Michiko to Hatchin



Hana Morenos is nine, miserable, and abused by her foster parents and step-siblings. She does all the chores, puts up with bullying and beatings, and daydreams about getting away.

...And then Michiko Malandro escapes from her high-security prison and crashes into Hana's life on a scooter. With nothing in common but a man named Hiroshi, who's Michiko's former lover and possibly Hana's father, the two embark on a wild trip through the countryside. Traveling through a South America/Brazil pastiche where everyone has Japanese given names, they encounter gangs, are pursued by the police, and learn to appreciate each other--just a little bit.

The show, released in 2008, is produced by studio Manglobe; it's Sayo Yamamoto's directing debut.

Tropes:

 * Abusive Parents: Or abusive step family, in Hana's case.
 * Absolute Cleavage: Michiko, frequently.
 * Adult Child: Michiko.
 * Aerith and Bob: Michiko, Hiroshi - Maria, Pedro... Also, Hatchin's actual name is "Hana", which can be both Japanese and Western.
 * Ambiguously Brown: Averted--Michiko is established as being from fictional Brazil.
 * Anime Accent Absence: Averted, since some characters have vaguely Latin-American accents.
 * Asshole Victim:  and to some degree.
 * : During the Distant Finale . She seems happy with   though.
 * Badass and Child Duo: a rare female version.
 * Barehanded Blade Block: In the bullfight episode.
 * Bare Your Midriff: Michiko likes to show off her tattoo that way.
 * Bifauxnen: Hana is androgynous enough to look like a boy.
 * Bilingual Bonus: Malandro means "Scoundrel" in Brazilian Portuguese.
 * Bishounen: Hiroshi.
 * Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Averted, since Michiko gets beaten up quite often.
 * Berserk Button: Don't call Atsuko "Jumbo" if you don't want to get hurt.
 * Book Ends: The cooking of omelettes.
 * Brand X
 * Camp Gay: Ivan.
 * Circus Brat: Rita.
 * Contrived Coincidence: Quite a few moments, usually involving Michiko spotting Hatchin.
 * Crapsack World
 * Dark-Skinned Blond: Atsuko
 * Distant Finale
 * Drunk On Milk: Hatchin at one points drinks some juice, which makes her very drunk.
 * Easy Amnesia: Lenine appears to suffer from that one.
 * Embarrassing Nickname: Michiko loves to call Atsuko "Jumbo" to annoy her.
 * Extreme Doormat: Hana to her abusive foster family
 * Flash Back: Lots of them.
 * Foe Yay: Michiko and Atsuko.
 * From the Mouths of Babes: Most depicted kids are quite adult in their reasoning.
 * Gangsterland: Although in this case it's a stand-in for Brazil not the USA.
 * Hey It's That Voice: Both Michiko and Hatchin are voiced by Japanese Celebrity Voice Actors.
 * In Michiko's case, she is voiced by Yoko Maki of The Grudge fame.
 * Hatchin is voiced by Suzuka Ohgo, who is Chiyo/Young Sayuri in Memoirs of a Geisha.
 * Hooker With a Heart of Gold: Pepe Lima is instead a Stripper With A Heart Of Gold
 * Honorifics: Which are apparently very important in Latin America.
 * Idiot Hero: Michiko, sort of. She isn't the brightest bulb in the box, but she makes up for it with lots of bravado and street smarts.
 * Important Haircut: Hatchin hacks off her Girlish Pigtails pretty shortly after joining up with Michiko.
 * Intrepid Reporter: Daniela Carneiro. Yes, he's a guy. He is extremely obnoxious, but.
 * I Was Quite a Looker: Michiko Menezes.
 * Jerk With a Heart of Jerk:
 * Les Yay: episode 16
 * Little Miss Badass: Hatchin all the way.
 * Looks Like Cesare: Shinsuke.
 * Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Michiko.
 * Memento MacGuffin: Hatchin's tattoo on her stomach, which is similar to Michiko's.
 * Name and Name
 * Nosebleed: Michiko gets one when she feels that she is close to Hiroshi.
 * And Hatchin gets one in the Distant Finale, when she figures out that.
 * Hiroshi gets one too in ep5. Although he got one naturally after being hit on his nose, he gets another when Michiko is close to him.
 * Now That's Using Your Teeth: Michiko, combining it with a Crowning Moment of Awesome.
 * Odd Couple: Michiko and Hatchin. Really.
 * ~Orphan's Plot Trinket~: The above-mentioned tattoos.
 * Parental Abandonment: Hatchin, but also Michiko when she was a kid.
 * Parental Favoritism: Hatchin's step-parents idolize their own kids and mistreat her. A lot.
 * Plucky Girl: Michiko. Try to stop her. Just try.
 * Precocious Crush: One episode is about Hatchin making a friend suffering from a Precocious Crush.
 * Psycho for Hire: Shinsuke.
 * Roof Hopping: On a motor scooter, no less.
 * Sick Episode: Episode 12. Michiko collapses while driving her scooter, and then tries to shrug off her fever by claiming she just has a very "hot body". The rest of the episode is about Hatchin taking care of her.
 * Slasher Smile: Satoshi
 * Smoking Is Cool
 * Shorter Means Smarter: Hatchin is considerably more rational and observant than the hot-headed, impulsive Michiko.
 * Soft Water
 * South of the Border
 * Spicy Latina: Michiko.
 * The Starscream:
 * Stern Chase
 * Stockholm Syndrome: In a more cynical view, this might be what causes Hatchin to bond with Michiko. Then again, anything would have been better than Hatchin's life with her foster family.
 * Stripperific: Most anything Michiko wears, which might not be the smartest move when you're on the run and want to avert attention.
 * Sunglasses At Night: Michiko and Atsuko.
 * Sympathetic Inspector Antagonist: Atsuko.
 * Take My Hand
 * Terrible Artist: Michiko, and how! She doesn't even realize she can't draw at all. Just like Luffy.
 * Tranquillizer Dart: Subverted. Michiko appears to be very resilient when hit by a dart from a tranquilizer gun. Twice.
 * Troubling Unchildlike Behaviour
 * Try Not to Die: Used almost ad verbatim.
 * Unlimited Wardrobe: Probably most of Michiko's and Hatchin's wear is stolen. But Atsuko also comes in several outfits.
 * Villain Protagonist: Michiko.
 * What Happened to The Mouse?: Several characters, but most importantly
 * never get an explanation.
 * Wholesome Crossdresser: Episode 17
 * Who Wears Short Shorts?: Michiko.
 * Wicked Stepmother
 * Witch Doctor: "Deus" is something between this and a Phony Psychic.
 * With My Hands Tied: Combined with the above mentioned Crowning Moment of Awesome.
 * Witch Doctor: "Deus" is something between this and a Phony Psychic.
 * With My Hands Tied: Combined with the above mentioned Crowning Moment of Awesome.