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Viz's Release of Mr. Osomatsu Anime's 1st Season Will Not Include Episode 1

Retailer Right Stuf's listing for Viz Media's Blu-ray Disc release for the first season of Mr. Osomatsu states that it will not include the "controversial episode 1" of the anime. The Blu-ray Disc will include episodes 2-25 of the series, and it is slated to ship on March 9.

After the premiere of the first season in October 2015, the staff of the anime announced that the Blu-ray/DVD release for the anime in Japan would not feature the episode. The first Blu-ray/DVD volume shipped in Japan in January 2016. The episode was also removed from various streaming sites in Japan in November 2015, and Crunchyroll stopped streaming the episode the same month.

In a press conference in October 2015, Yūichi Takahashi of TV Tokyo apologized for the series' third episode. The episode contained a parody of the Anpanman children's anime character. The first and second episodes of the show also contained parodies of many other series, such as Attack on Titan, Boys Over Flowers, and Sailor Moon.

Japan does not have a parody exception or provision in its copyright law. Therefore, making parodies of copyrighted works may illegally violate a copyright owners' "right to maintain integrity," if performed without the copyright holder's prior consent.

The third season of Mr. Osomatsu premiered on October 12. Crunchyroll is streaming the season as it airs in Japan. The anime's second cours (quarter of the year) will premiere in January.

Eiji Abiko, an animation director on the first season, is replacing Naoyuki Asano as the new season's character designer. Director Yōichi Fujita and series script supervisor and writer Shū Matsubara are returning from the previous seasons at Studio Pierrot. Besides the sextuplets' voice actors, the other cast members are returning as well.

The Mr. Osomatsu television anime is inspired by Fujio Akatsuka's original Osomatsu-kun manga and "high tension comedy" TV anime, which centers on the Matsuno household with six naughty and mischievous sons (who are sextuplets). All of the sextuplets, including the eldest Osomatsu, are all in love with the same girl, Totoko. The original Osomatsu-kun series followed the family when the sons were 10 years old. Mr. Osomatsu re-imagines the original manga and TV anime with the sextuplets as adults.

Crunchyroll streamed the first Mr. Osomatsu anime season as it aired in Japan. The second Mr. Osomatsu anime season premiered in Japan on TV Tokyo and TV Aichi in October 2017. The series also inspired a film and various videos.

Viz Media acquired the digital streaming, electronic sell-through, home video, and merchandise rights for the Mr. Osomatsu anime, including the second season. Viz Media is releasing the anime with an English dub.

Thanks to kenno20081 for the news tip.

Source: Right Stuf