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Tenshi ni Narumon: Step 20 (Close Dream, Far Person)
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This episode, which poignantly explores the implications of “becoming an angel,” is justly revered by Tennimon fans as one of the series' very best, both in script and art. It was one of three subcontracted to Kyoto Animation and produced by close associates of the distinguished animator Tatsuya Ishihara. (The others are Steps 12 and 17.)
Director: Yoshiko Shima
Assistant Director: Yutaka Yamamoto
Animation Director: Kazumi Ikeda
Script: Michiko Yokote
Storyboards: Mamoru Hosoda (as Katsuyo Hashimoto)
Yoshiko Shima was a regular and influential contributor to AniKyo’s contract work in the late 90s, doing episode direction for Akachan to Boku (Baby and Me, 1996-97), Hyper Police (Ep. 14), and Fancy Lala as well. After this Tennimon stint, however, she resigned from this role, returning briefly to other studios in 2007-08 to work on the Tokyo Majin and on Chiko, Heiress of the Phantom Thief. Her assistant, Yukata Yamamoto, went on to a brief and newsworthy career with KyoAni, serving as production director for Haruhi Suzumiya and moving to series director role for Lucky Star (2007). However, he was fired by the studio after four episodes of this series, but has continued to work independently on other projects, gaining a reputation for flamboyant public statements, especially on Twitter.
Michiko Yokote was then a promising writer with credits for work in Ranma ½, Rurouni Kenshin, and Cowboy Bebop. At the time she was also busy producing scripts for Toei’s Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne. After scripting Tennimon’s Ep. 19 and 20 for Tennimon, she moved on to more serious assignments as overall script supervisor, determining the overall course of a series and outlining all the episodes in advance. (This job is officially credited as “series composition.”) The list of series Yokote helped create includes many classics, including Gravitation, Princess Tutu, Genshiken, xxxHOLiC, Kobato, and Squid Girl. She was also one of the pair of scriptwriters responsible for the Ah My Goddess Movie .
Kazumi Ikeda, one of the central animators for KyoAni, later was character designer and chief animation director for several Ishihara projects, including Kanon (2006) , Clannad (2007), and, most recently, Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions (2012). She is the sister of the late Shoko Ikeda.
The episode was given extra class by having Mamoru Hosoda as the storyboard artist. At the time mainly a gengaman (Dragonball Z, Sailor Moon), this artist worked up the ranks by contributing to Digimon and burst into international attention in 2006 as director of the feature anime film The Girl Who Leapt Through Time. He has gained additional notice as director and originator of Summer Wars (2009), Wolf Children (2012), and, most recently, the Oscar-nominated Mirai (2018).
The blog Ani no Miyako has an interesting commentary on the Kyoto Animation staff involved in this episode, along with some of the distinctive stylistic features that tie it to other KyoAni productions of the time.
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