Right Stuf and their Nozomi Entertainment publishing label have announced that their upcoming release of Mario Watches Over Us, Season 2: Printemps set will be released on the 6th November 2012. This new DVD set repackages the entire 13-episode second television season of Maria Watches Over Us, plus the Season 2 specials, in a single DVD keepcase. It features Japanese audio, along with English on-screen translations, and two English-language subtitle tracks: one with regular dialogue subtitles and a second, special subtitle track that retains the Japanese honorifics.
The Maria Watches Over Us anime is based upon a series of novels – written by Oyuki Konno and illustrated by Reine Hibiki – that began in 1998 and spans 38 volumes. Short stories related to the series have been published in the shoujo (girls’) magazine Cobalt, and a manga adaptation was serialized in the anthology magazine Margaret. The series’ publisher, Shueisha, produced 14 drama CDs (featuring radio-style plays), and there are also several Internet radio plays, a live-action film adaptation and a spin-off novel series.
The anime adaptation of Maria-sama ga Miteru – also referred to by fans as “MariMite” – encompasses two, 13-episode TV seasons, a 5-episode OVA (original video animation) as its third season, and a 13-episode fourth season, which aired on Japanese television during 2009. All four seasons are licensed for English-speaking audiences by and available on DVD from Right Stuf’s Nozomi Entertainment.
Maria Watches Over Us features animation by Studio DEEN (Fruits Basket, Gravitation, Rurouni Kenshin), scripting by Reiko Yoshida (ARIA, Boys Over Flowers, Story of Saiunkoku), and direction by Yukihiro Matsushita (Seasons 1-3; Blue Dragon, Sugar Sugar Rune) and Toshiyuki Kato (Season 4; Full Moon O Sagashite, CODE-E).
The spring term is beginning for the students at Lillian Girls’ Academy. Friends are reunited, but for the Yamayuri Council, it’s a bittersweet time. Yoko, Eriko, and Sei are busy preparing to depart Lillian, while Sachiko, Rei, and Shimako are doing their best to ensure that their dear sisters receive a memorable commencement. Sei’s departure will leave a sizable hole in the White Roses and filling it won’t be easy. But is there anyone who will appeal to Shimako enough to become the next Rosa Gigantea en bouton?
