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Sazae-san

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Sazae-san

Cover of the eleventh volume of the

bilingual version of the manga by

, depicting the lead character

Sazae riding a horse with her little

sister Wakame.

サザエさん

Genre

Manga

Written by

Published by

English

publisher

Bilingual

Comics

Magazine

Fukunichi Shinbun

Asahi Shimbun, etc.

Original run

April 22, 1946

–

February 21, 1974

Volumes

68 (6,477 comic strips)

Anime television series

(1969–present)

Sazae-san

(

サザエさん

)

is a Japanese

series written and

illustrated by

. It was first published in Hasegawa's local

paper, the

Fukunichi Shinbun

(

フクニチ新聞

)

, on April 22, 1946. When the

wished to have Hasegawa draw the four-panel comic for their paper, she

moved to Tokyo in 1949 with the explanation that the main characters had

moved from

to Tokyo as well. The first

Sazae-san

strip run by the

Asahi

Shimbun

was published on November 30, 1949. The manga dealt with everyday life

and contemporary situations in Tokyo until Hasegawa retired and ended the

series, with the final comic published on February 21, 1974.

As of 1999, the manga had over 86 million copies in circulation, making it

one of the

television

adaptation by TCJ (later renamed

) began airing in Japan in October 1969

and holds the

for the longest-running animated

television series.

It has also been adapted into a radio show, theatrical

plays and songs.

Plot

[

]

In the beginning, Sazae was more interested in being with her horse than

dressing up in a kimono and makeup to attract her future husband. Hasegawa was

forward-thinking in that, in her words, the Isono/Fuguta clan would embody the

image of the modern Japanese family after

Sazae was a very liberated woman, and many of the early plotlines revolved

around Sazae bossing around her husband, to the consternation of her neighbors,

who believed that a man should be the head of his household. Later, Sazae

became a feminist and was involved in many comical situations regarding her

affiliation with her local

group.

Despite the topical nature of the series, the core of the stories revolved

around the large family dynamic, and were presented in a lighthearted, easy

fashion. In fact, the final comic, in 1974, revolved around Sazae's happiness

that an egg she cracked for her husband's breakfast produced a double

with Katsuo remarking about the happiness the "little things" in life can

bring.

In current culture, the popular

Sazae-san

anime is frequently viewed as a

nostalgic representation of traditional Japanese society, since it represents

a simpler time before many of the changes brought by modern technology. Its

social themes, though very liberal at the time of its publication, are

evocative of a bygone and nostalgic era.

Characters

[

]

A typical

Sazae-san

strip

Isono and Fuguta family

[

]

Sazae Fuguta

(

フグ田サザエ

Fuguta Sazae

)

(

née

Isono

(

磯野

)

The main character. Age 24 (27 in the manga). She marries Masuo.

She is a housewife, but occasionally works part-time as a maid for the Yumizu family, a wealthy family in the

neighborhood.

She has a unique hair style. This is one of the

that were popular at the time Manga was started, and

she has maintained this hairstyle since the fad passed.

She is bright, cheerful, and popular in the town with a personality like that of a split bamboo.

Her talkativeness and goofiness are shortcomings, and she is sometimes taken aback by her family, but most of the

time she is well-liked by those around her.

Voiced by:

Namihei Isono

(

磯野波平

Isono Namihei

)

Sazae's father and patriarch of the family. Aged 54.

He is characterized by a single hair on his bald head, and he is very protective of that single hair.

He hates crookedness and can be stubborn, often scolding Sazae and Katsuo, but he also has a compassionate and

good-natured side.

He appears to be full of dignity and dignity, but in fact has an unreliable side.

When he scolds, he often says, "Baka-monn!"

(

馬鹿者!

)

(It means "Fool!") However, he does not really believe this,

and in his heart of hearts, he has a love for his children, wanting them to grow up to be good people. This is also

known as a famous line that symbolizes him.

Voiced by:

(1969–2014),

(2014–present)

Fune Isono

(

磯野フネ

Isono Fune

)

(

née

Ishida

(

石田

)

Sazae's mother. In her 50s (48 in the manga); born in

She is a stay-at-home mom and proud of her position. She does all the housework and is the epitome of a good wife

and wise mother.

She is calm and trusted by all of her family. She is an important behind-the-scenes supporter of the family,

mediating domestic disputes.

On the other hand, as a girl she was a tomboy, and this side of her personality is sometimes apparent.

Voiced by:

(1969–2015),

(2015–present)

Masuo Fuguta

(

フグ田マスオ

Fuguta Masuo

)

Sazae's husband. He is a

in the sales department of a trading company. 28 years old (32 in the manga).

Born

After marrying her, they lived together in a rented house, but were advised by the landlord to move out of the house

due to misconduct (in his case, trying to remove the fence of the house without permission), and soon moved in with

her family.

He is good-natured and timid, which can lead to a loss-making role, and he sometimes says and does things that one

might consider black-hearted. However, his gentle and honest nature has earned him the trust of Sazae's family, and

he himself lives happily every day surrounded by Sazae's family.

Voiced by:

Shinsuke Chikaishi (1969–1978),

(1978–2019),

(2019—)

Katsuo Isono

(

磯野カツオ

Isono Katsuo

)

Sazae's younger brother who is an 11-year-old fifth grader.

He is quick-witted, well-spoken, and has a flattering personality. He knows how to get on in the world and to be

good with people. In the manga in 1973, he was sarcastically referred to by Sazae as "the

of our family".

but, he does not do well with schoolwork and refuses to do his homework.

He likes mischief and often suffers under the wrath of Sazae when he accidentally insults other guests in the

manner of faux-pas.

He is often scolded by Namihei, usually when he finds out about Katsuo's low test grades and mischief.

His main activities consist of playing baseball and soccer with his friends.

Voiced by:

(1969–1970),

(1970–1998),

(1998–present)

Wakame Isono

(

磯野ワカメ

Isono Wakame

)

Sazae's younger sister. Age 9 (7 in the manga). She features a

She is one of the characters whose personalities differ greatly between manga and anime.

In the manga, she is a talkative girl with a noticeably mischievous personality due to her young age.

In the anime, she is a kind honor student. Therefore, her role in the manga is sometimes handled by Tarao, but

sometimes, she shows her mischievous nature from the manga.

She likes to study, but is not good at PE. Her main hobbies are reading and fashion.

Voiced by:

Yoshiko Yamamoto (1969–1976),

(1976–2005),

(2005–present)

Tarao Fuguta

(

フグ田タラオ

Fuguta Tarao

)

Masuo and Sazae's 3-year-old son. Usually called

Tara-chan

(

タラちゃん

)

He is interested in everything and has a curious nature.

While a mostly well-behaved toddler, he can be a bit stubborn.

Sometimes he tries to be selfish and annoys His parents. However, he is a child who can honestly admit and

apologize when he knows he is wrong.

In the anime, he is so polite and uses honorifics that it makes it hard to believe he is 3 years old. This is said

to reflect the character of Takako Sasuga, who played him from the beginning of the broadcast until her sudden

death in 2023.

Voiced by:

(1969—2023),

(2023–present)

Tama

(

タマ

)

The Isono family's pet cat. He hates mice.

Voiced by:

Isono and Fuguta family's kin

[

]

Norisuke Namino

(

波野ノリスケ

Namino Norisuke

)

He is a nephew of Namihei and a cousin of Sazae, Katsuo, and Wakame. Ages 24–26. He works for a newspaper

publisher.

He is a cheerful character, an optimist who is always ready to take it easy without worrying about details.

He is also shrewd and has a brazen side, such as entering Isono family's house without telling them and eating the

cakes they keep without permission, but he is not a hateful type of person, so he gets a lot out of life.

Voiced by:

(1969–1998), Tarō Arakawa (1998–2000),

(2000–present)

Taiko Namino

(

波野タイ子

Namino Taiko

)

Norisuke's wife. Age is about 22 years old.

She is known as a particularly beautiful woman in the anime and has a demure personality. She also has a strong

core and supports Norisuke behind his back like his wife would, and Norisuke cannot resist her.

She is very comfortable with Sazae, who she is close in age with.

Voiced by:

Ryoko Aikawa, Masako Ebisu (1969–1979), Emiko Tsukada (1979–2013),

(2013–present)

Ikura Namino

(

波野イクラ

Namino Ikura

)

Norisuke and Taiko's son. Age is about one and a half years old.

He is Tarao's friend and only says "chan", "hai", and "babuu".

Voiced by:

Reiko Katsura (1969-2025), Sachie Hirai (2025–present)

Isono Mokuzu Minamoto no Sutamina

(

磯野藻屑源素太皆

)

Namihei's

ancestor. Around the time of the

, he haunts Namihei's (or sometimes

Katsuo's) dreams.

Voiced by:

(1970–2013),

(2014–present)

Umihei Isono

(

磯野海平

Isono Umihei

)

Namihei's twin older brother.

Voiced by:

(1970–2013),

(2014–present)

Isasaka family

[

]

Nanbutsu Isasaka

(

伊佐坂難物

Isasaka Nanbutsu

)

A novelist who lives in the next house over from the Isono family's house.

Voiced by:

(1970–1978),

(1985–2002),

(2002),

(2002–2009), Kōtarō

Nakamura (2009–2023),

(2023–present)

Karu Isasaka

(

伊佐坂軽

Isasaka Karu

)

Nanbutsu's wife. Fune's childhood friend.

Voiced by:

? (1970–1978), Reiko Yamada (1985–2023), ? (1994, 1996), Yui Komazuka (2023–present)

Ukie Isasaka

(

伊佐坂浮江

Isasaka Ukie

)

Nanbutsu's daughter.

She is one of the characters that Katsuo is secretly in love with.

Voiced by:

? (?), Miho Ochiai (1974), ? (?),

(1985–1989), Reiko Katsura (1989),

(1989–

1998), Eriko Kawasaki (1998–present)

Jinroku Isasaka

(

伊佐坂甚六

Isasaka Jinroku

)

Nanbutsu's son.

Voiced by:

? (1970–1978),

(1985–2023), Manabu Sakamaki(2023–present)

Hachi

(

ハチ

Hachi

)

The Isasaka family's pet dog.

Other characters

[

]

Grandpa

Ura-no

(

裏のおじいちゃん

Ura-no Ojīchan

)

An original anime character modeled after a guest character from the manga.

An old man who lives in a house in back of the (

ura-no

) Isono family's house.

Voiced by:

? (?–1985),

(1985–2002),

(2002–2013), Mitsuru Takakuwa (2013–present),

Grandma

Ura-no

(

裏のおばあちゃん

Ura-no Obāchan

)

An original anime character modeled after a guest character from the manga.

Ura-no

Grandpa's wife.

Voiced by:

, Reiko Yamada (1990s substitute)

Saburo

(

三郎

Saburō

)

The employee of Mikawaya who makes house calls for food orders.

An original anime character modeled after a guest character from the manga.

Voiced by:

Rika Nozawa

(

野沢リカ

Nozawa Rika

)

An original anime character.

One of Tarao's friends.

Voiced by:

Reiko Katsura (1969–2025),

(1997),

(2025–present)

Takeo

(

タケオ

Takeo

)

An original anime character.

One of Tarao's friends.

Voiced by:

(?), Reiko Yamada (?–2019), Eriko Kawasaki (?),

(?), Nozomi Mikajiri

(2020–present)

Hiroshi Nakajima

(

中島博

Nakajima Hiroshi

)

An original anime character modeled after a guest character from the manga.

Katsuo's best friend and his classmate.

Voiced by:

(1969–2015),

(2015–present)

Kaori Ozora

(

大空カオリ

Ōzora Kaori

)

An original anime character.

Katsuo's girlfriend, she is said to be the most beautiful girl in her class.

She is one of the characters that Katsuo is secretly in love with.

Voiced by:

? (1969–?), Reiko Katsura (?–present),

(1972, 1975),

(1997)

Hayakawa

(

早川

Hayakawa

)

One of Katsuo's girlfriends.

She is one of the characters that Katsuo is secretly in love with.

Voiced by:

? (?), Reiko Katsura (1975),

(1985–1990),

(1990–1998), Eriko Kawasaki (1998–

present),

Hanako Hanazawa

(

花沢花子

Hanazawa Hanako

)

An original anime character modeled after a guest character from the manga.

One of Katsuo's girlfriends, who has a crush on him. She is the daughter of a real estate agent.

Although Katsuo is bewildered and avoids her ardent approach, they actually tend to get along quite well.

Voiced by:

Mitsuko Asō (1971–?), Tikako Akimoto (1971–?),

(?–2023),

(2015),

(2020),

(2023—present)

Tōru Hashimoto

(

橋本とおる

Hashimoto Tōru

)

An original anime character.

One of Katsuo's best friends.

Voiced by:

? (1971–?), Reiko Yamada (?–present)

Takuma Nishihara

(

西原卓磨

Nishihara Takuma

)

An original anime character.

One of Katsuo's best friends.

Voiced by:

(1972–?), Emiko Tsukada (?–2013),

(2014–present)

Teacher

(

先生

Sensei

)

An original anime character.

Katsuo's teacher.

Voiced by:

(1969), ? (?),

(1971), ? (?),

(?–2002),

(?), ?

(2002),

(2002–present)

Horikawa

(

堀川

Horikawa

)

An original anime character.

Wakame's boyfriend.

Since the 2010s, he has been described as a psychopathic speaker and has become an

in Japan. also,

He used to be set up by Wakame as secretly liking him, but in recent years Wakame has sometimes made statements

that seem to indicate that she dislikes him.

Voiced by:

(1971–?), ? (?), Emiko Tsukada (?–2013),

(2014–present)

Suzuko Siota

(

塩田スズ子

Shiota Suzuko

)

An original anime character.

Wakame's best friend.

Voiced by:

Reiko Katsura (?–2022), Sayaka Kitahara (2022–present)

Miyuki

(

ミユキ

Miyuki

)

An original anime character.

One of Wakame's best friends.

Voiced by:

Reiko Katsura (?–1990),

(1990–1998), Eriko Kawasaki (1998–present),

Anago

(

穴子

)

An original anime character modeled after a guest character from the manga.

One of Masuo's co-workers. He has thick lips, which are his charm.

Voiced by:

(1971−197?),

(197?–present)

Kinzō Yumizu

(

湯水金蔵

Yumizu Kinzō

)

Voiced by:

? (?),

Mikawaya

(

三河屋

Mikawaya

)

The shopkeeper of Mikawaya, a sake shop.

Voiced by:

? (?),

(?),

(2019–present)

Kintarō Hanazawa

(

花沢金太郎

Hanazawa Kintarō

)

An original anime character.

Hanako's father. Boss of the Hanazawa Real Estate Agency.

Voiced by:

? (?),

(?–present)

Media

[

]

Manga

[

]

The comic strip was published in book form by Shimaisha

(

姉妹社

)

from 1946 to 1974, which Machiko ran with her

sister, Mariko. In April 1993, this publishing company went out of business and the comic books went out of print. The

same year,

Asahi Shimbun

purchased the right to publish the forty-five paperback volumes. Twelve bilingual (Japanese-

English) manga volumes were published by

between 1997 and 1999 as

The Wonderful World of Sazae-San

The

volumes were re-released in 2004,

and in 2015 another three bilingual manga volumes were released as

The Best of

Sazae-san

By 1999, it has sold over 86 million copies.

Sazae-san

won the 8th

1962.

Anime

[

]

Sazae-san

サザエさん

Based on

Sazae-san

Creative

director

Kondou Kazuhide (2024–)

Voices of

Music by

Nobuyoshi Koshibe

Kunihiro Kawano

Country of

origin

Japan

Original

language

Japanese

No.

of seasons

222 (2025, Conversion)

No.

of episodes

9,000 (2025)

Production

Producers

Kouya Watanabe (2016–)

Youichi Tanaka (2016–)

Running time

24 minutes

Production

companies

[

]

(1969-

1985)

(1985-

present)

(1969-present)

Original release

Network

(Fuji TV)

Release

October 5, 1969

–

present

In October 1969,

started an anime series, which is still on

the air today and currently in production, making it

and the longest-running animated show.

The broadcast time is every Sunday from 18:30 to 19:00 and has never been

changed since its inception. The format is in the form of three vignettes. The

anime series has some characters, like Katsuo's classmates, who have not

appeared in Hasegawa's original works.

On September 5, 2013, the anime achieved the

for the

Longest running animated TV series

As of December 2025, there

have been over 9,000 episodes aired.

The stories are based on at least one strip of the original manga. Due to the

limited number of strips, different episodes are based on the same strips. In

addition, the unique culture and events in a typical Japanese household,

including the four seasons, will always be reflected in the story.

At the start of the anime, it was a

with references to

, etc., but within a year the genre shifted towards a

. From this point onward, there has been no major change in style

for more than 50 years, in either directing, scriptwriting, or character

design. Also because of its popularity, a survey conducted by NIPPON RESEARCH

CENTER, LTD. (NRC) in 2020 recorded a high recognition rate of 97% for this

anime in Japan.

For this reason, it is often described as a "

national

anime

" in Japan and is regarded as a symbol of "universality" and

"permanence". Whenever a change is made, such as a change in voice actors,

there is always a great deal of media coverage, and the anime retains a strong

influence on the public.

In recent years, due to the influence of its unchanging style, it is sometimes

criticized as being "

" or a "period piece", due to elements such

as the absence of

and

in the setting even

though the time period is the present day. In response to this, the staff

stated, "The appeal of this anime is that it depicts scenes of everyday life

and universal relationships that can be found in any family. Therefore, we

have no plans in the future to incorporate events or items that would change

them." However, some things which have come to be considered inappropriate due

to changing times, such as smoking and corporal punishment, have been removed

or otherwise addressed.

The anime is not well known outside of Japan, as up until 2026, it had never

been exported overseas or otherwise developed globally due to the wishes of the rights holders. However, in 2019, the

producer said in a conversation that he hopes to be able to expand globally in the future. In January 2026, it was

announced that the anime would be leaving Japan for the first time to be aired on MOMOTV in

starting from the

26th of the same month.

As for voice actors, as of 2023, only

, who plays Sazae, has never been changed. Katō was recognized by

Guinness World Records in 2019 as the "Longest career as a voice actor for the same character of an animated TV

series".

As of 2008, 40 years after the anime was first broadcast, four of the seven main characters were the

original cast members, but in 2014

, who played Namihei, was replaced due to his sudden death at age

82,

and the following year

, who played Fune, was changed to reflect her age at 89.

who played Tarao, died suddenly in 2023 at the age of 87 and was replaced.

Starting from 1974, the opening is an introduction to the places that Sazae has traveled to and visited throughout

Japan. The settings change approximately every three months. Because of the popularity of the anime, this has come to

be viewed by cities as a "cost-effective means of promoting tourism," and since 2000, the program has received

approximately 5–10 million yen in aid from prefectures and municipalities wishing to introduce the program.

Since November 1991, after the closing credits and the next episode previews, each show has ended with a

match

between Sazae and the viewers at home, in which Sazae holds up a sign representing one of the appropriate hand

gestures.

From 1969 until October 1991, Sazae ended each episode by tossing a bean or rice cake in the air and

catching it in her mouth. Fuji Television switched to the janken match after doctors at Tohoku University Hospital and

the National Center for Child Health and Development raised concerns that children may try to imitate Sazae and

potentially choke on food.

The anime series was originally sponsored solely by

—Later, in 1998, the program expanded to other sponsors,

but the association between Toshiba and Sazae-san remained strong. When Toshiba withdrew its sponsorship due to poor

management, it was widely covered in the media.

Sazae-san

was the last animated television series to use traditional

, although as of April 2009, the

opening credits were digital;

the series finally switched to fully digital animation in 2013.

Despite the series

being a hit, Hasegawa stated that she never wanted any merchandise to be made for it, including home video rights,

making availability of past episodes, especially those prior to the introduction of the VCR, very rare. Following her

death, her request to prohibit older episodes from being released in home media was honored.

Despite this, however,

Fuji TV made an agreement with

as well as other streaming services in December 2018 to release the

1969 and early-to-mid 1970s episodes available on their streaming service. Some episodes from the mid-2000s are also

on the service with episodes from the mid-1990s to the 2010s also being available later on.

The Opening Song and Ending Song are original songs sung by

. Since the anime first started airing, the audio

itself has not been altered in any way, such as by arrangement, although it was trimmed to fit the length of the

sequences during the early years of airing.

There have been two previous suspensions of animation production: the first, for about a month beginning in February

1975, due to the

; the second, for about a month beginning in May 2020, due to the

. Programming during these periods was handled by rebroadcasting past productions.

In Japan, there is a term called "Sazae-san

" (サザエさん症候群,

Sazae-san shōkōgun

), which refers to a

depressed mood on Sunday night after an episode has finished on television, reminding people that the weekend is

coming to an end.

Live-action

[

]

In 1955, a radio station aired a serial drama based on the comic strip.

The same year, a short-lived live-action television series was started, and was aired on what is now

In November 1965, TBS started a dramatic television series modeled after the comic strip. It aired until September

1967.

In 1979,

made a dramatic serial which ran for six months, focusing on the creation of

Sazae-san

and Machiko

Hasegawa in her younger days.

In 2010, Fuji Television debuted a live-action situation comedy series,

Sazae-san 2

(

サザエさん2

)

, followed the

following year with

Sazae-san 3

(

サザエさん3

)

. The series is patterned after the anime series and uses the same

elements, including the theme music and the closing janken match.

Commercials

[

]

In 2008,

showed the family in "25 years later"

commercials, as adults, for the firm's "Otona Glico"

chocolates. The characters were portrayed by Eita (as Tarao Fuguta),

(as Katsuo Isono), Rie Miyazawa (as

Wakame Isono) and

(as Ikura Namino).

In 2017, the characters Sazae and Masao were depicted in a

commercial drawn by