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Neighborhood Story (ご近所物語, Gokinjo Monogatari
?) is a manga by Ai Yazawa. It was published by Shueisha from 1995 to 1998 in
the magazine Ribon. It
was adapted by Toei Animation as a 50-episode anime series which aired on TV Asahi from September 10,
1995 to September 1, 1996, with merchandise created by Bandai. There was a movie made in
1996, and a drama CD and soundtrack were also produced. Starting on
September 19, 2005, Gokinjo Monogatari began being
republished in a deluxe edition. Gokinjo Monogatari takes
place before, and includes several characters from, Paradise
Kiss.
Story
Mikako Kōda and Tsutomu Yamaguchi are students that attend
Yazawa Geijyutsu Gakuen, a special high school for the arts in
Tokyo (named after the author, who makes a cameo appearance as the
school's principal) and reside in the same apartment building as
neighbors where they have built a long-standing friendship since
infancy. However, as has been humorously pointed out by their
apartment manager, Mikako and Tsutomu's feelings have undergone an
unmistakable metamorphosis. Mikako and Tsutomu's friends inside and
outside of the Akindo club also detect this metamorphosis and
wonder one thing: will Mikako and Tsutomu embrace what is already
community discourse or will they deteriorate into leading very
bitter adult lives of not-at-all-significant brevity and
dysphoria?
Main
characters
Primary
Characters
- Mikako Kouda (幸田実果子, Kōda
Mikako
?)
Voiced by: Rumi
Shishido
- Driven by her dream of becoming a fashion designer and having
all the stores sell her handiwork under the brand name
"Happy Berry", Mikako is at her most
conspicuous when she is inspired or in a stormy mood for one reason
or another. The former earns her the admiration of her classmates
while the latter incenses her teacher Ms. Hamada who thinks nothing
of keeping her after school to revise her clumsy handiwork. Mikako
has a ferocious rivalry with Mariko who she fears will wield
Tsutomu to his detriment along with unrealistic expectations of
Tsutomu that leads to a very vivacious and adversarial divergent
concourse that often inflames matters on many occasions.
- Tsutomu Yamaguchi (山口ツトム, Yamaguchi
Tsutomu
?)
Voiced by: Kappei
Yamaguchi
- Unlike his fiery friend and next-door neighbor Mikako, Tsutomu
is somewhat equivocal in regards what he wishes to do with his life
as he synthesizes abstract art from odds and ends that he has found
here and there but not his feelings about Mikako as his prologue is
rife with instances where he has interceded on her behalf or
otherwise come to her rescue. Tsutomu follows Mikako's lead in
forming the street market club Akindo while seeming to operate
according to the proverb »Keep moving forward by doing your
best in the moment«. Unfortunately, as much of a chivalrous knight
as he has been that has long embraced being in love with Mikako,
Tsutomu is not perfect. Tsutomu's eerie corporeal similarity to the
Manbou lead singer Ken Nakagawa from "Tenshi
Nanka Ja Nai” has caused several fangirls mistaking him for the
musician and fanatically accosting him for an autograph, being
given a love letter, or being chased around all over the place. In
addition to being frightened of Mikako forcing him to forego the
world and the rest of his life, Tsutomu also has a very
accommodating »aim to please« personality that affords
easy coercion/manipulation (or in Mariko's case, seduction).
Tsutomu's chaotic conduct often frustrates Mikako into prosecuting
a fierce adversarial divergent concourse that has led to several
impulsive comments about which neither adolescent is really
sincere.
Secondary
Characters
Akindo
members
Risa Kanzaki
- Mikako’s best female friend, Risa comes from Hokkaido and her
dream is to design children’s clothes. She lives with her boyfriend
Takeshi, a guitarist for a local band, and is Mikako’s biggest
supporter as well as (later in the series) the mother of Arashi
from Paradise
Kiss.
- Voiced by: Shiho
Niiyama
Mai Oota
- Also known as P-Chan, she is a friend of Mikako and Risa’s. Mai
wears Lolita-style clothing and always carries
her stuffed animal Pucci Francois with her. She makes stuffed
animals to sell at Akindo and falls for Seiji.
- Voiced by: Wakana
Yamazaki
Jiro Nishino
- Has purple hair and always wears sunglasses, though Mikako gets
to see his eyes during the last volume of the manga. He is close
friends with Tsutomu and Yuusuke and is a computer programmer that
creates various computer games.
- Voiced by: Kyosei
Tsukui
Yuusuke Tashiro
- Tsutomu’s best friend, Yuusuke studies painting at Yazagaku
(although half-heartedly) and has feelings for Mariko. He’s very
gruff, but has a good heart and rides a motorcycle.
- Voiced by: Toshiyuki
Morikawa
Ancillary
Characters
- Hamada-sensei
- Ms. Hamada is the strict teacher of the fashion design and
sewing lab classes at Yazagaku that has no qualms about detaining a
student after school for inattentive or clumsy handiwork -- a trap
that Mikako often instigates when she is upset for one reason or
another. Strangely enough, Mikako is not sent packing by Ms.
Hamada's abrasive personality or having her handiwork harshly
appraised and even goes so far as to identify clumsy textile
handiwork that would instigate an after-school detention at Ms.
Hamada's hands. She was also the professor for Seiji and the cast
of Paradise
Kiss.
- Noriji Sunami
Voiced by: Takeshi
Aono
- Noriji is the old-fashioned but well-intentioned manager of the
apartment complex where Mikako and Tsutomu live. It is his
good-natured teasing that inspires the epiphany as to the
metamorphosis in their mutual feelings that Mikako and Tsutomu
undergo throughout the series. Noriji also has a bit of a crush on
Ruriko and demonstrates an almost paternal concern when Mikako's
status is unknown.
Kouda
family
- Miwako Kouda
- Miwako is spawned as a result of her parents finally seeing the
light in regards to their childish conduct and how it adversely
affects Mikako. Unfortunately, little Miwako does not get to begin
her postnatal life until Paradise Kiss whose inception is several
years after "Neighborhood Story".
- Ruriko Kouda
Voiced by: Yōko
Kawanami
- Although she gestated Mikako in her body and underwent
everything endemic to that process, Ruriko often acts more like a
co-dependent elder sister than a mother whose irresponsibility
forces Mikako to prosecute the commerce endemic to operating a
household. Ruriko is often seen sleeping the morning away after
prosecuting a nocturnal synthesis session of shoujo manga that
incorporates sad and painful love stories. There is even a point at
which Mikako bares her fangs at Ruriko who breaks down crying
instead of swiftly extinguishing the insurrection as most parents
would have done.
- Hirohiko Sakurada
- Considering the conduct she demonstrates with her daughter and
the sometimes erratic hours photographers like him are required to
keep, Hirohiko's divorce from Ruriko when Mikako was young was
probably caused by both Hirohiko and Ruriko growing apart because
they failed to do the work necessary to maintain their marriage and
grew apart. Fortunately, Hirohiko comes back onto the scene and
does the work alongside Ruriko necessary for the two eventually
reconcile and remarry. Hirohiko is also a crucial force for Tsutomu
deciding what to do with his life.
Nakasu
family
Mariko Nakasu
- Nicknamed “Body Ko” for her usual, sultry appearance. She is
popular at school and have had many boyfriend, but admits she's
tired of dating men who only want her for sex. She is in love with
her childhood friend from Yokohama. After going out with Tsutomu
for a short amout of time, she begin a volatile relationship with
Yuusuke which lasts for almost the whole length of the series.
- Voiced by: Yumi
Toma
Shintaro Nakasu
- Body Ko’s little brother, he sculpts dolls and sports
dreadlocks (much to Mariko's chagrin). He studies ceramics and
gives his sister advice, though she doesn't want to hear it most of
the time.
- Voiced by: Chizu
Yonemoto
Tertiary
Characters
Ayumi Oikawa
- Tsutomu’s classmate, owns the shed where the group creates
Akindo’s headquarters. She likes Yuusuke and admires his paintings,
but is jealous of his relationship with Mariko. She creates large,
abstract 3-D sculptures.
- Voiced by: Yuko
Minaguchi
Hiroaki Tokumori
- Owns a bar which is frequented by the characters who live in
Mikako’s apartment complex. Father of (later in the series)
Hiroyuki Tokumori from Paradise Kiss.
- Voiced by: Hideyuki
Tanaka
Kisaragi Seiji
- A “sparkling foreigner” who applies for the job of manga
assistant for Mikako’s mother. He is saving up money to study
abroad. He used to go to Yazagaku for fashion, but dropped out when
he realized that his passion was in hairstyling. He becomes a close
friend of Mikako’s and appears in Paradise Kiss.
Shuuichi Shintani
- Mariko's childhood friend from Yokohama. Has a fiancee when
first introduced.
Cameo
appearances
Ai Yazawa inserts many characters from previous works, and even
herself into the manga. Ai Yazawa herself is the flashy principal
of Yazagaku. One of the most prominent cameos is Ken Nakagawa, a
character from her previous manga Tenshi
Nanka Ja Nai. He looks almost exactly like Tsutomu, Ken's
lyrics are often found in the chapters and many times Tsutomu has
to run from crowds who think that he is Ken.
Midori and Akira (also from Ten Nai) are the first to
buy Mikako's creations at the flea market – further proving both
series apparently take place in the same universe, but
approximately 4 years apart (Akira reveals Midori's age to be 20
during their cameo). Takigawa appears as a tutor in the junior high
flashback section and Mamirin appears in the background when Mikako
is in London. Tonko and Kayo also appear in the background in the
Blue Parrot in the first volume.
Because in the United States, her later series Paradise Kiss
is far more popular than Gokinjo Monogatari (primarily
because both the manga and anime remain unlicensed) many people
only think of Gokinjo as a prequel to ParaKiss,
especially since many of the characters are the same. Miwako,
Mikako's younger sister is one of the main characters, as is
Arashi, Risa's son and Hiroyuki, Tokumori's son. Seiji-san works at
Yazagaku by the time ParaKiss takes place, and
Hamada-sensei is still a teacher there.
Mikako still plays a role in the manga and anime, giving Yukari
the big break in modelling by having her model for Happy Berry;
Tsutomu is the photographer. Shimamoto-san becomes a famous model
and eventually founds the modelling agency that Yukari works
with.
Anime
The Gokinjo Monogatari anime, produced by Toei Animation,
ran for 50 episodes from September 10, 1995 through September 1,
1996. Recently, a boxset was released containing all 50 episodes
which sells for around $500USD.
The Music
- Opening Theme
- "He.Ro.I.Ne" by Rumi Shishido
- Ending Theme
- "Don't You Know?!" by Rumi Shishido (Eps. 1-28)
- "NG!" by Rumi Shishido (Eps. 29-50)
The Movie
The animated Gokinjo Monogatari movie had a 30-minute
runtime and was released on March 2, 1996. It is an alternate
retelling of the beginning of the series.
External
links
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