Kururu Makes a Weird Noise for 6 Minutes

Here it is—the final Yoshizaki Q&A installment! So did he answer any burning questions to end this year-long campaign off with a bang? Well, I’ll tell you now he didn’t pick any of the ones I/you asked, but hey we tried. On the bright side, it’s a double-length session! Let’s get right to it, one last time.

Q: We know each member of the Keroro Platoon has a distinctive personality, but do Keronians have blood types to match? Just curious!

A: I’ve considered what their blood types might be before, but the longer I thought about it, graphic imagery started popping into my head, so I decided to stop thinking about it.

Q: If Zeroro-kun hadn’t met Keroro-kun and Giroro-kun and never joined the Keron Army, what kind of work would he have done with his life?

A: His job probably would’ve been something painfully average but suitably peaceful—he would’ve lived the complete opposite life of an assassin.

Q: Who has more combat prowess, Corporal Giroro or Lance Corporal Dororo?

A: In terms of physical fitness, it’s Dororo for sure, but Giroro is hiding a disconcerting amount of power deep inside, so I think there’s a chance he could turn the tables.

Q: Why do Keroro and the other [aliens] call Earth “Pokopen (Pekopon)”?

A: Because you gave me a good opportunity to do so, I’m gonna answer with a meta tidbit. In my generation, “Pokopen” was what we’d say during kick the can, a yard game like hide-and-seek. I’d hear it in different places when I was a kid, such as during school breaks, after school, and in the park in the evening. I wanted to use a word in the series that even people older than me, like my grandmother, would be familiar with. I’ve incorporated various things I’ve seen and experienced during my childhood into Keroro Gunso.

[Jumping in with some commentary because I know what you’re thinking about this answer, and yes, even with the most charitable interpretation I also find it a little hard to believe he had no idea about the implications of having his mid-1900s Japanese army-styled characters say that, and even if somehow he didn’t know at first, he certainly knows now because of the anime. But I think it’s more lying by omission than entirely making stuff up because the word actually was mostly associated with children’s yard games around the 70s-80s when Yoshizaki was young. I also couldn’t find an exact year the word was banned from broadcast television (most research in Japanese on the topic brings up people asking because of Keroro…although the term was also infamously used by Piccolo in Dragon Ball). Still, I would take him with a grain of salt here…]

Q: Keronians’ bodies change over the course of their lives from tadpole stage (name TBD) to chibi kero stage (name TBD) to adult stage, but what at what time do these changes generally occur? Also, how do they spend their days during the tadpole stage (name TBD)?

A: What goes on when they’re an egg or a tadpole is still a mystery even to me. As for the timing of their physiological changes, I think it differs vastly between individuals.

[I believe I speculated on this before! Feeling vindicated >:3]

Q: Zoruru’s left side (at least up to his eyes) appears to be covered with iron(?). How did that happen?

A: I don’t believe it’s a battle scar or anything. It’s still unclear whether the cause was external or internal. I designed him with the idea of it looking like a botched Demonic Arts transformation.

Q: What moment made you become a manga artist?

A: The first place I ever learned about manga was at a rental library, which is a kind of place that doesn’t really exist anymore. From the moment I saw my first volume of manga—Volume 2 of Doraemon—I realized I had no choice but to become a manga artist. I was in second grade at the time.

Q: In the series, the Keroro Platoon wears various outfits, such as the earthling suits. Do you have favorite outfits for each of them or prefer particular styles?

A: They don’t dress up [in the manga] as much as they do in the anime, but manga Keroro and crew do at time have attire prepared for raising morale during operations. I like them all, but I take care not to make the Keronian silhouettes unrecognizable.

Q: Was there ever a particular moment when you realized your artstyle had become established?

A: As a kid, I did a lot of drawing by copying, and I didn’t have much confidence in my own artwork. Even after I made my official debut [as a manga artist], I just kept drawing without thinking much of it. But at some point while I was making a manga called Arcade Gamer Fubuki, I suddenly became able to draw in a way that made me go, “I think this is it?” It’s been a very long time since then. I think this is a worry that every artist has, but I believe that if you just keep drawing, that same realization will hit you someday.

Q: As I improve as an artist, I’ve started to feel there’s a certain charm in my old drawings that look kind of crappy but had a lot of effort put into them despite their defects. I tend to think things like, “Where do I want to end up? Is there even an end point in the first place?” These are hard questions, so I imagine there’s a Keroro in my head saying, “As long as you have fun drawing, that’s all that matters!” Sorry this hasn’t been much of a question so far. I just want to know your mindset about drawing ♪

A: I completely agree with what Keroro says! But if a part of your brain is thinking “I wish people would praise my art a bit more,” it’s not a bad idea to try to push yourself a little harder.

Q: How are aliens besides the Keroro Platoon faring in the unusual heat we’ve been having these last few years? I’m especially curious if 556 and Lavie-chan’s secondhand AC is working again. Commodities are also expensive, so I’m worried that Lavie-chan might not be eating properly.

A: I’m worried about those two myself. During the intensely hot seasons of recent years, I’ve thought several times about showing what it’s like in 556’s apartment, but I keep putting it off because it might feel like it doesn’t belong in a gag manga. I figure a bunch of alien species who have been in hiding on Earth might have left because of the heat, which makes me a bit sad.

Q: Do Keronians share their body colors with one of their parents, or do they perhaps inherit a different color that’s close to it?

A: It is inherited. But I think bloodlines among Keronians work differently than those of Earth creatures.

Q: I know Chief Nurse Pururu was childhood friends with Keroro, Giroro, and Dororo, but she still has a tail like how young Keronians do. Why is that?

A: I think it works the same way as it does with Saiyans. If anything, I’d like to make sure that females don’t lose that mark for their whole lives. Oh? I’ve already drawn Keroro’s mother like that, haven’t I…? Oops…

Q: And finally, please give a closing comment for your readers!!

A: Thank you so much for sending in so many questions. There were enough pointed and deep questions to make me flinch even as the author, so I kind of regret being so cavalier about accepting this Q&A project…just kidding! I answered your questions in a very careful way that wouldn’t disrupt how you all see Keroro and wouldn’t give any big spoilers. I hope you all enjoyed reading. I’m so very grateful that there are this many people who think deeply about Keroro Gunso even after it’s gone on so long. This is the end of the Q&A for now, but it may come back again someday. Let’s meet again when that time comes. See ya, everyone! Yes, sir! -Mine Yoshizaki

That’s all, folks! What did you think of the project as a whole? As I’ve said, I don’t quite believe that every answer Yoshizaki gave is perfectly truthful (whether intentionally or not—it’s been over 25 years), but we did learn some interesting insights and fun trivia along the way, so I’m glad he went out of his way to do this.

I’ve decided I maybe don’t want to single out my followers especially since he ended up not answering any of the questions I submitted anyway, unless you guys really want to know… But I will say the one I came up with myself, which was asking which Keroro x other IP collab out of the many there have been over the years had the most impact on him. I can see why he didn’t answer that one, but I’m kinda surprised more people didn’t ask it! (My overall most burning question was actually answered quite early on coincidentally, and my other most burning question was asked by someone else on the Fan Club app but was not answered.)

I was going back and forth on whether to address this at all but it’s sticking in my mind too much to ignore, so let’s address the elephant in the room: some members of the general public have now seen the new movie for the first time as part of an early preview screening event, meaning the very earliest reviews are available. I’m not going to do a formal report on the event like I have done for previous movie PR events because most of the news reports are about ano/Jesse/Shinobu Hasegawa messing around at the stage greeting and while they’re swell talents and all, I assume the celebrity guest stars aren’t why my audience of mostly non-Japanese Keroro Gunso fans are interested so it’s not relevant enough to go over. I just want to talk about viewers’ impressions from social media because they were…kind of all over the place. “Divisive” is probably gonna be the number one word people use to describe this movie. I’m sure you guys have time to read this, it’s not like there’s any other heavily polarizing finales to popular franchises that too many strongly opinionated fans saw early that came out today, right?

If you want to go into the movie with zero expectations whatsoever you should probably skip this post, but I won’t spoil anything specific, so don’t worry about that, though I have seen a few spoilers—frankly I’ve just given up in advance on avoiding them, I do too much coverage to spend however many months trying to maneuver around them until we have access to the movie outside Japan. If you like to browse twitter for fanart and such and are still trying to avoid movie spoilers for potentially half a year or more, good luck lol.

Good news first, a few shared points were pretty universally positive even among those who didn’t like the movie as a whole:

The animation is high quality, much better than the older movies (makes sense, it’s been 16 years). Many people praised the fight scenes.

The character designs and art direction are very cute.

The returning characters sound just like they used to with the only exception I’ve heard so far being Jouji Nakata sounds a little aged (not surprised about this either). Every classic character gets a moment to shine and is largely in-character compared to previous installments.

Aruru and Deruru are seemingly the highlights when it comes to the actual story; even some who didn’t like the rest of the script say they’re pretty good characters. Jesse’s performance in both roles is impressive.

And now for the negatives—or, well, it’s really just one big negative that looms over the whole film. Although whether or not it’s even a negative is very subjective. But I will say the people who took the most issue with it were the diehard Keroro fans in the audience, which is why I think it’s worth discussing because…the audience of this blog is presumably diehard Keroro fans. So here’s the big catch:

Supposedly all the big jokes and setpieces involve very ham-fisted parodies. No shit Sherlock, it’s a movie from the series that brought you Trying to Sell Gundam To Children for 350+ Episodes: The Show. Okay but when you think about the parodies in Keroro, outside of the anime’s Gundam advertisements, they tend to be more subtle/not spell the reference out to you. If you get it you get it, if you don’t it’s still funny because the characters are inherently entertaining enough that they can do just about anything and be endearing. And to an extent that last part is still true about this movie based on impressions from both those who enjoyed it and the naysayers, the problem is that the parodies themselves allegedly drive the progression rather than the other way around. And while some of the works parodied are popular enough that much of the general audience with even minimal experience with anime will recognize them, several parodies are there presumably just because Fukuda worked on the source material or personally knows/likes specific actors. And because the scenes are themed around the parodies, some of them might distract from the existing characters/story and arguably overstay their welcome. So if you’re out of the loop, it might be a bit difficult to follow big chunks of the film.

In other words, the main complaint from some (keyword: SOME, but they were very vocal) Keroro fans was that it felt like a Yuichi Fukuda movie first and a Keroro movie second. Not that it didn’t have elements of the other Keroro movies—the ensemble cast still gets to save the world, there’s still power of love and friendship scenes, etc.—and even a few people who were disappointed in the over-reliance on parody felt those elements were present enough. But the ratio of heartfelt to gag seems to be quite a bit more on the gag side compared to movies 1–5. Allegedly there’s some continuity mismatches as well but it’s literally been 16 years it’s reasonable to not expect it to be perfect in that regard especially since the anime contradicted itself and the manga several times over.

You might be saying to yourself “people are just whining because it’s different and they think different = bad” and uh. Well you’re not wrong really that actually is pretty much the entire complaint. Because the people who were new to KG and/or are only casual fans—or came more for the celebrity guests than the series itself—largely had a great time, especially if they got the jokes, and the movie was apparently very newcomer- friendly wrt introducing the Keroro elements. Many in attendance have said that the theater was filled with laughter almost the entire time. But I also sympathize with the “it’s too different” perspective because people who feel strongly about maintaining the spirit of the older material aren’t really getting that here. If this was an annual movie franchise still like Doraemon I don’t think one movie that didn’t meet longtime fans’ expectations would be that big of a deal, but not only is it the first Keroro movie in over a decade, it’s also the last adaptation period featuring the beloved original voice cast, so some feel insulted that a movie by a sorta self-aggrandizing screenwriter is their swan song.

I will say I saw this coming to an extent because ever since Fukuda was announced as the director people were discussing this outcome being a possibility. I think Bandai Namco’s rationale in choosing him is that the series is too old/has been dormant too long for it to do well if it were to only appeal to existing fans, and Fukuda’s live-action adaptations do well financially even when the reception is mixed, especially the Gintama films and the recent Sakamoto Days film. Based on the fact that the non-hardcore fan audience at the preview screening did like the movie, that might not have been a bad call. Of course, the movie isn’t out officially yet, and it’s still slightly too early to start tracking presales (a box office nerd friend told me two weeks before release is when it starts being indicative of anything). But I figure that regardless of how it performs the reactions are going to largely fall into the same two camps when a wider audience sees it, which is why I’m bothering making this post this early.

So here’s the tl;dr based on these early reviews/impressions: If you’re cool with a comedy movie where you may or may not get all the jokes depending on how much of an anime otaku you are and are just happy to see anything new with Keroro and crew doing wacky high-octane things in it, you’ll probably have a fun time. If you are a stickler for the style of movies 1-5 (or more serious parts of the show like the Garuru arc) and want that again except they have iPhones now, or are hoping for a big lore bombshell plot for the anniversary, you should probably recalibrate your expectations. (Disclaimer, I haven’t seen any spoilers about Aruru and Deruru’s supposed connection to the platoon that early marketing teased so there might be some lore/surprise fanservice that I haven’t heard about.) We’ll see what more people have to say after the second preview screening on the 16th and then when it hits theaters on the 26th, but at the end of the day I think this is gonna be a YMMV movie to the max, so don’t take anyone else’s word for it 100%. I just wanted to give a heads-up on what to expect now that the opinions are out there, and I’ll probably revisit this when it does become accessible overseas.

And here’s new song number two! The fifth rendition of the classic first opening theme! Now sung by ano and Soshina with a remastered marching band arrangement.

For the translation, I did play with the words a bit to try to squeeze some rhymes in especially since the song is supposed to be funny. In case you want to check the lyrics in Japanese yourself, you can find them here. Dedicated fans will notice lines from multiple older versions of the song mixed in with the new lyrics! I’ll also leave a couple of translation notes at the end since there’s some lines that require a bit more context.

Three, two, one… Fire!!

Kero! Kero! Kero! Invade the Earth for the first time in a while Ke-kero kero! When I remember to bring my umbrella, it’s sunny for miles

“Hey there!! We’re back in action for a bit!!” The rice is finished cooking, but the curry is burnt

They had no more stock of the clothes I want to buy I can’t pay on my phone ’cuz my balance is dry Keron’s also fun for newlyweds But it would’ve been cheaper just to buy dinner instead

Ano! Ano! Ano! Launch our attack from atop a conveyor belt A-Ano Ano! A drop of ramen splattered on me the day I wore a white shirt

“All troops, attention…right! No, left!!” I want to be hated, but it turns out I’m beloved “Being popular is a pain!”

I don’t really need this, but I can’t throw it away Even if someone else wants it, I don’t wanna say goodbye Oh, Keron, air out all of your complaints Everything’s so manufactured, space and time have gone awry

“Soshina here! Here I go!” Freakin’ hot blood courses through our body parts A fighting spirit’s carved into our hearts Bring home the victory forevermore, we are Planet Keron Freakin’ hot blood courses through our body parts A fighting spirit’s carved into our hearts Bring home the victory forevermore, for our precious planet! We are Planet Keron!

“All troops… Sorry, but don’t stop moving!!!” “Uuugh! What the hell was that?!”

Gero! Gero! Gero! Shout to the heavens! A war cry louder than a yawn Ge-gero gero! I rushed to get the phone, but when I picked it up, it was just a robocall

“From today on, the Reiwa Era shall be the Keroro Era!!” I’m waiting out the rain with a rain-go-away doll

Sparkling stars, spilled food like stardust, five stars I see If you’re making fish broth, use those tiny dried sardines Keron is the best planet in space, maybe Ah, five minutes from the station is actually fifteen!!

Well then, soldier, that’s a job well done!!

Kero kero! Kero! Ke— Ano!! “That wasn’t it…” “You ruined it!”

Kero!!!

As hinted, I'm providing translyrics for both the new movie songs now that they're out in full! the new Kero to March will come soon, but I'd like to start with the brand-new song, "Destiny Lent Out," because it kinda makes me feel more things :V In-universe, I think it's most emblematic of Keroro himself as a character, but ano said she wrote the lyrics to capture the nostalgia of the series coming back after so many years in a new era, yet still feeling much the same as before.

It's been quite a while since I've done song lyrics, and it's difficult to make this song rhyme or flow well in English, but I hope you enjoy! (If you know Japanese and want to evaluate them yourself, the original lyrics are here.)

(Love yourself! Baby good ☆) (Love yourself! Baby good ☆)

Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2)

It’s another brand new day to spend causing a commotion, busy as can be No matter what anybody says, I’ll project a ton of love through telepathy I know about all of my flaws, I know about all of my faults In fact, I know ’em better than anyone But some of my weaknesses have turned into my strengths And you’re the one who changed them

All I do is catch some Z’s, and everyone hates me Could it be society...revolves around me?

I’m not self-centered, no way I’ve just got lots of self-love Ah, I think I realized something: It’s the world that’s all screwed up

What you gave me that day was destiny I’ll tell you this now, as a special treat: I hope our days together filled with laughter keep going on Falling down and crying and puking and getting up There’s not a single moment I forgot So I’ll tell you this now, no matter how much it embarrasses me: When’ll you return those comics I lent you, huh?

Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2)

I keep saying that, but I know it’s bad, bad Failure of a human being, full of self-loathing I hate myself, hate, hate, hate, hate How am I supposed to fix this thing?

Oops, was what I just said kinda weird? Ugh, I can’t, I just want to disappear That’s right, I left a pudding in the fridge Well, forget about eating it now

I’ll just do it tomorrow, whatever it is I’ll just live the way I want And the world better roll with it

Hey, what page are you on now? It didn’t slip your mind, did it? Hey, what are you doing now? Say, what do you think about me? Hey, what volume are you on? You didn’t lose them, did you? Are you always remembering me? Memories alone aren’t enough, though

What you gave me that day was destiny I’ll tell you this now, as a special treat: I hope our days together filled with laughter keep coming back Smiling and hugging and burning with jealousy There’s not a single moment that I forgot So I’ll tell you this now, no matter how much it embarrasses me: When’ll you return those comics I lent you, huh?

Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2)

Gimme back my comics! (x2) Gimme back my comics! (x2) Give ’em back! Gimme back my comics!

Promise me that you won’t forget, ’kay?

What you gave me that day was destiny I’ll tell you this now, as a special treat: I hope our days together filled with laughter keep going on Falling down and crying and puking and getting up There’s not a single moment I forgot So I’ll tell you this now, no matter how much it embarrasses me: When’ll you return those comics I lent you, huh?

Both Movie 6 theme songs are now on streaming! They are region-locked, so you will need a VPN to stream them on YouTube and you’ll need a Japan-region account to access them on Apple, Spotify etc. (The upload time is a bit deceptive, they were only just made accessible half an hour ago at time of writing.) UPDATE: The region lock has been removed! Enjoy them on the mainstream streaming platform of your choice.

Apparently these are the official titles in English for the songs. I was almost right with Kashippanashi Destiny, I just got the order backwards xD but the title of “KERORO MARCH RETURNS” frankly kind of baffles me since…that’s the name of the 2007 version/season 4 first opening…an actual correct translation would say “returns again.” Oh well.

In a surprisingly short-notice announcement, it’s been revealed that both “Mata Kaettekita Kero! to March” and “Kashippanashi Destiny,” ano’s theme songs for the new Keroro movie, will be released digitally on streaming platforms on Wednesday, 6/3 at midnight JST! That’s just two days away!

The streaming links are here: https://tf.lnk.to/ano_keroromovie

It will be available on YouTube Music, so I don’t think it will be hard to access outside of Japan even if it gets region locked on Spotify, Apple etc. (I’ve refused to pay for YouTube premium out of stubbornness but I guess this is when I should use that free trial haha.)

We’re just about three and a half weeks away from the new movie’s release in Japan! A few days ago, official outlets revealed a whopping seven famous guest actors playing minor roles. Here's the details!

Four celebrity guests cast!

The following guest VAs from other parts of the entertainment industry have been revealed and also provided comments:

Keigo Sato from idol group JO1 plays Guy in Shibuya!

Thank you so much for allowing me to perform as a voice actor in Shin Gekijouban Keroro Gunso: Fukkatsushite Sokkou Chikyu Metsubou no Kiki de Arimasu! I used to watch the Keroro Gunso anime a ton when I was little, so I'm super happy to participate in it as part of my job! In this movie, I play a delinquent whose personality is changed by a youkai. I really brought out my hidden inner bad boy! Be sure to be on the lookout for me! Also, there are many other first-rate talents in the film, so I'll be looking forward to it too! Please come see us in theaters!

Yusei Yagi from J-pop group FANTASTICS plays Guy in Shibuya (a different one)!

I had a lot of fun playing a guest role in this movie. The Keroro Gunso manga and anime have been dear to my heart since I my grade school days. I loved it so much that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was integral to my youth. When I received the offer from Director Fukuda, I was so overjoyed that I replied right away. It's been a long time since the last Keroro Gunso movie, so I can't wait for it to come out myself. Please check it out in theaters! Yes, sir!

Variety star and singer Suzanne (real name: Sae Yamamoto) plays Kumamoto Announcer!

I woke up at 5:30 AM and came all the way from Kumamoto to record for this film! Kumamoto is a location in the movie itself, so I tackled the role by putting all my personal feelings toward the area into it. Keroro Gunso is a very heartwarming story, and I think people of all ages can enjoy it. I'm excited to watch it in the theater with my own son! But I do think you might miss where my part is if you don't pay reeeeally close attention, so keep your eyes peeled.

Rina Watanabe from idol group Hinatazaka46 plays Girl in Shibuya!

I love Keroro Gunso, so I'm glad to be able to participate in the series, though I was surprised when I got the offer. This is my first voice acting role, but I still enjoyed giving it a try! Existing fans are definitely in for a treat, but I'd like those who are diving into the world of Keroro Gunso for the first time to get excited as well!

(Information above has all been sourced from this article.)

Three famous seiyuu join the guest cast!

If you regularly follow anime and other Japanese media, you're sure to recognize these three guests who have also been revealed to be part of the movie:

Tomokazu Seki as Warrior #7

Natsuki Hanae as Alien

Koichi Yamadera as Space Police Chief

Fun fact about these cast members: in a tweet, Fukuda hints at why he chose these voice actors:

So, uh, sorry about this, but I just asked these three to show up because I'm a huge fan. I like Seki-san from a certain youkai anime*. For Hanae-san, I already totally love what he's done with Nagumo in SAKAMOTO DAYS. And there's Tanjiro [TLN: from Demon Slayer] too, of course! As for Yama-chan, he's been so very kind to me since my days as a novice writing scripts for Oha Suta. Doing an anime has made me realize these beautiful things can happen! *TLN: he's referencing Seki's role as Whisper from the Yo-kai Watch anime.

I am quite a bit late to this (as I mentioned, I had a business trip) but a pretty significant batch of news about the Keroro Musical was revealed over the weekend! First and foremost…

Twelve additional cast members unveiled!

The following cast members and their roles have been announced:

Jun Noguchi as Fuyuki Hinata (Other notable roles: Tokyo Revengers stage plays as Naoto Tachibana, Full Metal Alchemist: -Sorezore no Senjou- as Kain Fuery)

Yuria Sato as Natsumi Hinata (ROCK MUSICAL BLEACH series as Orihime Inoue, HUNTERxHUNTER THE STAGE 2 as Shizuku)

Hazuki Tanda as Momoka Nishizawa (Assault Lily Schuzrum ~Sanngrthr-hen~ as Toa Tetsukawa, BanG Dream! Ave Mujica anime as Mana Sumita)

Wataru Yamane as Saburo (Oedo Fire Slayer -The Legend of Phoenix- as Shinnosuke Torigoe)

Arisa Sonohara as Koyuki Azumaya (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba stage plays as Makomo, World Trigger the Stage stage plays as Chika Amatori)

Noa Tsugumi as Angol Mois (Outaishi-sama, Watashi Kondo Koso Anata ni Korosaretakunain desu! as Dark Guide)

Cecile Daigo as Aki Hinata (video appearance only) (Live Spectacle Naruto stage plays as Tsunade, Moriarity the Patriot musicals as Irene Adler & James Bond)

In addition, five other cast members have been announced as secret characters (each written as “???”), with their roles having yet to be unveiled (on Twitter, there was a UFO emoji next to their names which indicates they will be alien characters).

Yuya Tominaga (Avataro Sentai Donbrothers as Sonoi, Go! Go! Loser Ranger the Show stage play as Footsoldier D)

Rukia Nakagawa (Mao Dao Zu Shi Sokai-hen as Lan Sizhui)

Ryoshiro Tsuji (Groovy Stage Break My Case as Kyoya Shido, Onmyouji ~Kaikoku no Sho~ musical as Ootakemaru)

Gaku Matsuda (Ensemble Stars! THE STAGE! plays as Ran Nagisa, Blue Lock stage plays as Ryusei Shido)

Kenta Matsui (Hetalia musicals as Denmark, Osomatsu-san on STAGE ~SIX MEN’S SHOW TIME~ 2nd SEASON as Choromatsu)

Official comments from the Keroro Platoon’s stage actors revealed!

The following comments from the Keroro Platoon’s actors have been revealed along with their official portraits:

Shogo Tamura / Sergeant Keroro:

I’m Shogo Tamura, and I play Sergeant Keroro. I never could’ve imagined I’d get to play this role someday. I couldn’t wait for when the Keroro Gunso anime would air on TV when I was a kid. The heartwarming slice-of-life times in the Hinata house, the slapstick comedy, the passionate friendships, the battles!! I couldn’t peel my eyes from the screen. I think portraying the series on stage will be a really fun challenge, and with a cast like this, I have a good feeling we’re about to see the birth of an awesome show. Look forward to when performances start at Nihon Seinenkan Hall! Yes, sir!!!

Shion Otomo / Private Second-Class Tamama:

Hi, everyone! I’m Shion Otomo, playing the role of Private Second-Class Tamama in the Keroro Gunso Pekopon Invasion Musical! When I was approached about the role, a bunch of super happy memories from when I was hooked on [the anime] came flooding back. I was a bit worried about how we could possibly depict this series on stage, but this cast is truly star-studded! I’m sure it’s gonna be a fun time, so I’ll keep working hard preparing for the performances! I can’t wait to see how the story unfolds! I’ll be waiting for you at the theater!

Ryono Kusachi / Corporal Giroro:

Hello. I’m Ryono Kusachi, and I play Corporal Giroro. Ever since the info about the show was made public, I’ve both realized just how much this incredible series is supported by so many people and felt the joy and pressure of being involved in such a project. I promise this show will make everyone who comes to see it say they’re glad they came.

Haruki Kiyama / Sergeant Major Kururu:

I’m so excited to be acting in the Keroro Gunso Pekopon Invasion Musical! Kururu, the character I play, is very unique and quirky, so I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of concoctions we can cook up on stage. Judging from data I’ve seen, I can’t help but feel a quirky role played by “Haru-chan” is bound to be super-duper fantastical (laughs). Please come to experience the world of Keroro Gunso at the theater! I can’t wait to meet you all.

Shin Tamura / Lance Corporal Dororo:

Nice to meet you, people of Pekopon. I used to watch the show all the time as a kid. I’d always sing the songs with my friends. To be a part of the stage play adaptation of the series I loved so much makes me very proud. And I get to play Lance Corporal Dororo, the kind-hearted assassin who loves Earth’s natural beauty. I love everything about this character, even how quickly his trauma switch can flick. I want to devote my body and soul to bringing him to life, de gozaru! I’m just as excited as you all are to see what kind of comedy the Keroro Platoon will create on stage. I await the day when we can all do one big resonance together in the theater room. I’ll play the strong, kind, and sort of pitiable Lance Corporal Dororo with lots of care, so! Everybody! Please don’t forget Dororo!!! (laughs)

Tickets for overseas fans?!?!

For once in our sad lives as Keroro fans who don’t live in Japan, they’re throwing us a bone this time! (I mean you do have to go to Japan for this but still.) There is an English ticketing website available for the show, which will open applications on August 15th! More details are available here. Note that the show will still be in Japanese and subtitles will not be available.

Finally, it has been announced that children under 18 will be able to attend for free, and there will be events at the venue for those who attend (details yet to be announced.)

There are about four months to go until the play will be held in mid-late September, so we’ll see what else comes out until then, if anything!

Earlier this morning, the Keroro Anime Twitter confirmed that the original soundtrack for the new movie will release on 6/27, one day after the movie comes out in Japanese theaters! It will contain a total of 82 tracks, including the movie size version of “Mata Kaettekita Kero! to March.”

So far only the physical release is up for preorder with a price of ¥4400 ($27-28 USD depending on whatever the conversion rate is next month). I imagine(/hope) the digital version will probably pop up on streaming on release day.

I'm actually a few days late to this news due to having a bit of a chaotic week, but we've received confirmation of a couple more cast members for the new movie!

New Narrator revealed!

(I just realized you can embed source links into images on PC apparently so I guess I'm just gonna do that does it work on mobile let me know if not :V)

The Narrator for the movie is Shinobu Hasegawa of the comedy duo Shisonnu! He usually plays the role of the tsukkomi (straight man) in his skits. Here is his comment about the role:

The moment I was offered the role of the Narrator in a magnificent anime that has transcended generations, my heart fluttered and my legs shook at the same time. I'm going to do the best I can to follow in the footsteps of my predecessors without mucking things up. I believe people of all ages will see this movie, even including parents who watched the series as kids now seeing it with their own children. I really do hope you enjoy it.

(As a reminder for context, the original show's narrator through the end of the series and later episodes of the Flash anime, Keiji Fujiwara, passed away in 2020, requiring his roles to be recast.)

ano and Soshina double as voice actors!

In addition to being the opening theme song artists, ano and Soshina will also be playing new minor characters in the voice cast!

ano plays the character of Lab Helper Robot, a robot assistant to Aruru and Deruru. Her comment on the role is as follows (per the movie official website):

I never imagined I'd be able to be part of the cast too, so I was super happy to get the role. It was an honor! I can't say I have that many lines, but I'm sooo excited just to be in a Keroro movie at all! Please come down to the theater and check it out.

Next, Soshina plays the character of Florida Shibuya Man, a guy who gets fired up after being possessed by a youkai in Shibuya. Soshina's comment is as follows:

Even just by watching the scenes right before and after the part I'm in, you can tell just how much this movie is bursting with Keroro energy. I had a great time going, "That's the Keroro I know!" I think people who are only just watching Keroro Gunso for the first time in the Reiwa era can enjoy it too. And of course, for those who watched it back in the day, it'll truly feel like coming home. So get excited to see it in theaters!

(Note: The octopus on the character's tank top is a mascot of Soshina's, Hagetako Ebifry-kun (ハゲタコエビフライくん).

It’s time for the monthly Q&A drop…but don’t get too used to it, because with this month’s post came the announcement that the Q&A campaign is coming to an end! Next month will be the last round of answers for a total of twelve rounds (maybe I should’ve kept numbering these after all?). It’s unfortunate, but I didn’t expect it to go on forever, though with the backlog of questions there are they could’ve easily kept it going for longer than a year. But it is additional work for Yoshizaki on top of having adaptations to oversee again after a very long time of not having to do that, so I don’t blame him for cutting it off here. This is also a shorter month with six questions answered as opposed to the usual 7-8.

Q: This thought came to me while I was getting in the bath myself, but how does Corporal Giroro take baths? Does he just use the Hinatas’ bathtub like the sarge? Or does he go to a public bath for aliens?

A: Keronians’ bodies have a special coating, so they don’t typically need baths. I think they just float around in the water as part of underwater training sometimes. Keroro enjoys the bath as a playground of sorts.

Q: The series parodies a lot of comedians and Keroro himself likes comedy, so I was wondering if you’re a fan of comedy too. I’d love to hear which comedian is your favorite.

A: You might be thinking more of the anime version of Keroro. Rather than referencing a specific professional comedian, I always remember [an] extremely funny friend(s)* I had as a kid. I bet someone who could be so sharply funny as just a child could surely be a comedian someday.

[*This is one of those instances where the Japanese doesn’t really distinguish between singular and plural.]

Q: Just how high of a level is Kururu’s genius intellect?

A: He’s so twisted that the distinction between a genius and an average person doesn’t really apply, so who knows?

Q: In Keroro Gunso, a lot of anthropomorphized animals such as a cat, a panda, and a tiger appear. When designing the animals’ humanoid forms, is there anything you’re particular about or pay special attention to?

A: This phenomenon is pretty much limited to the chapters you listed, so I don’t think that many show up, but they definitely have a different vibe than the Kemono Friends designs. Their transformations are caused by Kururu’s inventions, so they’re designed to demonstrate his sloppiness.

Q: Which member of the Keroro Platoon would you like to go on a trip with?

A: Probably Keroro! But if it were possible, it would be fun to go with all five of them!

Q: In the Easter Island storyline of the Keroron Ball arc, you showed what Giroro thinks about Keroro. About how long before then did you decide he feels that way?

A: There’s always put a general emotional distance between them since [Giroro] first appeared. But the series is a gag manga at its core, so I put off thinking about the serious stuff until later. I drew that chapter thinking it was just the right opportunity to pull that out. I suppose this too might’ve been guidance from the island’s gods.

The movies themselves don’t have subtitles, but the trailers have subs if your app/browser is set to English! The names/descriptions having translations is typical but it’s not a guarantee to have the trailers subbed on other untranslated movies (i.e., the Doraemon and Shin-chan movies in the same category). Of course we already know the movies are getting official releases from Discotek Eventually(TM), but the translations are unpolished enough to make me think the trailer subs are not from anything they’d be using, like the Movie 3 one with “two Gunso’s”:

I vaguely recall that the old movies were on Netflix in Indonesia or somewhere like that in the past, so maybe these subs are from there? Interesting curiosity. Even if the movies themselves aren’t translated, they are in pretty high quality and also include the OVAs for Movies 2–4! I hope this is a sign that Movie 6 will get added to Netflix Japan in a timely manner, possibly even predating the Blu-ray by a bit if we get lucky (I have a feeling that if it does go to say, Crunchyroll streaming with subs, it is going to take much longer than the JP home release but I’d love to be wrong).

After a series of teaser photos of the platoons’ outfits over the last few days, we finally have the full cast reveal! Not only that, the performance venue and dates have been unveiled as well!

Cast

Shogo Tamura (27) as Keroro (Other notable roles: Dancing Star Precure the Stage as Cure Top, KING OF PRISM-Your Endless Call-Mi~nna Kirameke! KinPri Tours as Shin Ichijo) (Personal announcement tweet)

Shion Otomo (18) as Tamama (Other notable roles: HUNTERxHUNTER the Stage as Gon, Nintama Rantaro musicals as Sakubei Tomatsu

Ryono Kusachi (27) as Giroro (Other notable roles: Osomatsu-san on STAGE as Osomatsu, Blue Lock (stage play) as Rin Itoshi) (Personal announcement tweet)

Haruki Kiyama (41) as Kururu (Other notable roles: HUNTERxHUNTER the Stage as Hisoka, Fate/Zero Series as Archer) (Personal announcement tweet)

Shin Tamura (30) as Dororo (Other notable roles: My Hero Academia The “Ultra” Stage series as Izuku Midoriya, Touken Ranbu musicals as Yoshiyuki Mutsunokami) (Personal announcement tweet)

Other cast members TBA

(More details on the official site’s cast page)

The musical will be performed at Nihon Seinenkan Hall in Shinjuku, Tokyo across a series of nine performances from September 18–27, 2026. The full schedule is here. Ticket application/purchase periods will be staggered over a course of several periods starting on May 22, with the Keroro Fan Club getting first dibs.