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Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo

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Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo
File:Bo-index.jpg
Picture of four of the main characters. Heppokomaru (Gasser), Beauty, Don Patch, and Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo
GenreComedy, Surreal humour, Action
Anime
Directed byHiroki Shibata
StudioToei Animation
File:Bo manga.jpg
The American Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo manga cover.

Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (ボボボーボ・ボーボボ, Bobobō-bo Bō-bobo) (sometimes known as Bo x 7, Bo^7, or Bobobo to Americans) is a manga by Yoshio Sawai, published by Shueisha in Japan and serialized in that country's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine.

In Japan, Shueisha made the manga and serialized it in Weekly Shonen Jump. The anime was made by Toei Animation and ran for 76 episodes from 2003 to 2005 on TV Asahi.

In North America, the manga has been licensed by Viz Media and has been published in graphic novel form starting in October 2005. The anime, which is licensed by Toei Animation, first aired as a sneak peek on Cartoon Network's Fridays block on September 30, and now airs on Cartoon Network's Toonami programming block Saturdays at 10:00PM. The anime is dubbed by Phuuz Entertainment Inc. (pronounced "fuse"), the studio that also dubbed the second Lupin the 3rd series and the Viewtiful Joe anime.

Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo is a comedy that uses puns, non sequiturs, double-talk, breaking of the fourth wall, non-sexualized cross-dressing, visual gags, and satirical and pop-culture references, which make its humor very specific to Japanese audiences (much in the same way The Simpsons is often not as accessible to non-native English-speaking audiences).

Despite its limitations, the American dubs of the anime and manga manage to preserve the spirit of the show; the translators and adaptation writers were forced to rewrite several of the jokes due to the differences between the Japanese and English languages. At several points in the dub, the American version makes fun of the fact that it is a translation of a Japanese product (for example, when Bo-bobo is filling out an application card in one episode, he botches it because the application is in Japanese and he cannot read it, instead drawing "little doodles" for answers; in the original Japanese version he messes up the application for a completely different reason, and the "little doodles" are his honest answers written in hiragana). This style of self-referential humor can also be seen in the American version of Kyatto Ninden Teyande (Samurai Pizza Cats). Additionally, with the exception of the opening credits, all other on-screen Japanese text is intentionally kept in the English dub (most likely as a part of the retaining the show's surreal humor).

Summary

Template:Spoiler

It is the 31st Century (more specifically, the year 300X), and the Earth has fallen into dark times under the iron-fisted rule of the "Crome Dome Empire" (Maruhage/Margarita Empire in Japan). The Margarita Emperor, Czar Baldy Bald (Tsuru Tsururina IV), has instituted a policy of "hair hunting" as a display of his ruthless power. Feared groups of Hair Hunters roam the land, shaving the heads of the entire human race until they become silky smooth! In this dark age, a single ray of hope shines brightly through the clouds: a man who has dedicated himself to protecting the peace and freedom of hair everywhere by standing up to the dreaded Margarita Empire.

That man is BoBoBo-Bo Bo-BoBo, he of the golden Afro!

Now, Bo-BoBo, master of the infamous "Hanage Shinken" (Fist of [the] Nose Hair; also "Snot Fo-You"), and his sidekicks Beauty and Don Patch (with more joining later), set off on a journey to save the world!! Seriously!! Template:Spoilerend

Parodies

The series mocks existing manga and anime conventions, making fun of more than a few fairly specifically: Doraemon, Sailor Moon (and the whole magical girl genre in general), Pokémon, Gundam, Dragon Ball, Serial Experiments Lain, Fist of the North Star and many others are used as humor fodder. The series also operates as a mockery of stereotypes in Japanese literature (for instance, the ideal of noble self-sacrifice) and Western popular culture (such as action films). While Bo-bobo is ostensibly the hero, his behavior is frequently self-important, childish, arbitrary, and incomprehensible. However, this is also often how he deals with his enemies — by confusing them into submission. At various points the top of Bo-bobo's head pops open, revealing a scene that is either an allegory for the state of Bo-bobo's own mind (i.e., when his powers fail him, the viewer sees a pair of boy-and-girl cartoon squirrels going through a painful separation), or to unleash weapons. Bo-bobo even turns into a giant robot (or at least emulates its functions) a number of times. Bo-bobo's afro also opens up to reveal something meant to drive the opponent mad, such as Game Boy Pig or the cat throwing churros.

The manga version of Bo-bobo has an easier time getting away with parodying and homaging various other manga, past and present, from Weekly Shonen Jump, the manga anthology book it is published in. Other mangaka have assisted in the parodies and homages as well. The most famous being a cameo by Yugi Mutou from Kazuki Takahashi's Yu-Gi-Oh!, where Bo-bobo summons him from his afro and he summons the Egyptian God Slifer the Sky Dragon (Saint Dragon - God of Osiris in the Japanese version) to take out an enemy (a scene that is re-enacted in the video game Jump Superstars). About the same time as this, Takahashi returned the favor by sneaking in Jelly Jiggler's "nu hankerchief" in a panel of his manga. The Bo-bobo anime could not get away with many of these homages and tributes.

There were also two special chapters of Bo-bobo that parodied chapter 18 of Death Note (while the original artists made a Bo-bobo chapter making them look more realistic) and recently a chapter based on the fight between Son Goku and Vegeta in Dragon Ball. They basically had Don Patch and Jelly Jiggler imitating the characters in those series. (with a special cover with even more DBZ/Bo-bobo fusions)

Adaptations

The manga has also been adapted into a TV series by Toei Animation and TV Asahi, which follows the original story (and preserves its surrealistic tone with surprising fidelity).

Several name changes were made to the English version to adapt the series to American audiences.

The U.S. release of the manga does not start at the beginning. Instead, it is a standalone volume based on some of volume 9 and 10 (the Halekulani arc) which uses the cover from volume 9, and is not assigned a volume number. The official explanation is that Viz wishes to "test the waters", by giving readers a sort of sneak preview into the world of the manga, and to give readers "a taste of what Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo is about" (in other words, they have decided to "test-market" the manga to judge reader reactions). [1]

Viz also did this with a previous release, Phoenix: A Tale of the Future, which was originally volume 2 of Osamu Tezuka's Phoenix canon; later, Viz published more of the Phoenix canon in English, although publication was temporarily suspended due to the fact that only five volumes were originally translated by Fred Schodt. Viz has only recently been able to finish the rest of Phoenix, and at the present rate, should be done by '07.

As of this writing, it is unknown when, or if the Bobobo manga will be given a "full" release. It is also unknown if the anime will recieve a DVD release, due to the fact that Toei has the US lisence, and they don't release DVDs in the United States anymore.

List of main characters

Main article: List of main hero characters in Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo


File:Bo-index.jpg
The main characters of Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo. From left-to-right: Gasser (Heppokomaru), Don Patch, Bo-bobo and Beauty

Although many wild and wacky characters exist within the world of Bo-bobo, the story focuses primarly on the nine main heroes who gather together under the most unlikely circumstances to fight against Tsuru Tsurulina the IV and the evil forces of the Maruhage Empire. At the center of this team is Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo himself, master of "Hanage Shinken" (Fist of the Nosehair) and completely wacky Hajikelist who will do anything and everything for victory! Through his journey to defeat the forces of baldness, he slowly gathers a team of allies and former enemies who become attached to his cause one way or another:

  • Beauty: The teen female heroine who usually has little idea regarding why all this strange stuff is happening.
  • Don Patch: The egotistical former leader of a group of Hajikelists whose ultimate power comes from his own insanity.
  • Softon: A warrior with the power of the mysterious land of Babylon...and a head that is either ice cream or poop!
  • Heppokomaru/Gasser: A teen boy with the stinky abilities of "Onara Shinken" (Fist of the Backwind)...and with as little knowledge of what's going on as Beauty!
  • Tokoro Tennosuke/General Jelly Jiggler: A gelatenous being who's as powerful as he is the consistant target of his allies attacks.
  • Hatenko: A warrior from Bo-bobo's Hair Kingdom with the power of keys...and an obsession with Don Patch!
  • Dengaku Man: A cute little mascot who's frequently ignored or left behind.
  • Torpedo Girl: The transformed state of a former enemy with a short temper and an obsession for teaching her "students" who's boss!

While these nine are the main warriors of the series, others occasionally assist in fighting against the evil in this world, including:

  • King Nosehair: A nosehair that used to live in Bo-bobo and takes part in the nonsense of "Bo-bobo World".
  • Serviceman: A covered being that makes everyone see things that shouldn't be seen!
  • Suzu: A nice girl with psychokinetic powers.
  • Rice: Master of "Kome Shinken" (Fist of Rice) and powerful Hajikelist.
  • Hanpen: A walking fishcake who fights with his fists...or jumping a lot.
  • Despair-kun: A guy with a bag over his head and serious emotional issues.
  • Kancho-kun: A tiny being with fingers of fury!
  • Halekulani: One of Bo-bobo's greatest enemies with a power and obsession tied to his greed.
  • Bebebe-be Be-bebe: One of Bo-bobo's older brothers and the master of "Sunege Shinken" (Fist of Leghair)
  • Bububu-bu Bu-bubu: Bo-bobo's sister, master of "Wakige Shinken" (Fist of Armpit Hair) and bearer of a strong resemblance to one of Bo-bobo's fused forms! She also has a crush on Don Patch!?!!!?
  • Land Mine Daddy:A complete idiot who always brings a cute living balloon tied to his head! The father of Torpedo Girl and user of"fist of the landmine"!
  • Captain Battleship:User of "self-taught fist of the nose hair" and bobobo's childhood friend.

By the start of Shinsetsu Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, many of Bo-bobo's allies have gone their seperate ways to other things. But while some eventually rejoin him (Beauty, Don Patch, Jelly Jiggler), several new characters join his battles against the Neo Maruhage Empire:

  • Gaoh:A koala, named after a moth, whose family is a bunch of fish, who likes whacking his opponent with tree's. User of"Fist of the grass".
  • Senonaka Namerō: User of "Fist of the tongue", and Pokomi's friend. Bobobo's new rival, he joins after being kicked out of the Neo maruhage empire.
  • Pokomi: Gassers little sister and user of "Fist of Lovely Magical". She aids Bo-bobo in the fight against the Neo Maruhage Empire after being purged of the dark soul possessing her.

Fusions and transformations

Main article: List of character fusions in Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo

Due to Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo both being part of (and parodying) the genre of shonen manga, it takes advantage of various classic traits in the genre and places its own bizarre spin on them. One of these traits is the usage of character transformation, a well-known cliche where a character gets an amazing power-up by unleashing either a dormant power within or a new power taken from elsewhere. The unpredictability of many characters cause them to partake in all sorts of weird transformations, either as part of the parody/homage process (like turning into a demonic being or "turning golden") or merely as part of a huge joke (such as turning into a vegetable, a yen or an immense fortress. However, even with many of the nonsense or one-shot changes, certain power-ups and transformations remain consistant and are consistantly used by the main characters. Some of these include:

  • Baby Gasser: A transformation undertaken by the teen male whenever his neck belt comes off...although it vastly increases his "Onara Shinken" abilities, it also reverts his mind back to an infant!
  • Super Bo-bobo: A stronger form of Bo-bobo who just simply wears a black jacket with flames on the bottom that cost 582 yen!
  • Ikarin Patch / SuperPatch: A powered-up form of Don Patch unleashed when his anger is at his peak and can be consistantly powered up, particularly with the assistance of the KoPatch of the Hajike Gang.

Similar to the transformations, Bo-bobo and his allies also partake in various fusion abilities, coming together to form more powerful beings. But once again, these beings are slightly different: no two fusions are like the original bases and no two are the same as the others! These beings range in personality from the heroic BoboPatch, the manipulative BoboPatchnosuke and the cheerful female Denbo (created from two males) to the impatient PatchBobo, the violently peaceful TenBobo, the reckless Kintenbo and the mature Adult Woman. With each beings comes new surprises both in attacks and in what they will unleash, adding to the weirdness of these already weird characters.


Villains

Main article: Villains in Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo

Bobobo Sagas Event List

Main article: Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo Sagas Event List

Run-on gags

  • Bo-bobo/Don Patch Theatre.
  • Don Patch and Jelly Jiggler getting attacked by Bo-Bobo and vice-versa.
  • Fake character/villain flashbacks.
  • Bo-bobo/Don Patch doing something unexpected.
  • Don Patch changing his face expression/voice.
  • The Don Patch Sword/hammer.
  • Don Patch/Bo-bobo acting like a woman/crossdressing.
  • Beauty/Gasser exasperated.
  • Breaking the fourth wall.
  • The "Wig Out" dance.
  • Jelly Jiggler's "Nu" obsession.
  • Jelly Jiggler being the scapegoat of Bo-bobo and Don Patch's wild antics.
  • Bo-bobo/Don Patch (Sometimes Softon & Jelly Jiggler) turning into a different animal, object, etc.
  • Jelly Jiggler being used as a sled.
  • Something unexpected or weird that pops out of Bo-bobo's afro.
  • Serviceman flashing his private parts at enemies.
  • Bo-bobo dressing up as another good guy, and Don Patch dressing up as the villain.
  • Eyes popping out a character's head.
  • Only in the manga, all characters would spit up large amounts of blood from almost every attack.
  • Dengakuman (and sometimes Don Patch) is ignored by both enemy and ally.
  • Bo-bobo using his teammates as shields against enemy attacks.
  • The unstable relationship between Bill and Sally, the squirrels that live within Bo-Bobo's afro.
  • Villains not actually acting villainous
  • Strange looking bad guys, such as Torpedo Girl

Common Bo-bobo terms

  • Hajike (ハジケ): This word is taken from the Japanese verb hajikeru (弾ける), which means "to burst open" or, in more appropriate terms, "to wig out or go crazy". In the world of Bo-bobo, the ability to "hajike" (or dub terms, Wig Out), is a useful ability used by many of the weird warriors of the world such as Bo-bobo or Don Patch. These Hajikelists (Wigging specialists in the dub) are able to fight opponents or each other using random, silly tactics in order to either confuse or outdo their opponents to the point of insanity. Also, perhaps not coincidentally, "hajike" rhymes with "majide" (see below).
  • Shinken (真拳): Literally standing for True Fist, this is a reference to Fist of the North Star, where the main character Kenshiro uses "Hokuto Shinken" (北斗神拳; God-given martial art of the North Star). Hence, the "Shinken" (真拳) in Bo-bobo is a Japanese pun on "Shinken" (神拳) in Fist. Besides Bo-bobo with his Hanage Shinken (鼻毛真拳; True Martial Art of the Nose Hair) technique, many other characters also have some type of "Shinken" technique, each one using various attacks based upon the thing they have mastered.
  • Ōgi (奥義): One of the Japanese words for Secret, it is used in conjunction with many of the special attacks, particularly in conjunction with the "shinken" attacks, as a special fighting technique of the practiced art. In the Bo-bobo dub, these secret techniques are emphasized instead by the prefix word Super prior to the attacking style and the subsequent attack (e.g.: "Super Fist of Nose Hair", or "Super Snot Fo-You"). The term is also used to identify the chapters in the original Japanese manga (Ōgi 1, Ōgi 2, etc).
  • Oyabin (おやびん): A mispronounciation of the word oyabun (親分), meaning boss in Japanese, this is the title called for Don Patch by members of the "Hajike Gang". Those whom call Don Patch this include the KoPatch, a young man who works with Don Patch when he is first introduced and Hatenko. The dub replaces "oyabin" with these characters calling him either Boss or, in Hatenko's case, The Don.
  • Majide (マジデ): Connected to the words maji (マジ), or "serious" and majime (真面目), "honest or serious", it is an exclamation that could be taken as meaning either Are You Serious!? or Seriously!?. Although some characters exclaim this word due to the weird and wild circumstances of this series, its best used in conjunction with BoboPatchiggler's Majide Time, a time-space dimension where BoboPatchiggler performs some truly bizzare attacks, leading to those trapped inside to constantly yell out this exclamation and make BoboPatchiggler stronger. Also, perhaps not coincidentally, "majide" rhymes with "hajike" (see first entry).
  • Nu (ぬ): A common character of hiragana which is also part of the Japanese kana alphabet. When introduced, the character of "nu" is found all over Tokoro Tennosuke's handkerchief (which is seen and used many times). However, later in the series, "nu" starts to become Tennosuke's obsession and is seen and used in more ways than just a handkerchief(Starting with Nu pajamas). The dub avoids all matters of Japanese language with "Nu", making it a symbol of his "lucky hanky" on everything he adorns it with.
  • Sangaria (３狩りア): A combination of san, the Japanese pronounciation for the number 3 and Karu, the verb To Hunt. First used in battles against the former Hair Hunters of one-hundred years ago, it is a specific rule set up determining how many fighters can take part in a showdown, usually in a 3X3 fight, but can be whatever number the opponents choose. The actual word is perhaps a pun to sangria.
  • Yamiken (闇拳): Translating into Dark Fist, this is similar to Shinken, but used by warriors from the Reverse Maruhage Empire. Like Shinken, these techniques are a mastery of the object or concept of their choosing. But while Shinken are merely techniques, a Yamiken master can fuse with the element through a process that transforms them into a more powerful being!
  • Ganeme (ガネメ): While this word seems like gibberish, it is actually a modification of the Japanese word Megane (メガネ), which stands for Glasses, with the first kana moved to the end creating this new word. This term originally appeared during a match between Bo-bobo and Z-Block Vice-Leader Kibahage, where Bo-bobo uses it to further confuse his opponent. However, it returns with a force against Bo-bobo's brother Bebebe-be Be-bebe, when the afro warrior uses the term while flipping his glasses over to unleash a furious glasses-filled final attack!
  • Shigeki (シゲキ): Standing for Excitement in English, this word is connected to Hair Kingdom general Shigeki X, who, like Don Patch (whom he looks a lot like) with his Hajike abilities, fights and inspires people to do things with Shigekiteki. (Excitingly)

Additional info

  • The comedic and presentation style of Bo-bobo is sometimes compared to the more adult-themed Excel Saga and its spinoff, Puni Puni Poemi.
  • Bo-bobo's name is also a reference to Manzai, a Japanese style of comedy that involves a "boke" (in this case, Bo-bobo himself), and a "tsukkomi" (in this case, Beauty).
  • In episode 1, when we are introduced to Bo-bobo's father via a flashback of Bo-bobo's childhood, his father's name is written on-screen as "Tuyosi." "Tuyosi" is the way of writing his name in Kunrei romanization, while in Hepburn romanization his name would be written as "Tsuyoshi."
  • The style and design of many of the weird characters in this world is similar to Yudetamago's manga Kinnikuman, in which anything and everything can be alive and, most likely, turned into an opponent wrestler. The series itself is usually parodied time to time, either based on a scene, a character, or technique imitations.
  • In an interesting Engrish mistake in the manga, Hatenkou's "Fist of the Key" attack is called "ROCK" when he first uses it, but in later volumes and the anime it is fixed into "LOCK", which makes more sense regarding keys. The mistake is also found with Torpedo Girl using the expression "ROCK ON" when locking in to potential targets. The mistake is a typical one regarding the interchanging nature of the letters "R" and "L" within the Japanese language.
  • In episode 22 of the Bo-bobo anime, Lamune receives a letter from Hatenko asking for her to return volume 5 of the Bo-bobo manga. Both Hatenko and Lamune make their first appearances in Vol. 5 of the manga. Consequently, the manga version of the letter has Hatenko asking her to return the 15th Volume of another Weekly Shonen Jump manga, Saint Seiya.
  • In Japan, Bobo-bobo-bobo was cancelled after its 76th episode because the japanese PTA claimed it was "too violent". The series was currently only half way through the reverse maruhage(hair hunt) empire arc. The manga, however, was not cancelled and is still being written.

Episodes

Main article: List of Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo episodes

Manga

Main article: List of Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo manga chapters

Theme songs

  • Opening
  1. "Wild Challenger" by Jindou (Episodes 1-32) View it
  2. "Baka Survivor" by Ulfuls (Episodes 33-76) View it

(Note: in the English dub, only the first opening is used until episode 38.)

  • Ending
  1. "Shiawase [Happiness]" by Mani Laba View it
  2. "Kirai Tune" by FREENOTE View it
  3. "H.P.S.J." by Mihimaru GT View it

(Note: currently, the dub uses an original ending sequence featuring scenes from the 2nd opening, as well as instrumental music used in the series)

Japanese cast

English Cast

Guest Cast

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