Selasa, 14 Desember 2010

Cardcaptor

Cardcaptor Sakura (カードキャプターさくら Kādokyaputā Sakura?), abbreviated as CCS and also known as Cardcaptors, is a Japanese shōjo manga series written and illustrated by the manga artist group Clamp. The manga was originally serialized monthly in Nakayoshi from the May 1996 until the June 2000 issue, and later published in 12 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha from November 1996 to July 2000. The story focuses on Sakura Kinomoto, an elementary school student who discovers that she possesses magical powers after accidentally freeing a set of magical cards from the book in which they had been sealed for years. She is then tasked with retrieving those cards in order to avoid an unknown catastrophe from befalling the world.
The series was adapted into a 70-episode anime TV series by Madhouse that aired in Japan on NHK between April 1998 and March 2000. Two anime films were produced by Madhouse in August 1999 and July 2000. Ten video games were produced based on the series. Kodansha published art books, picture books and film comics for the manga and anime series. Tokyopop released the manga in English in North America from March 2000 to August 2003. After Tokyopop's license for Cardcaptor Sakura expired, Dark Horse Manga acquired the license and began releasing the series in omnibus editions starting in October 2010. Nelvana licensed the anime TV series and first film for North American broadcast and distribution. Heavily edited and dubbed into 39 episodes, the series was renamed Cardcaptors and aired on Kids' WB, Cartoon Network and Teletoon. The TV series and films were re-licensed by Geneon, which released them unedited with English subtitles.
Critics praised the manga for its creativity and described it as a quintessential shōjo manga, as well as a critical work for manga in general. The manga series was awarded the Seiun Award for Best Manga in 2001. The TV anime adaptation was praised for its ability to transcend its target audience of young children and be enjoyable to older viewers too. The artwork in the anime was also a focus of attention, described as above average for a late-1990s TV series, and Sakura's magic-casting scenes were complimented for being nearly unique, because of the regular costume changes. The TV anime won the Animage Grand Prix award for Best Anime in 1999. The Cardcaptors version was heavily panned by critics, who called the editing ridiculous and cutting out vital character backgrounds essential to understand the plot.

Plot

Cardcaptor Sakura begins when ten-year-old fourth grader Sakura Kinomoto accidentally releases a set of magical cards called Clow Cards from the Clow Book, created and named after half-English, half-Chinese sorcerer Clow Reed. Each card has its own personality and characteristics and can assume alternate forms when activated. The guardian Beast of the Seal Cerberus emerges from the book and tells her it is now her responsibility to retrieve the missing cards. As she finds each card, she battles its magical personification and defeats it to seal it away. Cerberus acts as her guide, while her best friend and cousin Tomoyo Daidouji films her exploits and provides her with battle costumes. Sakura's older brother Toya Kinomoto watches over her, while pretending that he is unaware of what is going on.
A boy Sakura's age and descendant of Clow Reed, Syaoran Li, arrives from Hong Kong to recapture the cards himself, but finds his goal complicated as he comes to respect Sakura and begins aiding her instead. Once Sakura captures all the cards, she undergoes the Final Judgment, presided over by Yue, the cards' second guardian, who tests Sakura to determine if she is worthy of becoming the cards' true master. Yue is the true form of Yukito Tsukishiro, Sakura's crush and her brother's best friend. Sakura is aided by her teacher Kaho Mizuki, who was sent by Clow to ensure Sakura is able to pass the test, because he chose Sakura to be the cards' new master when he knew he was going to die. Sakura passes the test and becomes the new master of the Clow Cards.
Life for Sakura is initially peaceful until a boy Sakura's age, Eriol Hiiragizawa, transfers from England, which coincides with new disturbances occurring in Tomoeda. Suddenly unable to use the Clow Cards, Sakura transforms her wand and creates a new activation spell, which can transform a Clow Card into a Sakura Card. As strange events continue, Sakura gradually transforms each card into a Sakura Card, unaware the events are being caused by Eriol and two guardian-like creatures, Spinel Sun and Ruby Moon. Yue begins to grow weaker, because he requires magical support from Sakura, but her magic is not yet strong enough to sustain him. Toya gives all of his magical abilities to Yue in order to ensure Yukito does not die. Sakura eventually deals with the pain of Yukito's gentle rejection of her feelings, as he instead loves Toya. Syaoran consoles Sakura, while finding himself falling in love with her, but is unsure of how to tell her.
When only the Light and Dark Cards remain to be converted, which must be done together, Eriol reveals to Sakura he was behind all the strange events. After the cards are transformed, Eriol explains that he is half of the reincarnation of Clow Reed, with Sakura's father being the other half. Eriol, who has Clow's memories and magical abilities, aided Sakura in converting the cards so they would not lose their powers. Before returning to England, Eriol asks Sakura to split his magic between himself and her father, so that he will no longer be the most powerful magician in the world. Afterwards, Syaoran confesses his love to Sakura, but she is unsure how to respond. Sakura is hurt and upset when he tells her he is returning to Hong Kong, and comes to realize she loves him too after talking with her friends. She rushes to the airport to tell him and he promises to return when he has taken care of some things. One year later, Syaoran moves back to Tomoeda permanently.
The plot of the anime series is extended, featuring 52 Clow Cards from the manga's original 19, and certain scenes are stretched and delayed, such as Cerberus' true form not being revealed until just before Yue's appearance.[1] Sakura creates a 53rd card, Hope, a talent she is not shown to have in the manga. Some of the circumstances around the capturing of the cards is changed, such as Syaoran capturing several cards himself and being tested by Yue in the Final Judgment. Syaoran's cousin and fiancee Meiling Li is introduced in the anime, who positions herself as a romantic rival for Sakura later in the series. The role of Sakura's father as the second half of Clow's reincarnation and the splitting of Eriol's magic is removed from the ending. The TV series leaves the relationship between Sakura and Syaoran unresolved, but Sakura confesses her love to Syaoran at the end of the second anime film.

Source : Wikipedia

Bleach

Bleach (ブリーチ Burīchi?, Romanized as BLEACH in Japan) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Noriaki "Tite" Kubo. Bleach follows the adventures of Ichigo Kurosaki after he obtains the powers of a Soul Reaper (死神 Shinigami?, literally, "Death God") —a death personification similar to the Grim Reaper—from another Soul Reaper, Rukia Kuchiki. His newfound powers force him to take on the duties of defending humans from evil spirits and guiding departed souls to the afterlife.
Bleach has been serialized in the Japanese manga anthology Weekly Shōnen Jump since August 2001, and has been collected into 47 tankōbon volumes as of October 2010. Since its publication, Bleach has spawned a media franchise that includes an ongoing animated television series that is produced by Studio Pierrot in Japan, two original video animations, three animated feature films, seven rock musicals, and numerous video games, as well as many types of Bleach-related merchandise.
Viz Media obtained foreign television and home video distribution rights to the Bleach anime on March 15, 2006. Cartoon Network began airing Bleach in the United States as part of its Adult Swim block on September 9, 2006. Viz Media has licensed the manga for English-language publication in the United States and Canada, and has released 32 bound volumes as of September 2010 as well as published chapters of Bleach in its Shonen Jump magazine since November 2007. Viz Media released the first Bleach film, Bleach: Memories of Nobody, on DVD in North America on October 14, 2008. The second film, Bleach: The DiamondDust Rebellion, was released on September 15, 2009.
Volumes of the manga have sold over 60 million copies in Japan, and have reached the top of manga sales in the United States. The anime adaptation has been similarly received; it was rated as the fourth most popular anime television series in Japan in 2006 and held a position amongst the top ten anime in the United States from 2006 to 2008. The series received the Shogakukan Manga Award for the shōnen demographic in 2005, and is among the best-selling manga properties in both Japan and the United States.

Plot

Ichigo Kurosaki is a teenager gifted with the ability to see spirits. His life is drastically changed by the sudden appearance of a Soul Reaper —one who governs the flow of souls between the human world and the afterlife—named Rukia Kuchiki, who arrives in search of a Hollow, a dangerous lost soul. When Rukia is severely wounded defending Ichigo from the Hollow, she attempts to transfer half of her reiatsu (霊圧?, literally, "spiritual pressure") energy to Ichigo so that he can defeat the Hollow. However, Ichigo takes almost all of her energy, transforming into a Soul Reaper and allowing him to defeat the Hollow with ease. With her powers diminished, Rukia is left stranded in the human world until she can recover her strength. In the meantime, Ichigo must take over Rukia's role as a Soul Reaper, battling Hollows and guiding souls to the afterlife realm known as the Soul Society (尸魂界 (ソウル·ソサエティ) Sōru Sosaeti?).
As time passes and Rukia has yet to return to the Soul Society, her Soul Reaper superiors learn about her whereabouts and actions and sentence her to death for performing the illegal act of transferring her powers. Although he is unable to stop Rukia's departure to the Soul Society, Ichigo resolves to rescue her with the aid of several of his spiritually aware classmates, and ex-Soul Reapers Yoruichi Shihōin, and Kisuke Urahara. Once at the Soul Society, Ichigo and company battle against the elites of the Soul Reaper military and strive to reach Rukia before her execution.
It is revealed that both Rukia's execution and Ichigo's rescue attempt had both been manipulated by Sōsuke Aizen, a high-ranking Soul Reaper previously believed to have been murdered, as part of a far-reaching plot to take control of the Soul Society. Aizen betrays his fellow Soul Reapers and allies himself with the strongest of the Hollows, the Espadas. Each member of the Espadas has his or her own motives, ranging from malicious to benevolent from his or her own perspective. Aizen thus becomes the main antagonist of the series and the Soul Reapers form an alliance with Ichigo. At this point, Bleach chronicles the war between the Soul Reapers, the Espadas, and Aizen, who intends to garner souls from Ichigo's hometown in order to create the Ôken, a device able to open a portal to the location of the king of the Soul Society. Many third, fourth, and fifth parties also become involved in the conflict. After each of their eventual defeats, Ichigo undergoes intense training and becomes strong enough to battle Aizen alone. When Aizen is weakened, a spell that Urahara had previously hidden within him activates and seals him, thus ending the conflict and leaving the Soul Society to imprison him. As a result of using all of his Soul Reaper powers to defeat Aizen, Ichigo loses his spiritual power and returns to being a normal human again.

source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bleach_%28manga%29

Crayion Shin Chan

Crayon Shin-chan (クレヨンしんちゃん Kureyon Shin-chan?, also known as Shin-chan) is a Japanese manga and anime series written by Yoshito Usui.
Crayon Shin-chan follows the adventures of five-year-old Shinnosuke "Shin" Nohara and his parents, neighbors, and friends and is set in Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture, Japan.
Due to the death of author Usui, the manga in its current form ended on September 11, 2009, as announced in a broadcast of the anime on October 16, 2009. The series formally ended on February 5, 2010, but on December 1, 2009, it was announced that a new manga would be published in the summer of 2010 by members of Usui's team.

Basic information

Crayon Shin-chan first appeared in a Japanese weekly magazine called Weekly Manga Action, which is published by Futabasha. The anime Crayon Shin-chan has been on TV Asahi since April 13, 1992, and on several television networks, worldwide. Shin-Chan has 52 episodes. Many of the jokes in the series stem from Shin-chan's occasionally weird, unnatural and inappropriate use of language, as well as from his inappropriate behavior. Consequently, non-Japanese readers and viewers may find it difficult to understand his jokes. In fact, some of them cannot be translated into other languages. In Japanese, certain set phrases almost always accompany certain actions; many of these phrases have standard responses. A typical gag involves Shin-chan confounding his parents by using the wrong phrase for the occasion; for example, saying "Welcome back!" ("おかえりなさい") instead of "I'm home!" ("ただいま") when he comes home. Another difficulty in translation arises from the use of onomatopoeic Japanese words. In scolding Shin-chan and attempting to educate him in proper behaviour his parent or tutor may use such a phrase to indicate the correct action. Often through misinterpreting such a phrase as a different, though similar sounding phrase, or through interpreting it in one sense when another is intended, Shin-chan will embark on a course of action which, while it may be what he thinks is being requested of him, leads to bizarre acts which serve only to vex his parents or tutors even more. This is not restricted to onomatopoeic words, since almost any word can become a source of confusion for Shin-chan, including English loan-words, such as mistaking "cool" for "pool" ("That's pool!" or "プールだぞ!" for "That's cool!").
Some other humorous themes which are repeated in the series are of a more universal nature, such as gags based on physical comedy (such as eating snow with chopsticks) or, as a child, unexpectedly using adult speech patterns or mannerisms. But even there, many of the gags may require an understanding of Japanese culture and/or language to be fully appreciated; for example, his infamous "Mr. Elephant" impression, while being transparently obvious as a physical gag, also has a deeper resonance with contemporary Japanese culture since it references the popular Japanese children's song "Zou-san" (ぞうさん). Shin-chan regularly becomes besotted with pretty female characters who are much older than him, and an additional source of humor is derived from his child-like attempts at wooing these characters, such as by asking them (inappropriately, on several levels) "Do you like green peppers?" (ピーマン好き?). He continually displays a lack of tact when talking to adults asking such questions as "How many people have you killed?" to tough looking men or, "When are you going to die?" to elderly people.
During the beginning of the series, the TV show was mostly based on the storyline in the original manga. As the show progressed, more and more episodes became anime-original. The show works under a sliding timescale where the characters have maintained their ages throughout the course of the show. Though time has passed to allow for the rise and fall of several pop culture icons, marriages, pregnancies, and births of various characters, all the characters still maintain their age at the time of their introduction. For example, if the two major births in the series are taken into account (Shinnosuke's sister and his kindergarten teacher's child), Shinnosuke would be seven years old and in second grade, but he is not.
Yoshito Usui died on September 11, 2009 after a fall at Mount Arafune. After Usui died, Futabasha originally planned to end Crayon Shin-chan in November 2009. Upon discovery of new manuscripts, Futabasha decided to extend the comic's run until the March 2010 issue of the magazine, which shipped on February 5, 2010.

Souce : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crayon_Shinchan


Doraemon

Doraemon (ドラえもん?)[3] is a Japanese manga series created by Fujiko F. Fujio (the pen name of Hiroshi Fujimoto) and Fujiko A. Fujio (the pen name of Motō Abiko) which later became an anime series and an Asian franchise. The series is about a robotic cat named Doraemon, who travels back in time from the 22nd century to aid a schoolboy, Nobita Nobi (野比 のび太 Nobi Nobita?).
The series first appeared in December 1969, when it was published simultaneously in six different magazines. In total, 1,344 stories were created in the original series, which are published by Shogakukan under the Tentōmushi (てんとう虫?) manga brand, extending to forty-five volumes. The volumes are collected in the Takaoka Central Library in Toyama, Japan, where both Fujiko Fujio were born. Viz Media bought the license to the Doraemon manga in the 1990s for an English-language release, but ultimately decided not to publish it due to the possible controversy surrounding its content.[citation needed] However, Doraemon: Nobita's Dinosaur 2006 (The 26th film in the franchise) got a private screening in Washington D.C. in November 2008.
A majority of Doraemon episodes are comedies with moral lessons regarding values such as integrity, perseverance, courage, family and respect for elders. Several noteworthy environmental issues are often visited, including homeless animals, global warming, endangered species, deforestation, and pollution. Miscellaneous educational topics such as dinosaurs, the flat Earth theory, wormhole traveling, Gulliver's Travels, and the history of Japan are often covered.
Doraemon was awarded the Japan Cartoonists Association Award for excellence in 1973. Doraemon was awarded the first Shogakukan Manga Award for children's manga in 1982,[4] and the first Osamu Tezuka Culture Award in 1997. In March 2008, Japan's Foreign Ministry appointed Doraemon as the nation's first "anime ambassador." Ministry spokesman explained the novel decision as an attempt to help people in other countries to understand Japanese anime better and to deepen their interest in Japanese culture."[6] The Foreign Ministry action confirms that Doraemon has come to be considered a Japanese cultural icon. In 2002, the anime character was acclaimed as an Asian Hero in a special feature survey conducted by Time Asia magazine.

PLOT

Doraemon is sent back in time by Nobita Nobi's great-great grandson Sewashi to improve Nobita's circumstances so that his descendants may enjoy a better future. In the original timeline, Nobita experienced nothing but misery and misfortune throughout his life. As a result of this, Nobita's failures in school and subsequently, his career, have left his family line beset with financial problems. In order to alter history and better the Nobi family's fortunes, Sewashi sent him a robot called Doraemon.
Doraemon has a pocket from which he produces many gadgets, medicines, and tools from the future. The pocket is called yojigen-pocket, or fourth-dimensional pocket. Some of the gadgets are based on real Japanese household devices with fanciful twists, but most are completely science fiction (although some may be based on folklore or religious stories). Thousands of dōgu have been featured in Doraemon. The number of dōgu has been approximated at 4,500. It is this constant variety which makes Doraemon popular even among adult readers/viewers. In the series, the availability of dogu depends sometimes on the money Doraemon has available, and he often says some dogu are expensive in the future. The more famous ones include the "bamboo-copter", a small head accessory that allows flight; the "Anywhere Door", a door that opens up to any place the user wishes; and the "Time Machine". Some of the recurring dōgu appear also in Fujiko F. Fujio's other works such as 21-emon, Kaibutsu-kun, Kiteretsu Daihyakka, Mikio to Mikio or Pāman.
Although he can hear perfectly well, Doraemon has no ears: his robotic ears were eaten by a mouse, giving him a series-long phobia of the creatures.
The stories are formulaic, usually focused on the everyday struggles of fourth grader Nobita, the protagonist of the story. In a typical chapter, Nobita comes home crying about a problem he faces in school and/or the local neighborhood. After hearing him out, Doraemon always offers helpful advice to his problem(s), but that's never enough for Nobita, who is consistently looking for the "quick, easy" way out (which offers insight to the viewers as to why Nobita's life turned out the way it did). Finally, after Nobita's pleading and/or goading, Doraemon produces a futuristic gadget out of his aforementioned pouch to help Nobita fix his problem, enact revenge, or flaunt to his friends. The only main female character is Shizuka Minamoto (源 静香 Minamoto Shizuka?), who serves as a semi-romantic girlfriend of Nobita, but otherwise a supporting, minor character. Nobita's main human friends include Gian, a known bully, and Suneo, a gloating spoiled wealthy kid. There are many recurring supporting characters, such as Dekisugi, Nobita's parents, his school teacher, his descendants from the future, and Doraemon's sister, Dorami.
Nobita usually goes too far, despite Doraemon's best intentions and warnings, and gets into deeper trouble than before. Sometimes, Nobita's friends (usually Suneo or Jaian) steal the gadgets and end up misusing them. However, by the end of the story, there is usually retribution to the characters who end up misusing them, and a moral is taugh




Naruto

Naruto (NARUTO—ナルト—?, romanized as NARUTO) is an ongoing Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. The plot tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, an adolescent ninja who constantly searches for recognition and aspires to become a Hokage, the ninja in his village that is acknowledged as the leader and the strongest of all. The series is based on a one-shot comic by Kishimoto that was published in the August 1997 issue of Akamaru Jump.
The manga was first published by Shueisha in 1999 in the 43rd issue of Japan's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine. Currently, the manga is still being serialized with fifty-one tankōbon volumes released so far. The manga was later adapted into an anime, which was produced by Studio Pierrot and Aniplex. It premiered across Japan on the terrestrial TV Tokyo network and the anime satellite television network Animax on October 3, 2002. The first series lasted 220 episodes, while Naruto: Shippuden, a sequel to the original series, has been airing since February 15, 2007. In addition to the anime series, Studio Pierrot has developed six movies for the series and several original video animations (OVAs). Other types of merchandise include light novels, video games and trading cards developed by several companies.
Viz Media has licensed the manga and anime for North American production. Viz has been publishing the series in their Shonen Jump magazine, and as well as the indidividual volumes. The anime series began airing in the United States and Canada in 2005, and later in the United Kingdom and Australia in 2006 and 2007, respectively. The films, as well as most OVAs from the series, have also been released by Viz, with the first film premiering in cinemas. The first DVD volume of Naruto: Shippuden was released by Viz in North America on September 29, 2009, and it started broadcast on Disney XD in October of the same year.
The manga has sold over 100 million copies in Japan. Serialized in Viz's Shonen Jump magazine, Naruto has become one of the company's best-selling manga series. The English adaptation of the series has also appeared in the USA Today Booklist several times and volume 11 won the Quil Award in 2006. Reviewers from the series have praised the balance between fighting and comedy scenes, as well as the characters' personalities, but have criticized it for


Plot

Naruto Uzumaki is a young boy who has the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox sealed within him. Twelve years before the start of the series, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox attacked the ninja village Konohagakure, slaughtering many people. In response, the leader of Konohagakure and its ninja military – the Fourth Hokage – sacrificed his life to seal the demon inside Naruto when he was a newborn. Konohagakure, however, regarded Naruto as if he were the demon fox itself and mistreated him throughout most of his childhood. A decree made by the Third Hokage, who replaced the Fourth Hokage after his death, forbade anyone mention the attack of the demon fox to anyone else. This included Naruto, who was not aware of the demon inside of him.
Years later, Naruto is tricked by the renegade ninja Mizuki into stealing a forbidden scroll, but he is stopped by his teacher, Iruka Umino. When Iruka almost dies while protecting Naruto from Mizuki, Naruto uses a Jutsu he learned from the scroll that creates multiple clones of himself, Shadow Clone Technique, to defeat Mizuki. This encounter leads Naruto to realize that he is the container of the demon fox.
The main story follows Naruto and his friends' personal growth. Naruto befriends two comrades, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, who are assigned with him to form a three-person team named Team 7 under an experienced sensei named Kakashi Hatake. Like all the ninja teams from every village, Team 7 is charged with completing missions requested by villagers, such as doing chores or being bodyguards. During the course of their missions, Naruto befriends other characters that he meets throughout the series. Team 7 learns new abilities, get to know each other, and experience a coming-of-age journey as Naruto dreams of becoming the Hokage of Konohagakure.
After several missions, Kakashi allows Team 7 to participate into a ninja exam in which they can improve their ranks, and thus, take part in more difficult missions. During the exams, Orochimaru, a criminal at the top of Konohagakure's most wanted list, attacks Konoha and kills the Third Hokage in an act of revenge. This forces one of the three legendary ninja, Jiraiya to search for his former teammate Tsunade, who has been nominated to become the Fifth Hokage. During the search, it is revealed that Orochimaru desires to acquire Sasuke Uchiha due to his powerful genetic heritage. Believing Orochimaru will be able to give him the strength needed to kill his brother Itachi, who destroyed his clan, Sasuke goes to him in search of power. Tsunade sends a group of ninja including Naruto to make Sasuke return to Konoha, but Naruto is unable to defeat him and bring him back to the village. Naruto does not give up on Sasuke, however, and he leaves Konoha to train for two-and-a-half years under Jiraiya's tutelage in order to prepare himself for the next time he encounters Sasuke.
After the training period, a mysterious organization called Akatsuki attempts to capture the nine powerful tailed beasts including the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox sealed inside of Naruto. Several ninjas from Konohagakure, including Team 7, fight against the Akatsuki members and search for their teammate Sasuke. Although they manage to save Gaara the host of the One-Tailed beast, Akatsuki is successful in capturing seven of the creatures. In the meantime, Sasuke betrays Orochimaru and faces Itachi to take revenge. Although Itachi dies in battle, Sasuke is later told by the Akatsuki founder Madara Uchiha that Itachi was ordered by Konohagakure's leadership to destroy his clan. Saddened with this revelation, Sasuke joins forces with Akatsuki to destroy Konohagakure. Meanwhile, as several Akatsuki members are defeated by the Konohagakure ninja, their leader, Pain, invades the village to capture Naruto. However, Naruto defeats Pain's multiple bodies and convinces the real one to leave Akatsuki.
With Pain having left, Madara announces that he wants to obtain the nine tailed beasts in order to perform an illusion powerful enough to control humanity. All of the leaders of the five ninja villages refuse to aid him, and instead, join forces to confront him.

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naruto#Plot

Hell Teacher (nube)

Hell Teacher Nūbē (地獄先生ぬ~べ~ Jigoku Sensei Nūbē?) is a horror-comedy manga created by the collaborative efforts of writer Shō Makura (真倉翔?) and artist Takeshi Okano in Shueisha's manga anthology book Weekly Shōnen Jump. The series ran for 276 chapters (not including the two pilot chapters where Nūbē was known as Nubo (ぬ~ぼ~ Nūbō)) from Issue 38, 1993 through Issue 24, 1999. A 48-episode anime series based on the manga was created by Toei Animation, and aired from 1996–1997 on Animax and TV Asahi. The anime resulted in three movies and three OVA episodes. A spinoff story for Izuna Hazuki the itako-girl, Izuna the Spiritual Medium (霊媒師いずな), has been running in Oh, Super Jump since July 2007.
The series follows Meisuke Nueno (鵺野鳴介 Nueno Meisuke?), aka Nūbē (ぬ~べ~?), the homeroom teacher for Class 5-3 at Dōmori Elementary (童守小学校 Dōmori Shōgakkō?). More than a teacher, however, he is a skilled exorcist, protecting the town of Dōmori from supernatural threats with strength borrowed from a powerful demon sealed in his left hand—a technique he calls the Demon's Hand (鬼の手 Oni no Te?).

Plot

The basic formula for the manga chapters and anime episodes is as follows: what seems like a normal day at Dōmori Elementary is disrupted by some weird phenomenon, usually targeting one of Nūbē's own students. Nūbē is forced into action, most often using the power of the Demon's Hand to assist in solving the problem, but occasionally the solution lies either in another of his spiritual weapons, or somehow reasoning with or appeasing the threatening entity. By the end, things always seem to get back to normal, with Nūbē and his students having learned something from the experience. Most of the series retains this episodic formula, forgoing an over-arching storyline in favor of more character-driven action, although there are several recurring antagonists throughout, as well as some longer story arcs towards the end of the series.

Characters

The characters in Hell Teacher Nūbē can be divided into several distinct groups, each one separate from the others, yet consistently interacting with the others.
  • The first group is the staff of Dōmori Elementary, made up of the teachers and other adults (mostly) who assist in the education and welfare of the students. These include Nūbē, his "perverted obsession" Ritsuko Takahashi, and other teachers of the school, as well as the principal.
  • The second is the student body of Dōmori Elementary, each of whom brings a different personality and set of experiences brought both to their education and experiences with the supernatural. Most of these characters are the students of Nūbē's class 5-3, but also includes other students in other classes, both in the fifth and other grades (such as Hiroshi's soccer teammates and Makoto's "girlfriend", Ai Shinozaki).
  • The third are the various yōkai Nūbē and the citizens of Dōmori encounter. Many of these spirits appear once and never appear again after their chapter of focus. Others show up at least that one time, and then cameo here and there during certain chapters where various spirits reappear for the better or worse of Nūbē and the others. And still others, such as the yōko Tamamo and the yuki-onna Yukime, end up becoming intertwined in the events of Doumori, either assisting or tormenting Nūbē as they feel at that moment!
  • The last group of characters are humans who do not quite fit in any of the other categories, yet consistently are connected to the affairs of Nūbē or his students. These include other exorcists like "itako-girl" Izuna Hazuki and crooked Buddhist priest Oshō, normal recurring characters, and even the parents of the 5-3 students!

[edit] Influences and Homages

Although Shou and Okano created their universe of Nūbē as its own separate world, they were highly influenced by the works of several other authors, anime and mangaka in one way or another. For starters, Nūbē himself is a combination in design of Chirico Cuvie, main character of the anime Armored Trooper Votoms and Black Jack, from the classic medical manga by Osamu Tezuka. Similarly, several of the students gain their influence from series that have influenced the diversity of series nature: the school-comedy connection coming from the 1970s Jump series Dokonjyou Gaeru, the horror side from Go Nagai's classic Devilman. Ritsuko-sensei's design is similar to many of the heroines of classic 1970s giant robot anime, and Minako-sensei design is similar to Honey Kisaragi's design from Cutie Honey. Finally, the yōkai themselves are derived in design from the works of painter Sekien Toriyama, known for his art of the supernatural.
Although there are many connections to the past in Nūbē, the series does acknowledge that it is one of many manga that exist within the Weekly Shōnen Jump anthology. Since the series exists in then-modern 1990s Japan, it is merely one part of the world in which they live in. There are consistently jokes breaking the fourth wall regarding Jump, whether it is Nūbē or one of his students reading the book or commenting about how the staff of the book may act regarding certain plot points. Similarly, several other Jump series occasionally receive mention either in tribute or for laughs. One of the consistent mentions regards Osamu Akimoto's long running police-comedy manga Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kōen-mae Hashutsujo: both series have a similar story style where most stories are just one chapter episodes, yet the characters still grow and change through their run like the serial manga (though some of the comments were in regard to Kochi Kame's extremely long run). Another consistent Jump target regarded Akira Toriyama's action classic Dragon Ball. In this case, the tributes are varied, between the "artistic" appearance of characters like Son Goku or parodies of various attacks such as Nūbē going Super Saiyan or performing the fusion dance. Many other Jump manga from this era have also appeared in cameo within Nūbē as varied as Midori no Makibaou, Sexy Commando Gaiden: Sugoiyo! Masaru-san, Yu-Gi-Oh and Rurouni Kenshin!
Since the manga was a period of its time in the mid/late 1990s, the series did touch and joke about many of the things within Japanese culture during this period of time. The series made passing references to politicians (such as prime minister Morihiro Hosokawa) and sports players, as well as having visual cameos of celebrities such as Takuya Kimura of SMAP and actress Ryoko Hirosue. However, amidst the spiritual encounters, the manga also touched on various crazes and factors within the society of the era. One chapter involved a pagers as part of a climax, while another involved the consequences of Hiroshi receiving his first personal computer in a period where computers and the internet were becoming more prominent. Other chapters acknowledged video games such as Pokémon and the "fighting monster" craze (followed up by a literal Pokémon parody in a volume page), the Tamagotchi games, and the Gainax series of Princess Maker games. (Although a more well known Gainax creation, Neon Genesis Evangelion, got in a tiny reference in one of the other manga volumes, as does

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell_Teacher_Nube

Ghost Stories (ghost at school)

Ghost Stories (学校の怪談 Gakkō no Kaidan?, literally School Ghost Stories), also known as Ghosts at School, is a twenty episode anime series created in 2000 by animation studio Pierrot and Aniplex for Fuji Television, based on a book series by Toru Tsunemitsu.
The series is licensed for the North American market by ADV Films whose English dub replaces the original script with a comedic one. It was also aired in Latin America by Cartoon Network, which had broadcast the entire series unedited on October 1, 2005. The series was also translated and dubbed into English by the anime television network, Animax, who has broadcast the series unedited and uncensored under the title Ghosts at School within its respective networks across the world in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and other regions.

Storyline

Ghost Stories tells the tale of Satsuki Miyanoshita, who moves with her family to the hometown of her deceased mother. On her first day of school, Satsuki; her brother Keiichirou, a first-grader; their neighbor Hajime Aoyama; Momoko Koigakubo, an older schoolmate; and Reo Kakinoki, a classmate and friend of Hajime's with a penchant for the paranormal visit the abandoned school building adjacent the current school complex and discover that the building is haunted.
It is soon after revealed that Satsuki's mother was responsible for sealing several ghosts who haunted not only the school but also the town, and now they are released due to the urbanization taking place in the surrounding area. Satsuki's mother left behind a book detailing how to exorcize the ghosts once and for all. In her first confront, Satsuki faces a demon called Amanojaku, but in the process Amanojaku is sealed within Satsuki's pet cat, Kaya. Although Amanojaku does not want to help Satsuki at first, the danger soon threatens to envelop the town and it is left up to Satsuki, her friends and Amanojaku to stop the ghosts.

Characters

  • Satsuki Miyanoshita (宮ノ下 さつき Miyanoshita Satsuki?): Satsuki is the main character of the show. She moves with her father and her young brother Keiichirou to the hometown of her deceased mother, where she finds that her mother confronted several evil entities that haunted the town, which included Amanojaku, and wrote all her supernatural experiences in a diary, which is entitled "The Ghost Journal". Satsuki is very strong, brave and determined within, but sometimes a bit moody, mostly because of Hajime's reckless behavior. Her nickname in the Animax dub is Suki (from Satsuki). Voiced by: Tomoko Kawakami (Japanese), Hilary Haag (English)
  • Momoko Koigakubo (恋ヶ窪 桃子 Koigakubo Momoko?): Momoko is a 6th grader and Satsuki's best friend. She seems to fear nothing, even in very dangerous situations, and is very brave when it comes to help Satsuki and the gang confront the ghosts. She also seems to have a psychic connection with Satsuki's mother. Voiced by: Kumi Sakuma (Japanese), Monica Rial (English)
  • Hajime Aoyama (青山 ハジメ Aoyama Hajime?): Hajime is Satsuki's neighbor. He is always strong and courageous to help defeat the ghosts, but though he says that this is very brave, he is at times actually a coward. Despite this, he is one of the most reliable of Satsuki's friends and has saved her on more than one occasion. Hajime also has a naughty habit of flipping girls' skirts, and his constant victim is none other than Satsuki. This results in frequent comic moments. Throughout the anime, it seems that Hajime and Satsuki develop mutual crushes on each other (not that they'd admit it). Voiced by: Takako Honda (Japanese), Chris Patton (English)
  • Leo Kakinoki (柿木 レオ Kakinoki Leo?): Reo is Hajime's friend and has a big obsession with paranormal themes, and proclaims himself as a respected paranormal researcher. However, whenever Reo finds a clue pertaining to the existence of supernatural entities, it seems that the clue turns against him. Like Hajime, he tries to be brave but most of the times he's actually just a coward. In the English dub by ADV, he was named as "Leo". Voiced by: Makoto Tsumura (Japanese), Greg Ayres (English)
  • Keiichirou Miyanoshita (宮ノ下 敬一郎 Miyanoshita Keiichirō?): Keiichirou is Satsuki's young brother. He is easily frightened by many things and is seen crying sometimes, but he shows courage where it counts to help in defeating the ghosts. In the dub, when he is frightened, or stressed enough, his speech becomes so slurred only his sister is able to understand it. He creates a special friendship with the ghost Amanojaku. Voiced by: Kurumi Mamiya (Japanese), Christine M. Auten (English)
  • Amanojaku (天の邪鬼?): Amanojaku is a powerful entity that, long ago, was sealed by Satsuki's mother in a tree in the mountains, but was finally released from his magic prison due to urbanization. However, he did not have his freedom long, as Satsuki sealed him (by accident) in the body of her pet cat, Kaya. At first, Amanojaku is hostile toward the kids and takes great pleasure in seeing them in trouble, but throughout the series he develops somewhat of a care for them, especially for Satsuki and Keiichirou. Voiced by: Ryusei Nakao (Japanese), Rob Mungle (English)
  • Sakata (坂田?): Sakata is the teacher of the class where Satsuki, Hajime and Reo attend. Despite he doesn't believe in ghosts, he suffered many supernatural issues, as he was possessed, cursed and kidnapped by ghosts a couple of times. Voiced by: Tommy Drake
  • Reiichirou Miyanoshita (宮ノ下 礼一郎 Miyanoshita Reiichirō?): Reiichirou is Satsuki's father. He has no clue about his daughter's supernatural duties and also doesn't believe in ghosts. His nickname is Ray in the Animax dub. Voiced by: Takehiro Murozono (Japanese), Illich Guardiola (English)
  • Kayako Miyanoshita (宮ノ下 佳耶子 Miyanoshita Kayako?): Kayako is Satsuki's and Keiichirou's deceased mother. Through her diary it is revealed that she was an avid exorcist during her childhood. She possesses Momoko two times throughout the series to aid Satsuki against the Piano Ghost and Kutabe and once helped Satsuki and the others to escape from a powerful haunting called Anamnaneki. Her maiden name was Kamiyama. Her name in the Animax Dub was "Karen". Voiced by: Kotono Mitsuishi (Japanese), Marcy Bannor (English)
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Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_Stories_%28anime%29