Skip and Loafer Is More Than Just an Adorable Anime; It'll Benefit Victims of the Noto Earthquake, Too

It's not every day that an anime has the opportunity to give back to the real-life communities that inspired its protagonist to set off on their epic journey. Now, the makers behind Skip and Loafer, a very wholesome anime and 2024 Anime Awards nominee for Best Slice of Life show, will do just that by airing the entire season of the show for free on YouTube to raise funds for the victims of the 2024 Noto Earthquake in Japan.

On January 1, the Noto Peninsula in the Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan was hit by a 7.6 magnitude earthquake that its citizens are still recovering from. According to The Japan Times, the earthquake cut access to water supplies, uprooted the lives of around 14,000 people, and destroyed around 46,000 homes in the region.

In the wake of this disaster, the anime committee behind Skip and Loafer announced on X/Twitter that it would air the entire season of the show on YouTube to raise relief funds for the folks affected by the Noto Earthquake. This limited-time charity event is made all the more significant when you take into consideration that its plucky protagonist was born and raised in a tiny town in the Ishikawa Prefecture. Skip and Loafer's charity anime stream will release on the FullAnimeTV YouTube channel for free from midnight on February 3 to February 4.

#スキップとローファー 全12話
YouTubeにて期間限定チャリティー配信決定?

この配信における収益の全額は石川県に寄付させていただきます
?2月3日(土)18:00よりプレミア公開https://t.co/75zEgRWZyx

プレミア公開終了後、2月4日(日)23時59分まで全編無料公開

#スキロー pic.twitter.com/rJE4fUDX1w

— TVアニメ『スキップとローファー』公式 (@skip_and_loafer) February 1, 2024

Skip and Loafer, originally created by Misaki Takamatsu, is a slice-of-life drama anime by P.A. Works. The show follows an ambitious high schooler named Mitsumi Iwakura who moves from the countryside of Ikajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, to a high school in Tokyo. Although the show explores her journey building life-long friendships with her classmates and a budding romance with a boy named Sousuke Shima, her main goal in enrolling in her esteemed school is to make the world a better place.

Mitsumi's roadmap to achieving this lofty dream is to graduate from her high school, attend law school and be a valedictorian, build a career in government to provide key solutions to Ishikawa's depopulation issue, and eventually retire as the major of her hometown and use the knowledge she accumulated along the way to improve Ishikawa Prefecture's finances. Mind you, she ideates this life-long goal at 15 years old. Mitsumi may be a long way from achieving her goal in the anime, but Skip and Loafer's charity stream is both a heartwarming and metanarrative first step toward her becoming an "upstanding citizen."

⚡️YouTube期間限定⚡️
アニメ全話チャリティー配信↓ https://t.co/tmz4pikQpJ

— 高松美咲?スキップとローファー (@takamatsumisaki) February 1, 2024

"We would like to offer our deepest prayers for the repose of the souls of those who lost their lives in the 2020 Noto Peninsula Earthquake that occurred on January 1, 2024, and express our deepest sympathies to those affected," Skip and Loafer's anime committee wrote via Comic Natalie and its official Twitter account. "Everyone involved in the anime is saddened to learn that Suzu City, Ishikawa Prefecture, which is the model for the hometown of Mitsumi, the main character of this work, has suffered severe damage, and we hope that everyone can return to a peaceful life as soon as possible. We pray for the earliest possible recovery of the disaster-stricken areas and for everyone's good health."

キャラクターデザイン・梅下麻奈未さんから描き下ろしイラストを頂きました?#能登応援 #スキロー pic.twitter.com/rBEsZV5mzH

— TVアニメ『スキップとローファー』公式 (@skip_and_loafer) February 1, 2024

Skip and Loafer creator Takamatsu, character designer Manami Umeshita, shared new illustrations of Miitsumi to promote the anime's upcoming charity stream. Several voice actors and musicians behind the anime's theme songs also encouraged fans to tune into Skip and Loafer's charity stream.

"I really like the scenery of Ishikawa Prefecture depicted in the anime," Keina Suda, the singer behind Skip and Loafer opening theme wrote on X/Twitter. "I hope it warms your heart!"

"Please take a look," Ayumu Murase, Kento Yamada's voice actor said.

"I would like you to watch it again and again," Rikako Aida, the lead singer of Skip and Loafer's ending theme, wrote. "I hope it reaches many people."

"I would like you to watch episode 9 “Torotro Runrun" a story about Mitsumi returning to her hometown, Ishikawa Prefecture." Yuka Terasaki, Mika Egashira's voice actress said. "It's my favorite episode too."

Isaiah Colbert is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow them on Twitter @ShinEyeZehUhh.