R.O.D the TV is a 26-episode anime television series, animated by J.C.Staff and Studio Deen and produced by Aniplex, directed by Koji Masunari and scripted by Hideyuki Kurata, about the adventures of three paper-manipulating sisters, Michelle, Maggie and Anita, who become the bodyguards of Nenene Sumiregawa, a famous Japanese writer. Featuring music by Taku Iwasaki, the series is a sequel to the Read or Die OVA. Its official title of R.O.D the TV is a catch-all acronym referring to the inclusion of characters from both Read or Die and the Read or Dreammanga, the latter of which revolves solely around the Paper Sisters. Promotional material for R.O.D the TV implies that the show revolves around the three sisters of Read or Dream; however, Nenene Sumiregawa of Read or Die is also considered a protagonist. R.O.D the TV first premiered across Japan from October 1, 2003 through March 16, 2004 on pay-per-viewsatellite television platform SKY PerfecTV!. It was later aired across the terrestrial Fuji Television station from October 15, 2003 through March 18, 2004. The series spanned a total of 26 episodes, and was broadcast worldwide by the anime satellite television network, Animax. The series was first distributed on DVD in North America by Geneon, in seven discs; the company finished releasing the series in summer 2005. Aniplex of America re-released the original Read or Die episodes and the TV series on Blu-ray in Winter 2010/2011.
Plot
The series begins in 2006, five years after the "I-Jin" incident detailed in the Read or Die OVA. Yomiko Readman has supposedly gone missing, and Nenene Sumiregawa, her former student and best friend, is still in Tokyo after her parents moved to the United States. Nenene has not written a book since Yomiko disappeared, as she has become lonely and frustrated that her sensei has never read her last book, and she feels she can't write again until she hears Yomiko's reaction to the book, so Nenene often disappears for long periods of time searching for Yomiko, and has been periodically doing so ever since her "disappearance". During a trip to Hong Kong, Nenene meets the three sisters, Michelle, Maggie and Anita, who are supposed to take care of her during her visit. However, the hotel at which Nenene is supposed to stay at is bombed, and at a press conference Nenene is briefly held hostage by a jealous rival in her industry. The three sisters end up becoming her bodyguards and join her back to Tokyo. Each sister has paper manipulation skills similar to Yomiko, although less powerful and more focused in scope. After the initial action-filled adventure, the first several episodes take on the feel of an odd-couple comedy which focuses on tension between Nenene and the sisters, who move into her apartment and mooch off her, all while dealing with various crazies and psychos in their everyday lives. The sisters also perform odd jobs as agents of the Dokusensha. This eventually puts them and Nenene in direct conflict with the British Library and the protagonists of Read of Die. Events grow more serious as the series progresses as atrocities are committed by both sides, thrusting the main characters into the middle of a conflict between literary superpowers, the British Library and Dokusensha, who are both trying to collect ancient artifacts to control the entire world and even rewrite history. After a horrific collision between the two superpowers, Nenene and the Paper Sisters set out to find the missing Yomiko to learn the truth about the conflict and save the world from literary terrorism.
Characters
Main characters
The Paper Sisters' names seem to be derived from those of three real Hong Kong action stars: Maggie Cheung, Anita Mui, and Michelle Yeoh. These three actresses starred together in the 1993 movie The Heroic Trio as the titular super-powered heroines. Alternatively, a possible reference is Hong Kong actress Michelle Reis, whose surname means "king" in Portuguese. Anita King
