Ranked #688

Ie Naki Ko

Ie Naki Ko is based on Hector Malot's novel Sans Famille (the English version is called Nobody's Boy). I saw part of the Japanese version and part of the French one (the latter on DVD - the French Canadian release). I am not familiar with the out-of-print U.S. version, so I cannot speak to its quality.

The story is great, and really heart-wrenching. Remi and his friends go through hardship after hardship, and at times the future looks very bleak for them. The adaptation is usually but not always faithful to the novel. I personally prefer the novel's ending to that of the show, but otherwise I loved the story.

The art is great for the time. That is to say that the colors are not as clear as modern digital releases, even in the DVD version, but the level of detail is pretty good, the faces are expressive, and the scenery is sweeping. Many scenes are dreamlike, reflecting Remi's emotional state. There are some scenes with static images on moving backgrounds, and other shortcuts, but only as much as is common in anime. The colors are realistic - no pink-haired people in this show - and the thin lines and detailed linework is unusual, especially for the time.

There is a good deal of music, especially once the characters start performing for money. I enjoyed it as a rule, with the exception of the theme song in the French version, which was annoying and stuck in my head. The original theme music was better. The voicing was quite good in both versions and the music added to the mood of many scenes, meshing nicely with the art. Of course you're not going to get amazing surround sound on a show like this, and there wasn't a song that really stuck out to me as a favorite, but the music definitely added to the experience.

The major characters - from Remi to Capi, the leader of the dogs, to Vitalis, are endearing. I have to say it's unusual to see animals portrayed this well in anime. Some other characters are thoroughly detestable, but I found that even in the most emotional parts of the show, I kept watching for Remi's sake.

I had a few issues with the show in terms of historical accuracy. I can recall at least one instance of random English - "Coffee" on a sign in a tiny town in the middle of nineteenth century France? I also found the Japanese labels on the map of France distracting, especially once I switched to the French version.

I really liked this show and would recommend it to anyone who likes tearjerkers and older anime.

A couple notes on the Quebec release - it's called Remi Sans Famille (or just Remi) and I suspect the video is taken from the US version, because there are credits in English at the end of each episode. Also, the episode summaries reflect the plot of the book more closely than that of the show. This release is French-only, which is sad, because the French audio really is top-notch, as well as being the only version in print in the North America. read more

I give this a 94/100

This anime was made in 1977. It's quite hard to believe that when anime was still in it's adolescence, the world of anime still had masterpieces for it's time. When you think of 70s anime, you probably think about Anne of Green Gables, 3000 Leagues In Search of Mother, Candy Candy, etc. But I believe that Ie Naki Ko belongs in that category too.

This story is based on the French novel by Hector Malot. I haven't read the novel (though I do have an interest in doing so, but I have no idea where to find it in English)l, but when I saw that it was being streamed on Anime News Network, it really got me interested...and I'm glad I watched it! The story for this is just nothing short of amazing. Remi and his comrades endure hardships, receive few joys, and sometimes get totally crapped on by life. But even so, I couldn't help but both cheer for Remi and encourage him to go on as I was watching the saddest parts. This anime has made me cry more times than any other anime, and that has to mean something, right? There's no point in which the anime feels too fast-paced, too slow-paced (admittedly though it is, in fact, slow paced), and even though there's fillers, they serve their purpose and never deviate beyond that.

I feel the best thing about the anime were the characters. They're all endearing and unique, and they're portrayed as actual people instead of all the gunked out stereotypes you see in most modern anime nowadays. Remi is by far my favorite out of them all. His courage, strength, and determination really struck a chord with me, but even he understands his own limits (such as trying to get food for the animals by himself though failing miserably). The animals in the show were great too, though I admit I don't have much experience in seeing real life animals perform tricks like that, but I guess that's just me. I also liked Mattia. He was a cool guy and a great friend despite his slight complacency. There were a few characters who annoyed me a bit, but they were brief and didn't last long in the show.

And I haven't even started talking about the production values yet! Osamu Dezaki really knows how to direct and pick the right company because the way he made the setting (France) come to life is just unbelievably great! Even though the show was produced in 1977, it doesn't look like that at all! The budget for this series was pretty gosh-darn high for it's time. It almost looks modern, though constant multi-plane animation was used for this anime instead of computer generated animation, and the former animation was commonly pioneered by Disney when they produced Snow White in 1937, but no anime used it until Remi came along, which was probably a big achievement in the anime world.

Of course, there are some things in Remi that did seem to irk me a bit. I remember in one episode Remi and Mattia dressed up as girls with really heavy make-up in order to escape from people who were chasing them. I absolutely hated how they looked, and I didn't think they actually did that to anime characters in the 70s (except in maybe budding shoujo manga like Rose of Versailles or anything of the like). A lot of people are gonna hate me for saying this, but I also felt the music was a little passe too. I mostly hate the ED sequence for the show. It sounds way too bouncy and cheerful for such a dark and vivid series! Even the World Masterpiece Theater version of Ie Naki Ko had better music that caught the atmosphere while not trying too hard to get all preachy about courage and survival! There's another thing that irked me, but I don't feel like saying it in fear of getting yelled at.

But despite it's minor flaws, Ie Naki Ko is an absolutely wonderful 70's anime series. It really shows you first hand that life is tough, harsh, and even cruel at times (which Disney always tries to hide from it's audience practically 99.8% of the time), but it also encourages you to believe that once you overcome those obstacles, they'll all be worth it and you do, in fact, achieve happiness in the end. It tells us that life is meant to be lived, not wasted, especially if you have something to live for. I thank this anime for teaching me that! read more