Chobits

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

Chobits is a manga and anime series by CLAMP that starts out as a Magical Girlfriend comedy and transitions to a Contemplate Our Navels debate on the relationship between humans and Persocoms, machines programmed to serve humans. It takes place many years after Angelic Layer, although the only Canon Immigrants are of the "dead with an impact" variety.

The main character of Chobits is Hideki Motosuwa, an Ordinary Cram School Student who lives in a Japan where almost everyone has his or her own "Persocom" to do common tasks, ranging from household chores to surfing the Internet. Hideki would very much like his own Persocom, but there's no way he can afford one...unless he finds one lying in the trash. Like all Persocoms, this one looks just like a cute girl except for the obligatory distinctive ears. He starts her up, only to find that she has no memory or info on her hard drive, and can initially only say the word "Chi." Who is "Chi," and why was she left out in the trash in the first place? Could Chi possibly be a "Chobit," a rumored brand of robots capable of sapience and real emotion?

After several episodes of Hideki helping Chi to adjust to the real world with comic results, the plot shifts in a more serious direction when it is implied that Chi may be developing feelings for Hideki. But is it actual feelings, or just programming? Hideki, despite his constant reminders to himself that she is only a machine, seems to have some degree of affection for her. He also learns that Persocoms can have unexpected effects on humans, hearing one story from his cram school teacher Takako Shimizu, whose husband rejected her in favor of his Persocom, his up-to-then housemate and best friend Shinbo eloping with said teacher out of sympathy, and another from baker Hiroyasu Ueda, who was the first to wed a Persocom. This happens despite having been warned by Minoru Kokubunji, a Persocom expert, "not to fall in love" with her. Meanwhile, Chi's backstory begins to gradually unravel... and Hideki finds that he may be falling in love with Chi...

Dark Horse Comics has re-released the series in an Omnibus version, with two volumes each containing half the series.

Compare with Kowarekake no Orgel.

Tropes used in Chobits include:
  • Abridged Series: Yup, there is one: See it here.
  • Accidental Pervert: Hideki. Very, very much (In the anime much more than in the manga).
  • Almost Kiss: Episode 20
  • Anticlimax: The anime version, at least.
  • Arc Words: "A person just for me..."
  • Artificial Gravity: Chi weighs significantly less when she's turned on, and it can't be entirely explained by the difference between dead-weight and live-weight.
    • She floats at one point.
  • Artificial Human: The Persocoms.
  • Beach Episode
  • Berserk Button: If you harm Chi, Hideki and Freya (while possessing Chi) will kick your ass. Badmouth Chi and Hideki will be very angry.
    • If you illegally try to access Zima, Dita will fry your brain. Literally.
  • Bodyguard Crush: Dita (bodyguard) for Zima (charge). At least after Chi apparently gives Persocoms true sapience in the anime, at least.
    • Only like that in the anime, in the manga her program just isn't executed which sounds more plausible regarding Zima already having feelings for Dita before that incident.
  • Broken Bird: Poor Takako has the tragic part down, but unlike most examples, she hides it behind her chipper demeanor. At least in class.
  • Call a Rabbit a Smeerp: To an extent. "Persocom" is simply the Japanese equivalent of the abbreviation "PC", but the English translation uses "Persocom" to exclusively refer to android-computers.
  • Canon Immigrant: Ichiro Mihara and Kaede Saito.
  • Can't Have Sex Ever: Chi's reset button is down there.
    • This is especially true with Hideki in the manga. In the final chapter, Freya informs him that if he and Chi ever became one, Chi will be rebooted and all of Chi's memories of Hideki will be erased completely.
    • In the manga only. In the anime, it's a case of If It's You It's Okay with The Person Just For Me.
  • Child Prodigy: Minoru.
  • Chivalrous Pervert: Again, Hideki is a pervert but doesn't really want to be one.
  • Chosen One: The One Just For Me who can bring a new age to the Persocoms, either happiness or something dreadful.
  • Continuity Nod: Some background Persocoms are modeled after characters from CLAMP's other works, especially Cardcaptor Sakura. (For an example, look in the back of volume 1 of the manga. There's a Persocom being advertised that looks like the Fiery card.)
    • Even more so Angelic Layer, the company that made Angels went on to make the first Persocoms. The game is even mentioned as being popular some time ago.
  • Conveniently an Orphan: "Didn't your parents object [to marrying a Persocom]?" "Both of my parents had passed away."
  • Costume Porn: Chi's outfits, especially in the artbooks.
  • Cute Machines: Shinbo's miniature Persocom, Sumomo.
  • Cute Mute: Chi, who initially can't talk.
  • The Cutie: Chi is unbelievably adorable. She's so adorable that you may die of cuteness.
  • Damsel in Distress/Big Damn Heroes: Subverted -- every time Chi is kidnapped or whatever, by the time Hideki is close to finding her, Chi Freya would have stomped their asses, but when Hideki shows up at the scene, Chi would fall into his arms, thank him for rescuing her, and FAINTS.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Kotoko
  • Did I Just Say That Out Loud?: This happens to Hideki quite a bit. He comments that it's because he's used to living on a farm where the only ones to overhear him are cows.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything?: Ueda's wife and her robo-Alzheimer's/dementia...
  • Dogged Nice Guy: Shinbo just kept pushing the issue. He wouldn't let it go no matter how much Takako reminded him of the barriers between them.
  • Elegant Gothic Lolita: Chi's and Freya's dresses.
  • Elopement: Shinbo and Takako Shimizu elope because her husband has rejected her for a Persocom.
  • Fan Service: Most notable at the beginning of the series, but declines to the point of nonexistence by the end as the series shifts into drama territory.
  • Flipping the Table: Hideki once did this when he was frustrated with his homework.
  • Foreshadowing: Many clues about what happens in the second half of the series are actually more apparent after one sees the ending and then rewatches the earlier episodes. Miss Shimizu asks Hideki if it's more fun being with a Persocom than a human just one episode before it's revealed her husband has rejected her for the one they bought.
  • Fun Size: Laptops like Sumomo and Kotoko are Fun Size Persocoms.
  • Genki Girl: Sumomo, with shades of Cloudcuckoolander as well.

Sumomo: Sumomo is programmed to dance when on standby!

  • Giving Someone the Pointer Finger: Chi points at people and things she learns. No one minds because she's too gosh darn cute.
  • Glomp: Chi does this a lot, especially at the start.
  • Good Old Robot: Hiroyasu Ueda's Persocom. He could transferred her memories to a new hard drive but refused because the transfer might have worked. He couldn't let go of any part of her.
  • Grail in the Garbage: What gets the whole plot going.
  • Gratuitous English: In at least one "On the Next..." in the Japanese version (with a strange, slurred Japanese accent that sounds like it's maybe trying to be an Italian accent). Though given the context, it might just be Hideki studying English.

Hideki: The word "parasol" is Italian. [1]

  • Gratuitous Japanese: Ueda's Persocom would say "Konnichiwa" in the English version.
  • Hadaka Apron: Episode 16.
  • Hot for Teacher: Shinbo eventually marries his cram school teacher.
  • Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Ueda looks to to be a good deal taller than Yumi, especially in the third recap episode's group shot, though in the closeup it's closer to One Head Taller.
    • Zima is over a foot taller than Dita, as well.
    • Chi's quite a bit shorter than Hideki too.
    • Shinbo and Sumomo. Literally.
    • Also Dragonfly and Kotoko.
  • I'd Tell You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You
  • I Have the High Ground: Zima and Dita. Chi also does this herself on numerous occasions.
  • Innocent Fanservice Girl: Having no memories also means she has No Nudity Taboo. Also she wears a Naked Apron without having any idea what it means, because she thinks it would make Hideki happy.
  • Kawaiiko: Sumomo is cute and cheerfully and says things like 'Wakey wakey exercises'
  • Little Miss Snarker: Kotoko, a snarky loli robot.
  • Magical Girlfriend
  • Meido
  • Misplaced Kindergarten Teacher: Takako Shimizu; she actually wanted to be a kindergarten teacher, but her husband thought there was more money in teaching older students. Of course, he then threw her out in favor of the Persocom...
  • Nice Guy: Hideki, sort of. He's friendly and mild mannered but being a Large Ham scares some people off. He's only overtly bothered by his girlfriend-less virgin status when other characters talk about how tragic it is that "such a good guy can't find himself a girlfriend".
  • Nosebleed: Hideki is a frequent sufferer of these in the anime.
  • No Social Skills: Chi, having no memory, has no initial awareness of etiquette.
  • Older Than They Look: Hiroyasu Ueda.
  • The One With...: other than the last, each episode of the anime is titled Chi ___ or, for the recaps, [Character] and [Character] chat.
  • Ordinary High School Student: Hideki's a guy with a part time job, cram school classes, and a Magical Girlfriend robot who designated him her Chosen One.
  • Pimped-Out Dress: When Chi and Dark Chi see each other during the story, they are wearing various fancy dresses, especially on Dark Chi's part. Even more appear in the Omake artwork.
  • Pinocchio Syndrome
  • Power Glows: Chii begins glowing brightly whenever she is levitating, doing intense introspection, and especially when she is threatened in any way. If she is glowing while looking at you angrily, it is already too late to run away.
  • Pretty in Mink: One of Dark Chi's dresses, at least in the manga.
  • Rapunzel Hair: With an odd habit of flying around of its own volition (in the manga.)
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: Sumomo and Kotoko definitely have this going on.
  • Replacement Goldfish: A big part of the series: 'since It is not a person, It can be a person's dream.' Persocoms can be molded to whatever a human wants, up to and including dead relatives. The drama of the later half of the series is a debate on whether or not Persocoms can truly replace others, or if they can truly be replaced themselves.
    • Yuzuki, Minoru's Persocom, for instance was based on his dead sister and he is extremely protective of her.
    • The manager of Tirol refused to replace his Persocom's hard-drive when her memory was slowly shorting out and when it was gone completely refused to find a replacement Persocom because he believed no replacement could be found.
    • The Town With No People's premise is humans replacing the other humans in their lives with Persocoms. That's why its called' the town with no people'.
  • Ridiculously-Human Robots: Debated -- one robot explicitly states in the manga that even the Chobits of legend do not "feel" because they are only machines, after all. But she could be lying...
  • Robo-Family: Chi/Elda with her sister Freya.
  • Robosexual: A source of drama in the series is humans falling in love with and being sexually attracted to Persocoms.
  • Robot Girl:
  • Robot Maid: Yusoki even dresses the part.
  • Rule of Cute: Lots of stuff Sumomo does, Shinbo programmed her that way.
  • Running Gag: Hideki scaring Sumomo with his overblown reactions. "Master, he's scary!"
    • Also Chi mimicking Hideki's body language and mannerisms, and repeating words she hears, usually the obscene or embarrassing ones.
      • This is an okazu. Is she an okazu too?
    • Other characters mentioning that Hideki is a virgin.
  • Seinen
  • Sexy Mentor: Takako Shimizu, of the Hot Schoolteacher type.
  • Sexy Santa Dress: Chi wears one in an Omake pic in the Manga.
  • Shallow Love Interest: Chi, to a degree, because she is entirely dependent on Hideki to relearn what she forgot.
  • Show Within a Show: A City Without People, a manga drawn by Chitose Hanging a Lampshade on all of the problems that Persocoms are causing and Foreshadowing key plot points.
  • Spell My Name with an "S": Chi or Chii? Doesn't help that both are basically official, the former for the manga and the latter for the anime.
  • Super Prototype: Elda and Freya
  • Third Person Person: Sumomo and Chi both do this.
  • "Three Laws"-Compliant: Averted, mentioned a little near the ending:

Why call them Persocoms? Why not just call them "Robots"?
Ah... my husband didn't want them to be bound by the Three Laws of Robotics.

    • Flat out inverted with Kojima (AKA Dragonfly). Not only does she telepathically restrain him with the cables attached to her (which would have been pushing the absolute limits of tolerance for a "Three Laws Compliant" robot), but she then proceeds to knock him unconscious, ruining his house in the process and spraying shards of broken glass everywhere.
  • Trauma Swing
  • Twist Ending: The last anime episode uses a viewer's knowledge of the manga ending to create shocking, then moving twists. Unlike the filler, the last episode was written by Ohkawa herself however.
  • Two Siblings in One: Chi and Freya.
  • Unusual Ears: Persocoms have odd metal constructs around the ear area that contain various cables; this is the only visual difference they have from humans. The newest models that go on sale about midway through the story have normal human-like ears, however.
  • Verbal Tic Name: Chi.
  • What Do You Mean It's Not for Kids?: In-Universe. The storybooks Chi reads are incredibly profound for something seemingly aimed at children!
  • What Is This Thing You Call Love?: Chi has to figure out what love means before she can choose "the one for me and only me".
  • What Measure Is a Humanoid?: "WILL YOU STOP TALKING ABOUT HER LIKE SHE'S A MACHINE?! CHI HAS A NAME! DON'T LUMP HER IN WITH ALL THE REST!!" Originally said by Ueda, when asked about his deceased wife. Hideki did not mean to quote Ueda's words on purpose and only realized it after he said them and also understood the implications of these words.
  • You ALL Share My Story: Let's plot it out shall we?
    • Hideki finds Chi in the trash.
    • Chi was created by Chitose's husband. Chitose is also Hideki's landlady, who is monitoring movement in the area.
    • Zima and Dita are watching out for a possible End of the World as We Know It, which can be caused by Chi...
    • Who works for Ueda at Tirol, replacing a Persocom he was married to, and another girl who now works with Hideki.
    • And Hideki is doing cram school with Takako and Shinbo, and learning about Persocom obsession on the side.
    • Finally, Minoru is searching for Chi's background.
  • Zettai Ryouiki: Kotoko wears them in addition to Twin Tails. She's also the only known Persocom to snark at her owner.
    • Freya and Elda too in a pic, possibly just to extend the color scheme and/or add Moe.
  1. ↑ Actually, it's French. The Italian word is "parasole".
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