News

Nobuhiko Okamoto Leads Hybrid Child Boys-Love Anime Cast

The wraparound jacket band on the 17th volume of Shungiku Nakamura's Junjo Romantica boys-love manga is listing the anime cast for another Nakamura story, Hybrid Child, on Friday.

• Nobuhiko Okamoto as Kotarō Izumi
• Daisuke Hirakawa as Hazuki
• Ryōhei Kimura as Ichi Seya
• Tsubasa Yonaga as Yuzu
• Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Tsukishima
• Yūki Ono as Kuroda

Digital Manga Publishing describes the short stories in the Hybrid Child manga:

The Hybrid Child is an amazing android that can grow if it is lavished with enough love and care from its owner. Neither fully machine nor fully human, the various Hybrid Child models develop strong emotional bonds with their owners.

This volume contains several short stories of love, sacrifice, and drama: Young Kotaro learns the importance of responsibility when his Hybrid Child's lifespan runs out. The tragic swordsman Seya learns to love again with the help of his Hybrid Child, Yuzu. The final tale tells the story of Kuroda, the creator of the Hybrid Child designs, and how his lost love inspired their creation.

The anime was first announced in 2011.

Seiji Biblos originally serialized the manga in Be x Boy Gold magazine from 2003 to 2004, and Kadokawa Shoten later published the one-volume manga in 2008. Digital Manga Publishing released the manga in North America. The manga already inspired a drama CD adaptation with a different cast from the upcoming anime.

Nakamura's Junjo Romantica and Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi ~Onodera Ritsu no Baai~ manga also inspired anime projects of their own.

[Via 0takomu]