Shadow Star Narutaru - Vol. 1

Directed by Toshiaki Iino (NADIA: SECRET OF BLUE WATER) and written by Chiaki Konaka (SERIAL EXPERIMENTS LAIN), the sci-fi anime series SHADOW STAR NARUTARU plays out like the dark side of POKEMON. While vacationing at her grandparents' house for the summer, teenage schoolgirl Shiina Tamai discovers a strange starfish creature she names Hoshimaru. Returning home for school in the fall, Shiina learns that other adolescents like herself have met creatures similar to Hoshimaru. But not all the creatures' masters are as kind and well-adjusted as Shiina--some of the kids even begin to lash out via their creatures, angry at the strict social world and school politics that have entrapped them. Based on a hit manga, SHADOW STAR NARUTARU is a deceptive anime that starts cheery and turns into an exploration of alienated Japanese youth, extraterrestrial invasions, and psychic phenomena. This volume introduces the series with episodes 1-4.