Crunchyroll has announced the addition of The Glass Mask Year 3 Class D to its fall anime streaming lineup. The first three shorts are now available in territories excluding Asia and Europe with further episodes scheduled for Mondays at 7am PT.
This new series of 3D shorts pokes fun of the classic dramatic (it’s set in a drama school and super dramatic itself) 1976 ongoing shōjo manga by Suzue Miuchi. The more conventional 2005 anime adaptation of Glass Mask is also streaming on Crunchyroll.
The staff for 3 Nen D Gumi Glass Mask includes:
Planning: Ryuuta Shiki (DLE), Takuya Sasaki (Happinet)
Producers: Akiko Ashizuka (DLE), Ryō Kotake (Happinet)
Supervisor: Suzue Miuchi
Director: Michio Machida
Screenplay, Series Composition: Deko Akao
MMD Director: Ponpoko P
CG Character Design, Modeling: Kio
Background 3D Modeling: Vane@MajimeModeler
Background: G2
Sound Effects: Yoshiaki Tokunaga
Assistant Director: Karen Hayazaki
Assistant Producer: Mai Hamaguchi, Rika Tone
Casting: emo,Inc.
Recording Studio: Onkio Haus
Music: Yuichi “Masa” Nonaka
Animation Production: DLE
Production: DLE, Happinet
The cast of 3 Nen D Gumi Glass Mask includes:
Kana Asumi as Maya Kitajima, a very ordinary girl who is energetic but a bit scatterbrained. Maya has an enormous talent for stage-acting, and she throws herself headlong into her roles with such passion that she’s unstoppable.
Rumi Ōkubo as Ayumi Himekawa, a young lady from a wealthy family. Ayumi has a stoic personality, but she’s trying extra hard to fit in with modern times. Ayumi is knowledgeable but inexperienced. Ayumi considers Maya her chief rival, and she’s always striving to improve her acting skills.
Atsuko Tanaka as Chigusa Tsukikage, Maya’s mentor who in this version of Glass Mask has become a modern high school student who is friends with Maya and Ayumi. Chigusa has many deep thoughts about life and acting, and she helps Maya and Ayumi adjust to the modern world.
Yūki Kaji as Yū Sakurakōji, a kind-hearted young man who is more familiar with the modern world than the rest of the group. Yū loves Maya, and he regularly posts poetry on the Internet, earning him the nicknamed of “Dark Poem God”. Yū has a gentle disposition, but he’s also easily caught up in the darkness of the modern world.
And Daisuke Ono as Masumi Hayami, a young man who is constantly observing Maya and the others from the position of a school board chairman. He seems cool and aloof, but deep inside he’s passionately in love with Maya and jealous of Yū. Since he’s rich, Masumi tries to solve every problem by throwing money at it, and Maya dislikes him for this behavior.
The original Glass Mask manga has been serialized in Hakusensha’s Hana to Yume and Bessatsu Hana to Yume shōjo manga magazines since 1976. The story follows the turbulent lives of a group of young actors.
For more, read on Crunchyroll.