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[Kero Kero Chime is not available on DVD, so here is a screenshot from the anime.]
AKA: ケロケロちゃいむ, Ribbit Ribbit Chime
Genre: Fantasy comedy
Length: Television series, 30 episodes, 23 minutes each
Distributor: Currently unlicensed in North America
Content Rating: 10+ (comedic nudity)
Related Series: N/A
Also Recommended: Akazukin Chacha, Child's Toy, Mahoujin Guru Guru
Notes: This anime is based on the manga of the same name by Maguro Fujita, which ran in Ribon magazine.
Rating:

Kero Kero Chime

Synopsis

Aoi was an ordinary boy until a wizard from the Land of Frogs, Makaeru, splashed magical water over him, turning Aoi into a frog. (Yes, folks, a frog.) Makaeru then throws Aoi into a tree trunk, transporting him to the Land of Frogs. He is found by Princess Mimori, Makaeru's sister, and together they go on a quest to find the missing pages of the Magic Book that can remove Aoi's curse. For you see, when Aoi gets wet, he turns into a frog, and when he is dry, he turns back into a human ...


Review

Kero Kero Chime tries to be a cute, fun, entertaining fantasy romp in the vein of Akazukin Chacha, or possibly Mahoujin Guru Guru. Unfortunately, it fails at this mission, and thus is nothing more than awful.

Yes, I know this review is shocking. Jennifer "Full Moon o Sagashite is my absolute favorite shoujo anime ever" B giving a bad review to a shoujo anime? Nonsense, you say. But not every anime is the Best Ever™ ... especially not Kero Kero Chime.

Now, just why is Kero Kero Chime so bad? Well, let's see.

1. Kero Kero Chime has a derivative plot.

Really, folks, how many times have you seen shows with boys who can transform into girls/frogs/fluffy doinks by contact with water? Many times, I should imagine. And Kero Kero Chime doesn't add anything new to that. It simply has those requisite "Komedic Moments", such as Aoi trying to get water from a stream, falling in and, whoops, turning into a frog! Let's not even mention that when Aoi turns back into a human, he is *gasp* naked! My, how original!

The main plot itself simply tries to follow in the footsteps of its Ribon sister Akazukin Chacha by setting it in a fantasy world. Unfortunately, it does not have the fun characters and humor that made Akazukin Chacha so great, and so it flounders. Speaking of characters ...

2. Kero Kero Chime has awful characters.

Aoi is your typical Blustering Punk™, just like Ranma. He constantly calls people "bakayarou" (bastard or stupid dork) and has an awful temper. Indeed, it seems each episode goes like this: Mimori gets into some trouble and doinks about it, Aoi gets ticked off and calls everyone a "bakayarou", something happens involving magic, and everything is OK. And that happens every episode. For that matter, the Female Lead™, Mimori, is annoying and has the whiniest voice I have ever heard. She is constantly naive, and not in a cute way like, say, Usagi from Sailor Moon ... she's just an annoying whiny brat who every viewer will want to punch in the face. The supporting characters are just as one-dimensionally bad as Aoi and Mimori.

3. Kero Kero Chime has terrible animation.

Geez, if you looked at the animation for this series, you might think it was made in 1987 rather than 1997. It's just that bad. The animators try hard to capture Fujita Maguro's art style (especially the big, buggy eyes that are larger than the eyes of any other anime character), and they fail miserably. Along with the characters looking ugly, the color is dull and flat-looking. The frame rate is mostly good, about the same as Mizuiro Jidai, but there are some episodes where it is terrible.

4. Kero Kero Chime has painful music.

The opening and ending themes are typical fare for a series like this. In other words, they're bouncy and annoying and high-pitched and screechy. They are just pitiful to listen to.

When you look at all of these reasons, it's easy to imagine how Kero Kero Chime was overshadowed by Child's Toy when it was first released, and is mostly forgotten today. I simply can't recommend this to anybody, unless you really like shoujo anime or you want to see every anime ever adapted from a Ribon manga.

The ending song tells you to 'Check it out!', but I would suggest otherwise.Jennifer Berman

Recommended Audience: There are some scenes of nudity when Aoi transforms back into a human, but it isn't explicit and only played for laughs. I suppose it's OK for kids, but I don't think even they would want to sit through this series.



Version(s) Viewed: digital source
Review Status: Partial (6/30)
Kero Kero Chime © 1997 Maguro Fujita / Shueisha / Studio Comet / TV Tokyo / NAS
 
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