PUFFY -- Susume Nonsense（すすめナンセンス）

 

Up until last week, the ending theme for "Chibi Maruko-chan"（ちびまる子ちゃん）that we've been seeing in the end credits has been Keisuke Kuwata's（桑田佳祐）summery "Hyaku-man Nen no Shiawase!!" （100万年の幸せ!!）. I wondered then how far back we were in the episodes for the long-running anime as they were run on TV Japan. Well, I found out that "Hyaku-man Nen no Shiawase!!" was played between April 2012 and October 2017. 

(Sorry but the video has been taken down)

I guess we here in Toronto are three years behind since tonight a few hours ago, we got a look-see at the next ending credit sequence following Kuwata, and this time around it's good ol' PUFFY. It's been two years since I've had Ami and Yumi back aboard "Kayo Kyoku Plus", so welcome them back.

Instead of the O-hanami picnic setting with the Southern all Stars leader, the ending credits have gone for the happily wacky adventure involving Maruko and her best buddy Tamae with PUFFY popping up here and there. The ending theme is "Susume Nonsense" which could mean either "Recommended Nonsense" or "Go Ahead, Nonsense". In any case, it seems like the perfect combination of happy PUFFY pop-rock and Chibi Maruko-chan music with words by the late Momoko Sakura（さくらももこ）, the creator of the original "Chibi Maruko-chan" manga, and music by Tetsuro Oda（織田哲郎）.

"Susume Nonsense" started its run on "Chibi Maruko-chan" from October 2017 but it didn't get its digital download single release until December 2018, and as of this date, it's their most recent single. To further show how far behind we viewers in Canada are, another ending theme, and I assume, ending credits sequence have already popped up from last October. Still, it's refreshing to get a new song and sequence after five years with Kuwata.