Kappa Mikey is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
animatedAnimation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. It is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in a number of ways...
/
Animeis animation originating in Japan. The world outside Japan regards anime as "Japanese animation". Anime originated about 1917.Anime, like manga , has a large audience in Japan and high recognition throughout the world...
sitcom geared toward families and is created by
Larry SchwarzLarry Schwarz is the founder and CEO of Animation Collective, the New York City-based producer of children's programming for television, the Internet and home video....
.
4Kids Entertainment4Kids Entertainment is a Worldwide International American film and television production company and it was claimed to be one of the world's largest distributors in children's television. It is known for dubbing anime, specializing in the acquisition, production and licensing of children's...
is the worldwide licensing, marketing and official promotional agent. The show is
Nicktoons NetworkNicktoons is a digital cable and satellite television network owned by Viacom. It is a sister service of the Nickelodeon cable channel. The network broadcasts Nickelodeon's animated series, Nicktoons, along with other original animated series and foreign animation from other Nickelodeon networks...
's first original half-hour series, to be followed by other Animation Collective shows like
Three DeliveryThree Delivery is an American animated sitcom and action adventure, inspired by kung-fu movies. It is created by Larry Schwarz, who also created similar series, Kappa Mikey and Speed Racer: The Next Generation. It is an animation collaboration between Animation Collective in Manhattan, New York...
, as well as
Edgar and Ellen and
The Secret ShowThe Secret Show is an animated show commissioned by BBC Children's in partnership with BBC Worldwide. First debuted in 2006, it currently airs on CBBC, The Den, ABC, BBC One, BBC Kids, MBC3 and TSR 2...
. It premiered on February 25, 2006, and
NickelodeonNickelodeon is an American cable television channel owned by Viacom. Since the mid-1990s and early 2000s Nickelodoen as a brand has expanded into other territories including Europe, the Middle-East, Russia and Asia.It is often referred to by its shortened name, Nick, a practice that dates back to...
aired several reruns and premieres as a promotional movement from August 20, 2006 to January, 2007. It is
MTVMTV is a cable television network based in New York City and launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs...
's first global acquisition. The entire show is currently available on
iTunesiTunes is a proprietary digital media player application, used for playing and organizing digital music and video files. The program is also an interface to manage the contents on Apple's popular iPod digital media players as well as the iPhone...
.
Kappa Mikey is marketed as "the first
animeis animation originating in Japan. The world outside Japan regards anime as "Japanese animation". Anime originated about 1917.Anime, like manga , has a large audience in Japan and high recognition throughout the world...
to be produced entirely in the United States", according to press releases from MTV, Nicktoons Network, and various other sources, as the term
anime in English is generally reserved for animation originally produced for the Japanese market. It uses Japanese animation and culture as inspiration for its concept, rather than being "true" anime. As a matter of fact, the series is a homage/parody of the Japanese anime genre.
On February 16, 2008, during their "Music Week", Nicktoons Network aired their first original television movie: an hour-long
Kappa Mikey musical entitled "
Kappa Karaoke". Officially, the episode's title is
The Karaoke EpisodeThe Karaoke Episode is Nicktoons Network's first original television movie, and also Kappa Mikeys only two-part episode, which premiered on February 16, 2008. It is a musical, with original sing-a-long songs written and composed by John Angier, who usually wrote the score for the show...
.
The last three episodes have aired after the show was stuck on a hiatus. These episodes were aired in
September 2008September 2008 was the ninth month of the leap year. It began on a Monday and ended after 30 days on a Tuesday.-Portal:Current events:This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from September 2008....
, and declared the season (series) finale after the 20th of September.
Title
The show's title is a variation on the word kappamaki, a type of
sushiIn Japanese cuisine, ' is vinegar rice, usually topped with other ingredients, such as fish. In spelling sushi its first letter s is replaced with z when a prefix is attached, as in nigirizushi, due to consonant mutation called rendaku in Japanese.Sliced raw fish alone is called sashimi, as...
. It is suggested that it was the inspiration for naming the title character Mikey, and uses the prefix kappa. Like Mikey, who is a 'fish out of water' in Japan, the kappa creature itself is a water demon who can live on land. The kappas first appeared on this show in the episode
Mikey, Kappa, on August 5th, where the origin of the title was explained. Mikey also shares his name with the actor who supplies his voice.
Overview
The series centers around Mikey Simon, a 19-year-old actor who just graduated from high school and is from
Cleveland, OhioCleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately 60 miles west of the Pennsylvania border...
. He embarks to
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
after winning a scratch-off card contest to star in the country's formerly popular
animeis animation originating in Japan. The world outside Japan regards anime as "Japanese animation". Anime originated about 1917.Anime, like manga , has a large audience in Japan and high recognition throughout the world...
series,
LilyMuLilyMu is the show within a show on the television series Kappa Mikey.-Overview:Since Kappa Mikey's concept is to be a parody of anime, LilyMu represents the stereotypical, action-adventure animated programming in this cartoon version of Japan, akin to DragonBall Z, Pokémon, and Yu-Gi-Oh!...
. In doing this, he rockets the show back to the top of the ratings, and becomes Japan's biggest anime star.
Segments of
LilyMuLilyMu is the show within a show on the television series Kappa Mikey.-Overview:Since Kappa Mikey's concept is to be a parody of anime, LilyMu represents the stereotypical, action-adventure animated programming in this cartoon version of Japan, akin to DragonBall Z, Pokémon, and Yu-Gi-Oh!...
are seen at the beginning and end of each episode, but the show focuses primarily on the actors' and producers' lives off-set and Mikey's adjustments to the new world he has entered (similar in concept to
The Famous Jett JacksonThe Famous Jett Jackson was a joint Canadian and American Disney Channel Original Series coming of age television series for children ages 12–16 about a boy named Jett Jackson who plays a teenage secret-agent on a fictional TV show-within-a-show called Silverstone...
). The humor comes from the fact that because Mikey is an American, he actually stands out visually from the other cast members, similar to the mix of styles in
Who Framed Roger RabbitWho Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 fantasy comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Steven Spielberg and based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?. It was released by Walt Disney Pictures, under the Touchstone banner and co-produced by Amblin Entertainment...
. While most characters on the show are drawn in an
animeis animation originating in Japan. The world outside Japan regards anime as "Japanese animation". Anime originated about 1917.Anime, like manga , has a large audience in Japan and high recognition throughout the world...
-inspired style (thin outlines, big, detailed eyes, small mouths, and all ten fingers), Mikey (and all other American characters) is drawn in a retro-inspired American cartoon manner (thicker outlines, single black dot pupil eyes, a larger mouth, and only eight fingers). The humor is delivered in a rapid pace, and also consists of light satire, incongruity, slapstick, character quirks, and a fair amount of
gross-out humorToilet humour, or scatological humour, is a type of off-colour humour dealing with defecation, urination, flatulence, vomiting and other bodily functions. Public reference to bodily functions is taboo in many cultures...
.
Production
Kappa Mikey is different from other cartoons produced at the turn of the century, in that the property was owned by the studio instead of an agency, the animation was not out-sourced, and the episodes were written by a full-time staff. After producing Internet-based projects and television spots, this was
Animation CollectiveAnimation Collective is an American animated cartoon studio. The studio is based in New York City, and is founded by Larry Schwarz, best-known for its internet and television series using Adobe Flash, Maya and other software.- Original Series :...
's first ever television series, and was produced in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
starting from the summer of 2005.
An early test pilot was made for a pitch to
MTV NetworksMTV Networks is a division of media conglomerates Viacom and CBS Corporation that oversees the operations of many television channels and Internet brands, including the original MTV channel in the United States....
, where the character designs and backgrounds resembled more like those found in
Perfect Hair ForeverPerfect Hair Forever is an American comedy animated television series which is largely a parody of anime. It was created and produced by Williams Street, and primarily aired in 2005 on Adult Swim and The Detour in the US and Canada respectively....
and the humor was also more adult. Much of the current cast was voicing their characters even this early in production. When the deal didn't go through, Nickelodeon eventually picked up the project, and the show was tweaked heavily in order to be aimed at a younger audience.
Voice talents were usually local, and for the most part, the show was recorded at Manhattan-based
NYAV PostNYAV Post is a recording studio located in New York, founded by Michael Sinterniklaas in 2000. They have been prolific in recording anime dubs, primarily for Media Blasters and RightStuf, but they have also worked on original animation, commercials, and feature films.-ADR Production:Anime titles...
, which
Michael SinterniklaasMichael Tremain Sinterniklaas is a voice actor, dubbing director, and founder of NYAV Post, a dubbing studio in New York City. Sinterniklaas sometimes does work under the name Michael Tremain as well....
owns.
Larry SchwarzLarry Schwarz is the founder and CEO of Animation Collective, the New York City-based producer of children's programming for television, the Internet and home video....
, along with the other executive producers, oversaw all phases of production, but only had writing credits on the pilot episode,
Mikey ImpossibleMikey Impossible is the third episode of Kappa Mikey. It aired immediately after the premiere of The Switch on the same day.-Summary:...
, and
A Christmas MikeyA Christmas Mikey is the holiday special of the first season of Kappa Mikey, and can also be considered the sequel to the show's pilot episode. Though technically the first season finale, it aired as the eighteenth episode, in time for Christmas...
. All the episodes were directed by Sergei Aniskov. The instrumental score was composed by John Angier, who also wrote the lyrics to
The Recycling Song, Ori and Yori's hits,
Living With Mikey,
How Did We Get Here?, and the songs in
The Karaoke EpisodeThe Karaoke Episode is Nicktoons Network's first original television movie, and also Kappa Mikeys only two-part episode, which premiered on February 16, 2008. It is a musical, with original sing-a-long songs written and composed by John Angier, who usually wrote the score for the show...
.
It was animated in
Adobe FlashAdobe Flash is a multimedia platform originally acquired by Macromedia and currently developed and distributed by Adobe Systems. Since its introduction in 1996, Flash has become a popular method for adding animation and interactivity to web pages...
, with some moments of
CGIComputer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
rendered in
MayaAutodesk Maya, or simply Maya , is a high-end 3D computer graphics and 3D modeling software package originally developed by Alias Systems Corporation, but now owned by Autodesk as part of the Media and Entertainment division. Autodesk acquired the software in October 2005 upon purchasing Alias...
. To further emphasize the contrast in animation styles, one group of animators was assigned to the anime characters, and another group was in charge of Mikey and the other American characters. The vehicles on
LilyMuLilyMu is the show within a show on the television series Kappa Mikey.-Overview:Since Kappa Mikey's concept is to be a parody of anime, LilyMu represents the stereotypical, action-adventure animated programming in this cartoon version of Japan, akin to DragonBall Z, Pokémon, and Yu-Gi-Oh!...
and around Tokyo, as well as the weapons, the Gonard balloon, Pirate King's ship, the Karaoke Genie Machine, etc..., were created in Maya and exported into Flash using the Toon Filter. The backgrounds were modeled in Maya, and texture, details, and clouds were added in Photoshop. Some of the backgrounds were inspired by actual locations in
Tokyo, officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan and is located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū. The twenty-three special wards of Tokyo, each governed as a city, cover the area that was once the city of Tokyo in the eastern part of the prefecture, totaling over 8 million people....
.
The show's anime-style characters perform with large comedic overuses of face faults, such as a face and/or body turning into an exaggerated general appearance, or becoming much smaller. This allowed animators to have more control over how a character looks and acts than on many other Flash shows, and they didn't always have to be on-model. The show uses clichés common to anime, including the sweat drop, lines over the eyes or no eyes at all, big heads, flaming eyes, bodies becoming smaller (or
super deformedSuper deformed or SD is a specific style of Japanese caricature where characters are drawn in an exaggerated way, typically small and chubby, with stubby limbs and oversized heads, to make them resemble small children....
). Sometimes Mikey will try to do these things, which was one of the show's running gags, but cannot due to being drawn in an American style.
Characters
| Character |
Voice Actor |
| Mikey Simon Mikey Simon is the main character of Kappa Mikey.-Profile:Michael Alexander Simon is an American, from Cleveland, Ohio, 19 years old, and is the only American main character on the anime show, LilyMu...
|
Michael Sinterniklaas Michael Tremain Sinterniklaas is a voice actor, dubbing director, and founder of NYAV Post, a dubbing studio in New York City. Sinterniklaas sometimes does work under the name Michael Tremain as well....
|
| Gonard Gonard is a character from the animated television series Kappa Mikey.-Profile:As an actor on the LilyMu show, Gonard plays a diabolical, muscular, purple creature referred to as Super Gonard, bent on destroying Team Lilymu and taking over Tokyo....
|
Sean Schemmel Sean Schemmel is an American voice actor who works with anime series at FUNimation Entertainment, NYAV Post, and 4Kids Entertainment...
|
| Guano Guano is a character on the Nicktoons Network series Kappa Mikey. His name comes from a Spanish word for "Manure"- it refers specifically to manure obtained from birds or bats.-Profile:...
|
Gary Mack |
| Lily Lily is a character on the Nickelodeon and Nicktoons Network TV show, Kappa Mikey.-General Information:Lily used to be the one and only star of LilyMu, which points to the fact that she has been on the show since it started. She is an actress. Another clue is that the show is named LilyMu. She was...
|
Annice Moriarty Kether Donahue is a voice actress who was born and raised in New York City. She has starred as a number of anime characters, and is also known as Annice Moriarty, according to IMDB...
|
| Mitsuki Mitsuki is a fictional character on the Nickelodeon and Nicktoons Network TV show, Kappa Mikey.-Profile:Mitsuki is a main cast member on the hit show LilyMu, in Tokyo, Japan. She is good friends with the rest of the LilyMu stars...
|
Evelyn Lanto |
| Ozu Ozu is a major character of Kappa Mikey.-Profile:The ill-tempered producer of LilyMu, Ozu rules the show with an iron fist. He frequently yells at the cast and crew members whenever something goes wrong. He is a gentle, caring and supportive mentor to the cast and crew as well...
|
Stephen Moverly |
| Yes Man Yes Man is a fictional character of Kappa Mikey, based on the archetypical yesman character, found in role-oriented organizations. He is voiced by Jesse Adams.-General Information:Yes Man is Ozu's chimp-faced assistant and sidekick...
|
Jesse Adams |
These characters are modeled on cartoon stereotypes, to varying extents. The show also features secondary characters and extras, mostly in crowd scenes, whose designs are directly inspired by famous anime characters, but who are different enough to avoid copyright infringements. Sometimes this is done to spoof the films and television programs intentionally, such as the character Masaka Masako, whose appearance spoofs Yubaba (or her twin, Zeneba) from the film
Spirited Awayis a 2001 Japanese animated film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and produced by Studio Ghibli. The film views a sullen ten-year-old girl in the middle of her family's move to a new town and her adventures in a world of spirits and monsters.The film received many awards, including the...
, or Takashi Katashi, who shares a similar appearance and name with
Kakashi Hatakeis a fictional character in the Naruto manga and anime series created by Masashi Kishimoto. Kishimoto originally planned to introduce Kakashi in the manga to the series' titular character, Naruto Uzumaki, early on, but pushed back this meeting so that Naruto's teammates could be better developed.In...
from the anime
Narutois 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...
(the person standing next to him could be a character that's supposed to resemble
Sakura Harunois a fictional character in the Naruto manga and anime series created by Masashi Kishimoto. Sakura has become the series' female lead, although she was not immediately intended for the role...
, also from
Narutois 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...
, note the clothing). On another episode there is an anime version of Ami and Yumi from the TV series,
Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumiHi Hi Puffy AmiYumi is an Annie Award-nominated American animated television series produced by Renegade Animation for Cartoon Network. The show was created by Sam Register, who also serves as the series' executive producer....
(which was running on Cartoon Network at the time). Also in the final scene of the episode entitled 'Reality Bites' there is a person in the crowd that looks like a persocom from the anime
Chobitsis a Japanese manga created by Clamp. It was published by Kodansha in Young Magazine from February 2001 and November 2002 and collected in eight bound volumes. Unlike most stories by Clamp, Chobits is a seinen series commonly mistaken for shōjo because of its strong romantic themes and flowery art...
. Other times, it is done to continue the show's original concept, without any intention behind it.
List of episodes
| Seasons |
Episodes |
First Airdate |
Last Airdate |
| Season 1 |
26 |
February 25, 2006 |
April 28, 2007 |
| Season 2 |
26 |
June 9, 2007 |
September 20, 2008 |
DVD Release
A Kappa Mikey DVD was released on September 18, 2007 under Starz Home Entertainment. It includes the episodes
Lost in Transportation,
Easy Come, Easy Gonard, and
The Man Who Would Be Mikey, all from the first season, as well as bonus material, including a music video of 'I'm Alright' from
Battle of the Bands, wallpaper, an interactive game parodying
Hollywood SquaresThe Hollywood Squares is an American television comedy and game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win money and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by an entertainer seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
, and a How-To-Draw-Mikey tutorial.
In 2008, the Animation Collective site advertised a 2nd DVD that was scheduled be released sometime later that year. However, that announcement has been erased, leaving the exact release date to be unknown. It would've included Season One in its entirety, with DVD extras, and would've been considered more of an "official" volume than the last one. No further announcement has been made as the status of this DVD. It is presumingly cancelled as of 2009.
Cultural Errors
- Being made in, and for, the United States, every character speaks English, and most do not have Japanese accents except for Ozu and Yes Man.
- Americanized creative liberties with Japan abound in generally every minor detail, even though Japanese characters are used in signage, and the Tokyo cityscape looks accurate.
- The top, or near-top, of Mt. Fuji is not covered in snow or ice, and no characters are clothed in winter outerwear while climbing it in the episode The Bracemaster.
- Raccoons
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most widespread species, the Common Raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
, which appear in the show now and then, specifically in The Phantom of the Soundstage and The Man Who Would Be Mikey, are not found in Japan. However, Japanese raccoon dogs, or tanukisis the Japanese word for the Japanese raccoon dog . They have been part of Japanese folklore since ancient times...
, do exist in Japan and may instead be the creatures depicted, which would be consistent with the mischievous nature of these creatures in Japanese folklore. In The Masked Tanuki, Guano's costume resembles a raccoon, even though it is named after the former.
Dancing Sushi Spin-off Series
A spin-off mini-series of
Kappa Mikey was made for Nicktoons Network, called
Dancing SushiDancing Sushi is an American animated television series for Nicktoons Network. It is a spin-off of the 52-episode, half-hour animated Nicktoon Kappa Mikey. Animation Collective produced the series. Although it aired on international Nickelodeon channels in Brazil, Russia, etc., it never aired in...
, and focused on the antics of the three main sushi beings that originally appeared in the bumpers of the show.. They are given names, and a fourth female sushi named Meep was added to balance out the cast. Twenty-six 1-minute episodes were made, with 3 web-exclusive episodes currently out now. The series is currently running on networks outside the United States, with no announcement for when this series will run in the United States.
The Karaoke EpisodeThe Karaoke Episode is Nicktoons Network's first original television movie, and also Kappa Mikeys only two-part episode, which premiered on February 16, 2008. It is a musical, with original sing-a-long songs written and composed by John Angier, who usually wrote the score for the show...
songs
These are the songs that were sang by the characters from Nicktoons Network's first original TV movie,
The Karaoke EpisodeThe Karaoke Episode is Nicktoons Network's first original television movie, and also Kappa Mikeys only two-part episode, which premiered on February 16, 2008. It is a musical, with original sing-a-long songs written and composed by John Angier, who usually wrote the score for the show...
. They were all written by John Angier.
| Number |
Title |
Sung By |
| 1 |
It's In Your Heart |
Mikey, Gonard, Guano, Lily, Mitsuki |
| 2 |
I Feel Super |
Mikey |
| 3 |
My Life Is Rulin' [AKA Looking Back at Days Gone By] |
Mikey, Gonard, Guano, Lily, Mitsuki |
| 4 |
When Life Gives You Lunch Meat [AKA Sandwich-eees] |
Gonard |
| 5 |
I Pull the Strings |
Ozu |
| 6 |
Power Ballad Beat the Hero |
Ozu, Guano |
| 7 |
Nothing Rhymes With Purple |
Guano |
| 8 |
Hail Mighty Diva [AKA Popstar Power] |
Lily |
| 9 |
Our Paths (Will They Cross? Will It Matter?) |
Mitsuki |
| 10 |
Do the Bounce [AKA Follow the Bouncing Ball] |
Mikey, Gonard, Guano, Lily, Mitsuki |
| 11 |
It's In Your Heart (Reprise) |
Mikey, Gonard, Guano, Lily, Mitsuki, Ozu (at end) |
External links