"Azumanga Daioh" (2002) "Azumanga daiô" (original title), TV series 2002-

Directors:

Makiko Date
Jun Fukuda
(more)

Writers:

Aya Yoshinaga (episode)
Ichirô Ôkôchi (episode)
(more)

Seasons:

1

Genre:

Animation | Comedy

Tagline:

School goes crazy

Plot:

A humorous and highly unpredictable animated series following a group of high school girls and their teachers.

Plot Keywords:

Girl | School | Teacher | High School | Friendship

Cast

Tomoko Kaneda	...	Chiyo Mihama (26 episodes, 2002)
Yuki Matsuoka	...	Ayumu 'Osaka' Kasuga / ... (26 episodes, 2002)
Chieko Higuchi	...	Tomo Takino (26 episodes, 2002)
Rie Tanaka	...	Koyomi 'Yomi' Mizuhara / ... (26 episodes, 2002)
Yu Asakawa	...	Sakaki (26 episodes, 2002)
Akiko Hiramatsu	...	Yukari Tanizaki (23 episodes, 2002)
Sakura Nogawa	...	Kaorin (22 episodes, 2002)
Houko Kuwashima	...	Kagura (20 episodes, 2002)
Aya Hisakawa	...	Minamo 'Nyamo' Kurosawa (20 episodes, 2002)
Akane Omae	...	Chihiro / ... (18 episodes, 2002)
Naoki Yanagi	...	Male Student A / ... (16 episodes, 2002)
Kôji Ishii	...	Kimura-sensei / ... (15 episodes, 2002)
Ryoko Nagata	...	Female Student A / ... (12 episodes, 2002)
Hiroyuki Yoshino	...	Male Student B / ... (11 episodes, 2002)

Series Directed by
Hiroshi Nishikiori		(26 episodes, 2002)
Kiyotaka Ohata		(26 episodes, 2002)
Yuki Miyoshi		(3 episodes, 2002)
Kenichiro Watanabe		(3 episodes, 2002)
Yayoi Minazuki		(2 episodes, 2002)
Makoto Nagao		(2 episodes, 2002)
Tooru Takahashi		(2 episodes, 2002)
Isao Takayama		(2 episodes, 2002)
Makiko Date		(1 episode, 2002)
Jun Fukuda		(1 episode, 2002)
Kôichi Takada		(1 episode, 2002)
Jun Takahashi		(1 episode, 2002)

Series Writing credits
Kiyohiko Azuma		(26 episodes, 2002)
Ichirô Ôkôchi		(10 episodes, 2002)
Tomoyasu Okubo		(9 episodes, 2002)
Aya Yoshinaga		(3 episodes, 2002)
Gô Tamai		(2 episodes, 2002)
Hajime Satsuki		(1 episode, 2002)

Series Produced by
Shin'ichi Ikeda	....	producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Shinichi Ikeda	....	producer (26 episodes, 2002)
John Ledford	....	executive producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Taro Maki	....	executive producer / planning producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Yuji Matsukura	....	producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Toshimichi Ohtsuki	....	executive producer / planning producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Nobuhiro Osawa	....	producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Don Rush	....	producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Tatsuo Sato	....	executive producer / planning producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Atsushi Umezawa	....	co-executive producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Jun Umezawa	....	executive producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Mark Williams	....	executive producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Nobuhiro Ôsawa	....	producer (26 episodes, 2002)
Toshio Hatanaka	....	associate producer / assistant producer (23 episodes, 2002)
Muneyuki Kanbe	....	associate producer / assistant producer (23 episodes, 2002)
Atsushi Moriyama	....	associate producer / assistant producer (23 episodes, 2002)
Naoki Nakamura	....	associate producer / assistant producer (23 episodes, 2002)
Gô Shukuri	....	assistant producer (23 episodes, 2002)
Mitsuhiro Matsuo	....	assistant producer (22 episodes, 2002)
Makoto Suzuki	....	collaborating producer (22 episodes, 2002)
Norimichi Suzuki	....	associate producer / assistant producer (22 episodes, 2002)

Series Original Music by
Masaki Kurihara		(26 episodes, 2002)

Series Cinematography by
Masaru Takase		(26 episodes, 2002)

Series Film Editing by
Shigeru Nishiyama		(26 episodes, 2002)

Series Art Direction by
Chikako Shibata		(26 episodes, 2002)

Series Art Department
Hiroshi Nishikiori	....	storyboard artist: ending sequence / storyboard artist (26 episodes, 2002)
Kiyotaka Ohata	....	storyboard artist: opening sequence / storyboard artist (26 episodes, 2002)
Makoto Bessho	....	storyboard artist (3 episodes, 2002)
Tooru Takahashi	....	storyboard artist (3 episodes, 2002)
Mitsuru Hongo	....	storyboard artist (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiroko Oguri	....	accessory designer (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiroaki Sakurai	....	storyboard artist (2 episodes, 2002)
Yoshiki Yamakawa	....	storyboard artist (2 episodes, 2002)

Series Sound Department
Cesar Inserny	....	sound designer / sound mixer (26 episodes, 2002)
Eiko Morikawa	....	sound effects editor (26 episodes, 2002)
Soushi Shiihara	....	recording assistant (26 episodes, 2002)
Yoshimi Sugiyama	....	sound production supervisor (26 episodes, 2002)
Yota Tsuruoka	....	sound director (26 episodes, 2002)
Yô Yamada	....	recording mixer / sound mixer (26 episodes, 2002)

Series Special Effects by
Shigenobu Kaihou	....	special effects (6 episodes, 2002)

Series Visual Effects by
Asuka Hino	....	digital painter (13 episodes, 2002)
Shôko Mori	....	digital painter (13 episodes, 2002)
Maya Muranaga	....	digital painter (13 episodes, 2002)
Junko Suenaga	....	digital painter (13 episodes, 2002)
Akiko Uchida	....	digital painter (13 episodes, 2002)
Kyôsuke Ishikawa	....	digital painter (12 episodes, 2002)
Emiko Ueno	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (12 episodes, 2002)
Junko Mizuno	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (11 episodes, 2002)
Akiko Nakayama	....	2d works (11 episodes, 2002)
Yuri Okata	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (11 episodes, 2002)
Mika Sugawara	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (11 episodes, 2002)
Sayaka Tsuda	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (11 episodes, 2002)
Nagisa Abe	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter / ... (10 episodes, 2002)
Yuuko Fujita	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (10 episodes, 2002)
Mariko Shimokawa	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (10 episodes, 2002)
Takayoshi Ishikawa	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G / ... (9 episodes, 2002)
Mikio Nakade	....	system engineer (9 episodes, 2002)
Maki Nogami	....	digital composition and effects (9 episodes, 2002)
Jun Shiota	....	digital composition and effects (9 episodes, 2002)
Katsutoshi Sugawara	....	digital composition and effects (9 episodes, 2002)
Kazu Doi	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter / ... (8 episodes, 2002)
Romi Mishima	....	digital composition and effects (8 episodes, 2002)
Hajime Ômura	....	digital composition and effects (8 episodes, 2002)
Izumi Hirose	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter / ... (7 episodes, 2002)
Yukiko Itô	....	digital painter (7 episodes, 2002)
Eiko Matsushima	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter: Production I.G (7 episodes, 2002)
Tomomi Andou	....	digital painter (6 episodes, 2002)
Mika Funabashi	....	digital painter (6 episodes, 2002)
Kazunari Nishida	....	digital composition and effects (5 episodes, 2002)
Miyuki Ishida	....	digital painter (4 episodes, 2002)
Tomomi Sasaki	....	digital painter: Production I.G. / digital painter (4 episodes, 2002)
Mieko Maruyama	....	digital painter (3 episodes, 2002)
Mitsuhito Tsuji	....	digital painter: Production I.G / digital painter: Production I.G. (3 episodes, 2002)
Tamaka Sato	....	digital painter: Production I.G (2 episodes, 2002)
Mayumi Tanahashi	....	digital painter (2 episodes, 2002)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Miki Sakuma	....	digital camera operator: Production I.G. / digital camera operator: Production I.G (10 episodes, 2002)
Kazunari Nishida	....	assistant cinematographer (8 episodes, 2002)
Misaki Touma	....	digital camera operator: Production I.G. (8 episodes, 2002)
Maki Nogami	....	digital camera operator (4 episodes, 2002)
Katsutoshi Sugawara	....	digital camera operator (4 episodes, 2002)
Jun Shioda	....	digital camera operator (3 episodes, 2002)
Hajime Ômura	....	digital camera operator (3 episodes, 2002)
Mako Kogawa	....	digital camera operator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Jun Shiota	....	assistant cinematographer (2 episodes, 2002)
Misaki Tôma	....	digital camera operator: Production I.G (2 episodes, 2002)

Series Animation Department
Kunihiro Abe	....	animator: ending sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Michio Fukuda	....	animator: ending sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Hidenori Fukuoka	....	animator: ending sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Shinya Hasegawa	....	animator: ending sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Hideki Hashimoto	....	animator: opening sequence / animation director (26 episodes, 2002)
Noboru Jitsuhara	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Hiromi Kato	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Yasuhisa Kato	....	animation director: opening & ending sequences / character designer (26 episodes, 2002)
Yasunari Nitta	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Kazuhiro Oki	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Hisashi Saitô	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Shûji Sakamoto	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Tadashi Shida	....	animator: opening sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Yoshiki Yamakawa	....	animator: ending sequence (26 episodes, 2002)
Takashi Wada	....	chief animation director / animation director / ... (24 episodes, 2002)
Takako Kouno	....	inbetween checker / inbetween artist (21 episodes, 2002)
Nobuko Ogino	....	inbetween checker / inbetween artist (21 episodes, 2002)
Hiroki Okamoto	....	inbetween checker / inbetween artist (21 episodes, 2002)
Yûsuke Furuya	....	inbetween artist (17 episodes, 2002)
Keiichi Honda	....	inbetween artist (17 episodes, 2002)
Takehiko Kageyama	....	inbetween artist (17 episodes, 2002)
Mizuki Maedomari	....	inbetween artist (17 episodes, 2002)
Kaoru Ooki	....	inbetween artist (16 episodes, 2002)
Masahiro Sato	....	inbetween artist (16 episodes, 2002)
Satoshi Tezuka	....	inbetween artist (16 episodes, 2002)
Yukie Hiyamizu	....	inbetween artist (15 episodes, 2002)
Yuki Imoto	....	inbetween artist (15 episodes, 2002)
Shigeki Kimoto	....	inbetween artist (14 episodes, 2002)
Kinichi Ookubo	....	background artist: Studio Kanon / inbetween artist (12 episodes, 2002)
Sanae Sadamori	....	inbetween artist (12 episodes, 2002)
Masaki Mayuzumi	....	background artist: Studio Kanon / inbetween artist (11 episodes, 2002)
Yuichiro Yamada	....	inbetween artist (11 episodes, 2002)
Saori Endô	....	background artist: Studio Kanon / inbetween artist (9 episodes, 2002)
Hiroko Oguri	....	animator / animation director (8 episodes, 2002)
Chigusa Orishiba	....	background artist: Studio Kanon / inbetween artist (8 episodes, 2002)
Miwako Suzuki	....	cel checker (8 episodes, 2002)
Yuichi Takahashi	....	animator (8 episodes, 2002)
Tsuyoshi Kawada	....	animator (7 episodes, 2002)
Kouji Ogawa	....	animator (7 episodes, 2002)
Hideki Tachibana	....	animator / animation director (7 episodes, 2002)
Mayumi Ôkawa	....	background artist: Studio Kanon / inbetween artist (7 episodes, 2002)
Misao Abe	....	animator (6 episodes, 2002)
Takahiro Chiba	....	animator (6 episodes, 2002)
Satomi Furukawa	....	background artist: Studio Kanon (6 episodes, 2002)
Shirô Shibata	....	animator (6 episodes, 2002)
Hajime Yoshida	....	animator (6 episodes, 2002)
Takafumi Hori	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Satomi Kitahara	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Ooki Kusumoto	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Junko Matsushita	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Satoko Miyachi	....	animator / animation director / ... (5 episodes, 2002)
Shintaro Muraki	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Atsushi Okita	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Mayumi Tanahashi	....	color designer (5 episodes, 2002)
Masanori Watanabe	....	animator (5 episodes, 2002)
Ryotaro Akao	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Ryuichi Baba	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Kazu Doi	....	color designer: Production I.G. (4 episodes, 2002)
Saori Endô	....	background artist: Studio Kanon (4 episodes, 2002)
Hiroyuki Hashimoto	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Sôichi Higuchi	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Izumi Hirose	....	color designer: Production I.G. / color designer: Production I.G (4 episodes, 2002)
Naoto Hosoda	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Keiko Ijima	....	animator / animation director (4 episodes, 2002)
Hiroshi Kosuge	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Hidetoshi Sano	....	animator / animation director (4 episodes, 2002)
Ryozo Sugiyama	....	animator / inbetween artist (4 episodes, 2002)
Go Suzuki	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Masafumi Tamura	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Kazuki Toi	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Seizô Toma	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Jun Yamamoto	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Shinsuke Yanagi	....	animator (4 episodes, 2002)
Makoto Yoshida	....	animation director (4 episodes, 2002)
Naoki Aisaka	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Hiroya Iijima	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Tetsuya Imai	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Yoshikatsu Inoue	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Masashi Ishihama	....	animator / animation director (3 episodes, 2002)
Hiroshi Ito	....	background artist: Studio Forest (3 episodes, 2002)
Yukiko Itô	....	color designer / color designer/checker / ... (3 episodes, 2002)
Hatsue Kato	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Anzu Katsuragi	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Reiko Kudô	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Kazuko Matsumura	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Eiko Matsushima	....	color designer: Production I.G. / inbetween artist (3 episodes, 2002)
Yuriko Mori	....	background artist: Studio Forest (3 episodes, 2002)
Masumi Morishita	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Motoi Nakamura	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Kyôko Nakazawa	....	background artist: Studio Kanon (3 episodes, 2002)
Ryôichi Ooki	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Saki Sadamori	....	inbetween artist (3 episodes, 2002)
Chikara Sakurai	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Masaaki Sakurai	....	animation director (3 episodes, 2002)
Hiroyuki Shimizu	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Shin'ichi Tatsuta	....	animator (3 episodes, 2002)
Emiko Abe	....	animation director / animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Takeyuki Abe	....	inbetween artist (2 episodes, 2002)
Kei Ajiki	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Tomomi Andou	....	color designer / digital paint artist (2 episodes, 2002)
Shigemi Aoyagi	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Haruka Arisugawa	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Seiko Asai	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Eri Baba	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Kazuhiro Fujitani	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Kaori Fujiwara	....	background artist: Studio Forest (2 episodes, 2002)
Mayumi Furuse	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Takayuki Gorai	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Shinsuke Hamaura	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Tomoyo Hasegawa	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Nobuyuki Hata	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Keiichi Ishida	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Takashi Iwao	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiroyo Izumi	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Akio Katagiri	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Kôichi Kimura	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Mika Kinoshita	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Yukiko Kitamura	....	background artist: Studio Forest (2 episodes, 2002)
Daizen Komatsuda	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Kôji Komurakata	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Kazuhide Kondo	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Keiichi Kondo	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Seiji Masuda	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Kaoru Miura	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Fumi Morita	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiromasa Naito	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Mitsunobu Nakamura	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Motonori Nishibe	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Taeko Oda	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiroshi Ogawa	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Masayo Ogura	....	animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Yasuhiro Okumura	....	background artist: Studio Kanon (2 episodes, 2002)
Tsunenori Omura	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Daiki Ono	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Iku Ozawa	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Nobue Saitô	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Naruhito Sekikawa	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Tomohiro Shibuyama	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Tomohisa Shimoyama	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Yasushi Shingô	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Naoyoshi Shiotani	....	inbetween checker: Production I.G. / inbetween checker: Production IG (2 episodes, 2002)
Tomoko Sugata	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Hirofumi Suzuki	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Mizuka Takahashi	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Takao Takegami	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Kyôko Taketani	....	animator: Production I.G. / inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Motoki Tanaka	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Masateru Tanikawa	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Shinsuke Terasawa	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Hiroaki Tori	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Yukako Tsuzuki	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Shinya Uchida	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Minoru Ueda	....	animation director / animator: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Tomoko Utsumi	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Koichi Yagami	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Yôko Yamada	....	background artist: Studio Forest (2 episodes, 2002)
Mamoru Yasuhiko	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Shin'ichi Yokota	....	inbetween artist: Production I.G. (2 episodes, 2002)
Takahiko Yoshida	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)
Kenji Ôtsuki	....	animator (2 episodes, 2002)

Series Editorial Department
Yôhei Yamamoto	....	video editor: Jindaiji Soba / editor: video (24 episodes, 2002)

Series Other crew
Ichirô Ôkôchi	....	series composition (26 episodes, 2002)
Mamoru Igarashi	....	production supervisor (25 episodes, 2002)
Tatsuya Yamaga	....	program marketing: TV Tokyo / production supervisor (25 episodes, 2002)
Fukashi Azuma	....	program supervisor: TV Tokyo (24 episodes, 2002)
Kazuya Watanabe	....	planning assistant (24 episodes, 2002)
Shûgorô Sasaki	....	production assistant / production assistance (23 episodes, 2002)
Hideki Satomi	....	production assistant / production assistance (23 episodes, 2002)
Yoshirô Idehara	....	production assistant (6 episodes, 2002)
Masao Ohashi	....	production assistant (6 episodes, 2002)
Takurô Watabe	....	production assistant (5 episodes, 2002)
Shin'ichirô Kashiwada	....	production assistant (4 episodes, 2002)
Yasushi Shimizu	....	production assistant (2 episodes, 2002)
Mitsuhito Tsuji	....	production assistant (2 episodes, 2002)
Carole Pavlik	....	production assistant (unknown episodes)

Production Companies

• Genco
• J.C. Staff

Distributors

• ADV Films (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• King Record Co. (2002) (Japan) (video)
• TV Tokyo (2002) (Japan) (TV)
• Universum Film (UFA) (2006) (Germany) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Lantis  music production
• Production I.G.  in-between animation
• TV Tokyo Music  music production

Also Known As:

"Azumanga daiô" - Japan (original title)

Runtime:

Japan:24 min (26 episodes)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:PG | Canada:PG (Manitoba) (video rating) | UK:12 (volume 1, 5) | UK:PG | Australia:MA | USA:TV-PG | Germany:12 | Germany:6 (volume 4) | New Zealand:PG | South Korea:12 | Canada:G (Quebec) (VHS/DVD rating) | Australia:G (volume 2) | New Zealand:G (DVD volume 2) | New Zealand:M (DVD volume 3) | Australia:M (Volume 3)

Company:

Genco

Trivia:

Episode #21, there was a name Tomoko Kaneda (the voice of Chiyo-chan), amongst staff list of key animators. What drawing she did was never revealed, though it is suspected that it is the depressed Chiyo-chan scribble at the start of the episode

Quotes:

Chihiro:What are you doing Kaorin?
Kaorin:I was talking to Ms. Sakaki
Chihiro:What's this?
[Picks up desgin Sakaki was working on]
Kaorin:[in Sakaki's voice] It's a hat.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "JesuOtaku Anime Reviews: Azumanga Daioh (#1.5)" (2010)

Cutest show, *ever*!

I could not possibly have the power of words to describe the levels of cute this precious series soars to. I've watched the entire series in fansubs, and when I see it, I smile, and smile, and smile.

Azumanga Daioh covers the lives of six (or seven, if you count Kaorin) girls and three of their teachers as they make their way through high school in modern Japan. Originally adapted from a four-panel comic strip, the series runs for 26 episodes and spans the entire three years for the students.

Possibly made from the sweetest mix of Pixie Stix sugar, the series was made to be kawaii-cute, and it knows it, but it never quite divulges in it (well, the Chiyo-chan penguin skit maybe), rather taking it as just another fact of the series and building deep characters around its premise. There's Chiyo, a privileged girl who entered high school at ten years old and is therefore insanely small comparitively, but is the cutest character from the series. There's Osaka, who is not really named Osaka but came *from* Osaka, and so was named that way; she's a little slow, but charming nonetheless. There's Sakaki, the tall, reticent girl who is fantastic at sports but wants nothing else than to be surrounded by fuzzy kittens all day (but has horrible luck with a homicidal cat), Kaorin, the girl who has an enormous crush on Sakaki but is instead stalked by the creepy Kimura-sensei, the classics teacher with roaming eyes and a continuously slacked jaw, and Kagura, the insanely competitive rival-but-friend of Sakaki and perhaps the most outspokenly athletic one of the group. There's Yomi, sensible and calm but self-conscious about her weight, and Tomo, the overambitious girl who has gone to school with Yomi all her life. And then there are Yukari-sensei and Minami-sensei, the two old schoolmates-turned teachers who lead (or sometimes just provoke) the group.

The episodes mainly just delight in exploring the characters' personalities and seeing what happens. It's very Seinfeld-esque in the way that the show never quite focuses on one theme or storyline as its central plot device; rather, we just catch snippets of the years and watch the girls grow up. I was very sad that there were only 26 episodes... I even found myself getting a little teary-eyed near the end of the last episode. I wish there were more shows like this.