is a Japanese

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 ...

series written and illustrated by

Fujio Akatsuka was a pioneer Japanese artist of comical manga known as the Gag Manga King. His name at birth is 赤塚藤雄, whose Japanese pronunciation is the same as 赤塚不二夫. He was born in Rehe, Manchuria, the son of a Japanese military poli ...

, which began publication on April 9, 1967, in ''

Weekly Shōnen Magazine is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published on Wednesdays in Japan by Kodansha, first published on March 17, 1959. The magazine is mainly read by an older audience, with a significant portion of its readership falling under the male hig ...

''. It is about the misadventures of a dim-witted boy (Bakabon) and his idiotic father, the latter of whom eventually becomes the central character. It has been adapted into five

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. The first two series produced by

Tokyo Movie , 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'', ...

were broadcast in the 1970s for 40 and 103 episodes respectively. The third and fourth series were produced by

Pierrot Pierrot ( , , ) is a stock character of pantomime and '' commedia dell'arte'', whose origins are in the late seventeenth-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne. The name is a diminutive of ''Pi ...

and broadcast in 1990 and 1999–2000, for 46 and 24 episodes respectively. The fifth series was produced by Pierrot+ and broadcast for 12 episodes in 2018.

Characters

; :Bakabon's troublemaker father who eventually steals the show and becomes the central character. His catchphrase is saying "" to someone when trying to get them to go along with one of his stupid plans. A typical episode plot involves Papa either being too stupid to perform a simple task or coming up with some crazy idea to accomplish a simple task, usually asking for his son Bakabon's advice and causing tons of trouble. He was once very smart but became an idiot after an accident. He is known for always wearing his trademark

hachimaki A is a Japanese headband, usually made of red or white cloth, typically featuring a design of kanji at the front. It is worn as a symbol of effort or courage by the wearer, especially by those in the military, or to simply keep sweat off one' ...

and haramaki. His favorite food is

octopus An octopus ( : octopuses or octopodes, see below for variants) is a soft-bodied, eight- limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, ...

. Papa has become an anime icon in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

and was ranked number 9 in a 2002

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 Comp ...

Top 100 Anime Characters list. Voiced by

Masashi Amenomori was a Japanese actor and voice actor. Death Amenomori died of cirrhosis on April 9, 1984. At the time of his death he was represented by Aoni Production. Notable voice work *'' Ai Shite Knight'' (Juliano) ''final role'' *''Gatchaman'' (Debu) *' ...

(1st-2nd series),

Kōsei Tomita was a Japanese actor and voice actor from Tokyo Prefecture who was affiliated with Aoni Production and Production Baobab. He voiced Doraemon in the first half of the original 1973 ''Doraemon'' series. He voiced Shunsaku Ban, also known as Mus ...

(3rd series,

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 ...

games), Hisahiro Ogura (4th series),

Arata Furuta is a Japanese theatre and film character actor. Biography Furata has a broad range that goes from playing serious salary men, to '' bushi'' in period drama roles, and even women. He works with the theatrical troupe called Otona Keikaku and oft ...

(5th series). ; :A boy who enjoys causing

mischief Mischief or malicious mischief is the name for a criminal offenses that is defined differently in different legal jurisdictions. While the wrongful acts will often involve what is popularly described as vandalism, there can be a legal different ...

, especially with his Papa. On the inside, though, he is kind and works a part-time job as a shoeshine boy to buy his mother a birthday present. He is known for not wearing pants underneath his

kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

. At the beginning of the series he attends , which means Idiot Elementary School, but by the fourth anime it has been renamed , meaning Stupid Elementary School. Voiced by

Keiko Yamamoto , born August 7, 1943, is a Japanese voice actress from Osaka Prefecture. Many of her roles have been older women, young boys, or tomboyish young girls. Filmography Anime television series * Akado Suzunosuke – Akadō Suzunosuke * Andersen ...

(1st-2nd series, pachinko),

Megumi Hayashibara is a Japanese voice actress, singer, lyricist and radio personality from Kita ward in Tokyo and is affiliated with self-founded Woodpark Office. One of the most prominent Japanese voice actresses since the 1990s, Hayashibara is best known for ...

(3rd series),

Yoshiko Kamei is a Japanese voice actress from Ibaraki Prefecture. She is affiliated with Mausu Promotion. Roles Animation *'' Anime Himitsu no Hanazono'' (Bunny) *'' Atashin'chi'' (Nursing practitioner, Hanae) *'' Baby and Me'' (Tadashi Gotō, Taichi Kimur ...

(4th series),

Miyu Irino is a Japanese voice actor and singer. He voiced Haku in ''Spirited Away'', Shoya Ishida in '' A Silent Voice'', Sena Kobayakawa in ''Eyeshield 21'', Jinta "Jintan" Yadomi in '' Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day'', Syaoran in '' Tsubasa: Rese ...

(5th series). ; :Bakabon's younger brother. He is a

child prodigy A child prodigy is defined in psychology research literature as a person under the age of ten who produces meaningful output in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to young people who are extraor ...

, understanding words almost immediately after his birth and being capable of explaining the

Pythagorean theorem In mathematics, the Pythagorean theorem or Pythagoras' theorem is a fundamental relation in Euclidean geometry between the three sides of a right triangle. It states that the area of the square whose side is the hypotenuse (the side opposit ...

and

Kepler's laws of planetary motion In astronomy, Kepler's laws of planetary motion, published by Johannes Kepler between 1609 and 1619, describe the orbits of planets around the Sun. The laws modified the heliocentric theory of Nicolaus Copernicus, replacing its circular orb ...

. His name means "beginning". Voiced by Takako Sasuga (1st-2nd series, pachinko),

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 ...

(3rd series), Yukiji (4th series),

Ai Nonaka is a Japanese voice actress and singer. She works for Aoni Production and was formerly a member of the voice actor unit Drops, which included fellow voice actor Akemi Kanda, Tomoko Kaneda, Mariko Kōda, and Ryōko Shiraishi. In high school in ...

(5th series). ; :Bakabon's mother and a graduate of (a parody of Shirayuri Women's University). Despite how much trouble and mischief Papa and Bakabon cause, she is a good wife and mother. She is the only family member to have the same voice actress throughout the series. Voiced by

Eiko Masuyama is a Japanese actress and narrator. She works for Aoni Production. She is most known for originating the roles of Fujiko Mine ('' Lupin III''), Honey Kisaragi ('' Cutie Honey''), and Bakabon's Mama ('' Tensai Bakabon''). Early life Eiko Masuya ...

(1st-4th series), Haruko Kitahama (1st series, Ep. 35 only),

Noriko Hidaka , better known by the stage name of , is a Japanese actress, voice actress, singer and narrator. She played Minami Asakura in ''Touch'', Akane Tendo in '' Ranma ½'', Satsuki Kusakabe in '' My Neighbor Totoro'', Near in '' Death Note'', Jean Roq ...

(5th series). ; :The Bakabon family's odd neighbor, named so for his tendency to say "rerere" (rather than ) when confused about the countless shenanigans in the series. He is almost always seen sweeping the street outside of his yard. He is bald, has a moustache but no nose, ears that extend slightly off of his head, and wears a

yukata A is an unlined cotton summer kimono, worn in casual settings such as summer festivals and to nearby bathhouses. Originally worn as bathrobes, their modern use is much broader, and are a common sight in Japan during summer. Though are traditi ...

and geta sandals. Voiced by

Ryūji Saikachi was a Japanese actor and voice actor, known for his roles as Matthew Cuthbert in ''Anne of Green Gables'', Old Man in ''Paranoia Agent'', and Dwarf in ''The Wonderful Adventures of Nils''. Saikachi died from congestive heart failure on Septemb ...

(1st-2nd series),

Shigeru Chiba , known by the stage name , is a Japanese actor, voice actor, talent and sound director from Kikuchi, Kumamoto. He is affiliated with the talent management firm 81 Produce. He is most known for the roles of Yoshihiro Kira from '' JoJo's Bizarre ...

(3rd-4th series, pachinko),

Akira Ishida is a Japanese actor and voice actor. For his portrayal of Saki Abdusha in '' You're Under Arrest'', Makoto Kurumizawa in ''BOYS BE'', Setsuna Aoki in '' Sakura Wars'', and Athrun Zala in '' Gundam SEED'' & '' Gundam Seed Destiny'', he was ch ...

(5th series). ; :The local beat cop, referred to as in the anime. He is gluttonous, lecherous, and often fires his pistol at random. He is always wishing for money or a promotion. His notable features include his huge eyes usually drawn as connected into one eyeball, his

underbite In orthodontics, a malocclusion is a misalignment or incorrect relation between the teeth of the upper and lower dental arches when they approach each other as the jaws close. The English-language term dates from 1864; Edward Angle (1855-1930) ...

buck teeth (from the jawbone), and his one nostril in the middle of his nose. His official name from Akatsuka is . Voiced by

Isamu Tanonaka was a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Taitō, Tokyo. He was best known for voicing Medama Oyaji in nearly every adaptation of Shigeru Mizuki's '' GeGeGe no Kitarō'' made during his lifetime. Career During his life he had been atta ...

(1st series),

Kaneta Kimotsuki was a Japanese actor and voice actor who was most known for the roles of Takeshi Goda before Suneo Honekawa in Fujiko F. Fujio's Doraemon. Career During his life he had been attached to TBS broadcast theater company and then Aoni Production ...

(2nd series), Shigeru Chiba (3rd-4th series, pachinko),

Toshiyuki Morikawa is a Japanese voice actor, narrator and singer who is the head of Axlone, a voice acting company he founded in April 2011. His name is also sometimes mistranslated as Tomoyuki Morikawa. In 2003, he and Fumihiko Tachiki formed the band "2Hearts" ...

(5th anime). ; :An unusual animal from the neighborhood who is a cross between an eel and a dog. Voiced by

Michihiro Ikemizu is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Kanagawa Prefecture and a graduate of Waseda University who works for Aoni Production. Among his other roles, he has performed the characters Hot Springs Emblem (''Urusei Yatsura''), Isao Ohta ...

(2nd series),

Aruno Tahara is a Japanese voice actor. Filmography Television animation *'' Cat's Eye'' (1983) (Domon) *'' Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai'' (1991) (Baduck) *''Yu Yu Hakusho'' (1992) (Risho) *''Mahōjin Guru Guru'' (1994) (Bajāni) *''Hikaru no Go'' (2 ...

(3rd series),

Kōzō Shioya is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Kagoshima Prefecture. He is represented by Aoni Production. His younger brother Yoku Shioya is also an actor and voice actor. Biography Filmography Television animation ;1980s *''Mobile Suit Z ...

(4th series),

Takahiro Sakurai is a Japanese voice actor, narrator, and radio personality from Aichi Prefecture, Japan. His well-known roles include heroes such as Cloud Strife in ''Compilation of Final Fantasy VII'', Suzaku Kururugi in '' Code Geass'' and X in '' Mega Man X ...

(5th anime). ; :A goofy dog who shows up during scene changes. ; :Bakabon's classmate who always wears a helmet. For the 4th anime he was renamed . Voiced by

Rica Matsumoto is a Japanese actress, voice actress and singer who was born in Yokohama, Japan. Her name is also sometimes romanized as Rica Matsumoto. She was one of the founders of the anison band JAM Project. After early stage work, she began both voice a ...

(3rd series), Kappei Yamaguchi (4th series). ; :A reckless horse with no owner.

Minor characters

; :Bakabon's headmaster. Only appears in the first anime. Voiced by

Kōichi Kitamura , better known by the stage name , was a Japanese voice actor born in Osaka, Japan. Kitamura was employed by the talent management agency Mausu Promotion. He is known for dubbing roles played by Peter Cushing. He died on October 2, 2007 of p ...

. ; :Bakabon's ill-tempered classmate. Only appears in the first anime. Voiced by Kaneta Kimotsuki.

Characters from Akatsuka's other Titles

; :Originally from Osomatsu-kun, he only appears in the Rerere no Tensai Bakabon series alongside Chibita. Voiced by

(Episodes 1, 4, 16); Kenichi Ogata (Episodes 3, 6, 11, 16, 20-21, 24) (4th series) ; :Originally from Osomatsu-kun, he only appears in the Rerere no Tensai Bakabon series alongside Iyami. ; :Originally from Osomatsu-kun, he only appears in the Rerere no Tensai Bakabon series. ; :Originally from Osomatsu-kun, he only appears in the Rerere no Tensai Bakabon series. ; :Originally from Osomatsu-kun, he only appears in the Rerere no Tensai Bakabon series. ; :Originally from Kikanpo Gen-chan. Bakabon's girlfriend. Only appears in the first anime. Voiced by Kazuko Sawada.

Media

Manga

4 bilingual Japanese-English volumes have been released of the manga as ''The Genius Bakabon''.

Anime

Four anime series have been produced, with the first two series produced by

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'' ...

and the second two produced by Studio Pierrot. aired for 40 episodes on

Yomiuri TV JOIX-DTV (channel 10), branded as , is the Kansai region flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned by the subsidiary of the eponymous Yomiuri Shimbun Holdings, Japan's largest media conglomer ...

from September 25, 1971, to June 24, 1972. Three years later, aired for 103 episodes on

NTV NTV may refer to: Television * NTV (Bangladesh), a Bengali-language satellite television channel in Bangladesh * NTV (India), Telugu regional channel * NTV (Kenya) * NTV (Mongolia), a television channel based in Mongolia * NTV (Newport Televis ...

from October 6, 1975, to September 26, 1977. The two Studio Pierrot series aired nearly nine years apart, with airing on

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned and operated by the it is the key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network S ...

for 46 episodes from January 6 to December 29, 1990, and airing on

TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as and known colloquially as , is a television station headquartered in the Sumitomo Fudosan Roppongi Grand Tower in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by the subsidiary of listed certifie ...

from October 19, 1999, to March 21, 2000, for 24 episodes. In India this show was broadcast by

Hungama TV Hungama TV is an Indian television channel aimed at children, mainly showcasing Japanese and Indian animated series. It was launched on 26 September 2004. The Hindi word "hungama" means 'ruckus' in English. It is owned by Disney Star. The chann ...

. A late night anime titled premiered on July 10, 2018 on

and other channels. It ran for 12 episodes.

Notes

References

External links

Heisei Tensai Bakabon
Studio Pierrot
Heisei Tensai Bakabon
Studio Pierrot (Japanese) * * {{Studio Signpost 1967 manga 1971 anime television series debuts 1975 anime television series debuts 1990 anime television series debuts 1999 anime television series debuts Comedy anime and manga Fuji TV original programming Fujio Akatsuka Gag-a-day comics Kodansha manga Nippon TV original programming Pierrot (company) Studio Signpost Shogakukan manga Shōnen manga TMS Entertainment TV Tokyo original programming Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation original programming