Jim Button (partially found Rintaro anime TV series; 1974)

The characters from the Jim Button anime.

Status: Partially Found

Jim Button (ジムボタン) (Jim Knopf in German) or Jim Botan was a 26-episode anime created by Rintaro and produced by Eiken that aired in 1974. It's loosely based on the children's novel Jim Knopf und Lukas der Lokomotivführer by Michael Ende but is more of an original story than a true adaptation, as it takes many liberties from the book. It is not to be confused with the more faithful 1998 western cartoon series (which also has a lost English dub of its second season). Based on found information, the descriptions on multiple English/German language anime databases (Such as MyAnimeList, Anisearch, and Anime News Network) are completely inaccurate. (Although their descriptions might be edited after this article is published)

Jim holding a petrified Lukas.

Synopsis

Jim Button lives alone with his seamstress mother Nina on island called "Nandemo Land". The island has one day been attacked by pirates and turns his uncle Lukas into stone along with everyone else living there. Jim's girlfriend Pokko was turned into a dove, and Nina was kidnapped. Jim sets on an adventure to save Nina and return Pokko to her former self, bringing along his family's magic button and Lukas's train Emma.

Differences From the Book

This anime makes many changes to the original story from the book and uses Shonen tropes to transform it into more of a boy-hero story (which was popular in Japan at the time) instead of an epic fairy-tale adventure. Some changes include:

• Jim Button is no longer a black child. Instead, he is a slightly tanned boy.
• They changed Jim's personality from a bright, wholesome, teen to a mischievous young boy with an ego.
• Instead of being illiterate, Jim simply hates school.
• Jim is no longer an orphan. Rather, his mother, Lukas, and the rest of the adults are turned to stone by the antagonist, and he has to travel with Emma alone instead of together with Lukas. In the original Jim's adopted parents are fine and Jim willingly leaves his home with Lukas to save a princess (princess LiSi).
• Jim has some kind of magical button power that was handed down to him from generation to generation. This can be assumed to be where the "Button" in his name came from. In the original, he is named Jim 'Button' because his mother had to sew a button on his ripped shorts.
• Jim's love interest is a new character named "Pokko" who replaces Princess LiSi's role in the original. However, Jim was already in a relationship with this female. In the original, he meets LiSi later on when he rescues her. Some anime sites claim Pokko is princess LiSi, but there is no evidence that LiSi is even in this anime and Pokko is most likely just filling in the role of Jim's love interest. These sites may be confusing the anime with the western cartoon.
• Emma can scream, spit fire, and she appears to be more anthropomorphic than in other adaptations.
• The villain "Miss Grindtooth" has been removed; she does not exist in this anime.

Pokko transforming into a bird.

As to why these changes were made, it can be speculated that it was due in part to racism in Japan or a lack of care for the original property. It might be similar to how American companies make huge changes to foreign properties to localize them for a western audience, like the also previously lost Saban Moon. Michael Ende was a popular author in Japan at the time, but this specific work of his was not.

"It should be noted that the original book covers show a blackface-like minstrel depiction of Jim. Due to the cultural standards of the time, it is possible that this was not an intentionally racist portrayal of the character. Newer adaptations such as the 1999 German cartoon and 2018 movie are not faithful to this aspect of the original book and are more racially sensitive."

Production

Jim Button was produced by Eiken, Co-produced by Mainichi Broadcasting System, and Top-Craft did in-between animation for the show. It aired on All-Nippon News Network from October 4th, 1974, to March 28th, 1975. There are a total of 26 episodes. Chief Director is Taro Hayashi (AKA Rintaro).

Availability

There has only been one episode found that was uploaded to YouTube, but it has since been deleted. Now only the opening, ending, and a singular clip remains. There are no known home media releases, and the anime has only been rebroadcasted a few times despite its alleged good viewership. It is possible that the production company no longer owns the rights to the Ende property, and thus can't re-release the anime. Despite this, the soundtrack is easily available online.

Eiken has stated that they are unwilling to produce DVD reproductions, so the possibility of convincing the rights holder to release the anime publicly is unlikely.

Gallery

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External Links

• More descriptions and information from a fan (contains air dates).
• Japanese Wikipedia page on the Jim Button anime.