The TV anime "Chi. -About the Earth's Movement-" is based on a manga by Uoto Yutaka, which was also selected as the Manga Grand Prize winner of the 26th Osamu Tezuka Cultural Prize. The anime, which began broadcasting on NHK General TV in October 2024, has reached its final chapter. Uo Uoto's serial debut work "Hyakuem." was based on the 100-meter dash in track and field, and then he drew "Chi.", and then he serialized "Welcome! To FACT (Tokyo S Ward Second Branch)," which is based on the theme of love and conspiracy theories. All three of these works, which were released between 2018 and 2024, depict "human beings."Uoto, who continues to draw shocking works, about the relationship between the three works and his next work, which he is currently planning, and about "what has shocked him recently."
◇ "Chi." and "FACT" Doubt and believe
"Chi." was serialized in "Weekly Big Comic Spirits" (Shogakukan) from 2020 to 2022, and became a hot topic as an unusual manga depicting people who risk their lives to study the heretical theory of heliocentrism, set in 15th century Europe. The title "Chi." refers to the "Chi" of earth, "Chi" of blood, and "Chi" of intelligence, and depicts "intelligence and violence" using the heliocentrism as a theme. The next work, "Welcome to FACT (Tokyo S Ward Second Branch)," has the theme of "love and conspiracy theories." It was serialized on Shogakukan's manga app "Manga One" from August 2023 to February 2024, and depicts an unusual romantic comedy about a young man who is not doing well in life and gets caught up in love and conspiracy theories. Although the works have different tastes, both depict people who "want to know the truth."
Uoto says he began planning "FACT" while "Chi." was being serialized.
"While I was drawing 'Chi,' I was thinking, 'What should I do next?' At the time, I was very interested in conspiracy theories, but when it came to drawing a manga about them, I wondered what kind of story I should tell. So, when I was looking at various materials, I thought, 'Maybe love and conspiracy theories are similar?'"
The common thread between love and conspiracy theories is "endless suspicion."
"I can't help but suspect, 'Maybe it's really like this?'" The May 2021 issue of "Gendai Shiso" (Seidosha) featured conspiracy theories, and Ishido Satoru wrote, "Conspiracy theorists fall into the fundamental attribution error of cognitive bias. Simply put, it's about reading too much into things." In terms of reading too much into things, I think the same is true for romance. "What is the true meaning of this LINE message?" "What does it mean if this LINE message goes unread for two hours?" It may not have any meaning, but you start to think, "Maybe there is some meaning to it?" That's actually rational thinking. It's very closely connected to creating fiction and understanding things, so I thought it was interesting and wanted to depict it. In "Chi." I wanted to "portray the importance of doubt," but in "FACT" I wanted to "portray the preciousness of belief." I wanted to do the opposite as a theme."
"Doubt" and "Believe." In "Chi." as well, Rafal says at the end, "In the quest for truth, the most important thing is to believe," while Alberto's father says, "In the future, when you learn something, when you feel the need to know, just remember this: Doubt." This scene makes you feel the connection between "Chi." and "FACT," but there is also a connection between the three works, including his serial debut, "Hyakuem."
"'100M.' is about the 'individual,' 'Chi.' is about the 'world,' and 'FACT' is about society. Each of them is about human awareness. In the field of philosophy that I have studied, humans are sometimes perceived in three ways: the individual, the world, and society, and I thought it would be interesting to create a work based on these three, as each one has a major theme. I felt like I used that format as the basis for my thoughts."
Having completed three works depicting the relationship between humans and the world from different perspectives, Uoto temporarily thought that there was nothing more he wanted to do, but he says he is now starting to work on his next project.
"Next I really want to do food, clothing, and shelter. Those are things that are fundamentally related to human activities. I'm only really interested in big things like that. So I thought I'd try doing a trilogy on food, clothing, and shelter. I definitely want to complete all three before I die. First of all, I'd like to try food."
◇Manga artist's belief: Never pander to others
Uoto is known as a young and talented manga artist, having drawn "Hyakuemu.", "Chi." and "FACT" in his 20s. We asked him about his "beliefs" as a manga artist, which became a keyword in "Chi."
"The most important thing is to do what I think is good. I don't avoid doing something just because I think other people might not think it's good. And the same goes the other way around; I never do something just because I think, 'this is something people will like.' That's why I never draw manga that panders to others. Otherwise there's no point in doing it."
Isn't there a fear that what you think is "good" may not be accepted by others?
"I'm not that scared. In fact, I'd be much more scared of dying without ever doing it. But, speaking more rationally, if you do something you don't like in order to please someone else, there's a chance that that person won't actually like it, right? But if you do something you like, there's at least one person in the world who likes your work, so I think this has a higher success rate. Having said that, since everyone's releasing hits, I've recently started to wonder if marketing really exists (laughs). But to me, it's 'magic', so for now I feel like I'm just doing what has the highest expectations for me."
He said he also feels "fortunate" to have something he loves that he wants to express, and said, "I would like to use what God has given me. I also really love drawing manga, so I feel like this is God's work."
◇ The young genius’s latest “shock”
Finally, when I asked Uoto about the books, movies, and music that have inspired him recently, he said, "It's not about content, but..." and told me about his recent trip abroad. He said that a trip to Hawaii during his high school days also influenced the creation of "Chi."
"When I went to Hawaii and looked at the night sky, the stars were so beautiful. I wasn't just saying beautiful, I was actually scared because I could see so many stars. There were so many stars that it was creepy. That creepiness was expressed when I was drawing 'Chi.' I also had a lot of thoughts about what people in the past would have thought when they looked at the stars."
Despite having such experiences, Uoto actually has a fear of flying and has stayed away from traveling abroad. "But about two years ago, I realized that I could do it if I slept. By developing the technique of staying up all night and then getting on a plane and sleeping, I was able to create an incredibly perfect life where I can go anywhere (laughs)," he said, and he went on to visit various countries including Dubai and Greece.
"Then, what was really great was that I went to Spain, which I hadn't planned on going to. I only stayed in Barcelona for one night, but it was so amazing that I thought I'd like to live there. It was a great atmosphere. I think that having the Sagrada Familia in the center of the city must have influenced the identity of the people here. Also, there's a lot of architecture centered around Gaudi, and it's really 'strange,' which really matches how I see myself. I want to be that kind of person, so I thought it was great!"
At the souvenir shop he visited, there were rows of goods dedicated to great people like Gaudi, Dali, and Cervantes, and he thought, "They're all so weird! This hyper-pop style is seriously great!"
"When I went there, I was able to put myself in perspective for the first time, and it was the first time I realized, 'This is what I like,' and thought, 'I want to live in this country,' and it was a huge shock. I would like to learn about the country's unique history from now on, but before I start studying that, my first impression when I stepped into the city, the cheerfulness of someone with good taste, I really admired that feeling. I felt that this feeling exuded something much more essential than the information I had learned through study, and I thought it was awesome!"
"I thought this was the path I should take. I want to create something Spanish," said Uoto with glee. We are excited to see what kind of works he will surprise us with in the future.
