No.5 Kids on the Slope
出典 : Amazon.co.jp
An anime based on a girls’ manga that aired in the spring of 2012.
Set in Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture in the 1960s, it is a passionate and sad story about the adolescence of young people who are absorbed in jazz.
MAPPA, which was established in June 2011, started this anime as its first prime contract work.
Although it was a joint production with Tezuka Production, MAPPA must have already had a strong staff at that time, because they became the prime contractor soon after its establishment.
The highlight of this work is the performance scenes.
In the first drumming scene, the animation fans were amazed by the smooth and powerful drawing, and in the session, which is the most exciting part of jazz, the performance vividly reproduced the breathless atmosphere, bringing out the charm of jazz in a stylish and fun way.
No.4 Dororo
出典 : Amazon.co.jp
This work revived Osamu Tezuka’s masterpiece as a new animation and aired in the winter-spring of 2019.
The epic story follows the journey of Hyakkimaru, who leads a harsh life to regain the parts of his body that were stolen by the demon gods, and Dororo, whose dream is to create a country that does not rely on warriors.
This is the first co-production with Tezuka Productions since Sakamichi no Apollo, and it is a rare anime that a pure Tezuka work was co-produced with another studio.
This is a rare example of a pure Tezuka work being produced in collaboration with another studio, and is probably proof of the trust that was placed in MAPPA.
Since the original work was not yet complete, the settings were changed greatly from the original work to create a modern anime.
Although there are waves of evaluation depending on the episode, overall, the remake received a very high evaluation.
No.3 BANANA FISH
出典 : Amazon.co.jp
This is an anime based on a shoujo manga that was serialized in the 1980s and 1990s.
Although it was a shoujo manga, it was a thrilling story about a war between street kids and the mafia, and at the time of its serialization, it was a hit work that was difficult to adapt into an anime.
Many years later, in the summer and fall of 2018, MAPPA made its first film adaptation of the work, and while some of the settings were rearranged for the modern age, the atmosphere of the work was not lost, making it enjoyable for both fans of the original work and the younger generation.
MAPPA has had a number of hits with works for women, and this work in particular has received high praise.
No.2 In This Corner of the World
出典 : Amazon.co.jp
An animated feature film released on November 12, 2016.
It’s a family drama based on a manga serialized between 2007 and 2009 by Fumiyo Konno, known for “Town of Evening Calm, Country of Cherry Blossoms”, and is set in wartime Hiroshima.
Animated films about war are inevitably difficult to go see casually, and this film was also developed on a small scale, with only 63 theaters showing it when it was released.
However, the film was highly acclaimed at the previews, and after its release, it received rave reviews and won many awards both in Japan and abroad.
The film continued to spread by word of mouth over the years, and became a phenomenally long-running film.
In 2019, “In This (And Many More) Corners of the World” will be released with about 40 minutes of new footage added.
With this addition, the portrayal of Shusaku, the husband of the main character Suzu, and the prostitute Rin has been greatly increased, and the human aspect of the story has been enriched.
MAPPA’s Yuri was also a big hit at the same time, and the huge success of these two works quickly made MAPPA a household name in the anime world.
No.1 Zombie Land Saga
出典 : Amazon.co.jp
As mentioned above, MAPPA rose to prominence with the two films they released in 2016, but it was this Zombieland Saga that was their real breakthrough.
It’s an original anime that aired in the fall of 2018, and it’s an idol anime created with Munehisa Sakai of One Piece Film Strong World as the director.
The content is mainly comedy, but there are also some excellent serious developments such as a desperate performance that makes the most of the zombie setting, and an old idol struggling with the modern idol image.
The content of this work, which deals with themes that cannot be depicted in any other idol anime, is deep and has brought laughter and excitement to many viewers.
The work was so well received that a sequel, “Zombieland Saga Revenge,” was announced, but there has been no news for about a year since then.
As a result of the company’s increased fame, they began to take on sequels to major works by other companies, such as “Granblue fantasy” and “Attack on Titan”, and the main reason for this seems to be that their schedule became too full.
Summary
The founder of MAPPA is Masao Maruyama, who is also known as the model for President Marukawa of “SHIROBAKO” Musani.
At the time of the first “Kids on the Slope,” MAPPA was already a high-quality production studio, but now it seems to have become one of the leading hit makers in the industry.
On the other hand, I am concerned that the production of the sequels to Zon Saga and Yuri does not seem to be progressing well.
On the other hand, I’m concerned that the sequels to Zonosaga and Yuri don’t seem to be making much progress, partly due to the influence of Corona, and it may be a while before they are completed.
