History Anime / ADogOfFlanders1975

Because the original ''Literature/ADogOfFlanders'' story is big, big, '''big''' in Japan, this was one of their most popular entries, with Japanese children crying over the story and begging WMT for a different ending.

In 1997, the series was remade into a movie, which was actually released in the United States by Pioneer Entertainment, but cut out some footage.

* {{Bowdlerise}}: Downplayed, but the Italian dub removed two episodes because they were too disturbing for their child audiences.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Nello being a 10 year old and doing odd jobs for money, and the gratituous child abuse that follows. Thankfully, in modern day UsefulNotes/{{Belgium}}, child labour under the age of 16 is criminalized.

* AdaptationFriendship: * In the original ''Literature/ADogOfFlanders'' story by [[Creator/{{Ouida}} Marie Louise de la Ramée]], Alois was a beautiful woman Nello fell in love with when out one day. Here Nello and Alois are already best friends, and all of Baas' DatingWhatDaddyHates traits are portrayed as a hatred towards their platonic relationship. That's not to say the romance doesn't exist (it absolutely does), but the anime focuses on their friendship aspect more than anything.

Because the original ''Literature/ADogOfFlanders'' story is big, big, '''big''' in Japan, this was one of their most popular entries, with Japanese children crying over the story and [[spoiler: begging WMT to spare the child and the dog from death; alas this was ignored and Nello and Patrasche are taken to Heaven by angels to somewhat soften the blow.]]

* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler: Including children and dogs]].

* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: Nello (blonde), George (brunette), Paul (redhead). George and Paul are brothers, while Nello became their friend after his HeroicSacrifice to save Paul who was drowning.

* GorgeousPeriodDress: When the boat full of visitors arrives at Belgium, we see many poofy gowns and parasols, that scream "1800s".

* LighterAndSofter: [[spoiler: The original book was much darker, with Nello's grandfather losing his leg in a war and E

* SnowMeansDeath: [[spoiler: Nello and Patrasche freeze to death, until angels carry them both to heaven, with Nello being pulled in a cart by Patrasche to join his mother and grandfather]].

* TheCutie: So many, with the innocent and kindhearted Nello, the adorable dog Patrasche, George's playful brother Paul and the sweet GirlNextDoor Alois.
* DeathOfAChild: Averted with Alois, who's very sick but recovers. [[spoiler: Nello, after becoming a street child, isn't so lucky, and spends his last moments admiring a beautiful painting with Patrasche.]]

''A Dog of Flanders (フランダースの犬, Furandāsu no Inu)'' is a 1975 anime series produced by ''Anime/WorldMasterpieceTheater'' and one of their earliest entries. It is based on the 1872 story ''Literature/ADogOfFlanders'' by [[Creator/{{Ouida}} Marie Louise de la Ramée]].

* GorgeousPeriodDress: When the boat full of visitors arrives at Belgium, we see many poofy gowns and parasols

* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: Ensor is an alcoholic man and frequently abuses Pastrache, not even allowing him to drink water. Eventually Patrasche manages to escape from him and reunite with Nello and Jehan, who treat him well.

* CanonForeigner: George, Paul, Michel and Nullette weren't in the original story, and are anime-only characters.

* ChildrenAreInnocent: [[spoiler: Nello remains smiling and at peace even as he dies and is taken to Heaven.]]

* EveryoneHasStandards: [[spoiler: Noel is usually a calm and understanding old man. However, once he finds out that Nello was kicked out because Hans blamed him for the fire, his reaction is an impassioned ''"What the hell is wrong with you?"'' and shaming Hans in front of everyone.]]

* CreatorsCultureCarryover: Possibly why Patrasche looks like an Akita/Shiba Inu rather than a Bouviers des Flanders, though to be fair in the book he's mentioned to have "wolf-like ears", "a big head" and "sturdy legs", so his appearance fits.

* ABoyAndHisX: An boy and his adorable dog.

* AdaptationalIntelligence: Patrasche understands human language, even though he couldn't do that in the original book.
* AdaptationalSpeciesChange: Patrasche's breed was never specified in the book, but he is said to be a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouvier_des_Flandres#Notable_Bouviers_des_Flandres Bouviers des Flandres]]. However, he looks nothing like that and more like [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/patrasche_6.png this]].

* AgeLift: In the original story, Nello was 15 years old and Alois was 12 years old. In the anime Nello is 10 and Alois is 8.

* AmbiguouslyChristian: [[spoiler: Nello and his family are likely believers in Christianity, considering they go to Heaven at the end.]]

* BreakHisHeartToSaveHim: A downplayed example. In one episode, Nello, Georges and Paul visit Alois, but when they knock the door, Alois' butler informs them that Alois doesn't want Nello to see her when she's DelicateAndSickly. She does, however, ask that he give her a drawing, because they're a source of joy for her, and Nello obliges and draws a beautiful landscape with flowers and a windmill. Even the butler is impressed and when he shows it to Alois, she loves it.

* CultureEqualsCostume: Subverted. Alois is Belgian, but her dress and headpiece are clearly Dutch.

* DatingWhatDaddyHates: Friendship example. Alois and Nello are best friends, but her father thinks it is embaressing for the daughter of the richest man in town to hang out with a "pauper", and the two get into arguements over it. Alois' father even threatens to send her out of the country if she doesn't listen to him.

* DubNameChange:
** Nello was '''Niklaas''' in the German dub, '''Fadi''' in the Arabic dub and
** Alois was '''Aneka''' in the German dub and '''Hala''' in the Arabic dub.

* GreaterScopeVillain: [[spoiler: Hans, because he blamed Nello for the fire (when it was actually his own fault) to save a quick buck, and it led to Nello being left on the streets on Christmas day. All the villagers are disgusted that he would so something so cruel to a child, and even though he implores to them that he'll change and make it up to Nello by adopting him and raising him as his own son, it does little to change their opinion....and then Nello is found ''dead''.]]
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Nello has blonde hair and attracts people with his kindness despite his own tragedies in life, from rescuing George's brother Paul from drowning, to wanting to adopt Patrasche when he saw him being abused by Ensor.
* TheHeroDies: [[spoiler: Nello, Jehan, Patrasche. In the final scene, they're all in Heaven. Alois, George and Paul mourn their deaths, the former desperately trying to find them in the snow.]]
* {{Hypocrite}}: Alois's father hates Nello because he's from a poor family, but as shown in his flashback, he was also born a poor rural boy until he worked hard and made his fortune.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Georges is a playful boy who likes to muck around, but he adores Nello ever since he saved his little brother from drowning, and helps him speak to Alois when he's forbidden to. [[spoiler: He is very angry on Nello's behalf when Hans drives him out of the village, and tries to search for him despite the harsh snow.]]
* NoveauRiche: Mr. Cogez was born in a poor family, but he worked hard enough to become a landowner and a businessman and created a fortune in one generation. Both Alois and her mother live comfortably thanks to him, but while they're SpoiledSweet, he has rigid standards towards people (including his own daughter) and is extremely dismissive to the poor.

* OurAngelsAreDifferent: [[spoiler: The angels that carry Nello and Patrasche to the afterlife resemble the Literature/{{Bible}}'s depictions of cherubs, with their rosy cheeks and wings, child-like appearances and blonde hair]].

* SnowMeansDeath: [[spoiler: Nello and Patrasche freeze to death, until angels carry them both to heaven, with Nello being pulled in a cart by Patrasche to join his mother and grandfather]].
* SparedByTheAdaptation: [[spoiler: Patrasche's first owner, Ensor, is an alcoholic. In the original story, he died after getting into a fight while drunk, while in the anime he merely stops [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome making an appearance after episode 21]].]]
* SpoiledSweet: Despite being from a wealthy family Alois holds no snobbery towards Nello or the rest of the townsfolk; ironically it is her father who, despite being [[RagsToRiches born poor]], detests Nello and demands his daughter stay away from him.
* StarvingArtist: Nello works as a milk seller, but his true passion is for drawing, and he touches the hearts of many with his pictures. Unfortunately, he doesn't get anywhere with them, despite the fact that they're near-realistic.
* UptownGirl: Alois is far more well off than Nello and the rest of the town, but she loves him anyway and considers him her best friend.

* BigFancyHouse: Alois Cogez, the daughter of the wealthiest man in town, lives in a large mansion and has a personal butler who tends to her.

[[quoteright:269:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dog_of_flanders_1975_tv_series.jpg]]

* AerithAndBob: One of the nods that George and Paul are {{Canon Foreigner}}s is that they don't have traditional Belgian-sounding names like "Nello", "Alois", "Jehan", "Ensor", "Baas".

* BigFancyHouse: Alois, the daughter of the wealthiest man in town, lives in a large mansion and has a personal butler who tends to her.

* ComingOfAgeStory: It's a story of a little boy and his dog trying to keep their home running because the other adults in their lives are either dead or unable to. [[spoiler: And unfortunately, they never grow up]].

* SnowMeansDeath: [[spoiler: Nello and Patrasche freeze to death, until angels carry them both to heaven, with Nello being pulled in a cart by Patrasche to join his mother and grandfather]].

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Dub-only example. The German version of the opening has the lyric "You know Rembrandt and Rubens, and they all painted in Flanders". But Rembrandt was a Dutch painter who worked in Holland.

** In Korea, the series was called ''프란다스의 개 (Flanders Dog)'' and the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2mpeWjw5Xs theme song]] was sung by
* AmbiguouslyChristian: [[spoiler: Nello and his family, considering they go to Heaven at the end.]]

* BigFancyHouse: Alois lives in a large mansion and has a personal butler who tends to it.

* SceneryPorn: The accidental Dutch-inspired setting leads to this anime being one of the most gorgeous looking WMT entries to date, with beautiful tulips, serene skies and pretty rural scenery. Nello works as a milk delivery boy for a living and also works at a farm, so expect a lot of animals in the grass too.

* ArtisticeLicenseHistory: Dub-only example. The German version of the opening has the lyric "You know Rembrandt and Rubens, and they all painted in Flanders". But Rembrandt was a Dutch painter who worked in Holland.

[[caption-width-right:269:some caption text]]

!!Has examples of

* AllAbusersAreMale: Alois' father is strict and treats her harshly in the name of discipline, even barring her from seeing Nello because of their class difference, but her mother is sweet and caring and supports him and Alois' friendship.

* AmbiguousTimePeriod:

* AmbiguousTimePeriod: Alongside the Netherlands-inspired setting, it's hard to placate if the story takes place in the