Play It Cool, Guys

Alternate Titles

クールドジ男子
Cool Doji Danshi

Synopsis

Cool guys who stand out from the crowd. Though they all look somewhat unapproachable, they are actually all screw ups! Forgetting their wallet, playing music on the train without earphones, putting on glasses even though they’re wearing contacts, using the wrong end of a bendy straw, leaving the house carrying a shoehorn instead of an umbrella… Follow the everyday lives of these “cool clumsy guys” as they continually screw up but still try their best!

Background

Play It Cool, Guys written and illustrated by Kokone Nata began as a web manga series posted on their personal Twitter account before being serialized on Pixiv beginning in February 2019. It is also serialized on the Pixiv Comic service and has been released in four collected tankobon volumes under the Gangan Comics Pixiv imprint. The series is also being released in English through Yen Press, who will publish the fourth volume in late September 2022.

A novel adaptation written by Shino Kaida and titled Play It Cool, Guys: Connect It Cool, Guys was published in March 2020 by Square Enix.

A TV anime adaptation was announced in April 2022. It is being produced by Studio Pierrot and features Chiaki Kon as director, with Makoto Uezu handling series composition, Airi Taguchi handling character designs, Momoko Nagakawa as the main animator, and Masato Nakayama composing the music. The anime’s opening theme song is "Seishun Kippu" by Mafumafu, and the ending theme song is "Flash!" by Chiaki Kobayashi, Kouki Uchiyama, Yuichiro Umehara, and Shoya Chiba as their respective characters. The anime will premiere in Japan on Oct. 10, 2022 on TV Tokyo, will consist of short 15-minute episodes, and will run for two cours (half seasons).

Characters

Hayate Ichikura (Voiced by: Chiaki Kobayashi)
Hayate is a 20 year old in his second year of university. He is a shy dork who is aware of his clumsiness, though he is willing to cheerfully cover it up. He doesn't feel like he has any individuality and has recently had trouble envisioning his future. Though he isn’t skilled at socializing, he is a caring person.

Shun Futami (Voiced by: Kouki Uchiyama)
Shun is a 17 year old in his second year of high school. He is a member of the handball team and never misses practice. He is the straight-laced, stoic type who refuses to admit when someone points out one of his blunders, and instead bluffs that he meant to do it. Though he looks cool, he has a frank personality, and is often called cute due to this gap.

Takayuki Mima (Voiced by: Yuichiro Umehara)
Takayuki is a 27-year-old office worker. He is the unaware and apathetic type who doesn’t feel anything when he screws up. At work, he is serious and uncompromising, but often makes his coworkers feel at ease with his screw ups. Because of this, he is the office’s unofficial healer. But due to spending his days constantly busy, he is in search of healing of his own.

Soma Shiki (Voiced by: Shoya Chiba)
Soma is a 19-year-old student at a technical school, but due to his babyface he tends to be mistaken for a high schooler. He is the accepting and positive type with a shallow sense of humor who laughs at his own screw ups. He is studying design and although there are many things he wants to do in the future, he is worried that he doesn’t have the right tools and has a hard time taking action.

Motoharu Igarashi (Voiced by: Makoto Furukawa)
Motoharu is a 27-year-old novelist. He is a cool guy with genius-level autonomy. Influenced by events that happened during his childhood, he firmly believes that he can’t write about people if he doesn’t know about people. Due to that, he has high communication skills and is able to become friends with anyone. He seems to know Takayuki.

Asami Futami (Voiced by: Satomi Sato)
Asami is Shun’s older sister. She is a dependable older sister who loves her brother and lends a hand whenever he is feeling lost in worry. She runs the Mawarimichi Cafe and treats her part-time employees kindly. The meals she serves are well-known for being delicious.

Sota Shiki (Voiced by: Kazuyuki Okitsu)
Sota is Soma’s older brother. His younger brother is a healing presence for him, and he finds him adorable. He is also Takayuki’s senior at work and cheers up his junior by taking him out for drinks when he’s worn out from work. He sometimes worries his younger brother and juniors due to being overly passionate about his work.

Kurosaki (Voiced by: Taku Yashiro)
Kurosaki is a friend of Hayate’s who attends university. He is the exact opposite of Hayate and os assertive in his love life. He is confident that with his help he can make Hayate popular.

Akai (Voiced by: Kengo Takanashi)
Akai is a friend of Shun’s and is a member of the handball team. He thinks it’s cute when Shun screws up but acts like he did it on purpose.

Kida (Voiced by: Seiichiro Yamashita)
Kida is a friend of Shun’s and a member of the handball team. Just like Shun, he is in danger of failing, but it doesn’t seem to phase him.

Aoyama (Voiced by: Kohei Amasaki)
Aoyama is a friend of Shun’s and a member of the handball team. He calls Shun “Shun-chan” and sometimes shows a shrewd side when he takes advantage of Shun’s screw ups.

Momo Momosaki (Voiced by: Haruka Shiraishi)
Momo is a coworker of Takayuki’s. She is always excited to witness Takayuki screw up and sees it as the best form of healing.

Akane Kono (Voiced by: Yo Taichi)
Akane is a friend of Soma’s who goes to the same technical school. She cares for the hardworking Soma and gives him counsel and advice.

Music

Opening Theme Song: "Seishun Kippu" by Mafumafu
Ending Theme Song: "Flash!" by Chiaki Kobayashi, Kouki Uchiyama, Yuichiro Umehara, and Shoya Chiba

• Anime Site (Japanese)
• Twitter (Japanese)

• Original Creator: Kokone Nata
• Director: Chiaki Kon
• Series Composition: Makoto Uezu
• Character Design/Chief Animation Director: Airi Taguchi
• Main Animator: Momoko Nagakawa
• Art Director: Mio Isshiki (Studio Wyeth)
• Color Design: Mayumi Nagashima
• Director of Photography: Naoki Etō (EXPLOSION)
• Offline Editing: Honami Yamagishi (REAL-T)
• Online Editing: Good-Job TOKYO
• Sound Director: Jin Aketagawa
• Sound Production: Magic Capsule
• Music: Masato Nakayama
• Music Production: Avex Pictures
• Animation Production: Studio Pierrot