22/7 (TV series)

22/7 (ナナブンノニジュウニ) is a Japanese anime television series created as part of the multimedia project between Yasushi Akimoto, Aniplex, and Sony Music Records. The series features the idol girl group of the same name as their characters.

A short series on the official YouTube channel of the group, titled The Diary of Our Days, was animated by CloverWorks and aired on March 28, 2018. A TV series is animated by A-1 Pictures and premiered from January 11 to March 28, 2020. A preview for episodes 1 and 2 was scheduled for a special screening on January 4, 2020, also featuring the cast.[2]

In December 2019, a mobile musical rhythm game developed by h.a.n.d. with ForwardWorks and published by Aniplex was announced.

Synopsis

The story focuses on eight girls who are each sent a mysterious invitation from a talent agency called G.I. Productions. Upon assembling together, the girls are immediately told to form an idol group known as 22/7, following orders printed out by a mysterious entity known only as "The Wall".

Characters

Media

Reception

The series received a mixed reception from reviewers. Chiaka Mitama reviewed the first episode for Anime Feminist noting that while the first episode wants to tell viewers that the "idol industry is full of shit" and pushing the idea that adults are lying, it lionizes the founding of the 22/7 idol group, which gets its orders from a "higher being" named The Wall. Mitama noted that the situation seemed cultish, that although the characters are voiced by the real-life 22/7 group, the anime lore differs from the actual idol group, and seems to imply that the idol industry isn't foolish and adulthood isn't a "horrible web of lies."[21] Mitama later said that The Wall in the series makes it stand out as opposed to other Japanese idol anime.[22] Vrai Kaiser, another reviewer for Anime Feminist wrote that the series differed from Action Heroine Cheer Fruits and Zombie Land Saga in that it set itself "up for a higher fall" and added that The Wall appears to be "straight out of a horror movie" but becomes a "quirky, beneficent mascot of sorts," which Vrai found "unsettling" and wondered whether the show would do anything with the Class S "interactions between Miu and Sakura" or not.[23]

Anime News Network reviewers has divided views on the series. In an anime preview guide, Theron Martin gave the series 3 out of 5 stars, saying that sometimes it hinted at being a typical idol series, but other times had a "weightier tone," wondered the reason for naming the group 22/7, questioned what he described as a strange storyline focusing on a "whole order-granting mystical wall thing," and said the series will suffer because it is being released after Carole & Tuesday. In contrast, Nick Creamer was more positive, praising the "authentic, captivating performance" of Nagomi Saijō as Miu Takigawa, the character development around her, the dialogue, and character moments, said that this series is centered around human beings, but said that the debut was not "flawless," while criticizing the personalities of those being idols alongside Miu as falling into archetypes. James Beckett also praised the presence of bilingual performer Sally Amaki who plays Sakura Fujima in the multimedia projects of the real-life 22/7 group, and said that the series is "one of more interesting idol anime debuts" she had seen some time, and said that it wasn't like Revue Starlight but had a "notable veneer of melancholy and self-reflexivity." He also praised the different personalities of the idols in the group and the voice acting for the group's members. Rebecca Silverman was more critical, saying the series is "something darker than your average girl idol show" due to the presence of The Wall, and believed that the series would be simply about "kindly efforts of an otherworldly entity helping girls with low self-esteem or great/thwarted ambitions to shine," and said that despite her criticisms, the episode is "worth at least checking out."[24]

Steve Jones and Michelle Liu, of ANN, talked about the series, noting that by episode nine, the Wall had remained a mystery, showing that series was not giving up on "the most unsettling part of itself", noted it cribbed from AKB0048, the role of Sally Amaki in the series, and called the series "impressively well-crafted." It was also stated that the series took hairstyle tips from Mysterious Girlfriend X, that the series is contradictory, with "serious character drama frequently rubbing up against bubbly idol shenanigans," is not interested in "the actual workings of show business," and has some "real gay energy" between Miu and Sakura.[25] Reviews of the final three episodes by James Beckett, for ANN, was more critical, saying the series was entertaining but became a "largely superficial idol drama," noting that the female friendship between them was shown off screen, believed that series has only been "interested in serving as an exceptionally pretty commercial for an idol group that is already famous and successful," felt the climax was not earned, called the series "moderately entertaining" while he praised the character development for Nicole and the scene of the girls taking down The Wall.[26][27][28]

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