Magma Taishi! (Ep 1-4)

Orphan is delighted to release the first installment of Tezuka Osamu's 1993 OVAs, Magma Taishi (Ambassador Magma). We'll be doing three more installments of three episodes each to complete the series. Magma Taishi is more an homage than an actual Tezuka Osamu show; he had passed away by 1993. It uses his md-1960s manga and tokustatsu (live-action special effects) TV show as jumping off points for a new story, utilizing more or less the same characters. It preserves the "boys adventure" flavor of the original while adding more modern and cynical elements, such as government conspiracies. This is Orphan's first new Tezuka Osamu project since finishing Tales from the Old Testament more than two years ago.

Magma Taishi posits an ancient conflict between Goa, evil Emperor of the Cosmos, and the spirit of the Earth (confusingly called Earth), over the fate of our planet. 

To defeat Goa, Earth-the-spirit creates a giant robot/rocket man called Magma. 

After a titanic struggle, Magma shatters Goa's body, and the precursors of the Atsuka clan seal way both Goa's soul and Magma's body. Fast forward a few zillion years.

In the present, Goa's minions have collected the  scattered fragments of his former body, and they intend to retrieve his soul from where it was sealed away.  Asuka Fumiaki, descendant of the clan of sealers, calls a journalist friend, Murakami Atsushi, to warn that Goa's return is imminent. Atsushi rushes to his friend's aid, only to find Fumiaki killed by aliens and his daughter, Miki, nearly unconscious. Goa's spirit reunites with his former body and revives, appearing as an apparition to Miki and to Atsushi's son Mamoru. 

He sends an alien disguised as Fumiaki (a "pseudo-human"; they're really tentacled monsters) to kidnap Miki. She escapes, and her deceased father's spirit informs her of her purpose: to awaken Magma. Miki sacrifices herself to revive Magma, and the burden of fighting Goa falls on Mamoru (whose name means "protect" in Japanese). But with Goa's minions lurking everywhere, 

and elements of Japanese Intelligence in league with the aliens (thereby bringing about the Japanese economic miracle), how can Mamoru hope to fight back, even with Magma's help?

The voice cast includes:

• Ohtsuka Akio (Magma) played the title roles in most of the Black Jack properties, Magma Taishi, Blade, and Montana Jones. He also played Gozo in the Aika franchise, Batou in the Ghost in the Shell franchise, the villain All for One in Boku no Hero Academia, and Nyanko Big in one memorable episode of Tada Never Falls in Love. He played Gale in Dragon Slayer Eiyuu Densetsu, Kenneth Guildford in Nana Toshi Monogatari, George in Condition Green, the narrator in Fire Emblem, Nobunaga the boss crow in Ultra Nyan 2, Zilu in Eiyuu Banka Koushi-den, and Black Jack in Tezuka Osamu Disappears, all Orphan releases.
• Kikuchi Masami (Murakami Mamoru) starred as the male leads in the Tenchi Muyo, Aa! Megami-sama!, and Comic Party franchises. He played Iwayma Genzaburo in Princess Army, Terayama Suekichi in Asatte Dance, Makoto in Doukyuusei 2, Yukino Hiro in Houkago no Tinker Bell, and Taira no Kiyomori the younger in Genji, Part 1, and he appeared in Fukuyama Gekijou, all Orphan releases. His "Magma Taishiiiii!" at the end of each preview is unmistakable.
• Fukami Rika (Murakami Tomoko, Mol) played Spoor in the Crest of the Stars franchise, Myung Fang in Macross Plus, and Sailor Venus in the Sailor Moon franchise. She played Kuni in Tobira no Akete and Miss Toshiko in Raiyantsuuri no Uta and appeared in Majo demo Stead, and Ear of the Golden Dragon, all Orphan releases.
• Kosugi Juurouta (Murakami Atsushi) played Mochizuki Rokurou in the Sanada 10 special, Utsubushi in Amatsuki, Aizman in Bavi Stock, Takanesawa in Hiatari Ryouko, Daisuke in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, Gisuke in Shadow, Dr. Bayfam in Joker, and a bit part in Hi-Speed Jecy, all Orphan releases, as well as Krest in Ariel, Fernand in Gankuutsou, Hertz in Marie and Gali, and Touji in Ninku.
• Ishida Akira (Gam, son of Magma and Mol) starred as Sasuke in Samurai Deeper Kyou, Chrno in Chrno Crusade, Howard in Uninhabited Planet Survive, Rion in Galerians: Rion, Komugi in Hen Zemi, and Arima in Princess Lover. He played Abe no Yasuaki in Haruka Naru Toki no Nake de: Hachyoushou, Gaara in the Naruto franchise, Shinichi in Nana, Athrun Zala in the Gundam Seed Destiny properties, Cho Hokkai in the Saiyuki franchise, Xellos in the Slayers franchise, Natori in the Natsume Yuujinchou franchise, Tsukasa in the Shokugei no Souma franchise, and Kuchiki in the Genshiken series. He played brother Oomori in Let's Nupu Nupu, Gordon in Fire Emblem, Takumi in Bakuen Campus Guardress, Abe no Yasutsugu in Haruka Naru Toki no Nake de 2, and Ridvan in Haruka Naru Toki no Nake de 3, all Orphan releases.
• Miyauchi Kouhei (Earth) played Aaron in Dragon Slayer Eiyuu Densetu, Jack Goldman in Condition Green, King Kaiser in Grimm Douwa: Kin no Tori, Eddie in Nozomi Witches, Kogorou Shirachi in Stop!! Hibari-kun, the grandfather in Tsuki ga Noboru made ni, the judge in A Penguin's Memories, and Brigadier Hamilton in Techno Police 21C, and he appeared in the first two Sangokushi movies, all Orphan releases. He had a recurring role as Kame Sennin in the Dragon Ball franchise and played the mayor of Birdos in Watt Poe.
• Oohira Tooru (Goa) starred as Moguro Fuzuko in The Laughing Salesman! He also played Goa in the original TV drama. 'Nuff said!
• Sasaoka Shigezou (Jakov, Goa's sidekick) played the title role in God Mazinger, King Aleph in Magical Hat, and the villain Mr. X in Scoopers. He appeared in Dragon Slayer Eiyuu Densetsu, Sanctuary, Sugata Sanshiro, and Tezuka Osamu's Tales of the Old Testament, all Orphan releases.
• Takagi Wataru (Sekita Junya, Atsushi's assistant) played the title role in Great Teacher Onizuka, Nezumi in the 1996 and 2007 versions of GeGeGe no Kitarou, his namesake, as well as other recurring roles, in the Detective Conan franchise, old man Gorou in the recent Godzilla S.P., and Takeshi in Kakyuusei (1995), an Orphan release.
• Nakamura Hidetoshi (Asuka Fumiaki) appeared in Star Dust, Ai no Kusabi, Nana Toshi Monogatari, and Exper Zenon, all Orphan releases. 
• Itou Miki (Asuka Miki) played Annie in Adachigahara, young Yamataro in Yamataro Comes Back, Rie in Chameleon, Colon in Cool Cool Bye, Yuumi in Every Day Is Sunday, and an Innocent in Greed, all Orphan releases. She also played Fujimura Taiga in the Fate franchise, Eiko "A-ko" Magami in the Project A-ko franchise, and appeared in most of the Happy Science movies.
• Kanao Tetsuo (Kunisaki, Deputy Director of National Intelligence) played Daishi in Concrete Revolutio, Kokuyo in Dr. Stone, Chad in Gangsta., Kouhei in The Great Passage, and Yamazaki in Ghost Talker's Daydream.
• Inaba Minoru (Kuwabara, an intelligence agent) appeared in Izumo, Hiatari Ryouko, Majo demo Steady, Adachigahara, and Sangokushi 2, all Orphan releases. He played Bart Bagley in The Faraway Paladin, Tatsuma in The Morose Mononokean, Dr Garaki in My Hero Academia, and Ootsuka in Tetsujin 28.
• Hayami Shou (Matsuda) played Nanjou in Zetsuai: 1989, 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. 

Oohira Tooru's villainous posturing as Goa is worth the price of admission alone. I can imagine him as Captain Hook in Peter Pan, twirling his mustache and uttering his final line: "Pan, words cannot express me utter contempt for you."

The director, Uedo Hidehito, also directed Every Day Is Sunday, H2, A.D. Police, and the Fuuma no Kojirou OVAs. The OP is a typical overwrought ballad, but the ED is a throwback march, sung by a massed male chorus and illustrated with shots from the original manga.

This series has been on my wish list basically forever, but Orphan's translators were unable to help. Eventually, I got purpleparrotkin to translate the first four episode (Yume did the rest of the series). ImAWasteOfHair timed. I edited and typeset; the typesetting is minimal. ImAWasteOfHair and Uchuu QCed. The raws were encoded from R2J DVDs by an anonymous friend. This is a dual-audio release; there's a signs only track to accompany the English dub. In the dub, the OP and ED are wordless.

Magma Taishi is definitely a shounen adventure. Normally, it would be outside my wheelhouse, but... it's Tezuka Osamu. So I'm prepared to forgive its trespasses and to enjoy its often preposterous antics. You can get these four episodes from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

Magma Taishi (Ep 11-13)

With its final three episodes, Magma Taishi (Ambassador Magma) winds itself up, runs at a furious pace, takes a gigantic flying left turn, and jumps over a Megalodon-sized shark. Tezuka Osamu's shounen hero versus big baddie becomes an environmental fairy tale that ends with a whimper, rather than a bang. I'm no fan of the shounen genre, but the concluding episode left me baffled and more than a bit annoyed.

When we last left the good guys, they had been whisked off somewhere unknown. That turns out to be a "pocket dimension" set in some much earlier era, complete with dinosaurs. 

After killing a therapod that was about to devour Mamoru's father, they are confronted by an angry Earth-the-spirit, who asks why they would kill a creature they didn't intend to eat. (Um, self-defense, sir?) He asks what mankind's purpose is, strongly implying they don't have one and are therefore surplus to requirements. After some further Magma versus Udo action, they escape back to Earth-the-planet, only to find that Goa has launched a general offensive. 

Earth's defense forces are helpless against Goa's monsters. Magma and Udo also return.

As they grapple, Goa shoots them both with his "beam ray," inflicting fatal damage. Udo is gone, but so is Magma, and nothing seems to stand between Goa and his goal of obliterating humanity.

After some heartfelt (i.e., emo) interactions, Mamoru and Gam decide to make one last attempt at defeating Goa. With help from Mol, they break into Goa's ship, but there they are stymied by his power. Earth-the-spirit teleports in and tells Goa to back down.

Contrary to what Goa believes, Mother Earth created humans; they are necessary for her purposes. When Goa scoffs, Earth tells Mamoru to summon Magma. Mother Earth not only revived Magma but wipes out all of Goa's monsters.

Goa is enraged and decides to rip Magma into little tiny pieces. Mother Earth, realizing that Goa will never relent, now decides to destroy Earth-the-planet and all living creatures by reverting to the planet's primordial state billions of years ago. When Goa sees he won't be able to have his Big Blue Marble, he gets all huffy and decides to go home. After a few more environmental warnings from Earth-the-spirit, the good guys are left to ponder the destruction of civilization, and the anime ends.

There is only one possible reaction to this: WTF? Admittedly, thirty years had passed since Tezuka Osamu's manga (much of which he didn't write) and this show; and in those thirty years, Tezuka's Buddhist reverence for life and his environmentalism had grown much stronger. But the complete lack of payoff for all the travails and perils that Mamoru and crew had been put through is just laughable. Mamoru was irrelevant; Magma was irrelevant; even Earth-the-spirit was irrelevant. Mother Earth was capable of chasing off the bad guys all by her lonesome. The rest was filler.

Now, this show is not, in fact, the Master's work; it's posthumous. Without strong source material, post-Osamu Tezuka Productions had a tendency to lapse into preachiness. But Tezuka himself, even in his most discursive material like some of the Love Will Save the Earth specials, never failed to give the story a conclusion directly related to the protagonists. The ending of Magma Taishi feels like the scriptwriter failed to grasp the fundamentals of storytelling and the audience's need for closure. Enough.

The staff remains unchanged for this final group of episodes. Yume translated. ninjacloud timed. I edited and typeset. Paul Geromini and Uchuu QCed. The encoder wishes to remain anonymous. As before, these episodes are dual audio, with a signs-only subtitle track for the dub viewer. I've also included the non-credit OP and ED, just in case you haven't heard those songs enough. I have.

Magma Taishi, like the curate's egg, is good in parts; not just these parts. Still, I'm glad that it's finally subbed. You can get this last set of episodes from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

There will be a batch torrent in a few days. It will include some changes, so please don't torrent the episodes released to date as an "informal batch." 

Magma Taishi (Ep 8-10)

In this next set of Magma Taishi (Ambassador Magma) episodes, things look increasingly bleak for the good guys. Goa's monsters continue to hunt for Murakami Mamoru, and only Magma and Gam can save his bacon from increasingly difficult predicaments. Goa goes from strength to strength. He is fully recovered, and his minion, the oni Udo, has as well. While some of the agents in National Agency have wised up about Goa's intentions, the higher-ups persist in their delusions of negotiating, even when Goa's warships are in the sky all over the world.

And then, Mamoru makes a heart-breaking discovery. Our heroes have truly entered the Slough of Despond™.

The arc opens with Mamoru and his mother Tomoko once again pursued by a super-powerful pseudo-human. 

Rescued by chance, they end up at the home of Imai Kazuo, a typical family man with a wife, Yuki, and a daughter, Midori. But something is off. Midori is actually a pseudo-human, who took the real Midori's place when the latter died of illness. (Who arranged this? Goa was still a disembodied spirit back then.) Pseudo-Midori immediately recognizes what the viewer has suspected for some time: that Tomoko is also a pseudo-human, real name Altemira. Both have developed feelings for their human families, compromising their missions. 

And when Hilda, the blonde pseudo-human that bamboozled the Intelligence Agency back in episode 5, shows up to kill or capture Mamoru, those compromised loyalties are tested to the breaking point.

Meanwhile, Murakami Atsushi, his family, his sidekick Junya, and girl reporter Umemura return to investigate the restricted area around Mount Onitono.

In a long flashback to "ancient" times, an oni called Udo is shown terrorizing local villages until he is defeated by the first Asuka Miki. (Udo presents as female normally but as male in battle mode.) 

In modern times, Udo reawakens just as the gang, and the Intelligence agents under Kunisaki, discover its lair. They all barely escape with their lives when Goa teleports Udo to his spaceship. Udo has only one request: to settle the score with Magma before Goa conquers the planet.

But to get to Magma, Udo needs the flute (whistle) that Mamoru uses to summon Magma. The craven higher-ups at the Intelligence Agency have the same idea. Both sides are willing to kill Mamoru to get what they want. 

Artemila rescues her "son" from a threatening Intelligence agent, but at the cost of revealing her true identity.

Then Udo tries to get the flute by torturing Atsushi and his cohorts. In the ensuing struggle, Artemila is killed, and Gam is knocked out of action. Mamoru summons Magma, but then suddenly the whole group, and the land they stand on, is transported into some sort of gateway or black hole. Now what?

New seiyuu play the Kazuo family:

• Hikita Yumi (Imae Yuki) played Mirei in Condition Green, Android 1026 in Oz, and appeared in Zetsuai: 1989, all Orphan releases.
• Mitsuishi Kotono (Imai Midori) 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  Watanabe Yumi in Tsuyoshi Shikkari Shinasai: Tsuyoshi no Time Machine de Shikkari Shinasai, Oshina in Hidamari no Ki, and appeared in Gakkou no Yuurei volume 1, Blazing Transfer Student, Nagasarete Airantou, and Yamato 2520, all Orphan releases.
• Tsuji Tsutomu (Imai Kazuo) appeared in Next Senki Ehrgeiz, an Orphan release.

The voice actors who play Hilda, female Udo, and male Udo, are not identified. This is odd, because the show is normally quite scrupulous about identifying even small roles ("man", "alien"). 

The staff is unchanged. Yume translated. ImAWasteOfHair timed. I edited and typeset. Paul Geromini and Uchuu QCed. The encoder was an anonymous friend. As before, this is a dual-audio release, with a signs-only subtitle track to go with the English dub. Please note that I've put essentially no effort into the signs-only track, except to cut out the song lyrics and dialog. Accordingly, it shows the translated versions of episode titles, rather than the versions spoken in the English dub track.

Magma Taishi is now past the three-quarters mark, and the endgame is less clear than ever. Goa seems to hold all the cards. The forces of good are totally outclassed. Can they emerge victorious? You'll have to continue watching to find out. Meanwhile, you can get this set of episodes from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net 

2025 in Review

2025 turned out to be even more calamitous than I had feared. I couldn't bear to watch the news, as one horror followed another.

Orphan Fansubs

Despite the adverse conditions in real life, Orphan released a near-record number of projects, primarily thanks to prolific translator Perevodildo and the many staffers and helpers from across IRC and Discord. The team subbed several outstanding movies, crushed the backlog of untranslated Young Animator OVAs, revisited some old favorites, and laid the groundwork for interesting new and ongoing projects in 2026.

1. Gakkou no Yuurei volume 3. More ghost stories, mixed animation and live action.
2. Seirei Tsukai. Gods versus superpowered humans. Most of the planet ends up as collateral damage, and no one seems to care much.
3. Gakkou no Yuurei volume 4. Even more ghost stories, mixed animation and live action.
4. Tsuyoshi Shikkari Shinasai: Tsuyoshi no Time Machine de Shikkari Shinasai. A side OVA from long-running (112 episodes), totally forgotten sitcom. Put-upon elder brother Tsuyoshi and a pal travel back in time and discover, accidentally, why his family life in the present is so broken.
5. Mikosuri Han Gekijou. A collection of dirty jokes, strung together around themes. You'll like it, or you won't.
6. Sakyou Komatsu's Animation Theater. Outstanding science fiction and satire from a noted Japanese author. This show is always interesting, often thought provoking, and sometimes spooky.
7. Toraemon. A paean to the 1985 championship baseball team, the Henshin Tigers. Filled with topical references and satires on real characters, it is impossible to understand without a decoder ring.
8. Zetsuai 1989 v2. The grand-daddy of BL OVAs, in a new, shinier encode.
9. Tistou Midori no Oyayubi. A wondrous full-length movie about the power of goodness and beauty to alter lives for the better. Its fairy-tale like artwork and story soothe the soul.
10. Utsu no Miko (1989). This rarity is the prequel to the better-known OVA series of the same name. Utsu no Miko and his friends battle greed and perfidy on Earth, ultimately concluding they must take their battle to the heavens.
11. Tenjou Hen: Utsu no Miko (1990). A summary movie for the OVA series, covering the first five chapters.
12. Tanjou Debut. This OVA showcases four wannabe idols/actresses performing in unrelated TV dramas.
13. Cello Hiki no Gauche 1998. A highly abbreviated version of the classic, made to be shown in school classrooms. Faithful to the original but nowhere near as good as the Takahata Isao version.
14. Hashire Melos 1979. Another abbreviated version of a classic for the educational market. It is much shorter than the (later) movie but again, not as good.
15. Mahjong Hishouden: Naki no Ryuu 1988. An enigmatic mahjong player, known only as the Calling Dragon, tangles with various yakuza factions, all of whom want him for his legendary luck. An expanded version of the OVA that was subbed in 2024.
16. Kimu no Juujika. An excellent movie about the kidnapping of Korean workers for forced labor on the Japanese mainland during World War II. A religious overlay does not mask the brutality of the Japanese regime.  
17. Heart Cocktail Colorful episodes 1-5. A modern version of Watase Seizou's classic short tales of love found, lost, or regained. This set of five stories is set in spring. Joint with DarkWispers and LonelyChaser.
18. Magma Taishi, episodes 1-4. A Tezuka Osamu series that had been on my radar for a long time. Aliens led by the evil Lord Goa intend to seize Earth and destroy humanity. Only a handful of people, aided by a giant golden robot named Magma, stand in his way.
19. Tooyamazakura Uchuuchou: Yatsu no Na wa Gold. A complete clusterfuck of a sci-fi show, in which samurai themes are transplanted into an interplanetary future. Joint with Inka.
20. Gakkou no Yuurei volume 5. Still more ghost stories, mixed animation and live action.
21. Junk Boy. An ecchi, not to mention sketchy, story about a young boy who lands his dream job at men's magazine Potato Boy, only to find that life surrounded by beautiful (and sometimes naked) women is not quite what he expected. I originally edited this show for Erobeat. The new translation and encode are a significant improvement.
22. Heart Cocktail Colorful episodes 6-10. Five summer stories from Watase Seizou. Joint with DarkWispers and LonelyChaser.
23. Heart Cocktail Colorful episodes 11-15 and batch. The final set of five stories, set in late fall and winter. Joint with DarkWispers and LonelyChaser. 
24. Gakkou no Yuurei volume 6 and batch. The last of the original series.
25. The First Line. A recent web short, showing the tribulations of a young animator trying to find his own style. The anime plays with framing as a way of showing the young man breaking out of his constraints.
26. Usagi-chan de Cue!!. This very funny and very ecchi sci-fi caper posits a fusion between a schoolboy's pet rabbit and curvaceous girl delinquent. The resulting hybrid is very affectionate toward her keeper, and more than combative enough to fend off the various baddies. The third episode was my first attempt at rescuing an orphan, as part of C1. This version has a better translation and new encode.
27. Magma Taishi, episodes 5-7. The plot thickens. The aliens infiltrate by posing as humans, protected by various shady government agencies more interested in alien technology than saving humanity. 
28. Shin Gakkou no Yuurei. A sequel to the original series, fully animated for the first time since volume 1. 
29. Magma Taishi, episodes 8-10. The good guys' attempts to fend off Lord Goa seem increasingly futile. 
30. Magma Taishi, episodes 11-13 and batch. The Slough of Despond™ and the eventual victory of humanity. However, the outcome is not as clear-cut as one might expect in a shounen sci-fi series. 
31. Tezuka Osamu Works: Kyoto Animation Theater. A collection of short films that were shown in the Tezuka Osamu Kyoto Animation Theater, now closed. Shorts about familiar Tezuka characters - Astro Boy, Unico, Princess Knight, Leo the white lion, Black Jack, the Phoenix - alternate with humorous looks at key episodes in Kyoto's history.
32. Aoi Kioku. An excellent movie about Japan's attempts to colonize Manchuria during World War II. Teenage boys are lured to Manchuria with the promise of free land, only to find themselves unprotected and at the mercy of Russian soldiers when the Soviets invade in August, 1945.
33. Hello WeGo! A Young Animator's OVA. The protagonist is a lonely boy whose only companion is his mobile robot, named WeGo. A fairly routine coming-of-age story, but not offensive.
34. Kicks and Punk. Another Young Animator's OVA. The main character is a girl who loves to run in an age when everyone else uses automated propulsion. She discovers a shared mania for sneakers with an unlikely older woman.
35. Midnight Crazy Trail. A Young Animator's OVA. A young witch is sent to our world for training, but all she wants to do is get rid of her magic and be ordinary. Sort of a cross between Kiki's Delivery Service and Getbackers and not very original.
36. Hoshizora no Violin. A movie about a young boy whose quest to become Japan's Stradivarius is interrupted by World War II. Moving, but it whitewashes the Japanese regime in Manchuria; Aoi Kioku is more realistic.
37. Charanpo Land no Bouken. A Young Animator's OVA. Animals live in a fantasy world where a magic baobab tree provides all the necessities of daily life. When the tree suddenly becomes barren, three youngsters must race against time and other interests to restore the tree's essence.
38. Galaxy Apartment Cosmo Hills. A Young Animator's OVA. A fast-moving and subversive sci-fi story, in which a wannabe "Vtuber" slacker suddenly receives an overpowered baby as a present.
39. Shibuya Honky Tonk. The purported autobiography of George Akayama, ex-yakuza, author, and raconteur. Exaggerated and more than a bit smug, it's an entertaining comedy in spots.
40. Adesugata Mahou no Sannin Musume. Princess Persia, Minky Momo, and Creamy Mami hang out at a hot springs, make prank calls to their boyfriends, and review highlights from their TV series.
41. The Fullmoon Tradition: Indra (Pilot). A short promotional film for an Oshii Mamoru series that was never made. An intriguing premise.
42. Cat-Eyed Boy episodes 9 - 12. Once again, more Cat-Eyed Boy for Halloween. Subsequently, we've learned that the complete series will be released on DVD in 2026. 
43. Shin Takarajima DVD. An early Tezuka Osamu TV special, retelling Treasure Island with animal characters. It features a new, improved encode.
44. Heavy. A movie about a karate fighter who is recruited by a dying sports doctor to contend for the heavyweight title.
45. Animated Classics of Japanese Literature: The Izu Dancer. This collection of stories based on classic Japanese literature has been on my radar for a long time. The first is an oblique tale of a student's encounter with, and unfulfilled love for, an itinerant entertainer.
46. Ashita Genki ni Naare! This movie starts with the firebombing of Tokyo in March, 1945, but it mostly focuses on the plight of Japanese orphans immediately after the war.
47. It Rained Fire. This outstanding movie is tightly focused on the firebombing of Fukuoka in June, 1945. It's juxtaposition of children's carefree lives prior to the air raid, and the horrors they went through during it, is very effective. 
48. Animated Classics of Japanese Literature: The Sound of Waves. This second story in Animated Classics is a coming of age story about a young fisherman's romance with a local girl, and the obstacles both must overcome to reach their mutual happiness.
49. Animated Classics of Japanese Literature: The Dancing Girl. Episode ten of Animated Classics is another star-crossed romance, this time with tragic results.

Okizari, Orphan's h-anime label, was also active this year.

1. Bouken Shite mo Ii Koro. A reworking of a show first released by Erobeat, with improved encode and translation. It's about the (mis)adventures of a young man whose desire to be in films leads him to work as an AV actor for a porn video company.
2. Angel. A new translation of an OVA first released by Erobeat. This release uses the first edition Japanese laserdisc, which includes a smidgen of content cut from later home-video versions.

My personal favorites included Tistou Midori, Sakyou Komatsu's Animation Theater, Kimu no Juujika, Aoi Kioku, It Rained Fire, and Galaxy Apartment Cosmo Hills. The ultra-short The Fullmoon Tradition: Indra was very intriguing. Mikosuri Han Gekijou and Junk Boy were guilty pleasures.

A big "thank you" to all the team members, including translators Perevodildo, Skr, and Yume (who also time), editor and QC Paul Geromini, timer ninjacloud, QCs Nemesis, Uchuu, Topper3000, VigorousJammer, Eternal_Blizzard, bananadoyouwanna, MartyMcflies, Muzussawa, and True Noobow Gamer,and encoders anonymous1, anonymous2, "coffee," and WOWmd. I must also thank the Arutha foundation, which hosts all of Orphan's releases on IRC and reseeded all of our past releases. Finally, I'd like to thank our joint-project collaborators: Inka, DarkWispers, and LonelyChaser. But whether mentioned or not, every staff member has contributed to the work this year.

The Audio Side

Nothing this year.

 
Work for Other Groups

Some old, some new.

• Frozen-EviL. Yawara! reached a major milestone with the completion of the Blu-ray version of the show and the release of the batch torrent. I also edited the live-action movie. Sayona, Yawara-chan!
• Blasphemboys. I QCed more of Ningen Kakumei. I edited or QCed several other shows as well.
• Darkonius. I finished editing and typesetting a new version of Damekko Doubutsu (Useless Animals). This is one of my favorite short series, and I look forward to its release.

Favorites of 2025

I'm not an anime critic, so I don't try to compile a "best of" list for the anime year. Instead, I'm listing my favorites of the year and why they kept me watching all the way through. As usual, shows with lots of "action" (i.e., violence) mostly don't make the cut.

In alphabetical order:

• Ame to Kimi to. This low-key comedy about an introverted young woman who adopts a smarter-than-the-average-bear tanuki was very soothing. As is often the case with pets, the tanuki helps his(?) "owner" grow and come out of her shell.
• Apocalypse Hotel. An absurdist comedy about a high-end Tokyo hotel staffed completely by robots after the human race disappears. The humor gets very "out there" at times, but it worked for me.
• Ballpark de Tsukamaete! A feel-good comedy about the fans and staff at a mid-tier baseball team's stadium.
• Dandadan S2. It doesn't get more over-the-top than this show, and the the second season amped up the shenanigans to eleven. 
• Dekin no Mokura. An oddball show about college students awakening to the world of spirits after interacting with a generous, and perhaps immortal, recluse.
• Kowloon Generic Romance. An intriguing sci-fi/slice-of-life show, with an underlying premise that wasn't clear even after it ended.
• Kuroshitsuji: Midori no Majo Hen. This is the first Kuroshitsuji series I was able to watch all the way through. Although totally absurd in its science (tanks in the 1880s?), the human drama seemed more compelling and grounded.
• Kusuriya no Hitorigoto S2. The further adventures of Xiomao and Maomao and company. Although showing signs of "light novel syndrome" (i.e., spinning events out for the sake of more volumes), it still hits my historical shoujo sweet spot.
• Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsura Sugiru. This lightweight, likeable comedy about a Tokyo boy smitten with an Okinawan girl but unable to understand her dialect never set a foot wrong.
• Shabake. Youkai and mysteries. For me, an unbeatable combination. The self-effacing, quiet protagonist proved much stronger than he appeared. 

Quirky personal favorites:

• Me and the Alien MuMu. Alien cats obsessed with consumer appliances trying to save Earth from destruction? What's not to like?

I continue to enjoy the Ranma 1/2 reboot, rather more than original. And I watched the extended epilogue of Boku no Hero Academia, which is a masterclass on how to conclude a long-running battle shounen.

 

Looking Ahead

Orphan ends 2025 with a significant backlog of projects. We intend to finish the DVD episodes of Animated Classics of Japanese Literature and continue to search for other sources for the rest. There will be more Cat-Eyed Boy, hopefully from the DVD remasters. And we're starting a new project to revisit the early Toei Douga movies, using the best sources available.

 

On the down side, the Arutha foundation is closing down early next year. Orphan is collaborating with Saizen for a new torrent seeding and archiving solution, but the IRC XDCC capability will disappear. If you use IRC XDCC, please get your files before January 31, 2026.

 

Meanwhile, thanks, everyone, both team members and fans. Have a happy and safe 2026. 

 

Magma Taishi! (Ep 5-7)

After looking at the arc breaks, I decided it made more sense to release Magma Taishi (Ambassador Magma) in four batches of four, three, three, and three episodes, respectively. So this release include episodes five to seven. And in this set, the complications pile up thick and fast. The Murakamis gain some new allies: Umemura Sayaka, an inquisitive and martial-arts proficient female reporter; 

and Gam, a "rocket man" created by Earth-the-spirit in Mamoru's image. 

The Murakamis will need all the help they can get, because Goa and his minions have been running a sophisticated infiltration campaign that started before his reawakening. (Who orchestrated it, exactly, if Goa wasn't around? Never specified.) Aliens disguised as humans (pseudo-humans) made contact with Japanese Intelligence and provided technology that facilitated the Japanese economic miracle. 

This gives them credibility with the government. They now use that credibility to launch a disinformation campaign against Magma, blaming the golden giant for a tsunami that floods Tokyo.

Meanwhile, a minion of Goa's, the "oni" (ogre)  Udo, is slowly regaining strength by kidnapping and eating residents in a rural area. 

He's protected (natch) by a classified facility that the government leased to the aliens in return for the advanced technology. Atsushi is trying to trace Goa's footsteps by finding a small shrine, whose picture was hidden in a locket left by the now-deceased Asuka family. And both the aliens and the Intelligence agency are after Mamoru and his memories, hoping to find a path to Earth-the-spirit, who remains enigmatically offstage, only appearing long enough to entrust Mamoru with a device (called a flute) that summons Magma when needed.

The show does a very good job depicting the bafflement and frustration of the Murakamis and their allies, who always seem one step behind Goa and his machinations. At the same time, the diverging plot threads give this set of episodes a somewhat unfocused feel. Are the forces of good making progress, or are they just running around in ever-widening circles?

The already large voice cast adds additional characters in these episodes:

• Matsui Naoko (Umemura Sayaka) played Caterina in Tottoi, Efera in Gude Crest, Wato-san in Mitsume ga Tooru and Tezuka Osamu ga Kieta?!, and Lady Dola in Ai to Ken no Camelot, and she appeared in Hi-Speed Jecy and Every Day Is Sunday, all Orphan releases. She played the title role in Compiler, Uru Chie in High School! Kimengumi, Katsumi Liqueur in Silent Mobius, Run Run in Mahoujin Guru Guru, Roux Louka in Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ, Suzuki Sonoko in the Detective Conan franchise, Juushimatsu in Osomatsu-kun (1988), Wendy in Peter Pan no Bouken, Marian in Robin Hood no Daibouken, and Matsu in Nobunaga no Shinobi.
• Inoue Kikuko (Kitafuji, a sympathetic female doctor at National Intelligence) played Kasumi in Ranma 1/2, Chigusa in Kekko Kamen, Mizuho in Onegai Teacher and Onegai Twins, Yayoi in the Happy Lesson properties, Momozono Mei in Mouse, Maria in Gungrave, Emeraldas in Space Symphony Maetel, Belldandy in the Ah My Goddess franchise, Lust in Full Metal Alchemist, Goei in Ikkitousen, and the mother in the Uchouten Kazoku series. She also played the Queen of Antiphon in Hameln no Violin Hiki, Satomi in Nemure Omoigo, Chamberlain, Guilford's executive officer, in Nana Toshi Monogatari, Stasia in Megami Paradise, Shouta in The Girl from Phantasia, Narusawa in Doukyuusei 2, Doria in D4 Princess, and Mai in Hand Maid May, all Orphan releases. 
• Aizawa Masaki (Inoue, Kuwabara's sidekick) played Date Eiji in the Haijime no Ippo franchise, Todou Heikichi in Inazuma Eleven GO, and Norman in Red Baron. He  appeared in Chobits, Fire Force S3, Moonrise, Okane na gai!, Wolf Guy.
• Arakawa Tarou (Dr. Tsukioka, a scientist in National Intelligence) appeared in Blue Sonnet, Dokushin Apartment Dokudami-sou, and Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament, all Orphan releases.

The staff changed only slightly. Yume translated. ImAWasteOfHair timed. I edited and typeset. Paul Geromini (taking over from ImAWasteOfHair) and Uchuu QCed. The encoder was an anonymous friend. As before, this is a dual-audio release, with a signs-only subtitle track to go with the English dub.

Magma Taishi is now past the halfway point, and the endgame is murky. The forces of good will be victorious, of course, but exactly how is not all clear. You can get this set of episodes from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net

Magma Taishi, Batch

So here's Orphan's last word on Magma Taishi (Ambassador Magma), the 13-episode 1993 sci-fi OVA based (very loosely) on Tezuka Osamu's 1960's manga and tokustatsu TV series. The batch includes fixes to the first four episodes for a typo in the ED that wasn't noticed until episode five. Patches are available here. The fixes are very minor; you won't miss anything if you skip the updated episodes.

I've already expounded on my issues with Magma Taishi, particularly the way it ended. It should have hewed more closely to Tezuka Osamu's core strengths as an entertainer: strong plotting, good action sequences, and slapstick humor. Instead, it tried to be both a shounen adventure and and an environmental cautionary tale, succeeding at neither. Still, the show has its strong points. It's fast-paced and never stalls out. Even seeming diversions, like Mamoru's interaction with the Imai family, quickly move into action sequences. It has a terrific voice cast. Oohira Tooru's sneering performance as Goa is not to be missed, and Kikuchi Masami makes a suitably emo Mamoru (he is a teenager, after all). And it has a late example of the Star System, with Umemura Sayaka, girl reporter, modeled on Princess Sapphire. Do its virtues outweigh its defects? That's for you, the viewer, to decide.

For dub watchers, the English audio track is basically the same as the US dub release, with one significant exception: the US dub release includes the Japanese lyrics for the OP and ED. In the R2J DVDs, the OP and ED are instrumentals. The US dub also has English language credits and episode titles, rather than Japanese.

I'd like to thank the small team of people who made the show possible:

• Translation and initial timing: Yume
• Fine timing: ImAWasteOfHair 
• Editing and typesetting: yours truly
• QC: Uchuu, ImAWasteOfHair (ep 1-4), Paul Geromini (ep 5-13)
• Encoding: anonymous

I enjoyed working with them on the show to the very end.

I'll close with an image of  Magma at his most imposing:

(Gotta love the hair.) Thanks for watching.

P.S. The 1960s tokustatsu TV show is available on Blu-ray in Japan.

 

 

 

Returning to the Scene of the Crime (Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki II)

A decade ago, Orphan subbed a borderline hentai show called Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki (St. Michael School Drifting Story), a convoluted time-travel OVA with multiple time travelers, alternate histories, nefarious plots, and too many twists and turns to be understandable. After two tries, I sort of threw up my hands about all the dangling plot threads and wrote, "These questions are answered in the sequel, Sins of the Sisters... maybe. Or maybe not." Well, as part of the ProxyMan project, Orphan has now subbed the 1994-1995 sequel OVA, Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki II (titled Sins of the Sisters for its R1 release). And the answer is... not. If anything, the sequel is more confusing than the original.

Let me try to summarize the events of the original OVA. The roots of the plot start during World War II, with a romance between a Japanese office, Karino Daisuke, and a well-born woman and mother named Yuki, who is mostly notable for having a star under her left breast. Yuki's daughter Yumiko falls in love with Daisuke. When she discovers that he is her mother's lover, she is heartbroken and becomes a nun.

Fast forward to the 1980s. Yumiko yearns to be seventeen again and in the arms of Daisuke. Somehow this summons him through time. He seduces her, and together they set in motion the "Michaela project." This involves setting up a strict Catholic school for girls that teaches singing, dancing, and martial arts to create a "Girls' Crusade." The girls think they are training to become members of the Takarazuka Review. In fact, Daisuke intends to take them back in time to become "comfort women" for the Japanese Army in the Second World War. This will somehow inspire the soldiers to greater heights of valor and turn the tide of battle.

Daisuke's and Yumiko's nefarious plot in turn summons the attention of fallen angel (and intersexual) Hans Heilner, leader of the failed 13th century Children's Crusade. Hans travels through time and enrolls at the school disguised as a girl, Mimura Aiko. 

Hans wants to take the Girls' Crusade back in time to defeat both the Church and God. It also attracts the attention of ninjas from the 17th century Shimabara Rebellion. They want to take the Girls' Crusade back in time to fight the Tokugawa Shogunate. So there are three sets of time travelers -  Karino Daisuke, Hans Heilner, and the Shimabara ninjas - all of whom want to use the Girls' Crusade for their particular cause. After some confusing action in the past, a new timeline emerges, in which the world is peaceful, free of both religion and nationalism - thanks to the unspecified actions of Hans/Aiko and the Girls Crusade. Cue the sequel.

St. Michaela Gakuen II purports to show how the new timeline came about. In some ways, it is simpler - the ninja time travelers who summoned the Girls' Crusade to Shimabara are nowhere to be seen. But in others, it's even more absurd. Yuki, who is now married to Gonza, her servant in the "dark history", dreams that the timeline is wrong and must be fixed so that she can be with Daisuke. 

She is opposed by the "Old Sage," who seems more like a Dr. Who Time Lord than a Japanese mystic. 

Yuki acquires near-divine powers and animates the corpse of Ikeda Rika, who was killed in the first series, and transforms herself into Aaron, another intersexual. Yuki/Aaron goes back in time to make sure that the Children's Crusade actually succeeds (and that Mimura Aiko never comes into existence). Aaron corrupts the Pope

and parts the Red Sea, thereby allowing the Children's Crusade to reach the Holy Land. But the children discover a Papal contract selling them all into slavery and turn back to attack Rome.

Aaron, now desperate, kills all of the Girls' Crusaders that she can.

Eventually, she kills both Hans/Aiko and the Pope, thereby somehow accomplishing what Yuki wanted to prevent. But the Old Sage adjusts the timeline a bit to bring back all the Girls' Crusaders that Aaron killed, as well as Hans/Aiko. The vanished ghost of Daisuke tells Yuki that the "dark history" which included the two of them cannot be restored. 

Aaron vanishes, Rika dies (again) in Hans/Aiko's arms, and the utopian world timeline is saved. 

But frankly, I'm even less sure about this sequel than the first OVAs. And the idea that defeating the Shogunate and the Papacy would eliminate history and nationalism is preposterous. The thirteenth century included many other massive power structures, including the Mongol Empire, the Khmer Empire, China, the Incas, and other regional empires. What were they: chopped liver?

I never thought of Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki as anything other than erotic trash. To my astonishment, it's actually a media mini-franchise. It started as a play in 1982; the play has been revived multiple times. It has also released as light novels, manga, and even a live-action movie. I found an online version of the play's script, but none of the others are available in digital form. As a "serious work," it deserves a few notes:

• The Children's Crusade was not an authorized crusade and may be an apocryphal conflation of historical and mythical events.
• In the R1 subs, the slave traders tell the children they'll be sold as slaves on the "Ivory Coast." This is an anachronism. In 1212, the slave trade was centered in North Africa's Barbary Coast. European traders had not reached the Bight of Benin. 
• The Pope at the time of the Children's Crusade was Innocent III. He was a powerful politician and Church reformer known for calling the Fourth Lateran Council, and not the secret libertine shown in the anime.
• The Pope says that Jerusalem had been recaptured by the Seljuk Turks. In fact, it had been recaptured by Saladin, a Kurd serving the Egyptian caliphate. 
• Amakusa Shirou was a Japanese Christian who led the Shimibara rebellion against the newly established Tokugawa Shogunate.
• Indra's net is a Buddhist metaphor for, among other things, the idea of Perfect Interpenetration in the universe.

One translation note. The R1 script uses "androgyne" for Hans and Aaron, but the first OVA series used "hermaphrodite."  The latter has been retained for consistency.

The voice cast includes:

• Matsui Naoko (Mimura Aiko, Hans Heilner) played Umemura Sayaka in Magma Taishi, Caterina in Tottoi, Efera in Gude Crest, Wato-san in Mitsume ga Tooru and Tezuka Osamu ga Kieta?!, and Lady Dola in Ai to Ken no Camelot, and she appeared in Hi-Speed Jecy and Every Day Is Sunday, all Orphan releases. She played the title role in Compiler, Uru Chie in High School! Kimengumi, Katsumi Liqueur in Silent Mobius, Run Run in Mahoujin Guru Guru, Roux Louka in Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ, Suzuki Sonoko in the Detective Conan franchise, Juushimatsu in Osomatsu-kun (1988), Wendy in Peter Pan no Bouken, Marian in Robin Hood no Daibouken, and Matsu in Nobunaga no Shinobi.
• Watanabe Kumiko (Takemiya Kozue) played Shippou in the Inuyasha franchise, the title role in the St. Frog franchise, Kyouko in the Working! franchise, and Rouge in Megami Paradise, an Orphan release. 
• Onodera Mariko Onodera (Aoike Kumi) played Nana in Metal Fire Miku.
• Mizutani Yuuko (Ikeda Rika) played Pinoko in all the Black Jack properties, as well as Sumiko in Aoi Kioku, 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, Shoko in Gakkou no Yuurei, volume 1, and Dr. Uematsu Kikue in Yume Kakeru Kougen, all Orphan projects.
• Sasaki Yuuko (Hiraiwa Yuki aka Aaron) played the title role in Desert Rose and Gilbert in Kaze to Ki no Uta SANCTUS. She played Sayoko in Aoki Honoo, Akiko/Keiko in Wolf Guy, Yuki in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, and Exper Jiff in Exper Zenon, and she appeared in OL Kaizo Kouza, Amaama to Inazuma, Dokushin Apartment Dokudami-sou, and Yousei-ou, all Orphan releases.
• Hikita Yumi (Yamato Watoko) played Imae Yuki in Magma Taishi, Mirei in Condition Green, Android 1026 in Oz, and appeared in Zetsuai: 1989, all Orphan releases.
• Yajima Akiko (Ooshima Mayumi) played the title role in Idol Densetu Eriko, Lemon in VS Knight Ramune & 40 Fresh, Takami in Geobreeders, Dorothy in The Big O, Pino in Ergo Proxy, Kogitsune in Natsume Yuujinchou, Mipple in the Futari wa Precure franchise, and the title roles in Shin-men and of course Crayon Shin-chan. She played Lesser Panda (Red Panda) in Shirokuma Cafe, Mary Bailey in Heavy, Maijima Karen in Sotsugyousei, and Hikari in Kakyuusei (1995), and Unico in Tezuka Osamu Works: Kyoto Animation Theater, and she appeared in Gakkou no Yuurei, volume 2, all Orphan releases.
• Konishi Hiroko (Iwadate) played Aida Rion in Agent Aika, Miho in Yume de Aetera, Nene Romanova in Bubblegum Crisis 2040, Junna in Chameleon 6, and Gaou Nejiri in D4 Princess. The last two are Orphan releases.
• Naka Hiroshi (Old Sage) played Daisuke in The Ghost in the Shell SAC 2045 series, Monkey D. Garp in One Piece, and Doc in Hellsing: Ultimate. and had featured roles in numerous shows, including After War Gundax X, Altair: A Record of Battles, BNA: Brand New Animal, Coppelion, Delicious in Dungeon, Zetsuai 1989, and Heavy. The last two are Orphan releases.
• Mizusawa Jun (Eiko, ep 2) payed Miyuki in Doukyuusei 2: Sostugyousei and Amy in Nessa no Wakusei, both Orphan releases.
• Sugawara Junichi (Gonza, Pope) appeared in numerous shows, including Cowboy Bebop, Dragon Knight, Ninja Cadets, Ninjo Scroll, Yawara!, Oshare Kozou wa Hanamaru, Magma Taishi, Plastic Little, and Okane na gai! The last four are Orphan releases.
• Kosugi Juurouta (slave trader, ep1, Karino Daisuke, ep2) played Murakami Atsushi in Magma Taishi, Mochizuki Rokurou in the Sanada 10 special, Utsubushi in Amatsuki, Aizman in Bavi Stock, Takanesawa in Hiatari Ryouko, Daisuke in Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, Gisuke in Shadow, Dr. Bayfam in Joker, the yakuza leader in Ashita Genki ni Naare!, and a bit part in Hi-Speed Jecy, all Orphan releases, as well as Krest in Ariel, Fernand in Gankuutsou, Hertz in Marie and Gali, and Touji in Ninku.
• Nishihara Kumiko (Hagio Misayo) 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.
• Kanai Mika (Johann) 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, Noriaki, first son in Chocchan Monogatari, Tanaka Kumi in Tanjou: Debut, and Hime in Bakuen Campus Guardress. The last four are Orphan releases.
• Koorogi Satomi (Yayoi) 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, Keiko in Sensou Douwa: Tako ni Natta Okaasan, and Tanaka Misa in Doukyuusei: Climax v2, all Orphan releases.
• Takano Urara (Sister Yumiko) played Marler in the Aa! Megami-sama franchise, Maria in the Sakura Wars franchise, Cocktail in Knights of Ramume, and Gloria in PriPara. She played Sushi Neko in Let's Nupu Nupu and Ken in Next Senki Ehrgeiz and appeared in Gakkou no Yuurei volume 6, all Orphan releases.
• Matsumoto Yasunori (Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, ep 1) starred as Guy in Heavy, Ichitaro in Ushiro no Hyakutaro, Akira in Mellow, Johnny in Starship Troopers, Kaname in Singles, and Tooru in Every Day Is Sunday, all Orphan releases. He was in numerous OVAs in the 1990s, including Houkago no Tinker Bell, Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Seikimatsu: Humane Society, Fukuyama Gekijou: Natsu no Himitsu, and Al Caral no Isan, also Orphan releases. Among his other notable roles were Wataru Akiyama in Initial D, Jean Havoc in Fullmetal Alchemist, Gourry Gabriev in Slayers, Ryou in Sonic Soldier Borgman, and a personal favorite, Dick Saucer in Dragon Half.
• Amano Yuri (Miuchi Youko) (layed 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, the teacher in Tanjou: Debut, Tonto in the Blue Knight segment of Tezuka Osamu: Kyoto Animation Works, the Chinese whore in Shibuya Honky Tonk, Kate in Nessa no Wakusei, and Yuko in St. Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, as well as multiple roles in Fukuyama Gekijou and Gakkou no Yuurei, volume 1, all Orphan releases.

The director, Yamaguchi Yorifusa, specialized in gag anime, so this show is way outside his wheelhouse.

The original translation was done by Central Park Media. Perevodildo translation checked and timed, but he didn't change much. I edited and typeset. Paul Geromini and new (to Orphan) staffer imatu QCed. The raw is from ProxyMan and is encoded from a Japanese laserdisc. This show is the last Orphan/Okizari contribution to the ProxyMan project, for now.

Sei Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki II didn't really need a new release, but in for a penny with the first OVAs, then in for a pound. I still don't know what's really going on, and the sex and nudity are not sufficient compensation for sitting through this. Still, it looks better than the R1 DVD, so if you'd like to admire the video, this is the version for you. Although it's an Orphan release like the first OVA, because it requires no censorship, it's still quite NSFW. Accordingly it's been torrented on the X-rated side of the usual site.