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<\/a>“All of JET is fond memories for me. I loved it. Kansai was the perfect area. Nara, Osaka, and Kyoto were all in easy reach so I had the best of everything. I lived in ancient and traditional Japan, but had wild and modern Japan nearby anytime I wanted. I did everything I could possibly do, went everywhere, tried everything\u2014it changed my life.” (Courtesy of Zack Davisson)<\/p><\/div>\n
By\u00a0Julio Perez Jr.<\/a>\u00a0(Kyoto-shi<\/a>, 2011-13) for\u00a0<\/i><\/b>JQ<\/a>\u00a0magazine<\/a>. A bibliophile, writer, translator, and graduate from Columbia University, Julio is currently seeking opportunities with publications in New York. You can follow his enthusiasm for Japan, literature, and board gaming on Twitter\u00a0@brittlejules<\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n A scholar, author and translator of Japanese folklore and ghost stories,\u00a0Zack Davisson<\/b><\/a>\u00a0(Nara-ken<\/a>, 2001-04;\u00a0Osaka-shi<\/a>, 2004-06)<\/b>\u00a0joined the JET Program in 2001 with some basic Japanese knowledge and a strong desire to learn much more. After spending five years on the program, he remained in Japan to acquire a master\u2019s degree in Japanese studies while writing freelance and translating for Osaka University.<\/p>\n The theme of Japanese ghosts running through Davisson\u2019s writing and translation dovetails the interests of manga legend\u00a0Shigeru Mizuki<\/a>, who is famous for the classic series\u00a0GeGeGe no Kitaro<\/a><\/i>. Mizuki is equally well known in Japan for his autobiographical works about his experiences as a soldier during World War II. A great fan of Mizuki, Davisson now contributes to publisher\u00a0Drawn and Quarterly<\/a>\u2019s English adaptations of\u00a0Kitaro<\/a>\u00a0<\/i>and is the translator of the first volume of Mizuki\u2019s historical manga\u00a0Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan<\/a><\/i>, released last month in North America.<\/p>\n In this exclusive, expansive interview, Davisson discusses his time on JET, the significance of Mizuki\u2019s supernatural and historical works, and the unique methods and madness of manga translation.<\/p>\n How did you first become interested in learning the Japanese language, and how long have you been studying it? For aspiring translators who are still studying, do you have any advice about textbooks, programs, or techniques?<\/b><\/p>\n I actually became interested when I was about 10 years old and my mother took me to see\u00a0Seven Samurai<\/i>\u00a0at a local art theater. I was hooked pretty early\u2014if I you look at my class pictures from that time I am wearing ridiculous Japan t-shirts. I took Japanese in high school when it was offered as a foreign language, but there were only four of us in the class, so it was cancelled\u2014no one was interested in learning Japanese back then. This was the \u201980s, so there was no \u201cCool Japan<\/a>.\u201d That pretty much ended my language studies for a while.<\/p>\n Decades later when I went on JET, I was useless language-wise. I thought I knew more Japanese than I did, but really just the set phrases and greetings. I was determined to leave JET functionally bilingual, so I just studied as hard as I could from day one, eventually getting my master\u2019s degree in Japan.<\/p>\n My only real advice for people is to go to Japan, and talk and read and practice as much as humanly possible. There is no substitute for immersion and experience. I always say I learned more Japanese at my local bar, the 100 Club,<\/i>\u00a0than I did doing my MA. Talk, talk, talk. Read, read, read. Use Japanese as a living language, don\u2019t just study it as an abstract. And, of course, marry a Japanese person. That\u2019s a huge advantage!<\/p>\n When and where were you posted for JET? Could you talk a bit about your time there and what you remember fondly?<\/b><\/p>\n I started JET in\u2026I think 2001. Crazy to think it was more than 10 years ago, because it doesn\u2019t feel that way. I was unusual in that I was a 5-year JET that worked in two prefectures. I did three years in Nara and then two years in Osaka. I don\u2019t know if they still allow you to do that. I was one of the first in my prefecture to get that contract extension, and even then there were only two of us allowed to do it.<\/p>\n As for fond memories\u2026all of JET is fond memories for me. I loved it. Kansai was the perfect area. Nara, Osaka, and Kyoto were all in easy reach so I had the best of everything. I lived in ancient and traditional Japan, but had wild and modern Japan nearby anytime I wanted. I did everything I could possibly do, went everywhere, tried everything\u2014it changed my life. And my career; I got started in writing and translating doing articles for my prefectural newsletter, then moved on to publishing magazine articles for\u00a0Kansai Time Out<\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0Japanzine<\/i>. And now I have my Shigeru Mizuki translations out and my book,\u00a0Yurei: The Japanese Ghost,<\/i>\u00a0coming next year. I owe all that to JET and the people I met on JET.<\/p>\n In what ways did you become involved in your community?<\/b><\/p>\n I wasn\u2019t a big community person, other than I threw myself into every matsuri I could. I was fascinated with Shinto festivals, especially the big, loud, and dangerous ones. Anything fueled with alcohol and adrenaline. I did the Okayama Hadaka Matsuri four times and brought the magic sticks out twice. I carried this massive mikoshi in a little village in Nara every year. In Osaka, I carried these giant, flaming torches in the Taimatsu Matsuri for my town. I loved the primal nature of these matsuri, the physicality and closeness to the gods\u2014it\u2019s something we\u2019ve completely lost in the U.S. In our quest for safety and comfort we\u2019ve lost something intangible. Something Joseph Campbell would have recognized and appreciated.<\/p>\n Other than that, I was a regular at a local bar, the 100 Club in Osaka. A different kind of community, but that was another life changer. I\u2019m still friends with my pals from the 100 Club and we even got matching tattoos. Not quite as sweet as volunteering at the local children\u2019s eikaiwa, but there it is.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Do you have any favorite\u00a0kaidan<\/i>\u00a0(ghost stories) that originate from there?<\/b><\/p>\n Nara is old and full of kaidan. The dragon\u2019s cave in Muro. The oni\u2019s kitchen and toilet in Asuka. And Shigeru Mizuki\u2019s own\u00a0Sunakake-Babaa<\/a>\u00a0hails from Nara. Osaka is just as good, although with more modern hauntings. My friends all knew I was fascinated with ghost stories and mythology, so they took me out to haunted places, bars, alleys, etc\u2026.what they call yurei spots, I soaked up as much folklore as I could.<\/p>\n My favorite is definitely the oni\u2019s kitchen and toilet in Asuka. That\u2019s just fantastic\u2014the place where the oni waylay travelers and cook and eat them, then the specific place where they poop them out.<\/p>\n How were you first exposed to kaidan?<\/b><\/p>\n This goes back to me as a little kid again. I was always interested in fantasy, fairy tales, ghost stories, mysterious things,\u00a0cryptids<\/a>, etc\u2026.I got this set of Time-Life books on monsters and magic in the world. (From my mother, again, shaping my future life. Be careful, parents! You never know when a stray movie or book will determine your child\u2019s life path!) Anyways, these books had a few Japanese stories, like Oiwa and\u00a0Yotsuya Kaidan<\/a><\/i>. That was really my first exposure. I was fascinated because they were so different from everything I knew.<\/p>\n When I came to Japan on JET I gravitated to the ghostly, and started digging in. I discovered Lafcadio Hearn, which was a huge influence. I read everything I could in English, and then hit a wall where I realized if I wanted to keep going I would have to master Japanese.<\/p>\n You post many short kaidan story translations on your website\u00a0Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai<\/a><\/i>. Do you make and post these translations for practice or amusement? Or is it in some way related to your other Mizuki translations?<\/b><\/p>\n They are only related in that they are all Japanese folklore. And I do my translations for many reasons, including practice, but mainly because I enjoy contributing to the world\u2019s knowledge pool on all this cool stuff. There is still so much that has gone un-translated, and I like making that accessible<\/p>\n I started the website mainly as a place to stick some of the translations that I had done for my MA degree. It was pretty meager in the beginning. I was surprised when people started reading, then a hundred, then a thousand\u2026and now up to over three hundred thousand people that have read my site. I really had to up my game as the site got more popular.<\/p>\n What shocks me is that so many of my fans aren\u2019t even native English speakers. They\u2019re people who are interested in Japanese folklore and speak English, but not Japanese. I have readers from Pakistan, from Russia, from Turkey, from Brazil, all over Europe, Kenya\u2026I get emails from all over the world. It\u2019s pretty incredible.<\/p>\n And yes, for practice, because like everything, translation is a skill you need to keep working at in order to not get rusty. And sometimes it\u2019s for a project\u2014if you notice I am posting a bunch of stuff on a specific theme, then I am probably working on something in the background.<\/p>\n Mostly, I do\u00a0Hyakumonogatari.com<\/a>\u00a0because I love it, though. I wouldn\u2019t do it if I didn\u2019t love it.<\/p>\n At what point did you decide to make your Japanese skills a part of your career? Had you been interested in translation early on?<\/b><\/p>\n I decided to be a translator when I was in Japan working on my MA\u2014and specifically Shigeru Mizuki\u2019s translator. That was a goal I set for myself way back then. I thought there was all of this wonderful stuff with no English translation, and I wanted to be the one to bring it over. I used to talk about it in Japan all the time, so much that my friends got sick of it. They\u2019re pretty excited to see my first translated volumes released. I think they are sticking a copy up on display at the 100 Club to show dreams can come true, from time to time.<\/p>\n What did you do immediately after JET? At the time, did you see yourself where you are today?<\/b><\/p>\n Immediately after JET I stayed in Japan working as an elementary school English teacher, and doing some freelance magazine work and translation and writing for Osaka University. By that time I had met my now-wife, Miyuki, and we were going through the long process of getting her fianc\u00e9e visa so we could head back to the States together.<\/p>\n I stayed in Japan until my contracts finished and her visa was secured, then we came back to the U.S. The economy was bad, so I took what jobs I could\u2014there were some lean and miserable years. But I tried to push forward, to build my writing\/translation resume, and work on finishing\u00a0Yurei: The Japanese Ghost<\/i>.<\/p>\n What kind of translations have you completed in the past? Are they all literary translations? Which ones have been or will be published?<\/b><\/p>\n Up until now most of my published translations have been academic, done for Osaka University where I had a contract. I worked on a textbook called\u00a0Keywords in Use<\/i>\u00a0and some of their language-learning software.<\/p>\n Other than that, it has been for my own purposes on my website\u00a0Hyakumonogatari.com<\/a><\/i>, or at various private requests. I love American comics, and I do translation and research for a couple of different comic writer\/artists when they want to stick Japanese flavor into their comics. For example, I work with Tony Harris on\u00a0Roundeye<\/i>\u00a0and Brandon Seifert on\u00a0Supernatural Geographic<\/i>. Also, I did the TV special for National Geographic,\u00a0Okinawa: The Lost Souls of Japan<\/i>, which involved some translation work and research as well as my on-camera appearances.<\/p>\n I have done a few unpublished manga translations too, for practice and to pitch to publishing companies. We\u2019ll see if any of those see the light of day. I always hope. And I have a few secret, unannounced projects that are definitely coming, but I can\u2019t talk about.<\/p>\n How were you first exposed to Shigeru Mizuki?<\/b><\/p>\n It\u2019s hard to be in Japan and NOT be exposed to Shigeru Mizuki! He\u2019s everywhere! I remember being fascinated by his characters and by Kitaro, even though I had no idea who or what they were. At first, my Japanese ability wasn\u2019t good enough to penetrate the mystery, so my main knowledge of yokai came through Lafcadio Hearn, and Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli.<\/p>\n It really took my wife, Miyuki, to introduce me to Shigeru Mizuki. She thought if I liked ghosts and yokai that I would love his comics, so she bought some for me out of the blue. And I was completely hooked. After that, I bought and read as much Mizuki stuff as I possibly could. I even travelled up to Kyoto to meet him at the World Yokai Conference. And I did get to meet him, although briefly.<\/p>\n How did you come to write a translation of\u00a0Showa: 1926-1939<\/i>? Was it of your own initiative or Drawn and Quarterly\u2019s? If it was your decision, how did you go about having it published?<\/b><\/p>\n I had been pitching Shigeru Mizuki to different companies for a few years, mainly a translation of his\u00a0Tono Monogatari<\/a><\/i>. I thought that would be an approachable introduction to his work for Western audiences\u2014it\u2019s self-contained, has a nice literary provenance, and is just a beautiful, weird comic. But no one was really biting. Some people were interested, but it never went further than emails back and forth. I didn\u2019t think of Drawn and Quarterly, for whatever reason. Then they put out\u00a0Onwards Towards Our Noble Deaths<\/a><\/i>, which won the Eisner Award that year, and I found out they had the rights to publish Shigeru Mizuki\u2019s works.<\/p>\n I basically just sent them a cold letter saying how thrilled I was that they were putting out his work, and that I would love to be a part of it if possible. It was lucky timing\u2014they already had\u00a0Onwards Towards Our Noble Deaths<\/i>,\u00a0NonNonBa<\/a><\/i>, and\u00a0Kitaro<\/i>\u00a0translated, but were in the market for a new translator. I did a 100-page test translation that they compared against their current translation, and they liked it and gave me the job. I think they were impressed with the passion I brought to the project as well as my abilities as a translator.<\/p>\n I was surprised when they told me the next book would be\u00a0Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan<\/i>. Because I identify Shigeru Mizuki so strongly with yokai, I would have never thought of doing his war comics. But\u00a0Showa\u00a0<\/i>is an amazing and important comic\u2014possibly his magnum opus\u2014and I was thrilled to take it on. Thrilled and daunted. It\u2019s a heavy work.<\/p>\n Could you tell us a bit about\u00a0Showa 1926-1939<\/i>\u00a0and Mizuki\u2019s experiences in World War II?<\/b><\/p>\n You have to read the comic! Seriously, it is a long and incredible journey, and I wouldn\u2019t want to spoil the story for anyone. But I can tell you some of it.<\/p>\n Lost most young men his age, he was drafted. He was a terrible soldier; obstinate, lazy, insubordinate. His own stupidity got himself shipped to the front in New Guinea\u2014what he calls \u201cthe greatest mistake of my life\u201d but in truth is probably one of his defining moments. He was just as useless in Rabaul, and was beaten on a daily basis. Terrible things happened to him there. His squad got wiped out. He caught malaria. He lost his arm in an air raid.<\/p>\n And also wonderful things. He befriended the local Tolai tribe, a relationship that lasts to this day\u2014they have a road named after him in Rabaul. It\u2019s such a powerful story. I\u2019m not ashamed to say that I was so involved in it when I was translating it that I got weepy at more than a few parts.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve read\u00a0Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths\u00a0<\/i>you\u2019ve seen some of it. He fictionalized some of his experiences for that comic. But this is the real thing.<\/p>\n It\u2019s funny\u2014I just started watching the TV show\u00a0The Pacific<\/i>\u00a0and it struck me how connected the two are. If you just flip the camera away from the Americans and show the Japanese soldiers, then you have some of the books of\u00a0Showa<\/i>. Except instead of crazed, fanatical soldiers willing to die for the emperor, you get to understand just how afraid and desperate the Japanese soldiers were.<\/p>\n What particular aspects of the original text did you find most challenging to translate? What did you spend the most time on? Were there any particular areas where you feel something was lost and unable to be rendered into English?<\/b><\/p>\n By far the most challenging was the military and political lingo. Nothing in my Japanese studies had prepared me to name the different classes of battleships, or the obscure political theories and parties raging around Japan at the time. I really couldn\u2019t have done it without my wife. She became my assistant, looking up the kanji and making lists for me. And that was tough work. She is a native Japanese speaker, but there was plenty of kanji in there she couldn\u2019t read or didn\u2019t understand. This is a high-level comic.<\/p>\n Then, I had to match everything against Western naming conventions. World War II is heavily studied, and most things have already been named\u2014specific battles and theaters of war and such. And many famous speeches have already been translated and become iconic. All of that had to be taken into account. And then there was the Chinese side\u2026whew! All of the Chinese names and places had to be researched.<\/p>\n On top of that, everything has to fit into a predetermined space\u2014the dialog box is the bane of every manga translator. With a book you can always add more pages, but not with comics.<\/p>\n Japan\u2019s actions in World War II are still sensitive topics today. Earlier this year the education board of a city in Shimane Prefecture asked its elementary and middle schools to limit access to\u00a0Barefoot Gen<\/a><\/i>, a famous autobiographical manga\u00a0<\/i>portraying terrible wartime tragedies before, during, and after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, in primary school libraries after a complaint about its false portrayal of the actions of the Japanese troops during the war. Has\u00a0Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan<\/i>\u00a0received similar criticism or censorship? What about Mizuki\u2019s other autobiographical works?<\/b><\/p>\n I was very much thinking about that when I saw the news about\u00a0Barefoot Gen<\/i>, as well as the controversy regarding Miyazaki\u2019s new film\u00a0The Wind Rises<\/a><\/i>. The timing behind that news and the English publication of\u00a0Showa<\/i>\u00a0feels like zeitgeist.<\/p>\n Obviously, WWII is still a controversial topic in Japan today. There is a small but powerful lobby that would like to sugarcoat what happened and write their own pleasant history. This is nothing unusual. Many groups in the U.S. like to do the same thing on various topics. And that is part of why Shigeru Mizuki wrote\u00a0Showa\u00a0<\/i>to begin with.<\/p>\n Make no mistake:\u00a0Showa<\/i>\u00a0is a big, fat, finger-pointing at Japan for what happened during WWII. I get asked all the time about how critical Shigeru Mizuki was, or if he tried to make Japan seem heroic or victimized. All I can say is\u2014read the book. It\u2019s all there. The abuse of China and Korea. The Rape of Nanjing. The serial killers created by the war.<\/p>\n [Mizuki] wanted to educate the modern Japanese children\u2014the ones who grew up post-war and never knew what the generation before them had survived\u2014about what had really happened, in the hopes they would appreciate what they had and never repeat the same mistakes. I\u2019ll never forget what my wife said while we were working on the comic together\u2014\u201cI finally understand why China hates Japan so much.\u201d<\/p>\n But it is also a balanced, accurate account. Mizuki is angry at the war and the suffering it caused, but he presents the facts and circumstances untwisted. In fact, the academic text\u00a0Controversial History Education in Asian Contexts<\/a><\/i>\u00a0singles out\u00a0Showa: A History of Japan<\/i>\u00a0as the most unbiased and factual of all of Japan\u2019s various manga accounts of WWII.<\/p>\n That said, there is also the difference in that Shigeru Mizuki is still alive, and one of the most honored human beings in the country. All of Japan has been busy celebrating him for the past year [he turned 90 in 2012\u2014Ed.], and I don\u2019t think anyone is stupid enough to attack one of his books now.\u00a0Barefoot Gen<\/i>\u00a0author Keiji Nakazawa died a few years ago (2010), and so his work is easier to mess with. But no one is going to lead an assault on the living Buddha that is Shigeru Mizuki.<\/p>\n Although, frankly, I wouldn\u2019t mind if someone did try to ban it. Nothing like a little controversy to make people aware of a comic and drive up sales!<\/p>\n You also contributed to\u00a0Kitaro<\/a><\/i>, the new translation of Mizuki\u2019s\u00a0GeGeGe no Kitaro<\/i>. Could you talk about your involvement in the translation and how much of the final product was a team effort?<\/b><\/p>\n All manga translation is a team effort. People only see the final product, and aren\u2019t aware of the process it takes to get there. There is usually an initial \u201crough translation,\u201d then that rough translation is adapted and smoothed out\u2014sometimes by another person entirely, because the same skills that make you a translator don\u2019t necessarily make you a good writer. Personally, I do those two stages by myself because I am a writer as well as a translator. Then an editor works over the script, and, in the case of\u00a0Showa,\u00a0<\/i>a fact checker, and we go back and forth massaging it until it is perfect.<\/p>\n With\u00a0Kitaro<\/i>\u00a0they were up to the editor stage, and brought me in just to do a little fine tuning, clarifying some of the phrases and things like that. I also did a bunch of the background noises\u2014monster growls and bird flapping and stomping and all of that. The\u00a0Foley<\/a>\u00a0work. That\u2019s actually one of the toughest parts of translation, because Japanese and English onomonopias are so different. You pretty much make things up. Fortunately, I have a lifelong background in reading American comics so I have a solid mental dictionary of sound effects. Someone can say \u201csnikt<\/a>\u201d or \u201cbamf<\/a>\u201d to me and I know exactly what they are talking about.<\/p>\n My biggest contribution to\u00a0Kitaro\u00a0<\/i>is largely invisible, though. The translation had put all of the yokai names into English\u2014Daddy Eyeball, Rat Man, Sand-throwing Hag, etc.\u2026I am of the firm opinion that names are names and shouldn\u2019t be translated. For example, my wife\u2019s name Miyuki could be translated into \u201cBeautiful Snow,\u201d but it isn\u2019t. I made my case with D&Q to keep the yokai names in Japanese, and they agreed. That\u2019s what led to me writing the yokai glossary for\u00a0Kitaro<\/i>\u00a0as a compromise, which was very well received.<\/p>\n Do you feel that Mizuki\u2019s autobiographical portrayals of World War II and his imaginative fictional work on yokai relate to each other in a meaningful way? How?<\/b><\/p>\n That\u2019s tough to say. He blurs lines between autobiography and fiction.\u00a0Onwards Towards Our Nobel Death<\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0NonNonBa\u00a0<\/i>are both fiction, albeit based on facts. And he wouldn\u2019t consider his folklore work to be fiction. He is on record as a firm believer in the spiritual world and yokai. In fact, he encounters several yokai in\u00a0Showa: A History of Japan<\/i>, including one that saves his life on the island of Rabaul.<\/p>\n Even then, his fiction work serves different purposes. His work with his character Kitaro ranges from the outright goofy, like\u00a0Kitaro versus the Yokai Ramen<\/i>, to making a specific political message, like when Kitaro rallied the Japanese yokai to fight against the American invaders in\u00a0Kitaro\u2019s Vietnam War Diary<\/i>. He even has sex comics like the teenaged Kitaro in\u00a0Kitaro Continued.\u00a0<\/i>The further back you go in his career, the more his work was purely commercial, trying to pay his bills. Once he got established and famous, he had the luxury to make it personal.<\/p>\n But no matter what the comic or era, they all carry his specific life philosophy\u2014distrust in the establishment, cynicism, pacifism, and his Cult of Laziness that he is well known for. There are entire books in Japan just on his philosophy\u2014he is as famous for that as he is for his comics. If you read\u00a0Kitaro<\/i>, the character\u00a0Nezumi-Otoko<\/a>\u00a0is Mizuki\u2019s avatar, his personal mouthpiece, espousing his eternal quest for an easy life. It\u2019s no coincidence that Mizuki chose Nezumi Otoko to narrate\u00a0Showa: A History of Japan<\/i>. When Nezumi Otoko is talking, it is really Mizuki Shigeru.<\/p>\n What advice do you have for aspiring manga translators? Do you foresee any growth in the industry?<\/b><\/p>\n That\u2019s a tough question. As everyone knows, the manga boom is long over. Most translators are established pros with years of experience and established relationships with companies. It\u2019s a hard business to break into. There isn\u2019t a lot of room for newbies\u2014every year there are more and more people fighting for a piece of an increasingly shrinking pie.<\/p>\n If there is any growth, it will be digital. I know there is some push in that area, but no one really knows how it will go. There are a few companies trying experimental models, like translators working exclusively on a profit-sharing plan, which means if the book doesn\u2019t sell you don\u2019t get paid. Page rates are down, and few people are manga translators full-time. For most it is a second job, and not the main bill-payer.<\/p>\n For advice, I would say practice, practice, practice. Translate something at least every day. Get a hold of some comics that have English translations, then translate the Japanese and compare it to the official English translation. But whatever you do, don\u2019t post them online. Posted fan translations (a.k.a. scanalations) are poison and will get you blacklisted.<\/p>\n Also, look for paid work. I\u2019ve seen a few editors laugh at resumes that are full of \u201cvolunteer\u201d translations, but no paid work. Even if it isn\u2019t manga, you need a resume, you need work experience.<\/p>\n Oh, and go to conventions and make contacts. Like much of the modern world, networking counts. It\u2019s much easier to get jobs if people already know who you are.<\/p>\n As a professional translator, what is your opinion of fan-made translations of Japanese manga that are posted to be read for free on the Internet? In what ways do you think they help or hurt the publication of translations?<\/b><\/p>\n Absolute evil. They absolutely hurt the publication of translations, and have taken a huge bite out of the industry on the Western side. People don\u2019t understand the behind-the-scenes of what it takes to publish translated manga, and how damaging fan-translations can be. They make Japanese companies wary about doing business with American companies, and many manga creators take it personally. The West is just a drop in the bucket sales-wise for most manga companies; a million copies sold in Japan versus a thousand sold in the U.S. They can easily afford to be picky and cut off access when fans are behaving badly.<\/p>\n That said\u2026I can understand the impulse behind them. People want to read certain things, and not be held captive by what a particular company chooses to publish at any time. I know how frustrating that is. But have some impulse control. And show some respect. If you love manga, have a little care for the actual human beings who created it, ya know? They deserve their due. If you want to read certain comics that badly, learn Japanese. It doesn\u2019t take THAT high of a level to muddle your way through most manga, especially using an electronic dictionary. And you will gain a valuable skill instead of just stealing from hard-working comic creators.<\/p>\n Plus, the translations usually aren\u2019t very good. I\u2019ve seen a few for Shigeru Mizuki and they are awful, subpar amateur work. And like I said\u2026fan translations are pure poison if you have any hope of becoming a professional. Just say no.<\/p>\n Aside from Mizuki\u2019s work, what are some of your favorite manga series and why?<\/b><\/p>\n It comes as a shock to most people, but I don\u2019t actually read a lot of manga per se. I read comics, but I don\u2019t differentiate between Japanese, European, and American comics. To me, Mizuki\u2019s\u00a0Kitaro\u00a0<\/i>and Mike Mignola\u2019s\u00a0Hellboy<\/a><\/i>\u00a0are in the same category\u2014both brilliant folklore comics. It is irrelevant that one is Japanese and one is American.<\/p>\n Of the stuff I do like from Japan\u2014I love Naoki Urasawa\u2019s\u00a020th Century Boys<\/a><\/i>, which is incredibly dense and one of the best comics I have ever read, from any country. His comics\u00a0Monster<\/a>\u00a0<\/i>and\u00a0Pluto<\/a>\u00a0<\/i>are also outstanding. Akira Toriyama\u2019s\u00a0Dr. Slump<\/a><\/i>\u00a0is another series my wife introduced me to that cracks me up every time I read it. Yugo Ishikawa\u2019s\u00a0Kappa no Kaikata<\/i>\u00a0(How to Raise Kappa<\/i>) is a series I would love to translate (if VIZ Comics is listening!). It\u2019s weird, but a lot of fun.<\/p>\n What makes a good comic to me? I\u2019m not really sure. I like something unique, something where you can see the hand of the artist, but at the same time I appreciate classical storytelling and craft.\u00a0Hellboy<\/i>\u00a0is a good example of blend. And there has to be something intangible\u2026the hand of a genius. I can\u2019t really put my finger on it, but it\u2019s something magical that speaks to me. Something I find in the works of Mizuki.<\/p>\n For more on Zack and his upcoming works, visit\u00a0http:\/\/hyakumonogatari.com<\/a>.<\/em>\u00a0For more\u00a0<\/i>JQ\u00a0magazine interviews,\u00a0click here<\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By\u00a0Julio Perez Jr.\u00a0(Kyoto-shi, 2011-13) for\u00a0JQ\u00a0magazine. A bibliophile, writer, translator, and graduate from Columbia University, Julio is currently seeking opportunities with publications in New York. You can follow his enthusiasm for Japan, literature, and board gaming on Twitter\u00a0@brittlejules. A scholar, author and translator of Japanese folklore and ghost stories,\u00a0Zack Davisson\u00a0(Nara-ken, 2001-04;\u00a0Osaka-shi, 2004-06)\u00a0joined the JET Program […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[75,4,25,291,304],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33114","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art","category-articlejournalism","category-interviewprofile","category-jq-magazine","category-notable-jet-alums"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pkZ7m-8C6","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33114","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33114"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33114\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41627,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33114\/revisions\/41627"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33114"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33114"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33114"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}