is a Japanese

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a ''wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English languag ...

series written by Haruki Kuō and illustrated by konomi.

Media Factory , formerly is a Japanese publisher and brand company of Kadokawa Future Publishing. History It was founded on December 1, 1986, and its headquarters are situated in Shibuya, Tokyo. It is a subsidiary of Recruit Co., Ltd. Media Factory was possi ...

has published fifteen volumes from April 2019 to November 2023 under their

MF Bunko J is a publishing label affiliated with the Japanese publishing company Media Factory. It was established in July 2002 and is a light novel label that is aimed at young adult males with a focus on visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is ...

imprint. A

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

adaptation with art by Funa Yukina has been serialized in Media Factory's ''seinen'' manga magazine ''

Monthly Comic Alive is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Media Factory. The first issue was released on June 27, 2006. Serialized titles *''Absolute Duo'' *''Alice or Alice'' (until 2015, part of the supplement magazine ''Comic Cune'') *'' Ano Ko ni Kis ...

'' since August 2019. An

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series adaptation by

Geek Toys is a Japanese animation studio based in Nakano, Tokyo. Establishment The studio was founded in South Kōenji, Tokyo in October 2017 by Tamotsu Kosano, serving a subsidiary of Japanese mass media Mass media refers to a diverse array of ...

aired from July to September 2023.

Plot

At Academy Island, everything is settled through "Games" waged for a certain number of stars, with the strongest student being granted the ranking of Seven Stars. Hiroto Shinohara, a transfer student, unexpectedly beats the strongest empress, Sarasa Saionji, and becomes the pseudo-strongest in the school, letting to the shocking discovery of the true identity of Sarasa. As the mind game of lies and bluffs begins, also lies a darker past that has been awaiting both Hiroto and the fake Sarasa.

Characters

; : :The protagonist, he gained a seven-star ranking after cheating and defeating Sarasa. ; : :She works as Hiroto's maid and is childhood friends with Sarasa. ; / : : She was previously known as the most powerful student in Academy Island and a seven-star, but after she lost a duel to Hiroto, she loses a star. She is currently living as Sarasa as the real Sarasa was kidnapped and is missing. She seems to have known Hiroto when they were children. ; : (Japanese);

Alexis Tipton Alexis Tipton is an American voice actress and ADR director affiliated with Funimation. She has provided voices for English-language versions of anime series and video games. Her roles include Sun Seto in '' My Bride Is a Mermaid'', Musubi in '' ...

(English) ; : ; : ; : ; : ; : ; : ; : ; : :The student council president and a six-star. He has a very strong memory. ; : :A third-year student and a six-star. She is childhood friends with Shinji.

Media

Light novel

The series is written by Haruki Kuō and illustrated by konomi.

published the series in fifteen volumes from April 2019 to November 2023 under their

imprint. The light novel is licensed by

Yen Press Yen Press, LLC is an American manga and graphic novel publisher co-owned by Kadokawa Corporation and Hachette Book Group. It published ''Yen Plus'', a monthly comic anthology, between 2008 and 2013. In addition to translated material, Yen Press ...

for English publication.

Manga

adaptation with art by Funa Yukina has been serialized in Media Factory's ''seinen'' manga magazine ''

'' since August 2019. It has been collected in four ''

tankōbon is the Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or cultur ...

'' volumes.

Anime

adaptation was announced on April 1, 2021, which is

April Fool's Day April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved in these pranks, which may ...

. It was later revealed to be a television series produced by

and directed by Satoru Ono and Naoki Matsuura, with scripts written by Momoka Toyoda, character designs handled by Yumi Nakamura, and music composed by Kuniyuki Takahashi and Keiichi Hirokawa from Monaca. The series aired from July 8 to September 23, 2023, on

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV, branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city. It competes with Nippon TV, TV Asahi, NH ...

and other networks. The opening theme song is "Lies Goes On" by

May'n , better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer from Nagoya. Aspiring to become a musician since childhood, she began her music activities in 2003 upon passing an audition held by talent agency Horipro International. She made her major d ...

, while the ending theme song is "Fakey Merry Game" by Smile Princess.

Crunchyroll Crunchyroll is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Sony through a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex. The service primarily distributes films and tel ...

licensed the series.

Medialink Medialink Group Limited is a content distributor and licensor based in Kowloon, Hong Kong specializing in the distribution of Japanese anime and brand licensing. Its offices are located at Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. Registered from Hong Kong ...

licensed the series in Taiwan, South and Southeast Asia; will stream it on Ani-One Asia's Youtube channel via their ULTRA subscription service.

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{Geek Toys 2019 Japanese novels 2023 anime television series debuts Anime and manga based on light novels Crunchyroll anime Geek Toys Kadokawa Dwango franchises Light novels Media Factory manga MF Bunko J Romantic comedy anime and manga Seinen manga Tokyo MX original programming Yen Press titles