Thank you for purchasing volume 49!
I think some of you already know that the release of the movie version of Gintama, Gintama The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya, has been set for July 6, 2013 in Japan. I’m often asked “What does ‘final chapter’ mean?”, “Is Gintama going to end?” … No, the manga isn’t, but for the anime it’s the last fireworks. Don’t send me any letters of complaint again. Every time the anime ends, there’s always someone who picks on me: “Why?”, but as I’ve said many times, Sorachi sensei doesn’t deal with the anime at all. I’ve never said either to end it or to continue it, partly because that’s not how it works in that industry. And this case is no exception. When it was decided that I would also take part in the film by writing the story, I was told that it would probably be the last one, and that’s why the title was chosen. It’s not like I’m the one who gave the dying anime the coup de grâce! First of all, it wasn’t my intention to use such a title, and without my noticing, they added “Final Chapter”. You”ll understand the real reason why it was titled that way if you watch it. So I can only tell you to go and see it.
In any case, it’s also true that I wrote the story as if it were the last episode of the manga, or rather, as if it could become one… Well, when I draw a long saga, I always do that. Anyway, since I put all my strength into it, I’d be very happy if you’d rush to the cinema!
CONTACT WITH THE READERS: QUESTION CORNER 146
QUESTION FROM MR. “KYUBEI! HOW DARE YOU CARRY A SWORD IN THIS DAY AND AGE, WITH THE HAITOREI EDICT IN EFFECT!”
In Gintama, the Haitorei edict is in effect, which prohibits carrying a sword at one’s side. Yet Kyubei has one despite not even being a member of the police force. Why can Kyubei?
ANSWER:
Not everyone is forbidden to carry a sword. Officials in the service of the Bakufu are recognized as samurai who are allowed to. The Yagyu are famous in the art of swordsmanship, as they were once instructors of the shogun’s family, so they are treated the same as officials. If they were members of the shogun’s family, they would not be such, as they learned the art of sword fighting from them.
CONTACT WITH THE READERS: QUESTION CORNER 147
QUESTION FROM MISS WOMAN OF BLOOD TYPE A, FUKUOKA PROVINCE
Sorachi sensei, good morning! You often write defamatory things about your editors… Have they ever seriously reprimanded you?
ANSWER:
Never. Because they also slander me by calling me Gorilla on Jump or in the anime. So there’s an unspoken rule that even though we slander each other, when we meet in person we don’t talk about it and we pretend like nothing happened.
CONTACT WITH THE READERS: QUESTION CORNER 148
QUESTION FROM MS NAMINKO, FROM MIE PROVINCE
I’m a housewife who loves Gintama a lot. I really respect mangaka, including you, Sorachi sensei! But the other day my younger brother said, “All mangaka only draw the storyboards, and their assistants complete the works.” That’s not true… is it? (I’m asking even though I know that, at this point, it’s almost an insult).
ANSWER:
It depends on the way mangaka work. There are those who consider their work to be the creation of the story, and there are those who think they’re done only when they’ve finished drawing and inking everything.
Many authors prefer to do their own work, as they wish, provided they have enough time. But for a weekly publication it’s almost impossible, so a lot of people do the main characters themselves, but the nameless citizens called “background characters” I often entrust to my assistants. Excuse me, but I manage to complete the boards just in time for the deadline. However, when I’m not late, I sometimes draw them. The dirtier ones are usually done by me. I think you can have fun looking for them…
CONTACT WITH THE READERS: QUESTION CORNER 149
QUESTION FROM MISS MORIRIN
Good morning, Sorachi sensei! There’s something I’ve had a doubt about for a long time, so let me ask you a question. A punk is aware that he’s a punk, but when I say, “Dear ___, you’re a punk, aren’t you?”, he replies, “Not at all!” with a very happy air. Can you tell me why?
ANSWER:
By “punk” we tend to imagine a nonconformist or rebellious person who doesn’t follow school rules, but that’s not the case at all. There is no other person who is so serious, who wants to fit the stereotype that many people have of a punk, as a hoodlum. Because most hoodlums, considered as such by people, are pseudo hoodlums. They didn’t become such because they took a really bad turn, but because they found manga cool, or because maybe they can rank high in the school hierarchy. In short, it’s everyone who plays the role of a punk for a stupid reason like that. So they feel a bit uneasy if people think they’re punks or bad guys. All in all, they just want to fit into a stereotype and live quietly like that. You asked him “You’re a punk, aren’t you?”, and he, while denying it to hide his embarrassment, must have unintentionally cracked a smile. They tend to spontaneously adapt to a classic place, such as school, even though they say they don’t want to follow adult rules or be free, because they would like everyone to frame them in the typical stereotype of those who go out of the usual schemes, that of the punk. So give them that. Just remember three phrases, “You look good in a fight”, “What kind of bike do you ride?”, “You’re a punk, aren’t you?”, and you’ll be able to get along with them too.
You want to ask me why I know that? Do you suspect Sorachi sensei is a former punk? No, I’m not!
CONTACT WITH THE READERS: QUESTION CORNER 150
QUESTION FROM MR. SANTA KURO
I am very afraid of the opinion of others. It’s often said that “only after you’ve received an evaluation from a third party can you get some appreciation,” but, surely, more often than not you are disparaged and despised. And I think one is deeply hurt by taking all criticism seriously. Sorachi sensei, how do you digest all the criticism of Gintama, which seems very harsh?
Even though the publication has been going on for nine years, I still can’t stomach the criticism. When I receive letters with negative opinions, I get hurt, I get angry, and I suffer a lot…. I haven’t yet mastered the technique of putting these feelings in order; on the contrary, I try to remain as I am, because I consider this kind of difference a normal condition for my profession.
Of course, being involved in creative activities, I want a certain recognition from society. But what gives me the strength to keep going in search of something more fun and new is rather the spirit of refuting myself. I know that if I don’t keep thinking, “This isn’t good enough,” or “I have to do something,” I’ll lose the will; that if I feel satisfied, I’ll stop, but that’s just hard for me; and that if I’m left alone, I’ll end up listening only to positive opinions. That’s why, almost as a warning to myself, I told my editor to pass along all the fan mail, including the ones that seem like the epitome of nastiness.
Obviously, if I took all the negative opinions seriously, I’d end up having a breakdown, so I quickly read them with half-closed eyes thinking, “Shut up! Die!” and I don’t let the readers’ opinions sway me because I think, “If you don’t understand, it’s because you’re the stupid one!” It’s just that I try to put myself in a situation where I’m thinking, even vaguely, “Ooh, if I keep this up, I’ll never get anything done!”
That said, volume forty-nine “One step away from the 50th volume and the movie release” ends here. Both the 50th and the movie will be released in Japan at the beginning of July, so put your allowance or salary money aside: July will be Gintama month! And hurl them with all your might at Hideaki Sorachi’s face, which is me! Please give your support to both the manga and the movie.
New topic: “Gintama Month”
Yorozuya Shinigami 