Toei Animation (Japan)

Background
Toei Animation is the animation production subsidiary of Toei Company Ltd. It was established in 1956 at the former Tokyo-Ōizumi animation studio by purchasing the assets of Japan Animated Films. By the mid-60's, the company began producing anime for television. The company also produces feature-length anime films, based on well-known stories and their TV series. Toei Animation is famous for adapting such manga series as Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Sailor Moon, and for popularizing Digimon. Toei Animation also made overseas work for Marvel Productions and Hanna-Barbera.

1st Logo (1984, US)


Logo: We see a small line-art version of Pero (as described below) in reverse video, with the text "Produced in Association with" above and "TOEI DOGA" below, all in the Transformers credits font. Below all this is a Sunbow copyright notice, in a compressed sans-serif.

FX/SFX: None, aside from the clips of the show playing in the background.

Music/Sounds: The Transformers end theme.

Availability: Only seen on early season 1 episodes of Transformers.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (August 6, 1993)


Logo: On a white background with a blurred picture of a rainbow, we see the text, "Toei Animation" appearing on top of the screen in an arc formation. On the bottom, Japanese text saying "生産" (which means "Production") appears.

FX/SFX: Decent CGI.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Was only seen on Dragon Ball Z: Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans. (OVA)

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (1997-2017)
Nicknames: "Puss in Boots", "Merging Pero", "Morphing Pero"

Logo: On a space background, bubbles with images on them (mostly on nature, like the red tulip, a sunflower, a pelican, a gecko, a parrot and some fishes) form together and morph into the head of a Puss in Boots-like character named Pero, the star of Toei's 1969 adaptation of Charles Perrault's Puss in Boots tale. The background transitions into the multicolored starburst background and to white, and the head zooms out to make way for the "TOEI ANIMATION" text to zoom out into the screen.

Variants:
 * In some films that were produced in a 1:33:1 (4:3) full-screen aspect ratio, the logo is letterboxed. At the end, the black bars from the top and bottom move out.
 * A short version, which starts after the head has finished forming, is occasionally used.
 * An all-red logo, with the wording 'Since 1956' and a registered trademark symbol was used in the end credits of the short-lived 4Kids dub of One Piece.
 * On shows like Digimon Fusion, a variant is used which starts just as Pero's face forms.

FX/SFX: Cool CGI effects, that got better with the next logo.

Music/Sounds: A triumphant orchestral fanfare ending with a timpani roll. In most cases, it'll use the last part of the show's ending theme, or a descending sparkling noise ending in 4 bell tolls.

Availability: Pretty common. The 2nd variant listed here is the most common, as it appears on Japanese prints of the Digimon movies. The 1st variant listed here can be seen in Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem. The 'Since 1956' variant can be found on episodes of the 4Kids One Piece dub, though it alternates between that one and the short version of the animated logo. The short version of the logo can be found on episodes of Dragon Ball Z Kai when aired on Nicktoons in the US, Kix! in the UK, and the longer closing variant can be found on episodes of Digimon Fusion and also used as a longer opening variation that's currently seen on Sailor Moon Crystal. Also appears on Hulu prints of Dragon Ball and also Netflix prints of Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai

Editor's Note: This logo is well-known among fans of Digimon.

4th Logo (2016-)


Nicknames: "Puss in Boots II", "CGI Pero", "Pero, the Filmstrips and the Earth"

Logo: There are 2 variants for this logo:
 * Regular: On a space background, we zoom out and reveal the earth with an atom on it. The gold curved text, "60th" and "ANNIVERSARY" move into their positions, while Pero (in CGI) jumps down and poses, "TOEI ANIMATION" glitters with it's slogan fading in. The earth then turns into a blue circle with the atom shape with Pero inside it, a rainbow filmstrip and golden stars.
 * Extended: On a cloudy background, we zoom out from Pero's face and spin around, then the camera hovers above Pero, revealing a filmstrip. Pero then jumps out of the filmstrip, draws out his sword and flies to the right, while another filmstrip slides from the left and both filmstrips turns into a part of the atom. The animation then continues as normal.

Variants:
 * Sometimes, the text would be Japanese.
 * A 60th anniversary exists. The golden words "60TH" and "ANNIVERSARY" surround Pero and the "TOEI ANIMATION" text is smaller to make way for the additional text.

FX/SFX: Fantastic CGI animation.

Music/Sounds: 2 whoosh sounds, a sound when Pero jumps down and a proud note.

Music/Sounds Variant: The long version contains a filmstrip sound (similar to the 2012 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer logo), a glitter sound when Pero uses his wand, a Dragon Ball Z sound when Pero flies and the 2 whoosh sounds, the sound when Pero jumps down and the proud note. On one occasion, instead of the 4 mentioned sounds, there were 3 whooshes and a glitter sound when the gold stars appear.

Availability: Current. This was first seen on an episode of Dragon Ball Super and it was used at the beginning of every show produced by the studio since then. Used in tandem with the previous logo until a year later. Also seen on newer prints of Dragon Ball Z Kai: The Final Chapters.

Editor's Note: This is a fantastic successor, especially by Pero's design and the CGI animation. This is also a favorite to many, especially fans of anime.