Himitsu no Akko-chan

Himitsu no Akko-chan (ひみつのアッコちゃん, The Secrets of Akko-chan[1]) is a popular pioneering magical girl manga and anime[2] that ran in Japan during the 1960s.

Himitsu no Akko-chan
Cover of the DVD box of the 1969 anime series.
ひみつのアッコちゃん
GenreComedy, Magical girl, Romance
Manga
Written byFujio Akatsuka
Published byShueisha
MagazineRibon
DemographicShōjo
Original runJuly 1962 – September 1965
Volumes3
Anime television series
Directed byHiroshi Ikeda
StudioToei Animation
Original networkTV Asahi
Original run 6 January 1969 – 26 October 1970
Episodes94
Anime television series
Directed byHiroki Shibata
StudioToei Animation
Original networkFuji TV
Original run October 9, 1988 – December 24, 1989
Episodes61
Anime film
StudioToei Animation
ReleasedMarch 18, 1989 (1989-03-18)
Anime film
Himitsu no Akko-chan Umi da! Obake da!! Natsu Matsuri
StudioToei Animation
ReleasedJuly 15, 1989 (1989-07-15)
Anime television series
Directed byHiroki Shibata
StudioToei Animation
Original networkFuji TV
Original run April 5, 1998 – February 28, 1999
Episodes44
Live-action film
Directed byYasuhiro Kawamura
ReleasedSeptember 1, 2012 (2012-09-01)
Runtime120 minutes

The manga was drawn and written by Fujio Akatsuka, and was published in Ribon from 1962 to 1965. It predates the Mahōtsukai Sunny (whose name became Sally in the Mahōtsukai Sally anime) manga, printed in 1966. However, that title is the first magical girl anime as Himitsu no Akko-chan was not broadcast until 1969.

The original anime ran for 94 episodes from 1969 to 1970. It was animated by Toei Animation and broadcast by TV Asahi (then known as NET). It has been remade twice, in 1988 (61 episodes, featuring Mitsuko Horie in the role of Akko-chan and singing the opening and ending themes) and in 1998 (44 episodes).

Two movies were produced. Himitsu no Akko-chan Movie and Umi da! Obake da!! Natsu Matsuri both released in 1989. It was adapted into a live action film released on September 1, 2012.[3]

Currently, an adaptation the series is running as a web manga, ひみつのアッコちゃん μ (Himitsu no Akko-Chan μ, pronounced "myu".) It is written by Hiroshi Izawa, and drawn by Futago Kamikita.[4]

Plot

Atsuko Kagami is a childlike, arrogant elementary school girl who has an affinity for mirrors. One day, her favorite mirror which was given to Akko by her mother (or in some versions, by her father, as a present from India) is broken, and she prefers to bury it in her yard rather than throw it to the trash can.

In her dreams, she is contacted by a spirit (or in some cases the Queen of the Mirror Kingdom) who is touched that the girl would treat the mirror so respectfully and not simply throw it away. Akko-chan is then given the gift of a magical mirror and taught enchantments, "tekumaku mayakon, tekumaku mayakon" and "lamipus lamipus lu lu lu lu lu". that will allow her to transform into anything she wishes.[5]

Characters
Atsuko Kagami (鏡厚子, 加賀美あつ子, 加賀見アツコ, 加賀美あつこ, アッコちゃん)
Voiced by Yoshiko Ōta (1969), Mitsuko Horie (1988), Wakana Yamazaki (1998) Haruka Ayase (2012)
The titular protagonist. Atsuko Kagami is often called Akko-chan for short. 鏡アツ子, from the name 加賀美あつ子 but with the family-name part 加賀美, "Kagami", replaced by 鏡. In Japanese, kagami means mirror. She is known as "Stilly," "Caroline," or "Julie" in Western versions of the anime.
Kyoko Kagami (加賀美恭子)
Voiced by Reiko Senō (1969), Yoshiko Ōta (1988), Miina Tominaga (1998)
Akko's mother.
Kenichiro Kagami (加賀美健一郎)
Voiced by Ichirō Murakoshi (1969), Banjō Ginga (1988), Ken Yamaguchi (1998)
Akko's father
Moko (モコ)
Voiced by Sumiko Shirakawa (1969), Kazuko Sugiyama (1988), Kikumi Umeda (1998)
Akko's best friend.
Kankichi (カン吉)
Voiced by Akiko Tsuboi (1969), Noriko Uemura (1988), Harumi Ikoma (1998)
Moko's younger brother.
Ganmo (ガンモ)
Voiced by Junko Hori, Mariko Takigawa (1969), Noriko Tsukase, Yuko Mita (1988), Junko Takeuchi (1998)
Kankichi's friend.
Chikako (チカ子)
Voiced by Hiroko Maruyama (1969), Keiko Yamamoto (1988 and 1998)
A young girl who likes to spy on Akko.
Taisho (大将, 赤塚大作)
Voiced by Hiroshi Ōtake (1969), Yoku Shioya (1988), Takuma Suzuki (1998)
A hefty boy and rival to Akko. He has a secret crush on her.
Shosho (少将)
Voiced by Sachiko Chijimatsu (1969), Michiko Hirai (1969, episodes 56 and 61), Katsue Miwa (1988), Satomi Korogi (1998)
Taisho's younger brother.
Gyoro (ギョロ)
Voiced by Junko Hori (1969), Michitaka Kobayashi (1988), Yoshihiko Akida (1998)
Henchman of Taisho.
Goma (ゴマ)
Voiced by Kōko Kagawa, Junko Hori, Mariko Takigawa (1969), Noriko Tsukase, Chie Sato (1988), Yasuhiro Takato (1998)
Henchman of Taisho.
Shippona (シッポナ)
Voiced by Sachiko Chijimatsu, Kōko Kagawa (1969), Naoko Watanabe (1988), Ai Nagano (1998)
Akko's cat.
Dora (ドラ)
Voiced by Ichiro Murakoshi, Hiroshi Otake (1969), Masaharu Sato (1988), Yasuhiro Takato (1998)
Taisho's cat.
Kenji Sato (佐藤健二, 佐藤先生)
Voiced by Osamu Ichikawa (1969), Masaharu Sato (1988), Hiroki Takahashi (1998)
Homeroom teacher of Akko and Moko.
Moriyama (森山先生)
Voiced by Naoko Takahashi, Kōko Kagawa (1969), Kyoko Irokawa (1988), Ai Nagano (1998)
English teacher.
Queen of the Mirror Country (ドラ)
Voiced by Reiko Senoo, Kōko Kagawa (1969), Eiko Masuyama (1988), Mitsuko Horie (1998)
A queen from the distant "Magic Country". She provides Akko with the compact mirror.

Exclusive to 1969 Anime
Narrator
Voiced by Shun Yashiro
Gabo (ガア坊)
Voiced by Shun Yashiro
A talking parrot.

Exclusive to 1988 Anime
Kio (キーオ)
Voiced by Shigeru Nakahara
Prince of Mirror Country
Gentaro (源太郎)
Voiced by Kazumi Tanaka
Elderly servant of Kio
The Strange Old Man (変なおじさん)
Voiced by Kazumi Tanaka
A strange man who shows up randomly.

Exclusive to 1998 Anime
Ippei (一平)
Voiced by Junko Takeuchi
A penguin who joins Akko and friends.

Exclusive to 2012 Movie
Naoto Hayase (早瀬尚人 役)
Voiced by Masaki Okada

Foreign distribution

The only media in the franchise to be officially translated into English is the 1980s run of the manga, translated as Akko-Chan's Got a Secret![6] The series briefly aired in its original Japanese on California channel KWHY-TV in the mid 1970s as Akko Chan's Secret.[7]

Otherwise largely unknown in the English-speaking world, Himitsu no Akko-chan enjoyed a good deal of success when it was exported to the European market in the 1980s. All three Akko-chan series have been screened on TV in Italy.

  • Lo specchio magico (Italian, first series)
  • Caroline (French, second series; pronounced "Cah-ro-LEHN")
  • Los secretos de Julie (Spanish language version shown in Latin America, first series)
  • El Secreto de Akko (Spanish version shown in Spain, third series)
  • Un mondo di magia (Italian, second series)
  • Stilly e lo specchio magico (Italian, third series): In series three, as in series one, "Stilly" is the Italian name for Akko-chan.
  • Czarodziejskie zwierciadełko (Polish, first series)

References
  1. "Toei Animation TV Series". Toei Animation. January 24, 2016. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
  2. Thompson, Jason (2007). Manga: The Complete Guide. Del Rey. p. 8. ISBN 0345485904.
  3. "Haruka Ayase Stars in 1st Live-Action Himitsu no Akko-chan Film". Anime News Network. October 4, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
  4. "スピネル | ひみつのアッコちゃんμ（ミュー） - 漫画：上北ふたご／シナリオ：井沢ひろし 原作：赤塚不二夫／協力：フジオ・プロダクション" [Himitsu no Aukko μ (Mu) - Manga: Kamakita Futoto / Scenario: Hiroshi Izawa Original: Fujio Akatsuka / Cooperation: Fuji Production]. Comip.jp. 珠玉の女性向け漫画作品を集めたＷＥＢサイト。いくえみ綾、篠丸のどかなど、豪華作家陣の漫画を無料で配信中!. Retrieved November 24, 2017.
  5. "Himitsu no Akko-chan". Fujio Productions. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  6. "Akko-Chan's Got a Secret!: Fujio Akatsuka, translated by Carla Valentine". Toei Animation. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
  7. https://www.newspapers.com/search/#query=Akko-chan%27s+Secret&offset=14
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