Shopping Guide
On March 30, in celebration of the Japanese domestic broadcast of the American TV anime Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Landing in Japan Celebration Party” was held in Omotesando Hills, Tokyo. The event was free to attend.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is an action anime loaded with comedy. The show depicts four “Turtles” who receive martial arts training from Master Splinter in the sewers under New York and fight evil above ground. The anime series to begin broadcasting in Japan on April 4 is the new CG anime series reboot by Nickelodeon. Since its broadcast began in America in September 2012, it has become well known in many areas of the world including Europe, Asia, and South America.
At the party held on March 30, figures of the Turtles and related goods were on display throughout the venue. Also shown at the party were the collaboration music video for “Shinobu,” a song written just for the anime by popular Japanese vocal group GReeeeN, the ending theme “Bookasha” by rock band Ulfuls, and, of course, the TV anime. Being screened for the first time in Japan, the crowd let out “oohs” and “aahs” with each passing scene of the anime. It was also announced that the new live-action movie will release in Japan this December and a special PV was shown.
Regarding the development of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles products, Mr. Sato, company president of Dreams Come True, announced that development is underway for character goods and various kinds of toys, with a main focus on figures by Playmates Toys.
Japan-only products like collaborations with Japanese figure maker Kaiyodo also caught attention.
“This broadcast comes 2 to 3 years after the rest of the world. However, Japan can catch up to the rest of the world in terms of the popularity of Turtles,” said Mr. Sato, making his hopes clear.
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This is a Tokyo Otaku Mode original article.
