A dog walks, it will hit an anime. The 36th Edition] "Haikara-san ga Tsuruku Part 1: Benio, Hana no 17" shines brightly in the sun!　Heroine's charm in full bloom!

We want to meet more and more anime that excite our hearts, anime that will cheer us up tomorrow, and anime that we will always love!　Our anime writers will introduce you to anime that are hot at the moment, regardless of whether they are new releases or long-running favorites.

This time, we will focus on "Haikara-san ga Tsukuu the Movie Part 1: Benio, Hana no 17.

The writer, who was familiar with the original comic and the TV series, will introduce the charm of this new work, which should be seen by newcomers as well as fans of the original.

A classic from the past revived with fresh charm

Based on Kazuki Yamato's masterpiece, a romantic comedy serialized in "Shukan Shoujo Friend" (Kodansha) from 1975 to 1977. A theatrical version, in two parts, is scheduled to be released in the near future.

In 1978, the series was animated as a TV series (42 episodes), but unfortunately it was cancelled and the story was not drawn to the end of the original story. I still remember the feeling I had as a child when I watched the final episode and was stunned.

I still remember how I felt when I watched the final episode as a child and was stunned to see it being made into an animated feature-length version almost 40 years later!　Fans cannot help but watch it. I have been looking forward to the release of the film ever since its production was announced.

Hanamura Benio, a female student in the Taisho era, is a free-spirited, jaded girl with an open-minded "haikara-san" attitude. She rebels against her parents' marriage proposal to Ijuin Shinobu, her daughter-in-law, and causes a commotion in an attempt to break it off, but she gradually becomes attracted to Shinobu. The story spans the period of Taisho democracy, the Siberian invasion, and the Great Kanto Earthquake, with a more serious tone in the latter half.

In this film version, the royal road romantic comedy has been brushed up for the 2017 theater version, successfully reviving the charm of the original story, which has been dramatized and made into a movie many times.

The theme song "Yume no hate to the end of the dream" written and composed by Mariya Takeuchi and sung by voice actress Saori Hayami, who plays Benio, symbolizes the charm of this work as a theme song. It is nostalgic and warm. At the same time, it is fresh, clear, and powerful.

The powerful gags in the original work, which incorporated material from the time of the serialization, have been cut in this work, so that even first-time viewers do not feel as if they are watching a work from the Showa period. On the other hand, the "orikigurisan" and "sake-torin-doji," which are lively and funny, similar to Osamu Tezuka's "hyotantsugi," are still present, making the fans of the original work smile.

It is also nice to hear an instrumental rendition of the opening theme song from the old TV anime, "Hai Kara San Passing," played in the latter half of the film. This is a cool present for the former viewers.

The differences in the characters' drawings from the original are not a concern.

One of the factors that worried fans of the original work before the film's release was the difference in the characters' drawings. For fans who have read the original comics with great interest, there is a sense of "I don't like it unless the characters look like that! However, as the official pamphlet says, the original characters were originally drawn in the same way as in the original comics.

However, as stated in the official pamphlet, the original author Kazunori Yamato's wish was the reason for the change in the design of the characters in this theater version.

The reason for this was that if it was going to be made into an anime in 2017, it should be appropriate for the current era.

Certainly, if the design is based on the original work, it will inevitably have the feel of a 70's shoujo manga. The design of the original work by Kazuki Yamato itself has changed over the years, even up to the present day.

While it is fun to see works with a retro feel (and there are many such animated works nowadays), "Hai Kara-san ga Tsurugu" did not choose to go that route. It is likely that they wanted to bring in a new generation of fans, not just old fans nostalgic for the past.

The result is an appealing character that is easily accepted by anime fans accustomed to watching today's anime.

The "haikara-san" Benio is bursting with charm!

The charm of this work is first and foremost that the main character, Benio Hanamura, is cute, dignified, and cool.

She is not a particularly beautiful woman, but she is cheerful, unconstrained by convention, and always forging new paths. 17-year-old Benio's recklessness, youthfulness, cuteness, and strength are vividly portrayed in this work.

Her voice is also unexpectedly close to that of the Benio I remember in my memory, which was unexpected in a good way. Her voice is bouncy, strong, lively, and charming. I am sure that those who come into contact with Benio in this theater version for the first time will like her a great deal.

In the beginning, women were the sun!

This is a quote by Raiteu Hiratsuka when he published "The Bluestocking," which also appears in the film, and Benio, like the sun, shines strongly as a life-size high school student (a woman of her age) and as the one and only heroine.

Ensign Prince-ness is unbeatable.

Hai Karasan."

This is the voice of the Ensign calling out sweetly to Benio, as if teasing her. In a sense, the right way to enjoy the story is to be enchanted by the Ensign while being on edge about Benio's fate, but this first part is also like a love letter from the Ensign to Benio.

Ijuin Shinobu, or "Ensign," is the heir to the Count Ijuin family, a noble family, and a second lieutenant in the army. He is half Japanese, born to a Japanese father and a German mother. He is a beautiful, masculine man, a man of letters, a man of virtue, and a family man. He is intelligent, progressive, and not beholden to those in power, and he is considerate of his subordinates and servants. He also has a charming side that makes him laugh out loud. He is an invincible, orthodox prince character.

Why does this prince love Benio?　The first part of the story moves along at a pace that will surprise those who know the original story, but it works because it makes it easy to see the changes in Shinobu's feelings.

At first, Shinobu did not doubt her parents' decision to marry her if it would please her dear grandmother. Then he meets Benio, is amused by her tomboyishness, and is eventually moved by her charm, which seems to bring a new wind.

This flow fits well and adds depth to Shinobu's character. And Shinobu's wish to "return to her beloved Benio" on the battlefield in Siberia becomes even more poignant.

The manga is full of the charm of a classic shoujo manga! Looking forward to the second part!

There are many things that I was not aware of when I was enjoying the original shoujo manga, but now that I am an adult, I can see them in the anime again.

For example, I was again impressed by the solid historical background. The historical background gives a sense of the time period in the style of an epic drama, and the scale of the story is large.

Shinobu's grandmother was a princess of a noble family, and Hanamura's grandfather was a bannerman of the shogunate. The two were very much in love with each other. Shinobu's grandfather, Count Ijuin, was a former samurai of the Satsuma clan and a revolutionary who fought for the overthrow of the shogunate during the Meiji Restoration. At first, he is hostile to Benio, who is a descendant of a shogunate-type samurai family, but is chided by him, saying, "These are not the times anymore.

The style in which Benio is surrounded by handsome, starry-eyed men is very much in the style of today's otome games.

Ijuin Shinobu is a legitimate prince, a soldier, and his fated bride. Fuyusei Aoe, a long-haired, good-looking man who understands working women. Ranmaru Fujieda, his childhood friend, a good-looking cross-dresser (he is a Kabuki onnagata actor), who is as single-minded as a dog. Sergeant Morigo Onijima, with his wild charm. The reliable henchman, the manly Kurumaya's Ushigoro (who also looks a little sleeker!). ).

On the other hand, what differentiates this game from other "otome" games is the strong character of the main character, Benio. With her words and actions, Benio changes the people she meets, including the members of the Ijuin family.

The slapstick fun of this romantic comedy takes a serious turn when tragedy befalls Shinobu. The effervescent and fearless Benio loves and loses Shinobu and confronts her fate. Even so, Benio never loses her cheerful strength.

The film is a fascinating work with many elements of entertainment, and even today, it is a fascinating work and fascinating characters.

In today's entertainment world, where values have become more diverse, neither heroes nor heroines can easily stand alone. Many of today's anime and video game productions offer a variety of types of characters to choose from, as if to say, "Please eat whatever you like.

The story of a single main character who falls in love with a single man may not be the most modern of stories, but it is a very strong and compelling one. However, the story is very strong and compelling because of that.

The first part ends on a bright and hopeful note.

In the second part, the classic, royal drama of their crossroads, Benio's suffering, and his decision, is different and more thrilling than the first part. And that is exactly what we can look forward to in the "final part," which has not been depicted in the original story. We look forward to the second part.

(Text by YAMAYU)

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