Idolmaster: Xenoglossia
Idolmaster: Xenoglossia | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Anime Details | ||||||||
|
Idolmaster: Xenoglossia (Japanese: アイドルマスター XENOGLOSSIA Aidorumasutaa XENOGLOSSIA) is a spin-off anime television series by Sunrise, loosely based on Bandai Namco's game series THE iDOLM@STER. It was first broadcast in Japan on April 2, 2007 on TV Hokkaido and various other UHF television stations, three months after the release of THE iDOLM@STER (Xbox 360). The series was also broadcast over the internet on the Japanese website @nifty. The series has been licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America and was released on DVD in late 2012 with English subtitles.[1] Starting from March 2018, Xenoglossia has been available for streaming on Hulu JP.
Storyline
107 years before the beginning of Xenoglossia, the Moon was destroyed in an event known as "Lost Artemis." Remnants of the Moon formed quintillions of debris that floats through Earth's orbit. After over a century, humanity is able to live mostly normally.
Haruka Amami wants to become an idol, and decides to take part in the "Idolmaster Project." She believes this is an audition to become an idol, and is excited to be accepted and goes to Tokyo to start work at the Mondenkind Agency. She is surprised to find that this was not an idol audition, but instead a secret audition to find "Idolmasters," the girls who pilot robots known as iDOLs to destroy the debris threatening Earth.
Haruka is hesitant to become an Idolmaster, but after being rescued by the iDOL known as Imber, she decides to join Mondenkind, working alongside the other girls to protect Earth and find the remaining iDOLs.
A rival to Mondenkind, Turiavita, seek to take the remaining iDOLs from Mondenkind, as well as find the missing iDOLs so that they can destroy humanity. Much of the series focuses on the battle between Mondenkind and Turiavita for control of the iDOLs as well as the shifting bonds and rivalries between the Idolmasters themselves.
Characters
- Haruka Amami (voiced by Yuka Iguchi)
- Yukiho Hagiwara (voiced by Yui Horie)
- Iori Minase (voiced by Yukari Tamura)
- Yayoi Takatsuki (voiced by Ami Koshimizu)
- Makoto Kikuchi (voiced by Eri Kitamura)
- Ritsuko Akizuki (voiced by Mai Nakahara)
- Azusa Miura (voiced by Tomo Sakurai)
- Chihaya Kisaragi (voiced by Kaori Shimizu)
- Ami Futami (voiced by Kaori Nazuka)
- Mami Futami (voiced by Momoko Saitō)
- R.I.F.F.A (voiced by Yukana)
- Naze Munakata (voiced by Mamiko Noto)
- Naraba Daidou (voiced by Daisuke Ono)
- Sorewa Suzuki (voiced by Mikako Takahashi)
- Chikako Minamoto (voiced by Naomi Shindō)
- Hotaru Yasuhara (voiced by Ryōka Yuzuki)
- Hibiki Saku (voiced by Takuma Takewaka)
- Karasu (voiced by Akira Ishida)
- Joseph Shingetsu (voiced by Kazuhiro Nakata)
iDOL Robots
Mondenkind
- Prometheus–1 Imber
- Master: Chihaya Kisaragi, Haruka Amami
- Colors: white and indigo blue (episodes 1–7), white and pink (episodes 8–26)
- Name origin: Mare Imbrium
- Prometheus–2 Nebula
- Master: Azusa Miura (past), Makoto Kikuchi (episodes 1–13), Iori Minase (episodes 14–26)
- Colors: yellow and orange
- Name origin: Palus Nebularum
- Prometheus–4 Tempestas
- Master: Mami Futami
- Color: red
Turiavita
- Prometheus–3 Nubilum
- Master: Chihaya Kisaragi, Yukiho Hagiwara
- Colors: black and red
- Name origin: Mare Nubium
- Prometheus–5 Hiems
- Master: Makoto Kikuchi
- Colors: white and yellow
- Name origin: Mare Hiemis
- Epimetheus–1 "Epi-chan"
- Master: R.I.F.F.A
- Color: blue
Episodes
- Episode 1: Penguin Going to Tokyo
- Episode 2: Master of iDOL
- Episode 3: iDOL and Master
- Episode 4: Dumplings and Corn Dog
- Episode 5: Cold Hands, Warm Hands
- Episode 6: Height of Twenty Thousand Metres
- Episode 7: I'm Back. Welcome Back.
- Episode 8: Konpeito Night Stories
- Episode 9: Key Board
- Episode 10: Unharmoinious Sound (Noise)
- Episode 11: Niflheimr
- Episode 12: Muspellsheimr
- Episode 13: Room 501
- Episode 14: Somehow, It's Difficult to Move
- Episode 15: Hangar Heaven
- Episode 16: Idol and iDOL
- Episode 17: Stray Rabbit
- Episode 18: Night
- Episode 19: Goodbye
- Episode 20: The Way Back Home
- Episode 21: The Last Pudding
- Episode 22: Key and Bat
- Episode 23: RUN!
- Episode 24: Revival Calendar Year 108
- Episode 25: The Spring Snow
- Episode 26: The Moon and The Penguin
Bonus Episodes
Included with the DVD releases of the anime were short videos showing more about the characters' pasts and daily lives, as well as an extended version of the final episode. The titles for episodes 2 through 8 were taken from popular songs at the time.
Bonus Episodes | ||
---|---|---|
DVD | Title | Release date |
01 | Welcome to Dorm Izayoi! (Japanese: 十六夜寮へようこそ Izayoi-ryou e Youkoso!) |
July 27, 2007 |
Haruka and Yukiho introduce the dorm they will be staying at. | ||
02 | After All, They're iDOLs! (Japanese: なんてったってアイドル! Nantettatte Aidoru!) |
August 24, 2007 |
Haruka and Iori describe the stats and functions of the iDOLs, as well as the terminology surrounding them. | ||
03 | Suntanned Mermaid (Japanese: 小麦色のマーメイド Komugi-iro no Maameido) |
September 25, 2007 |
Makoto and Yukiho comment on the various members' swimsuits from their beach trip. Makoto gets excited about crabs. | ||
04 | Even If I Become an Old Lady (Japanese: 私がオバさんになっても Watashi ga Obasan ni Natte mo) |
October 26, 2007 |
Ritsuko discusses her history at Mondenkind to Iori and how she used to be an Idolmaster candidate to pilot Nebula. | ||
05 | And Yet It's Spring (Japanese: 春なのに Haru na no ni) |
November 23, 2007 |
An episode depicting Makoto's and Azusa's time living together. | ||
06 | More Than Anyone in the World, For Sure (Japanese: 世界中の誰よりきっと Sekaijuu no Dare yori Kitto) |
December 21, 2007 |
Haruka and Yayoi talk to each other about the boy Haruka has a crush on, though Yayoi doesn't know it's Imber. | ||
07 | Sweet Memories | January 25, 2008 |
Ami and Mami meet Tempestas for the first time. | ||
08 | Love and Heartbreak and Encouragement and... (Japanese: 愛しさと切なさと心強さと Itoshisa to Setsunasa to Kokoro Tsuyosa to) |
February 22, 2008 |
Yukiho and Chihaya spend time together and reminiscence on their past together. | ||
09 | Episode 26 Epilogue | March 25, 2008 |
An epilogue showing the characters' lives after leaving Mondenkind. |
Song Appearances
Opening themes
- Binetsu S.O.S!! (opening theme, episodes 2-15)
- Zankoku yo Kibou to Nare (opening theme, episodes 16-25)
Insert songs
- Koi Damon ~Shokyuuhen~ (insert song, episodes 2, 5, 7-9, 13, 16, 20, 22)
- Moonlight Labyrinth (insert song, episode 13)
- Natsuzora no Brooch (insert song, episode 16)
- Binetsu S.O.S!! (insert song, episode 26)
- Zankoku yo Kibou to Nare (insert song, episode 26)
Ending theme
- Yuukyuu no Tabibito ~Dear boy (ending theme, episodes 1-25)
Staff
- Director: Tatsuyuki Nagai (長井龍雪)
- Producer(s): Naotake Furusato (古里尚丈), Toyota Todoroki (轟 豊太)
- Script writer: Jukki Hanada (花田十輝)
- Character Design: Hiroshi Takeuchi (竹内浩志), Toshiyuki Kubooka (窪岡俊之) (original)
- Mechanical Design: Junichi Akutsu (Bee-Craft) (阿久津潤一(ビークラフト)) (iDOL design), Hiroyuki Taiga (大河広行) (guest)
- Art Director: Toshiyuki Tokuda (Studio Easter) (徳田俊之(スタジオ・イースター))
- Color Design: Sayoko Yokoyama (横山さよ子)
- Cinematographer: Masaru Oishi (大石英勝)
- Editing: Kazuhiko Seki (関一彦)
- Music composer: Tsuneyoshi Saito
- Music Producer: Shunji Inoue (井上俊次)
- Sound Director: Youta Tsuruoka (鶴岡陽太)
Gallery
Trivia
- Since Idolmaster: Xenoglossia was initially made without Namco's supervision, it features an entirely new line-up of voice actresses.
- Earlier upon the broadcast, the anime was not well-received, due to its different nature compared to the games. It is also said that the anime, along with various other reasons, caused such an unrest within the fandom, which peaked on Tokyo Game Show 2010.
- The voice actresses were also not involved further in the franchise, most likely as a result of the negative reception from the fandom.
- However, this all has since changed, with several fans nowadays starting to appreciate it as well as some of the voice actresses participating in BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Festival in 2019.
- Xenoglossia also marks iDOLM@STER's first involvement with the label Lantis.
- Penguins are heavily featured in the anime. Yayoi likes to wear a giant penguin costume during times.
- Idolmaster: Xenoglossia was featured in Super Robot Taisen: X-Omega for a limited time Christmas themed event where Haruka and the Imber could be obtained as exclusive event units.
- The Producers of the game wanted to introduce mecha series that were unconventional and not suited for mainline Super Robot Taisen games due to logistical or licensing reasons, and Xenoglossia was easily a top choice for adoption.