Ronja, the Robber's Daughter (2014 TV series) explained

Ronja, the Robber's Daughter
Ja Kanji:山賊の娘ローニャ
Genre:Fantasy, drama
Type:tv series
Director:Gorō Miyazaki
Producer:Nobuo Kawakami
Music:Satoshi Takebe
Studio:Polygon Pictures
Studio Ghibli (production cooperation)
Licensee:Serious Lunch[1]
Network:NHK BS Premium
First:October 11, 2014[2]
Last:March 28, 2015
Episodes:26
Episode List:
  1. Episode list

is a Japanese anime about Ronja, the only child of a bandit chief, who grows up among a clan of robbers living in a castle in the woodlands of early-Medieval Scandinavia. When Ronja grows old enough she ventures into the forest, exploring and discovering its wonders and dangers like the mystical creatures that dwell there. She learns to live in the forest through her own strength, with the occasional rescue by her parents. Ronja's life begins to change, however, when she happens upon a boy her own age named Birk, who turns out to be the son of the rival clan chief.

Characters

Production

The anime is a cel-shaded television series, based on the novel Ronia, the Robber's Daughter (Ronja Rövardotter) written by Astrid Lindgren.[3] Produced by Polygon Pictures, Studio Ghibli, NHK Enterprises and Dwango, the series is directed and storyboarded by Gorō Miyazaki,[4] with Hiroyuki Kawasaki handling series composition and writing the scripts, Katsuya Kondō designing the characters, Toshio Suzuki providing the title logo and Satoshi Takebe composing the music. Miyazaki stated that "Ronja, the Robber's Daughter is not only a story about a young girl growing into adulthood, but also a story of love, growth, and the bond between parent and child and their friends", also saying that the series can be enjoyed by everyone, from children to adults.[5] Kazuyoshi Saito wrote, produced and performed all the instruments on "Player" for Mari Natsuki to sing as the ending theme song.[6] It is Studio Ghibli's first television series.

UK-based distributor Serious Lunch has acquired the worldwide distribution rights, except for Japan and Scandinavia. It sought English-language broadcasters and brought the series to potential backers at the 2015 Annecy International Animated Film Festival. Amazon began streaming the series on its Amazon Prime service on January 27, 2017.[7] GKIDS released the series in the United States on August 20, 2019 (distributed by Shout! Factory),[8] and additional licenses were sold in China (UYoung Media) and Taiwan (PTS).[9] The English dub is narrated by Gillian Anderson. The BBC also produced a Scottish Gaelic dub of the series - "Ronia, Nighean a' Mhèirlich" - which was broadcast on the BBC Alba channel and available on its iPlayer service in 2022/23.[10]

Reception

Critical reception of Ronja, the Robber's Daughter was mostly positive. The series was praised in reviews by The Guardian,[11] Collider,[12] The Daily Dot,[13] Slate,[14] iDigitalTimes,[15] Starburst,[16] Mir Fantastiki,[17] among others. Meanwhile, Swedish journalist Yukiko Duke,[18] The Onion's The A.V. Club[19] and Polygon[20] published negative reviews. The show was praised for its visual beauty and being faithful to the original novel, but criticized for slow pacing.

Awards

|-| 2015| rowspan=2|Ronja, The Robber's Daughter| Asian Television Awards — Best 2D Animated Programme[21] | |-| 2016| International Emmy Awards — Kids: Animation[22] [23] | |-|}

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: English-Language Broadcasters Pursued for Ghibli/Polygon's Ronia Anime. Anime News Network. September 8, 2020. August 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200810223707/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2015-06-03/english-language-broadcasters-pursued-for-ghibli-polygon-ronia-anime/.88835. live.
  2. Web site: 山賊のむすめローニャ. nhk online. October 13, 2014. January 30, 2014. https://archive.today/20140130223815/http://www9.nhk.or.jp/anime/ronja/. live.
  3. Web site: 山賊の娘ローニャ|Nhkアニメワールド. October 4, 2014. October 6, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141006155900/http://www9.nhk.or.jp/anime/ronja/story/index.html. live.
  4. News: Goro Miyazaki to Direct Ronia the Robber's Daughter TV Anime. January 30, 2020. Anime News Network. January 30, 2014. February 9, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140209014555/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-01-30/goro-miyazaki-to-direct-ronia-the-robber-daughter-tv-anime. live.
  5. Web site: 宮崎吾朗監督:テレビアニメ初挑戦 ジブリと親元から離れCG作品を制作. MANTANWEB(まんたんウェブ). January 31, 2014 . September 19, 2021. July 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210720190802/https://mantan-web.jp/article/20140130dog00m200097000c.html. live.
  6. Web site: 夏木マリ×斉藤和義、アニソンで"説教ソング" . . Japanese . 2014-09-03 . 2021-03-28 . July 9, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210709182133/https://natalie.mu/music/news/125161 . live.
  7. News: Amazon Reveals Ronja the Robber's Daughter Anime's English-Dubbed Trailer, January 27 Stream Date. January 9, 2017. Anime News Network. January 9, 2017. January 11, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170111024900/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-01-09/amazon-reveals-ronja-the-robber-daughter-anime-english-dubbed-trailer-january-27-stream-date/.110819. live.
  8. Web site: GKIDS, Shout! Factory Release 'Ronja, the Robber's Daughter' on BD in August. May 14, 2019. May 14, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190514085122/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2019-05-14/gkids-shout-factory-release-ronja-the-robber-daughter-on-bd-in-august/.146674. live.
  9. Web site: Brzoznowski. Kristin. Ronja, the Robber's Daughter Notches Up Deals. World Screen. 23 May 2018. May 21, 2018. May 23, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180523095812/http://worldscreen.com/tvkids/ronja-the-robbers-daughter-notches-up-deals/. live.
  10. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qrjg/episodes/guide
  11. Web site: Studio Ghibli's first TV show is a wondrous world of peril and magic. TheGuardian.com. January 26, 2017. July 4, 2017. June 13, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180613161247/https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/jan/26/studio-ghiblis-first-tv-show-ronia-the-robbers-daughter-is-a-wonder-kids-will-be-bored-stiff. live.
  12. http://collider.com/ronja-the-robbers-daughter-review/ Ronja, The Robber's Daughter Review: Studio Ghibli Series Flies High
  13. Web site: Review: 'Ronja the Robber's Daughter' brings the magic of Studio Ghibli to Amazon. January 27, 2017. The Daily Dot. November 11, 2019. November 11, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191111143727/https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/ronja-robbers-daughter-review/. live.
  14. Web site: How Children's TV Like Studio Ghibli's Ronja, the Robber's Daughter Can Give Grown-Ups the Strength to Endure. Robyn. Bahr. January 30, 2017. Slate Magazine. September 19, 2021. June 24, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210624190011/https://slate.com/culture/2017/01/studio-ghibli-s-ronja-the-robber-s-daughter-is-part-of-a-wave-of-children-s-tv-that-also-appeals-to-adults.html. live.
  15. Web site: Studio Ghibli Anime 'Ronia the Robber's Daughter' Review: Amazon Prime's Latest Show Is Gentle, Whimsical And Warm . July 4, 2017 . February 7, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170207193816/http://www.idigitaltimes.com/studio-ghibli-anime-ronia-robbers-daughter-review-amazon-primes-latest-show-gentle-581935 . dead.
  16. https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/ronja-robbers-daughter RONJA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER
  17. Web site: "Рони, дочь разбойника": аниме-сериал студии Ghibli | Аниме, Обзоры сериалов, Сериалы. April 20, 2015. September 19, 2021. November 18, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211118032737/https://www.mirf.ru/serial/roni-doch-razboynika-ghibli/. live.
  18. "Ronja på japanska – nu på svenska ", P1 Kultur – podd, Sveriges radio, January 29, 2016. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
  19. Web site: Glacial pacing and stilted animation drag down Ronja, the Robber's Daughter. The A.V. Club. January 27, 2017 . June 25, 2017. August 19, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170819132340/http://www.avclub.com/review/glacial-pacing-and-stilted-animation-drag-down-ron-248829. live.
  20. https://www.polygon.com/2017/1/27/14401362/studio-ghibli-ronja-robbers-daughter-review Studio Ghibli's first TV show, Ronja, the Robber's Daughter, lacks any real magic
  21. Web site: 2015 Winners. Asian Television Awards. December 3, 2015. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20151205235753/http://ata.onscreenasia.com/2015-winners/. December 5, 2015. mdy-all.
  22. Web site: INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF TELEVISION ARTS & SCIENCES ANNOUNCES 2015 INTERNATIONAL EMMY® KIDS AWARDS NOMINEES AND NEW VENUE AT MIPTV®. International Emmy Awards. October 31, 2015. October 31, 2015. April 21, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160421154600/http://www.iemmys.tv/news_item.aspx?id=202. dead.
  23. News: Goro Miyazaki & Polygon Pictures' Ronja the Robber's Daughter Wins International Emmy. Anime News Network. April 6, 2016. April 6, 2016. April 7, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160407115029/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2016-04-06/goro-miyazaki-and-polygon-pictures-ronja-the-robber-daughter-wins-international-emmy/.100721. live.