Stitch!

Stitch!
File:Japanese Stitch Logo.jpg Logo for the first season of the series.
スティッチ! (Sutitchi!)
Genre	Kodomo
Anime
Stitch!
Directed by	Masami Hata
Studio	Madhouse, Walt Disney Animation Japan
Released	October 8, 2008 – June 26, 2009
Anime
Stitch! ~ The Mischievous Alien's Great Adventure ~
Directed by	Masami Hata
Studio	Madhouse, Walt Disney Animation Japan
Released	October 13, 2009 – June 29, 2010

Stitch! (スティッチ!, Sutitchi!) is the anime adaption of the animated feature film Lilo & Stitch and the subsequent spin-off series by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It takes place in the future after the film and started in Japan in October 2008. The show features a Japanese girl named Yuna in place of Lilo, and is set on a fictional island in the Ryukyus off the shore of Okinawa instead of Hawaii. The island is called Izayoi. A second anime season, called Stitch! ~ The Mischievous Alien's Great Adventure (スティッチ!悪戯エイリアンの大冒険, Sutitchi! Itazura Eirian no Daibōken) began airing in Japan on October 13, 2009. A third season, entitled Stitch! ~Always the Best of Friends (Stitch! ~Zutto Saikō no Tomodachi~) is set to debut on TV Asahi on July 6, 2010.

The first season began airing under the English language on Disney Channel (Australia) on Friday, 4 December 2009 at 3:30 PM, and went to also air in English later on Disney Channel Asia December 19, 2009.

Production

File:Stitch ~Itazura Alien no Daibouken~-Title Card.jpg

Logo for "Stitch! ~The Mischievous Alien's Great Adventure~," the second season of the series.

The show is animated and co-produced by the Japanese animation house Madhouse LTD.

At the 2008 Tokyo International Anime Fair, the pilot for the series was showcased for attendees at the Madhouse booth. Information was also shown around Disney's booth, showing the cast of characters who would appear in the anime. From the information available, many of the past characters, such as Jumba Jookiba, Pleakley, and Captain Gantu might appear, as well as three villains; Dr. Jacques von Hamsterviel, Experiment 627, and Leroy. In addition, two characters, Reuben and Angel, are in the anime. Sparky and Felix, also appear in the anime due to their popularity from the English franchise.

Stitch! started on TV Tokyo and following affiliates at 7:00pm on October 8, 2008 and had an hour premiere of the first two episodes. Afterwords, it aired on every Wednesday after at 7:26PM timeslot, essentially replacing Bleach.

Where the Hawaiian culture was featured in the original version, the culture of Okinawa Prefecture and the other Ryukyu Islands is featured. For example, Yuna's karate has replaced Lilo's hula.

The Stitch anime influnces kodomo manga. It is originally aimed in Japan at young kids aged 4 to 14 years. Most of the main characters are young children with Yuna being a 9-year old, 4th grader and elementary school student. But however like in all Japanese anime, some darker and mature content are present in the original Japanese version as they were appropriate and friendly to the kids in Japan.

Characters

File:Hanako.JPG

Yuna's (who was initially given the name Hanako) look is similar to Lilo in Stitch!.

Main characters

Yuna (ユウナ)

Seiyū: Motoko Kumai

She is a young 9-year old 4th grader, elementary-school student who lives on a fictional island off the shore of Okinawa, called Izayoi. Living on Izayoi, she learned and studies karate, living a rather normal life, but having to deal with minor problems living with her grandmother, Obaa. However, one day she meets a strange creature that has come from the depths of space, Stitch.

Stitch (スティッチ, Sutitchi)

Seiyū: Kōichi Yamadera

Stitch (original name: Experiment #626), an alien from outer space, one day ends up falling to an island located on Earth, called Izayoi. He discovers "The Spiritual Stone" on Okinawa and learns it can grant his wish of becoming the strongest in the universe...provided he does enough good deeds.

Doctor Jumba (ジャンバ博士, Janba Hakase)

Seiyū: Shōzō Iizuka

Jumba is an evil genius scientist, the one who created Stitch, and the other 625 Experients. He is assigned by the Galactic Council to watch over Stitch, and lives with Yuna and Obaa. He is much friendlier in this series than the original, and has less of a penchant for evil.

Pleakley (プリークリー, Purīkurī)

Seiyū: Yūji Mitsuya

He is a one-eyed alien working for the Galactic Council and Earth expert. He is Jumba's best friend, and lives with him along with Yuna, Obaa, and Stitch.

Obaa (Grandma)

Seiyū: Hisako Kyōda

Yuna's grandmother.

Kijimunaa

Seiyū: Kappei Yamaguchi

He is a little being who is Yuna & Stitch's friend.

Angel (エンジェル, Enjeru)

Seiyū: Keiko Toda

Experiment #624: A pink female experiment who is Stitch's love interest. Stitch is madly in love with her and she shares the same feeling. Angel travels a lot, but she stops at the island, at times, to visit Stitch and Yuna.

Other characters

Piko (named Penny in the English dub)

Seiyū: Miyako Ito

Yuna's rival. She is also a black-team karate leader. Piko/Penny dislikes Sae-chan but secretly does believe that she dresses better than her.

Kouji (named Kenny in the English dub)

Seiyū: Yuka Nishigaki

Although he is Piko's older brother, he is always bossed around by her. Kouji has a crush on Sae.

Taka (named Ted in the English dub)

Seiyū: Hitomi Hase

Piko's friend. His skin is like a langsat-colour skin. He is always bossed around by Piko.

Masa (named Marvin in the English dub)

Seiyū: Yuki Ishii

Piko's friend. He wears a cap and has orange hair. He is always bossed around by Piko.

Taro

Seiyū: Tomoe Banba

Yuna's karate student and classmate. He Is Very Timid And Chooses Not To Interact With Any Yokai Including Kijimuna Which He Still Thinks That He Eats Human Eye's But In Episode 12 It Was Revealed That He Likes Eating Fish Eye's When He Offers Dolores/Foxy Beige His Best And Biggest Fish Eye.

Yuna's Aunt/Zuruko-sensei

Seiyū: ???

A beautiful woman that knows a lot about alien technology. She can win almost any fight but only because she cheats such as a steel tip in her medal rod that she uses in judo and karate. She thinks that Yuna and Stitch are annoying but enjoys stealing, tricking others with Stitch.

Sparky

Seiyū: Yūji Mitsuya

Experiment #221: he can create crippling electric surges. He was under the control of Hamsterviel temporarily in a attempt to steal Stitch's Good Deed Counter. He currently works at a beauty salon on Izayoi.

Felix

Seiyū: Kappei Yamaguchi

Experiment #010: Felix can use his vacuum-like trunk to sterilize, disinfect, and clean everything in sight. Like Sparky and Angel, Felix often comes to visit Stitch.

627

Seiyū: Hanawa

Experiment #627: A red, monstrous experiment, he is Stitch's rival for Angel's affections.

note: Experiment 627 was never given a name.

Nosy

Seiyu: Matsuno Taiki

Experiment #199: A red, big-nosed experiment, who is Stitch's cousin that snoops out enemy secrets but ends up finding out mostly useless gossip. Like Angel, Sparky and Felix, Nosy often comes to visit Stitch.

Honda

Seiyū: Sōryū Konno

He is a mailman.

Suzuki

Seiyū: Kanji Suzumori

He is a policeman.

Kawasaki-sensei (named Mrs. Kawasaki in the English dub)

Seiyū: Ryōko Nagata

She is a teacher of Yuna's school

Sae-chan

Seiyū:

A new stylish transfer student, introduced in the new series. She becomes Yuna's new friend.

BooGoo

Seiyū:

Pleakley's pet. Everyone finds him cute, but he has a naughty side. He Was Doctor Jouques Von Hamsterviel's Second Experiment (First Being Leroy) He Was Originally Made To Mess Up Stitch's Good Deed Counter By Making It Go Up When He Does Bad Deeds And Go Down By 2-3 When He Does Good Deeds. BooGoo Also Has The Power To Transform But Was Deactivated By Jumba. Pleakley Originally Wanted To Keep BooGoo, Because He Looked Like An Alien Mosquito. So When BooGoo Changed Back To Normal Pleakley Was Depressed, But He Warmed Up To BooGoo.

Yuna's father

Seiyū: ???

Pleakley's Parents

Seiyū: ???

They Often Always Yell At Pleakley Because He Did Not Marry Either Chosen Brides That Pleakley's Mother Chose For Him. Oddly Enough, One Episode Revealed That The Picture On The Right That Pleakley's Mother Always Holds Is The Same Species As Gantu, And Her Name Is Pantu.

Tacchichu

Seiyū: ???

A Sumo Wrestling Yokai That Stole Kijimuna's Tree By Breathing Fire In A Sumo Match. He Is Also Able To Control Vines.

Muun (Bojo In English Dub)

Seiyū: ???

A painting Yokai that Can Make Drawings Come To Life With His Magic Tail He Uses As A Paint Brush. Stitch Used It To Create A Giant Version Of Himself And Yuna.

Chick (BabeeChick In English Dub)

Seiyū: ???

A Baby Bird that hatched From A Giant Egg That Stitch, Yuna, Jumba, and Pleakley Wanted To Make Scrambled Eggs, Fried Eggs, Sunny Side Up Eggs, Omelets Out Of It. Chick Grows Over Night And Can Fly But It Is Still An Infant Which Is Shown By Being Compared To Its Full Grown Mothers Size And Color.

Warracchi

Seiyū: ???

A Pranking Yokai That Loves To Pull Pranks On Others. Warracchi Often Only Puts HIs Victim's Pillow's Under There Feet And Gives Them Weird Hair Styles But Puts Kouji's/ Kenny's Cloths On Backwards. It Is Shown That He Loves Shave Ice And Coconut Flavored Drinks And Is Considered An Ice Yokai. Warracchi Also Does Not Prank The Elderly Which Is Shown When Obaa's/ Grandma's Hair Is Not Changed.

Pellorine and Pelloran (Hull & Husk in the English dub)

Seiyū: ???

Contorting Yokai That Are Able To Stretch There Tongue's. They Eat The Outside Of The Pineapple Only Which Explains Why There Names Are Related To Only The Outside Of The Pineapple.

Dolores (Foxy Beige In English Dub)

Seiyū: ???

A Shape Shifting Yokai That Can Transform Into A Beautiful Middle Age Girl But Transforms Back Into A Fox If Threatened. She Is Based On A Kitsune From Ancient Japanese Folk Lore. She Has The Power To Transform Leafs, Branch's Into Any Item But They Look Different Such As When She Tried To Pass It A Transformed Off As Real Money And It Had A Picture Of A Fox On The SIde. She Can Also Breath Fire And Lightning From Her Mouth. She Often Tries To Hide Her Tale But She Cant Help It From Popping Out Of Her Dress.

Damacchi

Seiyū: ???

A Shooting Star From Outer Space That Thought He Was A Fedama Yokai. This Episode Was Supposed To Teach Kids About Racism.

Himamushi

Seiyū: ???

A Small Green Lazy Yokai That Has The Power To Send Down Rain That Makes People Lazy Or Active. This Rain Was Used Twice On A Cleaner But He Seemed Much Happier When He Was Lazy.

Mrs Tanakawa

Seiyū: ???

An Old Women That Lives On The Other Side Of Izayoi. Her Son Works Far Away From Her But She Is Happy That He Takes The Time To Write Her A Letter Now And Then.

Topsy-Turvy

Seiyū: ???

2 Opposite Yokai That Can Make Anything Opposite. The Younger Topsy-Turvy Could Not Perform The Topsy-Turvy Spell But Learned How To In Izayoi.

Pilolo

Seiyū: ???

A Sleep Inducing Yokai That Can Put Anyone To Sleep . He Is Very Childish And Acts Tough To Strangers That Might Hurt Him But Is Secretly Easily Hurt.

Villains

Dr. Jacques Von Hämsterviel

Seiyū: Hiroshi Yanaka

The villain who was a college buddy of Jumba.

Captain Gantu

Seiyū: Unshou Ishizuka

He works for Hamsterviel to steal Stitch's Gadget.

Reuben

Seiyū: Kōji Ochiai

Experiment #625: he has all powers of Stitch, but he is lazy and eats sandwiches. Rueben doesn't do much beside make sandwichs all the time. During the series he isn't much of a enemy to Stitch even visiting him sometimes. During,"Onigiri Rueben" he becomes fond of Japanese Riceballs.

Episode list

Main article: List of Stitch! episodes

Cast

Please note that the original English voice cast from the Lilo & Stitch movie did not reprise their roles for this anime.

Character	Voice Actor (Japanese)	Voice Actor (English)
Stitch	Kōichi Yamadera	Ben Diskin
Yūna	Motoko Kumai	Eden Riegel
Jumba	Shōzō Iizuka	Jess Winfield
Pleakley	Yūji Mitsuya	Ted Biaselli
Hämsterviel	Hiroshi Yanaka	Kirk Thornton
Gantu	Unshou Ishizuka	Keith Silverstein
Obaa (Grandma)	Hisako Kyōda	Gwendoline Yeo
Kijimuna	Kappei Yamaguchi	Colleen O'Shaughnessey
Reuben	Kōji Ochiai	Dave Wittenberg
Yūna's father	Kōichi Yamadera	Jeff Nimoy
Tarō	Tomoe Banba	Stephanie Sheh
Taka (Ted)	Hitomi Hase	Laura Bailey
Masa (Marvin)	Yuki Ishii	Kari Wahlgren
Honda-san	Sōryū Konno	Dave Wittenberg
Suzuki	Kanji Suzumori	Kirk Thornton
Piko (Penny)	Miyako Ito	Meghan Strange
Angel	Keiko Toda	Kate Higgins
Kōji (Kenny)	Yuka Nishigaki	Derek Stephen Prince
Jun	Yuri Konno	Laura Bailey
Tonbo	Yūki Kaji	Dave Wittenberg
Sparky	Yūji Mitsuya	Steven Jay Blum
Felix	Kappei Yamaguchi	Steven Jay Blum
Kawasaki-sensei	Ryōko Nagata	Kari Wahlgren
Tachicchu	Sōryū Konno	Steven Jay Blum
627	Hanawa	Tom Wyner Ben Diskin
Nosy	Matsuno Taiki	???
BooGoo	???	???
Sae	???	???
Zuruko	???	???

Differences between the Japanese and the English

• The opening and ending themes are replaced with one theme for the English version, composed of electric guitars, taiko drums and character voices.
• The opening title and ending credits sequences in the English version are made up of clips and still shots from various episodes, rather than the unique animation used in the Japanese versions.
• All of the original Japanese background music is replaced.
• The original Japanese sound effects are replaced with different sounds.
• The music of any of the traditional Japanese and Okinawan instruments such as the Okinawan musical instrument called the Sanshin as the precursor of the Japanese shamisen are completely replaced and replaced with new different Japanese and Okinawan instrument music in the dub.
• Some scenes are cut or rearranged in the English version.
• Some episodes are shortened to half-length and aired together in a single 22-minute block in the English version.
• Although Japanese cultural references (and even Japanese kana, kanji and romaji) are mostly kept in the dub (with some Japanese kana, and kanji translated to English), the script/dialogue have been completely rewritten. This is partly done to make the anime seem like a direct sequel to the Leroy & Stitch movie (which in itself is a sequel of Lilo and Stitch: The Series).

Crew

• Project Planning: Masao Maruyama
• Producers: Yasuteru Iwase, Satoru Yoshimoto
• Series Composition: Shoji Yonemura, Yuuko Kakihara
• Director: Masami Hata
• Animation Production: Madhouse
• Production: TV Tokyo (season 1), TV Asahi (season 2 onwards), Madhouse, Walt Disney Animation Japan

DVD

The first DVD box set of the series was out on Aug 05, 2009 in Japan, which has episodes 1-13. A single DVD called Stitch! Kessaku Episode Shu / Sukisuki! Angel was out on the same day, but with only three episodes which are Episodes 6, 8 & 11 (Lovely! Angel - Episode 6, Stitch lost! - Episode 8 & Panic in the Pineapple Plant - Episode 11) & the 2nd half of the series (Episode 14-26) in another DVD box set was out on Oct 07, 2009.

The 2nd season of this series box set contains the first 15 episodes, 4 Haisai Stitch clips, and 17 Kung Fu Dragon: Pleakley shorts. It will be available on June 23, 2010. A single DVD called "Stitch! ~Itazura Alien no Daibouken~ The Best Lovely Alien" will be available on June 23, 2010, but with only three selected episdes which are Episodes 2, 14 & 15.

Theme songs

In the English version of the show, the opening theme song only uses generic music instead of any of the Japanese songs.

Stitch! (Season 1)

Opening theme

• "Ichariba Ohana" (イチャリバオハナ, "If We've Met Before, We're Ohana") by Begin

Ending themes

• "Izayoi Yoi" (イザヨイヨイ, "Izayoi Evening") by Begin w/ Hatoma Kanako (ep 1- 13)
• "Stitch is Coming" by Bless4 (ep 14- 26)

Stitch! ~Itazura Alien no Daibouken~ (Season 2)

Opening theme

• "SMILE" by Kimaguren (ep 1 - 10)
• "Rodeo star mate" by The Pillows (ep 11 - 19)
• "South Wind & Sun (南風と太陽, Minami Kaze to Taiyou)" by Mongol800 (ep 20 - 28)

Ending theme

• "Stitch Eisa" by LoversSoul (ep 1 only)

Insert Song

Trivia

• The crocodile was in the anime (which appears to be the same one from Peter Pan).
• There were lots of Disney cultures in the anime. (e.g. Mickey Mouse's pants, some items in Mickey Mouse shape, Mickey Mouse-styled hand from Stitch's car, Disney Princess costumes)
• The talking door "knobs" are in the anime and from Lord Kutato's palace, in Aladdin "Snowman is an Island".
• A crocodile-headed imp was in the anime (which appears to be the same one from Aladdin (TV series).
• A cyclops named Fashoom are in the anime (from Aladdin "Prophet Motive").

External links

Official Japanese Sites

• Disney's Stitch! website
• Disney's Stitch character page (Hawaii)
• Disney's Stitch character page (Okinawa)
• Official TV Asahi page of Stitch!
• Official TV Tokyo page of Stitch!

International Sites

• Official site from Disney Channel Asia
• Official site from Disney Channel Taiwan

English Fan Sites

• Stitch! on SaveLiloAndStitch.org

Others

• Stitch! ({{{type}}}) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Haisai Stitch (unofficial news source)