is the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

release title for ''No Surface Moon The Animation''; a 2001

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese

OVA , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and special episodes of a series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the ...

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

series adapted from the 2000 Japanese

visual novel A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustratio ...

eroge An ''eroge'' (, ''eroge'', or , ''erogē'', ), also called an H-game, is a Japanese genre of erotic video game. The term encompasses a wide variety of Japanese games containing erotic content across multiple genres. The first ''eroge'' were crea ...

of the same name. It was created by Orbit Co., Ltd., animated by

IMAGIN is the seventeenth installment in the popular Kamen Rider Series of tokusatsu programs. It is a joint collaboration between Ishimori Productions and Toei. It premiered January 28, 2007 on TV Asahi, and concluded airing on January 20, 2008. Its l ...

, and produced by

Pink Pineapple Pink is a pale tint of red, the color of the pink flower. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, sensitiv ...

, and later licensed by

Media Blasters Media Blasters, sometimes abbreviated as MB, is an American entertainment company that was founded by John Sirabella in 1997 and is based in New York City. It is in the business of licensing, translating, and releasing to the North American mar ...

, English dubbed by Wave Form Solutions (ep. 1–4), Sunlight Audio (ep. 5), and distributed by

Kitty Media Media Blasters, sometimes abbreviated as MB, is an American entertainment company that was founded by John Sirabella in 1997 and is based in New York City. It is in the business of licensing, translating, and releasing to the North American mar ...

. The original Japanese adult game placed fourth overall in the 2001 ''BugBug'' readers' choice awards. The remake version, ''Kao no Nai Tsuki - Matsuyoi no Sotsubaki'', was scheduled for release on August 29, 2025.

Synopsis

Suzuna Kuraki is a beautiful young woman apprenticing to become a priestess of her wealthy,

matrilineal Matrilineality, at times called matriliny, is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which people identify with their matriline, their mother's lineage, and which can involve the inheritan ...

family's

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

faith. As part of her initiation, she must not only practice consecration, but also enter an arranged marriage by her grandmother and subsequently participate in the decadal Tsukimachi ceremony, an esoteric ritual held to welcome a new female minister. However, things starts to get complicated when her

fiance An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

, Koichi Hayama, is brought to her estate and a mysterious paranormal energy begins making her act somewhat strangely.

Characters

Primary characters

; : (ep. 1-4), Janet Moltow (ep. 5) :A typical high school student, Suzuna Kuraki is the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a ...

of the series. She is a delicate, beautiful young woman, training to become a priestess of her Shinto ancestry so that she may properly consecrate her family

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

; a job traditionally bestowed upon the women of her lineage. Outside of her religious services, Suzuna generally behaves in a very

aristocratic Aristocracy (; ) is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. Across Europe, the aristocracy exercised immense economic, political, and social influence. In Western Christian co ...

, conceited and fastidious manner, even though she is in fact the most apprehensive and solicitous person in the house. Suzuna is the obligatory

fiancée An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

of Koichi Hayama by

arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of Marriage, marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures, a professional matchmaki ...

, sister of Mizuna and daughter of Yuriko. ; : (ep. 1-4), Rob Weir (ep. 5) :Koichi Hayama is the fiancé of Suzuna Kuraki. He was subconsciously chosen as her fiance and subsequently brought to the

estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...

to live while the Tsukimachi ceremony approaches. A tall and handsome university student, Koichi tends to clash with Suzuna, but this can be regarded as evidence of a

tsundere is a Culture of Japan, Japanese term for a character development process that depicts a character with an initially harsh personality who gradually reveals a warmer, friendlier side over time. The word is derived from the terms (adverb, 'mo ...

love affair. By the effects of an unexplained illness, he is unable to recollect any of his past, including his childhood or parents. He also could not recognize the faces of women before coming to the Kuraki estate. Koichi is a frequent smoker and has an elongated scar across his chest.

Secondary characters

; : (ep. 1-4), Lara Linndy (ep. 5) :Employed

maidservant A handmaiden (nowadays less commonly handmaid or maidservant) is a personal maid or female servant. The term is also used metaphorically for something whose primary role is to serve or assist. Depending on culture or historical period, a handma ...

and childhood friend of Suzuna Kuraki. Despite her noticeably sizable bust, Tomomi is a very slow, gentle, soft-spoken girl who often meticulously strives to please those being served; particularly Suzuna, who is her

foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ma ...

. She is the only bespectacled member of the household and the most bisexually promiscuous. Tomomi is a niece to Gohei Harukawa and granddaughter to Ippei. ; : (ep. 1-4), Sharon Simpson (ep. 5), Brenda Lewis (as Ruri Yamato) :The second maidservant of the household, Sayaka Kurihara is roughly the opposite of Tomomi in that she is upbeat, playful, talkative, and at times childish. Although she is unable to ever clearly remember, Sayaka did in fact used to be a renowned

promotional model A promotional model is a model hired to drive consumer demand for a product, service, brand, or concept by directly interacting with potential customers. Most promotional models are conventionally attractive in physical appearance. They serve to m ...

and actress by the name of Ruri Yamato; acquired when she was found wandering the estate grounds by Gohei Harukawa. ; : :Friendly yet inept, Io Azuma is a distant cousin of Suzuna and is good friends with Tomomi. He was originally chosen to be a suitor for Suzuna, but much to her disappointment, he became somewhat effeminate instead of the charming gentleman she was expecting. A devout

otaku is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, such as anime, manga, video games, computers or other highly enthusiastic hobbies. Its contemporary use originated with a 1983 essay by Akio Nakamori in '' Manga Burikko''. ...

, Io frequently spends most of his leisure in the house library reading

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

; playfully extending his obsession to Suzuna who, much to her chagrin, he tends to address with the

Japanese honorific The Japanese language makes use of a system of honorific speech, called , which includes honorific suffixes and prefixes when talking to, or referring to others in a conversation. Suffixes are often gender-specific at the end of names, while ...

title Chan. He and Koichi have no sexual contact in the anime, unlike in the original game. ; : (ep. 1-4), Molly Walters (ep. 5) :Yuriko Kuraki is the biological mother of both Suzuna and Mizuna,

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

of her late husband Zenzirō and

matriarch Matriarchy is a social system in which positions of power and privilege are held by women. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege, and control of property. While those definitions apply in general English, ...

of the house. A mysterious and voluptuous woman, Yuriko is by far the most influential figure over the household and the

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...

force that manifests within it; exhibiting this position with formality in both her voice and clothes. ; :''Voiced by'': Michael Johnston (English, ep. 1-4), Brian Drewberry (ep. 5) :Ominous and inscrutable, Gohei Harukawa is the great-uncle of Tomomi, older brother of Ippei and estate landscaper; even though he is rarely ever seen doing garden work. While he does not have supernatural powers of his own, Gohei frequently assists Yuriko with her endeavors; such as triggering events in preparation for the Tsukimachi ceremony. ; :First daughter of Yuriko and monozygotic twin sister of Suzuna. Unlike her younger sister, Mizuna is very taciturn, yet cheerfully playful; living silently and peacefully in the water caverns beneath the mansion. She was once the shrine maiden for the Kuraki family, but when Suzuna was born she was cast away. ; :Voiced by: Jessica Gee (English) :Chikako Sawaguchi is a professor of

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

who visits the estate in response to sensing paranormal activity. Besides that, not much else is known about her except that she is a past teacher of Koichi. ; :Older brother of Gohei, grandfather of Tomomi and family physician. Has no significant role in the series.

Episodes

Music

* Closing theme: "Cruel Moon" by Arca, 2001 (Epi. 1 - 5)

Credits

Japanese staff

:Original Story 顔のない月 No Surface Moon :Planning Piston Horaguchi :Assistant Planning Endo Kei :Producer Oruga Susumu :Original Plan and Supervisor Carnelian :Composition and Script Arakawa Masanobu :Animation Studio Imagin Co., Ltd :Character Design and Chief Animator Ishihara Megumi :Assistant Animator Hattori Noritomo :Director and Storyboards Sato Toshiharu :Production Pink Pineapple :Music Hiroshi Igarashi

American staff

:Producer Gary Sierra :Production Supervisor Jharmoni Nagasaki :Production Assistant Roller Girl :Editor Scottie Mack :Translation J. Yoshizawa :Design Temper-Tantric

Sequels

Spin-offs

On April 3, 2007,

Studio Deen is a Japanese animation studio founded in 1975 by former Sunrise producer Hiroshi Hasegawa, along with a team of ex-Sunrise animators. The studio owns three subsidiaries: Danny Donghua (), a Chinese sub-contracting studio; Megumi (め組), a di ...

released ; an animated adaption of the 2007

ese

and

of the same name. All three versions are the same

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

of 顔のない月 (''Kao no nai tsuki''). The animation aired from April 3, 2007, to September 24, 2007, on BS Asahi, SUN TV, and

Tokyo MX TV JOMX-DTV (channel 9), branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city and parts of nearby prefecture ...

. The series was directed by

Yūji Yamaguchi was a Japanese anime director who directed the ''Fate/stay night'' TV series and the ''Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works (film), Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works'' film. Career Yamaguchi directed several anime series, including ''Angel ...

References

External links

* *
Moonlight Lady
(Japanese)

(Japanese) * {{Imagin 2000 video games 2001 anime OVAs Hentai anime and manga Eroge Japan-exclusive video games Visual novels Kitty Media OVAs based on video games Pink Pineapple Video games developed in Japan Video games featuring female protagonists Windows games Windows-only games