Pani Poni Dash! Emergency Meeting!

Making Pani Poni into an Anime

-What were your first thoughts when you heard rumours about an anime adaptation?

Hikawa

Stuff like who will be the director and who will design the characters, I was nervous because I had no information about it (laughs). Although my editor questioned me with “You’re gonna do an anime? Or not?”, I was in a state where I didn’t understand anything (laughs).

Kanemaki

By the time I and the director heard about it, we happened to be already having planned on making an anime out of this work (laughs). We had once worked previously with the anime Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase, whose staff turned out to go be in charge of “Pani Poni” too. At the meeting for the Special Features of the Last Tsukuyomi DVD, we suddenly found ourselves talking about Pani Poni (laughs).

-What were your impressions after reading the original work?

Shinbo

At first it was difficult, or rather there were parts I didn't quite understand, but once I got to grasp the characters, it was really fun.

Kanemaki

I had same thoughts. As there are a lot of characters, I first thought “I have to remember them all”, but when I started understanding the charm of the characters one by one and see them in different situations, I found myself laughing at the same jokes over and over again.

Shinbo

There were gags I could understand once I reread them.

Kanemaki

Afterwards we heard Hikawa-sensei say “That’s what I’m aiming at”, which was when we realised we had been completely caught in his trap (laughs).

Hikawa

I am grateful for that. With the work being presented like this, all I had to do was go to sleep while the anime got more and more popular (laughs). I think I’m the happiest manga artist in Japan. There’s no happier occupation than this (laughs).

Shinbo

We first met at Square Enix, right? When presenting your work, the discussion started revolving around how you like this and that movie.

Kanemaki

We started off with some deep conversation about Star Trek’s story (laughs). From there on, the whole concept started to take its shape. When doing an anime based on an original work like this, it's normal to have discussions about what and how to show parts from the original work. In this work’s case, the characters were the ones who made it funny and interesting, so I felt that it was better to start idealizing how characters moved and interacted. It’s far different to the anime made up until now.

Shinbo

There’s no plot whatsoever (laughs). When we sit down to come up with a script, we start with some idle chatting.

Kanemaki

Making the script is an exceptional process. If it’s boiled down and crammed into some core base that looks nice and clean, it wouldn’t be anything like “Pani Poni” and no fun at all. Even having said that, I couldn’t avoid creating a core base, but I fumbled for new shapes and forms as I wrote. For that reason, the other screenwriters are pushing themselves to extensive degrees, and they told me that "writing one episode completely drains all their energy" (laughs).

Shinbo

Each comic volume has about 120 pages, but it felt like one volume was packed with about 1000 pages. I want to really capture those intense parts in the anime. Making simple comedy skits was something I absolutely didn’t want to do. Doing so, it wouldn't capture the worldview of Pani Poni. That's why we tried not to be too much eccentric with the music and other stuff.

The Unique Charm of the Anime

-For example, at the end of episode 1, a huge robot appears, but it isn’t mentioned in episode 2 at all. Many of the episodes seem really to end in a surreal way.

Kanemaki

It wouldn't have been interesting if things wrapped up always neatly, so the director had always some ideas, as he thought it was good to end at the point where another story starts. Then that another story isn’t continued in the anime (laughs). In a nutshell, this work is a slapstick comedy, but it tries expressions that wouldn’t be anywhere else than in serious works.

Shinbo

I'm really looking forward to seeing how it is received by the audience. The world of Pani Poni is rather left open, so I wanted to try and recreate it as an anime. I was grateful that they let me do that.

Kanemaki

I thought, "Doing this is okay!" (laughs). I love surreal gags, so I've always thought about making something like this. Previously, I was in charge of the script for Galaxy Angel, which is an anime that a lot of people might remember. From there, I played and twisted even more surreal punchlines, taking them tens of steps further, to the point where there was no coming back (laughs).

-Since there were so many characters, was it troublesome to compose the script?

Kanemaki

It’s a troubling part among other troubles, but it’s really the most fun part. Once we provide a situation, the characters start running around naturally, so it’s only a matter of organizing them. This is because the girls don’t listen to what others say (laughs). If we don’t organize it in a sense like “Now, Miyako is talking, so Himeko can shut up!”, things won’t come out as cohesive (laughs). With this, characters can enter any kind of story world and do the things that makes them unique.

-No. 6’s appearances increasing, and Behoimi being in Class D since the very beginning are some differences from the original work.

Shinbo

No. 6 came into picture as I decided to pick up every girl from Class C, and I wanted to see different sides from her. So, I created also an episode in which No. 6 is the main character. Looking how we structured the episode, it was an adventure. “What could be on the other side of No.6” made me think various things, and it turned out as a good episode. In the anime, there are several characters to whom we created catchphrases for them to stand out, and No.6's "** of the Year" is one of them.

Hikawa

For the manga, I'd like to try doing some No.6 jokes too.

Shinbo

As for Behoimi, Becky transferred in the beginning, and afterwards also Media inevitably moved in, so we were worried about there being too many transfers. We decided it would be more interesting if Behoimi had been there since the beginning.

Kanemaki

Although that made it pretty painful during the Behoimi-centered episode (laughs).

Hikawa

But it turned out as a great story, and I hope everyone will cry when they see Behoimi's great performance (laughs).

-Are there any other episodes that are unique to the anime?

Shinbo

The episode focusing at Captain, it’ll probably be surprising for fans of the original work to see.

Kanemaki

There is one episode that depicts an unexpected side of Captain, with a certain character getting involved and things get out of hand (laughs). There are also episodes with a parallel world setting, but as only 26 episodes were produced in total, there’s really not that many.

Shinbo

26 episodes just isn’t enough for anything. 30 minutes isn’t enough for one episode.

Hikawa

I hope SquEni-san will do their best to make a sequel happen (laughs).

Ideas from Staff Members in Use

-Director Shinbo, were there any challenges you faced?

Shinbo

It hasn't been particularly difficult, and I've been enjoying being a director (laughs). However, I think the work relies on its characters, so I tried to make sure the characters didn’t lose the heart of their original counterparts. I don't know if you call this as a hardship, but I made sure that this idea is passed to other staff members too. As long as we can do that for the majority of our staff, everyone can come up with lots of different ideas

Kanemaki

It was something fresh for me too. It's not like a normal anime process where the staff handle exaclty what's on the storyboard, but rather, the staff all look at the storyboard, throw out ideas, and the most interesting one is then used

Hikawa

Going from storyboard to film, one or two charms are always bound to change.

Shinbo

For example, the reason chibi characters appear here and there was because we were thinking about whether we could display images of characters who are speaking off-screen. Before we knew it, they had turned into chibi characters and were moving. We are the ones who come up with ideas for the script and storyboard, and the directors, Shin Oonuma-san included, expand them even further.

Hikawa

The way how those chibi characters move is pretty funny.

Shinbo

I think it also depends on the sense of each episode director, so it’s about choosing the best and fitting one for each situation. I thought of wanting to leave in parts that feel like are made ad-lib, so I tried not to keep it all detailed, but rather giving a sense it was made live at the moment. When making a realistic anime, the settings and directing methods are decided to its fine details, but I deliberately didn't do that this time. If I laughed to it at the first time of watching it, it would be OK (laughs). Rather than doing what the director decides, we went with the most funny thing the staff suggested (laughs).

Kanemaki

Even with a script, when it’s getting out of control and you start thinking “This is pretty dangerous”, it’s best to pull it back.

-How about the character designs?

Shinbo

Character designer Kazuhiro Oota-san did a great job. With no need to guide him, I’m really glad I asked for him

Hikawa

The expressions were made surprisingly cute, and the manga got excessively influenced by Oota-san’s designs. Oota-san particularly wanted more density, focusing on how to make the story denser compared to the manga, which goes to show his great motivation.

Things to See, Things to Hear, There’s Lots and Lots More!

-What’s the atmosphere after recording at the studio?

Shinbo

A non-stop fun atmosphere. As expected with a work like this, instead of rehearsing it several times to its finest detail, I think it’s closest to true emotions to record it when everyone is really into it, like with “eiya”.

Kanemaki

The main cast has been the same since the Drama CDs, so they have been leading the show in a great way. Becky's character is so perfectly developed. Chiwa (Saitou)-chan gives me the feeling that “It’s so fun that they’re playing around” inside studio.

Kanemaki

This time the script for an anime was full of wordplay and fun aspects of Japanese language from the start, so it was best to let the voice actresses convey the jokes through their performance. The actors are very excited, and I feel like I'm constantly getting inspirations for new jokes every time we finish recording.

Hikawa

Even the directorial actor Mugihito-san got really into it and called it “pretty fun”. “You can come up with as many jokes as you like”, he said (laughs).

Kanemaki

That’s the magic. For us screenwriters, the most difficult thing is to avoid creating something that anyone can write and make look like fun (laughs). Giving birth to a script is painful and troublesome thing, but as you can see, we haven’t been defeated.

-What about the theme song?

Hikawa

I think it’s a good and catchy song. I haven't seen the illustrated version yet, but I'm looking forward to it.

Shinbo

Everyone, listen to it and buy the CD (laughs). I asked for a rather old, 70’s-styled song. Since it will be broadcasted late on a Sunday night, I wanted to make it as acceptable for a wide range of people as possible. Making it something you’d hear nowadays would be a bit off.

Kanemaki

It helps to differentiate itself from other works. If it were to become something modern, like all the recent stories set in a school campus, where there are just a lot of girls, it wouldn't be "Pani Poni". That’s why the way how characters interact isn’t anything like with current trends.

-Lastly, please say something to the viewers.

Shinbo

Watch ’em all (laughs).

Hikawa

Buy the DVD (laughs). If everyone buys the DVD, we can make a sequel (laughs).

Shinbo

I'd love to watch the finished film without knowing that I made it. But already knowing it makes it all frustrating (laughs).

Kanemaki

I’m really the same way. I'm a big fan of Pani Poni myself. I'm looking forward to the reactions of people who see it. I’d like them to see it anyhow, as I think this time the anime is something special.

Hikawa

There are many things that you can’t see without slow motion, so please take your time with watching.

Kanemaki

Watching it while doing something else will have you miss it, so make sure you watch it with your eyes not slipping anywhere. There are lots of fun things you'll miss out if you watch it only once.

Shinbo

I want people to pay attention to all the scenes. I want people to watch the tape as many times as they like, but I want them to concentrate and watch it seriously when not recording it. In the old days, when we didn't have video tapes, we used to watch things like that and remember everything.

Kanemaki

The best thing to do is to see the broadcast and then buy the DVD to check if you remember it all (laughs). I think it's entertaining no matter how many times you watch it, and you'll enjoy it more every time you watch it. If you find the anime interesting, please consider buying the manga and delve yourself even deeper to the World of Pani Poni and the Realm of Pani Ponism (laughs).

Hikawa

Thank you very much (laughs).