Okita ×ka (Okita Bakka)
Comic Creator

--Please tell us about yourself and your interest in reading comics.

When I was 5 years old, my parents opened a Chinese restaurant. I started reading food-related comics a lot after reading "Kuishinbo Banzai" on the bookshelf that my parents made for keeping comics for customers. At that time, the bookshelves were full of men's magazines, which pages only depicted eroticism and violence, thus I was only familiar with these subjects.

--Out of all the comics you have read up until now, please tell us if there have been any influential authors, inspirational situations, or memorable lines.

When I was wondering if it would be possible for me to work properly in the future due to developmental disabilities, I vaguely remember reading the phrase from an episode called Sansha-Sanyo* in the series BLACK JACK  “Even if you go out into the real world and look at people walking around the city, you wouldn’t know their academic history or whether they are down and out. That’s just the way the world is!” After reading this, I realized that I shouldn’t care so much about what other people think about me.

 Sansha-Sanyo*: Sansha means three people and Sanyo means three ways in Japanese.

               Each of three people has their own way of doing things.

--What made you decide to become a professional comic creator?

When I was working in the adult entertainment industry, I just happened to meet the comic creator, Sakuraichi Bagen, and it seems that he thought my personal story was an interesting one and I could use it for something. At first, he told me to be a writer, but even when I actually turned in my story to the publisher, I was rejected as untrustworthy because I worked in the adult entertainment industry. Then I was asked, “Why don’t you become a comic creator?’ So, at age 25, I created my first comic book.

--What are you especially particular about when creating your comics?

The lives of all characters are described in detail. Even if you don't understand the character at first glance, by laying the groundwork for living their specific kind of life to the present, it will be easier for readers to empathize with “Oh, I guess there are some relatives like that!”

--Do you, personally, undergo any changes when you create the comics? If so, please tell us what they are.

At first, I thought that a comic wasn’t interesting unless you could laugh at the contents, but other than that, I started to make Tomei na Yurikago in order to prove that one can create an interesting comic even if one doesn’t laugh at it. I learned this in subsequent evaluations. I am still not sure exactly what charm my comics possess

--What kind of comics do you want to create in the future?

I want to create comics that depict what various people are like inside. Stories like a seemingly ordinary woman reaching happiness at the end of a turbulent life, or vice versa in which a character commits crimes. I would like to pursue these life lessons until I die and create comics that connect these lessons with the future. After all, this is what I want to refocus on in my own life as well.

--Please tell us if you have anything you would like to convey to the readers of your comics.

Others aren't interested in you as much as you may think. Even if an acquaintance, someone who doesn’t know you very well, suddenly starts to lecture you about something, you don't have to pay any attention to them. That person is just telling you this because he/she wants to feel good about themselves by saying what they think is the right thing.

--There are sayings such as "Don't decide things for us without consulting us first," "No one gets left behind," "Inclusion," "Symbiotic society," and "Society that recognizes diversity," but is there any saying that you feel is important? Please tell us if you have any. What kind of society do you think Japan should aim for in the future?

In my experience, I feel it is easier to live after realizing that even if one puts forth effort, one is not always rewarded with success and that the happiness that parents want for their children (dating with the opposite sex, marriage, pregnancy, childbirth) is not always their happiness. I think this is only natural.

My particular way of living is in the minority, but I feel we have to think of it as a distinction rather than discrimination. I would like a society that aims at accepting each individual’s way of life regardless of gender.

(Note) The text is a summary of the contents of the questionnaire answered by Ms. Okita and edited by the editorial department.