Frequent Akiko Questions

Here are number of questions, sorted by character, that readers have posed in the "Letters to Akiko" section over the past couple of years.


Poog

On Poog's Planet, Toog, does everyone look like Poog?
Yes, (though some might be a slightly different shade of mauve.)

Why is Poog purple?
Poog is purple because...well,er...uh...Can I get back to you all on this one?

What happened to the rest of Poog's body?
That is the rest of Poog's body.

Why doesn't Poog have a body?
Akiko answered that one herself, "I used to spend a lot of time wondering why Poog doesn't have a body. Then I started imagining how stupid he'd look if he did have a body."

Is Poog actually completely round, or is his face sort of on a flattened side?
When I first drew Poog, he was almost perfectly round. These days he tapers a bit underneath, something like the shape of a balloon. (Hopefully he's filled with more than helium, though!)

Does Poog have a mother or father? How about brothers or sisters?
Poog was raised by his great-grandfather, Yoog. As for the rest of his family, I haven't thought that part up yet.

What language does Poog speak?
Poog speaks Toogolian, the official language of Toog. Toogolian is unique among languages, because it has over 572 vowel sounds, and only one consonant.

Which consonant is the ONE consonant in the Toogolian language?
Sadly, there is no way to approximate this sound with our alphabet, and even if there were, I probably wouldn't reveal it to you for fear you'd severely damage your mouth. Try crossing a 'p' and a 'g' with an 'x' and you'll get an idea of what we're up against here. No wonder Mr. Beeba's so uptight all the time!


Akiko

What or who was your inspiration for creating Akiko?
I wrote and illustrated Akiko while living in Japan, so I'm sure there's a bit of manga influence in there somewhere. Mainly, though, I think I was trying to do "The Wizard of Oz" in outer space. If my characters remind you ever so slightly of the Cowardly Lion and the Tin Man, well now you know the reason why!

How old is Akiko?
Ten (really she's only 4, since she wasn't put on paper until 1992.

What does Akiko mean?
The Japanese name "Akiko" can have different meanings, depending on which Chinese character you choose to write it with. Our heroine writes her name with the character meaning "brightness".

How did you get the images of "Akiko" such as her face, her hair style, and unisex kind of personality and appearances?
As I said earlier, I was living in Japan when Akiko was first created. Her hair style is inspired by real grad school girls in Japan, almost all of whom seem to wear their hair in this way at some point in childhood, then abandon it as they grow older. As for her "unisex" personality, I guess I wanted both boys and girls to be able to identify with her. And with all the mayhem she'd have to go through, I knew it was going to have to be blue jeans all the way!

How does Akiko make her hair stay like that?
The really tricky thing about Akiko's pig tails isn't keeping them in place, it's making them spring up into the air whenever she's surprised.


Spuckler

Does Spuckler ever wash and comb his hair?
Certainly not. What do you think he is, some kind of sissy?

Is Spuckler bitter about his leg, or has he come to terms with it?
As far as I know, Spuckler is incapable of being bitter about anything for very long. He just doesn't have the patience for it.


Mr. Beeba

If Mr. Beeba is so smart, why can't he get gloves in his size?
How can you be so sure those gloves aren't in his size? The real question is, why does he even bother with gloves, since he doesn't even wear shoes? Ah, Beeba...such a slave to fashion.

Why does Mr. Beeba have snowballs on his ears?
I always thought those were balls of fur, but maybe you know something I don't.


Gax

Why is Gax so cute?
Ah, cuteness. It's dogged this project from the start...


Who is Robb Horan?
Robb Horan is the publisher at Sirius Entertainment. I used his name on the "envelope" in Issue #5, because he's the man I send my artwork to every month. Along with fellow Sirius folks Larry Salamone and Joe Linsner, Robb was one of the first people to belive that Americans would actually pay good money for a comic book about a little girl who goes to another planet!


Click here to send me e-mail
Regular mail:
Letters to Akiko
29209 Northwestern Hwy # 581
Southfield, MI 48034

Back to the top
Hosted by www.Geocities.ws

1