Himitsu no Akko-chan is a popular pioneering magical girlmanga and anime that ran in Japan during the 1960s. The manga was drawn and written by Fujio Akatsuka, and was published in Ribon from 1962 to 1965. It predates the Mahōtsukai Sunny manga, printed in 1966. However, that title's anime adaptation is the first magical girl anime, as Himitsuno Akko-chan was not broadcast until 1969. The original anime ran for 94 episodes from 1969 to 1970. It was animated by Toei Animation and broadcast by TV Asahi. It has been remade twice, in 1988 and in 1998. Three movies were produced. Circus Da Ga Kenyatta in 1969, and Himitsu no Akko-chan Movie and Himitsu No Akko-Chan:Umi da! Obake da!! Natsu Matsuri both released in 1989. It was adapted into a live action film released in September 1, 2012. Currently, an adaptation of the series is running as a web manga, ひみつのアッコちゃん μ It is written by Hiroshi Izawa, and drawn by Futago Kamikita.
Plot
Atsuko Kagami is an elementary school girl who has an affinity for mirrors. One day, her favorite mirror which was given to Akko by her mother is broken, and she prefers to bury it in her yard rather than throw it to the trash can. In her dreams, she is contacted by a spirit who is touched that the girl would treat the mirror so respectfully and not simply throw it away. Akko-chan is then given the gift of a magical mirror and taught enchantments, such as "Tekumaku mayakon, tekumaku mayakon" and "Lamipasu lamipasu lu lu lu lu lu", that will allow her to transform into anything she wishes.
Characters
;Atsuko Kagami Voiced by Yoshiko Ōta, Mitsuko Horie, Wakana Yamazaki in the animes, and played in live-action by Haruka Ayase ;Kyoko Kagami ;Kenshiro Kagami ;Moko ;Kankichi ;Ganmo ;Chikako ;Taisho ;A hefty boy and rival to Akko. He has a secret crush on her. ;Shosho ;Gyoro ;Goma ;Shippona ;Kenji Sato ;Moriyama ;Dora ;Queen of the Mirror Country
The only media in the franchise to be officially translated into English is the 1980s run of the manga, translated as Akko-Chan's Got a Secret! The series briefly aired in its original Japanese on California channel KWHY-TV in the mid 1970s as Akko Chan's Secret. Otherwise largely unknown in the English-speaking world, Himitsu no Akko-chan enjoyed a good deal of success when it was exported to the European market in the 1980s. All three Akko-chan series have been screened on TV in Italy.
