Crying Freeman vs. Project A-ko & Kira Kira Happy Hirake! Cocotama (クライング フリーマンVSプロジェクトA子・キラキラハッピー★ ひらけ!ここたま?) is the anime crossover TV special between Crying Freeman, Project A-ko and Kira Kira Happy Hirake! Cocotama. It is also the first anime production by A.P.P.P. since JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood.
Plot synopsis[]
After the events of the Crying Freeman OVA series, Japanese potter Yō Hinomura and artist Emu Hino move all the way back to Japan, only to meet pint-sized Galactic Police Officer Maruten (from Uncivil Wars) and Yellow Cat Cocotama Chaco.
A yellow-haired, sailor-suited teenage girl runs in and gets into a brutal fight against Yo. At the beginning of the fight, it appears that the teenage girl has the upper hand as she punishes Yo with blindingly fast punches and kicks. However, after consuming water from an opium pipe given to him by Emu and Maruten, Yo becomes energized and defeats the girl.
Upon being apologized to by Yo for getting his sight, the teenage girl is revealed to be C-ko Kotobuki, a friend of A-ko Magami. The five then meet the Project A-ko and Kira Kira Happy Hirake! Cocotama cast, along side with the recurring Crying Freeman cast.
Cast[]
Crying Freeman[]
| Character | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yō Hinomura/Crying Freeman | Toshio Furukawa | Steve Blum |
| Emu Hino | Chiharu Kataishi | Edie Mirman |
| Hu Feng Ling | Mayumi Tanaka | Catherine Battistone |
| Ron Fu (flashback only) | Masaharu Satō | Kyle Hebert |
| Bái-Yá Shàn | Dump Matsumoto | Barbara Goodson |
| Bugnug/Dark Eyes | Yoshiko Sakakibara | Melanie MacQueen |
| Huáng Dé-Yuán (flashback only) | Ryūsei Nakao | Steve Blum |
| Nitta (flashback only) | Yūsaku Yara | Michael McConnohie |
| Kimie Hanada | Masako Katsuki | Catherine Battistone |
| Jinshinye (flashback only) | Shinji Kawada | Michael Forest |
Project A-ko[]
| Character | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| A-ko/Eiko Magami | Miki Itō | Teryl Rothery |
| C-ko/Shiiko Kotobuki | Michie Tomizawa | Julia Brahms |
| B-ko/Biko Daitokuji | Emi Shinohara | Venus Terzo |
| Miss Ayumi | Hiroko Emori | Lynda Boyd |
| Maruten | Toshio Furukawa | Steve Blum |
Kira Kira Happy Hirake! Cocotama[]
| Character | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| Haruka Hoshinogawa | Minami Takahashi | Sandy Fox |
| Aoi Hidaka | Live Mukai | Laura Bailey |
| Miku Mochizuki | Ayaka Nanase | Dorothy Elias-Fahn |
| Nobuko Kageura | Michiko Neya | Jennifer Darling |
| Ribbon | Inori Minase | Sandy Fox |
| Pillow | Mariya Ise | Brian Beacock |
| Chaco | Emiri Iwai | Edie Mirman |
| Ruby | Yū Shimamura | Melissa Fahn |
| Marme | Aki Toyosaki | Erika Harlacher |
| Pantonio | Nobuaki Kanemitsu | Kyle Herbert |
| Ojou | Yumi Kakazu | Melora Harte |
| Doku-Doctor | Shinya Hamazoe | Eddie Frierson |
| Nachu | Rikako Aikawa | Erin Fitzgerald |
| Tsu, Mi and Ki | Ayaka Nanase | Debi Derryberry |
| Rannin | Yūki Kodaira | Sandy Fox |
| Amelie | Rina Hidaka | Debi Derryberry |
| Getchom | Rio Minamoto | Todd Haberkorn |
| Patrol | Megumi Urawa | Jonathan Fahn |
| Tia | Ayaka Nanase | Dorothy Elias-Fahn |
| Main | Mai Aizawa | Dorothy Elias-Fahn |
| Scope | Kokoro Kikuchi | Mari Devon |
| Nicky | Aya Endō | Melora Harte |
| Pashari | Aki Kanada | Allegra Clark |
| Penne | Ayaka Nanase | Ray Chase |
| Pipopa | Live Mukai | Cheryl Chase |
| Sebastian | Shinji Kawada | Cam Clarke |
| Tuxy and Dreesy | Asami Sanada (Tuxy) Ryōka Yuzuki (Dreesy) |
Richard Cansino (Tuxy) Laura Bailey (Dreesy) |
Original characters[]
| Character | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| Hanako Koyama | Mami Koyama | Melora Harte |
| Rumiko Mitsui | Ai Nonaka | Saffron Henderson |
| Yuriko Ogata | Inori Minase | Kate Higgins |
| Yakuza Boss | Tomohisa Aso | Richard Epcar |
| Detective Ohno | Kohei Matsumoto | Steve Blum |
| Shirō Yamaguchi | Ryohei Arai | Cam Clarke |
| Female Bartender | Minori Matsushima | Sandy Fox |
| Yakuza Leader | Naoki Imamura | Jeff Bennett |
| Police Officers | Shunsuke Kanie Takeshi Kusao Toshio Kobayashi Toshio Furukawa |
Brian Beacock Steve Blum Stephen Apostolina Todd Haberkorn |
| Yakuzas | Atsushi Kisaichi Hidehiko Kaneko Kōzō Shioya Naoki Bandō Naoki Tatsuta |
John Eric Bentley Beau Billingslea J.B. Blanc Steve Blum Christopher Carroll |
| American Wife | Christelle Ciari | Edie Mirman |
| American Boy | Adam Diagne | Cassandra Lee Morris |
| Girl | Chiharu Kataishi | Sandy Fox |
| Woman | Rumi Kasahara | Mari Devon |
| Man | Koji Haramaki | D.C. Douglas |
Staff[]
Opening[]
- Planning: Takashi Washio (Toei Animation), Toshiaki Okuno (OLM), Takuyuki Hirobe (TV Tokyo)
- Original creator: Kazuo Koike, Ryoichi Ikegami (Big Spirits Comics), Katsuhiko Nishijima, Bandai
- Producer: Hidenobu Muramatsu (Toei), Rioko Tominaga (Toei Animation), Kazufumi Nomura (A.P.P.P.), Naohiko Furuichi (OLM), Yosuke Takabayashi (TV Tokyo)
- Script: Toshio Yoshitaka
- Character Design: Kouichi Arai, Katsuhiko Nishijima, Shinobu Ookawa
- Animation Director: Kouichi Arai, Katsuhiko Nishijima, Shinobu Ookawa
- Art Director: Ken Tokushige
- Director of Photography: Yousuke Motoki
- Music: Hiroaki Yoshino, Katsuo Ōno
- Director: Tatsuya Nagamine, Katsuhiko Nishijima, Norio Nitta
Ending[]
- Script: Toshio Yoshitaka
- Storyboard: Norio Nitta
- Unit Director: Norio Nitta, Kazuya Karasawa
- Casting Cooperation: Aoni Production
- Music Producer: Terushige Yoshie
- Music Production Cooperation: TV Tokyo Music, Toei Animation Music Publishing
- Assistant Animation Director: Masahiko Ōkura, Nobuyoshi Hoshikawa
- Key Animation: Mayumi Nakamura, Masato Yamada, Michio Fukuda, Koichi Morishima, Kumiko Kawashima, Tomoya Nishiguchi, Tomoko Satō, Natsuo Kawamura, Tomoko Kobayashi, Takahiro Komori, Fumio Sasaki, Akira Takeuchi, Yuuji Ogata, Kazuhiko Miyake, Emi Mori, Yūko Suzuki, Kuniko Hamano, Atsuko Kawamura, Yuzo Aoki, Toshiharu Sugie, Naotoshi Shida, Tomohiro Kamitani
- In-Between Check: Tsutomu Ishibashi, Tomoko Suzuki
- In-Between Animation: Tomoko Takagaki, Yoshiyuki Iwamoto, Shin'ichirou Fukushima, Katsuya Nakamura, Risa Sadamatsu, Mariko Aoki, Masahide Matsumoto, Masayuki Shibano, Studio CL, Toei Animation Philippines (Jojo Baldovino, Francisco de la Rosa), Kagura, Madhouse, Magic Bus
- Paint Check: Takehiro Maeda
- Ink & Paint: Kyoto Animation (Tomoko Edamatsu, Hiroko Kobayashi, Noriko Ohashi, Asako Aisawa, Ayumi Shimoura, Keiko Takahashi, Mayumi Nakatsuji, Kaori Kuribayashi, Kunihiro Shibata), Beijing Xie Le Art Co., Ltd.
- CGI Producer: Yūji Yokoo
- CGI Director: Yasuhiro Kato
- CGI Cooperation: OLM Digital, Shūji Koide
- Color Design: Rumiko Nagai
- Color Coordination: Tomoko Kohioki
- Background Art: Studio Pinewood (Takahiro Terauchi, Tomoko Sekiya, Yū Tachimoto, Junko Matsui, Mariko Saito, Chisayo Namai, Ami Shimomura, Tomoki Moriya, Naoki Takada)
- Photography: OLM (Mai Sato, Chihiro Takahashi), Graphinica (Toshihiro Fujita, Haruka Gotō, Naoki Kitamura, Kōhei Tanada, Megumi Himeno, Ayumi Ushijima, Kouji Hayashi, Taketo Kimura)
- Editing: Eiichi Nishimura
- Sound Director: Yasunori Honda
- Recording: Miki Aragaki
- Recording Assistant: Chikako Abe
- Sound Effects: Sound Box, Kenji Koyama, Tomokazu Mitsui, Yasunori Ogata
- Music Selection: Makiko Kayahara
- Documentation: Minori Kajimoto
- Production Manager: Tetsuo Inagaki
- Production Advancement: Katsunori Kobayashi, Yui Maehara
- Assistant Director: Sayaka Yamai
- Production Desk: Wataru Takahashi
- Program Publicity: Natsumi Watabe (TV Tokyo)
- Assistant Producer: Kaori Kurose
- Sound Production: Toei Audio Visual Art Center
- Recording Studio: Toei Digital Center, Procen Studio
- Online Editing: Toei Digital Lab (Ryosuke Nagasawa, Kazuhiro Takahashi)
- Animation Production: Toei Animation, A.P.P.P., OLM
- Production: TV Tokyo, Toei Animation, A.P.P.P., OLM
Release[]
Although being classified as a TV special by Toei, A.P.P.P. and OLM, Crying Freeman vs. Project A-ko & Kira Kira Happy Hirake! Cocotama was first given a theatrical release on March 14, 2019. The television airing and the home media release followed on March 27, 2019 and April 20, 2019, respectively. Due to this some media consider it to be a theatrical movie.
The TV special was dubbed by Studiopolis in North America on September 10, 2019 and aired on Toonami, marking the second Cocotama material in English-speaking territories.