Tatsuyuki Nagai is a director and storyboard artist from Niigata, Japan. Nagai is labeled as one of the most well-known figures in the anime industry today thanks to his brilliant works. The man who was born on January 24, 1976 is part of the Super Peace Busters team with script writer Mari Okada and character designer Masayoshi Tanaka.
Of the many projects, of course there are some of them that receive more recognition than others. Here are five recommendations for the best anime directed by Tatsuyuki Nagai. Don’t forget to put it on your watchlist, okay!
Anime He Directed Tatsuyuki Nagai Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day (2011—2013)
Called one of the saddest anime ever, Anohana deserves to be called the best work by Tatsuyuki Nagai, Produced by A-1 Pictures, Anohana was worked on by Nagai with Mari Okada as screenwriter and Masayoshi Tanaka as character designer. It was from this series that the three of them adopted the name of the Super Peace Busters trio.
As childhood friends, the five youths of the Super Peace Busters club have grown apart after the death of their friend, Menma Honma. One day, Menma’s ghost comes to the club chairman, Jintan Yadomi, to ask for his help. Jintan then has to reassemble the Super Peace Busters to help Menma.
Anime He Directed Tatsuyuki Nagai Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans (2015—2017)
Iron-Blooded Orphans is the fourteenth title in Sunrise’s Gundam franchise. The 50-episode series is directed by Nagai and written by Okada. Unfortunately, Tanaka was unable to join his two colleagues on the project as he had already been in charge of character design and animation for the film Your Name that same year.
Three hundred years after the Calamity War, Mars has now been reformed and is inhabited by mankind. Even though they have far more advanced technology, the Martians still depend on the Earth government because they depend on economic assistance from there.
Aristocrat Kudelia Aina Bernstein is one of the Martian freedom fighters. He then hires Chryse Guard Security (CGS) to escort him on a diplomatic trip to Earth. However, everything didn’t go smoothly. When the military organization Gjallarhorn attempts to kill Kudelia, CGS must protect her to ensure the well-being of Mars.
Toradora! (2008—2011)
Adapted from a series of novels of the same name written by Yuyuko Takemiya, the Toradora! considered one of the classic romcom anime from the 2000s era. Produced by J.C.Staff studio, Toradora is the first collaborative project between Nagai, Okada, and Tanaka.
Ryuuji Takasu is a kind and diligent high school student, but people shun him due to his scary and intimidating looks. While in the school hallway, he accidentally bumped into Taiga Aisaka, an angry and rude girl despite her small stature. Taiga immediately hates Ryuuji, but apparently they live next door.
An interesting scenario occurs when Ryuuji finds out that Taiga likes his best friend, Yusaku Kitamura, while Ryuuji himself likes Taiga’s best friend, Minori Kushieda. They then help each other to approach their crush. However, unexpectedly, they grew even closer in the process.
The Anthem of the Heart (2015)
A-1 Pictures trusted Super Peace Busters to direct the original film The Anthem of the Heart. Being their debut film project, Super Peace Busters bears great responsibility. However, their efforts paid off with The Anthem of the Heart being nominated as Animation of the Year at the 39th Japan Academy Prize.
Jun Naruse used to be a cheerful and talkative little girl, but everything changed when she saw her father cheating on her. Still not understanding about it, Jun told it to his mother innocently. As a result, his parents divorced and blamed him for the conflict.
Jun then cursed himself by sealing his mouth so he couldn’t speak anymore. He now also always has a stomach ache every time he tries to talk. However, when he joined the community outreach program committee team, his life slowly changed. Jun starts to get his confidence back thanks to the help of his three friends, Takumi, Natsuki, and Daiki.
Her Blue Sky (2019)
The last one is Her Blue Sky. After the success of The Anthem of the Heart, Super Peace Busters is again entrusted with producing feature films, this time by the CloverWorks studio. An original work, Her Blue Sky, which was released in 2019, is the latest Super Peace Busters project.
Akane Aioi and Aoi Aioi are brother and sister who are very close. They are also close to all of Akane’s friend band members, including guitarist Shinno Kanamuro, Akane’s boyfriend. Shinno and Akane plan to move to Tokyo after graduation, but everything changes after Akane and Aoi’s parents die in a car accident.
Akane then had to part ways with Shinno in order to stay and care for Aoi. Aoi, who is now a teenager and good at playing bass, plans to move to Tokyo to pursue a career as a bassist. One day, Aoi is surprised to find a younger version of Shinno at her playground. Not only that, the current version of Shinno is also back in town to perform with his band.
Starting his foray into the anime industry in 1989, it means Nagai has been entertaining audiences for more than three decades. Of the five best anime above, which one is your favorite?