by A legendary anime packed with sharp social satire, The Kirby anime series has become legendary. The long-awaited anime adaptation of the popular video game series “Kirby: Right Back at Ya!” finally began airing on October 6, 2001. It aired for 30 minutes on Saturdays from 7:30 to 8:00 on the TBS network. Elementary school students eagerly awaiting the broadcast likely had their hopes pleasantly betrayed. The content was more extreme than they’d imagined.
“It still hasn’t arrived.” This is an expensive, artisan-made Kirby plush toy. Of course, like the previous comics, it was essentially a slapstick comedy, with the occasional heroic battles appealing to children. At the same time, it also contained some aggressive social satire that didn’t seem appropriate for elementary school students. It’s a mystery why the Kirby anime took this direction, citing “biased reporting,” “the dark side of the anime industry,” and even an episode based on the much-talked-about “Paleolithic fabrication incident” at the time. However, this style led to it being dubbed the “Japanese South Park.” Perhaps due to this edgy style, while the DVD is available, it doesn’t remain easy to find on video streaming services.
This situation has further strengthened the series’ legendary status. Meanwhile, although the anime’s primary target audience is thought to be elementary school students, certain circumstances have led to them only enjoying “half” of the series.
This does not mean that it was broadcast in a limited area, as is often the case with TV Tokyo affiliates. As mentioned above, the Kirby anime airs nationwide on the TBS network, with a standard broadcast time of “Saturdays from 7:30 to 8:00 PM.” However, a now-completely forgotten “system” was preventing elementary school students from watching Kirby: Right Back at Ya!.
Six months after the show began airing, only “half” of the show was watched by elementary school students. That was “Saturday classes.” While “Saturdays and Sundays off” is now the norm, when the anime “Kirby: Right Back at Ya!” first aired on October 6, 2001, school was held on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month.
The anime aired from 7:30 to 8:00 AM, which is the busiest time for school preparation. I was an elementary school student at the time, and I would tearfully cut “Kirby” short and school head. It wasn’t until April 6, 2002, that weekends were entirely off. During the first six months of the series, which were crucial for the show, “education” took away the show’s primary target audience.
This situation is quite reminiscent of the anime “Kirby: Right Back at Ya!” Incidentally, the five-day school week was part of the “relaxed education” (yutaka education) movement. The “relaxed education” movement is even poked at in the anime “Kirby: Right Back at Ya!” The episode, episode 67, “Magical Teacher 2,” was broadcast on January 25, 2003, after the five-day school week had already begun, truly a terrifying anime.
