Encouragement of Climb
Encouragement of Climb is a slice-of-life manga series written and illustrated by Shiro, which began serialization in Earth Star Entertainment's Comic Earth Star magazine in 2011. An anime television series by Eight Bit aired in Japan between January and March 2013 and was simulcasted by Crunchyroll. A second season aired from July to December 2014. An original video animation was released in October 2017, and a third season aired from July to September 2018. A new anime television series titled Encouragement of Climb: Next Summit aired from October to December 2022.
Plot
Aoi Yukimura is a quiet girl living in Hannō who prefers staying indoors and is afraid of heights. When she reunites with her childhood friend Hinata Kuraue, who is outgoing and loves mountaineering they decide to climb a mountain together, in order to see sunrise, which they saw together when they were younger. Along the way, they meet several other girls who are also interested in the outdoors, and begin a series of adventures on various mountains across Japan.Characters
;Aoi Yukimura;Hinata Kuraue
;Kaede Saitō
;Kokona Aoba
;Honoka Kurosaki
;Yuuka Sasahara
;Koharu Senjuin
;Mio
;Yuri
;Kasumi Takenaka
;Makoto Yukimura
;Megumi Yukimura
;Ken'ichi Kuraue
;Mai Kuraue
;Mai Aoba
;Taiki Kurosaki
;Susuki
;Hikari Onozuka
Media
Manga
Yama no Susume began as a manga series written and illustrated by Shiro and published in Earth Star Entertainment's Comic Earth Star magazine. The first chapter appeared in the September 2011 issue of the magazine, released on August 12, 2011. The series' chapters have been compiled in 26 volumes, published between June 2012, and June 2025.Anime
An anime television series, directed by Yusuke Yamamoto and produced by Eight Bit, aired in Japan on Tokyo MX between January 3 and March 21, 2013, and was simulcasted by Crunchyroll. The ending theme is "Staccato Days" by Yuka Iguchi and Kana Asumi. The series consisted of twelve five-minute episodes, with an additional OVA episode bundled with the Blu-ray Disc release of the series on May 14, 2013.A second season, consisting of 24 fifteen-minute episodes, began airing from July 9, 2014. The opening theme is "Natsuiro Present" by Iguchi, Asumi, Yōko Hikasa and Yui Ogura, "Mainichi Koharu Biyori" by Iguchi, Asumi for episode sixteen onwards; whilst the ending themes are "Tinkling Smile" by Ogura for the first twelve episodes, "Staccato Days" for episodes thirteen to fifteen, and "Cocoiro Rainbow" by Kyoko Narumi for episode sixteen onwards.
An original video animation, subtitled Omoide Present, was released on January 26, 2018, following a screening in theaters and a limited release on October 28, 2017. For the OVA, the ending theme is "Omoide Creators" by Iguchi and Asumi.
A third anime season premiered on July 2, 2018, and ran for 13 episodes, concluding on September 24, 2018. For the third season, the opening theme is "Chiheisen Stride" by Iguchi, Asumi, Hikasa, and Ogura, while the ending theme is "Irochigai no Tsubasa" by Iguchi and Asumi.
On September 16, 2019, a new project was announced during an Autumn Festival in Japan. On March 18, 2021, it was announced that the project would be a new anime television series, titled Encouragement of Climb: Next Summit. It consisted of 12 full-length episodes, and the main staff and cast members reprised their roles from previous seasons. The series aired from October 5 to December 21, 2022. The opening theme is "Omoi Nochi Hare" by Iguchi and Asumi, while the ending theme for the first 11 episodes is "Tobira wo Akete Beru o Narasou" by Iguchi and Asumi, the ending theme for episodes 12 is "Staccato Days" by Iguchi and Asumi.