Every Day Is Sunday

Mainichi ga Nichiyoubi (Every Day Is Sunday), a six-episode OVA from 1990 to 1992, is another show that's been percolating for a long time - in this case, more than two years. The project started when I noticed that Erik, of Piyo Piyo Productions, owned the Japanese laserdiscs. I thought that if he ripped them, I could spruce up the existing subs (from Kodocha Anime) for a better release, because the Kodocha raws were ancient Divx4 AVIs at low bit rates. Had I But Known™ what I was letting myself in for, I would have shelved the whole idea.

The problem is not the series itself. Mainichi ga Nichiyoubi is a light-hearted slapstick comedy about rookie 22-year-old policewoman Takeshita Yuumi and her love interest, itinerant magician Ichidaiji Tooru. The episodes are standalone capers during which Yuumi's awesome physical abilities and Tooru's cunning sleights-of-hand combine for adventures, with (or desite) help from another rookie policewoman, Ninomiya Shiho (the Chief's granddaughter), and idol Maijima Sarasa, Yuumi's childhood rival. Nothing is taken very seriously. Even when Yuumi's virtue seems imperiled by a villain, the mood is comedic rather than menacing. It's very entertaining.

And the problem is not the series title, although it's commonly given as Everyday Is Sunday. In his torrent, Erik pointed that this is total Engrish. "Everyday" is an adjective, meaning "ordinary" or "commonplace." Mainichi actually means "daily" or "every day." Erik blamed the original English translators, but in fact, the problem goes right back to the anime itself:

(If they meant to use "seems" rather than "is," the title would need to be Every Day Seems like Sunday.) AniDB and friends will never fix it, but the English title should be Every Day Is Sunday.

No, the problem is the encode - blended frames everywhere. That makes tracking moving signs a nightmare, and this series has a lot of signs, all hand-drawn, of course, and many of them in motion. I gradually came to understand why Kodocha typeset so few of them. I considered going back to the Kodocha raws, which have fewer artifacts, but in addition to the ancient codec and low bit rates, they're overcropped. So I blundered on. Some of the signs are set with {\an8}Sign says... because nothing else worked.

All the lead seiyuu are veterans with long careers. Matsumoto Yasunori (Tooru) got his first starring role as Johnny in Starship Troopers, an Orphan release. He was in numerous OVAs in the 1990s, including Seikimatsu: Humane Society and Al Caral no Isan, both Orphan releases. Among his notable roles were Wataru Akiyama in Initial D, Jean Havoc in Fullmetal Alchemist, Gourry Gabriev in Slayers, Ryou in Sonic Soldier Borgman, and a personal favorite, Dick Saucer in Dragon Half. He is still active, appearing in Violet Evergarden in 2018. Itou Miki (Yuumi) played Eika in Project A-Ko, Reimi in Burn Up, and Touko (Natsume's foster mother) in the Natsume Yuujinchou franchise. She is currently appearing in FLCL Alternative. Hiramatsu Akiko (Ninomiya) played Nene Romanova in Bubblegum Crisis and Bubblegum Crash, Tom Kusanagi in Mikan Enikki, Konoe (the security maid) in Hanaukyo Maid Tai, and Miyuki in the You're Under Arrest franchise. Matsui Ikeda (Sarasa) played the title role in Dream Hunter Rem and its sequels, Rei (the protagonist's rival) in Idol Densetsu Eriko, Wendy in Peter Pan no Bouken, and Aiko in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, an Orphan release, and its sequel. Ikeda Masaru (Chief) got his start in the 1970s and had numerous lead and featured roles, usually as father or authority figures. His most recent appearance was in 2017's Knight's & Magic.

The OP and ED are quite nice. The OP is bouncy, in keeping with the slapstick nature of the series; the ED is pensive, a more serious reflection on the ambiguous relationship between Yuumi and Tooru. The longest versions are in the first two episodes; the last four abbreviate both the opening and closing sequences. There are different OP and ED animations in each pair of episodes. I have not found a copy of the soundtrack, alas.

The original subtitles were by Kodocha Anime. tenkenX6 checked episodes 1 through 4, and laalg episodes 5 and 6. They added quite a few signs. Yogicat retimed to the new raws. I edited and typeset (and typeset and typeset and typeset...) Calyrica, bananadoyouwanna and VigorousJammer did QC. The encodes are by Piyo Piyo Productions from Japanese laserdiscs. It may be possible do better on the frame-blending issues. If anyone comes up with an improved raw, I'll consider a new version. Or in view of all the typesetting, maybe not.

A few translation notes:

• Tawagoto, the precinct where the show is set, means "nonsense" or "silly talk."
• Tooru is from western Japan and uses "-han" instead of "-chan." 
• Ep1. "Sefure Apartments." Sefure means "sex friend" (a friend with benefits).
• Ep2. "Miss High Legs Contest." High legs are a type of bathing suit cut to make the wearer's legs look longer.
• Ep3. In Japan, school failure notices say "Cherry blossoms fall," because "fall" sounds like "fail."
• Ep3. "Ground fighter" means lying down judo and wrestling techniques.
• Ep3. Miyazawa Rie was a famous actress and singer of the day.
• Ep4. The parade costumes are based on the ancient tale "Journey to the West," with Sarasa playing the Priest, the Chief playing the monkey (Son Gokuu), Yuumi playing the pig (Cho Hakkai), and Tooru playing the kappa (Sa Gojou).
• Ep6. "Suntona" is a parody of "Stona," "Kyolepion" of "Kyoleopin," both Japanese over-the-counter medications.
• Ep6. The newspaper office sign is Shuukan Mainichi, or Daily Weekly. 
• Ep6. Another background sign is "Nitional," a parody of the Panasonic "National" brand. This couldn't be typeset due to frame blending.

So here's a nearly family-friendly slapstick comedy series that almost everyone can enjoy. ("Nearly" and "almost" because there are a couple of topless scenes.) You can get the show from the usual torrent sites or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net

Mea culpa: At the last minute, I added signs at the very end of episodes 2, 4, and 6 giving the production or marketing credit to Takuma Communications. It should be Tokuma Communications, of course.  I'm not going to fix it; they should never have been added so late in the process. Lesson learned.