The Dragon Dentist 2-Part Anime Gets English Dub on NHK World

Translator Dan Kanemitsu revealed on Tuesday that he worked on an English dub of The Dragon Dentist special, the feature-length version of the first short from the Japan Anima(tor)'s Exhibition (Japan Animator Expo) project. The first part of the special will premiere on NHK World on Friday at 7:10 p.m. EDT and the second part will air on Saturday at the same time. The first part will also air on Saturday at 1:10 a.m., 6:10 p.m., and 1:10 p.m. EDT, and the second part will air on Sunday at the same time.

Programs on NHK World are streamed live.

The first part of the special originally premiered in Japanese on February 18, while the second part aired on February 25. Crunchyroll collaborated with Anime Limited to stream the special in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland. The two-part special will mark the first time Khara, the studio behind the new Evangelion films, is producing an anime for television.

The original short is available again for streaming on the Animator Expo website until the end of March.

The project's website describes the story:
The story takes place in Dragon Country. Nonoko is a newly appointed dentist and her mission is to protect the dragon, the guardian of the country, from tooth-cavity bacteria. One day, amid increasingly fierce battles with the neighboring country, Nonoko finds on the dragon's tooth an unconscious boy soldier from the enemy country. His name is Bell, and he has been resurrected from inside the tooth by the dragon -- a supernatural phenomenon that legend says occurs before a major disaster. As Nonoko and Bell go through a series of fierce battles, they eventually learn to accept their fate. This fantasy adventure, created on an unprecedentedly epic scale, will keep viewers thrilled and enraptured.

The theme of the story is "facing a life with an end, or death." The story is set in a country of dragons, where a dragon is the land's guardian deity. Nonoko is entrusted with being the dentist for the dragon, and while performing her duties, she encounters a boy named Bell from an enemy country in a state of war.

Hideaki Anno (Shin Godzilla, new Evangelion films) served as executive producer and sound director, and Kazuya Tsurumaki (FLCL, Aim for the Top 2!, new Evangelion films) returned from the short as the director. Otaro Maijo is credited with the original work and the script, and Yoji Enokido is wrote the script. Shuichi Iseki acted as the character designer. Nobuo Kawakami (Ronja the Robber's Daughter) was also an executive producer.​