Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl
Encyclopedia
YAWARA!, also known as Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl, is a Japan
ese manga
series by Naoki Urasawa
which ran in Big Comic Spirits
from 1986 to 1993. In 1990, it received the 35th Shogakukan Manga Award
for general manga.
The manga is first adapted in 1989 by Toho
as a live action movie, Yawara!, directed by Kazuo Yoshida, starring Yui Asaka
in the main role and singing the main theme Neverland.
In 1989, Yomiuri TV
(part of the Nihon TV
network) began broadcasting an anime
adaptation, which ran from October 16, 1989 through September 21, 1992 for a total of 124 episodes. Each episode ended with a countdown to the number of days remaining to the start of the Barcelona Olympics. The anime, produced by Kitty Film with animation by the Madhouse
studio, aired on Japanese television contemporary with Kitty's Ranma 1/2, but achieved higher ratings than Ranma, despite the latter series' being more well-known outside Japan. AnimEigo
licensed the TV series for North American distribution in August 2006. However, as of April 2010 AnimEigo has been unable to license the remaining episodes of the TV series for North American distribution.
by her authoritarian grandfather, Jigorou Inokuma, with the aim of achieving championship in Japan
and the gold medal in the Barcelona
's 1992 Olympic Games
. Because of all the pressure from her grandfather, she has a generally bad attitude about judo, avoiding it as much as she can. However, as the manga continues, she begins to understand why her grandfather so loves judo, and she begins to appreciate it more.
Hanazono
Sudoh
Ending Theme:
Yawara! was very popular in Japan, so when real life Japanese teenager Ryoko Tamura won a silver medal for judo at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, she was seen as a real-life "Yawara" (her age, stature, and ability all being strikingly similar to those of the fictional character) and promptly nicknamed "Yawara-chan". She was still known by this name eight years later, indicating perhaps the enduring popular recognition of the series as well as that of Ryoko Tamura herself.
The track "Miracle Panda" on the Ranma 1/2 Fighting Karuta soundtrack is a parody of the Yawara opening theme "Miracle Girl" (both Yawara and Ranma 1/2 were produced by Kitty Film). The 2nd OP of the anime was then resung by Shimokawa Mikuni. Shoko Nakagawa
resang the song again in her 10th single "Arigato no Egao".
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, 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...
ese manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series by Naoki Urasawa
Naoki Urasawa
is a Japanese manga artist.-Early life:He graduated from Meisei University with a degree in economics. In 2008, Urasawa had a guest teaching post at Nagoya Zokei University, where he taught classes on manga.-Manga career:...
which ran in Big Comic Spirits
Big Comic Spirits
is a weekly Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Shogakukan and aimed at males 20–25 years old. It originally launched on October 14, 1980. The culture of food, sports, love relationships, and business provide the themes for its featured series, which often question conventional values...
from 1986 to 1993. In 1990, it received the 35th Shogakukan Manga Award
Shogakukan Manga Award
The is one of Japan's major manga awards, sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga since 1955 and features candidates from a number of publishers.The current award categories are:...
for general manga.
The manga is first adapted in 1989 by Toho
Toho
is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
as a live action movie, Yawara!, directed by Kazuo Yoshida, starring Yui Asaka
Yui Asaka
is a Japanese actress, a J-Pop singer, and an idol who came to fame in the 1980s.- Biography :Yui was born in Miyazaki, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan, and later attended Nakano High School. In 1984, she was the Grand Prix Winner for a Young Girls Comics Magazine. Yui was featured as the main character...
in the main role and singing the main theme Neverland.
In 1989, Yomiuri TV
Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation
is a TV station joining Nippon News Network and Nippon Television Network System in Osaka Business Park, Osaka, Japan founded as "" on February 13, 1958...
(part of the Nihon TV
Nippon Television
is a television network based in the Shiodome area of Minato, Tokyo, Japan and is controlled by the Yomiuri Shimbun publishing company. Broadcasting terrestrially across Japan, the network is commonly known as , contracted to , and abbreviated as "NTV" or "AX".-Offices:*The Headquarters : 6-1,...
network) began broadcasting an anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
adaptation, which ran from October 16, 1989 through September 21, 1992 for a total of 124 episodes. Each episode ended with a countdown to the number of days remaining to the start of the Barcelona Olympics. The anime, produced by Kitty Film with animation by the Madhouse
Madhouse (company)
is a Japanese animation studio, founded in 1972 by ex–Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. It has created and helped to produce many well known shows, starting with TV anime series Ace o Nerae! in 1973, and including western favourites Ninja...
studio, aired on Japanese television contemporary with Kitty's Ranma 1/2, but achieved higher ratings than Ranma, despite the latter series' being more well-known outside Japan. AnimEigo
AnimEigo
AnimEigo is an American entertainment company that licenses and distributes anime, samurai films and Japanese cinema. The company was founded in 1988 in Ithaca, New York by Robert Woodhead and Roe R. Adams, III. It is now based in Wilmington, North Carolina, and run by Natsumi Ueki, Robert's wife...
licensed the TV series for North American distribution in August 2006. However, as of April 2010 AnimEigo has been unable to license the remaining episodes of the TV series for North American distribution.
Story
The story is about Yawara Inokuma, a young girl who aspires to an ordinary life but who, due to her innate talent, is forced to keep practicing judoJudo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
by her authoritarian grandfather, Jigorou Inokuma, with the aim of achieving championship in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, 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...
and the gold medal in the Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
's 1992 Olympic Games
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
. Because of all the pressure from her grandfather, she has a generally bad attitude about judo, avoiding it as much as she can. However, as the manga continues, she begins to understand why her grandfather so loves judo, and she begins to appreciate it more.
Characters
- Yawara is a young girl who aspires to an ordinary life but who, due to her innate talent, is forced to keep practicing judo by her authoritarian grandfather. She is always having romantic daydreams about an ordinary life, her biggest dream being to find a boyfriend.
- Jigorou is the 7th-dan Judo Master and 5-time National Champion, his passion for judo is rivaled only by his love for Yawara and food. He has great expectations for Yawara's judo career, and is constantly pushing her to do her best and focus primarily on judo. His motto is "Judo was not built in a day". He also does work on the side as a bone-setting doctor.
- Sayaka is an extremely spoiled daughter of one of Japan's richest families, she has never failed to dominate any sport she's cared to try, and when Yawara shows her up, she decides to stop at nothing to defeat her and becomes her rival. She has a false tooth, which is a sore point for her, and one that Yawara keeps accidentally bringing up.
- Shinnosuke is one of the finest judo coaches in all of Japan, he idolizes Jigorou, and has been hired by Honami. Despite being incredibly shy, he is an unbelievable babe-magnet thanks to his good looks and caring personality. Unfortunately for him, for all the women in the world, and in particular, for Sayaka, the one girl he's got his eye on is Yawara.
- A reporter working for a sports paper, Matsuda's becomes convinced Yawara is going to be the next great sports superstar.
- A cameraman working for a sports paper, Kamoda seems to have a knack for taking "the perfect shot" for headlines.
Hanazono
- Hanazono, the large, overly-emotional captain of the judo club at Yawara's high school, he becomes devoted to Yawara when she comes to his attention as a skilled judoka.
Sudoh
- Sudoh is the resident bad boy at Yawara's high school, he begins to pester her when she starts making headlines, and acts as a foil to Hanazono. When Yawara becomes the high school judo club coach, he joins and is the only new member to withstand Yawara's rigorous training program.
- Jody is the previous year's female judo world champion, she is a Canadian who comes to challenge Yawara to a match part way into the series, becoming a friendly rival and regular character.
Staff
- Executive Producer (Kitty Film): Hidenori Taga
- Producers: Masao Maruyama (Madhouse), Satoshi Suzuki (Kitty), Michihiko Suwa (Yomiuri TV)
- Planning: Michihiko Suwa (Yomiuri TV), Shigekazu Ochiai (Kitty)
- Series Director: Hiroko Tokita
- Episode Directors: Hiroko Tokita, Katsuhisa Yamada, Akio Sakai, Junichi Sakata
- Head Screenwriter: Toshiki Inoue
- Script: Toshiki Inoue, Yoshiyuki Suga, Hiroyuki Kawasaki, Yoshimasa Takahashi
- Character Design: Yoshinori Kanemori
- Art Director: Yuji Ikeda
- Sound Director: Yasuo Uragami
- Animation Directors: Kunihiko Sakurai, Hirotsugu Yamazaki
- Music: Hideharu Mori
- Animation Production: Madhouse Studios
- Production: Kitty Film, Yomiuri TV
Theme Music
Opening Theme:- Eps. 01 - 43
-
- Lyrics by: Yoshiko Miura
- Composition by: Kouichi Fuji
- Arrangement by: Takayuki Negishi
- Song by: Mariko Nagai
-
- Eps. 44 - 81
-
- Lyrics by: Yuuho Iwasato
- Composition by: KAN
- Arrangement by: Jun Satou
- Song by: Miki Imai
-
- Eps. 82 - 102
-
- Lyrics and composition by: Yuko Hara
- Arrangement by: Takeshi Kobayashi
- Song by: Yuko HaraYuko HaraYuko Hara plays the keyboards for Southern All Stars. She is an accomplished vocalist, and writes many of her own songs....
-
- "YOU AND I": Eps. 103-124
- Lyrics and composition by: Taizou Junouchi
- Arrangement by: Takayuki Negishi
- Song by: Mariko Nagai
Ending Theme:
- Eps. 01 - 43
-
- Lyrics by: Takashi Matsumoto
- Composition by: Wataru Yahagi
- Arrangement by: Mitsuo Hagita
- Song by: Rika HimenogiRika Himenogi, real name , is a Japanese singer born on 1971-10-06 in Bungo-ōno, Ōita, Japan. Two of her songs have been featured in anime, Glass Kiss in the Maison Ikkoku movie and Stand By Me in Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl. Rika is married to bass player of Foghat, World XXI and Michael Fath Dave...
-
- Eps. 44 - 81
-
- Lyrics and composition by: Midori Karashima
- Arrangement by: Kei Wakakusa
- Song by: Midori Karashima
-
- Eps. 82 - 102
-
- Lyrics and composition by: Yuko Hara
- Arrangement by: Takeshi Kobayashi, Keisuke KuwataKeisuke Kuwatahas gained fame as a Japanese multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and frontman for the Southern All-Stars, as well as his own solo band, the Kuwata band. He has also done significant amount of scoring music for films. He went to Aoyama Gakuin University....
- Song by: Yuko Hara
-
- Eps. 103 - 124
-
- Lyrics and composition by: LOU
- Arrangement by: Akihisa Matsura, LAZY LOU's BOOGIE
- Song by: LAZY LOU's BOOGIE
-
Cultural context and impact
The significance of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics in the story is that in the real world, this was the first time that Women's Judo would be a full competition event, and would thus see the awarding of the first ever Olympic gold medal for Women's Judo.Yawara! was very popular in Japan, so when real life Japanese teenager Ryoko Tamura won a silver medal for judo at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, she was seen as a real-life "Yawara" (her age, stature, and ability all being strikingly similar to those of the fictional character) and promptly nicknamed "Yawara-chan". She was still known by this name eight years later, indicating perhaps the enduring popular recognition of the series as well as that of Ryoko Tamura herself.
The track "Miracle Panda" on the Ranma 1/2 Fighting Karuta soundtrack is a parody of the Yawara opening theme "Miracle Girl" (both Yawara and Ranma 1/2 were produced by Kitty Film). The 2nd OP of the anime was then resung by Shimokawa Mikuni. Shoko Nakagawa
Shoko Nakagawa
is a Japanese idol, tarento, actress, voice actress, illustrator, and singer. She is best known as the presenter of Pokémon Sunday. She is the daughter of Katsuhiko Nakagawa, a celebrity in Japan in the 1980s....
resang the song again in her 10th single "Arigato no Egao".