first career【interview】 My Dress Up Darling Shinichi Fukuda

Based on Shinichi Fukuda ‘s manga, the TV anime 「My Dress Up Darling」 is a love comedy between 「Wakana Gojo」, a high school boy who aspires to be a 「kashirashi」that makes the face of「hina-ningyō」, and 「Marin Kitagawa」, a beautiful girl who is a reader model. Wakana is unfamiliar with the latest trends and does not fit in with his surroundings, while Marin is popular in class. The two have never been involved with each other, but when Wakana is assigned to make costumes for Marin’s cosplay hobby, they gradually grow closer. Marin’s feelings toward Wakana, who is sincerely devoted to his and her costume making, are…

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Shinichi Fukuda ‘s first interview 「My Dress Up Darling」

I watched it for 13 hours because I was so happy to see an anime adaptation of a manga I had given up on even before it was serialized.

I wanted to draw a boyfriend and girlfriend who affirm each other’s interests.

─ This is the first interview in Fukuda-sensei’s life, so I would like to start by asking him about your original work.「My Dress Up Darling」 is a romantic comedy about a high school boy, Wakana, who wants to become a 「hina-ningyō」 artisan, 「kashirashi」, and a beautiful cosplayer girl, Marin. The unusual setting of this manga catches the attention of readers, but could you tell us what you pay attention to when drawing Wakana and Marin?

Shinichi Fukuda 　When I was talking to a cosplayer once, she told me that her boyfriend or husband once told her that he wanted her to quit cosplaying and that he would leave her if she didn’t quit. She said that many people quit cosplaying because of that, even though she wants to continue doing what she loves, and I really didn’t like that. So in drawing this manga, I tried to make sure that when cosplayers or people who are dedicated to something and have a hobby read it, main characters in the manga, Wakana and Marin, would be boyfriends and girlfriends who affirm each other’s commitment to continuing their hobby.

I believe that many readers will identify with them because they are characters who live their lives with what they love at the center of who they are. Is there anything else you keep in mind when drawing the manga, or is there anything that has changed from your original assumptions about Wakana and Marin characterization?

Shinichi Fukuda 　I try to make sure that anyone who reads my manga can enjoy it regardless of gender. For Marin, I tried to make her a woman who would fulfill the dreams of men who wanted to date a cosplayer or a girl like her when they were in school. As for Wakana, in the first storyboard, just like in the manga you are reading now, he felt suffocated because his interests did not match those of the people around him, but he was not as sensitive as in the current setting, or rather, he had a more light-hearted personality and spoke to Marin in a casual manner.

My impression of wakana has changed a lot.

Shinichi Fukuda 　There was his reaction to Marin’s outfit shown at the end of the first anime episode, but at first he did not look that serious. Also, in the original setup, Wakana was supposed to have a friend, but when he had trouble making the costume, he inevitably consulted his friend rather than Marin, so a situation where Marin and he worked together to solve the problem did not arise. As a result, we eliminated both his friends and his parents’ presence in order to push Wakana into a romantic relationship.

From the first episode of the TV anime 「My Dress Up Darling」, Wakana decides to make a cosplay costume for Marin, but is surprised by the unexpected costume title.

Shinichi Fukuda 「Samue is too good for Wakana」.

Samue

What is Fukuda-sensei’s favorite scene in the episodes so far, and which scene did you enjoy drawing?

Shinichi Fukuda 　I quite like the story of Wakana and Marin going shopping for clothes during summer vacation. Marin often changes her appearance by cosplaying or wearing her own clothes, and if Wakana changes his appearance as well as often as Marin, the reader’s eyes would not feel comfortable. For various other reasons, I dress Wakana in 「samue」, but I was surprised that he didn’t look good in anything other than samue to that extent. No matter how much, I thought there was indeed at least one piece of clothing that would look good on him. ……

From 「My Dress Up Darling」 vol. 5. The two came to buy Wakana’s personal clothes except for his 「samue」. Marin’s reaction to Wakana’s appearance as he comes out of the fitting room is …….

─ So you were surprised yourself, weren’t you, Fukuda-sensei(laugh). Now, on the other hand, could you tell us about the most difficult scene for you in drawing your manga?

Shinichi Fukuda 　It is almost always difficult to draw the cosplay shooting times, but the makeup times for the cultural festival were especially hard.

The episode where Marin cosplayed as Rei from the manga 「The Student Council President is the No. 1 Host」 for the Miss Contest at the school festival, right? It was the first time she dressed up as a man in the work, so it felt fresh.

Shinichi Fukuda 　For 「Kisekoi」,(Abbreviations in the Japanese title) I changed the touch of the pen from the one I was originally comfortable with to one that I had forced myself to correct in order to fit the storyline. I was just getting used to it recently, but with the corrected pen touch, the picture of Wakana trying to draw Rei’s makeup turned out to be too cute. That didn’t fit the story, so I forced myself to go back to the original drawing style, but I struggled with it.

I see.so that’s how it was.

Shinichi Fukuda 　It was my own decision to change the way I drew, but there were a lot of big frames (in the manga) and it was a necessary episode that I couldn’t ignore for Wakana future, so it was tough in many ways. …… I felt like screaming in the middle of the night, or the first word out of my mouth when I woke up in the morning was 「tired」. …… My mind was racing all the time, and thinking back on it now, I think I was at my limit. Usually, no matter what kind of manga I am working on, I am in a state of emptiness because I have a deadline, but for that episode, I cried a little while I was typing the lines.

From 「My Dress Up Darling」 vol. 8. In this scene, Wakana applies makeup to Marin, who is preparing for the beauty pageant.

I wanted to read the book again when I heard this talk. You often write interview reports at the end of the book, and I know that you did a lot of interviews when you were writing the manga. I get the impression that you also challenged yourself with cosplay and other physical challenges.Was there anything impressive about your interviews?

Shinichi Fukuda 　I was impressed by how very kind everyone I interviewed was. When I started drawing cosplay from scratch for my manga, I had questions about how to compensate for body shape and undergarments for each costume. I think it was difficult to answer them, but everyone was very kind and helpful in answering them.

So all the cosplayers were very kind in giving you interviews？

Shinichi Fukuda 　Yes, they were. One said, 「I’m wearing shorts, so I’m fine. Do you want to see ? She even smiled and turned up her skirt to show us the inside.

That’s amazing. ……

「My Dress Up Darling」 animeted that I had given up on because of 「〇〇」.

Next, let’s talk about the anime version that is currently airing. First of all, frankly speaking, how did you feel when you were approached to make an animated version?

Shinichi Fukuda 　At the time, I was tired after the manga deadline, and I had been up all night and was not thinking straight, so I had a vague feeling like someone else’s problem「It’s going to be an anime ……」. I thought that the anime adaptation of the original work was something that would never happen to me, so I didn’t really feel it at all. …… I thought that if the anime adaptation was actually decided, I would cry more and be happy, but it was something I really didn’t expect, so when I was suddenly told about it, I didn’t feel any emotion.

So it was an unexpected event for you. I know that for some authors, 「making an anime is their goal」, but how about you, Mr. Fukuda?

Shinichi Fukuda 　For a manga artist, an anime adaptation is one of his dreams, but I wrote the line 「sei ❤ Nuru Nuru Jogakuen」 (Holy ❤ slimy Women’s Academy) in the first episode of the manga to make the readers remember my work and to leave a strong impression on them. It was a line that would normally offend an adult, and I knew there was no way I could broadcast it on TⅤ, including the game content of the manga episode. …… In exchange for 「Nuru Nuru Jogakuen」 line in the manga, I gave up everything I had to animate the manga even before it was published.

─ (laugh).

Shinichi Fukuda 　If I had been rather conscious of the anime adaptation of the original work, I would not have drawn Shizuku’s outfit like that, but would have drawn a simpler outfit that would have been easier and less burdensome for the animators.

「Shizuku」A character from the game 「Holy ❤ slimy Women’s Academy Misses are Shame Club Shameless Miracle Life 2」, which appears in the manga. Marin first asked Wakana to make a costume for Shizuku.

Speaking of costumes, the voice actor Shoya Ishige, who plays Wakana, has taken on the challenge of creating her own costumes for Shizuku as a project linked to the anime.

Shinichi Fukuda 　If I hadn’t drawn that costume in the manga, I don’t think Mr. Ishige would have had to struggle so much. …… I am rooting for Mr. Ishige.

Click on the image to go to youtube.　↓

Shinichi Fukuda ‘s thoughts on the anime 「My Dress Up Darling」

When the PV of the anime 「My Dress Up Darling」 was released last October, you said that it was so good that you sobbed when you saw it. How did you feel when you saw the finished anime?

Shinichi Fukuda 　I received the first and second episodes of the complete packet of the anime version from the people involved and watched them, and everything was so good that I cried with emotion. ……! I watched it over and over again for a total of 13 hours, so happy happy that I could not be happier in my life as a manga artist. I was very moved by the fact that my manga was moving and that the characters had voices.

─ Thirteen hours! ……

Shinichi Fukuda 　Anime is really amazing, and I even pre-ordered the Blu-ray quite early on! I wanted to get the hug pillow cover that they drew so cutely, so maybe the production company could give me a sample, but that’s another story, so I didn’t say anything selfish. Even if I could get them later, there’s nothing better than having a lot of Marin’s pillowcases.

That pillowcase was sexy and cute, wasn’t it? As I mentioned earlier, Mr.Ishige plays Wakana, and Hina suguta plays Marin in the anime. I would like to ask Mr. Fukuda what thinks of their performances.

Shinichi Fukuda 　I am really glad that it was the two of them who played the roles. Marin is a model for a women’s magazine in the series, so I wanted her to exist as a woman who is popular with the same sex. But even though she is a gal, she is not vulgar, she is a woman who is cute in some ways but not unnaturally too cute, and suguta’s refreshing voice performance is exactly what I envisioned for Marin! On the other hand, Mr. Ishige’s voice is too cool for Wakana. Is it okay? I thought that such a voice for Wakana was extravagant, but Ishige’s voice performance made his more sincere and sensitive, which was good for an adolescent high school student.

By the way, what is your favorite scene in the anime version?

Shinichi Fukuda 　In manga, there is a fixed number of pages that can be drawn in a book, so I decide on the number of frames and the number of characters in the dialogue that readers will not feel stressed reading, and I draw them in my own way. However, in the anime, I am very grateful that all the parts that were cut were carefully added to the story, and the content was complemented in a way that made it very easy to understand. That is why I love everything about the 「Kisekoi」 anime. I love the main story, the opening, the ending, everything!

「My Dress Up Darling」　Shinichi Fukuda Final message to the fans

I think everyone involved in the anime will be pleased with what Mr. Fukuda just said! Finally, please give a message to the fans of the original work and the fans who came across 「Kisekoi」 through the anime.

Shinichi Fukuda 　Thank you to everyone who has always read the original manga. Thanks to all of you, we were able to make it into an anime. And thanks to all of you who have spread the word, even more people are reading the manga. I try to draw the manga so that readers will be glad to have read it” so that they can take a break during their commute, during breaks, before going to bed at night, or any other time when they feel tired, so I hope you will continue to support me. We hope you will continue to support us in the future. We also hope that those of you who read the original manga because of the anime will enjoy comparing the anime and the original manga. Thank you to all of our fans for your continued support.

Thank you for watching. See you soon!

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「My Dress Up Darling」 Shinichi Fukuda Profile

Shinichi Fukuda won the Encouragement Prize at the 23rd Ace Newcomer Manga Award in 2006, and made his serial debut with 「Shibaraku」 in Monthly Shonen Ace (KADOKAWA) in 2009, 「Peach Color Meloic」Young Gungans (Square Enix) from 2018. Enix), and 「My Dress Up Darling」 is currently serialized in Young Gangan (Square Enix).