Lady!!

is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Youko Hanabusa. It was published by Akita Shoten in the ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Hitomi Comics'' from 1987 to 1993 and collected in 12 tankoubon volumes. The manga series was adapted into two anime television series, entitled, ''Lady Lady!!'' and its sequel ''Hello! Lady Lynn'', produced by Toei Animation.

The first season of the anime series, entitled consists of 21 episodes and was aired on Wednesdays from October 21, 1987 to March 23, 1988 on TBS.

Youko later made two sequels, ''Lady Lynn!!'' (レディ リン!) and the dōjinshi ''Lynn no Kodomotachi & Peter Pan'' (リンのこどもたち&ぴぃたぁぱん). In Italy it was published with the original title by Goen from February 2011 to January 2013.

Summary

Young Lynn and her mother travel from Japan to meet Lynn's father, The Viscount of Marble, who lives in England. On their way to the Marble Mansion, Lynn and her mother get into a tragic car accident in which Lynn's mother died. When Lynn wakes up in the hospital, the truth about her mother's death is kept as a secret from her since her father cannot bear to bring her such grief.

Soon after Lynn moves with her father to The Marble Mansion where she encounters a miscellaneous cast of servants, most of who are charmed by Lynn's adorableness. Lynn also finds out that she is not the only child of The Viscount of Marble – she meets her elder half-sister Sarah, whose mother has also died. At first Sarah seems cold and distant towards her.

After a string of events, the two sisters finally form a strong bond. Then problems arise with the arrival of the scheming Waverleys who take it upon themselves to run the household in The Marble Mansion while The Viscount of Marble is away. The motherless little girl tries to accommodate to the high society life and get the approval of the nobility. Her greatest wish is to become what her mother hoped her to be – a true Lady.

Much later, because of unpaid debts, the Russels lose The Marble Mansion to the bank. Sarah and Lynn are put into different homes. Nevertheless, Lynn never gives up and finally becomes a lady.

Characters

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:Lynn is a cheerful and innocent 5-year-old Anglo-Japanese girl who wishes to be accepted by her new family. She is naïve yet has an optimistic personality. She is the youngest daughter of The Viscount of Marble George Russell and Misuzu Midorikawa. Though she is half-British and half-Japanese, her appearance is predominantly English, especially having a wavy blonde hair. Hailing from Japan, her name was , when she was still living there with her mother and her grandparents. Her name ''Lynn'' is sometimes spelled as Rin to keep her Japanese ancestry.
:Her mother was killed from a car accident while protecting Lynn and wasn't told the truth until Magdalene Waverley coldly told her about it. She holds her mother's keepsake, the Lady's Key and promised that she'll persevere to become a true Lady. Lynn loves and cares for her father and sister very much that she is willing to make sacrifices even her own happiness just for their sake. She is good at horse riding, under the tutelage of Arthur and Edward and their steed Alexandra who is particularly fond of her. She has a pet kitten named Queen.
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:Sarah is Lynn's elder half-sister. She is the eldest daughter of The Viscount of Marble George Russell and Lady Frances Russell. She is 5 years elder than Lynn. Cold and distant at their first meeting, Sarah is actually kind and caring. Gradually, she cherishes Lynn as if she is her own younger sister, spurred on by their same state of being motherless, and defends her from the abuses of the Waverleys.
:Unlike Lynn, Sarah doesn't have any memory of her mother because she died when Sarah was very young. Her mother's only keepsake is the flute and the musical score. She is very good at painting and an excellent flutist. Sarah has feelings for Arthur.
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:Arthur is the eldest son of the noble Brighton family. He is Edward's elder brother. Calm, reserved and charming, Arthur is an excellent equestrian, and together with his noble steed Alexandra, wins a competition hosted by the equestrian club in the course of the series. He and Sarah have been friends long before Lynn arrived in England.
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:Edward is the youngest son of the noble Brighton family. He is Arthur's younger brother. He is Energetic and playful, and very protective of Lynn and would do anything for her sake. Though he can ride horses like his brother, he cannot ride Alexandra since the latter refuses to be ridden on by anyone except Arthur and Lynn. Later in the series, Edward manages to ride on Alexandra to stop Lynn from going back to Japan.
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:George is The Viscount of Marble and Sarah and Lynn's father. He is gentle and kind, he loves his children dearly and will do anything for their sakes. He is away on business trips a lot in order to pay back the money he owed to the bank for his businesses, with The Marble Mansion as the collateral. George works hard to the point of endangering his health. He is pressured by his father, The Duke of Woburn, to marry Magdalene Waverley to pay off his debts.
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:Frances was the first wife of The Viscount of Marble and Sarah's mother. She has a kind and gentle personality and cares her loved ones very much. She died when Sarah was very young so Sarah does not have any memory of her. She and George met in the university and they rode horses together with their friends. She is also an excellent flutist. Her portrait hangs in the Marble Mansion. Throughout the series, she is seen as the ideal Lady, both by Sarah and Lynn.
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:Misuzu is Lynn's mother. She met George when he was in Japan for a business trip. She also has a similar personality as his late wife and a reason why he chose her. She was killed from a tragic car accident while protecting Lynn from harm shortly after their arrival in England. Her wish for Lynn is to become a true Lady.
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:Magdalene is Sarah and Lynn's almost stepmother. Together with her children, Thomas and Mary, they play as the antagonist
*:Courtesy of Warner Pioneer

Ending Theme
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*:Lyrics by Masumi Kawamura
*:Composition and arrangement by Katsuhisa Hattori
*:Performed by Shonentai
*:Courtesy of Warner Pioneer

Insert Theme
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*:Lyrics by Takashi Matsumoto
*:Composition by Kazuo Zaitsu
*:Arrangement by Akira Nishihira
*:Performed by Nami Shimada
*:Courtesy of Columbia Records

Staff

*Director: Hiroshi Shidara
*Producer: Kazuo Yokoyama, Hiromi Seki, Hiroshi Inoue
*Episode Director: Toshihiko Arisako, Yasuo Yamayoshi
*Character Design: Kazuhiro Ochi
*Art Design: Takao Sawada
*Storyline: Tomoko Konparu
*Planning: Hiromi Seki, Kazuo Yokoyama
*Production Manager: Yoshiro Sugawara
*Music: Kōhei Tanaka
*Production Company: Toei Animation Co., Ltd., TBS

Home video

A DVD version was released in 2012.

Reception

The manga was described as a combination of "Tears, tenderness and frills" while the series was said to be "overflowed by emotional moments".

References

External links

Manga
*Author's official website
リンのマーブル館

*Milly un giorno dopo l'altro* Lady!! di Youko Hanabusa *Shoujo Manga Outline*

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Anime
*Toei Animation's official website
Lady Lady!!

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{{Toei Animation films 1980s

1987 anime television series debuts
1987 manga
1988 Japanese television series endings
Akita Shoten manga
Anime and manga set in the United Kingdom
Anime series based on manga
Historical anime and manga
Shōjo manga
Toei Animation films
Toei Animation television
TBS Television (Japan) original programming
Television shows set in England
Television shows set in London
Comics set in London
Comics set in England