Superbook (1981 TV series)


Superbook, also known as Animated Parent and Child Theatre, is a Japanese Christian anime television series from 1981, initially produced by Tatsunoko Productions for TV Tokyo in Japan in conjunction with the Christian Broadcasting Network in the United States. The Japanese opening song is "The TimeBook Song" by Ryō Miyauchi and the Japanese ending song is "My Fun Friends" by Fusako Fujimoto. The English opening song of the first season of the 1981 edition of Superbook is "Oh Superbook" by Stephan Peppos and the English ending song is "Su-su-super" by Stephan Peppos.
The series chronicles the events of the Bible's Old and New Testaments in its 52-episode run. The first 26 episodes aired from October 9, 1981, to March 29, 1982 in Japan, followed by a second season called Superbook II: In Search for Ruffles and Return to the 20th Century with 26 episodes from April 4 to September 26, 1983. The Japanese opening song is "Personal Computer Travel Detective Team by Ritsuko Ōwada. The Japanese ending song is "Lyndon Bell: Song of the Wind" by Yumi Okuhata, and the English opening song of "Superbook II: In Search For Ruffles And Return To The 20th Century" is "Superbook II" by Stephan Peppos. Its instrumental version serves the ending theme. Between both series in the first run was the companion series The Flying House.
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Overview

The 1981 edition of Superbook begins at the home of a young boy named Christopher "Chris" Peeper, who discovers the ancient Bible named Superbook that can speak and send him, his friend Joy and his clockwork toy figure named Gizmo the Crusader Robot back in time during the events of the Old and New Testaments. The second season, Superbook II: In Search for Ruffles and Return to the 20th Century, takes place two years after the first season, where Superbook falls onto a computer, giving anybody the ability to see into the past from Christopher's home via the monitor. Ruffles, his poodle, has managed to get lost in time, prompting Gizmo and Christopher's little brother, Uriah "Uri" Peeper, to search for Ruffles. While Chris and Joy keep watch and control of the computer from the present, Gizmo and Uri experience the stories from the Old Testament solely, later in episode 25, Gizmo and Uri have found Ruffles at last. In episodes 25 and 26, Ken keeps watch and fixes the problem on the computer and fixes the problem for Gizmo from the present. Chris and Joy experience the two stories from the Old Testament with Gizmo and Uri.

Cast and characters

  • Christopher "Chris" Peeper : The main hero of the series, who is Professor Peeper's son and Gizmo's former owner.
  • Joy : Chris's next-door neighbor and best friend.
  • Gizmo the Crusading Robot : The name of two characters, depending on the season. In the 1st season, he is Chris's advanced wind-up toy robot figure who can become a real-life robot. In the second season, Gizmo becomes a real-life sized robot built by Uri's father.
  • Uriah "Uri" Peeper : Chris's little brother and Gizmo's current owner.
  • Professor Frederick "Fred" Peeper : An archaeologist and Chris's father.
  • Phoebe Peeper : Chris's mother.
  • Ken Peeper: who works the computer and later he fixes the problem.
  • Ruffles in Japanese: Chris and Uri's pet Yorkshire Terrier.
  • Superbook : An ancient Bible that takes Chris, Joy, Gizmo and Uri back to the Old and New Testament periods or eras.
  • Narrator : who narrates the title card, and the story.

VHS/DVD releases

Superbook Season I and Season II were released on various VHS volumes by Tyndale Entertainment. The entire series was available over 26 VHS volumes. Superbook was released for the first time on DVD late 2005 to early 2006. The three DVD volumes features 4 episodes each from Season I.
As in July 2025, the 1981 edition of Superbook is featured on the Yippee TV streaming service.

Multilanguage list

  • Arabic: الكتاب الفائق
  • Bulgarian: Книга на книгите
  • Chinese :親子劇場/PC 旅行侦探
  • Filipino: Superbook
  • Finnish: Superkirja
  • French: SuperLivre
  • Korean: 성경만화 슈퍼북
  • German: Superbuch
  • Hungarian: Könyvek könyve
  • Indonesian: Superbook
  • Italian: Superbook
  • Polish: Superksięga
  • Portuguese: Superbook
  • Romanian: Cartea Cărților
  • Russian: Суперкнига
  • Spanish: Superlibro
  • Ukrainian: Суперкнига