Yozakura Quartet is a Japanese manga series created by Suzuhito Yasuda that began publishing by Kodansha in 2006, and was then published in the US by Del Rey in 2008. The anime adaptation aired from October 2 to December 18, 2008 in Japan and comprised 12 episodes. The series was produced by Nomad and aired on TBS on Thursdays. Three anime OVAs were released alongside volume 9-11 of the manga, between October 10, 2010 to November 9, 2011. A new anime adaptation of the series aired in 2013, with the cast returning from the first anime and OVAs, it was produced at Tatsunoko Production. Another set of OVAs, adapting the Tsuki ni Naku arc, was released with the special editions of volumes 14-16. Yozakura Quartet is Suzuhito Yasuda's first manga. Before the creation of Yozakura Quartet, he was an illustrator. He drew the original character designs for Yoshikazu Kuwashima's series Kamisama Kazoku and Ryohgo Narita's Durarara!!.
Story
The story revolves around four teenagers; Hime, Akina, Ao, and Kotoha; each of them having their own unique abilities. They run an office called Hiizumi Life Counseling Office, where their job is to help and protect the townspeople of Sakurashin, a town where humans and youkai co-exist. The town is protected by a barrier created by the spiritual sakura known as The Seven Pillars. The Seven Pillars exist in both the human world and the youkai world and is the only thing that keeps both worlds connected to each other. However, recent bizarre incidents have occurred in their town and someone has threatened its safety. It is up to the four of them to protect the town they love.
Characters
;Akina Hiizumi ;Hime Yarizakura ;Ao Nanami ;Kotoha Isone ;Enjin Hiizumi ;Kyōsuke Kishi ;Tōka Kishi ;Rin Azuma ;Zakuro Kurumaki ;Yūhi Shinatsuhiko ;Mariabelle ;Yae Shinatsuhiko ;V Juri F ;V Lila F ;Kohime Sakurano
Media
Manga
In July 2004, Suzuhito Yasuda was supposed to illustrate a demon manga series with someone else scripting the story, but his editor suggested that he should create an original series. In January 2005, Yasuda came up with a series called Glorious Life, a prototype for Yozakura Quartet. It was set in Sakurashin just like Yozakura Quartet, however the editor-in-chief shot it down. His editor suggested three girls and a boy as the main characters and that they could be demon hunters for hire. His editor commented that he wanted to make something similar to Charlie's Angels, which in August 2005 turned out as Yozakura Falsetto. However this too was shot down by his editor. He was told that he had a last chance to fix the series and in October 2005, his story was finally accepted. His editor told him he should change the title of his series though because it was too hard for their readers to understand, and suggested Yozakura Quartet instead of Yozakura Falsetto. The series finally began serialization in January 2006. A crossover manga with Durarara!!, titled YZQ ✕ DRRR!!, was released with the limited edition Blu-Ray of Yozakura Quartet ~Hana no Uta~ in December 2013. The manga was originally licensed in the United States and Canada by Del Rey Manga, however publication of the series ceased after five tankōbon volumes were released due to Del Rey Manga's closure. Kodansha USA resumed publication of the manga in English as a digital-only series in August 2016.
Anime
An anime adaption of the manga aired on TBS in October 2008. The anime was produced by Nomad. The anime has been licensed in North America by Sentai Filmworks and is distributed by Section23 Films. The complete collection was released March 2, 2010. On March 23, 2010, manga creator Suzuhito Yasuda announced that a new anime adaption that will start in October coinciding with the ninth volume of the manga. The cast from the first series returned for this series. The first OAV shipped on October 8. A second episode was released along with the 10th volume on April 8, 2011 and the third with the 11th on September 9, 2011. On April 4, 2013, it was announced that another three episode OAV, Yozakura Quartet ~Tsuki ni Naku~, is in the works and will be released with the limited edition volumes of the 14th, 15th, and 16th volumes of the manga. They were released on September 9, 2013, February 7, 2014 and November 7, 2014. Also on April 4, 2013, it was announced that Yozakura Quartet will get a new TV anime adaptation as well, animated by Tatsunoko Production. On April 9, 2013, the title was confirmed as Yozakura Quartet ~Hana no Uta~. On April 11, 2013, it was confirmed that Yozakura Quartet ~Hana no Uta~ will feature the same cast as the first series, and will not be a continuation from the first series, but rather, a complete new series on its own. It aired 13 episodes between October 6, 2013 and January 1, 2014.
