Perhaps the most famous manga character in all of Japan is Doraemon. Almost the equivalent of Mickey Mouse in the U.S., Doraemon and his namesake series symbolize to many the foibles and adventures of childhood. Characters from DORAEMON are referenced in adult manga, Doraemon's face graces candy, and just about anyone you ask in Japan would recognize the name and the round face with the round button nose, long whiskers, big smiling mouth, and collar with a bell.Penned by famous children's mangaka Abiko Motoo and the late Fujimoto Hiroshi, who for a long time co-authored the series and called themselves "Fujiko Fujio," DORAEMON was a big hit in the 1970s that continued through the 1980s, and even into the 1990s (though with only Fujimoto Hiroshi on the project, writing as "Fujiko F. Fujio"). The children who first grew up reading DORAEMON are now adults rising up through Japanese society.What is DORAEMON? It is a humorous children's manga (later a TV-series) about a boy named Nobi Nobita who is so unlucky, weak and lazy that his descendants had to send the family robot back in time to help him out. That robot is Doraemon (where the "Dora" is presumably based on the word "dora-neko," or stray cat), and his four-dimensional pocket produces any number of futuristic gadgets and devices meant to help Nobita become something other than a complete failure in adulthood. Though smart and caring, Doraemon has his own foibles, and his partnership with Nobita produces both triumphs and disasters, hilarious situations and occasional poignant moments.As a "gag" manga for children, the series has no real progression; our hero is always a fourth-grader, and rarely do changes carry over from story to story. As a glimpse into Japanese family life, though, DORAEMON is priceless. We see Nobita's parents as very typical for Japan of the 1970s, with the father a stocky and mellow salaryman, and the mother a hardworking housewife whose job it is to make sure Nobita studies hard and does his chores. Although ferocious when angry, she is also caring and smart; at heart she just wants her son to grow up to become a decent, hardworking adult with a bright future. Nobita's friends include the class bully nicknamed Gian (presumably based on the word "giant"), the class rich kid Suneo who usually acts as Gian's lieutenant, the gentle and smart girl Shizuka and the occasionally appearing super-brilliant Dekisugi (which can be read as "over done" or "overly perfect"). There's also their schoolteacher, a stern man who has no compunction against sending Nobita off to stand in the hallway for being late. In all this, Doraemon acts as the childhood friend or older sibling we all wish we could've had: caring, smarter than us, with a sense of justice, imperfect and fallible enough to not be irritating, and with a magic pocket that can produce the solution to any problem.A typical DORAEMON story starts with Nobita suffering from the abuses of Gian and Suneo, or doing badly in school, coming home crying, and being comforted by a tried but true Doraemon. Doraemon patiently (or resignedly) digs into his four-dimensional pocket and produces a new gadget that (it seems) might offer the perfect cure for the problem...until Nobita or his friends get too greedy (and even Doraemon's been known to screw things up from time to time).For example, after a day of forgetting his books at home and his pack at school, Doraemon produces a handbag that allows one to reach in and pick up something far away. Nobita retrieves his pack from school...and then promptly rushes out to show off the handbag to his friends. To prove its abilities, he grabs his mother's glasses from the handbag—which doesn't impress anyone—and then goes on to pull out Suneo's narcissistic diary and even Gian's suspiciously wet futon. But when he returns home, his mother is angry about her glasses—and she quickly finds the handbag very useful for retrieving her wayward son!Doraemon also sometimes carelessly leaves devices lying around. Nobita once found a time vending machine, which allowed the user to buy products from other times with modern money: thanks to inflation, of course, things from the past cost much less in absolute yen terms. Nobita uses it to buy boxes of cheap 1933 cigarettes for his father and a mountain of jars of ink for his mother, and even fails to buy a camera from the year 745. But when Doraemon warns him not to use the machine for making a profit, Nobita naturally rushes off to do so. With his new earnings, he decides to buy something different—candy from 100 years in the future, indescribably delicious. Unfortunately, he forgot about cost inflation...and he finds himself 230,000 Yen in debt to the machine, which is now demanding its payment!Almost every story brings a new gadget at play: a camera that turns objects into two-dimensional photos that need hot water to revert to normal (don't ask how Nobita returned to normal after he used it on himself!); a deluxe light that converts anything it shines on into a more deluxe model (which surprisingly makes some people unhappy); a cloud-shaping machine that alters the clouds in the sky (but don't let it overheat!); the flavor-sharing gum, which allows one to taste what someone else eats (great for rich friends, but very bad if a stray dog chews it); or the helping pill, which makes those who swallow it help out anyone they meet in need (and of course, Nobita winds up swallowing it instead of his friends). A few gadgets, though, return once in a while or are standard "staples" of the series. For example, the Dokodemo Doa ("Wherever Door"), which allows one to go anywhere; the Moshimo Box ("What If Phone Booth"), which allows one to go to an alternate world where a suggested proposition is true; the time machine in Nobita's desk drawer, which allows one to travel to any time; the take-copter, a tiny helicopter-style blade to wear on one's head, that allows one to fly; the time-cloth, which makes objects it is wrapped around younger or older; and of course, Doraemon's four dimentional pocket itself, which produces all these items. The stories, however, are not really about the gadgets; they are about Nobita and his decisions. The gadgets serve only as outlets for his character to shine through, whether in moments of greed, indignation, remorse or compassion. His mistakes, moments of weakness and occasional moments of bravery are what make the stories. And ultimately, the stories have a moral core. Nobita's misuse of the gadgets usually bring dire consequences back on his head, but when he champions justice and acts for worthy reasons, he usually manages to do lasting good. Thankfully, Nobita is at heart a good kid with a compassionate heart, if fraught with flaws.A prime example of this is the story where a new transfer student turns out to be even worse off than Nobita: slower, weaker and with even poorer test scores. Nobita is overjoyed to find someone worse than himself, so he studies with, races against and plays games with the new kid; and in each case the new boy fares worse. At last, Nobita even gets him drafted into Gian's dreaded baseball games instead of himself. But Doraemon brings out a film viewer in which characters can be switched. He shows that Nobita's actions to the new kid were just like Suneo's usual behavior to Nobita: condescending, arrogant, mean and self-serving. Nobita sees the truth in this, and when he sees Gian and Suneo beating up the other kid over his poor baseball performance, exactly where Nobita would have been, Nobita jumps in and takes the beating instead.Indeed, a number of DORAEMON stories depart from a simple gag routine and take a long, steady look at issues of moral and ethical importance. Stories have been told about environmental issues, caring for pets, self-sacrifice for another's sake, bravery in the face of danger, parental love and guidance, and the importance of reading. If not concerned with ethics, some stories are educational, touching on subjects ranging from biology, history, genetics, archaeology and geology (or even the notion of economic inflation, as mentioned above). When these elements are combined with comedy, familiar characters and a plethora of fun and fantastic gadgets, there is very little doubt about why DORAEMON became as popular as it did, or why so many Japanese can look back it with such fondness.For anyone who has the chance to read DORAEMON, it offers an excellent look at child's eye view of Japanese home life of the 70s, and should not be missed.Here's more about the main characters from the classic series:
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Nobi Nobita: The only child in his family, Nobita unfortunately inherited his dad's poor academic ability and his mother's poor athletic ability (along with her bad eyesight). His only two talents are cat's cradle and shooting, skills that are almost completely useless in modern Japanese society.
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Doraemon: A cat-based robot from the future, Doraemon has a four-dimensional pocket filled with useful gadgets. Doraemon loves dorayaki (a snack food made with sweet bean paste), hates being cold and he absolutely loathes rats and mice, to the point of digging out a nuclear bomb from his pocket when he thinks they're around.
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Nobita's Mother: A classic Japanese mother, good at lecturing Nobita, scary when angry and overall a sharp cookie. She also cares very much for her son, and is just as quick to bring him a snack when it looks like he's actually studying as she is to yell at him when he's goofing off.
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Nobita's Father: A laid back Japanese father and salaryman. Normally cheerful, he's ready to offer a lecture or two to his son about the hard times when he was a boy, during the war era. His nemesis appears to be learning to drive a car, though his inability to quit smoking has come up as a plotline as well.
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Gian: Gian (Takeshi) is the local bully, who forces everyone to do things his way, who takes other kids' toys, and who beats up those who oppose him. His dream is to become a singer, and he periodically forces other kids to come and listen to his mind-numbing, ear-warping "concerts." Once in a while he acts kindly towards others, but that's rare. His family is relatively poor. His mother slaps him when she finds him beating up other kids.
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Suneo: The local rich kid, Suneo finds his surest safety in obeying Gian and being his lieutenant, but Suneo secretly resents the stronger boy. His family often goes on expensive trips to which Suneo usually invites Shizuka and Gian, but not Nobita. Suneo has a narcissistic streak a mile wide and loves showing off what his wealth can buy him.
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Shizuka: The nicest girl in the neighborhood, Shizuka is also smart, pretty and gentle. Her hobby unfortunately is frequent bath-taking in the later books (yes, Japanese children's comics have nudity), but overall, she is one of Nobita's protectors and his favorite friend. In the future (as seen by time travel) it seems that she will become his wife, although Nobita was originally going to marry Gian's obnoxious younger sister. Doraemon, it appears, was at least partially successful in changing Nobita's fate.
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Dekisugi: A sometimes-appearing character, Dekisugi is Nobita's main rival for Shizuka. Handsome, athletic and smart, he appears to have no real flaws.
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Dorami: Doraemon's younger sister, who is apparently a somewhat better grade of robot. Her application of futuristic gadgets is usually more intelligent than her elder brother's, but she knows that Nobita and Doraemon are the best of friends. Dorami appears only occasionally, usually when Doraemon is in his periodic "off" state (necessary for robot health).
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The teacher ("Sensei"): The teacher is a fairly stern man who often sends Nobita off to stand in the hallway (a traditional Japanese school punishment). He doesn't hesitate to lecture poorly performing students if he runs into them on the street.
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Nobita's Grandmother (father's side): A small, gentle woman who died some years before, she makes a very rare appearance once in a while when Nobita goes time traveling. Remarkably, she accepts his story about coming from the future, and always treats him with kindness.
