I drew Solanin I was about 24 years old. I had just graduated from college and was feeling a bit insecure about my ability to succeed as a manga artist and whether I would be able to continue to draw manga that were true to myself. In my anxiety and impatience, I felt that all I could do in my manga was try to get a true depiction of the times as experienced by my generation.

Lovers, friends, money, jobs, a society with an unclear future, one’s own pride… Writhing in these multiple, entangling factors, perhaps they are unable to draw any conclusions. Perhaps this instant now is just a small part of their futile daily lives. The only thing that’s certain is that they can never return to the days gone by.

There’s nothing cool about these characters. They’re just your average 20-somethings who blend into the backdrop of the city. But the important messages in our lives don’t come from musicians on stage or stars on television. They come from the average people all around you, the ones who are just feet from where you stand. That’s what I believe.