History Anime / AshitaNoNadja

A long time ago in western Europe, a young twelve-year-old orphan named Nadja Applefield lives a peaceful life under the care of Applefield House, a British orphanage. She's the local CoolBigSis, a keen dancer, and is steeling herself for her thirteenth birthday, at which age she will be forced to leave her home and make her way in the world.

Cute little Nadja Applefield lives in a British orphanage, the Applefield house. She's the local CoolBigSis, dances around to distract herself and wonders how is her mother doing in Heaven, while steeling herself for her 13th birthday when she'll have to leave her home and start building her own life away from the orphanage.

One day, however, her life changes. Miss Applefield, her guardian, brings her a trunk with several pretty things (a diary, a PimpedOutDress, etc) and a letter. In the paper, someone tells her that [[MissingMom her "dead" mother]] actually is ''alive''. Nadja is understandably confused, so Miss Applefield explains that she was given away by her mom unwillingly, since said mother [[IllGirl was very ill]] and not expected to live for long; by the looks of it, though, she ''did'' survive her SoapOperaDisease, and Nadja can certainly hope to meet up with her once she leaves Applefield House and makes a good name for herself in the real world.

But before Nadja can digest all the news, two Bad Men come up to steal her things. Specially, Nadja's [[OrphansPlotTrinket medallion]], which seems to be connected with her past. After being rescued by a MysteriousProtector and a fire almost destroys the Applefield Orphanage, Nadja stuffs her belongings in her suitcase and leaves to not bring them more trouble. Soon she crosses paths with the itinerant circus known as the Dandelion Troupe, joins their ranks as a dancer, and takes off with them to search for her mother, her past, and answers to her questions.

''Ashita no Nadja'' (明日のナージャ, Ashita no Nāja, lit. "Tomorrow's Nadja") also had a manga adaptation started after the anime run started and before the anime run ended. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine Nakayoshi and collected in two bound volumes. The anime series was produced by Toei Animation right after the [[Anime/OjamajoDoremi end of one]] CashCowFranchise, and before the [[Anime/PrettyCure beginning of another.]] It premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax and the terrestrial TV Asahi network, as well as several local cable channels. The series is available on DVD (in Japanese) containing two to three episodes each. Was aired once in a while in Latin America Creator/CartoonNetwork and is occasionally seen in local Latin American cable stations.

** [[spoiler:Rosemary's whole world revolves around her [[ChangelingFantasy dream of being lost royalty]], and will not tolerate any threat to it. As she slips into mental instability and eventually villainy, Rosemary plots to ruin Nadja, her childhood friend, because she committed the heartless act of not playing the role of the nice but ultimately insignificant side character, as if Nadja would have control over such a thing.]]

But before Nadja can digest all the news, two Bad Men come up to steal her things. Specially, Nadja's [[OrphansPlotTrinket medallion]], which seems to be connected with her past. After being rescued by a MysteriousProtector and a fire almost destroys the Applefield Orphanage, Nadja stuffs her belonging in her suitcase and leaves to not bring them more trouble. Soon she crosses paths with the itinerant circus known as the Dandelion Troupe, joins their ranks as a dancer, and takes off with them to search for her mother, her past, and answers to her questions.

* AnimationBump: Episode 26 is very noticeably different from the other episodes in the series. It is more serious in tone, contains higher quality animation and the gorgeous use of high-contrast backgrounds. This is due to the fact that it is directed by Mamoru Hosoda.

''Ashita no Nadja'' (明日のナージャ, Ashita no Nāja, lit. "Tomorrow's Nadja") also had a manga adaptation started after the anime run started and before the anime run ended. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine Nakayoshi and collected in two bound volumes. The anime series was produced by Toei Animation right after the [[Anime/OjamajoDoremi end of one]] CashCowFranchise, and before the [[Anime/PrettyCure beginning of another.]] It premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax and the terrestrial TV Asahi network, as well as several local cable channels. The series is available on DVD (in Japanese) containing two to three episodes each. Was aired once in a while in Latin America CartoonNetwork and is occasionally seen in local Latin American cable stations.

''Ashita no Nadja'' (明日のナージャ, Ashita no Nāja, lit. "Tomorrow's Nadja") also had a manga adaptation started after the anime run started and before the anime run ended. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine Nakayoshi and collected in two bound volumes. The anime series was produced by Toei Animation right after the [[Anime/OjamajoDoremi end of one]] CashCowFranchise, and before the [[Anime/PrettyCure beginning of another.]] It premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax and the terrestrial TV Asahi network, as well as several local cable channels. The series is available on DVD (in Japanese) containing two to three episodes each. Was once aired in Latin America CartoonNetwork

* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: Nadja loves Francis, but also is attracted to [[spoiler: his twin brother Keith]] because of this.

** [[spoiler: When Keith finds out about Nadja choosing Francis, he berates brother his twin for "wanting to keep a free spirit like Nadja in a GildedCage" in his opinion. Well, Keith... who are '''''you''''' to single-handedly decide that Nadja will undoubtly be unhappy with the guy she has chosen - ''[[GreenEyedMonster a guy who is not you]]''? At least '''ask''' Nadja about it instead of treating her like your property.]]

* DeconstructedTrope: For such an idealistic series, it brings a ''massive'' deconstruction of tropes like GreaterNeedThanMine, ShelteredAristocrat, PrincelyYoungMan and WideEyedIdealist through Nadja's love interest Francis Harcourt. [[spoiler: Because when he sees that his philanthropy is ''not'' enough to make the world better, his [[MartyrWithoutACause huge]] [[StepfordSmiler hidden]] [[HeroicSelfDeprecation problems]] [[HiddenDepths come to the surface]], and not only he gets called out for his naivete and lack of self-worth ''by some of the people that he's attempting to help''... but at the end of the series he crosses the DespairEventHorizon, and both Keith and Nadja have to work ''damn'' hard to bring Francis back to stability.]]

* MartyrWithoutACause: [[spoiler: Francis, as time goes on and his PrincelyYoungMan archetype is deconstructed more and more.]]
* TheMasochismTango: Jose and Carmen. OUCH.

* TheOjou: Marianne, Julietta, Colette. The trope itself is discussed, explored, and arguably deconstructed.

* PrincelyYoungMan: Cruelly deconstructed with poor Francis.

* {{Shoujo}}: To the core. TO THE ABSOLUTE CORE!

''Ashita no Nadja'' (明日のナージャ, Ashita no Nāja, lit. "Tomorrow's Nadja") also had a manga adaptation started after the anime run started and before the anime run ended. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine Nakayoshi and collected in two bound volumes. The anime series was produced by Toei Animation right after the [[Anime/OjamajoDoremi end of one]] CashCowFranchise, and before the [[Anime/PrettyCure beginning of another.]] It premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax and the terrestrial TV Asahi network, as well as several local cable channels. The series is available on DVD (in Japanese) containing two to three episodes each.
Was once aired in Latin America CartoonNetwork

* AdultFear: [[spoiler: Colette Preminger]] experiences a terrible dose of this when she [[spoiler: wakes up from an illness-induced coma]], only to be told [[spoiler: by her retainers]] that [[spoiler: her baby daughter Nadja had died of the same sickness that almost killed Colette herself. (Complete with a heartbreaking scene where Colette rushes to Nadja's wooden crib and finds it empty, collapsing in tears). In reality, Nadja had been sent away to an English orphanage to trick Colette into coming back home to her clan. And both mother and daughter only learn of the whole deal ''thirteen years later''.]]

* BreakTheCutie: Colette was ''very'' broken at some point. Nadja gets broken later, as well. And Rosemary gets so broken that she [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope jumps off the slippery slope.]]

* MouthyKid: TJ Livingston, Fernando Gonzales

* RichBitch: Fernando's aunt, oh so much. Subverted with Marianne, who is [[BrutalHonesty blunt and selfish]] but doesn't use her riches to make self look better than she is; she's more of a LovableAlphaBitch.

''Ashita no Nadja'' (明日のナージャ, Ashita no Nāja, lit. "Tomorrow's Nadja") also had a manga adaption started after the anime run started and before the anime run ended. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine Nakayoshi and collected in two bound volumes. The anime series was produced by Toei Animation right after the [[Anime/OjamajoDoremi end of one]] CashCowFranchise, and before the [[Anime/PrettyCure beginning of another.]] It premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax and the terrestrial TV Asahi network, as well as several local cable channels. The series is available on DVD (in Japanese) containing two to three episodes each.

But before Nadja can digest all the news, two Bad Men come up to steal her things. Specially, Nadja's [[OrphansPlotTrinket medallion]], which seems to be connected with her past. After being rescued by a MysteriousProtector and a fire almost destroys the Applefield Orphanage, Nadja stuffs her belonging in her suitcase and leaves to not bring them moure trouble. Soon she crosses paths with the itinerant circus known as the Dandelion Troupe, joins their ranks as a dancer, and takes off with them to search for her mother, her past, and answers to her questions.

* SheCleansUpNicely: Nadja often dresses up elegantly for special occasions, some of them being VERY plot-important. [[spoiler: When Rosemary sees Nadja like this, her already frail self-esteem crashes and she had a huge FreakOut, which leads directly to her FaceHeelTurn.]]

* ShrinkingViolet: Rosemary, [[spoiler: pre FreakOut. This series shows ''very'' clearly that, when a Shrinking Violet ''does'' snap... snap she does]]

* SmugSnake: Hermann.
* TallDarkAndSnarky: Again, Antonio and [[spoiler: Keith (despite him being blond)]]

* Creator/AmiKoshimizu: Nadja was one of her first roles.

* MadLove: Rosemary has a crush on Fernando, who treats her like crap.

* MoralMyopia: [[spoiler: When Keith finds out about Nadja choosing Francis, he berates brother his twin for "wanting to keep a free spirit like Nadja in a GildedCage" in his opinion. Well, Keith... who are '''''you''''' to single-handedly decide that Nadja will undoubtly be unhappy with the guy she has chosen - ''[[GreenEyedMonster a guy who is not you]]''? At least '''ask''' Nadja about it instead of treating her like your property.]]

* {{Shoujo}}: To the core.

''Ashita no Nadja'' (明日のナージャ, Ashita no Nāja, lit. "Tomorrow's Nadja") also had a manga adaption started after the anime run started and before the anime run ended. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine Nakayoshi and collected in two bound volumes. The anime series was produced by Toei Animation right after the [[Anime/OjamajoDoremi end of one]] CashCowFranchise, and before the [[PrettyCure beginning of another.]] It premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax and the terrestrial TV Asahi network, as well as several local cable channels. The series is available on DVD (in Japanese) containing two to three episodes each.

* SpoiledSweet: Francis, Colette, Count Waltmuller, Oscar, Hilda. Rosemary would like to be this if she were ever a princess, but....

But before Nadja can digest all the news, two Bad Men come up to steal her things. Specially, Nadja's [[OrphansPlotTrinket medallion]], which seems to be connected with her past. After being rescued by a MysteriousProtector and a fire almost destroys the Applefield Orphanage, Nadja stuffs her belonging in her suitcase and takes off to search for her mother, her past, and answers to her questions.

* DeconstructedTrope: For such an idealistic series, it brings a ''massive'' deconstruction of tropes like ShelteredAristocrat, PrincelyYoungMan and WideEyedIdealist through Nadja's love interest Francis Harcourt. [[spoiler: Because when he sees that his philanthropy is ''not'' enough to make the world better, his [[MartyrWithoutACause huge]] [[StepfordSmiler hidden]] [[HeroicSelfDeprecation problems]] [[HiddenDepths come to the surface]], and not only he gets called out for his naivete and lack of self-worth ''by some of the people that he's attempting to help''... but at the end of the series he almost crosses the DespairEventHorizon, and both Keith and Nadja have to work ''damn'' hard to bring Francis back to stability.]]

* DomesticAbuse: Just another reason to hate Hermann Preminger.

* ForgottenChildhoodFriend: Rosemary is [[ChekhovsGunman in the background]] during the first two episodes, but is only formerly introduced as a close friend of Nadja's from the orphanage ''way'' later.

* IdiotBall: Nadja's attitude towards the brooch is nearly incomprehensible. She had it for ''thirteen years'', it being the only memento of her family, obviously incredibly expensive, and she had never ''tried to open it''. Then, once she learns it ''is'' important and that it has a ring inside, she not only never inspects the ring or brooch, she also ''keeps using both in plain sight''. She should have locked it away the moment she found out someone was trying to steal it or, at least, separated ring and brooch to keep at least one safe. Not to mention [[spoiler:she almost lost it twice, and she still never took precautions to keep it safe. No wonder it got stolen.]] The only excuses for this behavior would be that Nadja doesn't want the others to be at risk for it (which is pretty IC considering how she left the Applefield home when it was almost burned down) and/or that she had been ''ridiculously'' sheltered in her OrphanageOfLove (not that unbelievable, Miss Applefield never said anything either), and even '''those''' run thin soon.

* PetTheDog: [[spoiler: Rosemary in her final scene, even though the cost is [[KarmaHoudini her getting away without consequence]].]]
* PluckyGirl: Nadja, in the best tradition of young shoujo heroines.

* PromotionToParent: Kennosuke and Harvey had to take care of their little siblings (Hanako and TJ) once their parents died. Also, Emma cared for her nephews when they lost their mother.

** [[spoiler: RebelliousPrincess (in the very end, as she refuses to fully take over the clan per her grandpa's orders and, with Collette's approval, returns with the Dandelion Troupe.]]

* SacredFirstKiss. Subverted. [[spoiler: Nadja is mad as Hell at the Black Rose Thief for kissing her... but this isn't her first kiss. That one was given to her by Francis... who happens to be Black Rose's twin younger brother, but nobody knows that]].

* SheCleansUpNicely: Nadja often dresses up elegantly for special occasions, some of them being VERY plot-important. [[spoiler: When Rosemary sees Nadja like this, her already frail self-esteem crashes and she had a huge FreakOut]]

* [[spoiler: TwinSwitch: When Francis is mistaken as Black Rose, he refuses to discard his identity and fully intends to pay for Keith's acts as a GentlemanThief. This is seen as a sign of Francis's increasing mental/emotional stability, however, and not to mention Keith himself is '''very''' distressed by the prospect.]]

* TheMasochismTango: Jose and Carmen. OUCH.
* ThoseTwoGuys: Leonardo and Thierry

* AnimeFirst

* AnimationBump: Episode 26 is very noticeably different from the other episodes in the series. It more serious, contains higher quality animation and some very pretty high-contrast backgrounds. This is due to the fact that it is directed by Mamoru Hosoda

* AnimationBump: Episode 26 is more serious and contains higher quality animation, this is due to the fact that it is directed by Mamoru Hosoda