School Days (visual novel)

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School Days
スクールデイズ
Genre	Drama, Harem
Game
Developer	0verflow
Publisher	0verflow (PC), Interchannel (PS2)
Genre	Visual novel, Eroge
Rating	CERO: C (15+) (PS2)
Platform	PC, PlayStation 2
Released	April 28, 2005 (PC)
Other releases: January 17, 2008 (PS2)
TV anime
Director	Keitaro Motonaga
Studio	TNK
Network	Chiba TV, TV Aichi, TV Kanagawa, TV Osaka, TV Saitama, AT-X
Original run	July 3, 2007 – September 27, 2007
Episodes	12

School Days (スクールデイズ, Sukūru Deizu^?) is an animation adventure game developed by 0verflow and was first released on April 28, 2005. The original version, made for the PC, contains adult content of a sexual nature. An all-ages version was later released on January 17, 2008 for the PlayStation 2.

Similar to traditional visual novels, gameplay in School Days follows a linear plot line where at predetermined times the player is given the choice to interact and choose several options that appear on the screen. It differs from traditional visual novels in that the story is presented in a format that resembles an anime, and is divided into individual episodes and contains an opening sequence and an ending sequence.

The game is known for its "bad" endings, with contents ranging from the murder of the main characters, to graphic depictions of suicide. A spin-off of the game, Summer Days, was released by 0verflow using the same system, but with such contents removed.

School Days has made several transitions into other media, including a twelve-episode anime created by TNK, and two OVAs by the same studio, a manga series, three novels, and a drama CD.

Contents 1 Visual Novel 1.1 Gameplay 1.2 Release history 2 Plot 2.1 Story 2.2 Characters 2.2.1 Primary Characters 2.2.2 Secondary Characters 2.3 Endings 2.3.1 Happy endings 2.3.2 Sub Heroine Endings 2.3.3 Tragic endings 2.3.4 "Harem" endings 2.3.5 Variation 3 Adaptations 3.1 Anime 3.1.1 Delay of finale 3.1.2 Theme songs 3.1.3 Episodes 3.2 Manga 3.3 Novels 4 Music 5 Reception and sales 6 Notes and references 7 External links

[edit] Visual Novel

[edit] Gameplay

The gameplay requires little interaction from the player as most of the duration of the game is spent on simply listening to or reading the dialogues between the various characters. Every so often, the player will come to a "decision point" where he or she is given the chance to choose from options that are displayed on the screen. During these times, gameplay pauses until the time given to make a choice runs out, or a choice is made, effectively furthers the plot in a specific direction. Depending on the choices the player makes, hentai scenes depicting the protagonist Makoto and one of the heroines having sexual intercourse will become viewable. There are twenty-one different endings that the player will have the chance to experience. In order to view all of the endings, the player will have to replay the game multiple times and choose different choices during the decision points in order to further the plot in an alternate direction.

[edit] Release history

School Days was first available to the public on April 28, 2005, released for the PC.^[1] It was followed by an all-ages version released for the PlayStation 2, on January 17, 2008 as both a limited edition and a regular edition^[2]

To address several errors reported to have kept the game from functioning correctly, 0verflow has released several updates to the game. The latest version, version 1.11, was released on July 21, 2005 and added subtitles functionality and backlog functionality. ^[3]

[edit] Plot

[edit] Story

Makoto Ito, a Japanese high school student, has been admiring a girl he has been seeing on the train on his way to school, Kotonoha Katsura. Makoto managed to take a photo of her with his cell phone, but due to a new seating arrangement in his class, he ends up next to Sekai Saionji, who discovers Makoto's crush as she snoops for his cell phone while talking to him, and vows to help him until Kotonoha agrees to go out with him. When Sekai finally gets them together, she realizes her own feelings after finding out that the person Kotonoha liked was, in fact, Makoto. While waiting for her train next to Makoto, who was waiting for Kotonoha, she has him talking about how he can repay her for all of her help. Before leaving for her train, she kisses him and cries when she boards the way home. Kotonoha happily arrives for her date with Makoto shortly after. With all three main characters carrying different expressions on their faces, the story begins.

[edit] Characters

Many of the surnames of the characters are taken from previous Prime Ministers of Japan and Japanese Imperial Court members.

[edit] Primary Characters

Makoto Ito^[4] (伊藤 誠, Itō Makoto^?)

Voiced by: Tatsuya Hirai (game), Daisuke Hirakawa (anime)

Birthday: October 16 (Libra), Blood Type: O

He is the main character of the story. He attends Sakakino Gakuen (榊野学園) and is in class three, year one. Throughout the story, he is an indecisive womanizer, unable or unwilling to choose between the women in his life. Although not a bad-natured person, Makoto can be very self-centered and rash, and tends to make decisions without caring about how others feel or about the later consequences.

His parents are divorced and he now lives together with his mother in an upperscale apartment. His little sister, Itaru, lives with her father. His name means "Truth", contrasting with his indecisive nature.

Kotonoha Katsura (桂 言葉, Katsura Kotonoha^?)

Voiced by: Soyogi Tōno (game), Tae Okajima (anime)

Birthday: January 4 (Capricorn), Blood Type: A, B/W/H: 102/60/84

She is in year one, class four and is a member of the Student Council. She takes the same train as Makoto and becomes his girlfriend early in the story. Despite her busty figure, Kotonoha is quiet and has a respectable nature, but is frightened of boys, apparently after some bad experiences in junior high; due to this reserved and shy attitude, Kotonoha and Makoto often have awkward moments together. She is also very mentally fragile, expressed with her facial expressions (specifically her lifeless eyes) and obsessive behavior when she feels neglected or loses Makoto in some way. She is disliked by Otome and her friends and is subject to their bullying; this was present before she dated Makoto and intensified when Otome learns of her link to him.

Her family is very rich, and lives in a large house away from the city. Both of her parents work.

Sekai Saionji (西園寺 世界, Saionji Sekai^?)

Voiced by: Kaname Yuzuki (game), Shiho Kawaragi (anime)

Birthday: December 7 (Sagittarius), Blood Type: B, B/W/H: 84/62/86

The emotional and spirited classmate of Makoto. She is in the same class as him, and is seated next to him. After seeing the picture of Kotonoha that Makoto took on his cell phone, she helps him get close to Kotonoha, despite harboring strong feelings for him. Like Makoto, she is good at heart, but tends to make decisions without thinking about how others feel, and her impulsive and emotional nature sometimes leads her into trouble.

She lives with her mother, Youko, in an apartment. Her given name means "world" in Japanese; she has made a few puns with this detail.

[edit] Secondary Characters

Setsuna Kiyoura (清浦 刹那, Kiyoura Setsuna^?)

Voiced by: Hana Yamamoto (game), Keiko Imoto (anime)

Birthday February 14 (Aquarius), Height: 142.5 cm, Blood Type: A, B/W/H: 74/54/76

A student in year one, class three, Setsuna is a member of the class committee and is Sekai's best friend. Their mothers are good friends and they work together at the same company. Setsuna is very devoted to Sekai, willing to give up her own happiness in order to help Sekai, shown in the anime when she frequently helps Sekai with her feelings for Makoto despite having feelings of her own for him. She is also constantly worried about Sekai and tries to make sure that Makoto will keep Sekai happy. This leads her to go so far as to try to eradicate Kotonoha from Makoto's love life by cutting short any interactions they have while she is around; this is done for Sekai's sake and, unlike Otome, she does not hold any grudge against Kotonoha. Although silent-looking and almost emotionless, she is conscious about her underdeveloped body, especially in comparison with Kotonoha and Sekai.

She is the main heroine in the game Summer Days.

Nanami Kanroji (甘露寺 七海, Kanroji Nanami^?)

Voiced by: Mio Fujimura (game), Chiaki Takahashi (anime)

A friend of Sekai's, Nanami is in year one, class three. She was offered admission to the school based on her special athletic talents. Her boyfriend, a hardcore otaku, is also her senior and is in the school's basketball club. She is not really interested in Makoto's problems, unlike Sekai is, nor is she really ever introduced to Makoto; she only intervenes more directly in some of the games' endings.

Hikari Kuroda (黒田 光, Kuroda Hikari^?)

Voiced by: Hikaru Isshiki (game), Ryōko Tanaka (anime)

A student in year one, class three. She originally has a crush on Taisuke, and dislikes Makoto, whom she believes is going out with Sekai since the beginning of the story. However, towards the end of the anime, she grows a lot closer to Makoto and has sex with him (as seen in episode 11, something she acknowledges as a mistake from the beginning; she had originally gone to Makoto's house to discuss Sekai's situation), only to dump him later when Sekai reveals her pregnancy.

Otome Katou^[5] (加藤 乙女, Katō Otome^?)

Voiced by: Yuki Matsunaga (game) Haruka Nagami (anime)

She is in year one, class four of Sakakino Gakuen, and one of Makoto's friends since junior high. She is on the girl's basketball team and is also head of the group of girls who bullies Kotonoha. She has had a crush on Makoto since junior high, but never shows it until later on. Despite this, Makoto does not seem to think of her in any romantic way. When she finds out that Kotonoha has been dating Makoto, she becomes extremely irritated and jealous, and starts bullying Kotonoha openly because of it. Ultimately, when Sekai reveals her pregnancy, Otome dumps Makoto as well, realizing she is in love only with the image she had of him from junior high.

Kokoro Katsura (桂 心, Katsura Kokoro^?)

Voiced by: Aoi Kamizuki (game), Megu Ashiro (anime)

Kotonoha's younger sister. Unlike her shy older sister, Kokoro is very talkative and full of curiosity. Although she likes to tease Kotonoha around, she actually worries about Kotonoha a lot (seen especially in the manga). She often wants to play with Makoto during his visits at her house.

Taisuke Sawanaga (澤永 泰介, Sawanaga Taisuke^?)

Voiced by: Hikage Hyūga (game), Yoshiaki Matsumoto (anime)

He is one of Makoto's friends since junior high, and is in the same class as Makoto. He is cheerful, dorky and appears to be strongly attracted to Kotonoha because of her good looks. In the anime, he often tries to impress Kotonoha, but she constantly tells him that she is Makoto's girlfriend and therefore cannot date him. In the game under certain circumstances they briefly date, but Kotonoha ultimately breaks up with Taisuke and returns to Makoto. In some outcomes in the game, and in the anime, Taisuke does not give up, though, and this ultimately causes some of the events that break Kotonoha the most. Kotonoha eventually becomes cold with him and directly says she has no feelings for him.

Kumi Mori (森 来実, Mori Kumi^?)

Voiced by: Nene (game) Eri Saita (anime)

She is one of the girls in year one, class four that is part of another group that bullies Kotonoha. She is the most childish out of the three. In the anime, she mentioned that she has a boyfriend.

Natsumi Koizumi (小泉 夏美, Koizumi Natsumi^?)

Voiced by: Sawa Konohana (game) Nana Furuhara (anime)

One of the girls in year one, class four that is part of another group that bullies Kotonoha. She is good at getting information and gets along with people easily.

Minami Obuchi (小渕 みなみ, Obuchi Minami^?)

Voiced by: Kuribayashi Minami (game/anime)

One of the girls in year one, class four that is part of another group that bullies Kotonoha.

Itaru (止, Itaru^?)

Voiced by: Kagetsu Nanba (game)

Makoto's younger sister, a sweet and innocent little girl who is very attached to her brother. She lives with her father after her parents divorced and comes to visit Makoto from time to time. Her current family name is not certain. She appears in the game version of School Days; in the anime, Makoto only mentions to Sekai that his little sister is living with his father.

Youko Saionji (西園寺 踊子, Saionji Yōko^?)

Sekai's mother. A kind and wise woman who draws upon her wealth of experience in advising her daughter about her romance-related troubles. She appears only in the game versions of School Days and Summer Days, as well as the OVAs Valentine Days and Magical Heart Kokoro-chan.

[edit] Endings

Among twenty-one possible endings, there are fifteen "good" endings (the main character ends up with one girl), three "bad" endings (involves the death of a main character), two harem endings (the main character ends up with multiple characters), and one that is a variation of any of the above (a post-fin episode to other endings). Three "bad" endings exist in the game, the endings involve violent events.

[edit] Happy endings

Kotonoha's

"From a Kiss to Beyond" (「キスから先へ」, Kisu kara Saki e^?)

This ending shares the same conclusion as "To Kotonoha". It differs in how the scenario before that was carried out.

"Carnal Desire" (「肉欲」, Nikuyoku^?)

Makoto and Sekai develop a close relationship, however somewhere down the line Kotonoha still wants to be with Makoto. Though Makoto feels convinced he likes Sekai, Kotonoha seduces him a number of times and photographs their activities. She then makes a deal with Makoto where if Sekai gives up on him, he'd look only at Kotonoha. Kotonoha then tells Sekai about what they were doing together and shows the pictures to prove it. She then informs Makoto to keep his promise because Sekai gave up on him. Makoto wants to know what she told Sekai and after some persistence, Kotonoha tells him about what she discussed with Sekai. Though unhappy about what she did, Makoto keeps his promise and dates Kotonoha.

"The Him Only for Her" (「彼女だけの彼」, Kanojo dake no Kare^?)

This ending has the same conclusion as the "And to Kotonoha" ending, the difference is that the player was devoted to Sekai from the start, to a point where Kotonoha briefly dates Taisuke. Makoto eventually changes his mind to go for Kotonoha and she breaks up with Taisuke, and it then ends the same way as "To Kotonoha".

"And with Kotonoha" (「そして言葉と」, Soshite Kotonoha to^?)

Makoto dumps Kotonoha because of a sudden onset of feelings for Sekai. A misunderstanding at the pool leads to Kotonoha and Sekai both believing Otome to be Makoto's new love interest. Sekai, Kotonoha and Otome begin to compete for Makoto's affections. These events become the main source of gossip all over the school. In the end, Makoto chooses to be with Kotonoha and the story ends with Kotonoha and Makoto waking up in his bed the next morning answering a video call from Kotonoha's sister. Makoto angles the phone so the camera picks up the nude Kotonoha smiling and flashing a V symbol while the embarrassed and surprised Kokoro excitedly speaks words of amazement.

"And to Kotonoha" (「そして言葉へ」, Soshite Kotonoha e^?)

This ending shares the same scenario as the one above, with one exception. In this ending, Makoto makes it clear that the one he likes is Sekai. This effectively throws Otome out of the picture. However Makoto's feelings for Sekai at this point are tentative at best and Kotonoha desperately tries to win back Makoto's heart. Due to the fact that it is now clear that Sekai and Makoto are dating, Nanami and the girls in the sports clubs conspire to bully Kotonoha and keep her away from Makoto; Nanami warns Kotonoha about not getting close to Makoto, and later the other girls knock over Kotonoha's homemade lunch which she prepared for Makoto. Makoto himself learns about what happened by overhearing Otome's friends bragging about it and searches for Kotonoha, finding her right when Otome and her friends have her cornered and Natsumi is about to slap her. Then, a disgusted Makoto grabs Natsumi's hand and stands up for Kotonoha, lecturing the other girls for being bullies. He then blames Sekai for all the bullying and harshly reprimands her as she cries and apologizes repeatedly. The game ends with Kotonoha and Makoto eating lunch together and then kissing afterwards.

"And Starting from the First Kiss" (「そしてファーストキスからはじまる」, Soshite Fāsuto Kisu kara Hajimaru^?)

This ending also shares the same conclusion with the "To Kotonoha" ending and thus only differs because of the previous scenario.

These six are all happy endings with Kotonoha, varying from only kissing to sensuality. The variation depends on how much focus there is towards Kotonoha. The "With Kotonoha" and "To Kotonoha" endings are attained by keeping the relationship bar maxed towards Kotonoha at all times. The others involve briefly swaying towards Sekai at different points in the game before swaying back towards Kotonoha, thus the endings tend to lack the content of a more dedicated ending.

"Christmas Eve" (「クリスマス・イブ」, Kurisumasu Ibu^?)

This ending resembles a traditional "happily ever after" ending. However, it is attained by being indecisive throughout the first part of the game and thus not 100% dedicated to Kotonoha. On Christmas Eve, Makoto and Kotonoha go at a luxury hotel room and kiss, apparently staying there for the night.

Sekai's

"With Honest Feelings" (「素直な気持ちで」, Sunao na Kimochi de^?)

This ending resembles a traditional "happily ever after" ending. However, it is attained by being indecisive throughout the first part of the game and thus not 100% dedicated to Sekai. On Christmas Eve, Sekai is sitting and eating alone at the train station. She starts to cry bitterly over Makoto, but he suddenly appears and starts munching on her sandwich. She asks him about Kotonoha, whom he left at the hotel, but he just tells her that he chose her, Sekai, and that those were his honest feelings. He then finishes her sandwich and playfully teases her about it not being enough to eat by nibbling on her fingers. Sekai is slightly annoyed with his passive attitude, but it does not keep her from embracing him and telling him that she loves him. As they hug, Sekai wishes Makoto a Merry Christmas.

"I Love You" (「だいすき」, Daisuki^?)

After Makoto puts himself in a bad position with Sekai and Kotonoha he realizes that his true feelings are for Sekai. He boards the train to go to her house, in the meantime Setsuna sends Sekai a message saying that Makoto is on his way. Both meet at the station, Makoto apologizes, and both confess their love for each other.

"Bavarois" (「ババロア」, Babaroa^?)

Kotonoha forces Makoto into an awkward position and fabricates a picture taken on her cell phone. She shows Sekai this picture in order to bully her, and tells her that Makoto enjoys her better than Sekai. Sekai becomes extremely upset and resorts to sulking and crying in her room, ignoring his phone calls and later telling him to go away when he tries to come by to see her. Sekai's mother comes home later, and they have bavarois. After a meaningful talk, Sekai's mother tells her that Makoto has been waiting for her outside, looking upset. Realizing he's been out there, Sekai runs out to him and embraces him. He tells her that he is sorry, and that he truly loves her. Through her sobs, Sekai asks if Makoto likes bavarois.

"Binding Thoughts" (「想い結んで」, Omoimusunde^?)

These three are all happy endings with Sekai. Just like Kotonoha, these endings are achieved with varying levels of dedication towards Sekai.

"Setsuna's Wish" (「刹那の想い」, Setsuna no Omoi^?)

Happy ending with Setsuna and Sekai. Although Setsuna leaves to Paris and Makoto falls love with Sekai, this is known as Setsuna's ending because of the impressive last scene in the airport, when Sekai and Makoto go to say goodbye to Setsuna.

[edit] Sub Heroine Endings

"Everyone's Makoto" (「みんなの誠」, Minna no Makoto^?)

Makoto abandons Sekai and ends up with her friend Hikari Kuroda, while Kotonoha hooks up with Makoto's friend Taisuke.

"Sex Friend" (「セックスフレンド」, Sekkusu Furendo^?)

These two are the happy ending with Hikari, one of the sub heroines. In "Sex Friend", a post-fin is shown with Hikari carrying Makoto's baby with her.

"The Earnest Feelings are Rewarded" (「一途な思いは報われて」, Ichizu na Omoi wa Mukuwarete^?)

Happy ending with Otome. After Makoto chooses Otome over Kotonoha and Sekai they have sex to start their romantic relationship. The player is then shown a year later a short time after the school festival showing Makoto and Otome fighting and Otome's friends commenting on how common is that Makoto and Otome are fighting. During Otome's friends conversation one brings out a picture of Makoto and Otome kissing during the Folk Dance at the bonfire during the school festival, showing that even the two fight they still love each other.

[edit] Tragic endings

"Eternally" (「永遠に」, Eien ni^?)^[6]

Sekai and Makoto are in love and decide to tell Kotonoha about it. Kotonoha is so crushed that she handles it very poorly, begging Makoto to date her again while in Makoto's apartment. He apologizes to her and declines; afterwards, the crushed Kotonoha quietly tells them that they will never be happy together, since they are together despite knowing Kotonoha cannot go on without Makoto.

As Sekai and Makoto leave the apartment, Sekai worries aloud about Kotonoha's reaction, but Makoto reassures her, saying that Kotonoha will understand in time. Kotonoha's phone then falls and shatters on the sidewalk, and Makoto and Sekai witness Kotonoha jumping off the ledge of the apartment; just before she hits the ground, Sekai and Makoto see briefly how her eyes are completely lifeless and how her face is contorted in an insane smile.

The epilogue shows Makoto in front of Kotonoha's grave, some time after her suicide; it is revealed that he broke up with Sekai, finished high school, is now working with his mom as a nurse and has never had a girlfriend since, having decided to never fall in love again.

In the PS2 extension of the ending, Sekai crosses paths with Makoto when he is visiting Kotonoha's grave; she reveals that she had gotten married, but was going to divorce soon. Makoto tells her he is not married, but instead working as a nurse in his mother's hospital. After more strained conversation between the two, Sekai notes that the grave seems to be laughing in an unpleasant way, and they part ways.

"To My Children" (「我が子へ」, Wagako e^?)

One day while Kotonoha and Makoto are having sex, Kotonoha feels insecure about the relationship she had with Makoto and asks him to forget about Sekai for just that day. Makoto, who still has small feelings for Sekai, does not want to do it at first, but finally gives up since Kotonoha keeps begging him. During sex, then, Makoto tells Kotonoha that she is the only one for him, and that Sekai is good for nothing. Sekai overhears this and becomes enraged; she goes home, and as soon as she arrives, she throws up in the kitchen.

Six months later, Makoto and Kotonoha are on a walk outside, with her talking about having a baby. When they part, Sekai, now pregnant, appears and stabs Makoto in the gut with a butcher knife. After a few words from Makoto, Sekai becomes terrified at what she has done and runs off. Makoto slowly walks from the beach, leaving a trail of blood behind him, and he eventually dies.

In the PS2 extension of the ending, an afterward shows Kotonoha and Youko watching three children: one of Kotonoha's, one of Sekai's, and one of Hikari's. Sekai has run away; her mother cannot get in contact with her and does notknow if she is alive. Kotonoha, however, says that she hopes that is not the case. Hikari and Taisuke come along to pick up Hikari's child, and in Kotonoha's conversation with Taisuke, she hints that not only is the child she has hers and Taisuke's, but that Kotonoha's child may have been the result of a rape committed by Taisuke.

"The Bloody Conclusion" (「鮮血の結末」, Senketsu no Ketsumatsu^?)

One day, Kotonoha overhears Makoto and Sekai loudly engaging in sexual intercourse, which in turn emotionally destroys her. She spends several hours on her own, emotionally dead, until she suddenly snaps in the snow and laughs maniacally.

The next day, as Makoto and Sekai leave the train station, they meet Kotonoha on an overpass beside the station. There is an awkward moment as Sekai lets go of Makoto's arm, greeting her. Kotonoha says a few words before revealing a saw hidden behind her school bag and swiping it beside Sekai's neck. After a few seconds, Sekai suddenly bleeds violently and collapses in a pool of blood in front of Kotonoha and Makoto. Kotonoha starts laughing hysterically again, her lifeless eyes revealing that she has completely broken down.

In the PS2 extension of the ending, after Kotonoha kills Sekai, she states that it was her revenge. She apologizes to Makoto and begins to ask if he would like to do the same and kill her, but instead, he screams and knocks the blade out of her hand and over the side of the overpass. Kotonoha is surprised as she glances at her cut palm, but Nanami's and Hikari's screams bring Makoto back to reality. As he looks at Sekai, Kotonoha tries to wrap her scarf around his neck, but he panics. He grabs her hand as she tries to tighten the scarf, and realizing what she has done, Kotonoha breaks down and cries.

[edit] "Harem" endings

"Two Lovers" (「二人の恋人」, Futari no Koibito^?)

A "harem" ending in which Kotonoha and Sekai admit and accept that they both love Makoto. They both are pregnant, so they have a conversation and decide to reveal the news to Makoto as a "Christmas Present".

"Goodbye, Sekai" (「さよなら世界」, Sayonara Sekai^?)

In this ending, Makoto has sex with various girls almost every day. It is therefore inderterminate as to who is next after who.

[edit] Variation

"Watermelon (PS2 Ver.)" ( 「西瓜」 , Suika^?)

A post-fin episode to the endings "Carnal Desire" and "Bavarois", appears only on a certain condition. The episode was named "Watermelon" in the PS2 version; the episode does not have a title in the PC version. Makoto is at home with his mother eating a slice watermelon, which he promptly spits when he receives a picture and letter from Setsuna from France, showing her standing in front of the Arc de Triomphe. She writes: I will be giving birth in Japan, so I'll return around the time when you get this letter. Please think of a name. Setsuna. "^[7]. The doorbell rings and Makoto's chosen lover (Kotonoha if the ending is "Carnal Desire", or Sekai if the ending is "Bavarois") comes in, introducing Setsuna to Makoto's mother as Makoto's former classmate if Kotonoha is chosen, or as being her childhood friend if Sekai is chosen. Setsuna promptly introduces herself, "I'm the wife," holding up her pregnancy inoculations booklet and a victory sign.

[edit] Adaptations

[edit] Anime

A twelve-episode anime adaptation created by the studio TNK was produced and aired in Japan between July 3, 2007 and September 27, 2007. Later, two Original Video Animation were produced. The first OVA, titled "Valentine Days" ^[8] was released alongside the limited version of the PlayStation 2 port.^[2] A second OVA episode, titled "School Days ~Magical Heart Kokoro-chan~", was released on March 26, 2008.

[edit] Delay of finale

The day before the final episode was scheduled to air, a sixteen-year-old girl killed her father with an axe in Kyoto. In response, TV Kanagawa replaced the episode, which was known to contain similarly violent material, with half an hour of scenery and classical music to avoid association with the murder. Other stations airing the anime followed suit, except for AT-X, who remained indecisive at the time.^[9] In the following week, 0verflow announced that a screening of the episode would take place in the Tokyo area as part of the release of the series first DVD volume, and would require a copy of either the PC game or Summer Days PC game for admission. ^[10] However, AT-X announced that they would air the last episode on September 27, 2007, with minor alterations in airing times.^[11] The screening of the episode that 0verflow announced showed the uncut version of Episode 12, including the blood color change black to red, more sound effects, and fewer flashbacks. The uncut scene was included in the DVD release on February 27, 2008.

The sudden swap of the last episode to scenery footage came as a shock to many fans, but amidst the outrage, a 4chan contributor commented "Nice boat." in a seemingly calm manner, referring to the Fjord1 ferry shown in the scenery footage. The phrase became a internet meme, and was ranked tenth in Yahoo! Japan's keyword search ranking for the week of September 17 to September 23, 2007.^[12] Also, 0verflow decided to name its booth "Nice boat." for the Comiket 73 in December 2007, selling "Nice boat" merchandise along with its normal line of specialty items.^[13]

[edit] Theme songs

Opening theme

• "Innocent Blue" (イノセント・ブルー, Inosento Burū^?) by DeviceHigh

Ending theme

• "Usotsuki" (ウソツキ, "Usotsuki"^? lit. Liar) by CooRie – Episode 01, Episode 08
• "Ai no Kakera" (愛のカケラ, "Ai no Kakera"^? lit. Shards of Love) by Miyuki Hashimoto – Episode 02
• "Warutsu" (ワルツ, "Warutsu"^? Waltz) by Kanako Itō – Episode 03, Episode 11
• "Kioku no Umi" (記憶の海, "Kioku no Umi"^? lit. Ocean of Memories) by yozuca* – Episode 04, Episode 07
• "Look at Me" by YURIA - Episode 05
  
• "Namida no Riyū" (涙の理由, "Namida no Riyū"^? lit. The Reason for Tears) by Minami Kuribayashi – Episode 06, Episode 10
• "Anata ga...Inai -Remix Version-" (あなたが…いない -Remix Version-, "Anata ga...Inai -Remix Version-"^? lit. You Are...Not Here)** by Minami Kuribayashi – Episode 09
• "Still I Love You ~Mitsumeru Yori wa Shiawase~ (Still I Love You ～みつめるよりは幸せ～, "Still I Love You ~Mitsumeru Yori wa Shiawase~^? lit. Still I Love You -The Joy of Just Looking-)* by Kiriko – Episode 12
• "hello, my happiness"** by Kiriko - Valentines Day ~ OVA

Insert theme

• "Namida no Riyū" (涙の理由, "Namida no Riyū"^?) by Minami Kuribayashi – Episode 05, Episode 11
• "Kioku no Umi" (記憶の海, "Kioku no Umi"^?) by Yozuca* – Episode 06
• "Let me love you -Remix Version-"** by Haruko Momoi – Episode 09, Episode 10
• "Futari no Kurisumasu" (二人のクリスマス, "Futari no Kurisumasu"^? lit. Our Christmas) by Rino – Episode 11
• "Kanashimi no Mukō e" (悲しみの向こうへ, "Kanashimi no Mukō e"^? lit. To the Other Side of Sadness)** by Kanako Itō – Episode 12

- *Opening theme for original AAG.

- **Ending theme for original AAG.

[edit] Episodes

It has been suggested that this section be split into a new article entitled List of School Days episodes. (Discuss)

#	Title	Original air date
01	"Confession" "Kokuhaku" (告白)	July 03, 2007
Makoto first sees Kotonoha on the train. After seeing Kotonoha's picture on Makoto's cellphone, Sekai decides to play cupid and match Makoto together with Kotonoha by having lunch together. The next day, Makoto confesses to Kotonoha, which she accepts. Later that afternoon, while Makoto was thanking Sekai for setting him and Kotonoha up, not knowing how he should thank her, Sekai kisses him, saying that it was enough as a reward, and runs inside the train shouting "good luck" to a dazed Makoto.
02	"The Distance Between the Two of Them" "Futari no Kyori" (二人の距離)	July 10, 2007
Makoto is caught reading a love guidebook while waiting for Kotonoha for their first date. They wander around doing various things. When they part, Makoto tries to kiss Kotonoha but the subway's door blocks them. Makoto tells Sekai how the day went and she calls him an idiot for what he did. She gives Makoto two movie tickets so he can go on another date with Kotonoha and entertain her this time. Makoto messes up again and the relationship between Kotonoha starts to shake. Sekai then tells Kotonaha that Makoto is trying hard and she should try to get to know him better. The episode culminates with a kiss between Makoto and Kotonoha, with Sekai watching in the shadows.
03	"Crossing Thoughts" "Surechigau Omoi" (すれ違う想い)	July 17, 2007
At school, Kotonoha tells Makoto that Kokoro wants to see him, and asked him if he can go to her house on Sunday. Makoto happily accepts the invitation. Later while they are taking the train home, Hikari sees the couple together and thinks Makoto is cheating on Sekai, and sends her a text message saying that her boyfriend is flirting with another girl. Sekai quickly explains that they are just friends and nothing else. On Sunday, after Makoto goes to Kotonoha's house, he tells Sekai on the phone that being with Kotonoha is tiring.
04	"Purity" "Muku" (無垢)	July 24, 2007
While Kotonoha is busy studying at her house, Kokoro asks if she has kissed Makoto yet. Kotonoha avoids answering, but doesn't deny it. At school, Sekai speaks with her friends about various things, all the while thinking only about the kiss she shared with Makoto. On the roof, Makoto and Kotonoha are sharing a deep kiss when Makoto suddenly gropes Kotonoha's breasts, causing her to become embarrassed. She talks to Sekai later that night, Sekai explaining that lovers do this all the time, but Makoto is moving too fast. At school the next day, Sekai agrees to help Makoto by letting him "practice" on her, taking her to a karaoke and various other places, ending at the school roof. Makoto attempts to sleep with Sekai, and although Sekai protests at first, she soon consents. As Makoto starts to undress Sekai, he is interrupted by the arrival of a text message from Kotonoha. Later, Makoto and Sekai walk through the market, Makoto asks when they can continue practicing, but Sekai explains that it was enough practice and he should go use it on Kotonoha. Makoto bumps into Kotonoha along the way, and she asks him if he had received her message, but he declines. She apologizes and invites him to go to a water park in the near future. Makoto agrees, with Sekai looking on from afar with a sad look on her face.
05	"Ripple" "Hamon" (波紋)	July 31, 2007
The gang goes to the local pool for some fun. Hikari asks Makoto to give Taisuke a ticket because she is too shy to do it herself. At the pool, Makoto teaches Kotonoha how to swim; Taisuke is on the water slides with Hikari and Setsuna, while Sekai goes around swimming by herself. Makoto has completely fallen for Sekai, hinting her that he wants to be with her instead. Sekai keeps reminding him that he's Kotonoha's boyfriend and cannot be with her, and tells him to forget about the "practice". After everyone goes home, Makoto messages Sekai insisting that they meet. Despite her constant refusals, he travels to her home, finding her waiting in front of the train station for him. Makoto confesses his love for her and they have sex for the first time.
06	"A Revealed Relationship" "Akasareta Kankei" (明かされた関係)	August 07, 2007
Sekai and Makoto plan to tell Kotonoha about what they have been doing in secret, but end up not doing so. Setsuna is worried about Sekai, knowing that she and Makoto are together, but Sekai doesn't look happy about it. Setsuna asks Sekai if Makoto has broken up with Kotonoha. Sekai lies, saying they have, but later Setsuna finds out that Sekai was lying. Otome plans to confess her love to Makoto, but Kotonoha, not knowing that Makoto doesn't love her anymore, tells Otome that she is Makoto's girlfriend. Otome text messages Nanami and asks if it is true. Later, when Makoto receives a text from Kotonoha saying that she will not be able to meet him at lunch, he and Sekai go to the roof. Kotonoha at the last second is able to go to the roof arriving just as Makoto begins undressing Sekai. When Sekai and Makoto confess their love to each other, Kotonoha overhears them from the door.
07	"Festival Eve" "Zen'yasai" (前夜祭)	August 14, 2007
Kotonoha, refusing to believe that Makoto has cheated on her, still thinks that he loves her. Meanwhile, Tanaka, the other class rep besides Setsuna, has broken his arm, leading to Makoto replacing him. Otome and her friends guilt Kotonoha into getting more material for their class in order to build the hidden "lounge". Some girls from the basketball club have obtained a camera and the required equipment to film this "lounge". Setsuna, not knowing that Sekai was lying to her about Kotonoha and Makoto breaking up, tells everyone that they did, even taking Makoto's cellphone and blocking Kotonoha's calls and text messages. After hearing this, Taisuke tries to ask Kotonoha to go to the folk dance with him during the school festival while helping her carrying boxes, explaining that since she just broke up Makoto, they should go to the folk dance together. This conversation is overheard by Hikari, Nanami, and Makoto who happened to be in the hall nearby. Kotonoha then denies the break up and runs off, bumping into Makoto. Just when Kotonoha is going to talk to Makoto, Nanami steps in and blocks them, accusing Kotonoha of two-timing on Taisuke. Both Kotonoha and Hikari are left heart-broken and crying from the experience. Later during the night, Kotonoha goes to Makoto's house wanting to ask him to dance with her at the festival's bonfire, but sees Sekai's shoes by the door and leaves upset. Sekai feels guilty at having been caught and runs out of Makoto's house, bumping into Kotonoha and getting slapped by her.
08	"School Festival" "Gakusai" (学祭)	August 21, 2007
Sekai stays home from school the next day, thinking about her encounter with Kotonoha the previous night. That day, Makoto goes and visits Sekai and tells her that what they are doing is not wrong, but Sekai keeps telling Makoto that cheating on Kotonoha is not the right thing to do. Soon after, Kotonoha dashes after Makoto at the train station, sitting by him in the train, and then asking him if he wants to touch her breasts, and if he would like to dance with her at the festival. On the way back to school with materials for the festival, Setsuna tells Makoto that she will be moving to France after the festival. After Makoto and Setsuna get back with the material, Makoto falls asleep and Setsuna kisses him. Kotonoha sees this while she passes by the classroom on her way home.
09	"After Evening Festival" "Kōyasai" (後夜祭)	August 28, 2007
Setsuna and Kotonoha have a short conflict. Makoto flirts with Sekai the entire day, paying absolutely no attention to Kotonoha. When Makoto finally checks his cell phone, he finds twenty messages from Kotonoha who has been stuck minding her class' haunted house and "lounge," which is used by couples for sexual activities. On his way to finally see Kotonoha, he is stopped by Otome, who attempts to ask him to the bonfire dance later, only to be interrupted by Sekai. Back in the kitchen, Sekai asks if Makoto will dance with her at the bonfire. Otome encounters Taisuke, who is sulking over being rejected by Kotonoha. They discuss Makoto and Kotonoha's relationship status, and each resolving to be more assertive with their crushes. While Kotonoha is away from the lounge, Otome takes Makoto there, pushes herself onto him, and they have sex. Natsumi and Minami again bully Kotonoha about Makoto ignoring her, and she goes to his class room to see him. There she finds Taisuke who tells her that Makoto has already gone to the bonfire with Sekai. He then confesses to her and takes her into his arms. Makoto dances with Sekai around the bonfire, while Taisuke undresses and takes advantage of Kotonoha's fragile emotional state.
10	"Mind and Body" "Kokoro to Karada" (心と体)	September 04, 2007
After Taisuke rapes Kotonoha, she watches Makoto and Sekai dance and kiss in front of the bonfire and breaks down crying. The next day on the train, Kotonoha sees Makoto but says nothing about Taisuke the evening before. Taisuke attempts to ask Kotonoha out, but is rejected by her, again being told that she is Makoto's girlfriend. Taisuke is never seen again after this except for a brief scene at the end of episode 12. While she disposes of festival trash, she runs into Setsuna and Makoto. Setsuna forces him to break up with Kotonoha on the spot. Kotonoha threatens to reveal Setsuna's stolen kiss in the classroom, but Setsuna kisses Makoto right then. Makoto tells Kotonoha that he does not love her anymore, leaving her crying on the ground. Later, Setsuna goes to look for Makoto and overhears him in the gym store room, having sex with Otome. Kotonoha begins to act strangely at her home. Setsuna goes to Makoto's house and tries to get him to remain faithful to Sekai. Setsuna reveals that she hasn't told Sekai anything about finding him with Otome because she does not want to hurt Sekai's feelings. Makoto sees an opportunity and forces himself on her, knowing she has feelings for him. She tries to resist at first, and then consents as long as Makoto swears to break up with Otome. At the Girl's Basketball party, Sekai sees the video from the hidden camera in the "lounge" and sees the footage of Makoto with Otome. She tries to track down Makoto, and soon runs into Kotonoha on the bridge and is told that he is with Setsuna. Sekai notices that Kotonoha's eyes are completely lifeless. After the end credits, Setsuna is seen in the airport. Despite Makoto's attempts to find her, Setsuna ignores him and recalls the first day of school where Sekai, showing the first hint that she was in love with Makoto, successfully begged Setsuna to switch seats with her. With mixed feelings of sadness and regret, she says farewell.
11	"Everyone's Makoto" "Minna no Makoto" (みんなの誠)	September 11, 2007
Sekai is absent from school for several days, saddened by Setsuna's abrupt departure for France and Makoto's videotaped betrayal with Otome. It is revealed that Hikari has begun having sex with Makoto, who has not seen or attempted to contact Sekai since she started to be absent from school. Kotonoha is still in her lifeless, emotionally broken state, continuously phones and sends text messages to Makoto even though she is blocked. Natsumi, Kumi, and Minami want to know what it's like "having" Makoto, so the next day, they go to Makoto's house and they presumably have sex with him, though it was not shown. While scrolling through old text messages between herself, Setsuna, and Makoto, Sekai suddenly rushes to the bathroom and vomits. Concluding that she is pregnant, she goes to school to inform Makoto, loudly declaring for all in the class to hear that it is his child and insists he take responsibility. One by one, all the girls start to ignore Makoto, though Sekai warms to the fact that she is carrying his child. Kotonoha makes another call on her phone to Makoto, saying that she is waiting for him under the tree by the train station. Otome shows up at Makoto's apartement and tells him that he has changed from the Makoto she knew in Middle School, and not for the better. Afterwards, Makoto goes out for a walk and tries to call every girl in his speed dial, but finds all his calls have been blocked. He ends up where Kotonoha has been waiting for him, and upon seeing her current state, finally realizes the damage he's done to her. He apologizes to Kotonoha and hugs her; life returns to Kotonoha's eyes and she smiles warmly.
12	"School Days" "Sukūru Deizu" (スクールデイズ)	September 27, 2007
While having dinner with Kotonoha at a restaurant, Makoto receives a phone call from Sekai who’s waiting at his home. Before hanging up he tells Sekai that she ruined his life by getting pregnant and announcing it to the class. Sekai texts him an apology before heading home, but not before she destroys the dinner she had planned to share with Makoto. On the train ride home she catches sight of Kotonoha and Makoto together which causes her to head back to Makoto's. After a brief and tense confrontation with Kotonoha, Sekai leaves in a state of agony after witnessing Makoto and Kotonoha deep kiss in front of her. As she is walking home, it is revealed in a flashback that Sekai knew all along of Setsuna's feelings towards Makoto even to the point of supporting Setsuna to confess. It is only then that Sekai realizes what she has done to Setsuna. The situation worsens overnight when Makoto suggests to Sekai over text that she have an abortion. Overcome by emotion, Sekai stabs and kills Makoto the next day while at his apartment. After a few words from Makoto, Sekai becomes shocked by her actions and runs away in a panic. Shortly afterwards, Kotonoha arrives at Makoto's home to find him dead. Sekai, who was hiding in her room, receives a cryptic text from Makoto to meet "him" at the school's rooftop. She proceeds there cautiously, carrying the knife she killed Makoto within her jacket. After arriving she is confronted by Kotonoha, who accuses Sekai of lying about being pregnant. Sekai denies lying, and Kotonoha tells Sekai to look inside the gym bag lying on the bench, which contains Makoto's severed head. At that moment, Kotonoha unravels a bloody dozuki and kills Sekai. In a state of insanity she cuts open the womb of Sekai’s lifeless body and upon seeing nothing, concludes that Sekai was lying. On her family’s boat drifting off in the distant ocean, Kotonoha is last seen holding Makoto's head in her arms saying that now they can finally be together. Time passes by and life at the school returns to normal.
OVA	"Valentine Days"	January 17, 2008
Kotonoha treats everyone to a trip to an onsen associated with her father's job. When they return to school, the subject of Valentine's Day is discussed at Radish among Nanami, Hikari, Otome, and Sekai. As Hikari asks what Sekai is planning on giving Makoto, Otome points out her crush on Taisuke. Sekai thinks of the opportunities, but Setsuna bursts her bubble and tells her people in the restaurant are staring at her. At Kotonoha's house, she and Kokoro are preparing for Valentine's Day as well, although in a more occult way. And in Sekai's apartment, her mother is enthusiastically making chocolates and offers to help Sekai make some for her crush. The next day at school goes by without Makoto or Taisuke getting any Valentine gifts. However, Otome suddenly appears to ask for Makoto's time alone. Outside of the school, Otome gives him obligation chocolate, claiming her reason was their history in junior high. Sekai then shows up and offers her obligation chocolate to Makoto as well, resulting in animosity from Otome, leading to both of them demanding the other's chocolate be rejected. Makoto then bumps into Kotonoha, who offers him her very strange-looking chocolate. The girls then begin to chase him around various locations, Sekai pulling out a butcher knife and Kotonoha running after him with a dozuki. Sekai's mother and Kokoro also join the chase, and the girls decide to shove the chocolate in his mouth and let him decide by taste. Everything literally blows up in his face, but the girls decide to wait until White Day for his response. In a classroom, Setsuna offers him a small obligation chocolate, and once he claims it tastes delicious, she hands him an enormous box of the chocolate from a secret admirer who was too shy to deliver it. When Makoto asks who the admirer is, Setsuna tells him it was Sawanaga. Taisuke appears from behind a desk, blushing shyly at Makoto, who screams in terror.
OVA	"Magical-Heart Kokoro-chan~"	March 26, 2008
On his way to high school in the morning, Makoto sees a magical-girl superhero (Kokoro in disguise) battle a UFO. At school, Taisuke informs him that she is "Magical Heart," a Sailor Moon-like superhero who protects the city from crime, though Makoto does not seem to show any interest. Kokoro has began to work in the Radish cafe with Sekai, Hikari and Nanami, but in reality, the waitresses are actually part of a battle squad, commanded by Sekai's mother. The four of them are ordered to defend the city from Doctor S (Setsuna in disguise), a Doctor Doom-like supervillain who is using poison gas to turn the people in the city into perverted zombies. The battle squad saves Makoto, Taisuke, Otome and co. from advancing zombies and confront Doctor S (not knowing each others' true identity), using their secret technological weapon - a vacuum cleaner, to suck all the ero-zombie gas away. However, there are too much gases released and eventually their vacuum cleaner blows up. All of them get cornered by perverted zombies (including the newly affected Taisuke, though Makoto comments it's no different to his usual self), but they notice Kokoro has disappeared. Just as the zombies are about to attack, Magical Heart appears and uses her powers to revert the zombified crowd to normal. However, Doctor S uses a pump to inflate her henchman Tanaka, turning him into a giant. Even Magical Heart is no match for his strength, and Makoto attempts to save her (thinking whether this could be another "bad ending"). However, the two of them are saved by the arrival of another magical-girl superhero called "Magical Word" (Kotonoha in disguise). The two magical-girls fuse together into a giant doll (identical to the cartoon-character costume Makoto's class wore at their school festival cafe), and uses a special attack "The Bloody Conclusion" to defeat Doctor S's hencemen (slicing him up with a magical chainsaw), but Doctor S manages to escape. Magical Heart then saves Makoto and co. from drowning in a sea of blood in a lifeboat. The next day, the entire class visits Radish cafe for a drink, and seeing Kokoro, Makoto suspects whether she is Magical Heart.

[edit] Manga

School Days was also adapted into a manga series. It began serialization in the Japanese manga magazine Comp Ace on September 26, 2007. It was collected into two bound volumes; the first volume was released on July 26, 2007, followed by the second volume on November 26, 2007.

The story line of the manga adaptation is is very similar to that of the anime, with the exception of the ending. Makoto Ito, the protagonist, is portrayed as less promiscuous in the manga rendition of the story.

[edit] Novels

School Days was also adapted into a series of novels. Two of such novels were authored by Japanese writer Tome Okada, under the subtitles Kotonoha chapter (言葉編, Kotonoha-hen^?) and Sekai chapter (世界編, Sekai-hen^?). The two novels were published by Harvest Novels, and contained adult content. School Days was also adapted into another novel titled School Days: Along with you (スクールデイズ 君といる, Sukūru Deizu: Kimi to iru^?). It was authored by writer Takuya Baba, and was published by Jive Character Novels.

[edit] Music

The game featured a total of eight theme songs, starting with the opening theme, "Still I love you ~The Joy of Just Looking~" (Still I Love You ～みつめるよりは幸せ～, Still I love you ~Mitsumeru Yori wa Shiawase~"^?), composed and sung by Kiriko. There are seven other ending themes, mainly "You Are... Not Here" (あなたが…いない, Anata ga... Inai^?) which was featured in most of the episodes in the game and was sung by Minami Kuribayashi. The anime featured a single opening theme, "Innocent Blue" (イノセント・ブルー, Inosento Burū^?) performed by DeviceHigh, but featured several different ending themes, some being remixed versions of the theme songs from the original game.

The first music album released was a vocal album and was released on April 28, 2005 containing the theme songs used in the game.^[14] It was later followed by the game's original soundtrack, released on July 21, 2005 containing twenty-five tracks used in the game along with three bonus tracks.^[15] A maxi single entitled Innocent Blue was later released for the anime series on July 25, 2007 containing the opening theme of the anime series. It was later accompanied by an album entitled School Days Ending Theme+ released on August 22, 2007, which contained 8 of the endings and inserts used in the anime series, and the anime's original soundtrack on September 26, 2007.

[edit] Reception and sales

According to a national ranking of based on the sales of bishōjo games in Japan, the PC release of School Days premiered at number one in the rankings.^[16] It was then dropped to the second place the following two weeks,^[17] and the seventeenth on the next ranking,^[18] but was raised back to the fifth in the following chart.^[19] It then remained at the twenty-seventh for the next month, and is then removed from the chart.^[20] School Days was the most widely sold game on Getchu.com for the first and second quarter of 2005,^[21] and is the ninth most widely sold game for the overall year.^[22]

[edit] Notes and references

[edit] External links

• School Days official website (Japanese)
• Official School Days anime website (Japanese)
• School Days Anime at AT-X (Japanese)
• School Days Anime at Avex (Japanese)
• School Days Radio Drama Website (Japanese)
• School Days L×H official website (Japanese)
• School Days (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia