Animal Yokochō facts for kids

Animal Yokochō
Cover of the first manga volume of Animal Yokochō
Quick facts for kids アニマル横町 (Animaru Yokochō)
Genre	Comedy
Manga
Written by	Ryō Maekawa
Published by	Shueisha
Demographic	Shōjo
Imprint	Ribon Mascot Comics
Magazine	Ribon
Original run	February 2000 – ongoing
Volumes	18
Anime television series
Directed by	Yukio Nishimoto Nam Jong-sik
Music by	Yasunori Iwasaki
Studio	Gallop Dong Woo Animation
Network	TV Tokyo
Original run	October 4, 2005 – September 26, 2006
Episodes	51 (102 segments)

Animal Yokochō (アニマル横町, Animaru Yokochō, trans. Animal Alley) is a fun Japanese manga (comic book) series. It was written and drawn by Ryo Maekawa. The story is about a little girl named Ami. She has a secret doorway in her room. Through this door, three strange, stuffed animal-like creatures appear! They make her life very "interesting." These characters first showed up in a quiz column in Ribon Original magazine. The manga even won an award for children's manga at the 51st Shogakukan Manga Awards.

Story of the Animal Alley World

The Mysterious Door to AniYoko

The world of Animal Yokochō is called AniYoko. It is a special place where stuffed-animal-like creatures live. The only way to travel between AniYoko and the human world is through a door. This door is on the floor of Ami's bedroom.

The three creatures often give funny and confusing reasons for how the door got there. But the real answer is never truly known. It seems to be just part of the story's fun! As Kenta once said, "That's the setting for the story, so don't worry about it." This is a joke where the characters know they are in a show.

The door works both ways. The AniYoko Trio uses it most often to visit Ami. They seem to find her very interesting. Ami could go through the door herself and visit AniYoko. However, the Trio's strange stories often scare her. So, she has not gone through in the anime.

AniYoko itself has never been fully shown in the anime. Only a dark space appears when Ami looks inside. Sometimes, the Trio tells stories about AniYoko. But these stories are often quickly shown to be untrue.

Ami's Room and Its Magic

The door and the Trio seem to make Ami's room special. Ami and the Trio often find themselves in many different places. They can be in a jungle, a forest, or even a baseball stadium! They can also be in a RPG-style dungeon. All of this happens without them actually leaving Ami's room.

Meet the Characters

Here are the main characters you'll meet in Animal Yokochō:

• Ami Matsuzaki (松崎 亜美)

Voiced by: Erika (Japanese)

Ami is the main character of the anime. She is a preschool student. Ami is quite smart and imaginative for her age. She has just moved to a new home. The secret gate to AniYoko and the strange actions of her three visitors often surprise her. But she has gotten used to them. Ami even shares parts of her normal life with them. Her birthday is December 15, and her zodiac sign is Sagittarius.

• Iyo (イヨ)

Voiced by: Rumi Shishido (Japanese)

Iyo is one of the three creatures from AniYoko. She looks like a stuffed rabbit. She can use a special energy from between her ears for many effects. She can also store things and liquids in her ears. Iyo always tries to be cheerful and cute. But she can be selfish and a bit vain. She sometimes "dies" if she feels ignored or mistreated. But she comes back to life when someone says sorry. She looks a bit like a Snowshoe Rabbit. Her birthday is January 4, and her zodiac sign is Capricorn.

• Kenta (ケンタ)

Voiced by: Naomi Nagasawa (Japanese)

Kenta looks like a stuffed bear. He can be rough and sometimes rude. He often argues with Iyo, but they seem to be close friends. He always wears a red muffler (scarf). If he is without it, something is usually wrong. Kenta often delivers the funny ending to jokes. He was very close to an old human lady he called "grandmother." She gave him his scarf as a goodbye gift. Kenta has a big crush on Ami's friend, Ku-chan. His birthday is May 6, and his zodiac sign is Taurus.

• Issa (イッサ)

Voiced by: Yūko Satō (Japanese)

Issa is a creature that looks like a stuffed panda. He calls himself the "caring one" of the trio. He tries the hardest to be nice to Ami. He also tries to make peace between Iyo and Kenta, but often fails. His birthday is November 23, and his zodiac sign is Sagittarius.

• Mr. Yamanami (ヤマナミさん, Yamanami-san)

Voiced by: Kenyu Horiuchi (Japanese)

Mr. Yamanami is a horse. He seems to be a leader in AniYoko. He often appears to add something to the scene or ask for something. Then he leaves. Issa has said that all AniYoko creatures must obey "Commander Yamanami." Yamanami also runs a special "mail-order" service. This service sometimes delivers items to Ami's room. It seems there are many Yamanamis who do different jobs in AniYoko. His birthday and zodiac sign are unknown.

• Ayako

Ayako is Ami's mother. You can sometimes hear her, but you never see her. It's not clear if she knows about AniYoko or the strange things happening to Ami. But she sometimes notices the effects of what Ami and the creatures do.

• Kumiko Takeda (竹田 久美子)

Voiced by: Kaori Fukuhara (Japanese)

Kumiko, or Ku-chan, is Ami's close friend. She is a bit shy and gentle. Ku-chan is one of the few people who can see the AniYoko Trio as they really are. She even shares in some of Ami's adventures. She seems very open to strange things. Kenta has a crush on her, which makes Iyo annoyed. Ku-chan is very scared of horses. This is because a horse bit her head when she was a baby. So, meeting Mr. Yamanami is very scary for her. Her birthday is May 21, and her zodiac sign is Gemini.

• Catherine Maekawa (カトリーヌ前川)

Catherine Maekawa is Ami's favorite manga artist. In the anime, she is working on a manga series about sumo wrestling. Iyo once visited her house by hiding in a fan letter from Ami. But Catherine did not seem to notice her.

Other Characters

• Match & Pitch (まっち&ピッチ)

Voiced by: Nanae Kato and Naoko Suzuki

Match (まっち, Machi) appears sometimes in the story. Match is a girl. She and Kenta used to train together in martial arts. She calls him "Anikki" (Big Bro). Mr. Yamanami says Match is very skilled in many jobs. It's not known what kind of animal Match is, but some think she is a Tarsier. Her birthday is April 4, and her zodiac sign is Aries. Pitch (ピッチ, Pichi) is a Yellow Canary. She goes everywhere with Match and helps her.

• Shima Shimako (しま シマ子)

Voiced by: Urara Takano (Japanese)

Shima Shimako is a Zebra who walks on two legs, like Mr. Yamanami. She is a famous idol in AniYoko. She is a model, actress, singer, and dancer. All the girls in AniYoko look up to her. Because she is a big celebrity, she can be a bit spoiled. Mr. Yamanami is obsessed with her and will do anything to go on a date with her. She tries to "fix" bad fashion she sees, but often makes it worse.

Media Information

Manga Series

The Animal Yokochō manga series was first published in February 2000. It has 18 volumes.

Anime Series

The Animal Yokochō TV series aired from October 4, 2005, to September 26, 2006. It has 51 episodes, each with two segments.

Anime Episodes

Some of the episode titles include:

• "A new friend - The door has opened" (October 11, 2005)
• "Let's bake a cake - Let's do our homework" (October 18, 2005)
• "Secret diet - Fan letter" (November 8, 2005)
• "It's my Birthday - Snowball Fight" (December 20, 2005)
• "Ku-chan's First Appearance - Truth of Kenta" (January 17, 2006)
• "Valentine - Big Discovery" (February 14, 2006)

Anime Music

The anime series features several songs:

Opening themes

• Tondemo Nothing ~Doki☆Doki Animal Yokocho (飛んでもNothing 〜どき☆どき アニマル横町のうたの巻〜) by Ami with Iyo, Kenta, Issa
• Love Chu You!! (ラブ chu ユー!!) by Ribbon Girl

Ending themes

• Fantasista Girl (ファンタジスタ★ガール) by The Indigo
• Sweetie by Fumiko Orikasa