Wish Upon the Pleiades
Wish Upon the Pleiades is a Japanese original anime project created by Gainax in collaboration with Subaru.
Last updated August 25, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Wish Upon the Pleiades is an original Japanese anime property developed by animation studio Gainax in collaboration with Subaru, the Japanese automobile manufacturer. Its Japanese title, Hōkago no Pleiades, can be translated as After-School Pleiades. The project combined a magical-girl science-fiction premise with Subaru-associated visual and thematic imagery, while avoiding the structure of a conventional adaptation from an existing manga or novel. The property first appeared as a four-part original net animation released on YouTube on February 1, 2011. An English-subtitled version followed on February 7, making the project available to viewers outside Japan soon after its initial online launch. The web series established the central premise: Subaru encounters a group of magical girls, including her childhood friend Aoi, and joins them in a search for scattered fragments belonging to the spaceship of an alien called the Pleiadian. A mysterious boy named Minato is also pursuing the fragments for his own purposes. The story centers on Subaru and four other girls—Aoi, Itsuki, Hikaru, and Nanako—whose magical activities are linked to the recovery of the spaceship fragments. The characters use magical devices and travel through fantastical environments, while the narrative mixes school-life elements, friendship, personal growth, space imagery, and a light science-fiction mystery. The Pleiadian is depicted as a small green alien seeking the missing parts of his ship's engine. Minato, who lives in a mysterious greenhouse, functions as a major source of conflict and ambiguity. Gainax later produced a television adaptation that aired in Japan from April 9 through June 24, 2015. The television series expanded the online project's world and character relationships into a serialized format. It was also made available internationally through simulcast distribution on Crunchyroll. The television production used the same broad premise and principal characters while developing the emotional and science-fiction dimensions of the story over a longer run. The music contributed to the project's identity. The television opening theme was “Stella-rium,” performed by Kano, while the ending theme, “Koko kara, Kanata kara,” was performed by the unit fragments, made up of the principal voice performers Natsumi Takamori, Ayuru Ōhashi, Kanako Tateno, Yui Makino, and Saki Fujita. The voice cast included Natsumi Takamori as Subaru, Ayuru Ōhashi as Aoi, Kanako Tateno as Itsuki, Yui Makino as Hikaru, Saki Fujita as Nanako and the Pleiadian, and Houko Kuwashima as Minato. Wish Upon the Pleiades is notable as a branded collaboration between an anime studio and an automobile company, rather than as a conventional consumer automotive marque. Subaru's participation provided the original project with corporate sponsorship and brand association, while Gainax supplied the animation production and creative framework. The available reference material does not establish a separate corporate owner, independent headquarters, public listing, or a broad range of commercial product categories for the property. Its principal offerings are the 2011 web animation and the 2015 television anime.
History
Wish Upon the Pleiades originated as an original animation initiative jointly associated with Gainax and Subaru. Rather than adapting a pre-existing comic or novel, the project created its own cast, setting, and story world. The Japanese title, Hōkago no Pleiades, refers to the after-school setting of the central characters and to the Pleiades-related space mythology that informs the narrative. The first release was a four-part original net animation published on YouTube on February 1, 2011. Its online format gave the project a direct digital launch and connected it with viewers without requiring an initial television broadcast. The English-subtitled edition appeared on February 7, 2011. The web episodes introduced Subaru, Aoi, Itsuki, Hikaru, and Nanako as a group of girls drawn into a magical mission. Subaru, the principal protagonist, discovers the group and becomes involved in their effort to locate fragments from the spaceship of the Pleiadian, a small alien whose vessel has been scattered or damaged. The story also introduced Minato, a mysterious boy associated with a greenhouse and with the search for the same fragments. The project's creative identity rests on the combination of magical-girl conventions and cosmic adventure. The girls' ordinary school lives are placed alongside supernatural abilities, space-travel imagery, and a quest involving alien technology. Subaru's relationship with her childhood friend Aoi supplies an interpersonal foundation, while the other members of the group contribute contrasting personalities and abilities. Nanako also acts as an important intermediary because she can translate for the Pleiadian. After the online series, Gainax developed a television version. The television anime aired in Japan from April 9 to June 24, 2015. It expanded the original concept into a longer serialized narrative and retained the central cast and search for the spaceship fragments. The series was simulcast internationally through Crunchyroll, giving the property a formal route to overseas anime audiences in addition to the earlier English-subtitled online release. The television production was supported by a dedicated music identity. Kano performed the opening song “Stella-rium.” The ending theme, “Koko kara, Kanata kara,” was credited to fragments, a vocal unit comprising the actresses who voiced the principal magical-girl characters. This linked the musical presentation directly to the ensemble cast. The available reference material identifies Wish Upon the Pleiades as the final anime series produced by Gainax before the studio closed on June 7, 2024. That later institutional event provides historical context for the series' place in Gainax's output, although it does not indicate that the anime property itself was discontinued, sold, or relaunched. No reliable information in the supplied material establishes a separate franchise company, current commercial owner, headquarters, financial performance, or a comprehensive merchandise program.
- 2024
Gainax closure placed the series in historical context
[1]Gainax closed on June 7, 2024; reference material identifies Wish Upon the Pleiades as the studio's final anime television series.
- 2015
Television anime premiered
[1]The television adaptation began Japanese broadcasting on April 9 and concluded on June 24.
- 2011
Original net animation launched
[1]The four-part web animation produced by Gainax with Subaru was released on YouTube on February 1.
- 2011
English-subtitled release followed
[1]An English-subtitled edition became available on February 7, broadening access to the online project.
Products and positioning
An original magical-girl science-fiction anime franchise positioned around a collaboration between Gainax and Subaru, combining school-age characters, space-travel motifs, fantasy adventure, and an automobile-brand partnership.
Original net animation · 2011
Wish Upon the Pleiades original net animation
A four-part online anime created by Gainax in collaboration with Subaru. Released on YouTube in February 2011, it introduces Subaru and the other magical girls, their search for fragments of an alien spaceship, and the mysterious boy Minato. An English-subtitled version followed shortly after the Japanese release.
Television anime · 2015
Wish Upon the Pleiades television series
A television adaptation produced by Gainax and broadcast in Japan from April through June 2015. It develops the web animation's magical-girl science-fiction premise across a serialized format and was made available internationally through Crunchyroll simulcast.
Brand decisions
2015
Expand the web project into a television seriesProduct launchBackground
Following the 2011 online release, the collaborators developed the concept into a longer-form anime television production.
Action taken
Gainax broadcast the television adaptation in Japan from April 9 to June 24 and arranged international simulcast distribution through Crunchyroll.
Aftermath
The television series broadened the narrative and gave the property a conventional broadcast and international streaming presence.
2011
Launch the property as an online original animationProduct launchBackground
Gainax and Subaru introduced the collaboration as an original web animation rather than first launching it as a conventional television adaptation.
Action taken
They released four episodes on YouTube and subsequently supplied an English-subtitled version.
Aftermath
The online project established the franchise's characters and premise before the later television series.
Recent events
- 2015
Television adaptation aired in Japan[1]
Product launch · Product generation
Gainax's television adaptation broadcast in Japan from April through June 2015 and was distributed internationally through Crunchyroll simulcast.
- 2011
Wish Upon the Pleiades original net animation released on YouTube[1]
Product launch
The four-part original net animation created by Gainax in collaboration with Subaru debuted on YouTube, establishing the project's magical-girl and science-fiction premise.
- 2011
English-subtitled web episodes became available[1]
Other
An English-subtitled version of the online animation followed the Japanese release several days later, extending the project's initial digital reach beyond Japan.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/wish-upon-the-pleiades · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled