The anime version of the Japanese manga series KochiKame by Osamu Akimoto aired on FujiTV in Japan from 16 June 1996 to 19 December 2004, spanning a total of 344 episodes, 27 specials, and 2 theatrical movies. The official English title is KochiKame: Tokyo Beat Cops.
Background[]
The vast majority of episodes in the anime series involve plots and stories derived from chapters in the manga series itself, with the exception of some episodes being produced as anime-original storylines. In comparison to the manga, the violent and sexually suggestive scenes are either ignored or toned down to suit the younger audience.
The anime series aired weekly every Sunday on FujiTV at 7pm, following Kiteretsu Hyakka and preceding One Piece. The show lasts for approximately 22 minutes without advertising, with the exception of some special episodes. Episodes in the series do not air by season, but rather by year beginning in January all the way through to December on the weekly basis.
Music[]
Opening Themes[]
The anime series underwent many changes in theme songs used for the opening credits, inclusive of the following:
# | Music Title | Artist | Episodes used in | # of Episodes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Natsu ga Kita! (夏が来た!, Summer's Here!) | Nagisa no Jouou-sama | Episode 1 to 12 (16 June 1996 to 22 September 1996) | 12 |
2 | Everybody Can Do! | TOKIO | Episode 13 to 35 (27 October 1996 to 27 April 1997) | 23 |
3 | Katsushika Rhapsody (葛飾ラプソディー ) | Kouhei Doujima | Episode 36 to 135 (4 May 1997 to 25 July 1999)
Special 6 (4 April 1999) |
101 |
4 | Kochira Kameza no Onna (こちら亀座の女 ) | Osamu Yamada and Hello Nights | Episode 136 to 144 (1 August 1999 to 21 November 1999) | 9 |
5 | Oideyo Kameari (おいでよ亀有, Come Over to Kameari) | Kankichi Ryotsu (LaSalle Ishii) and Kameuii~n Song Group | Episode 145 to 191 (5 December 1999 to 24 December 2000)
Special 7 (19 December 1999) Special 8 (2 April 2000) Special 9 (24 December 2000) |
50 |
6 | Damatte Ore ni Tsuitekoi (だまって俺についてこい ) | Yoshimi Tendou | Episode 192 to 299 (14 January 2001 to 5 October 2003)
Special 10 (7 October 2001) Special 13 (13 October 2002) Special 14 (5 January 2003) Special 15 (6 April 2003) Special 16 (5 October 2003) |
113 |
7 | Katsushika Rhapsody ~YumYum VERSION~ (葛飾ラプソディー~ヤムヤムVERSION~ ) | Yum!Yum!ORANGE | Episode 300 to 344 (12 October 2003 to 19 December 2004)
Episode 343 (2 January 2005) |
45 |
Endings[]
In addition to the theme songs, the ending songs for KochiKame also changed numerous times to follow suit:
# | Music Title | Artist | Epsiodes used in | # of Episodes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Smile (スマイル ) | Hoff Dylan | Episode 1 to 12 (16 June 1996 to 22 September 1996) | 12 |
2 | Ii Koto Aru Sa (いいことあるさ, Good Things Will Come) - | THE COLLECTORS | Episode 13 to 35 (27 October 1996 to 27 April 1997) | 23 |
3 | Lady no Yume wa Mangekyō (淑女の夢は万華鏡, A Lady's Dreams are Like a Kaleidoscope) | Megumi Okina | Episode 36 to 72 (4 May 1997 to 22 February 1998)
Special 2 (4 January 1998) |
38 |
4 | Buuee no Biya Biya (ブウェーのビヤビヤ ) | Akira Inoue | Episode 73 to 122 (1 March 1998 to 4 April 1999)
Special 3 (12 April 1998) Special 4 (5 July 1998) Special 5 (4 October 1998) |
53 |
5 | Kyun | Kanae | Special 6 (4 April 1999)
Episode 123 to 135 (25 April 1999 to 25 July 1999) |
14 |
6 | Kimi to Boku (君と僕, You and I) | The LOVE | Episode 136 to 143 (1 August 1999 to 27 June 1999) | 8 |
n/a | Kimochi dayo (気持ちだよ, I Feel) | Yoshida Takurou | Episode 144 (21 November 1999)
Movie 1 (23 December 1999) |
2 |
7 | Mainichi, No Problem (毎日、ノープロブレム, Every Day, No Problem) | Komachi (Rieko Miura) and Naoko (Kanako Mitsuhashi) | Episode 152 to 162, then
Episode 164 to 191 (30 January 2000 to 17 December 2000) |
39 |
n/a | Robo Keiji Banchou no Uta (ロボ刑事番長の歌, Theme of Robo Officer Gang Leader) | Kankichi Ryotsu (LaSalle Ishii) | Episode 163 (16 January 2000) | 1 |
8A | Oideyo Kameari (おいでよ亀有, Come Over to Kameari) | Kankichi Ryotsu (LaSalle Ishii) and Kameuii~n Song Group | Episode 192 to 228 (14 January 2001 to 30 December 2001)
Special 10 (7 October 2001) |
38
(68 total) |
9 | Nice na Kokoroiki (ナイスな心意気, Nice Spirit) | Arashi | Special 11 (6 January 2002)
Episode 229 to 252 (13 January 2002 to 21 July 2002) Special 12 (7 April 2002) |
26 |
10 | Natsu ga Kita! (夏が来た!, Summer's Here!) | Nagisa no Jouou-sama | Episode 253 to Episode 259 (4 August 2002 to 15 September 2002) | 7 |
8B | Oideyo Kameari (おいでよ亀有, Come Over to Kameari) | Kankichi Ryotsu (LaSalle Ishii) and Kameuii~n Song Group | Special 13 (13 October 2002)
Episode 260 to 270 (20 October 2002 to 29 December 2002) |
12
(68 total) |
11 | Nande Darou ~Ryo-san no Version~ (テツANDトモのなんでだろう 〜両さんのバージョン〜 ) | Tetsu and Tomo | Special 14 (5 January 2003)
Episode 271 to 281 (12 January 2003 to 30 March 2003) |
12 |
12 | Nande Darou ~KochiKame no Version~ (テツANDトモのなんでだろう 〜こち亀のバージョン〜 ) | Testsu and Tomo | Special 15 (6 April 2003)
Episode 282 to 290 (13 April 2003 to 22 June 2003) |
10 |
13 | Hai, Irasshai (ハイ! いらっしゃい ) | NICEGUYJin | Episode 291 to 299 (6 July 2003 to 21 September 2003)
Special 16 (5 October 2003) |
10 |
n/a | Katare! Namida! (語れ! 涙! ) | Sex Machinegun | Movie 2 (20 December 2003) | 1 |
8C | Oideyo Kameari (おいでよ亀有, Come Over to Kameari) | Kankichi Ryotsu (LaSalle Ishii) and Kameuii~n Song Group | Episode 309 to 326 (18 January 2004 to 13 June 2004) | 18
(68 total) |
14 | Jugemu ~KochiKame version~ (ジュゲム〜こち亀バージョン〜 ) | Kankichi Ryotsu (LaSalle Ishii) and Dai Edo Taifuu Zoku | Episode 327 to 344 (20 June 2004 to 19 December 2004)
Episode 343 (2 January 2005) |
18 |
List of KochiKame Title Card Backgrounds[]
Aside from some one-off episode-specific title cards, the anime series used mainly the same backgrounds for title cards throughout the series' run. Here's a complete list of them all, as well as which episodes they're used in, and any variants of the same title card:
# | Screenshot | Description | Episodes used in | # of Episodes | Duration used between | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1A | Ryotsu smiling and saluting in front of an orange/yellow painted background.
Episode title uses white text. |
Episode 1 to 2 | 2 | 33 | (16 June 1996 to 23 March 1997) | |
1B | Ryotsu smiling and saluting in front of an orange/yellow painted background.
Episode title uses white text. The painted background here has a slightly different texture to it. |
Episode 3 to 33 | 31 | |||
2 | Ryotsu riding a bike in front of a yellow/green painted background, waving behind him to Ohara, Nakagawa, Reiko, Honda, and Dog as they're chasing after him. Honda has fallen on the ground.
Episode title uses white text with a black drop-shadow. |
Episode 34 to 71, Special 2 | 39 | (13 April 1997 to 15 February 1998) | ||
3A | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 72 to 74, 77, 82 to 85, 89, 91, 92, 95, 98, 100, 101, 104, 106, 108, 111 to 114, 118 to 120, 124, 126, 129, 130, 132, 134 to 137, 140, 144, 148 | 37 | 80 | (22 February 1998 to 28 May 2000) | |
3B | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses red text with a black border. |
Episode 76 | 1 | |||
3C | A magenta tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses black text with a white border and a bold-italic font. |
Special 3 | 1 | |||
3D | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a black drop-shadow. |
Episode 78 | 1 | |||
3E | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a red drop-shadow. |
Episode 79 | 1 | |||
3F | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a red border. |
Episode 80, 105, 123, 127, 139, 141 | 6 | |||
3G | A pink tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a blue border. |
Episode 81 | 1 | |||
3H | A gold tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses pink text with a white border. |
Episode 99 | 1 | |||
3I | A gold tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a red border. |
Episode 107, 115, 121 | 3 | |||
3J | A magenta tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses yellow text with a black border. |
Episode 116 | 1 | |||
3K | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses yellow text with a red border. |
Episode 117 | 1 | |||
3L | A grey tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses red text with a black glow and a bold-italic font. |
Special 6 | 1 | |||
3M | A light-blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 122, 146, 150 to 160, 163 to 166, Special 8 | 18 | |||
3N | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses grey-white gradient text with a black border. |
Episode 128 | 1 | |||
3O | A magenta tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a blue glow. |
Episode 131 | 1 | |||
3P | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with both red and green borders. |
Episode 133 | 1 | |||
3Q | A red tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses white text with a blue border. |
Episode 143 | 1 | |||
3R | A blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses red text with a white glow. |
Episode 147 | 1 | |||
3S | A red tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow.
Episode title uses blue text with a white border. |
Episode 149 | 1 | |||
3T | A light-blue tinted close-up of Ryotsu's eyes and unibrow, except he looks tired.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 161 | 1 | |||
4A | A tiled series of embossed Ryotsu faces in front of a blue background.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 168 to 170, 173, 175 to 179, 182 to 184, 186, 187, 189 to 191, 193 to 195, 198 to 200, 203, 205, 207 to 213, 215, 218 to 224, 226 to 228 | 43 | 123 | (11 June 2000 to 08 February 2004) | |
4B | A tiled series of embossed Ryotsu faces, continuously rotating in front of a blue background.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 229 to 239, 241 to 264, 266 to 287, 289 to 301, 303 to 306, 308 to 312 | 79 | |||
4C | A tiled series of embossed Ryotsu faces, continuously rotating in front of a blue background, with embossed Reiko faces on the opposite side.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 288 | 1 | |||
5 | A series of blue tinted tiles jumbled up and being slid into place to form a picture from the episode.
Episode title uses red text with a white border. |
Episode 313 to 344 | 32 | (15 February 2004 to 2 January 2005) |
Staff[]
- Original Author: Osamu Akimoto
- Planning: Kenji Shimizu -> Koji Kaneta -> Taichirou Fujiyama -> Momoko Konaka, Toshitaka Nakano -> Atsutoshi Hamano -> Yutaka Sugiyama -> Youko Matsushita
- Director: Tetsuo Yasumi -> Shin Misawa -> Shinji Takamatsu -> Yoshihiro Takamoto -> Akira Shigino (TV specials)
- Character design, Drawing Supervision: Tsukasa Nannai, Yamauchi -> Masahiro Kitazaki
- Art Director: Satoshi Shibata
- Director of Photography:
- Music: Ryou Yonemitsu, Toshihiko Sahashi
- Sound Direction: Fusanobu Fujiyama, Hajime Takakuwa
- Producer: Koji Kaneta, Akio Wakana, Kouji Beppu ->
- Animation Production: Gallop
- Development: FujiTV, ASATSU -> ASATSU-DK -> Asatsuu Deii Kei -> ADK
Trivia[]
- Episodes which aired in 1996 had no eyecatches between scenes. Instead, at the end of the anime episode, there were Today's Damage (本日の被害, Honjitsu no higai) segments which highlighted the total number of damages particular characters made during the episode, for example the number of cars someone destroyed or days left drunk/hung over.
- Rieko Miura, voice actress of Komachi, is a popular Japanese singer and actress who has also done voice work in other anime such as R.O.D the TV.
- The anime first used Digital Pen & Ink animation on 5 December 1999 on two episodes; episode 145 (SF Aliens Strike Back!) and episode 146 (Bonus Wars 4), before briefly going back to CEL animation for episodes 147-148 and Special 7. The show's main episodes made a complete switch from CEL animation to Digital Pen & Ink on 2 January 2000, starting with episode 149 (Withstanding Calcium). However, Special 8 (Great Battle of Odorokimononoki-Island), which aired 2 April 2000 would still use CEL animation, but it would be the last to do-so. Even so, the show would still go on to use CEL animation for flashbacks to older episodes, as well as for some of the mid-episode eyecatches.
- Endings were not used between episodes 145 (SF Aliens Strike Back!) and 151 (Komachi's Big Break!?), instead only showing the next episode preview. This was done once again in-between episodes 300 (Nishikigoi Panic!) and 308 (Ryotsu-Style Manga Studio).
- A shortened 15-second version of the 5th opening "Oideyo Kameari" started being used after the next episode preview, starting 16 April 2000 with episode 161 (The Worst Day of my Life), all the way to the penultimate episode of the series, episode 343 (The Tuna Cop). It took the static image with the message "look forward to the next episode", and replaced it with a few short clips of the next episode, while still showing the "look forward to the next episode" message at the end.
- Episode 163 (Profiting from Anime!) has a special one-time insert ending related to the episode titled "Robo Keiji Banchou no Uta", which replaced the standard ending at the time, "Mainichi, no Problem".
- The theme song used for the longest amount of time was 'Damatte Ore ni Tsuite Koi', which was used over two years and eight months. However, both the Doujima and Yum!Yum! versions of 'Katsushika Rhapsody' combined span a total of three years and four months. The theme song used for the least amount of time was 'Kochira Kameza no Onna', which only lasted for 4 months.