is a Japanese novel written by Megumi Hatakenaka and published in 2007. A sequel, titled , was published in 2013. 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 premiered from July to October 2018.

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 ...

is streaming the series under the title We Rent Tsukumogami.

Plot

Okō and Seiji own and run the Izumo-ya lending shop in the Fukagawa district of

Edo Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...

. Several of the items they lend are old and have become

tsukumogami In Japanese folklore, ''tsukumogami'' (付喪神 or つくも神, lit. "tool ''kami''") are tools that have acquired a kami or spirit. According to an annotated version of ''The Tales of Ise'' titled ''Ise Monogatari Shō'', there is a theory o ...

. Seiji is clever and, with the help of the tsukumogami, has a reputation for being able to solve mysteries and other difficult problems. One of those mysteries is the whereabouts of Satarō, a man who was once interested in Okō despite being engaged to another woman.

Characters

; : : Okō's younger brother ; : : Seiji's older sister ; : : heir to the Iida-ya shop ; : : a bat-shaped

netsuke A is a miniature sculpture, originating in 17th century Japan. Initially a simply-carved button fastener on the cords of an box, later developed into ornately sculpted objects of craftsmanship. History Traditionally, Japanese clothing – ...

tsukumogami ; : : a full moon

kakemono __NOTOC__ A , more commonly referred to as a , is a Japanese hanging scroll used to display and exhibit paintings and calligraphy inscriptions and designs mounted usually with silk fabric edges on a flexible backing, so that it can be rolled fo ...

tsukumogami ; : : a

kiseru A is a Japanese smoking pipe (tobacco), smoking pipe, traditionally used for smoking ''kizami'', a finely shredded tobacco product resembling hair. History The word ''kiseru'' is said to have originated from the Cambodian word ''khsier'' aroun ...

tsukumogami ; : : a princess doll tsukumogami ; : : a comb tsukumogami ; Narrator :

Media

Novel

The novel is written by Megumi Hatakenaka, and

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 ...

published it on September 25, 2007 (). A second edition was published on June 23, 2010 (). Hatakenaka published a sequel, titled ''Tsukumogami, Asobō yo'', on March 26, 2013 (), and the second edition was published on April 23, 2016 ().

Anime

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestri ...

announced an

television series adaptation on October 23, 2017. The series is directed by Masahiko Murata and written by Kento Shimoyama, with animation by studio

Telecom Animation Film is a Japanese animation studio founded on May 19, 1975 and currently affiliated with TMS Entertainment. The company produces television series, films, and original video animations (OVA). Works Television series and original video animations ...

. Miho Yano and Hiromi Yoshinuma are designing the characters based on the original designs by

Lily Hoshino is a Japanese manga artist. She is known for her extremely cute art style featured in her many published manga, some of which are boys' love (BL) series. On January 25, 2016, Hoshino announced that she had gotten married. In September 2016, s ...

. Natsue Muramoto serves as the series' art director, Ryoko Oka provides color design, Yūko Kamahara is the director of photography, and Yasunori Ebina serves as sound director. Music for the series is composed by Gō Satō. "

Miyavi , better known by his stage name Miyavi (雅, stylized as MIYAVI), is a Japanese guitarist, singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor known for his finger- slapping style of playing a guitar. He has been active since 1999, first as guitaris ...

vs.

Kavka Shishido , known as a solo artist by the stage name is a Japanese-Mexican drummer and vocalist. Originally a member of the rock band The News, she debuted as a solo musician in 2012 and released her debut album ''Kavkanize'' in 2013. She prominently plays ...

performed the opening theme song, and

Mai Kuraki (born October 28, 1982) is a Japanese pop and R&B singer-songwriter and record producer. After releasing her US debut single " Baby I Like" in 1999, Kuraki signed with Giza Studio and released her Japanese debut single " Love, Day After Tomorro ...

performed the ending theme song.

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'', ...

produced the anime.

Anime Limited Anime Limited, also known as All the Anime is a British anime distribution company based in Glasgow, Scotland. It releases anime for British, Irish, French and other European audiences. The company was established in 2012 by Andrew Partridge, b ...

acquired the series for distribution in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The series premiered on NHK General TV from July 22 to October 14, 2018.

References

External links

* at

* * {{TMS Entertainment 2007 Japanese novels 2013 Japanese novels Anime and manga based on novels Kadokawa Shoten Kadokawa Dwango franchises NHK original programming TMS Entertainment