Paradise Kiss
Encyclopedia
, abbreviated to "ParaKiss", is a manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

  series written and illustrated by Ai Yazawa
Ai Yazawa
is a Japanese manga author. Her pen name comes from Japanese singer Eikichi Yazawa, of whom she is a fan.-Biography:Yazawa started her manga publishing life in 1985. She studied in a fashion school but later dropped out. Throughout her 15 years of publishing, she wrote over 10 series in Ribon...

. It appeared as a serial
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...

 in the Japanese manga magazine Zipper. Shodensha
Shodensha
is a Japanese publisher of mostly non-fiction magazines and books, though it has recently begun publishing light novels and manga, including magazines which contain both...

 collected the chapters into five volumes. The series has also been adapted into a 12 episode anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 series, produced by Aniplex
Aniplex
, formerly known as Sony Pictures Entertainment Visual Works Inc. and Sony Music Entertainment Visual Works Inc., is a Japanese anime and music production and distribution enterprise owned by Sony Music Entertainment Japan and established in January 1997...

 and Studio Madhouse
Madhouse (company)
is a Japanese animation studio, founded in 1972 by ex–Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. It has created and helped to produce many well known shows, starting with TV anime series Ace o Nerae! in 1973, and including western favourites Ninja...

, and which was aired in Japan on Fuji TV's Noitamina
Noitamina
– "Animation" written backwards – is a Fuji Television programming block, devoted to anime, originally broadcast each Thursday night from 24:45 to 25:15 . It was launched with the intention of expanding the target audience beyond the typical young male demographic...

programming block and on the anime television network, Animax
Animax
is a Japanese anime satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. A subsidiary of Japanese media conglomerate Sony, it is headquartered in in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with its co-founders and shareholders including Sony Pictures Entertainment and the noted anime studios...

, who have broadcast the series across its respective networks worldwide, including Japan, Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...

 and East Asia
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...

.

This comic and anime are widely popular not only in Japan, but in many countries around the world. The Paradise Kiss manga and anime has been translated and dubbed or subtitled from Japanese to at least ten different languages, Vietnamese, Chinese (Taiwan), Korean, French, Italian, Polish, Thai
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...

, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Cantonese (Hong Kong) and English. The English version is published by Tokyopop
Tokyopop
Tokyopop, styled TOKYOPOP, and formerly known as Mixx, is a distributor, licensor, and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa, and Western manga-style works. The existing German publishing division produces German translations of licensed Japanese properties and original English-language manga, as well...

.

Paradise Kiss is the sequel to her previous work, Gokinjo Monogatari, which has not yet been published in English. However, Paradise Kiss is a stand-alone sequel because only three of the supporting characters are featured, and only as small children. Some of the main characters from Gokinjo Monogatari also make appearances throughout Paradise Kiss.

Characters

Yukari is a pretty-faced high school senior that studies dutifully for her university entrance exams, but cannot find meaning in her repetitive life and feels that she has not lived at all. Although she starts with a snobbish attitude towards the fashion design students, she eventually becomes the model for Paradise Kiss after being scouted by Arashi, "kidnapped" by Isabella, and whisked away to Paradise Kiss' lounge-like "atelier". Her intense relationship with George pushes her to mature further, despite the fact that she feels he is manipulative and cold. She is often referred to, inexplicably, as "Caroline" by Miwako. After she meets the ParaKiss crew, she discovers all new depths to her ambitions and personality.


George is an eccentric and charismatic student at Yazagaku fashion school who has extraordinary talent with a gift for fashion design
Fashion design
Fashion design is the art of the application of design and aesthetics or natural beauty to clothing and accessories. Fashion design is influenced by cultural and social latitudes, and has varied over time and place. Fashion designers work in a number of ways in designing clothing and accessories....

, particularly in haute couture
Haute couture
Haute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...

. Despite his cold demeanor, he has extravagant ideas on everything, most of which are not accepted by the general public. He feels that Yukari is a tease, and wants her to become an independent woman that takes responsibility for her own mistakes. His appearance is loosely based on Brian Slade of Velvet Goldmine
Velvet Goldmine
Velvet Goldmine is a 1998 British/American drama film directed and co-written by Todd Haynes. The film tells the story of a pop star based mainly on David Bowie's 'Ziggy Stardust' character and is set in Britain during the days of glam rock in the early 1970s.Sandy Powell received another Academy...

, and several references to the film are made by him in the manga. He has distinctive blue hair and eyes, making Yukari humorously question if he actually is an alien. The lifestyle that he lives is that of a wealthy young bachelor; he lives in a high-end loft and drives a vintage Jaguar. He is the son of a successful businessman, but because his mother was merely a mistress, he rarely sees his father. His mother often complains that despite his ill will towards his father, he looks and acts just like him.


A pink-haired student of Yazagaku who works with George to run their own brand, Paradise Kiss. She is the younger sister of the Happy Berry brand's creator/president, Mikako Kouda, who is the protagonist in Ai Yazawa
Ai Yazawa
is a Japanese manga author. Her pen name comes from Japanese singer Eikichi Yazawa, of whom she is a fan.-Biography:Yazawa started her manga publishing life in 1985. She studied in a fashion school but later dropped out. Throughout her 15 years of publishing, she wrote over 10 series in Ribon...

's Gokinjo Monogatari work. She is exceptionally sweet and cute. Miwako tends to act in a rather childlike manner, both in her Lolita
Lolita fashion
is a fashion subculture originating in Japan that is based on Victorian-era clothing as well as costumes from the Rococo period, but the style has expanded greatly beyond these two. The Lolita look began primarily as one of modesty with a focus on quality in both material and manufacture of garments...

 style dress and unique vocabulary. Because of her endearing personality, she is adored by many of the characters and is becomes Yukari's closest friend.


Arashi is a student of Yazagaku with a taste for punk style, piercings, and alternative music. He is Miwako's boyfriend, they have both known each other--along with Hiroyuki Tokumori--from childhood. During a talk with Hiroyuki, he (Arashi) is very aware that Miwako had feelings for Hiroyuki and is insecure about his (Arashi) own relatinship with Miwako, believing he wasn't making her as happy if she were to be with Hiroyuki. Hiroyuki tells Arashi not to underestimate Miwako's deep love for Arashi and to trust her more. Even though Arashi has a generally cynical and abrasive personality, he cares deeply about those around him. When the members of ParaKiss engage in outrageous behavior, Arashi is usually the voice of reason. He is the son of a musician, Kanzaki Risa, who is a good friend of Mikako Kouda. (Both characters appear in Gokinjo Monogatari.) Arashi and Miwako eventually marry and have a daughter who looks much like Arashi (to which Hiroyuki believes would look cuter if she had looked like Miwako instead).


Isabella is the mother figure to the members of ParaKiss. This tall Yazagaku student is the epitome of high class and femininity. Isabella inspired George's very first dress during childhood, and often had the habit of taking every piece of clothing that he finished. Isabella encourages Yukari when she needs it the most, whether it be regarding George or her abandoned studies. Notably, Isabella is a transgender
Transgender
Transgender is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies to vary from culturally conventional gender roles....

 woman, and she is mortified when anyone refers to her as 'Daisuke', her birth name.


Yukari's classmate, an intelligent and handsome prodigy who happens to be the object of Yukari's affections at the beginning of the story. Hiroyuki was once in love with Miwako, but Arashi forbade her from seeing him. He gives advice to Arashi on how to come to terms with his feelings for Miwako and his past actions and soon after the three of them are seen as friends once more just like when they were children. Hiroyuki is at the top of his class and aspires to become a physician. He eventually falls for Yukari, who foolishly assumed that a girl like her would never show interest in him. The two later marry. Son of Gokinjo Monogatari character, Hiroaki Tokumori ("Toku-chan"). :


A former Yazagaku student who is now studying abroad on a scholarship received as the previous winner of the junior Grand Prize. She has romantic feelings for her old friend George, but knows that he is not the type to make a woman happy. According to George's conversation with Yukari, Kaori is the only woman George cannot court and it is hinted that he holds some special feelings toward her.


Miwako's niece. She is in third grade, and just as perky as Miwako. In the anime, she only makes a brief appearance. Alice has the same eyes as Tsutomu.

Production

In an interview in the January, 2007 issue of Newtype USA
Newtype (magazine)
is a monthly magazine publication originating from Japan, covering anime and manga . It was launched by publishing company Kadokawa Shoten on March 8, 1985 with its April issue, and has since seen regular release on the 10th of every month in its home country...

, director Osamu Kobayashi
Osamu Kobayashi (illustrator)
is a Japanese animator, illustrator, mechanic designer, and animation director. He originally directed avant garde shorts and music videos for Studio 4°C and has more recently done two TV series for Madhouse Studios....

 revealed many of the personal decisions which went into restructuring the manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 into a television series. Wanting to avoid straying too far from the source material without approval, Kobayashi worked closely with Ai Yazawa
Ai Yazawa
is a Japanese manga author. Her pen name comes from Japanese singer Eikichi Yazawa, of whom she is a fan.-Biography:Yazawa started her manga publishing life in 1985. She studied in a fashion school but later dropped out. Throughout her 15 years of publishing, she wrote over 10 series in Ribon...

 on the new interpretations of the characters. In many instances, Yazawa was concerned that taking the original material straight would distract casual viewers or worse drive them away. Chief among these concerns was the handling of George's bisexual nature and interest in sadomasochism. Yazawa agreed that the dialogue should reflect this, but that actual onscreen depictions (as can be found in the original manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

) were to be avoided. However, Kobayashi felt this was not being entirely true to the character, so he included a few hints of this side of George in the final episode. In another instance of modification, this time brought by Kobayashi, the character design of Arashi was modified to suit a scruffier, less slick appearance. "I wanted to make him look like Lupin the 3rd... sort of slouching and walking around with his hands in his pockets," Kobayashi explained. In agreement with the director, Yazawa went for the change.

One area Yazawa and Kobayashi did not agree on was the casting of Shunsuke Mizutani as Arashi. The fact that he was not a professional voice actor, but rather a musician, was the cause of this debate. Kobayashi had wanted a more natural performance that did not sound like the typical voice acting found in anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

. "Yazawa and I even had a few rows because of that," Kobayashi explains. "But after she'd seen about three episodes, she finally admitted that Mizutani's voice is a great match, and I was able to relax."

In relation to the clothing design, despite the involvement of noted fashion creator Atsuro Tayama with all of George's outfits, most of the clothing was left largely as originally depicted in the manga. Director Kobayashi had specifically requested a real designer to work on the project, and Tayama's role on the production had originally been conceived as reworking the designs to fit better with the real world, but much to everyone's surprise, the original manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 designs by Ai Yazawa
Ai Yazawa
is a Japanese manga author. Her pen name comes from Japanese singer Eikichi Yazawa, of whom she is a fan.-Biography:Yazawa started her manga publishing life in 1985. She studied in a fashion school but later dropped out. Throughout her 15 years of publishing, she wrote over 10 series in Ribon...

 were already quite good. So, Tayama mostly was involved in updating the clothes to suit the very latest hot trends, and touching up the designs to make them look and behave realistically when animated. He also provided cloth samples and photographs with all of his illustrations to aid the animators with getting the textures right. Besides George's outfits, the majority of clothing for the other characters was designed by art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....

 Asami Kiyokawa. After the rough designs were completed, fellow artist Yuichi Suehiro drew all of the textures and lace by hand, and then scanned them into the computer and digitally applied them as textures during the animation coloring process.

Manga

Written by Ai Yazawa
Ai Yazawa
is a Japanese manga author. Her pen name comes from Japanese singer Eikichi Yazawa, of whom she is a fan.-Biography:Yazawa started her manga publishing life in 1985. She studied in a fashion school but later dropped out. Throughout her 15 years of publishing, she wrote over 10 series in Ribon...

, the chapters of Paradise Kiss appeared as a serial in the Japanese fashion magazine Zipper from 1999 to 2003.

Tokyopop
Tokyopop
Tokyopop, styled TOKYOPOP, and formerly known as Mixx, is a distributor, licensor, and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa, and Western manga-style works. The existing German publishing division produces German translations of licensed Japanese properties and original English-language manga, as well...

 licensed Paradise Kiss for an English-language release in North America and serialized it in its manga magazine Smile
Smile (magazine)
Smile was a magazine aimed at teenage girls. At first it was supposed to be a mainstream teen mag similar to Seventeen, but with added manga; later, it became more focused on manga and removed most of its other features. It was discontinued in 2002. It was published by TOKYOPOP.Sailor Moon, Peach...

. Tokyopop published the series from May 21, 2002 to March 9, 2004. Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment is an Australian company that distributes international films as well as Japanese anime and manga in Australia and New Zealand. The company is owned by Funtastic Limited and is one of the major entertainment companies in Australia. It employs 130 people and has an annual...

 distributes the series in Australia and New Zealand. The series is also licensed in France by Kana
Kana (publisher)
Kana is a French publisher affiliated with Les Éditions Dargaud. Kana was founded in 1996 by Yves Schlirf. The company publishes manga in French and Dutch. Its headquarters are in the Dargaud offices in the 18th arrondissement of Paris.-External links:*...

, in Poland by Waneko
Waneko
Waneko is a Polish manga publisher, located in Warszawa, Poland. The founders of Waneko are Aleksandra Watanuki, Martyna Taniguchi and Kenichiro Watanuki.-Manga:*Cat Shit One*Cześć, Michael!...

 and in Russia by Comics Factory
Comics Factory
Comics Factory is a comics imprint of major Russian book publisher AST. It serves as a translator and the licensor of European graphic novels, Japanese manga, manhwa, Taiwan and Hongkong manhua, Original English-language manga. It also released Russian-language manga of Russian and Ukrainian...

.

Anime

Produced by Madhouse Studios
Madhouse (company)
is a Japanese animation studio, founded in 1972 by ex–Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. It has created and helped to produce many well known shows, starting with TV anime series Ace o Nerae! in 1973, and including western favourites Ninja...

, the Paradise Kiss anime series began airing on October 10, 2005. Some well-known personages are staffed on the production of the Paradise Kiss series including director Osamu Kobayashi and Nobuteru Yūki
Nobuteru Yuki
is a Japanese manga artist, illustrator, and animator. He began as a doujinshi artist under the nom de plume The Man in the High Castle and Yubic , both references to the works of American science fiction author Philip K. Dick...

, character designer and animation director for the opening sequence. It has been aired by the anime television network, Animax
Animax
is a Japanese anime satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. A subsidiary of Japanese media conglomerate Sony, it is headquartered in in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with its co-founders and shareholders including Sony Pictures Entertainment and the noted anime studios...

 across its respective networks worldwide, including Japan, as well as Southeast Asia and East Asia, where the series received its first ever international broadcasts. The anime was licensed for release in North America by Geneon Entertainment. On July 3, 2008, Geneon Entertainment and Funimation Entertainment announced an agreement to distribute select titles in North America. While Geneon Entertainment will still retain the license, Funimation Entertainment will assume exclusive rights to the manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution of select titles. Paradise Kiss was one of several titles involved in the deal.

Episodes

  1. "Atelier"
  2. "Illumination"
  3. "KISS"
  4. "George"
  5. "Mother"
  6. "New World"
  7. "Butterfly"
  8. "Tokumori"
  9. "Designer"
  10. "Rose"
  11. "Stage"
  12. "Future"

Music

The opening is "Lonely in Gorgeous
Lonely in Gorgeous
-Music video:- External links :*...

" by Tomoko Kawase
Tomoko Kawase
Tomoko Kawase is a Japanese female singer. Tomoko is the lead vocalist of the rock/pop group The Brilliant Green, and as a solo artist she has released music under the alter-ego pseudonyms Tommy february6 and later as Tommy heavenly6.-1995-2002: The Brilliant Green:In 1995, after bassist Shunsaku...

 (as alter ego Tommy February6). The ending theme features Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand (band)
Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...

's hit song "Do You Want To
Do You Want To
"Do You Want To" is the lead single for Franz Ferdinand's second album, You Could Have It So Much Better. It was released 19 September 2005 and charted at number four in the UK Singles Chart . The video, directed by Diane Martel, was released on August 23 and was played every hour on MTV2 on the...

" over animation by the experimental animator Hiroyuki Imaishi
Hiroyuki Imaishi
is a Japanese key animator and anime director. His style is marked by fast and frantic animation combined with elaborate storyboarding and punchy direction.-Early career:Imaishi began his career at Gainax in 1995 as a key animator on Neon Genesis Evangelion...

. Both songs have been licensed for the American release.

Live-action film

Together with the Japanese production company IMJ, Fox International produced a live-action, Japanese-language film based on Paradise Kiss; The film has an estimated budget of US$3–4 million.

The Paradise Kiss live-action features Keiko Kitagawa
Keiko Kitagawa
is a Japanese actress and former model. She was an exclusive model for the Japanese Seventeen magazine from late 2003 to mid 2006, and left modeling when she left the magazine. Her first acting role was Sailor Mars in the Sailor Moon live action show Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon , and after her role...

 as Yukari Hayasaka and Osamu Mukai
Osamu Mukai
is a Japanese actor. He was born in Kanagawa, Japan. Graduated from Meiji University.-Summary:Mukai's first main role was in the 2006 Japanese television drama Nodame Cantabile...

 as George. Other cast members are Natsuki Katō
Natsuki Kato
is a Japanese actress and former fashion model, regularly appearing on television in various roles.-Career:After she was spotted and recruited with 1998's television commercial appearance by a current entertainment production, she made her debut in 1999....

 as Kaori Aso, Aya Ōmasa
Aya Omasa
is a Japanese fashion model and actress. She currently plays the main character of the sixth season of Keitai deka series...

 as Miwako Sakurada, Kento Kaku as Arashi Nagase, Shunji Igarashi
Shunji Igarashi
' is a Japanese actor, most notably known for the lead role of Mirai Hibino/Ultraman Mebius in the 2006-2007 tokusatsu series Ultraman Mebius. Igarashi is affiliated with the acting unit D-BOYS, produced by .-Career:...

 as Isabella Yamamoto, and Yūsuke Yamamoto
Yusuke Yamamoto
is a Japanese actor. He was born in Aichi, Japan. His debut role was as Tsurugi Kamishiro, a.k.a. Kamen Rider Sasword, in Kamen Rider Kabuto.-Television:-Movies:...

as Tokumori Hiroyuki.

The film is due for release in Japan in June 2011.

External links

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