Bottle Fairy Explained

Binzume Yōsei
Ja Kanji:瓶詰妖精
Ja Romaji:Bottle Fairy
Genre:Comedy, Magical girl
Creator:Yuiko Tokumi
Type:tv series
Director:Yoshiaki Iwasaki
Producer:Atsushi Moriyama
Yukinao Shimoji
Nobuhiro Osawa
Music:Sora Izumikawa
Yo Yamazaki
Hiro Takahashi
Studio:Xebec
Network:TV Kanagawa
First:3 October 2003
Last:26 December 2003
Episodes:13
Episode List:
  1. Episode list

is an anime series about four fairies who discover the secrets of the world from inside their little house. The show originally aired from October to December 2003 on UHF syndication in Japan, and each episode has a run time of only 12 minutes. It has been licensed in North America by Geneon and was released on two DVDs during 2005 and 2006.[1]

Synopsis

Bottle Fairy is a comedy series. The show follows a simple pattern, consisting of the Bottle Fairies misinterpreting the world around them. The fairies learn about Japanese culture and traditions with each episode taking place in a different month.

Plot

The Bottle Fairies, who have come from another world, are attempting to learn many things about the world so they can gain knowledge and turn into humans - a feat they finally achieve in episode 12, set in the twelfth month, thus making the series span a whole year. However, as their wish to stay together is stronger than their wish to become human, they merge into one human, while retaining their several personalities. The thirteenth episode shows the fairies attempting to function as a single human girl, before eventually splitting into four fairies again. This extra episode makes Bottle Fairy the typical length of a small anime series.

Characters

The Bottle Fairies

The Bottle Fairies are identified by their eye color, their individual quirks, and their association with the seasons (represented by season songs). They sleep in appropriately colored jars.

Other characters

Episode list

  1. April: The fairies try to picture a school entrance ceremony, then animate Oboro-chan. They then try out Hanami.
  2. May: Tama-chan explains several May things: the Golden Week, Kodomo no hi sekku, koinobori, kashiwa mochi, gogatsubyou.
  3. June: Because of a letter sensei received, the fairies explore the highlights of love: confession, marriage, adultery.
  4. July: The gang enjoys summer adventures in the jungle, in the mountain and a pyramid.
  5. August: Swimsuits, the beach, pools, torrent, Matsuri, fireworks.
  6. September: The fairies imagine their school life, with Japanese class, home economics, PE, medical check-up, school trips and graduation.
  7. October: The fairies undertake an autumn themed poetic contest (dead leaves, typhoon, nabe), then a sports contest.
  8. November: The fairies help a flower bloom, then use magic to prevent it from withering.
  9. December: The fairies perform New Year's Eve activities: cleaning and cooking become a drama, Kōhaku Uta Gassen a historical.
  10. January: First day of the new year, a time for Karuta, Onsen and aerobics.
  11. February: The fairies make chocolate and give it to sensei-san.
  12. March: For Hinamatsuri, the fairies receive a magic star that can turn them into humans.
  13. And then: Merged as one human being, the fairies go to school to bring sensei his bento, joining the excavation, baseball and idol clubs on the occasion.

Music

The series has one OP, "Oshiete Sensei-san" composed by Sora Izumikawa, and five variations of the ED composed by Hiro Takahashi. The ED has the same music and melody, but different lyrics for each version. The first four versions are named after the four seasons and are sung by a different Bottle Fairy according to her season. The final version, "Four Seasons Song", features all four of the Bottle Fairies. All five EDs are used in the anime, the first four playing three episodes each to roughly correspond with the progression of seasons and months and the final song playing in episode 13. Each episode of the anime also features a different ED animation corresponding to the month shown in the episode. Episode 13 shows multiple images to feature not only the fairies but also Sensei-san and Tama.

An OST, Bottle Fairy ~Four Seasons~ was released in both Japan and North America. It features image songs, the OP and the EDs, and instrumental music for the entire series.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Vault of Error: Bottle Fairy . Otaku . 2012-06-22 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120913115443/http://www.otakuusamagazine.com/Anime/News1/The_Vault_of_Error_Bottle_Fairy_4393.aspx . 2012-09-13 .