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Baby and Me
Cover of Japanese volume 1
赤ちゃんと僕 (Aka-chan to Boku)
Genre	Slice of life story
Manga
Author	Marimo Ragawa
Publisher	Hakusensha
English publisher	Viz Media
Demographic	Shōjo
Magazine	Hana to Yume Shojo Beat
Original run	1991 – 1997
Volumes	18
TV anime
Director	Takahiro Omori
Studio	Studio Pierrot
Network	TV Tokyo
Original run	11 July 1996 – 26 March 1997
Episodes	35
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Baby and Me (赤ちゃんと僕, Aka-chan to Boku^?) is a shōjo manga by Marimo Ragawa. It was originally published in Japan by Hakusensha, and was published in English by VIZ Media, serialized in the magazine Shojo Beat. It received the 40th Shogakukan Manga Award for shōjo in 1995.^[1] The series was adapted as an anime television series in 1996.

Baby and Me describes the detailed lifestyle of an elementary child and is highly praised in many aspects. The feelings of people are observed very closely, and the realistic descriptions of Takuya's life are one of the praised points in Marimo Ragawa's manga. Not only the story's plots and details, but the stable, clean drawings is also one of the attractive points.^{[citation needed]}

Story

Takuya Enoki loses his mother, Yukako when she dies in a car accident. Takuya now lives with his father, Harumi, and his baby brother, Minoru. Takuya's baby brother is only two years old and requires much care. Although Takuya is only a fifth grader, he cooks, cleans, sews, scolds, and does everything that is normally a mother's job. Between his housework and looking after his baby brother, Takuya begins to feel a helpless gap between his friends who have fun everyday after school. Neighbors blame him for Minoru's constant crying. His stress gradually builds up and bursts at a point. Because of a mistake Minoru made, Takuya reacts violently. He cannot help feeling upset over Minoru, who is stressing him and taking up all his time.

One day, when Takuya picks Minoru up from preschool, he starts to walk faster imagining what it would be like to leave his little brother behind him. But soon, Takuya realizes what he has done and runs back. He finds Minoru with his eyes full of tears and a brutal dog is blocking Minoru's way. Takuya dashes in full speed and saves his little brother. After coming home and seeing Minoru sobbing, Takuya realizes that Minoru cries because he is just lonely and becomes ashamed of himself. From then on, Takuya learns to love his little brother as family and his long life story of being a mother and a brother at once begins.

As time pass by, Takuya Enoki gradually adapts to his role in the family. Some of his friends in school like Akihiro Fujii and Tadashi Gotoh, have little brothers and sisters that go to Minoru's preschool, and are Minoru's friends. At the end of the series, while trying to find Takuya, Minoru is hit by a car, and undergoes major surgery to keep alive. Luckily, he just barely survives.

Some episodes were dubbed in Arabic (Ana Wa Akhi) meaning 'Me And My Brother'

Characters

Enoki family

Takuya Enoki (榎木拓也, Enoki Takuya^?)

Voiced by: Kappei Yamaguchi

The elder brother. Has taken up the burden of mothering his younger brother, Minoru. Akihiro and him are popular with the girls at school.

Minoru Enoki (榎木実, Enoki Minoru^?)

Voiced by: Chika Sakamoto

Baby of the family. Loves and over protective of his older brother, Takuya. Loves to wear a bear hat. His favorite character is Zap, a superhero from a laundry detergent commercial. His hero in life is Takuya.

Harumi Enoki (榎木春美, Enoki Harumi^?)

Voiced by: Mitsuru Miyamoto

The father of Takuya and Minoru. Works hard to feed his family.

Yukako Enoki (榎木 由加子, Enoki Yukako^?)

Voiced by: Misa Watanabe

Deceased mother of Takuya and Minoru. Married Harumi against her family's wishes, and escaped her family in doing so also.

Friends

Akihiro Fujii (藤井昭広, Fujii Akihiro^?)

Voiced by: Hiro Yuuki

Classmate of Takuya's. Is the fourth brother in his family of two older sisters, an older brother, a younger sister, and a younger brother. (see FuJii's family.) Competitive. He is deemed "cool" in class, mostly because it is hard to know what he is thinking. Poor because he has to share everything with his other siblings. Often stuck taking care of his younger siblings.

Ichika Fujii

Voiced by: Mika Kanai

Younger sister of Akihiro's. Different class from Minoru. She has a crush on Minoru and often fights (verbal and physically) with love rival, Hiro. She is highly intelligent and sees Minoru as cute. Sharp tongued.

Tadashi Gotoh (後藤正, Gotō Tadashi^?)

Voiced by: Yoshiko Kamei

Classmate of Takuya's. Nicknamed Gon. Is the older brother in his family, with Hiroko (Hiro), his younger sister. Is the opposite of Takuya in many ways, especially his care towards Hiro. Greedy and lazy. His family opens a grocery store, and he often works there. Though Gon's crush likes Takuya, he still likes Takuya as a friend.

Hiroko (Hiro)

Voiced by: Yumi Kuroda

Younger sister of Tadashi. Same class as Minoru. She has a crush on Minoru and often fights with love rival, Ichika. Was first thought to be a boy. She sees Minoru as brave and handsome. Plays roughly.

Tamadate

Voiced by: Chika Sakamoto

Rich classmate of Takuya's. Stuck up because he is rich. Wears expensive designer clothes. He often ridicules Takuya on his poverty and fights with Gon (whom he dislikes).

Fujii's family

Akemi

Voiced by: Misa Watanabe

Oldest daughter in the family. in charge of the other siblings when Parents are at works and looking after the house

Tomoya

Voiced by: Mitsuo Iwata

Oldest son, second-oldest child in the Fujii family. Dirty-minded. According to Ichika, his type of girls is "Someone with big boobs, and a sexy body, and a bouncy bottom."

Asako

Voiced by: Akemi Okamura

Second-oldest daughter, third child in the Fujii family. Has a cold voice.

Akihiro

Second-oldest son, fourth child in the Fujii family. Hard to know what he is thinking. Deemed "cool" by his classmates. Often stuck babysitting his younger siblings.

Ichika

Youngest daughter, fifth child in the Fujii family. Has a crush on Minoru, who she thinks is cute. She is very intelligent and sharp tongued. She's in a different class than Minoru.

Masaki (Ma-Bo)

Voiced by: Kazumi Okushima

Youngest son, sixth child, and youngest child in the Fujii family. Though younger than Minoru, his vocabulary is better than Minoru's. Also very intelligent.

Neighbors

The Kimuras

Lives across the street from the Enoki's. Though both are old, they are very spirited. Their son recently came home.

Others

Shinako Fukaya

Voiced by: Michiko Neya

Girl in Takuya's class. She has a quick temper. Her reputation as a liar makes it hard for her to have friends. She often speaks too honestly, and words come out of her mouth before she thinks it through, leading her to hurt other's feelings without meaning to.

(Chapter 14)

Ai Yarimizo

Voiced by: Hinako Kanamaru

Gon's crush. She is the class representative of Class 6-3. Takuya thinks she's weird. Gon probably likes her because she's pretty. She likes to dress very extravagantly (weird by Takuya's taste). On her date with Gon, she chose to go to the kiddie rides. She does "reverse sexual harassment" on Takuya and Gon by patting the boy's behinds. When Takuya asked her to go on a date with Gon (from Gon's orders) she told him that she already liked someone else. After her date with Gon, she confesses to Gon that she liked Takuya. She commented to Takuya that she knew he wouldn't tell Gon because he wants to protect his friends.

(Chapter 20)

Volumes

1. ISBN 4-592-12241-0 published in March 1992
2. ISBN 4-592-12242-9 published in August 1992
3. ISBN 4-592-12243-7 published in December 1992
4. ISBN 4-592-12244-5 published in February 1993
5. ISBN 4-592-12245-3 published in June 1993
6. ISBN 4-592-12246-1 published in November 1993
7. ISBN 4-592-12247-X published in March 1994
8. ISBN 4-592-12248-8 published in July 1994
9. ISBN 4-592-12249-6 published in November 1994
10. ISBN 4-592-12250-X published in February 1992
11. ISBN 4-592-12821-4 published in May 1995
12. ISBN 4-592-12822-2 published in September 1995
13. ISBN 4-592-12823-0 published in January 1996
14. ISBN 4-592-12824-9 published in July 1996
15. ISBN 4-592-12825-7 published in November 1996
16. ISBN 4-592-12826-5 published in March 1997
17. ISBN 4-592-12827-3 published in June 1997
18. ISBN 4-592-12828-1 published in September 1997

References

External links

• Shojo Beat - Baby and Me
• Baby and Me - Trader
• Baby and Me (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia