Ookami-san and her seven companions: A review of the charming characters and deep story

Ookami-san and his seven companions - The charm and full picture of this passionate romantic comedy

■Overview of the work

"Ookami-san and the Seven Companions" is a TV anime series based on the light novel by Masaki Okita. It aired from July 1st to September 16th, 2010, and the story is set in Otogi Academy and revolves around a unique club called Otogi Bank, and is full of charm that draws viewers in. The original work was published by Dengeki Bunko, and the animation was produced by JCSTAFF.

■ Story

Otogi Academy Student Mutual Aid Association, commonly known as "Otogi Bank", is a frightening club that accepts requests to help others, creates loans, and forces people to repay them in times of emergency. Are they heroes of justice, an evil organization, or just a bunch of weirdos? Among the members are Ogami Ryoko, a vicious lone wolf and new type of tsundere high school girl, Morino Ryoji, a weak-willed boy with scopophobia who has a crush on her, and Akai Ringo, who looks like a lolita but has a dark side, along with a host of other unique friends. They do whatever they want and fight to fix the world (?) in this hot-blooded, human-interest romantic comedy.

■Explanation

This is a TV anime adaptation of a hugely popular series that has been published by Dengeki Bunko since 2006. It is characterized by its parody developments that go beyond expectations, with motifs of fairy tales and old tales that everyone knows. It is a hot-blooded, refreshing, and exciting school romantic comedy + slightly sexy story woven by a succession of unique characters with twists, while admiring the maiden side of the stubbornly wild and strong-willed wolf. It is an entertainment work that can be enjoyed without being stubborn and will make you excited (burn?) for the diverse characters.

■Cast

・Ogami Ryoko/Ito Shizuka・Akai Ringo/Ito Kanae・Morino Ryoji/Irino Miyu・Kirigi List/Nojima Yuji・Kirigi Alice/Horie Yui・Tsurugatani Otsuu/Kawasumi Ayako・Majolica Le Fay/Koyama Kimiko・Urashima Taro/Asanuma Shintaro・Ryugu Otohime/Toyosaki Aki・Usami Mimi/Kugimiya Rie・Shimokiri Suzume/Yahagi Sayuri・Kibitsu Momoko/Kaida Yuko・Shirayukihimeno/Fukui Yukari・Haibara Kakari/Hayami Saori・Oji Akihiro/Akabane Kenji・Hansel/Okamoto Nobuhiko・Gretel/Iguchi Yuka・Murano Yukime/Nabatame Hitomi・Mura Nowakato/Miyasaka Shunzo, Himura Machiko/Sato Satomi, Aragami Hitsujito/Oono Atsushi, Shepherd Shiro/Suwabe Junichi, Nine-Tailed Fox/Nakahara Mai, Nekomiya Saburo/Kaji Yuki, Hanasaki Jin/Yamaguchi Taro, Jizo Ami/Takahashi Mikako, Inuzuka/Matsuoka Yoshitsugu, Saruwatari/Kanemitsu Nobuaki, Kijino/Aoki Tsuyoshi, Hamel/Aoyama Jo, Hatsuka/Kanemoto Hisako, Butada Futoshi/Nomura Kenji, Butada Hiroshi/Mogami Tsugio, Butada Takashi/Tanzawa Teruyuki, Kazuya/Mizuhara Kaoru, Futaba/Sakura Ayane, Santa/Saito Yuuki, Rokuro/Maki Chihiro, Mother/Ono Ryoko, Nekado Chutaro/Kotobuki Minako, Narration/Arai Satomi

■ Main staff

・Original work: Miyabi Okita (ASCII Media Works/Dengeki Bunko)
・Original illustrations / Nape・Planning / Atsushi Iwasaki, Kazutomo Suzuki, Yoshiaki Matsumoto, Yasuhiro Mikami, Shiro Sasaki, Taro Maki・Producer / Tatsuhiro Nitta, Hajime Takabayashi, Nobuhiro Osawa・Series composition / Michiko Ito・Character design, chief animation director / Haruko Iizuka・Prop design / Yukie Hiyasui・Art director / Teruhiko Tanida・Color design / Kyosuke Ishikawa・Director of photography / Tomokazu Nakanishi・Editing / Masahiro Goto・Digital special effects / Atsushi Sato・2D graphics / Yoshihide Mukai・System management / Hiroshi Onojima, Mikio Nakade・Editing studio / REAL-T
・Assistant editor: Hitomi Sudo・Post-production: Tokyo Development Laboratory, Ryo Kikuchi, Takuya Fujita・Sound effects: Kaori Yamada・Sound adjustment: Nobuhiro Negishi・Sound assistant: Keita Konagaya・Sound studio: Prosen Studio・Sound production: Magic Capsule・Sound production manager: Rie Tanaka・End card illustration: Nape・Eye-catcher: Haruko Iizuka・Production manager: Naoko Koyama, Bunpei Ogawa・Planning cooperation: Kazuyuki Kumeda, Hiroki Suwa, Takashi Watanabe, Yasuyuki Yaguchi・Publicity: Jun Kasai, Yusuke Suzuki, Mikio Kitajima・Cooperation: Tokyo Animator Academy, Yoshimi Nakajima (Quorus), Daisuke Kobayashi (Quorus)
・Associate Producer / Shinobu Yoshinuma, Wataru Koyama, Hiromasa Minami ・Assistant Producer / Ryutaro Kawakami ・Production Manager, Setting Production / Kaoru Suzuki ・Sound Director / Jin Aketagawa ・Music / Megumi Ohashi ・Music Producer / Keiichi Nozaki ・Music Director / Masakazu Sato ・Music Production / Flying Dog ・Animation Production Manager / Yuji Matsukura ・Animation Production Producer / Masao Ohashi ・Producer / Genco ・Animation Production / JCSTAFF
Director: Yoshiaki Iwasaki Produced by: Ookami-san Production Committee (Media Factory, ASCII Media Works, Marvelous Entertainment, ATX, Flying Dog, Genco)

■ Main Characters

・Ogami Ryoko A first-year student at Otogi Academy and a member of Otogi Bank. Nicknamed "Wolf-san." Her dignified eyes can silence crying children. When she smiles, her enchanting canines peek out. She's usually violent and talks like a man, but she also has a side to her that's just a normal girl... She doesn't have big breasts, but she's beautiful and wild, a direct-hitting tsundere high school girl!
Akai Ringo is Ookami-san's classmate and a member of the Otogi Bank club. She has a small body that is hard to believe she is a high school student, and an endlessly adorable smile. She looks like an angel, but her insides are filled with dark poison. She is good at excellent negotiation skills and intellectual work. She is Ookami-san's only close friend, and also prides herself on being her guardian.
Morino Ryoji is Ookami's classmate. Perhaps because he comes from the countryside and has had little contact with people, he is extremely sensitive to people's gazes and suffers from scopophobia, becoming weak as soon as someone stares at him. He is good at hiding his presence and shooting. He is in love with Ookami, but is worried that his weak personality causes him to be completely ignored.
Kirigi List: A third-year student at Otogi Academy and the head of Otogi Bank. Nicknamed the president. Despite being the head of an organization, he is a mass of unwillingness to work and is known as a "dumb fool" who is a pain in the ass because he always speaks in a fuzzy way. He has a thin face and looks like a bean sprout. He is good at disguise and seems to have a hobby of cross-dressing, but...
Alice Kiriki is a third-year student at Otogi Academy and the vice president of Otogi Bank. She takes over all the miscellaneous tasks at the bank in place of the president, who has no interest in working. She is an intelligent, cool beauty with glasses and a secretary with competent administrative skills, just as she looks. In fact, she is childhood friends with the president, and they are cousins.
・Tsurugaya Otsuu A second year student at Otogi Academy and a member of the Otogi Bank. She wears a maid uniform and finds the greatest joy in serving others; she is a flawless maid, as everyone acknowledges. Her daily routine is cleaning. Her demeanor never ceases to charm the maid fans at the school. ・Urashima Taro A first year student at Otogi Academy and a member of the Otogi Bank. She is a huge women's lover, and will approach and flirt with any woman she sees without discrimination. When Otohime finds out about this, she sucks a lot out of her. She has an extremely sharp eye for discerning the charms of women. Because she repeated a year, she is one year older than the wolves.
・Ryuguu Otohime Otogi Academy first year student and Otogi Bank club member. She's beautiful, has a good personality, and is also good at night... she's the best woman. She discovers Urashima, who she adores, trying to woo him and sucks him dry every day. She's been repeating a year to chase after Urashima.
Majorica le Fay is a second-year student at Otogi Academy, and is in charge of supplies at Otogi Bank. She has a classic witch look with a pointed hat, a long black blazer, and swirly milk bottle-bottle glasses. She is commonly known as "Miss Witch." She conducts suspicious experiments in the basement of Otogi Bank. She has hidden large breasts.

■Subtitle

Episode 1: The Wolf and His Friends at Otogi Bank (2010/07/01)
・Episode 2: The Lying Wolf and Ryoji (2010/07/08)
Episode 3: The wolf gets caught up in an ugly fight between a rabbit and a turtle (2010/07/15)
Episode 4: Wolf-san and Otsu-senpai's repayment of a favor (2010/07/22)
Episode 5: Wolf-san and Momo-chan Senpai go to defeat demons (2010/07/29)
・Episode 6: The Wolf and Little Red Riding Hood, and Ryoji (2010/08/05)
Episode 7: Wolf and Jizo go on a double date (2010/08/12)
Episode 8: Wolf and Mouse Search for a Bride and the Pig is Treated Like This (2010/08/19)
・Episode 9: Snow White and the wolf are immune to the poisoned apple (2010/08/26)
Episode 10: The Wolf and the Fairy Tale Bank's Very Long Day (2010/09/02)
・Episode 11: The Wolf and the Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (2010/09/09)
Episode 12: The Wolf and the Little Match Girl (2010/09/16)

■ Theme songs and music

・OP1
・Ready, go!
Lyrics: Yukino Nakajima; Composition: Akimitsu Honma; Arrangement: Akimitsu Honma; Singer: May'n

・ED1
・Ready, go!
Lyrics: Yukino Nakajima; Composition: Akimitsu Honma; Arrangement: Akimitsu Honma; Singer: May'n

・ED2
・Beware of Little Red Riding Hood・Lyrics by Masami Sugiyama・Music by Shunichi Tokura・Arrangement by Hideyuki Fukazawa・Singer by OToGi8

・ED3
・Beware of Little Red Riding Hood i-pop ver.
Lyrics: Masami Sugiyama; Composition: Shunichi Tokura; Arrangement: Hideyuki Fukazawa; Singer: OToGi8

■Broadcast information

"Ookami-san and her Seven Companions" was broadcast from July 1st to September 16th, 2010. It was broadcast on AT-X, TOKYO MX and other UHF stations, ShowTime, etc. The broadcast schedule for each station is as follows.
・AT-X: July 1, 2010 to September 16, 2010 (Episodes 1-12) Every Thursday 9:00-9:30
・Chiba TV: July 5, 2010 to September 20, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Monday 0:30 to 1:00 (Sunday late night)
・tvk: July 5, 2010 to September 20, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Monday 1:30 to 2:00 (Sunday late night)
・Teletama: July 6, 2010 to September 21, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Tuesday 1:00 to 1:30 (Monday night)
・TOKYO MX: July 7, 2010 to September 22, 2010 (Episodes 1-12) Every Wednesday 1:30-2:00 (Tuesday night)
・TV Aichi: July 7, 2010 to September 22, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Wednesday 1:58 to 2:28 (late Tuesday night)
Sun TV: July 8, 2010 to September 23, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Thursday 2:10 to 2:40 (Wednesday night)

■ Appeal and evaluation of the work

"Ookami-san and her Seven Companions" has won many fans with its unique setting and charming characters. The parody plot, centered around the unique club activity of Otogi Bank, uses fairy tales and old folk tales as motifs to provide viewers with fresh surprises and laughter. In addition, the adventures of the unique characters, including the main character Ogami Ryoko, will keep viewers entertained.

In particular, the combination of Ogami Ryoko's tsundere character and Morino Ryoji's weak character is very appealing as a romantic comedy. The gap between Ryoko's strong appearance and her inner self, and Ryoji's scopophobia and his efforts to overcome it make the viewer sympathize and root for them. In addition, the contrast between Akai Ringo's dark inner self and her angelic appearance also adds depth to the work.

Furthermore, the parodies of fairy tales and old tales that appear in each episode make viewers feel nostalgic and fresh at the same time. For example, in episode 3, "The Wolf Gets Caught in an Ugly Fight Between the Tortoise and the Hare," a story based on the race between the rabbit and the turtle unfolds, entertaining viewers. Also, in episode 5, "The Wolf Goes to Defeat Demons with Momo-chan Senpai," an episode based on the story of Momotaro is depicted, stimulating viewers' imaginations.

As for the music, May'n's powerful singing voice in "Ready Go!" brings out the passion of the work, and the ending song "Red Riding Hood Goyoujin" further enhances the humorous atmosphere of the work. In particular, OToGi8's i-pop version of "Red Riding Hood Goyoujin" provides new entertainment for the viewers.

■ Recommendation points

"Ookami-san and her Seven Companions" can be recommended for the following reasons:

1. **Unique setting and parody development**
The parodies of fairy tales and old folk tales, centered around the unique club activity of Otogi Bank, provide viewers with fresh surprises and laughter. The parodies of fairy tales and old folk tales that appear in each episode give viewers a sense of nostalgia and freshness at the same time.

2. **Charming characters**
The unique characters, such as Ryoko Ogami's tsundere character, Ryoji Morino's weak character, and Ringo Akai's dark inner self and angelic appearance, will keep viewers entertained. Their growth and changes in relationships are also points not to be missed.

3. **The appeal of this passionate romantic comedy**
The romantic comedy of Ryoko and Ryoji will make viewers sympathize with and root for them. It also depicts the friendship and bonds between the characters, which will move viewers.

4. **Powerful and humorous music**
The opening song "Ready Go!" and the ending song "Beware of Little Red Riding Hood" bring out the passionate and humorous atmosphere of the work. In particular, the i-pop version of "Beware of Little Red Riding Hood" by OToGi8 provides new entertainment for the audience.

Conclusion

"Ookami-san and her Seven Companions" is a work with many charms, including a unique setting and parody plot, charming characters, the appeal of a passionate romantic comedy, and powerful and humorous music. This work is definitely worth watching, as it provides viewers with fresh surprises and laughter, and inspires feelings of empathy and support. Enjoy the adventures of the Otogi Bank colleagues and discover new charms in fairy tales and old tales.