, also known as ''NieA under 7'', is a
doujinshi
, also romanized as ', is the Japanese term for self-published print works, such as magazines, manga, and novels. Part of a wider category of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, ''doujinshi'' are often derivative of existing works and created by ...
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 ...
series created by graphic designer
Yoshitoshi ABe
is a Japanese graphic artist who works predominantly in anime and manga. He first gained fame in his work on the avant-garde anime ''Serial Experiments Lain''. He is also responsible for the concept and character design for the series ''NieA_7'' ...
and later published by
Kadokawa Shoten
, formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines su ...
on their monthly
''Shōnen'' magazine ''Monthly Ace Next'' from October 1999 to January 2001. The manga revolves around a poor, introverted student named Mayuko Chigasaki, who lives above a
Japanese bathhouse, and a freeloading and freewheeling
outcast alien
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...
named NieA, who lives in Mayuko's closet.
The manga is adapted into a 13-episode
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 ...
series by
Triangle Staff
was a Japanese animation studio established in 1987 from former Madhouse staff, producing series such as '' Macross Plus'', '' Serial Experiments Lain'', and ''NieA_7''. The studio ceased operations in 2000, when they were set to do the animat ...
and aired on
WOWOW from April 16 to July 19, 2000. Much of the anime's staff also worked on ''
Serial Experiments Lain
''Serial Experiments Lain'' (stylized as ''serial experiments lain'') is a Japanese anime television series created and co-produced by Yasuyuki Ueda, written by Chiaki J. Konaka and directed by Ryūtarō Nakamura. Animated by Triangle Staff ...
'', as producer
Yasuyuki Ueda
is a Japanese producer, who has worked on such projects as ''Serial Experiments Lain'' (a producer and story writer). He was a director for the ''Noel'' video game, worked on the ''Lain'' video game, and also on ''Wachenröder'' for the Sega Sa ...
suggested the team work on a lighter anime as relief from the dark, heavily psychological ''Lain''. The character Chiaki, a
UFO
An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
fanatic, shares a name with
Chiaki J. Konaka
is a Japanese writer and novelist. He was the head writer of the anime series ''Serial Experiments Lain'', ''Digimon Tamers'', and ''Hellsing'', as well as the television drama ''Ultraman Gaia''.
Personal life
Konaka gave himself the middle ini ...
, the script writer for ''Lain''.
Plot
Set in a retro-future setting, the series revolves around Mayuko Chigasaki, a high school graduate who goes to cram school in preparation for college. However, due to having no place to settle in, she decided to live in a bathhouse in the countryside, which is in a
financial crisis
A financial crisis is any of a broad variety of situations in which some financial assets suddenly lose a large part of their nominal value. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many financial crises were associated with banking panics, and man ...
due to having no customers. Even worse, she has to live with an alien girl named NieA, who has no antenna and is considered an "Under 7", a class despised by other aliens due to being the lowest of their kind.
The series touches lightly upon issues of
discrimination
Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...
,
stereotypes
In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example ...
,
alienation,
city life vs
small-town life, and
assimilation. Mayuko, who attends a
cram school
A cram school, informally called crammer and colloquially also referred to as test-prep or exam factory, is a specialized school that trains its students to achieve particular goals, most commonly to pass the entrance examinations of high schoo ...
, is a young girl living away from her family and expresses a lot of
melancholy. NieA, who is apparently placed in an inferior class by her fellow aliens due to being a physical
minority among them, immediately accuses anyone who calls her a "stupid no-antenna" or the like, of discrimination. Other aliens adopt various stereotypical cultural styles; one chooses
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n dress and opens a convenience store, another chooses to associate herself with the
Chinese Revolution. This theme of the outsider alien is carried through in the brief comic live-action sequence which ends each episode, "Dalgit's Tidbit of Indian Information."
Characters
;
:
:Mayuko "Mayu" Chigasaki lives in a room at the Enohana Bathhouse. She is hardworking, polite, honest, and very self-conscious. Mayuko spends all of her time and energy just making ends meet. She shares an apartment with NieA, who she often refers to as a "freeloader".
;
:
:NieA is a lower-class or "under-seven" alien, who has no antennae. She lives with Mayuko and builds spaceships out of junk. She shares an apartment with Mayu, who often argues with her about money and food.
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Media
Manga
NieA_7 was created by
Yoshitoshi ABe
is a Japanese graphic artist who works predominantly in anime and manga. He first gained fame in his work on the avant-garde anime ''Serial Experiments Lain''. He is also responsible for the concept and character design for the series ''NieA_7'' ...
as an independent
doujinshi
, also romanized as ', is the Japanese term for self-published print works, such as magazines, manga, and novels. Part of a wider category of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, ''doujinshi'' are often derivative of existing works and created by ...
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 ...
following the end of ''
Serial Experiments Lain
''Serial Experiments Lain'' (stylized as ''serial experiments lain'') is a Japanese anime television series created and co-produced by Yasuyuki Ueda, written by Chiaki J. Konaka and directed by Ryūtarō Nakamura. Animated by Triangle Staff ...
''. The manga was picked up by
Kadokawa Shoten
, formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines su ...
, initially serialized on their monthly magazine ''Monthly Ace Next'' from October 1999 to January 2001 with a total of 14 chapters over 2 ''
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. An artbook titled ''NieA_7 Scrap'' was published in June 2001. The manga was republished in a single ''
kanzenban'' volume on 26 October 2012, under the title ''NieA_7 Recycle''.
Chapters
Anime
The anime adaptation, titled ' was animated by
Triangle Staff
was a Japanese animation studio established in 1987 from former Madhouse staff, producing series such as '' Macross Plus'', '' Serial Experiments Lain'', and ''NieA_7''. The studio ceased operations in 2000, when they were set to do the animat ...
, chief directed by
Tomokazu Tokoro
is a Japanese animator and director, best known for directing the anime series '' Haibane Renmei'' and ''Hellsing Ultimate''.
He has also directed ''NieA_7'', '' Maria†Holic Alive'', and was assistant director on ''Macross Zero''. He has worke ...
and written and directed by
Takuya Satō. It aired on the Japanese
BS Satellite channel
WOWOW from April 16 to July 19, 2000. The opening theme is titled by SION while the ending theme is titled by
Maria Yamamoto
is a Japanese voice actress and singer formerly with I'm Enterprise and now affiliated with 81 Produce.
Filmography Animation
Film
Video games
Drama CD
Other dubbing
References
External links
Official agency profile
Maria Yamam ...
. For episode 13, the ending theme is "KA MOA'E" by Yoshio Owa.
Geneon Entertainment
(abbreviated as NBCUEJ) is a Japanese music, anime, and home entertainment production and distribution enterprise headquartered in Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo. It is primarily involved in the production and distribution of anime within Japan.
Th ...
licensed the anime outside Japan before it went out of print.
Discotek Media
Discotek Media is an American entertainment company based in Altamonte Springs, Florida, focused on distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series.
Formed in 2005, Discotek primarily focuses on licensing retro titles fr ...
have rescued the license and released it on DVD and Blu-ray on February 27, 2018.
Episodes
References
External links
*
*
{{DISPLAYTITLE:''NieA_7''
2000 anime television series debuts
Anime with original screenplays
Articles with underscores in the title
Discotek Media
Kadokawa Dwango franchises
Geneon USA
NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan
Shōnen manga
Extraterrestrials in anime and manga