The story follows Kimimaro Yoga, an economics student who is introduced to the alternate reality of the Financial District, where people bet their own futures in battles.
The series was broadcast in Japan on Fuji TV's Noitamina programming block between April 15 and June 24, 2011, before being released on DVD and Blu-Ray discs by Toho.
[f] In the Financial District, each Entre is paired with a special creature who personifies their futures known as "Assets"; Kimimaro is designated to be accompanied by Mashu,[g] a horned girl who can conjure up fire-based attacks.
Kimimaro discovers that bankruptcy led his father to commit suicide and he finds a reason to continue there despite his disinterest in money and his fear of hurting others.
Kimimaro's attitude attracts veteran Entre Soichiro Mikuni,[j] who wants him to join the Starling Guild,[k] whose members' aim is to win by small margins so their victories do not greatly affect reality.
When the elder Mikuni's corporation started to crumble as a result of the financial crisis, he chose to save it, denying his terminally ill daughter Takako[l] the funds she needed to undergo a medical procedure unavailable in Japan.
People begin disappearing, poverty increases, birth rates decline, and morale drops as the Midas Money starts to invade the real Tokyo.
[22] At first, however, the anime's focus was not on money itself; its premise involved economic battles taking place around the world and the plan was to create something lighter than the final result.
After researching the history of currency, between February and August 2010 he conducted over twenty interviews with retired politicians from the Central Bank, finance professionals, college professors, nonprofit organization (NPO) members and other experts.
[20] Nakamura was moved by the stories of two interviewees; a trader impressed that U.S. CEOs were dealing with billions of dollars at the same time the Japanese economy was in poor condition, showing his concern for his country on the world stage; and the story of the Future Bank Business Association, an NPO that provided loans to individuals to upgrade their old refrigerators to more efficient models and that received the payment with the difference in energy savings.
Nakamura concluded that not deciding which path to take led to ruinous consequences, that waiting was not an option, and that people should design the future in the present.
By hearing inspiring stories, Nakamura pondered why people would try to help someone they had never met; he considers this question and the necessity to act to build a better future to be the main themes of C.[20] Nakamura appointed Naoki Osaka, the editor-in-chief of economics publisher Toyo Keizai, to be the anime's advisor and concluded he could not make a "light" economic story.
[9] When he succeeds in the Financial District, the other characters say it is a rarity for a newcomer, which was interpreted as a metaphor for "the difficulty regular people have in finding a secure economic foothold nowadays, when nepotism is rife amongst big money institutes".
[8] The show also depicts the value of money as a mutually-agreed-upon cultural fiction that can disappear when the agreement breaks, meaning one's life is exchanged for what is merely inked paper.
[33][34] In the United States, Funimation released an English-dubbed version of the series in a DVD/Blu-ray combo limited edition set on October 30, 2012;[16][35] a budget-priced re-release followed on July 19, 2016.
[36] In Australia and in the United Kingdom, it was released as a DVD box set with English and Japanese audio available on November 15, 2012, by Siren Visual,[7] and on October 14, 2013, by MVM Entertainment, respectively.
UK Anime Network's Andy Hanley wrote that if the series "managed to live up to its lofty ambitions and goals", it would be "an absolute classic".
[9] In a more positive review, Erin Finnegan of Otaku USA said although there was no satisfactory conclusion, viewers wanting something unusual would find it worth watching.
[17] The most positive analysis was done by The Fandom Post's Chris Beveridge, who said the series "does all ties [sic] things together well and leaves you with a satisfied feeling about the overall experience".
[9] In opposition, Beveridge praised C for avoiding a sole focus on the battles and providing a show that centers on the characters' actions, highlighting "the tightness of the themes and the gray areas that drive it all home".
[17] Although Hanley and Carroll also saw this reflective aspect in a positive light,[9][11] Kimlinger regarded it as a negative, saying debating economic philosophy is the show's sole point of interest and calling its story "a total and utter bore".
[9] The latter cited the use of shares, Kimimaro's father and his diary, and the way elements of the story relate to Mashu as aspects that are left unresolved or are not satisfactorily concluded.
[8] Meek found the characters' motivations are neither relatable nor interesting, criticizing Mikuni's portrayal as someone who wants to safeguard his ailing younger sister but is prepared to sacrifice the rest of the world.
[10] Hanley said Mikuni's backstory was a weak aspect that adds little to the story,[11] in opposition to Kimlinger, who found it "surprisingly moving",[8] and Beveridge, who described it as "strong".
[41] Van Renssen emphasized how it affected the character designs, saying their drawn counterparts are better,[13] but he and Huber noticed the use of CG decreases as the series progresses.
[39] Van Renssen highlighted the music on summarizing the show's qualities and also praised the opening and ending themes,[13] which Huber called "pretty awesome".
[41] The themes were also praised by Carroll, as well as its "moody background music [that] suits the tone of the series well"; he deemed it "an average but solid affair" on the audio aspect.