Panpaka Pants is a Japanese anime series set in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan developed by DLE. The series follows the adventures of Panpaka and his best friend cat, Punyan, as they go on various adventures in search of special pants. The series began in 2008 as a series of 1-minute shorts on local television, before being picked up to series in 2015. As of 2016, two season have been released in Japan on Shizuoka Broadcasting System's channel and Kids Station in Japan, and a third season is currently airing in South Korea. Each season has 26 episodes that last from one to five minutes. A feature film was released in 2014, titled Panpaka Pants: Treasure of The Bananan Kingdom. The series title is a pun on the Japanese phrase "panpakapan", which roughly translates to "surprise" in English.
Plot
In Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan lives the Pants family, a family of pigs who love pants. Their family lineage has been charged with securing the world's most sacred pants for generations. Now, this mission has been entrusted to the son of the family, Panpaka. Along with his best friend, Punyan, the two travel around the world looking for various pants. During their adventures, they encounter various other allies with their own unique problems. What ensues are surreal comedic situations, most of the time ending with Panpaka and Punyan getting the "special" pants they were searching for, but with some disappointment.
Characters
Main Characters
Panpaka Punyan Boark Croli
Supporting Characters
Pants Family
Pops Mom Grandpa Grandma
Production
Panpaka Pants began as series of 1-minute-long shorts within Shizuoka Prefecture in Japan. The shorts consisted of a song and dance segments. The main characters of these shorts were four pig characters named Taisuke, Jiro, Oshi, and Keiko. It wouldn't be until the third series of shorts when a character which resembled Taisuke named Panpaka became the main character of the series. Panpaka Pants aired along with six other titles during a programming block on Shizuoka Broadcasting System's local TV channel. Of the six, only Panpaka Pants was ordered to series. Panpaka Pants first appeared as a standalone movie in 2014, titled "Panpaka Pants: Treasure of The Bananan Kingdom."
Shorts
The shorts were developed by DLE, and were broadcast in collaboration with Shizuoka Broadcasting System. The shorts were aimed primarily at small children. The shorts were syndicated to TV Tokyo in 2012, where it went on to gain mass popularity. In the third batch of shorts, the format was changed slightly with the four original characters being replaced with a single main character named Panpaka. Panpaka Pants made its international debut in 2013 when the shorts began broadcasting in Taiwan.
Series
In 2015, Panpaka Pants was picked up for a nationally syndicated television series under the title Oh NEW! Panpaka Pants. The series is made up of 5-minutes, and takes place in Shizuoka Prefecture. DLE purchased the animation rights to the series, with SBS becoming one of the sponsors for the title. Season one for the series aired on April 4, 2015, and ran for 26 episodes. A second season, titled W Oh NEW! Panpaka Pants began airing on SBS on April 2, 2016, followed by a nationwide syndication on Kids Station on June 18, 2016. The season had 26 episodes. The second season is also currently syndicated on South Korea's Toonverseanime and cartoon television channel under the title of Pambara Pantsu 2. Panpaka Pants had the highest viewership ratings on Toonverse for the 4-13 year old age block.
Other Media
Film
A feature film for Panpaka Pants was released by Toho Films on May 10, 2014. Titled Panpaka Pants The Movie: Treasure of the Bananan Kingdom, the movie found Panpaka and Punyan separated from their family during a family vacation, and ending up in the jungle nation of the Bananan Kingdom. Bananan Kingdom is being tormented by the Alligator King, who took all the bananas of the kingdom, forcing the Bananan Kingdom's citizens to eat nothing but ice cream. There, Panpaka and Punyan are mistaken by the king as the "Legendary Pants Hero," and is entrusted in retrieving the "sacred pants." He is joined by WanpokoThe Dog, Orson The Crane, and Terry The Monkey.
Line Stamps
Panpaka Pants releases a series of LINE stamps. The stamps are reportedly the main driving vehicle for the character's popularity within Japan. As of November 2016, 10 different sets of stamps have been released. "Animated and voiced" stamps began at the 3rd set release, with Yoshino Nanjō reprising her voice as Panpaka. The stamps are released in multiple territories outside Japan, including the United States, China, South Korea, and Brazil, amongst many others. In all territories it was released, Panpaka Pants' LINE stamps ranked 1st in weekly sales.
