The TV anime "From Bureaucrat to Villainess" is based on the manga by Michio Kamiyama, which is currently being serialized in "Monthly Young King Ours GH" (Shonen Gahosha). The story is about a 52-year-old man, Kenzaburou Tondenbayashi, who is reincarnated as a villainess in the world of a girls' game... but the plot isn't the only thing that's shocking. When the first episode aired on January 9th, it was revealed that the ending theme (ED) was a cover of actor Ken Matsudaira's signature song "Matsuken Samba II," which has become a hot topic on social media. Matsudaira doesn't appear in the original work, and samba has nothing to do with it. Why "Matsuken Samba II"? We asked Hiroyuki Aoi, producer at MBS, the company in charge of the anime.
◇There is actually a commonality…
The series is a comedy with the themes of older men, reincarnation in another world, and villainous ladies. The story is about a 52-year-old earnest civil servant, Tondenbayashi Kenzaburou, who is involved in a traffic accident and reincarnated as Grace Auverne, a villainous lady in the world of the otome game "Magical School Love & Beast". Kenzaburou decides to act as a villainous lady, but his "elegant cheat" ability, which automatically transforms his parental comments and commonplace behavior into elegant ones, is activated, and he unintentionally ends up setting up flags with the handsome men who are the targets of the game. The series is currently airing every Thursday at 12:26 a.m. on MBS/TBS's late-night anime slot "Super Animeism TURBO".
The ending theme for the anime is a cover of "Matsuken Samba II" by Tondenbayashi Kenzaburou, played by Kazuhiko Inoue, and Grace-Kenzaburou, played by M.A.O. The fact that the ending theme is a cover of "Matsuken Samba II" was kept a secret before the first episode aired. Grace and Kenzaburou, wearing gold jackets, sing and dance passionately. Kenzaburou, a civil servant, holds a financial statement in his hands. After the broadcast, it became a hot topic on social media with comments such as "No way!" and "Why?", and the non-credit version of the ending video, which was released on YouTube immediately after the broadcast, exceeded 1 million views in 8 days. "The Villainess Reincarnated Uncle" has also come to be known as "this season's dark horse."
The idea to use "Matsuken Samba II" as the ending theme came from Aoi. The idea was born about four years ago. Aoi first noticed the original work in December 2019, when it was posted on Twitter (now X) and became a hot topic. As soon as the serialization was decided, he started working on making it into an anime.
Nowadays, various anime are being produced based on the "villainous lady story" in which the protagonist is reincarnated as the villainous lady in the world of an otome game, but at the time, although it was a big hit on novel posting sites, there were hardly any anime. The first season of "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! (My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!)," which sparked interest in "villainous lady" anime, was broadcast from April to June 2020, but Aoi began working on the anime adaptation before "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!" aired. Aoi is also the producer of "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!."
"At the time, villainess stories had not yet been made into anime, and they had not yet caught on with anime viewers. At that time, I saw the first episode of the completed ' My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!', and I felt that the drama was solid and the main character was attractive, so this would become a hot topic and become a genre that would be accepted by many people. The so-called cheat-type reincarnation in another world stories also have their appeal, but this genre has a different appeal. 'The Villainess Reincarnated Uncle' does not have any villains. It is full of goodwill. Kenzaburo is the uncle, so people of a similar age can sympathize with it. There are no brutal scenes, so children should be able to enjoy it too. I felt that it was a work that people of all ages and genders could enjoy. I approached the original creator about making it into an anime around April 2020, and thankfully they immediately gave their permission. However, the comics had not yet been released at the time, so we did not start moving in earnest towards making it into an anime until December 2020, when the first volume was released."
In 2021, the anime adaptation began in earnest, and the idea of using "Matsuken Samba II" as the ending theme came to mind. "Matsuken Samba II" became a big hit in 2004, and is a classic song that has been loved by people of all ages and genders for over 20 years.
"'Matsuken Samba II' is loved by people of all ages and genders, and listening to it fills you with a sense of euphoria and gives you energy. If this song is played as the closing song to 'The Villainess Reincarnated as an Uncle,' set in a world where only good people exist, you will feel even more joyful and happy. I wanted to make an anime that would make viewers laugh, have fun, and feel warm in the heart. There were plans to cover Showa-era and Heisei-era hit songs depending on the episode, but in terms of the impact and the way to conclude this work, there was nothing better than 'Matsuken Samba II.' This work is full of kindness, and that's why it's called 'Matsuken Samba II.'"
Although the title "Villain" has a big impact, "Villain Lady Reincarnated Uncle" is a heartwarming comedy. Although he found common ground with "Matsuken Samba II" and had a certain degree of confidence, the reaction from those around him was lukewarm.
"Most people responded with, 'Well, it's fine, isn't it?' and it wasn't praised unconditionally. Perhaps it was hard for them to imagine what it would be like. Only one person said, 'It's great!' But I guess I was just going along with my own ego. Usually, someone in my position doesn't participate in storyboard meetings for the ending, but the director kindly allowed me to participate in this production. Thanks to the support of the label, staff and cast, it turned out to be a wonderful film."
◇It happened to coincide with the boom
"Matsuken Samba II" has seen its umpteenth boom in recent years, with pop-up shops and collaborative cafes opening, as well as the serialization of a manga called "Matsuken Quest: Matsuken is summoned to another world and defeats the demon king with samba," in which Matsudaira is summoned to another world.
Aoi conceived the song as the ending theme for "Akuyaku Reijou Tensei Ojisan" before the recent boom. He said that he did not anticipate the boom, "It wasn't something I was aiming for, it was just a coincidence. However, for the past four years, I was worried that it might become the theme song for another anime... I'm sure other people are thinking the same thing I think."
In response to the huge response, he expressed his joy, saying, "Of course we do it to create excitement, but the response has been greater than we expected." He continued, "I also think it was a good idea that we didn't release any information before the broadcast. I think the correct way to promote a show is to release the opening and ending credits before it airs so that people can get to know about it first, but in this case I wanted to make it a surprise. It seems that sometimes the ending credits lead people to watch the main story."
It's not just the ending that gets people excited, but many people are also fascinated by the "gentle world" of the main story. Aoi said, "The scene where the famous song is sung in the original work is also faithfully reproduced in the anime. There are also action scenes, and a lot of effort has been put into it. There are still many scenes worth watching," so future developments are attracting attention.
