One of the reasons anime is loved around the world is because it (often) tells grown-up stories that are highly dramatic, whether it’s about space colonies being dropped on cities from orbit, a young scientist using a time machine to save a friend doomed to die hundreds of times, or tragic scenes of farewell to a dear friend. Stories portraying the incredible strength and love that mothers show to their children are another cornerstone of good anime, whether it’s the calming hands of Akiko from Kanon or Sanae from Clannad, the loving support of Iori from Gundam Build Fighters, or the tragedy of Junko Kaname, mother of Madoka. One mother-related series that’s very important to the Japanese is the 1976 series 3000 Leagues In Search of Mother, which helped launch the career of Hayao Miyazaki. It’s the story of Marco, a boy who travels from Italy to Argentina to find his sick mother, and in one heart-wrenching scene that’s re-broadcast at least once a year, Marco encounters a dying woman and kindly lets her believe he is her son so she can be happy at the end of her life. I was blessed with one of the most amazing mothers in the world, who not only raised me and was supportive as my odd obsession with Japan became my career, but who also became my trusted business partner, helping J-List to become what it is today. Wherever are you in the world, if you’re able to give your mother a special hug this Sunday, don’t let the chance slip by.
I hadn’t intended on watching the new magical girl anime Wish Upon the Pleiades, but some super cute posters in the new issues of Megami and Nyantype changed my mind for me, and I decided to give the show a whirl. Right off the bat, the series is interesting because it’s funded by Subaru, the car company, and is littered with Easter eggs for fans of the company’s cars. Instead of brooms, the magical girls fly “drive shafts” which rev like high performance engines, and the girls are seeking parts of the engine to a spaceship. Subaru — Japanese for the Pleiades star cluster — is the automotive arm of Fuji Heavy Industries, and was formed from six smaller companies after the end of WWII, when the market for fighter planes went into permanent decline. The company is based in J-List’s home prefecture of Gunma, so there are a lot of their cars on the road, and I feel like a bad prefectural citizen because I drive a BMW instead. This isn’t the first time an anime series was made possible by large-scale corporate sponsorship. Nissin backed an SF series by Akira creator Otomo Katsuhiro as a vehicle for promoting its Cup Noodle products, and Steins;Gate and Chaos;Head exist in part because Microsoft needed some unique content for the Xbox 360 platform in Japan, so they threw money at Mages and Nitroplus to get them to make limited versions for their platform.
May is a very special month, a month to get in touch with yourself and spend some quality time alone, if you’re feeling stressed out. J-List is offering an awesome 3x points on all personal toys, including “dolphin polishers” for guys, massagers for girls as well as personal lotion and more. Also, we’re offering 3x J-List Points on all apparel and cosplay products. Make an order now!
