YuruYuri

Plot

Taking place at the fictional Nanamori Middle School in Takaoka, Toyama, the series revolves around the daily lives of the Amusement Club (ごらく部, Goraku-bu), consisting of Akari Akaza, her childhood friends, Kyōko Toshinō and Yui Funami, and her classmate, Chinatsu Yoshikawa; along with the school's Student Council which is made up of its own set of characters.

The Amusement Club

Akari Akaza (赤座 あかり, Akaza Akari)

Voiced by: Shiori Mikami Akari is a polite, fun-loving and benevolent red-haired girl who is said to be the main protagonist of the series. She is well-known for her trademark hair buns and her lack of presence, both of which are bantered by other characters, comically.

Kyōko Toshinō (歳納 京子, Toshinō Kyōko)

Voiced by: Yuka Ōtsubo An optimistic and fun-loving blonde girl who is a year older than Akari and is the more substantial protagonist of the series. Not one to pass up an opportunity for a laugh, she is often causing Yui trouble and crushing on Chinatsu, who resembles her favorite anime character, Mirakurun. She's the object of affection of student council vice-president Ayano, who is in many ways her opposite. Despite her lazy attitude, she often gets high scores in tests after cram sessions. She enjoys eating rum raisin ice cream and is also a talented dōjin artist.

Yui Funami (船見 結衣, Funami Yui)

Voiced by: Minami Tsuda A cool-headed girl with dark hair who often acts as the voice of reason, Yui is the childhood friend of Akari and Kyōko. She enjoys video games and is shown to be a good cook, leaving Chinatsu obsessed with her food. She is a reliable friend and lives alone in an apartment complex, and although she won't admit it, she tends to feel lonely when others, particularly Kyōko, aren't around. Although generally quiet, she will sometimes burst into stifled laughter upon hearing Ayano's puns.

Chinatsu Yoshikawa (吉川 ちなつ, Yoshikawa Chinatsu)

Voiced by: Rumi Ōkubo Akari's pink-haired classmate who originally wanted to join the Tea Ceremony Club, but ended up joining the Amusement Club as the Tea Ceremony Club was already abolished. She is often chased after by Kyōko due to her resemblance to the anime character Mirakurun, though she herself has a passionate crush on Yui, whom she often fantasizes about. While generally cute, benevolent and fun-loving, especially in the presence of Yui, she tends to be selfish and occasionally shows dark thoughts. She also has a terrifying lack of artistic skills, frequently leaving others in shock.

Student Council

Ayano Sugiura (杉浦 綾乃, Sugiura Ayano)

Voiced by: Saki Fujita Ayano is the uptight and high-strung Student Council vice-president who is often not too honest with her feelings for Kyōko, always referring to her by her full name and treating her with acts of hostility, despite not wanting do so on purpose. As a diligent student, she constantly sees herself as a rival to Kyōko, who always manages to beat her in tests. However, on the inside, she is romantic and affectionate towards Kyōko, though she doesn't always show her friendly and responsive side, seeing it as a weakness. Though she may not outwardly show it, she cares about the people around her and sometimes doesn't think of herself, sacrificing her time and energy for the sake of others. She also frequently makes puns and likes crème caramels.

Chitose Ikeda (池田 千歳, Ikeda Chitose)

Voiced by: Aki Toyosaki A member of Student Council who is almost always seen with Ayano. Though she has a gentle disposition, she has various yuri fantasies whenever she takes her glasses off, almost always pairing Kyōko together with Ayano, which often leads to near-fatal nosebleeds. She speaks in soft Kansai dialect and likes tsukemono. Whenever she gets drunk (or eats chocolate in the anime), she goes on a kissing rampage.

Sakurako Ohmuro (大室 櫻子, Ōmuro Sakurako)

Voiced by: Emiri Katō A cheerful candidate for the Student Council vice-president next year. She has dark blond hair and a petite build, which she has a complex about. She and Himawari are childhood friends and rivals, constantly arguing as they both aim to become vice-president, though they do seem to hold feelings for each other. She is also quite friendly towards Akari. She and Kyōko are quite similar, but she appears to be much more prone to tantrums and lazier when it comes to school work.

Himawari Furutani (古谷 向日葵, Furutani Himawari)

Voiced by: Suzuko Mimori Another candidate for the Student Council vice-president next year. She has navy blue hair and large breasts, which often leads to her being teased by Sakurako, who is jealous of her early physical development. She generally behaves in graceful manner and speech toward everyone except Sakurako. Despite this, she does appear to hold feelings for her and often helps her with her homework.

Rise Matsumoto (松本 りせ, Matsumoto Rise)

Voiced by: Saori Gotō The current student council president who has very little presence and often speaks in a whisper-quiet voice that only a few people such as Nana can understand. She is Nana's "Explosive Friend," because she always suffers the explosions she causes.

Family members

Mari Funami (船見 まり, Funami Mari)

Voiced by: Maaya Uchida A daughter of one of Yui's relatives. She is a fan of Mirakurun, and initially mistakes Chinatsu for her, though does not take kindly to Chinatsu after learning her personality doesn't match her image.

Kaede Furutani (古谷 楓, Furutani Kaede)

Voiced by: Aya Uchida Himawari's six year old sister. Kaede is shown to be quite even-tempered and wise beyond her years.

Chizuru Ikeda (池田 千鶴, Ikeda Chizuru)

Voiced by: Momo Kuraguchi Chitose's twin sister, who looks identical to her except for eye color. Unlike her sister, Chizuru is shown to be very cold and distant towards most people, though she has a strong bond with her sibling. Much like Chitose, she often takes off her glasses to invoke yuri fantasies, pairing Ayano with Chitose and drooling instead of having nosebleeds. She strongly dislikes Kyōko, who constantly tries to play pranks on her and is seemingly a barrier against her fantasies.

Akane Akaza (赤座 あかね, Akaza Akane)

Voiced by: Yui Horie Akari's older sister who is 19 years old and attends a university. She is secretly infatuated with Akari, with her room almost completely covered in photos of her, often doing various perverted things with her belongings when she is not around and reading lots of doujins about sisterly incest.

Tomoko Yoshikawa (吉川 ともこ, Yoshikawa Tomoko)

Voiced by: Ayano Ishikawa Chinatsu's older sister. She's a friend of Akane and has strong feelings for her.

Nadeshiko Ohmuro (大室 撫子, Ōmuro Nadeshiko)

Voiced by: Chiwa Saitō Sakurako's older sister who is eighteen years old. Like Sakurako, she also has a petite build, but she is also taller, and unlike Sakurako, she is intelligent and responsible. She is in a romantic relationship with one of her friends, though it has not yet been revealed who.

Hanako Ohmuro (大室 花子, Ōmuro Hanako)

Voiced by: Rina Hidaka Sakurako's younger sister who is an elementary school student, and is eight years old. She acts very mature for her age, but also has some childish tendencies. Both Hanako and Nadeshiko tend to think Sakurako is lazy, abrasive and stupid, though they are shown to miss her when she's not around.

Others

Nana Nishigaki (西垣 奈々, Nishigaki Nana)

Voiced by: Ryōko Shiraishi A faculty member at Nanamori Middle School who is constantly trying various experiments, often using Rise as a test subject, and has a love for explosions, which are generally caused by her experiments. She is one of the few people who can understand Rise's quiet voice.

Hiro Takaoka (高岡 ひろ, Takaoka Hiro)

Voiced by: Haruka Yamazaki Akari and Chinatsu's classmate, who is an admirer of Kyōko's doujin works and is the heroine of Namori's other manga, Reset!.

Aoi Isurugi (葵石動, Isurugi Aoi)

She is Akari and Chinatsu's classmate, who is trying to find a way to make money. She is the secondary protagonist of the YuruYuri spin-off Reset! and Hiro Takaoka's best friend.

Ai Miwa (三輪 藍, Miwa Ai)

Nadeshiko's classmate.

Miho Yaena (八重野 美穂, Yaena Miho)

Nadeshiko's classmate.

Megumi Sonokawa (園川 めぐみ, Sonokawa Megumi)

Nadeshiko's classmate.

Mirai Sōma (相馬 未来, Sōma Mirai)

Hanako's classmate.

Kokoro Ogawa (小川 こころ, Ogawa Kokoro)

Hanako's classmate.

Misaki Takasaki (高崎 みさき, Takasaki Misaki)

Hanako's classmate, who sees her as a rival.

Mirakurun

Kurumi (胡桃) / Mirakurun (ミラクるん, Mirakurun)

Voiced by: Ayana Taketatsu The heroine of the fictional magical girl series, "Majokko Mirakurun". When transformed, she greatly resembles Chinatsu.

Raika (雷香) / Rivalun (ライバルん, Raibarun)

Voiced by: Aoi Yūki Another magical girl who competes with Mirakurun. She is secretly Kurumi's classmate.

Ganbo (ガンボー, Ganbō)

Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa A spherical robot who is Rivalun's boss.

Manga

YuruYuri began its serial run in Ichijinsha's Japanese manga magazine Comic Yuri Hime S on June 18, 2008. In September 2010, YuruYuri was moved to Comic Yuri Hime when Comic Yuri Hime S ended its publication. Additionally, the series has been released in thirteen tankōbon volumes, published between July 17, 2009, and February 4, 2015. As of December 2011, over a million copies of the manga have been sold. The manga was briefly released in English on the online reader site JManga before it shut down. Another manga series set in the same universe, Reset! (りせっと!, Risetto!), began serialization in Caramel Febri magazine's first issue, released on July 24, 2010, and went on hiatus after the fourth issue, on January 25, 2011. A spin-off web manga by Namori focusing on the Ohmuro sisters, titled Ohmuroke (大室家, Ōmuroke), has been released on Niconico's Niconico Seiga service. The series first released chapters alongside episodes of the second anime season between July 2, 2012 and September 17, 2012, before resuming on Ichijinsha's Niconico Yuri Hime web manga publication from February 17, 2013. The series has been collected in two tankōbon volumes, released on August 1, 2013, and August 4, 2014.

Anime

An anime television adaptation of the manga series was announced in the May 2011 issue of Comic Yuri Hime. Produced by Dogakobo under the direction of Masahiko Ohta, the series aired in Japan on TV Tokyo between July 5 and September 20, 2011. A second season, titled YuruYuri♪♪, aired in Japan between July 2, 2012 and September 17, 2012. Both series were simulcast by Crunchyroll. The series won the Television award at the 17th Animation Kobe Awards. NIS America have licensed both seasons in North America, releasing the first two seasons subtitled Blu-ray Disc on September 3, 2013, and January 7, 2014, respectively. An original video animation titled YuruYuri Nachuyachumi! (ゆるゆり なちゅやちゅみ！, YuruYuri Summer Vacation!) was screened in five theaters in Japan on November 29, 2014 before being released on Blu-ray and DVD on February 18, 2015. Unlike the series, the OVA is animated by TYO Animations instead of Dogakobo, with Hiroyuki Hata replacing Ohta as director, Michiko Yokote replacing Takashi Aoshima as scriptwriter, and Motohiro Tanaguchi replacing character designer Chiaki Nakajima and serving as chief animation designer. Two additional episodes, titled Nachuyachumi!+, aired on August 21 and September 18, 2015. A third anime season, titled YuruYuri San☆Hai!, also produced by TYO Animations, aired in Japan between October 6, 2015 and December 21, 2015. Like the previous two seasons, it was simulcast by Crunchyroll.

Music

The main opening and ending themes are performed by the Nanamori Middle School Amusement Club (七森中☆ごらく部, Nanamori-chu Goraku-bu), a unit consisting of the four main voice actresses, Minami Tsuda, Rumi Ōkubo, Shiori Mikami and Yuka Ōtsubo. For the first season, the opening theme is "Yuriyurarararayuruyuri Daijiken" (ゆりゆららららゆるゆり大事件, The Great YuriYurarararaYuruYuri Incident) while the ending theme is "My Pace de Ikimashō" (マイペースでいきましょう, Let's Go at My Pace). For the second season, the opening theme is "Yes! YuYuYu☆YuruYuri♪♪" (「いぇす！ゆゆゆ☆ゆるゆり♪♪, Iesu! YuYuYu☆YuruYuri♪♪) while the ending theme is "100% Chū~gakusei" (１００％ちゅ～学生, 100% Middle Schooler). The opening theme for episode six is "Yonde Mirakurun!" (よんでミラクるん!, Call Me Mirakurun!) by Ayana Taketatsu while the ending theme for episode eight is "Girl's Power" (ガールズパワーで, Gāruzu Pawā de) by Minami Tsuda and Rumi Ōkubo. For the OVA, the opening and ending themes are "YuruYurinrinrinrinrin" (ゆるゆりんりんりんりんりん) and "After School Days" (アフタースクールデイズ, Afutā Sukūru Deizu), both performed by the Nanamori Middle School Amusement Club. For Nachuyachumi! +, the opening and ending themes are "YuriShuraShuShuShu" (ゆりしゅらしゅしゅしゅ) and "Ohirune Universe" (おひるねゆにばーす, Naptime Universe). For San☆Hai, the main opening and ending themes are "Chochocho! YuruYuri Capriccio!!!" (ちょちょちょ!ゆるゆり☆かぷりっちょ!!!) and "Atchu~ma Seishun!" (あっちゅ〜ま青春！) by the Nanamori Middle School Amusement Club. The ending theme for episode 12 is "Kimi ga Kureta Shiny Story" (きみがくれたシャイニーストーリー, The Shiny Story You Gave Me) by the Nanamori Middle School Amusement Club.

Appearances in other media

Characters and songs from YuruYuri appeared alongside other anime characters in the rhythm game, Miracle Girls Festival, which was developed by Sega for the PlayStation Vita, and was released on December 17, 2015.