Neighborhood Story

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Neighborhood Story
ご近所物語
(Gokinjo Monogatari)
Genre Romance, Comedy, Drama
Manga
Author Ai Yazawa
Publisher Shueisha
Demographic Shōjo
Magazine Ribon
Original run February 1995 – October 1997
Volumes 7
TV anime
Director Atsutoshi Umezawa
Studio Toei Animation
Network TV Asahi
Original run September 10, 1995 – September 1, 1996
Episodes 50
Animated film
Director Atsuji Shimizu
Studio Toei Animation
Released March 2, 1996
Runtime 30

Neighborhood Story (ご近所物語 Gokinjo Monogatari?) is a manga by Ai Yazawa. It was published by Shueisha from 1995 to 1998 in the magazine Ribon. It was adapted by Toei Animation as a 50-episode anime series which aired on TV Asahi from September 10, 1995 to September 1, 1996, with merchandise created by Bandai. There was a movie made in 1996, and a drama CD and soundtrack were also produced. Starting on September 19, 2005, Gokinjo Monogatari began being republished in a deluxe edition. Gokinjo Monogatari takes place before, and includes several characters from, Paradise Kiss.

Contents

[edit] Story

Mikako Kōda, Tsutomu Yamaguchi and their friends attend Yazawa Geijyutsu Gakuen, a special high school for the arts in Tokyo (named after the author, who makes a cameo appearance as the school's principal). Mikako and Tsutomu live next door in the same apartment building and have been friends since they were infants. The manga is the story of their relationship and the things that happen to them while in high school. They create a club called "Akindo," with the principle concept being that anything that you can make or do can be sold, and they create a headquarters out of an old shed, selling their merchandise at flea markets.

Mikako and Tsutomu find themselves caught up with their feelings for each other once Tsutomu starts dating Body-Ko, or Mariko Nakasu, a third year student and resident heartthrob. Mikako becomes jealous, and decides to use Tsutomu's friend, Yūsuke, to make him jealous as well. Later, as the two are on a double date at the amusement park, Tsutomu breaks up with Mariko after revealing he only has feelings for Mikako – Mariko confesses that she, too, is in love with a childhood friend, and they separate on good terms. Mikako, however, oblivious to the real situation, assumes Mariko dumped Tsutomu because it was just a fling. The two continue to have petty disagreements, but Mikako is soon told by Tsutomu himself that he broke up with Mariko because he "liked somebody else".

Again oblivious to the real situation, Mikako starts to wonder who this mystery crush must be, thinking of every possible option aside from herself. Even after asking Yūsuke for the answer (who promptly replies, "Are you kidding? Of course it's you.") she still doubts Tsutomu could like someone such as herself. The paranoia and confusion nearly tear her apart. After being introduced to his classmate, Ayumi Oikawa, Mikako eventually breaks under the pressure of not knowing who Tsutomu likes, and asks him if he sees her as anything more than a friend. The two discover their feelings have always been mutual, and they embrace and kiss.

When Akindo goes to the Nakasu summer home, Mariko goes to visit her childhood friend, Shūichi Shintani, and she almost kisses him, although she's still dating Yūsuke. She leaves, but Yūsuke gets mad at her for leaving the house to go see him. Mariko drops out of school and breaks up with Yūsuke before the school festival, having kept pressuring him to skip classes with her. She begins dating Shūichi, but breaks up with him because she can't forget about her prior relationship with Yūsuke. Ayumi and Yūsuke then begin to get closer.

Mikako's parents were divorced when she was a child, something she didn't take well – she ran away when asked if she wanted to live with her mother or her father, only to be found, as usual, stubborn and crying, by Tsutomu. Thanks to Tsutomu's help, she becomes reunited with her father, Hirohiko Sakurada, at a gallery opening featuring his photography. Tsutomu's father asks Tsutomu to help him and become his assistant, which is when Tsutomu learns that he is good at and enjoys photography. Later in the series, Mikako's mother realizes that she is 3 months pregnant (after rekindling her relationship with Hirohiko) and the family comes together again.

After winning the grand individual prize in the fashion show at her school, Mikako and Risa are offered the chance to go to London to the "Amazing School of Design" and study fashion design there for a year. Risa instantly declines the offer, due to her relationship with Takeshi, her live-in boyfriend. Mikako is given a month to decide. In typical Mikako fashion, she cuts her hair short and dyes it pink because of the stress. She wants Tsutomu to tell her not to go and initially tells her teacher that she won’t be going. With the help of Body-Ko, she realizes that by placing the weight of the decision to go to London on Tsutomu, she is giving him a heavy burden. She decides to go to London for the sake of her dream, and partially because he told her it was more important to pursue it than stay with him.

After Mikako says goodbye to all her friends and Akindo has its last flea market event, Mikako goes to London to study abroad. In London, Mikako is happy, Seiji lives nearby and visits her a lot and she has a lot of work to do at the London school of design, but finds herself missing her family, friends, and most importantly, the boyfriend she left behind. At one point she believes she has seen Tsutomu in the middle of a park while listening to an album by Manbō, but it ends up being Ken Nakagawa, the band's lead singer (whom Tsutomu is constantly mistaken for throughout the series). Mikako breaks yet again because of her loneliness, but decides to be strong and refuses to cry again.

In the final volume, there is a short story that depicts the characters 7 years after the events of the series. Miwako (Mikako's younger sister), Arashi (the child of Risa and Takeshi) and Hiroyuki (the son of Hiroaki and his wife), also main characters of Paradise Kiss, are then introduced as children, and in the end of the story as pre-teens. It is revealed that Mariko has married Shūichi and has a child, Ayumi is married to Yūsuke, who started a company called Akindo, and the two are expecting a child of their own. Mikako, also recently found pregnant, finally launched her "Happy Berry" line and is married to Tsutomu.

[edit] Main characters

Mikako Kouda (幸田実果子 Kōda Mikako?)
A high school girl who goes to Yazawa Gakuen (or Yazagaku), a special school of art. She dreams of becoming a fashion designer and having stores sell her own brand, Happy Berry. She is known as the most ambitious student in the class, but often criticizes herself for being mean and bad-hearted. She later has a sister, Miwako, who also appears in Paradise Kiss.
Voiced by: Rumi Shishido

Tsutomu Yamaguchi (山口ツトム Yamaguchi Tsutomu?)

Mikako's friend from early childhood who lives next door, also goes to Yazagaku. He has been in love with Mikako for a long time. He searches for his passion and a hobby, eventually becoming an apprentice to Mikako’s father and learning to be a photographer. He bears an eerie similarity to Ken Nakagawa, a character from "Tenshi Nanka Ja Nai”, who is also the lead singer of the popular band Manbou - often leading to several accounts of rabid fangirls and mistaken identity. He is frequently referred to as a monkey (usually by Mikako). He forms Akindo, a street market shop/club, with Ayumi and the others.
Voiced by: Kappei Yamaguchi

Ayumi Oikawa

A friend in Tsutomu’s class, owns the shed where the group creates Akindo’s headquarters. She likes Yuusuke and admires his paintings, but dislikes his relationship with Mariko. She creates large, abstract 3-D sculptures.
Voiced by: Yuko Minaguchi

Mariko Nakasu

Nicknamed “Body Ko” for her usual, sultry appearance. She’s known for sleeping around, but admits she's tired of dating men who only want her for sex - Her real love is a childhood friend in Yokohama. She starts pursuing Yuusuke after a short-lived relationship with Tsutomu, and begins dating him, somewhat competing with Ayumi for his affection.
Voiced by: Yumi Toma

Yuusuke Tashiro

Tsutomu’s best friend, Yuusuke studies painting at Yazagaku (although half-heartedly) and has feelings for Mariko. He’s very gruff, but has a good heart and enjoys spending time with Ayumi. He rides a motorcycle.
Voiced by: Toshiyuki Morikawa

Risa Kanzaki

Mikako’s best female friend, Risa comes from Hokkaido and her dream is to design children’s clothes. She lives with her boyfriend Takeshi, a guitarist for a local band, and is Mikako’s biggest supporter as well as (later in the series) the mother of Arashi from Paradise Kiss.
Voiced by: Shiho Niiyama

Mai Oota

Also known as P-Chan, she is a friend of Mikako and Risa’s. Mai wears Lolita-style clothing and always carries her stuffed animal Pucci Francois with her. She makes stuffed animals to sell at Akindo and falls for Seiji.
Voiced by: Wakana Yamazaki

Shintaro Nakasu

Body Ko’s little brother, he sculpts dolls and sports dreadlocks (much to Mariko's chagrin). He studies ceramics and gives his sister advice, though she doesn't want to hear it most of the time.
Voiced by: Chizu Yonemoto

Jiro Nishino

Has purple hair and always wears sunglasses, though Mikako gets to see his eyes during the last volume of the manga. He is close friends with Tsutomu and Yuusuke and is a computer programmer that creates various computer games.
Voiced by: Kyosei Tsukui

Hiroaki Tokumori

Owns a bar which is frequented by the characters who live in Mikako’s apartment complex. Father of (later in the series) Hiroyuki Tokumori from Paradise Kiss.
Voiced by: Hideyuki Tanaka

Kisaragi Seiji

A “sparkling foreigner” who applies for the job of manga assistant for Mikako’s mother. He is saving up money to study abroad. He used to go to Yazagaku for fashion, but dropped out when he realized that his passion was in hairstyling. He becomes a close friend of Mikako’s and appears in Paradise Kiss.

Shuuichi Shintani

Mariko's childhood friend from Yokohama. Has a fiancee when first introduced.

Hamada-Sensei

The teacher of the fashion design and sewing lab classes at Yazagaku. She was also the professor for Seiji and the cast of Paradise Kiss.

Ruriko Kouda

Mikako’s mother, a famous Manga-Ka who writes sad and painful love stories in shōjo manga.
Voiced by: Yōko Kawanami

Hirohiko Sakurada

Mikako's father, a famous photographer. He and Ruriko divorced when Mikako was young, but the two eventually reconcile and remarry.

Noriji Sunami

The manager of the apartment complex where Mikako and Tsutomu live. Has good intentions, but is often overshadowed by the rest of the cast - something even he will comment on from time to time. He has a bit of a crush on Ruriko.
Voiced by: Takeshi Aono

[edit] Cameo appearances

Ai Yazawa inserts many characters from previous works, and even herself into the manga. Ai Yazawa herself is the flashy principal of Yazagaku. One of the most prominent cameos is Ken Nakagawa, a character from her previous manga Tenshi Nanka Ja Nai. He looks almost exactly like Tsutomu, Ken's lyrics are often found in the chapters and many times Tsutomu has to run from crowds who think that he is Ken.

Midori and Akira (also from Ten Nai) are the first to buy Mikako's creations at the flea market – further proving both series apparently take place in the same universe, but approximately 4 years apart (Akira reveals Midori's age to be 20 during their cameo). Takigawa appears as a tutor in the junior high flashback section and Mamirin appears in the background when Mikako is in London. Tonko and Kayo also appear in the background in the Blue Parrot in the first volume.

Mikako, as she appears (age 36) in the Paradise Kiss anime.
Mikako, as she appears (age 36) in the Paradise Kiss anime.

Because in the United States, her later series Paradise Kiss is far more popular than Gokinjo Monogatari (primarily because both the manga and anime remain unlicensed) many people only think of Gokinjo as a prequel to ParaKiss, especially since many of the characters are the same. Miwako, Mikako's younger sister is one of the main characters, as is Arashi, Risa's son and Hiroyuki, Tokumori's son. Seiji-san works at Yazagaku by the time ParaKiss takes place, and Hamada-sensei is still a teacher there.

Mikako still plays a role in the manga and anime, giving Yukari the big break in modelling by having her model for Happy Berry; Tsutomu is the photographer. Shimamoto-san becomes a famous model and eventually founds the modelling agency that Yukari works with.

[edit] Anime

The Gokinjo Monogatari anime, produced by Toei Animation, ran for 50 episodes from September 10, 1995 through September 1, 1996. Recently, a boxset was released containing all 50 episodes which sells for around $500USD. It has not been picked up by any English-language licensing company yet.

[edit] The Music

Opening Theme
"He.Ro.I.Ne" by Rumi Shishido
Ending Theme
"Don't You Know?!" by Rumi Shishido (Eps. 1-28)
"NG!" by Rumi Shishido (Eps. 29-50)

[edit] The Movie

The animated Gokinjo Monogatari movie had a 30-minute runtime and was released on March 2, 1996. It is an alternate retelling of the beginning of the series.

[edit] Resources