News

Crunchyroll to Stream Etotama TV Anime

Media service Crunchyroll announced on Thursday that it will stream the Etotama television anime as it airs in Japan. Crunchyroll will begin streaming Shirogumi Inc. (Moyashimon, Antique Bakery, Friends: Mononoke Shima no Naki) and Tablier Communications' original television anime worldwide, excluding Asia, on April 9 at 11:30 a.m. EDT.

The story revolves around Eto-shin(Zodiac God). "Eto-shin" are the 12 divine messengers chosen from "Eto-musume," or zodiac girls representing all kinds of animals. From ancient times, these 12 divine messengers have protected the land of the rising sun. They are powerful beings who have survived through "ETM 12," a divine tournament held every sixty years, and admired by all Eto-musumes.

Fast forward to now, the present day, and the year ETM 12 will be held. From all over Japan, Eto-shin candidates, or in other words, Eto-musumes gather in great numbers.

Within that group exists a single cat Eto-musume.

Her name is Nya-tan (nya, as in meow). She is thought of as the one closest to becoming an Eto-shin, but is a misfortunate girl who always ends up undermined by evil rodents.

The only way to become the 12 zodiac signs is to beat all the Eto-shins. However, the power of the Eto-shins is so great, and no Eto-musume has ever won in the tournament for the past two thousand years.

When Nya-tan meets an ordinary high school boy, Takeru Amato, the story begins!

Kadokawa's Dengeki Daioh magazine launched a manga version of the series in the January 2014 issue. Shirogumi and Tablier Communications are credited with the original work, Takashi Hoshi (Schäferhund) and Tōru Zekū (Trinity x Venus) are credited with the manga's original story, and Hiroma Hino is drawing the manga.

The cast so far includes:

Rie Murakawa will play Nya-tan, the cat zodiac. She and the other zodiac characters have an "adult mode" and a "pretty mode"

Hiro Shimono will play Takeru Tendo, a high school student who lives in Akihabara.

Sayaka Ōhara as Chuutan (mouse)

Eriko Matsui will play Mootan, the cow zodiac character.

Ari Ozawa will play Umatan, the horse zodiac character.

Yumiri Hanamori will play Uritan, the boar zodiac character.

Yuka Aisaka as Usatan (rabbit)

Megumi Toda as Kiitan (monkey)

Mikoi Sasaki as Piyotan (rooster)

Hitomi Nabatame as Shaatan (snake)

Maaya Uchida as Doratan (dragon)

Mai Fuchigami as Meitan (sheep)

Mariko Honda as Inutan (dog)

Yuiko Tatsumi as Shimatan (tiger)

Murakawa is performing the opening theme "Retry☆Rendez-vous." Soruraru BOB, a vocal unit consisting of the main voice actresses, is performing the ending theme.