Hitohira is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Izumi Kirihara. The story revolves around a shy girl named Mugi Asai who is unsure of what club to join in her school, but before she knows it she gets dragged into the Drama Research Society and becomes a member. The manga was first serialized in the Japanese seinen manga magazine Comic High! on March 22, 2004, and is published by Futabasha. The manga has been licensed for distribution in North America by Aurora Publishing; the first and second volumes are due out in October and December 2008 respectively. An anime adaptation, which aired in Japan between March 28, 2007 and June 13, 2007, contains twelve episodes.
Plot
Hitohira revolves around a group of young high school students, the primary characters of which are either in the Drama Club or in the much smaller Drama Research Society. At the center is the main heroine Mugi Asai, a shy girl entering her first year of high school. Early in the year, Mugi is unsure on what clubs she should join, but is soon spotted by the Drama Research Society's president Nono Ichinose after she hears Mugi's astonishingly loud voice. Nono pressures Mugi into joining the club and eventually Mugi buckles under the pressure and joins. At first Mugi did not think it was going to be so bad, but she eventually learns that the Drama Research Society is going to put on two plays this year, and Mugi must act in both plays in several roles due to the low number of club members. Over time, Mugi's personality changes due to the club members' influence on her.
The Hitohira manga series, written and illustrated by Izumi Kirihara, was serialized in Futabasha's seinen manga magazine Comic High! between March 22, 2004 and May 22, 2009. Seven bound volumes were released in Japan. The manga has been licensed for distribution in North America by Aurora Publishing. The first three volumes were released between October 2008 and February 2009. A side-story spin-off manga titled Hitohira Encore was serialized in Comic High! between July 22, 2009 and January 22, 2010. A single volume for Encore was published on April 12, 2010.
Anime
The anime series is produced by the animation studioXebec M2, written by Megumu Sasano, and directed by Akira Nishimori. The series contains twelve episodes which aired between March 28, 2007 and June 13, 2007. The opening and ending theme maxi single entitled Yume, Hitohira was released on April 25, 2007 by Media Factory. The single contained the opening theme "Yume, Hitohira" by Yūko Asami, and the ending theme "Smile" by Mai Mizuhashi. The first original soundtrack entitled Hitohira Drama & BGM Mugi Asai was released on May 30, 2007 by Media Factory containing background music tracks along with a set of tracks akin to a drama CD. The second soundtrack entitled Hitohira Drama & BGM Nono Ichinose was released on June 27, 2007, also by Media Factory.
