Oumagadoki Doubutsuen Omake 3

Totally forgot I still had this one on my hard drive for ages now (since mid November, I guess). Did I mention yet that found some nice guys who want to help out with Oumaga? - If not: Well, I did.

We'll get this thing done eventually. For now, enjoy this Omake!

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Author’s column:

Thank you very much for picking up the third volume of “Oumagadoki Doubutsuen”.

I was in second grade (of elementary) when I decided to become a mangaka.
The reason was that my friends complemented me on my scribbles.
I’d love to show this compiled volume to those friends and myself from back then, and to my parents as well.
I’d tell them: “I made it! I became a mangaka!”

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It’s the 3rd volume. Thank you very much.
When I had dinner with my teacher Tanaka-sensei by the end of last year, I plucked up all my courage and asked him for a certain favor, which he cheerfully agreed to.
He drew an illustration for me! I’m just so moved. Just like with volume 2, it got included to this volume.
I’m so damn happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It’s on page 46.

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Illustration

Congrats!!!!
Vol. 3 – On Sale!

I love those lively characters you draw, Horikoshi-sensei.
Tanaka Yasuki

[Tanaka-sensei (Hitomi no Catoblepas; Kagijin) drew a picture of Hana and Uwabami.]

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Kaizou

Walrus = 海象 = Kaizou*
It seems like the natural enemy of the walrus is the orca. Quite the dangerous connection…

The giant geezer who was just so determined and earnest when it came to the shows was fun to draw.
Especially because of how simple it.

[TN: Horikoshi obviously wrote something else in Japanese. He just explained how there exist two words for the same animal, i.e. walrus, one being “seiuchi” and the other being “kaizou” (sea elephant) and how he derived the character’s name from it.]

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Rough sketch

[It’s a rough sketch of Hana and Chita running next to each other]

Hana: Igarashi-san, hang in there…!!
Chita (thinking): She’s… unexpectedly fast

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Hanauwa Mukanai

The director of the Ushimi Construction Company.
You just can’t picture the old man as a company director.
He even shrugged the strange appearance of the aquarium director off with a mere: “You’re a funny one~”.
How he puts up with just about anything as long as he finds it interesting makes him resemble Shiina quite a bit, right?
You really wonder how that man has reached his current position…

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Isana (Sperm whale)

The aquarium director. He’s so huge!
In the last volume I mentioned how I decided on this “wild creature motive” for the aquarium but the truth is that all goes back to this exact form of its director. It all started from there.

Before the story even got serialized I just had this vague idea of how there should be a battle with an aquarium that’s run by a whale. And from that idea I drew a rough sketch of this form.
I did not think up his human form then.
At that time I had the plan to make him say something like “After this fight you’re gonna whale!”*, I think it was a good idea I scrapped that part!

[TN: In the Japanese version Horikoshi writes he intended to use the line “makkō shōbu” (lit. “direct confrontation”/”fight head-on”), whereas said makkō sounds like the species of Isana’s animal, i.e. sperm whale (makkō kujira). Now since this is a comic for kids I did not go for any nasty wordplays involving “sperm” but rather decided on this cheesy line and play with the sound of “wail” and “whale”.]

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See you, Aquarium!

I had mentioned this before, but while working on the concept for the series I thought it would be so cool to draw a battle of a zoo and an aquarium. Now that I got the arc to a proper ending (just like I intended it) I’m just extremely happy.
However, back when the story was published in the magazine there were a few passages that were a bit difficult to understand, thus I added some minor complementary content* (the passage when Sakamata explains his reasons for opposing Izana) … please excuse the inconvenience!
When looking at that double-page spread of the aquarium director transforming amongst the cheering and noise of the visitors to join the decisive battle, you can tell just how much I love giant monsters.

In terms of this whole zoo vs. aquarium thing, while I do love them both of course, I think that the aquarium might have the slight edge for me, frankly speaking.
I don’t mean in regards to the manga but in terms of fun places in real life.

That dark, slightly uncanny and pleasantly cool inside of an aquarium makes your heart just throb of excitement. There’s absolutely nothing like that atmosphere! I must have received several fan letters asking if I took the Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium as a model for the Ushimitsudoki Aquarium but the truth is I didn’t really plan to base if off any real life model.
Still, it’s been many a time that I have set foot in there when I was younger so I guess it’s only natural in a way that the building turned out to resemble the Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium.
Of course, that does not mean that I think their place is like a prison (for the animals) or anything like that!
It’s always been a real fun place. Sure brings back a lot of good memories~!

Let’s stick to the fan letters a little longer:
I received many questions like, “If you hear of whales you immediately think of the world’s biggest animal, the blue whale. But then why did you decide on the sperm whale?”
I’d also been wavering about this one but it seems like the sperm whale is the world’s biggest carnivore, so I thought “World’s biggest carnivore sounds hella strong!” and it all stemmed from this extremely simplistic idea of mine.
And the shape of their heads is just really cool!

That should be all about the aquarium. Because there are still many things I’d love to draw about it, I feel like it’d be real nice if I got a chance to draw them as much as possible.
Please excuse this incoherent little essay.

[TN: You may be wondering what this is about. Apparently, Horikoshi added two more pages to the Tankōbon version of chapter 23 of Oumaga. – I also just happened to notice this through his comment right here! (Had to dig up the corresponding issue of JUMP and checked page by page…) I do not intend to translate them for now since I don’t think many of you own the Tankōbon and will ever get to see this “Extended Edition” of chapter 23…]