Tanjou: Debut

Tanjou: Debut (Birth: Debut) is a two-episode shoujo OVA from 1994. It was originally subbed in the VHS-fansub era. Its two stories revolve around a quartet of high school girls - Ito Aki, Tanaka Kumi, Fujimura Saori, Aida Sachiko - but appear to exist in alternate realities. In the first, Aki falls in love, and Saori is her rival; in the second, the first three are fast friends, and Sachiko is MIA. There's a hint, in the opening credits, that the girls are acting in TV dramas, but this isn't followed through. What is going on?

Fortunately, Japanese Wikipedia explains all. Tanjou: Debut is a derivative of a training simulation game about three wannabe idols (Aki, Kumi, and Saori). 

The player's objective is to guide all three to successful careers, either as individual artists or as a unit, in the face of multiple rivals. The OVAs add Sachiko as a fourth member of the team. 

In the OVAs, the four are appearing as themselves in independent teleplays, the first about teenage romance, the second about childhood loss. In the first, only Aki and Kumi are friends, and the others appear in the course of the story. The tone is mostly comedic, with a touch of heartbreak. 

In other words, it's okay. In the second, Aki, Kumi, and Saori are friends, and Sachiko, it turns out, died in childhood. The tone is melancholic, with a redeeming (and unbelievable) supernatural conclusion

It is breathtakingly superficial.

The principal voice actors have all appeared in other Orphan releases:

• Tominaga Miina (Ito Aki) played Ritsu in Fruits Basket (2002), Persia in Magical Fairy Persia, Rollpanna in the Anpanman franchise, and Misaki in Tsuritama. She also played Muuma in Bavi Stock, Kamiya in Tokimeki Tonight, Hikaru in Chameleon, Karen in Yuukan Club, Cresson in Star Dust, Eri in Karuizawa Syndrome, and Kaguya-hime in Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko, all Orphan releases. 
• Kanai Mika (Tanaka Kumi) 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, Kanna in Gakkou no Yuurei volume 1, and Hime in Bakuen Campus Guardress. The last two are Orphan releases.
• Shiina Hekiru (Aida Sachiko) played Asami in Elementalors, Rurubell in Megami Paradise, and Elysse in Plastic Little, all Orphan releases, as well as Hikaru in the Rayearth series, Fam in Hikyou Tanken Fam & Ihrlie, Rockman in the Rockman Hoshi ni Negai wo OVAs,  Alpha in the Yokohama Country Cafe OVAs,and Nene (the protagonist's perverted younger sister) in the Seitokai Yakuindomo franchise. 
• Kasahara Hiroko (Fujimura Saori) played the title roles in Armitage III and Mahou Angel Sweet Mint, Maron in Assemble Insert, Nanako in Dear Brother, Ami in DNA^2, Fuu in the Rayearth properties, Tama in the Tama and Friends franchise, and Hinako in Ultimate Teacher. She starred as Seara in Baby Love and played Princess Shurain in Hayou no Tsurugi, both Orphan releases.
  

The first episode also includes some additional seiyuu:

• Amano Yuri (teacher) 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 and Gakkou no Yuurei, volume 1, all Orphan releases.
• Miyamoto Mitsuru (Mike) starred as Ibuki in Hidamari no Ki, an Orphan release. He also played Chihiro in After the Rain, Maiza in Baccano!, Roger Smith in The Big O, Steven Starphase in Kekkai Sensen, Ougai Mori in the Bungo Stray Dogs franchise, Hideo Tachibana in H2, Mizoguchi in Kaiju No. 8, Keiichi Nakagawa in the Kochikame franchise, Shirakawa in Piano, Itsuki in RahXephon, and Hubb in Wolf's Rain.
• Kazama Nobuhiko (manager) appeared in many shows, including Shinken Densetsu Tight Road and Spectral Force.

The director, Mochizuki Tomomi, has directed many other shows, including Ranma 1/2, Dirty Pair Flash, Fancy Lala, Princess Nine, Seraphim Call, and Porphy no Nagai Tabi.

I don't remember, or have suppressed, how this project got started. Perhaps I wasn't impressed by the existing subs. In any case, an anonymous friend found the R2J DVD ISOs and encoded new raws. I shifted the existing Mushin subs (themselves transcribed from an unknown VCD or even VHS tape) into place. Perevodildo translation checked. Paul Geromini edited. I fine-timed and typeset. ImAWasteOfHair and I QCed. IaWoH (to abbreviate) put me on the right track about the show by pointing out that the "original work" was credited to the same games company, Headroom, which was also behind Sotsugyou: Graduation and Sailor Victory, two shows where the same characters were used in radically different scenarios.

Tanjou: Debut is middling shoujo, but this version is an improvement over the previous ones. You can get it from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko

And now the other shoe drops. Orphan presents the first English-subtitled release of the movie version of Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko (Prince of the Skies: Heaven Chapter). The movie, released in 1990 before the OVAs, is a teaser for the OVA series. It provides condensed versions of the first five episodes and previews of the remaining eight. Like most teaser anime, it is intended to leave the viewer wanting more. Fortunately, all of the Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko OVAs are fansubbed, using Odyssey Anime subtitles from the VHS era, and  arer eadily available.

Although Tenjou Hen is nominally a direct follow-on to Utsu no Miko, it looks very different. Yamazaki Noriyoshi replaced Inomata Mutsumi as character designer. Matsumoto Kenji replaced Kawamoto Shouhei as art director. As a result, Tenjou Hen's look very different; for example, Miko now has blue eyes instead of brown. 

The artwork is darker and muddier. This is not just the result of laserdisc source vs VHS source. The change of staff led to considerable aesthetic differences. Frankly, I prefer the appearance of the first movie.

Tenjou Hen overlaps the ending of Utsu no Miko by retelling Princess Kaguya's return to the Moon. Miko's desires to follow her and to attain the powers of a god inherent in his divine origin. This leads Master Ozuna to send Miko and his oni comrades Kusuri, Tsuri, Takara, and Kagami, along with the fallen god Kijimuna, on a journey to the heavens. There, Miko first encounters the god Rahu Asura, cast out after his daughter Shachi was kidnapped and raped by Taishakuten, king of the gods. 

Next, Miko visits the Moon, only to discover that Kaguya has forgotten him.

Now determined to confront Taishakuten and right the wrong done to Asura, Miko and Kijimuna travel to the Heaven of the 33 Gods, Taishakuten's stronghold. Miko challenges the king of the gods, but he is no match for Taishakuten and is defeated.

In retaliation, or because he mistook her for a swan (shades of Polly Von), Taishakuten kidnaps Kagami, Miko's wannable squeeze, and threatens her with the same fate as Shachi. 

 

And that's where the movie ends. Want to know more? Watch the OVAs. (Spoiler: Miko gets Kagami back in episode 11.)

A few translation notes, courtesy of Perevodildo's study of Buddhism.

• Taishakuten is the Japanese term for Śakra, the king of the Trāyastriṃśa Heaven in Buddhism. Trāyastriṃśa is a tongue-twister and is translated as Heaven of the 33 Gods.
• Shachi, also known as Indrani, is the queen of the gods in Hinduism.

Except for Miko and Kagami, the voice cast is completely different from Utsu no Miko:

• Furuya Tohru (Utsu no Miko) played the lead male roles in Kimagure Orange Road and Sailor Moon, the title roles in Casshern Sins and Kyojin no Hoshi, and recurrent roles in the Dr. Slump, Dragonball, and Mobile Suit Gundam franchises. He also starred as Kosaku  in One Pound Gospel, Niimi in Nine, Kosaku in Stop!! Hibari-kun, Beat, aka the Rabbit, in Choujikuu Romanesque Samy: Missing 99, and the title role in Bavi Stock, all Orphan releases.
• Yamada Eiko (Kagami)  played Yamazaki Tarou in Okama Hakusho, Syril in Cool Cool Bye, and Vee in Al Caral no Isan, all Orphan releases, as well asTarou in the Captain Tsubasa franchise and numerous other featured roles.
• Tanaka Hideyuki (Kusuri) played Terryman in the Kinnikuman franchise and Rayearth in Magic Knight Rayearth. He also played Max in Dallos, Unno Rokurou in Sanada 10, Harmer in Al Caral no Isan, Sammy in Bavi Stock, Sawamura in Nozomi Witches, Ronron in Greed, Aoto in Oedo ga Nemurenai!, Katze in Ai no Kusabi, Minowa Takanari in Karuizawa Syndrome, Kazuhiko, Chiko's father in Ohoshi-sama no Rail, Ma Su, Fengji's lover, in Sangokushi movie 3, and an extra in Heart Cocktail, volume 5, all Orphan releases.
• Shioya Yoku (Tsuri) played the title roles in Kariage-kun and the Umi no Triton TV series and movies, Ryouta in Slam Dunk, Jinpei the Swallow in Gatchaman, and Cosmo Yuki in Space Runaway Ideon. He played Yuzuru in Laughing Target, Mickey in Milky Passion: Dougenzaka - Ai no Shiro, Mizuki in Nayuta, and Zhuge Jun in the first Sangokushi movie, all Orphan releases.
• Horikawa Ryou (Takara) played Shutendou in Shuten Douji, Vegeta in Dragon Ball, Naoto in Slow Step, Anthony Brown in Candy Candy, Reinhard in LOGH, Tadao in Ghost Sweeper Mikami, Kai in Kizuna, and Andromeda in Saint Seiya. He starred as Shinya in Okama Hakusho and appeared in Chameleon, Hi-Speed Jecy, Lunn no Kaze, and the first two Sangokushi movies, all Orphan releases.
• Shibata Hidekatsu (En no Ozuna) played Baron Ashura in Mazinger Z, Kenzou Kabuto in Great Mazinger, King Bradley in both versions of Fullmetal Alchemist, and the Third Hokage in Naruto. He played Sun Quon in the Sangokushi movies, the hero's father in Dragon Fist, Funakoshi in Ushiro no Hyakutaro, Koimura, the Steel Elementalor, in Seirei Tsukai, and the voice of God in Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, all Orphan releases.
• Mita Yuuko (Kijimuna) played the title role in Pokonyan, Posi in the Creamy Mami franchise, Kazuya in the Kimagura Orange Road franchise, Neko Musume in the 1985 iteration of GeGeGe no Kitarou, and Will in Robin Hood no Daibouken. She appeared in Rain Boy, an Orphan release.
• Banjou Ginga (Teishakuten) played the title role in 80 Days Around the World with Willy Fog, Baloo in The Jungle Book, and chairman Nakiri Senzaemon in Shokugeki no Souma. He appeared in Gude Crest, Oruorane the Cat Player, Amon Saga, Ipponbouchou Mantarou, Sanada 10, and the What's Michael? OVAs, all Orphan releases.
• Kashina Kazuhiko (Asura) played Roku in Haguregumo and Matsuda's editor in Yawara! He also appeared in Izumo, Meisou-ou Border, Akuma-tou no Prince: Mitsu Me ga Touru, the three Sangokushi movies, and the first Utsu no Miko movie, all Orphan releases.
• Tominaga Miina (Kaguya-hime) played Ritsu in Fruits Basket (2002), Persia in Magical Fairy Persia, Rollpanna in the Anpanman franchise, Misaki in Tsuritama, Muuma in Bavi Stock, Kamiya in Tokimeki Tonight, Hikaru in Chameleon, Karen in Yuukan Club, Cresson in Star Dust, Ito Aki in Tanjou Debut, and Eri in Karuizawa Syndrome. The last seven are Orphan releases.
  
• Yara Yuusaku (Fujiwara no Fuhito) played the destroyer captain in Zipang and Miyuki's father in Tokyo Godfathers. He had many featured roles, appearing in Nayuta, Next Senki Ehrgeiz, Eien no Filena, Elf 17, Hidamari no Ki, Nozomi Witches, Kimama ni Idol, both Sangokushi OVAs, the second Sangokushi movie, Prime Rose, Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, and both What's Michael? OVAs, all Orphan releases.

The director, Imazawa Tetsuo, directed the Sangokushi OVAs, Coo of the Far Seas, Candy Candy, and Montana Jones, among others.

Like many other Orphan projects that Perevodildo rescued from the vaults, the origins of this release are lost in the mists of time. I don't remember who bought the VHS tape or why; perhaps it was thought to be the first Utsu no Miko movie. In any case, an anonymous friend ripped and encoded it, and it was eventually released as a raw. This year, Perevodildo translated it, using the Odyssey Anime OVA subs as a base; he also timed it. ninjacloud fine-timed. I edited and typeset (very little needed there). ImAWasteOfHair, Paul Geromini, and Topper3000 QCed.

Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko the movie will give you a pretty good idea, in 80 minutes, of whether you want to invest six plus hours in the OVA series. (If you do, be prepared for rougher translations and early oughts styling.) If you want to try the Reader's Digest version instead, you can download the movie from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

 

Utsu no Miko

Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko (Heaven Chapter: Prince of the Skies), commonly called just Utsu no Miko, is a well-known OVA series, released in 13 installments between 1990 and 1992 and fully subtitled. Less well known is its prequel movie, actually titled Utsu no Miko (and unofficially subtitled Earth Chapter), released in 1989. Both are based on a series of light novels by Fujikawa Keisuke, published between 1984 and 1998. Orphan is pleased to present the first English-subtitled version of this movie.

Utsu no Miko is set in Japan's Asuka period, just after the Jinshin War in the late seventh century. It mixes mythical events with actual history, and supernatural characters with real ones. The hero is a divine or semi-divine creature born with a horn in his forehead. He is the son of the god of the northern sky. 

Because of his parentage, he becomes known as Utsu no Miko. He joins En no Ozuna's monks on Mount Kongo and trains as an Oni (demon), warriors who fight on behalf of the common people, along with his friends Tsuri, Takara, Kusuri, and Kagami. The last named has a crush on Miko.

The Imperial government, led by the sinister Fujiwara no Fuhito and his henchman, a renegade Oni with psychic (wizardly) powers named Karakuni no Hirotari, is trying to consolidate control over the countryside by oppression and violence. 

The bandit warlord Uokai and the Oni of Mount Kongo oppose Fujiwara and his minions. 

Miko tries to assassinate Fujiwara, but the attempt backfires. Fujiwara's soldiers attack Mount Kongo. To prevent a bloodbath, Ozuna surrenders himself as a hostage and is exiled to Izu no Shima.

As a result of Ozuna's departure, evil spirits in the old capital escape and run rampant. Fujiwara makes Miko an offer he can scarcely refuse: if he expels the spirits, his assassination attempt will be forgiven, and Ozuna's term of exile will be reduced. 

At the old capital, Miko and his friends dispel most of the spirits, but one is a fallen god, Kijimuna, who had hoped to create a country for spirits. 

This inspires Miko to organize a country for the landless peasantry, known as wanderers, inciting Fujiwara's wrath yet again.

But during the climactic battle, he crosses paths with the Moon Princess, Kaguya, whose flute playing entices and beguiles him, much to Kagami's dismay. 

When she departs for the heavens, he concludes that must realize the powers implicit in his divine origins. (Whether to bring peace to the land or to pursue Kaguya is not clear.) 

Cue the sequel series.

The use of the term Oni for the fighting monks of Mount Kongo is a bit confusing, because an actual oni has a horn on his forehead, just like Utsu no Miko. However, our hero is not a demon, even though he's known as one. Go figure.

The voice cast is large and distinguished.

• Furuya Tohru (Utsu no Miko) played the lead male roles in Kimagure Orange Road and Sailor Moon, the title roles in Casshern Sins and Kyojin no Hoshi, and recurrent roles in the Dr. Slump, Dragonball, and Mobile Suit Gundam franchises. He also starred as Kosaku  in One Pound Gospel, Niimi in Nine, Kosaku in Stop!! Hibari-kun, Beat, aka the Rabbit, in Choujikuu Romanesque Samy: Missing 99, and the title role in Bavi Stock, all Orphan releases.
• Yamada Eiko (Kagami)  played Yamazaki Tarou in Okama Hakusho, Syril in Cool Cool Bye, and Vee in Al Caral no Isan, all Orphan releases, as well asTarou in the Captain Tsubasa franchise and numerous other featured roles.
• Kinoshita Hiroyuki (Kusuri) played Ikuya in Ajin, Mugensai in Bakumatsu, Ken in Glasslip, Heizaemon in House of Five Leaves, and Fujimaki in Megalo Box.
• Yamadera Kouichi (Tsuri) played many leading roles, including Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop, Sukeroku in Shouwa Ginroku Rakugo Shinju, Ryouga in all the Ranma 1/2 properties, and the nameless hero of Otaku no Seiza. He played the title role in Hashire! Melos, Benten in Oedo ga Nemurenai!, Almarick Aswaer in Nana Toshi Monogatari, Happyaku in Wild 7, Chiryuu in Bakuen Campus Guardress, Matsu in Koiko no Mainichi, and Ryouan in Hidamari no Ki, all Orphan releases.
• Hamura Kyouko (Takara) played John in Peter Pan no Bouken and appeared in Starship Troopers, Toraemon, and Hitomi no Naka no Shounen: 15 Shounen Hyouryuuki, all Orphan releases.
• Ikeda Masaru (En no Ozuna) had major roles in Yatterman and Sakura Taisen. He appeared in Don Dracula, Bagi, Greed, Kasei Yakyoku, Every Day Is Sunday, Bakumatsu no Spasibo, Techno Police 21C, Tobira o Akete, and the first Sangokushi TV special, all Orphan releases.
• Isobe Tsutomu (Karakuni no Hirotari) played Dutch in the Black Lagoon franchise, Vincent in the Cowboy Bebop movie, Harry in Gungrave, Ivan in King of Thorn, Dimsdale in Mardock Scramble, Inspector Runge in Monster, and Emperor Hadrian in Thermae Romae.
• Sakamoto Chika (Kijimuna) played Campanella in Night on the Galactic Railway, the title role in Tsuruhime, Nonoko in Tobira wo Akete, Tendonman in the Soreike! Anpanman franchise, and Agumon in the Digimon franchise. She appeared as Miko in Ohoshi-sama no Rail, Yasuda Yumiki in Nine, and Suzume's erstwhile love interest, Katagiri-kun, in Stop!! Hibari-kun!, all Orphan releases.
• Ishida Gentarou (Fujiwara no Fuhito) played Shikishima in Akira, Seijuurou in BIoHunter, Hanzui in Giant Robo, Wotan in Harlock Saga, Red Beard in Life of Guskou Budori, and Duke Red in Metropolis.
• Ikeda Shuichi (Uokai) played Char in Mobile Suit Gundam, Gilbert Durandal in Gundam Seed, Ulrich Kessler in Legend of the Galactic Heroes, the Dragon in Naki no Ryuu, Alex in Dallos, and Azuma in Starship Troopers. The last three are Orphan releases.
  
• Hidaka Noriko (Tatarame)  played Satsuke in My Neighbor Totoro, Minami (the female lead) in Touch, Akane (the female lead) in Ranma 1/2, Peter in Peter Pan no Bouken, Mrs. Yamada (the mother) in the first two Chii anime series, Near in Death Note, and Kikyo in the Inuyasha franchise. She also played Seiko in Ichigatsu ni wa Christmas, Haruo in Senso Douwa: Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki, Yuuki in Boyfriend, Noriko in Yuukan Club, and Harumi in Mikeneko Holmes, all Orphan releases.
• Shimamoto Sumi (Nayotake no Kaguya-hime) debuted as Clarisse in The Castle of Cagliostro. She starred as Sara in Princess Sara, Nausicaa in Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Otonashi Kyouko in Maison Ikkoku, and Dayan in Neko no Dayan. She also played Shokupanman in the Soreike! Anpanman franchise, Tinkerbell in Peter Pan no Bouken, Antoinette in Reporter Blues, and Big Mama in Bakuretsu Hunter. She also played Sue in Maris the Choujo, Elice in Fire Emblem, Miss Akiko in The Girl with Blue Eyes, Suzuko and Suzu in Fire Tripper, the female lead in volume 3 of the original Heart Cocktail, the unnamed female lead in Heart Cocktail Again, and the mother in Kiku and the Wolf, all Orphan releases.
• Katou Seizou (Doushi Houki) played Nanni Spannu in Tottoi, Jashinsai in Tengai Makyou, Admiral Putyatin in Bakumatsu Spasibo, Ii Naosuke in Hidamari no Ki, Abraham in Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, Norbert in Apfelland Monogatari, Hatsutori Juuzou in Kage, Billy Bones in Shin Takarajima, the old stationmaster in Sotsugyou: Graduation, and Jeigan in Fire Emblem, all Orphan releases.
• Kaneuchi Yoshio (Narrator) played President Gibson in Future War 198X, Dr Shikishima in Shin Tetsujin 28, Kouichi in Wonder Three, and the Japanese voice of HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The director, Yoshida Kenji, has only one other credit, Cutta-kun Monogatari, which has pretty much vanished.

The impetus for this movie actually came from finding and ripping the sequel movie, Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko, which summarizes the first five volumes of the OVA series. (Orphan has released it as a raw.) Perevodildo translated and timed. ninjacloud fine-timed. I edited and typeset. ImAWasteOfHair, Paul Geromini, and Topper3000 QCed. The raw is an HD Kids Station rip from heponeko. It is watermarked and, frankly, it looks like an upscale. If we find a laserdisc source (there's no DVD or Blu-ray release), we'll do a second version.

Utsu no Miko didn't really grab me. It shows its light novel origins. The characters are flat. Utsu no Miko is brave, straightforward, and rather naive. Fujiwara no Fuhito is a villain who all but twirls his mustache. The presence of Princess Kaguya is an intrusion from another story and only confuses the plot. But it has lots of action, which helps, I guess. You can get the movie from the usual torrent site or from channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Tistou Midori no Oyayubi

Tistou Midori no Oyayubi (Tistou of the Green Thumbs) is a 1990 movie, based on a beloved French children's novel by Maurice Druon. It tells the story of a boy, Titsou. He's the son of a rich factory owner, but he has no aptitude for book learning. 

Instead, his father sends him to work with the family gardener, known as Mr. Mustache. There, Tistou discovers that he has an extraordinary ability, "green thumbs": whatever he touches sprouts flowers, even if there is no soil or seeds.

(He can also communicate with his pony, Gymanstique.) 

As he travels around his home town of Mirepoil, he applies his thumbs to whatever he encounters - the town prison, the slums, the town hospital, and his father's armaments factory. 

He thereby changes his world for the better, even to the point of stopping a war. It's all too good to last, but the ending is metaphorical and optimistic rather than tragic.

The movie captures the book's tone of magic realism, balancing gracefully between a slice-of-life family story and a fairy tale. Long stretches have no dialog and rely strictly on visuals. The movie looks beautiful, with a pastel palette and watercolor-like backgrounds.

No attempt is made to explain Tistou's capabilities or his effect on his world; miracles are to be experienced, not analyzed. It's a lovely film, airy and insubstantial as cotton candy, and quite moving. The translator, Perevodildo, gave it his highest compliment, calling it "kino." (Yeah, I had to look it up in the Urban Dictionary too.)

A few translation notes:

• The pony's name, Gymnastique, is from the original French book. The English translation uses Gymnast, because the actual translation, Gymnastics, would be a fairly strange name for a horse. Here, the French has been left untranslated.
• Several characters with "foreign accents" mangle Tistou's name. The Japanese script uses "Chichi," but the book uses "Tisti," and that's used here.
• The factory manager's name, Trounadisse, seems like a riff on "trou d'indice" or "missing the point," because the character's orderly and rigid outlook makes him miss the point of Tistou's gift. The English book translation uses Tornbull.

The voice actors were mostly drawn from the world of films, rather than anime:

• Yamase Mami (Tistou) has only a few anime credits - Princess Peach in Super Mario Brothers: Peach-hime Kyuushutsu Daisakusen and Kayoko in the What's Michael? TV series.
• Ootaki Hideji (Mr. Mustache) mostly appeared in live-action films and TV shows.
• Yamamtoto Kei (father) played Jutaro in Band of Ninja, Mr. Gogetz in Dog of Flanders, Lt. Inoue in Harp of Burma, and Kurosawa in the first Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo movie, an Orphan release.
• Wakamura Mayumi (mother) appeared in many TV shows but has no other anime credits.
• Ishizaka Kouji (narrator) narrated Manxmouse, an Orphan release, as well as Call of the Wild: Howl, Buck, and the Zenki series.

The director, Tanno Yuuji, was a planner and producer. His only other anime directing credit was Bunna yo Ki kara Oritekoi, which has not been translated.

Tistou Midori no Oyayubi has never been released on digital media, so when a Japanese laserdisc version came up for sale, WOWmd snapped it up. He ripped it on his Domesday Duplicator and then encoded it. The encode is quite large, in order to preserve all the lovely details of the artwork. Perevodildo translated and timed. I edited and typeset (not much to do there). ImAWasteOfHair, Nemesis, and Paul Geromini all QCed. WOWmd chose to encode the first and second side of the laserdiscs separately, because they have slightly different frame sizes. This has happened before; Orphan's first version of Hashire! Melos was encoded in two pieces for the same reason. Perhaps, like that show, a single complete raw will be available sometime in the future.

This blog entry has been rather short, not because Tistou Midori no Oyayubi is undeserving, but because it basically speaks for itself: a charming, self-contained fairy tale about a child's goodness overcoming the evils of the real world. It's just what we need in these dark times, and I recommend it highly. You can get the show from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Zetsuai 1989 v2

Redoing Zetsuai 1989 was not in this year's plan (or any year's, for that matter), but when WOWmd did a new Domesday Duplicator rip of the laserdisc, that set the ball rolling. A few timing adjustments to the old script, new typesetting, some quick QCs, and here we are: a new, visually improved version of the BL classic. 

Zetsuai is a compound word, meaning "desperate love," although the author preferred "everlasting love" as the translation. It tells the story of two teenagers, womanizing superstar singer Nanjou Kouji and soccer prodigy Izumi Takuto.

Both come from damaged backgrounds. Nanjou is a running away from a loveless but highly successful family; he was a gang leader before he became a singer. Izumi is hiding from early abuse; his mother killed his father and attacked him as well.

The two meet by coincidence (or fate). After a night of barhopping, Nanjou passes out in the street.

Izumi takes him home and nurses him back to health. Nanjou realizes that Izumi is the soccer player he saw and fell in love with six years earlier, although at the time, Nanjou thought the player was a girl. Nanjou becomes obsessed with Izumi and inserts himself into Izumi's life, eventually confessing his love. 

All this is accompanied by numerous melodramatic incidents, including life-threatening illnesses, near-fatal accidents, and stabbings and self-mutilation. (To be fair, both protagonists are sixteen, when wild emotional swings and hormone-driven desperation are the norm.) Despite the operatic tone, the fat lady never sings; that had to wait for the sequel, Bronze: Zetsuai ~ Since 1989.

The voice cast is quite famous:

• Hayami Shou (Nanjou) played Ichijo Hajime in Princess Army, Kushinige Hodaka in Oshare Kozou wa Hanamaru, an angel in Tezuka Osamu's Tales of the Old Testament, Charles in Ai to Ken no Camelot, Kuya in Genji, Part 1, Aju in Hayou no Tsurugi, Exper Kain in Exper Zenon, Iason's friend Raoul in Ai no Kusabi, Hojo in Sanctuary, Pat Leivy in Starship Troopers, Junoichi in Blazing Transfer Student, Shargan in Gude Crest, and Seichii in Mikoneko Holmes. All of these are Orphan releases.
• Koyasu Takehito (Izumi) played Doujima Gin in Shokugeki no Souma, Thirteen in Grimoire of Zero, Dio in Jojo's Bizarre Adventures, the title role in Master of Mosquitron, and Fool in Elegant Yokai Apartment Life. He also appeared in Yamato 2520 and Yuukan Club, both Orphan releases.
• Yamaguchi Kappei (Shibuya, Nanjou's "minder") played the title roles in the Detective Conan, Ranma 1/2, and Inuyasha franchises, Usopp in the One Piece franchise, Sakuma Ryuichi in Gravitation, and the title roles in the Arslan no Senki OVA series and Mouse, among many others. He played Billia in Tottoi, Matsuoka Eiji in Chameleon, Nichol Hawking in Plastic Little, and Tooru in Boyfriend, all Orphan releases.
• Nishihara Kumiko (Serika, Izumi's sister) played Iris in the Sakura Wars franchise and Renko in Kujibiki Unbalance, both OVAs and TV series. She played Fhalei Rue in Ryokunohara Labyrinth and appeared in Kakyuusei (1995), Kosuke-sama Rikimaru-sama: Konpeitou no Ryuu, Zetsuai 1989, Dragon Fist, Gakuu no Yuurei, Tenkousei, and Blazing Transfer Student, all Orphan releases.
• Munakata Tomoko (Izumi's mother) played maternal figures in Bremen 4, Yamatarou Comes Back, and Hashire! Shiroi Ookami, all Orphan releases. 
  

The score, including the instrumental opening and ending, is by the peerless Kenji Kawai and is very effective. I don't think the songs are as good; they're very similar to the ones in Cathexis.

For the original release, Erik of Piyo Piyo Productions provided the Lupin Gang Anime subtitle scripts, which formed the basis for Orphan's script. Yogicat transcribed the aarinfantasy release, and a few lines from that script were interpolated in the LGA script. Sunachan translation-checked the dialog and the songs and made extensive changes. M74 timed. I edited and typeset. Calyrica and M74 did QC. For this release, WOWmd provided a new raw. I shifted the original script, tweaked the timing, and redid the typesetting. ImAWasteOfHair and Perevodildo QCed.

Perevodildo pointed out that the script uses double vowels to represent long vowels (Nanjou Kouji rather than Nanjo Koji), even though English signs in the show use the latter spelling. Orphan is inconsistent about transcribing long vowels; individual shows follow their translator's preference. For Zetsuai, I didn't want to make any major changes to the script, and I've let sleeping double vowels lie.

So here's a revised version of Zetsuai 1989, featuring a new encode that wrings every last detail possible out of an analog laserdisc source. You can get this release from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

 

Toraemon

In 1985, the victory of the Hanshin Tigers in the Japan Championship, the equivalent of the US World Series, occasioned a one-shot OVA, Toraemon (Tiger Man), celebrating/lampooning the team's success. 

It was based on a manga by Haruo Takahashi that satirized celebrities and current events. Today, it is almost indecipherable to Western audiences and probably to Japanese audiences under 50.

The show is filled with references to real people. To start, the Hanshin Tigers are one of the oldest professional baseball clubs in Japan; they were founded before World War II. Their home field is Hanshin Koshien Stadium, beloved of anime baseball fans as the home of the Japanese high school baseball championships. After Hanshin won the championship in 1985, almost 40 years elapsed before they won again, supposedly because of a curse incurred during the victory celebrations.

The championship team consisted of

• Kafeku Masayuki, third baseman
• Okada Akinobu, second baseman
• Mayumi Akinobu, right fielder
• Kido Katsuhiko, catcher
• Hirata Katsuo, shortstop
• Rich Gale, pitcher (a former US professional baseball player)
• Senko Sano, left fielder
• Kitamura Terufumi, center fielder
• Randy Bass, first baseman (a former US professional baseball player)

The manager was Yoshida Yoshio. Kawato Kozo was a pinch hitter.

Other real-life characters showed up in the story too.

• Happou Tsukite was a rakugo artist and comedian
• Nakano Hajime was the former Hanshin CEO, who died in a plane crash
• Hideyoshi Toyotomi, the Osaka-based warlord defeated by Tokugawa Ieyasu
• Kanbi Fujiyami, a Japanese comedian who resembled Okada
• Egawa Takashi, losing pitcher for the Seibu Lions; his financial difficulties were well known 

Much of the humor stems from Osakans' pride in being the best in Japan (for once).

With so many characters, there's little time for depth or characterization.  The manager, Yoshido Yoshio, is satirized as stingy and money-grubbing. 

The first baseman, Randy Bass, is portrayed as a rich American with more cash than he knows what to do with.

The second baseman, Okada Akinobu, is lampooned as dim-witted, with questionable personal hygiene. 

There's also no through plot, just a series of comic sketches.

1. The climactic game of the Championship.
2. The delirious post-victory celebrations.
3. A New Years' party thrown by Manager Yoshida.
4. Training for the new season, including "joint training" with the JSDF.
5. Final arrangements for 1986.

None of it makes much sense. Some of it could be considered libelous. However, the humor is fairly universal, even if the local and topical references don't register.

The voice cast includes:

• Junko Hori was best known as the voice of the protagonists in three Fujiko Fujio works, Obake no Q-tarou, Ninja Hattori-kun, and Chinpui. She played the title role in Cat-Eyed Boy and appeared in Wan Wan Chuushingura, Taiyou no Ouji: Horus no Daibouken, Rain Boy, Time Slip Ichimannen Prime Rose, and Makoto-chan, all Orphan releases, as well as Moomin, Akage no Anne, Cinderella Boy, and Unico.
• Nagai Ichirou  starred in numerous shows, playing grandfather Jigoro in Yawara!, the off-the-wall narrator in Gosenzosama Banbanzai!, Professor Hajime in Queen Millennia, and Happosai in the Ranma 1/2 franchise. He appeared in Nijuushi ni Hitomi, Ore no Sora, Nayuta, One Pound Gospel, Rain Boy, Manxmouse, Nora, Hidamari no Ki, Yuukan Club, Amon Saga, Botchan, Ipponbouchou Mantaraou, Tengai Makyou, and Yamato 2520, all Orphan releases
• Aono Takeshi 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 Gakuu no Yuurei, 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.
• Saka Osamu played Daisuke Aramaki in the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex franchise and Oohara in the Oishinbo properties. He appeared in Aoki Honoo, 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.
• Utsumi Kenji was best known for his roles as Roah in Fist of the North Star, Kaioh in Fist of the North Star 2, and Senbei Norimaki in the Dr. Slump and Arale-chan franchise. He appeared as the village chief in Watt Poe and Alex Louis Armstrong in both versions of Full Metal Alchemist. He played the title role in Don Dracula and appeared in OL Kaizou Kouza, Nora, Bavi Stock, Stop!! Hibari-kun!, Techno Police 21C, Sanada 10, and 15 Shounen Hyouruuki, all Orphan releases.
• Sogabe Kazuyuki played Oda Nobunaga in Black Lion, Rei Ginsei in Vampire Hunter D, Kaei in To-Y, Madison in Nana Toshi Monogatari, and Meyer in Hi-Speed Jecy. The last three are Orphan releases.
  
• Futamata Issei was best known for his roles as Godai Yuusaku in Maison Ikkoku, Akira (Chibi) in Urusei Yatsura, and Saburo in Sazae-san. He starred as Ippei in Ore no Sora and Yoshio in Dokushin Apartment Dokudami-sou, and he played Bouya in Ichigatsu ni wa Christmas, Kouji Tanaka in Okama Hakusho, Ishida, coach's assistant, in One Pound Gospel, the psychopathic brother, Cross, in Hi-Speed Jecy, and mutliple characters in Fukuyama Gekijou, all Orphan releases.
• Hamura Kyouko played John in Peter Pan no Bouken and appeared in Starship Troopers and Hitomi no Naka no Shounen: 15 Shounen Hyouryuuki, both Orphan releases.
• Irokawa Kyouko played Tsubame in Stop!! Hibari-kun, an Orphan release.
• Ikemoto Sayuri played Mari in Project A-ko and Barbara in Robin Hood no Daibouken.

The director, Shibayama Tsutomu, is best known for the Doraemon franchise. He also directed Makoto-chan, an Orphan release, and well-known series including Ranma 1/2 and Chibi Maruko-chan.

I have no idea when or how Orphan acquired the laserdisc for this show, but it was one of the first rips on the Domesday Duplicator. After that, it languished, eventually being released as a raw. Then Perevodildo picked it up, translated it, and timed it. ninjacloud fine-timed. I edited and typeset. (There were too many signs in street scenes, and they were left untranslated.) WOWmd and bananadoyouwanna QCed. The raw was encoded by an anonymous friend.

Toraemon can't be fully understood outside of its time and place, but if you're prepared to let the details slide, along with the players, it's a fun watch, with plenty of weird characters, bizarre situations, and good gags. You can get the OVA from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

 

Sakyou Komatsu's Animation Theater

Another anthology show, far better than the last one...

Sakyou Komatsu (1931-2011) was a Japanese science fiction author and screenwriter, best known in the West for his novels Japan Sinks and Sayonara Jupiter. He wrote numerous short stories, spanning not just science fiction but satire, political commentary, and even erotica. In 1989 and 1990, MBS aired 24 five-minute episodes (plus three specials) based on Komatsu's short stories. These were collected as Komatsu Sakyou Anime Gekijou (Sakyou Komatsu's Animation Theater). Orphan is proud to present the first English translation of this show.

Anthologies, particularly those with short episodes, are difficult to summarize. There is no through plot, no consistent set of characters, no set styles. If these episodes seem to reflect a skepticism about mankind and its technology, that's probably just my interpretation. Many of the stories include space travel and encounters with aliens; they rarely turn out to be either edifying (like Contact) or horrifying (like Alien).

Still, the stories are consistently entertaining. If I were to select a few personal favorites, they might be:

• Joining the Club, which demonstrates that what's truly universal about the universe.
  
  
  
  
  
• Construction Work, a pointed example of how city government (mal)functions.
  
  
  
  
  
• Lost Spaceship. Maybe those monoliths in 2001 were something other than they seemed?
  
  
  
  
  
• Summer Event. Humanity's traditions outlast us.
  
  
  
  
  
• Forgotten Land. What did happen to all of humanity's gods?
  

A few, like Sample #1 and Too Late, play like short segments of The Twilight Zone. I mustn't say more.

Some translation notes:

• Moon Viewing. The Tsukimi festival is held to view the autumn full moon. Decorations traditionally include displays of susuki, Japanese pampas grass, and mounds of tsukimi dango, moon dumplings.
• First Dream. The "Seven Luckies" is a play on the Seven Lucky Gods (七福神). Hotei, the disgruntled leader, is the god of fortune. Benzaiten plays the lute and is the only goddess. Ebisu, who performs with a fish, is the patron of fishermen. During the first three days of the New Year, the Seven Lucky Gods are said to pilot the Takarabune or Treasure Ship through the heavens..
• The Man Who Returned. In the legend of Urashima Tarou, a fisherman rescues a sea turtle. As his reward, he is taken to the Dragon Palace under the sea and entertained by Princess Otohime. He thinks only a few days pass, but in fact, it's a century before he returns. The princess gives him a forbidden jeweled box as a parting gift. When he opens it, he turns into an old man.
  

All of the many characters were played by just two people, who primarily appeared in films and TV rather than anime:

• Tomita Yasuko is an actress who has appeared in numerous films and TV shows. She narrated the original Time Patrol Bon and had a small role in My Neighbor the Yamadas.
• Nagoka Akira was an actor and comedian. He appeared in several early anime movies, including Senya Ichiya Monogatari and Flying Phantom Ship, and he had a small role in Princess Mononoke.

The director, Nishimora Akira, also helmed A.D. Police and Urban Square. This was Gainax' first ever TV production. All the episodes were written by Yamaga Hiroyuki, a famous director in his own right. (Thanks to Darkonius for this research.)

The raw, which includes Japanese closed captions, had been floating around Orphan's archives for more than four years when Darkonius decided to translate it. Perevodildo translation checked. I edited and typeset (lots of signs). ImAWasteOfHair and Rezo QCed. Skr found the raw, but after all this time, he doesn't remember the source or whether he encoded it. The Japanese closed captions have been left in place as an alternate subtitles track.

Sakyou Komatsu's Animation Theater is really good, and I strongly encourage you to download it and watch it. Because of its structure, you can dip in and out, or jump around from story to story, with no loss of continuity. Some of it is funny, some of it is sad, much of it is ironic, and all of it is thought-provoking. You can get the show from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.