[Zombie Land Saga] Introducing manager Tatsumi Kotaro!

2025.07.29

Sakura Minamoto, now a second-year high school student, was dreaming of becoming an idol, or so she thought. Until she died in a traffic accident in front of her house first thing in the morning, with an audition application envelope in hand. She suddenly finds herself in a mysterious Western-style mansion, chased by eerie monster girls, and told a shocking truth and purpose by a mysterious man in sunglasses, Tatsumi Kotaro. The dead girls have been resurrected as zombies, and are to become local idols for Saga Prefecture. Sakura and the zombie girls are thrown into an absurd and incomprehensible situation as Tatsumi's idol plan gets them all thrown around.

Contents

Kotaro Tatsumi's Profileru

Tatsumi's Profile Image
Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

Manager of the zombie idol group "Franchouchou." To save the local idol industry and Saga, which was on the brink of collapse, he reincarnated young girls who had "legends" but died young into zombies and organized them into an idol group. He's a mysterious handsome man with a 7:3 hairstyle and sunglasses. For some reason, he keeps a dried squid in his pocket, which he does to calm the egoless zombies. He lives life with momentum and enthusiasm from start to finish, and everything he does seems to be done haphazardly.

An unusual and talented manager!?

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

The production policy is also a complete hand-off, under the guise of "believing in the potential of idols." Although he appears to be scolding the idols, he seems to have an ulterior motive, as he keeps an eye on members who try to escape and then lets them go, and there are suggestive entries in his diary on the official website. He seems to have no planning, as he suddenly had Death Girls (tentative name), who have just awakened and are not yet fully organized, perform their first live show at a live house, but he has prepared death metal-style songs to suit the live house's trends, and appears to have done some groundwork.

A mysterious character!?

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee
... For some reason, it's listed at the top of the credits, so it might be hinting at something important.

Side Note

Koutarou always carries these tentacles with him and feeds them to the zombie girls. Saga is famous for Yobuko squid, which is apparently delicious! Perhaps that's why they're being promoted. Incidentally, the reason dogs shouldn't eat squid is because its ingredients are bad for their health. It can cause indigestion and vomiting.

Kotaro Tatsumi's Skills

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

Can revive the dead as zombies. At first, like regular zombies, they wander around without any sense of self, but they are awakened by some kind of "stimulus" and are able to regain the same intelligence as when they were alive. Most of their memories are also restored, but for some reason, Yamada Tae remains the only one who has not. Since one of the members is a courtesan from the late Edo period, it seems that they can revive people from long ago as long as they have a corpse.

From Zombie to Human!?

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

It's unclear exactly how the girl was turned into a zombie, but according to the artist, it was "kind of like something out of a zombie movie." They also possess Hollywood-level special makeup techniques, allowing them to transform zombies' appearances into those of living humans. However, the makeup will wash off if they get wet in the rain.

Side Note

By the way, all the members except Tae have successfully awakened, but the problem here is that of the awakened members, Sakura has not regained her memories. It's possible to assume that even after becoming a zombie, she still retains her memories of her past.

Local Idol Group Production

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

A local idol group formed by Kotaro Tatsumi to save Saga, which was on the brink of collapse. The group consists of seven girls. In reality, all of them are zombies, but they hide this fact to avoid conflict with humans. Their decaying bodies are transformed into living, human-like forms with special makeup during live performances. They refer to themselves by numbers, such as "Zombie No. ○." Their numbers are printed on their T-shirts.

Solidarity as Idols

Source: Zombie Land Saga ©Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

At first, the members were disjointed due to differences in motivation, experience, and even their names and musical styles. However, after a surprise live performance in front of Karatsu Station, their unity and morale as idols are gradually growing.

Team Name: "Franchouchou"

Source: Zombie Land Saga ©Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

Before their direction was solidified, the group took a quirky approach, ultimately gaining popularity through numerous zombie-like incidents. However, after deciding on a more traditional idol style, they returned to a style appropriate to their own skills. In the first episode, they were called "Death Girls (provisional)," and in the second episode, they changed their name to "Green Face." However, in the third episode, the members discussed the matter and decided on "Franchouchou," adopting Yamada Tae's suggestion.

Everyone except Sakura Minamoto has some kind of "legend." The members include the "Legendary Special Attack Commander," "Legendary Idol of the Heisei Era," "Legendary Idol of the Showa Era," "Legendary Courtesan," "Legendary Genius Child Actor," and "Legendary Yamada Tae." They all died in their teens or twenties, but their death years vary.

Franchouchou's Songs

Welcome to Saga

Source: Zombie Land Saga ©Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

This is a song that Kotaro had prepared without even realizing it. It's death metal, unusual for an idol, with lyrics consisting only of moans and screams, but the title appears in the credits and he's credited as "lyricist and composer."

Unknown

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

A minor key idol song prepared by Kotaro for the second live performance. Sakura and the others were practicing this song, but Tae's violent behavior caused them to stop after singing just one line. Details are unknown.

DEAD or RAP!!!

Source: Zombie Land Saga © Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

Sakura and Saki engage in an impromptu rap battle. Naturally, there's no background music, so Kotaro quickly adds some vocal percussion. Yugiri joins in on the shamisen.

The voice actor is that popular voice actor!

The voice actor is Mamoru Miyano. He is affiliated with the Himawari Theater Company. Born June 8, 1983, he is from Saitama Prefecture. His blood type is B. He can't cook curry, but he is married. He was a member of the soccer club in elementary, middle, and high school. He is tall (183cm), has a good figure (63kg), and is handsome, so he has a large female fan base. He has been featured as a handsome voice actor in women's weekly and fashion magazines such as "anan" and "JUNON." He is also good friends with Yamazato Ryota of Nankai Candies, and when they stand next to each other, their facial contrast is striking.

He plays "Kotaro Tatsumi" with his outstanding acting skills.

Mr. Ito made his voice acting debut as Griffen Rowe in the TV series "Caitlin" (2001), and his first anime role was Akira in "Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Children" (2002). He delivers a brilliant performance that showcases his exceptional acting skills. While his protagonists and handsome characters are highly acclaimed, his insane characters are especially well-regarded (e.g., Light Yagami from Death Note and Shu Tsukiyama from Tokyo Ghoul).

Famous Quotes by Kotaro Tatsumi

"You are Sakura Minamoto." "Ten years ago, you died." "But you were resurrected as a zombie." "And now, as Zombie No. 1, you and your friends will save Saga!"

That's a shocking line. The unexpected resurrection as a zombie, becoming an idol, and saving Saga Prefecture is so sudden that it's sure to leave many confused.

"My name is Tatsumi Kotaro." "I'm the man who will make you an idol!"

Sakura learns that she died 10 years ago and has become a zombie. The mysterious person then reveals his goal: to "save Saga."

"Okay, so that's it. Starting today, let's work hard to become the strongest idols!"

Seven members are striving to become the strongest idols. However, Sakura is the only one who is normal. It's like I'm lost.

"It's to save Saga." "That's right. In this day and age, local idols are on the verge of extinction. But because of that, the number of other idols has also decreased. You guys are jumping in to take advantage of that opportunity and save Saga, a region whose very existence is also on the verge of extinction." "Here we go!" "We're calling it the 'Zombie Land Saga Project'!"

Source: Zombie Land Saga ©Zombie Land Saga Production Committee

It all started with this line. It's a line that symbolizes the work "Zombie Land Saga."

Summary

There's a lot of mystery surrounding Kotaro Tatsumi, and his behavior exudes a certain shady nature. Based on the limited information available, it seems he's truly trying to revitalize Saga Prefecture through idols. However, it's still unclear whether that's his ultimate goal. Or rather, his behavior makes it seem a bit suspicious...? This anime is inherently secretive and shrouded in mystery, so we'll have to keep our eyes peeled!