Series synopsis
This Ugly Yet Beautiful World, also known as この醜くも美しい世界 is a Japanese animation drama comedy television series that premiered on TBS on April 1, 2004. It ended on June 17, 2004. It stars Fujiko Takimoto, Ayako Kawasumi, Takahiro Mizushima and Ai Shimizu.
High school student Takeru works part time as a motorbike courier. During one of his deliveries, he sees a mysterious light passing him and fall into a forest. What he had found was a girl coming out from a glowing cocoon, calling herself "Hikari." A strange monster suddenly appears attacking them, but Takeru quickly discovers he can transform into a powerful superhero.
Premise
High school student Takeru works part time as a motorbike courier. During one of his deliveries, he sees a mysterious light passing him and fall into a forest. What he had found was a girl coming out from a glowing cocoon, calling herself "Hikari." A strange monster suddenly appears attacking them, but Takeru quickly discovers he can transform into a powerful superhero.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Fujiko Takimoto as Ryou Ninomiya (voice)
- Ayako Kawasumi as Hikari (voice)
- Takahiro Mizushima as Takeru Takemoto (voice)
- Ai Shimizu as Akari (voice)
- Asami Sanada as Mari Nishino (voice)
- Atsushi Kisaichi as Shin'ichi Asakura (voice)
- Hideki Ogihara as Daijirou Matsumura (voice)
- Dai Matsumoto as Icchou Nishino (voice)
Supporting cast
- Manabi Mizuno as Sakurako Urushima (voice)
- Megu Ashiro as Kimi Ninomiya (voice)
- Tomoko Kotani as Sumie Nishino (voice)
- Yumi Kikuchi as Amika Kuribayashi (voice)
- Hiroshi Iida as Tennin (voice)
- Keiichi Noda as Ioneous (voice)
- Mai Kadowaki as Mayu Yoshida (voice)
Episodes
This series spans 2 seasons with 17 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 0 | 5 | ||
| Season 1 | 12 | April 1, 2004 | June 17, 2004 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Animation Creator: Interview with Director Shouji Saeki | |
| 2 | "Metamorphose" Music Video | |
| 3 |
Clean Opening Opening Credits (minus text) |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dawn is the Separation Between Light and Darkness | April 1, 2004 |
| 2 |
You are my First Takeru and Hikari explain to his friends and family what happened the previous night. Hikari tells them she came to Earth from outer space because she was lonely, but doesn't know anything else about herself. However, because Takeru saved her he's now very precious to her. Takeru's male classmates go wild with jealousy because he's got a cute babe now. |
April 8, 2004 |
| 3 | The Two Silhouettes | April 15, 2004 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | TBS |
|---|---|
| First aired | April 1, 2004 |
| Last aired | June 17, 2004 |
| Runtime | 25 minutes |
| Status | Ended |
| Schedule | at 00:30:00 |