Hetalia: Axis Powers (anime)

Axis Powers Hetalia (also referred to as Hetalia: Axis Powers) is the anime adapation of Hidekaz Himaruya's manga of the same title, which premiered on Animate.TV on January 24th, 2009. Directed by Bob Shirohata, the series is scheduled to run for 52 episodes. It is animated by Studio DEEN.

Most of the storyline takes place between the 2 World Wars, however there are segments taking place in earlier times and the modern day as well. The anime is adapted from the published version of the manga, rather than the original webcomic, so early events like the forming of the Axis Powers have been condensed, though some storylines from both versions of the story have been trimmed or left out completely.

Although originally planned for 26 episodes, it was announced on April 15th, 2009, that the series had been renewed for a second order of 26 episodes, bringing the episode count up to 52. The second season of Hetalia is scheduled to broadcast on Animate.TV in the summer, the exact release date having not yet been revealed.

Characters
These are the characters that have appeared, or are slated to appear in the anime:

Axis Powers

 * North Italy
 * Germany
 * Japan

Allied Forces

 * America
 * England/UK
 * France
 * China
 * Russia

Others

 * Spain
 * South Italy (Romano)
 * Hungary
 * Austria
 * Prussia
 * Lithuania
 * Poland
 * Latvia
 * Estonia
 * Belarus
 * Switzerland
 * Liechtenstein
 * Finland
 * Sweden
 * Greece
 * Belgium
 * Sealand
 * Canada
 * Ancient Rome
 * Holy Roman Empire

Episodes
Main Article: List Of Axis Powers Hetalia episodes

Both seasons span 26 episodes, with the first mostly adapting from Axis Powers Hetalia volume 1, though some arcs and strips are sequenced out of order from their original placement. A few "Extra Stories" from the webcomic were also adapted into segments, as well as minor portions of chapters 2 and 3 from the webcomic's main storyline.

Most of the episodes had no titles when broadcast, unless they were shown in a next episode preview with a title listed, as was the case with the fifth and seventeenth episodes of season 1.

The anime is notable for the fact that its episodes are extremely short, with each running approximately 5 minutes in their broadcasts.

Staff

 * Original Creator: Hidekaz Himaruya
 * Director: Bob Shirohata
 * Producer: Mika Nomura
 * Planning: Takeshi Oikawa, Atsushi Iwasaki, Kimie Takahashi, Masaki Yasuda
 * Animation Producer: Keiichi Matsuda
 * Animation Production: Studio DEEN
 * Character Design: Masaaki Kannan
 * Backgrounds: Studio Tulip
 * Series Composition: Takuya Hiramitsu
 * Music Production: Frontier Works
 * Additional Music: Cornish
 * Sound Production: DAX International
 * Sound Effects: Suwara Production
 * Theme Song Performance: Daisuke Namikawa (ending theme, Marukaite Chikyuu)
 * Distribution: Media Factory
 * Series Production by: The Hetalia Production Committee

Voice Cast

 * Series Narrator: Kishô Taniyama


 * North Italy, Romano: Daisuke Namikawa
 * Germany: Hiroki Yasumoto
 * Japan: Hiroki Takahashi
 * America, Canada: Katsuyuki Konishi
 * England/UK: Noriaki Sugiyama
 * France: Masaya Onosaka
 * China, Narrator (Chibitalia): Yuki Kaida
 * Russia: Yasuhiro Takato
 * Austria: Akira Sasanuma
 * Hungary: Michiko Neya
 * Spain: Go Inoue
 * Switzerland: Romi Paku
 * Liechtenstein, Latvia: Rie Kugimiya
 * Poland: Kazutada Tanaka
 * Lithuania: Ken Takeuchi
 * Estonia, Prussia, Greece: Atsushi Kousaka
 * Sweden: Keikou Sakai
 * Finland: Takahiro Mizushima
 * Sealand: Ai Orikasa
 * Chibitalia, Young Austria: Aki Kanada
 * Holy Roman Empire: Jun Konno
 * Ancient Rome: Hozumi Gōda
 * Young America, Young Japan: Ai Iwamura


 * Narration and English Vocals ("America's Cleaning Of The Storage" previews): Jun'ichi Kanemaru

Soundtrack
The first season of the anime series spawned eight image song CDs, each one for a member of the Axis Powers or Allied Forces. Each CD contains two songs and a mini-drama CD segment. A full-length single version of the ending theme, Marukaite Chikyuu (The Rotating Earth) was released on March 25th, 2009.


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.1: Italy: Released March 25th, 2009. Contains the mini-drama It's Us Brothers! and the songs Let's Boil Hot Water and The Delicious Tomato Song by Daisuke Namikawa (as Italy Veneziano and Romano).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.2: Germany: Released April 22nd, 2009. Contains the mini-drama I Made Posters! and the songs Germany's Anthem (I Am German-Made) and Einsamkeit by Hiroki Yasumoto (as Germany).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.3: Japan: Released May 27th, 2009. Contains the mini-drama The Ghost Culture Of England And Japan and the songs Country Where The Sun Rises, Zipangu and Excuse Me, I Am Sorry by Hiroki Takahashi (as Japan).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.4: UK: Released July 29th, 2009. Contains the mini-drama England Catches A Cold and the songs Absolutely Invincible British Gentleman and Pub and GO! by Noriaki Sugiyama (as England/UK).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.5: France: Released September 30th, 2009. Contains a mini-drama and two songs by Masaya Onosaka (as France).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.6: America: Released November 25th, 2009. Contains a mini-drama and two songs by Katsuyuki Konishi (as America).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.7: Russia: Released January 20th, 2010. Contains a mini-drama and two songs by Yasuhiro Takato (as Russia).


 * Hetalia Character CD Vol.8: China: Released March 24th, 2010. Contains a mini-drama and two songs by Yuki Kaida (as China).

Interval CDs
Shortly after the announcement of season 2, the character CDs for UK through China were pushed back, in part due to "interval" character CDs being announced for the series:


 * Hetalia Character CD Interval Vol.1: The CD Of The Awesome Me: Released August 26th, 2009. Contains a mini-drama and two songs by Atsushi Kousaka (as Prussia).

DVD Release
The first season will be collected into four DVD volumes, which will be available in both standard and limited-edition deluxe releases. Each deluxe release contains a bonus CD with two alternate versions of Marukaite Chikyuu:


 * Volume 1: Released April 24th, 2009, collecting episodes 1-7. Bonus CD contains "Marukaite Chikyuu" (Germany version and re-arranged Piccolina techno remix) by Hiroki Yasumoto and Daisuke Namikawa.


 * Volume 2: Released May 22nd, 2009, collecting episodes 8-13. Bonus CD contains "Marukaite Chikyuu" (Japan and UK versions) by Hiroki Takahashi and Noriaki Sugiyama.


 * Volume 3: Released July 24th, 2009, collecting episodes 14-19. Bonus CD contains "Marukaite Chikyuu" (France and America versions) by Masaya Onosaka and Katsuyuki Konishi.


 * Volume 4: Released September 25th, 2009, collecting episodes 20-26. Bonus CD contains "Marukaite Chikyuu" (Russia and China versions) by Yasuhiro Takato and Yuki Kaida.

Shortly after the announcement of season 2, four more DVD volumes were solicited on the official site. Currently, it remains unknown what special features will be contained in the limited-edition releases:


 * Volume 5: October 23rd, 2009.


 * Volume 6: December 22nd, 2009.


 * Volume 7: February 25th, 2010.


 * Volume 8: March 25th, 2010.

Controversy
The anime was originally slated to broadcast on Kids Station on January 24th, but the television airing was cancelled due to "various circumstances". It is believed that the South Korean protests of the series (and reported death threats to the TV station) played a part in the cancellation. The protests arose when an online petition was created to ban the series, due to complaints that the South Korean character was an offensive stereotype. The South Korean government proceeded to declare the series a "national crime", though Kids Station responded that there was no Korean character in the series.

A preliminary character design of South Korea, however, was shown in the early promotional images for the series, suggesting that at one point, he was slated to be included. South Korea can also be seen in the ending sequence, among the other characters on top of the world.