Manga 'Ikoku Nikki' Receives TV Anime

by DatRandomDude
May 3, 2024 6:54 AM | 20 Comments

Production company Pony Canyon opened an official website for a television anime adaptation of Tomoko Yamashita's Ikoku Nikki (Journal with Witch) manga on Friday, revealing the main staff, a teaser visual (pictured) and teaser promotional video.

Staff
Director: Miyuki Ooshiro (Durarara!!x2 Shou assistant director)
Series Composition, Script: Kouhei Kiyasu (Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru)
Character Design: Kenji Hayama (Kuragehime)
Music: Kensuke Ushio (Boku no Kokoro no Yabai Yatsu)
Studio: Shuka

Yamashita (Sankaku Mado no Sotogawa wa Yoru) began drawing the drama manga in Feel Young magazine from June 2017 to June 2023. Shodensha shipped the 11th and final volume in August 2023. The manga has a cumulative 1.7 million copies of its volumes in print.

Ikoku Nikki ranked fourth, tenth, and fifth in the 2019, 2020, and 2024 Kono Manga ga Sugoi! rankings for female readers. The manga was nominated twice in 2019 and 2020 for the Manga Taisho Award.

Synopsis
Thirty-five-year-old novelist Makio Koudai never had a good relationship with her older sister Minori, who always berated her for being different. Due to this, Makio is not stricken with grief upon hearing the news that Minori and her husband die in a car crash. But when Makio is asked to identify their bodies, she runs into her 15-year-old niece, Asa Takumi, whom she has not seen in years.

Struggling to process her parents' death, Makio reassures Asa that her complicated feelings are valid and suggests that the teenager start writing in a diary as a way to cope with the loss. Upon learning that no other relatives wanted to take in Asa, Makio decides to become her guardian despite her lack of experience. In a world full of uncertainty, the novelist and teenager must learn to live with each other while figuring themselves out. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Teaser PV

Official site: https://ikoku-anime.com/
Official X (Twitter): @ikoku_anime

Source: Comic Natalie

Ikoku Nikki on MAL

20 Comments Recent Comments

Just checked out the live action movie and enjoyed it a fair amount. Looking forward to this next! And hopefully, it'll have more of a closure.

Jun 23, 2024 8:50 AM by _MushiRock11_

Pleasantly surprised that this is getting an anime adaptation. Emphasis on the "pleasantly." Hope the music used in this teaser is an actual reflection of what the soundtrack will sound like, because I think it fits the series a lot.

May 23, 2024 10:50 PM by bucciest

Having a good feeling about this one! Although the target demographic is not something that I am too fond of honestly! Still would give it a shot

May 4, 2024 7:17 AM by Kazou-nozumu688

The synopsis sounds pretty nice and finally something new.

May 4, 2024 6:38 AM by Ramkec

Wonderful news, I know there are a lot of fans of this.

May 3, 2024 7:08 PM by BluaPapilio

@missslauraa I'm sold, thanks for the info.

It does look like I'd have to be in the right headspace for it, though. It might get too real and personal for me...

May 3, 2024 6:38 PM by perseii

Looks dull for me.

May 3, 2024 9:33 AM by Memore

@Mirorin More precisely, the last seasons of Natsume and Durarara, as well as several adaptations of josei's works. A good portfolio for shoujo and josei fans, but I'm afraid this will be their first work with female protagonists in general.

@missslauraa I don't see works like this very often outside of locally known manga, so I try not to miss their adaptations. If this is successful at least from a ratings standpoint, I hope we get more josei/seinen about everyday life outside of CGDCT and high school romcoms in the future.

May 3, 2024 9:22 AM by RobertBobert

@RobertBobert No problem at all, hopefully you'll enjoy it once it comes out (:, I believe it'll have a good adaptation as well considering the studio

May 3, 2024 9:13 AM by missslauraa

Hmm I actually just finished reading this one. I'm curious to see how they adapt it - very SOL, metaphoric at times, and conversation-heavy. The characters are anything but the norm in terms of background, relationships, and personality/quirks. Saying that, there are some really impactful and dramatic scenes in this one, I cried at a few!

Animation looks gorgeous too :)

Edit: Same studio that did Natsume Yuujinchou? This is perfect LOL

May 3, 2024 9:12 AM by Mirorin

@missslauraa I see, thanks for the clarification. I wanted to see it anyway, but I like to know the nuances in advance in order to perceive the work more realistically and not build false expectations/impressions. I hope they adapt the entire manga since it doesn't seem to have many chapters.

May 3, 2024 9:10 AM by RobertBobert

@RobertBobert hahaha im passionate about this work, and yes, exactly!

May 3, 2024 9:05 AM by missslauraa

@missslauraa Sounds like a review from critics for an additional edition of a popular film :D. So, if I understand correctly, the work has gay side characters, but does not leads or their love interests?

May 3, 2024 9:02 AM by RobertBobert

@RobertBobert nope not yuri and not romance centered; it centers on a girl coping with the loss of both parents, moving in with her aunt. However, as the story unfolds, particularly from the second chapter onward, it delves into profound dialogues and reflections from various characters that resonate with many readers. It's a poignant tale, exploring themes of seeking meaning, grappling with the unknown, and navigating one's emotions. It's a very emotional and personal experience, that everyone will interpret in a different way. But it's a total masterpiece.

May 3, 2024 8:59 AM by missslauraa

@Piromysl I don't know, if the Japanese wiki is anything to go by, it's a pretty noteworthy drama SoL.

May 3, 2024 8:30 AM by RobertBobert

We have reached the point in time, where an anime NOT being an adaptation of generic LN fantasy trash with premise for a title is something to be hyped about.

May 3, 2024 8:13 AM by Piromysl

I've been missing realistic shoujo/josei about grown men and women outside of moe tropes for a long time now.

@BigBlueBash I would venture to guess that by others you mean Frieren and MaoMao?

UPD. As far as I can see, the manga itself is not defined anywhere as yuri, but on a number of resources it has "thematic tags" among others. So, does this have anything to do with yuri or romance in general?

May 3, 2024 7:51 AM by RobertBobert

We are getting so many manga adaptations with unconventional and amazingly written great female protagonists nowadays.

May 3, 2024 7:50 AM by BigBlueBash

Heard lots of good thing about the manga plus the staff looks stacked. Have high hopes for this one.

May 3, 2024 7:37 AM by ZXEAN

A Josei series and drama genre huh. Yeah plot seemed quite interesting but this will not be for me.

May 3, 2024 7:25 AM by Azuchi