CyberAgent announced the TV anime adaptation of Mokumokuren’s The Summer Hikaru Died manga series is coming soon to Netflix globally. The anime will be produced by Cygames Pictures.
The anime is directed by Ryohei Takeshita, the director of Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night. Yuichi Takahashi is the character designer and chief animation director, and Masanobu Hiraoka is the DORODORO animator. The cast of The Summer Hikaru Died includes Chiaki Kobayashi as Yoshiki Tsujinaka, and Shuichiro Umeda as Hikaru Indou.
Watch the announcement trailer below:
Here are some comments from the Chiaki Kobayashi, Shuichiro Umeda, and director Ryohei Takeshita:
Chiaki Kobayashi
“I am pleased to take on the role of Yoshiki. My name is Chiaki Kobayashi. From the time of the audition, I was swept up in a jumble of emotions: I shouldn’t be with him, but I want him to be with me; I’m scared, but comfortable with him; and I’m not sure what to do. I will do my best to pull out all Yoshiki’s feelings and melancholy by mobilizing all my blood, flesh, and bones. Since various values are intermingled in today’s society, I hope that many people will watch this anime. Please look forward to its release.”
Shuichiro Umeda
“I will be playing the role of Hikaru in the anime ‘The Summer Hikaru Died’. My name is Shuichiro Umeda. It was a new experience for me to play the role of Hikaru, and at the same time, it was like looking into the darkness. I am uncertain about many things in my mind and body, but I am certain that I want to stay with Yoshiki, so I will play his role with a strong sense of that feeling. I went into the audition with that in mind. I will do my best to play the role.”
Ryohei Takeshita
“When I first read the original work, I remember reading the pages with excitement, wondering what kind of expression I should use to express the frames of the original story in the animation. The entire staff has been working earnestly on the original work in order to skillfully animate not only the delicate emotions of Yoshiki and Hikaru, two young boys struggling to understand each other, but also the beautiful and innovative manga structure, so please look forward to the release.”
Lastly, here’s a story synopsis for the TV anime:
In a certain village
Since their childhood, they have grown up together.
Yoshiki and Hikaru, childhood friends.
the sun shining down on them
the chirping sound of a crypto tympana facialis
Ice cream on the way home
Laughing over trivial things
One day in summer, no different from any other day
…… You’re not Hikaru after all, are you?
Half a year ago, Hikaru went missing in the mountains.
A week later, he came back on a whim.
The voice, the figure, the thing that looked like Hikaru
What was stirring inside…
“Hikaru is no longer with us. …… if that’s the case.”
Starting the days with “something” in the form of a friend,
The “same as usual” everyday life.
But at the same time…
Strange incidents begin to plague the village.
Falling into the unknown “something”
The curtain rises on a coming-of-age horror story.
