| The Adventures of Hutch the Honeybee | |
|---|---|
 Key art | |
| 昆虫物語 みなしごハッチ | |
| Genre | Adventure |
| Created by | Tatsuo Yoshida |
| Written by | Jinzo Toriumi |
| Directed by | Seitaro Hara Ippei Kuri |
| Music by | Nobuyoshi Nishibe |
| Opening theme | "Minashi no hatchi" by Yuri Shimazaki |
| Ending theme | "Mama o tazunete" by Yuri Shimazaki |
| No. of episodes | 91[1] |
| Production | |
| Producers | Kenji Yoshida Tatsuo Yoshida |
| Production company | Tatsunoko Production |
| Original release | |
| Network | FNS (Fuji TV) |
| Release | April 7, 1970 – September 8, 1971 |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
The Adventures of Hutch the Honeybee (昆虫物語 みなしごハッチ, Konchū Monogatari: Minashigo Hatchi, lit. A Bug's Tale: Hutch the Orphan) is an anime series produced by Tatsunoko Production. The series features the adventures of a young bee named Hutch. Son of a Queen bee, Hutch is separated from his mother when his native beehive is destroyed by an attack of wasps. The series follows Hutch as he searches for his missing mother, in the midst of a frequently hostile nature.[2][3]
A sequel, The New Adventures of Hutch the Honeybee, and numbering 26 episodes, was produced in 1974. The original series was remade in 1989 under the same Japanese title, Minashigo Hutch.
The original show (1971) is notable for its frequently sad and cruel scripts.[4] In many episodes, Hutch would befriend another insect, only to see his new friend die a violent and painful death. In one, he befriended a female honey bee who lost her brothers and sisters to a hornet army. The 1989 remake, however, featured completely new episodes and a much more light-hearted story. On July 31, 2010, a movie which was a remake of show was released in Japan titled Hutch the Honeybee.
After being broadcast in several international countries, the show was re-edited and translated into English in 1994 by Saban Entertainment as Honeybee Hutch, with 65 out of 91 episodes being dubbed. Saban's edits cut out some of the show's violent material.[5]
- ^ みなしごハッチ. Tatsunoko Production (in Japanese). Retrieved 2008-07-20.
- ^ "みなしごハッチ ダイジェスト". 2008-10-09. Archived from the original on October 9, 2008. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
- ^ "Tatsunoko Pro". Tatsunoko Productions. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
- ^ Kahlone (2008-11-04). "Le Petit Prince Orphelin / Micky l'abeille" (in French). Planete Jeunesse. Retrieved 1 January 2009.
- ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 414. ISBN 978-1476665993.