Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima (Japanese: ヒプノシスマイク -Division Rap Battle- Rhyme Anima, Hepburn: Hipunoshisu Maiku: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima) is an anime television series produced by A-1 Pictures created as part of the media mix project of the same name. The series aired from October to December 2020. A second season, titled Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima+, aired from October to December 2023.
| Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima | |
 Anime key visual | |
| ヒプノシスマイク -Division Rap Battle- Rhyme Anima (Hipunoshisu Maiku: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima) | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Evil Line Records |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Katsumi Ono |
| Written by | Shin Yoshida |
| Studio | A-1 Pictures |
| Licensed by | Crunchyroll |
| Original network | Tokyo MX, BS11, Gunma TV, GYT, MBS, TV Aichi |
| English network | |
| Original run | October 3, 2020 – December 30, 2023 |
| Episodes | 26 |
Characters
| Team | Character | Voice cast[1][2] |
|---|---|---|
| Buster Bros!!! | Ichiro Yamada | Subaru Kimura |
| Jiro Yamada | Haruki Ishiya | |
| Saburo Yamada | Kōhei Amasaki | |
| Mad Trigger Crew | Samatoki Aohitsugi | Shintarō Asanuma |
| Jyuto Iruma | Wataru Komada | |
| Rio Mason Busujima | Shinichiro Kamio | |
| Fling Posse | Ramuda Amemura | Yusuke Shirai |
| Gentaro Yumeno | Soma Saito | |
| Dice Arisugawa | Yukihiro Nozuyama | |
| Matenro | Jakurai Jinguji | Show Hayami |
| Hifumi Izanami | Ryuichi Kijima | |
| Doppo Kannonzaka | Kent Itō | |
| Dotsuitare Hompo | Nurude Sasara | Ryōta Iwasaki |
| Rosho Tsutsujimori | Kengo Kawanishi | |
| Rei Amayado | Takaya Kuroda | |
| Bad Ass Temple | Kuko Harai | Shouta Hayama |
| Yushi Aimono | Yuki Sakakihara | |
| Hitoya Amaguni | Eiji Takeuchi |
Production and release
The anime television series was announced on December 4, 2019.[3] Funimation has licensed the series via Aniplex.[4] The 13-episode series was animated by A-1 Pictures and directed by Katsumi Ono, with Shin Yoshida handling series composition, and Minako Shiba designing the characters.[5][6] Division All Stars performed the opening theme "Hypnosis Mic -Rhyme Anima-" (ヒプノシスマイク -Rhyme Anima-, Hipunoshisu Maiku - Rhyme Anima -).[5] Buster Bros!!! performed the first ending theme "Kizuna - IKEBUKURO ver. -" (絆 -IKEBUKURO ver.-) from Episodes 1–3, while Mad Trigger Crew performed the second ending theme "Kizuna -YOKOHAMA ver.-" (絆 -YOKOHAMA ver.-) from Episodes 4–6, Fling Posse performed the third ending theme "Kizuna -SHIBUYA ver.-" (絆 -SHIBUYA ver.-) from Episodes 7–9, Matenro performed the fourth ending theme "Kizuna -SHINJUKU ver.-" (絆 -SHINJUKU ver.-) from Episodes 10–12, and Division All Stars performed the fifth ending theme "Rhyme Anima's Mixtape" for Episode 13.[7] The series was originally set to premiere in July 2020,[5] however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it aired from October 3 to December 26, 2020.[8][9]
On March 25, 2023, Evil Line Records announced at AnimeJapan 2023 that a second season is in production.[10] The second season, titled Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima+, features the cast and staff reprising their roles, along with Rina Morita being promoted to character designer, alongside Minako Shiba and chief animation director alongside Hitomi Ochiai.[2] It aired from October 7 to December 30, 2023. The six groups from the franchise performed the opening theme song "Rise From Dead".[11]
Episode list
Season 1 (2020)
| No. | Title [12] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [13][a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "As soon as man is born he begins to die." | Katsumi Ono[14] | Yūichirō Momose[14] | October 3, 2020 |
| 2 | "Speak of the devil and he will appear." | Ryūta Yamamoto[15] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[15] | October 10, 2020 |
| 3 | "Two heads are better than one." | Yūsuke Maruyama[16] | Shin Yoshida[16] | October 17, 2020 |
| 4 | "A friend in need is a friend indeed." | Naoki Kotani[17] | Yūichirō Momose[17] | October 24, 2020 |
| 5 | "Seeing is believing." | Akiko Seki[18] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[18] | October 31, 2020 |
| 6 | "He who laughs last, laughs best." | Satoshi Saga[19] | Shin Yoshida[19] | November 7, 2020 |
| 7 | "The darkest hour is just before the dawn." | Ryūta Yamamoto[20] | Shin Yoshida[20] | November 14, 2020 |
| 8 | "Dead men tell no tales." | Yūsuke Shibata[21] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[21] | November 21, 2020 |
| 9 | "Life is what you make it." | Kazuo Nogami[22] | Yūichirō Momose[22] | November 28, 2020 |
| 10 | "Today is a good day to die." | Akiko Seki[23] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[23] | December 5, 2020 |
| 11 | "No pain, no gain." | Yūsuke Shibata[24] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[24] | December 12, 2020 |
| 12 | "You can't make an omelet without breaking eggs." | Ryūta Yamamoto[25] | Shin Yoshida[25] | December 19, 2020 |
| 13 | "Tomorrow is another day." | Katsumi Ono[26] | Shin Yoshida[26] | December 26, 2020 |
Season 2 (2023)
| No. | Title [12] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [27][b] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Revenge is a dish best served cold." | Katsumi Ono[28] | Shin Yoshida[28] | October 7, 2023 |
| 2 | "Side with the weak and crush the strong." | Aya Ikeda[29] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[29] | October 14, 2023 |
| 3 | "Happiness depends upon ourselves." | Yūdai Shimizu[30] | Yukie Sugawara[30] | October 21, 2023 |
| 4 | "There is little success where there is little laughter." | Yūsuke Shibata[31] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[31] | October 28, 2023 |
| 5 | "As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live." | Akiko Seki[32] | Yukie Sugawara[32] | November 4, 2023 |
| 6 | "Friendship is a single soul dwelling in three bodies." | Isamu Yamaguchi[33] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[33] | November 11, 2023 |
| 7 | "Hell is empty and all the devils are here." | Akiyoshi Watamari[34] | Shin Yoshida[34] | November 18, 2023 |
| 8 | "Each of us bears his own Hell." | Aya Ikeda[35] | Yukie Sugawara[35] | November 25, 2023 |
| 9 | "The North Wind and the Sun." | Yūdai Shimizu[36] | Shin Yoshida[36] | December 2, 2023 |
| 10 | "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." | Yūsuke Shibata[37] | Shin Yoshida[37] | December 9, 2023 |
| 11 | "There are no goodbyes for us. Wherever you are, you will always be in my heart." | Akiyoshi Watamari[38] | Shin Yoshida[38] | December 16, 2023 |
| 12 | "Tears come from the heart and not from the brain." | Isamu Yamaguchi[39] | Yasuyuki Suzuki[39] | December 23, 2023 |
| 13 | "Where there's hope, there's life. It fills us with fresh courage and makes us strong again." | Katsumi Ono[40] | Shin Yoshida[40] | December 30, 2023 |
Notes
References
External links
- Official website (in Japanese)
- Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia