Hamtaro
Hamtaro | |
![]() Cover of the first children's book featuring Hamtaro. | |
とっとこハム太郎 (Tottoko Hamutarō[1]) | |
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Manga | |
Written by | Ritsuko Kawai |
Published by | Shogakukan |
Magazine | Ciao |
Demographic | Shōjo |
Original run | 1997 – 2000 |
Volumes | 3 |
Anime television series | |
Directed by | Osamu Nabeshima |
Written by | Yoshiyuki Suga |
Music by | Motoyoshi Iwasaki (JP) Tom Keenlyside John Mitchell David Iris (U.S.) |
Studio | TMS Entertainment |
Licensed by |
|
Original network | TV Tokyo |
English network |
|
Original run | 7 July 2000 – 31 March 2006 |
Episodes | 296 (Japanese) 105 (English) |
Original video animation | |
Directed by | Osamu Nabeshima |
Music by | Motoyoshi Iwasaki |
Studio | TMS Entertainment |
Released | August 6, 2001 – August 6, 2004 |
Episodes | 4 |
Anime film series | |
Directed by | Osamu Dezaki |
Produced by | Masato Matsumoto Yuoh Sekita |
Written by | Osamu Dezaki (1) Michiru Shimada (1, 2) Tomoko Konparu (3, 4) |
Music by | Motoyoshi Iwasaki |
Studio | TMS Entertainment |
Released | December 15, 2001 – December 23, 2004 |
Runtime | 50 minutes each |
Films | 4 |
Anime television series | |
Trotting Hamtaro Hai! | |
Directed by | Osamu Nabeshima |
Written by | Yoshiyuki Suga |
Music by | Motoyoshi Iwasaki |
Studio | TMS Entertainment |
Original network | TV Tokyo |
Original run | April 5, 2006 – March 26, 2008 |
Episodes | 77 |
Anime television series | |
Trotting Hamtaro Dechu! | |
Directed by | Osamu Nabeshima |
Studio | TMS Entertainment |
Original network | TV Tokyo |
Original run | April 2, 2011 – March 30, 2013 |
Episodes | 103 |
Hamtaro, known in Japan as Trotting Hamtaro (とっとこハム太郎, Tottoko Hamutarō), is a Japanese manga and storybook series created and illustrated by Ritsuko Kawai. The manga is serialized in Shogakukan's all-girl's magazine Ciao in 1997, focusing on a hamster named Hamtaro who has a variety of adventures with other hamsters, known as "Ham-Hams" ("Hamuchans" in the Japanese version). Viz Media published the manga adaptations and storybooks in English.[2][3]
Multiple anime adaptations were produced by TMS Entertainment and aired on TV Tokyo. The first series was dubbed in English by The Ocean Group.
Plot
The series revolves around a hamster named Hamtaro, who is owned by a 10-year-old girl named Hiroko Haruna (Laura Haruna in the English dub). Curious by nature, he ventures out each day to make friends and go on adventures with a clan of fellow hamster friends known as The Ham-Hams. The Ham-Hams meet at a special clubhouse built by Boss ("Taisho").
Media
Manga
There are three manga about Hamtaro, A Home for Hamtaro, Hamtaro Gets Lost, and Jealous Hamtaro. In the first two, Hamtaro's owner is named Yukari while in the latter, her name is Amy.
Anime
In Japan, Hamtaro aired three anime series, released four movies, several specials, many video game/DVD releases and merchandise. By 2002, the franchise had generated $2.5 billion in merchandise sales.[4] The success was not paralleled in the United States, however, with only the first series, some special episodes, three video games (though two others were released in Europe), and limited merchandise. On 23 February 2011, it was announced that Hamtaro would be receiving a series titled Tottoko Hamtaro Dechu.[5]
Games
The Hamtaro franchise has multiple video game titles with independent storylines. These titles include adventure and educational games that can be found for PC, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance (GBA), and the Nintendo DS consoles.
Title | Platform | Release Date |
---|---|---|
Tottoko Hamtaro: Tomodachi Daisakusen Dechu | Game Boy Color[6] | JP: September 8, 2000[6] |
Hamtaro: Ham-Hams Unite! | Game Boy Color | JP: April 21, 2001
NA: October 28, 2002 |
Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak | Game Boy Advance | JP: May 3, 2002[7] |
Hamtaro: Wake Up Snoozer! | PC/Mac | October 1, 2003 |
Hamtaro: Rainbow Rescue | Game Boy Advance | May 22, 2003 |
Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Games | Game Boy Advance | July 26, 2004 |
Tottoko Hamtaro: Nazo Nazo Q Kumonoue no ? Jou | Nintendo DS | December 1, 2005 |
Hi Hamtaro! Little Hamsters Big Adventure | Nintendo DS | September 23, 2008 |
In popular culture
On July 26, 2020, a group of more than 2.000 protesters in Bangkok called the Free Youth Movement, led a protest against the government of Thailand which involved singing the theme song for “Hamtaro” with modified lyrics to say “The most delicious food is taxpayers’ money. [...]Dissolve the parliament! Dissolve the parliament! Dissolve the parliament!”[8] Other student protests during the same week have continued using Hamtaro as a symbol for the government's "feasting on taxpayer's money," and have involved groups running in circles, as if in hamster wheels, while singing the modified version of the jingle.[9][10]
References
- ^ Clements, Jonathan; McCarthy, Helen (2006). The Anime Encyclopedia. California: Stone Bridge Press. ISBN 1-933330-10-4.
- ^ Hamtaro Gets Lost and Other Stories (The Adventures of Hamtaro, Vol. 2) Amazon.com
- ^ The Adventures of Hamtaro, Vol. 3: Jealous Hamtaro and Other Stories Amazon.com
- ^ Macdonald, Christopher (20 May 2002). "Hamtaro Launch Event". Anime News Network. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
- ^ "Tottoko Hamtarō Dechu TV Anime to Premiere in April".
- ^ a b "【GBC20周年企画(2)】いちばん売れたゲームボーイカラー専用ソフトは『遊☆戯☆王DM4』! では2位は? GBC専用ソフト販売ランキングTOP10! - ファミ通.com". ファミ通.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 16 November 2018.
- ^ a b "Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak (2002) Game Boy Advance release dates - MobyGames". MobyGames. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
- ^ "'Delicious taxes': Thai protesters use Japanese cartoon hamster to mock government". Reuters. 26 July 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
- ^ "Hamster hero? How a Japanese cartoon became Thai youth protesters' symbol". Reuters. 1 August 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ Tan, Yvette (1 August 2020). "Why young people are protesting in Thailand". BBC News. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Hamtaro Official Japanese site (in Japanese)
- TV Tokyo Tottoko Hamutaro Dechu Website (in Japanese)
- YTV Website Archived 19 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine
- Hamtaro (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Hamtaro at IMDb
- 2020 Thai protesters singing Hamtaro's jingle with modified lyrics
- Manga series
- 1997 manga
- 2000 anime television series debuts
- 2001 anime OVAs
- 2006 anime television series debuts
- 2011 anime television series debuts
- Hamtaro
- 2000 Japanese television series debuts
- 2006 Japanese television series endings
- 2000s fads and trends
- Animated television series about mammals
- Anime and manga featuring anthropomorphic characters
- Fictional hamsters
- Shogakukan franchises
- Shogakukan manga
- Shōjo manga
- TMS Entertainment
- Toonami
- TV Tokyo shows
- 5 (TV channel) shows
- Viz Media anime
- YTV shows