| Inakappe Taishō | |
| いなかっぺ大将 | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Comedy, sports (judo) |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Noboru Kawasaki |
| Published by | Shogakukan |
| Demographic | Shōnen |
| Magazine | Shogakukan no Gakushū Zasshi |
| Original run | 1968 – ongoing |
| TV anime | |
| Directed by | Hiroshi Sasagawa |
| Music by | Masahiko Nakamura |
| Studio | Tatsunoko Pro |
| Network | Fuji TV |
| Original run | 4 October 1970 – 24 September 1972 |
| Episodes | 104 (2 segments/episode)[1] |
Inakappe Taishō (いなかっぺ大将, lit. "The Funny Judo Champion") is manga series by Noboru Kawasaki and serialized by Shogakukan in Shogakukan no Gakushū Zasshi. The manga series won the 14th Shogakukan Manga Award. An anime adaptation was created by Tatsunoko Production.[2]
A lively boy named Daizaemon in traditional Japanese clothing comes with various kinds of animals to the capital of Tokyo. He has a funny habit of dancing whenever he hears music. He visits a friend of his late father's to learn judo and makes friends with the young daughter of the judo master Kikuko and the cat Nyanko. For a little girl, Kikuko has wonderful judo tricks inherited from her father while Nyanko is able to perform a difficult trick of triple turn in the air. Both of them are worthy instructors for Daizaemon. Although he shows clownish behavior once in a while, he is always popular among people around and grows stout and shrewd to be a future champion.