Kamichu!


Kamichu! is a Japanese anime television series, strongly influenced by the Shinto religion, that follows the adventures of teenage goddess Yurie Hitotsubashi and her friends. The title is short for Kamisama de Chūgakusei. The series was created by Besame Mucho, which is the joint pen name of producer Tomonori Ochikoshi, director Koji Masunari, and writer Hideyuki Kurata. It was broadcast by the anime television network Animax on its respective networks worldwide, including Japan, East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, where it received its first English-language broadcast.
The series was adapted as a manga serialized in Dengeki Daioh, a shōnen manga magazine, and collected in two tankōbon volumes.
In July 2008, Geneon Entertainment and Funimation announced an agreement to distribute select titles in North America. While Geneon still retained the license, Funimation would assume exclusive rights to the manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution of select titles. Kamichu! was one of several titles involved in the deal. However, as of August 2011, the rights to the series had expired.

Story

Yurie is a shy and otherwise ordinary middle school girl who suddenly discovers that, overnight, she has become a kami, a goddess in the Shinto sense. She has no idea what sort of goddess she is or what her powers are. Her friends give her the nickname Kamichu, a portmanteau of and. In her journey she meets many other divinities and spirits, and learns the ways of the gods in order to become a great goddess herself. During the course of the series, Yurie grows more in being both a better goddess and as a person.
Kamichu! is set in the Spring of 1983 to the Spring of 1984, in the city of Onomichi, Hiroshima prefecture, on the shores of Japan's Inland Sea. Many of the temples and landmarks shown in the anime are real locations in and around the city, faithfully depicted.

Characters

;Yurie Hitotsubashi
;Matsuri Saegusa
;Mitsue Shijo
;Miko Saegusa
;Kenji Ninomiya
;Yashima-sama
;Shoukichi Hitotsubashi
;Kiyomi Noto
;Ukaru Nishimura
;Bin-chan
;Tama
;Akane Hitotsubashi
;Kenkichi Hitotsubashi
;Ino, Shika, Chou

Media

Anime

There are sixteen episodes in the anime series. Twelve episodes were broadcast on TV Asahi in 720p, omitting episodes 8, 11, 13, and 16. The DVD release included all sixteen episodes. The opening theme was "Fair Weather Followed by Fair Weather" performed by Maho Tomita, and the closing theme was "Ice Candy" performed by MAKO.
On July 3, 2008, Geneon Entertainment and Funimation announced an agreement to distribute select titles in North America. While Geneon Entertainment still retained the license, Funimation would assume exclusive rights to the manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution of select titles. Kamichu! was one of several titles involved in the deal. However, as of August 2011, the rights to the series had expired.
The titles of several episodes are from Japanese pop songs from the 1980s and 1990s.
#TitleOriginal air date

Manga

Kamichu! was adapted as a manga serialized by MediaWorks in Dengeki Daioh, a shōnen manga magazine, and collected in two tankōbon volumes.
There are fourteen episodes plus one short episode in the manga series. Four long episodes consist of two parts.
#TitleRelated Anime episodes

Music

Three Kamichu! CDs were released:
  1. アイスキャンディー Maxi - 2005-08-24
  2. 晴れのちハレ! Maxi - 2005-08-24
  3. Kamichu OST - 2005-10-26

    Reception

The anime received an Excellence Prize at the 2005 Japan Media Arts Festival.