Love Me Licia is an Italian live adaptation and Sequel Series of the anime Ai Shite Night, known in Italy as Kiss Me Licia. It was released between 1986 and 1988.
Ai Shite Night was extremely popular in Italy, leaving the viewers disappointed about the ending, with Go (Mirko in the Italian dub) leaving Yakko (Licia in the Italian dub) to spend six months in the United States, and even more disappointed to know that the story will never have a continuation from the original authors. So, with the consent of the original producers, the Italian company Fininvest decided to create a live action sequel for the Italian viewers, who will finally be able to see Go coming back from the US and getting married to Yakko.
The show has four seasons, each with a different title, a different opening song, and several new songs performed by the Bee Hive and occasionally Yakko herself. Made for a Target Audience of Italian children, who were huge anime fans in the 80's, the show is cutesy, idealistic, and lighthearted to glurgy estremes.
Licia/Yakko is played by Cristina D'Avena (the singer of the Italian openings of both the anime and this show), and dubbed by Donatella Fanfani (her voice actress in the anime), though D'Avena still provides Yakko's singing voice. Similarly to Yakko, all the characters are dubbed by the same people who dubbed them in the anime, despite being played by other Italian actors.
The characters keep the names used in Italian dub of the anime, so we still have Licia instead of Yakko, Mirko instead of Go, Andrea instead of Hashizo, Marrabbio instead of Shigemaro, and so on.
Tropes
- Adaptational Comic Relief:
- Grandpa Sam and Lauro, the two most frequent customers at the restaurant of Shigemaro/"Marrabbio". They are normal custormers in the anime, while in this series they are regular foils to Marrabbio for "humorous" gags.
- In the anime, guitarist Eiji Tono (Tony in the Italian version) was the Butt-Monkey and Plucky Comic Relief of the Bee Hive band, while the drummer and the bass player were generic guys. In this series it's inverted: Tony is The Generic Guy, while both the drummer (Matt in the Italian version) and the bass player (Steve in the Italian version) share the Butt-Monkey and Plucky Comic Relief role, especially in season 2.
- Inverted with Juliano, the talking cat who was the main Plucky Comic Relief of the anime. In this show, he is a Living Prop who rarely talks.
- Adaptational Heroism: Meiko's antagonism towards Yakko is mostly gone and she's one of her best friends. This could be justified, due to Meiko's Character Development at the end of the anime.
- Adaptational Nationality: While the dub of the anime gives many characters Italian names, the story is still set in Japan, and Japan is mentioned frequently. On the other hand, this series, which is supposed to be a continuation of the anime, is set in Italy, removing all the references to Japanese culture. In one episode, Funny Foreigner Hildegard refers to Shige as an example of "Italian man" (in the anime, Shige was proud of his Japanese culture), and in another episode Italian television host Corrado appears As Himself. At one point, a character specifically mentions Japan as a foreign country ("He has learned judo in Japan").
- Adaptational Skill:
- This series turns Yakko/"Licia" into a talented singer, due to Cristina D'Avena playing the character. She eventually joins the Bee Hive as a female vocalist.
- In the anime, Yakko was a Lethal Chef. In this show, her cooking skills are praised by Go and Hashizo.
- Starting in season 2, the Bee Hive are also able to play other instruments other than their main ones. For example, in the anime, Satomi was only a keyboard player, but in this show's later seasons he can switch between playing the keyboard or the flute, depending on the song. Also, in the anime, Go was only a singer, but in this show, he's occasionally seen singing and playing the piano at the same time.
- Adaptation Dye-Job: Characters with Anime Hair are given realistic hair colors:
- Satomi still has long and curly hair, but they are brown instead of purple, though the actor was wearing a wig. In the last two seasons, Satomi has short and blond hair, showing his actor's real hairstyle.
- Hashizo/"Andrea" has brown hair instead of blue.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: Here, Satomi has no romantic interest in Yakko/"Licia" at all, while much of the anime was based on Go/Yakko/Satomi Love Triangle. Yakko chose Go at the end of the anime, so he simply got over it.
- Aerith and Bob: The characters keep their names of the Italian dub of the anime. As it was frequent for animes dubbed in Italian, the names are an odd mixture of Italian (Licia, Mirko, Andrea, Marika, etc.), English (Steve, Matt, Mary, etc.), and Japanese (Satomi).
- Artistic License – Music: Zigzagged. In the first seasons, it's mostly played straight (like musicians' fingers moving incorrectly, or not moving at all), but the drummer averts this, because he can really play the drums. This trope becomes less evident in later seasons, which mostly feature different band members, and where even the photography evolves to show that yes, this time the guitar virtuosisms are real.
- As Himself:
- Italian television host Corrado appears as himself in one episode of the first season.
- Despite being Yakko's actress, Cristina D'Avena also appears as herself in the final episode, to promote her upcoming show Arriva Cristina.
- Ascended Extra:
- Shin'ichi (the drummer) and Hiroyuki (the bassist) were Satellite Characters in the anime, had no role outside of playing music with the Bee Hive band, and their first names were rarely mentioned. In this show (mainly the second season), "Matt" and "Steve" are often seen as a roommate duo and get their own romantic subplots.
- Grandpa Sam and Lauro, due to their Adaptational Comic Relief, get a much larger role than in the anime, and have bickering dialogues with Shigemaro/"Marrabbio" in every episode.
- Breakout Character: Steve, the Bee Hive bassist, starts off as a minor character in the anime and the first season, but definitely becomes a major character, and after his absence in season 3, he comes back in the final season. He was so popular that, after the end of the show, he was brought back as a main character in the spin-off Arriva Cristina, another sitcom starring Cristina D'Avena as herself. His actor Marco Bellavia has even become the TV host of the children's programme Bim Bum Bam for ten years, starting in 1990.
- Butt-Monkey: Shige (Yakko's father) and Jack (the Bee Hive's manager from season 2 onwards) are frequently object of ridicule in a Played for Laughs way, which is treated as karmic because of their overly aggressive personalities.
- Canon Foreigner: The Bee Hive managers, Lucas (replaced by Jack from season 2 onwards) and Mary (Shige's crush). There's also Hildegard, a German Funny Foreigner and recurring friend of the main characters.
- Character Exaggeration: Yakko and Shige's Wacky Parent, Serious Child dynamic is much more exaggerated here than in the anime:
- In the anime, Shige is a stubborn, overly conservative father with only occasional Bumbling Dad moments due to his tendency to overreact. Here, he's an over-the-top idiotic buffoon and a Butt-Monkey who regularly makes a fool of himself.
- In the anime, Yakko is a nice Girl Next Door who still has some little flaws (Lethal Chef, getting into awkward situations at times, and can be a bit of a Tsundere). Here, she's a paragon of maturity, sweetness, and perfection, she is always right, and never gets angry.
- Cool Shades: Due to the rocker guy image, bass player Hiroyuki (Steve) often wears sunglasses, but not always like in the anime. On the other hand, guitar player Eiji (Tony) never wears sunglasses, while his anime counterpart does.
- Did Not Get the Girl: Yakko's father has a huge crush on Mary in the entire show. In every season, she always ends up dating different people, much to his jealousy.
- Later-Installment Weirdness: The first season is the most faithful to the anime, in appearance, voice (later episodes changes several voice actors), and role/screen time of the characters.
- Starting in season 2, the show is not just about Go and Yakko, but the entire band. Hashizo and Juliano are Demoted to Extra, to give the Bee Hive guys more screentime. This continues in later seasons, even after three of the Bee Hive are replaced. Also, Yakko starts leaving her hair smooth, instead of the bobbed haircut she had in the anime and season 1.
- Season 3 and 4 are by far the most different: Go and Yakko are married, Yakko/Licia officially becomes Bee Hive's co-lead singer, three Bee Hive members are replaced by other musicians, leaving only Go and Satomi of the original band, but Satomi changed hairstyle and hair color (his actor got rid of the wig), losing any physical resemblance to his anime counterpart. Also, Yakko no longer wears her waitress outfits she had in the anime and the early seasons, as she's now a singer who lives with Go, and doesn't help her father at his restaurant anymore.
- Lighter and Softer: The main difference from the anime, which was not even that dark to begin with. Just to give you an idea:
- In the anime, Yakko is a caring Nice Girl but has some Tsundere traits (slapping Go twice) and is often annoyed by her father. Here, she is a sickeningly sweet saint who is affectionate to everyone all the time, especially her father and Go/"Mirko".
- Go's flaws and rocker image are completely removed. In the anime, Go is seen being overly strict to his little brother to the point of slapping him in one scene, smoking (initially), getting drunk (after his break-up with Yakko), and wearing earrings during concerts. In this series, he is a perfectly nice guy in every way, wears normal outfits, and his only "flaw" is his blonde and red Anime Hair.
- The Bee Hive were a rock band in the anime. In this series they only sing pop love songs and slow romantic ballads, though they are still referred to as a "rock band" in-universe.
- In the anime, there are some fanservice moments, like naked Yakko in the shower or bathtub. Needless to say, this series is Tamer and Chaster and Yakko/"Licia" goes from the anime's cute and innocent Head-Turning Beauty to just being cute and innocent.
- The little conflicts of the plot are usually simple and there is much less drama.
- New Season, New Name: Love Me Licia is technically just the first season, the other seasons have different (but equally sappy) titles: Season 2 is Licia Sweet Licia, Season 3 is Tenderly Licia, Season 4 is Dance and Sing with Licia. However, all of them are often collectively referred to as Love Me Licia. They also have four different theme songs, that are just as sappy as their titles, all sung by Cristina D'Avena.
- Nobody Loves the Bassist: Downplayed. The Bee Hive are treated as a relatively famous band, and all the members are fairly popular, but bass player Steve is the one who has the hardest time winning over the girl he likes. Ironically, he turns out to be pretty much the Breakout Character.
- Out of Focus: Hashizo and his cat Juliano were the main characters in the anime along with Yakko and Go. In this show, Juliano is only somewhat relevant in the first season, but from season 2 onwards, he's just a Living Prop. Hashizo himself is no longer the protagonist he was in the anime.
- Revolving Door Band:
- Besides Go and Satomi, the other three Bee Hives are replaced in season 3, although the bassist comes back in season 4. Also, Yakko becomes an official member and the only woman of the band in season 3 and 4.
- For the Bee Hive reunion in 2008, the band is composed by Go, Satomi, the drummer from the early seasons, the guitarist from the later seasons, and a completely new bassist who wasn't from the show. Except that this time, they all sing and play instruments for real.
- Villain Protagonist: Shige is the Deuteragonist besides the main couple in the entire series, but is also the main villain in season 2, especially towards Go, only redeeming himself by the end of the season.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: Shige is this with Grandpa Sam and Lauro. He's often angry at them, they make fun of him, but they are his closest friends.
