Amin Abbas

DUBAI: Takahiro Yonemura is a Japanese Sci-fi novel-PC / IT writer, who is known for creating “Beast Code” sci fi novel series.

Speaking to Arab News Japan, Yonemura explained his passion for anime and manga started when he was a child playing video games like ‘Dragon Quest’ and ‘Final Fantasy.’

“I made up my mind that I would be able to make an impact with my own hands sometime in the future. I started researching and playing with the idea of creating a game that could have a second impact on the world in the future,” he explained. Currently, his favorite manga is ‘Guardian Beast’ and his favorite anime is ‘ZOIDS.’

Yonemura published his first book in 1994 on an introduction to technology. “Beast Code (eigoManga) was the first manga project I worked on that resulted in a press release. I have written more than 60 books,” he added.

“I reconstructed my novel ‘Beast Code’ for manga production, and in particular, I thought about expressions that can only be done in manga. I believe that comics made up of illustrations are an art form that can be enjoyed without any written explanation.”

“Moreover, a fateful encounter was on my side. Miraculously, I was able to get in touch with Megumi Akita, the artist, who drew my favorite manga ‘Guardian Beast’, which I mentioned at the beginning of this article. What used to be a proposal and ambition turned into a feasible project because of one fan’s brazen attack.

“In fact, I wanted to draw both ‘human characters’ and ‘fantastic characters, dragons, etc.’ with accurate drawings, which was a problem I had been struggling with. It was a miracle that we were able to solve this problem,” he added.

As the creator of ‘Beast Code,’ Yonemura said: “Dragons and beasts coexist with people, and their nature is not what it seems. What is important is a heart that knows pain and kindness. A heart that can learn and exercise them.”

Although the books are titled ‘Beast’, they each contain a story that can be completed in one book.”

“The origin of this message is probably something that sprouted unintentionally when I watched ‘ZOIDS’, which I mentioned as my favorite anime. This anime ‘ZOIDS’ was also credited as ‘Mecha-Biological Warfare’. It’s a fusion of two very different entities, mecha and living organisms. The mecha in this anime were all drawn in 3DCG, while the background and the living creatures (humans, etc.) were drawn in celluloid, which was the mainstream method at the time, and then synthesized into images. This was a time when the PlayStation was not even a thing. This was a limitation of digital technology in the 80’s and 90’s. Even so, the story had a heartfelt message, and I was fascinated by it without feeling uncomfortable.”

“Beast Code is a new kind of science fiction entertainment where scientific knowledge and romance intersect. This is also the concept, or catchphrase, of the entire series, and the foundation of the story. I was fortunate enough to have a teacher who kept me enrolled in a school I didn’t like, and I finally reached the ending (completed my course of study). At that time, he told me that the awarding of a doctoral degree indicates that you have the ability to disseminate difficult technology to a large number of people in an easy-to-understand manner and that you should make the most of it.”

Yonemura shared details about the upcoming release for ‘Beast Code,’ saying: “The project itself was born from a miracle. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Austin Osueke of eigoManga for accepting the publication of this book, Megumi Akita, the manga artist with whom I had a miraculous encounter, and Atsuo Kusada for translating the dialogues, which was another miraculous encounter. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them all for their positive actions.”

“And here is a small part of the story for the outline of ‘Beast Code’: A gene inherited from ancient times is expressed, revealing the mind and body of a ‘dragon’ to Raiki, who lives in the 21st century. Is love universal, even if the body becomes a ‘beast?’ What are the secrets of life as revealed by ancient genetic information?”

“It has been a long time since I had the opportunity to spread scientific knowledge using manga, which is easier to read than novels. I hope that everyone, from children to adults, will receive the message from the manga, which is neither childish nor difficult to read. With manga, even a single frame like this can send a message to the heart. Now that manga has become a culture, I feel that it will open up new possibilities in the future,” he added.

Regarding his upcoming projects, Yonemura said: “My latest science fiction book, ‘Recycle Brain’ has been released. The publisher (Reader’s Note) is considering releasing this book overseas. So you may see me in the not too distant future through my new work, which features fantastic characters and is the result of a fusion of different things.”