Library Wars Review: A moving story about the intertwining battles between freedom and love

"Library Wars": Entertainment where the battle between freedom and love intersects

"Library Wars" is a TV anime series based on Hiro Arikawa's hugely popular novel, which aired from April 10 to June 26, 2008. The series has sold over 1.25 million copies, and is an entertaining novel set in a fictional modern-day Japan, depicting the struggles and daily lives of library corps members who fight to protect "books" from unjust censorship. The anime adaptation was produced by Production IG's "IG 9th Division," and under the direction of Hamana Takayuki, meticulous settings and overwhelming visual beauty were realized.

story

In 2019 (Showa 31), 30 years after the passage of the Media Improvement Law, which cracks down on expressions that violate public order and human rights, the Media Improvement Committee and the Library Corps are in conflict in Japan. The protagonist, Iku Kasahara, is recruited as a library corps member, and without being able to tell his parents, he aspires to become a defense officer, which entails risk, and spends his days working hard at military training. During high school, a library corps member saved him from a media improvement corps member who was about to steal his book from him at a bookstore. He admired the "allies of justice" of the media improvement corps member and decided to join the library corps to protect books himself. Eventually, Iku's outstanding athletic ability and passion are recognized and he is assigned to the elite "Library Task Force (Library Special Forces)".

Commentary

The "Library Wars" series is an entertainment novel set in a fictional modern Japan where the "Media Improvement Law" has been enacted to crack down on expressions that violate public order and morals and infringe on human rights. It depicts the battles and daily lives of library corps members who try to protect "books" from unjust censorship. The series consists of four volumes: "Library Wars," "Library Civil War," "Library Crisis," and "Library Revolution," as well as spin-off novels "Library Wars Special Edition I" and "Library Wars Special Edition II," and has sold over 1.25 million copies in total (as of August 2008).

The animation was produced by Production IG's "IG 9 Division," known for hardcore animations such as the "Ghost in the Shell SAC" series and "Guardian of the Spirit." Under the direction of Hamana Takayuki, the film takes on the challenge of a "classic romantic comedy" set in a library, with meticulous settings and stunning visual beauty, as well as tense battle scenes and the snappy daily actions of the library members.

The series was broadcast in Fuji TV's "Noitamina" time slot, which enjoys support from a wide range of viewers. "Noitamina" is a late-night time slot established in April 2005 with the concept of "anime like a serial drama," and aims to overturn the conventional wisdom of television anime. So far, it has aired works such as "Honey and Clover" and "Nodame Cantabile," and has also attracted attention for its media mix developments that link with TV dramas and live-action films. "Library Wars" was part of this and was loved by many viewers.

cast

Iku Kasahara/Marina Inoue/Atsushi Dojo/Tomoaki Maeno/Mikihisa Komaki/Akira Ishida/Hikari Tezuka/Tatsuhisa Suzuki/Asako Shibasaki/Miyuki Sawashiro/Ryusuke Genda/Kanji Suzumori/Kazuichi Inamine/Haruo Sato

Main Staff

・Original work by Hiro Arikawa ・Original work cooperation by Dengeki Bunko Editorial Department, Dengeki Bunko MAGAZINE Editorial Department (Naomi Tokuda, Kazuyuki Kumeda)
・Planning: Yoko Matsuzaki (Fuji Television)
Producers: Hiroyuki Terasaki, Hiroshi Hattori, Yasuhiko Goto, Yasuhiro Sato, Yukihiro Ito (Fuji Television Network), Mitsuhisa Ishikawa Producers: Atsuya Takase (Fuji Television Network), Fumie Takeuchi, Tomoyasu Nishimura, Kosuke Hosogai (Fuji Television Network)
・Assistant Producer: Aya Saito (Fuji Television)
・Director / Hamana Takayuki・Series Composition / Furuya Takeshi・Character Concept / Adabana Sukumo・Character Design, Chief Animation Director / Nakamura Satoru・Design Works / Tsuneki Yoshinobu・Art Director / Ikeda Shigemi・Art Setting / Arakawa Naoki・Color Design / Katayama Yumiko・Color Setting Assistant / Sugawara Mika・Special Effects / Murakami Masahiro・Director of Photography / Tanaka Hiroji・Editing / Uematsu Junichi, Okuno Hidetoshi・3D Director / Endo Makoto・Sound Director / Hiramitsu Takuya・Music / Kanno Yugo・Music Producer / Sano Hiroaki・Music Production Cooperation / Flagship・Music Production / Fuji Pacific Music Publishing, Sony Music Entertainment・Production Desk / Honda Fuminori・Set Production / Tanimura Daishiro・Animation Production / PRODUCTION IG
Produced by: Library Wars Production Committee (Asmik Ace Entertainment, Dentsu, ASCII Media Works, Sony Music Entertainment, Fuji Television, Production IG)

Main Characters

・Kasahara Iku
A member of the Library Special Forces, Dojo Squad. First class librarian. 22 years old. 170cm tall and excellent at sports, but generally not good at classroom studies. A straightforward heroine who enlisted in the hope of meeting a library member (=prince) who saved her from a difficult situation when she was in high school. Nicknamed "Mountain Monkey" and "Bear Killer."
・Atsushi Dojo
Leader of the Library Special Forces, Dojo Squad. Second Class Librarian. 27 years old. Height 165cm. The superior officer in charge of training Iku and the others. He is honest and has a strong sense of responsibility, so he is known as a strict instructor, as he is strict with new Library Corps members.
・Mikihisa Komaki
Deputy leader of the Library Special Forces Dojo Team. Second Class Librarian. 26 years old. 175cm tall. A colleague of Dojo (both born early in the year), he and Iku are in charge of training together. In contrast to Dojo, he is gentle-spoken and always smiling, but sometimes he casually blurts out some terrifyingly sharp and harsh words.
・Hikaru Tezuka
A member of the Library Special Forces, Dojo Squad. First-class librarian. 22 years old. 180cm tall. An elite whose father is the president of the Library Association. A brilliant student who puts in the effort every day, he is extremely strict with underachievers and is merciless in his attacks on Iku.
・Asako Shibasaki
A librarian in the Library Operations Department at Musashino First Library. First class librarian. 157cm tall. 22 years old. Iku's roommate with a sharp mind and good looks. Although she has a bad mouth, she helps Iku with her quick information gathering skills and super S-class tact.
・Ryusuke Genda
Third class librarian. Height 185cm. 43 years old. A hero who values ​​righteousness and human feelings, he is the captain of the Defense Department's Library Special Forces. He has many outrageous and famous quotes, such as "The Library Corps' way is to crush lawlessness with recklessness."
・Kazuichi Inamine
Commander of the Kanto Library Base. Special Librarian. He was the director of the library at the time of the "Hino Nightmare" incident on February 7, 1282. He lost his right leg and uses a wheelchair.

Main Robot Items

・Library Freedom Statement
The "Library Freedom Declaration" also appears in "Library Wars". It is actually displayed in libraries all over the country. The "Library Freedom Declaration" was adopted at the National Library Conference and the General Assembly of the Japan Library Association held on May 26-28, 1954. After that, with the publication of "Public Library Management in Small and Medium-Sized Cities" (abbreviated as "Small and Medium-Sized City Report") in 1963, public libraries rapidly developed, and various services were started with lending as the core of the material provision. Then, in 1979, it was revised to consolidate 25 years of experience in the library world and to be more practical. The declaration currently displayed in libraries is this "Library Freedom Declaration 1979 Revised". As shown below, the wording that appears in the fictional world of "Library Wars" is slightly different.

"Library Freedom Statement"
Adopted by the Japan Library Association in 1954, revised in 1979 The most important role of libraries is to provide materials and facilities to the people, who enjoy the freedom of information as one of their fundamental human rights.
To fulfill this mission, the Library will affirm and practice the following:

First, libraries have the freedom to collect materials. Second, libraries have the freedom to provide materials. Third, libraries protect the confidentiality of their users. Fourth, libraries oppose all censorship.

When library freedom is violated, we will unite and relentlessly defend it.

・Media Improvement Act
Around the time the era name changed to Seihwa, this law was enacted with the aim of cracking down on expressions that disturb public order and morals and infringe on human rights. Based on this law, the "Media Improvement Committee" was established as a subordinate organization of the Ministry of Justice. The Media Improvement Committee established special improvement agencies in each prefecture as acting enforcement agencies, and with the aim of improving all media, it had the authority to arbitrarily crack down on books, video works, music works, etc. that violate public order and morals. The contents of these are wide-ranging, including censorship of incoming goods for retailers, injunctions against distribution for publishers, broadcast bans and correction orders for the media, and deletion orders for Internet providers. Censorship standards can be supplemented at any time with detailed rules and enforcement orders, and the discretion is left to the executive agency, making it extremely arbitrary, and the use of force is permitted against those who resist.

・Library Freedom Act
This is the nickname for "Chapter 4 of the Library Law," which was added to the three chapters of the Library Law in order to counter the censorship of the Media Improvement Law.
<<Library Law Chapter 4: Freedom of Libraries>>
Article 30. Libraries shall have the freedom to acquire materials.
Article 31. Libraries have the freedom to provide their materials.
Article 32 The Library shall protect the confidentiality of its users.
Article 33 The Library opposes all unjustified censorship.
Article 34 When the freedom of libraries is infringed upon, we will unite and resolutely defend that freedom.
As with the Media Improvement Act, details of implementation will be supplemented from time to time by enforcement ordinance.

・Library Corps
The Library, the only organization with a legal basis that can compete with the Media Improvement Committee, was established in 1924 as a defense organization. It has the characteristics of a regional administrative agency and manages its own personnel and budget. The Library Corps' job areas are divided into three: librarians in the Library Operations Department, defense personnel in the Defense Department, and logistics support personnel in the Logistics Support Department, who are responsible for the maintenance of library collections, combat equipment, and general logistics.

The Library Task Force, composed mainly of elite defense personnel, is stationed at the base during peacetime and responds to requests from each library, carrying out a wide range of missions from routine library duties to large-scale offensive and defensive battles.

subtitle

・Situation 01/My Prince is a Library Corps Member (2008/04/11)
・Situation 02 / Library Task Force (2008/04/18)
・Situation 03/Battle of Odawara (2008/04/25)
・Situation 04/Recover the Library Commander (2008/05/02)
・Situation 05/Parents Disturbance Operation (2008/05/09)
・Situation 06/The Library Corps Didn't Fire (2008/05/16)
・Situation 07/Love Information Search (Love Reference) (2008/05/23)
・Situation 08/Scheme Seshiha Tezuka Kei (2008/05/30)
・Situation 09/Promotion exam, coming to Taru (2008/06/06)
・Situation 10/Homecoming, outbreak (2008/06/13)
・Situation 11/Death Struggle! Security at the Ibaraki Prefectural Exhibition (2008/06/20)
・Situation 12/Who's at the Library? (2008/06/27)

Related Titles

・Library Wars Unaired Episodes ・Library Wars: Wings of Revolution

Theme songs and music

・OP1
・My Town, Tomorrow's Town・Lyrics by Hitomi Takahashi・Music by Satoru Hiraide・Arrangement by Satoru Hiraide・Singer by Hitomi Takahashi

・ED1
・changes
Lyrics: Yusuke Koide Composition: Yusuke Koide Arrangement: Base Ball Bear
・Song: Base Ball Bear

The appeal and evaluation of "Library Wars"

Library Wars has captivated many fans as an entertainment piece with the themes of freedom and love. Below, we will take a closer look at its appeal and reviews.

The appeal of the story

The story of "Library Wars" is set in a fictional modern-day Japan and depicts the struggles and daily lives of the library corps members who fight to protect "books" from unjust censorship. It carefully depicts the protagonist Kasahara Iku's growth as a library corps member, her encounter and reunion with her idolized "prince," and the bonds and love affairs between the library corps members. Not to be missed are Iku's growth as a straightforward heroine and the changes in her relationship with Dojo Atsushi. Additionally, the existence of conflicting laws, the Media Improvement Act and the Library Freedom Act, add tension and depth to the story.

Character Appeal

Each character in Library Wars is unique and charming. The main character, Kasahara Iku, is portrayed as an athletic and impulsive heroine, and her growth and struggles are at the center of the story. Dojo Atsushi is a strict instructor, but he also shows glimpses of his compassion and sense of responsibility towards Iku. Other characters, such as Komaki Mikihisa, Tezuka Hikaru, and Shibasaki Asako, also have their own unique personalities and backgrounds that draw viewers in. Additionally, the presence of veteran characters such as Genda Ryusuke and Inamine Kazuichi adds depth to the story.

The appeal of video and music

The visuals of "Library Wars" are characterized by meticulous settings and overwhelming visual beauty by Production IG's "IG Section 9". You can enjoy the tension of the battle scenes and the warmth of the scenes depicting daily life in the library visually. Director Hamana Takayuki's direction is also superb, and he succeeds in bringing out the charm of the characters. In terms of music, Takahashi Hitomi's "My Town, Tomorrow's Town" is used as the opening theme and Base Ball Bear's "Changes" is used as the ending theme, livening up the atmosphere of the story.

Evaluation and acceptance

"Library Wars" was highly praised not only by fans of the original novel, but also by anime fans. It was especially praised for its storyline, which has themes of freedom and love, its unique characters, and its detailed visuals and music. It was also broadcast on Fuji TV's "Noitamina" slot, and received support from a wide audience. The anime adaptation brought out the best in the original work while adding new perspectives and direction, winning it even more fans.

Recommendations for "Library Wars" and related works

"Library Wars" is an entertainment piece with the themes of freedom and love that can be recommended to many fans. It is especially recommended for fans of the original novel, anime fans, and those who like romantic comedies and action movies. It is also a work that can be enjoyed by those who are interested in libraries and books. Below, we will introduce some works related to "Library Wars".

Related Titles

・Library Wars Unaired Episodes An OVA was produced as an unaired episode of "Library Wars." This one also retains the charm of the original work while depicting new perspectives and stories.
・Library Wars: Wings of RevolutionThe movie Library Wars: Wings of Revolution was produced as a sequel to Library Wars. This movie also follows the worldview of the original work, but you can enjoy the introduction of new characters and the development of the story.

Conclusion

Library Wars has captivated many fans as an entertainment piece with themes of freedom and love. It has been praised for its intricate setting, stunning visual beauty, unique characters, and tense storyline, and has been supported by a wide range of viewers. This work is recommended not only for fans of the original novel, but also for anime fans, romantic comedies, and action fans. Please enjoy it, including related works.