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Mamoru Oshii's VladLove Vampire Comedy Anime Streams 2nd Half on March 14

The staff for Ichigo Animation and Mamoru Oshii's new anime series VladLove announced on Wednesday that the second half of the 12-episode anime will begin streaming on March 14.

The official YouTube channel for the anime had streamed a English-subtitled "special version" of the show's first episode on December 18. The anime formally debuted the first six episodes online on February 14 on Abema and Amazon Prime Video in Japan, alongside other subscription and rental streaming services in Japan. Crunchyroll began streaming the first six episodes in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and the Commonwealth of Independent States that same day.

(Just as February 14 is Valentine's Day, March 14 is White Day in Japan. On this day, people can give gifts to those who had given them Valentine's gifts.)

The 12-episode anime was originally slated to debut last fall but was delayed due to the effects of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

The anime's cast includes:

• Ayane Sakura as Mitsugu Bamba
• Rina Hidaka as Mai Vlad Transylvania
• Romi Park as Chihiro Chimatsuri
• Saori Hayami as Maki Watabe
• Yōko Hikasa as Jinko Sumida
• Yu Kobayashi as Nami Unten
• Kanako Takatsuki as Kaoru Konno
• Kenta Miyake as Masumi Katsuno
• Kaito Ishikawa as Okada
• Ryunosuke Watanuki as Kambara
• Taro Kiuchi as Horita
• Hiroshi Iwasaki as Mai's dad
• Jouji Nakata as Mitsugu's pops

VladLove's official website describes the anime:

Mitsugu Bamba is a high school girl who is crazy about donating her blood, to the point that she feels compelled to visit a local blood bank despite the unfriendly nurse. One day, Mitsugu encounters a beautiful girl there who looks like she has come from overseas. The girl is so pale that she appears ready to faint. Instead, she suddenly starts trashing the blood bank. The girl then loses consciousness and so Mitsugu takes her home...

Oshii is the executive director and is credited with the original work, and Junji Nishimura (Ranma ½, You're Under Arrest: The Motion Picture, True Tears) is directing the anime. Kei Yamamura (The Next Generation -Patlabor-) is penning the scripts with Oshii. Issei Aragaki (Monogatari Series key animator/episode animation director) is designing the characters.

Daisuke Miyachi is the music producer for the anime. Comic Animation is credited for the production, and Drive is credited for the animation production. Production I.G is credited for production cooperation. Ichigo Animation, the subsidiary of the Ichigo Japanese real estate and energy company, is funding the project to promote its Akiba Cultures Zone retail building in Tokyo's Akihabara district.

Japanese female heavy metal band Lovebites performs the "Mai Version" opening theme song "Winds Of Transylvania," and BlooDye performs the "Mitsugu Version" opening theme song "Where You Are." The artists alan & Ayasa perform the show's ending theme song. Violinist Ayasa's "Shingetsu" (New Moon) instrumental song is used for the overseas version of the show, while alan & Ayasa's "Akai Ame" (Red Rain) song is the opening for the domestic version of the show.

Kazuhiro Wakabayashi is the sound director for the anime. Wakabayashi has also worked with Oshii on Patlabor: The Movie, Jin-Roh - The Wolf Brigade, The Sky Crawlers, Ghost in the Shell, and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence.

Frequent Oshii collaborator Kenji Kawai (The Sky Crawlers, Stray Dog, Ghost in the Shell, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, Patlabor The Mobile Police) is composing the music for the anime. Kanako Takatsuki (Love Live! Sunshine!!'s Hanamaru Kunikida) is performing the anime's theme song as part of the vocal and performance unit BlooDye, who serves as the "ambassador unit" for the anime. Karin Isobe is also Takatsuki's "vocal partner" in the unit, and Sayaka Akagi, Ayano Furutaka, and Chisami Itō are also joining the unit.

Sources: Comic Natalie