Doraemon

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Doraemon
ドラえもん (Doraemon)
Genre	Comedy, Kodomo
Manga
Authored by	Fujiko F. Fujio
Publisher	Shogakukan Tora Aman
Serialized in
Original run	December 1969 –
No. of volumes	45
TV anime
Directed by	Tsutomu Shibayama
Studio	Asatsu DK
Network	TV Asahi Other networks: CCTV-1 Hungama TV Canal 13 (1983-1988), Chilevisión (2000) TVB RCTI Ntv7, RTM 1, TV9 Channel 8 ChampTV, AnioneTV GMA 7 Canal Panda TV3, Canal Panda, Boomerang CTS Modernine
Original run	April 15, 2005 - Present April 2, 1979 – March 25, 2005
No. of episodes	Original: 1049 Current: 50+
Related works
The Doraemons Dorabase Kiteretsu Daihyakka

Doraemon (ドラえもん, Doraemon^?) is a Japanese manga series created by Fujiko F. Fujio which later became an anime series and Asian franchise. The series is about a robotic cat named Doraemon, who travels back in time from the 22nd century to aid a schoolboy, Nobita Nobi.

The series first appeared in December 1969, when it was published simultaneously in six different magazines. In total, 1,344 stories were created in the original series, which are published by Shogakukan under the Tentōmushi (てんとう虫, Tentōmushi^?) manga brand, extending to forty-five volumes. The volumes are collected in the Takaoka Central Library in Toyama, Japan, where Fujio was born.

Doraemon was awarded the first Osamu Tezuka Culture Award in 1997.

Contents 1 History 2 Setting 3 Characters 3.1 Main characters 3.2 Minor characters 3.3 Nobita's family 4 Dōgu 4.1 Recurring Dōgu 4.2 Other dōgu 5 Series finale rumours 6 Anime 6.1 Television series 6.2 Featured films 6.3 Voice actors 6.4 Opening themes 6.5 Ending themes 7 Significance 8 Other appearances 9 References 10 See also 11 External links

[edit] History

In December 1969, the Doraemon manga appeared simultaneously in six different children's monthly magazines. The magazines were titled by the year of children's studies, which included Yoiko (good children), Yōchien (nursery school), and Shogaku Ichinensei (first grade) to Shogaku Yonnensei (fourth grade). By 1973, the series began appear in two more magazines, Shogaku Gogensei (fifth grade) and Shogaku Rokunensei (sixth grade). The stories featured in each of the magazines were different, meaning the author was originally creating more than six stories each month. In 1979, CoroCoro Comic was launched as a magazine of Doraemon. Original manga based on the Doraemon movies were also released in CoroCoro Comic. The stories which are preserved under the Tentōmushi brand are the stories found in these magazines.

Since the debut of Doraemon in 1969, the stories have been selectively collected into forty-five books published from 1974 to 1996, which had a circulation of over 80 million in 1992. In addition, Doraemon has appeared in a variety of manga series by Shōgakukan. In 2005, Shōgakukan published a series of five more manga volumes under the title Doraemon+ (Doraemon Plus), which were not found in the forty-five Tentōmushi volumes.

[edit] Setting

Doraemon was sent back in time by Nobita Nobi's great-great grandson Sewashi to improve Nobita's circumstances in order for Nobita's descendants to enjoy a better future. In the original timeline, Nobita's failures in school and subsequently, his career, left his family line beset with financial problems.

The stories are formulaic, usually focused on the everyday struggles of fourth grader Nobita, the protagonist of the story. Doraemon possesses a fourth-dimensional pocket from which he can produce all manner of futuristic tools, gadgets, and playthings from a future department store. In a typical chapter, Nobita comes home crying about a problem he faced in school or the local neighborhood. After Nobita's pleading or goading, Doraemon produces a device to help Nobita fix his problem, enact revenge, or flaunt to his friends.

However, Nobita usually goes too far, despite Doraemon's best intentions, and gets into deeper trouble than before. Sometimes, Nobita's friends (usually Suneo or Jaian) steal the gadgets and end up misusing them. However, by the end of the story, there is usually retribution to the characters who end up misusing them, and a moral lesson is taught.

[edit] Characters

[edit] Main characters

Fujiko's friends say that every main character represents elementary school student archetypes Fujiko noticed in his own school days.

Nobita Nobi (野比のび太, Nobita Nobi^?)

Nobita is the main character of the series. He is a fourth grader in Tokyo and an only child. He wears glasses, a red or yellow polo shirt with a white collar, and blue shorts. Nobita's character flaws are endless. He is lazy, uncoordinated, dim-witted, frail, plain-looking, unlucky, and bad at sports. Nobita's normal day consists of arriving late to class, scoring zeroes on his exam, getting yelled at by his teacher, being bullied by classmates Jaian and Suneo, falling into curbside rain gutters, being chased by dogs, and getting yelled at by his mom for refusing to do his homework. However, his flaws and struggles are what drive the storyline. Nobita does possess some unique talents such as his unrivalled marksmanship and string figure weaving. Although Nobita is frequently portrayed as being cowardly, he has a strong sense of justice and will sometimes risk his life to help save entire civilizations, which is shown in full-length stories.

Doraemon (ドラえもん, Doraemon^?)

Doraemon is the robot cat sent back in time by Sewashi to aid Nobita. Doraemon originally had ears but they were bitten off by a robot mouse back in the 22nd century. As a result, he has morbid fear of mice (rodentaphobia) , despite being a robotic cat. He also has the tendency to panic during emergencies, characterized by him frantically trying to pull out a very much-needed tool, only to produce a huge assortment of unrelated household items.

Of all the Doraemon characters, Doraemon is the only one to have changed since the manga began. He was predominantly blue, with a blue tail, a white stomach, and flesh-coloured hands and feet. He also stooped, and had a body much larger than his head. He was changed to have a smaller body, white hands and feet, and a red tail. He usually wears a red collar with a golden bell, hence the name DingDong, which is often used in Chinese versions.

In "The Doraemons" story arc, it is revealed that Doraemon's original paint color was yellow. After getting his ears gnawed off by the robot mouse, he slipped into depression on top of a tower, where he drank a potion with a label having letters that resembled "sadness". As he cried for a long time, the yellow color washed off and his voice changed due to the potion. He was later greeted by his sister, Dorami.

Doraemon weighs 129.3 kg and his height is 129.3 cm. He is also able to run at 129.3 km/h when scared, and jump 129.3 meters when threatened. He was manufactured on September 3, 2112, at the Matsushiba Robot Factory (マツシバロボット工場, Matsushiba Robot Factory^?).

Doraemon's favourite food is dorayaki, a Japanese treat filled with sweet bean paste, which is often used to make Doraemon do things he is otherwise reluctant to do. Speculations led to dorayaki being the origin of his name. However, it was revealed in one of the manga that his name originates from a Japanese word for "stray cat", dora neko, and the -emon ending which is part of traditional Japanese names, as seen also in, for example, Ishikawa Goemon.

Shizuka Minamoto (源静香, Shizuka Minamoto^?)

Shizuka, usually called Shizu-chan or Shizuka-chan, is a smart and kind girl who is the object of Nobita's affections as well as his future bride. She bathes every morning, noon, afternoon, and evening, which leads to numerous accidental bath scenes. She is also known for taking piano lessons unwillingly, which is sometimes used as an excuse for declining to play with Nobita. However, she has never played the piano in the anime. Her true passions are sweet potatoes and the violin, in which her playing is as bad as Jaian is at singing.

Takeshi Goda (剛田武, Takeshi Goda^?)

Takeshi, usually known by the nickname Jaian (ジャイアン, Jaian^?), is big, strong, and quick-tempered. His nickname might mean giant. He is known for his confidence in his terrible singing and cooking. He regularly subjects the neighbourhood children to horrendous singing recitals, which is sometimes combined with his homemade dinner. Many of the stories revolve around Nobita and his friends' efforts to avoid Jaian's concerts.

He also frequently steals other children's toys and books under the pretext of "borrowing" it. However, he still has a strong sense of justice, and will not hesitate to help Nobita and his friends when they are in real trouble, which often occurs in the movies. Although he bullies the other children (mostly Nobita), he is terrified of his mother. He founded his own baseball team named after himself. Even though Nobita is often blamed for the loss against the baseball team's rival, the "Tyranos", Jaian and Suneo still force Nobita to play because they do not have enough players.

Jaian has a younger sister, whom he adores.

Suneo Honekawa (骨川スネ夫, Suneo Honekawa^?)

Suneo is the braggart who parades his material wealth in front of Nobita. He is often seen with Jaian, who he bullies Nobita with. Several stories start with Suneo showing off some new video game, toy, or electronics his family bought, or him needing Doraemon's help. He is a talented artist and designer. He also has a younger brother Sunetsugu (スネツグ, Sunetsugu^?), who was adopted into his uncle's family in New York. In some scenes, Suneo is seen as a narcissist who loves to stare at himself in the mirror while telling himself that he is the most handsome guy in the world. He is still a bed-wetter and needs to wear diapers when he sleeps, despite being in the fourth grade. He considers this as his secret weakness, and according to his mother, it is his only weakness.

[edit] Minor characters

Jaiko (ジャイ子, Jaiko^?)

Jaiko is Jaian's younger sister who would have been Nobita's wife in the future had Doraemon not intervened. She first appeared in the first story, before the introduction of Jaian. Her name Jaiko is usually considered a nickname, but Fujiko never gave her a real name.

Jaiko goes by her amateur mangaka pen name Christine Goda (クリスチーネ剛田, Christine Goda^?), and sometimes submits her stories to publishing companies for prizes.

Hidetoshi Dekisugi (出木杉英才, Hidetoshi Dekisugi^?)

Hidetoshi is Nobita's classmate and rival for Shizuka's affections. He always gets perfect scores on his tests. His name literally means "brilliant over-achiever", and his last name is a pun on dekisugiru, which means "over achieving".

Dorami (ドラミ, Dorami^?)

Dorami, also known as Dorami-chan, is the younger sister of Doraemon. She lives in the 22nd-century Tokyo with Sewashi, Nobita's great-great-grandson. She is yellow where Doraemon is blue, and she has ears that looks like a large red bow. She likes melonpan and she is afraid of cockroaches. She is also shown to be more capable than Doraemon. She sometimes visits Nobita with a time machine.

Tameru Kaneo

Tameru tends to accompany Suneo and Jaian. He has a friend whose name is not mentioned, and both of them are always seen together. Kane wo tameru, the way his name is read in Japanese, means "to save money" in Japanese.

Mini-Doras

Mini-Doras are actually gadgets of Doraemon. They are mini versions of Doraemon, each with a different color. They can think and feel for themselves, and communicates with Doraemon through the "Mini-Dora" language. They act as helpers for all sorts of jobs.

[edit] Nobita's family

Tamako Nobi (野比玉子, Tamako Nobi^?)

Tamako is Nobita's mother, who is usually seen scolding Nobita, or sending Nobita on errands. However, on several occasions, it is shown that she loves her son very much and wants him to have a good life by forcing him to study.

Nobisuke Nobi (野比のび助, Nobisuke Nobi^?)

Nobisuke is Nobita's father and a laid-back salaryman. Nobisuke is very considerate of Nobita, often seen arriving home from work to soothe Tamako's anger directed at Nobita. He is also shown to be unable to drive or quit smoking, and has a poor memory.

Sewashi (セワシ, Sewashi^?)

Sewashi is Nobita's great-great-grandson who sent Doraemon back to the past to look after Nobita.

Nobisuke (ノビスケ, Nobisuke^?)

Nobisuke is Nobita's son, who is named after Nobita's father. He is a much better athlete than Nobita and is sly. He did not hesitate to beat young Nobita when young Nobita tried to stop Nobisuke from running away from home.

[edit] Dōgu

Doraemon can take out various devices known as dōgu (道具, dōgu^? lit. gadget) from his fourth-dimensional pocket. Some of the gadgets are based on real Japanese household devices with fanciful twists, while most are gadgets which are completely science fiction. (Although some may be based on folklore or religious stories). Examples of gadgets are one used to affect the outcome of fights on television or walk on clouds.

Thousands of dōgu have been featured in Doraemon. Some have placed the estimation at approximately 4,500 different dōgu used in Doraemon.

[edit] Recurring Dōgu

Fourth-dimensional pocket (四次元ポケット, Fourth-dimensional pocket^?)

The inside of pocket connects to the fourth dimension and acts like a wormhole. It is usually shown attached to Doraemon's abdomen. Some stories show Doraemon having a spare pocket which connects to the same location.

Time machine (タイムマシン, Time machine^?)

The exit of Doraemon's time machine is in Nobita's desk drawer. The time machine looks like a simple platform with a control console, and a clock with five hands overhanging the console. Doraemon is often seen piloting the time machine. Dorami has her own time machine shaped like a tulip, suggesting a variety of models available in the future. The time machine can create an exit in a specific place spatially as well as temporally. An alternative to the time machine is the time belt, which does not change the wearer's location relative to Earth.

Take-copter (タケコプター, Take-copter^?)

One of the main modes of transportation for the various characters is the take-copter, which combines the words taketombo (竹とんぼ, taketombo^? lit. bamboo dragonfly, the Japanese name for the bamboo-copter), and part of the word herikoputā (ヘリコプター, herikoputā^?), which means helicopter. The take-copter was also called the heri-tombo (ヘリトンボ, heri-tombo^?) in early stories. The device is a propeller attached to a tiny suction cup which can be attached to enable flight. Ever since the first few Doraemon stories, the take-copter is seen attached to the head instead of the waist, similar to a propeller beanie, due to a mishap with Nobita's shorts. The take-copter has also been attached to objects to enable its flight. One of its disadvantage is its short battery life.

Moshimo-box (もしもボックス, Moshimo-box^?)

The moshimo-box is a pun based on the Japanese greeting used on the telephone moshi moshi, and the phrase meaning "what if", or moshimo. The device is a telephone booth where the characters dial a number and propose a "what if" scenario which alters the world. Nobita has wished for a world where money was not necessary, and purchasing an item meant receiving cash, and being robbed meant being forced to take cash, causing store clerks to force cash onto his hands upon attempting to purchase toys. Nobita has also wished for a world without mirrors, and for a world where lazy people who napped would be hailed as celebrities.

Dokodemo door (どこでもドア, Dokodemo door^? lit. anywhere door)

One of Doraemon's most commonly used gadgets is the dokodemo door, a door which allows travel to anywhere by simply going through the door. In an early story, the door is able to travel to the end of the universe, but in later chapters, the door is said to only be able to travel a maximum distance of 100,000 light years and cannot access other dimensions. Another limitation of the door is that it can only safely connect two known locations in its mapping computer.

Small beam (スモールライト, Small beam^?)

Small beam, or small light, is a lamp similar to a flashlight that will shrink objects and people to minuscule sizes. Its opposite is the large beam (ビッグライト, large beam^? or big light), which enlarges objects and people. Another tool that is used in a similar capacity is "Gulliver's Tunnel (ガリバートンネル, Gulliver's Tunnel^?)", which causes a person to grow or shrink depending on which entrance he takes, however its ratio of shrinking and enlarging is fixed.

Pass Loop (通り抜けフープ, Tōrinuke Fūpu^?)

A loop which creates a passage through a solid object such as a wall when placed upon it.

Air cannon (空気砲, Kūkihō^?)

A gun barrel worn on the arm used to fire a powerful burst of air which can knock out the victim when the user says "bang". Later models, featured in the long manga and movies, are fired with a trigger.

Translation konjac (ほんやくコンニャク, hon'yaku-konnyaku^?)

A piece of konjac jelly which enables a person to understand and speak any known language in the universe. The effect begins after the person ingests the jelly, but the duration of the effect is unknown. While the ones Doraemon uses are usually unflavored, in the story Nobita's Birth of Japan (のび太の日本誕生, Nobita's Birth of Japan^?), he used one labeled to be miso flavored, suggesting the existence of various flavors, which are more expensive.

Dress-Up Camera (着せ替えカメラ, Kisekae kamera^?)

A camera that uses a picture of clothing instead of film, and changes the clothes of the person in the viewfinder to the clothing in the picture. It may also be used with no picture or an incomplete picture, with embarrassing results. The camera is often used in the long stories and movies, where the gang must disguise themselves in unfamiliar places to avoid attracting undue attention.

[edit] Other dōgu

There are around 4,500 different dōgu featured in Doraemon, and most of the dōgu appears only in one story.

• Memory bread is a bread used to imprint pages, which after ingestion, will imbue the consumer with the content imprinted on the bread.
• Restoring beam is a lamp which is able to restore broken items back to its original state.
• Animal biscuits are animal crackers which transforms the consumer into the animal the biscuit is shaped after for a short period of time.
• Air glue allows the user to stick things in the air.
• Air Crayons are used to draw things in the air, which then becomes real. The reverse is the air eraser.
• Allmighty pass is a pass which grants the holder access to anywhere and anything without cost or identification. Nobita once uses the pass for free taxi rides, going into pubs, and visiting a famous celebrity's house. The pass has an expiration date which needs to be renewed, and is very expensive, as Doraemon was disappointed when Nobita didn't use it for good.
• Deep sea cream allows the user to go underwater for extended periods of time.
• Fluffy medicine lightens the weight of the user taking this medicine, which allows floating into the clouds. Taking too much at once can be disastrous.
• Instant Christmas tree is a Christmas tree that grows instantly when planted. Similar tools include the instant vine, which grows into the sky moments after planting.
• Cloud hardening gas is a gas which hardens clouds upon application, allowing the clouds to be solid enough to be walked upon. Doraemon and his friends once used this gas to create a cloud city.
• Bamboo horse is a hybrid creature combining the horse and the bamboo, but is highly temperamental. It needs to be fed carrots and cared for to become loyal. Doraemon gives one to Nobita in order for Nobita to win a stilts walking contest.
• Mini-airplane is a miniature airplane with the ability to fire ammunition. When the mini-airplane is destroyed, the pilot will be ejected from it with a parachute.(seen on manga no.12)

• Lightning cloud is a small lightning cloud which floats and has a trigger used to immediately release lightning and thunder. Doraemon gives it to Nobita in order to help Nobita get accustomed to thunder.
• Sticker of truth is a small rubber sticker which can be stuck to anyone in order to make the wearer tell the truth. Nobita once used it on Suneo because Suneo was flattering random people.
• Air tubes are tubes that when stuffed into the nose, allows the user to breathe freely underwater.
• Sea water filter is a straw-like device that instantly filters seawater when the user drinks through it.
• Water pressure gun Is a powerful gun that can only be used underwater. Was used by Nobita in one story to fend off a shark attack.
• Weather Machine is used in many episodes to freely control weather. Works by inserting weather cards into the machine.
• Adaptation beam is another often-used gadget which makes the user able to go any kind of hostile environment, including outer space and deep undersea freely.
• Shadow separation scissors are scissors which can turn shadows into physical beings which can be commanded to do anything the owner wishes. However, after a certain period of time, the shadow must be put back or it will replace the owner and turn the owner into a shadow.
• Underwater firewood are firewood that can burn underwater.
• Reverse bulbs are bulbs which will turn the surrounding area dark when switched on.

[edit] Series finale rumours

There are three current and often quoted urban legends that started spreading in late 1980s of an ending to the Doraemon series.

• The first and the more optimistic ending was made public by Nobuo Sato several years ago. Doraemon's battery power ran out, and Nobita was given a choice between replacing the battery inside a frozen Doraemon, which would cause it to reset and lose all memory, or await a competent robotics technician who would be able to resurrect the cat-robot one day. Nobita swore that very day to work hard in school, graduate with honours, and become that robotics technician. He successfully resurrected Doraemon in the future as a robotics professor, became successful as an AI developer, and thus lived happily ever after, thus relieving his progeny of the financial burdens that caused Doraemon to be sent to his space-time in the first place. A dōjin manga for this ending exists. ^[1]

• The second, more pessimistic ending suggests that Nobita Nobi is suffering from autism and that all the characters (including Doraemon) are simply fictional characters in his imagination. The idea that Nobita was a sick and dying little boy who imagined the entire series on his sickbed to help him ease his pain and depression no doubt angered quite a lot of fans. Many Japanese fans staged a protest outside the Head Quarter of the publisher of the series after learning about this suggestion. The publisher had to issue a public statement that this is not true. (This ending actually correlates to the ending for the series St. Elsewhere, which ended in 1988.)

• The third ending suggests that Nobita fell and hit his head on a rock. He fell into deep coma, and eventually into a semi-vegetative state. To raise money for an operation to save Nobita, Doraemon sold all his tools and devices in his four-dimensional pocket. However, the operation failed. Doraemon sold all his tools except for one used for the last resort. He used it to enable Nobita to go wherever he wanted, whichever time era he wished to go. In the end, the very place Nobita wanted to go is heaven...

However, the plausibility of these issues was discussed here and it was concluded that there is no ending to Doraemon. ^[2]

Nevertheless, there are actually three official endings to Doraemon that were made. Doraemon was discontinued in two media because readers were advancing in grades and an ending was believed to be needed. These two are not reprinted.

• In the March 1971 issue of the magazine Shogaku 4-nensei ^[3]: Due to the fact that visitors from the future were causing too much trouble, the government in the 22nd Century passed a bill to ban time-travelling altogether, meaning Doraemon would have to return to his time era. He leaves Nobita.
• In the March 1972 issue of the magazine Shogaku 4-nensei: Doraemon, for some reason, had to go back to the future but fakes a mechanical problem so that Nobita would let him go. Nobita believes him and promises to wait until Doraemon gets well. Realizing that Nobita can handle his departure, Doraemon tells the truth and Nobita accepts. Doraemon returns to the future.

The third ending was actually meant to be the official ending due to low TV ratings and the Fujiko Fujio duo was busy with other works. But Doraemon did not leave their minds and restarted from next month's issue. In 1981, this episode was made into anime (called "Doraemon Comes Back"), and in 1998, this was released as an anime movie.

• In the March 1973 issue of the magazine Shogaku 4-nensei, Nobita again returns home after losing a fight against Jaian. Doraemon then explains that he has to return. Nobita tries to have Doraemon stay but after talking it over with his parents, he accepts Doraemon's departure. They take a last walk in the park. After they split up, Nobita encounters Jaian and gets into a fight again. After a long duel with Nobita trying to win at all costs so that Doraemon can leave without worries, Jaian lets Nobita win for not giving up. Doraemon finds Nobita passed out and takes him home. Sitting beside sleeping Nobita and after a moment of thought, Doraemon returns to the future. (It is also found at the last chapter of the manga Book 6)
• The animated version is completely similar but lenghtened. Nobita finds a box the shape of Doraemon in his drawer. The next day, which happens to be April Fool's day, Nobita is jeered at by Suneo and Jaian, the latter tricking him about Doraemon's return. He happily runs home and asked his mother whether Doraemon came back and finds out the truth. Nobita couldn't stand it and opens the box. Inside of it was a bottle of liquid. He hears Doraemon's voice explaining that the potion is called Uso 800 (Lies 800) it is used to make all untruths the drinker says true. Nobita uses it to play a few tricks on Jaian and Suneo, like first taking cover then say that the weather sure is good, which becomes a lie and it started to rain heavily before he said it is raining heavily and the rain stopped. Jian and Suneo was scared away after a few tricks and when Nobita mentioned what is happening. Nobita was very happy at first but quickly loses interest in the absence of Doraemon. As he walks home, due to his earlier questioning if Doraemon returned or not, his mother asked him if he could find Doraemon, he unwittingly said, in great disappointment, the truth about Doraemon never coming back, just like what Doraemon told Nobita before his departure. Since the potion was still in effect, when he arrives his room he finds Doraemon there, and they have a happy reunion, but due to the effects of the potion, all his greets and joyful words have to be spoken in the opposite way like I am so unhappy that we can never be together again.
• The extra portion of the above ending from the animated version is included in Book 7 of the manga series.

When the Fujiko Fujio duo broke up in the 1987, the very idea of an official ending to the series was never discussed. Since Fujiko F. died in 1996 before any decisions were reached, any "endings" of Doraemon are fan fiction. However, it is apparent from many episodes and movies where Nobita travels to the future that in the end he does marry Shizuka, leads a happy life and separates with Doraemon, although Nobita and his friends fondly remember him. ^[4]

[edit] Anime

[edit] Television series

After a brief and unpopular animated series in 1973 by Nippon Television, Doraemon remained fairly exclusive in manga form until 1979 when TV Asahi produced an anime series of Doraemon. This series became incredibly popular, and ended with 1,049 episodes on March 25, 2005.

Celebrating Doraemon's anniversary, a new Doraemon series began airing on TV Asahi on April 15, 2005 with new seiyūs and staff.

[edit] Featured films

Main article: List of Doraemon media

In 1980, the first of a series of annual feature length animated films was released. The films are more adventure oriented, taking the familiar characters of Doraemon and placing them in a variety of exotic and perilous settings. Nobita and his friends have visited the age of the dinosaurs, the far reaches of the galaxy, the heart of darkest Africa (where they encountered a race of sentient bipedal dogs), the depths of the ocean, and a world of magic. Some of the films are based on legends such as Atlantis, and on literary works such as Journey to the West and Arabian Nights. Some films also have serious themes, especially on environmental topics and the use of technology.

[edit] Voice actors

From 1979 to April 2005, the same five seiyū provided the main voices in Doraemon. However, they retired in April 2005 partially due to the 25th anniversary of the Doraemon television series.^[5][6] On March 13, 2005, TV Asahi announced the new seiyu for the five main characters:^[7]

Character	Seiyū for April 1979 - March 2005	Seiyū for March 2005 - Present
Doraemon	Nobuyo Oyama (大山のぶ代, Nobuyo Oyama?)	Wasabi Mizuta (水田わさび, Wasabi Mizuta?)
Nobita	Noriko Ohara (小原乃梨子, Noriko Ohara?)	Megumi Ohara (大原めぐみ, Megumi Ohara?)
Shizuka	Michiko Nomura (野村道子, Michiko Nomura?)	Yumi Kakazu (かかずゆみ, Yumi Kakazu?)
Jaian	Kazuya Tatekabe (たてかべ和也, Kazuya Tatekabe?)	Subaru Kimura (木村昴, Subaru Kimura?)
Suneo	Kaneta Kimotsuki (肝付兼太, Kaneta Kimotsuki?)	Tomokazu Seki (関智一, Tomokazu Seki?)
Dorami	Keiko Yokozawa (よこざわけい子, Keiko Yokozawa?)	Chiaki (千秋, Chiaki?)
Hidetoshi	Sumiko Shirakawa (白川澄子, Sumiko Shirakawa?)	Shihoko Hagino (萩野志保子, Shihoko Hagino?)
Nobita's Mama	Sachiko Chijimatsu (千々松幸子, Sachiko Chijimatsu?)	Kotono Mitsuishi (三石琴乃, Kotono Mitsuishi?)
Nobita's Papa	Yōsuke Naka (中庸助, Yōsuke Naka?)	Yasunori Matsumoto (松本保典, Yasunori Matsumoto?)
Sewashi	Yoshiko Ohta (太田淑子, Yoshiko Ohta?)	Sachi Matsumoto (松本さち, Sachi Matsumoto?)
Sensei	Ryōichi Tanaka (田中亮一, Ryōichi Tanaka?)	Wataru Takagi (高木渉, Wataru Takagi?)
Kaminari	Takeshi Watabe (渡部猛, Takeshi Watabe?)	Katsuhisa Houki (宝亀克寿, Katsuhisa Houki?)
Shizuka's Mother	Masako Matsubara (松原雅子, Masako Matsubara?)	Ai Orikasa (折笠愛, Ai Orikasa?)
Suneo's Mother	Mari Yokoo (横尾まり, Mari Yokoo?)	Minami Takayama (高山みなみ, Minami Takayama?)
Suneo's Father	Osamu Katou (加藤治, Osamu Katou?)	Hideyuki Tanaka (田中秀幸, Hideyuki Tanaka?)
Jaian's Mother	Kazuyo Aoki (青木和代, Kazuyo Aoki?)	Miyako Takeuchi (竹内都子, Miyako Takeuchi?)
Jaiko	Kazuyo Aoki (青木和代, Kazuyo Aoki?)	Banira Yamazaki (山崎バニラ, Banira Yamazaki?)

• Nobita - Hiroko Maruyama (stand-in for Ohara, July 23, 1979~July 28, 1979)
• Suneo - Naoki Tatsuta (stand-in for Kimotsuki, November 15, 1985~December 6, 1985)
• Nobita's Papa - Masayuki Katou (Start~October 2, 1992)
• Sensei - Ritsuo Sawa→ Osamu Katou→ Kazuhiko Inoue (Start~September 1981)
• Kaminari - Shingo Kanemoto (February 8, 1985 (character debut)~September 14, 1990)
• Shizuka's Mother - Keiko Yokozawa (Start~August 1981)
• Suneo's Mother - Yoshino Ohtori (Start~March 8, 1991)

[edit] Opening themes

The opening theme used for the weekly Doraemon series airing between 1979 and 2005 was "Song of Doraemon" (ドラえもんのうた, doraemon no uta^?), which was performed by five different performers over the course of its years:

	Performer	Starting date	Ending date
1.	Kumiko Ōsugi (大杉久美子, Kumiko Ōsugi?)	April 2, 1979	October 2, 1992
2.	Satoko Yamano (山野さと子, Satoko Yamano?)	October 9, 1992	September 20, 2002
3.	Tokyo Purin (東京プリン, Tokyo Purin?)	October 4, 2002	April 11, 2003
4.	Misato Watanabe (渡辺美里, Misato Watanabe?)	April 18, 2003	April 23, 2004
5.	AJI	April 30, 2004	March 18, 2005

Two songs were used for a separate weekday Doraemon series, the first song being the same as the first song of the weekly series.

	Name	Starting date	Ending date
1.	Kumiko Ōsugi (大杉久美子, Kumiko Ōsugi?)	April 2, 1979	September 29, 1979
2.	Nobuyo Oyama (大山のぶ代, Nobuyo Oyama?)	October 1, 1979	September 26, 1981

[edit] Ending themes

The ending themes used for the weekly Doraemon series airing between 1979 and 2005 were:

	Name	Performer	Starting date	Ending date
1.	"Aoi Sora wa Pocket sa" (青い空はポケットさ, "Aoi Sora wa Pocket sa"?)	Kumiko Oosugi (大杉久美子, Kumiko Oosugi?)	April 8, 1979	September 27, 1981
2.	"Maru-gao no Uta" (まる顔のうた, "Maru-gao no Uta"?)	Nobuyo Oyama (大山のぶ代, Nobuyo Oyama?)	October 2, 1981	March 30, 1984
3.	"Santa Claus wa Doko no Hito" (サンタクロースはどこのひと, "Santa Claus wa Doko no Hito"?)	Nobuyo Oyama (大山のぶ代, Nobuyo Oyama?)	November 18, 1983	December 30, 1983
4.	"Boku-tachi Chiyuu-jin" (ぼくたち地球人, "Boku-tachi Chiyuu-jin"?)	Mitsuko Horie (堀江美都子, Mitsuko Horie?)	April 6, 1984	April 8, 1988
5.	"Aozora-tte Iina" (青空っていいな, "Aozora-tte Iina"?)	Mitsuko Horie (堀江美都子, Mitsuko Horie?)	April 15, 1988	October 2, 1992
6.	"Ashita mo Tomodachi" (あしたも♥ともだち, "Ashita mo Tomodachi"?)	Yui Nishiwaki (にしわきゆい, Yui Nishiwaki?)	October 9, 1992	April 7, 1995
7.	"Boku Doraemon 2112" (ぼくドラえもん2112, "Boku Doraemon 2112"?)	Nobuyo Oyama, Koorogi '73 (大山のぶ代、こおろぎ'73, Nobuyo Oyama, Koorogi '73?)	April 14, 1995	September 20, 2002
8.	"Mata Aeru Hi Made" (またあえる日まで, "Mata Aeru Hi Made"?)	YUZU (ゆず, YUZU?)	October 4, 2002	April 11, 2003
9.	"Tanpop no Uta" (タンポポの詩 歌, "Tanpop no Uta"?)	The Alfee	April 18, 2003	October 4, 2003
10.	"YUME Biyori" (YUME日和, "YUME Biyori"?)	Hitomi Shimatani (島谷ひとみ, Hitomi Shimatani?)	October 10, 2003	May 28, 2004
11.	"Aa Iina!" (あぁ いいな!, "Aa Iina!"?)	W (Double You)|W (ダブルユー)	June 4, 2004	March 18, 2005

Three songs were used for the separate weekday Doraemon series.

	Name	Performer
1.	"Doraemon Ekaki-uta" (ドラえもん・えかきうた, "Doraemon Ekaki-uta"?)	Nobuyo Oyama (大山のぶ代, Nobuyo Oyama?)
2.	"Doraemon Ondo" (ドラえもん音頭, "Doraemon Ondo"?)	Nobuyo Oyama (大山のぶ代, Nobuyo Oyama?)
3.	"Dorami-chan Ekaki-uta (ドラミちゃんのえかきうた, "Dorami-chan Ekaki-uta?)	Keiko Yokozawa (横沢啓子, Keiko Yokozawa?)

[edit] Significance

In 2005, the Japan Society of New York selected Doraemon as a culturally significant work of Japanese otaku pop-culture in its exhibit Little Boy: The Arts of Japan's Exploding Subculture, curated by renowned artist Takashi Murakami. In Murakami's analysis, he states that Doraemon's formulaic plotlines typified the "wish fulfilment" mentality of 1970s Japan, where the electronics revolution glamorized the idea that one could solve their problems with machines and gadgets rather than hard work or individual intelligence.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Other appearances

Doraemon is a popular character in Japan and can be seen in many places. For example, Doraemon is used as a promotional character by Art Hikkoshi Center (アート引越センター, Āto hikkoshi sentā^?), by a removals company, and by Cocos, a restaurant chain. Doraemon also appears in appeals for charity, the "Doraemon Fund". Doraemon toys and novelties are also often found in Japan, with literally thousands of items for sale.

Doraemon, Nobita, and the other characters also appear in various educational manga.

Doraemon is mentioned in Ultra Maniac's first Manga book. Hiroki apparently has the enire comic seriese, and lent it to Nina. Hiroki an Nina (Now Jin) also sing the theme song to Doraemon in a karaeoke party.

[edit] References

1. ^ Dōjin manga of the Ending of the Doraemon series (Japanese with English translations).
2. ^ [1] (Japanese)
3. ^ [2]
4. ^ All About Doraemon the robotic cat (Chinese).
5. ^ Mainichi Daily News article
6. ^ Yahoo! Asia News
7. ^ Announcement by TV Asahi

[edit] See also

• List of channels air Doraemon series
• List of non-Japanese Doraemon versions
• List of Doraemon media
• Kiteretsu Daihyakka, a similar manga by Fujiko F. Fujio
• The Doraemons, a spin-off about Doraemon and his friends from Robot School
• Dorabase, a spin-off about robot cats who play on a baseball team

[edit] External links

• (Japanese) Doraemon Official Website
• (Japanese) Doraemon Movie Official Website
• (Japanese) Doraemon Official TV Asahi Website
• (Japanese) Doraemon Secret Dōgu List, a comprehensive list of dōgu featured in Doraemon
• The Doraemon Resource
• Doraemon article from TIME Asia Edition
• Doraemon (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia