Danganronpa: The Animation

Danganronpa: The Animation (ダンガンロンパ: The Animation) is an anime series based on Spike Chunsoft's video game Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc.

The series was produced by animation studio Lerche and directed by Seiji Kishi, who was previously known for directing the adaptations of Persona 4: The Animation and Devil Survivor 2 The Animation. The series ran for 13 episodes from July 4th to September 26th, 2013, with an exclusive extended version of the final episode included with the DVD release. The series has been licensed for English release by Funimation, who have produced both a subtitled version and a full English dubbed version. A full German dub has also been released by FilmConfect.

Series Summary
Danganronpa: The Animation is an abridged adaptation of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, the first game in the Danganronpa series. As in the game, the series follows Makoto Naegi, an average high school student who wins a nationwide lottery to attend the prestigious Hope's Peak High School, a school for teenagers who are at the peak of their chosen fields. Students with these extraordinary talents are awarded a special title, such as Sayaka Maizono, who is the Super High School-Level Idol, and are essentially guaranteed success in their future life, as graduates of the school are fast-tracked into high ranking careers. However, after stepping foot onto the school grounds it emerges that all is not as it seems when - after meeting the mysterious bear Monokuma - Makoto and his classmates learn that they are to be trapped in this school for the rest of their lives unless they meet his demands: they must kill another student and not get caught by their peers if they wish to leave.

Development
During the production of the anime series Carnival Phantasm - a production by animation studio Lerche - producer Yuji Higa had the idea of creating a Danganronpa anime. He approach director Seiji Kishi and screenwriter Makoto Uezu, who were working with him on Carnival Phantasm, and recommended the newly released Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc to them. The rest of the staff of Carnival Phantasm also became hooked on Danganronpa after playing the game, and it particularly resonated with them that the game was created by a small staff with a low budget and limited resources, which they themselves could relate to. With his colleagues at Lerche on board, Higa drafted an anime proposal to present to Spike (later Spike Chunsoft), taking care to put across his deep knowledge of the game's lore and with respect for it's unique visual presentation.

At the initial presentation to Spike and the staff of the original Danganronpa game, "Team Danganronpa" were hesitant that the game could be abridged into just thirteen episodes, but Higa's team were insistent on retelling the same story with the same visual details and feeling. The series was approved, and Danganronpa's scenario writer and creator Kazutaka Kodaka joined Lerche's project as an advisor and supervisor, visiting the studio every week and often staying so late that he would miss the last train home. There was ultimately a struggle to fit all of the narrative into 13 episodes, and they were ultimately unable to fully adapt the game's script in ways the team were fully satisfied with due to the amount of script which needed to be cut, but despite the difficulties were still pleased with how they managed to adapt the unique personality of Danganronpa in animation.

Danganronpa: The Animation was first publicly announced, with a tentative air date of Spring 2013 (though it was later pushed back to July), in the December 2012 issue of Kadokawa Shoten's Newtype magazine, and the series had promotional spreads and covers in several preceding magazines such as Animedia, Animage, G's Magazine, Otomedia, spoon.2Di, and PASH. The series was ranked at the 6th most highly anticipated series of the Summer 2013 anime season by readers of Famitsu magazine. The anime's first opening - a mix of the original theme from Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc - was first shown at Anime Contents Expo 2013 on April 8th, 2013, and its ending theme Zetsubōsei: Hero Chiryōyaku was later announced on June 18th, 2013.

A premiere event for Episode 1 was held on June 23rd, 2013 hosted by Megumi Ogata, the Japanese voice actress of series protagonist Makoto Naegi, alongside Yuji Higa, Seiji Kishi, and Danganronpa creator Kazutaka Kodaka. Called the Episode 1 Advance Screening & Special Talk Show, the event - and first episodes - were broadcast live from Roppongi to 10 cinemas around Japan. The series aired in Japan on MBS' Animeism programming block between July 4, 2013 and September 26, 2013. The series is licensed in North America by Funimation, who simulcast it as it aired with English subtitles.

Promotion
On April 24th - May 21st, 2013 an illustration contest was held on the art sharing platform Pixiv to commemorate the release of the series, with entrants tasked with drawing characters from Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. Winners were picked by the anime staff, and would receive a selection of Danganronpa merchandise and signed autographs from both director Seiji Kishi and Danganronpa artist Rui Komatsuzaki. A selection of work from this contest - including the grand prize winner 弾丸論破 by "hagi" was later printed in a compilation art book called the pixiv x Danganronpa The Animation Illustration Collection.

Large promotional posters were produced and displayed at 15 stations along Tokyo's Yamanote Line from June 24th, 2013, with each station displaying a a poster of a different character from the main cast of 15. The posters were displayed in Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ikebukuro, Akihabara, Tokyo, Yurakucho, Shimbashi, Ueno, Meguro, Ebisu, Harajuku, Takadanobaba, Kanda, Osaki, and Yoyogi. A large poster was also on display in Akihabara.

Broadcasts & Physical Releases

 * For more details, see: Danganronpa: The Animation/Releases.

Japanese
In Japan, the series aired between July 4 and September 26, 2013 on ' Animeism programming block, then later aired on, and. Lerche, the animation studio which produced Danganronpa: The Animation, was also the distributor of the series on Blu-ray and DVD in Japan, releasing the first volume on August 28, 2013. The series was released in 7 volumes of two episodes each, with the exception of Volume 7, which contained an unaired extended director's cut of Episode 13. Each volume also received a Limited Edition release, each containing bonus merchandise such as collectible cards, booklets of art materials, exclusive CDs, and other items. The Limited Edition release included an exclusive short story by Kazutaka Kodaka, Makoto Naegi Secret File.

English
On December 31st, 2014, Funimation revealed they acquired the North American home video rights to Danganronpa: The Animation. The cast list for the English dub was revealed on April 4th, 2015, and differed entirely from the English cast of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc with the exception of Bryce Papenbrook as Makoto Naegi. The full series was released as a Blu-ray and DVD combo standard edition on November 10th, 2015 with both English and Japanese audio options. A limited edition version set was also released on November 10th, 2015 in a collectible box. . A Funimation "Super Amazing Value Edition" (S.A.V.E.) was later released on February 7th 2017, which included the full series on Blu-ray and DVD but at a lower price point.

The Funimation releases were distributed by Manga Entertainment in the UK on November 9th, 2015 and in Australia on February 10th, 2016 as separate Blu-ray and DVD editions.

German
German publisher FilmConfect announced they had obtained the license to release Danganronpa: The Animation in German on June 8th, 2016, later releasing details of the German dub cast on July 27th, 2016. The series was released in four volumes in separate Blu-ray and DVD releases, with each volume spanning 3-4 episodes and featuring German and Japanese audio. The fourth and final volume was the subject of heavy delays due to a legal dispute between FilmConfect and Franciska Friede, who voiced Kyoko Kirigiri. As a result, Kyoko's lines were re-dubbed by Johanna Dost.

Opening Themes
Danganronpa: The Animation has three opening themes - the first is an instrumental mix of the main theme of Danganronpa: The Animation, composed by Masafumi Takada. The second, used for the majority of the series, is Never Say Never performed by the ensemble group TKDz2b. The third, a special one-off opening called the Monokuma Song, appears only in episode 4, and parodies the Bullet Time Battle mechanic. It is performed by famous Japanese singer, and features Monokuma, voiced by then Monokuma-voice actress Nobuyo Ōyama.

Zetsubōsei: Hero Chiryōyaku
The main ending theme of Danganronpa: The Animation is Zetsubōsei: Hero Chiryōyaku, however, six different ending videos are used throughout the series, with different characters joining the end card image with Makoto as the plot develops.

Ending Credits
The final end credit sequence in Episode 13 of Danganronpa: The Animation is an anime remake of the ending of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc and uses the same song: Saisei -rebuild- by Megumi Ogata (the voice of Makoto Naegi).