Don’t Touch Me, Kotesashi-kun Anime in Oct

Key visual

The TV anime adaptation of Shinjo Takuya’s romantic comedy manga “Don’t Touch Me, Kotesashi-kun” has been announced to start airing in October. Yasuda Rikuya will play the main character Kotesashi Miyuki, while Naota Himena, Serizawa Yu, Aizawa Saya, Murakami Manatsu, and Aoki Ruriko will play the five heroines. The key visual and the lineup of the main staff have also been released.

The original work has been serialized on Kodansha’s web manga site “Magazine Pocket” since 2021 (published by Kodansha). Kotesashi, who has excellent massage skills and aspires to be a sports doctor, enrolls in Seiwa University High School, a strong school for sports, and works as a live-in employee at the student dormitory “Momiji-so” to earn tuition money, but the residents there are unique female high school athletes. Kotesashi struggles to balance his work as a caretaker with caring for the girls’ physical and mental health… The latest 12th volume of the book will be released on July 9th.

Yasuda will play the protagonist Kotesashi, who is tasked with a mission in exchange for a recommendation from the chairman of the board of directors for a scholarship to medical school. Naota will play Kusunoki Aroma, a first-year high school student in the basketball club who is feeling a bit overworked due to anxiety over the high level of high school basketball, Serizawa will play Kitahara Aoba, a first-year high school student in the soccer club who tries to play with Koyo out of curiosity, Aizawa will play Sumiyoshi Izumi, a second-year high school student in the swimming club who is weak under pressure and is worried about not being able to perform well in tournaments despite having world-class talent, Murakami will play Sayamagaoka Chiyo, a second-year high school student in the table tennis club who has a laid-back personality but is strict about managing her body, and Aoki will play Hongo Miyuki, the captain of the volleyball club and a member of the All Japan national team despite being a third-year high school student, who is like an older sister to the dorms.

The director is Saito Hisashi, who worked on “For Some Reason, I Started Living Together with a NEET Kunoichi,” with series composition and scriptwriting by Shiraki Goko and character design by Tsukamoto Ryusuke. Animation will be handled by Quad, who also worked on “For Some Reason, I Started Living Together with a NEET Kunoichi.”

The key visual shows the five heroines wearing their club uniforms.

Full comments from the cast and staff are below.

[Yasuda Rikuya (role of Kote Misaki Haru)]

Click to enlarge

I’m Yasuda Rikuya, who will be the voice of Kote Misaki.

I’ve been looking forward to this moment so much that it feels like ages since I auditioned.

The other cast members were also perfect for their characters, and it was a lot of fun acting on set.

[Naota Himena (role of Kusunoki Aroma)]

I’m Naota Himena, who plays Kusunoki Aroma. When I auditioned, I was surprised that it could be made into an anime! But it was a very memorable work. I’m very happy to have had the opportunity to play Aroma-chan!

[Serizawa Yu (role of Kitahara Aoba)]

I’ll be playing Kitahara Aoba-chan! My name is Serizawa Yu! The illustrations in the original manga are so cute, and the girls are drawn so gracefully and gracefully. The girls’ massage time… I thought it was the best work to heal me when I saw the girls being healed!! I did my best to act in the role so that I could live up to the expectations of everyone who loves Aoba-chan! Thank you!

[Aizawa Saya (role of Sumiyoshi Izumi)]

I’m Aizawa Saya, who will be playing Sumiyoshi Izumi. This is a sports anime about professionals in the Japanese sports industry coming together under one roof and breaking down their barriers. This explanation can’t be wrong.

[Murakami Manatsu (voice of Sayamagaoka Chiyo)]

I’m Manatsu Murakami, who plays Sayamagaoka Chiyo. I was shocked by the dynamic nature of the original work! It’s the best! I had a lot of fun acting during the recording, so I hope you’ll enjoy watching the anime along with the original work.

[Ruriko Aoki (Hongo Miyuki)]

I was very happy when I heard that it was going to be made into an anime, and that I would be able to star in it, as I was already familiar with the work! I was looking forward to the dubbing to see what kind of anime it would be!

[Saito Hisashi (Director)] The main character, Kotesashi-kun, faces challenges in order to achieve his goal. Please stay tuned to see how it turns out!

[Shirayuki Gokou (Series Composition)] I’ve been reading it since the first chapter of the serialization, so I felt like it was destined to be the one. Personally, I thought it would become an anime someday from the beginning of the serialization, so I never thought I would end up writing that comment.

[Tsukamoto Ryusuke (Character Design)] Shinjo Takuya’s characters are so cute and fun to draw, so I’m very happy to have been in charge of the design!

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A Touch-Shy Romance with a Twist of Youthful Clumsiness

This upcoming anime adaptation of Don’t Touch Me, Kotesashi-kun explores the emotional awkwardness of high school relationships through a protagonist who avoids physical contact at all costs. With Rikuya Yasuda lending his voice to the reserved Kotesashi-kun, and Himena Naota and Yu Serizawa portraying contrasting heroines, the story promises a blend of heartfelt growth and comedic misunderstandings. Given the rising popularity of “anti-touch” or “distance-based” romantic protagonists in recent anime, this series could resonate well with viewers looking for a more nuanced take on adolescent affection. It might also spark conversations about consent and personal boundaries in romantic storytelling.