“Make This Shōwa Manga Moe” Vipper Challenge
- Author: Artefact
- Categories: H, Manga, News
- Date: Sep 26, 2011 00:59 JST
- Tags: 2ch, Character Design, Comparison, Illustration, Image Gallery, Retro, VIP Quality
The artistically inclined denizens of 2ch’s VIP board have been challenging themselves to convert this panel from an ageing Shōwa period (meaning the 80s and 90s in this case) manga into something more modern – and more moe.
In the process they provide an insightful dissection of some of the changes in artistic conventions manga has seen over the last two decades.
The exchange:
“However you look at it, this is a Shōwa manga – moefy it please!”
“I have high expectations of you guys!”
“Like this?”
“That’s good, keep at it!”
“Fiddle with Gen too!”
“The background still reeks of Shōwa…”
“It looks great now. You guys are too good at this.”
“Her language is still a bit stiff?”
[For those wondering about the text change, the original dialogue of “What has it got to do with you, dad!?” (“tou-chan to nan no kankei ga aru no desu ka!”) has been subtly modernised to “Papa to nan no kankei ga aru no yo!” – switching “dad” for the more moe “papa,” and scrapping a slightly polite form for a more lively and assertive form.]
“GJ! It actually looks better than many actual moe manga nowadays…”
“I ported the text back into the original moe version.”
“Looks very modern now!”
“Why’s he fully dressed…”
“I fixed the background:”
“Her hairstyle still reeks of Shōwa!”
“These days we aren’t allowed nipples any more.”
“Right:”
“We’re putting too much effort into this, aren’t we?”
“Needs an ahoge.”
“What are you, a genius?”
“Difficult to do…”
“I’m not getting any reaction from my penis, compared to the original. Why is this?”
“The lines are a bit thick, aren’t they?”
“There are issues with Gen, I think.”
“Something to do with the tone and shading, and the brush stroke style of the lines, I reackon.”
“Hey, stop hiding her nipples!”
“Here you go:”
“Saved.”
“She has twin tails but her hair is still long in the wrong places.”
“Wait, just what is going on in this scene anyway!?”
“She’s been made to strip to check whether she stole some lunch money or something, then her little brother rushes in and her father comes in and gets angry at the teacher… or something like that anyway.”
“Having the guy keep his clothes on is discrimination, isn’t it?”
“There you are.”
“Colour it!”
“It needs some shading?”
“I think her tears are still too Shōwa.”
“How about this then:”
“Comparison image please.”
“Here:”
“I think she should be saying ‘Nani yo! Papa ni wa kankei nai desho!'”
“Sorry, I just don’t have the right font or Photoshop on this PC so I can’t change the lines any more.”
“Manga has totally changed, hasn’t it?”
“I still think it needs finer lines.”
“Oh?:”
“Now for colour.”
“Doesn’t she have the wrong number of fingers?”
“Her hands look like she got hit by an A-bomb…”
“She needs a hair ornament.”
“Add some lustre as well.”
“If there’s a problem with her hands I’m afraid it’s the result of my artistic ineptitude, sorry.”
“It’s finished, isn’t it?”
“We don’t need Gen any more, get rid of him.”
“What if Gen were redone a bit in the same style?”
“You guys are too good at this…”
“We don’t need her left hand.”
“Let’s fix her mouth!”
“How’s this:”
“Delete Gen already!”
“Make Gen into a cute girl?”
“We really didn’t need her left hand.”
“It looks like she and her little brother have been caught going at it by their father?”
“Gen’s hair needs a makeover, make it longer to make him look more like a modern youth.”
“Saved.”
“This is almost at Jump level now.”
“What happened in this scene!?”
“How about this:”
“Amazing…”
“A bit late, but I fiddled with Gen:”
“K-ON! eyes…”
“Nice!”
“Some colour:”
“Comparison image please.”
“Don’t make Gen so swarthy, you!”
“The original looks like the Photoshopped one.”
“My amateurish colouring:”
“More colouration:”
“I came!”
“Amazing!”
“You’re an angel!”
“Comparison:”
“GIF animated comparison:”
[Looping version:]
“This is amazingly good!”
Some of their previous efforts to chart the evolution of drawing styles may also be of interest.
| 
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Ero-Figures of Wonder Festival 2016 Unseasonably Searing
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Star Ocean 5 Trailer Introduces Emmerson
Shoujo Kara Shoujo e Raunchy & Retro
Orgakill – “A Kill la Kill H Parody!”
Teto Futanari Ero-MMD Sexually Chaotic
Massive Snow Miku Figure Magical Indeed
Medabots: Girls Mission Trailer Tears It Up
Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 Introduces Helena
Saijaku Bahamut Senseless Romance Anime
Taiga Seifuku Cosplay Infinitely Charming
Junko Ero-Cosplay by Mion Sonoda Crazy Hot
Gokou Ruri Maid Cosplay Truly Extravagant
Alluring Achellia Cosplay by Tasha
Carnivore Taiga Cosplay Too Cute For Words
Alluring Ahri Cosplay Magically Charming
Tsukihi Araragi BDSM Ero-Cosplay by Komugi Platinum Sexy
Goddess of Twitter “Pink & Perky!”
Serene Horo Cosplay Pure Gold
Iona Ero-Cosplay by Komugi Taking on Water
That Gen person looks alot less like a sexual predator now.
Moe is really fucking serious business.
2ch = Were always serious
lol you talk like you dunno 'barefoot gen' its a classic
Published from 1973 to 1985.
In contrast, when you look at Maison Ikkoku (1980 to 1987) it looks surprisingly modern.
So I think the challenge wasn't so much moefying an 80s manga, but moefying a manga with a completely different visual style. After all, today there's still Yugioh, which looks completely different from the things we generally read.
What the various improvements did point out though was how much technology has progressed. A lot of effects that are trivial to do with computers would have taken an artist in the 80s an hour with shading sheets and scissors.
Anybody who understood the context of the scene would be disgusted by this.
No, actually I don't.
I'm a moe-boomer, not a baby boomer.
And you talk like you dunno sarcasm.
Yehh.. pedophiles on duty will love!
A dumb solution, with results more ridiculous :P
Never underestimate the power of moe
Never underestimate the power of 2ch.
Never underestimate the power of otaku?
Never underestimate those with too much time on their hands :3
Okay, that's enough.
Never undestimate the power of fap
Never fap the underestimated power.
Never underestimate those without their dick in their hand(s)!
Never underestimate the power of friendship!
Never underestimate the power of too much free time.
Well 2ch pretty much comprises of NEET's or "Stay at home club" people (and every other pathetic lifeform you can think of). Well we get a laugh or two so it's no biggie. Might as well make the best of their social life....which is basically none.
they at least gave us this magnificent modern art masterpiece.
YOU, what have you given to humanity? (apart from your unuseful and unfappable comment)
He provides the 2ch bashing.
He seems to have some deep resentment for 2ch...
Never underestimate VIP QUALITY.
God skills!
Aye!
And the whole MOEfication process was shown in all it's splendor as I quote "Needs an ahoge"
*Bows* Epic
New show is coming : Moe Makeover
Honestly, this is freaking amazing.
You can say that again!
My hormones were on a roller coaster ride all of the time. Then it was over.
This was a righteous transformation. I love the fact that this encapsulates pretty well how visual tastes have changed over the years.
I must say that the modern version appeals to me much more than the original. Personally I would have been fine with the bobcut, but twintails and an ahoge work fine for me as well.
Though I most appreciate updating the boy's looks. He was pretty damn creepy in the original image.
Personally, what I liked about this post the best was the thought processes that went through each step in the design change. As you pointed out, it does give one a glimpse into the tastes and somewhat psyche of the modern fan.
Personally, I find the original style somewhat off putting as well. The overall proportions are far more irregular and the face too mature and realistic.
Also, I'm really glad that you're still around as I do have some things that I do want to ask your opinions on, but I'll have to take some time to flesh them out first.
Too be fairly honest, the original one kinda freaked me out in a traumatizing way mainly because (like what I said in my other comment here) it reminds me of the Nagasaki Hiroshima bombing manga I read in my childhood, the art style is completely the same either because it's done by the same mangaka or it just happened to be the popular and most copied style during that era. The images of the victims with their skins melting and a lady with glass shards sticking half of her body are still haunting my mind...
I was genuinely amazed. The comparison shot is saved on my pc for future amazement now.
blue sheet in minecraft lull
Moefy a whole manga like this, and sales will go through the roof...
They'd probably not fail like Cartoon Network is currently doing with the Thundercats reboot.
Thundercats 2011 is ok. Atleast the Art style is Much more cleaner than the original. I can't say much for the story except that Memory scene with the thundercats's ancesters on Mummra's ship.
"at least art style is much more cleaner than the original.."
WELL DUHH...2011 reboot..newer tech...against something that came out years ago...stupid mofo...kill yourself..
gott damnmit - they're not moe unless they have dfc!
omg,... gradually that face started to morph into Azunyan-chan,.... or or Luccini-chan!!
Oh wait Azunyan & Luccini are DFCs!!
This is so wrong!!
^_^
Wow, what an amazing transformation... xD
I agree! Now imagine anime and manga in another 20 years!
They will be just eyes with twintails, boobs and panties.
Vipper challenges are the shizzle.
The best post in Sankaku.
I'm tired with all the "rankings" shit.
good job turning them from Japs into round-eyed, brown haired, white people.
Man, it's been ages since I cracked up so much in laughter at a 2ch conversation on SanCom.
BTW, pardon me for being pedantic, but the Showa period hardly covered the 1990s AT ALL.
This is because the Showa Emperor himself died at 1989, heralding the end of the Showa Era and the beginning of the Heisei Era, thus making 1989 as the dividing mark between the Showa Generation and Heisei Generation. (e.g. Kamen Rider series)
At least the Shôwa Era was a better time.
More manga, anime and freedom back then.
You are of course completely right... the fashions and visual styles of the late period does spill into the nineties quite a bit though.
That's like saying disco fashion of the late 70s spills into the 90s era of Vanilla Ice and Nirvana, which is kind of hard to see.
Actually Barefoot Gen was published between 1973 and 1974. Urusei Yatsura (1978 to 1987) from roughly the same time period looks much more like what we're used to reading.
Meanwhile there's still things like Yugioh around which look nothing like what we're generally used to.
This challenge wasn't about the ‘showa’ date at all; it's about making a manga in a completely different style moe.
And some of the modifications are just some neat effects that nowadays take half a minute in a painting program, but that used to take an hour of fiddling with screen tones. While these do improve the image, they don't really add to the moe-ness.
If you have a chance, please read origianl manga.
it's Hadashi no Gen (Barefoot Gen).
Impossible for these kids. All they know is moe fap material. Hell, even stuff from the mid 80s is considered Neanderthal era to them.
Well, I can't exactly blame them for wanting 14-year-old girls to look 14 instead of 40, as she does in the original image.