Chobits facts for kids
Chobits (ちょびっツ, Chobittsu) is a Japanese manga series created by a group of artists called Clamp. It was first published in a magazine called Young Magazine from 2000 to 2002. Later, all the stories were collected into eight books.
Chobits was also made into a 26-episode anime TV show that aired from April to September 2002. Besides the TV show, there are also two video games and other fun items like figurines and artbooks.
The story is about a young man named Hideki Motosuwa. He finds an abandoned persocom (パソコン, PasoKon), which is like a personal computer that looks like a human. He names her "Chi" because that's the only word she can say at first. As the story goes on, Hideki and Chi try to discover where Chi came from. The series also makes you think about how humans and computers can connect. The world of Chobits is the same as another Clamp story called Angelic Layer, happening a few years later. It also explores how people interact with human-like electronic devices.
Contents
Story of Chobits
The story follows Hideki Motosuwa, a student who is trying to get into university in Tokyo. He dreams of having a persocom (パソコン), which is an android that works like a personal computer. These persocoms are usually very expensive.
One evening, Hideki finds a beautiful girl-shaped persocom lying next to some trash. He takes her home. When he turns her on, she immediately seems to adore him. The only word she can say is "chi" (ちぃ, Chii), so Hideki names her that. Hideki thinks something might be wrong with her. His neighbor, Hiromu Shinbo, tries to check her with his own mobile persocom, Sumomo. But Sumomo crashes, and they realize Chi must be a very special, custom-made persocom.
Shinbo then introduces Hideki to Minoru Kokubunji, a very smart twelve-year-old who knows a lot about custom-made persocoms. Minoru and his own advanced persocom, Yuzuki, also can't figure out Chi. They start to wonder if Chi might be one of the "Chobits," which are legendary persocoms rumored to have their own feelings and free will. Minoru doesn't fully believe this rumor, but Yuzuki confirms that Chi doesn't match any known persocom models.
A big part of the story is Hideki trying to teach Chi how to speak, understand things, and act properly. This happens while he's also busy with school and work. At the same time, Chi starts to develop deep feelings for Hideki, which persocoms aren't supposed to have. Hideki also struggles with his own feelings for her. Finding out more about Chi's mysterious past becomes a big goal for the characters in the series.
Main Characters
Hideki Motosuwa
Hideki is a 19-year-old student who is studying hard to get into university. He also works at a restaurant. One night, he finds Chi in a pile of garbage and takes her home. Since she can only say "Chi," he names her that and takes care of her, trying to teach her everything.
Hideki is a very kind and honest person. He often thinks about others before himself, which can sometimes cause problems for him. He can get embarrassed easily, especially when he talks to himself out loud. But when his friends are in trouble, especially Chi, he is always there to help them. Even though people sometimes tease him for being "too nice," they often ask him for advice because they know he will listen and try his best to help.
Chi
Chi is a very advanced persocom, known as a "chobit." Unlike other persocoms, she can feel emotions and make her own choices. Hideki finds her in the trash. When he turns her on, she can only say "chi" and doesn't remember anything about her past. Hideki names her Chi and starts teaching her how to do simple things.
Chi reads a series of children's books called A City with No People. These books are about a character looking for their "special person." These books were written by Chitose Hibiya to help Chi remember her past and guide her search. As the story continues, Chi starts to have visions of another persocom who looks exactly like her. This "other Chi" helps and protects Chi. At the end of the series, Hideki finally tells Chi that he loves her, and that he is her special person.
How Chobits Was Made
The creative team called Clamp wrote and drew Chobits. This was their first manga series made for older male readers. The idea for Chobits came from the group's own experiences with computers. Sometimes, computers would show confusing error messages when they had problems.
After finishing their previous manga, Cardcaptor Sakura, the Clamp team suggested the idea for Chobits to a Japanese manga magazine. They drew fourteen pages every week for Chobits, which added up to fifty-six pages a month! The name "Chobits" came from a cat named "Chobi" that one of the artists, Nekoi, knew. They added "bits" because the characters Elda and Freya were twins.
The main characters, Hideki and Chi, were designed first. Chi was designed as a personal computer because the creator wanted to show how strange it might feel to have strong feelings for something that is just a machine. Designing Hideki was a bit harder. At first, they thought about making him a distant person who slowly became emotional. But they decided that wouldn't fit well with Chi, so they made him a kind, but poor, student instead.
Media About Chobits
Manga Books
Chobits started as a manga (Japanese comic book) series written and drawn by Clamp. It was published in Young Magazine from 2000 to 2002. The company Kodansha collected all the chapters into eight books, which were released from 2001 to 2002.
In 2002, a company called Tokyopop brought Chobits to North America in English. They made it so you read it from right-to-left, just like the original Japanese manga. Tokyopop published the series until 2009. Later, another company, Dark Horse Manga, released the series again in bigger "omnibus" editions in 2010.
Chobits manga has also been published in many other countries, including Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, France, Spain, Mexico, Italy, Germany, Poland, Brazil, and Sweden.
There is also an art book called Your Eyes Only based on the series. Plus, the fictional picture book from the story, A City with No People, was actually released as a real picture book in Japan!
Anime TV Show
Chobits was turned into an anime (Japanese animation) TV series by Madhouse. The show was directed by Morio Asaka. The opening song is "Let Me Be With You." There are also different ending songs sung by Rie Tanaka.
The TV show had 26 episodes and was shown in Japan and other parts of Asia from April to September 2002. It was later released on DVDs. Some episodes were summaries of earlier events, but these were moved to the end of the DVD set. There are also two special episodes that were only released on DVD.
The series has been shown in many countries, including Korea, France, Spain, Portugal, and Poland. In North America, companies like Geneon and later Funimation released the series on DVD and Blu-ray. The Chobits anime first aired on US television in May 2011 on the Funimation Channel.
Music Soundtracks
Two music albums from the anime were released. Chobits Original Soundtrack 001 came out in July 2003, and Chobits Original Soundtrack 002 came out in October 2003. There were also singles released for the opening and ending songs. A special album with songs sung by the characters was released in February 2004.
Video Games
In 2002, a company called Marvelous Entertainment released a Chobits game for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance in Japan. It was called Chobits: Atashi Dake no Hito. You could even buy a special clear blue Game Boy Advance that came with the game and had a picture of Chi on it!
In 2003, Broccoli released another game for the PlayStation 2 called Chobits: Chii Dake no Hito, also only in Japan.
There was also a computer game released in 2002 called Communication Game. In this game, you could "talk" with Chi and teach her how to speak. It also had some small games inside, like a keyboard typing game.
See also
In Spanish: Chobits para niños
