In food and in life, one must taste what is bitter to appreciate what is sweet… Troubled that memories of the past continue to invade his dreams of the present, Keiichiro Tachibana stuns all who know him by abruptly quitting his ordinary office job to open a bakery. He envisions a predominantly feminine clientele and a wait staff of cute girls. Instead, his employees include a playboy pâtissier who's been fired from every job he's ever had, an ex-boxer with an insatiable sweet tooth, and an absent-minded childhood friend and family servant. Can this unlikely quartet overcome personal tragedies, learn to work together, and discover a recipe for culinary success?
Contains the complete 12-episode series.
Special Features: U.S. Trailer, Clean Opening, Clean Closing, Interview with Tomomi Kasai, Live Event Coverage, Scene Access and Nozomi Entertainment trailers. Also includes a special booklet featuring Character Bios, Quick Facts, Featured Desserts, and two interviews featuring all four main voice actors as well as Fumi Yoshinaga, the author of the manga!
Spoken Languages: Japanese, English subtitles.
In The Cafe
Pull up a chair in Nozomi Entertainment's online cafe and catch up on the chatter from our partners and patrons.
Manga creator Fumi Yoshinaga and the Antique Bakery voice actors
- An excerpt from the interviews included on the DVD Box Set
Whenever a favorite story is adapted for a different medium, two things are foremost in its fans' minds: 1.) "Did the new creative team capture what I loved most about it?" and 2.) "Was the original creator consulted?" In the case of Antique Bakery's anime adaptation, Nozomi Entertainment is happy to answer "yes" to the first question and an unqualified "yes" to the second. Manga creator Fumi Yoshinaga wasn't just involved. She was a frequent visitor during the voice actors' recording sessions… as you'll discover in this brief excerpt from the interviews with her and the voice actors that are included with Nozomi Entertainment's upcoming release of the series.
Ms. Yoshinaga, you attended almost all of the voice recording sessions. What did you think when you first heard their voices?
Fumi Yoshinaga: Instead of just recreating their characters from the manga, the entire cast added their own interpretations. Plus, there were moments of sheer acting brilliance that far exceeded my expectations. It was great fun to be able to witness those moments.
Eiji Hanawa: We did it, Mr. Fujiwara! (laugh)
Keiji Fujiwara: Yeah! (laugh) You think about how being too faithful to the original manga isn't good, but on the other hand you don't want to stray too far from it either. Sometimes the most expressive performances that are still faithful to the book happen when you're not even thinking about them.
Eiji Hanawa: Right! Like that scene when Tachibana is talking to his mother on the phone.
Fumi Yoshinaga: In that scene Tachibana was really great. One minute he's acting all cool and then he's suddenly calling his mother practically in tears. It was really heartwarming. (laugh)
Keiji Fujiwara: At first, I wasn't sure how much I should switch gears from the serious scene to the gag scene.
Fumi Yoshinaga: The other scene I really liked was when Chikage told the French master pâtissier to back off from Ono. I figured you'd make Chikage sound really cool there, but you made him sound so much cooler than I had imagined. And the part where Chikage cries afterwards! Yes, I drew that, but when an actor gives a character a voice, it's as though they're breathing life into it. It's a strange but incredible feeling.
Keiji Fujiwara: Because Ms. Yoshinaga attended all of the recording sessions, we felt that we got her stamp of approval. We didn't have to wonder what she'd think after she saw it on the air.
Eiji Hanawa: We figured if you're always leaving with a smile on your face, we must be doing a good job.
Fumi Yoshinaga: I'm so glad to hear that. I was afraid you thought that I was silently pressuring you because you all stared at me every time I came.
