It’s not very often you see a big, hyped anime film released around the world at the same time as it’s released in Japan. Given that, and the incredible list of staff associated with the project, you can understand why fans are so excited to see Bubble! The unique story and style have many fans wondering if the Bubble movie is based on a manga, or is it an original anime.
Bubble takes place in a Tokyo that has been ruined by bubbles that break the laws of gravity. Now, the city is a playground for parkour teams that battle against each other. Hibiki is a parkour ace, although when he falls into the sea, he is saved by a girl with mysterious powers, and the two of them discover secrets that could change their world.
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Is Bubble an Original Anime?
The Bubble film is an original anime conceived by Tetsurō Araki and Genki Kawamura, then written by Gen Urobuchi.
It was revealed in a making-of video that the story was worked on originally by director Araki and producer Kawamura over the course of half a year.
They worked together to bring to life Araki’s concept – a mechanical Little Mermaid in dystopian Tokyo – with Kawamura (Your Name, Belle) helping the successful director create a more universal story than his usual darker works (Attack on Titan, Death Note).
Once they had an idea, they enlisted the help of acclaimed psychological and dystopian anime writer Gen Urobuchi (Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Psycho Pass) to flesh it out into a feature film.
Takeshi Obata, the artist behind the Death Note manga, was then brought on board to design the characters.
As the making-of video points out, the movie is simply a collection of excellent creatives in the anime industry working together to create something new.
Is There a Bubble Anime Manga?
While the Bubble film isn’t based on a manga originally, Shonen Jump is making a spin-off manga based on the movie.
The new Bubble manga is being created by Erubo Hijihara. It has not been confirmed what the manga will cover, whether it will be a translation of the movie or set before or after those events.