History Anime / Ojarumaru

''Ojarumaru'' is an anime series that follows the daily adventures of a 5-year-old Heian era prince named Ojarumaru Sakanoue who accidentally time-warps to modern-day Japan and lives with Kazuma Tamura's family after being invited to live there by Tomio (also known as "Tommy"), Kazuma's grandfather.

* ADayInTheLimelight: Many of the later episodes tend to focus on other characters besides Ojarumaru, Denbo, and Kazuma. One of the most popular episodes focused on a recurring character is 14th series episode 6 in which the God of Poverty transforms Okorinbou and Nikorinbou into half human, half guardian dogs as a punishment for talking negatively about it behind its back. Both of them decide to take advantage of their rather adorable transformation by opening up an outdoor cafe at the Mangan Shrine called the "Dog Mimi Cafe" in a bid to make enough money to get the shrine out of poverty.

* AccidentalMisnaming: Maeda never seems to pronounce anyone's names correctly. Hoshino Papa always mispronounces Ojarumaru's name as "Ojamaru". Despite Hoshino correcting him, Papa instantly forgets how to pronounce Ojarumaru's name correctly the next episode the Hoshino family appear in.

* GiganticMoon: At the end of the intro, the time of day changes to night and a massive-sized moon appears to distinguish the silhouettes of Ojarumaru, his wagon, and Cow who is pulling the vehicle.

** Ojarumaru's parents and Kazuma's parents, Ai and Makoto. Kin-chan's parents, Komachi's parents, and Hoshino's parents.

* InsomniaEpisode: In Series 13 episode 9, Ojarumaru finds himself unable to sleep and asks Kazuma to sing him a lullaby. The lullabies he sings, as well as the ones that are sung by other characters who are pulled into the problem, keep failing to satisfy Ojarumaru.
* MeaningfulName: The series has plenty of these.
** Ojarumaru most likely comes from his VerbalTic, "de ojaru", and "maru", a suffix for names of males.
** Aobee comes from "aoi" meaning "blue" and "bee", a suffix for names of males.
** Kisuke comes from "kiiroi" meaning "yellow" and "high-pitched voice" [[note]] Which is fitting for him since he does have a high-pitched voice. [[/note]] and "suke", a suffix for names of males.
** Akane comes from "akai", meaning "red".
** Okorinbou comes from "okoru", meaning "to get angry".
** Nikorinbou comes from "nikoniko", an onomatopoeia of "smilingly".
** Princess Okame most likely comes from "okame", meaning "plain woman".
** Komachi Ono possibly comes from the Japanese waka poet, Ono no Komachi.
** Kobayashi Tea comes from the Japanese poet, Kobayashi Issa.
** Kanae possibly comes from "kaneru", meaning "to grant something (such as a wish)".
** Hoshino possibly comes from "hoshi", meaning "star".
** Kame comes from "kame", meaning "turtle".
* MissingMom: Makoto's mother, Sayuri, (also known as "Sally"). It's implied that she passed away some time before the series even starts, since she doesn't appear in any episodes with her husband, Tommy. She is only seen in old photos and flashbacks.

* SecondEpisodeIntroduction: Kazuma first appears in Series 1 episode 2.

** Episodes 1-3 of the 1st series follow Ojarumaru's arrival at Moonlight Town and eventual reunion with Denbo, while outsmarting the Kooni Trio.

* TotemPoleTrench: In episode 3, Aobei, Kisuke, and Akane do this in the disguise of a deliverer in order to get inside the Tamura family's house. Funnily enough, Kazuma seemingly falls for the disguise while Ojarumaru doesn't.

While Ojarumaru befriends many of the citizens, animals, and insects that live in Moonlight Town and discovers many new things he has never seen before in his time period, three oni siblings, Aobee, Kisuke, and Akane (who are also known as the "Oni Child Trio") constantly pester him into returning a powerful scepter he stole from their father, Great King Enma, which he uses in order to judge the dead. The oni try many, ''many'' times to retrieve it, but [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption all their attempts fail in the end]].

* AlternativeForeignThemeSong:
** The Italian dub uses [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxgaCRz6yhs this opening theme]].
** The Arabic dub uses a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APlwnPlvfto different opening theme]] as well.
* ArtEvolution:
** The series has gone through this over the years. Ojarumaru's mouth became smaller, Kisuke's [[EyesAlwaysShut always-shut eyes]] became smaller, and some of the character's faces, most notably the main characters, were modified to look cuter. The animation has also improved, along with the character outlines being drawn thinner since the 3rd series.
** Strangely, whenever Aobee, Kisuke, and Akane do their union sequence in later episodes, their old designs are re-used for some reason.

* ChromaticArrangement: The oni children; Aobee is blue, Kisuke is yellow, and Akane is red.

** The Oni Child Trio as a whole are called the Scamps, with each individual oni's name also being changed (Aobee is Blue-Joe, Kisuke is Khakie, and Akane is Scarlet).

* EdutainmentGame: There was one for the Sega Pico and the Nintendo DS.

* FreakyFridayFlip: Enma switches bodies with Kisuke [[note]]in episode 125[[/note]], Akane [[note]]in episode 220[[/note]], Aobee [[note]]in episode 323[[/note]], Denbo [[note]]in episode 377[[/note]], Denboko [[note]]in episode 484[[/note]], the scepter [[note]]in episode 541[[/note]], ''Ojarumaru himself'' [[note]]in episode 994[[/note]], and Ai [[note]]in episode 1529[[/note]] in order to retrieve his scepter. [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption All of these attempts go awry, of course]]!

** Honda and Asako meet each other in 1st series episode 81 and became a married couple.

* InformedSpecies: It's almost never brought up anywhere, but Ojarumaru is apparently a fairy; in Series 1 episode 1, King Enma calls him a "fairy brat", and NHK's official description of the same episode refers to him as a "fairy aristocratic child". However, Ojarumaru does not display any traits one would normally associate with fairies and he could easily pass for a normal human otherwise.

* OverlyNervousFlopSweat: The Hoshino family frequently does this when they get nervous.

* RobotMe: In episode 152, Tommy makes an Ojarumaru robot called the "Mechanical Ojaru Doll" in order to help Aobee return Great King Enma's scepter from Ojarumaru. However, the plan fails by the end of the episode. The Mechanical Ojaru Doll appears again in episode 174 in which it gets sent by Tommy over to Kazuma's house. Ojarumaru befriends it and spends the remainder of the episode together with it.

* TotemPoleTrench: In episode 3, Aobee, Kisuke, and Akane do this in the disguise of a deliverer in order to get inside the Tamura family's house. Funnily enough, Kazuma seemingly falls for the disguise while Ojarumaru doesn't.

* DancingTheme:
** "Purin Sanka" has the characters dancing to the theme while holding their own plate of pudding. "Purin de ojaru" recycles this animation, except for a different background.
** "Kooni Trio no Theme" has the Oni Child Trio dancing to their theme while Ojarumaru frustratingly tries stealing the spotlight. Near the end of it, the Oni Child Trio stop dancing to chase after Ojarumaru.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9X1fUVpZBcE "Acchi Muite Hoi de ojaru"]] has Ojarumaru, Denbo, Kazuma, the Oni Child Trio, Komachi, Kin-chan, Okame, Kimi-chan, Kame, Tome, Katapi, and the God of Poverty dancing to the bouncy rhythm of the theme.
** "Warera Gekkou Chou Chicchai Mono Club" has the Moonlight Town Tiny Things Club members (except for Ojarumaru) dancing to the marching rhythm of the theme.
** "Denbo no Bunbun Fushi" doesn't having any characters dancing, but it's a dance-worthy theme.
** "Sankyukkyu Dancing" has Ojarumaru (in various outfits) and at one point, the Oni Child Trio dancing to the theme.
** [[https://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm14435432 "Hatsukoi wa Minora Nai"]] has '''16''' Ojarumarus in an [=AKB48=]-esque outfit[[note]]Referred to as the "Ojarumaru Sisters"[[/note]] dancing to the fast-paced rhythm of the theme.
** "Wakaran" has a couple sequences of Usui dancing to the theme.
** "Mihatenu Yume" has a couple sequences of Hoshino, Ken, Kanbutsu, the Haunted House Director, and Kawakami[[note]]All of which are credited as "Ojamens"[[/note]] dancing to the theme.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93QetnAExRM "Purin Sanka ~20th à la mode edition"]] has a couple sequences of the characters dancing in the same fashion as the original theme, "Purin Sanka".
** "Kono Michi Ashita e" doesn't have any characters dancing, but it sure gives you the urge to dance 20s style.
** At the beginning of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qftUG96Ntd0 Yada na~ Ii na~]], Enma's oni assistants are seen dancing to the bouncy rhythm of the theme while holding trash bags.

''Ojarumaru'' is an anime series that follows the daily adventures of a 5-year-old Heian era prince named Ojarumaru Sakanoue who accidentally time-warps to modern day Japan and lives with Kazuma Tamura's family after being invited to live there by Tomio (also known as "Tommy"), Kazuma's grandfather.

The series was originally created by Rin Inumaru in 1993, as a manga that was serialized in Shogakukan's ''Ciao'' magazine.[[note]]However, due to the lack of documentation of the manga's history, it's unknown how long it actually ran.[[/note]] It eventually was adapted into an anime in 1998 (directed by [[Manga/{{Kodocha}} Akitaro]] [[Manga/FruitsBasket Daichi]]), and has been running ever since on NHK E-Tele, becoming their second [[LongRunners longest-running anime]] (just behind ''Manga/NintamaRantarou'') and the third longest-running anime of all time (behind the aforementioned ''Nintama Rantarou'' and ''Manga/SazaeSan''), currently having over 1,800 episodes produced up until this day.

* SweatDrop: This occurs whenever the characters are surprised, confused, nervous, embarrassed, or very excited. The show uses small, U-shaped sweat.

* DubNameChange: In many countries, the series is renamed as ''Prince Mackaroo'', and many of the characters are renamed with more Western names, among them the following:

* FreakyFridayFlip: Enma switches bodies with Kisuke [[note]]in episode 125[[/note]], Akane [[note]]in episode 220[[/note]], Aobee [[note]]in episode 323[[/note]], Denbo [[note]]in episode 377[[/note]], Denboko [[note]]in episode 484[[/note]], the scepter [[note]]in episode 541[[/note]], ''Ojarumaru himself'' [[note]]in episode 994[[/note]], and Ai [[note]]in episode 1529[[/note]] in order to get the scepter back into his possession in Enma World. [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption All of these attempts go awry, of course]]!

* IAmNotWeasel: Kisuke is an oni, but looks enough like a chick that he is often mistaken for one, much to his dismay.

* IconicItem: An odd variation. Yes, Ojarumaru always carries around a pink scepter, but it's not actually his; he stole it from Great King Enma, who sent out his children to to get it back for him.

* {{Akanbe}} Ojarumaru does this to the Kooni Trio in 1st series episodes 2 and 14 to express his refusal to return the scepter. He then does it to Iwashimizu in episode 16.

* NiceHat:
** Ojarumaru and his father wear tate-eboshi caps. Not only are they capable of storing any object, but also warp people to alternate worlds! Asako wears a red cap with the letter "A" on it, while Marie wears a purple hat with feathers on it.
** Episode 201 focuses on Ojarumaru and his friends wondering what's inside Marie's hat.

%% * HotBlooded: Honda-sensei. %% This isn't enough context; the example should explain how Honda-sensei fits the trope.

* SickEpisode: In episode 180, Kazuma gets a fever and Ojarumaru decides to go back to the Heian era in order to find a medicinal plant that will cure him.

* ADogNamedDog: There is a cow named Ushi[[note]] Which means "Cow" in Japanese. [[/note]] and a turtle named Kami [[note]] Which means "Turtle" in Japanese [[/note]].

* ADogNamedDog: There is a cow named...Cow [[note]] "Ushi" in Japanese. [[/note]]. Considering that all the other animal and insect characters actually have a distinct name, it's quite odd that Cow lacks one.
* AccidentalMisnaming: Maeda never seems to pronounce anyone's names correctly. Hoshino Papa always mispronounces Ojarumaru's name as "Ojamaru". His son then tries to correct him, but he seems to instantly forget how to pronounce Ojarumaru's name correctly the next episode the Hoshino family appear in.

** The series has gone through this over the years. Ojarumaru's mouth became smaller, Kisuke's [[EyesAlwaysShut always-shut eyes]] became smaller, and some of the character's faces, most notably the main characters, were modified to look more cuter. The animation has also improved, along with the character outlines being drawn thinner since the 3rd series.

* ArtShift: Happens in the vast majority of the episodes that place the characters in parodies of Japanese and Western folktales, or stories that take place in different scenarios. While the character designs are retained, softer colors are used and the character outlines are colored.

* CrossPoppingVeins: These occur frequently during the 1st series. Episodes afterwards use them less frequently to the point of eventually becoming extremely rare.
* CouchGag: In the 6th ending theme, ''Acchi Muite Hoi de ojaru'', the direction Ojarumaru points at whenever he sings "Hoi" near the end of the theme [[note]]Varies between up, down, left, and right[[/note]] is different per episode of the 5th series.

** Honda-sensei and Asako met each other in episode 81 and became a married couple for the remainder of the series.

-->'''Kisuke:''' Kii-kun is not a chick, ppii!

** Episodes 1-3 of the 1st series follow Ojarumaru's arrival at Moonlight Town and eventual reunion with Denbo, while outsmarting the Oni Child Trio.

** Episodes 36-40 of the 17th series follow the journey of Kazuma, Kin-chan, Komachi, and Iwashimizu through strange lands in search for Ojarumaru, who suddenly disappeared during a camping trip.

* TerribleTrio: The three oni children are considered the series antagonists since they want to take back the scepter from Ojarumaru and give it back to their father, with Ojarumaru being completely uninterested to return it.

* DubNameChange: In many countries, the series is renamed as "Prince Mackaroo", and many of the characters (including Ojarumaru) are renamed with more western names.

* StoryArc: Although majority of the episodes are episodic, small story arcs occur over the course of the series.

* InformedSpecies: It's almost never referenced, but Ojarumaru is apparently a fairy; in Series 1 episode 1, King Enma calls him a "fairy brat", and NHK's official description of the same episode refers to him as a "fairy aristocratic child". However, Ojarumaru does not display any traits one would normally associate with fairies and he could easily pass for a normal human otherwise.