Remi, Nobody's Girl

Remi, Nobody's Girl (家なき子レミ, Ie Naki Ko Remi) was a 26-episode Japanese anime television series by Nippon Animation, broadcast 1996 to 1997 across Japan on the TV Tokyo network as an installment to Nippon Animation's famed World Masterpiece Theater series. The show was directed by Kusaba Kouzo and screenplay adapted by Man Shimada, with character designs by Ooshiro Katsu.

The story is adapted from Sans Famille, an 1878 French novel, written by Hector Malot (adapted previously to anime in 1977's Nobody's Boy: Remi); this version made major changes from the book, including changing the gender of the main character and the "Swan" chapter, along with many other main events.

It started airing on September 1, 1996; the show was canceled by TV Tokyo on account of low ratings; it ended March 23, 1997 with a low count of 23 episodes. The complete series, all 26 episodes, was later aired by the anime satellite television network, Animax, who translated and dubbed the series into English for broadcast across its English-language networks in Southeast Asia and South Asia, under the title Remi, Nobody's Girl, as well as other languages including Arabic in the Middle East where it was a success and famous.

Story

Remi, Nobody's Girl tells the story of Remi, a cheerful and tender-hearted girl, who is an excellent singer and lives in the French country town of Chavanon with her mother. One day her father returns to the town after a long period working in a city. She discovers that she was a "foundling" or an abandoned child and was adopted by Mother Barberin. Her stepfather Jerome leaves to work in Paris and expects Mother Barberin to send Remi to the workhouse. He returns 10 years later, finds that Remi is still there, and becomes furious and Remi is almost sold to an evil slave trader.

Vitalis, a strolling entertainer, helps Remi. Vitalis discovers her talent for singing and takes her in with his troupe. Remi starts her journey with Vitalis and his troupe of animals such as the monkey Joli-CÅ"ur and the dogs Capi, Dolce, and Zelbino. On her journeys with Vitalis and his company she must endure and overcome many difficulties while looking for her real family.

Characters

Remi Barberin (レミ・バルブラン, Remi Baruburan)

• Voiced by: Mitsuko Horie

• A bright and energetic 10-year-old girl who is an excellent singer. She was raised in a French village called Chavanon, but she doesn't know where she was born. After her father, Jerome, returns from Paris, he becomes upset that she was still at his house. Her mother reveals to Remi that she was a foundling and it is unknown where her real parents reside. Jerome sells her to a slave trader, until she was later rescued by Vitalis. She becomes part of Vitalis' troupe and sings and performs with his band.

Anne Barberin (アンヌ・バルブラン, Annu Baruburan)

• Voiced by: Kumiko Hironaka

• Remi's stepmother. Her husband, Jerome, found Remi abandoned as a child on a street corner of Paris. Afterwards, Jerome leaves to work in Paris and Anne raises Remi in secret.

Nana (ナナ・バルブラン, Nana Baruburan)

• Voiced by: Junko Shimakata

• Remi's little sister. She is the only child of Anne Barberin.

Jerome (ジェローム・バルブラン, Jerōmu Baruburan)

• Voiced by: Masahiko Tanaka

• Remi's stepfather. While in Paris, he found Remi as a baby, abandoned in an alleyway. Seeing that she came from a wealthy family, he believes that he would be given a reward if she was given back to her family. However, to no avail, he couldn't find her family and took her home with him in Chavanon Village. He goes away to Paris to work and expects his wife to get rid of Remi and send her to the workhouse. He returns ten years later because of a work injury and sells Remi to a slave trader to get money.

Rosette (ルーセット, Rūsetto)

• The family cow, which was sold because Jerome's friend paid for Jerome's treatment and he was promised to give away Rosette in return.

Vitalis (ヴィタリス, Vitarisu)

• Voiced by: Fubito Yamano

• The owner of three dogs and a monkey. He is a performer who travels throughout France. He is skilled at playing the violin. At first glance, he appears frightful; however, he is very kind. He taught Remi to read and write because there was no school in her hometown. Because of his old age, he became sick and passed away.

Milligan (ミリガン婦人)

• Voiced by: Eiko Yamada

• An English lady who meets Remi in Toulouse and believes that Vitalis is innocent. She searches for her daughter who was kidnapped not long after birth. After Arthur told her about the brooch that Remi had similar to hers, she realized that Remi was her daughter who was kidnapped ten years ago.

Arthur (アーサー, Āsā)

• Voiced by: Yumi Touma

• Mrs. Milligan's son who is paralyzed in a wheelchair. He was initially cold towards Remi at first, but became good friends with her. He had a belief that everyone was only worried about his health and that he was a burden to them. When Remi tries to save him from falling into the river, he tells her that he may be better off dead than alive. However, Remi made him realize that if he dies, his mother will die as well since she will have no one else to look after anymore. Hearing those words, he returns to his lively self. He found out from his mother that he is Remi's brother.

Nelly (ネリー, Nerī)

• Voiced by: Megumi Hayashibara

Mattia (マチア, Machia)

• Voiced by: Shinobu Adachi

• One of the boys who has lived with Gaspard. He is the leader of the children. To earn his living for Gaspard, he and Ricardo pickpocket from the wealthy. He stopped stealing after listening to Remi's pleas. He became attached to Remi because of her kindness and gentleness. He is also good at playing the violin. In the last episode, he promised to work hard so that he can be in same social status and ask Remi to be with him forever.

Lise (リーズ, Rīzu)

• Voiced by: Mika Nakai

• One of the girls who has lived with Gaspard. She became good friends with Remi after she protected her from Gaspard's abuse.

Ricardo (リカルド, Rikarudo)

• Voiced by: Hiro Yuuki

• One of the boys who has lived with Gaspard. Just like Mattia, he pickpockets from the wealth so he can live with Gaspard. He is a friend of Mattia but they frequently argue.

Marcel (マルセル, Maruseru)

• Voiced by: Kyoko Tsuruno

• One of the boys who has lived with Gaspard. He briefly took care of white kitten, whom he called Shiro, but he was returned to its owner.

Maria (マリア, Maria)

• Voiced by: Kae Araki

• One of the girls who has lived with Gaspard.

Gaspard (ガスãƒ'ール, Gasupāru)

• Voiced by: Nobuaki Fukuda

• An acquaintance of Vitalis. He uses homeless children and treats them like slaves. He uses the money he collects from them for his own purposes.
• He is based on Garofoli from the original story.

Capi (ã‚«ãƒ", Capi)

• A dog of Vitalis' company. He has a sense of responsibility and strong leadership qualities. His name comes from the Italian "capitale". He protected Remi and Joli-Coeur from wolves but lost his fellow dog companions. After Vitalis passed away, he continues his journey with Remi and Joli-Coeur.

Zerbino (ゼルãƒ"ーノ, Zerubino)

• A dog of Vitalis' company. He is known as the cool one. Zerbino is the Italian word for "dandy". He was killed when defending Remi and Joli-Coeur from wolves.

Dolce (ドルチェ, Dorushi)

• A French Bulldog of Vitalis' company. She becomes attached to everyone. The name "Dolce" is the Italian word for "gentle". She was killed when defending Remi and Joli-Coeur from wolves.

Joli-Coeur (ジョリクール, Jorikūru)

• Voiced by: Chie Sato

• The monkey in Vitalis' company. He acts almost like a human and is a natural entertainer. He is also very mischievous. He was ran over by a wagon and needs to receive proper treatment from a veterinarian. He survives and continues his journey with Remi and Capi.

Episodes

Episode titles:

1. La gara di canto (The Singing Contest)
2. Il signor Vitali (Signor Vitali)
3. La compagnia teatrale del signor Vitali (Signor Vitali's Troop)
4. Un regalo favoloso (A Wonderful Gift)
5. Il miracolo di Maria (Mary's Miracle)
6. La piccola Sara (The Little Sara)
7. Il rapimento di Cai (The Kidnapping of Capi)
8. L'incedio (The Fire)
9. Incontro col destino (The Meeting With Fate)
10. L'incidente di Arthur (Arthur's Incident)
11. Un nuovo viaggio (A New Journey)
12. Il sentiero di montagna (The Mountain Path) [recap]
13. Addio sulla neve (Farewell in the Snow)
14. Il viaggio solitario (The Solitary Journey)
15. Nuovi amici (New Friends)
16. La gattina smarrita (The Lost Kitten)
17. Persi nel labirinto (Lost in The Labyrinth)
18. Madre e figlia vicine e lontane (Mother and Daughter Close and Distant)
19. La famiglia girovaga (The Traveling Family)
20. L'amica del cuore (The Bosom Friend)
21. Il violino (The Violin)
22. Paura nella minera (Fear in the Mine)
23. Il desiderio (The Wish)
24. Amore diviso in duo (Shared Love)
25. La fuga (The Escape)
26. La mamma (The Mother)

Music

Opening theme

Ai ni Tsuite / "About Love" (愛について)

Lyrics: Masashi Sada

Composition and arrangement: Katsuhisa Hattori

Performance: Masashi Sada

Ending theme

Shiawase no Yokan / "Foreboding Happiness" (しあわせの予感)

Lyrics: Fumiko Okada

Composition and arrangement: Katsuhisa Hattori

Performance: Youca

External links

• Nippon Animation's official website (Japanese)
• Remi, Nobody's Girl (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia

See also

• Sans Famille, the novel by Hector Malot on which this anime was based.
• Nobody's Boy: Remi, a 1977 anime TV series by Tokyo Movie Shinsha in which Remi is a boy, just like in the novel Sans Familie.