Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! (映像研には手を出すな!) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Sumito Owara, following the whimsical adventures of three high school girls as they pit against the bureaucracy of the school board to realize their ultimate passion – anime creation ! This excellent manga has since been adapted into an equally fantastic anime series by Science Saru studios, the brainchild of Eunyoung Choi and Masaaki Yuasa who has bought us such amazing series like PingPong and Devilman Crybaby.

This official guidebook for the anime series includes materials like plot synopsis, character, environment designs and model sheets, as well as what I think is the highlight – amazing settei ( art boards, production sketches ) illustrated by director Masaaki Yuasa, which are not unlike those that we seen in his two absolutely delightful sketchbooks ( see here and here ).

(above and below) In the anime, these character/mecha design and settei sketches are drawn by Asakusa-shi, but they are actually the wonderful watercolor illustrations done by the director Masaaki Yuasa. Definitely check out his two published sketchbooks – ( see here and here ).

I really, really enjoyed Eizouken. The story and friendship between the three high school girls are hilarious and engaging, and the process of their anime creation gives viewers a good window into how the animation is actually done. Just like Science Saru studio’s earlier series PingPong, I hope the publishers will also release a more full fledged art book showcasing the background art, color keys/image boards and sketches by Masaaki Yuasa. That said, this official guide book still comes highly recommended.

Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! Official Guide Book Review TVアニメ『映像研には手を出すな!』公式ガイド details :

– Dimensions – 25.6 x 18.2 x 1 cm
– Soft cover, 128 pages
– Full color, in Japanese

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