MAPPA to Produce Local Is Best! Anime for Netflix
The adaptation pairs a dark-comedy social-media-born manga with a major studio and a global streaming platform, signaling continued investment in niche, creator-driven properties by both MAPPA and Netflix.
Reporting from 6 sources: Comic Natalie, KAI-YOU, Cinema Today, Denfaminicogamer, and 2 more.
MAPPA announced on June 19 during its 15th anniversary lineup presentation that it will produce an anime adaptation of the manga "Local Is Best!" ("Jimoto ga Saikō!") by usagi. The series will stream exclusively worldwide on Netflix. Alongside the announcement, a teaser visual and a teaser promotional video were released. The PV uses the song "milk" by singer-songwriter aiko, who is a fan of the original work. The manga, originally serialized on social media, is known for its cute art style contrasted with a story that has been described as a stew of all the world's evils. It follows girls who have never left their hometown and insist "Local is best!" no matter what misfortunes befall them. The director is Toshio Igarashi, the script is by Ryo Takada, and character design is by Rio. The original creator usagi commented on the announcement, expressing gratitude that the manga could be adapted into an anime, and noted that during serialization, when the creator went bankrupt, the editor lent 1 million yen out of pocket. aiko also shared her joy about the adaptation and the PV.
The director, Toshio Igarashi, previously directed Attack on Titan The Final Season: The Final Chapters. Scriptwriter Ryo Takada worked on The Light Shines Only There. Character designer Rio previously worked on Neko ni Tensei Shita Ojisan. Additional staff includes art director Naoki Takada, color designer Yukiko Kakita, 3DCG director Yoko Sawai, director of photography Kaori Yoneda, editor Tomoki Nagasaka, and animation producer Takahiro Ogawa.
In her comment, aiko said usagi attended one of her live concerts before. After the show, usagi told her, "Seeing the scenery of a certain song, I thought, This is hometown at its best!" aiko said that comment has been encouraging her. She added, "A world that is both super cute and super scary, hometown is the best~! I'll watch while drinking goldfish ♡"
Usagi said the manga was "just casually posting under the guise of a serialization." The creator added, "At first, my goal was just to make a living, but now I draw the manga with a certain hope. I don't know what the future holds, but I want to complete 'Local is Best!' based on that hope!"
The teaser visual shows the protagonist Chanel-chan surrounded by friends and seniors in their hometown. The manga has eight volumes in print. An official website and X account have launched.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 6 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- Comic Natalie 「地元最高！」MAPPA制作でアニメ化決定！Netflixで世界独占配信
- KAI-YOU バイオレンス日常漫画『地元最高！』まさかのアニメ化決定 MAPPA制作、Netflixで世界配信
- Cinema Today 「地元最高！」MAPPA制作でアニメ化、Netflix世界配信決定 aiko「milk」にのせたPV公開
- Denfaminicogamer 『地元最高！』MAPPA制作でアニメ化決定！Netflixにて世界独占配信。aiko さんの「milk」にのせたティザーPV解禁
- Real Sound Anime 『地元最高！』MAPPA制作でアニメ化＆Netflixで世界独占配信 aiko「milk」起用のPVも
- Anime Anime SNSで話題のマンガ「地元最高！」MAPPA制作でアニメ化！ 原作ファン・aikoの「milk」にのせたティザーPV公開