CineScope
さらざんまい

さらざんまい

2019 - 2019

I Want to Connect, but I Want to Lie

12th April 2019
Episode 1
After accidentally breaking a statue of a kappa at a shrine in Asakusa, middle school student Kazuki Yasaka encounters Keppi, heir to the throne of the Kappa Kingdom. He, along with his classmates Toi Kuji and Enta Jinnai, enrage Keppi by calling him a frog; he steals their shirikodama, a mythical organ located in the anus that stores an individual's desires, and transforms them into kappas. Keppi informs them they must defeat a zombie by extracting its shirikodama in order to become human again. They are successful, but the act of "Sarazanmai" to transfer the shirikodama to Keppi exposes Kazuki's secret to the group: that he cross-dresses as the idol Sara Azuma. In a post-credits scene, police officers Reo Niiboshi and Mabu Akutsu extract the desires of a man they are questioning.

I Want to Connect, but I Want to Take

19th April 2019
Episode 2
Keppi gives the group a Dish of Hope as thanks for helping him, which grants one wish to whomever possesses it, and informs them that they can earn more plates by defeating more zombies. Kazuki explains that he cross-dresses for his younger brother Haruka, a fan of Sara's, and that he wishes to earn a dish for him. Toi wishes to earn a dish for his older brother Chikai, a yakuza for whom he sells cannabis. Kazuki and Toi are later forced to pursue Nyantaro, a feral cat cared for by Kazuki and Haruka, after he steals a bag of cannabis from Toi's grow-op. Nyantaro is suddenly captured by a kappa zombie who, upon being defeated, exposes Kazuki's secret that Nyantaro is domestic cat that he stole. In a post-credits scene, Enta encounters a sleeping Kazuki dressed as Sara, and kisses him.

I Want to Connect, but It's Not Meant to Be

26th April 2019
Episode 3
Enta, who has a crush on Kazuki, wishes to earn a dish so that Kazuki will return to playing soccer with him. Reo and Mabu extract the desires of Otone's boyfriend (who, unbeknownst to her, is a serial killer targeting women) and turn him into a zombie. The group defeats the zombie, exposing the secret of Enta's crush, and causing Otone to forget her boyfriend ever existed. In a post-credits scene, Enta visits Haruka in a hospital, who is revealed to be a wheelchair user.

I Want to Connect, but You're So Far Away

3rd May 2019
Episode 4
Kazuki asks for Toi's help to kidnap Sara and so that he can take her place during a meet-and-greet that Haruka plans to attend. Toi's backstory is revealed through a flashback – after his parents died from suicide upon being conned into crippling debt, the family's soba shop was saved from closure through Chikai's intervention. When a yakuza came to collect the family's debt, he was shot by Toi, which was subsequently covered up by Chikai.

I Want to Connect, but I Can't Be Forgiven

10th May 2019
Episode 5
Toi attempts to kidnap Sara, though she evades him by transforming into a kappa, exposing Kazuki's crossdressing to his family. Kazuki reveals that he is adopted, and that he blames himself for Haruka's disability when he was hit by a car after they had a fight. Kazuki's turmoil causes him to fail in defeating the episode's zombie; an angry Keppi subsequently refuses to transform the group back into their human forms.

I Want to Connect, so I'm Not Giving Up

17th May 2019
Episode 6
The group rescue Haruka after he is kidnapped by Reo, and are transformed back into human form. Keppi explains that Reo and Mabu are agents of the Otter Empire, who have been at war with the Kappa Kingdom for generations over the energy of the shirikodama; with the Kappa Kingdom now defeated, the Otter Empire has begun to extract the shirikodama of humans. In a post-credits flashback set during the Otter-Kappa war, Mabu sacrifices himself to protect Reo in battle.

I Want to Connect, but I Want to Betray

24th May 2019
Episode 7
In a flashback, Mabu is brought back to life with a mechanical heart transplanted by Otter, though Reo believes that Mabu is merely a re-animated facsimile. Chikai's criminal dealings force him to flee the city, and Toi announces that he intends to join his brother. The group agrees to use the dishes to help Chikai, but discover they have been stolen. Upon defeating a kappa zombie, Enta is exposed as having stolen the dishes out of jealously over Kazuki's concern for Toi.

I Want to Connect, but We'll Never Meet Again

31st May 2019
Episode 8
Chikai and Toi make preparations to leave the city. Enta returns the Dishes of Hope to Kazuki, but they are confronted by Reo and Mabu, who intend to use the dishes to restore Mabu. Reo shoots Enta, and takes the dishes.

I Want to Connect, but I Can't Express It

7th June 2019
Episode 9
Keppi transforms a hospitalized Enta into a kappa so that he and Kazuki can recover the dishes. Reo witnesses Otter performing sexually-charged "maintenance" on Mabu's heart; when he intervenes, Otter appears in the form of Reo, and explains that he is a mirror of Reo's inner desires. Meanwhile, Chikai is shot and killed in a confrontation with the yakuza.

I Want to Connect, but I Can't

14th June 2019
Episode 10
Kazuki, Enta, and Keppi encounter Dark Keppi, the corporeal form of half of Keppi's shirikodama held by the Otter Empire. Otter, having learned of Reo's plan to use the dishes on Mabu, transforms Mabu into a zombie. Keppi transforms Reo into a kappa, who recovers Mabu's shirikodama and learns that Otter forced Mabu into giving up his connection with Reo in order to live. Mabu tells Reo that he loves him, causing his mechanical heart to explode. A grieving Reo attacks Kazuki, Enta, and Keppi, but is shot and killed by Toi, who wishes to use the dishes to bring Chikai back to life. Kazuki uses the dishes to save Enta's life, and Toi is absorbed by Dark Keppi.

I Want to Connect, so Sarazanmai

21st June 2019
Episode 11
Toi begins to destroy his connection to Kazuki and Enta, but ultimately chooses to preserve it. Keppi fuses with Dark Keppi, with assistance from the group and a revived Reo and Mabu, and defeats Otter and the concepts it represents. Upon performing sarazanmai, Kazuki, Toi, and Enta foresee a potential future in which their connections to each other are eventually severed. In the aftermath, Toi is sent to juvenile detention for three years. Upon his release, he jumps off of the Azuma Bridge, but is rescued by Kazuki and Enta. The three happily run "off to the future" together.
Top Cast
AnimationAction & AdventureComedySci-Fi & Fantasy

After accidentally breaking a statue of the guardian god of the Asakusa district, middle school students Kazuki, Toi and Enta are transformed into kappas -creatures from japanese folklore- by Keppi, self-proclaimed prince of the Kappa Kingdom. If they want to regain their human form, they must collect the five Dishes of Hope for him, which fulfill the wishes of whoever possesses them. To do so, they will fight against the kappa-zombies and extract their "shirikodama", the mythical organ containing humans' deepest desires. Two policemen, Reo and Mabu, are the ones behind this evil scheme, turning humans into zombies as agents of the Otter Empire, enemy of the Kappa Kingdom since ancient times. In the guise of "Kappazon, Inc.", they control society by manipulating the desires of the masses for their own goals. To succeed in their mission, the boys must be connected through the "Sarazanmai", revealing their most intimate secrets in the process...

Watch Providers 🇬🇧
Crunchyroll
Crunchyroll
Crunchyroll Amazon Channel
Crunchyroll Amazon Channel
Production Companies
+2 more
Image 0
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
Image 4
Image 5
Image 6
Image 7
Image 8
Image 9
Image 10
Image 11
Image 12
Image 13
Image 14
Image 15
Image 16
Image 17
Image 18
Image 19
Image 20
Image 21
Image 22
Image 23
Image 24
Image 25
Image 26
Image 27
Image 28
Image 29
Image 30
Image 31
Image 32
Image 33
Image 34
Image 35
Image 36
Image 37
Image 38
Image 39
Image 40
Image 41
Image 42
Image 43
Image 44
Image 45
Image 46
Image 47
Image 48
Image 49
Full Cast
Ayumu Murase Image

Ayumu Murase

Kazuki Yasaka

Koki Uchiyama Image

Koki Uchiyama

Toi Kuji

Shun Horie Image

Shun Horie

Enta Jinnai

Mamoru Miyano Image

Mamoru Miyano

Reo Niiboshi

Yoshimasa Hosoya Image

Yoshimasa Hosoya

Mabu Akutsu

Teiko Nanahara Image

Teiko Nanahara

Sara Azuma

Junichi Suwabe Image

Junichi Suwabe

Keppi

Rie Kugimiya Image

Rie Kugimiya

Haruka Yasaka

Full Crew
Kunihiko Ikuhara Image

Kunihiko Ikuhara

Series Director

No Image

Toshirou Hamamura

CGI Director

No Image

Yukari Hashimoto

Original Music Composer

No Image

Kayoko Ishikawa

Supervising Animation Director

No Image

Maimu Matsushima

Assistant Director

Takeo Ogiwara Image

Takeo Ogiwara

Director of Photography

No Image

Seina Yaguchi

Assistant Art Director

No Image

Kayoko Ishikawa

Character Designer

Haru Yamada Image

Haru Yamada

Sound Director

Kunihiko Ikuhara Image

Kunihiko Ikuhara

Series Composition

No Image

Toshihiro Funahashi

Music Producer

No Image

Teruko Utsumi

Series Composition

No Image

Toshihiro Fujita

Assistant Director of Photography

Kunihiko Ikuhara Image

Kunihiko Ikuhara

Sound Director

No Image

Yuka Okayasu

Producer

No Image

Ayaka Fujii

Art Direction

No Image

Tomomi Kawatsuma

Supervising Animation Director

No Image

Kenta Suzuki

Producer

No Image

Masayuki Kurosawa

Editor

Kunihiko Ikuhara Image

Kunihiko Ikuhara

Original Series Creator

Kunihiko Ikuhara Image

Kunihiko Ikuhara

Original Story

Kunihiko Ikuhara Image

Kunihiko Ikuhara

Screenplay

No Image

Teruko Utsumi

Screenplay

showData