Cinnamoroll

Cinnamoroll (Japanese: シナモロール, Hepburn: Shinamorōru) is a character series created by Sanrio in 2001, with character designs from Miyuki Okumura. The main character, Cinnamon, is a white puppy with long ears, blue eyes, pink cheeks, and a plump and curly tail that resembles a cinnamon roll. He starred in his own manga series, an anime movie and various animation shorts.

In its initial run, the series expanded into two official side series: Cinnamoangels (シナモエンジェルス, Shinamoenjerusu) in 2005, which focuses on Azuki, Mocha and Chiffon and Lloromannic (ルロロマニック, Ruroromanikku) in 2007, which focuses on both Berry and Cherry.

Story

One day, while the owner of Café Cinnamon was admiring the sky, a tiny white puppy came floating by, looking just like a small, fluffy cloud. She thought, "Maybe he caught a whiff of the cinnamon rolls and came to check them out." The owner of the café was correct. The curious little puppy took a shine to the café owner and her delicious cinnamon rolls, so he decided to stay. Since his tail was plump and curled up like a cinnamon roll, she decided to call him Cinnamon. Cinnamon became instantly popular with customers and soon became Café Cinnamon's official mascot. Now, when he is not napping on the café terrace, Cinnamon flies around the town looking for fun and new adventures with his friends Chiffon, Mocha, Espresso, Cappuccino, and Little Milk.^[1]

Characters

Cinnamoroll/Cinnamon (シナモン, Shinamon)

Voiced by: Taeko Kawata

Cinnamon (Born March 6) is a male white and chubby puppy with long ears that enables him to fly. He has blue eyes, pink cheeks and a plump and curly tail that resembles a cinnamon roll.^[1] The owner of Cafe Cinnamon, a little cafe, looked up and saw a white puppy floating out of the sky like a fluffy cloud. The owner thought that he came because he smelled her cinnamon rolls. The puppy has a curly tail just like a cinnamon roll, so she called him Cinnamon. Cinnamon became instantly popular with customers and soon became Café Cinnamon's official mascot. Now, when he is not napping on the café terrace, Cinnamon flies around the town looking for fun and new adventures with his friends.

Cappuccino (カプチーノ, Kapuchīno)

Voiced by: Rei Sakuma

Cappuccino (Born June 27) is a male puppy living in the house with the red roof across the street from Cafe Cinnamon. He likes to go at his own pace, eat a lot, and take lots of naps. Cappuccino is easy to recognize by his mouth, which is just like a cup of cappuccino and likes eating, but his favorite thing of all is napping. He is the glutton of the bunch and very chubby. He's also loves bug catching which is his favorite activity.

Chiffon (シフォン, Shifon)

Voiced by: Ikue Ōtani

Chiffon (Born January 14) is a female puppy living right by a lush, green park and is the most energetic of the pups. Chiffon inspires her friends and doesn't sweat the small stuff. Her ears, which are fluffy like a chiffon cake, are her standout feature. She is also a Tomboy and she loves to play tennis. She has a sensitive side when it comes to animals. She loves sports and dreams of winning a gold medal at the Olympics one day. Cinnamoroll has a crush on her and is also an animal lover. Alongside Mocha and Azuki, they make up the three-girl idol group Cinnamonangels. Chiffon's ear and tail color are usually brown, though sometimes it's coloured orange as seen in the manga and very rarely pink.

Espresso (エスプレッソ, Esupuresso)

Voiced by: Ryoko Shiraishi

Espresso (Born December 4) is a male puppy living near the park in the biggest house around. Espresso is very intelligent and well-bred, but he gets lonely and whines sometimes. He's known for his distinguished Mozart hairstyle. His owner is a famous actress, and his dad is a well-known movie director. Espresso is especially good at drawing, painting and music. But he can’t sleep without his favorite blanket which makes him whine and cry like a sad puppy so very much. In the Manga, He wears a red or green Beret and red or green Kerchief.

Mocha (モカ, Moka)

Voiced by: Yumi Kakazu

Mocha (Born February 20) is a female puppy living in a white house on top of a hill. She's a stylish chatterbox and also the "big sister" of the bunch, always looking out for others. Mocha is known for her silky chocolate-brown fur and her pink bows with flowers. She has a crush on Cinnamoroll and loves fashion and getting dressed up but doesn’t like bell peppers or bugs. She is the girly girl of the group. In the Manga, Mocha's fur color is light brown and she is seen wearing different hair accessories besides her pink flowers. Alongside Chiffon and Azuki, they make up the three-girl idol group Cinnamoangels.

Milk (みるく, Miruku)

Voiced by: Ikue Ōtani

Milk (Born February 4) is a baby male pup living close to the park in a house with a chimney. The smallest and youngest of the pups, he likes being cuddled and will whine and cry if he doesn't have his favorite pacifier. Milk can be recognized by his blue Pacifier and the single curl of baby hair on top of his head. He can get spoiled sometimes. He wants to be just like Cinnamoroll when he grows up. His pacifier is his most prized possession, and he’s skilled at gulping down large quantities of milk. Milk can't talk so the only words he can say are "Ba-Boo".

Cornet (コルネ, Korune)

Cornet is a unicorn kid who lives in the sky above the clouds. His horn is shaped like an ice cream cone.

Coco (ココ, Koko)

Coco (Born July 25) is baby male pup who wears a red scarf around his neck. He along with his twin brother Nuts were rescued by Cinnamoroll when a white Stork got shocked by lightning during a thunderstorm, causing the bag to fall from its beak. Cinnamon, quickly flew down to catch the bag that the stork was carrying. By the time Cinnamon landed on the ground. He opened the bag to reveal that two newborn puppies were inside. Cinnamon then carried Coco and Nuts to Cafe Cinnamon to give them a new home. Coco's fur color is light brown and has a white spot on his mouth like his big brother Cappuccino and his twin brother Nuts. Coco and his brother Nuts both have different style ears. Coco and Nuts both appear in the 5th volume of the manga, where Cinnamon babysits the two while Cappuccino is away.

Nuts (ナッツ, Nattsu)

Nuts (Born July 25) is a baby male pup who wears a blue scarf around his neck. He is a more curious then his brother Coco and is often seen sleeping. Nut's Fur color is the same as Coco's fur color. Nuts along with his twin brother Coco appear in the 5th volume of the manga, where Cinnamon babysits the two while Cappuccino is away.

Poron (ポロン)

Poron is a female puppy who wears a blue bow on her head and owns a time compass which helps her on her Journey with Cinnamoroll. She is the third female friend of Cinnamoroll. She is a time traveler and one given day she dropped out of the sky on Cinnamoroll’s fluffy head. They became friends and go on adventures with Cornet The Unicorn. She was first introduced on Cinnamoroll's Japanese Twitter in April 2014. Her ears resemble cloud and her tail also resembles an angel wing.

Azuki (アズキ, Azuki)

Voiced by: Masako Okōchi

Azuki (Born September 25) is a female puppy who dreams to become an idol. She is ladylike but sometimes a little bit off in terms of personality. She is in charge of the Cinnamoangels’ manners, fortune-telling and also practices calligraphy and flower arrangement in hopes of becoming a true Japanese lady.

Berry (べリー, Berī)

Voiced by: Kōki Miyata (Onegai♪My Melody Kirara★)

Berry (Born June 6) is the male demon with Ram Horns and black bat wings, who has the ability to transform into a more devilish form; his ram horns turn into devil's horns, gold eyes, grows sharp fangs, changes colors from medium-grey to dark-black, skeleton wings, sharp talon-like claws, and his voice changes. He seems to have the talent of making potions. Both Berry & Cherry would go through their magic mirror to enter into the human world to play tricks on children while they sleep. The Duo fear daytime and would hide in the closet or drawers, if they don't make it home in time until night returns and they are friends with a bat, a magical lantern and a Jack O' Lantern. Berry serves as narrators in the anime Onegai♪My Melody Kirara★, alongside Cherry.

Cherry (チェリー, Cherī)

Voiced by: Fujiko Takimoto (Onegai♪My Melody Kirara★)

Cherry (Born September 9) is a female demon and Berry's partner-in-crime; but accidentally used a jar of salt that had its label covered by another saying "sugar". When Cherry transforms into her devilish form, her light-black closed bat wing ears change into dark-black opened bat wings, her black eyes into fandango, her top hat disappears, her teeth into fangs, and her voice changes. Cherry loves to play jokes on Berry. Cherry also has a crush on Espresso. Both Berry & Cherry would go through their magic mirror to enter into the human world to play tricks on children while they sleep. The Duo fear daytime and would hide in the closet or drawers, if they don't make it home in time until night returns and they are friends with a bat, a magical lantern and a Jack O' Lantern. Cherry serves as narrators in the anime Onegai♪My Melody Kirara★, alongside Berry.

Rename

When he was first created by Sanrio in 2001, he was called Baby Cinnamon. A year later he was "renamed" Cinnamoroll, to remedy any problems with the registration of the mark overseas, however he is now called in both ways, but also more simply Cinnamon. As of 2007, Cinnamoroll's original name "Baby Cinnamon" is no longer being used by Sanrio and is officially called "Cinnamoroll". In Japan, he is still named "Cinnamoroll" but he is mostly called "Cinnamon".

Media

Anime

A movie based on the character titled Cinnamon The Movie (シナモン The Movie, Shinamon THE MOVIE) was produced by Madhouse Studios and was released in Japan on December 22, 2007. The movie is directed by Gisaburō Sugii (Night on the Galactic Railroad) and written by Mari Okada (Toradora!, Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans).

Other appearances

In the 2007, stop-motion series "Hello Kitty Stump Village". Cinnamoroll is one of the main characters next to Hello Kitty, My Melody, Pom Pom Purin, and Badtz-Maru. In the 2008, animated CGI TV series The Adventures of Hello Kitty & Friends Cinnamoroll is a minor character, and debuts in an episode called "Cinnamoroll Cafe" where he is building his own cafe. But, is to shy to ask for help.

Video games

Cinnamoroll quickly became the star of video games. There are four video games that features him and his friends. The earliest video games were "Cinnamoroll Koko ni Iruyo" which was released in Japan in 2003, and "Cinnamoroll FuwaFuwa Daibouken" which was released in Japan in 2005 which were only for the Game Boy Advance. Nintendo also made two Nintendo DS games called "Cinnamoroll: Ohanashi shiyo! - Kira Kira DE Kore Cafe" made in 2006, and a Pin Ball game called "Cinnamoroll: Kurukuru Sweets Paradise" made in 2007. He also made appearances in Hello Kitty games like Hello Kitty: Big City Dreams, Hello Kitty Birthday Adventures for the DS and Hello Kitty Seasons on the Wii. Cinnamoroll's friends also appear in certain areas in Hello Kitty Seasons. Cinnamoroll also appears in Sanrio's first and only Massively multiplayer online role-playing game called Hello Kitty Online as a NPC in certain special quests. The Cinnamoangels also made cameo appearances in Hello Kitty Online as statues in London along. While Cinnamoroll's friend Mocha and Chiffon and can be seen as one of the emoticons in a Cinnamoroll themed guild. Cinnamoroll also shows up in "Hello Kitty World" for the Android and iPhone as one of the characters you unlock once you add a new attraction when you reach a certain level. Cinnamoroll is also one of the racers in "Hello Kitty Kruisers" which is available for the Android,iPhone and Wii U.

Manga

A five volume manga of the series, titled Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll (ふわふわ♥シナモン, Fuwafuwa ♥ shinamon) was written by Chisato Seki and illustrated by Yumi Tsukirino. It was published in Japan from 2005 to 2008 by Shogakukan, serialized in the monthly magazine Pucchigumi. In 2008, three special volumes of the manga came out in Japan called "Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll Color Edition" (カラー版 ふわふわ♥シナモン Karāban Fuwafuwa Shinamon) which had all the pages for each manga in color and has brand new stories. Also in 2005, A spin-off manga series that focused on The Cinnamoangels was made from 2005 - 2008 called "Puri Kawa Shinamonenjerusu!!" (プリ☆かわ☆シナモンエンジェルス!!) which focuses on Mocha,Chiffon,and Azuki doing various activities and trying to attract boys. Viz Media started translating the manga in 2011 and was released to English speaking countries in 2012.^[2]

Novel

A novel adaptation titled Cinnamoroll: Cinnamon's Wonderland Trip (シナモロール シナモンのふしぎ旅行, Shinamorōru shinamon no fushigi ryokō) was released by Kadokawa Shoten under the Tsubasa Bunko label on September 12, 2014 which stars Cinnamoroll and Poron going through various adventures along with doing time traveling.

Events

Characters of the series had also appeared in various Sanrio Puroland and HarmonyLand live shows, parades, and events. Following their debut in 2007 with their first musical Cinnamon's Door of Secrets (シナモンなしひみつの扉, Shinamon nashi himitsu no tobira).

Music

Cinnamon was featured in a music video with the Japanese rock girl band Scandal.^[3] In June 2012, Sanrio teamed up with MasatakaP to create an animated video coinciding the character's 10th Anniversary using the MikuMikuDance software. The video is handled by MastakaP for the animation while Intetsu, the Bassist of the band Ayabie handles the music.^[4] A downloadable version of Cinnamon for use with MikuMikuDance software is available by Sanrio until August 31, 2012. In October 2012, OSTER project announced an album called "Cinnamon Trip!!", which was released in Japan on December 12, 2012. There are 9 songs in the album, each sung by Cinnamoroll and his friends including the Cinnamoangels and Lloromannic. Each song has its own theme, such as Mocha's song "Petit Paris" which takes place in Paris,France and "Hawaiian Angels" which takes place in Hawaii and is sung by the Cinnamoangels.

Reception

Cinnamoroll is the second most popular Sanrio character franchise next to Hello Kitty, somehow not what Sanrio had expected in such a short time. The popularity of Cinnamoroll and minor characters kicked off in 2005 to a kind of "spinoff" called The Cinnamoangels which features Cinnamoroll's friend Mocha, Chiffon and Azuki. In 2011, Cinnamoroll got his own blog on the Japanese blogging and social networking website Ameba.^[5] In 2012, Cinnamoroll celebrated his 10th anniversary. To celebrate Cinnamoroll's 10th Anniversary an airport in Japan called Haneda Airport had a Cinnamoroll showcase showing fan taken photos and some original Cinnamoroll pictures.^[6] There is an also, a Cinnamoroll statue that can be seen outside Bandai Headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.

However, the official Twitter account of the character has been slammed with Cyber Bullying since March 2015. Some comments being offensive and obnoxious regarding the character have been spotted on some tweets and got worse in May. In May 11, a tweet from the official Twitter saying: “Chiffon: “Morning! Cinamon doesn’t want to come all the way out this morning, so I’ve come out instead. I will protect Cinamon, so I hope all his friends will look after him too.””, referring to the continuous bullying due to haters.^[7][8] Sanrio were also disappointed regarding the incident, and starts to block the offensive users.^[9]

References

Further reading

• Bentham, Rachel (March 7, 2012). "Fluffy Fluffy Cinnamoroll Volume 1". Active Anime. 
• Carlson, Johanna Draper (2 January 2012). "Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll Book 1". Manga Worth Reading. Comics Worth Reading. Archived from the original on April 23, 2012. 
• Dacey, Katherine (January 6, 2012). "Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll, Vol. 1". The Manga Critic. 
• McNeil, Sheena (January 16, 2012). "Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll Vol. 1". Sequential Tart. 
• Silverman, Rebecca (April 21, 2012). "Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll GN 1". Anime News Network. 

External links

• Official site
• Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Cinnamon the Movie (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia