The official Twitter account for GTO Revival, the live-action television special for the 1998 live-action series of Tohru Fujisawa’s GTO manga, revealed six more cast members and teaser images for the special on Friday.
© Fuji TV
© Fuji TV
The newly announced cast all reprise their roles from the 1998 live-action GTO series, including Hiroyuki Ikeuchi (top left in image above) as Kunio Murai, Yuta Yamazaki (top center ) as Masaru Watanabe, Yōsuke Kubozuka (top right) as Yoshito Kikuchi, Hidenori Tokuyama (bottom left) as Kenji Youda, Shun Oguri (bottom center) as Noboru Yoshikawa and Naohito Fujiki (bottom right) as Ryuji Saejima.
The story of the new special is about Onizuka being appointed as a teacher at Sōtoku Academy, which is currently in trouble because a famous online influencer reveals the secrets of both students and faculty. People at school become suspicious of others, thinking that the influential person is the person who studies or works there.
The special will premiere on April 1 on Kansai TV, Fuji TV and their affiliated networks. Takashi Sorimachi returns as main character Eikichi Onizuka.
© Fuji TV
© Fuji TV
Other cast members include:
Shinya Kote (top left in image above) as Takeshi Fujiyamada, principal of Sōtoku Academy Sae Okazaki (top center) as Miyu Ayahara, homeroom and Japanese history teacher for grade 3-1 Sōtoku Kōsuke Suzuki (top right) as Kōichi Ichikawa, Suzuka’s father and a politician about to run for the Japanese House of Representatives Mei Hata (bottom left) as Rin Endō, a student in class 3-1 whose family is online influencer target Rikako Yagi (bottom center) as Suzuka Ichikawa, an honor student of class 3-1 Wataru Hyūga (bottom right) as Haruto Uno, an honor student baseball scholarship but can no longer play due to injury
Tokyopop and Vertical have published various GTO (Great Teacher Onizuka) manga titles, including the prequel GTO: The Early Years, in North America. Tokyopop describes the story:
Meet Eikichi Onizuka, a 22-year-old virgin and former cyclist. He is rude, foul-mouthed, and short-tempered. His goal is to become the greatest high school teacher in the world!
Of course, the only reason he wants to be a teacher is so he can try to score points with hot students? Before Onizuka could become a teacher, he had to work as a student teacher to get his degree.
He may think he’s the toughest guy on campus, but when he meets a classroom full of bullies, blackmailers, and plotting sadists, he’ll have to prove it.
The original manga inspired a television anime, as well as a 1998 live-action film adaptation, numerous television specials over the years, and a live-action film in 2000. GTO: The Early Years inspired a new live-action series adaptation in February 2020.
Fujisawa launched the spin-off manga GTO: Paradise Lost in Kodansha’s Weekly Young Magazine in April 2014, and it is still ongoing. Publisher Kodansha USA also released the manga digitally in English. Fujisawa stated in 2021 that GTO: Paradise Lost is intended to be the “final” manga in the GTO series.
Source: GTO Revivla Twitter accountNatalie Comics