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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 37: FuyuComi
Year-end and New Year’s—it doesn’t matter the profession, everyone’s slammed.
Whether it’s catching up on work that piled up at the last minute, or all the final events of the year crashing in one after another.
Mid-December, 2008.
As the year wound to a close and the buzz around the 'D Note' anime’s advance screenings hit a fever pitch, I returned to my studio, disappointed that I didn’t get to see it in time.
Director Daito did say he’d try to get me a ticket no matter what, but I didn’t want to push it, especially not after I’d already turned one down.
And now that the movie script and the anime’s co-production were finally done, it was like all the built-up exhaustion hit me all at once.
With a long sigh, I sank deep into my chair and—out of habit—pulled a stack of papers from my drawer.
The drawer was filled with plot outlines and storyboards for the works I’d seen in that blank ‘Bright White Room’.
One in particular caught my eye, and I began reading through it right away.
“Hmm…”
I glanced at the calendar.
December 13.
“December 30th. Just a bit over two weeks left until FuyuComi.”
I’d already finished working on Volume 2 of 'Art Sword Online' and 'Dora Tora'.
Unlike last time—when I had to scramble to find a circle willing to sell on consignment—this time I had no problem, thanks to how well things sold during NatsuComi (Summer Comiket) and the introduction I got from Field Scroll.
But one thing kept bugging me…
I didn’t have a new release under the name ‘Enju’.
“Hmmm…”
It’s not like I hadn’t considered doing something new. I ‘had’ a project in mind for a new release.
But it didn’t come together the way I wanted—so I shelved it.
“…But still… maybe now…”
Suddenly, a strange kind of confidence welled up in me—totally baseless, but there it was.
“Should I go for it?”
I didn’t hesitate for long.
There’s no harm in trying, and if it crashes and burns, I’ll just walk away clean.
I laid the thick bundle of papers on my desk—its cover read:
“Monogatari.”
It was one of the light novels I’d read in that white, dream-like space.
Thanks to that world where anything creative could appear, I’d seen both the original novel and the anime adaptation of 'Monogatari'.
And back then, my first thought was:
- There’s no way you could adapt this into a manga.
This series had a very strong, very ‘specific’ personality.
Its charm lay in the author’s unique, cerebral narration and the fast-paced, back-and-forth dialogue between characters.
The anime nailed the tone with spot-on direction.
It was hard to imagine a more fitting way to bring the original to life in another format.
I wanted to see if there ‘was’ a manga adaptation… but no luck. It didn’t exist.
Now, you might say—“Can’t you just tweak the pacing, like you did with 'Art Sword Online' or 'Dora Tora'?”
But that’s not so easy here.
As I said, 'Monogatari' has a deeply literary flavor.
The character banter is electric, sure—but there’s ‘a lot’ of it. Too much for a standard manga format.
And the psychological nuances? They’re brilliant, but ‘so’ hard to capture in visual panels.
The anime managed to express that strange, heady mood through quick voice acting and clever use of subtitles and visual cuts.
But in manga? That same tempo is practically impossible to replicate—at least, it felt that way to me.
Not to mention the protagonist’s dense inner monologues, metaphor-heavy lines, and non-linear conversations…
The anime could pull it off.
But manga?
Manga has limits.
And yet…
After the movie project… after the anime co-production…
I’d learned so much.
And things I couldn’t see before—now they were becoming clear.
And then I arrived at the one answer.
The one way I could adapt 'Monogatari' into manga.
And that answer was—
“Don’t be bound by the framework of manga alone.”
＊ ＊ ＊
The biggest advantage Jung Junhyuk had at Comiket was that he could control the page count however he wanted.
Being able to freely expand or trim the number of pages meant he could use bold, cinematic paneling without constraint.
“I can’t include every monologue. I’ll have to selectively keep what’s crucial to the story and cut the rest.”
Junhyuk had been trapped in that Bright White Room for what felt like an eternity, during which he neither ate nor slept, instead devoting himself entirely to analyzing the work.
Even so, there was no way he could remember every single line or scene from the original.
Right after his return, he began scribbling down the plot whenever it came to mind, jotting down any highlight he could recall, and sketching rough illustrations of the mood for the parts he couldn’t put into words.
Though he’d consumed a wide range of media—light novels, anime, webtoons—his deepest loyalty always lay with manga.
Even the way he recorded everything was tailored toward creating manga.
And now, with new clarity and perspective, Junhyuk felt capable of adapting 'Monogatari' into a manga that truly captured its unique tone.
“I’ll borrow techniques from the anime and use plenty of negative space panels.”
If he transcribed the original text word-for-word, the pages would become cluttered and dense. That would exhaust readers and ruin the pacing.
“I’ve got room to work with. I can dedicate entire pages to just white space and a single simple drawing to set the mood.”
Even with the same amount of text, effective spacing and layout could preserve the rhythm.
“I can’t stage every scene like in the anime, but if I use it sparingly and smartly, it should work.”
When psychological descriptions took center stage, he would use composition, lighting, and backgrounds as visual devices to keep the reader’s attention.
For more delicate emotional moments, he’d skip the exposition and instead depict lips trembling, hands fidgeting—leaning on film-like direction to show emotion through images rather than words.
“Monologue and dialogue need to be clearly separated. In the novel or anime, you can fluidly switch between internal thoughts and spoken lines, but in a manga, doing that without distinction will only confuse the reader.”
By blending visual storytelling from anime with the paneling unique to manga, he aimed to evoke the signature mood and manipulate the reader’s emotions.
“Whew… honestly, I think it turned out pretty well.”
The page count had grown significantly, but the content—the core material—was solid and satisfying.
He flipped through the completed storyboard he’d drafted.
While it was long, that didn’t mean the total amount of drawing work was dramatically more than 'Art Sword Online' or 'Dora Tora'. Because he used so many blank or minimalist panels to set the tone, the actual amount of drawing hadn’t ballooned.
“To be honest, I’m not sure if this will land…”
He’d tried hard to integrate cinematic and anime-style direction in a way that wouldn’t feel out of place. But ultimately, it was up to the readers.
No matter how meticulous the layout or how strategically the text was dispersed, if it didn’t reach the audience, it would just come off as confusing.
“Still, it’s Comiket. Even if it flops a little, it’s not the end of the world.”
He’d layered in a number of experimental directing techniques.
From the start, Junhyuk had never viewed Comiket as a venue for profit or prestige, so he didn’t feel much pressure.
“Still, maybe I should print fewer copies…”
The name 'Enju' became famous far faster than he expected.
It wouldn’t be great if someone bought the new work based solely on that name, only to find it confusing and impenetrable.
With 'Art Sword Online' and 'Dora Tora' making the rounds on social media and forums, it made sense they sold well. But this likely wouldn’t generate the same buzz.
“Please print about 500 copies of the new release.”
Tack—
Junhyuk hit enter lightly and sent off the email. He glanced up at the sun now hanging high in the sky and let out a light yawn.
He hadn’t even realized a whole day had passed while he was deep in the zone.
“I’ll catch a few hours of sleep, then get back to work.”
Dragging his feet, Junhyuk collapsed into bed.
Unaware of the impact those mere 500 copies of 'Monogatari' might end up having.
＊ ＊ ＊
"Thank you so much for coming, Sanae!"
Inside the bustling venue of Winter Comiket, the department head of Field Scroll, Sanae, gave a small wave in response to the bright greeting from her junior in college.
"It's nothing. We just had some free time, so we came by. You helped out Honoka last time too, remember?"
Behind Honoka, an entire lineup of game packages neatly displayed titles developed by the circle she managed.
In industries like theirs, connections often matter, so when an opportunity arises to build relationships, it’s wise to take it.
But for Sanae, this wasn’t about networking. She and Honoka were personally close from their university days, so she had naturally volunteered to help out in any way she could.
"Still, the line outside was crazy when we came in."
"That’s because FuyuComi’s a year-end event… Honestly, that’s what has me worried. We really wanted to participate in the summer instead..."
Honoka sighed softly, and Sanae gave her a few reassuring pats on the shoulder.
When you really look at it, FuyuComi (Winter Comiket) was generally larger in scale than NatsuComi (Summer Comiket).
Even if the physical venue wasn’t necessarily bigger, the year-end timing meant it attracted high-profile, powerhouse circles—and with them came serious heat.
It was the kind of battlefield where only the most polished, perfected works could stand out.
So naturally, a mid-sized circle like Honoka’s—not obscure, but not yet on Field Scroll’s level—had every reason to be nervous.
“But honestly, I’m just glad we get to display Enju-sensei’s manga at our booth. Since their work blew up at NatsuComi, I’m hoping this time’ll be just as— …Senpai?”
“Hmm? Oh… uh, is it okay if I buy a copy of this?”
“Oh, of course!”
Sanae smiled as she picked up copies of Enju’s latest release, along with the sequels to 'Art Sword Online' and 'Dora Tora', which had drawn massive buzz at the previous event.
Honoka, grinning, teased her playfully.
“Senpai, are you sure you came here to help me? Or did you just come to snag Enju-sensei’s new books?”
“……”
“...Senpai?”
With that little hiccup behind them, Winter Comiket finally opened its doors.
Despite all the nerves and second-guessing, Honoka’s circle, Try&, barely had time to catch their breath.
“...Huh?”
In just an hour and a half, they had completely sold out.
＊ ＊ ＊
[Okay but seriously, where the hell do I get a copy of “Monogatari”?]
I saw someone post a snippet online and wanted to buy it, but they only printed 500 copies. There’s literally no one selling it.
And once again, Enju’s account was absolutely on fire.
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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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