The official website for the original television anime Hisone to Masotan revealed a new visual, new cast member, and theme song artists for the series on Saturday.

Riko Fukumoto is performing the opening theme song "Shōjo wa Ano Sora wo Wataru" (The Girl Crosses That Sky). The unit "D-Pai" — made up of voice actresses Misaki Kuno, Tomoyo Kurosawa, Maki Kawase, Satomi Arai, and Kaori Nazuka — will perform the ending theme song "Le temps de la rentrée ~Koi no Ieji (Shingakki)~" (The Time of the Return: Love's Road Home (New School Term)).

The site also revealed that professional storyteller Matsunojō Kanda will play Masotan/F-15J. Masotan has huge wings and a long tail, and is honest and serious, but has a fear of strangers.

The show will premiere on April 12 at 24:00 (effectively April 13 at 12:00 a.m.) on Tokyo MX and BS Fuji, before airing later that evening on Gifu Broadcasting.

The show stars: (Note: The character descriptions below are, except for Haruto's character, the official English descriptions from the show's website.)

Misaki Kuno as Hisone Amakasu. Hisone is a rookie pilot at Gifu base of Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). She is a very honest person who can never lie, and this leads her to hurt people unconsciously. Early in her career she encountered a dragon, Masotan, and was swallowed by him. This is how he chose Hiosone as his pilot. She gradually gets a thrill to fly with Masotan, and decides to live her life with the legendary dragon.



Tomoyo Kurosawa as Nao Kaizaki. Nao is a candidate for dragon pilot at Gifu base, who has a strong fighting instinct and always provoke a fight to anyone around. Her mother was also a dragon pilot. Although Nao was the prime candidate for dragon pilot until Hisone showed up, dragons didn't accept her. Being jealous of Hisone who was chosen by Masotan, Nao keeps teasing her. But she actually is such a hard worker.



Maki Kawase as El Hoshino. El works at Tsuiki base in Fukuoka Prefecture as a dragon pilot. She is cool and dignified, very good at both academics and sports. El believes that she should be the ace among other pilots. But in fact her depth of understanding of OTF(dragons) is very low and her co-workers find it difficult to deal with her. She pilots a dragon disguising F-2A fighter aircraft.



Satomi Arai as Liliko Kinutsugai. Liliko is a cool and clever dragon pilot at Misawa base in Aomori Prefecture. She cannot help imagining worst-case scenario for everything, and always has negative thoughts. She fears catching others' eyes, always half crying and cannot live without handkerchiefs. Liliko is very competent and pilots a dragon which disguises E-2C, the Airborne Early Warning aircraft.



Kaori Nazuka as Mayumi Hitomi. Mayumi works at Iruma base in Saitama Prefecture as a dragon pilot. She is big, slow, powerful and always smiling calmly. When she was working at a zoo, an employee of Iruma base witnessed that all savage animals were attached to her and scouted her for a dragon pilot. Mayumi understands dragons and tells their feeling to other pilots. She pilots a dragon which mimics C-1, the transport aircraft.



Romi Park as Sada Hinomoto. A mysterious old lady who comes in and out of the base to sell healthy drink. She always wandering around the base and gives Hisone significant advice. Although she seems to know very well about dragons, no one knows who she actually is.



Yuuki Kaji as Haruto Okonogi. Haruto is a member of the maintenance division at Gifu base. He looks quiet, and he's weak to pressure and gives vague answers. His superiors sometimes see him as a burden, but he in truth has a strong heart, and strong convictions in what he believes in.



Yukitoshi Tokumoto as Yutaka Zaito. A fighter pilot at Gifu base. Yutaka is Hisone's supervisor and his directions during training are very exact. Despite his ability and broad experience, he looks like such a playboy. For Yutaka who tries to pick up all women regardless of age or looking, Hisone is the only woman who doesn't interest him.



Rie Kugimiya as Remi Kakiyasu. Remi is a Lieutenant Colonel and a flight branch leader at Gifu Base. She has a cool beauty looking and strong mind, but in fact is easy to scare and cry. Though she is bad at getting along with dragons, pilots' safety is her priority #1.



Junichi Suwabe as Hiroki Ikushima. Hiroki is an engineer who develops pilots' suits. Pilots need to wear those to get inside dragons. To obtain necessary information and data, he spends most of his time at the base. In spite that many women get a crush on him, his interest is only polots' suits development.



Jouji Nakata as Hiroshi Sosoda. Hiroshi is a commander of Air Development and Test Wing and Major General. In spite of his tough-looking, he actually is very easy going, and loves animals including dragons. He holds a national secret and value Hisone who was chosen by Masotan.



In the show's story, straightforward and innocent Hisone Amakasu is a Self-Defense Force rookie stationed at the Air Self-Defense Force's Gifu Base. She struggles with the fact that she sometimes hurts people unintentionally by her innocent words and decides to join the Air Self-Defence Force, hoping to maintain a certain distance from people. This decision leads her to a fateful encounter that profoundly changes her life. Hisone meets the "OTF" (Organic Transformed Flyer) dragon hidden in the base, and it chooses Hisone as its pilot. When it soars into the sky with Hisone, her fate as a dragon pilot is decided. It is said that dragons have a key to the future of the world...

Gainax co-founder and Shin Godzilla co-director Shinji Higuchi is supervising the anime for Warner Brothers. Hiroshi Kobayashi (Kiznaiver) is directing the anime at BONES, and Mari Okada (The Anthem of the Heart, anohana) is writing the anime. Higuchi noted that he, BONES, and Okada created the original story concept together.

Yoshiyuki Ito (Space Dandy) is adapting the original character designs by Toshinao Aoki (Kimi no Koe o Todoketai) for animation. Shoji Kawamori (Macross) is credited with mechanic design. Shigeto Koyama (Star Driver) is responsible for the monster concept design, and okama is credited with concept design. Taisei Iwasaki (Blood Blockade Battlefront) is composing the music.

Keigo Koyanagi is the military supervisor. Yuji Kaneko is directing the art with art designer Akihiro Hirasawa. Yuko Kobari is designing the color key. Kota Sasaki is directing the photography, and Yota Ando is directing the 3D CG. Hiroshi Okuda is editing. Haru Yamada is directing the sound, and Toru Noguchi is in charge of sound effects.

Aoki launched a manga adaptation in the April issue of Kadokawa's Monthly Dragon Age magazine on March 9.

[Via Ota-Suke]