Bringing The Suicide Squad Into the Anime World
by Christopher Macdonald & Lynzee Loveridge,ANN's coverage of Anime Expo 2023 sponsored by Yen Press!
Anime News Network: When did development start on Suicide Squad Isekai? Did WIT Studio formulate the idea, or did DC approach you?
Hiroyuki OMORI: Was it three or four years ago? Though I have a vague memory of who approached who first... Warner Bros. Japan wanted to make an anime for a DC Comic title and then approached asking if WIT Studio would be interested in the project. Then, after WIT Studio considered it, they decided they'd like to join the project. Producer [Sho] Ohtani was especially interested and tried to develop the idea of what they could make the anime look like. So that's how the project started.
What about these well-known comic book characters make them fit into an isekai fantasy?
George WADA: Firstly, the Suicide Squad characters are really vivid and strong. The viewers would be interested in what the team or the individual characters would do next, how they would prepare to fight, and what they would do. We discussed this and the anime genre called “isekai-mono” at Wit Studio.
You're all familiar that the isekai genre is when the characters are transported from their normal life into this entirely different world, but I suspected that average DC fans wouldn't have watched isekai anime as their daily routine. So, if Suicide Squad is produced by a Japanese animation studio, I assumed that creating an isekai genre anime would be an original approach only we could take.
Usually, an isekai fantasy takes place or begins with the character's death before they are reborn in the new world. Can we expect a dramatic end to the Suicide Squad characters before they enter the isekai world?
Sho OHTANI: There is no dramatic end before they enter the world. (laughs) Usually, the isekai fantasy is all about them being forcefully taken into the isekai world. In this story, they actually choose to be in another world, so they have a purpose to go into that world.
Isekai worlds are always alternative worlds from our own. What kind of world can we expect to see in the Suicide Squad Isekai?
OHTANI: It's very much like a basic image of, like, a fantasy world.
Amano Akira previously worked for Production I.G on the PSYCHO-PASS series. What makes their art a good fit for Suicide Squad Isekai?
WADA: I am a producer of PSYCHO-PASS, who came up with the proposal [for that series]. PSYCHO-PASS is all about a police organization. And Amano-sensei was involved in that project [as the original character designer]. So when I was working on the PSYCHO-PASS series, I thought it would be interesting to see the Suicide Squad villains animated with the Amano-sensei's designs. So, I wanted to see Suicide Squad characters depicted in a broader sense, as Japanese animation. So that's why we used Amano's style.
This is your directorial debut. You've worked on titles like Jujutsu Kaisen. What attracts you to this project, and what kind of strengths do you bring to it?
Eri OSADA: So I love The Flash from the DC series. When I took this job on, I thought maybe it's a good way to get a connection with the DC, so, later, I might get to direct the Flash anime. (laughs).
OHTANI: You like Suicide Squad, too, don't you?
OSADA: Ah…
All: (Laugh)
OHTANI: Not only is she a great animator, but she is very imaginative and creative. So, I thought she would have a good influence on this title if she joined the project.
Do you like the Suicide Squad project?
OSADA: Of course, I love it.
All: (Laugh)
Besides Re:Zero, Tappei Nagatsuki also wrote for WIT's Vivy -Fluorite Eye's Song anime series. How would you describe his interpretation of Harley Quinn for Suicide Squad Isekai?
OHTANI: Nagatsuki-san produced everyone's favorite Harley and the Joker. But that influence came from Osada-san. She had her vision of how the Joker and Harley should act and behave. So he took that vision and developed it into a project.
Did Nagatsuki's previous work influence how you designed that role for him? Or was it entirely from your original idea?
OSADA: It was not necessarily like his previous works influenced how I designed that role for him, but I requested the characteristics I wanted for Harley from him. I watched a couple of movies that Harley Quinn was in. In some movies, Harley Quinn depended on the Joker. But in the other movies, she has fallen out with the Joker and fights with him. But it was hard to depict that kind of woman considering my personality. What I wanted was the next step of Harley being an independent woman. That's the image I had. Although I wanted her to be an independent woman, I also wanted Harley to look cute in front of the Joker. So that's the kind of vision of Harley Quinn I requested from Nagatsuki-san.
What was your first experience with DC characters? And do you have a favorite version of the Joker?
WADA: The first time I sort of recognized DC as a brand was The Dark Knight. Heath Ledger's the Joker is the Joker that left a strong impression on me.
OSADA: When I was a little child, I kind of noticed this thing called Superman.
OHTANI: (humming the melody of Superman's theme music)
All: (Laughs)
OSADA: And also Dragon Balls' Akira Toriyama, who also wrote Dr. Slump—Arale-chan, you know Arale-chan, right? Superman inspired a character in that series.
OHTANI: That's the "Suppaman" character.
OSADA: Right, Suppaman!
OHTANI: Then, your first experience is Christopher Reeve's Superman.
OSADA: It was so popular everywhere in Japan that it affected a famous comic author like Toriyama-san. Although I didn't realize it was a DC franchise, I remember that I had liked it unconsciously since childhood.
OHTANI: Same with Wada-san. I remember that Heath Ledger's the Joker from The Dark Knight was captivating as the Joker. But a little bit different from everyone else who answered. I also strongly remember the villain in Batman v Superman's Lex Luthor. Maybe because I liked that actor, I don't know, but I definitely liked that character.
Is there anything you want fans to know about this show or you want our readers to look forward to?
WADA: Through Suicide Squad Isekai, I would like non-Japanese anime-watchers to notice there is a genre called "isekai" and there are other types of interesting stories that they've never seen. So, I really would like this anime to be a window into anime and also the isekai genre. Vice versa, I also will like Japanese anime fans to notice there is a DC franchise.
OHTANI: In Japan, while there are some hardcore DC fans, most people just know the brand name and don't know its franchises deeply. So, it's not that well-known. So when I ordered the characters and the storyboards, I hoped that the anime would give the viewers a strong attachment to the characters.
OSADA: I don't really like serious stuff. So I put some comedy moments when developing the script. While there are serious films like Batman v Superman, there are also light and enjoyable themes. So it would be great if the fans could know that DC titles can be enjoyed lightly and are fun. The series isn't always dark.
Suicide Squad ISEKAI Production Credits:
Director: Eri Osada
Screenplay: Tappei Nagatsuki, Eiji Umehara
Character Design Draft: Akira Amano
Character Design: Naoto Hosoda
Music: Kenichiro Suehiro
Animation Production: WIT STUDIO
Produced by: Warner Bros. Japan
Official Website: https://suicidesquad-isekai.com
Copyright:
Suicide Squad and all related characters and elements © & TM DC © 2023 Warner Bros. Entertainment. All rights reserved.
Illustration／Akira Amano
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