Mahō no Mako-chan

Mahō no Mako-chan (魔法のマコちゃん) is a Japanese anime series by Toei Animation. The story is loosely based on the 1837 Hans Christian Andersen tale "The Little Mermaid". It was broadcast from 1970 to 1971 on Nippon Educational TV (NET), later rebranded as TV Asahi.

Plot
Mako is a mermaid and the youngest daughter of the Dragon King. She longs for the human world despite it being forbidden. One fateful night, she rescues a young man from drowning and falls in love with him. With the help of the sea hag, Mako is transformed into a human girl. With the magical pendant called the "Life of A Mermaid", Mako meets many people and experiences many things as she learns what it means to be human, while searching for the young man she saved.

Characters

 * Mako Urashima (浦島マコ)
 * The 15-year-old heroine. She is the youngest daughter of the Dragon King but yearns for the human world. She eventually becomes human so she can be with the man she rescued from a shipwreck. She is adopted by an old man named Urashima and attends Karatachi Academy. Mako's parents gift her with a magical pendant called the "Life of a Mermaid."


 * Papa (パパ)
 * The Dragon King himself. He is able to assume human form and appear on Earth so he can help Mako. He often lets his daughter do her own things but is stern, particularly with Mako's use of her magical pendant and the etiquette she should follow.


 * Mama (ママ)
 * The Dragon King's wife and mother of Mako. It's implied she once contemplated becoming human long ago.


 * Obaba (おばば)
 * The sea hag. She is the one who tells Mako how to become human.


 * Mako's older sisters (お姉様たち)
 * Unlike Mako, most of them are content with their life in the sea. One of Mako's older sisters does go exploring on the surface and is captured. Mako rescues her.


 * Mr. Urashima (浦島老人)
 * The old zoologist who found an unconscious Mako on the beach after her transformation into a human. He takes her in as his adoptive granddaughter. He's very stern but deep down cares for Mako. His daughter, Kyoko, died at sea many years ago. (His surname, which Mako adopts, may be based on the legend of Urashima Tarō.)


 * Akira Shigeno (茂野アキラ)
 * The young man Mako once saved from drowning. He had been on a cruise ship that was hit by a tsunami. Mako falls in love with him but once she becomes human, he's not found so easily. Akira in truth is a drifter who does odd jobs and arrives and leaves town at will. In the original series plan, his name is "Shinichi," which was used for the Spanish dub.


 * Haruko Hayashi (林ハル子)
 * Mako's classmate at school, she becomes her closest friend there. She loves jewelry.


 * Jiro (次郎)
 * Along with his identical twin brother, Taro, are Mako's neighbors.


 * Taro (太郎)
 * Jiro's identical twin brother, Taro is the more realist of the two.


 * Bancho (番長)
 * The gang leader of Karatachi School. He's in love with Mako. His real surname is Matsubashi.


 * Senkichi (千吉)
 * Bancho's friend and lieutenant.


 * Tomiko Tomita (富田トミ子)
 * Mako's classmate and rival. Her mother is president of the school's PTA, hence her arrogance. Tomiko falls in love with Akira, which sparks a rivalry with Mako.


 * Mr. Dabagon (ダバゴン先生)
 * Mako's homeroom teacher.


 * Mrs. Tomita (富田夫人)
 * Tomiko's mother. Head of Karatachi's PTA. Abuses her wealth to control the school.


 * Twins' Mother
 * Mother of Taro and Jiro. Raises and educates her sons in a very strict manner.


 * Principal
 * Principal of Karatachi. Is strict with students, especially Mako, and often ingratiates herself to Mrs. Tomita in order to keep her donations to the school flowing.


 * Kaoru (かおる)
 * A little girl who Akira befriends on the Sea Paradise cruise ship. The shipwreck leaves her traumatized. She eventually gets over her phobia thanks to Mako and a magic telescope given to her by Obaba. She is called "Naomi" during her second appearance.


 * Jim (ジム)
 * A black man who is falsely accused of a crime. Mako tries to restore his faith and urges him to clear his name. Appears in episode 11.


 * Minori (みのり)
 * A young woman who looks exactly like Mako. She has an arranged marriage but she only wants to marry the man who saved her little sister's life. Appears in episode 23.


 * Funakichi Koinuma (鯉沼鮒吉)
 * A creepy boy who transfers into Mako's class. He hypnotizes her classmates and lures them to a bombing testing site. Funakichi is revealed to be a kappa who wants to get revenge on mankind for how they've mistreated his people. Eventually he realizes the error of his ways and saves Mako's friends. His people go out in the world, deciding to believe in humanity. Appears in episodes 46 and 47.

Music
The scores and lyrics for Mahō no Mako-chan were created by Takeo Watanabe and performed by Horie Mitsuko. Some of the score was reused in later Toei series, including Majokko Megu-chan and Genshi Shonen Ryu.

Opening theme
"Mahō no Mako-chan" (Magical Mako) by Horie Mitsuko

Ending theme
"BOKU wa MAKO ni tsuite yuku" (I Follow Mako Around) by Horie Mitsuko