is a Japanese

visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

series produced by

Mages Mage most commonly refers to: * Mage (paranormal) or magician, a practitioner of magic derived from supernatural or occult sources * Mage (fantasy) or magician, a type of character in mythology, folklore, and fiction *Mage, a character class in s ...

, with character design and art provided by Karu. The series follows Mei Ayazuki, a high school girl who is sent back in time to the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

and explores her relationships with spirits and Japanese historical figures. ''Meiji Tokyo Renka'' was released as a

mobile game A mobile game, or smartphone game, is a video game that is typically played on a mobile phone. The term also refers to all games that are played on any portable device, including from mobile phone (feature phone or smartphone), tablet, PDA to ...

Dwango The Dial-up Wide-Area Network Game Operation, better known by the acronym DWANGO, was an early online gaming service based in the United States. Launched in 1994, it was originally known for its compatibility with ''Doom'', for which it function ...

in 2011, with over 300,000 users playing the game. In 2013, it was ported onto the

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...

Broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large flowering head, stalk and small associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable. Broccoli is cl ...

, and was then followed by game sequels and updated re-releases. The original game franchise also expanded with a series of adaptations, including two theatrical animated films,

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

adaptations, an animated television series, and a

live-action film Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ga ...

Plot

On the night of the crimson moon, high school student Mei Ayazuki comes across a traveling magician, Charlie, and is transported back in time to the

, where she meets several historical figures and is invited to live with them. Though Mei has lost her memories, she begins helping the men with their own concerns through her ability to see and interact with

spirits Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

. While waiting for the next full moon, Mei comes to consider staying in the Meiji period altogether.

Characters

; : :Portrayed by: Shion Aoki (''Oborozuki no Chat Noir'' musical), Momoko Suzuki (''Gekkō no Meine Liebe'' musical), Rikka Ihara (live-action film) :Mei is a high school student who is transported into the Meiji period and loses her memories. She has the ability to see

. Her name can be changed by the player in the games. ; : :Portrayed by:

Hirofumi Araki is a Japanese actor and singer associated with Watanabe Entertainment. He is a member of the acting troupe D-Boys and the leader of its pop unit D-Date. As an actor, Araki has been involved in many theater and television projects, notably st ...

(musical),

Shuto Miyazaki is a Japanese actor represented by Watanabe Entertainment. Filmography Stage Play * ROMEO×JULIET〜legend of painful heart (2011) * THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT CHRONICLE "Blood Heaven 〜Seventh Heaven~" (2011) - Rudge * Benibara Rabbit Team Vol.9 "M ...

(live-action film) :Ogai is a translator and writer who also works as a doctor for the military. After meeting Mei, he has her to pretend to be his fiancé to avoid suspicion. Later on, he asks her to pose as his fiancée and invites her to live in his house. Throughout his route, Ogai faces a spirit named Elise, a character he created based on a girl he admired while he was in Germany. ; : :Portrayed by:

Shohei Hashimoto is a Japanese actor and television personality. He first began making appearances in musical theatre and stage plays in 2013 and was also the host of the intelligence training segments on the children's variety show ''Shima Shima Tora no Shimaj ...

(musical), Makaha Takahashi (live-action film) :Shunso is an artist living with Ogai and is known for his unique art style. He acts exasperated towards Ogai and Mei, but secretly admires them. He is fascinated with cats, but falls into a slump after a black cat from one of his paintings escapes into the real world. Shunso also has problems with his vision and avoids getting examined out of fear that it may lead to the end of his career. ; : :Portrayed by: Kousuke Asuma (musical),

Taiki Yamazaki Please don't delete this article because this actor or actress will play a lead or supporting role in the tokusatsu series "Uchu Sentai Kyuranger" and will continue their career and make more roles, either lead or supporting, after the end of the ...

(live-action film) :Otojirō is an actor who works as a cross-dressing

geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female ...

under the name Otoyakko. He invites Mei to train as a geisha at his

okiya An is the lodging house/drinking establishment to which a or geisha is affiliated with during her career as a geisha. The is typically run by the "mother" () of the house, who handles a geisha's engagements, the development of her skills, and ...

. He enjoys the plays that Kyōka writes and uses them for his performances. ; : :Portrayed by: Tomoru Akazawa (musical), Toman (live-action film) :Kyōka is a playwright. He is mysophobic and hates dogs. Like Mei, he can also see spirits, including the rabbit on his shoulder, a memento from his deceased mother. ; : : Portrayed by: Yu Yoshioka (musical),

Yuki Kubota is a Japanese actor and model whose work has included stage, television and film roles. He is best known as the character Takatora Kureshima / Kamen Rider Zangetsu / Kamen Rider Zangetsu Shin in the Kamen Rider series ''Kamen Rider Gaim''. He is ...

(live-action film) :Gorō is a policeman and a former member of the

Shinsengumi The was a special police force organized by the (military government) during Japan's Bakumatsu period (late Tokugawa shogunate) in 1863. It was active until 1869. It was founded to protect the shogunate representatives in Kyoto at a time when ...

. The reflection of his katana allows him to see spirits, which he fights to preserve peace in the village. ; : :Portrayed by: Ire Shiozaki (musical), Tetsuya Iwanaga (live-action film) :Yakumo is a researcher from Greece who came to Japan to teach English and do research on Japanese spirits. ; : :Portrayed by:

Yūya Asato , also known as'' Anri'' (あんり), is a Japanese stage, film, TV, and voice actor, affiliated with Ruby Parade. He is also a member of the performance unit Tokyo Ryūsei-gun since 2012 Biography Yūya Asato was born on December 4, 1987, in O ...

(musical), Yutaka Kobayashi (live-action film) :Charlie is a traveling magician who transports Mei into the Meiji period. His real identity is . He can only appear at nighttime. ; : :Portrayed by:

Shōta Matsushima is a Japanese actor. He is currently under contract with Amuse, Inc. is a Japanese entertainment company that provides artist management services. The artists include idols, musicians, and so on. Amuse produces TV and radio programs, commerc ...

(live-action film) :Tōsuke was introduced as an original character for the 2015 anime film '' Gekijōban Meiji Tokyo Renka: Yumihari no Serenade'', but was integrated into the main cast following the release of ''Full Moon''. He is an inventor with a focus on electric devices and can also see spirits. Because he believes a spirit killed his mother when he was young, he hopes to eliminate all spirits from the world. ; : :Kōyō is an author and Kyōka's mentor. He was introduced as a new character for ''Haikara Date''. ; : :Rentaro is a prodigy pianist. He was introduced as a new character for ''Haikara Date''. ; : :Taikan is an apprentice painter and Shunso's friend. He was introduced as a new character for ''Haikara Date''.

Media

Games

''Meiji Tokyo Renka'' was originally a game published for mobile phones in 2011 by

. The characters were designed by Karu. The game's theme song was "Tokyo Roman Tan" by KENN. The game was ported to the

, which released on September 26, 2013. The game's theme song is "Kurenai no Yoru no Uta" by KENN. A sequel, ''Meiji Tokyo Renka: Twilight Kiss'', was released for the

on April 23, 2015. An updated re-release of the first game, titled ''Meiji Tokyo Renka: Full Moon'', was released for the

PlayStation Vita The PlayStation Vita (PS Vita, or Vita) is a handheld video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 17, 2011, and in North America, Europe, and other international territo ...

on August 25, 2016, which included a route for Tōsuke Iwasaki, an original character from '' Gekijōban Meiji Tokyo Renka: Yumihari no Serenade'' and '' Gekijōban Meiji Tokyo Renka: Hana Kagami no Fantasia''. A mobile port for the iOS and Android were released on July 20, 2017. A fourth game developed by

and titled ''Meiji Tokyo Renka: Haikara Date'' was released as a mobile game app on December 14, 2018.

Light novels

''Meiji Tokyo Renka'' was adapted into several light novels written by Yukiko Uozumi.

Manga

''Meiji Tokyo Renka'' was adapted into a manga series by Hiyori Hinata and ran in ''

Monthly Asuka , formerly , is a bimonthly Japanese manga magazine published by Kadokawa Shoten, aimed at teenage girls. The magazine was established in 1985. It is released on the 24th of every odd-numbered month as of May 2021. Much like its sibling public ...

''. A manga anthology drawn by several artists was later released in 2016.

Film

An animated film project was announced in January 2013, and the cast from the original game reprised their roles.

Sumire Morohoshi is a Japanese actress, voice actress and singer from Kanagawa Prefecture. She debuted as a solo singer under the Flying Dog record label. Biography Sumire Morohoshi was born in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, in 1999. At the time of birth, the right ...

was cast as Mei, who was unvoiced in the games, and the film also introduced a new original character, Tōsuke Iwasaki. The film was animated by

Studio Deen is a Japanese animation studio founded in 1975 by Sunrise producer Hiroshi Hasegawa and ex-Sunrise animators. The studio owns three subsidiaries: Danny Donghua (丹尼動画), a Chinese sub-contracting studio; Megumi (め組), a digital work sub-c ...

and directed by Hiroshi Watanabe. The story is centered on Kyōka Izumi's route, with new plot elements introduced through Tōsuke Iwasaki. The first film, '' Gekijōban Meiji Tokyo Renka: Yumihari no Serenade'', was released in theaters in Japan on July 18, 2015. The theme song, "Dance in the Light", was performed by KENN. The second part, '' Gekijōban Meiji Tokyo Renka: Hana Kagami no Fantasia'' was given a one-day screening event on May 6, 2016 in select theaters due to the first film's poor box office performance. A live-action film titled ''Meiji Tokyo Renka'' was announced in January 2018 and is slated for a 2019 release. Rikka Ihara was cast as Mei. The film also stars Yutaka Kobayashi as Charlie, Shuto Miyazaki as Ogai, Makaha Takahashi as Shunso, Daiki Yamazaki as Otojirō, Toman as Kyōka,

as Gorō, Tetsuya Iwanaga as Yakumo, and

as Tōsuke. To promote the film, a live-action television series featuring the same cast will air in April 2019.

Daisuke Namikawa is a Japanese actor and singer associated with Stay Luck. He began acting as a child and is sometimes mistaken with Daisuke Hirakawa, as their names only differ by one character when written in kanji. Despite his wide range of roles, he usual ...

Nobuhiko Okamoto is a Japanese Voice acting in Japan, voice actor and singer affiliated with Raccoon Dog. He won the Best New Actor Award at the 3rd Seiyu Awards and Best Supporting Actor Award at the 5th Seiyu Awards. Voice acting career In an interview held ...

, and

Toshiyuki Morikawa is a Japanese voice actor, narrator and singer who is the head of Axlone, a voice acting company he founded in April 2011. His name is also sometimes mistranslated as Tomoyuki Morikawa. In 2003, he and Fumihiko Tachiki formed the band "2Hearts", ...

, who voiced Ogai, Kyōka, and Charlie respectively, will make voice-only cameos in the film. The theme song, "Ichiya no Eien ni Kimi Omou", will be performed by KENN.

Musicals

adaptation titled ''Kageki Meiji Tokyo Renka: Oborozuki no Chat Noir'' ran in June 2016. ''Oborozuki no Chat Noir'' is centered on Shunso Hishida's route. The musical was directed by Kotaro Yoshitani and written by Sayaka Sakuragi. It starred

as Shunso,

as Ogai, Kousuke Asuma as Otojirō, Tomoru Akazawa as Kyōka, Yu Yoshioka as Gorō, Ire Shiozaki as Yakumo, and

as Charlie. Shion Aoki was cast as Mei. The musical was given a home release on Blu-ray and region 2 DVD on October 5, 2016, with the Blu-ray peaking at #175 and the DVD at #109 on the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

Weekly Charts. A sequel stage musical titled ''Kageki Meiji Tokyo Renka: Gekkō no Meine Liebe'' ran from August 18–19, 2018 at Morinomiya Piloti Hall in Osaka and August 25-September 2, 2018 at Theatre 1010 in Tokyo. The musical focuses on Ogai Mori's route. The cast from the previous musical reprised their roles, this time with

as lead, while Momoko Suzuki was recast in the role of Mei.

Anime

An anime adaptation was announced at a promotional event in October 2016.

Akitaro Daichi is a Japanese anime director, producer and photography director. Career Daichi is a native of Gunma Prefecture and a graduate of Tokyo Polytechnic University. He originally aspired to be a stage photographer, but entered the employ of Tokyo A ...

was announced as the director at the ''Haikara Date'' promotional event on January 21, 2018. The cast from the games and the anime film reprised their roles and the show is animated by

TMS Entertainment , formerly known as the , also known as or , is a Japanese animation studio established on October 22, 1946. TMS is one of the oldest and most famous anime studios in Japan, best known for numerous anime franchises such as ''Lupin the Third'', ...

. The series premiered 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

TVA The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina ...

from January 9 to March 27, 2019. The series is being simulcasted by

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 ...

, and in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

by Ponimu. It is also being given an English dub by

Funimation Crunchyroll, LLC, previously known as Funimation from 1994 to 2022, is an American entertainment company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony as a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex that specializes ...

. The opening theme song is "Tsukiakari no Rhapsodia" by KENN. The series features three ending songs, each performed by members of the cast: "Hoshikuzu no Yomibito" by KENN and

; "Mellow na Yoru ni Odorimashō" by

Shinnosuke Tachibana is a Japanese voice actor, singer and narrator. He is married to voice actress Ao Takahashi. Career Tachibana graduated from Aojijuku Tokyo School 18th term. In 2003, he made his voice acting debut as Kyuu in the television anime ''E's Otherwis ...

and

; and "Yoiya Yoiya" by

Kousuke Toriumi is a Japanese voice actor affiliated to Arts Vision. Biography He is a member of and . To commemorate twenty years of his debut, a book entitled released on May 16, 2016. He created his YouTube channel on March 19, 2020. Filmography Anime te ...

and

Jun Fukuyama is a Japanese voice actor and singer. He played Lelouch Lamperouge in ''Code Geass'', Koro-sensei in '' Assassination Classroom'', Ichimatsu in ''Osomatsu-san'', Yuta Togashi in ''Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions'', Kraft Lawrence in ''Spice and ...

Episodes

Reception

Over 300,000 users had downloaded the 2011 mobile game. The PlayStation Portable port of the original game sold 5,963 copies in its first week.

References

External links

Official websiteOfficial Full Moon website
* * {{TMS Entertainment 2019 anime television series debuts 2.5D musicals 2013 video games 2015 video games 2016 video games 2018 video games Anime television series based on video games , AUS/ NA Funimation Japan-exclusive video games Kadokawa Beans Bunko Light novels Meiji period in fiction Musicals based on anime and manga Musicals based on video games Otome games PlayStation Portable games PlayStation Vita games Male harem anime and manga Video games developed in Japan Visual novels Android (operating system) games IOS games Broccoli (company) games