Sensou Douwa: Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu

Sensou Douwa (War Tales or War Fables) was a series of TV specials by Shin-Ei Animation that ran annually from 2002 to 2009. In chronological order:

• 2002    Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and The Sea Turtle)
• 2003    Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite)
• 2004    Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi o Shita Dekasugiru Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine)
• 2005    Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter)
• 2006    Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki (The Cake Tree in the Ruins)
• 2007    Futatsu no Kurumi (Two Walnuts)
• 2008    Kiku-chan to Ookami  (Kiku-chan and the Wolf)
• 2009    Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl)

Orphan has already released The Boy and the Sea Turtle, The Cake Tree in the Ruins, The Mother Who Became a Kite, The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine, My Air Raid Shelter, and Kiku and the Wolf. Today, we're releasing Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl). Saizen has already done Two Walnuts, so the series is completely translated.

Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu is a departure from the most of the Sensou Douwa series, both in source material and in tone. It's not based on a short story by Nosaka Akiyuki. Instead, it's an original screenplay by Fujimoto Nobuyuki, who penned scripts for children's shows such as the original Doraemon and Bosco Adventure, as well as the adaptations of three earlier Sensou Douwa shows. As a result, it's a lighter episode than some of the previous specials, and it has a relatively happy ending.

Like the other episodes, Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu is set in World War II Japan. Although the time-frame isn't specified, the story is set after the firebombing of Yokohama (April, 1945) - the last five months of the war. Kudo Eiko, a grade-school girl, and her mother have fled to the relative safety of the countryside. When Eiko is introduced to her rural classmates, they are all struck by one thing. She has blue eyes, which most of them have never seen. (One asks, "Did she paint them?") They are horrified to discover the reason. Eiko is the daughter of an American man and a Japanese woman. Her father was sent back to the United States at the outbreak of the war. Eiko and her mother remained in Japan.

Most of the school kids have absorbed the lessons of Japanese propaganda - that Americans are savages - and they shun and bully Eiko. But one boy, Kenta, doesn't agree. He befriends Eiko and brings her into his group of friends, Norio, Tarou, and Shunsuke. This goes reasonably well until Norio's dad returns from the war, horribly wounded, with the news that Norio's older brother has been killed. Everyone except Kenta turns against Eiko. Then, Kenta and Eiko are both orphaned in an air raid. Kenta must go live with distant relatives, and Eiko will be interned by the Military Police as an enemy alien, even though she's a Japanese citizen. This terrible prospect brings the boys, and the rest of the class, to their senses. With help from his friends, Kenta hatches a plan to save Eiko and himself from their fates.

The show contrasts the attitude of Kenta, his sympathetic teacher, Miss Akiko, and eventually his friends, with the unthinking xenophobia of most of the children and the (male) teachers at the school. Miss Akiko, in particular, draws a distinction between the wars of adults and the universal friendship of children; that draws a sharp rebuke from her colleagues. In addition, the show contrasts the grim reality of wartime Japan with a (mythical?) island in the South Pacific, where the people are friendly to everyone and war is unknown. With the help of a friendly but drunken fishing boat captain, Kenta hopes to take Eiko to this utopia.

One irrelevant question kept nagging at me: could the daughter of a Japanese woman and an American man have blue eyes? As I was taught in high school genetics, blue eyes are recessive. For Eiko to have blue eyes, her mother would have to have one blue-eye gene. I thought blue eyes were unknown in pre-war Japan, but in fact, they were found in the north and in a few other parts of Japan.

The voice cast includes:

• Kuwashima Houko (Eiko) played the title role in Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne and Arete-Hime and starred as Sango in Inuyasha, Aoi in Infinite Ryvius, Marlene in Blue Gender, Margaret in Madlax, Kou Shuurei in the Saiunkoku Monogatari series, Yuuko in Dennou Coil, Chizuru in the Hakuoiki properties, and Warp in Kaiba. She appeared in Yume Tsukai, an Orphan release.
• Komatsu Rika (Kenta) appeared in Animation Runner Kumori, Boys Be..., Kuromajyo-san ga Tooru!, Nessa no Ha-ou Gandalla, On-chan, and Shin Hakkenden, among other featured roles.
• Kobayashi Yumiko (Norio) played the title role in Crayon Shin-chan, Poemi in Puni Puni Poemi and Excel Saga, Souchi in ex-Driver, Mamoru in Sister Princess, Shoubu in the Duel Masters franchise, and Shiro the demon dog in the Hoozuki no Reitetsou properties.
  
• Shimamoto Sumi (Miss Akiko) 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, Big Mama in Bakuretsu Hunter, Sue in Maris the Choujo, Elice in Fire Emblem, and the mother in Kiku and the Wolf. The last three are Orphan releases.
• Mine Atsuko (Tarou) played Miwa, the artist's wife, in Lunn Flies into the Wind and Maris' mother in Maris the Choujo, both Orphan release, as well as Tohdoh Yuki in Yawara!
• Nagasako Takashi (the principal) played King Enma in the Hoozuki no Reitetsu properties and Bill Atkin in Alice in Cyberland 2, an Orphan release.
• Isobe Masako (Tomie, Kenta's mother) played Tilda Miller in Gozdilla S.P. She appeared in Ear of the Golden Dragon, an Orphan release, Letter Bee, and Koi Sento.
• Nakagi Ryuji (old Captain) played Lot in Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, an Orphan release, and Coach Yuutenji in Yawara!, among other featured roles.
  

The director, Yasumi Tetsuo, wrote the screenplay for Kiku and the Wolf and storyboards for numerous series.

As he's done for all the other Sensou Douwa releases, kokujin-kun translated Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu. Yogicat timed. I edited and typeset. Nemesis and Uchuu QCed. The raw is a 1080p webrip from UNEXT, rather bit-starved. (It would be nice to have better raws, but the R2J DVDs are hard to find.) Honorifics have been omitted.

Now that the series is completely translated, I can look back on all the episodes and sum them up simply, using Lorraine Schneider's classic poster:

Three of the shows (The Boy and the Sea Turtle, The Mother Who Became a Kite, The Cake Tree in the Ruins) portray the deaths of children in war in straightforward and devastating ways. As a parent (and now grandparent), I found them extremely upsetting and very difficult to watch. The rest are more indirect in their approach, and I had a sense that the series was pulling its punches in the later episodes. Kiku and the Wolf deviates from Nosaka Akiyuki's story to provide a more upbeat ending. The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl is downright optimistic, compared to the rest; Kenta and Eiko's escape from the MPs has a lyrical, almost fairy-tale quality. Nonetheless, the shows collectively demonstrate the cruel mindlessness of war in ways impossible to ignore. Did they have an impact on their intended audience? I simply don't know.

You can get Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net. Peace.

 

Sensou Douwa: Kiku-chan to Ookami

Sensou Douwa (War Fables or War Tales) was a series of TV specials by Shin-Ei Animation that ran annually from 2002 to 2009. In chronological order:

• 2002    Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and The Sea Turtle)
• 2003    Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite)
• 2004    Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi o Shita Dekasugiru Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine)
• 2005    Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter)
• 2006    Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki (The Cake Tree in the Ruins)
• 2007    Futatsu no Kurumi (Two Walnuts)
• 2008    Kiku-chan to Ookami  (Kiku and the Wolf)
• 2009    Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl)

Orphan has already released The Boy and the Sea Turtle, The Cake Tree in the Ruins, The Mother Who Became a Kite, The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine, and My Air Raid Shelter. Today, we're releasing Kiku-chan to Ookami (Kiku and the Wolf). Saizen has already done Two Walnuts, so there's just one more to go.

Kiku-chan to Ookami is, like most of the Sensou Douwa specials, based on a short story by Nosaka Akiyuki. It is set in the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo (the Chinese province of Manchuria) during the closing days of Word War II. Life for the Japanese colonists is tranquil, with none of the hazards and shortages occurring in the Japanese homeland. Then, on August 9, 1945, the Soviet Union, fulfilling its obligations to the Western Allies, declares war and invades. The local Kwantung Army folds up like a house of cards, leaving the Japanese colonists exposed to the invading Russians and Chinese.

The story focuses on a typical family - Kiku, her old brothers Ko and Yo, and her mother, who is holding the family together while her husband is fighting in the army. Kiku, Ko, and Yo have nothing more serious on their minds than cadging hot sweet buns from the shop next door, but that changes when the Soviets invade. The colonists flee southward for their lives, hoping to reach Korea and be repatriated to Japan. (The Japanese in Korea were also fleeing southward, hoping to reach the American zone of control; see Ohoshi-sama no Rail.)

Kiku and her family head south by train, abandoning most of their possessions and the family dog, Belle. When the train is bombed, they are forced to continue on foot. However, Kiku falls severely ill and cannot go on. Faced with an impossible dilemma, Kiku's mother abandons her in order to continue south with her other children. Kiku becomes the target of an aging, famished she-wolf. In her delirium, Kiku mistakes the wolf for Belle, and the wolf becomes her maternal keeper. Together, they try to survive in the war-torn landscape, but the hazards are great, and the odds of success slim.

Like the other shows in the Sensou Douwa series, Kiku-chan to Ookami uses the pathos of children in danger to crusade against war, while ignoring the larger historical context. The Kwantung Army - the source of many of Japan's bellicose militarists and eventual war criminals - was a prime provocateur in sparking the Japanese invasions of China in 1931 and 1937. It used slave labor to build its installations and fortifications. Its infamous Unit 731 worked on bacteriological and chemical weapons and performed human medical experiments on prisoners. (In an equally infamous deal, the Americans pardoned the perpetrators in return for the data.) Despite its formidable reputation, the Kwantung Army was soundly defeated by the Red Army in the unofficial Soviet-Japanese border war of the late 1930s. By 1945, its best troops had been sent to defend the Pacific front; it had become a hollow shell and put up little resistance.

The Soviets captured 850,000 Japanese settlers (colonists). Most of them were repatriated to Japan in 1946 and 1947. However, orphans left behind in the confusion were adopted into Chinese families; some refused to return home under later repatriation programs. Further, stranded women that married Chinese husbands were not allowed by the Japanese government to bring their children to Japan. To the end, Japanese xenophobia and denial of responsibility trumped humanitarian action.

The voice cast includes:

• Shimamoto Sumi (Mother) 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, Big Mama in Bakuretsu Hunter, Sue in Maris the Choujo, and Elice in Fire Emblem. The last two are Orphan releases.
• Nozawa Masako (Wolf) is a legend. She played the title roles in The Adventures of Gamba, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry no Bouken, Billy Inu nan demo Shoukai, and Hey! Bumboo. She was Enma-kun in the original Dororon Enma-kun, Son Goku in the original Dragonball, and Kitarou in the 1968 and 1971 versions of GeGeGe no Kitarou, as well as Hakaba Kitarou. Even though her first role was in 1965, she is still active, appearing as Obaba in Ping Pong the Animation, Madame Curie in Marie & Gali, and of course, Medama Oyaji in the most recent version of GeGeGe no Kitarou. She played the title roles in Manxmouse and The Green Cat, Isamu in Kaitei 3-Man Mile, Lek in Cool Cool Bye, and Costar in 15 Shounen Hyouruuki, all Orphan releases. She won a lifetime achievement award in 1997.
• Kawasumi Ayako (Kiku-chan) starred as Mogi in the Initial D franchise, Sakuraba in Ai Yori Aoshi, Fuu in Samurai Champloo, Sara in Gallery Fake, Lafiel in the Crest of the Stars franchise, Henrietta in the Zero no Tsukaima franchise, Saber in the Fate/Stay Night franchise, Ohno in the Genshiken series, Mahoro in the Mahoromatic franchise, and my personal favorite, Nodame in the Nodame Cantabile franchise.
• Satou Ai (narrator) played many maternal roles, including Light's mother in Death Note, Masami's mother in Wedding Peach, Misaki's mother in Dear Brother, Ban's mother in Getbackers, Shigeru's mother in Noramimi, the unnamed mothers in Cinderella Express, Ai Monogatari, and Guyver: Out of Control, as well as Kristin Adams in Yawara!. Other roles include the refined mother in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, Ibuki's mother in Kiss wa Me ni Shite, Taichi in The Cake Tree in the Ruins, the narrator in The Boy and the Sea Turtle and The Mother Who Became a Kite, and the unnamed girlfriend in Lunn Flies into the Wind, all Orphan releases.
• Kumai Motoko (Yo) played Gorou Honda in the Major franchise, Ginta in Mar, Banba in Kurage-hime, Yuuna in the Stitch TV franchise, and the title roles in Gon, Gakyuu ou Yamazaki, and Papuwa. She appeared in Tezuka Osamu's In the Beginning: Tales from the Old Testament, an Orphan release.
• Yoshida Konami (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 Akuemon, Kiss wa Me ni Shita, and Yamato 2520, all Orphan releases. 

The director, Hirai Minetarou, also directed two other Sensou Douwa specials, Two Walnuts and The Girl with Blue Eyes.

As he's done for all the other Sensou Douwa releases, kokujin-kun translated Kiku-chan to Ookami. Yogicat timed. I edited and typeset. Nemesis and Uchuu QCed. The raw is a 1080p webrip from UNEXT, rather bit-starved. kokujin-kun omits honorifics, so the translated title in the anime is Kiku and the Wolf.

Kiku-chan is an instance where my (distant) background as a historian distorts my reaction to the anime itself. The show is very moving, particularly the second half where Kiku and "Belle" are trying to survive. Nozawa Masako's performance as the wolf is both comic and poignant. The show makes it case more subtly than the blunt instrument approach of The Cake Tree in the Ruins or The Mother Who Became a Kite, but it's still effective. (Nosaka Akiyuki original short story retains the blunt instrument approach.)

You can get Kiku-chan to Ookami from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Sensou Douwa: Boku no Boukuugou

Sensou Douwa (War Tales or War Fables) was a series of TV specials by Shin-Ei Animation that ran annually from 2002 to 2009. In chronological order:

• 2002    Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and The Sea Turtle)
• 2003    Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite)
• 2004    Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi o Shita Dekasugiru Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine)
• 2005    Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter)
• 2006    Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki (The Cake Tree in the Ruins)
• 2007    Futatsu no Kurumi (Two Walnuts)
• 2008    Kiku-chan to Ookami  (Kiku and the Wolf)
• 2009    Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl)
  

Orphan has already released The Boy and the Sea Turtle, The Cake Tree in the Ruins, The Mother Who Became a Kite, and The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine. Today, we're releasing Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter). Saizen has already done Two Walnuts, so we're in the home stretch.

Boku no Boukkuugou is, like most of the Sensou Douwa specials, based on a short story by Nosaka Akiyuki. It is set in Midori Ward, Nagoya, during World War II. The Kasamatsu family, consisting of father Tetsuo, mother Tomoko, and only child Yusuke, are a typical Japanese family, hard-working and patriotic. As the war situation worsens, the government urges citizens to build air-raid shelters, so Tetsuo and Yusuke build a strong, roomy shelter under the house. Then, Tetsuo is drafted and sent to the Kwantung Army in China, leaving Yusuke, who is probably seven or eight, as the "man of the house."

In late 1944, after the fall of Saipan, American B-29s begin bombing Nagoya, targeting the Mitusbishi Aircraft Works as well as other industries and the port. Although the loss of life is far less than in Tokyo, the repeated raids put great stress on Yusuke. The boy retreats to the shelter and imagines that his father is there, comforting him and urging him on. Whether his father is killed in China, Yusuke refuses to accept it, clinging to the image of his father in the shelter. Eventually, his world collapses. Sixty years later, as an old man, when he sits in the park where his house and the shelter used to be, he still feels the trauma from those days.

The voice cast is small:

• Orikasa Ai (narrator) made her debut in Shoukoushi Cedie. She played the title role in Romeo no Aoi Sora, Fee in Planetes, Seguchi Touma (the record company president) in Gravitation, Quatre in Gundam Wing, and Ryouko in the Tenchi Muyo franchise. She also played Carrie in Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Sara in Eien no Filena, Toryune in Al Caral no Isan,  Katchan's mother in Tako ni Natta Okaasan, and young Mars in Fire Emblem, all Orphan releases.
• Kiyokawa Motomu (Yusuke as adult) played Kouzou in Evangelion and Norman Burg in The Big O.
• Ookubo Shoutarou (Yusuke as child) was 10 years old when he appeared in this show. He played Katchan in Tako ni Natta Okaasan and Takaya in Lupin III: Kiri no Elusive.
• Nobuo Tabita (Tetsuo) played Lumial in the Angelique franchise, Ken Wakashimazu in the Captain Tsubasa franchise, Randy in Fake, Sinistra in Kiddy Grade, the title role in Locke the Superman, and Dayon in Osomatsu-san. He appeared in Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Condition Green, and Eien no Filena, all Orphan releases.
• Hisakawa Aya (Tomoko) has had a prolific career. She played the title roles in Mamono Hunter Youko, Voogie's Angel, and Iria: Zeiram, Skuld in the Ah! My Goddess franchise, Cerberus in Card Captor Sakura, Sailor Mercury in the Sailor Moon franchise, Yuki in Fruits Basket, Haruka in RahXephon, Youko in The Twelve Kingdoms, and Storm in X-Men. She starred as Mishima Misako in Yume Tsukai, Shana in Al Caral no Isan, Sonia in Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, and Koneko in Ear of the Golden Dragon, all Orphan projects.

The director, Takeuchi Yoshio, also helmed the Oishinbo TV series and specials, as well as Botchan, Gorillaman, Harlock Saga, Shin Megami Tensai: Devil Children,  Night Head Genesis, and several of the Sensou Douwa specials.

As he's done for all the other Sensou Douwa releases, kokujin-kun translated Boku no Boukkuugou. Yogicat timed. I edited and typeset. Nemesis and Uchuu QCed. Uchuu also researched the locale and the background to the bombings. The raw is a 480p webrip from UNEXT. Unfortunately, there's an onscreen text for the entire running time. The text is simply the series name and the episode title.

Boku no Boukkuugou is a little less of a gut punch than some of the other Sensou Douwa episodes - no children are killed, at least on screen. Nonetheless, it sensitively explores the terrible costs that war imposes on children, even if they emerge physically unscathed. 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.

 

Sensou Douwa: Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi wo Shita Dekasugira Kujira no Hanashi

Sensou Douwa (War Tales or War Fables) was a series of TV specials by Shin-Ei Animation that ran annually from 2002 to 2009. In chronological order:

• 2002    Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and The Sea Turtle)
• 2003    Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite)
• 2004    Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi wo Shita Dekasugira Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine)
• 2005    Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter)
• 2006    Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki (The Cake Tree in the Ruins)
• 2007    Futatsu no Kurumi (Two Walnuts)
• 2008    Kiku-chan to Ookami  (Kiku and the Wolf)
• 2009    Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl)

Orphan has already released The Boy and the Sea Turtle, The Cake Tree in the Ruins,and The Mother Who Became a Kite. Today, we're releasing Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi wo Shita Dekasugira Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine), and that brings us to the halfway point in the series.

Once again, the show draws upon a short story by Nosaka Akiyuki, but this time, the tone is somewhat different, a bit lighter. The human protagonist is a boy named Hayano Kota. Boys as young as 15 and 16 are being drafted into the Japanese navy, and Kota is training to be a pilot (presumably a kamikaze pilot). However, he's totally inept, and he ends up being transferred to a coastal-defense submarine. There he crosses paths with the other main character.

This second protagonist is not a human but a whale - specifically, a sei whale (sardine whale) that Kota names Kusuke. Sei whales are the third largest whale species, after blue whales and fin whales. Kusuke is a particularly impressive specimen, 20 meters long - and that's his problem. Female sei whales are supposed to be bigger than the males, but no female is as large as he is. As a result, he is lovelorn and lonely, scorned by the females who want mates that are smaller than they are, and scammed by dolphins and orcas that want him to stop eating all the sardines in the area.

Swimming to Rainbow Sea for the annual mating gathering of the sei whales, Kusuke encounters Kota's submarine and mistakes it for the object of his desire, a female sei whale that's bigger than he is. He starts courting "her", which involves vocalizing, bumping bodies, and generally playing. But the noise attracts American anti-submarine forces, and the mating game takes a potentially deadly turn - for the whale, for the submarine, or both.

Up until the last act, Chiisai plays like a comedy (hence, the playful translation of the title). Kusuke is dumb but earnest, convinced that he has finally found a mate. Kota, pining for a girl onshore, tries to convince himself that sacrificing his life for the glory of the Empire is the right path, but he really just wants to be friends with Kusuke and go home. But war is no respecter of the desires of either whales or humans, and the ending is somber.

The original story is much sparser than the anime. The whale is unnamed, and the only described human character is the sub captain. The story is set after the surrender, but the captain refuses to accept the news and tries to continue the war. That brings about a final hostile encounter with American naval forces, and the love-struck whale is caught in the crossfire.  

One historical note: Kota's submarine isn't an actual Japanese sub type. The original story describes the sub as "half again as long" as Kusuke, that is, 30 meters, and the anime shows a crew of five. However, second-class Japanese subs were much longer (47 meters and up, with a crew of more than 25), and midget submarines were much smaller (under 10 meters, with a crew of only two). 

The voice cast has only a few well-known names:

• Takato Yasuhiro (Kusuke the whale) played Artemis in the Sailor Moon franchise, Gluttony in original Full Metal Alchemist, Russia in the Hetalia franchise, Kase-bake in GeGeGe no Kitarou (2007), and many featured roles, often as animals.
• Miura Tomu (Kota) has no other credits.
• Orikasa Fumiko (narrator) played Oseki in Hidamari no Ki (an Orphan release), Kuchiki Rukia in all the Bleach properties, Mikan in Atashinchi, Yuzuki in Chobits, Karin in the Stratos 4 properties, Ikuku in the Massagu ni Ikou OVAs, Aoba in Jinki Extend, Seras Victoria in both versions of Hellsing, Nicoletta in Restaurant Paradisio, Riza Hawkeye in the original Full Metal Alchemist, Lotte Yanson in Little Witch Academia, and the heroine Okonogi Yuuko in Dennou Coil.
• Kikuchi Yuumi (Kota's crush Yoshie) had only a few featured roles.
• Kusao Takeshi (the fast-talking Orca) played the lead roles in Junk Boy and Fujilog, the title role in Babel II, Trunks in the Dragon Ball Z franchise, Sakuragi in Slam Dunk, Lamune in NG Knight Lamume & 40, the teenaged Tezuka Osamu in Tezuka Osamu Monogatari, Daichi in Singles, and the icy director Kurume Kenjirou in Smash Hit!; the last three are Orphan releases. He is still active, appearing in the recent Major 2nd.
• Narita Ken (Dolphin B) played Sesshoumaru in the Inuyasha franchise, Seimei in Loveless, and Byakuroku (the snake demon) in Amatsuki, an Orphan release.
• Tahara Aruno (sub captain) appeared in Apfelland Monogotari and Bremen 4, both Orphan releases, among numerous other featured roles.
• Shioya Kouzou (instructor) played Kaji-kun in Stop!! Hibari-kun! (an Orphan release) and Konaki Jiji in GeGeGe no Kitarou (1996), among numerous featured roles.
  

The director, Yasumi Tetsuo, helmed more than half of the Sensou Douwa specials.

As with previous episodes, kokujin-kun translated, and Yogicat timed. Skr provided the evocative English title. I edited and typeset. BeeBee, Nemesis, and Uchuu QCed. The standard-definition raw is a webrip. It's marred by an onscreen text for the entire running time. The text is simply the series name and the episode title, but the title is long and therefore distracting. I have no idea why it's there.

Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi is not as bleak as the previously released Sensou Douwa episodes, but it's still a sobering reminder of the toll war takes on willing participants and bystanders alike. This continues to be an outstanding series, best taken one episode at a time. 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.

Sensou Douwa: Tako ni Natta Okaasan

Sensou Douwa (War Tales or War Fables) was a series of TV specials by Shin-Ei Animation that ran annually from 2002 to 2009. In chronological order:

• 2002    Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and The Sea Turtle)
• 2003    Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite)
• 2004    Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi o Shita Dekasugiru Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine)
• 2005    Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter)
• 2006    Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki (The Cake Tree in the Ruins)
• 2007    Futatsu no Kurumi (Two Walnuts)
• 2008    Kiku-chan to Ookami  (Kiku and the Wolf)
• 2009    Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl)

Orphan has already released The Boy and the Sea Turtle and The Cake Tree in the Ruins and is now proud to present the third in the series, Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite).

By now, you know the drill. It's the waning days of World War II, in a smaller city in Japan. Food is scarce, but the war hasn't otherwise impinged on the world of small children. They still go to school, play games, and parrot the mindless patriotism of the Japanese propaganda machine. This time, the focus is on a young boy, Katchan, and his best bud, Itchan. They live at home with their mothers; their fathers are dead or at the front. Katchan passes the days dodging air raids, reading manga, longing for food, and dreaming anxiously about his father, while his mother tries to hold her family together. She raises vegetables in the back yard. She ventures out into the countryside to trade her good kimonos for rice and vegetables. She is about to cook her harvested eggplants when one last bombing raid incinerates the area, with tragic and poignant results. The war ends, but it is too late for this family.

Like The Cake Tree in the Ruins and The Boy and the Sea Turtle, The Mother Who Became a Kite is based on a short story by Nosaka Akiyuki. And like other stories from this author, this special shows the ruinous effects that war has on children. It is suffused with melancholy. The artwork matches the tone - dun colors and sepia tones, except for the scenes set when the war has ended. Then, the sky is blue, and the colors are bright; but it's too late.

The voice cast includes familiar names as well as newcomers:

• Orikasa Ai (Katchan's mother) made her debut in Shoukoushi Cedie. She played the title role in Romeo no Aoi Sora, Fee in Planetes, Seguchi Touma (the record company president) in Gravitation, Quatre in Gundam Wing, and Ryouko in the Tenchi Muyo franchise. She also played Carrie in Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Sara in Eien no Filena, Toryune in Al Caral no Isan, and young Mars in Fire Emblem, all Orphan releases.
• Ookubo Shoutarou (Katchan) was 8 years old when he played Katchan. He also appeared in Sensou Douwa: My Bomb Shelter and Lupin III: Kiri no Elusive.
• Kamon Ryou (Katchan's father) appeared in Shin Sekai Yori and Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex.
• Satou Ai (narrator) played many maternal roles, including Light's mother in Death Note, Masami's mother in Wedding Peach, Misaki's mother in Dear Brother, Ban's mother in Getbackers, Shigeru's mother in Noramimi, the unnamed mothers in Cinderella Express, Ai Monogatari, Guyver: Out of Control, and Kristin Adams in Yawara!. Other roles include the refined mother in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, Ibuki's mother in Kiss wa Me ni Shite, Taichi in The Cake Tree in the Ruins, the narrator in The Boy and the Sea Turtle, and the unnamed girlfriend in Lunn Flies into the Wind, all Orphan releases.
• Futama Issei (Kappa) is best known for his roles as Godai Yuusaku in Maison Ikkoku, Akira (Chibi) in Urusei Yatsura, and Saburo in Sazae-san. He played the main character, Yoshio, in Dokushin Apartment Dokudami-sou and the psychopathic brother, Cross, in Hi-Speed Jecy, and he appeared in Fukuyama Gekijou. All three are Orphan releases.
• Miyamoto Seiya (Itchan) has no other credited roles.
• Katsuki Masako (Itchan's mother) played Maroko in Gosenzosama Banbanzai and its movie version, Maroko, Mira in Ginga Tansa 2100-nen: Border Planet, Queen Bee in Golgo 13: Queen Bee, and Tsunade (Fifth Hokage) in the Naruto franchise. She also played Kenbishi Yuuri in Yuukan Club, Hojo's lover in Sanctuary, and Yamazaki's maintenance engineer Kiriko in Kigyou Senshi Yamazaki: Long Distance Call, all Orphan releases.
• Koorogi Satomi (Keiko, Itchan's baby sister) played Chi in all versions of Chii's Sweet Home, Himawari (the baby sister) in Crayon Shin-chan, Menchi (the food pooch) in Excel Saga, and Kuki-sama in the Limeiro properties. She also played Yahoi in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki and Misa in Doukyuusei Climax and Doukyuusei 2, allOrphan releases.
• Kamei Saburou (neighborhood chief Kato) had featured roles is many shows, including Akuma-kun, Armored Trooper Votoms, Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor, One Outs, Planetes, Rainbow, and Techno Police 21C, an Orphan release.

The director, Takeuchi Yoshio, also helmed the Oishinbo TV series and specials, as well as Ipponbouchou Mantarou, Gorillaman, Harlock Saga, Shin Megami Tensai: Devil Children, and Night Head Genesis.

Staff credits are basically the same as the other Sensou Douwa specials. kokujin-kun translated. Yogicat timed. I edited and typeset. BeeBee and Nemesis QCed. The raw is a 480p webrip from UNEXT and looks pretty good

Like the other specials in this series, Tako ni Natta Okaasan is a difficult watch. In particular, the final dialog between mother and son is devastating. With all the stressful events happening right now, I put off doing the final run-through far longer than I should have. Between Covid and the US elections, we could all use some happiness; but there are no happy endings in war.

You can find Tako ni Natta Okaasan on the usual torrent site, or download it from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Sensou Douwa: The Boy and the Sea Turtle

Sensou Douwa (War Tales or War Fables) was a series of TV specials by Shin-Ei Animation that ran annually from 2002 to 2009. In chronological order:

• 2002    Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and The Sea Turtle)
• 2003    Tako ni Natta Okaasan (The Mother Who Became a Kite)
• 2004    Chiisai Sensuikan ni Koi o Shita Dekasugiru Kujira no Hanashi (The Tale of the Ginormous Whale That Fell in Love with a Little Submarine)
• 2005    Boku no Boukuugou (My Air Raid Shelter)
• 2006    Yakeato no, Okashi no Ki (The Cake Tree in the Ruins)
• 2007    Futatsu no Kurumi (Two Walnuts)
• 2008    Kiku-chan to Ookami  (Kiku and the Wolf)
• 2009    Aoi Hitomi no Onnako no Ohanashu (The Tale of the Blue-Eyed Girl)

Except for Two Walnuts, which has been subbed by Saizen, the series has not been translated into English before.

Umigame to Shounen (The Boy and the Sea Turtle) is set during the Battle of Okinawa, the most horrific battle between Japan and the United States in World War II. Almost the entire Japanese garrison of 77,000 men perished. American forces suffered more than 75,000 killed, wounded, or missing. Up to 30% (or more) of the civilian population of 300,000 were also killed - by bombardment, by starvation, by the retreating Japanese army, or - influenced by Japanese propaganda about the likelihood of American atrocities - by mass suicide.

The Boy and the Sea Turtle shows the war from the point of view of children.The central character is Tetsuo, a boy who escapes from the firebombing of Naha and goes to live in the countryside with his grandmother. He puts up a brave front with the other children and joins in their patriotic war bluster, but inside, he is lonely and terrified. A boy in his new class, Norio, sees him as an instinctive rival, but eventually their faux-macho competitiveness yields to friendship. Tetsuo also makes friends with a girl in his class, Hanako.

 

Norio show Tetsuo a beach where sea turtles return annually to lay their eggs. The three friends roam the countryside, scrounge for food, and help with the harvest. And then the invasion begins.

Like The Cake Tree in the Ruins, The Boy and the Sea Turtle is based on a short story by Nosaka Akiyuki. And like The Cake Tree in the Ruins, this special shows the ruinous effects that war has on children - physically and mentally. Ultimately, Tetsuo must make a terrible choice, between honoring his friends' beliefs and starving, or abandoning those beliefs and surviving. The ending is ambiguous and poetic... and deeply, deeply sad.

 

The artwork is simple and beautiful, with Okinawa depicted as almost a fairy-tale setting of quaint houses, lush fields, and beautiful beaches. The show makes effective use of child-like drawings to portray the horrors of war and the deep terror it causes for children.

 

As the first special in the series, The Boy and the Sea Turtle has a fairly modest voice cast, mostly consisting of veterans from Shin-Ei's "repertory company" who appeared in Shuukan Storyland:

• Tokiwa Yuuki (Tetsuo) appeared in Shuukan Storyland and dubbed Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies.
• Satou Ai (narrator) has played many maternal roles, including Light's mother in Death Note, Masami's mother in Wedding Peach, Misaki's mother in Dear Brother, Ban's mother in Getbackers, Shigeru's mother in Noramimi, and the unnamed mothers in Cinderella Express, Ai Monogatari, Guyver: Out of Control, and Kristin Adams in Yawara. Other roles include the refined mother in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, Ibuki's mother in Kiss wa Me ni Shite, Taichi in The Cake Tree in the Ruins, and the unnamed girlfriend in Lunn Flies into the Wind, all Orphan releases.
• Mitsuhara Rin (Tetsuo's aunt) played Irma in Birdy the Mighty, Yaobikuni in Blade of the Immortal (2019), and Torogai in Seirei no Moribito. She also played Miki in Wolf Guy, an Orphan release.
• Hisamatsu Yuuko (Tetsuo's grandmother) has just two other credits.
• Namatame Kento (Norio) and Takuya Ishihara (Haruo) only appeared in this show.
• Mimura Yuuno (Hanako) appeared in Hanebado, Kemurikusa, Hachi-nantte, and Aikatsu.

The director is again Yasumi Tetsuo.

kokujin-kun translated, Yogicat timed, and I edited and typeset. Nemesis and BeeBee did QC. The raw is a 480p webrip from UNEXT and looks pretty good. This show was broadcast in standard definition, and no attempt has been made to upscale it, fortunately.

The Boy and the Sea Turtle is again rather upsetting, but I recommend it strongly, for the simplicity of its storytelling and the impact of its message. You can find the show at the usual torrent site or download it from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.