Powerpuff Girls Z, known in Japan as Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z (出ましたっ!パワパフガールズZ, Demashita! Pawapafu Gāruzu Zetto, roughly They're Here! Powerpuff Girls Z, PPGZ), is a Japanese television anime adaption based upon the American animated television series The Powerpuff Girls. The anime is produced by Cartoon Network Japan, and Aniplex and animated by Toei Animation; with Yoshiya Ayugai and Mark Buhaj of Cartoon Network, Hiromi Seki, Hideo Katsumata producing, Megumu Ishiguro supervising, Hiroyuki Kakudō directing, Yoshio Urasawa (of Tokyo Pig and Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo 's chief writer) story composing and Miho Shimogasa (of Sailor Moon fame) doing character design. As production occurs in Japan, Craig McCracken, the original creator of The Powerpuff Girls, is not directly involved in this project. The series, an anime reimagining of The Powerpuff Girls, debuted in Japan on July 1, 2006, on TV Tokyo, where the Japanese version of the original Powerpuff Girls premiered, as well as its affiliates, replacing Sugar Sugar Rune in its time slot, Saturday at 7:00 a.m. JST. Its final episode aired on June 30, 2007. Its time was replaced by Fight Tension School on July 7, 2007. Since August 1, 2006, it has also aired on AT-X.[1] Since April 1, 2007, the program airs on Cartoon Network in Japan.[2] The initial order was for about 52 episodes at 30 minutes each. Recently, Nami Miyahara, the voice actress of Miyako/Bubbles, posted an entry on her blog in which she mentions working with the staff and cast of the series after having not worked on the series for so long.[when?] As to whether or not this is referring to more episodes, an OVA, or a movie being produced is currently unknown.[citation needed] Cartoon Network has said it will be showing the anime worldwide. Taiwan became the first country to air the show outside Japan when the show aired there on January 21, 2008.[citation needed] The Ocean Group has also dubbed the official English version of the show and has been shown on several English-speaking markets; it is unknown if the show will make an appearance in the United States (a few clips from the English dub were recently leaked onto YouTube). A Latin-American dub premiered on August 2, 2008, although a pre-premiere was done on July 13, 2008. Most of the original dubbing cast returned to reprise their roles. Except in episode 41, none of the voices from the Japanese dub of the original Powerpuff Girls returned to reprise their roles for this series. Kazuki Kosakai was the sole exception, and guest-starred as the narrator. His voice is heard at the end of first part of episode 41. The show is currently screening in Australia on Cartoon Network and uses the Japanese title of 'Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z' In an interview with The Big Spoon on March 2008, Tara Strong, the voice of Bubbles in the original series, stated that Craig McCracken had approached her about acting on a few episodes of the anime[3]. The manga of the same name was introduced in the August 2006 issue of Ribon, published in July 3, 2006.
[edit] StoryIn order to stop an ecological disaster, Ken Kitazawa used Chemical Z, a new form of the Professor's original substance Chemical X, to destroy a giant glacier. The Chemical Z is caused by Peach's accident of dropping a Daifuku (a Japanese confection consisting of a small round mochi stuffed with sweet filling) which had dissolved in the chemical. However, the impact of Chemical Z caused several black and white lights to appear in the skies above Tokyo City. Three ordinary girls, Momoko, Miyako, and Kaoru, were engulfed in white lights and soon became the new defenders of Tokyo City: the Powerpuff Girls Z. However, the numerous black lights caused others to turn to the side of evil. And so, using their ultra super powers, Hyper-Blossom (Momoko), Rolling Bubbles (Miyako), and Powered Buttercup (Kaoru) dedicated their lives to defending Tokyo City from the likes of those swayed by the black lights and Him's black particles. Fighting the Rowdyruff boys, Sedusa, Princess, or any other, the girls are always there to help. [edit] Characters[edit] Powerpuff Girls ZThe Powerpuff Girls Z are the main heroines of the series. They are three thirteen-year-old girls from three different families, unlike the original Powerpuff Girls who were sisters created by Professor Utonium and attended kindergarten. When Chemical Z exploded into multiple black and white lights, Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup received white lights when they protected nearby children from it. Under the condition to keep their identity a secret as long as their needs were met, the girls transform into the Powerpuff Girls Z to protect Tokyo City (New Townsville in the English dub). Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup use a yo-yo, a bubble wand and a hammer as their weapons, respectively. In addition, they all have basic abilities such as super strength, super speed, flight, weapon materialization, and atmosphere resistance. Their costumes also have some special abilities, including the ability to fit anyone of any size and withstand strong physical impact. The girls' battle cry is "Powerpuff Girls Z!" in both their civilian and superhero garb and yet somehow manage to hide their secret identities from their classmates and relatives.
Blossom is the first member of the Powerpuff Girls Z squad. She transforms using the phrase "Hyper Blossom" and fights villains with a yo-yo. Like the original, she is the self-proclaimed leader of the team. She is a bit boy-crazy. She is very familiar with the maho shōjo genre, along with some typical anime/super sentai concepts and is famous for being a "hero maniac" in school, especially by Buttercup. Blossom also has a strong appetite for candies and other sweets, and spends much of her time snacking. Because of this, most of her attacks are named after food. In addition, she dislikes vegetables and is afraid of bugs and dentists. Although she can be easily distracted and has been known to whine, Blossom tries her best to protect New Townsville, lead the girls, and help her friends regardless of her situation. Often she can be very clever and crafty when needed, usually being the first to come up with a plan to trick or defeat villains/monsters. She is the elder daughter of Hachizou and Kakio Akazutsumi and has a younger sister named Kasey. She is represented by hearts. She dreams of being married in the future.
Bubbles is the second member of the Powerpuff Girls Z team. She transforms using the phrase "Rolling Bubbles" and uses a bubble wand staff as a weapon. In comparison to the original Bubbles, who was known for being the most childish of the girls, Bubbles is quite mature, as she was the most successful at being a mother to Ken, but she's the ditsiest member of the three, often appearing a bit clueless, and doesn't seem to understand her powers completely, along with a few other things. She is the only member of the girls who, like some villains, end a few sentences with a phrase in the Japanese version. Her phrase is desu wa. She is very friendly and polite, as she always uses honorifics at the end of names, although she too can be angered when provoked and is not above pretending to cry to get what she wants. Trendy and stylish, Bubbles enjoys shopping and fashion the most. Although she is popular with the boys at school, she already has feelings for Takaaki (Taka-chan) (Cody in the English Dub), a boy who saved her from bullies when she was six who she later visits in the hospital everyday. She also uses curlers (3 balls on each pigtail) when going to bed. Bubbles remains typified, however, by the original's compassion, gentleness and innocence, as well as her love of animals and her favorite doll, Octi. She lives with only her grandmother. Her parents live in Kyoto. She is represented by bubbles. She dreams of being a fashion designer or model in the future.
Buttercup is the third and final member of the Powerpuff Girls Z team. She transforms using the phrase "Powered Buttercup" and uses a Daruma Otoshi hammer. She hates skirts and other girly things, which is the reason why she was reluctant to join the group. In fact, she even hates girls who are too feminine. Like the original Buttercup, this Buttercup is a tomboy and is the most easily enraged of the three. Famous for being the most athletic girl in school, Buttercup enjoys all kinds of sports and spends a great deal of time watching sports on television. She is especially good at soccer. She speaks with a hard and masculine edge and rarely uses honorifics when speaking, though she will speak a little more like a girl in later episodes. Her greatest fear is ghosts. Buttercup also has a slight crush on Butch Z after holding her kiss until told she could stop.[citation needed] Buttercup lives with her father, who is a professional masked-wrestler, mother and two brothers, one older and one younger [older = Dai (Dave) and younger = Shou (Sam)]. She is represented by stars. She dreams of being a professional wrestler like her dad in the future. It is also suggested she might have a bit of a father complex, often attracted to guys with a similar build as him as well as being in a love struck daze after seeing her father's face. Her jacket is yellow-green. [edit] Supporting characters
This series' version of Professor Utonium. His real name is unknown, aside from his family name Kitazawa (北沢). In this incarnation, he has a son named Ken, who is responsible for all those affected by the Chemical Z lights, especially the Powerpuff Girls Z. Professor Utonium was originally experimenting with the substance Chemical X and strove to find a way to change its chemical properties. Professor Utonium has created several inventions throughout the series; the most important one being his Chemical Z Particle Ray, which allows him to transform those affected by the lights back to normal (although it doesn't prevent recurring transformations nor is it able to work on all black light victims). He seems to be aware of the effect Ken's lack of a mother has had on his son, assuming that it had caused him to be a bully to the girls. However, this does not change his behavior towards Ken. He appears to be a gentle father figure like the original Professor Utonium was in The Powerpuff Girls. He treats the girls like members of his family and is very close to the Mayor and Miss Bellum. While he is very gentle and serious, Professor Utonium may, at times, act a little less mature than he usually does. In episode 37, when the Powerpuff Girls Z are "grounded" from using their powers for a day when they have to take a test in school, Professor Utonium fills in for them, donning an exosuit with a laser beam gun and rocket pack, calling himself "Utonium Z" (this is most likely based on the American cartoon episode "Powerprof" in which he also donned a fighting suit but drove the girls crazy with lame one-liners during battles). He also appears to have a mecha that looks like Utonium Z, which he uses against the Mojo Robo. Although he seems unsuccessful at first, he is able to defeat Mojo Jojo, Fuzzy Lumpkins, and the Amoeba Boys. His main attack is the Uto Beam. At the end of the episode, Ken, Poochi and himself call themselves "Powerpuff Boys Z" as their own self-proclaimed superhero team.
A young boy genius, the 8 year-old son of Professor Utonium who is somewhat responsible for turning regular girls into the Powerpuff Girls Z and numerous other characters into villains using Chemical Z. He used it to blast a glacier in order to set the weather back to normal, but the impact resulted in the explosion of several lights, which affected all those who came in contact with it. Despite being younger than the girls, he acts a lot more mature and the education he receives from his father is considered more advanced than what the girls learn in their school, earning his PhD at an early age. Ken, in a later episode, attended school in order to gain social skills and make friends. While he considers grade school life boring, he has made several friends, including Jou (who was originally his rival) and Kuriko (Blossom's little sister). Ken sees the girls as older sisters and has to often put up with them, though he still cares for them deeply. Ken interchanges between calling Professor Utonium Dad and Professor. During a serious situation (such as a monster attack or investigative purposes) he will try to refer to Utonium as "Professor," but in less serious situations (like packing a lunch) he will call him "Dad." Ken often corrects himself, because he usually uses the wrong honorific (e.g. "Dad, I mean, Professor"). In Episode 26, it is revealed that Ken's mother works on a space station, therefore making her very busy and unable to be with Ken. Thanks to the girls and Santa Claus (whom he believed did not exist at first based on a 70% possibility), he was able to see her and is now able to communicate with her clearly on the lab's monitor. In episode 37, when the Powerpuff Girls Z are "grounded" from using their powers for a day when they have to take a test in school, Ken fills in for them, donning a superhero suit consisting of a black bodysuit, a white cape, white gloves, white boots, a red vest with gold shoulder pads and a yellow "Z" on it, and a blue helmet with the yellow letters "KK" on it, while brandishing a blue polearm with a yellow "U" at the end, and calling himself "Ken Kitazawa Z". Despite having no powers or attacks, he uses traps [disambiguation needed] and other props [disambiguation needed] as weapons when he defends their lab from the Gangreen Gang, ultimately driving them off by tricking them into drinking bottles of hot sauce (thinking they were the containers of Chemical Z). Ken's pre-production art bares a strong resemblance to Dexter from Dexter's Laboratory, even the current incarnation. However, in one of the special edition DVD booklets, it is explained the design originated from Kid Utonium from the original series.
Ken's pet robot dog. Poochi was also affected by a white light, gaining the ability to talk, as well as a considerable boost in intelligence. Poochi's shout prompts the girls to transform either in person or through a long-distance communication device, although a modification to the girls' compacts allows them to transform on their own. Additionally, Poochi can re-summon the girls' powers, even when their powers are drained. Poochi is also capable of sniffing out those who are affected by the black lights, white lights, and Him's black particles. The black light monsters/villains that have been sniffed by Poochi are stored in his data banks for later reference. This ability, however, is hindered if his target is wearing heavy cosmetics (as was the case with Sedusa). Poochi is also capable of sniffing and identifying others more clearly than other dogs, even when someone's appearance has been completely changed. In the Japanese version, Poochi's phrases always end with a bark (or "wan," literally his bark). He is also able to understand cats. It is possible Poochi is based after "The Talking Dog" as well as the Powerpuff Hotline. Like many recurring characters, he was given his own symbol, a Bone. In episode 37, when the Powerpuff Girls Z are "grounded" from using their powers for a day when they have to take a test in school, Poochi fills in for them, wearing a skintight brown jumpsuit with black trim, and brandishing a nunchaku made of two bones linked together, and calling himself "Peach Z". He assists Ken in dealing with the Gangreen Gang, making short work of them with his nunchaku. In the English dub, his 'death scene' is censored, cutting the part where the dying Poochi screams, and having him merely losing his voice instead of his sentence. He is known as Peach in the Japanese version.
The Mayor of New Townsville. His design is distinctly different from his American counterpart, as he is of normal height and has no monocle or top hat. A caveman version of the Mayor that is closer to the original design does make an appearance in episode 51 briefly. While less extreme in comparison to the original Mayor, the Mayor in this series is very childish and has a very short attention span. He seems to worry quite a lot when the girls are fighting, and wishes that they could cause a little less damage. The Mayor, like many of the characters in the anime, loves sweets. The Mayor also has a younger brother, who is the Principal of the school Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup attend. It was through him that Miss Bellum and the Mayor were able rearrange the classes, so that the girls would be in the same class. However, the Mayor and the Principal, don't always get along, and even the most minor of things will set off an argument, which often time leads to name calling. He also deals with his brother when the girls aren't doing well in class due to them skipping class to save the city.
Like the original Miss Bellum, her face doesn't appear on screen; however, unlike the original, she is now blonde. Usually, Miss Bellum covers her face with a tablet computer, which has lips imprinted [disambiguation needed] on it. While the Mayor is different from his original counterpart, Miss Bellum still does most of his work for him, and still appears to be the brains of the operation. She also instructs the girls a bit, which she has done several times in the original. Fuzzy Lumpkins has a crush on her; however, she dislikes Fuzzy. In Episode 51, a pre-historic version of Miss Bellum is shown as the inventor of fire after being hit by a way-ward Chemical Z Light particle that scattered across Earth's timeline. At one point in pre-production, Miss Bellum had facial features. She is represented by lip prints like the one on her tablet computer.
Another "returning" supporting character, Ms. Keane first appears in episode 3. She is very pretty and loved by her male students, although the female students don't like her as much, especially Princess Morbucks. Miss Keane, like the original, is kind and incredibly patient. She is talented in many ways, which she used to counter Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup's excuses; this includes knowledge on medicine for non-existent medical conditions, such as dislocation of the stomach, and is able to speak mole and English. She is also unfazed by the destruction Mojo causes and speaks to him as if he were a normal human being. In fact, in episode 33 when Mojo asks her out on a date, she gladly accepts and even enjoys the date (though she still treats him as a monkey, as in ordering a "monkey ticket" for him at a movie house while getting an adult ticket for herself). At the end of that episode, though, it is also revealed that Miss Keane has a mole-man boyfriend named Uneo, who appears in an earth-tunneling vehicle that emerges from the ground to pick her up. [edit] Family membersKuriko Akatsutsumi (赤堤 くりこ, Akatsutsumi Kuriko) / Kasey Blossom's 8-year-old sister, Kasey seems to be just as hyper and addicted to the sentai/hero genre as her older sister. She is very independent and likes to pretend she is a heroine. She seems to admire the Powerpuff Girls Z and wishes to be a heroine just like them (she tried to defeat Mojo's robot with a broom). She likes Bubbles and Buttercup, but she does not really like Blossom (who is actually the alter-ego of Momoko). She also seems to be looking for new ways to annoy her sister. She appears to be quite interested in Ken, especially when she realizes that he knows her sister. Similarly, Ken seems interested in her because of her resemblance to Blossom. English Dub Voice: Erin Matthews Kiyoko Gotokuji (豪徳寺清子, Gōtokuji Kiyoko) Bubbles' grandmother, generally referred to as Obachan, who Bubbles lives with in a large traditional style house. She is gentle sounding and usually gets distracted by nostalgic things, but she can also be strict when it comes to manners. You also never see her eyes ever open, as they are always closed to portray a happy feeling. She is a traditional Japanese woman. English Dub Voice: Cathy Weseluck Tokio Matsubara Buttercup's father, a professional wrestler and loving family man who is never seen without his mask. He left for Mexico when Buttercup was young, and studied the art of the Luchador after experiencing a losing streak that could have cost him his career. His teacher was severely injured in what is implied to be his final match. Buttercup's father was given his teacher's mask, which in true lucha spirit, he never removes (except when taking a shower). Since then, Buttercup has forgotten what her father's face looks like. There is no photograph in their family album that shows what his real face looks like either, mirroring Miss Bellum's running gag. After he wins the match against Panda Mask, Buttercup finally got to see her father's face for the first time since before he left for Mexico. According to Buttercup, her father is extremely handsome, and is no doubt why her mother fell in love with her father. English Dub Voice: Brian Drummond Mitsuko Matsubara She is the mom of Sam, Buttercup and Dave Matsubara. She is a very good cook and is exceptionally gentle in contrast to her husband and kids. She also likes to smile a lot. English Dub Voice: Jillian Michaels Dai Matsubara/Dave He is Sam and Buttercup's big brother. He is quite a bit innocent. English Dub Voice: David Hurwitz Shou Matsubara/Sam He is Buttercup and Dave's little brother. We don't see him much but all we know is he is rough and tumble. English Dub Voice: Kathleen Barr [edit] Minor allies
[edit] Villains and monstersMost of the villains of Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z were normal, everyday humans/animals/organisms/objects, until the explosion of the chemical Z ray and the effect of the black lights (or Him's black particles,) transformed them into "Monsters." The black light is drawn to people, animals, organisms or inanimate objects that were dominated by negative emotions and not only affects the appearance of its victims and grants them powers, but it magnifies their desires and removes their moral inhibitions. In the more recent episodes, Him (Kare) can also inflict darkness in the same way as the black lights with a black demon powder, creating monsters in the process. Whenever these villains cause trouble, the Powerpuff Girls Z must apprehend them and, for the most part, turn them over to Professor to be restored to their normal form with the Chemical Z Ray. At other times, when the trouble surrounding the darkness is vanquished, the black spores will not usually go away on their own. In Episode 20, Mojo creates the Rowdyruff Boys, similar to the ones in the original show, but older and more immature. |
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