To-Y Blu-ray

To-Y is a 1987 OVA about a Japanese indie rock band and its lead singer. It is based on a ten-volume manga by Kamijou Atsuji. To-Y was stranded on the wrong side of the Digital Divide for years, until the eponymously named To-Y Restoration Committee subbed a laserdisc rip of the show in 2007. It quickly found a niche among devotees of indie rock and Japanese visual kei. Earlier this year, it was restored and released on Blu-ray. Orphan is now releasing a high-definition version featuring a new encode and a revised script.

To-Y tells the story of the indie rock-and-roll band GASP, which has a fervent following among Tokyo's rebellious youth. GASP is on the verge of a breakthrough, with a pending concert at an outdoor venue, Hibiya Yaon. However, the band's lead singer, To-Y (pronounced Too-i), seems indifferent to the possibilities of success. He's more interested in living his life, fighting when he feels like it, and balancing the attentions of his eccentric girlfriend, Niya, who seems to be part cat, and his beautiful cousin, Hiderou Koishikawa, who performs as a successful idol under the name Sonoko Morigaoka.

As the show opens, GASP is playing a gig at a seedy nightclub. For no particular reason, To-Y punches out the lights of a successful male idol, Aikawa Youji, who has come to see the band play. This arouses the interest of Youji's scheming manager, Katou Koshiko. She approaches To-Y and offers to make him an star - without his band, of course. When To-Y rebuffs her, she sets out to show him who really holds the power in the music business. She gets GASP's forthcoming concert at Hibiya Yaon canceled, throwing the band into a tailspin. But inspired by Niya, To-Y refuses to buckle, and he finds a way forward for the band and for himself without giving in to Katou's demands.

To-Y is as much a music video as it is a drama. It includes eight different songs in its 55-minute runtime, all performed by indie bands of the era, including Psy S, the Barbee Boys, the Street Sliders, Zelda, AMOR, and Qujila. The dialog is sparse, less than 300 lines, and very terse. Despite the brevity of the script, To-Y tells a coherent, complete story and fleshes out its characters in a few deft strokes.

The voice cast contains both veteran seiyuu and successful practitioners from other fields:

• Shiozawa Kaneto (To-Y) played Shin in Hiatari Ryoukou, Iason in Ai no Kusabi, Rock Holmes in Fumoon, Shiina in Chameleon, Sanzou in I am Son Goku, Kouhei in Karuizawa Syndrome, and Kurahashi Eiji in Nine, all Orphan releases. He also played Joe in Tokimeki Tonight, Yoshio in Miyuki, Takeshi in Touch, D in Vampire Hunter D, Narsus in the Arslan Senki OVA, Rosario in Dragon Half, and Abriel senior in Crest of the Stars.
• Nokko (Niya) is a singer-songwriter. To-Y was her only anime role.
• Uchida Naoya (Aikawa Youji, the rival singer) played the title role in the Cobra franchise, Yagami's father in Death Note, Daigo in the recent version of Dororo, Oda Nobunaga in Drifters, and Askeladd in Vinland Saga.
• Yayoi Mitsuki (Hiderou Koishikawa, aka Sonoko Morigaoka, the successful female singer and To-Y's cousin) played Maria Winter in Condition Green and Maron in Girl from Phantasia, both Orphan releases.
• Sogabe Kazuyuki (Nakahara Kimihiko, aka Kaei, the mysterious goth character) played Oda Nobunaga in Black Lion, Rei Ginsei in Vampire Hunter D, and Meyer in Hi-Speed Jecy, an Orphan release.
• Hitotsuyanagi Miru (Katou Koshiko, Youji's scheming manager) has only a few credits, appearing recently in Eizouken.
• Gendou Tesshou (Momo, the drummer) played Colonel Muto in Joker Game, Moloch in Yondemasu Azazel-san, Rei in the Urusei Yatsura franchise, Moguro Fukuzou in New Laughing Salesman,  and "Oyaji" in Mitsuboshi Colors. He also played Jin Kiryu in Blue Sonnet, Zigong in Eiyuu Banka Koushi-den, Paul Rusch in Yume Kakeru Kougen, Jim Hyatt in AWOL Compression Remix, the loyal lieutenant Galbreath in Next Senki Ehrgeiz, the dragonman Baguda in Greed, the narrator in Akai Hayate and Meisou-ou Border, Dog McCoy in Dallos, Hebopi in Wild 7, rebel leader Oosukune in Izumo, and Rikiishi's trainer Kuroki and Kirishima in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, all Orphan releases.
• Seki Toshihiko (Shouji, the guitar player) played the title role in Izumo, Riki in Ai no Kusabi, the hero Seitarou in Hoshi Neko Full House, the gang leader Hiba in Wild 7, Miroku in Yuukan Club, Chuuta in Satsujin Kippu wa Heart-iro, the fighter Nagase Jun in Akai Hayate, Hayata in Call Me Tonight, Ootsuki in Milky Passion: Dougenzaka - Ai no Shiro, Junichiro in Kasei Yakyoku, and the unnamed protagonist of Oruorane the Cat Player, all Orphan releases. He also played Matsuda in the Yawara! properties, Sanzo in the Saiyuuki TV series, Mousse in Ranma 1/2, and the title roles in Alexander (Reign the Conqueror) and Kaiketsu Zorro.
• Yamada Tatsuo (Isami, the bass player) is an animator. To-Y was his only voice-acting role.

The director, Hamatsu Mamoru, also helmed B.B Fish (an Orphan release), Yoroiden Samurai Troopers, the Arslan Senki OVAs, B'tx, and the 2005 remake of Glass no Kamen.

This version started with the To-Y RC script. Iri did a thorough translation check. (One example of the changes: the originals script had the venue as Yaon Hibiya, as though it were a Japanese name that needed to be reversed for Western order. In fact, Hibiya Yaon is an acronym, short for Hibiya Yagai Ongakudou - Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall - not a name.) ninjacloud timed. I edited and typeset; the typesetting is much more extensive than in previous versions. Nemesis and Uchuu QCed. bananadoyouwanna encoded from a Japanese Blu-ray. The file is 9GB for a show of less than an hour, driven by the visual effects, the film grain, and the FLAC soundtrack.

I guess Orphan is in the big (file) leagues now.

I quite liked To-Y. It is recognizably an 80s one-and-done OVA teaser for a long manga series, like Sanctuary, but it tells a complete story and can be watched without knowledge of the manga. It even has the usual 80s soupcon of gratuitous nudity, which I'm sure will discourage exactly none of our potential viewers. You can get To-Y from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.