Taisho Otome Fairy Tale

Plot

It is late 1921, the 10th year of the Taishō era. Tamahiko Shima, second son of the wealthy Shima family, has his life turned upside-down after his right arm is paralyzed in a car accident that also claims the life of his mother. Now seen as worthless to his calculating father's long-term plans for his business empire, his family treats him as "dead". But since it would bring shame to the family were they to disown him outright, he instead finds himself shunted off to a villa in the mountains of Chiba, out of public view. Though he quickly resigns himself to the idea that he will die alone and forgotten, one snowy December night a girl appears at his doorstep and announces that she is there to be his live-in caretaker, and when she is old enough, his bride. The girl, named Yuzuki Tachibana, or "Yuzu" for short, was purchased from her impoverished home by Tamahiko's father, and while she too finds herself uprooted from her home and family, she throws herself into her new role with gusto.

Tamahiko is initially extremely cynical and depressed due to his exile, and Yuzuki's irrepressibly sunny disposition grates on his nerves at first, but her presence gradually helps brighten his mood. In time, Tamahiko and Yuzuki fall in love. In 1922, Tamahiko's younger sister, Tamako, visits the couple, and, though initially cold, warms up to Yuzuki. They also meet Ryō Atsumi, the older sister and caretaker of a number of younger siblings, who teases, picks on and steals from Tamahiko. However, she grows close to him and Yuzuki, and Tamahiko helps her younger siblings with school.

In 1923, Yuzuki and one of Ryō's brothers, Ryotaro, leave for Tokyo—the former to see her friend from school, and the latter to pursue an apprenticeship. However, they are caught up in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, leading Tamahiko and Ryō to walk to Tokyo, with Tamahiko leaving his house open as a temporary shelter for the affected population in his town. Tamahiko finds Yuzuki, bringing her to a temporary hospital run by his estranged uncle. After the earthquake, the famous singer Kotori Shiratori visits Chiba and plays a show with Yuzuki and Ryō attending. Later on, Tamahiko returns to school, passing the entrance exams and making friends with Kotori's twin brother, Hakaru. Kotori visits Yuzuki and Tamahiko and asks them about love to support her songwriting.

Yuzuki suddenly leaves one day, and Tamahiko falls back into his depressed state. It is revealed that the heir to the Shima family, Tamaki, has died, and Tamahiko, despite being previously ostracized, is invited back into the family to serve as heir. As a result, Yuzuki is assigned to become the wife of Tamahiko's brother Tamao. Tamahiko goes back to Tokyo, gets Yuzuki back, and cuts ties with his father, with Tamako and Tamao following him, leaving only the oldest sister, Tamayo, to succeed the Shima family. In preparation for their wedding, Tamahiko and Yuzuki visit Yuzuki's family in Iwate. Eventually, Tamahiko takes Yuzuki's last name, Tachibana, and becomes a teacher. Tamao and Tamako are adopted by their uncle.

Characters

Taisho Otome Fairy Tale

Tamahiko Shima (志磨 珠彦, Shima Tamahiko)

Voiced by: Yūsuke Kobayashi, Aya Yamane (young) (Japanese); Ben Balmaceda, (English) Daisy Guevara (young)

Tamahiko Shima, the second son of a prominent Tokyo family, becomes disabled in a car accident that kills his mother. Deemed useless by his father, he is exiled to their Chiba mountain villa, where he sinks into despair. His life changes when Yuzuki enters his world, helping him overcome his self-hatred. Though deeply in love, he resolves to improve himself before proposing. When forced to choose between inheriting his family's legacy or keeping Yuzuki after his brother's death, he abandons his lineage to marry her. The couple raises three children while Tamahiko pursues his talent for teaching, eventually becoming an elementary school educator.

Yuzuki Tachibana (立花 夕月, Tachibana Yuzuki)

Voiced by: Saya Aizawa (Japanese); Lisa Reimold (English)

Yuzuki, the fourteen-year-old otome (maiden) of the story, is sold by her impoverished family to the Shima household for ¥10,000 to serve as Tamahiko's caretaker and intended bride. Her relentless optimism allows her to see past Tamahiko's bitterness to his inherent kindness. Through unwavering devotion, she gradually draws him out of isolation. Developing genuine affection, she resolves to marry him despite his self-doubts. When the Shima family attempts to separate them to reclaim Tamahiko as heir, the couple elopes. They raise three children in modest but contented circumstances.

Tamako Shima (志磨 珠子, Shima Tamako)

Voiced by: Yume Miyamoto (Japanese); Elizabeth Quedenfeld (English)

Tamako is Tamahiko's younger sister and the youngest of the Shima children. She is bratty and domineering thanks to her luxurious upbringing, but underneath lies a sensitive and caring child. Her lonely childhood made her unable to trust others. Her time at her brother's villa allows her to form a true bond with him and they reconcile. She also bonds with Yuzuki, seeing her as an older sister. Changed by the couple, she decides to become a doctor and moves in with her uncle. Although annoyed by Hakaru, she grows close to him and marries him.

Shōwa Otome Otogibanashi

Jintaro Shima (志磨 仁太郎, Shima Jintarō)

A distant member of the Shima family and Tamayo's adoptive son. After being sent away by his parents and abused by Tamayo, Jintaro returns to his hometown to see his childhood friend and love, Tokoyo, before attempting suicide. However, he falls back in love with her, they fake their deaths to escape from Tamayo, and turn Tamayo over to the police. The pair get married and open their own parlor house before Jintaro is drafted into WWII. He is presumed to have been killed in combat but survives. Jintaro and Tokoyo later have a son.

Tokoyo Kurosaki (黒咲 常世, Kurosaki Tokoyo)

Jintaro's childhood friend and lover. Due to being abused by her stepmother, she becomes dependent on Jintaro to the point she prefers death if she can't be with him. She works hard to regain his heart and the two run away to escape from Tamayo. Tokoyo contracts turberculosis. She marries Jintaro before he is drafted into WWII and she almost commits suicide when he is presumed dead but is overjoyed when she learns he is alive. They later have a son.

Liselotte Meggendorfer (リーゼロッテ・メッゲンドルファー, Meggendorufā Rīzerotte)

The daughter of Jintaro's patron. She is infatuated with him and sees Tokoyo as a rival for his attention. Although she accepts Jintaro will never reciprocate her feelings, she believes her feelings will never change.

Tsukihiko Tachibana (立花 月彦, Tachibana Tsukihiko)

Tamahiko and Yuzuki's son and first child. He resembles his father. He is a mature and pleasant boy.

Ritsu (りつ, Ritsu)

A miko at the shrine of the Arima Onsen Inn Tokoyo and Jintaro live and work at. She becomes friends with Tokoyo and despises men. She is secretly in love with Tokoyo.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Sana Kirioka, Taisho Otome Fairy Tale was serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Jump Square from July 4, 2015, to September 4, 2017. Shueisha collected its chapters in five tankōbon volumes, released from February 4, 2016, to October 4, 2017.

A sequel, titled Shōwa Otome Fairy Tale (昭和オトメ御伽話, Shōwa Otome Otogibanashi), was serialized on Shueisha's Shōnen Jump+ online magazine from August 21, 2018, to May 12, 2020. Shueisha collected its chapters in five tankōbon volumes, released from January 4, 2019, to July 3, 2020.

A spin-off series, titled Taishō Otome Otogibanashi: Pessimist no Shokutaku (大正処女御伽話―厭世家ノ食卓―, Taishō Otome Otogibanashi: Peshimisuto no Shokutaku; "Taisho Otome Fairy Tale: A Pessimist's Dining Table"), was serialized on Shōnen Jump+ from July 3 to December 31, 2021. Shueisha collected its chapters in two volumes, released on October 4, 2021, and March 4, 2022.

Anime

On December 20, 2020, at the Jump Festa '21 online event, it was announced that the series would receive an anime television series adaptation by SynergySP. It is directed by Jun Hatori, with scripts written by Hiroko Fukuda and Mayu Watanabe designing the characters. Yasuharu Takanashi is composing the series' music. It aired from October 9 to December 25, 2021, on TV Tokyo, TVO, BS11, and AT-X. Garnidelia performed the opening theme "Otome no Kokoroe" (オトメの心得; 'A Maiden's Experience'), while Shun'ichi Toki performed the ending theme "Magokoro ni Kanade" (真心に奏; 'Playing Music Sincerely'). Ayasa Itō performed the ending theme "Koi no Uta" (戀ノ歌; 'A Song of Love') of episode 12. Funimation streamed the series while Muse Communication licensed it in Southeast Asia.

Reception

In 2017, the manga was ranked seventh at the third Next Manga Awards in the print category.

The anime adaptation's first episode garnered mixed reviews from Anime News Network's staff during the Fall 2021 season previews. Richard Eisenbeis critiqued that a familiarity with the Taisho era is needed to enjoy the show and that Yuzuki's characteristics made her more of a plot device for Tamahiko's story, calling it "a perfectly watchable anime" that he had little reason to continue watching it. Nicholas Dupree understood the fluffy approach the show was going for but felt it lacked bite to explore its given topics and make its couple more romantically engaging beyond trite sentiment, concluding that: "Overall this is a perfectly pleasant experience, but one I'm not interested in repeating." James Beckett observed that while the show had "a decent period setting and a couple of chuckle-worthy jokes", he criticized the main couple for lacking chemistry with each other and the marriage angle for overusing an arc that's bereft of mature storytelling, saying that audiences who prefer "a perfectly nice, unambitious take" on historical romance will enjoy it. Rebecca Silverman wrote that: "While this isn't treading any new ground, there's a sort of wholesome charm to it. That goes a long way to making up for hackneyed plots or lines and the simple, at times lackluster artwork. At its heart this is a familiar story about two people coming to care for each other and overcome the obstacles life has seen fit to throw in their way. As long as it keeps that heart warm and beating, this could be a quiet charmer of a show."

Fellow ANN editor Caitlin Moore reviewed the complete anime series in 2022 and gave it a B− grade. She praised the "pleasant and cheerful" narrative, the exploration of damaged people navigating the world and finding solace in one's community and its depiction of Tamahiko's disability, but was critical of Yuzuki's "one-dimensional[ly] cheery" demeanor lacking interiority during her situation and the "lackluster visual direction" failing to further elevate the story, concluding that: "Overall, Taisho Otome Fairy Tale is a nice enough series, but it's held back by a hesitation to venture into anything beyond nice ... As it is, it's good as a relaxing watch if you're tired of the "cute girls doing cute things" rigmarole, or if you're looking for something with well-handled disability representation." Allen Moody, writing for THEM Anime Reviews, found the series to be "trite and mawkish" with its "lazy storytelling", generic charicatures and unbelivable romance between its two main leads, calling it "a lowest-common-denominator, crowd-pleasing tearjerker" that will attract its audience.