is a Japanese
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 ...
and
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 created by Kenji Morita. The series revolves around household robot Robotan, who is created By Kan-chan and lives with an everyday Japanese family as a domestic servant and friend to the children. Like
Doraemon
''Doraemon'' ( ja, ドラえもん ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujiko F. Fujio. The manga was first serialized in December 1969, with List of Doraemon chapters, its 1,345 individual chapters compiled into 45 ' ...
, his good intentions don't always work out, with comic consequences. The original series was produced by Daiko Advertising. Production moved to
Tokyo Movie Shinsha
, formerly known as the , also known as or , is a Japanese animation studio established on October 22, 1946.
TMS is one of the oldest and most famous anime studios in Japan, best known for numerous anime franchises such as ''Lupin the Third'', ...
for the 20th-anniversary color remake ''New Robotan'' (1986) under director Masaharu Okuwaki.
Plot
Robotan is a
robot
A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be c ...
made by a school boy named Kan-chan, a nerd. He has special abilities like "Robotan Copter", "Robotan Punch" etc. His arch Rival is Botchi, a small kid who dislikes Robotan and makes several plans to destroy him or make him a slave, but Robotan destroys all his plans. He has also a little crush on his teacher, Umi. He is very fond of bananas which gives him power. His male mentor Uminoyamais is also in love with Umi, at which Robotan is angered.
Media
Manga
Written and illustrated by Kenji Morita, the manga began serialization in the Shonen Gaho magazine in 1966. The manga was published simultaneously with the 1966 anime version after Morita was hired by Daiko Advertising to create a series similar to
Obake no Q-Taro
and are a class of ''yōkai'', preternatural creatures in Japanese folklore. Literally, the terms mean ''a thing that changes'', referring to a state of transformation or shapeshifting.
These words are often translated as "ghost", but primari ...
.
Anime
1966 anime
The 1966 anime version of ''Robotan'' was produced by Daiko Advertising and the animation was outsourced to four studios, all located in Osaka. The studios providing the animation were Puppe Production, A Production, Sun Production, and Nakamura Production, all of which would take turns producing the episodes. All the stories were handled at Daiko Advertising, which would then be sent the four studios. The film would then be sent back to Daiko for editing and dubbing work.
The series was aired on
Fuji Television
JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba
today is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay, Japan, across the Rainbow Bridge from central Tokyo. Odaiba was initially b ...
from October 4, 1966 to September 27, 1968 for 104 episodes. To this day, it's unknown how many episodes still survive. The films were thrown out by Daiko several years ago and ended up as collectors items.
1986 anime
The 1986 anime color remake was produced by Daiko who contracted
Tokyo Movie Shinsha
, formerly known as the , also known as or , is a Japanese animation studio established on October 22, 1946.
TMS is one of the oldest and most famous anime studios in Japan, best known for numerous anime franchises such as ''Lupin the Third'', ...
to handle the production of it. It aired on Yomiuri Television from January 6 to September 22, 1986 for 33 episodes.
Characters
*Robotan voiced by Hyosuke Kanbe (1966), Hiroko Maruyama (1986)
*Kan-chan voiced by Yoko Matsui (1966),
Eiko Yamada
is a Japanese actress and voice actress from Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Hisamura worked under her maiden name before her marriage and for a long time afterward, so that name is still often used, even among fans. She is currently affilia ...
(1986)
*Bocchi voiced by Hiromi Onoe (1966),
Chika Sakamoto
is a Japanese voice actress who is affiliated with Arts Vision.
Filmography Television animation
;1980s
*''Captain Tsubasa'' (1983) – Sanae Nakazawa
*'' Cat's Eye'' (1983) – Ai Kisugi
*'' Nine'' (1983) – Yukimi Yasuda
*'' Super Dimension C ...
(1986)
*Kiiko voiced by Takako Nakamori (1966),
Mayumi Tanaka
(born January 15, 1955) is a Japanese actress, voice actress and narrator. She voiced Monkey D. Luffy in ''One Piece'', Ryunosuke Fujinami in ''Urusei Yatsura'', Koenma in ''Yu Yu Hakusho'', Pazu in '' Laputa: Castle in the Sky'', Krillin, Yajir ...
(1986)
Opening themes
1966 series:
* Robotan no Uta (ロボタンの歌)
1986 series:
* I'm Robotan (ボクはロボタン)
References
External links
*
{{TMS Entertainment
1966 anime television series debuts
1986 anime television series debuts