Arashi no Yoru Ni
Encyclopedia
is the first in a series of children's books authored by Yūichi Kimura and illustrated by Hiroshi Abe. In 1995, the book won the 42nd Sankei Children's Literature Culture Award and the 26th Kōdansha Literature Culture Award.

When "Arashi no Yoru Ni" was published in 1994, Kimura had no plans to continue the story as a series. But due to the popularity of the story and receiving considerable encouragement, he continued the story through five more books, ending with "Fubuki no Ashita (After the Snowstorm)." As the series became more popular, a compilation called "Shiroiyami no Hatede" was released and a movie adaptation was produced. Soon after, Kimura wrote the seventh book, "Mangetsu no Yoru Ni", finally ending the series.

Arashi no Yoru Ni was published in Japanese textbooks by Mitsumura Tosho Publishing. In 2005, Gisaburō Sugii
Gisaburo Sugii
is an anime director and Nihonga artist. He is currently a member of the anime studio Group TAC, and is most well known for his work as director of the Touch series and the movie Night on the Galactic Railroad...

 directed an animated film adaptation covering all seven books in the series.

Plot

A goat named Mei wanders into a barn one night, seeking shelter from a storm. In the barn, the goat meets another refugee. The two can neither see nor smell each other, but nevertheless they huddle together, fending off the cold, and begin to talk. Eventually, they establish a friendship. The two decide to meet later and will recognize each other by using the password "one stormy night". The next day, when they meet, Mei learns that his companion from the night before was a wolf named Gabu. Despite their natural predisposition as enemies, they share a common bond and begin meeting regularly. However, Mei's flock and Gabu's pack eventually find out about their relationship and forbid the friendship. Mei and Gabu, hoping to preserve their friendship, cross a river during a storm. They hope to find an "emerald forest" free from persecution.

However, Giro, the leader of Gabu's pack, holds a grudge against goats and views Gabu as a traitor to all wolves. Giro and his pack begin to hunt down the two companions. Gabu and Mei reach the summit of a mountain where they stop and rest, exhausted from fighting their way through a snowstorm. Mei, knowing that Gabu has not eaten in days, offers to sacrifice himself as food. Gabu agrees initially, but soon realizes that no matter how hungry he is, he cannot eat his friend. Gabu hears his pack approaching and faces them, ready to defend his goat friend to the death. As Gabu is about to go face the wolf pack, there is an avalanche. The next morning, Mei digs through the snow blocking the cave and sees the "emerald forest" they had been searching for in the distance. Gabu is missing, but Mei finds him in another cave. Gabu has lost his memory of their friendship and all the events that preceded the avalanche. While waiting for the moon to come out, Gabu taunts Mei that he plans on eating him. Mei, saying that he wouldn't have minded being eaten by Gabu before, accuses the wolf of not being the Gabu he previously knew. Angrily, Mei shouts that he wishes that he had never met Gabu on "one stormy night". On hearing these words, Gabu's memory returns, and they happily reunite. In the end, Mei and Gabu both enjoy watching the moon as it rises.

Book series

The picture book series, published by Kodansha, Ltd.
Kodansha
, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...

, has been released in Japanese in seven volumes.
  1. Arashi no Yoru Ni (1994) ISBN 4-06-252852-5
  2. Aru Hareta Hi Ni (1996) ISBN 4-06-252870-3
  3. Kumo no Kirema Ni (1997) ISBN 4-06-252874-6
  4. Kiri no Naka De (1999) ISBN 4-06-252875-4
  5. Doshaburi no Hi Ni (2000) ISBN 4-06-252876-2
  6. Fubuki no Ashita (2002) ISBN 4-06-252877-0
  7. Mangetsu no Yoru Ni (2005) ISBN 4-06-252878-9

Characters

  • Gabu, a wolf from the Bakubaku Valley.
  • Mei, a goat from the Sawasawa Mountains.
  • Giro, the boss of the Bakubaku Valley wolves and a friend of Gabu's father.
  • Barry, a red-haired wolf and Giro's right-hand man.
  • Beach and Zack, a pair of twin wolves.
  • Tap (known as Tapper in the unofficial English dub), an overweight goat who acts as an elder brother figure to Mei.
  • Mii (known as Mina in the unofficial English dub), a pink-colored goat and a friend of Mei. She does not appear in the book series.
  • Elder Goat, the leader of the goats of the Sawasawa Mountains.
  • Mei's Mother, who attempted to save Mei from a group of wolves when he was a child, managing to bite off Giro's ear before being eaten. Though she is mentioned, she does not physically appear in the book series.
  • Mei's Grandmother, who raised Mei after his mother was killed, and is later shocked when Mei befriends Gabu. She does not appear in the book series.

Stage

Since 1997, Engekishūdan En has annually performed the story on the "En Kodomo Stage." Performers have included Yoshie Minami, Akio Kaneda, Rintarō Nishi, and Rieko Takahashi among others.

In 2004, Aoni Production
Aoni Production
Aoni Production is a Japanese talent agency representing a fair number of voice actors and other Japanese entertainers.-Voice actors currently affiliated with Aoni:...

 sponsored the Voice Fair 2004's dramatization of Arashi no Yoru ni and Aru Hareta Hi ni, which starred Katsue Miwa
Katsue Miwa
is a Japanese voice actress from Osaka affiliated with the studio Aoni Production. She began her career in 1960 and has since starred in a number of voice-over roles for various anime, video games, films, and television commercials.-Anime:...

 as Mei and Minori Matsushima
Minori Matsushima
, born December 1, 1940, in Chiba Prefecture, is a veteran female seiyū. She currently works for Aoni Production.She is most known for the roles of Candice White , Meat-kun , Sayaka Yumi , Hiroshi , Dororo , and Gyopi .-Notable voice roles:*Candice "Candy" White in Candy Candy *Alexandria Meat in...

 as Gabu.

In 2007, Yoshikazu Yokoyama directed the Engekishūdan Studio Life musical version, in which Sayaka Yoshino portrayed Mei.

Animated film

The film "Arashi no Yoru Ni" was released in Japan on December 10, 2005. The film stayed on the top 10 list for the Japanese box office for well over a month, with over 1,200,000 viewers in the first month alone. On January 20, 2006, "Arashi no Yoru Ni" was screened in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

. The Japanese DVD was released on June 23, 2006 as both a special edition and a standard edition. In 2007, the film was nominated for the Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year
Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year
The of the Japan Academy Prize is one of the annual Awards given by the Nippon Academy-sho association .-History:...

.

Cast

  • Gabu: Shidō Nakamura II
  • Mei: Hiroki Narimiya
    Hiroki Narimiya
    , better known as , is a Japanese actor.-Early life:He was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan. His parents are Okinawan, so he is of Okinawan descent. His parents divorced when he was young, and in his third year of junior high school, his mother died and he and his brother were raised by his...

  • Giro: Riki Takeuchi
    Riki Takeuchi
    is a Japanese actor best known for his roles in v-cinema yakuza movies.Takeuchi has starred in many yakuza films and action films, such as Dead or Alive by Takashi Miike...

  • Barry: Kōichi Yamadera
    Koichi Yamadera
    is a Japanese voice actor, actor, tarento, narrator, master of ceremonies and impressionist from Shiogama, Miyagi Prefecture. He graduated from Tohoku Gakuin University's economics school, and is currently affiliated with Across Entertainment. Before that, he was affiliated with the Tokyo Actor's...

  • Beach: Tetsuya Yanagihara (America Zarigani
    America Zarigani
    is a Japanese comedy duo formed in 1994.-Appearances:* Sakiyomi Jan Bang!* Shiseido* Kochikame* Reborn!* Jewel Pet* Natsume Yujincho* YatterMan-External links:*...

    )
  • Zack: Yoshiyuki Hirai (America Zarigani)
  • Kama: Mitsuaki Hoshino
    Mitsuaki Hoshino
    is a Japanese actor and voice actor who works for Arts Vision. He is married to Yūko Kobayashi.-Anime:*Black Jack: The Movie *D.Gray-man *Gallery Fake *Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex...

  • Toro: Akimitsu Takase
    Akimitsu Takase
    ' is a Japanese voice actor who is affiliated with Mausu Promotion.-TV Anime:*Ceres, Celestial Legend *Daphne in the Brilliant Blue *E's Otherwise *Fafner of the Azure *Fullmetal Alchemist...

  • Gari: Yasuyuki Kase
    Yasuyuki Kase
    ' is a Japanese voice actor who works for Ōsawa Office.-Notable voice roles:*Air Gear *Bleach *Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo *Code Geass...

  • Gori: Takahiro Yoshino
  • Tap: Shōzō Hayashiya IX
  • Mii: Maya Kobayashi (then TBS announcer)
  • Moro: Masamitsu Morita (weather forecaster)
  • Grandmother goat: Kabachan
  • Elder goat: Eiji Bandō
    Eiji Bando
    is a Japanese television entertainer and former baseball player. He pitched many innings in his high school career. The Japan High School Baseball Federation were afraid that he would injured his arm, so they set a new rematch rule in 1958. However, he pitched 18 innings in a 1958 quarterfinal...

  • Gabu's Mother: Yū Hayami
    Yu Hayami
    is a J-pop singer and TV actress in Japan.- Childhood and education:Hayami was born in Atami, Shizuoka on 2 September 1966. Her real name was . After her parents divorced, her family name changed to ....

     (Friendship Performance)
  • Mei's Grandmother: Etsuko Ichihara (Special Performance)


Staff

  • Original story: Yūichi Kimura
  • Director: Gisaburō Sugii
    Gisaburo Sugii
    is an anime director and Nihonga artist. He is currently a member of the anime studio Group TAC, and is most well known for his work as director of the Touch series and the movie Night on the Galactic Railroad...

  • Animation supervisor: Tsuneo Maeda
  • Character design: Marisuke Eguchi
  • Art director: Yukio Abe
  • Music: Keisuke Shinohara
  • Theme song: "Star" by Aiko
    Aiko (singer)
    Aiko is a J-Pop singer-songwriter and vocalist. She studied popular music vocals at the Osaka College of Music, and after graduating in 1996, she became a DJ on FM Osaka...


English Dub

A small group of voice actors and sound engineers acquired permission from the original producers Tokyo Broadcasting System Television
Tokyo Broadcasting System Television
has a 28-affiliate news network called JNN .TBS produced the Takeshi's Castle game show, which is dubbed and rebroadcast in Indonesia , Germany , Britain , Spain , Italy , Finland Philippines , India and the United States has a 28-affiliate news network called JNN (Japan News Network).TBS...

 (TBS) to make a complete English Re-dub of the Arashi No Yoru Ni movie for YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

. The first part of the movie was uploaded on December 31, 2008 and was completed on November 5, 2009. On December 23, 2009 the team released an AC3
Dolby Digital
Dolby Digital is the name for audio compression technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories. It was originally called Dolby Stereo Digital until 1994. Except for Dolby TrueHD, the audio compression is lossy. The first use of Dolby Digital was to provide digital sound in cinemas from 35mm film prints...

 file which replaces the Japanese voice cast with an English voice cast and became available for download on their Fur Affinity web page. The team was unable to obtain the rights to the song Star by Aiko
Aiko (singer)
Aiko is a J-Pop singer-songwriter and vocalist. She studied popular music vocals at the Osaka College of Music, and after graduating in 1996, she became a DJ on FM Osaka...

, the original theme song for the movie. The ending was replaced with the song "Watch the Moon Rise" performed by MFE.

Cast

  • Mei: Akira Ishida
    Akira Ishida
    Akira Ishida is a prolific male seiyū born in Nisshin, Aichi, Japan.He was a part of Mausu Promotion from 1988 until March 2009...

  • Gabu: Hiroaki Hirata
    Hiroaki Hirata
    is a male seiyū from Tokyo. He stands at 175 centimeters , and is a member of Gekidan Subaru.He is most known for the roles of Sanji , Sha Gojyo , and the Narrator of Digimon Adventure...

  • Tap: Kappei Yamaguchi
    Kappei Yamaguchi
    , better known by his stage name of , is a Japanese voice actor and actor from Fukuoka, affiliated with Gokū and 21st Century Fox.He is best known for the roles of Ranma Saotome , Jackson Neil , Tombo , Yattaro , InuYasha , Ryuichi Sakuma , L , Usopp...

  • Giro: Jūrōta Kosugi
    Jurota Kosugi
    is a Japanese voice actor. His deep voice is often used for rough and imposing characters. He is well known for playing the role of Sukashii from Kyattou Ninden Teyandee and Asuma Sarutobi from Naruto....

  • Barry: Kazuya Nakai
    Kazuya Nakai
    is a Japanese voice actor who was born in Hyōgo-ku, Kobe. He is currently attached to Aoni Production.-Overview:Kazuya Nakai debuted in After War Gundam X as Witz Sou....

  • Narration: Shigenori Sōya
  • Misses Goat: Noriko Suzuki
    Noriko Suzuki
    ' is a Japanese seiyū from Saitama Prefecture affiliated with Kenyū Office .-Television animation:*Emma - A Victorian Romance...

  • Elder Goat: Hiroshi Shirokuma
  • Goat A: Ai Emi
  • Goat B: Takayuki Nezu
  • Wolf A: Jun Nakata
  • Wolf B: Keiichi Takahashi

External links

"Arashi no Yoru Ni" movie official website Yūichi Kimura's home page TBS's "Stormy Night" website in English "Arashi no Yoru Ni" on TvTropes
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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