Kiznaiver (anime)

Kiznaiver (キズナイーバー, Kizunaībā) is an anime series produced by Studio Trigger. It began airing on April 9, 2016 and ended the same year on June 25, totalling 12 episodes, and there has been no announcement of a second season. It features character designs by Shirow Miwa and Mai Yoneyama. The title and story are based upon the Japanese words, "wound/scar" (きず kizu) and "bond/connection" (きずな kizuna).

Plot
The anime's setting is a fictional Japanese city named Sugomori City. One day, Noriko Sonozaki tells her classmate Katsuhira Agata, "You have been selected to be a Kiznaiver." The Kizuna System, which allows Katsuhira to share his wounds, connects him to the classmates whose lives and personalities completely differ from his. The Kizuna System is an incomplete system for the implementation of world peace that connects people through wounds. All those who are connected to this system are called Kiznaivers. When one Kiznaiver is wounded, the system divides and transmits the wound among the other Kiznaivers. Sugomori City is built on reclaimed land, but as the years go by, the city's population is decreasing. The story is set in this town where Katsuhira and the others live.

Characters
Katsuhira Agata (voiced by Yuji Kaji) - The main protagonist of the anime. He is a seemingly emotionless boy who, at the start of the series, gets beaten up for money constantly. He also has a high tolerance for pain. While he may not show it to the others, in reality, he does care about his friends. As the anime goes on, he understands pain through his connection with his friends, allowing him to express his own emotions better.

Noriko Sonozaki (voiced by Hibiku Yamamura) - One of the members of the Kizuna Committee and acts as the leader of the Kiznaivers. She lacks emotions despite her being very beautiful, the reason for the latter being that she takes constant medication. However, at the end of the anime, she and Katsuhira fall in love and both become more capable of expressing their emotions.

Chidori Takashiro (voiced by Yuka Terasaki) - Katsuhira's childhood friend who fell in love with him and desperately wishes for him to return to his original kind, funny personality. She is humanistic, emotional, and seemingly nosy at times.

Hajime Tenga (voiced by Tomoaki Maeno) - A delinquent who is impulsive, loud, and rowdy to the point of being obnoxious, but he cares and protects his friends. It is revealed in episode 2 that he has an intense case of cynophobia, despite having the nickname "Mad Dog".

Nico Niiyama (voiced by Misaki Kuno) - A girl with an energetic, cheerful personality who acts in an eccentric manner by claiming that she "sees fairies". However, in episode 2, this is revealed to be a lie in order to create a quirky demeanor, which she developed out of fear that others would dislike her because of her intelligence, beautiful appearance, and the fact that she comes from a rich family. Most of the time, she acts immature and girly, but later on, she is shown to be very mature and perceptive, with the latter not being afraid to show it.

Tsuguhito Yuta (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki) - A sly and self-centered honors student and ladies' man. He views the other Kiznaivers as "peculiar animals" and dissociates himself from them. It is revealed in episode 2 that he used to be overweight as a child, due to him eating a lot of junk food growing up; he is still a fussy eater as a result of this. He has affections for Honoka and tries to help her, and while doing so, his more open, gentle-hearted personality is revealed.

Honoka Maki (voiced by Rina Sato) - An aloof, but intelligent girl who usually maintains a cold, cynical attitude towards others, especially the Kiznaivers. She used to be best friends with Ruru, a terminally-ill girl, now deceased, and the two worked on a manga under the title Charles de Macking. After Ruru's death, she blamed herself for the incident, but thanks to the help from Yuta and the others, she realizes that Ruru actually wanted her to move on.

Yoshiharu Hisomu (voiced by Kotaro Nishiyama) - A handsome young man shrouded in mystery. He is not introduced until episode 3. He is a masochist who seems to enjoy physical pain, most of the time thinking about it. He usually spends most of his time smiling, although his blunt personality unnerves his new friends. Not much is known about him, and he rarely attends his classes, but when he does, he wears tattered gym clothing instead of his uniform.

Staff

 * Director: Hiroshi Kobayashi
 * Sound Director: Toshiki Kameyama
 * Script, Theme Song Lyrics, Series Composition: Mari Okada
 * Storyboard: Yuzuru Tachikawa

Music

 * Opening theme: LAY YOUR HANDS ON ME by BOOM BOOM SATELLITES
 * Ending theme: Hajimari no Sokudo by Sangatsu no Phantasia