Japanese cartoonist Machiko Hasegawa (1920-1992) made a name for herself when her comic strip Sazae-san (Mrs. Sazae) debuted in 1946. The comic about a housewife would later spawn movies, live-action television series, and a long-running anime still going to this day (see my earlier post here). However, one hit wasn’t enough for Hasegawa and she created other comic with varying success. Her second most famous comic is arguably Ijiwaru Baasan (“Granny Mischief”).
The titular Granny (named “Ishi” in the comic, “Tatsu” in some of the TV adaptations) is as nasty and vindictive as you could get. The character would play mean pranks on anyone she runs across, whether her own family members, acquaintances, or even random strangers who had the misfortune of running into her.
Some of her pranks are harmless, such as when she replaced nori (dried seaweed) with black construction paper. Others are more malicious, such as intentionally hiding a lost dog in her home so the family would increase their reward money as days pass. There are also times where her pranks are out of what she perceives as an injustice. One comic featured Granny covering up the display glass at the local aquarium with paper to protest the increased ticket price.
The comic strip ran in Sunday Mainichi magazine from January 2, 1966 to July 18, 1971. While the comic wasn’t as long-lasting as Sazae-san, it has managed to gain numerous television adaptations, both live-action and animation.
There were two anime adaptions. The first one was broadcast on Yomiuri Television starting October 3, 1970, about a year after the Sazae-san anime debuted. This version was produced by Knack, their first show. In this version, Granny was named Tatsu. Only 38 episodes (each half-hour split into two segments) were made before it went off the air on August 18, 1971.
Here’s a clip from the 1970 series:
The second anime came 25 years after the first series ended. This version was produced by Eiken, the studio behind Sazae-san. Fuji Television broadcast the series from April 19, 1996 to June 13, 1997 for 46 episodes. Here, they reverted to the original “Ishi” for the main character’s name.
Here is the theme song for the 1996 series:
That was it for the series, however. The six-volume book collections are still in-print, but there are seemingly no plan to revive the character in a new adaptation at this moment in time.
Charles Brubaker is a cartoonist originally from Japan. In addition to his work for MAD Magazine and SpongeBob Comics, he also created Ask a Cat for GoComics. You can also follow him on his Tumblr page.
Looks amusing. It’s rare to have a series star a senior citizen, even in animation where you can do anything.
Interesting article! I never knew the creator of Sazae-san created another manga!
I wonder if “Ijiwaru Baasan” was ever subject to the same “no merchandise”, and by extension, “no video releases” policy that “Sazae-san” was subjected to?
Kind of sad if that is true.
I found an English translation of these a few years ago (can’t remember the publisher) but had no idea it had ever been made into an anime series. While “ijiwaru” could be translated as “mischievous,” I always understood it as more like “meanie” or “spiteful,” and referring to characters who tend to say or do nasty or vindictive or hurtful things, rather than those who pull innocent pranks.
I noticed Amazon has a listing for one of those books, but sellers of this are asking for US$90 or more for this Volume 3.
https://www.amazon.com/Granny-Mischief-3-Machiko-Hasegawa/dp/4770026161/
I enjoyed the 1996 series. I think I still have most of it on VHS. I never saw the 1970-71 version though.
Oooh, are you willing to digitize the 1996 show for me? I would love to have some of the episodes to my collection.
My email is cbrubaker@gmail.com