Rent-a-Girlfriend quickly cemented itself as a popular anime franchise when it launched in 2020. However, Rent-a-Girlfriend isn’t the only series infamous mangaka Reiji Miyajima has worked on. In fact, he was also involved in another anime series. Said franchise took one of anime’s weirdest idol series in a new direction and this show will likely delight Rent-a-Girlfriend fans.
One of Reiji Miyajima’s earliest jobs was working on the manga AKB49: Ren’ai Kinshi Jorei, a manga based on the real-life idol group AKB49. So, he was the natural choice to work on other idol-inspired projects. Because of this, he was hired to work on the anime 22/7 (Nanabun no Nijuni) and its tie-in manga 22/7 +α in 2020.
Formed in 2017, 22/7 is a collaboration by Yasushi Akimoto, Aniplex, and Sony Music Records. 22/7 is an idol group with a twist. Rather than being the usual group of singers, dancers, and musicians, 22/7 is a mixed-media project featuring animated idols. The project sees a group of voice actors voicing fictional girls who make up the band. The actors also motion capture the band’s dance routines, giving the animated characters more personality and meaning as their routines perfectly capture the style used by many real-world idol groups.
By the time 2020 rolled around, the band had a sizable following in Japan. Several long-time members had left and been replaced with new faces, but the group was still popular. So, the companies behind the group decided to launch a new manga and anime series to push them to the next level. Reiji Miyajima was brought in to help with the project. He handled series composition, along with prolific anime writer Chiaki Nagai. The whole series was animated by popular studio A-1 Pictures.
The anime, simply titled 22/7, offers a new backstory for the band The series follows on Miu Takigawa, a shy and reserved girl who works part-time at a store to support her family. However, her life gets turned upside down when she receives a letter from the entertainment company GIP. The letter is rather straightforward, stating that Miu had been selected to work on a special project. Though confused, she follows the letter and goes to the meetup location, only to find several other girls waiting there.
These girls are whisked to a super-secret facility where they’re told they will become an idol group, and that they will debut on a major record label in the next few months.Things only get more strange when the girls are told they must obey the orders of something called The Wall, no matter what it tells them to do. The girls have to knuckle down and prepare for their first performances, despite lacking any idol experience. This is especially hard for Miu, as her shy personality holds her back. The contrast between her old life and the world of idols forces her to endure many culture shocks.
22/7 features all the idol fun you would expect, with the girls learning how to perform together and bonding as a unit, complete with all the humor and heartbreak that entails. However, what makes 22/7 stand out from other idol anime shows is that previously mentioned Wall. This Wall quickly adds a semi-magical sci-fi element to the show, making it stand apart from most other idol anime on the market. There was also a tie-in manga called 22/7 +α released the same year. While this manga uses the designs seen in the anime, it tells a different story not seen in the anime. However, this manga was written by Reiji Miyajima, so it retains a similar tone to the anime series.
22/7 is one of the strangest idol series in anime and manga history. While both slice-of-life and supernatural idol series have existed in the past, 22/7 features a unique blend of the two genres. This blend is more surprising due to the anime featuring a virtual, though very real, idol group. However, fans of Rent-a-Girlfriend will likely find a lot to like here, as Reiji Miyajima’s style shines through, especially his approach to writing characters. So, while 22/7 is rather different compared to other idol series, it is a lot of fun, and Rent-a-Girlfriend fans will likely find it very enjoyable.
22/7 (Nanabun no Nijyuuni) is now streaming on Crunchyroll