• Welcome to the Kancolle Wiki!
  • If you have any questions regarding site content, account registration, etc., please visit the KanColle Wiki Discord

Difference between revisions of "Interview with 6 Artists: MelFebri December 2013"

From Kancolle Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
 
(One intermediate revision by the same user not shown)
Line 798: Line 798:
 
'''[[Murasame]]:''' I drew her looking a little bit naughty, but I didn't expect to be a big sister type. *laughs*<br>
 
'''[[Murasame]]:''' I drew her looking a little bit naughty, but I didn't expect to be a big sister type. *laughs*<br>
 
That really took me by surprise. In many ways.<br>
 
That really took me by surprise. In many ways.<br>
But I think that right now she's in a pretty good spot together with [[Shiratsuyu]] as the two who're jealous of their sisters' K2 status.
+
But I think that right now she's in a pretty good spot together with [[Shiratsuyu]] as the two who're jealous of their sisters' K2 status.<ref> Given this interview was made back in 2013, this is quite halarious on hindsight given how [[Shiratsuyu]] is now the only one without a Kai Ni and has displayed visible signs of jealousy.</ref>
  
 
[[Yuudachi]]: She's the most dutiful of the bunch.<br>
 
[[Yuudachi]]: She's the most dutiful of the bunch.<br>
Line 947: Line 947:
 
|}
 
|}
  
''Translation was provided [[User:Admiral_Mikado]]
+
''Translation was provided [[User:Admiral_Mikado]]<br>
 +
''Special Thanks to [[User:HiroAnobei]] for providing us the magazine.''
 +
 
 +
===References===
 +
<references/>
 +
 
 +
 
 +
{{Interview}}
 +
[[Category:Interviews]]

Latest revision as of 19:23, 24 March 2018

The following interview was conducted in the MelFebri Magazine on December 2013 in which 6 KanColle Artist were interviewed about who they were and how they got inlisted to work on KanColle.

Within one of the earlier interview article, Konishi, Kuuro Kuro, Yadokari, bob, Kujou Ischiso, and Ooguchi all answer similar questions where they discuss thier impression with being allowed to join into Kancolle and mentioning details involving thier involvement, some of the ships they due, inspirations and more...

Interview with 6 KanColle Artists (2013)

Following up on the interviews with Shibafu and Shizuma Yoshinori in the last issue, this issue features interviews with six more ship girl artists. We're getting closer to the secret behind the origins of the ship girls and the Abyssal fleet!


Japanese English
Konishi

――――自己紹介をお願いします。

はじめまして。複数の艦娘を担当しましたコニシです。

――――以前から艦船やミリタリーに詳しかったのでしょうか。好きな艦があれば教えてください。

『艦これ』の仕事をいただくまでは、ミリタリー関係にはまったく触れていませんでした。
デザインするにあたり、調べものをする過程で興味を持った感じです。
好きな艦船はそれぞれに良さがあるので選べませんが、
他国に比べスマートなまとまりのある日本の空母が好きです。

――――最初の話が来たときの企画の印象やご自身の取り組み方は?

描きたい!と純粋に思いました。お話をいただいたのは、活動し始めたばかりのときです。
経験を積んで、今後に繋げたいという思いが強いですね。

――――艦船の擬人化ということで、苦労した点や楽しめた点を教えてください。

楽しめた点は今まで触れていなかった文化に触れられたことです。
先ほどの質問にもありましたが、ミリタリーに関してはまったくの無知状態でしたので、
新しい知識が入ってくることはいくつになっても嬉しいものだと思っています。
逆に今まで知識がなかった分、デザインするときは兵装がわからず、苦労しました。
特に機銃などは、いただいた資料だと、小さくてわかりにくいものもありました。

――――各キャラクターの衣装などで、特に意識した点や工夫した点は?

かぶりのないキャラクター制作です。
参加しているデザイナーが多い作品で題材が同じだと、
どうしても似たようなキャラクターが生まれてしまいます。
金剛型や由良などの軽巡は、二次創作などで軍艦に詳しくない方でも捉えやすいように、
簡単な兵装にするなど気を遣いました。

――――キャラクターの性格設定など、イラスト以外の部分へのアイデア出しは?

それはお任せしていました。
逆に、デザインしたキャラクターがどのような性格で登場してくるか、
リリースされたときの楽しみですね。

――――担当キャラクターについて、コメントをお願いします。

【金剛型】日本で一番長生きした戦艦クラスであり、人気のある艦船ということで、
デザインに迷いました。せっかくの擬人化なので、四姉妹にそれぞれ違った特徴を持たせました。
幅広い層に愛でてもらえると嬉しいです。

【翔鶴・瑞鶴】実は、一度通っていた原稿を全部取り消して、
大幅なデザイン修正を自分で出しました。初めてのイベント報酬ということもあり、
実装前日ギリギリまで頑張って粘りました。

【夕張】特徴的な艦船で姉妹艦がなく、ひとりっ子。夢の詰まった艦船で、
小さな体に重兵装と、自分好みのそんな艦。
デザイン前の資料集めがとても充実しました。

【駆逐艦】私が始めて『艦これ』のお話をいただいたのは、霞でした。
初めてということもあり、慎重に何案かを出してみたら、
そのまま霰と霞として誕生。この子達のおかげで、
今も『艦これ』のお仕事を続けられていると思っています。

【熊野・鈴谷】悩んだ結果の航空甲板。
もともと、この2隻には航空巡洋艦への改装がなかったとかなんとか。
今思うと航空甲板大きすぎましたかね……。
甲板ニーソもよろしくなのです。

――――他のイラストレータさんが描いた艦娘の中で、好きなキャラクターは?

書ききれないほどいます! 幸運の女神のキスを感じちゃう雪風が大好きです!
好きすぎてドロップした雪風が保有艦娘数を圧迫していきます。
現在5隻。全部雪風で出撃したいくらいです。

――――『艦これ』に対するユーザーとしての感想をお願いします。

片手間にできるゲームという感覚で始めてみましたが、
さわり始めると時間が知らないうちに経過していく、そんなゲームですね。

--- Please introduce yourself.

Greetings. I'm Konishi and responsible for several ship girls.

--- Were you well up on warships or the military before working on KanColle? If you have a favourite ship, please tell us.

Until I got the job for KanColle I hadn't touched the topic of military at all.
Upon designing the girls I gradually got interested as I was doing research.
My favourite ships all have their own strong points, so I can't make up my mind on that, but I love Japanese aircraft carriers because of their stylish and consistent designs compared to those of other nations.

--- What was your impression of the project when you were approached with it for the first time, and how did you deal with it?

I genuinely wanted to draw all this! I received the job offer when I had just started to work as an artist.
I really wanted to gain experience for future jobs, you know.

--- Please tell us about what you struggled with or enjoyed while personifying the warships.

I enjoyed that I could experience a culture I'd never come into contact with before.
As already mentioned in my response to the previous question, I knew absolutely nothing about military stuff.
I think it's an enjoyable experience to acquire new knowledge, no matter how often you do it.
On the flipside I struggled with my girls' designs back when I was lacking said knowledge and had no idea about their armaments.
Especially parts like machine guns that were so small that I could hardly make them out on the reference materials I received.

--- Where did you pay extra attention to detail or let your creativity run loose when designing each character's outfit etc.?

I was going for low-key character designs.
When many designers are part of a single work and they all work on the same subject, it simply is inevitable that they end up creating similar characters.
For the Kongō-class or light cruisers like Yura I made sure to keep their armaments simple so that even creators of derivative works who aren't familiar with warships would have an easier time understanding them.

--- What about your input regarding aspects unrelated to the characters' illustrations, like their personalities?

I let the writing team handle that.
In return I could look forward to just how my girls would turn out to be personality-wise when they got released.

--- Please give us a comment on each of your characters.

Kongou-class: Since they were Japan's longest-lived battleship class and fairly popular, I was somewhat stumped when I had to design them. I wanted their personifications to be something special, so I gave each of the four sisters distinct features.
I'd be glad if large range of people appreciate them.

Shoukaku, Zuikaku]: I actually scrapped the initally submitted draft and massively reworked their designs from scratch.
They were going to be the first event rewards ever after all,
so I kept working and working and somehow barely made it by the day before their implementation.

Yuubari: She's a special ship as she's an only child and doesn't have any sisters. A ship packed with dreams, with a small body but heavy armament, just the way I like it.
I was very thorough in my collection of reference materials before designing her.

Destroyers: My first KanColle job was Kasumi.
And because it was my first job I wanted to be careful and submitted several designs, but they took them as is, leading to the creation of Arare and Kasumi.
I think it really is because of them that I've been able to work on KanColle to this day.

Suzuya, Kumano: Ah yes, their flight decks, the cause of many headaches...
Originally they couldn't be remodelled into aviation cruisers, so yeah.
Now that I'm thinking about it, their flight decks might be too big...
Anyway, now they also have their deck knee highs, so there you go.

--- Which character is your favourite among the ship girls that were drawn by the other illustrators?

There are so many I just can't list them all!
But I really love Yukikaze, who's been blessed by Lady Luck!
I love her so much that Yukikaze drops are filling up my port slots.
Right now I have five. If only I could sortie all of them together.

--- What are your thoughts on KanColle from a player's perspective?

When I started playing the game I was under the impression that it was just something you can do in your spare time,
but then you realise it's a game where once you start time just flies by before you notice it.

Kuuro Kuro

――――自己紹介をお願いします。

くーろくろです。趣味と仕事の両方で兵器擬人化のイラストを描いております。

――――以前から艦船やミリタリーに詳しかったのでしょうか。好きな艦があれば教えてください。

陸の兵器が興味の対象でしたので、艦船の知識がついてきたのは、仕事で描き始めてからです。
以前は大和と武蔵の差がわかりませんでした。好きな艦船は、戦艦・長門です。

――――最初に話が来たときの『艦これ』という企画に対する印象は?

艦娘の参考として送っていただいた吹雪が、
艦の識別に重要なマストと煙突を大きく描かれていたので、
開発側やしばふさんのミリタリーに対する温度の高さを感じました。

――――艦船の擬人化ということで、苦労した点や楽しめた点を教えてください。

艦船は縦に長く、敵を側面に捉えて射撃するという、人とはかなり異なる特徴がありますので、
どこを割り切るか、どこを活かすかの選択が面白く、難しいところでもありました。

――――各キャラクターの衣装などで特に意識した点や工夫した点は?

制服のデザインは少々のアレンジだと他作品とかぶってしまいかねないので、
巫女装束や衣冠などの和装デザインを分解して制服のアウトラインになるように合成しました。
軽巡はセーラー服、軽空母はブレザー、千歳型はボレロの制服を意識しています。
参考でいただいた空母と戦艦が和服でしたので、
艦が大きくなるとともに和服の濃度が高くなるようなイメージで描いています。

――――キャラクターの性格設定など、イラスト以外の部分へのアイデア出しは?

性格についての案は出していません。
全員非常に良いキャラ付けをしていただいて、
声優さんとシナリオを書いた田中さんに感謝しています。

――――担当キャラクターについて、コメントをお願いします。

【龍驤】最初、実艦の箱型船体を表した艦載機収納箱を持っていたのですが、
実艦同様にデザインの大変更があり、キャラ本体に艦の特徴を収束しました。
小型の船体を小柄な体、艦橋を帽子、増設格納庫をぶかぶかの服、バランスの悪さを厚底靴、
全通式平甲板を胸で表しています。

【飛鷹・隼鷹】巻物から艦載機型の式神が飛び立つ軽空母のデザインは、
飛鷹型用に考えました。紙が変形したものですので、
艦載機はローポリゴンのCGのように多面体です。
元豪華客船ということで、派手な制服を着せています。
アングルの問題で表現できなかった特徴があるのですが、
今後、機会があれば描いてみたいと思っています。

【千歳・千代田】実艦ではカタパルトが4基から2基になり甲標的搭載能力を得ますが、
強化してカタパルト数が減るのは絵的にどうかと思い、
レイヤーの組み合わせを自由にできるようにして田中さんの判断で遣っていただくことにした結果、
とても面白いバージョンアップの形になりました。
千代田の脚は甲標的を装備するため、重さに負けないように立派な太さに描きましたが、
後に千歳にも甲標的艤装追加の依頼があったので意味が薄れてしまいました。
軽空母時の箱と操り人形風のギミックは、
路上で箱を舞台に人形芝居をする古典芸術が元ネタです。
改二の箱は、迷彩パターンに沿って甲板がスライドして開くもので、
寄木細工の秘密箱のイメージです。

【五十鈴】素早い敵機を相手にする艦ということで、
動きの大きいポーズで、キャラも攻撃的な雰囲気にしました。
髪型は長良型「二」番艦を表しています。
改二では制服が変わるので少し成長させ、
装備には爆雷投下軌条と爆雷投射機を反映しました。

【長良・名取】最初の依頼は長良単艦でしたので、
やりたいことはやっておこうという気持ちで主砲は5門すべて再現しました。
腰の砲は手に持っている砲の照準に同調します。
脇の艤装に肌が擦れないように、アームガードを付けています。
長良はネームシップらしく元気で明るそうなキャラに、
名取は3隻の中の末っ子なので大人しそうな外見にしました。

――――他のイラストレータさんが描いた艦娘の中で、好きなキャラクターは?

UGUME先生の艦(編注:球磨型や古鷹、加古)が好きです。
全部艤装が違っているのがいいですね。

――――『艦これ』に対するユーザーとしての感想をお願いします。

時間がないときは仕事をしながら遠征を回したり、秘書艦の時報を聞いて楽しんでいます。
デイリーの演習と遠征だけでも地味にレベリングできますし、
自分のペースで遊べるところが好きです。

--- Please introduce yourself.

I'm Kuuro Kuro. I draw personified weaponry both as a hobby and for work.

--- Were you well up on warships or the military before working on KanColle? If you have a favorite ship, please tell us.

My main interests were land-based weapons, so I only started to learn more about warships after I'd already starting drawing them for work.
Before that I couldn't even tell Yamato and Musashi apart.
My favorite ship is the battleship Nagato.

--- What was your impression of the project when you were approached with it for the first time?

The mast and smokestacks, which are important for telling ships apart, were drawn particularly big in the Fubuki illustration I received as reference for ship girls, so I could already tell just how strong the developers' and Shibafu's passion was for military stuff.

--- Please tell us about what you struggled with or enjoyed while personifying the warships.

Unlike humans warships are pretty peculiar in that they're long and shell enemies from a flank, so I found it interesting to choose where to divide what and which parts I should make the most out of, but at the same time is was also difficult.

--- Where did you pay extra attention to detail or let your creativity run loose when designing each character's outfit etc.?

You can't really prevent school uniform designs from overlapping with those in other works if you arrange them only a little bit,
So I took traditional Japanese clothing like shrine maiden or court attire, disassembled it and put it back together in the form of school uniforms.
For the light cruisers I focused on sailor suits, for the light carriers on blazers and for the Chitose-class on bolero jackets.
The carriers and battleships I got as reference were all wearing Japanese clothes,
so I drew my girls in such a way that the bigger the ship the higher the density of their clothing.

--- What about your input regarding aspects unrelated to the characters' illustrations, like their personalities?

I didn't make any suggestions for their personalities.
They all turned out to be extremely great characters,
and I can't thank the voice actresses and scenario writer Tanaka enough for that.

--- Please give us a comment on each of your characters.

Ryuujou: She used to have an aircraft storage box that represented the actual ship's box-shaped hull,
but similarly to the actual ship her design received some major changes,
so in the end the ship's characteristics were represented by the character herself.
Her small body represents the ship's small hull, her cap the bridge, her baggy clothes the extended aircraft hangar, her platform shoes the terrible stability, and her chest the flush deck.

Hiyou, Junyou: The light carrier design of aircraft-shaped shikigami taking off from a paper scrolls is something I originally came up with just for the Hiyou-class.
Since the planes are made of paper that changed its shape,
they're polyhedra similar to low-polygon CGs.
They're former luxury liners, so I made them wear extravagant clothes.
There are some traits I couldn't express because of the angles,
but I'd like to draw them sometime in the future if the opportunity arises.

Chitose Chiyoda: The actual ships lost two of their four catapults to be able to mount midget submarines,
so I was wondering how to visually express the loss of catapults during their modifications.
I made it so that the layers could be rearranged freely, which ended up getting used according to Tanaka's decision, so it turned out to be a pretty interesting upgrade.
Since the midget subs were to be attached to Chiyoda's legs, I drew them extra thick so that they'd be able to carry that weight,
but later I received the request to add the same midget sub rigging to Chitose as well, so it lost a bit of its meaning.
The boxes and the marionette gimmick of their CVL versions are based on the classic art of performing puppet shows on roads with the box as the stage.
The K2 boxes have a deck that can be slid open along the camouflage patterns and are modelled after wooden puzzle boxes.

Isuzu: I drew her in a dynamic pose and overall gave her an aggressive aura as if she was about to face agile enemy planes. Her hairstyle represents that she's number "2" of the Nagara-class. Her outfit changes for her K2, so I made her grow up a bit and the equipment reflect the depth charge racks and projectors.

Nagara, Natori: My first commission was Nagara only,
so I basically did whatever I wanted and recreated all five main batteries.
The guns on her hips are aligned with the one in her hand.
I added arm guards to prevent the rigging below her armpits from chafing her skin.
I gave Nagara an energetic and cheerful look befitting of a name ship, while I made Natori look quiet and demure because she's the youngest of the three.

--- Which character is your favourite among the ship girls that were drawn by the other illustrators?

I love UGUME's ships. (Editor Note: Kuma-class, Furutaka, Kako) I like how all of them have different riggings.

--- What are your thoughts on KanColle from a player's perspective?

It's fun that when you don't have any time you can just run expeditions and listen to your secretary's hourly voice lines while working. You can do some simple levelling even if it's just daily PvP and expeditions, so I like that you can play it at your own pace.

Yadokari

――――自己紹介をお願いします。

やどかりです。『艦これ』では第六駆逐隊(暁、響(ヴェールヌイ)、雷、電)、
睦月型(長月、皐月、望月、文月、菊月、三日月)、初霜、
若葉を担当させていただきました。ノンケです。

――――以前から艦船やミリタリーに詳しかったのでしょうか。好きな艦があれば教えてください。

銃器や戦闘機などはゲームなどで名前を知っていた程度。
あとはそこで興味を持ったり描きたいなーと思ったときに調べて詳しくなったなど、
偏った知識を持っています。艦船については調べるにつれて興味を持っていって、
規模のデカさとロマンに感動しています。つよい(確信)。

――――最初に話が来たときの『艦これ』という企画に対する印象は?

昔から擬人化は好きで、やっていたりやりたかったりしたので、
声をかけていただいたときは喜びました。
ちなみにイラストの仕事は初でした(笑)

――――艦船の擬人化ということで、苦労した点や楽しめた点を教えてください。

前後に長い艦船をうまく人型という縦長のものに反映させるのは非常に苦労しました。
最初に提出した暁の没ラフは、肩の上から船が生えていた気がします。
バランス最悪です。でも、やはり試行錯誤しているときは楽しかったです。
結果、生まれた暁型はそれなりにうまくまとまってくれたと思います。

――――各キャラクターの衣装などで特に意識した点や工夫した点は?

しずまよしのりさんもおっしゃっていましたが、
戦闘時と非戦闘時が切り替えられるようにしたことですかね。
たとえば、銃や武器は収納できるような感じにして、両手は空けられるけど、
いざとなったときは戦える!みたいな。制服ということで、そのまま生活するのは辛そうだったので……。
平和であってください(悟り)。

――――担当キャラクターについて、コメントをお願いします。

【暁・響】暁は……結構キャラ付けに悩みました。
暁型の最初のデザインということで、艤装に注意がいきすぎたというのもありますが。
なにより他の暁型3人のキャラが強すぎまして……。レディだよォ! 
響は結構するっとイメージが湧いてきました。白髪蒼眼。
ひとりでロシア行ったということで、意思を強そうに。
第六駆逐隊を描いていた当時、作業環境が良くなく、
ブルースクリーンとかでよくパソコンが落ちまして。
でも、その中で一度も作業中にデータ破損などが起きなかったのが響でした。
響まじ不死鳥。そういうこともあり、結構思い入れの強いキャラになりました。

【ヴェールヌイ】実装が決まったときはかなり喜びましたね。
だた、資料探しに滅茶苦茶苦労しました。しかも、結局わからない、という。
なので、装備の深い詮索はやめてください……。お願いします! 何もしませんから!

【雷・電】雷は史実を見ても、かなり沈めている強い子!というイメージだったので、
ああなりました。もうイカリでぶん殴ると思います。ぶん殴ってください。
電は有名な救出劇もあったわけですし、意思の強い子。
しかし、深雪先輩にぶつかるおっちょこちょいさを残し……。
まんべんなく盛り込めたと思います。暁、響にも言えることですが、
最初に聞いたときはびっくりしました。イメージ通りすぎて。
ありがとうございます。

――――他のイラストレータさんが描いた艦娘の中で、、好きなキャラクターは?

ひえぇ~~の比叡も、最初に手に入れた戦艦・日向のキャラもとても好きですが、
やはりデザイン的にも度肝を抜かれたのはくーろくろさんの軽空母たちですかね。
デザインしたときに、とうしてもメカっぽく固いイメージが付きまとっていたのですが、
まさか甲板を巻いてくるとは。召喚式にしてくるとは。視点が変わりました。

――――『艦これ』に対するユーザーとしての感想をお願いします。

まず、設定が好きです。細かいところも凝っていて惹かれます。
その他にも図鑑の説明、ほかの艦娘を気にかけるような発言の数々によって
他の艦娘の繋がりとかまでに興味を持たざるを得ない構成。
史実を調べずにはいられない。なんだ、これは宣伝じゃないか!
いや、ここまで読んでいるということは宣伝の必要もないか!!

--- Please introduce yourself.

I'm Yadokari. I designed the 6th Destroyer Division (Akatsuki,Hibiki/Верный, Ikazuchi, Inazuma), the Mutsuki-class (Nagatsuki, Satsuki, Mochizuki, Fumizuki, Kikuzuki, Mikazuki), Hatsushimo and Wakaba. Just your average straight guy.

--- Were you well up on warships or the military before working on KanColle? If you have a favourite ship, please tell us.

I knew the names of some guns and fighter planes from games, but that's basically it.
From there I got kinda interested and felt like drawing them, so I did some research and got more familiar with the subject matter, so my knowledge is somewhat biased in that regard.
As I was looking stuff up about warships I grew interested and was moved by their large scale and ambitious designs. Like, damn they're strong.

--- What was your impression of the project when you were approached with it for the first time?

I've always been a fan of anthropomorphications and have made my own when I felt like it,
so I was really glad when they approached me.
By the way, that was my first job as illustrator *laughs*

--- Please tell us about what you struggled with or enjoyed while personifying the warships.

I had an extremely hard time translating the horizontal shape of a warship into the vertical one of a human.
On my first submitted Akatsuki draft kinda looked like a ship was growing out of her shoulders.
The balance was just atrocious. Nevertheless I enjoyed doing this by trial and error.
As a result I think the Akatsuki-class that was born this way turned out pretty fine.

--- Where did you pay extra attention to detail or let your creativity run loose when designing each character's outfit etc.?

As Shizuma Yoshinori already mentioned it, I also made sure that they could easily mount and demount their weapons depending on the situation.
For example, I designed the guns and other weapons so that they could be put away and the girls have their hands free, but in a way so that they could still fight if the situation called for it, something like that.
I gave them school uniforms because I thought living like that would be pretty tough otherwise...
Let's just hope everything stays peaceful.

--- Please give us a comment on each of your characters.

Akatsuki, Hibiki: I was really racking my brain about what kind of character Akatsuki should be.
She was the first girl of the Akatsuki-class I designed, so I also paid way too much attention to her rigging.
And the best part is that the other three Akatsuki-class girls ended up standing out way too much... But she's a lady, y'know!
For Hibiki I came up with this pretty smooth look. White hair and blue eyes.
She went to Russia on her own, so I made her strong-willed.
Back when I was drawing the 6th Destroyer Division my work environment wasn't exactly great and my PC was crashing constantly because of bluescreens and whatnot.
But even then Hibiki was the only one where didn't lose any data while working. Not even once. She really is a phoenix. Because of that she really holds a special place in my heart.

Верный: I was getting very excited when they decided to implement her.
However, finding reference materials was a huge pain in the ass. And then I couldn't even read it. So please stop having me dig so deep for equipment... I'm begging you! I'm not gonna do it anymore!

Ikazuchi, Inazuma: When I looked up Ikazuchi's history I got the impression of a strong kid who'd sunk a whole lot of ships, so she turned out like this.
It's as if she's about to hit someone with that anchor. Please hit me.
Inazuma is famous for rescuing so many people, so I made her strong-willed.
But there also was that one moment where she crashed into her senior Miyuki, so I guess she's a bit scatterbrained as well...
I think I could give all of them something.
I can say the same about Akatsuki and Hibiki, but when I heard them for the first time I was really surprised. They were just like I imagined them.
Thank you so much.

--- Which character is your favorite among the ship girls that were drawn by the other illustrators?

I really love Hiei's "Hieeee~~" and the personality of my first battleship ever, Hyuuga, but the girls that left me dumbfounded design-wise were Kuuro Kuro's light aircraft carriers.
When I was designing my girls I was trying so hard to give their equipment a mechanical, rigid look, but then I saw girls with scrolls as decks. Like for a summoning ritual. It really changed my perspective.

--- What are your thoughts on KanColle from a player's perspective?

First of all, I love the setting. That attention to details just draws you in.
And apart from that this structure where the explanations in the ship guide and how the ship girls constantly mention others get the player interested in how they're all connected.
You'll just have to look up their historical counterparts. At this point you might think "Now you're just plugging the game"!
But nope, no need for that if you've already read this far!

bob

――――自己紹介をお願いします。

前号にて、田中さんより直々に「脱衣パワー絵師」の二つ名を頂戴しました、
イラストレータのbobと申します。『艦これ』では川内型、妙高型、利根型、
祥鳳の計10艦のデザインを担当させていただきました。
脱衣パワーの由来は、私の担当した艦娘を振り返っていただくと理解できるかもしれません。

――――『艦これ』に関わることになったときの気持ち、または打ち合わせの印象を教えてください。

中破! 軍艦! 擬人化! ……この企画は異彩を放っているな、というのが第一印象です。
ソーシャルゲームに何回か関わらせていただいた経験上、大抵はコンセプトに前例があり、
前例を参考にイラストも詰めていくことが多いのですが、
『艦これ』は企画段階から独自路線を手さぐりで突っ走っている印象を受けました。

――――以前から艦船やミリタリーに詳しかったのでしょうか。好きな艦があれば教えてください。

さっぱりでした! 軍艦もミリタリーも嫌いではありませんでしたが、知識はゼロに等しかったです。
大和と雪風くらいしか知らなかったですね。後に史実のエピソードを調べて、
雷と夕立が好きになりました。こういったエピソードに出会わせてくれた『艦これ』に感謝です!

――――艦船の擬人化ということで、苦労した点や楽しめた点を教えてください。

とにかく、艦娘のデザインの自由度がどこまで許されるのか、そのイメージをつかむのに苦労しました。
ゲームが形になった今なら全体像がわかるのですが、要領がつかめず、無闇に派手にしたり、
デカブツを装備させたりした記憶があります。
しずまさんと同じく私も駆逐艦・吹雪をお題でデザインしましたが、
駆逐艦なのに戦艦以上の装備でした。ちょうごついです(笑)。

――――各キャラクターの衣装などで特に意識した点や工夫した点は?

艤装をなるべく厳つく、鉄臭いイメージで描くことを心がけました。
柔らかい女の子と硬い鉄の艤装の組み合わせは……とても良いですね。
服装は、運営さんの考えと言うこともあり、なるべく配色を地味にするよう意識した艦が多いです。

――――キャラクターの性格設定など、イラスト以外の部分へのアイデア出しは?

私の場合、イラスト以外には基本的にノータッチです。
ただし、中破・大破に関してはただの差分でなく、
新規に描き下ろすことを打ち合わせの段階で熱く提案させていただきました。
我ながら、適切な判断だったと自負しております。

――――担当キャラクターについて、コメントをお願いします。

【那珂】私もファンです。
当初は「ちょっとお茶目な艦娘」というくらいのイメージでデザインしたのですが、
ゲームで見たときはアイドルとして立派に羽ばたいていました。お父さんは嬉しいです。

【川内・神通】川内は自分が担当した中では、
最初にデザインした娘なのでとても思い入れがあります。
ゲームでは夜戦ばかり気にしていてびっくりしましたが、とても純粋で可愛い娘です。
神通は引っ込み思案に見えますが、夜戦突入時などは凛々しい台詞をしゃべってくれます。
花の二水戦旗艦を務めたのは伊達じゃないですね。惚れます!

【妙高型】妙高型は4人姉妹なので、見た目にもバリエーションを意識してデザインしました。
ゲームでは声の演技も相まって、とても魅力的な姉妹になっていて、感動……!
ところで、羽黒や足柄が付けている髪飾り。あれはカタパルトを模しているので、
ゲーム画面ではわからないですが、厳密にはトラス構造のデザインになっています。
あと、羽黒ちゃんは通常時でも涙目です。可愛いですね。

【利根型】利根型は私がデザインした中でもかなりお気に入りの姉妹!
お姉ちゃんの利根は妹の筑摩よりも小さいです。いろいろと。
でも、我輩で偉そうで可愛いです。デザイン的には、実艦の潔い艤装配置を再現するため、
左右非対称をテーマにしています。具体的には右手側に主砲を集中装備し、
左手側には航空能力を集中させました。
ニーソの模様は艦載機運搬用レールをイメージしていたりします。
あと、わかりづらいですが、ブーツの横についている飾りは対空機銃になっています!

【祥鳳】お父さんとしては、普段はちゃんと着物を着るよう躾けています。
はだけているのは戦闘中だけだと信じています。髪型はリボンで腰辺りでひとつ、
顔の左で小さめにひとつ結んでいます。

――――他のイラストレータさんが描いた艦娘の中で、好きなキャラクターは?

島風、雪風、夕立、金剛、榛名、雷、北上様……ハッ、ずいぶん多くなってしまいました……。
使っているうちにだんだん愛着が湧いてくるので、好きなキャラクターは多いですね。

――――『艦これ』に対するユーザーとしての感想をお願いします。

びっくりするほど、クリエイター業と相性が良いゲームです(笑)。
ツイッターなどで話の種にもしやすく、
学生時代に同じゲームの話で盛り上がったときの感覚を
呼び起こしてくれるのが個人的にとても嬉しいですね。
ただ、最近のイベントで応急修理要員の積み忘れで愛娘の利根を轟沈させてしまったときは、
号泣の上、利根との思い出が走馬灯のように蘇って仕事が手につかなくなり、
これは恐ろしいゲームだと痛感しました……。
みなさんも私のような応急修理要員の積み忘れにはお気をつけください……。

--- Please introduce yourself.

Greetings, I'm Bob, the illustrator whom Tanaka himself graced with the nickname "Master of Undressing". For KanColle I designed the Sendai-, Myoukou- and Tone-class as well as Shouhou for a total of ten ships.
If you're wondering where the "undressing" part came from, I think you'll understand when you look at the ship girls I was responsible for.

--- What was it like to get involved in KanColle, and what was your first impression when you got briefed on it?

My first impression basically was "Medium damage! Warships! Personifications! ......Wow, this project really is something else..."
Since I've been involved in social games several times I knew that the concept as such was nothing new and that it wasn't uncommon for artworks to be based on what had already been done before,
but KanColle gave me the impression that it went off the rails right from the planning stage in order to find its own path.

--- Were you well up on warships or the military before working on KanColle? If you have a favourite ship, please tell us.

Nope, not at all! It's not like I hated warships or the military, but my knowledge pretty much equaled zero.
I knew about Yamato and Yukikaze, but that was basically it.
When I later looked up the historical counterparts of the girls I grew fond of Ikazuchi and Yuudachi. It's small anecdotes like this one that just make me want to say thank you to KanColle!

--- Please tell us about what you struggled with or enjoyed while personifying the warships.

I generally had a hard time figuring out how much freedom we had when it came to the ship girls' designs and how to imagine them.
Now that the game has shaped up to what it is I get the whole picture, but I still remember how I didn't know the ropes back then and went excessively over the top or gave the girls ridiculously huge equipment.
Just like Shizuma I was tasked to design the destroyer Fubuki,
But her equipment turned to be too much even for a battleship, let alone a destroyer. It was humongous. *laughs*

--- Where did you pay extra attention to detail or let your creativity run loose when designing each character's outfit etc.?

I tried to draw the riggings with a rough and rusty look wherever possible.
This juxtaposition of tender girls and hard steel riggings... it's really great, don't you think?
For their clothes I also received input from the developers, so for most ships I went for a rather plain colour scheme.

--- What about your input regarding aspects unrelated to the characters' illustrations, like their personalities?

I generally don't get involved in anything outside of my illustrations.
However, when it came to medium and heavy damage I didn't want to just edit in some small differences but draw completely new artworks, and I was very passionate about it when I suggested this during the briefings.
A wise decision in hindsight, if I may say so myself.

--- Please give us a comment on each of your characters.

Naka: I'm also a fan of her.
Back then I designed her as just a little bit mischievous ship girl,
but when I saw her in the game she'd already made a name of herself as an idol. Daddy's so proud of you.

Sendai, Jintsuu: Sendai is the first girl I designed, so she holds a very special place in my heart.
I was surprised when she's all about night battles in the actual game, but she's a really pure and cute girl.
Jintsuu may look like an introvert, but she has pretty manly lines when, for example, entering a night battle.
There's a reason she was the flagship of the splendid 2nd torpedo squadron. Careful, she might steal your heart!

Myoukou-class: Since the Myoukōou-class consisted of four sisters I designed them with different looks in mind.
Together with the voice talent you can hear in the game they turned out to be really charming sisters. I'm so moved...!
By the way, those hair decorations I gave Haguro and Ashigara among others? Those are based on catapults.
It might be hard to see on the game screen, but strictly speaking I designed them as trusses.
Also, Haguro has teary eyes even when not damaged. Such a cutie.

Tone-class: The Tone-class sisters are two of my favourites among the girls I designed!
Tone may be the older one, but she's still shorter than Chikuma. In many ways, actually.
But I think it's cute how self-important and arrogant she acts.
Design-wise I went for an asymmetric motif because I wanted to replicate the actual ship's clean rigging layout.
To be more specific, the main battery was mounted on her right-hand side while the aircraft facilities were mounted on her left-hand side.
The knee high pattern was modelled after the aircraft transport rails.
Also, it might be hard to see, but the decorations I stuck to their boots are actually anti-air machine guns!

Shouhou: As her father I usually make sure that she's dressed properly.
She exposes herself like that only during combat, or at least I hope so.
For her hair I gave her one ribbon around the waist area and a small one left of her face.


--- Which character is your favourite among the ship girls that were drawn by the other illustrators?

Shimakaze, Yukikaze, Yuudachi, Kongou, Haruna, Ikazuchi, the almighty Kitakami...... Whoops, the list's gotten pretty long now......
It's just that I slowly got attached the longer I used them, so I have lots of favourites.

--- What are your thoughts on KanColle from a player's perspective?

This game is surprisingly compatible with the creative industries. *laughs*
It's an easy conversation starter on Twitter and other platforms,
and it reminds you of this feeling when you were still at school and the excitement you felt when you were talking with friends about the same game. Personally I'm really happy about that.
However, during the last event when I forgot to equip my damage control parties and let my beloved Tone sink, I was bawling my eyes out and on top of that had memories with Tone flashing before my eyes, so I couldn't even get any work done.
That's when I realised what a terrifying game this is......
So please be sure not to forget your damage control parties like I did...

Kujou Ichiso

――――自己紹介をお願いします。

やっぱり駆逐艦は最高だぜ! どうも玖条イチソです。

――――『艦これ』に関わることになった経緯を教えてください。

僕の場合、最初はゲスト的な感じでお仕事をいただきました。
田中さんはフランクで、自分の中にある情熱を率直に伝えやすい方です。
今の夕立と時雨の改二のデザインを生み出せたのも、
自由にさせていただいたおかげだと思っています。

――――以前から艦船やミリタリーに詳しかったのでしょうか。好きな艦があれば教えてください。

僕はミリタリーに関しては、たぶんお気づきの方も多いかと思いますが、完全ににわかだと思います。
女の子が大好きなので、ミリタリーに関するアニメや作品などは観たりしますが、
完全に女の子しか観ていませんでした。勉強を始めたのは『艦これ』にハマりだしてからです。
装備やディテールの勉強もありますが、史実に関する物語が艦娘に重なって、
もう号泣ものばかりで、暇さえあれば実装されている艦の史実を調べたりしていますね。

――――最初に話が来たときの『艦これ』という企画に対する印象は?

よくあるメカ娘的な擬人化かなーとか想像しながら、そういう路線で描いていきました。
僕の発注は後のほうだったのかもしれないですが、しばふさんの吹雪をお手本として、
それに近づけていくという作業でした。最初から駆逐艦という指定があったので、
派手な装備ができない縛りはちょっと難しかったり。
でも、今までただの可愛い女の子だけを描いていた僕から、
一歩前進できたきっかけだと思っています。

――――艦船の擬人化ということで、苦労した点や楽しめた点を教えてください。

前の質問でもお答えしたように、僕の場合は、
もうデザインが完成に近づいていた吹雪に寄せていく形でした。
そのため、しばふさんやしずまさんのように最初から形を考えていく必要はなかったので、
イメージはしやすかったです。
ただ、お手本ありきで自分の持ち味をどれだけ出せるかが苦悩しました。
どれくらいやっていいのかも、ホント手探りという感じでしたし。

――――各キャラクターの衣装などで特に意識した点や工夫した点は?

僕の娘の白露型4人の制服は、旧日本海軍ということもあり、赤いラインは意識したつもりです。
工夫したというよりは、僕の場合、初期にデザインしたときはミリタリーの知識がほとんどなかったので、
どれだけ女の子が可愛く元気に暴れまくってくれるかというのを意識してデザインしました。
ホントすみません。今、猛烈に勉強しています(汗)。

――――キャラクターの性格設定など、イラスト以外の部分へのアイデア出しは?

完全に、イラストを提出した結果、田中さんの目にどう映ったかだと思います(笑)。
でも、白露の「いっちばーん!」は、
僕のこうして欲しいというドストライキのラインをいってくれたと思います!
各キャラのデザイン詳細は次の質問で!

――――担当キャラクターについて、コメントをお願いします。

【白露】一番お姉さんなのに、一番頼りない愛すべきアホキャラになってくれました。
大丈夫! 何が一番かは提督さんがそれぞれわかってくれていると思います!

【時雨】ある意味、一番思い入れの深い子です。
史実で、とてもつらい思いをしてきた儚さの具現化だと思っています。
ガ●キャノンとか言われているけど、時雨は前に構えても砲撃するし!
僕っ娘なのに他の誰よりおしとやかな大和撫子です。
そして改二ですが、デザインとしてはいろいろな経験をもとに、すべてを凝縮した形です。
一番気になる髪飾りは、西村艦隊のあのキャラをイメージしていますが、
どういう経緯であの髪飾りになったのかは想像していただいて、
みなさんの中でイメージを形にしていただけると幸いです。
あとバックパックは可動変形します。いずれ何かで描けたらいいなと思っています。

【村雨】ちょっとやんちゃに描いたつもりが、予想外にお姉さんキャラだったり(笑)、
いろいろな意味で不意を突かれました。
でも、今では白露と一緒に改二組をうらやましがる、良い位置についたと思います!

【夕立】一番親孝行な子ですね。
最初は知識不足でソロモンの悪夢的な活躍をこの子に詰め込むことができませんでした。
『艦これ』にハマることで、この子がものすごい駆逐艦だということを知り、
その頃からずっと改二を望んで想像し続けました。狂気めいた別人になったけれど、
中身は変わらずぽいぽい言っているのがホント愛おしいです。
デザインとしてこだわったのは、戦闘不能になる前まで動かそうとしたハンモック。
混乱のさなかに叩き込んだ、敵から見たら悪魔のような魚雷。覚醒を表した髪。
吉川艦長をイメージしたマフラーから胸元のバッジ(星ではなく桜のバッジです)などなど!
他の子も愛おしいですが、僕を押し上げてくれたのはこの子だと思っています。ありがとう!

――――他のイラストレータさんが描いた艦娘の中で、好きなキャラクターは?

もうどの子も大好きですが、巻雲とか卑怯なくらい可愛いですよね!
何だあのあざとさは!! 他にも一航戦とか五航戦とか金剛型とか大和型とか島風、
雪風、第六駆逐とか、数え切れないほど好きなキャラはいます。
一番なんて選べない!! みんな大好きだから!!

――――『艦これ』に対するユーザーとしての感想をお願いします。

長いことユーザーとしてプレイしている感想としては、
ひとつ、慢心ダメ!絶対!
ふたつ、資源はいくらあってもたりないようねー!。
三つ、三隈? 知らない子ですね……(涙目)です。
いや~『艦これ』はホント楽しいなぁー!

--- Please introduce yourself.

Destroyers are just AWESOME! 'Sup, I'm Kujou Ichiso.

--- Please tell us how you got involved in KanColle.

In my case I initially got the job as a kind of guest artist.
Tanaka is pretty frank and someone with whom you can just share your inner passion.
I think it's because he gave me so much freedom that I could come up with the current K2 designs of Yuudachi and Shigure.

--- Were you well up on warships or the military before working on KanColle? If you have a favourite ship, please tell us.

I think many of you out there have already noticed, but as far the military is concerned I see myself as a complete noob.
I love girls, so I do enjoy animes or other works with military themes, but I was focusing entirely on the girls. I started doing research after KanColle got me hooked.
I do look up equipment and other details, but also historical events as they and the ship girls go hand in hand, and they're nothing but tear jerkers, so basically I occasionally look up the history of already implemented ships in my free time.

--- What was your impression of the project when you were approached with it for the first time?

I imagined it as one of these mecha girl anthropomorphications you can see almost everywhere, so I drew my girls with that in mind.
I guess it's because I was commissioned after the others,
but I used Shibafu's Fubuki as a template and my job was to get as close to it as possible.
Right from the beginning I was assigned to work on destroyers, so I wasn't allowed to design flashy equipment, which I found a lil' bit hard.
But for someone like me who until then had just drawn generic cute girls it felt like taking a step in the right direction.

--- Please tell us about what you struggled with or enjoyed while personifying the warships.

As I've already mentioned in my answer to the previous question,
I was sticking to Fubuki whose design had pretty much been finalised at that point.
That's why unlike Shibafu or Shizuma I didn't have to come up with the basic figures from scratch, so it was easy for me to visualise things.
However, since my girls were to be based on this template I was racking my brain about how much of my own style and preferences I could throw into the mix.
So it really felt like I was groping in the dark when it came to whether I'd be allowed to do this or that.

--- Where did you pay extra attention to detail or let your creativity run loose when designing each character's outfit etc.?

For the outfits of my four Shiratsuyu-class girls I wanted to focus on red lines because of the IJN.
It wouldn't really call this creative, it's just that when I was working on my first designs I knew basically nothing about the military,
so I simply designed them with a focus on how cute and happy-go-lucky girls could be while going on a rampage.
I really sorry. Nowadays I'm eagerly doing my homework, trust me. ^^;

--- What about your input regarding aspects unrelated to the characters' illustrations, like their personalities?

I think it was entirely up to how Tanaka saw the illustrations I submitted. *laughs*
But Shiratsuyu's "Number One~!" really encapsulates how I wanted her to be and that line hits the mark perfectly!
I'll save the details of each character's design for the next question!

--- Then please give us a comment on each of your characters.

Shiratsuyu: She's the oldest of the bunch, but turned out to be most unreliable yet lovable ditz character.
That's okay! I think the admirals all know in what way she's number one!

Shigure: In a way she's the most precious girl to me.
I think she's the embodiment of evanescence considering the horrible, horrible things she had to live through.
I know that the Gun Cannon meme is frequently brought up,
but Shigure really can fire her gun even when facing forward!
She sounds a bit like a tomboy but she's actually a well-mannered and shy girl, more than anyone else.
And regarding her K2, its design is the culmination of everything I'd experienced up to that point.
I modelled her very conspicuous hair decoration after a certain someone who was part of the Nishimura Fleet, but how she actually got it is something that I'll leave to everyone's imagination.
Her backpack is actually convertible. I'd love to draw that someday.

Murasame: I drew her looking a little bit naughty, but I didn't expect to be a big sister type. *laughs*
That really took me by surprise. In many ways.
But I think that right now she's in a pretty good spot together with Shiratsuyu as the two who're jealous of their sisters' K2 status.[1]

Yuudachi: She's the most dutiful of the bunch.
At first I couldn't incorporate her status as the nightmare of Solomon into her design due to my lack of knowledge.
When I got into KanColle I found out what an awesome destroyer she was, and from then on I was hoping she'd get her K2 and let my imagination run wild. She may have turned into a raving lunatic appearance-wise, but on the inside she's still the same with her Poi Poi lines, and I really love that.
Design-wise I was really fussy about the hammock she tried to move until she couldn't fight anymore.
The torpedoes that to the enemy look like demons as they get pummeled by them amidst the chaos. Her hair that shows that she's awakened.
The muffler I modelled after captain Kikkawa's, the badge on her chest (that's not a star, it's a cherry blossom badge), and so on!
I love the other girls as well, but I think it's her that got me where I am now. Thank you!

--- Which character is your favourite among the ship girls that were drawn by the other illustrators?

I love so many girls, but then there's someone like Makigumo who's so cute it's unfair! You cheeky little scamp!
Then there's the 1st Carrier Division, the 5th Carrier Division, the Kongō-class, the Yamato-class, Shimakaze, Yukikaze, the 6th Destroyer Division... I have so many favourites I can't list them all.
I just can't pick my ultimate favourite! I love all of them!!

--- What are your thoughts on KanColle from a player's perspective?

As someone who's been playing it for a long time I have three points to share:
#1: Curb. Your. Pride!
#2: You'll never have enough resources!
#3: Mikuma? Never heard of her... *cries*
Yep, KanColle sure is a lot of fun~!

Oguchi

――――自己紹介をお願いします。

おぐちです。

――――以前から艦船やミリタリーに詳しかったのでしょうか。

ミリタリーは全然知りませんでした。

――――最初に話が来たときの『艦これ』という企画に対する印象は?

マシーネンクリーガーとか竹谷隆之さんの『漁師の角度』とか、
近未来SFは多少好きで見ているのですが、
正直「自分がミリタリーに手を出していいのか……」とか思いました。

――――オーダー内容を、差し支えない範囲で教えてください。

僕の場合は特定の艦船ではなく「沈んでいった船を想像したテイストで」とお話をいただきました。
そういう意味では、自由に描かせていただいたと思います。

――――深海棲艦全般のデザインコンセプトや、

描いていく上で特に意識した点、工夫した点などをお願いします。
通常の艦娘の子達は既存の設定がしっかりあったので、
負けないためには何かアイコンとなるものがほしくて、
あんまり関係はないかもしれませんが、
ちょっと前にやっていたフランシス・ベーコン展で「教皇」を見たので、
歯が剥き出しになっている「口」をテーマにしました。

――――艦のクラスが小型になるほど人間型から離れ、かつ「顔が見えなくなっていく」のが特徴であり、艦娘との大きな違いだと思います。これは当初から確定していたのでしょうか。それともデザインの過程で方向性を固めていったのしょうか?

轟沈した艦船がビジュアルテーマだったので、
そのときの「怒り」とか負の感情が生まれて
成長していく感じをキャラクターとして描きたかったのがあります。
だから最初はクリーチャーとしてのオーダーだったのですが、
僕が徐々に人間的な要素を付けさせていただきました。
赤ん坊は叫ぶだけですけど、大人になるに従って、
怒りもいろいろな形で表現するようになるじゃないですか。
そこを特に強く意識したキャラクターがいて、
もう登場しているかわからないんですけど、
他とは違った怖さと可愛さがあって、個人的には一番気に入っています。
怒りも知性を持つことで表現が変化していくので、
デザインとしては、そこを増やしていくことを目的にしていました。
フリーザみたいな感じですかね。なんか違いますね。

――――実在の特定の艦船を参考にしたりはしましたか?

申しわけない話なのですが、艦船についてはからっきしなので、
それらの要素については、あまり深く考えていません。

――――艦種についてコメントをお願いします。

空母ヲ級が一部のマニアには人気みたいで嬉しいです。ありがとー!

――――通常の艦娘の中で、好きなキャラクターを教えてください。

重巡洋艦の愛宕。大破する前からセクシーなのが好きです。

――――『艦これ』に対するユーザーとしての感想をお願いします。

実際の話、ゲームはほとんどプレイできていませんが、 その分、自分の中で物語を考えたり、可愛くしたりしてキャラに反映させていたりするので、 ゲームとしての面白さもそうですが、キャラの持つストーリー性も楽しんでもらえればと思います。

--- Please introduce yourself.

I'm Oguchi.

--- Were you well up on warships or the military before working on KanColle?

I knew absolutely nothing about the military.

--- What was your impression of the project when you were approached with it for the first time?

I like near-future science fiction works such as Maschinen Krieger or Takeya Takayuki's "The Fisherman's Angle", but to be honest I was somewhat torn whether I should even dabble in the military.

--- Can you tell us more about the contents of your commission if possible?

In my case I was asked to draw not any specific ships but to approach the job with sunk ships in mind.
In that sense I think I had a lot of artistic freedom.

--- Where did you pay extra attention to detail or let your creativity run loose when it came to the Abyssal Fleet's overall design concept?

The regular ships girls already had a well established setting,
so in order to compete with that I wanted something iconic.
This may be somewhat unrelated, but shortly before I got the job I visited a Francis Bacon exhibition and saw his work "The Pope",
which inspired me to use open mouths baring their teeth as a common theme.

--- I think their defining traits and a huge difference to the ship girls are that the smaller the ship class the less they look like humans and the less visible their faces become.Was that determined from the very beginning? Or was that a trend that established itself during the design process?

Since the visual theme was sunk ships I wanted to draw them as characters that were born from negative emotions such as anger and that grew stronger with them.
That's why at first the commission was just for creatures,
but I gradually added more human characteristics.
Infants can only scream in anger, but as they grow up to become adults they'll be able to express that anger in many different ways, don't you agree?
I don't know whether she's already made an appearance in the game, but there's one character for whom I really wanted to emphasise that.
She emits a sense of terror and cuteness unlike the rest, and is my personal favourite.
How anger is expressed keeps changing as intelligence increases,
so I made it my goal to incorporate that into my designs accordingly.
I guess it's kinda like Frieza. But not quite.

--- Did you use certain actual warships as reference?

I'm sorry I have to say this, but I know absolutely nothing about warships,
so I didn't think too hard about their characteristics.

--- Please give us a comment on the different ship types.

I'm happy that Standard Carrier Wo-Class seems to be pretty popular among certain fans. Thank you!

--- Who is your favourite character among the regular ship girls?

Heavy cruiser Atago. I like how sexy she is even before she gets heavily damaged.

--- What are your thoughts on KanColle from a player's perspective?

To be honest, I don't get to play the game that much, but in return I make up my own headcanon or cutify characters, so while KanColle can be fun as a game, I think you can also enjoy it as a character-driven narrative.

Translation was provided User:Admiral_Mikado
Special Thanks to User:HiroAnobei for providing us the magazine.

References

  1. Given this interview was made back in 2013, this is quite halarious on hindsight given how Shiratsuyu is now the only one without a Kai Ni and has displayed visible signs of jealousy.