Now, I'm the type who sits down with his manga and reads through with a decent understanding of Japanese culture and the way they use grammar and writing for their jokes. Certain titles, with respect to this knowledge, come out feeling really awkward and broken. This usually leads me to wonder, "What the hell goes on behind the scenes here?" Well, in the interest of better knowing the people behind the manga we read, and in the interests of maybe finding out a bit about what really does go on there, I got into contact with David Ury. The man does some excellent work on several of my favorite titles currently, Genshiken, Gacha Gacha, and Pastel, and luckily, he agreed to take some time out and answer a few questions I had. So, without further whatnot and tazzamaraz(my spellchecker likes this word a lot), I give you… An Interview with David Ury.

Ok, first things first. How do you pronounce your last name? Is it like yuri or you-rhee or oo-rhee? Or something else altogether?

My name is pronounced Yuri.

Now on to the meat of the thing. I'll start with the whole process in general. How do you go about translating the books that you translate? Do you read them first and then translate or just dig right in and skip the pleasantries?

I generally do a read through of each book before I translate it. I always do read-throughs of new books or books with complicated plots. If I'm on, say volume 14 of a series that I'm very familiar with, then I might just dig right into the translation.

I've noticed a lot of American-style sassy writing in lots of the books that are out there (notably with TOKYOPOP). With regards to adapting them for an American audience, how close do you keep it to the original Japanese works, and do you generally try to keep as much of the Japanese influence in as possible or do you think it's more important to Americanize things and why?

I try to keep as close as possible to the original content and style of the manga. I don't generally add in lots of extra slang or idioms to give the manga more American appeal. I just don't see a great need for it in my work. Of course, there are times when a joke or saying is simply not translatable into English[ed. Such as kanji based wordplay]. In these cases I try to come up with as close an English equivalent as possible. Sometimes I just have to improvise and come up with a joke that works in the context.

Following from that idea, I have long said that anime dubbing is something that just can't carry over well as English, specifically American-English, lacks a large number of the mannerisms, rather they get lost in translation. How do you feel about dubbed anime without regard to the talent involved on the acting or writing sides? Would you rather see a move towards understanding the Japanese culture or is it fine as it is?

To be honest, I don't watch a lot of American versions of Anime, so I really have no strong personal opinion about it. Most DVD's I've seen have an option where you can watch it dubbed or with subtitles, so that seems like it would solve the problem for those who don't like dubs. As far as dubbing…in general…only a limited number of Americans are willing to read subtitles when watching a film/show. Dubbing allows the work to reach a wider audience, including young kids who definitely wouldn't put up with subtitles. So, while it may annoy some viewers, overall I'd say it's a positive thing.

Being as you speak fluent Japanese, I will boldly assume that you are at least mildly keeping track of otaku culture (more specific questions about your interest will be coming down the pipe momentarily). That assumption being cast, how do you feel about the moe shift of late? Is it a trend you're a fan of? Are you moe for Becky-sensei (from Pani Poni Dash!)?

I have mixed feelings about the moe trend. I consider myself an impartial observer to these trends in manga, so I won't comment on them directly, but here is a link to an interesting take on the recent popularity of moe/fetish stuff and its effects on otaku culture.

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/waiwai/news/20060512p2g00m0dm014000c.html

(See also our discussion on the matter.)

I'm not moe for Becky sensei. I'm only moe for Umagon. [ed. *shudders*]

Moving violently back to the American industry, I'd like to ask how you are generally treated, artistically by domestic companies. How often do you have differences with the management? If any one instance or company sticks out, everyone would be glad to hear about it. After all, it's the manga we buy, we want to know what's getting axed. It's cool to keep it general as well.

Different companies have different ideas about how a translations or adaptations should look. It's basically my job to give them what they ask for. I do personally get a little annoyed when I see a favorite character name of mine changed to a more "reader friendly" version, but then again, I'm sure the publishers have a better idea of what their readers want than I do. Sometimes publishers have to change the manga in order to keep it consistent with an anime that has already been released.

To be honest, I've never gotten into any huge arguments with management over creative differences. Sorry, no juicy stories in that vein.

How about working with the Japanese companies? Do you tend to work closely with the authors and publishers?

It seems to be a common misconception among manga fans that we translators get to hobnob with the manga writers/and creators. Nope, I have no contact with any of the artists that I translate. There are certainly times when I'd like to ask the writers exactly what they meant here or there, but… I reckon they're too busy writing new material.

How did Del Rey feel about dropping the F-bomb in volume 5 of Genshiken? Honestly, I stopped reading it for a second and went "man, that kicks ass. I'm glad they brought that through. It captured the emotion well."

I don't know how they felt, but they printed it. Nobody said anything to me about it. I try to use profanity sparingly, that way, when it does appear, it has a lot more impact.

Considering the way Genshiken has been received in Japan, do you feel you have a lot to live up to bringing it over?

Yes, Genshiken is definitely my most challenging title. There are often references to manga and anime, or specific quotes that I'm not familiar with. I have a number of Japanese hardcore otaku friends who I consult. The Japanese version of Genshiken often contains purposely misspelled/altered names of characters and titles, sometimes it's tough to figure out what they refer to.

Ok, ok. One last Genshiken question. Who would you say you most relate with from the series?

Kuchiki

Now, to get personal. Oh yeah. What is your favorite anime? Manga? Failing that, what is the genre that you most often find yourself sitting down in front of?

What I'm into right now is Gantz and 20th century boys. (20seiki Shonen). My favorite artist is Shigeru Mizugi (Ge, Ge, Ge ni Kitaro). I love all the Kitaro stories. His dark style really captures the beauty of rural Japan. I love his images of temples and graveyards.

As far as anime goes…I'm a huge Miyazaki fan. Especially Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Nausica, and Spirited Away.

I don't watch much anime that is adapted from manga. I prefer to just read the manga. I do like Initial D though.

I've always been a fan of Chibi Maruko and Crayon Shin-chan. I also like watching old anime from the 70's… Gacha-man, Majinga X, that kind of stuff. I like Kiteretsu Daihyakka too.

Where/how/from whom did you learn Japanese and what drove you to do it?

I went to Japan as a college student because I wanted to get the hell out of the U.S. While there, I became absolutely obsessed with becoming the most fluent white guy in Tokyo. I learned Japanese from everyone and everything around me. I used to walk home from the train station to my home stay house looking up every kanji on every sign I passed. It took me 11 hours just to walk 3 blocks.

I also spent many months hitchhiking around Japan. I got to talk to all kinds of people for hours on end.

Do you think more women should find receding hairlines sexy? I mean, mine is on its way out, and the ladies just don't know what they're missing.

All women find receding hair lines sexy.

Since we seem to be completely unrelated to the general theme of manga and such, let's talk about the other hobbies you have. Aside from translating you have a pretty full plate it seems. Tell us a bit about what you do.

Well…I'm an actor. So, when I'm not translating, I'm usually auditioning for film or TV or commercial stuff. I try to do my own little short films sometimes too.

I'm also finishing the second draft of a horror screenplay which will hopefully get made.

I travel to Japan a few times each year. This summer I'm planning on taking side trips to Thailand and Taiwan. I also study languages. I'm working on Mandarin and Thai right now.

Have you ever considered trying your hand at Japanese stand-up(kneel on pillow) comedy?

When I was a student in Japan, I did manzai (two man stand up), and a little bit of Rakugo (the kneel on pillow type). Nowadays I sometimes appear on Japanese TV shows introducing LA hot spots and stuff.

I do a lot of sketch comedy and Improv comedy here in L.A. too.

Lastly, do you have any upcoming shows, appearances, and/or book releases that you're excited about and want to tell people not to miss?

Del-Rey is releasing "Basilisk" at the end of May. It's a dark, beautifully drawn page turner about warring ninja clans. It was a real pleasure to work on this one. This was a new genre for me and a refreshing change from the shonen and shojou titles I usually work on. It's one of my favorite books. Don't miss this one.

I also recommend Gacha Gacha. I think book 3 is out now. There are 6 books in the first series, and the second series comes out at the end of 2006.

As far a film/TV work goes…

You can see me, now, being whipped by demons in hell on the promo commercial for the FX show "it's always sunny in Philladelphia".

You can also see me as a meth addict in a anti-meth PSA.

http://montanameth.org/ads_television.aspx

Click on "Junkie den". I'm the guy who says "You did it, kid".

I have a nice little part in the first episode of the new NBC show "Heroes" (airing in September). It's a show about people discovering they have super powers. A lot of people are comparing it to the X-men. I haven't seen the show yet, but the script was by far the best TV script I'd ever read.

I'm also in the horror film "Dark Ride" starring the girl who plays Meadow on The Sopranos.

I'm in another film called "Intellectual Property" starring Christopher Masterson (the older brother on Malcolm in the Middle). They should both be out this year.

End Of Interview!

I'd like to thank David Ury, again and again, for his time and for the keen answers to my relatively stupid and stilted questions. I hope that this interview was entertaining, and I certainly got a lot from it as a manga fan. But if you didn't, whatever, you suck. Just to link him again, you can find David Ury's actor site here, and you can find the books he's translated all over the place. So go pick some up and see the stuff he's in and all that good sort of stuff there.

For another interesting insight into the world of manga translation, please check out the AnimeonDVD blog over in this direction.