Ikebukuro West Gate Park usually referred to as IWGP, is a series of urban mystery novels by Ira Ishida. It was adapted into a very successful live-action TV drama series in 2000.
Later a manga adaptation was released by Digital Manga Publishing in English. There are 4 volumes in the series.
The anime adaptation is set to premiere in October 2020.
1. Release Date
Tokyo is a dangerous city and it attracts an assortment of people. It was announced last year that Ira Ishida’s famous IWGP novel series would be adapted into an anime.
The fans of the ragtag group would be delighted to know that Ikebukuro West Gate Park is officially releasing on October 6th, 2020 and will run for a duration of 12 episodes.
Funimation has acquired the rights of the show for streaming in North America. While AnimeLab will be streaming in New Zealand and Australia.
The official website for the TV anime has been opened as well to further increase the audience expectation.
The website has, so far, released the cast, staff, and a teaser for the show.
Once the news of the exact date is officially confirmed, this article will be updated with the relevant information.
Since the news came out that Doga Kobo is taking up the anime production, fans have been waiting eagerly to see their favorite characters on the silver screen.
Read below to know all the information about the plot and storyline of IWGP.
2. Cause of Delay
The series was previously scheduled to premiere in July. But, it was delayed to October due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its effects the production.
The TV animation ‘Ikebukuro West Gate Park’ scheduled to be broadcasted in July will be postponed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The new broadcasting time is October 2020 and will be announced again on the official website and official Twitter.
English Translation, Twitter Translate
3. How well known is IWGP?
IWGP was a household TV drama series, which even surpassed the source novel in terms of enjoyment. With a lot of fans comparing notes on the manga and drama, the anime has gained a lot of inevitable publicity.
Let’s look into the technical details of this upcoming anime to check what influences the production of ‘Ikebukuro West Gate Park’.
I. Popularity of the Novel and Manga
The original IWGP novels were published by Bungeishunju. It has sold over 4.2 million copies to date.
They were adapted into a manga by Sena Aritou, the English version was released by Digital Manga Publishing. The manga has 4 volumes so far.
The novel series inspired a popular live-action TV series in 2000 as well as a sequel in 2003.
II. Reception of the Drama
The IWGP aired from April to June 2000 with high ratings. Though inspired by Ishida’s novels, the story was slightly altered with changes to some story arcs.
The TV drama was directed by Yukihiko Tsutsumi (Kindaichi Case Files) and aired on the Tokyo Broadcasting System.
The series used edgy graphics to depict the story involving the underbelly of modern Japanese society: gang warfare, delinquency, Yakuza, rape, and murder.
The TV show with 12 episodes won many awards in the 25th Television Drama Academy Awards. They won the awards for the Best Drama, Best Cast, Best Opening, Best Supporting Actor: Kubozuka Yosuke (Great Teacher Onizuka), Best Director, Best Scriptwriter, and Best Theme Song.
IWGP has a solid rating of 7.9 on IMDB, and 8 on MyDramaList.
The famous anime Durarara was based on this TV series seen from the various references to color gangs and places.
4. Would the anime adaptation be popular?
According to sources, the first season of the IWGP adaptation will have a total of 12 episodes. With many eyes on the anime, there is a lot of speculation on the adaptation as the anime will be produced by Doga Kobo.
Many fans also wonder if the anime will sincerely follow the novel or change arcs like the drama. Many questions will only get answered in October 2020.
I. Anime Production
Doga Kobo has taken up the production of the IWGP anime. This studio is responsible for many famous works like Yuru Yuri, Love Lab, Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, Himouto Umaru-chan, and Sing ‘Yesterday’ for Me.
The studio is known for its ‘moe’ and ‘yuri’ aesthetic styles but recently has started branching out to other genres. Doga Kobo has been recently adapting source materials from the completed manga of the 90s and 2000s, exhibit A – Sing ‘Yesterday’ for Me.
Koshida Tomoaki is the director of the anime. He has worked on several anime like Acchi Kocchi, Love Lab, Uta no Prince-sama, and Vinland Saga.
II. Animation Quality
Fans are shocked to know that that Doga Kobo is going to animate IWGP. The animation studio is known for its cutesy, adorable animation as accurately represented by Love Lab, Umaru-chan, and Gabriel Dropout.
They seem to be trying to change their style by directly adapting from the source material. Works like ‘Sing Yesterday for Me’ depict these changes in the animation.
The way the backgrounds of the scenes are detailed to represent the real-life places is mind-blowing. The art is colorful in scant scenes, where the animation is oddly smooth in the rest of the episodes.
The focus of the viewers may constantly shift to the life-like backgrounds and artworks. The expressions and emotions of the characters are hand drawn in full detail as seen by the linework and shading.
How these changes will affect the IWGP anime is yet to be seen. The newly released PV and visuals seem to be a job done well.
5. New Key Visuals
The official website of the anime has released a key visual and character designs.
The official website of the anime released a new trailer with English subtitles. It was released on the Kadokawa YouTube channel as a PV.
It features narration by Kentaro Kumagai, who will play Makoto in IWGP.
The first PV of the TV animation “Ikebukuro West Gate Park” has been released. The narration of Kentaro Kumagai, who plays Makoto, has also been unveiled for the first time.
English Translation, Twitter Translate
7. The Plot
Ikebukuro West Gate Park, beside Ikebukuro Station in Tokyo, is the district where Makoto lives. He is the son of a fruit store owner from the Majima family.
Known for his cool head and ability to get things done, Makoto becomes the ‘Troubleshooter of Ikebukuro’. He solves complicated issues that even the police can’t handle.
Makoto is friendly to everyone and doesn’t belong to any gang, despite being friends with a leader of a gang called G-Boys.
However, the death of his girlfriend and an escalating turf way between G-Boys and a rival gang, Makoto finds himself in a mystery which is more than what he can deal with.
8. Cast & Staff
The following are the cast and staff members for the anime show:
| Position | Staff | Other works |
| Director | Toshida Tomoaki | Acchi Kocchi |
| Sound Director | Tsuchiya Masaki | Azur Lane |
| Studio | Doga Kobo | Plastic Memories |
| Cast | Staff | Other works |
| Majima Makoto | Kumagai Kentarou | Hinomaruzumou (Gojou Yuuma) |
| Andou Takashi | Uchiyama Kouki | Amagi Brilliant Park (Kanie Seiya) |
| Ozaki Kyouichi | Tsuchida Reiou | Ensemble stars! (Suou Tsukasa) |
9. About Ikebukuro West Gate Park
The series revolves around a 20-year-old Makoto, who frequently gets involved in highly dangerous situations, usually against his judgment.
The ones to go along with his messes are his friends Shun, Masa, and Takashi, a leader of a local gang in Ikebukuro.
Source: Official Twitter, Official Website
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