Bakemonogatari

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"Ghostory" redirects here. For the School of Seven Bells album, see Ghostory (album).
Bakemonogatari
Bakemonogatari Up.png
Cover of volume 1 of the light novel series
化物語
Genre Occult detective, Romance, Supernatural
Light novel
Written by Nisio Isin
Illustrated by Vofan
Published by Kodansha
Magazine Mephisto
Original run November 1, 2006 – ongoing
Volumes 16 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo
Music by Satoru Kosaki
Studio Shaft
Licensed by
Hanabee
Network Independent UHF Stations
Original run July 3, 2009 – September 25, 2009
Episodes 12 (List of episodes)
Audio drama
Hyakumonogatari
Written by Nisio Isin
Released August 3, 2009
Original net animation
Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo
Studio Shaft
Licensed by
Hanabee
Aniplex of America
MVM Films
Released November 3, 2009 – June 25, 2010
Episodes 3 (List of episodes)
Anime television series
Nisemonogatari
Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo
Music by Satoru Kosaki
Studio Shaft
Licensed by
Hanabee
Aniplex of America
MVM Films
Network Independent UHF Stations
Original run January 7, 2012 – March 17, 2012
Episodes 11 (List of episodes)
Game
Bakemonogatari Portable
Developer Namco Bandai Games
Publisher Namco Bandai Games
Genre Visual novel
Rating
Platform PlayStation Portable
Released August 23, 2012
Anime television series
Nekomonogatari (Kuro)
Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo
Tomoyuki Itamura
Music by Satoru Kosaki
Studio Shaft
Network BS11, Tokyo MX
Original run December 31, 2012
Episodes 4 (List of episodes)
Anime television series
Monogatari Series Second Season
Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo
Studio Shaft
Original run July 2013 – scheduled
Episodes 26
Anime film
Kizumonogatari
Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo
Studio Shaft
Portal icon Anime and Manga portal

Bakemonogatari (化物語?, "ghostory"), a portmanteau of bakemono (化物?, ghost or monster) and monogatari (物語?, story), is a Japanese light novel series written by Japanese novelist Nisio Isin and illustrated by Taiwanese illustrator Vofan; the series is published by Kodansha under the Kodansha Box imprint. The story centers on Koyomi Araragi, a third-year high school student who survived a vampire attack, and finds himself helping some girls involved with all kinds of apparitions, gods, ghosts, mythological beasts, and spirits. An anime adaptation by Shaft aired 12 episodes between July and September 2009, and released three more episodes online between November 2009 and June 2010. An anime of the sequel Nisemonogatari aired from January to March 2012. An anime of Nekomonogatari (Kuro) aired on December 31, 2012. An anime titled Monogatari Series Second Season will begin airing in July 2013. An anime film will be produced based on the prequel novel Kizumonogatari.

Contents

Plot and setting [edit]

Main article: List of Bakemonogatari characters

Bakemonogatari revolves around Koyomi Araragi, a third-year high school student, who's almost human again after briefly becoming a vampire. One day, a classmate of his, the reclusive Hitagi Senjōgahara, falls down the stairs into Koyomi's arms. He discovers that Hitagi weighs next to nothing, in defiance of physics. Despite being threatened by her to keep away, Koyomi offers his help and introduces her to Meme Oshino, a strange middle-aged man living in an abandoned building, who cured him of being a vampire. Once Koyomi helps solve Hitagi's problem, she agrees to become his friend and, later, his girlfriend.

As the series progresses, Koyomi finds himself involved with other girls, each afflicted by different "oddities", including the ghost of a child called Mayoi Hachikuji, his underclassman Suruga Kanbaru, Nadeko Sengoku, a friend of his sisters, his classmate Tsubasa Hanekawa and his own younger sisters Karen and Tsukihi. To deal with the spectres, Koyomi relies on guidance from Oshino and, later, from Shinobu, the same vampire who attacked him, now with the appearance of an eight-year-old girl.

Most heroines have an item which symbolises their spectres, such as Hitagi's stapler (the claw of a crab), Mayoi's backpack (the shell of a snail), Suruga's arm (the arm of a monkey), Nadeko's hat and jacket (the head and skin of a snake), and Karen's black and yellow suit (the colors of a bee). Although incorporating elements of fantasy, horror, and action, it primarily focuses on conversations between characters, containing parodies of other series, as well as Nisio Isin's trademark word play and metahumor.

Media [edit]

Light novels [edit]

Main article: Monogatari (novel series)

The series was first created by Nisio Isin as a series of short stories for Mephisto magazine. While his previous Zaregoto series featured large casts of characters, each Bakemonogatari story tends to introduce only one new character. The previously published stories, and some new ones, were eventually collected in two volumes as part of the Kodansha Box launch titles in 2006.[1][2] The first volume contains three stories titled "Hitagi Crab" (ひたぎクラブ?), "Mayoi Snail" (まよいマイマイ?) and "Suruga Monkey" (するがモンキー?);[3] the second volume comes with two additional stories titled "Nadeko Snake" (なでこスネイク?) and "Tsubasa Cat" (つばさキャット?).[3]

A prequel to the series, titled "Koyomi Vamp" (こよみヴァンプ?), was published in the first issue of Pandora magazine. It was later released as a separate volume in 2008, titled Kizumonogatari (傷物語?, "Damaged Goods Story"),[4] followed by Nisemonogatari (偽物語?, "Impostor Story"), which was divided into two volumes released in 2008 and 2009:[5] the first containing "Karen Bee" (かれんビー?) and the second "Tsukihi Phoenix" (つきひフェニックス?).[6] The first volume of Nekomonogatari (猫物語?, "Cat Story") released in 2010, subtitled Kuro (黒?, "Black"), contains another prequel to Bakemonogatari, titled "Tsubasa Family" (つばさファミリー?).

The second Monogatari saga, released between 2010 and 2011, delves further in Koyomi's relationship with each of the heroines, including a second Nekomonogatari volume, subtitled Shiro (白?, "White") containing "Tsubasa Tiger" (つばさタイガー?), Kabukimonogatari (傾物語?, "Slope Story") containing "Mayoi Jiang Shi" (まよいキョンシー?), Hanamonogatari (花物語?, "Flower Story") containing "Suruga Devil" (するがデビル?), Otorimonogatari (囮物語?, "Decoy Story") containing "Nadeko Medusa" (なでこメドゥーサ?), Onimonogatari containing "Shinobu Time" (しのぶタイム?) and Koimonogatari (恋物語?, "Love Story") containing "Hitagi End" (ひたぎエンド?).

A third and final Monogatari saga deepens the history of the character Oshino Ōgi, a supposed relative of Meme Oshino, who has emerged as the villain behind the events in some of the stories told above. It is composed of four volumes; Tsukimonogatari (憑物語?, "Evil Spirit Story"), containing "Yotsugi Doll" (よつぎドール?), Koyomimonogatari (暦物語?, "Koyomi Story") containing 12 short stories, Owarimonogatari (終物語?, "End Story") containing "Ōgi Dark" (おうぎダーク?),[7] and Zokuowarimonogatari (続終物語?, "Continued End Story") containing "Koyomi Book" (こよみブック?). The first of the final four books was released in 2012, with the others slated to be released in 2013.[8]

Anime [edit]

Main article: List of Bakemonogatari episodes

The anime adaptation of Bakemonogatari aired between July 3 and September 25, 2009 on Tokyo MX.[9][10] The series is part of Kodansha's Nisio Isin Anime Project and is produced by Shaft, directed by Akiyuki Shinbo with assistance from Tatsuya Oishi, written by Fuyashi Tō and featuring a character designs by Akio Watanabe based on Vofan's original concepts.[11] The music for the series is produced by Satoru Kosaki under the supervision of Yota Tsuruoka.[12] The series was scheduled to be 15 episodes long, but only the first 12 episodes were broadcast. The remaining three episodes were distributed on the official website between November 3, 2009 and June 25, 2010.[13] At Sakura-Con 2012, Aniplex of America announced that they have acquired Bakemonogatari for a North America release.[14] The series was released in North America on Blu-ray on November 20, 2012.[15]

An 11-episode anime adaptation of Nisemonogatari aired from January 7 to March 17, 2012, produced by the same staff as Bakemonogatari. A four-episode anime television series adaptation of Nekomonogatari (Kuro) aired back-to-back on December 31, 2012.[16] Two BD/DVD compilation volumes will be released: the first on March 6, 2013 and the second on April 3, 2013.[16] A 26-episode anime television series titled Monogatari Series Second Season, spanning the novels from Nekomonogatari (Shiro) (猫物語(白)?, "Cat Story (White)") to Koimonogatari,[17] will begin airing in July 2013.[18] A flyer included with the release of Nekomonogatari (Kuro) (猫物語(黒)?, "Cat Story (Black)") announced that the prequel novel, Kizumonogatari, would be adapted into an anime film.[19]

Other media [edit]

A drama CD titled Original Drama CD: Hyakumonogatari (オリジナルドラマCD -佰物語-?), a reference to the parlor game Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai, was released on August 3, 2009.[20] The script was written by Nisio Isin and is bundled with the CD.[20]

A PlayStation Portable visual novel titled Bakemonogatari Portable (化物語 ポータブル?) developed by Bandai Namco Games was released on August 23, 2012.[21][22]

Good Smile Company has made several nendoroid petit figures for the series, releasing them as separate sets. The first set contains the characters Koyomi Araragi, Hitagi Senjōgahara and Tsubasa Hanekawa.[23] The second set contains Suruga Kanbaru, Mayoi Hachikuji and Nadeko Sengoku[24] and the third set contains the Araragi sisters Karen and Tsukihi, as well as Shinobu Oshino.[25] The company also made a line of separate, 1/8 scale figures of Hitagi Senjōgahara,[26] Suruga Kanbaru,[27] Nadeko Sengoku,[28] Tsubasa Hanekawa,[29] Mayoi Hachikuji,[30] and Shinobu. Oshino[31] They also plan to make a figure of the older form of Shinobu from Kizumongatari. They have also made figma figures of several of the characters: Koyomi Araragi,[32] Hitagi Senjōgahara,[33] Mayoi Hachikuji,[34] Suruga Kanbaru,[35] Nadeko Sengoku,[36] and Tsubasa Hanekawa.[37] They have planned to make the Araragi sisters, Karen and Tsukihi. Alter, Bandai, Kotobukiya, and others have made figures of some of the other characters as well.

Reception [edit]

The light novel series ranked sixth in the 2009 issue of Takarajimasha's light novel guide book Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi!; Koyomi Araragi ranked sixth in the Best Male Character while Hitagi Senjōgahara ranked seventh in the Best Female Character.

The anime adaptation won the Users' Special Award in the 2nd annual DEG Japan Awards/Blu-ray Prizes.[38][39] Over one million DVDs and BDs of Bakemonogatari and Nisemonogatari have been sold.[40]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "化物語 (上)" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  2. ^ "化物語 (下)" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on October 16, 2009. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  3. ^ a b "概要" [Outline] (in Japanese). Shaft. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  4. ^ "傷物語" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  5. ^ "偽物語 (上)" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on 18 October 2009. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  6. ^ "偽物語 (下)" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  7. ^ "New Monogatari Book Planned in April, VOFAN Artbook in the Works". Anime News Network. December 23, 2012. Retrieved December 24, 2012. 
  8. ^ "NisiOisin's Next Monogatari Books Slated". Anime News Network. March 25, 2013. Retrieved March 26, 2013. 
  9. ^ "ひたぎクラブ" (in Japanese). Shaft. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  10. ^ "NisiOisin's Bakemonogatari Light Novels to Get Anime". Anime News Network. April 4, 2008. Retrieved August 28, 2008. 
  11. ^ "Bakemonogatari Anime Promo Video Posted". Anime News Network. March 18, 2009. Archived from the original on 21 March 2009. Retrieved March 18, 2009. 
  12. ^ "スタッフ・キャスト" [Staff & cast] (in Japanese). Shaft. Retrieved October 6, 2009. 
  13. ^ "Bakemonogatari Anime Promo Video Streamed". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 3, 2009. 
  14. ^ "Aniplex of America Adds Bakemonogatari TV Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved 6 April 2012. 
  15. ^ "Bakemonogatari Blu-ray Complete Set (S) Limited Edition". The Right Stuf International. Retrieved September 16, 2012. 
  16. ^ a b "Nekomonogatari (Black) Anime's Promo Streamed". Anime News Network. December 7, 2012. Retrieved December 7, 2012. 
  17. ^ "NisiOisin's Nekomonogatari (Black) Anime to Air on TV". Anime News Network. September 26, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2012. 
  18. ^ "Monogatari 2nd Season to Run for 1/2 Year Starting in July". Anime News Network. January 7, 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2013. 
  19. ^ "NisiOisin's Kizumonogatari Light Novel Gets Anime (Updated)". Anime News Network. 2010-07-28. Retrieved 2010-08-02. 
  20. ^ a b "オリジナルドラマCD 佰物語 西尾維新 講談社" [Bakemonogatari: Hyakumonogatari Drama CD] (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on 6 October 2009. Retrieved October 11, 2009. 
  21. ^ "ジャンル検討中の『化物語 ポータブル』が8月23日に発売！ 豪華6大特典が付く限定版も" (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. February 24, 2012. Retrieved August 7, 2012. 
  22. ^ "青春をPSPで妄想し――プレイヤーの想像が創造につながる『化物語 ポータブル』のプレイレポを掲載!" (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2012. 
  23. ^ "Nendoroid Petite: Bakemonogatari Set #1". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  24. ^ "Nendoroid Petite: Bakemonogatari Set #2". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  25. ^ "Nendoroid Petite: Bakemonogatari Set #3". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  26. ^ "Hitagi Senjougahara". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  27. ^ "Suruga Kanbaru". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  28. ^ "Nadeko Sengoku". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  29. ^ "Tsubasa Hanekawa". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  30. ^ "Mayoi Hachikuji". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  31. ^ "Shinobu Oshino". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  32. ^ "figma Koyomi Araragi". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  33. ^ "figma Hitagi Senjougahara". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  34. ^ "figma Mayoi Hachikuji". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  35. ^ "figma Suruga Kanbaru". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  36. ^ "figma Nadeko Sengoku". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  37. ^ "figma Tsubasa Hanekawa". Good Smile Company. Retrieved August 8, 2012. 
  38. ^ "Ponyo, Bakemonogatari, Conan Win Japanese BD Prizes". Anime News Network. February 18, 2010. Archived from the original on 20 February 2010. Retrieved February 19, 2010. 
  39. ^ "第2回「DEGジャパン・アワード/ブルーレイ大賞」受賞作品発表｜DEGジャパン" (in Japanese). deg-japan.jp. Retrieved February 19, 2010. 
  40. ^ "1+ Million Bakemonogatari/Nisemonogatari DVD/BDs Sold". Anime News Network. September 25, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2012. 

External links [edit]

The works of Nisio Isin
Light novels
Novelizations
Manga
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