Ocha-Ken

Ocha-Ken (お茶犬) means in Japanese "tea puppy" or "tea dog". They are colorful puppies, most of them with leaves for ears, representing "tea leaves". They were first introduced as toys released by Sega Toys. Later, due to the popularity, an animated series was made based on the Ocha-Ken.

Ocha-Ken
DVD cover of Ocha-ken: Ryokutto Monogatari
お茶犬
Anime television series
Ocha-ken: Chokotto Monogatari
StudioTeahouse
Original networkKids Station
English networkTVB (China)
Original run October 6, 2003 – March 29, 2004
Episodes26
Anime television series
Ocha-ken: Hotto Monogatari
Directed byGreen Hillow
Produced byT.A
StudioTeahouse
Licensed byMTO Games
Original networkKids Station
Original run January 16, 2006 – March 31, 2023
Episodes128
Anime television series
Ocha-ken: Ryokutto Monogatari
Music byPRESENTDAY Co, Ltd.
StudioTeahouse
Original networkNintendo DS
Original run November 22, 2008 – February 21, 2009
Episodes13

Characters

Dogs
Ryoku
Ryoku is the green Ocha-Ken with green leaves for ears. Most of the time, Ryoku is seen sleeping. His nose has a special tendency to smell the aroma of green tea, which Ryoku loves to drink. His tea is indeed green tea, 緑茶 (ryokucha).
Aru
Aru is the red Ocha-Ken with red leaves for ears. A very adventurous dog, he wants to be a superhero as in television, even going so far as to wear a cape. However, most of his attempts do not turn out the way he wanted them to. His tea is black tea, 紅茶 (koucha).
Ron
Ron is the black Ocha-Ken with gold leaves for ears. The most mysterious of the Ocha-Ken, he seems to have the ability to do things no one else can. For example, he could predict rainfall. His tea is oolong (Wulong) tea, 烏龍茶 (u-roncha).
Hana
Hana is the pink Ocha-Ken with purple leaves and flowers for ears. The only female Ocha-Ken in the group, she loves flowers and is usually in a good mood. Her tea is herbal tea, ハーブ茶 (ha-bucha).
Chai
Chai is the pale cream-colored Ocha-Ken with yellow leaves for ears. The troublemaker of the group, he can be seen doing silly things, such as jumping into tofu, which he mistook for pudding. His tea is Indian Chai, チャイ (chai).
Cafe
Cafe is the dark brown Ocha-Ken with coffee beans for ears. Being very different from the other Ocha-Ken, Cafe was visibly upset at first, but he eventually got over it. His tea is actually not a tea at all, but coffee, コーヒー (ko-hi-)
Muha
Muha is the gold Ocha-Ken with brown grains for ears. He is hyperenergetic and extremely active. He can be seen running around while the other Ocha-Ken are tired. His tea is barley tea, 麦茶 (mugicha).

Cats
Sakura
Sakura is the pink Ocha-neko, a romantist. Likes being dramatic. Apparently has a crush on somebody. Her tea is cherry tea, 桜桃 [literally cherry tree-peach] (sakuranbou).
Ran
Ran is the blue Ocha-neko, a calm and quiet sort. She is very tolerant and has never been sighted angry. Likes being clean. Her tea is lavender tea, ラベンダー (rabenda-).
Min
Min is the yellow Ocha-neko, a polite and popular cat, surrounded by friends. Her tea is jasmine tea, ジャスミン (jasumin).
So
So is the aquamarine Ocha-neko with tan spots, a cleanly cat loving cleaning. She also takes lots care of keeping in health. Her tea is soba tea, 蕎麦 (soba).

Mini dogs
Ruu
The mini type of the black tea Ocha-Ken.
Midori
The mini type of the green tea Ocha-Ken.
Fan
The mini type of the oolong tea Ocha-Ken

Animated Series

The Ocha-Ken animated series was aimed at a younger audience. There are 26 episodes, approximately 3½ minutes long, and include a short story and a lesson.

Toys

The Ocha-Ken toys were the original idea of the tea puppies. They are tea-scented and in the first year of its release, 400,000 of the Ocha-Ken toys were sold. They were released by Sega Toys.

Video games

Game Boy Advance
  • Ochaken no Heya released December 19, 2003. Similar to Nintendogs, though this came out before.
  • Ocha-Ken Kururin: Honwaka Puzzle de Hottoshiyo- released October 28, 2004 by MTO. This is a puzzle game featuring the Ocha-Ken, and Ocha-Neko.
  • Ocha-Ken no Yumebouken released April 28, 2005 by MTO. In this action game, you control the Ocha-Ken, to go and gather balloons. You can collect parts to make your own Ocha-Ken.
  • Ochaken no Boukenjima released December 22, 2005.

Nintendo DS
  • Ocha-Ken no Heya DS released April 27, 2006 by MTO. This is a Nintendogs-like game, but instead you play with the Ocha-Ken. By playing mini-games, you can collect parts to make and design your own room. This game got localized to America and Europe under the titles Petz Dogz 2 in America, and Dogz 2 in Europe.
  • Ochaken no Heya DS2 released January 18, 2007. Another similar to the first.
  • Ochaken no Daibouken - Honwaku Yumemiru Sekai Ryoukou released December 20, 2007
  • Ochaken no Heya DS3 released May 22, 2008.
  • Ochaken no Heya DS4 was slated to come out in November 2009.

Nintendo 3DS
  • Ochaken to Itsumo Nakayoshi, a virtual pet game from Nippon Columbia, released December 1, 2011.[1]

Arcade

References
  1. "お茶犬といつもなかよし". ニンテンドー3DS 任天堂. Nintendo. 2011-12-01.
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