Assistant Producer Muramatsu Ryouko's Karekano Diary

Oct. 30

Hi. It's Muramatsu. Strange weather we're having--hot, then cold, then hot again. I can't handle it--this is a nasty cold I've got. It's hard having my head sort-of aching for days on end. I could take time off if I'd just get a proper fever...which is a sign of the dangerous thoughts I'm having. In this state, I came to work one morning, and there on my desk was a Karekano calendar! Which reminded me that the day before we got a call Miyamoto, editor-in-chief at Hakusensha, to the effect that the calendar was finished. . I flipped through it, and there was a terrific pinup by Hiramatsu, series animation director, of Yukino and company atop a huge sunflower. This is so cute, it made my headache go away! It comes with stickers which make it a real value. It goes on sale in November, which means you'll be able to get your hands on it soon. No sooner did I write this than Hiramatsu came up here, to the third floor. Seems he's got stiff shoulders, so he got a shoulder rub from Tencho. That must feel good. And with that, he went back to the second floor, where the animation work is being done. Here's one more piece of big news. Next week, the series' opening titles are finally scheduled to air!! Just hang on a little longer. You know how time flies. That's all for now!!

Oct. 23

Hi there, It's Muramatsu again. Well, Karekano Episode 4 aired this evening. Those of you who've been taping the series on 120-minute VHS tape at standard speed will have finished one tape now. Congratulations. The animators' area at GAINAX is overflowing with Evangelion potato chips from Calbee right now (they've been reissued by popular demand. Our heartfelt thanks. ) And I've got 21 of the collector's cards included with each bag of these chips, thanks to Tencho. I guess the thing to do is eat lots of these chips so I'll have plenty of energy for work . One more thing to note is that the CD single with the opening theme went on sale in Japan on this date. Since the series opening titles aren't airing yet, this release predates even the official airing. Until next time...

Oct. 16

Hello all, this is Muramatsu. Today I'll talk about the telephone. From time to time, viewers call us up about the show. Yesterday, someone asked, "Um, is the manga which Kareshi Kanojo no Jijoo is based available in collected form?" Of course it's available! If your local bookstore doesn't carry it, then order it! Look for the pretty pink wrapper. It was a male caller, so he might find it awkward to go to the girls' manga corner...but if so, he should just screw up his courage and do it. At least, that's what I think, anyway. Anyway, there are six volumes of the series currently, available from Hakusensha's Hana To Yume Comics (Flowers and Dreams Comics). The ongoing series continues in the monthly LaLa magazine. Now that you know this, you'll just have to go out and buy them all, right? Another frequent question is, "Where's the opening?" Well, don't worry, because we'll soon have a fantastic opening sequence for you to see! Stay tuned. In the meantime, we can't talk about what's in it. (Top Secret aside: a glimpse at the storyboards told me that it'll be too cute for words.) Well, that's all for this time. Love, love, happy.

Oct.9

Hello. My name is Muramatsu, and I've been drafted as of today to start writing these notes. I haven't done anything like this since I was in grade school! This is going to be rough. I hope you won't be too rough on me. Anyway, I haven't seen Karekano episode 2 yet, as I imagine most of you reading this haven't, either. I feel a kind of shock at missing the show on the air already (there's an unwritten law about GAINAX staffers having to watch it on the air). I took a peek right at the scene where Arima pushes Yukino down! This is definitely not like the original manga. We sure get a lot of calls right when the show is on, though. Today was no exception. Watch the show and call us later, OK? Last week was the series premiere party, and things got a little complicated. You see, there were some people who were too busy to attend. So for their sake, Anno asked the restaurant staff of he could get a doggy bag for the leftovers. Nice going on our director's part. He's such a nice guy. He pleaded with the restaurant staff to bring some Saran Wrap, then he bundled the batter-fried chicken and other stuff and took it back to the office with him. Now you can be prepared to expect big things from the KareKano Group, since they're bound together by such strong bonds (does batter-fried chicken count?) I want to be love-love happy.