateur creators and fans and was seen as just a hobby. But now even casual fans are starting to read webcomics. I think it's thanks to Murata Sensei.

WSJ: What are the advantages and disadvantages of drawing webcomics as opposed to traditional print manga?

ONE: I think a major advantage is that you can quickly upload fixes if needed. Being able to do this as often as necessary even after something has made it to the public isn't possible with a print version. I can't think of any disadvantages. Lately, I'm not even feeling that there are fewer readers than Print.

WSJ: How do you think the success of One-Punch Man will set a precedent for other Webcomics?

ONE: There are more and more examples of popular webcomics, so I think that trend will continue.

WSJ: In addition to One-Punch Man you also have to other web comics, Makai no Ossan (Old Man of the Demon World) at Tonari No Young Jump and Mob Psycho 100 at UraSunday. Can you briefly talk about these works and also let us know if you have any other projects going on?

ONE: One-Punch Man is something I originally started just to entertain myself. So, I just do whatever the heck I want with the characters. With Makai no Ossan, I create it while thinking about how the daily readers are reacting to the story. I put in tons of characters so that fans would have more to look forward to. In contrast to One-Punch Man, the main guy in Mob Psycho 100 is emotionally weak and delicate. So the side characters act as a support for him. The series are kind of opposite, but they are both extremes, making them easier to create. Regarding my schedule, I've been given some amount of flexibility, so it isn't that difficult.

WSJ: What advice would you give webcomic artists?

ONE: I'm in no position to advise other people, I would recommend creating a website that is easy to navigate.

WSJ: Any last messages for your international fans?

ONE: I'm so happy that an international audience is reading One Punch Man! I get really excited when I receive comments from fans in foreign languages. The series is just going to get more exciting, so please, stick with it until the end. Thank you so much!

Niconico Interview
ONE: Sonic with weapon would've defeated Sea King pre-rain form.

ONE: Sonic's last appearance was just a joke on the popularity poll (means he'll show up again)

ONE: Genos's and Sonic's fight would end in a tie.

ONE: While the most popular one in their world is Sweet Mask, King is rather high up as well.

ONE: Puri Puri Prisoner could've defeated the Giant Crow that crashed into King's home.

ONE: The origin of Boros's name is from a game ONE played.

ONE: Genos is rather powerful even among the S-Class heroes.

ONE: The situation against the monster association would've changed if Metal Bat was around. Metal bat wasn't joking when he said "He could take care of a dragon level threat".

ONE: King's height is 187cm

ONE: Tatsumaki in her best shape could've defeated Golden Sperm. Golden Sperm is equally strong as ossan (main protagonist from makai no ossan). Tatsumaki > Normal Mob, if he gets serious, there's no answer.

ONE: Zombieman needs 15min to recover a cut off arm. He'll die if you reduce him to mince meat. There's the rumor that he's the weakest amongst s-class heroes, but it hasn't been confirmed. It would be difficult for him to defeat sea king

Anime Behind The Scenes Interview
WSJ: What is appealing in One-Punch Man?

Shingo: It's a hero manga about Saitama who has extraordinary strength... and can bring down a villain in one punch. It's a wild premise for a story. But aside from the setting, which is interesting in itself, the characters that appear are fun like the S-Class heroes, Genos, and Speed-o'-Sound Sonic. The world view widens as the different characters appear and makes each episode more interesting. Our goal with the television anime is to stay true to the original manga and make it even more interesting. I hope that's the appeal of One-Punch Man.

WSJ: Special attention to the action

Shingo: This time, we've gone digital it not drawn on paper, but on computer we're coordinating the drawing with the camera work. We'll be able to reproduce the actions with more accuracy and speed. This is the one thing we're targeting for this series.

WSJ: What to watch for in Episode 1

Shingo: I think it would be Saitama. We go in depth with his character in the anime. What drives him to use his power. What kind of hero he aspires to be. we've created his character with great detail so I'd like the audience to watch.

WSJ: About the opening

Shingo: JAM project's theme is full rock. So we want to match the visuals to rock just as much and we've put a lot of energy into it. And we also incorporated BLS shading where shadow areas are filled in with black ink. That kind of gives an American comic look. So hopefully, it's received as a cool, superhero opening.

WSJ: About the staff

Shingo: Tomohiro Suzuki is doing the script and the series composition. The author of the original manga, ONE, as well as Murata-Sensei sat in our production meetings. They shared their views from a manga standpoint and we shared ours and reworked the series composition as well as what volumes featured. They gave us a lot of input and their participation was very helpful. Chikashi Kubota is doing the character designs. He's done a great job of reproducing Murata-sensei's drawings down to his little idiosyncracies. He has stayed true to the characters in the manga and painstakingly transformed them for anime. He's a top class animator and designer. So we've got someone very sensitive to art working on the character designs for the series. I feel very blessed that we have such a great staff. We were able to get top people in every department. As a director, you can't ask for anything more. It makes my job easy to rely on them. I mean, people like Satoshi Hashimoto, our color designer. His color choices and distribution are so pleasing to the eyes. We have a lot of evening scenes in the series he paid so much attention to the color subtleties. That made it visually comfortable. It's attention to detail... the smallest detail. It's great to have staff that care about these things. And the last step is photography. Putting everything together with the composites. We have Akane Fushuhira on top of that and she has such a great feeling for this work. She's very young but very talented. Anime can become very routine. Mostly, it's diffusion, and there are those who think that alone will suffice. Not with her. She'll look at the raws and bring out the best of them. She finds the challenge in that process. So from that standpoint, I think we have an interesting great series. And for the music, we have Makoto Miyazaki. We were luck to get him. There are many places where the music enhances the scene.

WSJ: Director's message

Shingo: The television anime, One Punch Man will be premiering in Japan and it will be simulcast around the world. I'm hoping we can all view it together. The staff and I are doing our best to create a great anime. I believe it doesn't betray the original manga. So please watch and enjoy the series.

Furukawa/Ishikawa Interview
──To start off, what do you think about One-Punch Man?

Makoto Furukawa: Seeing someone defeat enemies with one punch is fun in a simple way, so overall it’s quite exhilarating. While it’d be misleading to say it doesn’t require any thought to read, I really think as a piece of entertainment it’s a series which anyone can enjoy.

Kaito Ishikawa: At first I only knew the title, and had no clue what the actual story was about. Then when I got the audition I finally read it for the first time. Like Furukawa-san said, the thrill you get after reading it is something else. While Saitama might not like how his fights end after just one punch, for the reader it certainly feels nice. I think it’s a tremendous series because it has a good tempo so you can flip right through it, yet at the same time it gets you hyped up.

──How did it feel to get the role?

Furukawa: I was like “Am I really the right choice…?” (laughs) When my manager told me I had got the part, I simply couldn’t process it and had to have him tell me again. During the audition I actually hadn’t thought too hard about the part. Maybe Saitama didn’t have anything for me to latch on to, or I just couldn’t imagine what sort of voice would come out of that face of his. As a result, I didn’t prepare for the role and just tried to perform naturally, as myself I suppose. I’m glad that approach went over well.

Ishikawa: I auditioned for both Saitama and Genos. Before auditioning for Genos, the staff asked if I’d be interested in giving Saitama a shot as well. Genos has a much more starkly defined character compared to Saitama, so I auditioned for him while deciding what direction I wanted to take the character. But with Saitama, I couldn’t get a handle on his character at all, and couldn’t work out an approach. Even while performing I just couldn’t get into it, nothing clicked, and I suddenly thought that Saitama was still beyond my capabilities. And so since I couldn’t figure out what sort of voice Saitama should have, I couldn’t figure out one for Genos either. For characters that hang out with the lead, I think their voices need to be compatible. As long as I couldn’t imagine the lead character’s voice, I likewise couldn’t imagine Genos’ voice. So after auditioning for Saitama, I was stuck not knowing what to do with Genos either. Then a short while later I received word from my manager that I had gotten the role of Genos. Obviously I was happy to have gotten the part, but my very first thought was to wonder who had been cast as Saitama. Then when I heard it was Furukawa-san, I was able to relax a little. He and I had worked together before, so that perked me up.

──How do you feel about the characters you play? What do you keep in mind while performing as them?

Furukawa: Saitama has both a serious face and a goofy face, and I was very careful to modulate my voice in order to perform each one distinctly. During the recordings, the director Natsume asked me not to make him seem strong whenever he’s got his ordinary, goofy face on. Saitama’s strength is only visible once he gets down to business; otherwise he just defeats monsters like it was nothing. That’s what the director said. So I adapted my performance to fit that, but it required a lot of thought. For instance, if it’s a scene where I’m hitting someone, my first instinct is to put some energy into my performance. But then the sound director will tell me I’m exerting myself too much. Dialing back the energy to just the right amount is really tricky.

Ishikawa: At first I thought Genos was a cool-headed, crafty character, but actually he’s pretty hot-headed. Case in point, when he first appears he acts like you’d expect a cyborg would, but then later once he’s met Saitama…Well, I want you to watch and see for yourself what happens, but suffice to say I was quite surprised at the difference, which made it fun to perform. The director, Natsume, didn’t really tell me anything in advance about how to perform the role. Of course, I’ve had detailed direction on how to perform specific scenes, but I never received any general introduction as to what type of character Genos was. So I was a bit scared (laughs). At any rate, I threw myself into the part thinking that I’d give it all that I was capable of.

──Now that the recording sessions have started, what are your impressions on director Shingo Natsume?

Furukawa: Normally he seems soft and cuddly, but in the recording studio he looks strict, and you can always tell the zeal he has towards the series. That passion also comes across when he directs performances, and I go into the recording sessions thinking how I want to respond to his passion!

Ishikawa: He reminds me a lot of Saitama. The look in his eyes is completely different in the recording studio than it is the rest of the time. He seems like a true professional. But once you get away from the studio, his demeanor softens and he lightens up, and if I goof off he just plays along (laughs). I think you’ll be able to tell this from the second One-Punch Man special that’ll be broadcast on Nico-Nico Live on September 20th, so look forward to that!

──They’ve certainly lined up a star-studded cast to play the other heroes and monsters…

Ishikawa: I think it’ll have a bigger impact if you watch without knowing who’s playing who. Especially with the enemy characters, it’s way more fun not knowing in advance.

Furukawa: People are in for a shock right from the opening of episode 1! You’ll never believe who they’ve got playing a certain character! I can’t wait for people to see the series.

──Besides your own characters, what other heroes and monsters should people keep an eye out for?

Ishikawa: Mumen Rider. I’m a big fan of a certain hero who (Yuichi) Nakamura plays, one with a strong sense of justice. I won’t say the name of the franchise, just that it’s an American hero who carries a shield (laughs). I love that hero, so Nakamura’s Mumen Rider stands out. I really admire him as a voice artist.

Furukawa: I really like Zombie Man. Sakurai-san is fantastic in the role! I think you can tell from the drama CD packaged with the 9th comic volume, released August 4th. He’s got some great lines, so definitely give it a listen.

Ishikawa: His self-introduction is particularly good. It really put the rest of our self-introductions to shame. He just introduces himself by casually saying his name, but it’s so direct and concise.

Furukawa: He really fleshed out the character of Zombie Man after that, so now I can’t take my eyes off him.

──How did it feel to see images of the characters moving? What’s the finished product like?

Furukawa: At the very least it’s an entertaining series with cool action scenes. They were put together with great skills; it’s very inspiring.

Ishikawa: With heroes, the action scenes are very important: not just the characters, but the scenes of buildings being destroyed and explosions all back a real wallop. When I finally saw it with the sound effects added in, I knew what sort of sounds were in each part, and I figured that we’d have to change our performances to go along with it. I felt tense because I knew we needed to make our performances more precise in order to match up with the characters’ movements. I want to go into the next batch of recording sessions with renewed vigor, in order to not be outdone by realistic films.

──What lines were particularly memorable?

Furukawa: Right at the start of the first episode there’s this line where I say “shall I go?”, and the truth is I had to redo that line an insane number of times. Am I going to show off my strength or not? I wasn’t sure which way to play it. With a giant monster rampaging through town, how would Saitama respond? That’s why I think it’s no exaggeration to say that that line encapsulates everything about Saitama.

Ishikawa: This was part of the preview too, but one line that left an impression was “But that would mean sensei went bald at a young age…” I consider that an important line for cementing Genos’ character, when he’s come to seek training from Saitama. At a time like that he goes out of his way to point out that Saitama’s bald, and it seems to genuinely bug him. I think it changed Genos’ position within the series, and I remember performing it really carefully.

──What are the highlights of the series? What makes it worth seeing?

Furukawa: Everyone should cheer up whenever Saitama lets loose with a punch. Just imagine the monsters as people you don’t like, and pow! (laughs) I think that feeling of exhilaration is one of the highlights.

Ishikawa: This series is really entertaining. While it’s not set in the real world, and is full of impossible events, I hope people will get caught up in the fun. Despite not being set in the real world, it’s as if the characters of One-Punch Man are all truly living, breathing people in a world of their own, saying their lines like they really mean it. And I hope that degree of seriousness will make people laugh.

──You two have worked together on a number of different series. What do you think of each other?

Furukawa: At first I thought Ishikawa-san was an extremely serious person…

Ishikawa: Are you trying to say that I’m really not?

Furukawa: Ishikawa-san seems to be good at all sorts of things, so I thought he was amazing. He’d see things I couldn’t, and casually point them out to me, so I was very grateful to have him around.

Ishikawa: I’ve always thought he’s incredibly serious-minded. I guess you could say he’s firmly grounded; he seems to me the same now as when I first met him. That was two or three years ago, but this is the first series where Furukawa-san has played the lead role. He’s a good guy; he brought the original manga over to the studio and taught me a lot about it, which helped me relax. We’ve performed on the radio together, and he takes his work seriously, working out plot structures and coming up with material in brainstorming sessions.

──To ask something a bit personal, looking at yourself objectively, what sort of person are you? Analyze yourself.

Furukawa: I’m a bit stubborn in some ways. And I can be a bit scatterbrained too. Recently my manager told me to come to the study at 11, but I went at 10 instead and there was nobody else there yet. Fortunately this didn’t cause anyone else any trouble (laughs).

Ishikawa: I think I’m a hard worker (the surrounding staff members all laugh). OK, I lied; no need to laugh so much…I actually think I’m rather frivolous. Even being interviewed like this, I hate just talking about serious stuff, and want to clown around and get laughs. But I love myself, even those parts of myself (laughs).

──What have you been into lately?

Furukawa: I’ve been going on a tour of temples, shrines, and other power spots. It seems that temples and shrines each have different “attributes”. So I go to temples and shrines whose attributes are compatible with my own, based on my birthday and blood type, and make wishes, draw fortune strips, etc. There’s a really compatible temple near my house, and sometimes when I go there and pray for a job, I’ll get a job right away!

Ishikawa: Lately I’ve been seeing how far I can go on an empty stomach. I suddenly started to wonder just how hungry I could possibly get, so I tried eating only one meal a day, or telling myself I wasn’t hungry even when I was; doing things like that to test the limits of my hunger.

Furukawa: What, are you trying to achieve enlightenment or something?

Ishikawa: Most of the time I’ll cave halfway through. Like, go eat an onigiri at the convenience store on my way home from work or something…But now I’m trying to see how little I can eat in a meal and still feel sated.

──What are your goals as a voice artist? What sort of voice artist do you aim to become?

Furukawa: I want to become a voice artist who can make someone’s heart tremble. It’d be great to be able to inspire someone not only through my performance in a series, but even just through what I say in an interview like this, or in an onstage panel. That’s the sort of voice artist I want to be.

Ishikawa: I want to do plays. They’re really difficult, so I want to confirm for myself that I’m moving forward, that I’ve become able to do them. I don’t know how long it will take, but that’s my goal.

──Finally, say something for all the viewers looking forward to the broadcast.

Furukawa: There’s finally less than a month to go until it starts airing. As I’ve been saying, it’ll be really entertaining. Just hang on a little while longer, and we can enjoy it together!

Ishikawa: The staff and cast all put their heart and soul into making this series, so I think their enthusiasm will come across to everyone onscreen. Look forward to it. It won’t disappoint.

The author of One-Punch Man discusses the appeal of web comics
――Congratulations on your debut in a commercial publication. Your web comic One-Punch Man was what led to your professional debut. Tell us about that process.

ONE: I had stopped updating One-Punch Man in February of 2010 due to getting a job, but then in spring 2011 I announced on Twitter that I had quit my job, and from there I was contacted by various people, which is what led to where I am now. Thanks to all of One-Punch Man’s readers, this web comic enabled me to go pro.

――I think that web comics are one option for getting your foot in the door professionally, as was the case with you. What are your thoughts on the possibilities of web comics in that regard?

ONE: I think it’s another effective option, besides the traditional way of going pro after winning a manga award. Series like Hetalia: Axis Powers or Hori-san to Miyamura-kun that were ranked high on the WCR (Web Comic Ranking) received print releases, and Diary of a Chinese Wife got one too after getting popular on the web. Apparently some manga editors check out web comics that have made a splash, and I think they probably look at sites like WCR or Neetsha. Those two sites have rankings, which makes it easy to judge what’s popular.

――What do you suppose is appealing about web comics, as pieces of work?

ONE: For readers, the fact that you can read them for free is huge. Also, since some web comic artists use Twitter and other such communication tools, thanks to the internet they feel very accessible; I suppose that’s another key point for some people. For creators, the appeal lies in the lack of restrictions: you can draw manga that you wouldn’t be able to draw in a commercial publication. There’s nobody to stop you, so you’re free. This all ties into what I guess you could call a sense of crudeness and lack of polish, an amateurishness which for some reason gives web comics a unique charm.

Encountering web comics for the first time
――What led you to begin drawing a web comic? How long have you wanted to be a manga artist?

ONE: I had decided I wanted to be a gag manga artist from the time I was in grade school. I was a fan of Crayon Shin-chan, and at the time I wanted to draw that sort of manga. For me it wasn’t a case of simply trying to be a manga artist and testing the waters to see if it was worth a shot. Rather, my thought process was to decide right off the bat that I was going to be one, so the rest was just a matter of effort. I guess that’s how I decided my whole future while still just a kid.

――What kind of student where you?

ONE: Well, I liked to draw manga, obviously. In middle school and high school I enjoyed using my notebook paper to draw manga full of funny lines of dialogue and character interactions, rather than cool faces or cute girls or anything like that. I guess what I found interesting about it was being able to turn my own wild ideas into pictures and create stories.

――What sort of response did you get from friends when they saw your manga?

ONE: I kept drawing manga from grade school onward, but never told anyone else about it, not even once. In grade school everyone else was into soccer or whatever video games were popular at the time, so I guess I was afraid of looking uncool if I drew manga. From middle school to college, I’d have friends who read manga, but didn’t know anybody who drew manga themselves, so I felt embarrassed about it. In the end, I went my entire student life without showing my manga to anyone or even telling people that I drew manga. But then, my parents got angry at me a few times when they found out I had drawn a gag manga called Middle-Aged-Man Man in my notebooks. In fact, I filled up about 50 notebooks just with manga. But what hurt the most wasn’t getting chewed out for goofing off. Rather, it was having something I loved to do be rejected.

Afterwards, I decided that instead of getting made fun of or rejected and losing my motivation, it was better to just not show anybody, and so I kept on drawing manga all by myself. Although having said that, it also felt really fun to store up so much “forbidden fruit” inside my notebooks. Back then I only drew manga about my crazy ideas, and never copied anything from real life. I think if I had drawn things from life back then, I’d probably be a lot better at drawing today…

Even in college things didn’t really change; the manga clubs and whatnot just didn’t feel right, so I didn’t enter them. And then I thought maybe there were other people out there in the same boat I was, so since I didn’t have a laptop at the time, I went searching for “aspiring manga artists” on mobile phone sites. This was what led me to encounter web comics for the first time.

The secret behind the birth of One-Punch Man
――What sort of sites did you visit searching for “aspiring manga artists”?

ONE: People who were like me at the time, aspiring manga artists in their teens who didn’t own laptops, would post their illustrations up on these mobile phone sites. Back then there were thousands of sites like that, and seeing them all I was seized with the desire to have people view my pictures, so I made a site of my own.

At first I didn’t put up manga, just funny pictures. For instance, even if I drew a person, the back of their head would be really long, or they’d have a really wide forehead, or an unbelievably huge cleft chin (laughs). While I was drawing stuff like that, my site’s visitors increased to about a hundred. At the time there were lots of people imitating popular manga, trying to make pictures that were likely to sell, so I guess because of that I stood out from the pack.

As I got more readers, I figured that it was about time I show them a manga, but camera phones weren’t as advanced back then as they are now, so the images were too small to read any of the lines. While I was looking around for a good solution, an aspiring manga artist friend of mine who had put his manga up on mobile phone sites told me that all I had to do was put the pictures and lines on pieces of paper about the size of your palm and photograph them close up.

――And from that was born a series called Sun Man (currently unavailable). That was the first time you showed your own manga to others. How did it feel?

ONE: It felt great to finally fulfill my dream of showing my manga to others. Before then some of my pictures had included panels with stick figures, but after I started posting manga up on my site I stopped doing that. I kept on posting manga to my mobile phone site for a little while after that, but I realized that I was never going to get good at manga if I just kept on drawing ones that were the size of the palm of your hand, so I stopped. Later that same friend who had told me how to draw manga for mobile phone sites started making manga with his laptop. Web comics are really easy to read up on a big PC screen, and I thought it was just perfect. And so, One-Punch Man became the first web comic I made on the PC.

Overcoming days of conflict to make his professional debut
――At the time of its debut in July 2009, One-Punch Man was hosted on Neetsha, a site for posting manga and novels. These days it’s up on your own personal site and gets about 20,000 visitors a day. When did it start gaining in popularity?

ONE: Roughly from Chapter 5, which went up about a week after Chapter 1. At the time, Neetsha’s yardstick for determining a popular series was if it got 30 or so comments with each update, but I just kept getting more and more comments, so that by the time Chapter 30 went up in October I was getting about a thousand comments per update. This was in large part due to other web comic artists like Oshan Manabu creator Takusu Totsuka-san or Kendo creator PD-san both showcasing One-Punch Man on their blogs, and also thanks to it being featured on blogs covering 2chan threads and whatnot.

――What did you think of the constantly growing response?

ONE: The truth is that One-Punch Man was originally simply a way for me to practice using a manga-creating software called “Comics Studio”, and I uploaded it intending for it to be only a single chapter long. But I was happy to see it get a bigger response than I had anticipated, so I quickly drew up Chapter 2. And then lots of comments came in saying “put up the next chapter soon!” So I figured I would draw this thing properly, and came up with the plot all the way up to the final chapter, which I’m still following even now. Though I hadn’t expected that initial response, afterwards I’d draw certain parts specifically to get a reaction from readers, and it felt great to get lots of “LOL”-type comments.

Once lots of people were reading it, I’d get offers to have it showcased in a Recruit web comic anthology and things like that, and I even learned that manga professionals were aware of it; I could really feel the series expanding.

――But then in February 2010, just as One-Punch Man’s popularity was on the rise, you announced that you were putting it on long-term hold. You said this was because you had gotten a job…

ONE: Due to family matters, I decided to get a job for a year. But my plan was to not goof around and just save up as much money as I possibly could, then quit. That way, the year after that I wouldn’t have to bother with even a part-time job, and could focus on drawing manga full-time. I intended to spend 365 days doing nothing but manga, and if that didn’t lead anywhere, I’d give it up.

――I imagine you faced some very difficult struggles during this period.

ONE: Not being able to draw manga was hell. During that year I tried as much as necessary not to think about manga. On the flip-side, I also sometimes thought that I might calm down once a year had gone by. Even though work was tough, my boss was nice, and I wondered if I really needed to take the risky path of giving up my job.

But thinking it over, in the end it had to be manga. My schedule didn’t even allow me to draw manga on my days off, so I passed each day with no time to express all the story ideas that popped into my head. I decided to give it a real shot, rather than just gloomily go on working my whole life, and so I quit my job.

――Which brings us back to the start of the interview. Due to your high profile, you ended up being contacted by a publisher. Will you continue to update the One-Punch Man web comic even after your professional debut?

ONE: I’ll keep on drawing it. The web comic is something I do as a hobby, and messing around with my home page is always fun. But above all else, there’s plenty of readers who look forward to updates. I’m very grateful for that.

――Finally, I’d like to ask you what web comics mean to you.

ONE: I think they’re the best place for saving people unable to show their manga to anyone, as was the case with me. You can draw a web comic even if you’re not that great, challenge yourself, and if it doesn’t work out you’re free to quit anytime at your own discretion. Also, in my case it enabled me to meet up with ambitious friends aiming to go pro. I encourage anyone in the same situation I was back then to try out drawing a web comic.

One Punch-Man: Hero Perfection Q&A
Murata: Didn't ONE-sensei depict this in his picture diary on his old homepage?
 * Question: What did Saitama do before he became jobless?

ONE: He was working part time in a convenience store.

Murata: In that picture diary there was a robber entering the convenience store. Despite that there was a man pointing a knife at Saitama and all Saitama did was wondering were the barcode was. He thought the knife was one of the merchandise.

ONE: Since long ago he always had that unperturbed character.

ONE: At that time I read a lot of Eyeshield 21, so I thought of dropping a reference to an american football player.
 * Question: What is the meaning behind those black lines under Sonic's eyes?

Murata: Eeh!? So that's how it was!

ONE: Yep, that's a reference to Eyeshield's Gaoh! Rather than it having some deep meaning of absorption of light it is only there to add some flavour to him. Answer: By living very frugally with his savings.
 * Question: How did Saitama made a living before he became a pro hero?

Murata: What does this mean?

ONE: He made a living doing troublesome part time jobs. By living frugally to the utmost while spending as little of his saved up money and living off vegetables given to him by people he saved.... It's the lifestyle as advocated by the slow movement, isn't. By the way, after Genos gave him money his standard of living hasn't changed all that much with Genos moving over. Answer: Parts and the daily necessaries.
 * Question: When Genos moved over to Saitama's house he was carrying an incredibly big backpack. What are the contents?

ONE: He came with a basic full selection of parts and necessary daily goods.

Murata: There were also parts in there for housework, doesn't it!

ONE:There's no need to visit Dr. Stench's place everytime when his wrist break down, because he got his own spare parts at hand. Dr Stench's Lab is there In case for a big reparation job, a drastic upgrade or an examination. Answer: No comment
 * Question: Did Hammerhead, the leader of the Paradise Group, found a job in the end?

ONE: I can't tell, but he is still doing his best in job searching! I'll say that for now...

Murata: On ONE's Sensei previous hompage you had drewn a scene depicting Hammerhead undergoing a job interview!

ONE: During the previous popularity contest I had everyone one by one say thank you like messages, but Hammerhead sure said some strange things.

Murata: When he goes "Your company's corperate vision is..." he would be shocked by the interviewer saying "That is enough". Answer: That isn't true
 * Question: Did all the housework responsiblity fall on Genos after he began living together with Saitama-sensei?

Murata: Is it like that Saitama saying that he doesn't need to do it, but Genos does it anyway on his own accord?

ONE: That's the image I am going for~. Before Saitama is able to say he is going to do it Genos has already done the cleaning and the dish washing on his own accord.

Murata: A scene wells up where Genos is saying he has powerful parts for housework. Answer: She is a strong willed girl
 * Question: What kind of a girl is Metal Bat's sister?

Murata: Ah, you are interested in it!

ONE: She gives off a feeling of a strong willed girl. Even if her brother is a S-class hero she doesn't feel the need to boast about it to the other schoolkids. Whether he is a hero or a brother at the time she is always in contact with Metal Bat. Answer: He has.
 * Question: Does Saitama have any weaknesses in sports?

ONE: I think running is his specialty. But he isn't good at sports like table tennis, football and etcetera where technique is required because Saitama hasn't practised them.

Murata: When is going to shoot the ball is going to disappear. Even if his power is incredible in terms of control and other technical aspects he is no match for a pro, isn't he.

ONE: And it feels like he is poor in team sports. When Saitama's pinned down I feel that he will lose his motivation to play sports at all. Answer: The first story of Saitama.
 * Question: In which scene did Murata sensei put his passion the most in?

Murata: At the time when I was drawing the first story I felt troubled that I didn't capture the whole being of Saitama.I felt a desperate sense of duty to draw it absolutely well.

ONE: So that's how it is...!

Murata: I had to redraw it many times... After that comes the final clash between Boros and Saitama. I put a lof of incredible effort in drawing it. Answer: ONE-sensei: Trash collecting man Murata-sensei: Sakuga Ne Bukuro (= Online handle name of Murata, means sleeping bag)
 * Question: If ONE-sensei or Murata sensei entered the One Punch Man world what kind of hero rank would you be? Teach me about your hero name and such.

Murata: The C-rank Sakuga Nebukuro! Something like that(lol). The only time he collapses is when he sleeps. While he sleeps he draws pictures! I sure want to see that(lol). What about ONE-sensei?

ONE: That's for certain a C-rank. There is no chance of victory in a battle against a mysterious being. About myself... how about "Trash collecting man"? I sure want to see the whole point with him collecting trash.

Murata: But ONE-sensei, you and Saitama take after each other. Both of you began from doing your hobby!

ONE: Nono, that isn't true at all.

Question Corner

 * Question: During Genos school period what kind of person was he?

ONE: He wasn't all that different compared to now.


 * Question: When did Genos got his piercings?

ONE: After he became a cyborg


 * Question: Whom is Atomic Samurai modelled after?

ONE: No one

Murata: Kyuzo from "Seven Samurai"


 * Question: Where does Sonic procures his weapons?

ONE: He buys them from the weapon shop.


 * Question: What was the disaster level of Boros?

ONE-sensei's answer: Above Dragon...


 * Question: Is Tornado's hair naturally curly?

ONE: It's a natural perm.

Garou vs Boros
ONE: Garou vs Boros, who would win, you ask? Before (pre-monster Garou), it was quite obvious Boros was ways above him. But now that Garou has basically become the perfect monster, it is hard to tell who would win, it would've been one hell of a battle. I do believe that Garou is stronger in close combat, where he would simply dodge all punches and kicks

Sugoi Japan interview with ONE and Murata
ONE: Initially, I was uploading pictures of my manuscripts through my phone camera onto a free website. But writing the scripts for cellphone screens were way too small, and if my hand shook even a little bit while I was taking the picture, the words blurred. It was just as I was thinking that this was going to be too hard to continue when a friend of mine asked me, "Hey check out my comic on Nitosha (the website ONE currently posts Onepunch Man)."
 * So ONE, what made you start writing web comics?

When I looked at it, this site had thousands of freely available web comics, it was made for a computer screen it was easy to read, and it was no different than comics being published in magazines. I decided that this was a great opportunity so I bought a PC, a tablet, Comic Studio (manga drawing program), and started working. It was a lot easier to read than when I was taking pictures with my phone, so I decided to start off with Onepunch Man. It was my first try so I had trouble understanding how to separate the panels haha. ONE: The biggest reason was that there were already thousands of people reading manga on Nitosha already at the time. As I continued with my updates, apparently there were a lot of comments about Onepunch Man. Until then, I haven't even shown my manga to my close friends so getting feedback from other people in general was a new experience for me. Not only that, people were telling me "I want to read more" and "When's the next update?" so I got excited and kept on drawing. Murata: Nope, I knew their existence but I never actually read any. Around the time when Eyeshield 21 was ending, I saw a Tweet and blog post by Akiman (an illustrator) saying "Onepunch Man is really good." I got interested and took a look, which led me to pull an all-nighter reading the entire thing. I thought "Web comics are really great!" and started reading a whole bunch of them, but in the end Onepunch Man was the most enjoyable to read.
 * Even though you were in such a clumsy state, I heard that Onepunch Man was popular from when it first started.
 * And this is where Mr. Murata read these updates which eventually led to the currently publishing remade "Onepunch Man" correct? Were you regularly reading web comics before then?

ONE: I realized Mr. Murata was reading it when he Tweeted "Onepunch Man got updated." But that was also around the time where I got a job and had to take a hiatus....

Murata: After about an year Mr. ONE tweeted "I'm thinking of quitting my job to become a manga artist, but my peers are stopping me."

ONE: In my mind it was already decided, but because my peers were against it, I was starting to wonder what I should do. That was when Mr. Murata contacted me.

Murata: When I first started reading Onepunch Man, I was already hoping I could one day work together. But I was already under a contract with Shonen Jump, so I thought it would sound too fishy if I just asked "Want to work together?" But then I saw the Tweet and thought "Crap, Mr. ONE is going to stop drawing manga!" and contacted him immediately. Murata: Around that time, I was actually really sick. I broke out in a hive, my inner organs were infected, and I couldn't breathe well with my windpipes swelling. I was in the hospital when I thought, "Ah, I guess people die just like that." If I'm going to die, I want to do something I really love to do. I want to draw manga with Mr. ONE. That's what I thought. If I was going to do it, I wanted to create a manga that didn't change Mr. ONE's original manga. I just tried to contact as many publishers that would fulfill my wish, regardless of my contract. It was thanks to my editor who contacted "Tonari no Youngjump" (the publisher that Murata writes Onepunch Man right now) that my dream came true. The deciding point was that I had already previously contacted Mr. ONE about working together, and that we were going to write with published books already in mind. Murata: It was just simply how strong of an impact Saitama leaves on you. It's hard to relate when the setting is about "a main character who's too strong that he became bored." But Saitama is not only a super hero, but he also embodies the common man, so readers can relate to him. Plus, there's this slight cuteness to him. All the other characters are also appealing, and they're all placed efficiently to draw out Saitama's appeal. But they're not there only for that purpose, and each character has their own soul. Although the big reason for web comic readers to read these series is that they're free and easily accessible, but you can't get absorbed in every free comic. It's hard for even professional artists to write a comic that makes you read it all the way through in one sitting. When I pulled that all-nighter, I realized that this work has enough power to rival the best of the pros. ONE: Well.... what I think is cool is a hero that stands up against someone who seems stronger than you. If you knew you were strong, you can just show up regardless of how evil the enemy is, but what's important is if there was someone clearly stronger than you hurting a child, can you stand up against it? I feel that that mentality is what defines a hero, and I thought that zeal would draw readers including myself. Saitama himself wants this zeal as well, but because he's so strong he had this drive taken away from him. But instead, he understands people's feelings, and he can lend his hand to the weak. I'd like to treasure this part of his. ONE: To be honest, I never actually thought this was hard..... It was when someone else pointed this out to me when I realized for the first time, "Is this setting too hard for me to continue with?" But in the end, even to this day I hadn't thought that writing the plot was hard. Thinking of a plot that involved a lot of thinking and cleverness for the main character to get over any obstacle requires a lot of experience and knowledge, so I think it's a bit too hard for me. In Saitama's case, all I have to do is have him show up to punch the problem away so I don't have to think too much about it. In the world Saitama lives in, monsters show up frequently, so he gets to utilize his strength to the fullest, so I can feel comfortable making my plot. If anything happens, I can always count on Saitama. The story will be interesting as long as he's on the move. The difficulties Saitama encounters are for the most part really common problems like making it to the next supermarket sale, and since I solve these problems myself, it's easy to write about them. The only hard part is to make his allies seem not too weak. Murata: Just trying not to lose any of the characters' appeal. I basically revamp the artwork of the original Onepunch Man, so the only thing I have to think about is emphasizing the characters' appeal. In reality, an artists job starts before he even starts drawing. It's important to know what the character's good parts. If you don't understand that to the core, there's no point in drawing the character in the first place. On the flip side, as long as you understand the character's appeal, there are so many scenes that come into your mind to draw that appeal out. So the only thing I care for is if I can accurately grasp Mr. ONE's characters' appeal. Murata: I actually started off drawing him really cool looking (lol). I was thinking that if was working as the artist, I should make everyone look as cool as possible. In that process I was making Saitama look handsome, or adding stars in his eyes, but I scrapped all of it. In the end, those things don't matter to Saitama's nature. His appeal isn't in his looks, so I thought that if I didn't take Mr. ONE's original design Saitama would end up a completely different character. I had a lot of fun working on this. I've been drawing manga for a quite a while now, but I realized that I hadn't fully grasped even the basics yet.
 * In the end, Mr. Murata chose to work with Mr. ONE regardless of his contract with Shonen Jump. What made you ultimately decide?
 * What was the charm that drove Mr. Murata to this extent?
 * Is there anything you try to keep in mind when you draw Saitama?
 * When Saitama always finishes off enemies in one punch it's really exhilarating and feels good, but on the other hand, isn't it hard to make a new kind of development that still ends in the punch every time? Is there something that you keep in mind when you're creating these plots?
 * I agree that even if there are many different appealing heroes and villains appear, by having a stable character like Saitama in the middle, the story development gets more exciting. Is there anything that you Mr. Murata keep in mind when drawing the characters?
 * So that's why Saitama is drawn so exquisitely while capturing his original artwork.

ONE: By utilizing my original design, it added even more to the "gap" that I was drawing. I was trying to make Genos and Sonic look a lot cooler than Saitama to add a gap between them, but Mr. Murata's meticulous drawings multiplies this gap. For example, in volume 3, there's a scene where Sonic is blowing up the city with his shurikens, and Saitama goes behind him and knocks him out. The face Saitama makes has such a blank look that makes you doubt that it was actually Mr. Murata that drew it (lol).

ONE: I get mesmerized every time I see Mr. Murata's manuscript. The villain designs are just fabulous. When the Sea King changes form, you get that feeling of despair that no can win against him just from the artwork. When the invader’s huge spaceship came down, I thought it had as much of an impact as a finale (lol). Every time there's a time where it seems like there's no chance, there's an even bigger impact from Saitama's fighting action, so I can't complain about anything. It's like watching a movie. ONE: I get English comments on my Twitter and my website and it makes me really happy. Usually they talk about how they're a huge fan, and then they end it with "Hurry up and write more." (lol) I think it's also huge that Onepunch Man is published on the English version of Weekly Shonen Jump. Although it's the same company, Shonen Jump and Tonari no Young Jump are two different branches so this move itself was pretty rare, so I'm very grateful for it.
 * By adding dynamic action scenes, the gap becomes even wider doesn't it?
 * The reason why this series has hit the top rankings of manga on the NYTimes is how close the characters feel, and how dynamic the action scenes are. Do you get to come in contact with foreign responses?

Murata: I get English replies on my Twitter as well, so I try to read it using Google Translate and I try my best to reply. After publishing on Tonari no Young Jump, the first person to cosplay Saitama was someone from abroad. It was a picture that went around on the web of two brothers in Laos who wore a handmade outfit and a cardboard cutout of Saitama's face. I started to really recognize the existence of foreign fans from there on out. ONE: The quality of the anime is really great. It's absolutely amazing.
 * I feel a strange connection to Mr. Murata coming back to Shonen Jump after English translations of his work coming out. I heard that comic sales in the US are affected by the anime adaptation, so wouldn't the anime that's airing right now start to affect sales?

Murata: I'm amazed every time. There are textures and scenes that are impossible in the manga. For an example, when Saitama is fighting the Underground beings. That's the only part where Saitama is using his full strength. Although it ends as a dream, it's because of it that allows the scene to become even more extravagant. In the anime, it was depicted a lot more extravagantly, so I was moved. It was a bit salty that I couldn't do the same too (lol). Murata: I wonder (lol). But as I said before, my job is to just take Mr. ONE's original Onepunch Man and think about how I can express its appeal. I'd like to only think about that and focus on my job.
 * On a web comic that no one knew Mr. Murata's drawings were added, the anime is aired around the world, and there are more possibilities yet to come. It might not be too far off from a Hollywood film too.

ONE: I also want to think about how I can make my work even better. I'd like to continue with what I've been working on over these years, rather than step up my pace because it got so much attention. Of course, I would be really happy if it increases in popularity, but it was a series that gained attention without trying to gain any in the first place, so I think it's important to maintain that.

Acknowledgements
Great thanks to the following people for providing the translations
 * Fan and ultimateking from http://nerieru-scans.com/
 * Taka from One Punch-Man subreddit
 * Jpneseman for Sugoi Japan interview with ONE and Murata translation