When Lupin III: Part 6 was announced for Japan, fans abroad grew eager to learn how they were going to be able to watch the show. It did not take long for American licensing company Sentai Filmworks to step onto the scene, and now the show is airing weekly in select territories via the HIDIVE streaming platform.

Ian Fagen is working with Sentai Filmworks as a Japanese to English translator, and is currently translating Lupin III: Part 6. His work on episodes zero and one of the show have aired in cinemas across the United States. At the time of writing, he is currently hard at work on episode three (which is due to air this Saturday, at 17:30 UTC).

We contacted Ian with the prospect of an interview, which he was gracious enough to accept. You can read it in full below, and follow Ian on Twitter for more insights into his work on Part 6 and beyond. We want to thank Ian for taking the time out of his day to answer our questions, and for all the great stories he has shared!

Please note that the below interview contains spoilers for “Episode 0 ~ The Times” of Lupin III: Part 6.

* What inspired you to work in anime, and with translations?

Well, there are two parts to it. One is my childhood. Like most people in my generation, I grew up with a lot of Japanese media that aired on TV here in the US. Stuff like Power Rangers, Pokémon, DBZ, Sailor Moon, Gundam, etc. I ate all that stuff up. I was a kid who proudly wrote “I’m a Beetleborgs Lover” as part of my second grade yearbook profile, hahaha. Of course, back then, I didn’t understand that it was from Japan.

It wasn’t until high school that I learned some of my favorite shows were originally Japanese. Certain things made a lot more sense for me after that. One infamous example is from the English dub of Pokémon, there’s a scene where Brock refers to some riceballs as “jelly filled donuts”, and they’re clearly not donuts. So as I grew up, my childhood love of those shows got me interested in other cultures and languages.

I took Spanish in high school, followed by Japanese in college, and learned more and more about the cultural gap that translators have to fill. Part of my studies involved translating excerpts from textbooks, which was fun, and I eventually began translating as a hobby. Things like songs, interviews with anime staff, fan comics, news articles, etc. But I definitely wasn’t good enough to be a professional and, to be honest, I never considered becoming one. At that time, I thought it was a pipe dream. Which leads me to my second source of inspiration…

After graduating college, I moved to Japan for 5 years to teach English via the JET Program. As that came to an end, I struggled to figure out what my next step in life should be. Since I was fluent in Japanese by that point, I decided to try putting it to use.

I did a week-long internship with a big company in Tokyo called Takasago International. They produce flavors and fragrances that get used in shampoo, detergent, cologne, and so on. It was a really neat experience, but the turning point for me was the day they sent me to their lab. I met a man there who was in training to become one of their smell masters. Basically, they’re the people who create the fragrances by mixing these various base scents. At one point, I was given a bunch of vials and told to try and create a “rose” smell. He gave me a cheat sheet that explained how much of each vial to add, but some of them were blank, so I had to guess.

Although my attempt didn’t come close, working with that guy gave me some valuable insight. When he explained the finer details of his job, he absolutely radiated with enthusiasm for it. And that was infectious. Spending time with him made me realize that if I was going to do a job, it had to be something I was passionate about. It gave me the push I needed to chase after a translation job in anime.

A few weeks after that internship, I compiled a small portfolio of my amateur writing and translation work, then started sending my resume to anime companies in the US. Now, 4 years later, I find myself helping to provide the content that originally sparked my interest. So it really feels like I’ve come full circle! I hope that one day my work inspires others in a similar way.

* Is there anything you have worked on in the past that you are particularly proud of?

Oh boy, there are a lot!

Part of me is proud of every show that I work on because I often end up very fond of whatever it is. But to be specific, one project that turned out amazing was the Saint Seiya translation I did for Netflix in 2019. That was a huge undertaking of 114 episodes, which I had to deliver in a short time span, and it was the first time I’d done anything that long.

It was also similar to Lupin in the sense that it’s a classic series that I knew had a lot of fans, so I wanted to do it justice. The show itself is very bombastic and has a lot of trash talking during fights, so it was super fun to translate. I was really pleased with the end results, especially since a lot of my writing ended up being used in the new dub.

On the other hand, the translator in me would probably say: Seitokai Yakuindomo 2 The Movie and Cute Executive Officer. I don't think either of those are super popular, but I’m really proud of them because they are comedy shows.

Humor is honestly the hardest thing to translate because it doesn’t always carry over directly, which means I have to flex my creative muscles. I spent hours brainstorming different ways to approach certain jokes in both of those shows and I think the translations turned out genuinely funny.

When I look back on all the projects I've worked on, I definitely think those posed some of the biggest challenges and I found clever ways to overcome them.

* Is there any advice you would give to those looking for an opportunity in the translation scene?

Absolutely. My advice breaks down into four parts.

Study:

Obviously, you need to know your languages. I don’t just mean the language you’re translating from, but also your native language. If my experience as a translator has taught me anything, it’s that I didn’t know English as well as I thought! There have been a few times where I learned the hard way that I either misunderstood the meaning of, or misspelled a word. The best example I can think of is: unphased versus unfazed. I remember a commenter on reddit got really upset at me for that one, hahaha. On top of that, you should study translation itself, because there are established techniques and theories that can guide you. I know of a couple textbooks that specifically cover Japanese to English, but even just reading books that explain translation in general can offer great insight.

Practice:

As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. Once you’ve studied enough to feel comfortable with it, try translating something that interests you. There is no lack of content out there on the internet. For example, I used to go to the Japanese websites for new anime that were coming out and translate the story synopsis and character descriptions to better understand the show before I watched it. Or you can even translate tweets from your favorite Japanese actors or content creators. If you want a real challenge, try looking up clips of Japanese variety shows and translating what the people say. Working off only what you hear without any text is really difficult and happens more often than you think in this business!

Absorb:

Translation is mainly a creative endeavor, so just like how an amateur artist might imitate the style of their favorite painter, translators can also imitate each other’s work. I recommend watching translated shows and reading translated books. When you notice a certain phrase or word that you like, then write it down and remember it! This is something I did for Lupin. Before I started work on Part 6, I rewatched Part 5 and took notes about things in the translation I liked and wanted to carry over. For example, I remember a line where Jigen referred to a gun as “a piece”. That’s not something that would have crossed my mind, but definitely sounds like something he’d say - so I took a note of it. I also did something similar on a much larger scale earlier this year. I asked the translator community on Twitter for common examples of bad or mistaken translations, then compiled a spreadsheet with ideas of how to approach them in a more natural way. You can find the link to that pinned on my Twitter here, if you're interested.

Persist:

Last, but not least, if you want to get a job as a translator you have to be persistent. It’s a competitive field and there are only so many jobs available. Especially if you go freelance, you have to make a name for yourself and establish relationships with companies to ensure that you keep getting work. That requires a lot of persistence in the face of rejection. You will fail. We all do. But you can’t give up. I’m very lucky because I get to do this as a full-time job, but many translators that I know actually have a day job while translation is only a side-gig. Whatever the case may be, just remember that patience is a virtue. Sometimes there are no openings and you can’t get in, but a door will always open sometime down the road. The best thing you can do is be prepared for it and don’t let previous failures stop you from trying again.

* What previous experience do you have, if any, with watching the Lupin III series?

Quite a lot! The first time I was exposed to Lupin III was back when Part 2 started airing in the US on Adult Swim in 2003. I don’t actually remember the first episode I saw, but I quickly fell in love with the whole cast and knew I wanted more of their wacky adventures.

I eventually bought a number of the Part 2 DVD releases from Geneon and then some of the specials from Funimation. Of course, I am a big fan of Miyazaki too, so I made sure to check out Castle of Cagliostro.

After that I kept up with all the new installments as they came out: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine, Part 4, and Part 5. Two of the Koike films were released when I lived in Japan and I remember renting those. Ditto for the Lupin vs. Detective Conan specials. I also saw the live action film in theaters when it came out in Japan. So yeah, I have a fair amount of experience with the series, although I haven’t seen everything.

* Do you have any particular favourite characters and episodes?

My favorite character is definitely Jigen. I’m a huge sucker for gruff gunslingers, a love that was born from watching Clint Eastwood star as The Man With No Name in the Dollars Trilogy. But aside from being a badass, what I like about Jigen is his fierce loyalty and professionalism.

I think every good group needs an anchor, someone who is largely unshakable and always dependable. That’s the role Jigen fills. His presence provides a sense of security because we know he always has Lupin’s back. Without him around, things definitely wouldn’t be the same. So I gotta love him.

In terms of favorite episodes, the ones I enjoy the most are where they pull a more traditional heist. A good example of this is Part 2 Episode 5 “Gold Smuggling 101”, which is one where they steal a bunch of gold bars, melt them down to make a car frame, and then drive it out of the city.

That episode also has the usual Zenigata hijinks, where he tries to catch them with a net contraption that he later falls into, and Fujiko pulling a double-cross. It may seem pretty standard, but I guess that’s what I like about it.

Aside from that, I really enjoy the First Contact special because I love origin stories. And of course, I appreciate the Koike films for their unique visual style and more grotesque approach to the content. The fights from Goemon’s Blood Spray are nuts! However, I haven't seen any of Part 1 or Part 3, plus a number of the older specials, so if you’ve got any recommendations I’m all ears!

* You recently worked on the debut episode of the latest season, Lupin III: Part 6. Was this a project you were excited to be a part of?

Oh, most definitely!

Actually, around this time last year I was working on an anime called Is the Order a Rabbit? Bloom and they had an episode about a character who was a parody of Lupin called “Lapin”. I had a ton of fun working on that episode and I mused on Twitter that it was probably the closest I would get to translating Lupin itself.

Fortunately, I turned out to be very wrong about that! Needless to say, this is one of the most exciting projects I’ve been a part of.

* How does it feel to have subtitled the legendary Kiyoshi Kobayashi's final speaking role?

It feels like I’m dreaming and waiting for someone to pinch me, hahaha.

I have an immense amount of respect for Mr. Kobayashi for dedicating the majority of his life to the role. Like I said earlier, Jigen is the anchor of the group and the fact he’s always been voiced by the same person is a big part of that. Plus, Mr. Kobayashi served as the narrator for one of my favorite anime of all time, the mecha series GaoGaiGar.

There’s a quality to his voice and the way he delivers his lines that just makes things seem more epic. So having his final performance be put in my hands was a huge honor. Especially since I know that the quality of a translation can make or break how it’s received by the audience.

I took great time and care with “episode 0” to make sure the subtitles lived up the quality of the writing and his performance.

* Is there a particular line or moment in “Episode 0 ~ The Times” that has stuck with you?

There are quite a few, actually. I’m at a point of my life where I can relate a little to what Jigen is going through.

I used to be up to date on all the newest tech when I was younger, but lately I’ve fallen off the bandwagon. My smart phone and laptop are all pretty old. I don’t even buy new video game consoles anymore. So when I hear news about cloud gaming, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, NFTs, and all that stuff, I honestly don’t know what to make of it. That’s why I was very curious to see how Jigen came to terms with it in “episode 0”.

There is one line in particular that I remember. Towards the end, when he’s facing off with Zenigata, Jigen says:

“The modern world may be dull, but I can still enjoy laughing at its expense.”

That was a really hard line to translate in a satisfying way.

A more literal translation might have been “I’ll laugh it off”, but I think that has a negative ring to it. It makes it sound like he’s just ignoring the problem, when really, he decides to to stick to his guns (pun intended) and watch new technology struggle to handle his older methods. That’s where the laughs come from. Like, the police poured all this time and money into A.I. drones that can predict being shot at, but they can't handle a ricochet. That's funny!

It reminds me something that happened in real life earlier this year, New York was planning to deploy some sort of robot police dog, and a few weeks later people on Twitter were explaining how to take out its battery to make it useless. It goes to show that interacting with new technology in an old-fashioned way can find some major faults.

So what I took from that particular line of dialog was that everything comes down to your outlook. Even if you feel old and irrelevant, you’ll always belong. The “classics” like Jigen still enrich our society in their own way, no matter how the times may change. I take a lot of solace in that idea as I grow older.

* Your work will soon be shown on the big screen in cinemas around the United States, as part of the 50th anniversary of Lupin III event. What does this mean to you?

I’m crazy excited for it! This will actually be the first time I get to see my own work on a big screen! And it’s doubly exciting because there will be other people watching it.

Although I get to see a lot of reactions from viewers online, I hardly ever get to see reactions from viewers in person. Part of the reason I love doing translation so much is because I get to act as a bridge that connects the English-speaking audience to the original work. So seeing their reactions and enjoyment is a big source of fulfillment for me.

Even if they don’t comment on the translation itself, I take that as a sign of success. Because, generally speaking, the translator’s goal is create an experience that is seamless and natural. So if I’ve done my job right, some people don’t know I’ve done anything at all, hahaha.

* If you could leave a message for Lupin III fans around the world regarding your work on Part 6, what would you tell them?

Well, I really hope that you like it!

The Lupin series has passed through many translators before me and I think some of the people who worked on it in the past, particularly Part 4 and Part 5, did an excellent job. I’m doing my best to live up to that and hopefully inject a little of my own unique style. I think Part 6 will leave a big mark on the history of Lupin by the time it ends, so I'm working hard to assure that my translation will withstand the test of time since I'm sure fans will go back to watch it again and again.

Lastly, thank you so much for watching! I wouldn't be able to pay my bills without the support of viewers who stream the shows I work on legally, so I deeply appreciate everyone who does so. If you ever have questions, comments, feedback, or whatever, I'm always happy to engage with fans on Twitter so feel free to hit me up!