by The anime “Nohara Hiroshi’s Lunch Style” aired its final episode on December 19th. This spin-off of the hugely popular anime “Crayon Shin-chan” is a unique gourmet story about office worker Nohara Hiroshi putting all his effort into the fleeting moment known as “lunch.”
This time, we’ll be conducting a cross-talk between screenwriters Mori Hayashi and Moral. How did they create the unique direction for the anime while building on the appeal of the original manga by Tsukahara Yoichi? How did they interpret the original and expand on it? We’ll be delving into the behind-the-scenes of “Lunch Style.”
It was a one-shot success: “Chai wins in the end.”
Were there any rules you were conscious of or decided upon when writing the script? Mori Hayashi (hereafter, Mori): There were no particular rules like “Let’s not do this,” and the producer and the original author told me I could write freely. For example, in the first episode, “The Curry Style,” I added many scenes to the script in which Hiroshi struggles with an overly spicy curry.
Even though the genre is cooking, I prioritized “fun” over “tasty,” so when I finished writing, I asked, “Is this OK?” and they said, “It’s fine” (laughs). At that point, I could create without any restrictions as long as I emphasized the humor. Morals: While we shared a common understanding that “staying true to the core of the original’s humor” was important, our standard was “whether it was funny.” Mori: This was a team that truly enjoyed writing, and we had fun together. Morals: That’s right.
However, because we were given so much freedom, if the writer wasn’t passionate, that passion would be transmitted to the entire production team. In that sense, it was a pretty thrilling environment. Tsukahara-sensei, the original author, immediately gave me the OK at the first draft stage. I was really grateful that he didn’t stop me midway and let me extend it. It was an enjoyable set. Mori: It was so much fun. I didn’t want it to end (laughs). Also, even if I was a little worried about something, once I started writing, the words began to flow, and jokes came out.
The atmosphere during meetings was also excellent, and I was happy to receive so many compliments. Moral: I had a lot of fun too. Of course, parts were cut or changed during meetings, but the whole team had an atmosphere of “Let’s go along with someone’s ambition first.” That’s why I was able to approach it without being intimidated and with the mindset of just bringing out what was inside me. Mori: I felt like the direction this work should take was decided when they gave the OK to the phrase “Chai wins in the end” in the first episode. It didn’t go over that well on Niconico, though (laughs).
