Kaidan Restaurant

Kaidan Restaurant
怪談レストラン (Kaidan Resutoran)
Genre	Horror, Mystery, Supernatural
Anime
Directed by	Yoko Ikeda
Studio	Toei Animation
Released	October 13, 2009 – January 5, 2010

Kaidan Restaurant (怪談レストラン, Kaidan Resutoran) is an anime horror series from Toei Animation in 2009. It derives it's name from "kaidan", which, here, loosely translates as "thriller" (from "kai", meaning strange, mysterious, rare or bewitching apparition, and "dan", meaning talk or recited narrative; a more direct translation would be a ghost or horror story).

Rather than forming a linear plot, the series is instead a collective group of ghost stories similar to what would be traditionally told around a campfire.

Plot

There is a loose theme throughout the series of the "Thriller Restaurant", which is introduced in the first episode. The remainder of the series is a collection of ghost stories reminiscent of the Scary Stories anthology.

Each episode is broken up into three "dishes", namely the Appetizer, the Main Dish, and the Dessert. The "Appetizer" is a short story featuring something supernatural, such as ghosts, spirits, or similar. The "Main Dish" is a longer ghost story similar to the Appetizer, usually with a twist. The "Dessert" is a brief campfire ghost story told by the main character (Ako); these involve characters not related to the series and ends with some sort of a moral.

Characters

Recurring Characters

Ako Ōzora (おおぞら あこ, Ōzora Ako)

Voiced by: Ryoko Shiraishi

Currently attending <school name> Elementary School, Ako is frequently referred to as "Anko" by her friends and fellow classmates. She doesn't have an overly large fascination with ghost stories, but when she hears of one, she likes to learn more about the story and learn facts about it, such as the morals or historical significance, etc.

She is the first to make friends with Sho after he transferred to <school name>.

Shō Kōmoto (こうもと しょう, Kōmoto Shō)

Voiced by: Hiro Yuuki

Sho transferred to <school name>. He is not very social, and he doesn't have many friends, but he sports a massive love of ghost stories of any kind.

Reiko Sakuma (さくま れいこ, Sakuma Reiko)

Voiced by: Masumi Asano

She is the chairperson for Ako's class. She believes that every ghost story and supernatural phenomenon has a logical and scientific explanation behind it.

Ghastly Garçon (おばけ ぎゃるそん, Obake Garuson)

Voiced by: Hiroaki Hirata

The ghost garçon who hosts the Thriller Restaurant. He introduces every meal. He typically appears at the beginning of the show, during opening credits, and after the main course, to wrap up the show.

Supporting Characters

Yūma (ゆま, Yūma)

Voiced by: Yoshihisa Kawahara

Takuma (たくま, Takuma)

Voiced by: Hisayoshi Suganuma

Machiko Sensei (まちこ せんせい, Machiko Sensei)

Voiced by: Machiko Toyoshima

Ishimoto Sensei (いしもと せんせい, Ishimoto Sensei)

Mari (まり, Mari)

Voiced by: Yūko Yajima

Ako's Mother (あこの おかあさん, Ako no Okaasan)

Voiced by: Ai Maeda

Ako's Father (あこの おとうさん, Ako no Otousan)

Voiced by: Kentarou Itou

Bunta Ōzora (おおぞら ぶんた, Ōzora Bunta)

Voiced by: Fuyuka Oura

Episode List

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#	Episode title	Original air date

Theme songs

Ending theme

Lost Boy

• Performance: SEAMO

References to Modern Culture

• In episode two, The Path To A Bottomless Pond tells of a boy who drowned in a pool, then saves another boy who falls into the same pool. This is similar to the San Antonio legend of a school bus full of children stalling on a railroad, then hit by a train. The legend says that if a car stops on the rails, an unknown force pushes the car back off.
• In episode three, The Midnight Princess tells of a young man who was saved from a grisly death by the ghost of his dead father. This is a similar version to the story of a wife who dies in a fatal crash, whose spirit seeks for help to save her still living baby.
• In episode three, Passenger On A Rainy Night tells of a girl getting a taxi ride to her house, where she is revealed to already be dead. This is a version of an urban legend, where a person (usually a young woman) gets a ride from the place of her death to an address, usually the house of a relative or close friend.
• In episode four, Spirited Away shows a boy disappearing from the mortal world. This episode is a reference to Miyasaki's feature film Spirited Away, where a young girl gets trapped in a world ruled by gods, monsters, and demons.

External links

• Kaidan Restaurant's Official Anime Website Template:Jp icon
• DailyRadar's AnimeBlip Page on Kaidan Restaurant
• Kaidan Restaurant (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia