# Synduality

Synduality (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese mixed-media project created by the Bandai Namco Group. An anime television series produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks and animated by Eight Bit, titled Synduality: Noir, aired from July 2023 to March 2024.

## Plot

On the night of the new moon in 2099, the "blue rain" fell heavily over a wide area, mainly in the Mediterranean Sea, and the resulting flooding around the world resulted in the loss of more than 92% of the world's population within a few days. This series of catastrophes was later called the "Tears of the New Moon", and the blue rain, which continued to fall intermittently afterwards, was found to have the effect of instantly killing anyone who touched it, while also making other animals and plants gigantic and aggressive. The giant creatures that were created as a result came to be called "Enders".
The surviving humans were forced to take refuge in underground facilities, but eventually they developed a bipedal weapon called the "Cradle" as a countermeasure against the Enders, and discovered a new energy resource called the "AO Crystal". As a result, they succeeded in building a huge underground city called "Amasia" with a huge canopy that could completely block the rain and declared the founding of the country in 2135. Under the strictly controlled AO energy society, humanity had finally found a new place to live, but some chose to remain on the surface and live a free life in exchange for the danger. Also, android-related technology developed rapidly in Amasia after this, and in 2210, the first batch of cradles, "Cradle Coffins," was completed, equipped with a new type of android with human-like emotions, "Human Duality Thinking AI-Equipped Humanoid (commonly known as Magus)," and its cockpit, "Coffin."
However, in 2222, 123 years after the "Tears of the New Moon," a disaster occurred in which the roof of Amasia and the city infrastructure suddenly collapsed overnight. The upper levels of Amasia were virtually wiped out, and the survivors began living in small underground cities called "Nests" or on the surface. Furthermore, the collapse of Amasia resulted in the leakage of a large amount of materials and technology, which made it easier for ordinary people to obtain Cradles and Cradle Coffins, which had previously been strictly controlled, and ushered in an era in which anyone could become a "Drifter" who fought the Enders while collecting AO Crystals, in the hopes of making a fortune.

## Characters
### Synduality: Noir
#### Kanata (カナタ)

    Voiced by: Takeo Ōtsuka, Mayu Mineda (young)

#### Noir (ノワール, Nowāru) / Mystere (ミステル, Misuteru)

    Voiced by: Aoi Koga

#### Ciel (シエル, Shieru)

    Voiced by: Nagisa Aoyama

#### Tokio (トキオ) / Licht Alter (リヒト・アルター, Rihito Arutā)

    Voiced by: Yūsuke Kobayashi

#### Mouton (ムートン, Mūton)

    Voiced by: Fuminori Komatsu

#### Ellie (エリー, Erī)

    Voiced by: Konomi Inagaki

#### Ange (アンジェ, Anje)

    Voiced by: Ayaka Ōhashi

#### Michael (マイケル, Maikeru)

    Voiced by: Daisuke Sakaguchi

#### Bob (ボブ, Bobu)

    Voiced by: Daiki Hamano

#### Maria (マリア)

    Voiced by: Miku Itō

#### Schnee (シュネー, Shunē)

    Voiced by: M.A.O

#### Kurokamen (黒仮面) / Macht Ewigkeit (マハト・エーヴィヒカイト, Mahato Ēvihikaito)

    Voiced by: Taito Ban

#### Claudia (クラウディア, Kuraudia)

    Voiced by: Ryoka Yuzuki

#### Flamme (フラム, Furamu)

    Voiced by: Marika Kōno

#### Weisheit Blaurecht (ヴァイスハイト・ブラウレヒト, Vaisuhaito Buraurehito)

    Voiced by: Yuki Kaji

### Echo of Ada
#### Ada (エイダ, Eida)

    Voiced by: Yui Ishikawa

#### Alba Kuze (アルバ・クゼ, Aruba Kuze)

    Voiced by: Yūya Hirose

#### Yoshio (Yoshio, Yoshiwo)

    Voiced by: Zundamon

## Media
### Synduality: Noir

An anime television series, produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks and animated by Eight Bit, was announced in September 2022. Titled Synduality: Noir, the series was directed by Yusuke Yamamoto, with Takashi Aoshima writing the scripts based on a story draft by Hajime Kamoshida, Kenichirō Katsura designing the characters for animation, and Masato Nakayama composing the music.
The first half of the series aired from July 11 to September 26, 2023, on TV Tokyo and its affiliates, as well as BS Nittele. The first opening theme song is "Raytracer", performed by Stereo Dive Foundation, while the first ending theme song is "Eureka" (ユリイカ), performed by Arcana Project.
On September 24, 2023, a second cour was announced during the "Synduality Project TGS Special Stage" event at Tokyo Game Show 2023, which aired from January 9 to March 26, 2024. The second opening theme song is "Aire" (アイレ), performed by Arcana Project, while the second ending theme song is "Drifters", performed by Stereo Dive Foundation.
The series is streaming worldwide on Disney+, in Latin America on Star+ and in the United States on Hulu.

#### Episodes

| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Storyboarded by | Original release date |
| Part 1 ||||||
| 1 | "My name is..." | Sho Kitamura | Hajime Kamoshida | Yusuke Yamamoto | July 11, 2023 (2023-7-11) |
| 2 | "My master" | Munenori Nawa | Hajime Kamoshida | Katsumi Terahigashi | July 18, 2023 (2023-7-18) |
| 3 | "Behind the mask" | Seung-hui Son | Takashi Aoshima | Katsumi Terahigashi | July 25, 2023 (2023-7-25) |
| 4 | "Wild daisy" | Shinpei Ezaki | Takashi Aoshima | Shinpei Ezaki | August 1, 2023 (2023-8-1) |
| 5 | "Drifting the maze" | Munenori Nawa | Deko Akao | Tatsuya Igarashi | August 8, 2023 (2023-8-8) |
| 6 | "Dice is cast" | Tsutomu Murakami | Masahiro Yokotani | Futoshi Fujikawa | August 15, 2023 (2023-8-15) |
| 7 | "My dear..." | Atsushi Nakayama | Takashi Aoshima | Katsumi Terahigashi Yūji Haibara | August 22, 2023 (2023-8-22) |
| 8 | "Pure dream" | Susumu Tosaka | Deko Akao | Hiroaki Shimura Yūji Haibara | August 29, 2023 (2023-8-29) |
| 9 | "Legendary hero" | Masahiko Suzuki | Masaru Hatano | Katsumi Terahigashi | September 5, 2023 (2023-9-5) |
| 10 | "Drifter's pride" | Takayuki Tanaka | Takashi Aoshima | Katsumi Terahigashi | September 12, 2023 (2023-9-12) |
| 11 | "Storm of A.I." | Sho Kitamura | Takashi Aoshima | Yusuke Yamamoto | September 19, 2023 (2023-9-19) |
| 12 | "Mirage of the Ideal" | Masahiko Suzuki Miho Arai | Takashi Aoshima | Katsumi Terahigashi | September 26, 2023 (2023-9-26) |
| Part 2 ||||||
| 13 | "Double cast" | Naokatsu Tsuda | Takashi Aoshima | Naokatsu Tsuda | January 9, 2024 (2024-1-9) |
| 14 | "Mysterious journey" | Yūki Nakano | Masaru Hatano | Hiroaki Shimura | January 16, 2024 (2024-1-16) |
| 15 | "Duel of Fates" | Kentarō Sugimoto | Hiroshi Yamaguchi | Shunichi Yoshizawa | January 23, 2024 (2024-1-23) |
| 16 | "Noir Rain" | Sho Kitamura | Takashi Aoshima | Sho Kitamura | January 30, 2024 (2024-1-30) |
| 17 | "Greyish zone" | Naoki Kusumoto | Hajime Kamoshida | Masao Shimizu | February 6, 2024 (2024-2-6) |
| 18 | "Beyond the sky" | Yūsuke Yamamoto Sho Kitamura | Hajime Kamoshida | Yūsuke Yamamoto | February 13, 2024 (2024-2-13) |
| 19 | "Body double" | Munenori Nawa | Takashi Aoshima | Chihiro Nitta | February 20, 2024 (2024-2-20) |
| 20 | "Their narratives" | Takayuki Tanaka | Yūya Takashima | Hidekazu Sato | February 27, 2024 (2024-2-27) |
| 21 | "Your song" | Masahiko Suzuki | Hiroshi Yamaguchi | Nejiko Shimura | March 5, 2024 (2024-3-5) |
| 22 | "Gravity coffin" | Yūsuke Yamamoto | Hiroshi Yamaguchi | Shunichi Yoshizawa | March 12, 2024 (2024-3-12) |
| 23 | "Over the limit" | Tatsuya Igarashi | Takashi Aoshima | Susumu Nishizawa Masao Shimizu | March 19, 2024 (2024-3-19) |
| 24 | "My name is... Noir Drifters again" | Sho Kitamura | Takashi Aoshima | Yūsuke Yamamoto | March 26, 2024 (2024-3-26) |

### Synduality: Kaleido

A spin-off novel titled Synduality: Kaleido by Dai Hatano was serialized in Hobby Japan's Monthly Hobby Japan from July 25, 2023 to April 25, 2024.

### Synduality: Ellie
#### Manga

A manga series, illustrated by Hiroji Mishima with a screenplay by Masaru Hatano, titled Synduality: Ellie was serialized in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Alive from July 27, 2023, to October 25, 2024.
| No. | Japanese release date | Japanese ISBN |
| 1 | February 28, 2024 | 978-4-04-811265-9 |
| 2 | January 28, 2025 | 978-4-04-811311-3 |

#### Light novel

A light novel also titled Synduality: Ellie, written by Hatano and illustrated by Yō Midorikawa, was published by Media Factory's MF Bunko J imprint on September 25, 2023.
| No. | Japanese release date | Japanese ISBN |
| 1 | September 25, 2023 | 978-4-04-682861-3 |

### Hajimari no Ao Synduality: Roots

A second light novel titled Hajimari no Ao Synduality: Roots, written by Yūya Takashima and illustrated by neco, was published by Tokyo Sogensha's Sogen SF Bunko imprint on March 15, 2024.
| No. | Japanese release date | Japanese ISBN |
| 1 | March 15, 2024 | 978-4-488-78503-1 |

### Synduality: Echo of Ada

A third-person shooter and action RPG developed by Game Studio and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, titled Synduality: Echo of Ada, was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S on January 23, 2025.