Talk:My Darling Is a Foreigner (manga)

Is this really the English title of the manga??

It doesn't seem like this manga has been translated for a general readership outside Japan. The name is he turning Japanese? (upper-case J but everything else small) appears to be the name of some kind of "manga textbook" that ties in with My Darling is a Foreigner, which was written by Lazlo and illustrated by his wife.[1] This is not the official title of Oguri's manga in English. In fact, a volume of My Darling is a Foreigner is available in English, under the title ダーリンは外国人in English：My Darling is a Foreigner.[2]

I am therefore moving the page to "My Darling is a Foreigner (manga)", since it seems the film version is better-known in the English-speaking world, so making this the primary topic is awkward.

elvenscout742 (talk) 00:33, 28 December 2012 (UTC)

The article it said that Digital Manga Publishing actually did publish a translation in the U.S. as "Is He Turning Japanese?" - The Daily Yomiuri article doesn't say anything about that, though. So I made it unsourced but I'm checking archives of the DMP WhisperToMe (talk) 19:37, 29 December 2012 (UTC)

Found it: http://web.archive.org/web/20051001193959/http://www.dmpbooks.com/titles?n=25 - That archive lists it as "My Husband is a Foreigner" but in the later date it's listed as "Is He Turning Japanese?" in later dates and in the final product page http://web.archive.org/web/20070405074135/http://www.dmpbooks.com/titles?n=25 WhisperToMe (talk) 19:38, 29 December 2012 (UTC)

No, that's a separate manga. My Darling is a Foreigner has had numerous separate tie-in books, and Is He Turning Japanese is one of them. The author is listed as the husband. It is possible that he just translated it, but I am really much more inclined to trust the cover page of the actual book than anything else. Plus, it's not like it was a long-running, well-known translation either way; ダーリンは外国人in English：My Darling is a Foreigner also exists. elvenscout742 (talk) 00:41, 30 December 2012 (UTC)

To clarify: Regardless of what the Yomiuri article or the webarchive links say, I don't think we can go around saying that Is He Turning Japanese? is the official English translation of Saori Ogura's manga, because the cover of Is He Turning Japanese? itself claims that the writer was Tony Laszlo. elvenscout742 (talk) 01:02, 30 December 2012 (UTC)

I didn't notice that at first, but I looked at a higher res copy of the book cover http://www.mutantfrog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/is-he-turning-japanese-amazon.jpg - The cover does say Laszlo was the writer and Oguri was the illustrator! If this is indeed a tie-in-book, it seems strange that they would translate the tie in book but not the main work itself...

The description for the book says: "Author/Artist: Tony Lazlo, Saori Oguri ISBN: 156970953X 160 pages Dimensions: 7 1/8" x 10 1/8" Age 16+ SRP: $14.95 -- Based on the lives of author Tony Lazlo and his wife and illustrator Saori Oguri, in this volume the reader experiences the zany situations an expatriate encounters in everyday Japan, public and at home. You will laugh at Tonys foul-ups while gaining insights into Japanese language, manga and culture with our notated bilingual format. Its also a handy reference for mixed couples of Japanese and American nationalities. A cool way to study all things Japan!"

WhisperToMe (talk) 08:11, 30 December 2012 (UTC)

The tie-in appears to have been written by Laszlo in English, and I'm not sure if there is a Japanese version. The only other English edition I can find is the above-mentioned ダーリンは外国人in English：My Darling is a Foreigner, which from the title appears to be one of these "learn English through manga" books for Japanese people. The main series itself appears to be one of these un-translateable cultural works along the lines of Nihonjin no Shiranai Nihongo (which will never get an English translation). It also appears from a search on Amazon[3] that the main series has about 3 volumes, but there are a huge number of tie-in books about the couple's trips to France and Hawaii, what goes on in Laszlo's mind (ダーリンの頭ン中 -- I guess that's what it means?), etc. etc.. elvenscout742 (talk) 09:08, 30 December 2012 (UTC)