Saikano: The Last Love Song on This Little Planet is a manga, anime, and OVA series by Shin Takahashi, the creator of Iihito and Kimi no Kakera. Saikano was originally serialized in Shogakukan's Big Comic Spirits magazine. A live-action movie adaptation was released in Japan on January 28, 2006, featuring Aki Maeda as Chise. The Saikano manga and anime series has been licensed and is being distributed in English by Viz Media in North America. The anime series is distributed in the UK by Manga Entertainment. Although the city is not named in the series, many of the locations featured in Saikano can likely be found in Otaru-shi, west of Sapporo. The train station, "Hell Hill," the Asahi Observation Hill, the view over the harbor, and the school all have similar counterparts in the city of Otaru.
