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Tsurune: The Linking Shot Anime's 2nd Video Previews Luck Life's Opening Song
posted on by Joanna Cayanan
The staff for Tsurune: The Linking Shot (Tsurune: Tsunagari no Issha), the second season of the Tsurune television anime, held an advance screening event on Sunday at the Togeki Cinema in Tokyo, where they revealed the anime's second promotional video. The video previews the opening theme song and features the anime's returning cast members: Yūto Uemura as Minato Narumiya, Kenshō Ono as Shū Fujiwara, Shōgo Yano as Nanao Kisaragi, and Kaito Ishikawa as Kaito Onogi.
The anime will premiere on January 4 on Tokyo MX at 24:00 (effectively, January 5 at midnight or January 4 at 10:00 a.m. EST), and on ABC TV at 26:14 (effectively, January 5 at 2:14 a.m. or January 4 at 12:14 p.m. EST). The anime will then air on January 5 on BS11 at 24:00 (effectively, January 6 at midnight or January 5 at 10:00 a.m. EST). HIDIVE will stream the anime as it airs.
New cast members include:
- Jun Fukuyama as Eisuke Nikaidō
- Takayuki Kondō as Kōshirō Fuwa
- Yūya Hirose as Tōma Higuchi
- Yūichirō Umehara as Reiji Aragaki
- Yōhei Azakami as Kenyū Ōtaguro
Takuya Yamamura is returning to direct the new season. Luck Life is performing the season's opening theme song "℃," and Tei is performing its ending theme song "Hitominaka."
Other returning staff members include:
- Series Composition: Michiko Yokote
- Character Design: Miku Kadowaki
- Chief Animation Director: Nobuaki Maruki
- Art Director: Shōko Ochiai
- 3D Art: Mutsuo Shinohara
- Color Design: Azumi Hata
- Prop Design: Hiroshi Karata
- Director of Photography: Kōhei Funamoto
- 3D Director: Rin Yamamoto
- Sound Director: Yōta Tsuruoka
- Music: Masaru Yokoyama (Tsurune The Movie: The First Shot)
- Music Production: Lantis, Heart Company
The first television anime premiered in Japan on the NHK-General channel in October 2018. Sentai Filmworks licensed the anime and streamed the series on Crunchyroll and HIDIVE (with an English dub) as it aired in Japan. Sentai Filmworks released the anime on home video in January 2020. The release included an original video anime, an unaired 14th episode.
Pony Canyon USA describes the show's story:
The story opens with Minato Narumiya beginning his freshman year at the local Kazemai High School.
Mr. Tommy, advisor to the Japanese archery Club, is keen to recruit Minato, as well as his childhood friends Seiya Takehaya and Ryohei Yamanouchi. Ryohei convinces the reluctant Minato to attend the Club's orientation, where he also meets Kaito Onogi and Nanao Kisaragi.
Singling Minato out, Mr. Tommy introduces him as a rare Japanese archery talent and asks him to demonstrate in front of everyone. However, Minato's arrow fails to hit the mark because he is afflicted by a serious condition… Minato, Seiya, Ryohei, Nanao and Kaito.
Japanese archery brings them together. What will they attain as they struggle through their beautiful, yet “bitter” youth?
The Tsurune The Movie: The First Shot (Gekijōban Tsurune: Hajimari no Issha) film opened in Japan on August 19. Takuya Yamamura returned to direct the film at Kyoto Animation. Yamamura also wrote the script, with supervision by the television anime's scriptwriter Michiko Yokote. Miku Kadowaki returned as character designer. Masaru Yokoyama (new Fruits Basket anime, Your Lie in April) replaced Harumi Fuuki as the composer. HIDIVE will release the film in theaters in the U.S. in 2023.
The anime franchise is based on Kotoko Ayano's novel of the same name.
Sources: Kyoto Animation's YouTube channel, Comic Natalie
