It has been announced that voice actors Yusuke Kobayashi will play Undou Kai, Yusuke Kobayashi as Akitsu Ken, Masayuki Sato as Inda Haishin, Hideya Watanabe as Imajo Yutaka, and Ayumu Asakura as Kinriki in the new TV anime adaptation of "High School! Kimengumi," a comedy manga by Motoei Shinzawa that was serialized in "Weekly Shonen Jump" (Shueisha) in the 1980s. Undou Kai, Akitsu Ken, Inda Haishin, Imajo Yutaka, and Kinriki are a group of five who have repeated a year of junior high school. Known as the "Ude Gumi" (arm group), they excel in all sorts of sports, but are not good at studying and often train in the corner of the classroom even during class. The series is also attracting attention for being adapted into an anime for the first time in approximately 39 years.
The second set of leader visuals for each group has been released, featuring the image of Kumodou Kai, the leader of the Ude Gumi group.
Kobayashi, who plays Kumodou Kai, commented, "The Udegumi Leader is a wonderful character who is passionate, refreshing, cute and has many different elements! During the dubbing, the Kimengumi are so powerful that I had to cling on desperately so as not to get lost in the crowd (laughs). It's not just silly, you'll feel a fresh breeze after watching it, so please look forward to this film!"
The original series began as "3-nen Kimengumi" in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1980, and was renamed "High School! Kimengumi" in 1982 as the characters progressed to higher education. It's a slapstick school comedy featuring the Kimengumi, a group of five middle school students: Ichidou Rei, Reikoshi Go, Idese Kiyoshi, Oma Jin, and Monohoshi Dai, along with Kawa Yui and Uru Chie. The TV anime, which aired from 1985 to 1987, also gained popularity with its theme song, sung by Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi, a spin-off unit of the idol group Onyanko Club.
The new anime will be directed by Seki Kazuaki, known for films such as "Blank Canvas: My So-Called Artist's Journey" and "Beethoven Fabrication," and produced by Animation Studio Seven. The cast has been completely renewed, with Tomokazu Seki as Ichidou Rei, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Reikotsu Go, Chiaki Kobayashi as Ideze Kiyoshi, Kikunosuke Toya as Oma Jin, Toya Kikunosuke as Monohoshi Dai, Shiraishi Haruka as Kawakawa Yui, and Ikumi Hasegawa as Uru Chie. It will air on Fuji TV's anime block "Noitamina" every Friday at 11:30 PM starting in January 2026.
*Cast (titles omitted)
Ichidou Rei: Tomokazu Seki Yoshitsugu Matsuoka ▽Reiko Go: Chiaki Kobayashi ▽Idese Kiyoshi: Matsuoka Kikunosuke Toya ▽Kawan Yui: Shiraishi Haruka▽Uru Chie: Ikumi Hasegawa ▽Nibiruta You: Nobuhiko Okamoto ▽Undo Kai: Yusuke Kobayashi
