is a Japanese anime television series directed by and produced by Genco, Suplex, framegraphics and Geneon Entertainment for the 24-hour Japanese animation channel called Animax. The show pre-began as 14 eight-minute segment episodes which aired on Fuji Television's Flyer TV block from June 18, 1998 to September 24, 1998 from 24:45 to 24:55, with the animation being produced by Tokyo Kids. The full-length show, entitled , ran for 12 twenty-four-minute episodes which was aired on the 24-hour Japanese music channel called Space Shower TV from January 27, 2000 to April 13, 2000 at 19:00 and then 18:00.
The North American DVD release by A.D. Vision features two different English-dubbed versions: a straight translation of the original Japanese version (which was aired on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block on November 7, 2004 with the original vintage episodes before making its official series premiere a week later) and an Americanized version with western pop culture references and short live-action skits featuring ADV voice cast members.
Summary
The show centers on the activities of Milk, a young 5-year-old superheroine who may or may not actually have any powers and usually can do very little besides making popular culture references. Its American slogan, as a result, became "Wholesome? Probably not. Good for you? Definitely." She lives in a house on a suspended platform with her malfunctioning robotic maid Tetsuko and her drunken pet slug Hanage (nosehair). The show follows a fairly linear formula. In each episode, the President (of "Everything", according to his name) calls with a new mission; whether Milk actually takes the mission is not guaranteed. Regardless of whether or not she takes the mission, she always takes credit and celebrates her success by going out for "sushi (or something)." Likewise, there are a number of other constants that follow through the series, often under contrived circumstances.
Major characters
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The title character of the show, Milk is an infantile little girl whose status as a superhero is questionable. She is often selfish, vain, short-tempered, and has a habit of drooling, but is not devoid of decent qualities. She harbors a love-hate relationship with the President and Tetsuko, alternating between tormenting them and getting along with them. Although she works officially for the President, she chooses on her own whether or not she wants to follow his orders. Coincidentally, her house is in the shape of a baby bottle and she still drinks powdered milk from a baby bottle on occasion.
An obsolete robot maid, Tetsuko was created at the King's Idea Laboratory in 1982. She lives with and works for Milk. Tetsuko is a more conservative character, the only occasional voice of reason on the show when she is questioning Milk's greedy, questionable, or random decisions. She yearns for a stable traditional family life, which the living organisms around her do not even consider. Milk often calls her a piece of junk and Tetsuko is torn between loving Dr. Eyepatch (who may or may not be her "daddy") and being disappointed in him when he insults her or offers to replace her. She has the ability to generate a fart ("Tetsuko's gas") that is lethal enough to even kill a raging bear. The only character that brings out Tetsuko's aggressive side is Robodog, whom she hates. They are in a constant conflict over Milk's affection, much to Milk's amusement.
Hanage is Milk's green, middle-aged pet slug known as a "Hanage". He has a drinking problem and is incapable of speech, though he can understand multiple languages. When he does speak, it's usually to express his thoughts; often a maudlin soliloquy, that are referred to as "the voice of Hanage's heart." "Hanage" means "nose hair" in Japanese.