is a

yonkoma , a comic strip format, generally consists of gag comic strips within four panels of equal size ordered from top to bottom. They also sometimes run right-to-left horizontally or use a hybrid 2×2 style, depending on the layout requirements of ...

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

series begun in 1991 by

Hisaichi Ishii is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known outside Japan for his manga series '' Nono-chan'', which was adapted into the Studio Ghibli anime film ''My Neighbors the Yamadas''. Topics covered by Ishii's manga include baseball (in his debut work), ...

originally serialized as in the ''

Asahi Shimbun is one of the four largest newspapers in Japan. Founded in 1879, it is also one of the oldest newspapers in Japan and Asia, and is considered a newspaper of record for Japan. Its circulation, which was 4.57 million for its morning edition and ...

'' in Japan. When the series first began, it was generally focused on all of the members of the Yamada family. As the series progressed, the daughter (Nonoko, or "Nono-chan") became the most popular character among readers and more of the strips focused on her and her point of view. In 1997, the series title was changed to reflect this change of focus. The ''Asahi Shimbun'' continues to feature this manga series as of October 2007. In July 1999,

Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Koganei, Tokyo."Studio Ghibli Collection - Madman Entertainment". ''Studio Ghibli Collection - Madman Entertainment''. Retrieved 2020-12-14. It is best known for its animated feature films, and ha ...

released ''

My Neighbors the Yamadas is a 1999 Japanese animated comedy film written and directed by Isao Takahata, animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon Television Network, Hakuhodo and Buena Vista Home Entertainment, and distributed by Shochiku.

'', a film based on this series. From 2001 to 2002, a 61 episode

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series based on the manga was shown on the

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compan ...

network in Japan.

Characters

Yamada family

; :Nonoko is the main character and a very easy-going 3rd grade

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

student. She is constantly battling to keep the lowest spot in the class (for grades). ; :Nonoko's mother, a

housewife A housewife (also known as a homemaker or a stay-at-home mother/mom/mum) is a woman whose role is running or managing her family's home—housekeeping, which includes caring for her children; cleaning and maintaining the home; making, buying an ...

. She is always worrying about what to cook for dinner (usually something that goes with

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

, and it usually turns out to be some sort of

curry A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included. There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradit ...

). She is a somewhat sloppy housekeeper as well as being forgetful. ; :Nonoko's father, an ordinary

salaryman In Japan, a is a salaried worker. In Japanese popular culture, this is embodied by a white-collar worker who shows overriding loyalty and commitment to the corporation where he works. Salarymen are expected to work long hours, to put in addit ...

. Unlike his wife and daughter, Takashi is a very diligent worker. His car is a piece of junk, and his hobbies include

pachinko is a mechanical game originating in Japan that is used as an arcade game, and much more frequently for gambling. Pachinko fills a niche in Japanese gambling comparable to that of the slot machine in the West as a form of low-stakes, low-st ...

and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

. ; :Nonoko's older brother, a

junior high school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school ...

student. He's very good at

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

, but has poor study skills and doesn't do as well in other subjects. ; :Nonoko's grandmother and Matsuko's mother. She is 70 years old. Shige is very energetic, but a very stubborn and hard boiled grandmother. ; :The Yamada family's pet dog. He generally has a sullen, grumpy mood.

Studio Ghibli film

References

External links

* * {{Hisaichi Ishii works 1991 manga 1997 manga 2001 anime television series debuts 2002 Japanese television series endings Animated television series about children Animated television series about families Anime series based on manga Comedy anime and manga Futabasha manga Hisaichi Ishii Manga adapted into films Slice of life anime and manga Toei Animation television Tokuma Shoten manga TV Asahi original programming Works originally published in Asahi Shimbun Yonkoma Animated sitcoms

Characters

Yamada family

Studio Ghibli film

See also

References

External links