The Flying House (TV series)
The Flying House, known in Japan as Tondera Hausu no Daibōken (トンデラハウスの大冒険, Adventures of the Flying House), is a 52 episode anime series produced by Tatsunoko Productions broadcast between April 1982 and March 1983 on TV Tokyo,[1] and distributed by the Christian Broadcasting Network in the United States.[2] In 2010, the Christian Broadcasting Network made the 52 episodes available for viewing online.[3]
The Flying House | |
Cover art from volume 1 of the DVD release of the series | |
トンデラハウスの大冒険 (Tondera Hausu no Daibōken) | |
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Genre | Christian Animation |
Anime television series | |
Directed by | Masakazu Higuchi and Mineo Fuji |
Studio | Tatsunoko Productions |
Licensed by | |
Original network | TV Tokyo |
Original run | 5 April 1982 – 28 March 1983 |
Episodes | 52 |
At the same time, CBN and Tatsunoko also produced a related series, Superbook.[2]
In the Philippines, reruns of the show were broadcast on GMA Network in 1992 and on ABS-CBN in 2015. The episodes are currently broadcast on Pop Life TV via digital free-to-air television BEAM TV.
Plot
The series begins in the middle of a game of hide and seek, as a young boy named Justin Casey (Gen Adachi) finishes counting and begins searching for his friends Angela "Angie" Roberts and her little brother Corbin "Corky" Roberts (Kanna and Tsukubo Natsuyama). As he searches for Angie and Corky in a wooded area, a thunderstorm suddenly appears. Justin manages to sneak up on the two before the rain starts pouring, forcing them to run for cover. They eventually find a spacecraft type house in the wooded area, previously unseen according to Justin. At first glance it appears that nobody is home, until they discover a clown battery type android named Solar Ion Robot (Kadenchin), or S.I.R. for short. They soon meet the owner of the house, Professor Humphrey Bumble (Dr. Tokio Taimu), who introduces the children to his greatest creation, a half rocket, half house one of a kind time machine namely The Flying House. Humphrey's attempt at recreating Benjamin Franklin's famous lightning experiment with the use of a bat looking kite flying outside the house to get the machine working only leads to a temporary change in S.I.R.'s personality from nice to mean and goes berserk before sending The Flying House on course for the past. Little did they know that Justin, Angie, Corky, and S.I.R. truly realize how long the journey back home will take due to Humphrey's misguidance and errors in time travel, but in the meantime they witness and participate (with little or no consequences) in numerous events in the Bible's New Testament, from John the Baptist's birth to the rise of the Apostle Paul.
Eventually, they make it home exactly the same way they traveled into the past in the first place. S.I.R. gets a knock in the head which, again, makes him go from nice to mean and go berserk and he attacks The Flying House. Ironically, S.I.R.'s berserkiness fixes it in such a way that it finally sends the whole crew back to their own time period, and the show ends, with S.I.R. changed back from mean to nice by the end of the trip.
Cast
The main cast of the series includes (English-language voice actors in parentheses):[4]
- Justin Casey is played by (Billie Lou Watt) Corky and Angie's best friend. His Japanese counterpart Gen Adachi, is played by Satomi Majima.
- Angela "Angie" Roberts is played by (Sonia Owens) – Corky's older sister and Justin's best friend. Her Japanese counterpart, Kanna Natsuyama, is played by Sanae Takagi.
- Corbin "Corky" Roberts is played by (Helena Van Koert) – Angie's little brother and Justin's best friend. His Japanese counterpart, Tsukubo Natsuyama, is played by Runa Akiyama.
- Professor Humphrey Bumble is played (Hal Studer) – The inventor of the Flying House. His Japanese counterpart, Dr.Tokio Taimu, is played by Yoshito Yasuhara.
- S.I.R. (Solar Ion Robot) is played by (Ray Owens) - Justin, Angie, and Corky's best friend and Professor Bumble's clown type robotic assistant. His Japanese counterpart, Kandenchin, is played by Kyōko Tongū.
- Jesus Christ is also played by (Ray Owens) - played by Jun Hazumi in Japanese.
- Paul the Apostle is also played by (Hal Studer).
- The Flying House is himself - his Japanese counterpart Tondera Hausu, is himself.
Episode List
Season 1 (1982)
- Blast Off For the Past - The Flying House transports back from the 20th century to 1st century Judaea. The episode narrates the story of the birth of John the Baptist.
- Star-Spangled Night - The narrative of the Birth of Jesus.
- Lost and Found in Time - The finding of the lost 12 year-old Jesus at the Temple in Jerusalem.
- Voice in the Wilderness - The Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist.
- Speak of the Devil - The Temptation of Jesus in the wilderness.
- All That Glitters - The recruitment of Matthew as an apostle of Jesus.
- Military Secrets - The Healing of the Centurion's servantby Jesus.
- The Prize That Was Won and Lost - The execution of John the Baptist.
- Another Life - Jesus raises Jairus' daughter back to life.
- The Runaway - Jesus' performs the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves.
- Neighbors - Jesus tells the parables of The Good Samaritan and The Ungrateful Servant.
- Poor Little Rich Men - Jesus preaches The parables of The Rich Fool and The Prodigal Son.
- The Greatest - The apostles argue who amongst them is the greatest.
- Back From the Grave - The story of Martha and Mary; the resurrection of Lazarus.
- Real Treasure - The story of the conversion of Zacchaeus.
- What If - The parables of The Unprofitable Servant; and the man who built his house on a rock and the man who built his house on sand.
- The Lost Sheep - The parables of the Good Shepherd and the Workers in the Vineyard.
- Sour Grapes - The first miracle of Jesus during the Wedding at Cana.
- Dog Gone - Jesus heals the Gentile woman's daughter.
- Little Orphan Anna - The story of the poor widow's offering at the Temple.
- A Word to the Wise - The parables of the Evil Judge and Wedding Feast.
- Judgement Day - The parables of Lazarus and the Rich Man and The Astute Master.
- Possessed - Jesus cures a man possessed by an evil spirit; The Gadarene Demoniac
- Over the Hill - Jesus cures ten lepers.
- True Friends - Jesus cures a paralytic lying in bed.
- Devil's Gate - Jesus raises the widow's son.
Season 2 (1983)
- Well, Well, Well? - Jesus meets a Samaritan woman on the well and promises her the gift of living water.
- Left Holding the Bag - Jesus heals a paralytic man on Bethesda pool during the Sabbath Day.
- Who Among You? - A Pharisee asks Jesus a question with regards to the stoning of an adulteress.
- Oil and Water - Jesus sends his 12 disciples in pairs to preach the word of God and to perform miracles.
- A Special Secret - The Transfiguration and Jesus cures an epileptic boy.
- Midnight Callers - Jesus teaches, "Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door will be opened to you." The Parable of The Ten Maidens.
- What's it worth? - The Parable Of The Sower. Jesus explains about the Kingdom Of God being comparable to the sower in the field and separates the good harvest from the weeds; the fisherman who catches all kinds of fish and then keeps the good ones and throws away the bad ones; and the man who sells everything upon finding the most expensive treasure in the world.
- Fruitless - The parables of The Weeds and The Murderous Tenants.
- Fit For a King - Jesus uses a colt when he enters to The City of Jerusalem; "The Truimphal Entry to Jerusalem"
- The Secret Agent - Jesus drives the merchants out of the temple in Jerusalem.
- The Preparation - Mary of Bethany washes Jesus' feet with an alabaster box of expensive perfume; Jesus heals a blind man.
- Betrayed - The Lord Supper; Jesus washes the apostles' feet; The agony of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane; Judas Iscariot betrays Jesus and sends him to Caiaphas.
- Who's in Charge - Jesus is presented to Caiaphas, King Herod Antipas, and Pontius Pilate; Peter betrays Jesus thrice and the cock crows.
- The Crown of Thorns - Jesus is scourged at the pillar and put with a crown of thorns; Pilate frees Barabbas and sentenced Jesus to death by crucifixion.
- Golgotha - Jesus carries his cross towards Golgotha Simon of Cyrene is compelled to carry the cross before Jesus; The Crucifixion
- The Empty Tomb - The Resurrection of Jesus.
- With You Always - The Ascension of Jesus into heaven; Jesus appears as himself to two of his disciples in the road towards Emmaus. The apostles catch many fish with the help of the risen Christ. Jesus asked Peter thrice, "Do you love me?"
- The Prison Break - An angel helps Peter escape from prison.
- Good Riddance - The death of King Herod.
- The Blinding Light - The conversion of Saul from being a persecutor of Christians to becoming an apostle of Jesus; The death of Stephen.
- Bound & Rebound - Paul preaches the word of God in Macedonia and deliver a woman from an evil spirit. Paul and Silas are flogged in public and placed in prison. A severe earthquake happened while they are in prison. The Roman officials released them from prison.
- Tender Grapes - Paul interferes in a mob and helps a man get justice.
- Shipwrecked - Paul is shipwrecked in the island of Malta.
- Snake Bite - Paul is bitten by a snake but does not die. He heals a young girl from a severe illness.
- Heartbreak - The story of Onesimus, the slave of Philemon.
- Homeward Bound - Paul writes Philemon to take back Onesimus, who is baptized and converted as a follower of Christ. The Flying House finally returns to the 20th century after its treks through the times of Ancient Israel.
Home video and syndication
The Flying House was available on VHS by Tyndale; all 52 episodes were released over 26 VHS cassettes. A DVD volume of The Flying House was released by Vision Video in 2006, featuring the first four episodes. In 2010, the Christian Broadcasting Network made the 52 episodes available for viewing online.[3] The series also airs on the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) and its children's subchannel Smile.
Other titles
- French: La maison volante
- German: Fliegendes Haus (Flying House; aired on Bibel TV)
- Spanish: La casa voladora
- Russian: Летающий дом
- Ukrainian: Літаючий будинок
- Romanian: Casa Zburătoare
- Danish: Det Flyvende Hus
- Hungarian: A repülő ház
- Mongolian: Нисдэг байшин
- Hebrew: הבית המעופף
- Portuguese: A Casa Voadora
See also
- Other Christian themed Japanese cartoons, i.e. anime: Superbook, In the Beginning: The Bible Stories
- Christian themed western cartoons: The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible, The Story Keepers, CHI RHO – Das Geheimnis
References
- トンデラハウスの大冒険 (in Japanese). Tatsunoko Productions. Retrieved 13 December 2010.
- Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 808–809. ISBN 978-1476665993.
- "The Flying House". Christian Broadcasting Network. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
- Time kyôshitsu: Tondera house no dai bôken, IMDb
External links
- The Flying House episodes viewable online at CBN.com
- The Flying House (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- The Flying House at IMDb