Season
overview:
Episode 24 contains the single appearance of Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Alone Again (Naturally)" and "Get Down" as the opening and ending themes. Both were used in the live action Maison Ikkoku Apartment Fantasy film that would be released to theaters a month after the episode debuted. Rumors of the animation staff being asked to use the songs to promote the film only to learn that they had not obtained the legal rights to do so are unsubstantiated. If you would like to see examples of the different styles of the various animation directors, please read our article on the animation directors of Maison Ikkoku.
Episode 13: モテモテ五代くん? 桃色電話にご用心!
Motemote Godai-kun? Momoiro denwa ni goyoujin! (Godai the Gigolo...? Are You Going to Get That, or Shall I?)
As Godai attends his classes, he notices a mysterious dark-haired woman following him around campus. Letting his imagination run wild, he assumes she must be infatuated with him. Once she finally confronts him, Godai learns that her name is Sayoko Kuroki and that she wants him to join the Puppet Theater Club. When the (mostly female) club members start calling at all hours of the night asking for Godai, Kyoko gets the wrong idea about Godai's new female friends and has a payphone installed.
A brief glimpse of the child versions of Ataru, Megane and Shinobu run past Maison Ikkoku as Soichiro wakes up.
As Godai gets more and more phone calls, Kyoko finally installs a pink payphone for public usage.
Episode 14: やったね五代くん! 響子さんと初デート
Yattane! Godai-kun! Kyoko-san to hatsu date (Way to Go, Godai! The First Date with Kyoko)
Godai finally gets the courage to ask Kyoko on a date, but with this being the anniversary of her moving to Maison Ikkoku, Kyoko considers it as only a friendly gesture. But things quickly fall apart as Godai and Kyoko go to different restaurants to wait for each other. Godai ends up in the proper place waiting hours for Kyoko to finally realize her mistake. Once they meet up with each other, she's very apologetic, and Godai is only too happy to take advantage of her feeling sorry for him. And even though Kyoko is willing to let him go a bit further than usual, Godai's luck runs out when he tries to steal a kiss.
As Godai daydreams about getting paid, he begins to see the images of famous people from Japanese society on yen bills. The first bill he sees is the 1,000 yen Series D note which was in circulation from 1984 until 2007. It features novelist Natsume Sōseki (夏目漱石). The second bill he sees is the 10,000 yen Series D note featuring Fukuzawa Yukichi (福澤諭吉) an author and founder of Keio University.The third time this happens is the 1,000 yen note again.
The Ma Maison versus Mamezo mix up is of course understandable with the names being so similar, but what viewers who have paid close attention will also realize is that outside of Chachamaru, Mamezo is another frequent eatery that the residents of Maison Ikkoku frequent, as various cast members have been seen there in episode 4 and episode 11.
Episode 15: あぶない二人の人形劇! 僕もうダメです
Abunai Futari no ningyo geki! Boku mou dame desu (The Play's the Thing, Not the Playing Around! The Show Must Go On!)
A campus festival brings Kyoko to Godai's college, in tow are the rest of the tenants hoping to have a bit of fun at Godai's expense. When a sudden departure from Godai's Puppet Club brings Kyoko into a staring role, will Godai's feelings get the best of him and ruin the play?
The matsuri (祭) or festival that Godai's college holds is a common tradition at schools and communities all across Japan.
Signs at Godai's college's festival include one that translates as Create 61, where the 61 refers to Showa 61, the year this was made, 1986. Anoter sign says Wham in English, no doubt referring to the globally popular band consisting of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley.
Costumes at the festival include a mixture of American and Japanese sci-fi characters including Superman, the Xenomorph from Alien, Ebirah (エビラ) the lobster monster from Ebirah, Monster of the Deep (ゴジラ・エビラ・モスラ) in 1966, Kanegon (カネゴン) and Garamon (ガラモン) the red furry monster from Ultra Q.
Onsen Mark can briefly be seen standing next to Kyoko as they watch the dancing troupe perform, and Lum and Ran make cameo appearances in the observatory re-creating a scene from Urusei Yatsurachapter 56. The child versions of Shinobu, Ataru and Megane can also be seen in the back of the room watching Godai’s performance with the Puppet Club, a child version of Lum can also be spotted briefly just after they appear and before they rush out of the room.
Episode 16: お見舞パニック! 倒れても好きな人
Omimai panic! Taoretemo sukina hito (Sympathy Scramble. If I Should Stumble.)
Kyoko twists her ankle while playing tennis and both Mitaka and Godai blame themselves. The other tenants can't help but feel sorry for their injured Manager, and everyone seems to think the only thing that will make her feel better is food! But how many courses will it take before the Kyoko makes herself sick?
“My volley was impossible to return.” - Mitaka blames himself for Kyoko’s sprained ankle because his volley was too advanced. In tennis terminology a volley is the flight of the ball (or its course before striking the ground and also the return of the ball before it touches the ground.
Godai has a Madonna poster in his room. When this episode aired in 1986, Madonna had not yet begun toured Japan, but when she did arrive for five concerts in 1987, they were complete sell outs and the launch of her second tour, the Who’s that Girl World Tour.
When Mitaka cooks for Kyoko he makes her White Stew or Japanese Cream Stew (クリームシチュー) It’s made with bite-size pieces of chicken, mushrooms, and colorful vegetables simmer prepared together in a creamy white sauce before being ladled over steamed rice.
“My what a pretty cosmos flower.” – Instead of buying roses, Godai gives Kyoko a cosmos flower he picked. Cosmos flowers are amongst the most common type of freely flowering annual plants. Because of their range of colors, they attract bees, birds and butterflies.
Episode 17: 響子さんの初恋物語雨の日はいつも…
Kyoko-san no hatsukoi monogatari, Ame no hiwa itsumo... (The Story of Kyoko's First Love On Rainy Days Like These)
Godai gets depressed over the rain, remembering that some of the worst events of his life have occured on rainy days. Kozue visits Maison Ikkoku and her skirt gets stained so she and Kyoko have snacks together while they wait for the skirt to dry. Kozue asks about Godai and learns that Kyoko is a widow. Kyoko remembers trying to flirt with Soichiro when she was in high school . After Kozue leaves, Godai runs into Kyoko, and she invites him to share an umbrella with her as they head home.
This episode heavily features the concept of aiaigasa (相合傘) which is a Japanese word that literally means sharing the umbrella, but its meaning is much deeper and more romantic than some realize. Aiaigasa literally means “to share an umbrella” but can also be read as “love love umbrella.” Additionally the drawing of an umbrella with a pair of names beneath that shows up in this episode and frequently occurs in many anime and manga is also known as aiaigasa.
The song playing in the background as Kyoko watches Soichiro caught in the rain was never collected on any soundtrack.
This is the first time Kyoko’s maiden name of Chigusa is revealed.
The billboard that Godai walks in front of says Hishakaku (飛車角). This is a film starring Koji Tsuruta from 1963.
Episode 18: 響子さんの贈り物エッ? これを僕に!?
Kyoko-san no okurimono, E? Kore wo boku ni!? (Kyoko's Gift! "What , You Mean it's For Me?")
With Christmas just around the corner, Godai has to decide what he's going to get for Kyoko this year. He spends all his money on a set of earrings for her, but Kozue spots the present over lunch and assumes its for her. Godai has no choice but to give it to her as he had totally forgotten to buy anything for Kozue. Seeing Kozue so happy cheers Godai up a bit, and she did give him a hat that he really liked, so he tries not to think about the fact that he now has nothing to give to Kyoko. After laying on the floor for a bit, Godai remembers that he never gave Kyoko the present he bought her last year and goes on an all night search of his room trying to find it. The next day, Godai gives Kyoko her brooch, and she gives him a scarf. Godai is completely surprised and overjoyed at this, until he finds out Kyoko gave everyone a scarf (including Mitaka) to thank them for helping her when she was sick.
Godai lays out his rent money and viewers can see that it costs 22,000 yen per month in 1986 for a room at Maison Ikkoku.
Episode 19: 五代と響子! 二人の夜は危険がいっぱい
Godai to Kyoko! Futari no yoru wa kiken ga ippai (Godai and Kyoko ! An Evening for Two Means Double the Trouble)
When New Year's comes around almost everyone at Maison Ikkoku has vacation plans. Yotsuya is going to visit his family, and the Ichinose's are visting relatives. The only people staying behnd are Kyoko, Godai, and Akemi. Kyoko and Akemi decide to watch the New Year's festivities on TV in Kyoko's room, and Akemi invites Godai to join them. On New Year's Even though, Akemi gets a call from her friends asking if she wants to go skiing in Wajima. Akemi accepts, but then feels guilty about leaving Kyoko alone with Godai. Kyoko reassures her that she'll be fine, so Akemi leaves. When Godai arrives, Kyoko tries to keep the fact that Akemi isn't home from him for as long as possible. Once Godai finds out, he starts planning ways to force himself on Kyoko, which all backfire. By the end of the night, Kyoko thinks he was the perfect gentleman and asks him to go to make offerings at the shrine with her.
Viewers can once again see Megane, Shinobu and Ataru as children again at the very start of the episode.
Ueno station (上野駅) is a major transportation and commuter hub for long-distance trains heading to and from northern Japan, which would make it the perfect stop for Akemi to meet her friends before heading out on their ski trip.
The television program that Kyoko and Godai watch together is the Kohaku Uta Gassen (紅白歌合戦) or Red and White Song battle. It is a staple of New Year’s Eve television in Japan airing on NHK.
One of the songs used on TV while Godai is in Kyoko's room is Sailor Suit and Machine Gun (セーラー服と機関銃) by Hiroko Yakushimaru. Produced by Kitty Films, who handled all of the 80s and 90s animation of Rumiko Takahashi's works, the song is from a film of the same name which also stars Hiroko Yakushimaru. The song went to number one on the Oricon Charts and was written by Yakushimaru's future husband, lead singer of Anzen Chitai, Koji Tamaki, who performed the opening Suki Sa in Maison Ikkoku.
Joya-no-Kane (除夜の鐘) is the custom of ringing a temple bell on New Year's Eve in Japan. Practiced throughout the country, priests and temple visitors ring this symbolic bell 108 times to usher in the New Year.
Maison Ikkoku has shimekazari (しめかざり) placed on its doors. These decorate the entrances to homes during the New Year celebrations to ward off evil spirits.
Episode 20: 響子さんイライラ!? 帰らない五代君の謎
Kyoko-san iraira!? Kaeranai Godai-kun no nazo (Kyoko's Ticking Time bomb ! Godai's Extended Absence)
Godai takes a late vacation over Winter break to visit his family in Niigata. While he's there he plays rugby with his old high school team and gets a black eye. Since he's so embarrassed about his appearance, he delays coming back until his eye heals. Kyoko gets worried and starts wondering why Godai isn't coming home. While making a delivery for his parents restaurant, Godai crashes into a telephone poll and gets a second black eye. His family refuses to let him stay with them any longer and he heads back to Tokyo. Once he gets home, an angry Kyoko chastises him for not calling but can only laugh once she sees his face.
This episode marks the first apperances of Mrs. Godai and Mr. Godai, Yusaku’s parents.
Japan actually has the fourth largest population of rugby players in the world and has been played in the country as far back as 1866.
Seijin Shiki or (成人式) is the national “Coming of Age Day” in Japan, and is celebrated on the second Monday of January each year to honor those who have turned 20 in the previous year. When young people reach twenty they officially become adults in Japanese society and they now have responsibilities as well as newfound liberties: such as being able to drink, smoke, go to hostess bars, gamble and to drive legally. The voting age was lowered from 20 to 18 in 2015.
In Mitaka and Kyoko’s conversation about Godai, they discuss Godai being from Niigata. This is also where Rumiko Takahashi was born. It’s famous for being the “snow country” of Japan and is located in the northwest of Honshu island.
The tenants reveal that rent is due on the 24th of each month.
Episode 21: 五代くんパニック! 一刻館の子猫物語!!
Godai-kun panic! Ikkoku-kan no koneko monogatari!! (Godai's Panic! The Cat Who Came to Ikkoku.)
Godai and Sakamoto go out drinking with friends and Sakamoto gets Godai completely drunk. While he's in his druken stupor Sakamoto asks Godai to take care of his new pet cat while he goes out of town, and when Godai learns its name is Kyoko he happily agrees. The next morning, Godai wakes up in Sakamoto's apartment and doesn't remember a thing. After some convincing, Godai reluctantly agrees to take care of Sakamoto's cat, but is worried because he thinks Ikkoku has a no-pets policy. He manages to sneak the kitten into Maison Ikkoku, but his troubles begin right away when the cat uses the bathroom on his futon. As he screams her name in anger, the manager runs to his room to see why he was calling her. Before long the other tenants find out about Kyoko-chan. The kitten and Godai quickly bond and the other tenants manage to keep it a secret from the Manager while its staying with Godai, but once the cat goes missing Kyoko finds out and has to help him find her.
“I was thinking of taking a week off and going to Izu.” – Sakamoto plans to visit Izu. Later he specifically mentions Nishiizu.
Godai has a box that says "Wham" on it in his room. This is likely another reference to the British pop band, Wham! made up of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. The group was the first western band to tour China, and were quite popular all over Asia.
“Go back to ronin school!” – The teacher who appears in this episode is the same one that chastises Godai for sleeping in class in episode 6.
Episode 22: 大ショック五代くん! 響子さんの引退宣言
Dai shock Godai-kun! Kyoko-san no intai sengen (Godai Gets a shock! Kyoko Calls It Quits)
Godai walks home from the laundromat, wondering how he's going to dry his clothes on the dangerous clothesline at home when he notices a strange man walking behind him. As he gets closer to Maison Ikkoku he notices the man is still following him. Godai goes inside and sees the man peeking over the wall. He quickly tells Kyoko, and they both go outside to investigate. They find the man hiding behind a telephone pole and Godai yells at him, causing him to run away. After a few verbal insults from Godai, Kyoko nervously tells him that the man was her father. Back his apartment, Kyoko's father, Mr. Chigusa and his wife Ritsuko argue about how stupid he must be to get caught at Maison Ikkoku. Kyoko calls and argues with her mother, but agrees to visit them the following Sunday. When Kyoko arrives at their apartment, she and her parents get into a knock-down, drag-out fight, and they tell her they want her to leave the slum that she's working at, and change her name back to Otonashi. Kyoko leaves in a huff, but is inspired to fix up Maison Ikkoku all by herself. The next day, Kyoko fixes the balcony, but when she leans back on the railing to admire her work, the railing collapses and she nearly falls. She agrees to call the professionals and let them handle the work. Before long the tenants find that Ikkoku has a termite infestation, and Kyoko has to fix that as well as patching up Yotsuya's hole in Room 5. One night, when Kyoko isn't home, Mrs. Chigusa appears and tells the tenants that she is sorry, but effective immediately, Kyoko will no longer be their manager.
Episode 23: 響子さん危機一髪! 恐るべき母の陰謀!!
Kyoko-san kiki ippatsu! Osorubeki haha no inbo!! (Kyoko's Brush with Danger! Mother's Nefarious Plot)
The tenants are shocked as Kyoko's mother tells them that Kyoko will no longer be the Manager of Maison Ikkoku. As soon as she walks out the door the movers rush in to pack up her room. Mrs. Ichinose goes into a rage after Yotsuya mentions that the previous manager also left this way. She doesn't believe that Kyoko could be anything like him, and that she always thought they were like an extended family. She continues screaming about how betrayed she feels when Godai collapses to the floor and begins crying uncontrollably. Ichinose hauls Godai down to ChaChaMaru so they can get drunk and tell Akemi what happened. Yotsuya stays behind in Kyoko's room to reflect on the recent events. A few minutes later, Kyoko arrives, running late from grocery shopping and is shocked to find her room completely empty and Yotsuya standing in the middle. Yotsuya tells her that her mother came and quit for her, then had her furniture moved to their house. Kyoko becomes furious and rushes to find her mother, before she goes she hands Yotsuya a box of Takoyaki and tells him to share it with the other tenants. After she leaves, Yotsuya goes to ChaChaMaru to tell the tenants about what happened, in his own unique fashion. He tells them that she brought them this gift of Takoyaki and then left to her mother's house without another word. Godai and Ichinose are throughly drunk by this time, and Master tells Yotsuya and Akemi to take their friends home since they're hurting his business. As the tenants head back and continue their partying in Kyoko's room, she arrives. She tells them how insane her parents are, and how the whole thing was just a ploy to get her to move back home. Godai buries his head in her lap and cries himself to sleep as the rest of the tenants drink late into the night.
Another appearance by the child versions of Megane, Ataru and Shinobu as Godai and Kentaro talk on the playground.
Episode 24: 五代くんドギマギ! こずえと初キッス!?
Godai-kun dogimagi! Kozue to hatsu kiss!? (Godai in Confusion! Kozue's First Kiss)
Godai and Kozue sit in a cafe and stare out the window. Suddenly, she asks him if he owns a tie. Later Godai is putting on his best outfit and getting ready to meet with Kozue. As he attempts to tie his necktie he has a fantasy about Kyoko doing it for him before work. As a result of his daydream, he crashes his face through his mirror. Going downstairs Godai spies Mr. Otonashi and the Chigusa's coming out of Kyoko's room. Kyoko herself then leaves and tells Godai and Mrs. Ichinose that she's going to Soichiro's grave today. Godai begins to worry and tells her to hurry home. As he waits for Kozue in the park, Godai can't help but think that he should cancel the date and go and try to offer support to Kyoko. Suddenly, Kozue jumps out and surprises him. She's thrilled that he found a tie to wear, and they both go to the market to pick out a cantelope. Godai is very confused as they arrive at a nice middle income house. Kozue announces that this is her house and that he is finally getting to meet her parents. Godai begins to freak out as she pulls him inside. During lunch, Kozue's brother Yosuke asks repeatedly if Godai and Kozue have kissed and other intimate asides. Kozue's parents remark that they don't want her to grow up too quickly. Kozue takes Godai upstairs to her room and tells him he would have to get used to her parents. At that, Godai really begins to worry. Kozue tries to get him to kiss her, and Godai almost does before a dream about her father sticking a shotgun in his mouth snaps him out of it. He makes his apologies and runs off to meet Kyoko. Meanwhile, at the gravesite, Grandfather Otonashi tells Kyoko that he agrees with her parents, and that perhaps it is time for her to become a Chigusa once more. Kyoko disagrees and when her parents chime in the discussion becomes heated and Kyoko drops the subject altogether. On the way home Godai spies Kyoko and her parents yelling at each other in the streets as various onlookers stare in amazement at the scene they are causing.
Yoko Matsushita, the producer at the time, said as follows about the change to "Alone Again, Naturally" and "Get Down" as the opening and ending themes: “At that time, Takashi Anno's chief director was changing, and the production site was quite busy, so I had to appoint Noboru Furuse, who is unfamiliar with the character of Maison Ikkoku, as the animation director, but the completed opening and ending are not similar in character. The color was unsatisfactory. Therefore, the audience rating of episode 24 dropped, but in reality the song was far from the image of Maison Ikkoku, but I allowed it without noticing that it was not Maison Ikkoku like, which led to a decrease in the audience rating. So it was also said that this was a factor. In addition, there was an angry phone call, so we immediately returned to the original opening and ending.” You can also find Kazuo Yamazaki's comments about the songs here.
It is worth mentioning that Yosuke Nanao, Kozue’s younger brother is played by legendary seiyuu Megumi Hayashibara in her very first role.
Mr. Otonashi discusses the meaning behind the word for widow, mibyojin (未亡人). The characters do in fact literally translate as “not yet dead person” indicating that the spouse left behind should remain married for the rest of their life to the spouse who has already passed on.
As she visits Soichiro’s grave, Kyoko holds ojuzu (数珠) also known as japamala (माला). These usually are made up of 108 beads. There is usually a larger 109th bead or tassel as well. The beads are used to keep track of counting when chanting a mantra.
Kozue has a framed album cover of Madonna’s True Blue album on her wall. She and Godai share musical tastes as he had a Madonna poster on his wall in episode 16. The True Blue album was released on June 30, 1986.The album was seven times platinum in the United States and went gold in Japan. The album chartered at number one in both countries and was the 13th highest selling album in Japan that year.
