Gakkou no Yuurei (School Ghosts), Volume 1

Gakkou no Yuurei (School Ghosts) is an anthology of ghost stories, mostly set at schools. Seven volumes were released between 1995 and 1999. Each volume has multiple, independent stories. Because there's no continuity between volumes, or even stories, Orphan will be releasing this show one volume at a time. The series is technically an orphan, because Flapsubs released one episode and then stopped.

This first volume was supposed to be released for Halloween, but Stuff Happened™. We ended up changing raws twice, first from the KPMP raw to a bespoke raw, and then to a second version of that raw to deal with the need for different frame rates in different sections. As a result, I redid the typesetting twice. The timing was tweaked very late in the process. So, for those reasons, this episode is being released post-election, when horror seems to be the order of the day.

The first volume of Gakkou no Yuurei has six stories:

1. Forgotten Notebook. A late-staying schoolgirl issent home by the janitor, forgets her notebook, and is killed by a train when she turns back for it. She returns later to get it...
   
   
   
   
   
2. Batting Ghost. The ghost of a baseball coach who killed himself over an accident haunts the school baseball field.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Cursed Summer Camp. A girls' basketball camp stays overnight at a converted hospital, only to find that the ghosts of former patients still linger.
   
   
   
   
   
4. Night on a School Trip. Schoolgirls on a trip stay overnight an inn, where the seaside pavilion windows are nailed shut, for a reason.
   
   
   
   
   
5. Hanako-san. A ghost inhabits the furthermost stall of the girls' bathroom. You can summon her, but you shouldn't.
   
   
   
   
   
6. Red Eyes. The ghosts of dead warriors haunt the school chemistry lab. You really, really, REALLY mustn't look them in the eye.

Ghost stories don't appeal to me, but some of them are quite creepy. I was amused to see the story of Hanako-san, which is apparently a common urban legend in Japan.

Some translation notes:

• As Guardian Enzo points out in his informative essay, the Japanese have two words for ghosts: obake, the quasi-harmless spirits often found in Western popular media, and yuurei, the terrifying spirits of the restless dead. This show is most definitely about the latter.
• The song "You may pass, you may pass..." is from the Japanese children's game Touryanse. The song "Kagome, kagome" is from the Japanese children's game of the same name. Both are quite creepy, and both have appeared in other anime.

As an anthology series, the voice cast is huge, and online sources are no help. Using Google Translate, I did parse some of the voice credits, and Perevodildo filled in the rest. The cast contains many stalwarts from the 1990s.

Forgotten Notebook

• Iwao Junko (girl) played the title roles in Ayashi no Ceres and Devilman Lady, Tomoyo in Card Captor Sakura, Natsuko in Shin Cutie Honey, Tokiko in Key the Metal Idol, Mima in Perfect Blue, and Mika in Kakyuusei (1995), an Orphan release.
  
• Aono Takeshi (janitor) played Nurarihyon in every incarnation of GeGeGe no Kitarou through 2007, Billy Bones in Treasure Island, Bookman in D.grayman, Dracule in One Piece, Katsuhiko Masaki in the Tenchi Muyo franchise, and Shiro Sanada in the Yamato franchise. He also appeared in Bride of Deimos, A Penguin's Memories, Ginga Tansa 2100: Border-nen, Fire Emblem, Grimm Douwa: Kin no Tori, Hashire Melos!, the three Sangokushi movies (as Guan Yu), Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, and Rain Boy, all Orphan releases.

Batting Ghost

• Ootsuka Houchuu (Coach Nagai) played Satou in the Ajin properties, Bookman in D.grayman: Hollow, Rob in Shinigami no Kuro Maid, Ziggy in Edens Zero, Tsurumi in Golden Kamuy, the announcer in Yawara!, and Ikezu Daisuke in Asatte Dance, an Orphan release.
  
• Neya Michiko (M) played the title character in Shin Cutey Honey, Emilia in Macross 7: Ginga ga Ore o Yonde Iru!, Rally in Gunsmith Cats, Barnett in Vandread, Mako in the Initial D franchise, and Nancy in R.O.D. She also played (Mesa, Eve's mother) in Mother: Saigo no Shoujo Eve, Aya in Hidamari no Ki, and Lena in Fire Emblem, all Orphan releases.
• Tsuboi Tomohiro (Matsumoto) played Shinpachi in the Hakuouki franchise, Ichirou in the Knights of Sidonia properties, Toshii Maeda in the Sengoku Basara: Samurai Kings shows, and Shima in Zegapain.
• Ogihara Hideki (student; also Morita in "Red Eyes") played Toshiya in the Mahoromatic franchise, Ryouta in Soul Link, Ma-kun in Gravitation, and Yamane in the Major franchise.
  

Cursed Summer Camp

• Okamoto Maya (Chiko) played played Maya in the Burn Up! series, Harumi in The Irresponsible Captain Tylor franchise, Saiko in the Silent Mobius properties, female Akira in Mellow, and Puck in Yousei Ou. The last two are Orphan releases.
  
• Kanai Mika (Kanna) played the title role in the Licca-chan franchise, Normad in the Galaxy Angel franchise, Histoire in the Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise, Melonpanda in the Soreike! Anpanman franchise, Misato in Nana, Lotte in Starship Girl Yamamoto Yohko, and Hime in Bakuen Campus Guardress, an Orphan release.
  
• Ohtaki Shinya (Mr. Takai) played Beat in Scoopers and Chiefson in Wolf Guy, and he appeared in Aoki Honoo, Elf ,17 and Hi-Speed Jecy. The last four are Orphan releases.
• Asaoka Natsumi (Captain) appeared in Blue Seed, Orphen, and Turn A Gundam.
  

Night on a School Trip

• Mitsuishi Kotono (Yukari; also Kumi in "Hanako-san" and Aki in "Red Eyes") played the title roles in Excel Saga, Birdy the Mighty, and the Maze TV and OVAs, Mink in Dragon Half, Katsuragi Misato in the Evangelion properties, Rosalia in the Angelique franchise, Kagura in the original Fruits Basket, Eri in Love Get Chu, and of course, Sailor Moon in the Sailor Moon franchise. She played the leads in Mother: Saigo no Shoujo Eve and Oshare Kozou wa Hanamaru, as well as Oshina in Hidamari no Ki, and appeared in Blazing Transfer Student, Nagasarete Airantou, and Yamato 2520, all Orphan releases.
• Amano Yuri (Yumi; also Kaoru in "Red Eyes") played the title role in The Legend of Snow White, Julia in Daddy Long Legs, Kiyone in the Tenchi Muyo franchise, and Moemi in Video Girl Ai. She appeared as Lady Freeze in Bakuen Campus Guardress, Catherine in Okama Hakusho, Kuzunoha in Akuemon, Angie in Condition Green, Elthena in Eien no Filena, Kitagawa in Nozomi Witches, Noriko in Singles, and Yuko in St. Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, as well as multiple roles in Fukuyama Gekijou, all Orphan releases.
• Satoko Kifuji (Megumi; also Ai in "Hanako-san") - no information
  
• Mizutani Yuuko (Shoko; also Yuko Mizutani in "Red Eyes") played Pinoko in all the Black Jack properties, as well as Misako in Houkago no Tinker Bell, Hiromi in Milky Passion: Dougenzaka - Ai no Shiro, Rika in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, Lila in Eien no Filena, Anna in Inochi no Chikyuu: Dioxin no Natsu, and Dr. Uematsu Kikue in Yume Kakeru Kougen, all Orphan projects.
• Nishimura Chinami (Keiko; also Yuuko in "Hanako-san") played the title role in the Aria franchise, Chibusuke in Dragon Drive, Neko Musume in the 1996 version of GeGeGe no Kitarou, Mia in Kaleido Star, Rand in the Maze properties, Hydra in the UFO Princess Valkyrie franchise, and Koko in Zatch Bell.
  
• Tahara Aruno (Mr. Yasuda) appeared in Apfelland Monogatari, Bremen 4, Oz, Raiyantsuura no Uta, and Nozomi Witches, all Orphan releases, as well as Cowboy Bebop, Rurouni Kenshin, and Death Note.
  
• Shimaka Yuu (deputy manager) played Katagiri in Yawara! He appeared in Bagi, Kosuke-sama & Rikimaru-sama: Konpeitou no Ryuu, Kasei Yakyoku, Apfelland Monogatari, Ushiro no Hyakutaro, and Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, all Orphan releases.
• Kobayashi Hiromi (Nakai) - no information.
  

Hanako-san

• Ootani Ikue (Hanako) provided the voice of Pikachu in in the Japanese, English, Spanish, and German versions of the Pokemon shows. She also played Mitsuhiko in the Detective Conan franchise and Tony Tony Chopper in the One Piece franchise. She appeared as the Fujiwara twins in Haruka Naru Toki no Naka de 2, Ann in Next Senki Ehrgeiz, and Sumire in Kiss wa Mi ni Shie, all Orphan releases.
• Yoshida Konami (Minako) (Ko) played the title roles in Asobo Toy-chan and Metal Fighter Miku and the lead in Idol Fighter Su-Chi-Pai. She appeared in Sensou Douwa: Kiku-chan to Ookami, Akuemon, Kiss wa Me ni Shita, and Yamato 2520, all Orphan releases.
  

Red Eyes

• Horiuchi Kenyuu (Takeda) played the title role in Guin Saga and Oscar in the Angelique franchise. He also played the lead role in Amon Saga and Raiyantsuuri no Uta, Ryuuichi in Aoko Honoo, Jin Akira in Wolf Guy, Nest in Eien no Filena, Kubota in Meisou Ou Border, Lid in Greed, Romus in Choujikuu Romanesque Samy: MISSING 99, and the refined son in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, all Orphan releases.

The director, Kashima Norio, also directed Dirty Pair TV, Refrain Blue, and Huckleberry Finn Monogatari.

ninjacloud really wanted to do this series and commissioned bespoke encodes of the episodes. Perevodildo translated checked the original Flapsubs subtitles; he also wrote a perceptive commentary on MyAnimeList. Perevodildo did the initial timing, and ninjacloud tweaked it for the new raw. I edited and typeset. Nemesis and ImAWasteOfHair QCed. The encoder wished to remain anonymous, but he labeled each episode with a caffeinated beverage; this episode's encoder credit is "Coffee".

 

So if you're looking for a spooky good time, you could do worse than pass 45 minutes with the ghosts of Gakkou no Yuurei. You can get this episode from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Portrait of the Psychopath as a Young Man (Aoki Honoo v2)

Aoki Honoo is a one-shot OVA from 1989, based on a six-volume manga by Yanagasawa Kimio, a prolific mangaka who is almost unknown in the West. It was translated by Random Masters and released by ACR (Anime Classics Review), but the encode was hardsubbed and subsized (240p), which made it difficult to watch. In 2017, Orphan released a sofsubbed, "full SD" version based on a VHS rip. As I noted as the time, "The show has been released on Laserdisc but not on DVD. If we can find the Laserdisc, we'll do a second version." Now, thanks to WOWmd, the laserdisc has been found and encoded. Accordingly, Orphan is releasing a revised version with better video.

Aoki Honoo makes for uncomfortable viewing, for me. It is the story of a heel (viewed kindly) or a psychopath (viewed clinically) who claws his way toward the top over the bodies of his girlfriends. The main character, Kaizu Ryuuichi, is a high-school senior determined to escape from his small-town upbringing, achieve independence from his family, and become a major success. He systematically seduces and extorts money from a series of women, starting with a local hostess, Sayoko, and then the local rich girl, Naito Emi. 

When he gets to college, he continues his cold, calculating conquests. Throughout, he abandons or two-times his current girlfriend, whoever she is, when a more promising opportunity appears. Because Ryuuichi is so cold and calculating, it's difficult to understand why women fall under his spell. Perhaps this screencap offers an explanation: 

He has big hands, too.

One translation note. Ryuuichi's little sister Kaizu addresses him as onii-chan. In the original, this was translated literally, as "brother." But in English, use of a sibling relationship in direct address is uncommon, unless meant sarcastically, so in this version, Kaizu calls him by his name.

The voice actors all appeared in other Orphan releases:

• Horuichi Kenyuu (Kaizu Ryuuichi) played the title role in Guin Saga and Oscar in the Angelique franchise. He also played the title role in Amon Saga, Inlen in Raiyantsuuri no Uta, Jin Akira in Wolf Guy, Nest in Eien no Filena, Kubota in Meisou-ou Border, Lid in Greed, Romus in Choujikuu Romanesque Samy: MISSING 99, Simon in Ai to Ken no Camelot, and the refined son in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, all Orphan releases.
• Andou Arisa (Naito Emi) starred in the title role of Eien no Filena and as Mako in Doukyuusei: Climax, both Orphan releases. She played Rosa in Makyuu Senjou and appeared in a number of h-anime, including Cream Lemon.
• Ikura Kazue (Kuroeda Keiko, a third-year conquest at university) is best known for the roles of Makimura Kaori in City Hunter, Toraou in Mashin Eiyuuden Wataru, Natsume Ryuunosuke in All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku, and Leni Milchstrasse in Sakura Wars. She played Jiliora in Gude Crest and Hojo Masako in Genji, Part 1, and she also appeared in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki and 15 Shounen Hyouryuuki, all Orphan releases.
• Shou Mayumi (Kaizu Misao, Ryuuichi's little sister) played Minako in Bride of Deimos, Ayako in Kimami ni Idol, Gannet in Hoshi Neko Full House, Peggy in A Penguin's Memories, Yuko Kurita in the Oishinbo movie-length specials, and Baby Boar in Katte ni Shirokuma, all Orphan releases.
• Yoshida Miho (Sumibishi Hisayo, a first-year conquest at university) played "D-cup" Hiroko in Meisou-ou Border and appeared in Kiss wa Me ni Shite and Zetsuai: 1989, all Orphan releases. Her best known role is Afura Mann in the El Hazard franchise. She also appeared in a number of h-anime.
• Sasaki Yuuko (Sayoko, a hostess and Ryuuchi's long-term mistress) played the title role in Desert Rose and Gilbert in Kaze to Ki no Uta SANCTUS. She played Akiko/Keiko in Wolf Guy, Yuki in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, and Exper Jiff in Exper Zenon, and she appeared in Amaama to Inazuma, Dokushin Apartment Dokudami-sou, and Yousei-ou, all Orphan releases.
• Ono Kenichi (Yamada) appeared in Akuemon, Bavi Stock, Botchan, Elf 17, Houkago no Tinker Bell, Ipponbouchou Mantarou, Wolf Guy, Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, and Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, all Orphan releases.
• Yokoo Mari (Naitou Fumie) played Battia in Outlanders, Fumio (the dorm mother) in the Shokugeki no Souma franchise, Mantarou's mother, Kayo, in Ipponbouchou Mantarou, Queen Felicia in Dragon Slayer, and Yuriko in Yuukan Club. The last three are Orphan releases.
• Ichijou Miyuki (Kaizu Toshiko, Ryuuichi's mother) played Akane in Next Senki Ehrgeiz, Gizza in Tottoi (both Orphan releases), and Jody Rockwell in the Yawara! properties. She appeared in several Detective Conan movies.
• Nishimura Tomomichi (Ryuuichi's father) appeared as the narrator in YuYu Hakusho, Anzai-sensei in Slam Dunk, Shibaraku Tsurugibe in Mashin Eiyuuden Wataru, and Jamitov Hymem in Mobile Suit Z Gundam. He had a cameo as Don Dracula in Bremen 4 and appeared in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Goro Show, Eguchi Hisashi no Nantoka Naru Desho!, Fire Tripper, Fumoon, Hi-Speed Jecy, A Time Slip of 10,000 Years: Prime Rose, Tezuka Osasmu's Tales from the Old Testament, Wild 7, Wolf Guy, and Yamataro Comes Back, all Orphan releases.
• Saka Osamu (Emi's father) played Daisuke Aramaki in the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex franchise and Oohara in the Oishinbo properties. He appeared in Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, Sanada 10, Next Senki Ehrgeiz, Fire Emblem, Kasei Yakyoku, Oz, and the third Sangokushi movie, all Orphan releases.
• Ohtaki Shinya (Emi's brother) played Beat in Scoopers and Chiefson in Wolf Guy, and he appeared in Elf 17 and Hi-Speed Jecy; the last three are Orphan releases. He also appeared in a number of h-anime.
• Nakahara Shigeru (Kirioka, a high school student with a crush on Emi) played the title role in Arion, Trowa Barton in Gundam Wing, Fujiwara no Takamichi in Haruka Naru Toki no Nake de: Hachyoushou, and Kurama in Kyousogiga. He also played Hyakutaro in Ushiro no Hyakutaro, Fujiwara no Yukitata in Haruka Naru Toki no Nake de 2, Arikawa Yuzuru in Haruka Naru Toki no Nake de 3, and had featured roles in Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Ai no Kusabi, Dragon Fist, Dokushin Apartment Doukudami-sou, Chameleon, and Neko Neko Fantasia, all Orphan releases.

The director, Ishikuro Noboru, had an extensive resume with a focus on sci-fi. His projects included Legend of the Galactic Heroes, Megazone 23, and Tytania.

The original script was by Random Masters. M74 transcribed and timed the subtitles from the ACR release. For this release, Perevodildo translation checked, and ninjacloud retimed. I edited and typeset both versions. bananadoyouwanna and M74 QCed the original. ImAWasteOfHair QCed this version. WOWmd ripped the laserdisc on the Domesday Duplicator and encoded it. The result looks much better than the first version. I cannot say the same of Ryuuichi's actions.

Aoki Honoo is competently made and focuses on a character type that is rare in modern anime. There's a lot of nudity and sex, so it's definitely NSFW. If you're interested in spite of that, or because of that, you can get it from the usual torrent sites or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net