Moomin (ムーミン, Mūmin) is a Japanese anime series broadcast on the Fuji Television Network between 1969 and 1970. The series of 65 episodes is very loosely based on Tove Jansson's book series. Jansson, however, never really approved of the series due to dramatic changes in plot, atmosphere, character personality, appearance and names. The series was aimed at adults rather than children. The first episode aired on October 5, 1969; the last on December 27, 1970.
The series was never translated into English. It is also notably different from the 1990 Moomin anime series. The later series is much more faithful to the original spirit of the Moomin books, and was accepted as a part of the Moomin franchise.
Summary
This series is the 1969 version of Moomin.
It is only called, "Moomin" in Japan, and is called the first half as "Tokyo Movie version" and the latter half as "Mushi pro version". Especially, Hisashi Inoue, the novelist and dramatist who won many prizes, has participated as a screenwriter in the first half.
Tokyo Movie that undertook the production of this at first drew the eye of Moomin greatly according to liking of a Japanese children, and drew him lovely. The character of Moomin also differs from an original. He was a naughty ordinary boy who occasionally did fight or was a little sly. Moreover, since the car etc. appeared in everyday life ordinarily, Tove Jansson, the original author, got angry, saying "my Moomin is No car, No fight, and No money" (At that time, Hayao Miyazaki who had participated in this work as an animator opposed it, and made the tank appear in the work). Although the reputation as animation for the boys in whom elements of an adventure and a comedy, etc. were incorporated was very high, it was too different from the original. In addition, the names weren't the same as in the original, and the heroine who didn’t have any name in the original (and was called only "The Snork Maiden") was named "Non-non". The first director took the name from his wife's pet. However, she was renamed "フローレン, Fraulen" which parodied the word "Fräulein" to mean "young lady" in later "Delightful Moomin Family" because the author disliked her name being audible as "non, non (no, no)". As a result, Tokyo Movie had the contract cancelled, and the character design had been changed by her complaint.
Mushi pro version which took over this work had a lot of literary episode in which a mysterious story, a scary story, an absurd story, a myth story or a tragedy, etc. were included.
Still, her consent is not obtained, and the program has ended.
List of Moomin episodes
| # | Original Title Japanese | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | " シルクハットのひみつ" | Secret of Silk Hat |
| 2 | "悪魔のハートをねらえ" | Aim at the heart of the devil |
| 3 | "雨だ!あらしだ!!洪水だ!!!" | It is Rains! It is Storm!! It is Flood!!! |
| 4 | "ふしぎの泉はどこにある?" | Where is Wonderful Spring? |
| 5 | "パパの思い出のライフル" | Rifle of the memory of papa |
| 6 | "かえってきたノンノン" | Nonnon who comes back |
| 7 | "さよならガオガオ" | Good-bye, Gao-Gao |
| 8 | "ノンノンがあぶない" | Nonnon is in danger |
| 9 | "ムーミン谷の列車大強盗" | Train Great Robber of Moomin Valley |
| 10 | "ふしぎなこびと" | Mysterious Midget |
| 11 | "消えたコレクション" | Collection Which Disappeared |
| 12 | "ムーミン谷のクリスマス" | Christmas of Moomin Valley |
| 13 | "パパは売れっ子作家" | Papa is a popular writer |
| 14 | "ムーミン谷最後の日" | The Last Day in Moomin Valley |
| 15 | "帆を上げろ!ムーミン号" | Put up the sail! Moomin ship |
| 16 | "謎のグノース博士" | Dr. Gnos of mystery |
| 17 | "ベビーはどこに" | Where is a baby? |
| 18 | "乞食になりたい" (再放送で「金持ちはもうやだ」に変更される) | I want to become a beggar (it is changed in "I already got tired of the rich person" at the time of rebroadcast) |
| 19 | "月着陸OK! " | Landfall on the moon, O.K.! |
| 20 | "スキーでハッスル! " | Hustle on Skis! |
| 21 | "ふしぎな家なき子" | Strange Child without Home |
| 22 | "山男だよヤッホー! " | I’m Mountaineer, Yoo-hoo! |
| 23 | "チビのミー大作戦" | The big operation plan of Little Mee |
| 24 | "おさびし山のガンマン" | Gunman of Deserted Mountain |
| 25 | "おめでとうスノーク" | Congratulations, Snork |
| 26 | "ノンノンこっちむいて" | Nonnon, Please turn around to me |
| 27 | "顔をなくしたニンニ" | Ninny who lost a face |
| 28 | "小さな大冒険" | Small, great adventure |
| 29 | "ひこう鬼現わる" | Flying Demon(=The Hobgoblin) appears |
| 30 | "天国からの贈りもの" | Present from Heaven |
| 31 | "ごめんねスティンキー" | I'm sorry, Stinky |
| 32 | "森のゆうれい屋敷" | Haunted House in the forest |
| 33 | "おくびょうな豆泥棒" | Cowardly Beans Thief |
| 34 | "金の馬銀の馬" | Golden Horse, Silver Horse |
| 35 | "夏祭りのオーロラ" | Aurora of Summer Festival |
| 36 | "ムーミンパパのノート" | Notebook of Moomin papa |
| 37 | "小さなみにくいペット" | Small, Ugly Pet |
| 38 | "人魚さんこんにちわ" | Miss Mermaid, Hello |
| 39 | "家にいるのは誰だ" | Who is in the house |
| 40 | "ニョロニョロのひみつ" | Secret of Nyoro-Nyoro(=Hattifattener) |
| 41 | "マメルクをつかまえろ" | Catch Mamelk |
| 42 | "大きな大きなプレゼント" | Big, Big Present |
| 43 | "あらしの怪獣島" | Stormy Monster Island |
| 44 | "海の星はどこに" | Where is the marine star? |
| 45 | "悪魔の島がやってきた" | Devilish Island has come |
| 46 | "真夏の雪を探せ!" | Look for Snow of Midsummer! |
| 47 | "なくしたペンダント" | Lost Pendant |
| 48 | "歩いてきた山びこ" | Echo Which Has Walked |
| 49 | "ピアノなんか大嫌い" | I hate pianos |
| 50 | "眠りの輪をぬけだせ" | Slip out the ring of sleep |
| 51 | "秋はおセンチに" | To be sentimental in autumn |
| 52 | "月夜に踊る人形" | Doll which dances in a moonlight night |
| 53 | "凧が知っていた" | Kite knew |
| 54 | "さようなら渡り鳥" | Good-bye, migratory bird |
| 55 | "鳩は飛ばない" | Dove doesn’t fly |
| 56 | "ムーミン谷のカーニバル" | Carnival of Moomin Valley |
| 57 | "お婆ちゃんのひみつ" | Secret of the old woman |
| 58 | "ノンノンがいなくなる? " | Is Nonnon gone? |
| 59 | "手品にはタネがある" | There is a trick in Magic |
| 60 | "ひとりぼっちの冬" | Lonely Winter |
| 61 | "消えた雪うさぎ" | Snow Rabbit which disappeared |
| 62 | "氷姫のいたずら" | Mischief of Ice Princess |
| 63 | "一日だけのお姫様" | Princess only during one day |
| 64 | "影なんか恐くない" | Who's Afraid of Shadow? |
| 65 | "おやすみムーミン" | Good Night, Moomin |
Cast
- Kyôko Kishida as Moomintroll
- Hitoshi Takagi as Moominpappa
- Akiko Takamura as Moominmamma
- Reiko Mutoh as The Snork Maiden
- Taichirou Hirokawa as The Snork
- Junko Hori as Little My
- Kousei Tomita as Sniff
- Hiroyuki Nishimoto as Snufkin
- Chikao Ohtsuka as Stinky
- Miyoko Shoji as The Mymble
- Kôichi Kitamura as The Police Inspector, The Ancestor
- Masashi Amenomori as Hemulens
- Jouji Yanami as The Muskrat
- Yoshiko Yamamoto as Too-Ticky
- Yoshiko Matsuo as Ninny
- Takako Sasuga as Thingumy
- Katsue Miwa as Bob
- Ichirou Nagai as The Hobgoblin
- Sachiko Chijimatsu as Ynk
- Ryuuji Saikachi as Hodgkins
- Kazuya Tatekabe as Antlion
- Junpei Takiguchi as The Groke
- Anime originals
- Katsue Miwa as Gaogao (Ep. 2)
- Terue Minami as Sniff's Grandmother
- Tamio Ohki as Abdalla (Ep. 59)
- Chikao Ohtsuka as Kagemiro (Ep. 64)
Crew
Director:
- Masaaki Osumi (eps 1-26)
- Rintaro (eps 27-65)
Script:
Ariyoshi Katô Hideko Yoshida Hiroyuki Hoshiyama Hisashi Inoue Junji Tashiro Kahei Chikara Keisuke Fujikawa Kôei Yoshihara Kuni Miyajima Kuriya Okiya Michiko Asano Shun'ichi Yukimuro Tadaki Yamazaki Tsutomo Matsumoto Yoshiaki Yoshida
Episode Director:
Ippei Sukehiro (Mushi) Masayuki Hayashi (Mushi) Mitaka Fujishi (Mushi) Mitsuo Kamiri (Mushi) Moriyoshi Murano (Mushi) Noboru Ishikuro (Mushi) Rintaro (Mushi) Ryousuke Takahashi (Mushi) Satoshi Dezaki (Mushi) Seiji Okuda (Mushi) Terumasa Kan (Mushi) Wataru Mizusawa (Mushi) Yu Yamamoto (Mushi)
Music:
- Seichiro Uno
Original story:
- Tove Jansson
Art Director:
- Hideo Chiga (eps 1-26)
- Katsumi Hando (eps 27-65)
Animation Director:
- Hiromitsu Morita (Mushi)
- Mitsuo Kimura (Mushi)
- Osamu Kobayashi (Tokyo Movie Shinsha)
- Toyoo Ashida (Mushi)
- Tsutomu Shibayama (Tokyo Movie Shinsha)
- Yasuo Otsuka (Tokyo Movie Shinsha)
Executive producer:
- Masami Iwasaki
Producer:
- Masami Iwasaki (eps 27-65)
- Yoshihiro Nosaki (eps 1-26)
Key Animation:
- Hayao Miyazaki
Planning: Shigehito Takahashi Broadcaster: Fuji TV Production: Mushi Productions (eps 27-65) Tokyo Movie Shinsha (eps 1-26)
DVD release
This series has not been released on DVD.
Since it is difficult to obtain permission from the author side and two or more copyright holder exist, it is said that it is difficult to make this DVD.
VHS and LD release
The series was released on VHS and LD in Japan, but was eventually discontinued.
- LD
- Vol.1-7 (episode 1-26)
- VHS
- "The volume of love" (episode 37, 49)
- "The volume of dream" (episode 34, 64)