R.O.D the TV is a Japanese anime television series, animated by J.C.Staff and produced by Aniplex, directed by Koji Masunari and scripted by Hideyuki Kurata. It follows the adventures of three paper-manipulating sisters, Michelle, Maggie and Anita who become the bodyguards of Nenene Sumiregawa, a famous Japanese writer. Featuring music by Taku Iwasaki, the series is a sequel to the Read or Die OVA. Its official title of R.O.D the TV is a catch-all acronym referring to the inclusion of characters from both Read or Die (the light novels, manga and OVA) and the Read or Dream manga, Promotional material for R.O.D the TV implies that the show centers around the three sisters of Read or Dream; however, Nenene Sumiregawa of Read or Die is also considered a protagonist.

R.O.D the TV was broadcast for 26 episodes from October 1, 2003, to March 16, 2004, on pay-per-view satellite television platform SKY PerfecTV!. It also aired across the terrestrial Fuji Television station from October 15, 2003, to March 18, 2004.

Plot

Set in 2006 five years after the events in Read or Die, Nenene Sumiregawa, a renowned author in Japan who was a publishing prodigy at 13-years-old, is invited to a promotional book signing in Hong Kong. However, Nenene's career has been at a standstill: she has neither written nor published a single novel since her former high school teacher and best friend, Yomiko Readman has mysteriously vanished. Unable to cope with the loss of her friend, she has slipped into an aggressive state of writer's block.

After the initial action-filled adventure, the first several episodes switch tone, becoming a slice-of-life-odd-couple comedy, focusing on tensions between Nenene and the sisters who move into her apartment and mooch off her, all while dealing with various psychos in their everyday lives. The sisters also perform odd jobs as agents of Dokusensha (ostensibly, part Chinese publishing company, part organization with the purpose of collecting rare and powerful documents). This eventually puts them and Nenene in direct conflict with the British Library and the protagonists of Read or Die (Dokusensha is established as the British Library's rival in the Read or Die novels and manga).

Events grow more serious as the series progresses. Atrocities are committed by both sides, thrusting the main characters into the middle of a conflict between the literary superpowers of the British Library and Dokusensha, sharing the goal to control the entire world and even rewrite history. After a horrific collision with Dokusensha where the sisters defect as agents and are framed as terrorists, Nenene and the Paper Sisters set out to find the missing Yomiko.

When Mr. Lee, Nenene's editor who secretly worked for Dokusensha is killed, he leaves behind a clue hidden in a cigarette lighter, notes which reveal Dokusensha's motives and a missing book that the British Library has been searching for, which may have something to do with Yomiko's disappearance. The girls arrive at the National Diet Library, hoping to find Yomiko and uncover the truth. Thus, our heroes are accidentally plunged into the British Library's path to world domination, which is linked to both Yomiko and a young boy who Anita befriends, Junior. In order to save the world from literary terrorism, the girls must face ultimate risks that may threaten their sisterhood.

Characters

Main characters

The Paper Sisters names were derived from those of three real Hong Kong action stars: Maggie Cheung, Anita Mui, and Michelle Yeoh (who has also been credited as "Michelle Khan").

: The youngest sister is a spitfire who specializes in using her paper offensively (by using paper "blades" and throwing index cards like shuriken), but she also relies upon her impressive physical martial arts skills in combat. Unlike all other known Paper Masters, she dislikes books (but is obsessed with collecting frogs and drinking milk). Although Anita sometimes acts bratty and self-important, she deeply loves her sisters. She frequently fights with Nenene, who is equally outspoken, but beneath their squabbles, they demonstrate a strong bond through the series. She is well liked in her class and is especially admired by classmate named Hisami Hishiishi (whom Anita nicknames "Hisa"). Hisa compares the two to the main characters with an extremely close friendship in Anne of Green Gables. Like Maggie, she is also flat chested but unlike the latter, she mostly resembles an elementary school student (especially in stature). At the start of the series, her past is shrouded in mystery and one of her earliest memories involves a traumatic fire incident. came in 2001 after the idea to re-cut the prequel with new animated scenes and re-release it as a film was dropped. Though Nenene never appeared in the OVA, concept sketches of her character were still included in the original pitch deck to SME Visual Works and the creators planned for her to feature heavily in the proposed film.

This was partly because both Japanese and American fans had complained to series creator and writer Hideyuki Kurata at pre-screenings and conventions that Nenene, who was a fan favorite of the light novels and manga especially in Japan, was absent from the OVA. Therefore, it was decided that Nenene would be cast as a main character for the TV series where Kurata elaborated: "If that was what the world wanted, then we had to let her appear in the show! [...] [She] had given people dreams and laughter and had shown un-highschool-girl-like [sic] manliness."

Furthermore, he "wanted to take the sequel in a cheerier direction [compared to the serious tone of the OVA], like Charlie's Angels." "[T]he characters in our R.O.D are mostly middle-aged men," Kurata recalled humorously in a discussion he had with director Koji Masunari (referring mainly to the large cast of supporting men from the original novels as well as the lineup of antagonists in the OVA). Both creators expressed interest in a TV series sequel, using Charlie's Angels as a springboard for a show with "lots of girls in it" to set it apart from the R.O.D incarnations that came before it. However, Kurata has felt that the men of R.O.D "seem rather overshadowed by the female characters" in the TV series as he related strongly (half-joking) to their work ethic and "devot[ion] to their jobs," even if it involved "taking over the world [in Joker's case] or earning money for child support [like Drake]." Though Kurata considered the story of the OVA to be complete, he also said that "there were still many mysteries left behind."

Characters, story and setting

Women of Read or Die

Kurata has commented that although he had written Nenene as a teenager in the Read or Die novels and comics, which preceded the OVA as a promotional gig, Additionally, "the OVA is only for old men and old ladies," joked Kurata. "So [in the] next [version, I wanted] to do something more glamorous [with three sisters]," citing the term "moe" as the show's aesthetic. "Apparently, there was some booing [from fans]," remembered Kurata Kurata name-dropped various Izumi Takemoto manga titles as examples for his team to work off of for the central mood, including The Holy Girl Who Kicked Her Out as well as the work of writer Ohira Michuru. ("King" deriving from the alternate reading of "Yeoh": "Khan." In turn, "Khan" directly translates as "king"). "[It's] probably much too close to be called a coincidence," said the producer of New Generation Pictures, Kevin Chu (one half of the team responsible for the English adaptation). "So I believe that it's safe to say that Kurata-san is a fan."

Kurata aimed to draw distinct personalities for each of the Paper Sisters. Anita, in particular, "became a strong Izumi Takemoto character," Uon, the character designer thought, "kicking [her sisters] and picking her nose." Also, her complaint, "I hate school" in an early episode was lifted directly from a scene in one of Takemoto's manga. "Maggie, unlike what her outward appearance suggests, is different on the inside than on the outside," said Hirata. "I wonder if [the audience] can understand and accept her inner love, cuteness and weakness as the story progresses [...] [because I] want to grow with Maggie."

Along with Charlie's Angels, Kurata modeled the style of the sisters' banter from the Okuda (a.k.a. "Onda") Sisters, characters which featured in the 1980s Fuji TV Network sitcom Yappari neko ga suki (lit. I Like Cats After All!, or Love Cats). The themes of genetic engineering, which feature in the second half of the series (touching on the sisters' origin story), were inspired by the Japanese author Toshiko Endo's comic, Heaven. Other literary influences were derived from H.G. Wells's War of the Worlds. "That was the first novel that I ever read," said Kurata which he embedded visual elements from in the end of Episode 24: "You Know Me".

Nishihama Students and the Men of R.O.D

Kurata wrote the teleplays for the anime and the manuscripts for the Read or Dream chapters concurrently (plus, balanced his work load with the ongoing light novels). He worked closely with artist Ran Ayanaga, one of the character designers who joined the creative team to produce sketches of the background characters and Anita's classmates. Her chief responsibilities coincided with drawing the artwork for Read or Dream and she was credited with the original designs for Anita's closest companion, Hisami and Hisami's childhood friend, Toru Okahara. Though he had invented Hisami for the TV series to begin with (and was heavily influenced by Ayanaga's designs that would be re-adapted for the Read or Dream manga), Kurata explained: "Because [Hisami had] already appeared in the anime [in 2003 before Read or Dream volumes 3 and 4 were published in 2004 and 2005, respectively], when we got ready for Hisami to appear in the manga, we gave it some thought. We thought we'd have some overlap with the anime, but make her a little different. In the anime, she's an ordinary schoolgirl, but for the manga we made her a young novelist [like novel Nenene]." Kurata took advantage of the creative space he had in the manga chapters to expand on her relationship with Anita.

Considering the opposite moods of the OVA and TV sequel: "The main motif - or theme, rather," said Masunari, "was 'bonds.' In the previous work, we dug deep into the bonds of friendship between Yomiko and Nancy. [For the TV series] we made the theme 'family bonds.' That's probably the reason it feels so different." While Kurata and Masunari arrived at a consensus from the start to stay true to the show's themes of female friendships and familial love, Kurata claimed that he balanced these stories by "express[ing] the sorrow and hardness of being a man through the male characters," citing Joker and Drake as prime examples. "I've known [them] for a long time," commented Kurata, "[as] a pair of old faces" since he began writing the novels, manga and OVA.

Joker's seiyu, Hozumi Goda conveyed his joy at returning to perform in the TV sequel, even if he had to find another voice for his character as his personality was no longer the same. "[In the OVA], I think [Joker] was a good and humble person," he was quoted in the DVD interview for Volume 6. While the tone and character setting had changed significantly from the OVA, he explained: "I'm certain this does not mean that Joker has become a bad person. For him, it's not about justice. It's: 'Let's do it'." Goda believed too that Joker's inner qualities were still very much present, that his views of the world were there "since the beginning." He said further: "I don't have an answer [for how he changed]." On the dubbing process for his role, Goda listed the '90s Fuji Television anime, Chibi Maruko-chan as a source of inspiration (especially the protagonist's grandfather, Tomozou) for the "rough villainy" of Joker's emotions. One of the biggest changes that Kurata considered for his character, which never came to fruition, was that he and Nancy would have had a child together. The identity of the child's father would be given to another character from the OVA (which, story-wise, would have made more sense). was selected for the voice of Junior as she could convincingly disguise her voice and sound like a young boy on the cusp of puberty (except, she admitted she was confused about his gender when she was first cast). Junior was one of her earliest voice acting gigs, commenting: "I think there is a certain amount of conscious effort put into playing a boy." Similar to actress Mika Sakenobe and her lack of knowledge surrounding Wendy's backstory, Saiga had also been kept in the dark about Junior's fate, learning of his character arc only during the recording sessions. in her finalized battle outfit with bun coverings (which only sit on top of her head as accessories). Uon claimed he referenced "panda ears" for Anita's twin buns. Due to her youth and outward innocence "She's lively and cute," he told PALETTA Magazine in 2003. "Even if she's a boyish girl."

Specifically, producer Kevin Chu recommended for his team to request a videotaped audition with child actress Rachel Hirschfeld for the role of Anita King as he had worked with her previously on Haibane Renmei (where she played a minor part, Hana). Hirschfeld, who was then new to anime dubs, came from a trained theatre background. She attended a performing arts middle school as well as starred as Tina Denmark in the acclaimed Off-Broadway musical, Ruthless! at the Hudson Mainstage Theatre in Hollywood, California during the second half of the series' dubbing production (which she "plugged" at the end of Volume 6's commentary track). "The voice that I used for Anita," revealed Hirschfeld on the DVD extras, "is not my normal voice; my normal voice is really high-pitched." Although Hirschfeld was a pre-teen like her character, she noted: "Anita and I have two totally different personalities. Anita is sort of a tomboy with magic powers, she's super smart and is like a parent trapped in a 13-year-old body."

A handful of the child actors were already acquainted with one another off-screen. Outside of New Gen titles, Hirschfeld had worked with Jessica D. Stone (voice of Junior) on a musical production while Megan Taylor Harvey (Hisami) and Brittney Lee Harvey (Toko, Anita's classmate) are sisters in real life. JB Blanc (voice of Joker) extended his skills towards not only acting but dialect coaching, mentoring J.D. Stone in the booth so she could acquire the authentic West London dialect that Jaffe envisioned for Junior's character (along with the core agents of the British Library). recalling how in the later episodes, she had issues with nailing " 'psychological' in a British a accent," for which she joked that Blanc would tease her for butchering the dialect. On the other hand, he humorously remarked that he wasn't keen that Joker was blonde. Flynn was pleased to portray a female role that was "multi-faceted," feeling that Wendy only appeared charming on the exterior, but truthfully, harbored "a deep, possibly cold-blooded personality buried within." For an action series, she noted, "It is rare to find animation where the lead women are such strong and yet realistic characters," even when she took into account Wendy's attraction to Joker.

thumb|left|Taliesin Jaffe (ADR director), Rachel Hirschfeld (Anita), Jessica D. Stone (Junior), Siobhan Flynn (Wendy) and JB Blanc (Joker) at the R.O.D the TV panel at Anime Expo in Anaheim, California (3 July 2005).

Unlike Yomiko's OVA English dub counterpart, Hellena Taylor is an English native, Carrie Savage, cast as Nancy, was another recognizable face from the OVA whose character had been put through obvious physical and personality alterations. "Here was this grown woman," thought Savage, "with a child-like personality who also had to display the loving qualities of being a mother. [...] [But] I hope that she gets to go back to her vixen-risqué personality [from the OVA]."

Patrick Seitz was cast in a small yet pivotal role, playing Nenene's ex-smoker editor Mr. Lee (who may or may not have ulterior motives), yet Seitz related strongly to the characters and the show's themes. "Books have had quite an impact on me," he was quoted in the DVD extras. "I relate to the bookless daze in which Maggie stumbles through [Kanda-Jinbōchō], and Michelle's manic purchase of every title in sight, because I've acted similarly in like circumstances. I laugh at Nenene and Anita's frustration with them because it's a frustration my own appetite for books has so often prompted in my less text-addled friends."

Similarly, Lee Everest was given a minor though vital part as Drake, a familiar character from the OVA. Everest was thrilled that the character writing challenged the "two-dimensional" archetype of a "typical action-hero," pinpointing Drake's sarcasm as a safeguard to his inner emotions, yet at some point, he finds himself opening up to Anita. "Here is a man who cares deeply for his daughter," commented Everest, "so much that he's willing to take this life-risking work [and] it's his love for his daughter that endears him to the Paper Sisters, particularly Anita." (excluding the audio commentary tracks). This mirrored the extras included with the Japanese physical release where the Paper Sisters (Kikuchi, Hirata and Saito) would interact with each other, on script and off. Creator and writer, Hideyuki Kurata toured many events as a promotional gig for the show and the DVD releases, including his guest appearance at Anime Vegas in 2006.

To promote the limited edition DVDs, the English cast panel and signing held at Anime Expo in July 2005 was the first time most of the English voices had met each other in person.

Reception

Critical response

Story, themes and characters

The series was positively received. Enoch Lau of THEM Anime Reviews argued that the series had a "refreshing concept" with an "ultra-cool" female protagonist as a bookworm, adding that the show was like a "good mystery novel" with some filler episodes. Furthermore, he stated that Maggie reminded him of Sakaki in Azumanga Daioh and that the paper fights were "cool." While praising the animation, art, detail, and character designs, he criticized the show's inconsistent pacing. Timothy Donohoo of CBR praised the series as perfect for bookworms and writers, arguing that it had an "interesting" take on writer's block, and called it a classic which was "one for the books." Theron Martin of Anime News Network compared the OVA and anime series, noting the "contrast [...] in focus and tone" between the two works. He explained that the anime series was more about relationships between the characters, unlike the OVA, adding that the OVA and TV series together were a "complete tale that can be a lot of fun to watch."

Caitlin Donnovan of The Mary Sue praised the series for having female superheroes with "amazing powers based on literature," writing that while the show could be "heartwrenching," it was, in her view, absurd and an "over-the-top sci-fi superhero fun." She also praised the action scenes, storyline, and the theme, which centered around "hardcore ladies kicking ass with the power of literacy." However, she noted some instances of fan service, gory deaths, torture, stereotypical Chinese characters, and sexualized female characters. John Sinnott of DVD Talk reviewed the first four episodes and argued that it had a "good amount of humor, some action, and very good dramatic moments."

Analyzing finale, Friedman thought that "[i]n terms of characters [...] Nenene wins, hands down. [...] But really, there's no bad or weak characterization. [...] Everyone really peaks as a character. And Nancy has some serious shiny moments which are totally kick-ass... even if they don't really make sense in terms of the history we've given her. I mean, brain tissue doesn't spontaneously regenerate when its [sic] been removed, does it?"

Revisiting the series in 2017, however elicited a contrasting response. Not only did Friedman perceive the animation quality to be "craptastic" when compared to modern standards, she dictated that "[t]he story turned out to be atrociously timed. As the United States is slipping more quickly than we could have imagined into a not-Democracy, with the assistance of Putin who would love to recreate the Soviet Union as the world leader, watching a story about Joker remaking the world in a former age’s image was hitting way too close to home. I was not series-angry with Joker’s stupid pretension of world peace, I was actually really angry. So that wasn’t so good." However, she went on to highlight the themes of overthrowing fascism, which was depicted the strongest through Yomiko's dialogue and her opposisition against Joker's regime, dictatorship, expansionism and colonialism. She further underscored how Joker used gaslighting against the Paper Sisters in revealing to them their false memories because in the end, none of what he said was relevant: Joker is an unreliable narrator. Thus, the Paper Sisters survive through "trust in [their] bonds [...] [by] not let[ting] the gaslighters get the final word."

Efrain Diaz, Jr., writing for IGN, called the show "an odd amalgam of action and soft drama [...] but never actually hitting them [on] the head." Furthermore, he believed the foreshadowing in the early episodes was too heavy-handed, which was "so thick even Michelle's best attempts to distract [us] will not keep people from noticing."

Commenting on the writing, Way Jeng of Mania praised the series for making "a clear distinction between the characters in their superhero aspect and their human aspect" and that "[n]one of these characters are powerful enough to win the fights on their own." However, he criticized the introduction of global conspiracies, which made the episodes "less personal" as "[t]he show's biggest strength has always been the characters." He added: "These new revelations are so large that it's [...] difficult to take the show seriously." On the positive side, he explained that the show avoided ending on a dramatic battle sequence as "none of the most interesting parts [...] revolve around the fate of the world" as this "doesn't drive the plot. The threat [...] is a fair external mirror of Junior's fate and the potential erasure of the [characters'] bond."

Vocal performances

thumb|Jessica D. Stone (Junior) and Rachel Hirschfeld (Anita King) sign autographs at Anime Expo n Anaheim, California (3 July 2005).

While New Generation Pictures's English dub garnered positive attention from some publications, including Dub Review (now defunct) which emphasized the performances of Wendy Tomson (Nenene), the Paper Sisters, the villains and the child actors, elaborating: "I like the children who are played by children and therefore sound like children" as well as "genuine British accents for British characters (as in Hellsing and L/R)," comparatively, it has received criticism from other American reviewers. Anime Discover, located in Alabama, cited that the British accents were inauthentic, singling out Hellena Taylor (Yomiko), JB Blanc (Joker) and Jessica D. Stone (as J.D. Stone; Junior) - perhaps, not realising that both Taylor and Blanc hail from the UK.

Way Jeng of Mania argued that Hunter MacKenzie Austin (as Michelle) was consistent from volume to volume, filled with "very memorable [...] energy and enthusiasm" while Sara Lahti (as Maggie) was the "most difficult [performance] to judge of the three main sisters," largely because of Maggie's introverted nature. Except, he noted Lahti's strength as she was able "to keep Maggie understated without simultaneously making her a dead and lifeless character." He cited that Rachel Hirschfeld (as Anita) was "excellent," saying she "has an uncanny ability to deliver her lines" naturally, concluding that her "crying at the end of episode five [is] the highlight." He further stated that Wendy Tomson's Nenene was "one of the weaker [performances] in the series" due to clumsy word inflections when paired with the sisters, and dictated that J.D. Stone (as Junior) was "satisfactory with no exceptional strengths or weaknesses;" granted, it took him several episodes to realize that the character was a pre-teen boy.

Later in the show, Jeng pointed out that Tomson's vocal performance improved, and her "stubborn streak comes across beautifully." Siobhan Flynn was able to convey Wendy's complex facets convincingly, and at a plot turn, she "re-invent[ed] the character [by] show[ing] a part of Wendy that we haven't seen up to this point." He opinionated that in volume four, JB Blanc (as Joker) delivered "one of the most appealing performances in the dub" which was "soft [with] a subtle edge." Hellena Taylor (credited as Helena Taylor) was praised for her portrayal of Yomiko's "absent-minded qualities" contrasted with her dramatic moments while Carrie Savage's Nancy displayed "a wide emotional range." "[T]he real prize [of Savage]," Jeng added, was her "gentle warmth" when interacting with Junior, "which compliments [his] confusion and usual standoffish demeanor."

By volumes five and six, Jeng said that Hirschfeld's Anita and Blanc's Joker ranked "among the best in the cast" while Blanc and Flynn shared notable chemistry as "urbane villains, heartless [...] and always driven to succeed." On the other hand, he noted that Nancy's "relationship with Junior is less clear" in later episodes, therefore there was "less warmth." Despite this, he singled out the emotion in Nancy's and Junior's verbal fight. In volume seven, Jeng explained that because Nancy's "character has undergone some of the most dramatic changes" from vulnerable to self-possessed, Savage's performance "reflects that change [and] range." Likewise, Blanc's Joker "never feels overplayed, [making] him an extremely compelling villain." On a critical note, Jeng thought Stone's interpretation of Junior ranged from "somewhere between fair and good," mainly because his angst wasn't quite as "pronounced, but there's some very good work towards the end of the disc."

In the U.S., some of the cast earned individual Anime Dub Recognition (ADR) Awards by the anime magazine/website Dub Review (before the publication folded in mid 2007), including Rachel Hirschfeld, Wendy Tomson, JB Blanc, Helena Taylor, and Hunter MacKenzie Austin.

Assessing the best anime dubs of 2004, Mark Abersold of Dub Review was one of many staff writers who granted New Generation Pictures with a Studio of the Year nod, writing: "Nobody quite matched the amount of care that New Gen put into their dubs. [...] It's difficult to think of any weakness [...] [when they] creat[ed] quality dubs for every title they received [such as R.O.D. the TV], regardless of the quality of the show itself." The show was further awarded Dub of the Year by the same publication. "This is a dub so well-constructed and so brilliantly realized," praised Dale Abersold, lauding the performances of the Paper Sisters, "[that] Hunter [Austin is] overwhelming[ly] [solicitous] as Michelle. I like Sara Lahti's quietness-but-not-quite-shyness as Maggie. And Rachel Hirschfeld is a perfect cheerful brat. And I like how they rise to the occasion in particularly emotional scenes: episode 5 was an early highlight of this." He added of the supporting roles: "[T]he villains, of which they are many [...] range from ranting to inscrutable to charming." He concluded: "As much as I enjoyed the original Japanese track of Read Or Die, I cannot imagine watching R.O.D. the TV in Japanese."

  • In 2012, an alternate universe manga was released, R.O.D Rehabilitation, which recasts Yomiko as the villain of a dystopian world. Likewise, "Joker" is rewritten as the bibliophile hero.

Notes

References

Bibliography

Further reading

  • R.O.D -THE TV- Official Japanese site
  • Geneon's official R.O.D. the TV website
  • Madman Entertainment's official R.O.D. the TV website
  • Aniplex USA's official Read or Die/ROD the TV website