Takopi's Original Sin

Plot

In 2016, Nueinukf, an alien hailing from the Happy Planet, crash-lands on Earth on his mission to spread happiness to others. After evading capture, he comes across Shizuka Kuze, a 9-year-old girl who is bullied at school and only finds solace with her Border Collie, Chappy. Shizuka, noting that he resembles an octopus, names the alien Takopi. Takopi decides to use his planet's Happy Gadgets to help Shizuka, but after seeing her, face scratched and bruised all over as she holds Chappy's leash, Shizuka asks for one of Takopi's gadgets and uses it to take her life. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Takopi uses a Happy Camera to travel back in time, hoping to prevent Shizuka's suicide.

In one of these loops, during a confrontation between Shizuka and her bully Marina Kirarazaka, whose father had an affair with Shizuka's mother, Takopi accidentally hurls the Camera at Marina, breaking it after failing to save Chappy in 101 attempts, killing her and preventing them from reversing time again. Desperate to conceal the crime, Takopi, with help of Shizuka's classmate, Naoki Azuma, buries Marina's body inside one of his gadgets before assuming her identity. The ruse quickly unravels: Takopi's imitation of Marina is unconvincing, and a group of workers soon stumbles upon the hidden corpse. At the same time, Shizuka exploits Naoki's deteriorating mental state—his spiral into paranoia over hiding the crime, his frantic attempts to save her dog, and the crushing weight of being compared to older brother Junya and condemnation after a poor grade. Ultimately, Takopi tries to reason with Shizuka, preventing her from making anymore mistakes, but Shizuka knocks him out with a rock.

An unconscious Takopi recalls his previously erased memories; he initially came to Earth in 2022 to spread joy. The first person he ran into however was not Shizuka but Marina who lived in an abusive household. With Takopi's help, Marina's life begins to improve and she starts dating Naoki. But when Naoki leaves Marina for Shizuka, who survived her suicide attempt and when Marina's mother finds out about the relationship and tries to kill Marina, but she kills her in self-defense and then Marina says she regrets not "killing" Shizuka in fourth grade before committing suicide. This failed timeline leads Takopi to plot killing a 9-year-old Shizuka in the past, which caused the erasure of his memories as a violation of Planet Happy's law, making him forget his original plan upon traveling back in time.

Returning to where Marina and Shizuka met, Takopi is consoled by Naoki, who thanks him for their friendship and returns to him his Camera. Months later, Takopi finds Shizuka looking for Chappy, and apologizes for initially causing her pain. He ultimately sacrifices himself to reactivate the Camera, rewinding to 2016 back when Shizuka met Takopi. Afterward, Shizuka and Marina are tearfully reminiscing of Takopi upon noticing Shizuka's sketch of him; Naoki reconciles with Junya and his friends as Takopi wishes them happiness before disappearing. Six years later in 2022, Shizuka and Marina remain best friends growing up together.

Characters

Takopi (タコピー, Takopī) / Nueinukf (んうえいぬkf)

Voiced by: Kurumi Mamiya (PV, voice comic, anime) (Japanese); Abigail Blythe (English)

A Happian alien from the Happy Planet who resembles an octopus. Takopi's goal is to spread happiness to others through his various gadgets, though his innocent and simplistic worldview is challenged as he confronts the complex morality and nature of human beings. It is revealed later that Takopi had first met a teenage Marina. Marina revealed how she believed that Shizuka was responsible for all her misfortune and wanted her dead, prompting Takopi to go back in time to fulfill Marina's goal. Takopi lost his memories when he was enacting Marina's wish and forgot his objective, leading him to befriend Shizuka instead. After seeing his actions were doing more harm than good, Takopi sacrificed himself to reset the timeline and give both Shizuka and Marina a better future.

Shizuka Kuze (久世 しずか, Kuze Shizuka)

Voiced by: Reina Ueda (PV, voice comic, anime) (Japanese); Emily Fajardo (English)

A young girl whom Takopi befriends upon his arrival on Earth. She is the subject of bullying in her school due to her mother's work as a hostess and only finds solace at home with her pet Border Collie Chappy. She commits suicide after Marina had Chappy taken away, only to be saved by Takopi turning back time. As time goes on, she slowly starts to unravel as she feels like she is alone. Eventually, she travels to where her biological father is but learns that he has a new family and decides to kidnap his daughters, which Takopi thwarts after seeing his actions did more harm than good. In the final timeline, Shizuka and Marina end up becoming best friends after subconsciously realizing that they are bonded together through their latent memories of Takopi.

Marina Kirarazaka (雲母坂 まりな, Kirarazaka Marina)

Voiced by: Honoka Kuroki (voice comic), Konomi Kohara (anime) (Japanese); Jill Harris (English)

Production

Manga production

Author Taizan 5 stated that he originally chose to serialize his work on Shōnen Jump+ because he had read works such as Spy × Family. From there, his editor encouraged him to draw whatever he liked, so he decided to draw a slightly darker version of Doraemon. Using family issues as the theme to suit his preferences, he made it a time loop story in order to develop the story. When asked about how he came up with this worldview, which combines the real-world darkness of bullying and family problems with the unrealistic idea of life forms from outer space, Taizan 5 replied in an interview, "I've always liked suspense novels, and I also like children's topics, so I thought it would be interesting to combine the two worldviews." In an interview with Oricon News about the manga, Taizan 5 explained how he dealt with themes like bullying, domestic violence, and abusive parenting. He went on to explain that he chose to depict scenarios where the issue of blame was not clear and could not be laid solely on one individual.

Anime production

The Takopi's Original Sin anime was produced by the studio Enishiya. It was the first time that the studio has produced an anime TV series. It is a six-episode series written and directed by Shinya Iino. He was responsible in making the anime based on the story of the manga which is emotionally charged and deep.

When Iino and producer Kotaro Sudo were making the anime, they emphasized the necessity of maintaining the original themes and the emotional core of the manga during the production. Iino stressed that he strived to present the issues featured in the manga, such as bullying, neglect, and cruelty, without diminishing their impact, as well as to accentuate the animated version of Takopi's expressive personality. The staff tried to balance Takopi's cheerful personality and the difficult stories of the humans' lives, as well as their problems and possibilities to be saved. Sudo stated that the issue of communication is one of the major themes of the adaptation, as well as the fact that there was a warning about the content before the release of the anime.

During a round table discussion at Anime NYC 2025, director and series composition writer Shinya Iino highlighted some of his objectives in the anime adaptation of Takopi's Original Sin. One of his chief objectives was bringing out the charm and expressiveness of Takopi in anime form, in terms of the actions and dialogues which were not as easy to bring out as in the manga form. Another important objective was ensuring that the structure and atmosphere of the original manga was retained along with the story elements and portrayal of the struggles and quest for happiness of the characters.

In his interview, Iino described how the production crew deliberately refrained from imposing any limits to the scripting and storyboard process so that the staff would be free to choose the best method for adaptation of the manga. According to Sudo, although broadcasting on television could have attracted more viewers, the choice of another format enabled the staff to focus on maintaining the integrity of the original work. The ending of the anime was decided based on the reactions to the early episodes, and ended up being different from what was originally planned.

The framework of the story was decided at the initial meeting. As a result of the limited duration of the anime to six episodes, Iino and his crew managed to allocate a different storyboard artist and an episode director for each of the episodes from the start, and every one of the staff members could devote their attention solely to individual episodes. According to Iino, the limited number of episodes allowed the crew to pay greater attention to the quality of individual episodes. As was stated by the producer, Kotaro Sudo, the same amount of time was allocated for the production of the series as is usually spent on a television anime, albeit with less episodes, making it possible for the team to dedicate more effort to each one.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Taizan 5, Takopi's Original Sin was published on Shueisha's web platform Shōnen Jump+ from December 10, 2021, to March 25, 2022. Shueisha collected its 16 chapters in two tankōbon volumes, released on March 4 and April 4, 2022.

Shueisha's Manga Plus service published chapters of the series in English simultaneously with their Japanese release. In February 2023, Viz Media announced that it licensed the manga for English publication; the series was released as a single volume on November 21 of that same year.

Anime

In December 2024, it was announced that the series would receive an anime adaptation. It was later revealed to be an original net animation (ONA) produced by Enishiya, with TBS Television handling planning and production duties. The six-episode miniseries was directed and written by Shinya Iino, with character designs and chief animation direction handled by Keita Nagahara, and music composed by Yoshiaki Fujisawa. The series was released from June 28 to August 2, 2025, on various streaming platforms, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Abema, and U-Next. The opening theme song is "Happy Lucky Chappy" (ハッピーラッキーチャッピー), performed by Ano, and the ending theme song is "Glass no Sen" (がらすの線), performed by Tele. Crunchyroll streamed the series outside Asia, with a dub being later produced. Medialink licensed the series in the Asia-Pacific for streaming on Ani-One Asia's YouTube channel.

Compilation film

In May 2026, it was announced that the anime would receive a compilation film titled Takopi's Original Sin: Thank You, See You Tomorrow (タコピーの原罪 -ありがとう、また明日-, Takopī no Genzai: Arigatō, Mata Ashita). The film is set to be released theatrically in Japan on November 27, 2026. The film will compile the six episodes of the anime with additional scenes.

Reception

Critical reception

The manga of Takopi's Original Sin received limited critical coverage, though the reviews were generally positive. Jenni Lada of Siliconera commended Takopi's Original Sin for its complex character development and the theme of perspective. This was because the story defied the notion that there is a clear-cut hero or villain. She appreciated the fact that the characters Takopi, Shizuka, and Marina were slowly revealed and understood through their backstories. Another element that earned praise from her included the discussion of the themes of trauma, relationships, and what happens when one tries to help other people before completely comprehending what they have gone through.

Writing for Anime News Network, Christopher Farris rated the manga four out of five stars. But he commended Takopi's Original Sin for its ability to maintain balance between its dark ideas and theme by having a fun premise and dark humor without resorting to exploiting them. But still, the review stated that because of its heavy emphasis on suffering and certain developments in the plot, the work was inconsistent but emotionally powerful. Another writer, who uses the alias "MrAJCosplay", who wrote on the same review, praised Takopi's Original Sin for its strong contrast between its softly-designed characters and its disturbing theme, saying that the way it was drawn added to the intensity of the plot. He enjoyed the story for being very intriguing and touching on themes like human cruelty and psychological trauma as well as how hard it is to help people; he thought that there were some convenient plot devices in the latter part of the story.

The anime adaptation of Takopi's Original Sin received generally positive reviews. It was praised for its storytelling, direction, animation, and visual presentation. Marko Jovanovic of Anime Corner described the first episode as "gorgeous but devastatingly painful." Melvyn Tan from Anime Trending highlighted the graphics and portrayal of disturbing topics contributed greatly to an unforgettable experience.

A reviewer from Anime News Network, who goes under the name "Bolts", explained that Takopi's Original Sin is an extremely difficult and thought-provoking series due to the intensity with which it deals with the issue of bullying, abuse, neglect, and traumatization. The critic commended the anime for the way it has been directed, the contrast in its visuals and the use of the innocence of Takopi as a device through which to emphasize the difficult life that the human characters are leading, although it is not entirely exploitative since it focuses on the issues of empathy and understanding. The themes of communication and support, as well as the cycle of suffering, were appreciated.

Accolades

Takopi's Original Sin won the Excellence Prize at the 51st Japan Cartoonists Association Awards in 2022. The series ranked third in the 2023 edition of Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list of best manga for male readers. The series ranked ninth on "The Best Manga 2023 Kono Manga wo Yome!" ranking by Freestyle magazine. It was nominated for the 16th Manga Taishō in 2023, and ranked 10th out of 11 nominees; it has been nominated for the 27th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in the same year. The manga was nominated for the 54th Seiun Award in the Best Comic category in 2023.

In February 2022, it was reported that the series surpassed the 2 million views per day on the Shōnen Jump+ platform. The first volume sold 41,277 copies in its first week, and the second volume sold 198,505 copies in its first week. By May 2022, the manga had over 1.2 million copies in circulation, including digital versions.