Domo-kun first appeared in short stop-motion sketches on December 22, 1998, to mark the 10th anniversary of NHK's satellite broadcasting.The name "Domo" was acquired during the second episode of his show, in which a TV announcer said "dōmo, konnichiwa" (どーも、こんにちは), which is a greeting that can be translated as "Well, hello there!", but which can also be interpreted as "Hello, Domo", and thus is a convenient pun (dajare). Thekun suffix on "Domo-kun", the name used to describe the character in the Japanese versions, is aJapanese honorific often used with young males.
Tsuneo Gōda, a stop motion animator and character designer, created Domo for NHK in 1998 and directed astop motion animated TV series based on the character in 2008. Gōda says that by using stop motion one can "create a work filled with feeling".[1]
Domo, the main character, is a brown, furrymonster[2] with a large, sawtoothed mouth that is locked wide open. His favorite food isnikujaga, a Japanese meat and potatostew. According to aTokyopop press release of the Domo comic book, Domo "communicatessotto voce with a verve that only his friends can understand." Domo can only say his name.[3] Clint Bickham, the writer of the Domo comic book, said that to him Domo's expression is "a sort of cheery wonderment. Like when a kid wakes to a room full of presents onChristmas day." While Domo's face has variants, to Bickham most of his expressions have "an underlying sense of fascination."[4] Domo is known to pass gas repeatedly when nervous or upset.[2] He also sweats when nervous.
Domo lives in a cave withMr. Usaji,[2][5] known inJapanese-language versions asUsajii (うさじい), aportmanteau of the words usagi (うさぎ), (rabbit), andjii (じい) (old man,grandpa). Mr. Usaji is a wise oldrabbit who has lived in a cave for decades, loves to watch television and drink astringent green tea.[2] Mr. Usaji is not into any "new" materials, and does not own atelephone.[2][5] In terms of fashion, Mr. Usaji focuses on materials instead of shapes. Mr. Usaji's favorite food iscarrots, and his least favorite food is "something that is meaningless."[2]
Also in the cave live two bats, a mother namedMaya[5] (Shinobu (しのぶ) in the Japanese version) and her childMario (Morio (もりお) in the Japanese version). Maya suffers fromalcoholism; her favorite foods are seasonal while her least favorite food is alcohol. Mario's favorite food is Japanese-style tomatospaghetti, while his least favorite food isshiitake mushrooms.[2][5]
The other main character in the shorts is aPolar bear orweasel girl namedTashanna[2][5] (Tā-chan (たーちゃん) in the Japanese version). Tashanna, 17 years old, is a weasel who aspires to be a fashion stylist or model inTokyo and is always using technology (televisions, mobile phones, and cameras). In English Tashanna has a "weaselly accent" (いたちなまり,itachi namari) (bear in mind weasels in Japan are not associated with underhandedness) and ends her sentences with "y"s. In the Japanese version, she ends her sentences with "chi" (ち).[6] She has not had a boyfriend in ten years and she is seeking a platonic boyfriend.[2][5] She has a passion for bidding in auctions, but she gives up by the end. Tashanna's favorite food isapricot andminttarts, and her least favorite food issea urchin.[2] The Japanese name originates from the word "multichannel" (多チャンネル,tachanneru) of digital broadcasting.[citation needed]
Bear Boy (Kogumagorō (こぐまゴロー)), also known asA Little Bear (くまのこ,Kuma no ko, literally "A bear cub"), is aMoon Bear and one of Domo's friends from the neighborhood; the timid cub enjoys playingbaseball.[2][5]
Hee (Flower One (花一,Hanaichi)) andHaw (Flower Two (花二,Hanaji)) arepixietwins from aflower. Domo is the only individual who can see them.[5]
TheFox Trio consists ofEsther (Esuko (エスコ)),Brother Fox (あにきち,Aniki-chi), andFox Boy (Konjirō (コンジロー)). Esther, the youngest member, enjoys producingcrocodile tears, plotting schemes, and causing havoc. Brother Fox, the eldest member, dutifully cares for his youngest siblings and feels upset when referred to as "short-legged" (短足,tansoku). Fox Boy, having a quiet demeanor, converses with Domo and Bear Boy and prefers to read.[2][6]
Hungry Bear (はらぺこぐま,Harapekoguma), a large and powerfulBrown bear, feels too hungry to take advantage of his strength.[2]
The Ghost (Hyūtarou (ヒュ～たろう)) randomly appears and disappears.[2][6]
Astop-motionchildren's television series based on the character, titledDomo TV, was co-produced byNickelodeon and NHK. It was first announced in 2006 and premiered in October 2008 onNicktoons Network.[7][8] It continued to air until February 2009. Later that year, Nickelodeon also aired a series of7-Eleven advertisements featuring Domo.[9]Domo TV was released to DVD on July 1, 2009, along with every Domo commercial that had been produced to that date.[10]
Tokyopop published anoriginal English-language manga based on the character titledDomo: The Manga in the United States and Canada.[11]Clint Bickham created the stories and crafted the dialog; Bickham said that he did "pretty much everything short of drawing it."[4] The stories were drawn byPriscilla Hamby (aka Rem), Lindsay Cibos, Jared Hodges,Sonia Leong,Maximo V. Lorenzo (in the special 7-11 edition only) and Erie Horita.[12][13][14] Bickham decided to use a series of short stories instead of one long story to "recreate the feel of the original series," "so hopefully, reading a story from the manga will feel the same as watching an episode of the show." Bickham said that writing the stories became entertaining when he "got into the Domo mindset." The writer said that Domo's thoughts do not need to be expressed in words as they are "always very simple and innocent." Bickham added that sometimes other characters speak for him. Bickham said that theDomo: the Manga stories "are driven by situations instead of dialogue." To prepare for writing the series, Bickham watched each episode multiple times; Bickham intended to "get a feel for the characters so that the jump from stop-motion to manga would be as seamless as possible." He added that "more than anything, I had to have fun doing it. I don't think you can create a good Domo story without fun."[4]
On February 5, 2014, Domo celebrated its 15th anniversary withDomo Hollywood e Iku! (Domo Goes to Hollywood!), a television special which was premiered on March 28, 2014.[15][16]
In September 2015, the first music compilation based on Domo,Domo Loves Chiptune, was released on iTunes, Amazon, and all major music streaming services.[17][18] The compilation features top artists in theChiptune genre suchAnamanaguchi andDisasterpeace. A Domo Loves Christmas compilation was released in November 2015.
Domo has 5 video games on the DSiWare on the Nintendo DSi Shop application for theNintendo DSi. The 5 games are Crash-Course Domo,Hard-Hat Domo, Rock-n-Roll Domo, Pro-Putt Domo and White-Water Domo.[19] TheGame Boy Advance game Domo-kun no Fushigi Terebi also features Domo-kun.[20] On Facebook, Domo is featured in the social game Planet Domo.[21]
^Target (2008). "Halloween Costumes."Target Corporation. Retrieved on September 14, 2008 from[1].
^abcdefghijklmnAuthor unknown (date unknown).Domomode. English page. Retrieved on February 5, 2009 from"Domo Mode". Archived fromthe original on December 3, 2007. RetrievedNovember 28, 2007..
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