PaRappa the Rapper (TV series)
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| PaRappa the Rapper | |
 Logo | |
| パラッパラッパー (PaRappa Rappā) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Comedy, Action, Adventure |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Hiroaki Sakurai |
| Produced by | Yoshio Urasawa |
| Music by | Masaya Matsuura Tadashi Suzuki Yasuji Kuroha |
| Studio | J.C.Staff Production I.G SME Visual Works |
| Original network | Fuji TV (2001-2002) |
| Original run | April 14, 2001 – January 14, 2002 |
| Episodes | 30 |
PaRappa the Rapper (パラッパラッパー, PaRappa Rappā) is a 2001 Japanese anime series aimed towards children in Japan that consists of 30 episodes. It features the rapping dog PaRappa and his friends in different adventures. Unlike the name, there's very little rap incorporated into the series' soundtrack (whereas the game was focused only on rapping).
Rodney Greenblat, the original creator of PaRappa the Rapper, only designed the characters of Matt Major and Paula Fox for the show. He had nothing to do with the plot, as he had found out that it was a kids-oriented show meant to sell PaRappa merchandise. Originally, he, along with the company, were to make a teenage/young adults-oriented show (which featured Lammy, Ma-San, along with a few other characters) meant for the target audience, which was teenagers, at the time.
Setting
The storyline seems to be set before either of the two PaRappa the Rapper games and UmJammer Lammy took place because MilkCan is never seen in the series. It could just be a different universe, though. Katy also never speaks of Milkcan (although she is shown with a bass in the opening), and Parappa's father's car looks the same before Parappa accidentally crashes it (this can be seen in Episode 1). The characters go to school and (as far as Parappa is involved) have a house which is easily found overhead in Parappa Town. Although his house can be seen, the various locations that were in the video game are no longer around (seemingly as if they never existed). The anime also doesn't explain how Chop Chop Master Onion lost his dojo (the reason is revealed in a cutscene in UmJammer Lammy), or why Lammy, Ma-San, and Joe-Chin have not appeared. However, characters from the sequels such as Chief Puddle and Hairdresser Octopus do make their appearances.
On another note, Parappa and Sunny's relationship seems to be very close, and as the episodes go by seems to get closer, climaxing at episode 28 out of 30 where it becomes almost blatant that they are more than just friends. The anime seems to be about how he bonds with Sunny instead of actually trying to win her heart all the time, until the latter episodes at least. They seem to be just very good friends at first. Although things shift at times in episodes(especially the latter episodes towards the final 3), for example episode 28, The Heart Does Not Pass!, blatant signs of a greater intimate relationship can be seen. It is blatantly apparent by the end of the anime's reign that Sunny and PaRappa were more than just friends in the end.
P.J. is the DJ at Club Fun. In episode 4, Parappa is surprised to know this and he may have asked P.J. to be his DJ. This could possibly be how they started off before the game took place.
Katy is into poems rather than singing. She has as much as a stronger role in the series as Parappa and Sunny only seems to be around whenever Katy is. There is little to no mention of anything about the other characters of the game, however Parappa's father is seen more often.
The first season of the anime, seems to be made up of 15 episodes and the rest of the 15 episodes are the second, during the second season, the story changes, but not by much, this meaning the Opening, Ending, Character Roster and Background development
Music
- Openings
- "LOVE TOGETHER: Parappa Rapper MIX" (LOVE TOGETHER〜パラッパラッパーMIX〜, LOVE TOGETHER: PaRappa Rappā MIX)
- April 14, 2001 - September 8, 2001
- Lyricist: Gota Nishidera / Composer: Gota Nishidera / Arranger: Nona Reeves / Singers: Nona Reeves
- Episodes: 1-15
- "Attitude"
- September 22, 2001 - January 11, 2002
- Lyricist: Masumi Kawamura / Composer: Masumi Kawamura / Arranger: AKIRA / Singers: Crystal Kay
- Episodes: 16-30
- Endings
- "SCHOOL GIRL"
- "Yellow Balloon" (イエローバルーン, Ierō Barūn)
On December 2, 2001, an Original Soundtrack of this anime (PaRappa Rappā Stage Volume 1) was made for Japanese retail only, many songs of this soundtrack are original score, remixed versions from the game or game songs directly taken from the game, this CD also has a second disk which is sold separately. Furthermore, the Song Love Together is a Remix from the Original Version, Nona Reeves was also in this song but the original version had a much more remixed style of its own with a much more hip hop beat to it.
Characters
Various new characters enter during the course of the anime; they made an appearance in all of the show's episodes, although they aren't in any of the games.
- Parappa Rappa (the main hero.)
- Sunny Funny (the girl that Parappa is in love with, that eventually during the later episodes returns that love and becomes his girlfriend.)
- Katy Kat (friend of Parappa.)
- P.J. Berri (Parappa's close friend and possibly sidekick, he is also a D.J. who works at Club Fun.)
- Matt Major (P.J. Berri and Parappa's closest friend, P.J. and Matt are the first to meet in Club Fun, but this isn't seen.)
- Paula Fox (at first, she was Katy's rival,now Katy and Sunny's best friend.)
- Chop Chop Master Onion (a karate master who is a good friend of PaRappa)
- Gaster (the antagonist of the series)
Secondary characters
- Groover (Gaster's sidekick)
- Dorothy (an old lady who was once a dancer)
The Rappa Family
- Papa Parappa Rappa (he has a stronger appearance in this series.)
- Pinto Rappa (Parappa's little sister.)
- Boxy Boy (created by Parappa's father to help Parappa when he is in trouble.)
- Uee (a strange figure that lives in Pinto's lunch box; it can do things like hold extra items for Pinto, and assist her in many ways like waking Parappa; Uee is something of a secret that for some reason Pinto won't tell anyone about.)
Several other characters appear as well, but only one important character appear in just one episode as a guest.
Episodes
References
External links
- Official Fuji TV Website
- PaRappa the Rapper (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
