Ah My Buddha
Ah My Buddha, known in Japan as Amaenaide yo!!, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Toshinori Sogabe that was serialized in Comic Gum magazine from March 25, 2004 to February 24, 2007. An anime adaptation aired on TV Tokyo's anime satellite channel, AT-X between July and September 2005. A second "season" of the manga, named: Amaenaideyo!! MS! was serialized from July 25, 2007 to August 22, 2009.
A second season of the anime, Amaenaide yo!! Katsu!!, aired between January and March 2006 and introduces a new antagonist, the fifteen-year-old girl Kazuki Kazusano, who is actually very affectionate to Ikkou, unlike the other girls. The second season is also more serious and dramatic than the last one, and focuses more on Hinata's unstable powers, Haruka's childhood years and Kazuki's tricks to get her hand on Ikkou's powers.
The show was broadcast in Japan with an R-15 rating, which is the Japanese equivalent of a "Restricted" rating. Media Blasters licensed and released both seasons of the anime in North America under the title Ah My Buddha, first as six single bilingual DVD volumes throughout 2009, and then as a six-DVD collection in April 2010. Right Stuf Inc. has since rescued the series for a complete collection release under their Lucky Penny label in 2014.
Plot
The protagonist of the series is the monk-in-training Ikkou Satonaka, who transforms into a super-monk with the ability to perform mass exorcisms for the girls he lives with. He lives in the Saienji Temple as a Buddhist priest in training with six other nuns: Haruka Amanogawa, Sumi Ikuina, Hinata and Sakura Sugai, Chitose Nanbu and Yuuko Atouda, each of whom represents one of the bosatsu of the six lower realms of the traditional Buddhist cosmology. Chitose is the main love interest and has a love-hate relationship with Ikkou which is somewhat typical in many other anime, involving numerous misunderstandings, beatings, and angry tirades where the male is clearly at a disadvantage to the female. A side effect of Ikkou using his ultimate power is that immediately afterwards he turns into an even bigger pervert than he normally is. The subject matter of the series is Ikkou's self-destructive power and the powers of the other nuns and their training to control these powers, as well as their relationships.Characters
; Ikkou SatonakaMedia
Manga
Ah My Buddha / Amaenaideyo!! is written and illustrated by Sogabe Toshinori. It was serialized in Comic Gum magazine. Wani Books released the seven tankōbon of Amaenaideyo! between March 25, 2004 and February 24, 2007. Sharp Point Press released the seven tankōbon of Amaenaideyo! between January 7, 2005 and February 24, 2009. Soleil Productions released the first tankōbon of Amaenaideyo! on February 21, 2007. As of 22 August, the last Amaenaideyo MS chapter with a grand finale was released.Wani Books released the first volume of Amaenaideyo! MS on July 25, 2007. Sharp Point Press released the first volume of Amaenaideyo! MS on March 3, 2009.
Anime
produced an animated series based on the manga. The series, also titled Amenaideyo!!, was broadcast on AT-X between July 1, 2005 and September 16, 2005. It and sequel series Amaenaideyo!! Katsu!! are licensed by in North America by Media Blasters, who released them on bilingual DVD as a 26-episode series entitled Ah My Buddha. It is also licensed in Taiwan by Top-Insight International. Ah My Buddha uses two pieces of theme music. "Afurete yuku no wa kono kimochi" by Amae-tai! is the series' opening theme, while "Happy Days" by Mai Nakahara is the series' ending theme.The first DVD, containing the first two episodes of Amaenaideyo!!, was released by VAP on August 24, 2005. The second DVD, containing the third, fourth and fifth episodes of Amaenaideyo!!, was released by VAP on September 22, 2005. The third DVD, containing the sixth, seventh and eighth episodes of Amaenaideyo!!, was released by VAP on October 21, 2005. The fourth DVD, containing the ninth, tenth and eleventh episodes of Amaenaideyo!!, was released by VAP on November 23, 2005. The fifth DVD, containing the twelfth and the original video animation episodes of Amaenaideyo!!, was released by VAP on December 21, 2005.
The first three DVDs of Media Blasters' release of Ah My Buddha contain the first season of the TV series. The individual volumes were given the secondary titles The Aroused One, The Two Uncovered Paths and The Three Exposed Jewels.
The second season, titled Amaenaideyo!! Katsu!!, was broadcast on AT-X between January 4, 2006 and March 22, 2006. It is also licensed in Taiwan by Top-Insight International. Amaenaideyo!! Katsu!! uses two pieces of theme music. "Amaenaideyotsu!!" by Amae-tai! is the series' opening theme, while "Lonesome Traveler" by Mai Nakahara is the series' ending theme.
The first DVD, containing the first two episodes of Amaenaideyo!! Katsu, was released on February 22, 2006. The second DVD, containing the third, fourth and fifth episodes of Amaenaideyo!! Katsu, was released on March 24, 2006. The third DVD, containing the sixth, seventh and eighth episodes of Amaenaideyo!! Katsu, was released on April 26, 2006. The fourth DVD, containing the ninth, tenth and eleventh episodes of Amaenaideyo!! Katsu, was released on May 24, 2006. The fifth DVD, containing the twelfth and the original video animation episodes of Amaenaideyo!! Katsu, was released on June 21, 2006.
The fourth through sixth DVDs of Media Blasters' release of Ah My Buddha contain the second season of the TV series. The individual volumes were given the secondary titles The Four Naked Truths, The Five Bare Aggregates and The Six Realms Below.
Animation Soundtrack CDs
On July 21, 2005, VAP released an animation soundtrack CD for Amaenaideyo!! using the lyrics of Toshiaki Yamada. It was sung by Mai Nakahara. On November 2, 2005, wint released a Christmas animation soundtrack CD for Amaenaideyo!!. It was sung by Akeno Watanabe, Mai Nakahara, Chieko Higuchi, Tomoko Kawakami, Ryoko Shintani and Haruhi Terada. On January 25, 2006, wint released an animation soundtrack CD for Amaenaideyo!! using the lyrics of Toshiaki Yamada. On March 15, 2006, wint released an animation soundtrack CD for Amaenaideyo!!. The songs were composed by Toshiaki Yamada and were sung by Ryoko Shintani, Chieko Higuchi, Tomoko Kawakami, Asami Sanada, Akeno Watanabe, Haruhi Terada and Mai Nakahara.Drama Audio
Two Amaenaideyo Drama episodes were released on the Japanese DVD release at Volume 1 of both seasons. They were made to make the story more easy to understand, by adding stories about Ikkou's life.The first audio drama, also named "Episode 00" starts as Ikkou is on a train. He's on his way to his grandmother, as it is his first time travelling to the Saienji temple. The girls welcomes him, and is very excited to have a boy at the temple for the first time. Well, everyone except Yuko. But the next day at the morning, Ikkou goes inside the bathroom when Sumi already is inside... And that makes them think twice about him.
The second audio drama is just added as a "bonus chapter" of Kazuki.