Friday, May 9, 2008

PUFFY AMIYUMI

Nyahahaha. I love this. OOhhhh la la.

Actually, i don't know Puffy Amiyumi from the cartoon network. Seldom do i watch that because primarily, ain't have cable network subscription at home. I used to be fond of watching classic cartoons like Betty Boop and Felix the Cat, also a die-hard fan of Bugs Bunny, Pluto, Goofy, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Uncle Scrooge McDuck and his Huey, Dewey, Louie.. and others. When the Powerpuff era came, i wasn't that interested in cartoons anymore, neither was i hooked on Anime.. though i must admit that there are afternoons that i'd love to be tickled by Ranma 1/2. As of the moment, im still waiting for the perfect time when Coyote would be able to finally catch roadrunner.Beep Beep!

And so I just spotted this cute teeny-weeny knick-knack when i was buying a new monitor and i just felt i can't leave the store without having them in my cart. (Impulsive that is! :lmao:) It's so cute i bought another one for my sister.






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let's get to know more about Puffy Amiyumi from wikipedia:

Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi is an Annie Award-nominated American animated television series produced by Renegade Animation for the Cartoon Network. The show was created by Sam Register, who also serves as the series' executive producer.

According to Register, the target audience of the show is boys and girls from six to sixteen years old. However, the show also has a following of fans of the real-life Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura who make up the J-pop duo PUFFY, known as "Puffy AmiYumi" in North America. Register, a fan of the band, wished to spread its fame to other parts of the world and thus produced the cartoon.

The series features the adventures of animated versions of the band. It has been immensely popular in Japan since making its debut in 1996. The group now has several U.S. albums to its credit—including a 2004 companion album to this program—and was known to viewers of Cartoon Network in the USA for performing the theme to the animated series of Teen Titans comics.

Concept

The cartoon was produced entirely in the United States (the only series that does this full time) using a combination of Macromedia Flash and traditional cel animation.[1] Each program was 30 minutes long (with commercials) and featured three seven-minute segments that borrow inspiration from Japanese animation.

During the first season, the show included short clips of the real Ami and Yumi making childish commentary (in English and nonsubtitled Japanese) at the beginning and end of each episode. They only performed short clips at the beginning of the show during the second and third seasons. Starting with the second season, the duo was sometimes shown holding title cards introducing the cartoon segments. At the end of the episode "Sitcomi Yumi", Ami and Yumi watch TV and see the animated Kaz with the real Ami and Yumi.

The real Puffy AmiYumi performs the cartoon's theme song (which is also in Japanese, German, Spanish, and Portuguese in the respective regions), and many episodes feature one or more of the duo's songs playing in the background, along with music by their Puerto Rico muse Andy Sturmer.

The animated Puffy AmiYumi travel all over the world in their tour bus. While appearing the same size as a regular bus on the outside, it appears to have enough internal space to house the girls' rooms (including full-sized beds), Kaz' room, their equipment, and several televisions and computers, among other things. In the episode "Domo", Kaz refers to an upstairs area. It also seems capable of running on autopilot, as many episodes have Kaz, Ami, and Yumi sitting in the rear cabin of the bus while traveling. Several times, the rear door has been opened to receive packages, which a boy on a scooter usually delivers.

Though the characters speak English, the script occasionally intersperses their vernacular with Japanese speech, especially when the characters react to events that they find to be surprising. Calling out "Tasukete!" instead of "Help!" is commonly used. While Kawaye and Young speak fluent Japanese, DeLisle learned how to speak some of the language in the series thanks to both her castmates (this is also evident in the episode of The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy titled "My Peeps").

Despite mostly negative reviews, Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi has gained a cult following for both fans of the band and fans of cartoons. It is said to be one of CN's greatest shows and one of the better "New age" Cartoon Cartoon.

Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi depicts characters with the same name and profession as the actual Puffy members but with different appearances and exaggerated personalities as well as the tendency to break the fourth wall:

* Ami Onuki (pronounced /'?mi/), the younger one of the duo is depicted as a peppy, optimistic, and cute girl with rose hair and eyes. She favors bubblegum pop and wears a 1960's go-go dress, also sporting a flower in her hair and white knee-high go-go boots. Janice Kawaye provides Ami's upbeat voice.


* Yumi Yoshimura (pronounced /'umi/), the older of the duo, is depicted as a cynical, sarcastic punk rocker with lavender hair and eyes. She dresses in a heavy metal/grunge/goth style with studded necklaces and bracelets, a light purple T-shirt with a skull that has the same facial expressions as she does and seems to have a mind of its own, a black miniskirt, purple bike shorts, and black army boots. Yumi is voiced by Grey DeLisle.


* Kaz Harada is the duo's well-intentioned yet money-grubbing manager, whose successes are usually balanced out by his foolish decisions. His appearance and name are based on Puffy AmiYumi's real-life manager, Kaz Harada. Veteran character actor Keone Young provides his voice. He is also a huge fan of sumo wrestling, as seen in the episode "Sumo Kaz". When asked his opinion on his animated likeness during a panel at the 2005 Otacon event, the real Kaz Harada admitted that he had never actually seen the show.

* Jang Keng and Tekirai are Yumi's and Ami's pet cats, respectively. The girls adore their cats, but Kaz is a constant victim of their the animal's mischief. Ms. Kawaye voices Tekirai ("Teki" for short) while Mrs. DeLisle does Jang Keng (sometimes called "Jengo").

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