Mikagura School Suite

Mikagura School Suite (ミカグラ学園組曲, Mikagura Gakuen Kumikyoku) is a Japanese light novel series written by Last Note., with illustrations by Akina. The novels are inspired by songs written by Last Note. which use Vocaloids for the vocals. Media Factory published eight volumes of the novels from July 2013 to August 2016. A manga adaptation by Sayuki was serialized in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Gene magazine. An anime television series produced by Doga Kobo and directed by Tarō Iwasaki aired in Japan between April and June 2015.

Mikagura School Suite
Light novel volume 1 cover
ミカグラ学園組曲 (Mikagura Gakuen Kumikyoku)
Genre	Comedy[1]
Light novel
Written by	Last Note.
Illustrated by	Akina
Published by	Media Factory
English publisher	^NA One Peace Books
Imprint	MF Bunko J
Demographic	Male
Original run	July 25, 2013 – August 25, 2016
Volumes	8
Manga
Written by	Last Note.
Illustrated by	Sayuki
Published by	Media Factory
English publisher	^NA One Peace Books
Magazine	Monthly Comic Gene
Demographic	Shōjo
Original run	July 13, 2013 – February 15, 2016
Volumes	6
Anime television series
Directed by	Tarō Iwasaki
Written by	Masahiro Yokotani
Music by	Yoshiaki Fujisawa
Studio	Doga Kobo
Licensed by	^AUS Madman Entertainment ^NA Funimation
Original network	TV Aichi, AT-X, Tokyo MX, Sun TV, KBS, BS11
English network	^US Funimation Channel
Original run	April 6, 2015 – June 22, 2015
Episodes	12

Plot

Eruna Ichinomiya is a third-year junior high school student who has not decided on which high school to attend, and spends her days skipping school and playing games at home. One day, Eruna's eyes are captivated by a photo of Seisa Mikagura in a pamphlet for Mikagura Private Academy, given to her by her cousin, Shigure Ninomiya. Feeling that it is fate, Eruna decides to attend Mikagura Academy. However, Eruna discovers that Mikagura Academy is a school where only cultural clubs exist, and that it has an intense battle system where students with special powers must fight each other as representatives of their own clubs.

Characters

Main characters

Eruna Ichinomiya (一宮 エルナ, Ichinomiya Eruna)

Voiced by: Juri Kimura[2] (Japanese); Monica Rial (English)[3]

A somewhat dimwitted girl who has a romantic interest in girls and as a result spends much of her time playing dating simulation visual novels on her portable device. She enrolls into Mikagura Private Academy after her cousin Shigure recommends it to her, largely due to wanting to be able to meet Seisa whom she developed a strong interest in. She later form her own club, which she eventually names the "Afterschool Paradise Club". Her abilities are "Toy Gun" (オモチャの銃, Omocha no Jū), which allows her to shoot a powerful laser from her fingertips, and "Toy Bayonet" (オモチャの銃剣, Omocha no Jūken), a bayonet made out of light, in addition to possessing incredible speed. Eruna is a descendant of the original Ichinomiya who along with Mikagura and Ninomiya founded the academy.

Seisa Mikagura (御神楽 星鎖, Mikagura Seisa)

Voiced by: Saori Ōnishi[4] (Japanese); Jamie Marchi (English)[3]

The granddaughter of Mikagura Academy's principal, who starts off as the sole member of the Going-Home Club but later joins Eruna's club. Seisa is a second-year at school, and is a hikikomori. She was once a member of the Art Club, but began secluding herself after she was betrayed by an upperclassman from the Photography Club. Her ability is known as "Killing Art" (キリングアート, Kiringu Āto), which allows her to reshape space by her will. Seisa is a descendant of the original Mikagura.

Otone Fujishiro (藤白 おとね, Fujishiro Otone)

Voiced by: Ari Ozawa[5] (Japanese); Jad Saxton (English)

Like Eruna, Otone is a first-year student who eventually becomes a member of Eruna's club. She puts up a cold front towards others, but is often secretly lonely and bad at opening up to people, often living in a small house in the woods. Her ability is "Anticomplex" (アンチコンプレックス, Anchi Konpurekkusu), which allows her to make anything she wants out of ribbons.

Himi Yasaka (八坂 ひみ, Yasaka Himi)

Voiced by: Ayaka Suwa[6] (Japanese); Lara Woodhull (English)[3]

Representative of the Calligraphy Club, Himi is a very small second-year, and has the appearance of a young child. She is extremely innocent, positive, and always has a smile on her face. Occasionally, she is the victims of Eruna's 'delusions.' Her ability is "Lovely Ink" (ラブリーインク, Raburī Inku), which lets her form living ink attacks using a large calligraphy brush.

Shigure Ninomiya (二宮 シグレ, Ninomiya Shigure)

Voiced by: Nobunaga Shimazaki[7] (Japanese); Ben Phillips (English)[3]

Eruna's cousin, a third-year who is the representative of the Manga Research Club. He is very attached to Eruna, and tries all sorts of ways to get closer to her, but he has not succeeded even once, and it seems that she is only avoiding him more and more. His ability is "Hero Time" (ヒーロータイム, Hīrō Taimu) which lets him create mid-air platforms in order to swoop in for a hero-like rescue. Shigure is a descendant of the original Ninomiya. Shigure kept knowledge of Eruna's ancestor a secret because he wants Eruna to make friends with Seisa naturally.

Yūto Akama (赤間 遊兔, Akama Yūto)

Voiced by: Natsuki Hanae[8] (Japanese); Micah Solusod (English)[3]

Yūto is a second-year who is the representative of the Drama Club. He is always smiling, and he is adored by the Drama Club members, who are known for being like a large family. He is always carrying a scythe, which is actually just a prop. His ability is "Coup d'etat Faker" (クーデターフェイカー, Kū detā Feikā), which lets him create illusions to fool his opponents.

Kyōma Kuzuryū (九頭龍 京摩, Kuzuryū Kyōma)

Voiced by: Yoshimasa Hosoya[9] (Japanese); Chris Rager (English)[3]

Kyōma is a third-year who is representative of the Art Club. His blunt attitude has caused most to fear him, but he can also be kind and is good at taking care of others; he also loves to drink milk. Both his face and uniform are always covered in paint. His ability is "Palette Barrett" (パレットバレット, Paretto Baretto) which lets him use paint to attack.

Sadamatsu Minatogawa (湊川 貞松, Minatogawa Sadamatsu)

Voiced by: Makoto Furukawa[10] (Japanese); Josh Grelle (English)[3]

Sadamatsu is a second-year who is both the leader and representative of the Flower Arranging Club. He also seems to be spaced out, and shows no interest in anything. His ability is "Selfish Flower" (セルフィッシュフラワー, Serufisshu Furawā), which lets him manipulate plant life.

Asuhi Imizu (射水 アスヒ, Imizu Asuhi)

Voiced by: Ai Kakuma[11] (Japanese); Trina Nishimura (English)[3]

Asuhi is a first-year who is part of the Astronomy Club. He came directly from Mikagura Academy's junior high school, and it is said that he may become the next representative. He has a very cute appearance which often causes him to be mistaken for a girl. His ability is "Shooting Star" (シューティングスター, Shūtingu Sutā), which allows him shoot powerful stars from a telescope.

Bimii (ビミィ)

Voiced by: Yoshitsugu Matsuoka[12] (Japanese); Sonny Strait (English)[3]

Bimii is a mysterious winged creature, largely resembling a cat, who can only be seen by those eligible to attend Mikagura Academy and often ends his sentences with "ryui" (りゅい). He was originally human and can transform between the two using a somewhat terrifying method, becoming a ghost member of Eruna's club. Since his real name appears to be unpronounceable in human language, Eruna nicknames him "Bimii" after the word "bimyō" (微妙, lit. weird).

Other characters

Nyamirin (にゃみりん)

Voiced by: Haruka Tomatsu (Japanese); Alexis Tipton (English)[3]

A third-year student who belongs to the Drama Club. She gave all the Drama Club members (except Yuto) animal inspired names.

Usamaru (うさ丸)

Voiced by: Daiki Yamashita (Japanese); Clifford Chapin (English)[13]

A freshman and member of the Drama Club. Often seen together with Tonkyun. He currently hasn't awoken his ability.

Tonkyun (トンきゅん)

Voiced by: Takuma Terashima (Japanese); Christopher Bevins (English)

A freshman and member of the Drama Club who is often seen together with Usamaru. His ability is Ad-Lib Role which makes flames burst from his hands burning anything and everything around him. Every time he tries to say his real name is interrupted.

Kumano (熊野)

Voiced by: Yurika Kubo (Japanese); Sarah Wiedenheft (English)

A second-year student and member of the Drama Club who, like Himi, is very short.

Rumina Rikyū (離宮ルミナ, Rikyū Rumina)

Voiced by: Minami Takahashi (Japanese); Caitlin Glass (English)

Representative of the Newspaper Club. Her ability is Secret Memories, in which she uses embarrassing scoops to mentally damage her opponents.

Kurumi Narumi (鳴海クルミ, Narumi Kurumi)

Voiced by: Ai Kayano (Japanese); Bryn Apprill (English)[3]

Eruna's teacher and Seisa's maid. Her serious and deadpan demeanor doesn't hide her dislike for Eruna's antics, but she can be soft to Seisa.

Meika Katai (花袋めいか, Katai Meika)

Voiced by: Reina Ueda (Japanese); Apphia Yu (English)[3]

A freshman member of the Calligraphy Club. Katai is a shy girl and the first female friend Eruna made on the academy. Her ability is very similar to Himi's Lovely Ink but she can only summon one character at a time.

Azumi Sagara (相良あづみ, Sagara Azumi)

Voiced by: Rumi Ōkubo (Japanese); Trina Nishimura (English)

The ace of the Brass Club.

Haruka Toishi (遠石遥架, Toishi Haruka)

Voiced by: Shizuka Ishigami (Japanese); Jennifer Pompa (English)

Representative of the Broadcast Club.

Media

Print

Mikagura School Suite is a light novel series written by Last Note., with illustrations by Akina. Media Factory published eight volumes from July 25, 2013 to August 25, 2016.[14][15]

A manga adaptation by Sayuki was serialized in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Gene magazine between the August 2013 and March 2016 issues. Media Factory published six tankōbon volumes from November 27, 2013 to March 26, 2016.[16][17] One Peace Books will publish both the light novels and manga in English.[18]

Anime

An anime television series adaptation, produced by Doga Kobo and directed by Tarō Iwasaki aired in Japan between April 7 and June 22, 2015. The series is written by Masahiro Yokotani and music is by Yoshiaki Fujisawa. Chief animation director Manamu Amazaki also designed the characters.[19] The opening theme is "Hōkago Kakumei" (放課後革命, "After School Revolution") by Hōkago Rakuen-bu (Juri Kimura, Saori Ōnishi and Ari Ozawa). The ending themes are "Hōkago Stride" (放課後ストライド, After School Stride) by Kimura for episodes 1 and 9 onwards, "Rakuen Fanfare" (楽園ファンファーレ, Rakuen Fanfāre, "Paradise Fanfare") by Hōkago Rakuen-bu for episodes 2–7, and "Sekirara Candy" (赤裸々キャンディ, Naked Candy) by Ozawa for episode 8. The series is licensed in North America by Funimation, who simulcast the subtitled version as it aired and began streaming a broadcast dub version from June 9, 2015.[20][21]

Episode list

No.	Title	Original air date
1	"Youthful Prelude" "Seishun Pureryūdo" (青春プレリュード)	April 6, 2015 (2015-04-06)
As Eruna Ichinomiya, a somewhat perverted schoolgirl, is pressured into choosing a high school, her cousin, Shigure Ninomiya, recommends his school, Mikagura Private Academy. Taking an interest in the principal's granddaughter, Seisa Mikagura, Eruna decides to take the entrance exam, which she passes by being able to see the school's feline teacher, who she names Bimii. At the start of her new school life, Eruna learns about the school's system, in which students are required to join one of the school's clubs, using points earned by battles against other clubs to improve their state of living. Stuck with the poorest living conditions due to not yet being in a club, Eruna attempts to join Himi Yasaka's Calligraphy Club, but is rejected due to her poor art skills. A few days later, however, Eruna is approached by Seisa herself, who invites her to join her Going-Home Club on a trial period on the condition that she act as the club's representative in a battle taking place the next week.
2	"After School Stride" "Hōkago Sutoraido" (放課後ストライド)	April 13, 2015 (2015-04-13)
After learning about how students can use special abilities during club battles, in which student's must destroy all three of their opponent's crystals, Eruna pays a visit to each of the different clubs, learning about the various abilities the representatives have. However, Eruna struggles to come up with her own special ability by the time of her match, in which she must battle against Himi. As Eruna quickly finds herself on the defensive and goes into hiding, she comes across a sealed room and briefly sees a mysterious woman, who tells her that she has already possesses a power inside her. When she regains her senses, Eruna discovers she now possesses super speed and a finger laser ability called "Toy Gun", which she uses to destroy all of Himi's crystals in one go and win the match.
3	"Not Quite a Heroine" "Hiroin Miman" (ヒロイン未満)	April 20, 2015 (2015-04-20)
After learning about an upcoming rookie tournament for new students, Eruna reports her victory to Seisa, who claims that she only won because Himi held back and challenges her to a practise match with her club membership on the line. Prior to her match against Seisa, Eruna observes a practise match between the Astronomy Club's Asuhi Imizu and the Drama Club's Yūto Akama, with Yūto winning with a single strike. The match between Eruna and Seisa soon begins, with Eruna attempting to destroy Seisa's crystals whilst she is dozing off. However, Eruna's Toy Gun fails to activate and she is overwhelmed by Seisa's "Killing Art" ability, getting kicked out of the Going-Home Club as a result. Bimii, after informing Eruna that she needs to build more experience to use her ability properly, suggests that she form a club of her own, using the rookie tournament to attract potential members. Admiring her determination, Seisa lets Eruna bring her sleeping bag into her mansion.
4	"Apathetic Coup D'état" "Mukiryoku Kūdetā" (無気力クーデター)	April 27, 2015 (2015-04-27)
With Eruna still struggling to use her Toy Gun properly, the Drama Club decide to put on an after-school beginner's class in the run up to the rookie tournament. As Eruna learns she will be facing against the Calligraphy Club's Meika Katai in her first rookie match, Yūto is feeling down as Asuhi reminds him of his younger brother, who was separated from him when their parents divorced, leaving him all alone. However, he is cheered up when Eruna and the other Drama Club members hold a party to mark the end of the beginner class. The next day, as Eruna faces off against Katai, her excitement from enjoying the duel allows to once again use her Toy Gun and win the match.
5	"School Fantasia" "Gakuen Fantajia" (学園ファンタジア)	May 4, 2015 (2015-05-04)
Eruna and Seisa take a look around the tournament's festival, where they end up standing in for Flower Arrangement Club's Sadamatsu Minatogawa, who is running a shooting gallery with his prized life-size Super Miracle Man doll up for grabs. After both Yūto and Eruna fail to even budge the doll, due to Sadamatsu protecting it with his ability, Seisa knocks down his second-best prize, which attracts more attention to the booth. Later, as Eruna hangs out with the Drama Club's Usamaru and Tonkyun, Seisa meets up with the Art Club's Kyōma Kuzuryū, who observes how she has changed since meeting Eruna. After Eruna clears the second round in the tournament, she witnesses Usamaru being overwhelmed by the school band's Azumi Sagara, who can manipulate gravity with her music, her victory prompting a harsh reaction from Seisa.
6	"Junk Innocence" "Garakuta Inosensu" (我楽多イノセンス)	May 11, 2015 (2015-05-11)
After holding a pep rally for Eruna, Shigure tells her about how he and Kyōma transferred to Mikagura from another school, which revolved around sports clubs, where Kyōma became distrustful of other people. As Eruna proceeds further in the rookie tournament, Tonkyun goes up against Azumi, managing to trick her into coming up close so that he can take advantage of her ability's weakness and win the match. This leads to Eruna and Tonkyun facing against each other in the fifth round, where Eruna announces her plans for a "Surrounding Eruna Ichinomiya with Cute Girls Club". As the two clash, Eruna brings out a new ability, Toy Bayonet, to win the match, igniting Kyōma's love of painting once more. After Eruna is inevitably eliminated in the quarter-finals, the tournament is won by a girl named Otone Fujishiro, who defeats Asuhi in the final round.
7	"Izayoi Seeing" "Izayoi Shīingu" (十六夜シーイング)	May 18, 2015 (2015-05-18)
As Seisa reminisces about an old upperclassman, Eruna takes an interest in Otone, who appears to be just as weird as she is. Meanwhile, the Drama Club, noticing Asuhi feeling down about his defeat, decide to hold a party to cheer him up. After Eruna invites everyone to come along, Bimii, exhausted from escorting Eruna, mixes up an invitation he was supposed to give Asuhi with a message about a change in venue he was supposed to give Eruna. As such, Eruna misinterprates Asuhi's invitation as a letter of challenge and almost ends up initiating a match against Sadamatsu before Asuhi shows up. While waiting for the rain to stop so they can have a rooftop party, Asuhi explains how he came to love stars, after which Seisa uses her ability to put a stop to the rain and give Asuhi his starry-skied party.
8	"Unidentified Treasure" "Mikakunin Torejā" (未確認トレジャー)	May 25, 2015 (2015-05-25)
The first-year students participate in an annual treasure hunt event, with Eruna paired up in a team with Otone, assisted by a Mecha Bimii. As Eruna clears the first set of checkpoints, Otone expresses her disinterest in teaming up with her and runs off. When Eruna injures herself after slipping off a cliff edge while searching for her, Otone takes her to her secret hideout to treat her injuries and have teatime with her. Things soon become hectic when Mecha Bimii transforms into a giant mech and goes on a rampage, but Eruna and Otone manage to use their combined abilities to make it out safely. Afterwards, as Otone agrees to help Eruna form her club-in-progress, Seisa grows concerned after witnessing Otone's Anticomplex ability.
9	"Derailed Scandal" "Dassen Sukyandaru" (脱線スキャンダル)	June 1, 2015 (2015-06-01)
Given until the upcoming midterm battles to find the third member for their club, Eruna and Otone use fake scandals in order to sneak promotion of their club into reports by the newspaper club, with not much result. As Eruna struggles to find members willing to join, Otone has the opposite problem of inadvertently scaring away anyone who is interested, as she is afraid they would get between her and Eruna. Upon stumbling across an empty classroom they could potentially use for their clubroom, Eruna is challenged by the newspaper club's Rumina Rikyū, who uses her Secret Memories ability to attack Eruna with embarrassing scoops from her childhood. Before Eruna is completed defeated, Otone uses her ability to plug Eruna's ears, allowing her to defeat Rumina. Thanks to Bimii transforming into human form to act as the club's third member, Eruna gets her "I'll Figure It Out Later Club" recognised and gains permission to use the clubroom.
10	"Sleeping Bag Haunting" "Nebukuro Hōntingu" (寝袋ホーンティング)	June 8, 2015 (2015-06-08)
Now having an official club, Eruna moves her sleeping bag out of Seisa's mansion and into her new clubroom alongside Otone. As everyone brings housewarming gifts, Rumina asks for Eruna's help in seeking out a rumored ghost haunting the school grounds. When Eruna and the Drama Club discover the ghost was most likely just Eruna hopping around in her sleeping bag, Bimii pretends to be the ghost to fool Rumina, but soon gets caught in a mysterious void. Meanwhile, Otone confronts Seisa over why she won't go see Eruna, deciding to fight against her when she refuses to listen. As Otone pushes her further into a corner, Seisa finds herself unable to use her Killing Art, only being saved when Eruna arrives on the scene.
11	"Nostalgic Triangle" "Tsuioku Toraianguru" (追憶トライアングル)	June 15, 2015 (2015-06-15)
After Otone runs off, Eruna becomes shocked when she notices some strange scars on Seisa's back. The next day, Otone apologises to Eruna, who asks her to help her train for the upcoming midterm battles. As Seisa stays away from the battles and shuts herself in, her Killing Art ability starts going out of control, causing temporary cracks to appear around the school. Investigating the school's photography club, Eruna stumbles into a different dimension and comes across Bimii. He explains that during her first year, Seisa was betrayed by the photography club upperclassman she admired, who seriously injured her with her ability, prompting Seisa to use her Killing Art to seal the clubroom away and shut herself in. With Seisa's Killing Art growing more unstable by the minute, the school itself starts becoming warped, with Eruna and Bimii falling through a sudden crack.
12	"Infinite Grand Finale" "Mugendai Fināre" (無限大フィナーレ)	June 22, 2015 (2015-06-22)
Eruna briefly sees a vision of people resembling Seisa, Shigure, and the girl she met when she first got her powers, before winding back in the real world, where the school has turned into ruins. Shigure explains that the people she saw were their ancestors who founded Mikagura Academy, stating that Eruna's ancestor gave Eruna her powers so that she could help Seisa. Eruna rushes over to see Seisa, asking her to join her club if she manages to win the midterm battles. After giving her thanks to her ancestor, Eruna makes it to the finals, where she is supposed to fight against Kyōma, but the others arrange for Seisa to fight against her instead. With Seisa regaining control of her power from the enjoyment of the battle, both combatants bring out their full power against each other. After the match ends in a draw, Seisa decides to join Eruna's club, which she names the "Afterschool Paradise Club".

References

1. "The Spring 2015 Anime Preview Guide - Mikagura School Suite". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
2. 一宮 エルナ (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
3. "Broadcast Dub English Cast Announcements at A-Kon 26!". Funimation Entertainment. June 5, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2015.
4. 御神楽 星鎖 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
5. 藤白 おとね (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
6. 八坂 ひみ (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
7. 二宮 シグレ (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
8. 赤間 遊兎 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
9. 九頭竜 京摩 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
10. 湊川 貞松 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
11. 射水 アスヒ (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
12. ビミィ (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2017.
13. Chapin, Clifford (June 23, 2015). "Timeline Photos - Clifford Chapin (Voice Actor)". Facebook. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
14. ミカグラ学園組曲1　放課後ストライド [Mikagura School Suite 1 After School Stride] (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
15. ミカグラ学園組曲 8　革新的ヒロイズム (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
16. ミカグラ学園組曲 1 [Mikagura School Suite 1] (in Japanese). Media Factory. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
17. ミカグラ学園組曲 6 [Mikagura School Suite 6] (in Japanese). Media Factory. Archived from the original on March 12, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
18. "One Peace Books to Publish Mikagura School Suite Light Novels, Manga in English". Anime News Network. March 10, 2017. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
19. "Mikagura School Suite Anime's Promo Previews Theme Song". Anime News Network. March 19, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
20. "Funimation Adds Mikagura School Suite Anime". Anime News Network. April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
21. "Funimation Streams Ninja Slayer, Yuki-chan, Ultimate Otaku Teacher, Arslan, Show by Rock, Mikagura With English Dubs". Anime News Network. May 13, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2015.

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)
• Anime official website (in Japanese)
• Mikagura School Suite (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia