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New Moomin 11/52 - Moominvalley Is Full of Holes (ムーミン谷は穴だらけ) (1972) (English subtitles)
After an argument with the Muskrat, My digs a massive hole in Moominvalley in an attempt to figure out how holes are useful. All of a sudden, a…
New Moomin 43/52 - Arion's Lyre (アリオンのたて琴) (1972) (English subtitles)
Pappa waxes lyrical about the stars, and tells Moomin the tale of Arion and his lyre to convey to him the power of beautiful poetry. The next day,…
Arion, Maku, Moomin, Moomin, New Moomin
New Moomin 39/52 - The Laughter Mask (笑いの仮面) (1972) (English subtitles)
It's the day of the Mask Festival, and Sniff wants a special laughter mask that the old mask-maker doesn't want to give him at first. Eventually, he relents,…
New Moomin 34/52 - I Am King! (ぼくは王様だ!) (1972) (English subtitles)
Moomin has to clean the storehouse before he can go play with his friends in the sea. While rummaging through the items, he finds a strange pair of…
New Moomin 42/52 - Flap Your Wings! Pegasus (はばたけ! ペガサス) (1972) (English subtitles)
One late autumn day, the weather is unusually warm, and Mr. Hemulen puts up a portrait of two pegasuses who, according to an old story from his parents,…
New Moomin 14/52 - Sorry-oo's Own Home (メソメソ君のマイホーム) (1972) (English subtitles)
Sorry-oo has been too mischievous and destructive lately, and no one in Moominvalley can stand having him anymore, not even the Snork family. Eventually, the kids decide to…
New Moomin 35/52 - Pappa's Old Shoes (パパの古い靴) (1972) (English subtitles)
While searching for his ball in the storeroom, Moomin discovers Pappa's old shoes. As Mamma explains, they are a memento of the hardships he went through when he…
New Moomin 52/52 - Farewell, Moominvalley (さらばムーミン谷) (1972) (English subtitles)
It is time for Moominvalley to go into hibernation, and for Snufkin to leave for the winter. Before he departs, Snufkin takes one last look around Moominvalley and…
New Moomin 38/52 - The Curse of the Red Moon (赤い月の呪い) (1972) (English subtitles)
Every lunar eclipse, swarms of bats arrive in Moominvalley, and these bats are said to be vampiric. When it turns out that Snufkin has been taking care of…
New Moomin 8/52 - The Marvelous Spoon (ふしぎなスプーン) (1972) (English subtitles)
Moomin is a picky eater, and is curious about starvation. When Pappa takes out a giant spoon and discusses how it has kept the family from starving, Moomin…
New Moomin 33/52 - Pappa All Alone (ひとりぽっちのパパ) (1972) (English subtitles)
Pappa is feeling underappreciated. Moomin and Mamma did not tell him about a fire, and his idea to take them on vacation for a day conflicts with Moomin's…
New Moomin 41/52 - Language Is Disappearing? (言葉が消える?) (1972) (English subtitles)
One morning, as a repairman visits Moominvalley, words begin to disappear, and in due time this is followed by sounds and even voices. Moomin and his friends find…
New Moomin 40/52 - The Torn Picture Book (やぶれた絵本) (1972) (English subtitles)
As a gift to celebrate her recovery from illness, Moomin gives Nonnon a mysterious but beautiful picture book that Too-Ticky found on the beach. However, the last page…
New Moomin 44/52 - Let's Play With the Clouds (雲と遊ぼう) (1972) (English subtitles)
It's a quiet, peaceful autumn day, and Moomin is lying on a hill while looking at the clouds. All of a sudden, one of the clouds calls out…
New Moomin 4/52 - Snufkin Is Back (スナフキンが帰って来た) (1972) (English subtitles)
Moomin seems to have broken Mr. Hemulen's horn, so he takes on various jobs in an attempt to buy a new one for him. Along the way, however,…
New Moomin 48/52 - The Broken Necklace (こわれたくびかざり) (1972) (English subtitles)
The snows are approaching in Moominvalley, and Moomin and his pals are making their own necklaces while they still can. My, jealous of Nonnon's beautiful necklace, attempts to…
New Moomin 37/52 - The Bell That Rings On Moonlit Nights (月夜になる鐘) (1972) (English subtitles)
On moonlit nights, Moominvalley's bell tolls mysteriously, and the culprit seems even stranger, leaving leaves behind. When everyone tries to take the bell down to figure out who…
New Moomin 51/52 - I Hate You, Snufkin (スナフキンなんか大きらい) (1972) (English subtitles)
It's almost time for hibernation in Moominvalley, and Moomin is mostly idling. After he and his friends wonder why Snufkin has a guitar, he goes to Snufkin's tent…
New Moomin 10/52 - The Police Inspector Goes Away (署長さんがいなくなる) (1972) (English subtitles)
The Police Inspector feels that he is unnecessary in the peaceful Moominvalley, and resolves to leave. However, Stinky overhears this, and connives with Moomin and pals to instigate…
New Moomin 36/52 - Grandpa Is the Best In the World (おじいちゃんは世界一) (1972) (English subtitles)
Snork's grandfather is visiting, and Moomin wishes he had a grandpa as amazing as him. Thereafter, the Ancestor drops in to be Moomin's grandpa, and quickly proves to…
Rintarō, “New Moomin” (1972), and the Last Days of Mushi Pro
Last year marked the 50th anniversary of a rather little-known series in Japanese animation history. New Moomin was the second TV anime to be based loosely on Finnish…
More on だけ
Quick follow-up on my newsletter from last month about the particle だけ (dake). I mostly discussed the non-“only” meaning of the word, which can be replaced with くらい…
のだ
A subtle but important tip for written Japanese - How to Japanese - August 2023
The Tycoon / 傷だらけの山河 / Kizudarake no sanga (1964)
Obscure Japanese Film #144 Ayako Wakao and So Yamamura Having delivered a mega-hit for Daiei studios with Shinobi no mono (1962) and also...
Funuke Show Some Love, You Losers! (腑抜けども、悲しみの愛を見せろ, Daihachi Yoshida, 2007)
The petty resentments of a dysfunctional family quickly escalate when a failed actress returns home in Daihachi Yoshida’s dark farce
Gold Kingdom and Water Kingdom (金の国 水の国, Kotono Watanabe, 2022)
After centuries of conflict, two feuding countries finally begin to put the past behind them to work for a common future in Kotono Watanabe’s animated fantasy romance.
からだの美
Yōko Ogawa’s 2023 collection からだの美 brings together sixteen short essays on the theme of bodies and physicality. The three primary topics are sports, performing arts, and animals. The…
Sensei, Would You Sit Beside Me? (先生、私の隣に座っていただけませんか？, Takahiro Horie, 2021)
A mangaka and her cheating husband become locked in a cat and mouse game of ambiguous revenge in Takahiro Horie’s deliciously cynical anti-rom-com
Break Down That Wall / その壁を砕け / Sono kabe o kudake (1959)
Obscure Japanese Film #108 Izumi Ashikawa and Yuji Odaka in foreground Saburo (Yuji Odaka) is a young Tokyo garage mechanic who has been w...
Remembering Every Night (すべての夜を思いだす, Yui Kiyohara, 2022)
A series of women wander around Tama New Town each searching for something in Yui Kiyohara’s wistful drama.
Watashi no Kobushi wo Uketomete, Volume 3 ( 私の拳をうけとめて)
In Volume1 and Volume 2, we met Soramori and Takebe, former rivals in high school gangs who have met once again as adults. Soramori confesses to Takebe that…
Watashi no Kobushi wo Uketomete, Volume 4 (私の拳をうけとめて！)
Watashi no Kobushi wo Uketomete, Volume 4 does something wonderful. But first…. Soramori and Takebe are taking a trip. To an onsen. Overnight. Yeah, and don’t think they…
Princess Mononoke (もののけ姫, Hayao Miyazaki, 1997)
A young man from an exiled clan tries to make peace between the natural world and the industrial in Hayao Miyazaki’s landmark 1997 animation
行方不明の池田大作創価学会会長を探せ！
日本で最も有力な政治関係のパイプ役であり、宗教指導者でもある池田氏は2010年以来、公共の場で姿を見せていない。彼いったいどこにいるの？
The Target of Roses (薔薇の標的, Kiyoshi Nishimura, 1972)
A melancholy sharpshooter finds himself caught up in conspiracy when hired by fascist revolutionaries in Kiyoshi Nishimura’s paranoia thriller.
![Featured image for Episode #72 (S10E1) – Princess Mononoke [ もののけ姫] (1997)](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240131/1706688971.78398.116105.jpg)
Episode #72 (S10E1) – Princess Mononoke [ もののけ姫] (1997)
We kick off Season 10 with one of the most internationally renowned animated films of all time. Derick McDuff of the Underrated network returns to discuss Studio Ghibli’s…
Douseiseikatsu 3 Watashi ha Anata dake no mono (同棲生活3 わたしは貴方だけのもの)
Douseiseikatsu 3 Watashi ha Anata dake no mono (同棲生活3 わたしは貴方だけのもの) is the third volume of Miyuki and Yuuko doing absolutely nothing and I’m pleased as punch about it.…
Douseiseikatsu 3 Watashi ha Anata dake no mono (同棲生活3 わたしは貴方だけのもの)
Douseiseikatsu 3 Watashi ha Anata dake no mono (同棲生活3 わたしは貴方だけのもの) is the third volume of Miyuki and Yuuko doing absolutely nothing and I’m pleased as punch about it.…
How to Japanese Podcast – Episode 42 – のだ
I remember vividly learning how to use んだ in Japanese. My third year teacher did a section on storytelling/explaining, and she had us tell different stories over and…
My Blood & Bones in a Flowing Galaxy (砕け散るところを見せてあげる, SABU, 2020)
A young man’s attempt to protect a bullied schoolmate leads him into infinite darkness but eventually also to the light in SABU’s poetic teen drama
Bread of Happiness (しあわせのパン, Yukiko Mishima, 2012)
A warmhearted couple offer gentle support to a series of lonely souls from their cosy Hokkaido cafe in Yukiko Mishima’s slice of comfort foodie cinema
Dear Summer Sister (夏の妹, Nagisa Oshima, 1972)
A young woman travels to Okinawa in search of a boy who may or may not be her half-brother in an uncharacteristically breezy effort from Nagisa Oshima
決死の一発描きをお見せします。 My life risking drawing, without rough sketches!
漫画家・浦沢直樹の「浦沢チャンネル」。今回は、連載中の漫画「あさドラ！」より、主人公・浅田アサの一発描きをほぼノーカットでお見せします。 This is the channel of a Japanese Manga artist Naoki Urasawa. He draws a picture of Asa Asada from his recent work without rough sketches this time. The…
Tokyo Theater to Screen Japanese Films with English Subtitles
Only a few Japanese films are available to audiences who aren't fluent in the language. One theater chain is aiming to change that.
Episode #52 – Kikujiro (菊次郎の夏)
We’ve got another Kitano film this episode, featuring new guest Dan Clarke of the SuperMakerUniverse YouTube channel. We discuss Kitano’s coming-of-age comedy film, Kikujiro.
The Light of Spring (ひかりのどけき, Fumito Fujikawa, 2022)
Pushed to breaking point by the pressures of the contemporary society amid the coronavirus pandemic, an ordinary family undergoes a trial separation in Fumito Fumikawa’s neorealist drama
Too Young to Die (死ぬにはまだ早い, Kiyoshi Nishimura, 1969)
An adulterous couple begin to reassess their relationship when caught up in a hostage situation in Nishimura’s tense interpersonal drama
Pick of the Week: Ice Ice Baby
MICHELLE: In a week with the debut of a josei series about a nerdy figure skater, there is really no contest. It’s gotta be Knight of the Ice.…
Casino, The (1972)
Director: Chang Tseng-chai Starring: Yueh Hua, Lily Ho, Shih Kien, Fan Mui-shang, Chiang Nan Entering a casino and casually cleaning out the House, Luo (Hua) demonstrates his gambling…