Kill la Kill

Kill la Kill

International promotional artwork of Kill la Kill with Ryuko Matoi (foreground, wearing Senketsu) and Satsuki Kiryuin (background, wearing Junketsu).
キルラキル
(Kiru Ra Kiru)
Genre Action, comedy-drama, magical girl[1][2][3][4]
Anime television series
Directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi
Written by Kazuki Nakashima
Music by Hiroyuki Sawano
Studio Trigger
Licensed by

‹See Tfd›

Network MBS, TBS, CBC, BS-TBS
English network

‹See Tfd›

Original run October 4, 2013 – March 28, 2014
Episodes 24
Manga
Illustrated by Ryō Akizuki
Published by Kadokawa Shoten
English publisher

‹See Tfd›

Demographic Seinen
Magazine Young Ace
Original run October 4, 2013 – March 4, 2015
Volumes 3
Original video animation
Goodbye Again
Directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi
Written by Kazuki Nakashima
Music by Hiroyuki Sawano
Studio Trigger
Licensed by

‹See Tfd›

Released September 3, 2014
Runtime 25 minutes

Kill la Kill (Japanese: キルラキル Hepburn: Kiru Ra Kiru) is an anime television series produced by Trigger. It follows vagrant schoolgirl Ryuko Matoi on her search for her father's killer, which brings her into violent conflict with Satsuki Kiryuin, the iron-fisted student council president of Honnouji Academy, and her mother's fashion empire.

The series is Trigger's first original television anime project, directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi and written by Kazuki Nakashima, both of whom had previously worked together on Gurren Lagann. It aired in Japan between October 4, 2013 and March 28, 2014.

Aniplex of America licensed the anime for a simulcast with a home video release starting July 2014. The series premiered on Adult Swim's Toonami block on February 8, 2015.[5][6][lower-alpha 1] A manga adaptation by Ryō Akizuki began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's Young Ace magazine from October 4, 2013. An OVA was released as a 25th episode on September 3, 2014.

Plot

Kill la Kill is set at Honnouji Academy (本能字学園 Honnōji Gakuen), a fictional high school situated in Tokyo Bay, Japan on the island of Honnō City. The school is dominated by its fearsome student council led by Satsuki Kiryuin. Its students wear Goku Uniforms (極制服 Gokuseifuku, from gokusei (極製?, "finest quality") + seifuku (制服?, "school uniform") ) which give their wearers superhuman abilities because they are constructed with a special material known as Life Fibers (生命戦維 Seimei Sen'i, lit. "Life Battle-Fibers"). Vagrant transfer student Ryuko Matoi, who wields a scissor-shaped longsword that can cut Goku Uniforms, challenges the council as she searches for her father's killer. Although she is initially easily defeated, she finds a sentient sailor uniform that she names Senketsu, a Kamui (神衣, lit. "Godrobe") which is completely made of Life Fibers and transforms her so that she can face Kiryuin and her trials and obstacles. She is befriended by her hyperactive classmate Mako Mankanshoku and lives with her family.

When Satsuki reorganizes the allocation of Goku Uniforms through a battle royal and king-of-the-hill event known as Naturals Election, Ryuko faces the members of Satsuki's Elite Four, who wear powerful Three-Star Goku Uniforms, in a series of duels. Her final fight is interrupted by Nui Harime, the wielder of the other Scissor Blade and the murderer of Ryuko's father. In the ensuing fight, Ryuko transforms into an uncontrollable monster.

With the Tri-City Schools Raid, Satsuki annexes the major schools in the other regions of Japan, and quashes Nudist Beach (ヌーディスト・ビーチ Nūdisuto Bīchi), a paramilitary organization led by Ryuko's homeroom teacher Aikuro Mikisugi. She arranges for a festival that will host her mother Ragyo, the academy's director and the CEO of REVOCS Corporation (REVOCSコーポレーション Ribokkusu Kōporēshon), a clothing manufacturer that has dominated the world-wide market. Mikisugi reveals that the Life Fibers, which have been woven into all REVOCS clothing, are actually alien parasites that consume their wearers. When they devour the festival audience, Satsuki turns on her mother, revealing her end goal has always been destroying Ragyo, but the rebellion is short-lived as Ragyo has fused with the Life Fibers to attain tremendous power. Ragyo recognizes Ryuko as her own daughter and Satsuki's younger sister, who survived the termination of a Life Fiber experiment and was raised in secrecy by Ragyo's missing husband Isshin Matoi.

A month later, Ragyo and the Life Fibers have devastated Japan and have captured Satsuki, leaving the Elite Four without Goku Uniforms and forced to hide out with Ryuko and the others at Nudist Beach. When they rescue Satsuki, Ragyo captures and brainwashes Ryuko into fighting her. After Ryuko frees herself, she and Satsuki challenge Ragyo, who plans to use a space satellite to command all Life Fibers to consume their human hosts and detonate the Earth in order to propagate the Life Fibers throughout the universe. After taking down the satellite transmitter and blasting the cocoon that houses the Original Life Fiber, Ragyo absorbs Nui and flies in to space to manually activate the satellite, but Ryuko chases Ragyo into space and defeats her, causing the Life Fiber clothes to perish. Following the battle, Senketsu sacrifices himself and burns up on atmospheric re-entry to return Ryuko to Earth.

In a follow-up OVA episode, Ragyo's secretary Rei Hououmaru disrupts Honnouji Academy's graduation ceremony, using leftover Life Fibers to create doppelgängers of Satsuki and the Elite Four. However, they are defeated by Ryuko, the real Elite Four, and Nudist Beach, and Satsuki convinces Rei to abandon her struggle. Honnouji Academy is shut down during the sinking of Honnō City and everyone leaves to live out normal lives.

Development

The television anime project, directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi at his animation studio, Trigger, was first teased in the March 2013 issue of Kadokawa Shoten's Newtype magazine released on February 7, 2013.[8] Kill la Kill was officially announced on May 8, 2013, with scripts written by Kazuki Nakashima and character designs by Sushio.[9]

According to director Imaishi, much of the plot is based on his observation that the Japanese manner of pronouncing "fascio" (ファッショ fassho) is nearly the same as the word "fashion" (ファッション fasshon), his observation that the pronunciation of the Japanese words "school uniform" (制服 seifuku) and "conquest" (征服 seifuku) are identical, and that the titular kiru may mean "kill" (キル), "to cut" (切る), or "to wear" (着る).[10]

Release

Broadcast

Kill la Kill aired in Japan on MBS' Animeism programming block between October 4, 2013 and March 28, 2014. It also aired on TBS, CBC and BS-TBS.

The series is licensed in North America by Aniplex of America, who simulcast the series on Daisuki.net,[11] and streamed it on Crunchyroll, and Hulu.[12][13] The series aired on Adult Swim's Toonami block in the United States from February 8, 2015[6] to August 2, 2015.[14][lower-alpha 1]

Home media

Japanese

The video release on Blu-ray Disc and DVD began on January 8, 2014.[15] Soundtrack CDs are included with the first and fifth volumes, making-of documentary DVDs are included with the third, seventh, and ninth volumes, and drama CDs are included with the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth volumes. An original video animation episode was released as part of the ninth volume on September 3, 2014.[16]

Aniplex (Region 2)
Volume Episodes Release date Ref.
Volume 1 1–2 January 8, 2014 [17]
Volume 2 3–5 February 5, 2014 [18]
Volume 3 6–8 March 5, 2014 [19]
Volume 4 9–11 April 2, 2014 [20]
Volume 5 12–14 May 7, 2014 [21]
Volume 6 15–17 June 4, 2014 [22]
Volume 7 18–20 July 2, 2014 [23]
Volume 8 21–23 August 6, 2014 [24]
Volume 9 24 + OVA (25) September 3, 2014 [25]

English

The series is being released in five BD/DVD volumes in North America. The first volume was released on July 15, 2014, in limited edition BD/DVD combo packs including soundtrack CDs, as well as standard Blu-ray Disc and DVD releases.[26] At Anime Expo 2014 held in Los Angeles, Aniplex premiered the first English dub episode, and hosted a performance by theme song singer Eir Aoi, and a panel with script writer Kazuki Nakashima, director Sushio, producer Yosuke Toba, and voice actresses Ami Koshimizu and Ryoka Yuzuki.[27]

Aniplex of America (Region A/1)
Volume Episodes Release date Ref.
Volume 1 1–4 July 15, 2014 [26]
Volume 2 5–9 October 21, 2014 [28]
Volume 3 10–14 December 23, 2014 [29]
Volume 4 15–19 February 24, 2015 [30]
Volume 5 20–24 + OVA (25) April 28, 2015 [31]

The series is licensed in the United Kingdom and France by Anime Limited under its All The Anime label, and was simulcast on Wakanim, later receiving a digital release on Netflix.[32] The series will be released on Blu-ray and DVD in three Collector's Edition sets, the first part was originally slated for a December 8, 2014 release date[33] but was moved up to November 17, 2014.[34] Subsequently, the release was pushed forward a further two weeks to see the first release being available in the UK on November 3, 2014,[35] while the Blu-ray version was pushed back by a full month to December 1, 2014.[36]

Anime Limited (Region B/2)
Volume Episodes Release date Ref.
Volume 1 1–9 November 3, 2014 (DVD)
December 1, 2014 (Blu-ray)		 [36]
Volume 2 10–19 March 23, 2015 [37]
Volume 3 20-24 + OVA (25) July 11, 2016

In Australia and New Zealand, the series is streamed by Madman Entertainment.[38]

Media

Soundtrack

Kill la Kill Original Sound Track
Soundtrack album by Hiroyuki Sawano
Released December 25, 2013 (2013-12-25)
Studio
  • Bunkamura Studio
  • ONKIO HAUS
  • Studio GreenBird
  • LAB recorders
Genre Soundtrack
Length 1:17:22
Language
  • English
  • German
Label Aniplex
Producer Hiroyuki Sawano

Music for the series is composed by Hiroyuki Sawano.[39] For the first fifteen episodes, the opening theme is "Sirius" (シリウス Shiriusu) by Eir Aoi, while the ending theme is "Gomen ne, Iiko ja Irarenai" (ごめんね、いいコじゃいられない。, "Sorry, I'm Done Being a Good Kid") by Miku Sawai.[40] From episode 16 onwards, the opening theme is "ambiguous" by Garnidelia, a duo consisting of vocalist Maria and composer Toku,[41] and the ending theme is "Shin Sekai Kōkyōgaku" (新世界交響楽, "New World Symphony") by Sayonara Ponytail.[42] Aoi's song "Sanbika" was used as an insert song to accompany climactic events in episodes 3, 7, 11 and 23.

The first soundtrack album was published on December 25, 2013.[43] Aniplex USA also released the CD on January 17, 2014.[44] It features 18 tracks, including six vocal songs performed in English and German. The background music tracks feature titles that are typographical variants of "Kill la Kill".

The second soundtrack album was released in Japan as part of the fifth DVD/Blu-ray disc set on May 7, 2014.[45] It also features "Kara-OK" (空OK karaoke) versions of the vocal tracks from the first album, amongst other background music.

Track listing

All music composed by Hiroyuki Sawano.

Manga

A manga adaptation illustrated by Ryō Akizuki began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's Young Ace magazine on October 3, 2013.[46] The series ended with the seventeenth chapter on February 4, 2015.[47] Udon Entertainment has licensed the manga adaptation.[48]

No.Japanese release dateJapanese ISBNEnglish release dateEnglish ISBN
1 December 2, 2013[49]ISBN 978-4041209080October 29, 2015[50]ISBN 978-1927925492
2 March 7, 2014[51]ISBN 978-4041210482January 14, 2016[52]ISBN 978-1927925546
3 March 4, 2015[53]ISBN 978-4041021071July 26, 2016[54]ISBN 978-1927925843

Reception

Kill la Kill was well received by critics. Eliot Gay of Japanator called the "uniquely fun, even gripping" series "a reminder of how fun and creative anime can be at its best", despite the readily apparent budget constraints.[55] Kat Bailey of IGN, describing the series as "magical girl anime on speed", noted that its over-the-top absurdity was part of its charm.[3] Joseph Luster of Otaku USA described the series's concept as "mostly straightforward setup for revenge and shonen-style 'stronger! STRONGER!' battle progression", but praised its execution.[56] Richard Eisenbeis of Kotaku appreciated the series for "perfectly mixing comedy and action", its pacing, internal consistency and over-the-top straightforward adaptation of standard action anime tropes.[57]

The animation of fight scenes and character movements, as well as the "keen selection of music", were particularly praised by Robert Frazer of UK Anime Network,[58] The site selected it as the 2013 UK Anime Network Awards winner in the "Best streaming anime" category.[59] Carl Kimlinger of Anime News Network also appreciated the inventive and funny animation and the series's "retro shonen action pushed to (...) loony, hyperactive extremes".[60] Michael Logarta of GMA News Online likewise noted the "superb pacing", to-the-point storytelling and well-realized characters in the series's "whirlwind of gorgeous visuals, story, and unfettered insanity".[61]

Kill la Kill won multiple prizes during the 4th Newtype Anime Awards, including Best Character Design (Sushio), Best Script (Kazuki Nakashima), Best Sound, and Best Picture (TV Broadcast). It placed second for Best Theme Song ("Sirius"), Best Director (Hiroyuki Imaishi) and Best Studio (Trigger). In the Best Mascot category, Senketsu placed third and Guts placed ninth. In Best Character (female), Ryuko placed second, and Mako placed third.[62]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Adult Swim used an after midnight schedule for Toonami, so the show's programming guide lists the dates for its shows on the Saturday night, February 7, 2015, which is technically the same as Sunday morning, February 8, 2015. The English airdates shown in this list reflect the actual date.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Harding, Xavier (February 8, 2015). "Kill La Kill English Dub Episode 1 Premiere: How Does Toonami's Attack On Titan Replacement Stack Up? [VIDEO]". iDigitalTimes. IBT Media.
  2. ↑ Romano, Aja (April 3, 2014). "Kill La Kill: How the year's most polarizing anime became a smash hit". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Bailey, Kat; Sliva, Marty (January 30, 2014). "9 Anime That Would Make Great Video Games". IGN. Retrieved April 20, 2015. Article was updated from its original Bailey, Kat (January 30, 2015). "6 Animes That Would Make Great Video Games". Archived from the original on February 16, 2014.
  4. ↑ Logarta, Michael (April 14, 2014). "No-holds-barred insanity in 'Kill la Kill'". SciTech - GMA News Online. GMA Network.
  5. ↑ "Aniplex USA Adds Kill La Kill". Anime News Network. August 10, 2013. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  6. 1 2 "Kill la Kill to Run on Toonami Starting in February". Anime News Network. January 16, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes". Toonami Tumblr. January 27, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Panty & Stocking Helmer Imaishi, Trigger Launch New Anime". Anime News Network. February 7, 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Kill La Kill Anime Reunites Gurren Lagann Director, Writer". Anime News Network. May 8, 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
  10. ↑ Chaisiri, Andy Lee. "Kill la Kill: The Fashion of Fascism". Art-Eater. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  11. ↑ "DAISUKI.NET ANNOUNCES SIMULCAST OF ANIPLEX'S KILL la KILL in 5 languages". Daisuki.net. September 25, 2013. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Aniplex USA Streams Kill la Kill Ad With English Subtitles". Anime News Network. August 11, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Aniplex USA to Stream Magi & Valvrave 2nd Seasons, Kill la Kill on 4 Sites". Anime News Network. September 18, 2013. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  14. ↑ Kill La Kill [KillLaKillUSA] (July 30, 2015). "Just a reminder, Episode 24 of Kill la Kill will be on Toonami, ending its run. Members of the English Cast..." (Tweet). Retrieved August 5, 2015 – via Twitter.
  15. ↑ "Official website" (in Japanese). Aniplex. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  16. ↑ "Last Kill la Kill Blu-ray/DVD to Include Unaired Episode". Anime News Network. December 19, 2013. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
  17. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  18. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  21. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  22. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  23. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  24. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Blu-ray&DVD | TVアニメ『キルラキル KILL la KILL』オフィシャルサイト". Kill-la-kill.jp. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  26. 1 2 "Aniplex of America to Release Kill la Kill on Blu-ray and DVD". Anime News Network. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Kill la Kill English Dub to Premiere at Anime Expo – News". Anime News Network. May 12, 2014. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Blu-ray & DVD | Kill la Kill USA Official Website". Killlakill.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  29. ↑ "Blu-ray & DVD | Kill la Kill USA Official Website". Killlakill.com. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  30. ↑ "Blu-ray & DVD | Kill la Kill USA Official Website". Killlakill.com. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  31. ↑ "Blu-ray & DVD | Kill la Kill USA Official Website". Killlakill.com. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  32. ↑ "New U.K. Anime Online Broadcaster Announced". Anime News Network. October 3, 2013. Retrieved October 5, 2013.
  33. ↑ "Anime Limited Licenses Kill la Kill for Home Video in the UK" (Press release). All the Anime. Anime Limited. March 7, 2014. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  34. ↑ "All the Anime – KILL LA KILL – RELEASE TRAILER & NEW DATE". All the Anime. Anime Limited.
  35. ↑ "Anime Limited - 'Well blow me over!' is what you're going... - Facebook". facebook.com.
  36. 1 2 "Anime UK News :: Anime Limited Pushes Kill la Kill Blu-Ray Back To 1st December". animeuknews.net.
  37. ↑ "Anime Limited Newswire #8 – 24th Feb. 2015". All the Anime. Anime Limited. February 24, 2015.
  38. ↑ "Madman Entertainment Acquires Kill La Kill". Anime News Network. September 20, 2013. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
  39. ↑ "SVWC-7973 | KILL la KILL ORIGINAL SOUND TRACK - VGMdb". vgmdb.net. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
  40. ↑ "Kill la Kill Anime's New Ad Previews Eir Aoi's Song". Anime News Network. August 29, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  41. ↑ "GARNiDELiA Duo to Perform Kill La Kill Anime's New Opening". Anime News Network. December 12, 2012. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
  42. ↑ "Sayonara Ponytail to Perform Kill la Kill's 2nd Ending Theme". Anime News Network. January 2, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  43. ↑ 「キルラキル」オリジナルサウンドトラック (in Japanese). Trigger. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  44. ↑ "Aniplex USA to Release Kill la Kill Original Soundtrack CD". Anime News Network. December 24, 2013. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  45. ↑ Green, Scott (December 20, 2013). ""Kill La Kill" Blu-rays to Feature Soundtrack and OVA". Crunchyroll. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
  46. ↑ "Gurren Lagann Staff's Kill la Kill Anime Gets Manga". Anime News Network. September 4, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  47. ↑ "Ryou Akizuki's Kill la Kill Manga to End in February". Anime News Network. December 30, 2014. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  48. ↑ "Udon Entertainment Licenses Kill La Kill Manga, More". Anime News Network. July 27, 2014. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  49. ↑ キルラキル (1) (カドカワコミックス・エース) (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. ISBN 4041209080. Retrieved December 4, 2013.
  50. ↑ "Kill la Kill Volume 1 (Kill La Kill Gn)". Amazon.com. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  51. ↑ キルラキル 2 (角川コミックス・エース) (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. ISBN 4041210488. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
  52. ↑ "Kill la Kill Volume 2 (Kill La Kill Gn)". Amazon.com. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  53. ↑ キルラキル (3) (カドカワコミックス･エース) (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. ISBN 978-4041021071. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
  54. ↑ "Kill la Kill Volume 3". Amazon.com. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  55. ↑ Gay, Eliot (October 8, 2013). "Imaishi and crew hit it out of the park". Japanator. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  56. ↑ Luster, Joseph (October 4, 2013). "Anime First Impressions: Kill la Kill". Otaku USA.
  57. ↑ Eisenbeis, Richard (April 4, 2014). "Kill la Kill Is a Rare Breed of Anime". Kotaku. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  58. ↑ Frazer, Robert (November 8, 2013). "Kill la Kill – Eps. 1–5". UK Anime Network. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  59. ↑ Hanley, Andy. "The 2013 UK Anime Network Awards". UK Anime Network. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  60. ↑ Kimlinger, Carl (November 21, 2013). "Kill la Kill Episodes 1–6 Streaming". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  61. ↑ Logarta, Michael (April 14, 2014). "No-holds-barred insanity in 'Kill la Kill'". GMA News Online. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  62. ↑ http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-10-12/kill-la-kill-idolm@ster-movie-win-top-prizes-in-newtype-awards/.79838

External links

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