New York Comic Con 2024: Hiro Mashima Talks With Anime Herald

Note: Due to the time-sensitive nature of our coverage, this article will debut on the main Anime Herald site on October 31. We apologize for the inconvenience.

• Interviewer: Seth Burn

• Editor: Samantha Ferreira

Anime Herald: Welcome to New York! Is there anything in particular you are looking forward to doing in New York?

Hiro Mashima: Food! Meals!

Anime Herald: Anything in particular?

Hiro Mashima: Steaks and hamburgers.

Anime Herald: If you were to hire the Jiggle Butt Gang to steal something for you, what would you have them try to steal?

Hiro Mashima: That’s a hard one. (Laughs) I am not a criminal, so I am not really into stealing anything.

Anime Herald: You go to the dubbing studio and talk to the director and voice actors of FAIRY TAIL, and now FAIRY TAIL: 100 Years Quest. I’ve read that through your communications with the voice actors, some characters got to have more appearances in the manga. Is this because you were inspired by the voice actors? Can you share some of the stories with the voice actors?

Hiro Mashima: The voice actor for Happy, (Rie) Kugiyama-san approached me and said “I have a feeling Happy is this kind of character, can I just check my understanding.” It was a fresh perspective that I hadn’t thought about. That was a refreshing and unique experience for me.

As a manga artist, I have to bring all of the characters to life. However, as a voice actor, they really focus on bringing one character to life. There are some differences in perspective that enriches the entire content.

Anime Herald: What led you to continue FAIRY TAIL with FAIRY TAIL: 100 Years Quest?

Hiro Mashima: I think everyone is looking forward to a continuation of FAIRY TAIL. That’s what’s moving the story along.

Anime Herald: What would you like our readers to know about FAIRY TAIL: 100 Years Quest?

Hiro Mashima: The FAIRY TAIL series can seem a little violent at first. There are a lot of battle scenes. But at its core, it is a story about friendship. That’s what I want readers to know. This is a story of friendship.

Anime Herald: You seem to have a particular affinity for Dragons. Where did that come from?

Hiro Mashima: I used to believe they were real when I was a kid. My imagination has continued their growth within me.

Anime Herald: You’ve remarked that creating the rough sketch of the plot, the storyboards, is your favorite part of the process. Are there any particular chapters that you remember fondly?

Hiro Mashima: Very often, until I start doing these sketches, I haven’t fully developed the entire backstory. There are times during the process of drafting that a different twist of the story comes into play.

In Rave Master there’s a character named Reina. Since it’s so old, we’re not going to worry about spoilers here. She doesn’t make it through the story. She died in that episode. But until I started drafting that episode, it hadn’t been decided that she was going to sacrifice herself there.

I heard that my editor at the time was wondering, “Is she going to make it? Is she not going to make it? It was a thrill for everyone involved.

Anime Herald: Did you break your editor’s heart when she died?

Hiro Mashima: He was impressed.

Anime Herald: You’ve said that you’ve been inspired by RPGs. What are some of your favorite RPGs?

Hiro Mashima: Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. Two equal favorites.

Anime Herald: What modern games have you been playing lately?

Hiro Mashima: Overwatch.

Anime Herald: Favorite character?

Hiro Mashima: Reinhardt.

Anime Herald: How has your writing changed now that you have such a strong international audience, particularly in France and the US?

Hiro Mashima: I’ve become more sensitive to cultural nuances. There are a lot of symbols in Japan that are just decorative, that have religious meaning overseas. I’m careful to check those nuances before using them.

Also, I’ve started using circle bubbles so it’s easier for overseas audiences.

Anime Herald: You’ve mentioned sometimes disagreeing with your editor. Can you talk about any specific cases where you went with your editor’s idea over your own?

Hiro Mashima: It’s hard to think of a concrete example. In general, what happens is I’ll think something is usable and fun and my editor will say “You know, that’s really no good.”

What I try to take out of that situation is not just that it’s no good, but why it’s no good. Understanding how to make it better through conversations with my editor.

Anime Herald: In DEAD ROCK, God wears a “form-fitting cat suit.” What attracted you to such a style?

Hiro Mashima: It was a time when I had to produce a lot of different designs. It was the easiest for me to draw out.

Anime Herald: Does God get to be the lead singer in a rock band?

Hiro Mashima: What is this question trying to get at?

Anime Herald: God looks like a 1980s rock band lead singer.

Hiro Mashima: Now I understand. Should I have God sing in one of these episodes?

Anime Herald: Yes. (Laughs) How long do you intend DEAD ROCK to run? (How many books?)

Hiro Mashima: It has not been decided yet. Initially I wasn’t thinking of having it be a very long series, but since it has done so well with the audience, I’ll be able to extend it.

Anime Herald: What is your origin story? IE, how did you become a mangaka?

Hiro Mashima: When I was a little kid, I lived in the countryside. My grandfather would bring home manga magazines he found in the mountains. He would bring them home, I would read them, and I started emulating them.

Anime Herald: Are there any in particular that you loved?

Hiro Mashima: Kinnikuman.

(Editor’s note: The translator asked me the English name of Kinnikuman.)

Anime Herald: Ultimate Muscle. They banned Ultimate Muscle in the US for being too violent.

Hiro Mashima: I knew about that. There was a lot of inappropriate symbolism.

Anime Herald: That’s true, too. Do you have any questions for us?

Hiro Mashima: I am curious about the casting for the English dubbing. What goes into those decisions and do they choose voice actors that are similar to the original Japanese voice actors?

Anime Herald: I’m going to answer the last part of that first. No, they are not similar. They don’t try to recreate the exact thing that they did in Japan. The director will have a vision of how something will work in America, and then try to choose voice actors that will fit that vision.

Hiro Mashima: Considering that, the FAIRY TAIL dubbed version is pretty similar in spirit to the Japanese.

Anime Herald: They want it to be similar in spirit, but sometimes in America, to express the same message, they have to say it a little bit differently.

That can be from the script, or how a line is said. Let’s say in Japan you could say something very quietly, and people will understand you are being dead serious, but in America you might have to say it more forcefully to get the same message across.

Hiro Mashima: I understand. Thank you.

Anime Herald: Thank you very much.