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The Summer Hikaru Died Premiere Brings the Unsettling

Mokumokuren's genre-bending title, The Summer Hikaru Died, drew a massive July 4th crowd to JW Platinum Ballroom. Starting on time and jumping immediately into the screening, fans didn't have time to catch their breath before the lights went out. Cygames Pictures dove headfirst into emphasizing the horror, placing those aspects of the story front and center. The studio assured the audience that they're in for a thrill, not a walk in the park.

The immediate sense of dread as the scenes jump back and forth between Hikaru's disappearance and the present day, with a seemingly normal Hikaru and Yoshiki, is jarring to say the least. But Yoshiki cuts to the chase and sees through the facade. Quickly, both the viewer and Yoshiki experience a sense of dread as "Hikaru's" face shape shifts and creepily begs his friend not to give him a reason to kill him. The sense of dread never lightens up during the episode.

Yoshiki's crumbling mental state creates a sense of anxiety and insecurity for the audience, from sleepless nights to atmospheric cues. He's haunted by flashbacks in his dreams, animated as if the scene were skipping frames to mimic a staccato memory, glitching back and forth. While he's conflicted over the fact that "Hikaru" is not the person he knows and may never come back, Yoshiki can't stand the idea of him ever leaving again.

Even though "Hikaru" seems put together and is “perfectly cloned,” both in terms of memories and appearance, the being portraying him is experiencing basic sensations for the first time. People around him notice something is wrong as their expressions wilt at the sight of him. To close off an already emotionally tense episode, the audience witnesses an extended scene of a scared, stressed older woman—a scene filled with some body horror and existential dread. Overall, the anime doesn't rely on jump scares, but instead, a sense of having to constantly look over your shoulder for fear of something there.

As the scene closed and the lights came back on, the crowd loudly roared as Mokumokuren took to the stage in a large cube box. Voice actor Chiaki Kobayashi (voice of Yoshiki) brought a stuffed version of mince-aniki and placed him on the table, and greeted the full ballroom. Producer Chiaki Kurakane and producer Manami Kabashima followed suit and sat next to the two. Unfortunately, Director Ryohei Takeshita couldn't make it because he is “still in the studio doing work,“ but he recorded a video message to thank fans.

”I thought it was a work that vividly depicted the emotional states of the characters, Yoshiki and Hikaru. I decided to focus on making an anime that specializes in that direction,” shared Takeshita. ”Given that it's a horror piece, I thought about shaping the animation to create a scary and creepy atmosphere.” Kobayashi added that Director Takeshita took care of him during the recording sessions and let him act freely.

Diving quickly into the Q&A session, Mokumokuren voiced their support for the anime. “I know the anime is in good hands and it will deliver. I was involved from the early stages of writing the script, and I worked with the team to ensure the quality of the anime. There were things they needed to change to adapt it to the anime form, but I know it's been done in a great and unique amazing way.”

Producer Kurakane added that when they held auditions for the role of Yoshiki, they had two recordings. “We felt Kobayashi was made for this role because of the portrayal of his growth.“ Kobayashi jumped in to say that he worked hard on his Mie-ben accent for the role. When he spoke with Mokumokuren, they stuck to easy, laid-back questions like ramen or movies rather than asking about how he should act. Mokumokuren agreed as they wanted him to “interpret it in his own way.”

To close off the panel, Kobayashi and Mokumokuren were both asked what the most impressionable scene in the first episode was. For the author, the scene is Hikaru chasing after Yoshiki with a glowing red lamp. “I couldn't show the glow of the red light and the sounds in my original work. The director had a great interpretation of that scene and did it in an amazing, creative way.” For Kobayashi, it was the punchline: “You're not Hikaru, are you?” He explained that this kind of line carries the weight and impact that usually shows up in a final scene, but instead, it's set in the beginning.

The series began streaming on Netflix, July 5.