Karl to Fushigi na Tō Gets New Kids' TV Anime in Fall

Karl & the Mysterious Tower already animated in 2009; Rita et Machin also airs in Fall

Nippon Animation Vice-President Kazuko Ishikawa confirmed in a Wednesday presentation in Tokyo that a new Karl to Fushigi na Tō (Karl and the Mysterious Tower) children's fantasy anime series will premiere on the NHK-Educational and KIDS STATION channels in October. Ishikawa also confirmed that the Rita et Machin (Rita and Whatsit) anime project, which was first announced last year, will air this fall as well. Singer Shiho Nanba (Fairy Tail) is making her voice-acting debut and performing the "Toki-kake no Puzzle" theme song in the new Karl to Fushigi na Tō anime.

last October, and acclaimed children's book illustrator Junzo Terada There was already a series of Karl to Fushigi na Tō anime shorts that ran on KIDS STATION(Animals Around the World, Happy Animal Time: 30 Postcards) designed the characters. The story centers around a mysterious tall tower built from an (unsteady) stack of building blocks. Every morning, noon, and evening, an old timekeeping man rings the bell in the tower to confirm the time for the local townspeople. However, one day at noon, the tower bell fails to ring — leaving the townspeople confused about when to eat lunch. The fantasy adventure begins when Karl, an inquisitive boy living in the town, decides to go to the tower's plaza to see what is the matter.

Rita et Machin was originally a popular picture book series by Jean-Philippe Arrou-Vignod and Olivier Tallec. The books follow the happy daily lives of a precocious five-year-old girl named Rita and an easy-going yet somewhat lazy dog named Machin. Over a dozen Rita et Machin books has been published in their native France since April 2006.

Source: Natalie, Bunka Tsūshin

Images © Karl-Tower Project
© Gallimard Jeunesse