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A grand opening ceremony was held at the Tottori Airport International Meeting Hall in Tottori, Japan, in celebration of the brand new Tottori Sand Dunes Conan Airport. The mangaka Gosho Aoyama is a Tottori native from Hokuei-cho, and his series Detective Conan (also known as Case Closed) is the namesake of the airport.
Decorating the inside of the airport are various homages to the series such as illustrated signs, life-size figures of Conan and Ran, a giant 3D floor mural, and more! The notable part is that the entire airport is wholly dedicated to the single concept of Detective Conan, making it an absolute spot to visit for fans of the series.
Days before the opening ceremony, a notice from none other than Kaito Kid himself, the longtime rival of Conan, was received by the airport, stating “When the wings that soar in the heavens awaken, I will arrive to claim the scattered stone which lies on top of the golden sands.” This turned out to be a promotional project to celebrate the new Detective Conan movie titled Meitantei Conan: Goka no Himawari (Detective Conan: Sunflowers of Inferno), focusing on Kaito Kid who is featured as a key character. The last movie, which was released in 2014, outstandingly pulled in 4 billion yen in revenue.
A special page dedicated to the Kaito Kid campaign was set up on the official site on Feb. 14, 2015 and the cryptic message was talked about among fans.
The opening ceremony itself opened on March 1 with more than 500 attending, including international fans. Amongst the celebration, the voice of Kaito Kid chimed in and resounded along the walls of the hall.
His interruption revealed that his true motive hidden in the message sent from days past was to steal the giant 3D floor mural that was installed inside the airport. The hall burst into an uproar, but as it turned out this was not the object he was seeking.
What was then discovered was a second message at the site of the 3D floor mural from Kaito Kid, stating “I will arrive to claim the slightly erotic piece of art in front of Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers.”
With the second phase of the campaign in motion, fans were keeping their eyes out for what would be stolen next during this grand project.
As for the ceremony itself, it featured spectacular events such as a performance of the Detective Conan main theme by the police band, a speech made by prefectural governor Hirai, a special guest appearance from Conan Edogawa, and a video message by original creator Gosho Aoyama.
The many fans who attended the ceremony also had the exciting chance to take pictures with the 3D floor mural which was stolen and promptly returned by Kaito Kid during the ceremony.
Detective Conan: Sunflowers of Inferno
Opening April 18, 2015 (Sat.)
Meitantei Conan: Goka no Himawari
© 2015 Gosho Aoyama / Detective Conan Production Committee
Source: animeanime
Source article written by Yuma
