While Sword Art Online and Psycho-Pass were both airing on television, L.S Produ was steadily advancing the production of several other animations, including Lin Zhiyan's new series, Angel Beats, set to premiere in October.
Lin Zhiyan's previous works had all ended tragically: Death Note saw the male lead die and the female lead commit suicide out of love; in Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, the male lead's death remained the final lingering question; in Puella Magi Madoka Magica (without the theatrical film), the ending separated the female lead Madoka from her absolute second lead, Homura Akemi; and in Gurren Lagann and Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, the male and female leads were forced apart in their endings.
All of them were tragic endings.
Angel Beats was different. As long as the SP that hinted at an alternate ending didn't appear, it would have a happy ending, because the final scene showed the male and female leads reincarnating and reuniting.
It was a happy ending.
Of course, the animation still contained plenty of depressing and heartbreaking moments. But after all, it was a Lin Zhiyan animation—if it lacked even a shred of angst or sorrow, fans might not be able to adapt.
As long as the ending is happy, the animation can be considered neither depressing nor overly sentimental, which helps to redeem it to some extent.
The audience would never have guessed that the main characters would be reincarnated together, and that they would end up together again after reincarnation, until the final episode aired. I'd bet most viewers remained on the edge of their seats, fearing a tragic ending until the very last scene.
Moreover, the animation starts with a comedic tone—a style Lin Zhiyan had never attempted before. This creates a striking contrast with his reputation as a "depressing" director.
The story's opening also had plenty of buzz, sparking widespread discussion.
In another timeline, the script for this animation was written by the Great Demon King of Tears, Maeda Jun. After the "tear-jerking trilogy," audiences had come to expect certain patterns in his work. Yet, a massive number of viewers still watched this animation, making it a popular late-night anime in April 2010.
If even Maeda Jun could pull this off, Lin Zhiyan had no reason to worry about the audience rejecting the animation.
From a script standpoint alone, this animation wasn't flawless, but it wasn't a major issue. This was because, on the surface, Lin Zhiyan was only credited as Supervising Director, Character Designer, Chief Animation Director, and Music Director, while the script was attributed to "Takagi Makoto."
There was no need to worry about losing face.
In fact, after finishing Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day in 2008, Lin Zhiyan teamed up with Dengeki G's Magazine to finalize this project.
The original character concepts had already been published in Dengeki G's Magazine years earlier. While not identical to the original version from another timeline, they were close enough.
The animation project had also been announced long ago in the magazine and on L.S Produ's official website, with even the world-building details revealed. The only missing pieces were the Supervising Director, scriptwriter, and original character concept artist.
With L.S Produ's sudden surge in animation projects over the past two years, audiences didn't think much of it at the time, barely paying attention to this specific project. Only industry insiders showed much interest.
In early 2010, after the voice actors for the main characters were confirmed, a promotional video was released.
At the time, the PV didn't reveal the specific production team, only mentioning "Afterlife Battlefront" and other elements, giving it a lighthearted feel. Combined with the casting of Hanazawa Kana, the voice of the main character from Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, as Kanade Tachibana, and Hiroshi Kamiya, the voice of the male lead from Natsume's Book of Friends, as the male lead, along with the excellent character designs, it caught the attention of many viewers.
After the first PV, a series of four-panel manga strips were gradually published in Dengeki G's Magazine as promotional material.
The anime's opening and ending themes were also released one after another. Because both songs were so catchy, their release drew even more attention to Angel Beats, an anime scheduled to premiere in October.
The hype kept building.
By this point, a considerable number of viewers were already eagerly anticipating the Angel Beats anime.
Then, in August, while many anime from the April and July seasons were entering their mid-to-late story arcs, the official account for the upcoming animation Angel Beats released a new promotional video.
This new PV contained far more information, including not only promotional footage but also details about the production team.
Supervising Director: Lin Zhiyan Script Supervisor: Takagi Makoto Character Designer, Chief Animation Director, Music Director: Lin Zhiyan
These details were revealed for the first time.
The comment section immediately exploded:
"I knew this anime was being so secretive and withholding the production team—it's Old Thief Lin's work after all!"
"I was so excited before, and now you're telling me it's Old Thief Lin's anime? I'm trembling with fear!"
"First Anohana with its ghost main character, and now this new animation is even more extreme—everyone's dead from the start in an afterlife world. I'm speechless."
"When it comes to dead people, I'll only bow to Old Thief Lin's anime."
"Old Thief Lin is really something else—ordinary dead people probably can't satisfy him anymore."
"I had a feeling something was off when I saw the Afterlife Battlefront PV—I suspected it might be Old Thief Lin's work, and now it's confirmed."
"Scared—this feels like it's going to be another super depressing anime."
After all, Lin Zhiyan's previous work was Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, which featured the main character as a ghost from the very beginning. This time, Angel Beats starts with everyone being dead and even sets the story in a post-mortem world. From the perspective of the "dead character" trope, this was a significant escalation, naturally leading many to mock the premise.
The fear was also genuine. After all, Anohana was already heartbreaking with only the main character being dead. With everyone dead this time, wouldn't it be on another level of emotional devastation?
As for the content of the two promotional videos, the comedic tone drew similar reactions from netizens:
"Deceptive marketing! This has to be deceptive marketing!"
"Exactly, what comedic tone? That doesn't exist. Maybe the first two episodes will be funny, but by the third, the truth will come out. After Puella Magi Madoka Magica, I'll never be fooled easily again."
"If Old Thief Lin ever makes a truly funny anime, the sun will rise in the west and the Earth will spin backward."
"Remember how Puella Magi Madoka Magica was advertised as a healing anime? And what was the result? I wanted to slap Old Thief Lin to death after watching it."
"I wouldn't believe it's a comedy anime even if you killed me."
"Old Thief Lin has pulled this deceptive marketing stunt more than once. Anyone who believes this is a comedy is a fool. It's bound to be heartbreaking and soul-crushing, no doubt about it."
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