OVERVIEW OF THE SERIES (From his and her perspectives)   His Perspective Bruce: Marmalade Boy is a teen soap opera FULL of humor and drama. As of the end of 3/95, 53 episodes had aired. The show was renewed and is expected to run at least 76 episodes - unusual for a shoujo show. It has consistently been in the top 7 shows in the ratings, and has been as high as #4. This is rather amazing considering that it is a DAYTIME show and runs on Sunday mornings, the one day when everyone is trying to sleep in. In the beginning it was aimed at preteen girls, but over time it was gradually changed to accommodate a steadily enlarging adult market (much like Sailor Moon). As of episode 32 a new ending animation was begun. This was of OAV quality and, in our opinion, was another sign of the shift toward an older audience. Men who like this show frequently say that they feel like there must be something wrong with them because they are watching a "shoujo" series and enjoying it immensely. I suspect that there is a very valid reason why they enjoy it, and that is this: This is the ONLY TV show I have ever seen that ACCURATELY depicts the feelings that people have about their families, friends, and romantic interests. Questions are asked that everyone asks themselves now and then, and the possibilities are honestly explored. It is often done in a very humorous way, but no show that I have ever seen before has done this without distorting things with an overly male or female perspective. This show is unique in that it honestly depicts the feelings of both men and women. The families shown in this show are not typical of the Japanese. Unlike Maison Ikkoku which shows lower middle class characters, Marmalade Boy depicts the rich. There are two families (Miwa and Akizuki) which are ultra-rich. Over time, commercials shifted too. Those featuring Marmalade Boy merchandise at the beginning were mostly concerned with dolls and items aimed at middle-school age girls. Later on, commercials featuring high school age girls and cosmetics began to be run as well. As distributors for several fan studios, we have had feedback about many series, movies, and OAVs. The most enthusiastic responses, from all over the country, have been to Marmalade Boy. LDs have been announced. 3 box sets, each of 25 episodes. Release dates are: 7/95 9/95 12/95 Pre-orders only.   Her Perspective Karen: Marmalade Boy fits into a category that would also include Maison Ikkoku and Orange Road. All are romantic comedy series. Each has it's own flavor and speed of action. Each is good in its own way. The tempo of Marmalade Boy tends to run somewhere at the speed of Star Wars, whereas the other two previously mentioned series have a bit more mellowness. Observers of MB cannot afford to leave the room at any time, too much can be missed. And the ending of each episode tends to leave one dying for the next episode. Maybe "dying" isn't a strong enough word! Bruce is right, the response to Marmalade Boy has been enormous. We understand that men, women, and hentais alike have been riveted! The letters we've received have been appreciated. Marmalade Boy is my personal all time favorite show. The project to translate the show originally occurred when Bruce took compassion on me. He saw me sitting and watching MB in straight Japanese over and over and over. I don't speak Japanese. (Well, a little now, not then.) Late last year, I gave up my own hobby of 21 years, to devote myself to this project. Our translator works for Bruce one day and myself on another. Each translation takes a great deal of work on the part of the native born Japanese translator and ourselves. For one reason, many Japanese sayings do not translate straight across into our language. In addition, native born Americans do not speak English exactly the way the Japanese are taught to speak it. We're FAR less formal for instance...using manyconjunctions and leaving out a lot of words! It HAS been an interesting project. The Series Overview From His and Her Perspectives Pages with directories for their sections... KD's Corner Home Page The Original Marmalade Boy Guide Page The New Marmalade Boy '99 Addition For those who linked in from exCel Animation Art and need to return: exCel Directories excel@ncn.com or karen.duffy@bbs.chemek.cc.or.us