R.O.D: Read or Die

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: ROD OVA, Read or Die OVA

Japanese: R.O.D リード・オア・ダイ

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Information

Type: OVA

Episodes: 3

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: May 23, 2001 to Feb 6, 2002

Producers: Aniplex, SME Visual Works

Licensors: Aniplex of America, Manga Entertainment

Studios: Studio Deen

Source: Light novel

Genres: Action, Adventure, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Themes: Adult Cast, Historical

Duration: 33 min. per ep.

Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Statistics

Score: 7.63¹ (scored by 32,676 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #1299²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #2508

Members: 65,511

Favorites: 331

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Synopsis

Yomiko Readman is a lovable, near-sighted bibliomaniac working as a substitute teacher at a Japanese high school. Her real identity, however, is that of a secret agent for the British Library Special Operations Division. Her codename: "The Paper." The moniker denotes her supernatural ability to freely manipulate paper into any object she can imagine, including tools and weapons in her fight against the powerful and self-serving IJIN (Great Historical Figure) Army! Along with her partner, the enigmatic "Ms. Deep," Yomiko travels across the world in attempt to solve the mystery behind the reincarnation of historical figures and their attempt to control the world.

(Source: RightStuf)

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	R.O.D: Read or Die
Sequel:	R.O.D: The TV

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Readman, Yomiko

Main

Miura, Rieko
Japanese

Makuhari, Nancy

Main

Neya, Michiko
Japanese

Anderson, Drake

Main

Iwasaki, Masami
Japanese

Sanzo, Genjo

Supporting

Takahashi, Hiroki
Japanese

Carpenter, Joseph

Supporting

Gouda, Hozumi
Japanese

Earhart, Wendy

Supporting

Sakenobe, Mika
Japanese

van Beethoven, Ludwig

Supporting

Lilienthal, Otto

Supporting

Kaneko, Harii
Japanese

Hiraga, Gennai

Supporting

Ohtani, Ryousuke
Japanese

Soujun, Ikkyu

Supporting

KONTA
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Masunari, Koji

Director

Jaffe, Taliesin

Script

Kurata, Hideyuki

Script, Original Creator

Iwasaki, Taku

Music

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Opening Theme

"R.O.D no Theme (R.O.Dのテーマ)" by Taku Iwasaki (岩崎琢)

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Ending Theme

	1: "Sho wo Aishite Kuruu Mono Iwaku, "Kami wa Tsuneni Warera to Tomo ni" (書を愛して狂う者曰く、"紙は常に我らと共に")" by Taku Iwasaki (岩崎琢) (eps 1)
	2: "Subete no Eichi wo Eikoku e! (すべての叡知を英国へ!)" by Taku Iwasaki (岩崎琢) (eps 2-3)

More reviews

Reviews

Apr 15, 2009

Ranivus

Recommended

Yomiko Readman will probably be the cutest bookworm you will ever see. Obsessed with the philosiphy "reading first, hygine second" The viewers will be fully immersed in the life of cute but unkempt Yomiko. In this world, books are the prized posession of the world. Books are so precious, there is a world organized task force designed in protecting these books from 'the bad guys. You'll be imersed in crazy steampunk/fantacy/etc vs magic conflicts and edge of your seat madness through the eyes of Ms. Readman.

The story itself is very farfetched and out of this world, but its a story that everyone should experience at ... leat once. Reality may be limited as paper can stop bullets or take down giant insects, but the cute and clumsy Yomiko and her friends will keep you watching with great intent. Being a three episode ova, there is little back story to all what is happening and it leaves the backstory up to its viewers imagination. Which is fine because all that leaves room for is high quality action only an anime can portray.

When I mean high quality action I mean high framerate action sequences coupled with great coreagraphy and amazing attention to detail. Things like paper sticking to a hand or scouring an old bookstore littered with books and dust really show how much hatd work and effort it took the artists to make such amazing detail come to life. Nothing impresses me more than attention to detail esepecially in rooms/buildings. On top of the OVA quality artwork, this show just oozes cool from the James Bond-esque themesong and sexy girl credits to the crazy steampunk gadgets and flashy magic spells, its a pure sensory overload for me.

Speaking of sensory overload, the female supporting cast were quite an eyeful. All of them were either beautiful or cute, very easy on the eyes. And for the girls, the guys are all quite burly military men in stature and can give up quite a good fight. The enemies, on the other hand, are pretty outrageous incarnations of storytime characters (Genjo anyone?) Crazy badguys do lend themselves quite easy to some fun and crazy battles. Not much can be salvaged in terms of backstory information for most of the characters, but the chemistry between all the support characters and Yomiko are quite believeable in an anime sort of way.

Not much can be said in terms of negative aspects other than sloppy animations and some silly situations, but the overall experience is just too fun if you're really into the fantasy action genre. Don't get me wrong, its not the greatest OVA of all time but it is well worth your time (read: Good). If you're a sucker for a glasses-moe like I am (think Yuki Nagato or Miyuki Takara), you'll love this show. And if you love this show, I'm sure you'll love the R.O.D. TV series.

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Sep 13, 2008

TrenchKamen

Recommended

I have been meaning to watch this show for ages. Now that I've seen it, I'm wondering what the hell exactly took me so long to get around to this. It's a fusion of some of my favorite elements--steampunk, books, history, music, and espionage. Yomiko is an absolutely adorable character, and her personality is well-established the moment you get a look at her house. The characterization for the rest of the cast is excellent as well. The artwork is lush and gorgeous, and the action sequences flow beautifully and intuitively. As a bibliophile and history buff myself, the inclusion of various random intellectual figures as ...

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Nov 5, 2015

Luquillo

Mixed Feelings

Yomiko Readman is an innocent looking girl who has an obsession with collecting and reading books. Her entire check goes into her hobby. After coming into a book, she's soon under attack by a man with a strange ability. She learns that the particular book she just purchased is necessary for an organization's plan. Readman also works for the British Library Special Operations Division under the alias Agent Paper, and her mission is to learn why this outfit is after the book. -summary

For reasons I do understand, R.O.D. is recognized as a popular anime title, and it was so well received that it spawned ... a 26 episode series. Despite the claims to fame this is one title that never truly vibed with me. It doesn't get the least bit better over time, instead it does get worse and I see myself never watching it again.

The plot follows Agent Paper and a second woman code named Agent Deep, as they try to reclaim the book when it's eventually taken from Paper. This leads the two into a gauntlet against multiple enemies with bizarre powers, whom happen to be clones of famous individuals such as the samurai Hiraga Gennai, French Entomologist Jean Henri Fabre, and even Ludwig Von Beethoven himself. The anime features quite a bit of historical content, and it's heavily influenced by American superhero comics. Agent Deep has the ability to phase through objects, which is the exact same power of Kitty Pryde aka Shadow Cat of the X-Men, while Agent Paper has the ability to manipulate paper and use it for combat, by either turning it into solid objects for weapons, create shields, or even a vehicle. This large amount of creativity here is the only interesting thing about this character, as it does create some pretty cool action segments.

Now speaking of the action, this is where the anime shines. The animation is pretty fluid with minimum jumpiness during the quick paced battle segments, and the choreography during the hand to hand fights are also nice. The backgrounds are very pretty and they mesh well with the CG and 2D animation. There are some very pretty landscapes and artwork of New York City and even the White House. I can't say I liked the music, especially the Mission Impossible-ish opening instrumental featuring that jazzy theme canon with secret agent type movies. However, it is fitting for the anime.

The plot is your standard good vs. evil, with the stock bad guy seeking to plunge the world into destruction, and here lies some of the problem. Outside of how the bad guy wants to pull off his plan, it's way too cookie-cutter, predictable, and the characters have very little depth. I didn't care for anyone in this title, and this especially goes for Agent Paper who came off way too annoying for me. It wasn't only the voice acting for both languages, but it was her personality and how the character was just written. There are also issues with the writing when concerning her abilities. It's unable to tell how exactly her powers work, and it appears things happen only when it's convenient for the script. One thing I cannot stand are power level inconsistencies.

Read or Die is something that will no doubt appeal to the action crowd. I may have enjoyed it more had I been able to buy into the characters and their interactions along with the story, but for some reason it feels as if it was a vehicle only to show off the visuals, which are very pretty I must admit. The fan service is mildly present via bouncing breast, and the gore is also pretty tame. Still, this is a title I do recommend, because at least it looks pretty while doing what it's suppose to do and that's entertain.

Highs: Visuals, Some creativity

Lows: Stock bad guys, cliché characters, writing issues

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Poll: R.O.D. OVA Episode 2 Discussion Dodecahedron-O24 - Jan 9, 2010	11 replies	by Ilfracombe »» Jun 4, 4:33 PM
Poll: R.O.D. OVA Episode 1 Discussion datsunvic - Feb 9, 2009	24 replies	by Amber_4shenfell »» Apr 20, 1:22 PM
Anyone else cry at the end? MarryMeSenpai - Feb 23	1 replies	by Azriel-chan »» Feb 24, 2:02 AM
Poll: R.O.D. OVA Episode 3 Discussion Kana - Apr 8, 2008	35 replies	by GakutoDeathGlare »» Feb 14, 8:48 PM
can I watch the OVA without having read the manga? UnmeiMinmay - May 7, 2018	2 replies	by UnmeiMinmay »» Sep 24, 2020 5:01 PM

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R.O.D: Read or Die

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Readman, Yomiko

Makuhari, Nancy

Anderson, Drake

Sanzo, Genjo

Carpenter, Joseph

Earhart, Wendy

van Beethoven, Ludwig

Lilienthal, Otto

Hiraga, Gennai

Soujun, Ikkyu

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R.O.D: Read or Die

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