Noozles
From Nickelodeon
Noozles , ふしぎなコアラ ブリンキー, Fushigi na Koala Blinky , or The Wonderous Koala Blinky, was a 26-episode anime that was originally released in Japan in 1984, under the title Fushigi na Koala Blinky or Brinky and Printy. It depicts the adventures of a 12-year old girl named Sandy and her koala friends, Blinky and Pinky, who are from the extradimensional realm of Koala-Wala Land. Noozles aired on Nickelodeon from November 1989 through April 1993 in the United States.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Sandy Brown's father is an archaeologist who mysteriously disappears. One day, Sandy receives a package containing a stuffed Koala named Blinky that was lost in a shipwreck 38 years ago. Sandy gives the koala a Noozle (another term for an Eskimo Kiss) and it revives him from "magic sleepytime". They are soon joined by Blinky's sister Pinky who appears out of thin air soon after Blinky is awakened and demands immediately that Blinky return with her to Koala-Wala land, Blinky refuses however, and the trio go on to have many adventures together. Blinky is able to sustain himself while living on Earth with Sandy because of the Eucalyptus tree that Sandy's grandmother had planted 38 years ago when her grandfather (who had also mysteriously disappeared, just before the ship was lost) told her that he was sending a Koala as a gift, as Sandy's grandmother had expressed that she had always wanted one as a pet.
It takes Sandy some time to determine that the "noozle" is the action that revives Blinky from magic sleepytime. She does this several times without thinking about it and gets frustrated over the fact that Blinky falls asleep repeatedly (during which time his appearance is similar to that of an ordinary stuffed animal) and stubbornly refuses to awaken until she realizes what she must do to revive him.
Soon, Sandy discovers Koala-Wala Land. Koala-Wala Land and Earth are parallel worlds in different dimensions that are dangerously linked. Unlike Earth, Koala-Wala Land is a spherical-space rather than a solid planet, and its "core" is a somewhat dangerous place filled with brightly colored orbs, which when touched by bare hands immediately entrap that person forever with no escape. These colored orbs are used as a sort of prison-region, as shown when two robbers from Earth (Frankie and Spike, who followed Blinky, Pinky and Sandy through a portal) were apprehended for various misdeeds while in Koala-Wala Land.
| |
Sandy's grandfather, who had discovered an entrance to Koala-Wala Land while in Australia, ultimately becomes trapped in one of those orbs, but when Sandy finally locates him, only his spirit remains within the orb. She is able to communicate with him empathically by placing her hands towards her grandfather's, palm to palm, with only Pinky's protective bubble preventing direct contact with the orb. Ultimately, Sandy and the Noozles (her koala friends) manage to take two special crystals and separate the worlds where they are joined at Uluru. There is a tearful farewell before Blinky and Pinky return to their world forever.
[edit] Credits
- Production company: Nippon Animation Company Ltd.
- Original broadcaster: Fuji TV
- Japanese distribution: Fuji Eight Company Ltd.
- American distribution: Saban International Services
- Written by: Nobuyuki Isshiki & Taku Sugiyama with Akira Nakano, Keiko Mukuroji, Mitsuru Tanabe
- Series Director: Ki-nam Nam & Taku Sugiyama
- Episode Directors: Kenji Miyashita, Mitsuru Tanabe, Noboru Ishiguro, Taku Sugiyama
- Character Design: Isamu Kumata
- Storyboards: Eiji Okabe, Eimi Maeda, Fumio Kurokawa, Katsumi Endo, Kazuyoshi Katayama, Masayuki Hayashi, Noboru Ishiguro, Taku Sugiyama
- Animation Director: Eimi Maeda, Masaki Abe, Takao Ogawa
- Art Director: Koichi Kudo
- Layout Supervisor: Yasuji Mori
- Original Music: Reijiro Komutsu (U.S. version: Haim Saban and Shuki Levy)
[edit] Music
- Opening Theme: Fushigi Ufufu by TARAKO
- Ending Theme: Shabadaba Dakedo by TARAKO
[edit] Characters
- Blinky (voiced by Barbara Goodson/US, Masako Nozawa/Japan & So Zang Yoon/Korea)
- Brown, Prof. Alex (voiced by Gregory Snegoff/US, Sachiko Saitô/Japan)
- Brown, Kelly (Sandy's mother, voiced by Mona Marshall/US)
- Brown, Sandy (voiced by Lara Cody/US, Megumi Odaka/Japan) & Soo-yeon Kang/Korea)
- High Dingy Doo (ruler of Koalawalla Land, voiced by Robert Axelrod)
- Frankie (voiced by Dave Mallow/US)
- Osgood (voiced by Dean Hagopian/US)
- Pinky (voiced by Cheryl Chase(during the first 5 episodes) Rebecca Forstadt (Later episodes)/US & Haruna Ikezawa/Japan)
- Spike (voiced by Jeff Winkless/US)
- Mark (Sandy's best friend and classmate, who had a habit of constantly bouncing a soccer ball off his head and feet)
- Sandy's Grandma (voiced by Edie Mirman/US, Kumi Mizuno/Japan & Su-mi Oh/Korea)
[edit] Episode list
- A Friend From Down Under
- Granny Meets Blinky And Pinky
- Sandy's Birthday Surprise
- A Gift For Sandy
- Sandy's Three Wishes
- Sandy's TV Debut
- To Catch Smoky And Louis
- The Art Contest
- Like Father, Like Daughter
- Naughty But Nice
- That Ol' Pink Magic
- Going Back In Time
- Humans Not Allowed
- Pet Problems
- Koalawalla Land
- The Mysterious Message
- Commander Blinky
- Cinderella Sandy
- Star Struck
- The Magical Vacations
- Sandy Runs Away From Home
- Travelling Back In Time
- The Magic Show
- Play Acting
- Ayers Rock
- How It All Began
[edit] Merchandise
[edit] Books
- Noozles: New Friends (1993 Tor Books; L. Spencer Humphrey & Deborah Morse)
[edit] Videos
Released from 1991-1994 by Celebrity Home Entertainment
- Adventures in Koalawalla Land (120 min.)
- Blinky and Pinky's Excellent Adventure (95 min.)
- A Day With Grandma (30 min.)
- Fuzzy Was a Noozle (95 min.)
- Koala Bear Magic (75 min.)
- A New Friend (30 min.)
- Nuzzling With the Noozles (110 min.)
[edit] Bibliography
- The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons, 2nd ed.
- The Anime Encyclopedia - A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917 by Jonathan Clements and Helen McCarthy
[edit] External links
- Review at Progressive Boink
- Comparison with "The Adventures Of The Little Koala"
- Gallery of screenshots on Flickr
