Successful Mission

"Successful Mission"
8-cm CD single cover
Single by Megumi Hayashibara
from the album Irāvatī
LanguageJapanese
B-side"I'll Be There"
ReleasedOctober 23, 1996 (1996-10-23)
Genre
Length4:10
LabelStarchild
ComposerHidetoshi Sato
LyricistMegumi
Megumi Hayashibara singles chronology
"Just Be Conscious"
(1996)		 "Successful Mission"
(1996)		 "Don't Be Discouraged"
(1997)
Audio
"Successful Mission" on YouTube

"Successful Mission" is a song by Japanese voice actress and recording artist Megumi Hayashibara. Written by Hidetoshi Sato with lyrics penned by Hayashibara, the song was released as a single on October 23, 1996, via Starchild.

Background and release

"Successful Mission" was written as the opening theme song for the television anime series Saber Marionette J, in which Hayashibara voiced the main character, Lime. The anime was broadcast in Japan via TV Tokyo from October 1995 through January 1996. The song is characterized for its Eurobeat influence combined with heavy guitar use, a common feature of anime songs from that era.

For the single release, the song was coupled with "I'll Be There", which served as ending theme song for the same anime. The full-length versions of both tracks were first included on the Saber Marionette J soundtrack album Japanese Poem Anthology Collection Volume 2 released on April 9, 1997, and later on Hayashibara's studio album Irāvatī released on August 6, 1997. "Successful Mission" was also used as opening theme of the PlayStation fighting game Saber Marionette J: Battle Sabers released by Bandai on March 28, 1997.

The original single was made available for streaming on March 30, 2021, along with the entire Megumi Hayashibara discography.

Commercial performance

"Successful Mission" debuted and peaked at number 7 on the Oricon Singles chart, marking Hayashibara's second Top 10 entry on the Japanese charts since "Give a Reason." The single sold 66,450 copies on its first week and charted for seven weeks, with cumulative reported sales totalling 139,120 copies.

The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) in April 1997.

Impact

Since its release, "Successful Mission" has become one of Hayashibara's signature songs, being described as a "classic, quintessential anime theme song" as well as a "legendary track in anime song history."

This track further boosted Megumi Hayashibara's mainstream popularity, leading to her being invited to perform the song live on the Nippon Television show Sokuhō! Uta no Daiji Ten [ja] in 1996, which marked her first appearance as a pop star on a TV music program.

Cover versions

"Successful Mission" has been covered by various artists. Yoko Ishida first covered the song on her 2001 album Ultra Anime Eurobeat Series Para Para Max 5: The Power of New Animation Songs. Masami Okui recorded her own version of it on her 2003 cover album Masami Kobushi. Eizo Sakamoto and his heavy metal band Eizo Japan covered the song on their 2010 album Super Anime Song: Legend of the 1990s. Voice actress Kanae Itō recorded her own version of the song for the compilation album Shin Hyakka Seiran: Josei Seiyū Hen released that same year. Anime song group Trefle also recorded their own version of the song for their 2014 album Anison Shinkyoku Plus.

Track listing and versions

All lyrics are written by Megumi; all music is composed by Hidetoshi Sato.

CD single/digital release track listing
No.TitleArrangementLength
1."Successful Mission"Toshiro Yabuki5:34
2."I'll Be There"Keiji Soeda4:15
3."Successful Mission" (off vocal version) 5:34
4."I'll Be There" (off vocal version) 4:13

Official versions

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of the CD single.

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ) Gold 200,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes

  1. ↑ Credited under her alias "Megumi" in all caps.
  2. ↑ "I'll Be There" included as the re-arranged "ballade version."

References

  1. ↑ "「セイバーマリオネットJ」～サクセスフル・ミッション [廃盤]". CD Journal (in Japanese). Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "セイバーマリオネットJ". Animate Times (in Japanese). 19 February 2025. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 "声優「林原めぐみ」のシングル曲人気ランキングTOP31！　第1位は「Give a reason」【2022年最新投票結果】". NetLab (in Japanese). ITmedia Inc. 10 May 2022. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  4. ↑ "セイバーマリオネットJ オリジナルサウンドトラックジャポネス吟詠詩集 其ノ二 | TVサントラ". Oricon News (in Japanese). Oricon. 1997. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  5. 1 2 "林原めぐみ / イラーヴァティ [廃盤]". CD Journal (in Japanese). 1997. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  6. ↑ "Saber Marionette J: Battle Sabers Credit Information". GameFAQs. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  7. ↑ "【林原めぐみ】全シングル41枚＆全オリジナルアルバム14枚がサブスクにて一挙配信開始！". EnterJam (in Japanese). 30 March 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
  8. 1 2 "Successful Mission | 林原めぐみ". Oricon News (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Taiju']. Oricon. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
  10. ↑ "一般社団法人 日本レコード協会" (To access, enter the search parameter "Successful Mission" in the field "作品名"). www.riaj.or.jp. Retrieved 13 March 2026.
  11. ↑ "Successful Mission / 林原めぐみ". J-Pop Time Traveler (in Japanese). Retrieved 17 March 2026. 90年代の声優アーティストブームを牽引した林原めぐみの代表曲の一つ。パワフルな歌声とキャッチーなメロディで、アニメの大ヒットと共にアニソン史に残る名曲となった。
  12. ↑ "速報！歌の大辞テン　林原めぐみ「Successful Mission」(1996/11/13)". YouTube. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  13. ↑ "ウルトラアニメユーロビートシリーズ パラパラMAX5～THE POWER OF NEW ANIMATION SONGS～". CD Journal (in Japanese). 2001. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  14. ↑ "奥井雅美 / マサミコブシ～アニメソング カバーアルバム [限定][廃盤]". CD Journal (in Japanese). 2003. Retrieved 14 March 2026.
  15. ↑ "ANTHEMボーカルEIZO Japanがアニソン30曲一挙メタル化". Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha Inc. 18 October 2010. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  16. ↑ "新・百歌声爛(しん・ひゃっかせいらん)～女性声優編～". CD Journal (in Japanese). 2010. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  17. ↑ "声優ユニットTrefleの2ndアニソンカバーアルバムの収録曲が決定". Uta-suke (in Japanese). 13 September 2014. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  18. ↑ "Successful Mission - EP by Megumi Hayashibara". Apple Music (in Japanese). 1996. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  19. 1 2 "「セイバーマリオネットJ」サウンドトラック～ジャポネス吟詠詩集 其ノ一". CD Journal (in Japanese). 1996. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  20. ↑ "「セイバーマリオネットJ」サウンドトラック～ジャポネス吟詠詩集 其ノ二". CD Journal (in Japanese). 1997. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  21. ↑ Hayashibara, Megumi (1996). Successful Mission (8-cm CD single). Starchild. King Records Co., Ltd. KIDA-138.
  22. ↑ "Japanese single certifications – Megumi Hayashibara – Successful Mission" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved 2026-03-19. Select 1997年4月 on the drop-down menu