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In the Beginning: The Bible Stories

In the Beginning: The Bible Stories (手塚治虫の旧約聖書物語, Tezuka Osamu no Kyūyaku Seisho Monogatari, lit. Osamu Tezuka's Old Testament Stories) is a Japanese-Italian anime television series based on The Bible's Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) created by Osamu Tezuka. The series was a coproduction between Japan's Nippon TV, Tezuka's Tezuka Productions, and Italy's government-owned broadcaster, Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI). Although the series was in production during a period of several years in the late 1980s and early 1990s, it was not aired in Japan until 1997, on the satellite channel WOWOW, while it premiered in Italy in 1992 on Rai 1.[1] The series has also been aired on TV in the United States (on the Catholic-oriented Eternal Word Television Network), Spain, Germany, and Australia (on Australian Christian Channel).

In the Beginning: The Bible Stories
手塚治虫の旧約聖書物語
(Tezuka Osamu no Kyūyaku Seisho Monogatari)
Anime television series
Directed byOsamu Dezaki
Written byOsamu Tezuka (posthumous work)
Music byKatsuhisa Hattori
Reimy
StudioTezuka Productions
Original networkWOWOW
English networkEternal Word Television Network
Australian Christian Channel
Shine TV
Original run April 1, 1997 – May 9, 1997
Episodes26

In the Beginning marked the fourth time Bible stories formed the basis of a Japanese-animated television series, following the two Superbook series and The Flying House, which were made for Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network by Tatsunoko Production in the early 1980s.

In the Beginning features episodes devoted to most of the major Bible stories of the Old Testament, including the stories of the Creation, Cain and Abel, Noah's Ark, Abraham and Isaac, Joseph, Moses, David, and Solomon, with the final episode featuring the birth of Jesus Christ. As with the second Superbook series, some stories were stretched out over several episodes. Unlike Superbook and The Flying House, however, no contemporary characters from modern times were inserted into the stories, save for the series mascot and viewpoint character, Roco the fox (whose appearances were removed in the United States edit of the English dub).

Tezuka's manga work frequently included religious themes, and because of his long-running manga Buddha, he is sometimes perceived as having been a devout Buddhist, but in fact, Tezuka was largely agnostic.[2]

The theme music (for the American version), an ending theme called "Rainbow Blue", is performed by Reimy.

Background

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In the Beginning grew out of a request that Osamu Tezuka received from the Vatican by way of RAI in 1984, requesting that Tezuka produce an animated version of the Old Testament. Tezuka spent two years working on a pilot film for the project based on the story of Noah's Ark, both writing the scenario for the film and working in the production of the animation itself, but Tezuka died in 1989 before the film was finished. The remainder of the production for the pilot film and the subsequent 26-episode television series was supervised by director Osamu Dezaki.

Episodes

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Number English title Japanese title Italian title
1 The Creation 天地創造 I signori della Terra
2 Cain and Abel カインとアベル I figli di Adamo
3 The Story of Noah ノアの箱舟 L' avventura di Noè
4 The Tower of Babel バベルの塔 Una torre fino al cielo
5 Abraham, the Forefather 父アブラハム Abramo il patriarca
6 Sodom and Gomorrah ソドムとゴモラ Sodoma e Gomorra
7 Isaac and Ishmael イサクとイシュマエル Ismaele
8 Isacc's destiny アブラハム、イサクを捧げる Il destino di Isacco
9 Jacob's children ヨセフの夢占い Venduto dai fratelli
10 Joseph's triumph ヤコブ一族の再会 Il trionfo di Giuseppe
11 Moses, The Egyptian モーセの誕生 Mosè l'egiziano
12 The Fire in the Desert 砂漠の火 Il fuoco nel deserto
13 Moses and the Pharaoh モーセとファラ Mosè e il faraone
14 The Exodus エジプト脱出 L'Esodo
15 Laws carved in stone 十戒 La legge scolpita sulla pietra
16 Israel's Treachery イスラエルの裏切り Il vitello d'oro
17 New Alliance 約束の地 La Terra Promessa
18 Jericho {エリコ Gerico
19 One king for Israel 初めての王サウル Un re per Israele
20 King Saul サウルの敗北 La sconfitta di Saul
21 King David ダビデ王 Il seme di Davide
22 King Solomon ソロモンの王国 Il regno di Salomone
23 The Exile of Israel バビロン捕囚 L'esilio di Israele
24 Release from Bondage 奴隷からの解放 Gerusalemme, Gerusalemme
25 Prophets in the desert 砂漠の預言者たち Profeti del deserto
26 The birth of Jesus イエスの誕生 Una stella brilla ad Oriente

Staff

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  • Director: Osamu Dezaki
  • Screenplay: Osamu Tezuka/Tezuka Production Co., Ltd.
  • Character designs: Osamu Tezuka, Shinji Seya
  • Animation direction: Masaki Yoshimura, Akio Sugino, Junji Kobayashi, Hideaki Shimada
  • Music: Katsuhisa Hattori
  • Production: Tezuka Production Co., Ltd. / Nippon Television Network / Radiotelevisione Italiana

Voice cast

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References

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  1. ^ "AntonioGenna.net presenta: IL MONDO DEI DOPPIATORI - ZONA ANIMAZIONE: "In principio - Storie dalla Bibbia"". www.antoniogenna.net. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  2. ^ Schodt, Frederik L. The Astro Boy Essays. Stone Bridge Press, 2007.
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