Castle Bang
| Castle Bang | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Voices of |
|
| Composer(s) | Kathy King |
| Country of origin | Gylias |
| Original language(s) | |
| No. of episodes | 30 |
| Production company(s) |
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| Release | |
| Original network | ATV Arxaþ and Alţira |
| Original release | 1 June – 25 December 2009 |
Castle Bang is a Gylian animated series which aired on ATV Arxaþ and Alţira in 2009. Produced by Kamanimation and the Gylian National Film Institute, it is a nénédie comedy following the adventures of Liza Runecastle, who fights crime and serves Alscia together with her sidekick Nancy Bangcroft.
Plot
The series is set in 1919 in Alscia, and follows the adventures of Liza Runecastle, a talented and attractive polymath who fights crime and serves the Alscian government in a variety of ways, including engaging in espionage, sabotage, and taking part in various social programs. In her tasks, she is assisted by her unwavering yet bashful assistant, Nancy Bangcroft.
Characters
- Liza Runecastle
- Voiced by: Rena Neleş
- Liza is a veteran of the Cacerta-Xevden War who now leads a life of adventure: fighting crime, carrying out missions on behalf of the government, and indulging in other pursuits such as reading to kindergarteners, modeling, enjoying the Alscian nightlife and sex work.
- She is boisterous, extremely self-confident, and has little modesty, enjoying showing off her cleavage and having numerous one-night stands. She has a mischievous side and enjoys teasing others good-naturedly, but is a kind and passionate woman who always thinks of what is best for her comrades and friends.
- Liza is highly charismatic and skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Her closest friend is Nancy, who she loves deeply but also enjoys teasing mercilessly due to her easily embarrassed nature, claiming this is intended to "thicken her skin".
- Nancy Bangcroft
- Voiced by: Saele Roano
- Nancy is Liza's assistant. The few mentions of her past suggest that she had grown up in Xevden and fled to Alscia after it was established.
- She is an extremely skilled sharpshooter, and always carries an elephant rifle. She is very timid, and when embarrassed, blushes easily. She is often awkward in social situations, and is flustered by luxury, the result of an impoverished childhood.
- Nancy is Liza's closest friend, and admires her greatly. In turn, Liza acts as a big sister figure to her, encouraging her to be more confident and affectionately teasing her as a way to give her a "thick skin". Nancy is used to resorting to violence first, which Liza abhors, preferring to outwit her way out of danger.
Production
Castle Bang originated as an individual Kamanimation project that was taken over collectively. The studio was small and specialised in erotica at the time. The creative team decided to try its hand at nénédie, and considered it an interesting challenge to create an attractive character following the model of Julie Legrand.
Chihiro Munakata was hired as character designer, as the team admired his work on Kenkyūsha Ayako to joshu Himeko, especially the stylish wardrobes he devised for his big-breasted heroines. Liza was the first character to be designed. Chihiro drew inspiration from dirndls for her outfit. The team thought the design was strong, and were inspired by its appearance to set the series in Alscia. Nancy was concieved afterwards, on the suggestion that Liza have a character to play off of. Nancy was deliberately designed to be Liza's opposite, from her personality to her appearance.
The series was produced by Kamanimation and the Gylian National Film Institute between 2008 and 2009. One producer recalled that "for whatever reason", the team was nervous about approaching GTV4 with the project, and instead contacted ATV Arxaþ and Alţira, feeling that the Alscian setting would appeal to them. The show was set in 1919, allowing for a comedic subplot where Liza and Nancy follow the Race Around the World.
The creators enjoyed the dynamic of Nancy as admiring yet somewhat intimidated by Liza, and Liza as a big sister figure who shows her affection physically and through teasing. One running gag became the ending to every episode: a scene where Liza enthusiastically hugs Nancy while celebrating, squeezing her tightly and pushing her head into her breasts due to their height difference.
In keeping with nénédie's emphasis on brevity, Castle Bang used a two shorts format, with each episode consisting of two shorts around 10 minutes long.
The series' soundtrack was produced by Kathy King, whose work with Yoko Kanno and the Seatbelts and solo career the team highly admired. Kathy commented that the studio's request was to record "something raunchy and tongue-in-cheek", and to use only acoustic guitar. Kathy's soundtrack relied primarily on slide guitar, as she felt blues would be appropriate chronologically without "going into the generic swing that wouldn't fit Liza at all." She found it amusing to come up with "big rock riffs" only to play them on acoustic guitar.
Reception
Castle Bang was a critical and commercial success upon airing. It became one of the biggest hits of the nénédie genre, with reviewers praising the strong characterisation, raunchy comedy, voice acting, and the dynamic between Liza and Nancy.
The series was uploaded to Proton TV as it aired, and was later released on DVD.
The series became Kamanimation's biggest hit. One of the animators joked that they were initially taken aback by its success, but then "we decided to do the logical thing: milk it for all its worth and then retire it." The creators approved the creation of an action-adventure game based on the show, which was well-received, and licensed Liza for a variety of merchandise, particularly dolls. Their efforts paid off as Liza became one of the most celebrated characters in Gylianime, earning a particularly strong following on the Gylian internet.