As previously announced, the Eiken manga received a remake, renewing the character designs to a much fresher look, which has certainly given much to talk about, since the main thing is that this was partly done with the help of an AI to remake the character designs. And despite the general opinion about this issue, the designs were very well done, so much so that the original author gave his approval to this remake.
Author of Eiken talks about AI remake
A few days ago an interview was given through the Real Sound page to the people in charge of remaking Eiken, in which Matsuyama, author of the original work published in 2001, was also interviewed. In which he talks about how they tried to adapt Eiken to what are the designs that are handled today and even about how artificial intelligence was a basic pillar for the creation of this new adaptation, which seems to be attracting the attention of the public.
It turns out that the one who came up with the idea of using AI for this remake was the public relations manager, who in search of connecting with a new audience and at the same time with older fans, suggested this method. And it was proposed, since it would make it easier for the work to be published in an electronic medium and with color to make it more attractive to people who had never had any experience reading a manga like Eiken.
Although an artificial intelligence tool is used to recreate the scenes of the original manga, there is a team behind it that is in charge of redrawing everything that the AI generates. This is to make it to the taste of the artists and authors of the manga, in order to make the project go in a good way, so it requires the union of the traditional method with the modern one to give us something like the remake of Eiken.
Even Matsuyama talked about how he was happy with the final product of this remake, as he was curious about how his characters would look reinvented by an artificial intelligence and it seems that the result was the most favorable for him. This is due to the fact that he was even enthusiastic about using an AI to create some manga in the future, giving it his personal touch.
Although he is in favor of the use of AI, he mentions that it would certainly not replace the human effort that is currently in place. He even mentions that it would be more like a tool that would facilitate the work of artists or that would strengthen the artists’ ability to continue developing their work skills, so he does not see this type of tool as a threat to the work of artists today or in the near future.
Also this new remake of Eiken will make people who have not read the original work seek to read it, so the use of AI is not necessarily a negative thing, and hope that other works that are being remakes with the help of artificial intelligence will receive the same support as with Eiken. Therefore, it is expected that fans will give this remake a chance, which is made so that the current audience can enjoy it to the fullest without any inconvenience.
（C）松山せいじ・秋田書店／エイケンヴ一同