Anpaman is one of Japan's longest-running multimedia franchises, having produced a wealth of manga series, anime shows, films, Christmas specials and video games in the 40 years since its conception. Fans are now able to stream and enjoy seven of the superhero franchise's classic movies online.
The streaming rights for Anpanman were acquired by Tubi earlier this year, and the seven movies premiered on the streaming service on Sept. 10. Each of these are available in their English and Spanish dubbed versions.
The seven films are as follows:
- The Adventure of Happie, which follows Anpanman's new apprentice Happie as he is tempted by Baikinman to join the side of evil.
- Star-Spirited Dollie, which tells the story of Dollie, a woman that Anpanman saves, and features Baikinman trying to build a mold robot to defeat the titular superhero.
- The Secret of Fairy Rin-Rin, which involves an epic journey to find more of the magical flowers that give Anpanman his powers.
- Blacknose and the Magical Song, which sees the superhero face-off against Cana and Blacknose as the evil duo tries to destroy the joys of dancing, singing and delicious food.
- Revive Banana Island, which finds Anpanman trying to save the titular Banana Island from being ruined by cloudy and rainy days.
- Nanda and Runda from the Star Toys, which follows the selfish princess Runda and her kind robotic companion Nanda as they try to find the princess's missing magical wand.
- Shine! Kulun and The Stars of Life, which involves Anpanman battling against the mysterious Kulun, who is trying to end all life in the world.
The original Anpanman picture book series by Takashi Yanase ran from 1973 until the author's death in 2013. They follow the adventures of the superhero with an anpan (a red bean paste-filled pastry) for a head. The franchise as a whole is incredibly popular and profitable in Japan; for example, the picture books have sold over 80 million copies as of February 2019.
Moreover, in 2011, Bandai found Anpanman to be the most popular fictional character among children (ages 0 to 12) in Japan for 10 consecutive years, and the superhero currently holds the Guinness World Record for the most popular character in an animated franchise.
The seven Anpanman movies join Tubi's ever-expanding collection of anime shows and films, which already includes Fist of the North Star, Lupin the 3rd Part 2, Cowboy Bebop, Ouran High School Host Club and several entries in the Yu-Gi-Oh! and One Piece franchises.
Tubi is a completely free streaming service that offers more than 35,000 movies and television shows alongside multiple local and national news channels. It is available on Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, Vizio TVs, Samsung TVs, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: Tubi