Hino Interview Animage October 2018 Part 2
Nosaka Yuuma: He talks about how ‘The Ares Program will change the world’, but what’s his true goal…? And with that brain tumor is he going to be okay?
Q When didn’t Nosaka play in the FF when he was a first year?
A He was playing soccer but Outei didn’t have enough strong players to play in a tournament. Gekko Electronics don’t do things half-heartedly. In this world, soccer is already one of the most popular sports, so they wanted an incredibly strong team to promote Ares.
Q Do Haizaki Ryouhei and Nishikage Seiya’s names come from their schools’ theme?
A They were based on their character’s appearance. Nosaka’s was also based on his character’s appearance, and his school’s theme was decided after that. Haizaki, as his name shows, is a gray character with an air of darkness around him, so in contrast we decided to give Nosaka a pretty name and pink hair. We wanted to make them feel as different as shadows and light.
Q In Haizaki’s flashback we see Outei has a trophy, but what tournament is that from?
A This is Outei’s first time to take part in the FF so it’s from a separate tournament. There are many soccer tournaments held throughout the year, but the FF gets the most attention. That’s why even though it’s Nosaka’s first time in the FF he’s already a popular player. Before the Outei team was established, Nosaka also appeared by himself in Gekko Electronics commercials, and was already treated quite favorably.
Q Is Outei’s theme based on literature?
A No, it’s based on nature. The three main teams are based on the blazing sun (Raimon), a school of star players to represent the stars (Seishou) and the shadow of the moon at night (Outei). However, naming the members of Outei only after the moon would have been impossible. Since Nosaka’s name was already decided, we decided to use names that relate to nature like his, using the kanji for field and flowers and grass. Outei is an unnatural, mechanical school, so we wanted to create a contrast. The Outei members are very simple, natural, and unadorned.
The Outei members ‘nature kanji’ is as follows
(桜 sakura) SAKUraba Haruki
Q According Ranking Race for practice matches, Seishou are number one. Does that mean Outei lost to Seishou?
A Or rather, each school’s ranking us decided by a variety of factors. Outei have been steamrolling ahead recently, but I feel like Seishou have a higher overall rank. Outei were slow to get going. All matches that take places take various ranking points into mind as they place on the Ranking List.
Q Why is there no member of the reinforcement committee as part of Outei?
A Because Gekko Electronics didn’t want to be accused of Outei’s strength being thanks to a member of that committee. I feel like they’ve declared ‘as long as we have the Ares Program, we don’t need a member of the Reinforcement committee’. Besides, they might butt into their plans more than necessary.
Q Why did Nishikage decide to follow Nosaka?
A To Nishikage, Nosaka is more or less a mentor to him. After the incident with the fire, Nishikage basically developed a guy crush or great admiration for Nosaka. ‘Unlike me, who has been living their life with no direction, Nosaka seems to have a direction in his life.’ Is what he thought. We plan to expand in this in the upcoming Nosaka focused manga that will be published online at MangaOne. You’ll get to see their backstory, and just what exactly happened to Nosaka.
Q Wasn’t it difficult for Nishikage to suddenly join the Ares Program?
A Even though he was quite a delinquent, he hasn’t had much trouble adapting. I think Nishikage is quite an intelligent kid. And even though he has the ability to take action himself, he did his best to stay by Nosaka’s side. Nosaka probably feels like he took Nishikage under his wing.
Q Wasn’t it difficult for Kazemaru to go from an ordinary school (Raimon) to an elite school (Teikoku)?
A It probably was! And the textbooks would be different too. But I think Kazemaru has the ability to handle it - it’s part of him being very adaptable. Like how he went from track club to the soccer club. However, if you take music classes for example, ‘What do you mean I have to learn the violin?!’ he probably felt a bit taken back!
Q Both Nishikage and Hiroto were delinquents - have they ever crossed paths?
A No, they haven’t. They occupy different territories. The same goes for Fudou. By the way, Fudou is nowhere near as much of a delinquent in this parallel world.
Q Please give us your closing words on what’s to come!
A I would have like to go through each match in more detail throughout Ares. But I wanted to introduce so many characters that we wouldn’t have enough time - that was my dilemma. In the next series - Orion - matches will last at least three episodes. You can see things in more detail. And there will be a lot of suspense. You’ll get to see characters act contrary to your expectations, which might make some fans uneasy, but keep your heart strong as you watch the show unfold!
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