Toudou-san.
Yes?
Do you think you'll be done with that soon?
I'll finish sometime today.
Then do you think you'll be able to do a new tire next?
You can, right?
Yes...
Musashino Animation
The delivery of episode eight was completed last Saturday,
and now we just have to wait for it to air on Thursday.
Episode nine will go into dubbing in two days, on Wednesday.
Episode ten will be updated with a more complete version on Friday along with its all-rush.
The key animation work for episode eleven is almost complete.
Episode twelve will go into after-recording the day after tomorrow.
Up to this point, things have gone well, but for episode thirteen, the last episode,
the director's B part storyboards have not been completed!
Seriously?!
If we don't get it to editing by next week, it'll be rough...
We can't drop the after-recording.
We'll lose our scheduling with the voice actors.
Ack!
Um... When do you think it'll be done?
I'd like to know that more than anyone else!
So for the last episode, we'll be doing the after-recording with animatics...
Yes.
We're ready to make the A part animatic.
Oh, yes, thank you. Please wait a moment.
Then if there isn't anything else...
Katsuragi-san from Western Entertainment is here.
Have him come to my office. Nabe-chan, you, too.
I wonder if the last episode's storyboards will get done.
This is the suffering you go through with original content.
Even if the storyboards were to be completed tomorrow,
we only have a little over a month to deliver everything.
Sounds like a tense situation. Do your best, Miyamori.
I'll be cheering you on.
Don't say that like this doesn't concern you!
If you only have a little over a month until delivery,
you'll end up with just the key frames.
Then you'll have to do the in-betweens, clean it up, film it,
then the after-recording and dubbing, then fix this and that...
Oh, no!
Well, do you think we'll make it?
Not a chance!
What Do You Think I Was Trying to Say?
The Third Aerial Girls Squad
The Third Aerial Girls Squad, huh?
Filled with friendship and battles.
It's such a great, passionate series.
Director Kinoshita wanted to work on this, too.
This is totally in right now.
Apparently, it's about to sell a million copies.
So is it going to be a fierce battle?
I think it'll be a bloodbath.
Then we'll have to give it our all.
Oi-chan.
Ah, Ema.
My next episode is the last episode. Any idea when it'll be ready for me?
Sorry. The storyboards for the B part haven't been completed yet,
so it'll probably be a bit longer.
Then could I get some work to help out with episode twelve?
All right. I'll talk to Takanashi-san.
Okay.
What have you been looking at?
Hm?
Anime Pre-order Ranking
It's rare for you to be looking at that stuff, Honda-san.
Exodus! Vol. 1 (First Print Limited Edition)
Hey, it's at number 29. That's not bad at all.
That's just in the anime ranking.
In the overall ranking, it's been bouncing around 100th place.
It's been pretty popular, so it's going up,
but I'd like for it to sell a bit more.
Won't the last episode decide that?
Don't you dare say that to the director.
Exodus! Vol. 1 (First Print Limited Edition)
The pressure would drive him to quit the storyboards completely.
But if you're so concerned with sales that it affects your work,
you won't be able to make anything good.
You can actually say some decent stuff sometimes.
Huh? Really?
We'll just have to do what we can right now.
Get it now with Shinanon Express
The Most Popular Anime Items
How's it going, Director?
How many more pages of the scenario do you have left?
Just four more pages...
You're so close!
Yet so far...
Madoka-san was asking if you needed any help.
What do you say?
No.
Then when is this going to be done?! Please, tell me the truth!
Please! Put us at ease!
Say...
What do you think "entertaining" is?
I'm not falling for that.
But I'm being serious...
Huh?
Can I sit here?
Sure.
You brought your own lunch today?
Yes. I have leftover stewed pumpkin from yesterday.
Please, help yourself.
Really? Then you can have one of my ham cutlets.
Yay! Ham cutlets!
This is good! It's so soft!
The ham cutlet is delicious, too.
You're going to be done with the wheel today, Misa-chan?
You're so fast.
I think I've got the hang of it...
Plus, I've been doing the same thing for a while.
It's been over six months since I joined the company,
and all I've worked on is wheels and tires.
I've only been working on the interior of cars for three years.
Three years?
Five years here. The exterior of cars.
The president just keeps getting more jobs with cars.
The president used to live overseas
and was the CG creator for Zoo Park Story, right?
Yep.
Those CG animals were so cute,
and the way they moved was so fun!
Apparently, this company used to do stuff like that, too.
But it's just been cars for the last six or seven years.
Um... Don't you ever want to make other things?
Yeah, but... It's company policy.
Well, our pay is a bit better than other companies,
and we can get our desired days off, and our benefits package is good, too.
I did apply here in the first place because I thought all those were great.
But...
At this rate, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow...
one year later, two years later... will still be just cars, huh?
Here you go.
The Prince of Baseball
Don't Worry
It's about baseball, and all of the regular voice actors are pretty well-known.
They needed some girls to do walla for the match scenes immediately.
Thank you very much!
Inbox
Mii-chan
Shizuka
Subject: None
Can I stop by your bar today?
Sorry! I have today and tomorrow off.
Hello?
Oh, are you free right now?
Sure.
You said you took time off. Are you not feeling well?
No. I suddenly got some work tomorrow.
You mean you got some anime work?
It's just walla, though...
Walla? Are you playing a boy?
Walla isn't the name of the role.
I've been asked to do background and crowd voices.
I'll be one of many extras.
I don't even have a role name.
That doesn't matter! A debut is a debut!
What's the show called?
It's Prince of Baseball.
Yaki Puri? That's awesome!
So I thought I'd practice today.
I see. Well, do your best! See you later!
Oh, didn't you have something to talk about, Mii-chan?
No, it's nothing important.
After I'm done recording tomorrow, let's have dinner.
Will that be okay?
Yeah.
Then I'll contact Oi-chan-senpai and Ema-senpai, too.
I'll see you tomorrow, then.
Okay! Do your best with the walla!
I will.
Anime debut, huh...
Ryou cheers on Echigo as he heads toward the batter's box. The cheers pause when he sees the stiffness in Echigo's expression.
I wonder what I'm supposed to say...
You can do it!
I'll never forgive you if you lose!
Fight!
Prussia Studio
This is where I failed my audition...
No. Today's the day I'm getting over my trauma.
I've got this.
TV Anime The Prince of Baseball
Entry time for the event tomorrow is ten...
So I'll come pick you up by eight.
Yes, ma'am.
People who get leading roles really do sparkle.
Yeah.
Shall we?
Yeah!
I'm Sakuma Hiromi from Aka Oni Productions. Thank you for having me.
Thanks.
Likewise, I'm Sakaki Shizuka from Aka Oni Productions.
I'm still new, so I look forward to your direction.
Thank you for having me.
Asugawa Gen Sound Director
Shoes aren't allowed in here.
I'm so sorry!
So about The Third Aerial Girls Squad...
Hantou Tatsuya Yotaka Bookshop Editor-in-chief
You've already gotten offers to make the anime from other places, right?
I have, indeed, had some offers.
Of course you have.
It's a title that I'd like to really put our all into.
In short, would you let us do it?
This may sound rude, but do you really think Musani could do it?
Of course!
We'll gather a great team and put everything we've got into it.
We plan to have Kinoshita Seiichi as the director.
Ah, from Jiggly Jiggly Heaven.
You sure this won't end up just like Jiggly?
No... Our current project, Exodus!,
has consistent quality and is quite popular.
Oh. Is that one of Director Kinoshita's?
Exodus! is quite entertaining.
Thank you very much!
The Third Aerial Girls Squad is within the director's field of expertise,
and Musashino Animation will truly give it our all if we can make it.
So please...
But sadly, the decision is not mine alone.
I'll go talk with the people above.
Thank you for your consideration.
That's it for the main audio.
We'll move on to the walla next.
Please do cut 100 to cut 113.
Bottom of the 9th, 6-run deficit, 2 outs.
No runners, and the protagonist is up to bat.
They might lose, but you hope that he'll somehow hit the ball.
Please cheer him on with that in mind.
Turning on the cue lamp. Please do a long take.
You can do it!
I won't forgive you if you lose!
Whoa, whoa, whoa, there.
Girl in red, I think you're a bit too enthusiastic.
I'm so sorry!
Take a step back.
All right, let's try it one more time.
Go!
Go.
You can do it.
Hit it.
Don't lose.
Don't give up.
And cut.
Thank you very much.
Ah, Zuka-chan-senpai.
You're here early.
Oh, yeah.
Apparently, Oi-chan-senpai and Ema-senpai are still at work.
How was the Yaki Puri after-recording?
The protagonist is Nagai Tsukasa-san, isn't it? Did you get to meet him?
Yeah.
He's younger than me but has much more of a presence.
I wonder if it's because he's done so many leads.
Wow!
So you've done an after-recording with amazing people like that.
Yeah.
Did the walla go okay?
Well... It was over in an instant.
On top of that, I stood out too much, so I got in trouble.
That sounds tough.
But I'm sure it was a great experience.
Well, yeah.
It feels like you're
moving gradually forward, Zuka-chan-senpai.
I don't even know how to
become a scenario writer.
I have no idea what my future holds.
But being able to see too much
of your future brings you down sometimes, too.
Huh?
I thought I got closer to my dream by joining a CG company,
but lately, I feel like I'm just getting further away from my dream.
Why's that?
I've only created car parts,
and we've only got the same kind of work lined up for the next three years.
Why not make a suggestion to the president?
Ask him to let you do something else.
Rii-chan, newbies who haven't been there for a year
couldn't say things like that.
That's true, but thinking about my future with that company,
all I can see is myself making wheels, even three years into the future.
If you say that,
I don't even know if I'll have work in the next three years.
Well, it's not like I have much right now, either.
Same here.
I wonder if really we'll be able to make the Seven Lucky Gods someday.
Treasure
It's from Ema.
She says she's not going to be done with work, after all.
Oi-chan-senpai also says she won't be able to make it.
She says her research isn't getting anywhere.
Hm?
She's trying to see if a diesel train comes through Musashi Sakai Station.
A diesel train?
I wonder if one shows up in one of the episodes she's in charge of.
Then maybe I'll help her with her research, too.
She always treats me to tea in her apartment, and I'm bored, anyway.
Oi-chan and Ema are both working so hard.
It feels like they're really making something,
so I'm a little jealous.
Wow! They've got 20" magnesium wheels on a Prius.
The 20" does really fill in the wheel well perfectly,
so the car as a whole looks much sharper.
You really are working hard, Mii-chan.
Huh?
Ah, Takuboku.
"On the day when my friends all seem more eminent than me."
I have some good news for everyone today.
It's been confirmed that we will be doing work
on a game called Grand Speed 2.
The first game was done by a different CG company,
but the maker has specifically asked us to do it.
Tateishi Kouichi Super Media Creations President
That's because the achievements of our company have been acknowledged.
All of you,
please continue putting your soul into every single tire and screw.
Ow!
That tire's pretty sturdy, isn't it?
It's a premium comfort tire.
It's got great grip and water resistance,
and makes the ride smooth. It's also quiet.
What's the matter, Toudou-kun?
The line director, Dobashi-kun, had nothing but praise for you.
At first, your polygon flow was a bit messy,
but now it's apparently very clean.
Um...
Will I be able to do other CG
besides just wheel modeling?
I'll have you working on other CG in the future,
depending on your abilities and aptitude.
Like adding motions.
Are those... all going to be cars?
Cars, yes.
Um... Is there any other CG work besides cars?
Our company hasn't even been around for ten years yet.
However, in the industry,
when you think of cars, it's Super Media Creations.
That's what they say about us now.
That's because we've been so passionate about cars.
That's also why we've received such steady work.
We now also have fifty employees.
Paying fifty people every month
is a very hard thing.
You mentioned other CG,
but is there something in particular that you'd like to work on?
I was thinking
that I wanted to make an anime again
with the members of my high school anime club.
What kind of anime?
Something that both children and adults can enjoy.
If you already have a goal, why not sit down
and think about how to achieve it?
Whatever you decide to do,
if you can't picture yourself in the future,
nothing will begin.
Something's not right...
What's not right?
The ending...
Does that mean you're stuck on the ending?
I was trying to do it according to the scenario, but...
I'm trying to figure out if that conclusion is really okay.
"The members of Tracy are cornered by the police.
Akane and the others, on motorbikes, jump from the aircraft carrier into the ocean."
There's
no way that Akane and the others will survive this, is there?
You're the one who said
you wanted to do this like American new cinema.
That's what I was thinking when we had the scenario meeting...
But there aren't any aircraft carriers in Japan, are there?
We already ordered the design for the aircraft carrier!
Did I?
We wouldn't make it in time if we hadn't.
You know...
What?
If I said I wanted to change the ending...
Would you get mad?
What?
Well, I mean...
I don't think people who watch this will be satisfied with this ending.
More importantly, I'm not satisfied with it!
Can I change it?
Who's going to land this show if you're not going to?
So, how are you going to change it?
What do you think I was trying to say with this project?
I have no idea!
Of course not. Of course you wouldn't know...
All right. I'll contact the writer, Maitake-san.
Maitake Shimeji Scenario Writer
I see. I didn't think you were still in storyboards.
I'm sorry.
I hate to ask, but please help us out.
All right.
Now, then.
What did you want to do most in this project, Director?
Moe?
I don't think that's right.
Didn't you start off wanting to do a bishoujo action series?
Yes, but...
Why did we make the title Exodus! again?
What are Akane and the others running from?
The police...
That's not what Maitake-san is asking.
Maybe they're trying to escape their harsh reality...
What are Akane and the others
going to obtain once they're finished running?
A chance to sing?
Right.
While they're running, all they've been saying is
how they want to be on stage and sing together again.
But Akane and the others are cornered...
By the way, during the initial reading,
didn't you say that Akane was quick to trust others?
Did I say that?
You did.
That has stayed in my head all this time.
Why does Akane trust others so easily?
I'm not sure, but that's just how Akane is.
She trusts them, then gets betrayed.
That's why they end up in a crisis, but she still believes in someone.
I see.
Maybe I wanted to say that it's
important to believe in others no matter what.
If Akane's hopes come true after believing in people all along,
that'll be a nice ending, won't it?
Right...
She kept trusting people, even though she was betrayed.
That goodness in their hearts will open up the future in the end.
Pardon me.
We're throwing out the aircraft carrier.
What?
In the end, Tracy will come back to Musashino Dome...
Because they wished to sing there one more time.
Akane and the others start to sing in the empty dome.
The girls stream their last concert to the whole world!
But the dome
is completely surrounded by the police, and they're totally blocked in!
Even then, Tracy doesn't stop singing!
Eventually, the tens of thousands of people watching online head toward the dome!
They're all people who were not fooled by the rumors,
and just genuinely wanted to hear the girls sing.
People they encountered while on the run,
who believed in their innocence, have also arrived.
They thwart the police and pour into the venue!
And then the song comes to an end!
The spotlight slowly fades...
And that's when...
Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-bang!
The police let loose a barrage of gunfire!
The only light in the darkness is the storm of bullets from the guns!
And then, there is a long silence.
The spotlight comes back on.
There is a hole in the middle of the stage.
Akane and the others have disappeared.
Akane and the others run backstage!
But the outside is completely surrounded by the police, and they're in a life-or-death situation!
It looks like they're finally going to be captured, when...
A cowboy appears
with a hundred horses!
Howdy.
Everyone helps them escape!
Even the police who were after them!
And then, the horses grow wings, and sonic engines sprout from the wings...
I think that's going a bit too far.
Aren't they cleared of their false charges?
That's not the theme, though.
So what happens in the end?
Akane and the others arrive on their horses at the Chofu Airport.
A plane appears in front of them, and...
They jump on!
That's it!
Indeed.
Woo-hoo! We're done!
Thanks so much. You really helped us out.
Nah.
I just came here to play catch.
Horses?
Horses running...
A hundred of them?!
All right!
Hello, this is Musashino Animation.
Oh, thank you for everything.
What? You got your hands on some good duck meat?
Next time on Shirobako, "Just One More."
Just One More