Animal Yokocho
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese manga
and anime
series aimed at children about a little girl who has a doorway to another world in her room, from which three bizarre and frequently-annoying stuffed animal-like creatures emerge to make her life "interesting". The manga was created by Ryō Maekawa and is serialized in Ribon Magazine
, Ribon Original and Ribon Bikkuri. This manga's characters originally appeared in Ribon Original as quiz column's characters. The manga won the award for children's manga at the 51st Shogakukan Manga Award
s. In 2008, Cartoon Network Philippines made an English version of the anime called "Ani-Yoko: My Next Door Neighbor"
Iyo
Kenta
Issa
Mr. Yamanami
Ami's parents
Kumiko Takeda
Catherine Maekawa
Others:
, something that happens often in the show.
The door is two-way. It is most often used by the Trio to enter our world and interact with Ami, who they seem to find strangely fascinating. Ami could go through the door herself and enter AniYoko but, due to the insistent Trio and their strange often frightening stories, has yet to do so in the anime and AniYoko itself has never actually appeared, with only a dark space being shown whenever Ami looks inside. Scenes of AniYoko do appear in the Trio's recollections and stories, but these often are immediately shown to be false, and no objective AniYoko scenes have ever been shown. On one episode, it has shown Iyo's bedroom.
The presence of the door and the Trio seems to have had some effect on Ami's room itself. Ami and the Trio frequently find that they can go to many other places, such as a jungle, a forest, a baseball stadium (complete with crowd) and an RPG
-style dungeon
, without actually leaving the room.
s. There are also numerous jokes about Japanese cuisine
, including the preparation of dishes such as cake and Hot Pot (Oden
).
Although there are many elements of juvenile fantasy
in the series, it seems that the action is actually occurring and not taking place in Ami's imagination.
Some Western viewers have made comparisons between the Trio's behaviors, abilities and personalities with those of the Warners, the protagonists of the American animation anthology Animaniacs
. Iyo has many personality traits in common with Dot Warner, and the Trio frequently behave like squabbling siblings.
Despite looking like stuffed animals, the Trio and the other inhabitants of AniYoko appear to be living beings, and there are references to suggest that they can die, including the running gag of Iyo's frequent deaths and revivals and an episode built around the apparent murder of Yamanami-san. The "spirit rabbit" that appears when Iyo dies and returns to her body when she revives is reminiscent of the portrayal of the spirits of the dead in Shinto
Mythology.
There is no connection between this series and the Animal Crossing
series of video games, although the title "Animal Crossing" was mistakenly used for this series in early English-language reports.
Ending themes:
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
and anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series aimed at children about a little girl who has a doorway to another world in her room, from which three bizarre and frequently-annoying stuffed animal-like creatures emerge to make her life "interesting". The manga was created by Ryō Maekawa and is serialized in Ribon Magazine
Ribon
is a monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Shueisha. First issued in August 1955, its rivals are Nakayoshi and Ciao. Its target audience is young girls roughly 9–13 years old. In 2009, the magazine's circulation was 274,167, down from the previous year's circulation numbers of 330,000...
, Ribon Original and Ribon Bikkuri. This manga's characters originally appeared in Ribon Original as quiz column's characters. The manga won the award for children's manga at the 51st Shogakukan Manga Award
Shogakukan Manga Award
The is one of Japan's major manga awards, sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga since 1955 and features candidates from a number of publishers.The current award categories are:...
s. In 2008, Cartoon Network Philippines made an English version of the anime called "Ani-Yoko: My Next Door Neighbor"
Characters
- (Japanese) (English voice unknown)
- Ami Matsuzaki (松崎 亜美), the protagonist of the anime, is a preschool student who is quite mature for her age and has just moved into a new home and neighborhood with her family. She is intelligent and imaginative, but grounded and a bit easily flustered. The revelation that a gate to Ani-Yoko is in her room, and the increasingly bizarre actions of her three visitors, frequently drive her to the brink of total distraction, yet she seems to have gotten used to their presence, with Ami sharing some of her regular life with them. Her date of birth is 15 December and her zodiac sign is SagittariusSagittarius (astrology)Sagittarius is the ninth astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the zodiac between the 240th and 269th degree of celestial longitude...
.
Iyo
- (Japanese) (English)
- Iyo (イヨ) is one of the three creatures from AniYoko, known as "the Happy AniYoko Trio", who frequently visit Ami through the door in her floor. She looks like a stuffed rabbit, and can use a sort of energy discharged through the space between her ears for all kinds of effects. She can also store objects and liquids in her ears, to be dispensed as needed. Although she always tries to act cheerful and cute, she is frequently selfish and vain. She also has the habit of dying when abused or neglected, only to return to life when a suitable apology is made. She somewhat resembles a Snowshoe Rabbit. Her date of birth is 4 January and her zodiac sign is Capricorn.
Kenta
- (Japanese) (English)
- Kenta (ケンタ) has the appearance of a stuffed bear. He is brusque, frequently rude, and sometimes picks up odd obsessions. He has a love-hate dynamic with Iyo, with whom he is always arguing or fighting but he still appears to be close to her. His attempts to assert his species identity frequently end in disaster. He is always seen wearing a red mufflerMufflerA muffler is a device for reducing the amount of noise emitted by the exhaust of an internal combustion engine. A US Patent for an Exhaust muffler for engines was granted to Milton and Marshall Reeves in 1897....
, and it is usually a sign that something is very wrong if he is without it. He also often gives the punchline in jokes where all three of the trio are involved. Kenta has a grandmother who's ironically a human and is the one who gave him his scarf. He has a major crush on Ami's friend, Ku-Chan. His date of birth is the 6th of May and his zodiac sign is TaurusTaurus (astrology)Taurus is the second astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the zodiac between the 30th and 59th degree of celestial longitude. Generally, the Sun transits this area of the zodiac between April 21 to May 21 each year...
.
Issa
- (Japanese) (English)
- Issa (イッサ) is a creature that looks like a stuffed panda. He refers to himself as "the empathic one" of the trio, puts the most effort into trying to be nice to Ami, and makes many unsuccessful efforts to make peace between Iyo and Kenta. His date of birth is 23 November and his zodiac sign is SagittariusSagittarius (astrology)Sagittarius is the ninth astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the zodiac between the 240th and 269th degree of celestial longitude...
.
Mr. Yamanami
- (Japanese)
- Mr. Yamanami (ヤマナミさん Yamanami-san)) is a horse, apparently the leader of AniYoko. He frequently appears to make a small contribution to the scene or some demand on the cast, and then departs. Issa has said that all the creatures of AniYoko must obey "Commander Yamanami" or face an unspecified but terrible punishment. Yamanami also operates a "black-market mail-order" service, which occasionally delivers goods to Ami's room. It is implied that there are numerous Yamanamis, occupying different roles in AniYoko society. His birthday and zodiac sign are unknown.
Ami's parents
- Ami's parents [Ami's mother's name is Ayako Matsuzaki (松崎あやこ)] are occasionally heard but never seen throughout the anime. There is no indication that they are aware of the existence of AniYoko or any of the strange events surrounding Ami's life, although they do sometimes notice the effects when something Ami or the three creatures do affects their real-world activities.
Kumiko Takeda
- (Japanese) (English)
- Kumiko Takeda (竹田 久美子), also known as Ku-chan, is Ami's close friend. She is rather timid and frail girl and is one of the few people who can see the AniYoko Trio and others as they really are (although she annoyingly looks for Kenta's batteries in belief that he's a toy), and shares in some of the adventures that Ami has. She seems to be very open to what happens. Her date of birth is 21 May. Kenta appears to have a crush on her, much to Iyo's annoyance. Ku-chan suffers from a paralyzingParalysisParalysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
fear of horses due to an unfortunate incident in a stable (in anime, a horse bit her head when she was a baby), so any interaction she has with Yananami-san is extremely traumatic. Her date of birth is the 21st of May and her zodiac sign is GeminiGemini (astrology)Gemini is the third astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the Zodiac between the 60th and 89th degree of celestial longitude. Generally, the Sun transits this area of the zodiac between May 21 to June 20 each year...
.
Catherine Maekawa
- Catherine Maekawa (カトリーヌ前川) is Ami's favorite manga artistMangakais the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
. It is revealed in the anime that she is currently engaged in a mangaMangaManga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series about sumo wrestling. Iyo has been to her house, after stowing away in a fan letter written by Ami, but she did not appear to notice.
Others:
- Mr. Nonko-Chan (Mr. のんこちゃん). .
- Mr. Nonko-Chan is Iyo's pet turtle that lives in her ear. It was revealed in the first-half of the last episode that he lives in a fully furnished room inside Iyo's ear.
- Match & Pitch (まっち&ピッチ). and .
- Match (まっち, Machi) is one of the recurring characters who appears sporadically. Match is originally a girl (which was confirmed with the dress she is wearing at the first ending theme of the anime), but in the Cartoon Network English dubbing, Match is addressed as a "he" throughout the entire series. She and Kenta go way back in the past as training partners in a Martial Arts Dojo and addresses him as "Anikki" (Big Bro or Bro in Japanese). According to Yamanami-san, Match is also a Jack-of-all-Trades in the professional world and considers her as the greatest bane of the Yamanami Industries. It was never mentioned or confirmed what kind of animal Match is (in one episode in the anime, Kenta does not know himself), but she is rumored to be a TarsierTarsierTarsiers are haplorrhine primates of the genus Tarsius, a genus in the family Tarsiidae, which is itself the lone extant family within the infraorder Tarsiiformes...
. Her date of birth is 4 April and her zodiac sign is AriesAries (astrology)Aries is the first astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the zodiac between the zero degree and the 29th degree of celestial longitude. The Sun enters Aries when it reaches the northern vernal equinox, which is usually on March 21 each year, and remains in this sign until around April 20...
.
- Pitch (ピッチ, Pichi) is a Yellow Canary who accompanies Match to everywhere she goes. Pitch also serves as Match's assistant at work and does domestic duties for her.
- Shima Shimako (しま シマ子). (Japanese), (English)
- Shima Shimako like Yamanami-san is also a Zebra who walks upright on two legs. She is Ani-yoko's showbiz idol (Model, Actress, Singer/Dancer) and is admired by every girl in Ani-yoko. Being Ani-yoko's biggest celebrity, she has a bratty celebrity-attitude. Mr. Yamanami is very much obsessed with her and will do anything (to the point of closing out his business) just to get a date with her. She'll try to "fix" bad fashions that she sees people make (In other words, she makes it worse).
- Yayoi (弥生くん Yayoi-kun)
- Yayoi is a KoalaKoalaThe koala is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae....
who, in the manga, wandered out of Aniyoko and managed to be unseen by humans for two years. He's very silent. He has an alien-like creature that lives in his nose. His name is a secret, so no one knows his name.
- Mr. Matsumoto (マツモトさん Matsumoto-san)
- Mr. Matsumoto is a giraffe who's head is always hidden in a cloud with a bright light. Many people from Ani-yoko describe him as powerful and high in authority.
- Kotaro Matsuzaki (松崎 光太郎), Takeru. .
- Sayuki (サユキ), Magurono (まぐろの抱き枕), Shachihoko (しゃちほこ). .
- Ako Aomori (青森 あこ), Botetechuto (ポテテチュート). (Japanese), (English)
The gate to AniYoko
It is explained in the anime that AniYoko itself is an alternative world inhabited by stuffed-animal-like creatures. The only method of travel between AniYoko and the human world is through a door mounted in the floor of Ami's bedroom. The Trio has given many conflicting and spurious explanations for how the door got there, but the real answer may never be revealed to Ami nor the viewer. Still, nothing overly sinister appears to be involved - As Kenta said in the second story, "That's the setting for the story, so don't worry about it", breaking the fourth wallFourth wall
The fourth wall is the imaginary "wall" at the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theatre, through which the audience sees the action in the world of the play...
, something that happens often in the show.
The door is two-way. It is most often used by the Trio to enter our world and interact with Ami, who they seem to find strangely fascinating. Ami could go through the door herself and enter AniYoko but, due to the insistent Trio and their strange often frightening stories, has yet to do so in the anime and AniYoko itself has never actually appeared, with only a dark space being shown whenever Ami looks inside. Scenes of AniYoko do appear in the Trio's recollections and stories, but these often are immediately shown to be false, and no objective AniYoko scenes have ever been shown. On one episode, it has shown Iyo's bedroom.
The presence of the door and the Trio seems to have had some effect on Ami's room itself. Ami and the Trio frequently find that they can go to many other places, such as a jungle, a forest, a baseball stadium (complete with crowd) and an RPG
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
-style dungeon
Dungeon
A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period...
, without actually leaving the room.
Themes and elements
Much of the comedy in Animal Yokocho involved the Trio using and sometimes misinterpreting elements of popular Japanese culture, such as television quiz showQuiz Show
Quiz Show is a 1994 American historical drama film produced and directed by Robert Redford. Adapted by Paul Attanasio from Richard Goodwin's memoir Remembering America, the film is based upon the Twenty One quiz show scandal of the 1950s...
s. There are also numerous jokes about Japanese cuisine
Japanese cuisine
Japanese cuisine has developed over the centuries as a result of many political and social changes throughout Japan. The cuisine eventually changed with the advent of the Medieval age which ushered in a shedding of elitism with the age of shogun rule...
, including the preparation of dishes such as cake and Hot Pot (Oden
Oden
Oden is a Japanese winter dish consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon radish, konnyaku, and processed fish cakes stewed in a light, soy-flavoured dashi broth. Ingredients vary according to region and between each household...
).
Although there are many elements of juvenile fantasy
Juvenile fantasy
Juvenile fantasy is children's literature with fantasy elements: fantasy intended for readers not yet adult.The protagonists are usually children or teens who have unique abilities, gifts, possessions or even allies that allow them to face powerful adversaries...
in the series, it seems that the action is actually occurring and not taking place in Ami's imagination.
Some Western viewers have made comparisons between the Trio's behaviors, abilities and personalities with those of the Warners, the protagonists of the American animation anthology Animaniacs
Animaniacs
Steven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs, usually referred to as simply Animaniacs, is an American animated series, distributed by Warner Bros. Television and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. The cartoon was the second animated series produced by the collaboration of Steven...
. Iyo has many personality traits in common with Dot Warner, and the Trio frequently behave like squabbling siblings.
Despite looking like stuffed animals, the Trio and the other inhabitants of AniYoko appear to be living beings, and there are references to suggest that they can die, including the running gag of Iyo's frequent deaths and revivals and an episode built around the apparent murder of Yamanami-san. The "spirit rabbit" that appears when Iyo dies and returns to her body when she revives is reminiscent of the portrayal of the spirits of the dead in Shinto
Shinto
or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
Mythology.
There is no connection between this series and the Animal Crossing
Animal Crossing
The Animal Crossing games have garnered positive response. The first three games are among the best-selling for their respective consoles. Animal Crossing has sold 2.321 million copies; Wild World 10.79 million; and City Folk 3.38 million...
series of video games, although the title "Animal Crossing" was mistakenly used for this series in early English-language reports.
Music
Opening themes:- ~ by Ami with Iyo, Kenta, Issa
- by Ribbon Girl
Ending themes:
- by The IndigoThe IndigoThe Indigo is a Japanese band originally composed of on vocals, on composition and arrangement, and on bass. They were first formed in 1998 and released their debut Maxi single Blue on May 24, 2000. This was followed by their 2nd Maxi Single on August 30, 2000, and their first full album Blue...
- Sweetie by Fumiko OrikasaFumiko Orikasais a Japanese voice actress and singer who works for Atomic Monkey. Her record label is Geneon Entertainment. Shopping is one of her hobbies. She is a skilled dancer, and is referred to as "Oririn" by fellow voice actors and fans. She also performed a fair number of anime insert and character image...
Episodes
- A new friend - The door has opened - 11 October 2005
- Let's bake a cake - Let's do our homework - 18 October 2005
- Puzzled punch - Dark pan - 25 October 2005
- Catalog shopping - Catching a cold - 1 November 2005
- Secret diet - Fan letter - 8 November 2005
- Fortunetelling Paradise - The BIG Fight 15 November 2005
- The story of Kenta's scarf - Iyo Affair - 22 November 2005
- Art of punchlines- AniYoko Shiritori - 29 November 2005
- Playing Cards - Autumn's Terror - 6 December 2005
- Exchange of Diaries - Murder of Yamanami-san - 13 December 2005
- It's my Birthday - Snowball Fight - 20 December 2005
- Christmas -Curing Insomnia - 27 December 2005
- Spring Cleaning - Hotspring - 3 January 2006
- Everyone's Superb - Watching the House - 10 January 2006
- Ku-chan's First Appearance - Truth of Kenta - 17 January 2006
- Preventing Cavities - I have many Interests - 24 January 2006
- Yamanami Battle 2 - Speech Meet - 30 January 2006
- The day before the field trip - Ami's First Love?! - 7 February 2006
- Valentine - Big Discovery - 14 February 2006
- Rival? - Adults? - 21 February 2006
- Video War - Issa's Special Abilities - 28 February 2006
- Rabbit and Tortoise - Investigation Team - 7 March 2006
- Mini Mini Big Adventure - AniYoko Newspaper - 28 March 2006
Animation
- TV Tokyo Animal Yokocho Homepage
- Animax's official Animal Yokochō website
- SBS Animal Yokocho Homepage
- Dongwoo Animation Co., Ltd. Homepage
Games
- Animal Yokochō Doki☆Doki Kyūshutsu Daisakusen! no Maki (Game Boy AdvanceGame Boy AdvanceThe is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
, KonamiKonamiis a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
, 2005) - Animal Yokochō Doki☆Doki Shinkyū Shiken! no Maki (Game Boy AdvanceGame Boy AdvanceThe is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
, KonamiKonamiis a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
, 2006)