Animan

This article is about the episode. You may be looking for the character.

Animan

Season 1, episode 13 (Production order); Episode 13 (Overall)

Animan
Season	1
Episode	13
Overall	13
Episode Guide
Previous	“Gamer“
Next	“Darkblade“
Prod. Code:	113
Airdates
English Premiere:	April 12, 2016 (Australia: ABC Me)
French Premiere:	January 24, 2016 (France: TFOU)
World Premiere:	January 24, 2016 (France: TFOU)
Credits
Written by:	Cédric Perrin Jean-Christophe Hervé
Directed by:	Thomas Astruc
Animation Studio:	SAMG Animation
Video

Read transcript

“	Still up for a race? Go on, I'll give you a head start.	”
—Animan, "Animan"

"Animan" is a Season 1 episode of the series, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir. According the series' production/written order, it is the 13th episode of Season 1, as well as the 13th episode of the series, overall.

Synopsis

A humiliated zookeeper is akumatized into a villainous shapeshifting animal on a day when Marinette, Adrien, and friends are visiting the zoo in Paris.

Disney+

Ladybug and Cat Noir face the zookeeper, now Animan.

Plot

At the Collège Françoise Dupont courtyard, Marinette and Alya look through La Mode, a magazine Adrien models for. From a distance, Nino peeks at the girls. Adrien notices him eyeing Marinette. Nino admits to him that he has a huge crush on Marinette but is too shy to go talk to her. Adrien encourages him to ask Marinette out to the zoo to see the new panther exhibit. Nino begins to walk over to her but panics at the last minute and runs back to his best friend. Adrien smiles and assures his friend that he would be happy to help.

Later, Alya and Marinette are on their way home after school, still admiring the pictures of Adrien in the magazine. Distracted, Marinette accidentally bumps into Nino and drops the periodical from her hands. Stiff as a board, Nino does not move at all, prompting Adrien to come out from behind him and apologize on Nino's behalf. Marinette giggles at the sight of Adrien but then realizes that her magazine -- prominently featuring several pictures of Adrien -- is in plain sight. Attempting to be a gentleman, Adrien also goes to pick it up, and they bump heads, cuing another apology from Adrien. Hoping to get Nino to open up, Adrien suggests that they do something together to make it up to them, but Nino remains frozen. Adrien ends up inviting the girl to the zoo at four that afternoon. In a trance, Marinette agrees, then shakes in her boots when Alya tells her that Adrien just asked her out. Believing that she is about to have her first date with Adrien, Marinette begs Alya for help. Across town, Nino has the same reaction when Adrien tells Nino that he and Marinette would be alone together at the zoo.

Marinette arrives at the zoo and takes a seat on a park bench. Using an earpiece and microphone, Alya intends to coach Marinette on what to say while Alya herself remains out of sight behind a tree. Marinette spots Max and Kim who explain they came to see the new panther. Nino arrives shortly after, causing Marinette to question why Adrien is nowhere to be seen. Unbeknownst to her, Adrien is hiding in the bushes to coach Nino. Nino's nerves, however, still get the better of him and he winds up agreeing with her suggestion to wait for Adrien to arrive, much to Adrien's annoyance.

Elsewhere in the zoo, Kim and Max are looking at the new panther as she eats her meat. Max tells Kim how fast the panther can go. Unimpressed, he replies that could easily beat her. Otis Césaire, the zookeeper, grows aggravated by this comment and tells Kim not to bother the animal. Kim continues to taunt both the zookeeper and the panther by boasting about winning the County Athletics Tournament. Max then points out that it would be much more likely for the panther to eat Kim than to race him, but Kim ignores the comment. Once again, Otis tells Kim to stop bothering the animal, but he remains persistent in mocking the "poor tomcat" and her "cranky nanny" as he and Max walk away.

Meanwhile, Nino and Marinette continue to awkwardly wait for Adrien. Marinette asks if he's really arriving. Coached by Adrien, Nino replies back, "Yes, he is coming, but before I wanted to spend some time with you, too." Quickly after responding, he cracks and then reveals that he has a crush on a girl but is afraid to tell her. Marinette assures him there is no need to worry. Nino begins to confess to Marinette, but at the last second, changes the girl to "your best friend Alya", prompting three loud "What!?"s from Adrien, Marinette, and Alya herself. Marinette, however, likes the idea and offers to help get the two of them together. Contrastingly, Alya, who views Nino as a friend, feels everything but happiness with this development.

From his lair, Hawk Moth senses Otis's annoyance with the overly competitive Kim and sends an akuma to the zookeeper's bracelet. He offers the man a chance to put Kim in his place. Once the zookeeper agrees, he transforms into Animan, a shapeshifting villain who sets out after the boy. Animan releases the entire menagerie and, in the form of a panther, corners Kim and Max. He tauntingly tells them that he will give them a head start in their race.

Over at the benches, Alya again objects to Marinette arranging a date for her and Nino. Marinette tells her that he will be devastated if she were to refuse. Before they can carry on any further, they spot Kim and Max running for their lives from the zoo animals, led by Animan. Marinette and Nino rush away, and once she is out of sight, Tikki scolds Marinette for not respecting Alya's wishes before transforming her into Ladybug. Elsewhere in the zoo, Plagg changes Adrien into Cat Noir. The heroes find Kim, cornered by Animan. They distract the panther long enough for Kim to flee, and Ladybug incapacitates him by tying him up in her yo-yo, but before they can take his bracelet, the animals he freed come to his aid and force them to retreat. The heroes split up, realizing that it would be too much of a hassle to get all of them back into their cages. Ladybug spots Nino and Alya running for their lives, so she locks them in the empty gorilla habitat for their own safety while the animals are loose in the streets of Paris.

The heroes return to where they left the panther, only to find no sign of him. This confuses Ladybug, knowing that her wire is impossible to break. They decide that for the time being, the best course of action would be to find Kim. They eventually spot him, once again cornered by the panther atop a bridge. Cat Noir tells Kim to run but not before planting a tracking device on him. Ladybug again ties Animan up in her yo-yo, but he simply turns himself into a bald eagle and flies off towards Kim. Cat Noir uses his tracking device to find Kim desperately begging for help from the owners of the Tom & Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie. Recognizing that their foe probably has a good sense of smell, Ladybug asks to see Kim's sweatband. She places it on a railing and sprays herself and Cat Noir with a deodorant to hide their own scents. Sure enough, Animan -- now in the form of a ladybug -- flies to where the heroes placed the sweatband. Ladybug traps him in a tissue box, but he changes back into a panther and chases the heroes into an empty bus with the doors locked.

The duo struggles to fight him as he changes into a variety of animals, gradually getting slower each time. Ladybug figures out that the transformations must be tiring him out. Cat Noir activates his Cataclysm to make the bus go haywire. The doors are wide enough to give the heroes a chance to escape but not a tired grizzly bear. At first, it seems that he has successfully been worn out, but just as they are about to take the bracelet from the sleeping panther, he transforms into a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Ladybug summons her Lucky Charm, and, as usual, is confused by the object -- this time, a car jack. She leaves it aside and realizes that her partner could use his cat-like agility to climb onto the dinosaur and distract him while she uses her yo-yo to tie him up for good.

With the Tyrannosaur defeated, Ladybug is confused as to why the Lucky Charm would provide her with something they did not need. However, when Cat goes over to retrieve the bracelet, he just narrowly avoids being chopped in half by Animan's massive teeth. Understanding at once, Ladybug charges at the T-Rex. Cat Noir is horrified as he watches the villain apparently swallow her whole. He prepares to attack but is relieved when he sees Ladybug, safe and sound, having used the car jack to open the dinosaur's mouth, retrieving the bracelet, and cleansing the akuma.

Ladybug throws the car jack into the sky, which repairs all of the damage done by the fight, returns the animals to their cages in the zoo, and turns Otis back into himself. She prepares to bump fists with her partner, but he is too relieved that she is all right that he embraces her before realizing that his transformation is about to wear off.

From his lair, Hawk Moth vows that he will get Ladybug and Cat Noir someday. Meanwhile, Ladybug turns back into Marinette, tiredly returning home and crashing onto her bed before receiving a call from Alya. Realizing that she left her two friends at the zoo, Marinette apologizes to Alya over the phone before catching up with her in front of the bakery storefront. The girls reconcile as Nino joins them, offering cookies. Nino comes clean to Marinette and admits that he used to have a crush on her before spending so much time with Alya. Funnily enough, as Alya and Nino admit, while they were locked in the same cage all day, they realized that they had a great deal in common. Alya also admits that she told Nino that Marinette had feelings for another boy but did not tell him who it was. She adds that while she was helping Marinette at the zoo, Nino was being coached by Adrien. Nino offers to talk to the "mystery guy", but Alya keeps him in line. Marinette giggles, and the end title card appears: Marinette imagining Alya and Nino smiling at each other in the gorilla habitat.

Characters

Major characters

• Marinette Dupain-Cheng/Ladybug
• Adrien Agreste/Cat Noir
• Hawk Moth
• Tikki
• Plagg
• Akuma
• Otis Césaire/Animan
• Alya Césaire
• Nino Lahiffe
• Lê Chiến Kim

Minor characters

• Max Kanté
• Sabine Cheng
• Tom Dupain
• Nadja Chamack
• Jean Duparc (background)
• Aurore Beauréal (pictured)
• Mireille Caquet (pictured)
• Théo Barbot (background)
• Wang Fu (background)
• André Bourgeois (pictured)
• Various zoo animals
• Civilians
• Students

Trivia

• Internationally, this episode first premiered in France.
• The title for the Korean version is "Runaway Zoo".
• In the Norwegian dub when Cat Noir makes the bear joke, Ladybug respond with "You are as cute as Ole Brumm", which is the Norwegian name of Winnie the Pooh.
• At the beginning of the episode, Alya and Marinette can be seen reading the horoscope section of a magazine. Marinette reads to Alya, "Leo, your heart will roar," implying that either Marinette or Alya is a Leo, placing either's birthday sometime between July 23rd and August 22nd, because she was jokingly roaring while she was seeing Adrien's picture in the magazine.
  • However, according to Thomas Astruc, that isn't the case, and isn't proof that she's a Leo.
• In the scene where Marinette recalls accidentally walking into the boys' bathroom, Théo Barbot can be seen drying his hands.
• It is revealed in this episode that Nino used to have a crush on Marinette, but he has changed since Ladybug locked him and Alya together in a cage during the fight.
• The episode references many movies with dinosaurs and Kaiju destroying a city, such as Jurassic Park and Jumanji.
• What happened between Alya and Nino while they were stuck in the cage will be seen in upcoming comics, and in a Season 2 episode.
• The bus where Cat Noir and Ladybug attempt to trap Animan has a board of Mireille and Aurore in some of the shots.
• This is the first time someone else other than Ladybug gets tangled in her yo-yo.
• Ladybug mentions that her yo-yo string is unbreakable which is actually proven to be true as of "Simon Says" and "Captain Hardrock".
• It's revealed that the Miraculous tools have a storage compartment for tracking tags.
  • It's unknown if Kim still has the tracker attached to him or just like the Miraculous tools they too disappear when the holder detransforms.
  • The full capabilities of the trackers is unknown.
  • This is also the first and only time where they're used.
  • Cat Noir found about those by either studying users guide or used them prior to this episode.
• In "Evolution", Alya and Nino's first kiss inside the cage was shown.
• This is one of the six episodes of season 1 in which Ladybug and Cat Noir don't do their signature "Pound it!", the other five being "Princess Fragrance", "The Pharaoh", "Timebreaker", "Kung Food" and "Stoneheart".

Errors

• When Kim first runs into the bakery, the outer window on the right-hand side is backward.
• Cat Noir's right wristband is missing after he jumps away from Animan.
• When Cat Noir showed Ladybug where Kim was through his staff, it was still attached to his back.
• Both Ladybug and Cat Noir say Animan's name despite the fact that Animan never said his name.
• The background when Ladybug captured the akuma is darker than usual.
• When Ladybug and Cat Noir are running from the T-Rex, the bakery door is seen on the wall of the bakery, despite being broken off minutes ago.

Inaccuracies

• The black panther in this episode is entirely black. A real-life black panther, be it a melanistic leopard, jaguar, or puma (also called a mountain lion), is actually a very dark brown. Additionally, black leopards and jaguars actually have a lot of visible spots showing through their dark coat, and a black puma has spots around the belly (albeit only a few).
• Despite Max saying that Kim could be a panther's lunch if he raced one, panthers do not usually hunt humans and will usually only attack if provoked.
• Max states that panthers can run at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour. However, panthers, assuming they're melanistic leopards, run at speeds of up to approximately 30 miles per hour. In the French version, it is correctly stated that panthers can run at speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour.
• Animan, as a bald eagle, makes a cry uttered only by red-tailed hawks.
• As a bald eagle, Animan was able to sniff out Kim's wristband. However, in real life, most birds (including eagles) have very poorly-developed olfactory bulbs and, therefore, a very weak sense of smell, if they even have one at all. Additionally, eagles almost always find prey by sight over any other sense.
• Animan's bear form was unable to escape through the bus doors. However, in real life, grizzlies have enough force to lift objects up to 500 kg.
• The episode's depiction of a Tyrannosaurus is inaccurate in several ways:
  • The dinosaur's arms are longer than in real life and are positioned differently on its body. It's also seen to pronate its arms, which it couldn't do in real life without breaking them. Lacking the ability to cross their radius over the ulna, most bipedal dinosaurs, including theropods (like T. Rex), held their hands in a clapping position.
  • When Animan transformed into the dinosaur, it busted through the roof of the bus. In reality, the bus would have combusted due to the massive size of the dinosaur. Also, the bus shouldn’t support the weight of a 3-ton Tyrannosaurus, not even a damaged one.
  • The T-Rex lacked eyebrow horns in real life. However, relatives of the T-Rex, like Albertosaurus, had smaller versions of the brows seen on Animan.
  • The T-Rex’s roars sound similar to the ones from The Dino King, which featured both the T-Rex and its relative, Tarbosaurus. However, after studying the brain case of a T-Rex, scientists now think that the T-Rex emitted a deep, unsettling, rumbling sound thanks to closed mouth vocalization. This could be a modification Hawk Moth gave to Animan.
  • Despite its mouth being opened by Ladybug's car jack with ease, the average Tyrannosaurus Rex had a bite force of around 12,800 pounds, meaning it would have crushed the car jack, and, possibly, snapped Ladybug in half by the time she got out. Though considering that this is a lucky charm object, it might be more durable than an average car jack.

Gallery

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References

v • e Episodes Season 1 101 Stormy Weather • 102 The Evillustrator • 103 Lady Wifi • 104 Princess Fragrance • 105 Dark Cupid • 106 Mr. Pigeon • 107 Pixelator • 108 Copycat • 109 The Bubbler • 110 Simon Says • 111 Rogercop • 112 Gamer • 113 Animan • 114 Darkblade • 115 Pharaoh • 116 Timebreaker • 117 Horrificator • 118 The Puppeteer • 119 The Mime • 120 Guitar Villain • 121 Reflekta • 122 Ladybug & Cat Noir (Origins - Part 1) • 123 Stoneheart (Origins - Part 2) • 124 Antibug • 125 Kung Food • 126 Volpina Season 2 201 The Collector • 202 Prime Queen • 203 Glaciator • 204 Despair Bear • 205 Troublemaker • 206 Gigantitan • 207 Riposte • 208 Befana • 209 Frightningale • 210 Gorizilla • 211 Robostus • 212 Sapotis • 213 The Dark Owl • 214 Syren • 215 Zombizou • 216 Captain Hardrock • 217 Frozer • 218 Style Queen (Queen's Battle - Part 1) • 219 Queen Wasp (Queen's Battle - Part 2) • 220 Reverser • 221 Anansi • 222 Malediktator • 223 Sandboy • 224 Catalyst (Heroes' Day - Part 1) • 225 Mayura (Heroes' Day - Part 2) • 226 Santa Claws Season 3 301 Chameleon • 302 Animaestro • 303 Bakerix • 304 Backwarder • 305 Reflekdoll • 306 Weredad • 307 Silencer • 308 Oni-Chan • 309 Miraculer • 310 Oblivio • 311 Desperada • 312 Christmaster • 313 Startrain • 314 Kwamibuster • 315 Feast • 316 Gamer 2.0 • 317 Stormy Weather 2 • 318 Ikari Gozen • 319 Timetagger • 320 Party Crasher • 321 The Puppeteer 2 • 322 Cat Blanc • 323 Félix • 324 Ladybug • 325 Heart Hunter (The Battle of the Miraculous - Part 1) • 326 Miracle Queen (The Battle of the Miraculous - Part 2) Season 4 401 Truth • 402 Lies • 403 Gang of Secrets • 404 Mr. Pigeon 72 • 405 Psycomedian • 406 Furious Fu • 407 Sole Crusher • 408 Queen Banana • 409 Gabriel Agreste • 410 Mega Leech • 411 Guiltrip • 412 Crocoduel • 413 Optigami • 414 Sentibubbler • 415 Glaciator 2 • 416 Hack-San • 417 Rocketear • 418 Wishmaker • 419 Simpleman • 420 Qilin • 421 Dearest Family • 422 Ephemeral • 423 Kuro Neko • 424 Penalteam • 425 Risk (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 1) • 426 Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2) Season 5 501 Evolution • 502 Multiplication • 503 Destruction • 504 Jubilation • 505 Illusion • 506 Determination • 507 Passion • 508 Reunion • 509 Elation • 510 Transmission (The Kwamis' Choice - Part 1) • 511 Deflagration (The Kwamis' Choice - Part 2) • 512 Perfection • 513 Migration • 514 Derision • 515 Intuition • 516 Protection • 517 Adoration • 518 Emotion • 519 Pretension • 520 Revelation • 521 Confrontation • 522 Collusion • 523 Revolution • 524 Representation • 525 Conformation (The Final Day - Part 1) • 526 Re-creation (The Final Day - Part 2) • 527 Action Season 6 TBA Season 7 TBA Season 8 TBA Specials Two Part Episodes The Origins Story • Queen's Battle • Heroes' Day • The Battle of the Miraculous • Shadow Moth's Final Attack • The Kwamis' Choice • The Final Day Christmas specials Santa Claws • Christmaster Standalone specials Action Miraculous World Released Media Miraculous New York • Miraculous Shanghai • Miraculous Paris • Miraculous London • Miraculous Tokyo Cancelled/Unknown Specials Miraculous Rio • Miraculous Dakar • Miraculous: One Night Mission • Miraculous & Ghostforce crossover Movies Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie Future movies Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie 2 • Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie 3 Cancelled/Unknown movies Miraculous (live-action film) • Miraculous Lady Bug Miraculous Secrets Marinette in Paris • Marinette and Fashion • Ladybug as seen by Adrien • Ladyblog • Adrien's Double Life • Marinette and Alya • Marinette's Double Life • Cat Noir as seen by Marinette • My Birthday Party • Marinette and Adrien • Master Fu • Tikki • Plagg • Friends • Nino • Max • Mylène • Rose • Alix • Sabrina • Ivan • Gabriel • Nathaniel & Marc • Marinette as seen by Chloé • Lila • Hawk Moth and the Akumatized Villains • Family • Kagami as seen by Marinette • Kagami as seen by Adrien • Luka as seen by Marinette • New Powers • New Heroes • Mayura and the Sentimonsters • Chloé as seen by Marinette • Nathalie as seen by Gabriel • Feelings Tales from Paris The Notebook • Inspiration • Repetition • Busy Day • Homework Essay Miraculous Chibi Rooftop Dinner • Catnip Fragrance • The Chase • Curiosity Kicked the Cat • Cutest Cat Fight • Fatal Posy • Scarybug • Panic at the Park • The Cake Race • Good Sports Future webisode NeckRace Action Shorts Plastic - The Story So Far • Reduce, Reuse, Recycle • Innovation & Creativity • Youth Empowerment & Leadership • Become an Advocate Against Plastic YouTube series Diários de Paris • Miraculous News Network • Miraculous Club Other media Released media The Mini Menace Ladybug • Ladybug PV • First CGI promotional videos • Happy Birthday to You! • Ladybug (musical) • Miraculous Ladybug (musical) • Miraculous: The Ladybug Show • Miraculous Ladybug COVID-19 Special • Ladybug Saves Christmas • Action Future media Miraculous (live-action TV series) Cancelled/Unknown media List of unproduced episodes (Le Gourmangeur • Gagotor • Ladybug in Halloween • Miraculous Ladybug OVA) • Miraculous Live • Miraculous LadyLion