New Moomin

New Moomin (新ムーミン) is a Japanese anime television series produced by Zuiyo Enterprise and animated by Mushi Production. The series is a sequel series to the series Moomin, which aired from 1969 to 1970, and is based largely on the Moomin books by Tove Jansson. It was produced in 1972 as part of the Calpis Comic Theater (later known as World Masterpiece Theater) and broadcast on Fuji TV.

As in the previous series, Jansson never approved of the series, due to their dramatic changes with the plots, overall atmosphere, and character personalities. Also, the series has never been released in principle since 1990 including in Japan, when a new anime television series Moomin was released with the full involvement of Jansson herself.

Summary
It was initially simply broadcast as Moomin and subsequently retitled Shin Moomin to distinguish it from the 1969 series.

Since most of the staff and cast from the 1969 series have been retained, most elements were maintained from the 1969 series, starting with the characterization. Also, the content can be considered a sequel to the previous series, even though it is a stand-alone work. For this reason, Mami Hagiwara, a freelance writer who writes a series of articles for the official Moomin website in Japan, refers to this series as "Season 2 of the 1969 series".

Although few changes have been made, it is more faithful to Jansson's book than the 1969 series. The story has a stronger fantasy element and more moralistic episodes. As for the character designs, minor changes were made in several places, including larger black eyes and the addition of hair to Snufkin. In addition, Too-Ticky makes her first appearance in this series and plays an active role in many episodes.

Although Jansson had a negative opinion of the series, she once did a painting of Snufkin based on his appearance in the series, in which he is much taller, wears flowers on his hat and carries a guitar.

Since 1990, Moomin Characters, Ltd, which manages the Moomin copyrights, has not released this series to the public in principle along with the previous series.

Production
The first Moomin animated series, which aired from 1969 to 1970, received negative reviews from the original author, Tove Jansson, but was well received by viewers and sponsors and ended after the broadcast period was extended. The project for this series was then launched.

Initially, the idea of creating a completely new look for the Moomins, reflecting Jansson's ideas, was floated, but it was decided that it would be a bad idea to change the image of the existing series, so the Moomins were born as Japanese-style Moomins, with no plans for overseas development.

When Jansson produced this series, she agreed to maintain the style and setting of the 1969 series, provided that it would not be exported. Therefore, neither the series nor its 1969 predecessor broadcast outside Japan except Taiwan, which aired in TTV.

Reception
Shizue Kaneko, a well-known Japanese animator, has highly praised this anime, describing it as "the bible of family-friendly animation. Kaneko praised the animation techniques and direction, and said, "While referring to the original work, the story is mostly original, and it tells a philosophical story, such as the loneliness of adults, and the depiction of life. I feel that the creators were determined to convey the world's truths and life lessons to children in an easy-to-understand way, even if it was a bit stale. It is a masterpiece that sacrifices commercialism because of that commitment.".

Cast

 * Kyoko Kishida as Moomintroll
 * Akiko Takamura as Moominmamma
 * Hitoshi Takagi as Moominpappa
 * Reiko Mutō as Non-Non (Snork Maiden)
 * Kosei Tomita as Sniff
 * Junko Hori as Little My
 * Masashi Amenomori as Hemulen
 * Joji Yanami as The Muskrat
 * Hiroyuki Nishimoto as Snufkin
 * Chikao Ohtsuka as Stinky
 * Sachiko Chijimatsu as Sorry-oo
 * Yoshiko Yamamoto as Too-Ticky

Home media
In 1989, all episodes were released on VHS. 2 or 3 episodes per volume, for a total of 26 volumes. Released by Tohokushinsha Film Corporation. Distributed by VAP, Inc.