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An anime classic character block figure with light and sound

2003 MEGA BLOKS BANDAI ANPANMAN 6-PIECE FIGURE

DETAILS:

Your favorite red bean paste filled pastry superhero!

Calling all collectors and Anpanman enthusiasts! Dive into the magical anime world of Anpanman with the rare and unique 2003 Mega Bloks x Bandai Anpanman figure. This Japan import is a true gem, embodying the essence of collaboration between two powerhouse brands, Mega Bloks (Mega Brands) and the esteemed Japanese toy and entertainment company, Bandai.

This large Mega Bloks figure is made up of 6 Mega Bloks pieces, with the head piece providing some amazing features. The blocks are double-sided, allowing you to switch between Anpanman's iconic superhero costume or a stylish tuxedo look. Mix and match as you please, or incorporate more Mega Bloks to create your own unique versions of Anpanman. Anpanman's nose on both sides is a button that activates the light, sound, and music. Press the winky face Anpanman nose and you'll be treated to a delightful melody, followed by a couple words from Anpanman (no light this side). Press the regular face Anpanman nose to see his nose flash red and hear him yell "Annpannnnn!!!", followed a quick melody.

In 2003, for the first time, Mega Bloks and Bandai joined forces in a venture that brought Mega Blok sets featuring popular Japanese anime, or cartoon, characters to the Asian market. This special toy collaboration resulted in the production of the rare and sought-after 2003 Mega Bloks Bandai Anpanman figures, a true testament to the creativity and innovation of both companies.

Add this rare and unique 2003 Mega Bloks Bandai Anpanman figure to your collection today!

Vintage and extremely rare!

This hard-to-find Anpanman figure is a true collector's item, as extensive research reveals the genuine scarcity and zero availability elsewhere today. We scoured the online world in search of another Anpanman Mega Bloks figure and came up empty-handed, confirming its extreme level of rarity. And oddly, there's even little to no certifiable information available regarding Mega Bloks Anpanman products. The charming Anpanman and Mega Bloks crossover was only available in Japan for a limited time in 2003 at select retail locations - adding another level of exclusivity. The Mega Bloks Anpanman figure holds more than just the allure of a rare toy find; it encapsulates a piece of Bandai and Mega Brands history. This detail makes it even more special, as it reflects a stage in toy history that adds an extra layer of uniqueness to this already extraordinary product. It's a must-have for Anpanman fanatics who treasure the nostalgia and exclusivity it represents.

Requires 2 "AAA" batteries to operate.

Batteries are not included.

Dimensions:

Height: 8" (8 inches)

Width: 2-1/4" (2.25 inches)

Length: 6-1/4" (6.25 inches)

CONDITION:

In good, pre-owned and working condition. Anpanman has visible wear. Please see photos.

To ensure safe delivery all items are carefully packaged before shipping out.

THANK YOU FOR LOOKING. QUESTIONS? JUST ASK.

*ALL PHOTOS AND TEXT ARE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF SIDEWAYS STAIRS CO. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.*

"Mega Brands Inc. (formerly Mega Bloks Inc. and Ritvik Holdings) is a Canadian children's toy company that is currently a wholly owned subsidiary of Mattel. Mega Bloks, a line of construction set toys, is its most popular product. Its other brands include Mega Construx, Mega Puzzles, and Board Dudes. The company distributes a wide range of construction toys, puzzles, and craft-based products.

In 2016, Mega Brands' Bloks was second in worldwide sales (11%) of toy construction building sets.[4]
History
Ritvik Holdings

In 1967, Victor Bertrand and his wife Rita founded the company as Ritvik Holdings (RH). Ritvik is a portmanteau word based on a combination of Rita and Victor. RH began by distributing toys made outside Canada and also facilitated contracts between foreign brands and Canadian manufacturers.[5]

Ritvik later became a vertically integrated company as it expanded by adding plastic injection molding operations, design operations, tooling manufacturers, and marketing services. The company had a leading share of the plastic injection molded market by the early 1980s.[5]

Wanting to expand beyond Canada, Victor Bertrand took an interest in construction block sets. He saw room for growth despite them being an industry staple since the early years of the 20th century when the Batima Block was released in Belgium in 1905. With Lego being the leading construction toy, Bertrand chose to make a similar set. Bertrand ignored friends and advisors, feeling he had two advantages in launching Mega Bloks: he aimed to produce jumbo-sized bricks for toddlers, who Lego bricks were not designed for, and he considered his expertise in injection molding would give him a price advantage.[5]

At 1984 trade shows, Ritvik showed the Mega Bloks line in the US and Canada. An immediate hit, Mega Bloks had generally large sales in Canada, including a $1 million sale to Toys R Us, and were available almost anywhere in the two markets in 1985. Several multinational companies had made offers just after the trade show for distribution rights, as well as to buy either Mega Bloks or RH itself.[5]

By 1989, Mega Bloks were in 30 countries and popular in Europe, the US and Canada. Up to 30 play sets were available. A piano set with Mega Blok-compatible keys for the pre-school market was released in 1988. In 1989, Ritvik sold all of its other toy and plastics lines.[5]

A Mega Bloks "Micro" line was released in 1991; these were compatible with or a clone of Lego bricks. This finally placed Ritvik and The Lego Group in direct competition. Lego Canada soon sued Ritvik for unfair competition, claiming a likelihood of confusion between its Micro Mega Bloks and the Lego line. Since Lego's brick shape patent had expired, the lawsuit dragged on for years as sales grew worldwide (at an average 70% a year until the mid-1990s), but finally Ritvik won the case by clearly distinguishing its brand from Lego. Suits were filed in Europe and the U.S. with similar results.[5]

In 1996, a 28% share of Ritvik was sold to the Blackstone Group. Rita Bertrand and her daughter Chantal retired that year, while Marc and Victor Bertrand Jr. were active in management. Two international subsidiaries were formed, Mega Bloks Latinoamerica S.A. de C.V. in 1997 and Mega Bloks Europe N.V. in 1998. International sales in the 1990s were at 30%, with 70% from Canada and the US; all but 10% were from four major chains: Toys 'R Us, Wal-Mart, Target, and Kmart.[5]

Ritvik followed the late 1990s licensing trend in 1998, with its first licensing agreement being for Teletubbies, followed by an agreement with Fisher-Price with its Sesame Street characters license. A NASCAR line was also introduced.[5] Ritvik Toys, Inc. was amalgamated with Ritvik Holdings Inc. on June 30, 1998.[6]

Lego, K'Nex and Ritvik added features to their lines in 2000. Ritvik made transformable building sets that changed into vehicles, and a remote control electronic kit named the Mega Bloks RO Action Builder. Ritvik also added TV advertising that year with a $2 million campaign; the company spent $30 million on advertising, marketing, and research and development in 2002.[5]
Mega Bloks

With sales having approximately doubled since 1999, Ritvik went public via an initial public offering in May 2002 on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the new name of Mega Bloks Inc.[5] The company traded at $14.50 a share.[1] The founders' sons, Victor Bertrand Jr. and Marc Bertrand, became chief operating officer and chief operating officer/president, respectively, while Victor Sr. remained chairman of the board.[5]

The toy market was in a down cycle from 2002 to 2003, with the construction toy segment losing 10 to 15%, but Mega Bloks experienced increased sales. Since 1986, the company had seen a run of 17 years of growth, becoming number two in the construction toy segment behind Lego.[5]

In 2003, the company formed a joint venture with the Japanese toy company Bandai for Asia. Bandai marketed Mega Blok sets with their existing licensed Japanese cartoon characters. With the success of movies of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books and J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, a Dragon series was released in 2003. Mega Play!, a block set large enough for children to fit inside, was also launched.[5]

With shares trading at almost $30, in 2005 Mega Bloks, Inc. acquired Rose Art Industries, including its Magnetix line of toys, for US$350 million.[1] Soon, Magnetix was a source of lawsuits resulting from choking incidents, causing its share value to drop quickly. Magnetix was then recalled.[1] The company acquired Board Dudes, Inc., makers of Board Dudes posting and marking boards and Locker Dudes locker products, in January 2006, through its Rose Art Industries subsidiary.[7]
Mega Brands

On June 15, 2006, following the acquisition of several brand names not associated with construction brick toys,[citation needed] the company again changed its name, this time from Mega Bloks Inc. to Mega Brands Inc.[1] with Rose Art Industries, Inc. being renamed Mega Brands America, Inc.[8]

After 23 consecutive years of growing sales and profit, Mega lost $458 million in 2008. Heading towards bankruptcy, the company refinanced. Shares were consolidated 1-for-20, with Fairfax Financial becoming a major partner in the recapitalization.[1]

Rose Art was placed on the market in March 2008 as a result of inquiries from the previous owners and others.[9] The former owners of Rose Art, Jeffrey and Lawrence Rosen, offered to purchase it back in April 2008.[10] They then sued company management for insider trading in September 2008, alleging shares were sold prior to the Magnetix recall.[11] Rose Art's base operation was shut down in New Jersey, and in 2010 the company moved its stationery and activities division, with some key employees, to Irvine, California, under new executive Thomas Prichard, a former executive at Crayola, Pixar, and Hasbro. The subsidiary was not sold, and was reintegrated into Mega operations by 2012.[1]

On February 28, 2014, it was announced that Mattel, Inc. would acquire Mega Brands Inc. for approximately US$450 million.[12] It became a wholly owned subsidiary of Mattel as of April 20, 2014.[13] Prior to the purchase, Mega and Mattel were partners in adding Mattel brands to Mega "Worlds" plus a line for Mattel's American Girl that competes with Lego's Friends line.[4]

Three years later, on February 10, 2017, Mattel announced that it was introducing Mega Construx,[14] a new sub-brand of construction sets designed for children four and up as well as adult collectors. Construx's first license property line was Pokémon, launched in mid-2017.[4]

In March 2021, LaRose Industries, the company founded by Lawrence Rosen in 2008, announced it purchased the RoseArt brand from Mattel. The purchase reunites the RoseArt brand with the Rosen family.[15]
Product types
Construction

    Bricks
        Mega Bloks - original large size for pre-school now branded under 1st Builders[5]
        Mega Blocks - intermediate size - compatible with Duplo now branded under Junior Builders
        Mega Bloks micro - Lego compatible bricks[5]
    Mega Construx[4] now branded under Wonder Builders & Advanced Builder lines Lego compatible bricks[5]

Mega Construx micro figures do not follow the iconic Lego modular mini figures: instead their figures allow up to 16 articulation points, i.e. poses and customization.[4]

In 2022, many lines of Mega Construx were rebranded to MEGA with a purple logo. Some products from prior years have been sold with either branding.
Pop culture connections

Mega Bloks were featured in a commercial for the Honda Element, in which bricks fell from the sky to assemble the full-sized vehicle. The commercial clearly identifies the bricks as Mega Bloks in the opening moments of the sequence.[16]

Mega Brands currently[when?] has the licensing rights for Thomas the Tank Engine, video game franchises Call of Duty and Halo, Barbie,Masters of the Universe, Hot Wheels, Power Rangers, American Girl, Monster High, Pokémon, Destiny, and used to have the rights for the Despicable Me franchise.[citation needed] Mega Brands picked up the license for Nickelodeon franchises like SpongeBob SquarePants and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles after Lego discontinued carrying their version of the licensed sets.[citation needed] They also have the rights to produce sets based on Nick Jr. Channel properties like Paw Patrol, Blaze and the Monster Machines, and Shimmer and Shine. They have even recently picked the license for Alien as well." (wikipedia.org)

"Mattel, Inc. (/məˈtɛl/ mə-TEL) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in Los Angeles by Harold Matson and the husband-and-wife duo of Ruth and Elliot Handler[8] in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. Mattel has a presence in 35 countries and territories; its products are sold in more than 150 countries.[9] Mattel consists of three business segments: North America, International and American Girl.[10]

It is the world's second largest toy maker in terms of revenue, after The Lego Group.[11][12] Two of its historic and most valuable brands, Barbie and Hot Wheels, were respectively named the top global toy property and the top-selling global toy of the year for 2020[13] and 2021[14] by The NPD Group, a global information research company.
History
Origins and early years

Businessman Harold "Matt" Matson and the husband-and-wife duo of Elliot and Ruth Handler founded Mattel as Mattel Creations in January 1945 in a garage in Los Angeles.[15][16] The company name chosen is a portmanteau of the surname of Matson and first name of Elliot, with former chairman and CEO Bob Eckert revealing at a 2013 Christmas Day Peninsula Seniors lecture that the founders, according to Elliot, couldn't fit Ruth's name into that of their company.[17] The company began selling picture frames and later dollhouse furniture out of the scraps from those frames. Matson sold his share and stake to the Handlers due to poor health the following year, with Handler's wife, Ruth, taking over his stake.[18] In 1947, the company had its first successful toy, a ukulele called "Uke-A-Doodle".[16]

The company was incorporated in Hawthorne, California in 1948.[18] In 1950, the Magic 8-Ball, currently owned by Mattel themselves, was invented by Albert C. Carter and Abe Bookman.[19] Mattel started television advertisement when it became the first sponsor of the Mickey Mouse Club TV series.[20] The Fisher-Price Corn Popper, and the Xylophone was released in 1957.[21][22] Mattel would ultimately acquire Fisher-Price on August 20, 1993.[23] The Barbie doll debuted on March 9, 1959, going on to become the company's best-selling toy in history.[24] In 1960, Mattel introduced Chatty Cathy, a talking doll that was voiced by June Foray and revolutionized the toy industry, leading to pull-string talking dolls and toys flooding the market throughout the 1960s and 1970s.[18][25] In 1961, Mattel introduced the Ken doll.[26] The company went public in 1960 and became listed on the New York Stock Exchange 3 years later. Mattel also acquired a number of like-minded companies during the 1960s.[18]

The Barbie Dreamhouse made with cardboard and paper made its debut in 1962,[27] when also the Astronaut Barbie, the first of many space-themed iterations of the doll, was introduced.[28] In 1965, the company built on its success with the Chatty Cathy doll to introduce the See 'n Say talking toy, spawning a line of products.[29] Barbie traveled to the Moon four years before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.[30] In 1967, Mattel released a toy astronaut with space vehicles and a Moon base for boys, with a gumby-like central character named Major Matt Mason.[31]

On May 18, 1968, Hot Wheels was released to the market.[18] Hot Wheels was invented by a team of Mattel inventors, which included a rocket scientist and a car designer.[32][33] That year also saw another doll release, this time, Christie, Barbie's friend and the first black doll,[34] which in the following years and decades would spawn an endless line of Barbie-themed and branded family and friends. In 1969, Mattel changed the Mattel Creations and the "Mattel, Inc. – Toymakers" marketing brands to just Mattel and launched the "red sun" logo with the Mattel wordmark in all capitals for better identity. In 1970, Hot Wheels forged a sponsorship agreement with drag racing drivers Don “The Snake” Prudhomme and Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen.[35] In addition to other marketing measures, the two racers’ cars, a yellow Barracuda and a red Duster, were reproduced as Hot Wheels toys.[35]

In May 1970, Mattel formed a joint venture film production company "Radnitz/Mattel Productions" with producer Robert B. Radnitz,[36] which would kickstart Mattel's venture into full-time entertainment to accompany its most famed toy TV commercials,[37] and later entered a multimillion-dollar partnership with Mehra Entertainment, whose CEO, Dr. Nishpeksh Padmamohan Mehra and Nishchal Shome, are one of Mattel's Inc.'s main directors for Barbie (film series).[38]

The card game Uno (now stylized as UNO) was invented by Merle Robbins in 1971,[39] and was acquired by Mattel in 1996.[40]
Acquisitions     Year[18]
Dee & Cee Toy Co. Ltd.     1962
Standard Plastic Products, Inc.     1966
Hong Kong Industrial Co., Ltd.
Precision Moulds, Ltd.
Rosebud Dolls Ltd.     1967
Monogram Models, Inc.     1968
A&A Die Casting Company
Ratti Vallensasca, Mebetoys, Ebiex S.A.     1969
H&H Plastics Co., Inc.
Meta frame Corp.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
/Feld Productions     1971–1982
Ice Follies     1979–1982
Holiday on Ice
Western Publishing     1979
Corgi Toys, Ltd.     1989[41]
International Games     1992[42]
Fisher-Price, Inc.     1993
Tyco Toys, Inc.     1997
Pleasant Company     1998[18]
Bluebird Toys (original home of Polly Pocket)     1998
The Learning Company (formerly SoftKey)     1999–2001[18]
Pinky:st.     2004
HIT Entertainment     2012[43]
Mega Brands     2014[44]
Fuhu     2016

In 1971, Mattel purchased The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from the Feld family for $40 million, whom Mattel kept on as management.[45] Mattel sold the circus corporation by December 1973 although it was profitable; Mattel showed a $29.9 million loss in 1972.[46]

In 1974, an investigation found Mattel guilty of issuing false and misleading financial reports, which led to the banishing of Elliot and Ruth Handler from the company they had founded.[18]
Post-Handlers

Arthur S. Spear, then a Mattel vice president, took control of the company in 1975 and returned the company to profitability in two years.[47] In 1978, the Mattel Children's Foundation was founded. Ruth Handler sold her stock in 1980 and finally let loose of the company she co-founded.[18]
Logo of Mattel Electronics (1977–1984)Logo of Mattel Electronics (1977–1984)

Mattel debuted its Electronics line in 1977 with an all-electronic handheld game. Its success led to its expansion with game consoles then the line, eventually becoming incorporated in 1982.[48] Mattel Electronics forced Mattel to take a $394 million loss the following and almost filed for bankruptcy.[18]

In 1979, through Feld Productions, Mattel purchased the Holiday on Ice and Ice Follies for $12 million,[49] Also acquired that year was Western Publishing for $120 million in cash and stock.[50] which they sold to Richard A. Bernstein in December 4 years later.[50]

In 1980, Mattel introduced the first diverse line of Barbie dolls with a Hispanic doll and the first African-American Barbie (unrelated to Barbie friend Christie),[51][52] which will eventually include iterations of Barbie from more than 40 countries.[52]

In 1982, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe line of action figures was released, which inspired a three-issue comic book mini-series, an animated series and a live-action film.[53]

The Felds bought the circus (and related companies) in 1982 for $22.8 million.[54]

In the early 1980s, Mattel produced video game systems, under its own brands and under license from Nintendo.

In 1985, the company launched the Barbie “We Girls Can Do Anything” TV advertising campaign to encourage girls to believe in themselves.[55] They also released the CEO / Day-to-Night Barbie to celebrate women becoming CEOs.[56] In 1986, Barbie joined the list of famous individuals painted by Andy Warhol.[55]

New York City-based venture capital firms E.M. Warburg, Pincus & Co., and Drexel Burnham Lambert invested a couple hundred million dollars in Mattel in 1984 to help the company survive. However, the Masters of the Universe action figure line sales dropped, causing a $115 million loss in 1987.

In the late 1980s, John W. Amerman, who joined Mattel in 1980 as head of its international division, was named the company’s new chairman and improved its financial performance in 1987 by focusing on core brands. It paid off as sales of Barbie dolls and accessories increased from $430 million to almost $1 billion between 1987 and 1992.[18]

Mattel secured licensing and sponsorship rights from The Walt Disney Company for a new line of infant and preschool plush toys in 1988, sponsor attractions and to develop and sell toys at three Disney theme parks.[18] Mattel also negotiated the exclusive rights to sell dolls, stuffed characters and preschool toys based on Disney characters.[18] On January 31, 1988, Mattel shut down its operations in the Philippines and shifted the distribution and sales of Mattel-branded toys and games to Richprime Global, Inc. (formerly Richwell Trading Corporation). Mattel returned to working with Disney the following year.[18]
Headquarters in El Segundo, California, in 2012Headquarters in El Segundo, California, in 2012

In 1991, Mattel moved its headquarters from Hawthorne to its current El Segundo site, in Los Angeles County.[57]
Uno, Fisher-Price, American Girl, Pinky:st., Polly Pocket: 1992–2009

In 1992, Mattel created the first President Barbie, claiming that Barbie has run for President 7 times since 1992 and released an all-ticket in 2016.[58]

Mattel entered the gaming business in 1992 with the purchase of International Games, creators of UNO and Skip-Bo.[42] The company purchased Fisher-Price, Inc. on August 20, 1993, and Tyco Toys, Inc. (owners of the Matchbox and Dinky Toys brands) in 1997. In 1998, Mattel acquired Pleasant Company (creators of the American Girl brand)[18] and Swindon, England-based toymaker Bluebird Toys (along with its most prized property, Polly Pocket). In the same year, the first American Girl retail store opened for business in Chicago.[59]

In 1997, the Fisher-Price Little People toys underwent a redesign to look more like real kids with different skin colors, added arms and hands, and greater detail on the face, hair, and clothes.[60] Also that year, Mattel acquired View-Master,[61] and Hot Wheels partnered with NASCAR drivers Kyle Petty and Jack Baldwin leading to the production of the first NASCAR-themed vehicles.[62]

In 1998, Mattel donated $25 million to help rebuild UCLA’s children’s hospital, which was later renamed the UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital.[63] Barbie was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame that year[64] and the first Thomas & Friends theme park, Thomas Land, opened in Fujikyu Park in Japan.[65]

Mattel purchased The Learning Company (formerly SoftKey) in 1999 for $3.5 billion, but sold it the following year at a loss. The company had a $430.9 million net loss that year.[18]

Mattel earned the first grant for the Disney Princess doll license in 2000.[66] In December 2000, Mattel sued Danish-Norwegian europop band Aqua, claiming their song "Barbie Girl" violated the Barbie trademark and turned her into a sex object, referring to her as a "blonde bimbo". The lawsuit was rejected two years later.[67]

In 2000, Mattel signed a deal with Warner Bros. to become the master licensee for Harry Potter branded toys.[68] It was extended in 2002; Mattel became the master licensee for Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Justice League and Looney Tunes toys for all markets except Asia.[69]

In 2001, the first life-sized Hot Wheels car, the Twin Mill, was created.[70] More than twenty life-sized cars were created and all of them were inducted into the Hot Wheels Garage of Legends.[71]

American Girl launched its “Girl of the Year” campaign in 2001 to highlight dolls with contemporary stories; each doll is only available for a year.[72]

In 2002, Mattel closed its last factory in the United States; the factory was originally part of Fisher-Price outsourcing production to China. A chain of events followed that led to its distribution of millions of hazardous toys, including ones contaminated with lead.[73] On August 14, 2007, Mattel recalled over 18 million products, with Louise Story of The New York Times in close coverage.[74][75][76] Many of the products had surface coatings that contained more than the U.S. legal limit of .06% lead by weight.[76] Other toys were recalled because their strong, detachable magnets could endanger children. Mattel re-wrote its policy on magnets, finally issuing a recall in August 2007.[77] The recall included 7.1 million Polly Pocket toys produced before November 2006, 600,000 Barbie and Tanner Playsets, 1 million Doggie Daycare, Shonen Jump's One Piece and thousands of Batman Manga toys due to exposed magnets.[77] In 2009, Mattel paid a $2.3 million fine to the Consumer Products Safety Commission for marketing, importing and selling non-compliant toys.[78] Mattel was noted for its crisis response by several newspaper publications, including PRWeek, the Los Angeles Times, Fortune and Business Management.[79][80][81]
More acquisitions and brand portfolio expansion: 2010–2016

On June 11, 2010, Mattel launched Monster High, a fashion doll line featuring the teenage children of famous and well-known monsters like Dracula, Frankenstein, Cleopatra, Gorgon, Werewolf, and The Mummy.[82][83] It led to popularity and cult following success which Mattel translated into two spin-offs, each with a different focus than Monster High; Ever After High in 2013[84][85] and Enchantimals four years later. In 2011, Hot Wheels set a new world-record for a jump made by a four-wheeled vehicle at the 100th anniversary of the Indy 500.[86] The 332 feet jump broke the previous 301 feet record set in 2009.[86]

In early 2010, HIT Entertainment licensed Thomas & Friends to Mattel for toys.[87] Mattel then agreed to purchase HIT Entertainment from Apax Partners on October 24, 2011, for $680 million, excluding its share of the PBS Kids Sprout channel (now Universal Kids), which would be completed on February 1, 2012 for £680m,[88] and be managed under Mattel's Fisher-Price unit.[89] In 2012, Mattel introduced a doll, Ella, to the Barbie line.[90] The doll is bald and was distributed directly through hospitals to children experiencing hair loss due to cancer and other diseases.[90] On October 16, 2013, with reports of high profitability, Mattel launched an in-house film studio, Mattel Playground Productions, through which it produces original films, TV shows, Web series, live events, and games.[91][92]

Fortune Magazine named Mattel one of the top 100 companies to work for in 2013, noting only 1,292 positions were full, out of 164,045 job applications during the previous year, as well as more than 1,000 employees had been with the company longer than 15 years.[93]

On February 28, 2014, Mattel acquired Mega Brands[44] and Pinky:st. celebrated its 10th anniversary. On April 16, 2015, Mattel announced a partnership with invention platform Quirky to crowd-source a number of products.[94]

Mattel added a princess-themed Barbie line in 2010. Barbie sales began plummeting in 2012, thus removing focus from the Disney Princess line. Mattel had only sold Cinderella, Ariel, Belle and the two Frozen princesses (Anna and Elsa) around its last year of the Disney license in early 2016. With these competing lines and an expiration of the brand license at the end of 2015, Disney gave Hasbro a chance to gain the license given their work on Star Wars, which led to a Descendants license. Disney Consumer Products also made an attempt to evolve the brand from "damsels" to "heroines." In September 2014, Disney announced Hasbro as the licensed doll maker for the Disney Princess line starting on January 1, 2016.[66] Mattel again became the licensed doll maker, instead of Hasbro, on January, 2022 and the characters of Frozen were part of the line.[95][96] The latest collection of dolls was available for purchase in January 2023.[97][98]

In January 2015, board member Christopher Sinclair replaced CEO Bryan Stockton, following with 2/3 of senior executives resigning or receiving lay off.[66] The following month, an upgraded View-Master to provide a virtual reality viewing experience was announced through a partnership with Google Cardboard.[99]

On January 21, 2016, Mattel acquired Fuhu, makers of Nabi tablets and other technology-driven hardware, in a bankruptcy proceeding for a sum worth $21 million.[100] On March 30, 2016, Mattel formed a "senior head" division named Mattel Creations to centralize its multi-platform content output. In the process, the production teams and operations of Mattel Playground Productions, HIT Entertainment and the American Girl content creation team in Middleton, Wisconsin were absorbed into Creations the following day.[101] On July 19, 2016, NBCUniversal announced Mattel's license acquisition to produce toys based on the Jurassic Park franchise after Hasbro's rights expired in 2017.[102]
Hasbro's failed takeover and Mattel163: 2017–2018

Former Google executive, Margo Georgiadis, was announced as company CEO on 17 January 2017.[103] On November 10, 2017 The Wall Street Journal reported that Hasbro had made a takeover offer for Mattel,[104][105] with Hasbro worth about $11 billion at the time and Mattel, $5 billion.[105] The latter rejected the offer less than a week later, according to Reuters.[106]

On January 29, 2018, Mattel and Chinese internet technology and video game company NetEase formed a joint venture mobile publishing and development studio, Mattel163, aimed at creating apps based on the former's key brands.[107][108][109] That same year, American Girl released “Create Your Own,” allowing kids to create a doll from scratch and customize everything including facial features, hair, accessories and outfits, and the doll’s favorite places and hobbies.[72]
Company reorganization and production partnership increments: 2018–present

On April 19, 2018, Mattel named former Maker Studios CEO Ynon Kreiz as chairman and the replacement CEO for outgoing CEO Georgiardis who moved on to head Ancestry.com, effective from April 26, 2018.[110][111] Two months later, the company laid off 2,200 employees partially due to the liquidation of Toys "R" Us in the U.S.[112] Kreiz started reorganization of Mattel which included new board of directors and added that executives having entertainment backgrounds and a global franchise management group had been charged with finding new opportunities in existing markets.[113]

On 30 August 2018, Mattel indicated the formation of its global franchise management division to be headed by Janet Hsu as chief franchise management officer. The division was mandated to seek out new commercial opportunities plus to bring to together consumer products, content development and distribution, digital gaming, live events and partnerships. Hsu was previously the CEO of Saban Brands,[114] where Frederic Soulie last worked before being appointed as senior vice president of content distribution and business development in the franchise division on September 28, 2018.[115] Hot Wheels celebrated its 50th anniversary the same year by recreating and selling as a set the original 16 Hot Wheels die-cast cars.[116] That same year in September, Thomas & Friends announced an alliance with the United Nations to introduce some of the organization’s Sustainable Development Goals, including quality education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, sustainable cities and communities, responsible consumption and production and life on land, into the show’s content.[117]

On December 24, 2018, Mattel announced the loss of the DC Comics toy license to Spin Master starting in the spring of 2020, hitting an 18-year low on its share price which concluded at $9.25 for a share.[118]

Mattel reorganized Mattel Creations and renamed it Mattel Television on February 5, 2019, which would be headed by former Disney Branded Television programming executive Adam Bonnett.[119] On June 30, 2020, Fred Soulie in turn was "role-tripled" to general manager and senior vice president of the new division.[120][121]

On March 9, 2019, Mattel celebrated Barbie's 60th anniversary. As part of the anniversary celebrations, Mattel released 20 new role model dolls in its Shero line to recognize influential women around the world.[122][123] Mattel donated $1 from every sale to its Dream Gap Project Fund, which aims to work with other organizations to end the issue of girls seeing themselves as less capable than boys.[124]

On June 14, 2019, Mattel released new Hot Wheels ID line of cars, which are embedded with NFC chips so that people can scan the cars and then build tracks, race, and view race stats for combined digital and physical racing play.[125] On December 16, Mattel released an update that allowed kids to scan their cars into an app and then access different coding exercises.[126] On August 19, 2019, Mattel announced a reboot of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, including new toy lines and brand extensions, a new comic book series and a Netflix series.[127]

In October 2019, Mattel released Hot Wheels Monster Trucks, which included a full line of die-cast vehicles, and a national live-event tour, Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live.[128] The company also released a line of gender-neutral dolls called the “Creatable World”[129] Mattel Children’s Foundation announced and organized its second annual "Global Day of Play", a company-wide community service initiative that focuses on working with nonprofits and organizations around the world to give children a day focused on the power of play.[130]

While formerly associated with content productions, as of  2020 Mattel Creations is now an e-commerce and content platform, of Mattel, Inc.[131][132] In April 2020, the company released a Thomas & Friends special titled “The Royal Engine” to celebrate the program’s 75th anniversary, featuring animated versions of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles as children and introduced by the Duke of Sussex.[133] In the same month, the new Basquiat Barbie was introduced, featuring the work of the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.[134] Mattel also created an online resource, "Mattel Playroom", to provide free games, activities, coloring sheets, DIY projects resources for parents/caregivers and more to help families during the

Warner Music Group's Arts Music division arranged to become the distributor of Mattel's music catalog on May 1, 2020.[136][137][138] Arts Music planned to make available hundreds of never-before-released songs and new songs for existing brands, with the 8th May digital launch of Thomas & Friends’ birthday album first up[139] which was managed/handled by ADA Worldwide under the pseudonym label: "Mattel–Arts Music."[140] Also in May 2020, Mattel announced an initiative known as "Play it Forward" which focuses on using Mattel brands to give back.[141] The first Play it Forward program was #ThankYouHeroes, which included a collection of action figures and Little People characters who represent those who work essential jobs during the like doctors, nurses, emergency medical technician (EMTs) and delivery drivers.[141] On October 15, 2020, Mattel celebrated Fisher-Price’s 90th anniversary by creating a virtual Toy Museum, which featured more than 90 different exhibits created by artist, set designer and photographer Leila Fakouri.[142] Mattel Creations was also launched that month; it is an e-commerce and content platform.[143] It features limited edition, curated items made with collaboration from pop-culture artists.[143] The site’s inaugural collection included the Artist Collaboration Collection, featuring brands Barbie, Masters of the Universe, Hot Wheels, and the Magic 8-Ball[143] as well as artists Gianni Lee, Cristina Martinez, Travis Ragsdale, and Distortedd.[144]

On October 12, 2020, Mattel announced Season 25 of Thomas & Friends[145] but instead retooled launching a traditionally-animated take on it titled Thomas and Friends: All Engines Go!, which began on September 13, 2021.[146] That ended the show at 24 series/seasons over 37 years.

On November 20, 2021, Mattel launched a non-fungible tokens (NFTs) marketplace to allow fans purchase digital collectibles for its flagship brands; Barbie and Hot Wheels.[147][148][149]

On April 5, 2022, the Mattel board of directors led by its CEO, Ynon Kreiz, named company chief commercial officer, Steven Totzke, as company co-president with Richard L. Dickson alongside his original post and would continue to report to Kreiz as before.[1][2][3][4][5] On July 21 of that year, Mattel appointed the senior vice president of strategic partnerships at Scopely, Mike DeLaet, as the global head of its digital gaming division.[150][151]
Media and entertainment ventures
Main articles: Mattel Films and Mattel Television

Mattel has a long history of media engagement since its foundation with the advertising of products from its brands including Barbie, Monster High and Polly Pocket, but the venture into full-time entertainment began in May, 1970, when it teamed up with producer Robert B. Radnitz to form a joint venture film production company, "Radnitz/Mattel Productions".[36] Masters of the Universe and its lead character He-Man had a cartoon series which released between 1983 and 1985 and was followed by a live-action film in 1987.[152] In 1986, Mattel launched a television syndication unit; MTS Entertainment, headed by John M. Weens, to distribute the Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future syndicated television show.[153]

My Scene, with Mattel's flagship Barbie brand, launched in 2002 and wasted little time in invoking a film franchise of DVD-exclusive/direct-to-DVD animated films. "Polly Pocket", which was originally founded and designed by Chris Wiggs in 1983 for his daughter Kate as a private toy and from 1989 housed in Bluebird Toys which Mattel acquired in 1998, also followed suit.

With Lionsgate and its acquired and merged companies in Artisan Entertainment and Family Home Entertainment, Mattel's flagship Barbie brand was adapted into a series of successful animated direct-to-video films, which moved to Universal in late 2006. As of September 2021 it is jointly handled by Mill Creek Entertainment and NCircle Entertainment, with the latter solely for American retailers.[154][155][156][157][158] Monster High followed Barbie just months after its launch in 2010[159] and many “American Girl” films were made.[159]

Mattel agreed to purchase HIT Entertainment without the stake in the Sprout TV channel (formerly PBS Kids Sprout and now Universal Kids) from Apax Partners on 25 October 2011, for $680 million,[87] which closed on 1 February 2012,[88] making it part of its Fisher-Price division. HIT Entertainment was absorbed into Mattel Creations (now Mattel Television) in 2016 with its intellectual property (IP) brands shared equally between itself and Mattel Films upon the latter's formation on September 6, 2018.

On October 16, 2013, with reports of high profitability, Mattel launched an in-house film studio, Mattel Playground Productions (shortened to Mattel PGP or just PGP) as its in-house film studio to handle multimedia productions and foster creative storytelling for its brands for global multi-platform distribution.[91][92][159]

Mattel formed a division named Mattel Creations on March 30, 2016 to absorb Mattel Playground Productions, HIT Entertainment and the American Girl content creation team in Middleton, Wisconsin and centralize its multimedia content output.[101] Mattel Playground Productions was revived as Mattel Films on September 6, 2018 and it solely bases its films on its brands as opposed to its predecessor.[160][161] The 2023 movie Barbie was the first movie released by Mattel Films. Mattel reorganized Mattel Creations renaming it to Mattel Television on 5 February 2019, hiring former Disney Branded Television programming executive Adam Bonnett as its head.

Mattel announced it started construction on the Mattel Adventure Park, slated to open in 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona. The 9-acre park will include popular Mattel brands including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Thomas & Friends and Uno. It will have multiple themed-roller coaster rides amongst other attractions.[162]

Mattel announced a new game called Pictionary Vs. AI in September 2023. It is a version of its visual guessing game where an AI model does all the guessing. A smartphone is used as the medium. Players draw cards that assign a given word, then draw whatever that word is before letting AI guess what they've drawn." (wikipedia.org)

"A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pets. Toys can provide utilitarian benefits, including physical exercise, cultural awareness, or academic education. Additionally, utilitarian objects, especially those which are no longer needed for their original purpose, can be used as toys. Examples include children building a fort with empty cereal boxes and tissue paper spools, or a toddler playing with a broken TV remote control. The term "toy" can also be used to refer to utilitarian objects purchased for enjoyment rather than need, or for expensive necessities for which a large fraction of the cost represents its ability to provide enjoyment to the owner, such as luxury cars, high-end motorcycles, gaming computers, and flagship smartphones.

Playing with toys can be an enjoyable way of training young children for life experiences. Different materials like wood, clay, paper, and plastic are used to make toys. Newer forms of toys include interactive digital entertainment and smart toys. Some toys are produced primarily as collectors' items and are intended for display only.

The origin of toys is prehistoric; dolls representing infants, animals, and soldiers, as well as representations of tools used by adults, are readily found at archaeological sites. The origin of the word "toy" is unknown, but it is believed that it was first used in the 14th century. Toys are mainly made for children.[1] The oldest known doll toy is thought to be 4,000 years old.[2]

Playing with toys is an important part of aging. Younger children use toys to discover their identity, help with cognition, learn cause and effect, explore relationships, become stronger physically, and practice skills needed in adulthood. Adults on occasion use toys to form and strengthen social bonds, teach, help in therapy, and to remember and reinforce lessons from their youth....Culture

The act of children's play with toys embodies the values set forth by the adults of their specific community, but through the lens of the child's perspective. Within cultural societies, toys are a medium to enhance a child's cognitive, social, and linguistic learning.[24]

In some cultures, toys are used as a way to enhance a child's skillset within the traditional boundaries of their future roles in the community. In Saharan and North African cultures, play is facilitated by children through the use of toys to enact scenes recognizable in their community such as hunting and herding. The value is placed in a realistic version of development in preparing a child for the future they are likely to grow up into. This allows the child to imagine and create a personal interpretation of how they view the adult world.[25]

However, in other cultures, toys are used to expand the development of a child's cognition in an idealistic fashion. In these communities, adults place the value of play with toys to be on the aspirations they set forth for their child. In the Western culture, the Barbie and Action-Man represent lifelike figures but in an imaginative state out of reach from the society of these children and adults. These toys give way to a unique world in which children's play is isolated and independent of the social constraints placed on society leaving the children free to delve into the imaginary and idealized version of what their development in life could be.[25]

In addition, children from differing communities may treat their toys in different ways based on their cultural practices. Children in more affluent communities may tend to be possessive of their toys, while children from poorer communities may be more willing to share and interact more with other children. The importance the child places on possession is dictated by the values in place within the community that the children observe on a daily basis.[26]
Child development
   
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Toys, like play itself, serve multiple purposes in both humans and animals. They provide entertainment while fulfilling an educational role. Toys enhance cognitive behavior and stimulate creativity. They aid in the development of physical and mental skills which are necessary in later life.

Wooden blocks, though simple, are regarded by early childhood education experts such as Sally Cartwright (1974) as an excellent toy for young children; she praised the fact that they are relatively easy to engage with, can be used in repeatable and predictable ways, and are versatile and open-ended, allowing for a wide variety of developmentally appropriate play.[27] Andrew Witkin, director of marketing for Mega Brands, told Investor's Business Daily that "They help develop hand-eye coordination, math and science skills and also let kids be creative."[28] Other toys like marbles, jackstones, and balls serve similar functions in child development, allowing children to use their minds and bodies to learn about spatial relationships, cause and effect, and a wide range of other skills.

One example of the dramatic ways that toys can influence child development involves clay sculpting toys such as Play-Doh and Silly Putty and their home-made counterparts. Mary Ucci, Educational Director of the Child Study Center of Wellesley College, has demonstrated how such toys positively impact the physical development, cognitive development, emotional development, and social development of children.[29]

Toys for infants often make use of distinctive sounds, bright colors, and unique textures. Through repetition of play with toys, infants begin to recognize shapes and colors. Play-Doh, Silly Putty and other hands-on materials allow the child to make toys of their own.

Educational toys for school age children of often contain a puzzle, problem-solving technique, or mathematical proposition. Often toys designed for older audiences, such as teenagers or adults, demonstrate advanced concepts. Newton's cradle, a desk toy designed by Simon Prebble, demonstrates the conservation of momentum and energy.

Not all toys are appropriate for all ages of children.[30] Even some toys which are marketed for a specific age range can even harm the development of children in that range, such as when for example toys meant for young girls contribute to the ongoing problem of girls' sexualization in Western culture.[31]

A study suggested that supplying fewer toys in the environment allows toddlers to better focus to explore and play more creatively. The provision of four rather than sixteen toys is thus suggested to promote children's development and healthy play....Economics
   
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Making toys, Digby, Nova Scotia. 2008

With toys comprising such a large and important part of human existence, the toy industry has a substantial economic impact. Sales of toys often increase around holidays where gift-giving is a tradition. Some of these holidays include Christmas, Easter, Saint Nicholas Day, and Three Kings Day.

In 2005, toy sales in the United States totaled about $22.9 billion.[28] Money spent on children between the ages of 8 and twelve alone totals approximately $221 million annually in the U.S.[51] It was estimated that in 2011, 88% of toy sales was in the age group 0–11 years.[52]
Toys "R" Us operated over 1,500 stores in 30 countries and had an annual revenue of US$13.6 billion

Toy companies change and adapt their toys to meet the changing demands of children thereby gaining a larger share of the substantial market. In recent years many toys have become more complicated with flashing lights and sounds in an effort to appeal to children raised around television and the internet. According to Mattel's president, Neil Friedman, "Innovation is key in the toy industry and to succeed one must create a 'wow' moment for kids by designing toys that have fun, innovative features and include new technologies and engaging content."

In an effort to reduce costs, many mass-producers of toys locate their factories in areas where wages are lower. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world's toys and is home to more than 8,000 toy firms, most of which are located in the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong Province.[53] 75% of all toys sold in the U.S., for example, are manufactured in China.[28] Issues and events such as power outages, supply of raw materials, supply of labor, and raising wages that impact areas where factories are located often have an enormous impact on the toy industry in importing countries.

Many traditional toy makers have been losing sales to video game makers for years. Because of this, some traditional toy makers have entered the field of electronic games and have even been turning audio games into toys, and are enhancing the brands that they have by introducing interactive extensions or internet connectivity to their current toys.[54]

In addition, the rise of distributed manufacturing enables consumers to make their own toys from open source designs with a 3-D printer.[55] As of 2017 consumers were already offsetting millions of dollars per year by 3D printing their own toys from MyMiniFactory, a single repository.[56][57]
Types
   
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Construction sets
Main article: Construction set

The Greek philosopher Plato wrote that the future architect should play at building houses as a child.[58] A construction set is a collection of separate pieces that can be joined to create models. Popular models include cars, spaceships, and houses. The things that are built are sometimes used as toys once completed, but generally speaking, the object is to build things of one's own design, and old models often are broken up with the pieces reused in new models.

The oldest and perhaps most common construction toy is a set of simple wooden blocks, which are often painted in bright colors and given to babies and toddlers. Construction sets such as Lego bricks and Lincoln Logs are designed for slightly older children and have been quite popular in the last century. Construction sets appeal to children (and adults) who like to work with their hands, puzzle solvers, and imaginative sorts.

Some other examples include Bayko, Konstruk-Tubes, K'Nex, Erector Sets, Tinkertoys, and Meccano, and generic construction toys such as Neodymium magnet toys....Puzzles
Main article: Puzzle
A puzzle is a problem or enigma that challenges ingenuity. Solutions to puzzles may require recognizing patterns and creating a particular order. People with a high inductive reasoning aptitude may be better at solving these puzzles than others. Puzzles based on the process of inquiry and discovery to complete may be solved faster by those with good deduction skills. A popular puzzle toy is the Rubik's Cube, invented by Hungarian Ernő Rubik in 1974. Popularized in the 1980s, solving the cube requires planning and problem-solving skills and involves algorithms.

There are many different types of puzzles; for example, a maze is a type of tour puzzle. Other categories include: construction puzzles, stick puzzles, tiling puzzles, disentanglement puzzles, sliding puzzles, logic puzzles, picture puzzles, lock puzzles, and mechanical puzzles." (wikipedia.org)

"A construction set is a set of standardized pieces that allow for the construction of a variety of different models. Construction sets are generally marketed as toys. One very popular brand of construction set toys is Lego.
Toys
Psychological benefits

Construction toy play is beneficial for building social skills and building trust in others because it acts as a collaborative task where individuals have to cooperate to finish the task – building an object out of Lego, for example. The effect was found in high school students.[1]

For children specifically, children who complete models using toy building blocks have much better spatial ability than children who do not complete such models. Spatial ability also predicts completion of models.[2]

Construction toy play is also beneficial for autistic children when both individual and group play with building blocks is incorporated. Autistic children who played with building blocks were motivated to initiate social contact with children their age, able to maintain and endure contact with those children, and were also able to surpass the barriers of being withdrawn and highly structured.[3]
Categories

Construction sets can be categorized according to their connection method and geometry:

    Struts of variable length that are connected to any point along another strut, and at nodes.
        Tesseract connection points are initially flexible but can be made rigid with the addition of clips.
    Struts of fixed but multiple lengths that are connected by nodes are good for building space frames, and often have components that allow full rotational freedom.
        D8h (*228) nodes are used for K'Nex, Tinkertoys, Playskool Pipeworks, Cleversticks and interlocking disks in general.
        D6h nodes are used for interlocking disks.[4]
        Ih (*532) nodes are used for Zometool
    Panels of varying sizes and shapes
        Panels of varying sizes and shapes are connected by pins or screws perpendicular to the panels, which are good for building linkages such as an Erector Set, Mini Unit Beams, Meccano, Merkur, Steel Tec, Lego Technic, Trix, FAC-System, Constructo Straws, and Überstix
        Panels of varying sizes and shapes with flexible panels or hinges between panels such as Tog'l, Jovo Click 'N Construct, Zaks, and Polydron.
    Struts and panels
        Girder and Panel building sets
        Synestructics (does not make pentagonal structures)
        Ramagon (some panels include studs for connecting with Lego clones)
        Geomag (components are magnetic)
        Bayko
    Building components with various methods of connection include:
        No connection: toy blocks, Anchor Stone Blocks, KEVA planks, Kapla, and Unit Bricks
        Studs: Engino, Rokenbok, Lego, Lego clones, Coco, Rasti, Tente, Mega Bloks, Fischertechnik, Playmobil, Loc Blocs, Cobi blocks, Betta Builda, Guangdong Loongon (and its subbrands: Cogo, Lepin, Xingboa) and Oxford, Kre-O, Clementoni mechanics.
        Notches: Lincoln Logs, GIK, and Stickle bricks
        Sleeves: Capsela
    Spherical magnets
    Many marble run toys are construction sets.

Influence on architecture
Renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright credited his childhood building blocks designed by Friedrich Fröbel as a major influence, and his son John Lloyd Wright invented the widely-known Lincoln Logs building set.[5] In addition to teaching architectural concepts such as modularity and load-bearing construction,[6] many architects credit construction set play as influencing their later design." (wikipedia.org)

"Anpan (あんパン, 餡パン) is a Japanese sweet roll most commonly filled with red bean paste. Anpan can also be prepared with other fillings, including white beans (shiro-an), green beans (uguisu-an), sesame (goma-an), and chestnuts (kuri-an).
History

Anpan was first made in 1875, during the Meiji period, by Yasubei Kimura [ja] (木村安兵衛 Kimura Yasubei), a samurai who lost his job with the rise of the Imperial Japanese Army and the dissolution of the samurai as a social class.[1] The Meiji era was a period in which Japan was becoming increasingly modernized, and many samurai who lost their jobs were given work that was totally new to them. The role of a baker was one such job.

One day, while wandering around the area where many employed in new jobs worked, Kimura found a young man making bread, and decided to start his own bakery, named Bun'eidō (文英堂). In 1874, he moved to Ginza and renamed the bakery Kimuraya (木村屋), now Kimuraya Sohonten (ja:木村屋總本店). At that time, however, the only recipe for bread known in Japan was for making a salty and sour-tasting bread, ill-suited to Japanese tastes at the time. Kimura thus figured out how to make bread akin to manjū, raising the dough with traditional sakadane liquid yeast. He then filled the bread with a bean paste wagashi and sold the resulting rolls as snacks. Anpan became popular not only because of its taste, but also because the Japanese were interested in anything new and foreign at this time.[citation needed]

Emperor Meiji and Empress Shōken later acquired a fondness for anpan after Kimura, via chamberlain Yamaoka Tesshū, prepared it for them to eat during hanami. Concerned with their appearance, he decorated them with a salt-pickled sakura in the middle of each bun. These anpan were presented to the emperor and empress on April 4, 1875, after which the emperor requested anpan from Kimura on a regular basis. Because of its newfound association with royalty, the popularity of anpan, and bread as a whole, increased throughout Japan.[citation needed]
In popular culture

"Anpan" is often used as slang for recreational inhalation of paint thinner.[2]

The picture book and anime series Anpanman is about a superhero whose head is made of anpan." (wikipedia.org)

"A superhero or superheroine is a stock character who typically possesses superpowers or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero; typically using their powers to help the world become a better place, or dedicating themselves to protecting the public and fighting crime. Superhero fiction is the genre of fiction that is centered on such characters,[1] especially, since the 1930s, in American comic books (and later in Hollywood films, film serials, television and video games), as well as in Japanese media (including kamishibai, tokusatsu, manga, anime and video games).

Superheroes come from a wide array of different backgrounds and origins. Some superheroes (for example, Batman and Iron Man) derive their status from advanced technology they create and use, while others (such as Superman and Spider-Man) possess non-human or superhuman biology or use and practice magic to achieve their abilities (such as Captain Marvel and Doctor Strange).[2][3][4] The Dictionary.com definition of "superhero" is "a figure, especially in a comic strip or cartoon, endowed with superhuman powers and usually portrayed as fighting evil or crime",[5] and the Merriam-Webster dictionary gives the definition as "a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also: an exceptionally skillful or successful person."[6] Terms such as masked crime fighters, costumed adventurers or masked vigilantes are sometimes used to refer to characters such as the Spirit, who may not be explicitly referred to as superheroes but nevertheless share similar traits.

Some superheroes use their powers to help fight daily crime while also combating threats against humanity from supervillains, who are their criminal counterparts. Often at least one of these supervillains will be the superhero's archenemy or nemesis. Some popular supervillains become recurring characters in their own right." (wikipedia.org)

"TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. (株式会社トムス・エンタテインメント, Kabushiki-gaisha Tomusu Entateinmento), formerly known as the Tokyo Movie Shinsha Co., Ltd.,[a] also known as Tokyo Movie[b] or Kyokuichi Tokyo Movie,[c] is a Japanese animation studio established on October 22, 1946.

TMS is one of the oldest and most famous anime studios in Japan, best known for numerous anime franchises such as Lupin the Third, Lilpri, The Gutsy Frog, The Rose of Versailles, Anpanman, Detective Conan, Monster Rancher, Magic Knight Rayearth, Hamtaro, Sonic X, D.Gray-man, Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple, Obake no Q-Taro (until 1972), Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Fruits Basket (2019), Dr. Stone, and feature-length films such as Golgo 13: The Professional, Akira, and Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland, alongside animation works for Western animation such as Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Inspector Gadget, The Real Ghostbusters, Rainbow Brite, DuckTales, The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, Tiny Toon Adventures, Batman: The Animated Series, Animaniacs, and Spider-Man: The Animated Series.

In 2010, TMS Entertainment became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sega Sammy Holdings.[1]
History

The company was originally established on October 22, 1946 by Yutaka Fujioka.[2] As Asahi Gloves Manufacturing Co., Ltd., it was originally a textile manufacturer. Later, the company name was changed to Asahi Ichi Henori Co., Ltd., Asahiichi Co., Ltd., Asahiichi Shine Industry Co., Ltd., and Kyokuichi Co., Ltd. In 2003, the company completely withdrew from the textile business.[citation needed]
Foray into animation
Former Tokyo Movie Shinsha logo

The company started operations in 1964 when it ventured into the animation industry as Tokyo Movie (東京ムービー, Tōkyō Mūbī) after the failure of Fujioka's previous studio, Tokyo Ningyo Cinema (東京人形シネマ, Tōkyō Ningyō Shinema).[3][4] The studio's first production was an animated adaptation of Osamu Tezuka's Big X.[citation needed]

Hayao Miyazaki was associated with Tokyo Movie before founding Studio Ghibli.[5] His most notable work at TMS was his role as the director of The Castle of Cagliostro, which is notable for being his first feature-length debut.[6]

In 1972, Madhouse was established with funding from Fujioka, and co-produced its earliest series with Tokyo Movie.[citation needed] In 1977, Fujioka reformatted Tokyo Movie into Tokyo Movie Shinsha. Its first production was Lupin the Third Part II, which aired from 1977 to 1980. The film adaptation, The Mystery of Mamo, was the studio's first feature-length movie in history. A subsidiary, Telecom Animation Film, was founded in 1975, but didn't start production until after Tokyo Movie was restructured.[citation needed]

In 1980, TMS established a partnership with the French (later American) company DiC, as one of its overseas animation subcontractors, where the former would help animate many of the latter's programs, starting with the pilot of Ulysses 31. The two would also produce the 1982 unaired pilot Lupin VIII. This partnership would last until 1986, when DiC opened its own Japan-based animation facility known as K.K. DIC Asia (later Creativity & Development Asia) in 1983, for animation production on its shows in order to bypass overseas animation subcontractors.[citation needed]

In 1989, TMS released Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland in Japan, followed by a United States release in 1992. The movie was infamous for being in development hell with figures such as George Lucas, Chuck Jones, Hayao Miyazaki, and Gary Kurtz being involved with the movie before dropping out. The film received mixed reviews from critics, where it earned $11.4 million on a $35 million budget and was a box-office bomb. In response to this, founder Fujioka decided to retire from the animation business. TMS, having to recoup Little Nemo's losses by increased production on locally based anime programs including Anpanman and the yearly Lupin III television specials which the specials ran non-stop until 2013 (with additional special produced in 2016, 2018 and 2019) while Telecom became highly involved in animation for Western-based productions due to the Japanese bubble economy busting making it difficult to find local work, including Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, and Batman: The Animated Series in order to fund for its next project Farewell to Nostradamus.[7]

Throughout the 1980s and the 1990s, TMS and its subsidiaries, Telecom Animation Film and South Korea-based Seoul Movie, animated for various companies, including DiC, Walt Disney Television Animation, Warner Bros. Animation, Marvel Films Animation, Studio Ghibli, Madhouse, Production I.G, Sunrise, Bones, Shogakukan Music & Digital Entertainment,[8] Since the early 2000s, TMS itself has no longer supplied animation services to western studios due to increasingly demanding costs,[8][9] although there have been a few exceptions such as Green Lantern: First Flight (2009) and Superman vs. The Elite (2012). While it still produces feature films, these films are primarily spinoffs from existing anime properties, which include the likes of Anpanman and Detective Conan.[citation needed]

Aside from Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, animators would leave TMS to form their own studios. One of these studios was Brain's Base.[citation needed] Similarly, animators at its subsidiary, Telecom Animation Film, would leave to form Ufotable in 2000,[citation needed] which they would be later known for works like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Tales of Symphonia, The Garden of Sinners, Fate/Zero, and Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works.
Tokyo Movie Kyokuichi era

On July 1, 1991, Tokyo Movie Shinsha's holding company changed their name to Tokyo Movie Kyokuichi.[10]
TMS Kyokuichi Corporation era

In 1995, Tokyo Movie Kyokuichi merged with Tokyo Movie Shinsha.[10][11]
TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd era

In 2000, the company was re-branded as TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd.[10]

In 2003, American brokerage group Merrill Lynch became the second-largest shareholder in TMS Entertainment after acquiring a 7.54 percent stake in the studio. Merrill Lynch purchased the stake purely for investment purposes and had no intention of acquiring control of the firm's management.[12]

In 2007-02-01, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the establishment of studio D within the Tokyo studio building, set to operational in 2007-02-05.[13]
Partnership with Sega

On October 17, 2005, Sega Sammy Holdings announced that they had acquired a 50.2% majority stake in TMS and subsidized the studio under it.[14]

In 2012, the head office was relocated to Nakano, Tokyo.[2] In 2015, Sega Sammy placed TMS as a subsidiary of Sega Holdings.[15] In April 2017, Sega's CG production division, Marza Animation Planet, became a subsidiary of TMS.[16]
Subsidiaries

The company has numerous animation subsidiaries collaborating in conjunction with the company. Those include:

    TMS Entertainment, USA, INC.: Established in 1996 as the Los Angeles studio division. In 2006, it was renamed to TMS Entertainment, USA, INC.
    TMS Entertainment Europe SAS: Established in 2001 as the Paris studio division.[2] In 2022, it was renamed to TMS Entertainment Europe SAS.
    TMSLab（トムスラボ）: In 2022-04-26, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the establishment of TMS-Lab (原作工房TMS-Lab), where 'TMS' stands for 'Theme, Message, Story'. The associate web site went operational in 2022-04-21.[17] In 2022-12-22, it was renamed to TMSLab（トムスラボ）, and the web site was relocated.[18]
    Tokyo Movie Online (東京ムービーONLINE): In 2005-10-19, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the establishment of Tokyo Movie Online video subscription platform.[19]
    Tokyo Movie (東京ムービー（トウキョウムービー）): In 2005-12-22, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the beginning of the Tokyo Movie service for EZweb users, effective on the same day.[20]
    TMS MUSIC UK LTD.: Established in 2007-01-15.[21]
    TMS MUSIC HK LTD.: In 2007-02-14, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the establishment of TMS MUSIC HK LTD., to be established in March 2007.[21]
    AG Bowl（エージーボウル）: In 2008-04-21, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the establishment of AG Bowl bowing facility in Ishioka, Ibaraki, to be opened 5 days later.[22]
    Anpanman Digital LLP: In 2008-06-11, TMS Entertainment Co., Ltd. announced the establishment of Anpanman Digital LLP (アンパンマンデジタルＬＬＰ) with Nippon Television and Froebel-Kan Co., Ltd., with each founding member invested 100 million yen, to be established 5 days later.[23]
    Telecom Animation Film Co., Ltd. (Japanese: 株式会社テレコム・アニメーションフィルム, Hepburn: Kabushiki-gaisha Terekomu Animēshon Firumu), a studio established on May 19, 1975. It first started as a subcontracting company for its parent, but has since become the leading animation studio behind the more recent Lupin the Third titles.[24][25] The studio has also produced series like Chain Chronicle: The Light of Haecceitas,[26] Orange,[27] and Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation.[28]
    Marza Animation Planet Inc. (Japanese: 株式会社マーザ・アニメーションプラネット, Hepburn: Kabushiki gaisha Māza Animēshonpuranetto), a CG studio formerly a part of Sega and known for producing Space Pirate Captain Harlock,[29] Resident Evil: Vendetta,[30] and the 2020 Sonic the Hedgehog film.[31]
    V1 Studio (Japanese: ヴィーワンスタジオ, Hepburn: Vīuwan Sutajio), a studio most known for co-producing the Detective Conan films since the 16th movie and the 2nd season (and OVAs) of Kamisama Kiss.[32]
    Double Eagle (Japanese: だぶるいーぐる, Hepburn: Daburuīguru), a studio most known for co-producing ReLIFE, Nana Maru San Batsu, and The Thousand Musketeers.[33]
    8PAN (Japanese: エイトパヌ, Hepburn: Eito Panu), a studio best known for co-producing Bakuon!!, D.Gray-man Hallow, and Dr. Stone.[34]
    3xCube (Japanese: スリーキューブ, Hepburn: Surīkyūbu), a studio known for producing The Pilot's Love Song, My Monster Secret, Sweetness and Lightning, and Megalobox.[35]
    Studio Sakimakura (Japanese: スタジオさきまくら, Hepburn: Sutajio Sakimakura), a studio founded in March 2011, and known for producing the second half of the first season of Cardfight!! Vanguard and Brave 10.
    Trois Studio (Japanese: トロワスタジオ, Hepburn: Torowa Sutajio), a studio that produced Lupin III: Goodbye Partner, the 27th film special for the Lupin the Third franchise.[36]
    Seoul Movie, a South Korean animation studio based in Seoul, established in 1990 and closed sometime in the late 2000s." (wikipedia.org)

"Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities.[1] It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology.[2] Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics to abstract concepts such as nations, emotions, and natural forces, such as seasons and weather. Both have ancient roots as storytelling and artistic devices, and most cultures have traditional fables with anthropomorphized animals as characters. People have also routinely attributed human emotions and behavioral traits to wild as well as domesticated animals.[3]
Etymology

Anthropomorphism and anthropomorphization derive from the verb form anthropomorphize,[a] itself derived from the Greek ánthrōpos (ἄνθρωπος, lit. "human") and morphē (μορφή, "form"). It is first attested in 1753, originally in reference to the heresy of applying a human form to the Christian God.[b][1]
Examples in prehistory

From the beginnings of human behavioral modernity in the Upper Paleolithic, about 40,000 years ago, examples of zoomorphic (animal-shaped) works of art occur that may represent the earliest known evidence of anthropomorphism. One of the oldest known is an ivory sculpture, the Löwenmensch figurine, Germany, a human-shaped figurine with the head of a lioness or lion, determined to be about 32,000 years old.[5][6]

It is not possible to say what these prehistoric artworks represent. A more recent example is The Sorcerer, an enigmatic cave painting from the Trois-Frères Cave, Ariège, France: the figure's significance is unknown, but it is usually interpreted as some kind of great spirit or master of the animals. In either case there is an element of anthropomorphism.

This anthropomorphic art has been linked by archaeologist Steven Mithen with the emergence of more systematic hunting practices in the Upper Palaeolithic.[7] He proposes that these are the product of a change in the architecture of the human mind, an increasing fluidity between the natural history and social intelligences[clarification needed], where anthropomorphism allowed hunters to identify empathetically with hunted animals and better predict their movements.[c]
In religion and mythology
See also: Euhemerism

In religion and mythology, anthropomorphism is the perception of a divine being or beings in human form, or the recognition of human qualities in these beings.

Ancient mythologies frequently represented the divine as deities with human forms and qualities. They resemble human beings not only in appearance and personality; they exhibited many human behaviors that were used to explain natural phenomena, creation, and historical events. The deities fell in love, married, had children, fought battles, wielded weapons, and rode horses and chariots. They feasted on special foods, and sometimes required sacrifices of food, beverage, and sacred objects to be made by human beings. Some anthropomorphic deities represented specific human concepts, such as love, war, fertility, beauty, or the seasons. Anthropomorphic deities exhibited human qualities such as beauty, wisdom, and power, and sometimes human weaknesses such as greed, hatred, jealousy, and uncontrollable anger. Greek deities such as Zeus and Apollo often were depicted in human form exhibiting both commendable and despicable human traits. Anthropomorphism in this case is, more specifically, anthropotheism.[9]

From the perspective of adherents to religions in which humans were created in the form of the divine, the phenomenon may be considered theomorphism, or the giving of divine qualities to humans.

Anthropomorphism has cropped up as a Christian heresy, particularly prominently with Audianism in third-century Syria, but also fourth-century Egypt and tenth-century Italy.[10] This often was based on a literal interpretation of the Genesis creation myth: "So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them".[11]

Hindus do not reject the concept of a deity in the abstract unmanifested, but note practical problems. The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 12, Verse 5, states that it is much more difficult for people to focus on a deity that is unmanifested than one with form, remarking on the usage of anthropomorphic icons (murtis) that adherents can perceive with their senses.[12][13]
Criticism

Some religions, scholars, and philosophers objected to anthropomorphic deities. The earliest known criticism was that of the Greek philosopher Xenophanes (570–480 BCE) who observed that people model their gods after themselves. He argued against the conception of deities as fundamentally anthropomorphic:

    But if cattle and horses and lions had hands
    or could paint with their hands and create works such as men do,
    horses like horses and cattle like cattle
    also would depict the gods' shapes and make their bodies
    of such a sort as the form they themselves have.
    ...
    Ethiopians say that their gods are snub–nosed [σιμούς] and black
    Thracians that they are pale and red-haired.[14][d]

Xenophanes said that "the greatest god" resembles man "neither in form nor in mind".[15]

Both Judaism and Islam reject an anthropomorphic deity, believing that God is beyond human comprehension. Judaism's rejection of an anthropomorphic deity began with the prophets, who explicitly rejected any likeness of God to humans.[16] Their rejection grew further after the Islamic Golden Age in the tenth century, which Maimonides codified in the twelfth century, in his thirteen principles of Jewish faith.[e]

In the Ismaili interpretation of Islam, assigning attributes to God as well as negating any attributes from God (via negativa) both qualify as anthropomorphism and are rejected, as God cannot be understood by either assigning attributes to Him or taking them away. The 10th-century Ismaili philosopher Abu Yaqub al-Sijistani suggested the method of double negation; for example: "God is not existent" followed by "God is not non-existent". This glorifies God from any understanding or human comprehension.[18]

In secular thought, one of the most notable criticisms began in 1600 with Francis Bacon, who argued against Aristotle's teleology, which declared that everything behaves as it does in order to achieve some end, in order to fulfill itself.[19] Bacon pointed out that achieving ends is a human activity and to attribute it to nature misconstrues it as humanlike.[19] Modern criticisms followed Bacon's ideas such as critiques of Baruch Spinoza and David Hume. The latter, for instance, embedded his arguments in his wider criticism of human religions and specifically demonstrated in what he cited as their "inconsistence" where, on one hand, the Deity is painted in the most sublime colors but, on the other, is degraded to nearly human levels by giving him human infirmities, passions, and prejudices.[20] In Faces in the Clouds, anthropologist Stewart Guthrie proposes that all religions are anthropomorphisms that originate in the brain's tendency to detect the presence or vestiges of other humans in natural phenomena.[21]

Some scholars argue that anthropomorphism overestimates the similarity of humans and nonhumans and therefore could not yield accurate accounts.

In literature
Religious texts

There are various examples of personification in both the Hebrew Bible and Christian New Testaments, as well as in the texts of some other religions.
Fables

Anthropomorphism, also referred to as personification, is a well-established literary device from ancient times. The story of "The Hawk and the Nightingale" in Hesiod's Works and Days preceded Aesop's fables by centuries. Collections of linked fables from India, the Jataka Tales and Panchatantra, also employ anthropomorphized animals to illustrate principles of life. Many of the stereotypes of animals that are recognized today, such as the wily fox and the proud lion, can be found in these collections. Aesop's anthropomorphisms were so familiar by the first century CE that they colored the thinking of at least one philosopher:

    And there is another charm about him, namely, that he puts animals in a pleasing light and makes them interesting to mankind. For after being brought up from childhood with these stories, and after being as it were nursed by them from babyhood, we acquire certain opinions of the several animals and think of some of them as royal animals, of others as silly, of others as witty, and others as innocent.
    — Apollonius of Tyana[23]

Apollonius noted that the fable was created to teach wisdom through fictions that are meant to be taken as fictions, contrasting them favorably with the poets' stories of the deities that are sometimes taken literally. Aesop, "by announcing a story which everyone knows not to be true, told the truth by the very fact that he did not claim to be relating real events".[23] The same consciousness of the fable as fiction is to be found in other examples across the world, one example being a traditional Ashanti way of beginning tales of the anthropomorphic trickster-spider Anansi: "We do not really mean, we do not really mean that what we are about to say is true. A story, a story; let it come, let it go."[24]
Fairy tales

Anthropomorphic motifs have been common in fairy tales from the earliest ancient examples set in a mythological context to the great collections of the Brothers Grimm and Perrault. The Tale of Two Brothers (Egypt, 13th century BCE) features several talking cows and in Cupid and Psyche (Rome, 2nd century CE) Zephyrus, the west wind, carries Psyche away. Later an ant feels sorry for her and helps her in her quest.
Modern literature

Building on the popularity of fables and fairy tales, children's literature began to emerge in the nineteenth century with works such as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) by Lewis Carroll, The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883) by Carlo Collodi and The Jungle Book (1894) by Rudyard Kipling, all employing anthropomorphic elements. This continued in the twentieth century with many of the most popular titles having anthropomorphic characters,[25] examples being The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1901) and later books by Beatrix Potter;[f] The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (1908); Winnie-the-Pooh (1926) and The House at Pooh Corner (1928) by A. A. Milne; and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1950) and the subsequent books in The Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis.

In many of these stories the animals can be seen as representing facets of human personality and character.[27] As John Rowe Townsend remarks, discussing The Jungle Book in which the boy Mowgli must rely on his new friends the bear Baloo and the black panther Bagheera, "The world of the jungle is in fact both itself and our world as well".[27] A notable work aimed at an adult audience is George Orwell's Animal Farm, in which all the main characters are anthropomorphic animals. Non-animal examples include Rev. W. Awdry's Railway Series stories featuring Thomas the Tank Engine and other anthropomorphic locomotives.

The fantasy genre developed from mythological, fairy tale, and Romance motifs[28] sometimes have anthropomorphic animals as characters. The best-selling examples of the genre are The Hobbit[29] (1937) and The Lord of the Rings[g] (1954–1955), both by J. R. R. Tolkien, books peopled with talking creatures such as ravens, spiders, and the dragon Smaug and a multitude of anthropomorphic goblins and elves. John D. Rateliff calls this the "Doctor Dolittle Theme" in his book The History of the Hobbit[31] and Tolkien saw this anthropomorphism as closely linked to the emergence of human language and myth: "...The first men to talk of 'trees and stars' saw things very differently. To them, the world was alive with mythological beings... To them the whole of creation was 'myth-woven and elf-patterned'."[32]

Richard Adams developed a distinctive take on anthropomorphic writing in the 1970s: his debut novel, Watership Down (1972), featured rabbits that could talk—with their own distinctive language (Lapine) and mythology—and included a police-state warren, Efrafa. Despite this, Adams attempted to ensure his characters' behavior mirrored that of wild rabbits, engaging in fighting, copulating and defecating, drawing on Ronald Lockley's study The Private Life of the Rabbit as research. Adams returned to anthropomorphic storytelling in his later novels The Plague Dogs (novel) (1977) and Traveller (1988).[33][34]

By the 21st century, the children's picture book market had expanded massively.[h] Perhaps a majority of picture books have some kind of anthropomorphism,[25][36] with popular examples being The Very Hungry Caterpillar (1969) by Eric Carle and The Gruffalo (1999) by Julia Donaldson.

Anthropomorphism in literature and other media led to a sub-culture known as furry fandom, which promotes and creates stories and artwork involving anthropomorphic animals, and the examination and interpretation of humanity through anthropomorphism. This can often be shortened in searches as "anthro", used by some as an alternative term to "furry".[37]

Anthropomorphic characters have also been a staple of the comic book genre. The most prominent one was Neil Gaiman's the Sandman which had a huge impact on how characters that are physical embodiments are written in the fantasy genre.[38][39] Other examples also include the mature Hellblazer (personified political and moral ideas),[40] Fables and its spin-off series Jack of Fables, which was unique for having anthropomorphic representation of literary techniques and genres.[41] Various Japanese manga and anime have used anthropomorphism as the basis of their story. Examples include Squid Girl (anthropomorphized squid), Hetalia: Axis Powers (personified countries), Upotte!! (personified guns), Arpeggio of Blue Steel and Kancolle (personified ships).

In film

Some of the most notable examples are the Walt Disney characters the Magic Carpet from Disney's Aladdin franchise, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit; the Looney Tunes characters Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Porky Pig; and an array of others from the 1920s to present day.

In the Disney/Pixar franchises Cars and Planes, all the characters are anthropomorphic vehicles,[42] while in Toy Story, they are anthropomorphic toys. Other Pixar franchises like Monsters, Inc features anthropomorphic monsters and Finding Nemo features anthropomorphic sea animals (like fish, sharks, and whales). Discussing anthropomorphic animals from DreamWorks franchise Madagascar, Laurie[non sequitur] suggests that "social differences based on conflict and contradiction are naturalized and made less 'contestable' through the classificatory matrix of human and nonhuman relations[clarification needed]".[42] Other DreamWorks franchises like Shrek features fairy tale characters, and Blue Sky Studios of 20th Century Fox franchises like Ice Age features anthropomorphic extinct animals. Other characters in SpongeBob SquarePants (franchise) features anthropomorphic sea animals as well (like sea sponges, starfish, octopus, crabs, whales, puffer fish, lobsters, and zooplankton).

All of the characters in Walt Disney Animation Studios' Zootopia (2016) are anthropomorphic animals, that is an entirely nonhuman civilization.[43]

The live-action/computer-animated franchise Alvin and the Chipmunks by 20th Century Fox centers around anthropomorphic talkative and singing chipmunks. The female singing chipmunks called The Chipettes are also centered in some of the franchise's films.
In television

Since the 1960s, anthropomorphism has also been represented in various animated television shows such as Biker Mice From Mars (1993–1996) and SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron (1993–1995). Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, first aired in 1987, features four pizza-loving anthropomorphic turtles with a great knowledge of ninjutsu, led by their anthropomorphic rat sensei, Master Splinter. Nickelodeon's longest running animated TV series SpongeBob SquarePants (1999–present), revolves around SpongeBob, a yellow sea sponge, living in the underwater town of Bikini Bottom with his anthropomorphic marine life friends. Cartoon Network's animated series The Amazing World of Gumball (2011–2019) are about anthropomorphic animals and inanimate objects. All of the characters in Hasbro Studios' TV series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (2010–2019) are anthropomorphic fantasy creatures, with most of them being ponies living in the pony-inhabited land of Equestria. The Netflix original series Centaurworld focuses on a warhorse who gets transported to a Dr. Seuss-like world full of centaurs who possess the bottom half of any animal, as opposed to the traditional horse.

In the American animated TV series Family Guy, one of the show's main characters, Brian, is a dog. Brian shows many human characteristics – he walks upright, talks, smokes, and drinks Martinis – but also acts like a normal dog in other ways; for example, he cannot resist chasing a ball and barks at the mailman, believing him to be a threat. In a similar case, BoJack Horseman, an American Netflix adult animated black comedy series, takes place in an alternate world where humans and anthropomorphic animals live side by side, and centers around the life of BoJack Horseman; a humanoid horse who was a one hit wonder on a popular 1990s sitcom Horsin' Around, living off the show's residuals in present time. Multiple main characters of the series are other animals who possess human body form and other human-like traits and identity as well; Mr. Peanutbutter, a humanoid dog lives a mostly human life—he speaks American English, walks upright, owns a house, drives a car, is in a romantic relationship with a human woman (in this series, as animals and humans are seen as equal, relationships like this are not seen as bestiality but seen as regular human sexuality), Diane, and has a successful career in television—however also exhibits dog traits—he sleeps in a human-size dog bed, gets arrested for having a drag race with the mailman and is once forced to wear a dog cone after he gets stitches in his arm.

The PBS Kids animated series Let's Go Luna! centers on an anthropomorphic female Moon who speaks, sings, and dances. She comes down out of the sky to serve as a tutor of international culture to the three main characters: a boy frog and wombat and a girl butterfly, who are supposed to be preschool children traveling a world populated by anthropomorphic animals with a circus run by their parents.

The French-Belgian animated series Mush-Mush & the Mushables takes place in a world inhabited by Mushables, which are anthropomrphic fungi, along with other critters such as beetles, snails, and frogs....Mascots
Main articles: Mascot and List of mascots

For branding, merchandising, and representation, figures known as mascots are now often employed to personify sports teams, corporations, and major events such as the World's Fair and the Olympics. These personifications may be simple human or animal figures, such as Ronald McDonald or the donkey that represents the United States's Democratic Party. Other times, they are anthropomorphic items, such as "Clippy" or the "Michelin Man". Most often, they are anthropomorphic animals such as the Energizer Bunny or the San Diego Chicken.

The practice is particularly widespread in Japan, where cities, regions, and companies all have mascots, collectively known as yuru-chara. Two of the most popular are Kumamon (a bear who represents Kumamoto Prefecture)[46] and Funassyi (a pear who represents Funabashi, a suburb of Tokyo)." (wikipedia.org)

"Takashi Yanase (やなせ たかし,Yanase Takashi,February 6, 1919 – October 13, 2013) was a Japanese writer, poet, illustrator and lyricist.[1] He was best known as the creator of the picture book and animated series Anpanman. Yanase was chairman of the Japan Cartoonists Association from May 2000 to 2012.
Early life, Military service

After graduating from the Tokyo School of Arts and Crafts in 1939 he entered Tokyo Tanabe Pharmaceuticals in the marketing department. In 1941 he was drafted into the army under the 6th Field Heavy Artillery Reserve Company stationed in China. As an educated non-commissioned officer he was assigned to senbu operations, presenting kamishibai to Chinese civilians. His younger brother was killed in action during the Pacific Campaign.

Post-war alongside other veterans Yanase made a living collecting garbage. To pursue his artistic embarkations he entered Kochi Shimbun in 1956, working as an editor. Hearing that his co-worker Nobu Komatsu was quitting and relocating to Tokyo, Yanase did the same. They would marry in 1947. While working at Mitsukoshi as a graphic designer he would pick up drawing manga seriously, submitting his works to newspapers and magazines. Finding success, Yanase would quit to work on manga full-time in 1953. His income from manga was triple that of his department store job.
Religion

The day after his death, an obituary in the October 16, 2013 edition of the Tokyo Shimbun reported that he was "a dandy Christian with a strong faith."[2] However, a correction was later published in the November 20, 2013 edition of the Tokyo Shimbun: "It was an error to refer to Takashi Yanase as a Christian.” Yanase himself wrote in "Gekkan Omoshihan No. 57, Special Feature: No Need for Religion!” in the March 1976 issue of Gekkan Omoshiban No. 57, "I don't have any religious beliefs at all. I’ll probably never turn to religion.” and “I’m not religious at all, even though I respect religion and worship God in my own way. I’m not religious at all.” [3]

Photos of his gravesite also show no evidence of him being a Christian. His gravesite lacks crosses and references to Jesus Christ. He was cremated and buried at his father’s former home, where he spent his early childhood. On his gravestone is this poem translated from Japanese, “I want to be a magnolia tree. In the season, bashful and shy, white flowers will bloom. I want to sway with the breeze.”" (wikipedia.org)

"Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and North American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element for men, the dinner suit or dinner jacket. In American English, the equivalent term tuxedo (or tux) is common. The dinner suit is a black, midnight blue or white two- or three-piece suit, distinguished by satin or grosgrain jacket lapels and similar stripes along the outseam of the trousers. It is worn with a white dress shirt with standing or turndown collar and link cuffs, a black bow tie, typically an evening waistcoat or a cummerbund, and black patent leather dress shoes or court pumps.[1] Accessories may include a semi-formal homburg, bowler, or boater hat. For women, an evening gown or other fashionable evening attire may be worn.

The first dinner jacket is traditionally traced to 1865 on the then Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII (1841–1910). The late 19th century saw gradual introduction of the lounge jacket without tails as a less formal and more comfortable leisure alternative to the frock coat. Similarly, the shorter dinner jacket evolved as a less formal alternative to the dress coat out of the informal smoking jacket, itself derived from the banyan.[citation needed] Thus in many non-English languages, a dinner jacket is still known as the false friend "smoking". In American English, its synonym "tuxedo" was derived from the village of Tuxedo Park in New York State, where it was introduced in 1886 following the example of Europeans. Following the counterculture of the 1960s, black tie has increasingly replaced white tie for more formal settings in the United States, along with cultures influenced by American culture.

Traditionally worn only for events after 6 p.m., black tie is less formal than white tie but more formal than informal or business dress.[2] As semi-formal, black tie are worn for dinner parties (public, fraternities, private) and sometimes even to balls and weddings, although etiquette experts discourage wearing of black tie for weddings. Traditional semi-formal day wear equivalent is black lounge suit. Supplementary semi-formal alternatives may be accepted for black tie: mess dress uniform, religious clothing (such as cassock), folk costumes (such as highland dress), etc.
Name

Dinner jacket in the context of menswear first appeared in the United Kingdom around 1887[3] and in the United States around 1889.[4] In the 1960s it became associated in the United States with white or coloured jackets specifically.[5] In modern British English, dinner jacket may be abbreviated to simply a "DJ".[6]

Tuxedo in the context of menswear originated in the United States around 1888.[7] It was named after Tuxedo Park, a Hudson Valley enclave for New York's social elite where it was often seen in its early years. The term was capitalized until the 1930s and traditionally referred only to a white jacket.[8] When the jacket was later paired with its own unique trousers and accessories in the 1900s the term began to be associated with the entire suit. Sometimes it is shortened to "tux".[9]

In French, Italian, Portuguese, German, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Persian, Turkish, and other European languages the style is referred to with the pseudo-anglicism smoking (esmoquin). This generic colloquialism is a false friend deriving from its similarity with the 19th century smoking jacket. In French the dress code may also be called "cravate noire",[10] a term that is sometimes adopted directly into English.[11]

The suit with accompanying accessories is sometimes nicknamed a monkey suit and, since 1918, soup and fish – a term derived from the sort of food thought to be served at black tie dinners....Composition
The elements of gentleman's black tie

The dinner suit's accompaniments have also evolved over time. The most traditional interpretations of these elements – dress shirt, low cut waistcoat (in the "V" or "U" shape), black bow tie, oxford dress shoes – are incorporated in the black tie dress code.

Unlike white tie, which is very strictly regulated, black tie ensembles can display more variation. More extensively, the traditional components for men are:

    A dinner jacket, also called a tuxedo jacket in the United States, is primarily made of black or midnight blue wool. Dinner jackets in an off-white color are also considered appropriate for some occasions, but it traditionally associated with warmer climates and differs from other dinner jackets in that it is self-faced and can be made of fabrics including linen and cotton.[40] Silk jacket lapels and facings, usually grosgrain or satin, are a defining element of the jacket and can be seen on every type of lapel. The dinner jacket may have a peaked lapel, a shawl lapel, or a notched lapel, with some fashion stylists and writers seeing shawl lapels as less formal and notched lapels as the least formal,[41] despite the fact that they, like peaked and shawl, were used (though somewhat rarely) in some of the early forms of the garment.[42]
    Trousers with a single silk or satin braid covering the outer seams, uncuffed and worn with braces
    A black low-cut waistcoat or a cummerbund
    A white dress shirt, with a marcella or pleated bib being traditional, with double or "French" cuffs and a turndown collar. While the turndown is most appropriately semi-formal, the attached wing collar has been popular with American men since the 1980s. However, many style authorities argue that the attached version now typically offered is insubstantial with minuscule wings and inappropriately paired with soft pleated fronts.[43]
    A black silk bow tie matching the lapel facings
    Shirt studs and cufflinks. Some classic etiquette authorities limit studs to stiff-front marcella shirts only and prescribe pearl buttons for soft-front models instead.
    Black dress socks, usually of silk or fine wool. Some style guides recommend that the socks should come up to the knee.[44]
    Black shoes – traditionally patent leather court shoes or pumps; now often highly polished or patent leather Oxford dress shoes instead, without brogueing...Social occasions
Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel Westling arriving at the Riksdag's Black Tie Gala Performance on the eve of their wedding

In traditional Western dress codes etiquette black tie is intended for adult men's evening wear. Traditionally, in the 20th century black tie, in contrast to formal white tie, was considered informal.[17] In the 21st century black tie is often referred to as being semi-formal.[22]

Black tie is worn to private and public dinners, balls, and parties. At the more formal end of the social spectrum, it has to a large extent replaced the more formal white tie. Once more common, white tie dress code is fairly rare, being reserved for only the most formal occasions.[78] Black tie is traditionally worn only after six o'clock in the evening, or after sundown during winter months. Black tie's rough daytime equivalent is the stroller, which is less formal than morning dress because, as with black tie, it replaces the tailcoat with a lounge coat. Contrary to the trend seen in evening dress, the less formal stroller is now extraordinarily rare, whereas morning dress is still relatively common.

The most popular uses of the dinner suit in the United States in the early 21st century are for balls, galas, proms, cruise ship dinners and weddings. In these circumstances the dinner suit's styling and accessories are most commonly chosen according to the wearer's tastes. Less popular are black tie events, such as gala fundraisers, where men typically wear more traditional dinner suits and accessories as dictated by the dress code.[citation needed] They are also often worn by male musicians at concerts.

As a general rule, boys do not wear dinner jackets much before they are 15, or dress coat before they are about 18.[79]
Academia
Jacob Rees-Mogg in black tie debating at The Cambridge Union

Some British university debating societies, such as at Oxford,[80] Durham[81] and University College London[82] conduct at least some of their debates in black tie.[83] Notably, the Cambridge Union abolished the long-standing mandatory wearing of black tie at debates in 2002.[84] The Irish Times hosts an annual black tie debating competition.[85]

Learned societies, such as the Royal Aeronautical Society,[86] may also follow a similar practice.

Black tie dinners and debates are held through the academic year by British university conservative associations, such as those at Oxford,[87] Cambridge,[88] York,[89] and Nottingham.[90]
Opera and ballet

Historically, white tie was worn for the opera. Since the 20th century, however, black tie has been worn increasingly and today a dark lounge suit is generally acceptable.[91][92] In the 21st century, many opera houses in the English-speaking world do not stipulate black tie. For example, neither the Royal Opera House nor the Sydney Opera House maintain a black tie dress code. Notwithstanding, black tie is customary at English country house operas, such as during the summer Festival at Glyndebourne.[2] Black tie is also worn at a ballet or orchestra gala.[citation needed]
Cruise ships

At more formal dinners on cruise ships the dress code will typically be black tie although a dark lounge suit may be worn as a substitute.[93] In 2013 Cunard, noted for its adherence to formal dress codes, relaxed its dress standards.[94] As of 2015 Cunard requires one of a dinner jacket, a dark suit, formal national dress or military uniform for gentlemen diners on formal evenings.[95] Similarly, the luxury cruise liner, Seabourn, stipulates either a dinner suit or a dark business suit on formal evenings.[96]
Weddings

Black tie has been increasingly seen in the United States at weddings in place of the traditional morning dress. However, etiquette and clothing experts see the wearing of black tie before 6 p.m. as out of the ordinary.[97] Prior to the late 1930s, black tie was even discouraged as too informal for evening weddings, with Amy Vanderbilt arguing that "no man should ever be caught in a church in a tuxedo". Emily Post would continue to argue in preference of white tie at evening weddings into the 1950s.

In the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe, although a minority accepts black tie at evening wedding receptions, including some Jewish weddings,[98] it is seldom worn at church weddings or civil ceremonies where morning dress or a lounge suit is normally favoured.

Other than that, supplementary alternatives include local variations of white tie etiquette, such as highland dress in Scotland, if neither white tie nor black tie is preferred." (wikipedia.org)

"Anime (Japanese: アニメ, IPA: [aꜜɲime] ⓘ) is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, anime refers specifically to animation produced in Japan.[1] However, in Japan and Japanese, anime (a term derived from a shortening of the English word animation) describes all animated works, regardless of style or origin. Many works of animation with a similar style to Japanese animation are also produced outside Japan. Video games sometimes also feature themes and art styles that are sometimes labelled as anime.

The earliest commercial Japanese animation dates to 1917. A characteristic art style emerged in the 1960s with the works of cartoonist Osamu Tezuka and spread in following decades, developing a large domestic audience. Anime is distributed theatrically, through television broadcasts, directly to home media, and over the Internet. In addition to original works, anime are often adaptations of Japanese comics (manga), light novels, or video games. It is classified into numerous genres targeting various broad and niche audiences.[2]

Anime is a diverse medium with distinctive production methods that have adapted in response to emergent technologies. It combines graphic art, characterization, cinematography, and other forms of imaginative and individualistic techniques.[3] Compared to Western animation, anime production generally focuses less on movement, and more on the detail of settings and use of "camera effects", such as panning, zooming, and angle shots.[3] Diverse art styles are used, and character proportions and features can be quite varied, with a common characteristic feature being large and emotive eyes.[4]

The anime industry consists of over 430 production companies, including major studios such as Studio Ghibli, Kyoto Animation, Sunrise, Bones, Ufotable, MAPPA, Wit Studio, CoMix Wave Films, Production I.G, and Toei Animation. Since the 1980s, the medium has also seen widespread international success with the rise of foreign dubbed, subtitled programming, and since the 2010s due to the rise of streaming services and a widening demographic embrace of anime culture, both within Japan and worldwide.[5] As of 2016, Japanese animation accounted for 60% of the world's animated television shows.[6]
Etymology

As a type of animation, anime is an art form that comprises many genres found in other mediums; it is sometimes mistakenly classified as a genre itself.[7] In Japanese, the term anime is used to refer to all animated works, regardless of style or origin.[8] English-language dictionaries typically define anime (/ˈænɪmeɪ/)[9] as "a style of Japanese animation"[10] or as "a style of animation originating in Japan".[11] Other definitions are based on origin, making production in Japan a requisite for a work to be considered "anime".[12]

The etymology of the term anime is disputed. The English word "animation" is written in Japanese katakana as アニメーション (animēshon) and as アニメ (anime, pronounced [a.ɲi.me] ⓘ) in its shortened form.[12] Some sources claim that the term is derived from the French term for animation dessin animé ("cartoon", literally 'animated drawing'),[13] but others believe this to be a myth derived from the popularity of anime in France in the late 1970s and 1980s.[12]

In English, anime—when used as a common noun—normally functions as a mass noun. (For example: "Do you watch anime?" or "How much anime have you collected?")[14][15] As with a few other Japanese words, such as saké and Pokémon, English texts sometimes spell anime as animé (as in French), with an acute accent over the final e, to cue the reader to pronounce the letter, not to leave it silent as English orthography may suggest. Prior to the widespread use of anime, the term Japanimation, a portmanteau of Japan and animation, was prevalent throughout the 1970s and 1980s. In the mid-1980s, the term anime began to supplant Japanimation;[16] in general, the latter term now only appears in period works where it is used to distinguish and identify Japanese animation....Modern era
Frame from the opening sequence of Tezuka's 1963 TV series Astro Boy

In the 1960s, manga artist and animator Osamu Tezuka adapted and simplified Disney animation techniques to reduce costs and limit frame counts in his productions.[31] Originally intended as temporary measures to allow him to produce material on a tight schedule with inexperienced staff, many of his limited animation practices came to define the medium's style.[32] Three Tales (1960) was the first anime film broadcast on television;[33] the first anime television series was Instant History (1961–64).[34] An early and influential success was Astro Boy (1963–66), a television series directed by Tezuka based on his manga of the same name. Many animators at Tezuka's Mushi Production later established major anime studios (including Madhouse, Sunrise, and Pierrot).

The 1970s saw growth in the popularity of manga, many of which were later animated. Tezuka's work—and that of other pioneers in the field—inspired characteristics and genres that remain fundamental elements of anime today. The giant robot genre (also known as "mecha"), for instance, took shape under Tezuka, developed into the super robot genre under Go Nagai and others, and was revolutionized at the end of the decade by Yoshiyuki Tomino, who developed the real robot genre.[35] Robot anime series such as Gundam and Super Dimension Fortress Macross became instant classics in the 1980s, and the genre remained one of the most popular in the following decades.[36] The bubble economy of the 1980s spurred a new era of high-budget and experimental anime films, including Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise (1987), and Akira (1988).[37]

Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995), a television series produced by Gainax and directed by Hideaki Anno, began another era of experimental anime titles, such as Ghost in the Shell (1995) and Cowboy Bebop (1998). In the 1990s, anime also began attracting greater interest in Western countries; major international successes include Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z, both of which were dubbed into more than a dozen languages worldwide. In 2003, Spirited Away, a Studio Ghibli feature film directed by Hayao Miyazaki, won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at the 75th Academy Awards. It later became the highest-grossing anime film,[b] earning more than $355 million. Since the 2000s, an increased number of anime works have been adaptations of light novels and visual novels; successful examples include The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Fate/stay night (both 2006). Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train became the highest-grossing Japanese film and one of the world's highest-grossing films of 2020.[38][39] It also became the fastest grossing film in Japanese cinema, because in 10 days it made 10 billion yen ($95.3m; £72m).[39] It beat the previous record of Spirited Away which took 25 days.[39][40][41][42][43]

In 2021, the anime adaptations of Jujutsu Kaisen, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Tokyo Revengers were among the top 10 most discussed TV shows worldwide on Twitter.[44][45] In 2022, Attack on Titan won the award of "Most In-Demand TV Series in the World 2021" in the Global TV Demand Awards. Attack on Titan became the first ever non-English language series to earn the title of World's Most In-Demand TV Show, previously held by only The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones.[46] In 2024, Jujutsu Kaisen broke the Guinness World Record for the "Most in-demand animated TV show" with a global demand rating 71.2 times than that of the average TV show, previously held by Attack on Titan.[47][48]
Attributes
Anime differs from other forms of animation by its art styles, methods of animation, its production, and its process. Visually, anime works exhibit a wide variety of art styles, differing between creators, artists, and studios.[49] While no single art style predominates anime as a whole, they do share some similar attributes in terms of animation technique and character design.

Anime is fundamentally characterized by the use of limited animation, flat expression, the suspension of time, its thematic range, the presence of historical figures, its complex narrative line and, above all, a peculiar drawing style, with characters characterized by large and oval eyes, with very defined lines, bright colors and reduced movement of the lips.[50][51]
Technique

Modern anime follows a typical animation production process, involving storyboarding, voice acting, character design, and cel production. Since the 1990s, animators have increasingly used computer animation to improve the efficiency of the production process. Early anime works were experimental, and consisted of images drawn on blackboards, stop motion animation of paper cutouts, and silhouette animation.[52][53] Cel animation grew in popularity until it came to dominate the medium. In the 21st century, the use of other animation techniques is mostly limited to independent short films,[54] including the stop motion puppet animation work produced by Tadahito Mochinaga, Kihachirō Kawamoto and Tomoyasu Murata.[55][56] Computers were integrated into the animation process in the 1990s, with works such as Ghost in the Shell and Princess Mononoke mixing cel animation with computer-generated images.[57] Fuji Film, a major cel production company, announced it would stop cel production, producing an industry panic to procure cel imports and hastening the switch to digital processes.[57]

Prior to the digital era, anime was produced with traditional animation methods using a pose to pose approach.[52] The majority of mainstream anime uses fewer expressive key frames and more in-between animation.[58]

Japanese animation studios were pioneers of many limited animation techniques, and have given anime a distinct set of conventions. Unlike Disney animation, where the emphasis is on the movement, anime emphasizes the art quality and let limited animation techniques make up for the lack of time spent on movement. Such techniques are often used not only to meet deadlines but also as artistic devices.[59] Anime scenes place emphasis on achieving three-dimensional views, and backgrounds are instrumental in creating the atmosphere of the work.[19] The backgrounds are not always invented and are occasionally based on real locations, as exemplified in Howl's Moving Castle and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.[60][61] Oppliger stated that anime is one of the rare mediums where putting together an all-star cast usually comes out looking "tremendously impressive".[62]

The cinematic effects of anime differentiates itself from the stage plays found in American animation. Anime is cinematically shot as if by camera, including panning, zooming, distance and angle shots to more complex dynamic shots that would be difficult to produce in reality.[63][64][65] In anime, the animation is produced before the voice acting, contrary to American animation which does the voice acting first.[66]
Characters

The body proportions of human anime characters tend to accurately reflect the proportions of the human body in reality. The height of the head is considered by the artist as the base unit of proportion. Head heights can vary, but most anime characters are about seven to eight heads tall.[67] Anime artists occasionally make deliberate modifications to body proportions to produce super deformed characters that feature a disproportionately small body compared to the head; many super deformed characters are two to four heads tall. Some anime works like Crayon Shin-chan completely disregard these proportions, in such a way that they resemble caricatured Western cartoons.

A common anime character design convention is exaggerated eye size. The animation of characters with large eyes in anime can be traced back to Osamu Tezuka, who was deeply influenced by such early animation characters as Betty Boop, who was drawn with disproportionately large eyes.[68] Tezuka is a central figure in anime and manga history, whose iconic art style and character designs allowed for the entire range of human emotions to be depicted solely through the eyes.[69] The artist adds variable color shading to the eyes and particularly to the cornea to give them greater depth. Generally, a mixture of a light shade, the tone color, and a dark shade is used.[70][71] Cultural anthropologist Rachel Thorn argues that Japanese animators and audiences do not perceive such stylized eyes as inherently more or less foreign.[72] However, not all anime characters have large eyes. For example, the works of Hayao Miyazaki are known for having realistically proportioned eyes, as well as realistic hair colors on their characters.[73]

Hair in anime is often unnaturally lively and colorful or uniquely styled. The movement of hair in anime is exaggerated and "hair actions" is used to emphasize the action and emotions of characters for added visual effect.[74] Poitras traces hairstyle color to cover illustrations on manga, where eye-catching artwork and colorful tones are attractive for children's manga.[74] Despite being produced for a domestic market, anime features characters whose race or nationality is not always defined, and this is often a deliberate decision, such as in the Pokémon animated series.

Anime and manga artists often draw from a common canon of iconic facial expression illustrations to denote particular moods and thoughts.[76] These techniques are often different in form than their counterparts in Western animation, and they include a fixed iconography that is used as shorthand for certain emotions and moods.[77] For example, a male character may develop a nosebleed when aroused.[77] A variety of visual symbols are employed, including sweat drops to depict nervousness, visible blushing for embarrassment, or glowing eyes for an intense glare.[78] Another recurring sight gag is the use of chibi (deformed, simplified character designs) figures to comedically punctuate emotions like confusion or embarrassment....Industry
See also: List of anime companies and List of Japanese animation studios

The animation industry consists of more than 430 production companies with some of the major studios including Toei Animation, Gainax, Madhouse, Gonzo, Sunrise, Bones, TMS Entertainment, Nippon Animation, P.A.Works, Studio Pierrot, Production I.G, Ufotable and Studio Ghibli.[101] Many of the studios are organized into a trade association, The Association of Japanese Animations. There is also a labor union for workers in the industry, the Japanese Animation Creators Association. Studios will often work together to produce more complex and costly projects, as done with Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away.[101] An anime episode can cost between US$100,000 and US$300,000 to produce.[102] In 2001, animation accounted for 7% of the Japanese film market, above the 4.6% market share for live-action works.[101] The popularity and success of anime is seen through the profitability of the DVD market, contributing nearly 70% of total sales.[101] According to a 2016 article on Nikkei Asian Review, Japanese television stations have bought over ¥60 billion worth of anime from production companies "over the past few years", compared with under ¥20 billion from overseas.[103] There has been a rise in sales of shows to television stations in Japan, caused by late night anime with adults as the target demographic.[103] This type of anime is less popular outside Japan, being considered "more of a niche product".[103] Spirited Away (2001) was the all-time highest-grossing film in Japan until overtaken by Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train in 2020.[104][105][106] It was also the highest-grossing anime film worldwide until it was overtaken by Makoto Shinkai's 2016 film Your Name.[107] Anime films represent a large part of the highest-grossing Japanese films yearly in Japan, with 6 out of the top 10 in 2014, in 2015 and also in 2016.

Anime has to be licensed by companies in other countries in order to be legally released. While anime has been licensed by its Japanese owners for use outside Japan since at least the 1960s, the practice became well-established in the United States in the late 1970s to early 1980s, when such TV series as Gatchaman and Captain Harlock were licensed from their Japanese parent companies for distribution in the US market. The trend towards American distribution of anime continued into the 1980s with the licensing of titles such as Voltron and the 'creation' of new series such as Robotech through the use of source material from several original series.[108]

In the early 1990s, several companies began to experiment with the licensing of less child-oriented material. Some, such as A.D. Vision, and Central Park Media and its imprints, achieved fairly substantial commercial success and went on to become major players in the now very lucrative American anime market. Others, such as AnimEigo, achieved limited success. Many companies created directly by Japanese parent companies did not do as well, most releasing only one or two titles before completing their American operations.

Licenses are expensive, often hundreds of thousands of dollars for one series and tens of thousands for one movie.[109] The prices vary widely; for example, Jinki: Extend cost only $91,000 to license while Kurau Phantom Memory cost $960,000.[109] Simulcast Internet streaming rights can be cheaper, with prices around $1,000–2,000 an episode,[110] but can also be more expensive, with some series costing more than US$200,000 per episode.[111]

The anime market for the United States was worth approximately $2.74 billion in 2009.[112] Dubbed animation began airing in the United States in 2000 on networks like The WB and Cartoon Network's Adult Swim.[113] In 2005, this resulted in five of the top ten anime titles having previously aired on Cartoon Network.[113] As a part of localization, some editing of cultural references may occur to better follow the references of the non-Japanese culture.[114] The cost of English localization averages US$10,000 per episode.[115]

The industry has been subject to both praise and condemnation for fansubs, the addition of unlicensed and unauthorized subtitled translations of anime series or films.[116] Fansubs, which were originally distributed on VHS bootlegged cassettes in the 1980s, have been freely available and disseminated online since the 1990s.[116] Since this practice raises concerns for copyright and piracy issues, fansubbers tend to adhere to an unwritten moral code to destroy or no longer distribute an anime once an official translated or subtitled version becomes licensed. They also try to encourage viewers to buy an official copy of the release once it comes out in English, although fansubs typically continue to circulate through file-sharing networks.[117] Even so, the laid back regulations of the Japanese animation industry tend to overlook these issues, allowing it to grow underground and thus increasing its popularity until there is a demand for official high-quality releases for animation companies. This has led to an increase in global popularity of Japanese animation, reaching $40 million in sales in 2004.[118]

Since the 2010s, anime has become a global multibillion industry setting a sales record in 2017 of ¥2.15 trillion ($19.8 billion), driven largely by demand from overseas audiences.[119] In 2019, Japan's anime industry was valued at $24 billion a year with 48% of that revenue coming from overseas (which is now its largest industry sector).[120] By 2025 the anime industry is expected to reach a value of $30 billion with over 60% of that revenue coming from overseas....Globalization and cultural impact
See also: Japanese pop culture in the United States, List of anime distributed in the United States, List of anime theatrically released in the United States, List of anime distributed in India, Japanese influence on Chinese culture, Japanese influence on Korean culture, Anime in hip hop, and List of highest-grossing anime films
Anime Expo in Los Angeles, California, United States – one of the largest fan conventions in the Western world[144]

Anime has become commercially profitable in Western countries,[145][146] as demonstrated by early commercially successful Western adaptations of anime, such as Astro Boy and Speed Racer. Early American adaptions in the 1960s made Japan expand into the continental European market, first with productions aimed at European and Japanese children, such as Heidi, Vicky the Viking and Barbapapa, which aired in various countries. Italy, Spain, and France[147][148] grew a particular interest in Japan's output, due to its cheap selling price and productive output. As of 2014, Italy imported the most anime outside Japan.[149] Anime and manga were introduced to France in the late 1970s and became massively popular in spite of a moral panic led by French politicians in the 1980s and 1990s.[150] These mass imports influenced anime popularity in South American, Arabic and German markets.[151]

The beginning of 1980[citation needed] saw the introduction of Japanese anime series into the American culture. In the 1990s, Japanese animation slowly gained popularity in America. Media companies such as Viz and Mixx began publishing and releasing animation into the American market.[152] The 1988 film Akira is largely credited with popularizing anime in the Western world during the early 1990s, before anime was further popularized by television shows such as Pokémon and Dragon Ball Z in the late 1990s.[153][154] By 1997, Japanese anime was the fastest-growing genre in the American video industry.[155] The growth of the Internet later provided international audiences with an easy way to access Japanese content.[118] Early on, online piracy played a major role in this, through over time many legal alternatives appeared. Since the 2010s streaming services have become increasingly involved in the production, licensing and distribution of anime for the international markets.[156][157] This is especially the case with net services such as Netflix and Crunchyroll which have large catalogs in Western countries, although as of 2020 anime fans in many developing non-Western countries, such as India[158] and the Philippines, had fewer options for obtaining access to legal content, and therefore would still turn to online piracy.[159][160] However beginning with the 2020s anime has been experiencing yet another boom in global popularity and demand due to the  and streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, Disney+, Hulu and anime-only services like Crunchyroll and Hidive, increasing the international availability of the amount of new licensed anime shows as well as the size of their catalogs.[161][162][163][164][165] Netflix reported that, between October 2019 and September 2020, more than 100 million member households worldwide had watched at least one anime title on the platform. Anime titles appeared on the streaming platform's top-ten lists in almost 100 countries within the one-year period.[166] As of 2021, anime series are the most demanded foreign-language television shows in the United States accounting for 30.5% of the market share. (In comparison, Spanish-language and Korean-language shows account for 21% and 11% of the market share, respectively.)[167] In 2021 more than half of Netflix's global members watched anime.[168][169] In 2022, the anime series Attack on Titan won the award of "Most In-Demand TV Series in the World 2021" in the Global TV Demand Awards. Attack on Titan became the first ever non-English language series to earn the title of "World's Most In-Demand TV Show", previously held by only The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones.[46][170] In 2024, the anime series Jujutsu Kaisen won the award of "Most In-Demand TV Series in the World 2023" in the Global TV Demand Awards.[171]

Rising interest in anime as well as Japanese video games has led to an increase of university students in the United Kingdom wanting to get a degree in the Japanese language.[172] The word anime alongside other Japanese pop cultural terms like shonen,shojo and isekai have been added to the Oxford English Dictionary.[173][174]

Various anime and manga series have influenced Hollywood in the making of numerous famous movies and characters.[175] Hollywood itself has produced live-action adaptations of various anime series such as Ghost in the Shell, Death Note, Dragon Ball Evolution and Cowboy Bebop. However most of these adaptations have been reviewed negatively by both the critics and the audience and have become box-office flops. The main reasons for the unsuccessfulness of Hollywood's adaptions of anime being the often change of plot and characters from the original source material and the limited capabilities a live-action movie or series can do in comparison to an animated counterpart.[176][177] One of the few particular exceptions to this includes Alita: Battle Angel, which has become a moderate commercial success, receiving generally positive reviews from both the critics and the audience for its visual effects and following the source material. The movie grossed $404 million worldwide, making it director Robert Rodriguez's highest-grossing film.[178][179]

Anime and manga alongside many other parts of Japanese pop culture have helped Japan to gain a positive worldwide image and improve its relations with other countries such as its East Asian neighbours China and South Korea.[180][181][182][183][184] In 2015, during remarks welcoming Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to the White House, President Barack Obama thanked Japan for its cultural contributions to the United States by saying:

    This visit is a celebration of the ties of friendship and family that bind our peoples. I first felt it when I was 6 years old when my mother took me to Japan. I felt it growing up in Hawaii, like communities across our country, home to so many proud Japanese Americans... Today is also a chance for Americans, especially our young people, to say thank you for all the things we love from Japan. Like karate and karaoke. Manga and anime. And, of course, emojis.[185]

In July 2020, after the approval of a Chilean government project in which citizens of Chile would be allowed to withdraw up to 10% of their privately held retirement savings, journalist Pamela Jiles celebrated by running through Congress with her arms spread out behind her, imitating the move of many characters of the anime and manga series Naruto.[186][187] In April 2021, Peruvian politicians Jorge Hugo Romero of the PPC and Milagros Juárez of the UPP cosplayed as anime characters to get the otaku vote.[188]

In April 2023, the Japan Business Federation laid out a proposal aiming to spur the economic growth of Japan by further promoting the contents industry abroad, primarily anime, manga and video games, for measures to invite industry experts from abroad to come to Japan to work, and to link with the tourism sector to help foreign fans of manga and anime visit sites across the country associated with particular manga stories. The federation seeks on quadrupling the sales of Japanese content in overseas markets within the upcoming 10 years.[189][190]

A 2018 survey conducted in 20 countries and territories using a sample consisting of 6,600 respondents held by Dentsu revealed that 34% of all surveyed people found excellency in anime and manga more than other Japanese cultural or technological aspects which makes this mass Japanese media the 3rd most liked "Japanese thing", below Japanese cuisine (34.6%) and Japanese robotics (35.1%). The advertisement company views anime as a profitable tool for marketing campaigns in foreign countries due to its popularity and high reception.[191] Anime plays a role in driving tourism to Japan. In surveys held by Statista between 2019 and 2020, 24.2% of tourists from the United States, 7.7% of tourists from China and 6.1% of tourists from South Korea said they were motivated to visit Japan because of Japanese popular culture.[192] In a 2021 survey held by Crunchyroll market research, 94% of Gen-Z's and 73% of the general population said that they are familiar with anime." (wikipedia.org)

"Popular culture
Main articles: Japanese popular culture, Japanese youth culture, and Japanese pop culture in the United States

Japanese popular culture not only reflects the attitudes and concerns of the present day but also provides a link to the past. Popular films, television programs, manga, music, anime and video games all developed from older artistic and literary traditions, and many of their themes and styles of presentation can be traced to traditional art forms. Contemporary forms of popular culture, much like the traditional forms, provide not only entertainment but also an escape for the contemporary Japanese from the problems of an industrial world. Many anime and manga series are very popular around the world and continue to become popular, as well as Japanese video games, fashion, and game shows.[74]

In the late 1980s, the family was the focus of leisure activities, such as excursions to parks or shopping districts. Although Japan is often thought of as a hard-working society with little time for leisure, the Japanese seek entertainment wherever they can. It is common to see Japanese commuters riding the train to work, enjoying their favorite manga, or listening through earphones to the latest in popular music. A wide variety of types of popular entertainment are available. There is a large selection of music, films, and the products of a huge manga and anime industry, among other forms of entertainment, from which to choose. Game centers, bowling alleys, and karaoke are popular hangout places for teens while older people may play shogi or go in specialized parlors. Together, the publishing, film/video, music/audio, and game industries in Japan make up the growing Japanese content industry." (wikipedia.org)

"Japanese popular culture includes Japanese cinema, cuisine, television programs, anime, manga, video games, music, and doujinshi, all of which retain older artistic and literary traditions; many of their themes and styles of presentation can be traced to traditional art forms. Contemporary forms of popular culture, much like the traditional forms, are not only forms of entertainment but also factors that distinguish contemporary Japan from the rest of the modern world. There is a large industry of music, films, and the products of a huge comic book industry, among other forms of entertainment. Game centers, bowling alleys, and karaoke parlors are well-known hangout places for teens while older people may play shogi or go in specialized parlors. Since the end of the US occupation of Japan in 1952, Japanese popular culture has been influenced by American media. However, rather than being dominated by American products, Japan localised these influences by appropriating and absorbing foreign influences into local media industries.[1] Today, Japanese popular culture stands as one of the most prominent and influential popular cultures around the world....Kawaii
Main article: Kawaii

The Japanese adjective kawaii can be translated as "cute" or "adorable" and is the drive behind one of Japan's most popular aesthetic cultures. Kawaii culture has its ties to another culture called shōjo, a girl power type movement that has been commodified to sell the image of young girls alongside pop culture and the goods they might be interested in. Shōjo can be seen as Japan's version of "the girl next door" with the cute and innocent aspects of kawaii. It has been associated with fancy goods (frilly and feminine type goods marketed toward young females), character goods (Sanrio, San-X, Studio Ghibli, anime/manga merchandise, etc. marketed to both males and females), entire fashion movements, and idols. As long as a product or person has "cute" elements, it can be seen as kawaii.[17] In 2008, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs moved away from just using traditional cultural aspects to promote their country and started using things like anime and Kawaii Ambassadors as well. The purpose of the Kawaii Ambassadors is to spread Japanese pop culture through their cute personas, using mostly fashion and music.[18] This can also happen at the local level as seen by the mayor of Shibuya designating Kyary Pamyu Pamyu as the "Kawaii Ambassador of Harajuku", famously known as a hub of Japanese fashion, clothing stores, and youth culture....Anime
Main article: Anime

Anime (Japanese: アニメ) is a movie or television episode of sorts which utilizes animation as an art style iconic to Japan in order to convey a story. Unlike western cartoons, anime can be distinguished by its detail in character design, large array of facial expressions, in-depth character development, wide target audience and rare use of talking animals.[48] These traits are used in order to better the connection between a viewer and the characters. Most of the time, anime is based on animated comics called manga, which is an ancient form of comic writing which dates back to the 12th century.[49]

The world of animated films in Japanese popular culture has been a growing trend since the 1920s. Influenced by Walt Disney and his animated characters, Osamu Tezuka (1925–1989), also known as "manga no kamisama" (which means, "God of Comics")[50] would begin his forty-year evolution of animation, or anime, that would change the content of Japanese comic books. With the creation of his first animated character Astro Boy that was unlike any other animated character; he found the hearts of the Japanese public with a robotic boy who has spiky hair, eyes as big as fists, with rockets on his feet.Doraemon gained great popularity in Japan with the broadcast of Doraemon on TV Asahi in 1979.In 2008, he was appointed as anime ambassador by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.

Studio Ghibli, a Japanese animation film studio, also contributed to anime's worldwide success through films including "My Neighbor Totoro", "Ponyo", and "Spirited Away" (winner of the Golden Bear award in 2002 and the Academy Award for Best Animation Film in 2003). For these works, the studio's current president Hayao Miyazaki is often credited as a visionary in animation.[51][52]

The success of the Pokémon franchise has been credited by people such as Nissim Otmazgin and sociologist Anne Alison as popularizing anime in the United States.[53] The anime market has also been described as owing greatly to the crucial role of fans as cultural agents, the deterritorializing effects of globalization, the domestication and heavy editing of anime to suit local tastes, and being part of the wider global flow of Japanese pop culture and "soft power".[53] Otmazgin argues that the rise of anime in the United States is a result of the sophisticated graphic quality, a wide thematic diversity, and an inclination to reject the Disney convention of a happy ending.[53] He further states that anime was a tool in which Japan could gain popularity with their pop culture and give Americans a taste of something unique and interesting in the media.

The growing international popularity of anime has led to various animation studios from other countries making their own anime-influenced works.

As anime has grown in its variety of viewers, genres, and themes, the industry has become more prevalent in society. In modern Japan, anime has become so popular that memorable characters have frequently been made into byproducts such as figurines and video games.
Manga
Main articles: Manga and Manga outside Japan

The word manga, when translated directly, means "whimsical drawings". Manga are not typically 'comic books' as the West understands them; rather, they represent pieces of Japanese culture and history. The 'manga' style has an extensive history, beginning sometime in the 10th century; scrolls from that period depict animals as part of the 'upper class', behaving as a typical human would in similar situations. Such scrolls would go on to be known as the Chōjū giga or "The Animal Scrolls".[54]

Scrolls found later on in the 12th century would depict images of religion such as the Gaki Zoshi (Hungry Ghost Scrolls) and the Jigoku Zoshi (Hell Scrolls). While both dealt with various aspects of religion, unlike "The Animal Scrolls", these provided a more instructive viewpoint, rather than a comedic style.[54]

Manga are more significant, culturally, than Western comic books (though many fill the same role). Originally, manga were printed in daily newspapers; in the Second World War, newsprint rationing caused a down-surge in manga popularity. In the post-war 1950s, they made a resurgence in the form of "picture card shows", which were a style of storytelling supplemented by the use of illustrations, and the highly popular "rental manga" that would allow their readers to rent these illustrated books for a period of time.[55]

Since their inception manga have gained a considerable worldwide consumer base." (wikipedia.org)

"Anpanman (アンパンマン) is a Japanese children's superhero picture book series written by Takashi Yanase, running from 1973 until the author's death in 2013. The series has been adapted into an anime entitled Soreike! Anpanman (それいけ!アンパンマン, Let's Go! Anpanman), which is one of the most popular anime series among young children in Japan. The series follows the adventures of Anpanman, a superhero with an anpan (a red bean paste filled pastry) for a head, who protects the world from an evil anthropomorphic germ named Baikinman.

Heavily merchandised, the Anpanman characters appear on virtually every imaginable children's product in Japan, ranging from clothes[2] and video games to toys[3] and snack foods.[4] The series spawned a short-lived spin-off show featuring one of the popular recurring characters on the show, Omusubiman. Anpanman overtook Hello Kitty as Japan's top-grossing character in 2002,[5] and has remained the country's top-grossing character as of 2019.[6][7] Anpanman has sold over 80 million books as of February 2019, and the franchise generated ¥4.5 trillion in total retail sales revenue by 2013. Works inspired by Anpanman include the manga and anime series One-Punch Man, and the K-pop song "Anpanman" by BTS.
Development

During the Second World War, Takashi Yanase faced starvation countless times, which made him dream about eating an anpan. This inspired the creation of Anpanman.[8]
Characters

In each episode, Anpanman fights with Baikinman and saves people. He goes on daily patrols around the house of Uncle Jam. He is a symbol of justice, fighting for good every day. Anpanman has a long history, and new characters are frequently introduced, keeping the series fresh. In 2009, Anpanman was verified as a Guinness World Record Holder for the highest number of characters in an animated franchise, with a total of 1,768 characters appearing in the first 980 episodes of the TV series and the first 20 films.[1]
Heroes
Anpan

Anpanman (アンパンマン, Anpanman)
    Voiced by: Keiko Toda (Japanese); Ghia Burns[9][10] (English)
    The main character of the anime, whose head is an Anpan made by Uncle Jam. His name comes from his being a man whose head is made of bread (Japanese: pan) that is filled with red bean paste (Japanese: anko) called an anpan. When translated into English, Anpanman means "Bean Bun Man." He doesn't need to eat or drink to sustain himself and has never been seen eating, as it is believed the bean jam in his head allows him to sustain himself in this manner. His weaknesses are water and anything else that makes his head dirty. In order to prevent his head from getting wet when underwater or in wet weather, he wears a bubble-like helmet to protect it. He regains his health and strength when Uncle Jam bakes him a new head and replaces the old head. Anpanman's damaged head, with his eyes turning into X's, flies off his shoulders once a new baked head replaces it. Anpanman was born when a shooting star landed in Uncle Jam's oven while he was baking an anpan. In movies and other media, the shooting stars that brought Anpanman to life were called “the stars of life”. Anpanman has two special attacks; An-punch and An-kick (with stronger variations of both). When Anpanman comes across a starving creature or person, he lets them eat a part of his head. This can also make him weaker and causes him to replace his head to regain his strength. He also has super hearing, which allows him to respond to anyone who calls his name out in distress, anywhere in the world.
Uncle Jam (ジャムおじさん, Jamu Ojisan)
    Voiced by: Hiroshi Masuoka (1988–2019), Kōichi Yamadera (2019–present), Barry J Tarallo (English)
    The creator of Anpanman and a very kind baker. He is a skilled cook with knowledge of nearly everything in the world.
Batako-san (バタコさん, Batako-san)
    Voiced by: Rei Sakuma (Japanese); Elaine Flores (English)
    Assistant to Uncle Jam. She is dedicated and hard-working but prone to forgetting things. Her name literally translates to "Butter Girl." She makes and mends the capes of Anpanman and the other heroes in the story.
Cheese (チーズ, Chīzu)
    Voiced by: Kōichi Yamadera (Japanese); Clay Cartland (English)
    A dog that lives in Uncle Jam's bakery. In the manga, he became Anpanman's loyal friend after he saved his life. In the anime, a young Anpanman finds Cheese starving during his very first patrol, and gives him a part of his head to eat. Cheese tends to be an effective sidekick when he's around.
Currypanman (カレーパンマン, Karēpanman)
    Voiced by: Michiyo Yanagisawa (Japanese); Paul Louis (English)
    Another of Anpanman's friends. His head is made from currypan, a pastry filled with red-hot curry. He is quick-tempered and hot-headed on the surface but gives way to a kind and sentimental interior. Tends to be the strongman of the trio. Wields the Curry-punch and Curry-kick, which are similar to the fighting techniques of Anpanman's other sidekicks. However, he can also use the hot curry concealed in his head as a weapon, using it to burn villains. He first appeared in episode 2b.
Shokupanman (しょくぱんまん, Shokupanman)
    Voiced by: Sumi Shimamoto (Japanese); Alex Machado (English)
    A friend of Anpanman. His head is made from sliced white bread (Japanese: shoku pan). He is handsome and level-headed and kind, but narcissistic. Tends to be the thinker of the trio. His job when not helping Anpanman is serving lunch to the schoolchildren. Dokin-chan has a crush on him. Wields the Shoku-punch and Shoku-kick, which are similar to Anpanman's fighting techniques. He also has a multi-functional delivery van known as the Shokupanman-go with many implements to help avoid trouble. He first appeared in episode 3b. In the Tubi Dub, he is called Bread Head Man.
Melonpanna (メロンパンナ, Meronpan'na)
    Voiced by: Mika Kanai (Japanese); Amanda Lopez (English)
    Anpanman's friend. Her head is made from melon bread. She is extremely softhearted, being caring and sensitive, and is sometimes clever. When she's in trouble, she usually needs Anpanman or somebody else to save her, or if there is no one available, she calls out for her sister, Rollpanna. Sometimes she likes hanging out with Cheese. Her special attack, the Melo-Melo Punch, makes bad guys woozy with affection or awakens others from a deep sleep. She first appeared in episode 200.
Rollpanna (ロールパンナ, Rōrupan'na)
    Voiced by: Miina Tominaga (Japanese); Benji Leon, Alisha Todd (English)
    Melonpanna's older sister who has two hearts: A red one of goodness, and thanks to Baikinman, a blue one of evil. The sight of Anpanman can trigger her evil heart while the sight of Melonpanna can trigger her good one. She started out in the series as a loner at Baikinman's beck and call, but she broke from his power and wanders the world doing good deeds, but stays away from others for fear of what she would do if her blue heart is triggered. Her nickname is "The tragic heroine". Her weapon is a gymnastics ribbon, which she can use to wrap up her enemies or cause tornadoes. She first appeared in episode 300.
Creampanda (クリームパンダ, Kurīmupanda)
    Voiced by: Miki Nagasawa (Japanese); Natalie Perlin (English)
    The youngest of Anpanman's friends and the foster brother of Melonpanna and Rollpanna. He is 6 years old. His head is made from a cream bun and his eyes look like those of a panda's. Despite his immaturity and relative weakness as compared to Anpanman and his hero friends, he is courageous, protective of his friends, and has a "never give up" attitude. He has an immature character causes him to sometimes get into petty squabbles and competitions of one-upmanship with the other younger characters on the show. Because his head resembles a hand, he has a special headbutt attack called the "Guu-Choki-Punch" (Guu-Choki-Pa means Rock, Scissors, Paper in Japanese). Relatively powerful when it connects, it fails to connect more often than not. He first appeared in episode 469.

Villains

Baikinman (ばいきんまん, Baikinman)
    Voiced by: Ryūsei Nakao (Japanese); Jason Michael Kessler[9][10] (English)
    The villain from the "Germ Planet" and is the leader of the Viruses. His Japanese name means "Bacteria Man". His ambition is to destroy Anpanman and spread bacteria all over the latter's world, yet he is perfectly content to play tricks, steal, and bully those weaker than him. He and Anpanman were born at the same time, making them physical representations of moral dualism. He has a weakness to soap, which shrinks him to the size of a fly. He constructs machines and thinks of intricate plans to counteract Anpanman's strength. His two famous phrases are his battle cry, "Ha-hi-hu-he-ho!" (based on the h-row of Japanese kana); and "Bye-baikiiin!", which he utters out whenever he's sent flying by Anpanman or another character. On the English TMS Entertainment website, he was called Bacteriaman. In the English Tubi Dub, he keeps his original Japanese name. Anpanman and his main enemy Baikinman combine in the view of the media expert Thomas Hoeren elements of Milton Paradise Lost, Frankenstein (Roman) and Star Trek[11] In Japanese his name sounds like bikeinman.
Moldyrunrun (かびるんるん, Kabirunrun)
    Baikinman's henchmen. They have the ability to rot Anpanman's head with mildew/mold (Japanese: kabi). They first appeared in episode 2a. In the English Tubi dub, they're called Rot-Rot.
Dokin-chan (ドキンちゃん)
    Voiced by: Hiromi Tsuru (1988–2017), Rei Sakuma (2017 Christmas Special), Miina Tominaga (2018–present),[12] Krystal Valdes (English)
    Baikinman's female partner in crime. She is selfish, demanding, childish, and greedy, but sometimes shows kindness, as demonstrated by her crush on Shokupanman. Her Japanese name is a combination of "Doki", the Japanese onomatopoeia for a quickly beating heart, "baikin" (meaning "germ", also the case for Baikinman), and the diminutive/affectionate suffix "-chan". She first appeared in episode 13a. On the English TMS Entertainment website, she was called Spark, however in the English Tubi dub she is called Dokeen
Horrorman (ホラーマン, Horāman)
    Voiced by: Kaneta Kimotsuki (1991–2016), Kazuki Yao (2017–present), Rio Chavarro (English)
    A skeleton who often works with Baikinman and Dokin-chan. Although he seems scary on the outside, he is very weak and often falls to pieces, and can magically put the pieces back. He is neither a hero nor a villain. His special attack is the Bone Boomerang, where he takes off one of his bones and throws it. He is also in love with Dokin-chan and often stalks her. He first appeared in Fly! Fly! Chibigon. In the English Tubi dub, he is called Horror.

Media
Picture books

The Anpanman picture book series debuted in October 1973.[13] Froebel-kan has published over 150 picture books under different series labels consisting of a varying amount of picture books. Takashi Yanase wrote and illustrated the picture books until 2013, following his retirement from his career and eventual death.
Manga

Takashi Yanase created three different manga series based on the character.

    January 1975 – May 1976: Nekketsu Märchen Kaiketsu Anpanman (熱血メルヘン 怪傑アンパンマン)
        Serialized in Sanrio's monthly poetry magazine Shi to Märchen (詩とメルヘン) for which Yanase was the editor-in-chief. Unlike all other iterations, this one is aimed at adults. The entire series is included in the box-set Yanase Takashi Taizen (やなせたかし大全), published in 2013 by Froebel-kan.
    September 1976 – July 1982: Anpanman (あんぱんまん / アンパンマン)
        Serialized in Sanrio's monthly youth magazine Gekkan Ichigoehon (月刊いちごえほん). The series changed its title spelling from hiragana to katakana in January 1981 and ended when the magazine folded in July 1982. It remained commercially unavailable until 2016 when it was collected in its entirety into the volume Dare mo shiranai Anpanman (だれも知らないアンパンマン) by Fukkatsu Dotcom.
    January 1, 1990 – May 29, 1994: Tobe! Anpanman (とべ!アンパンマン)
        A full color comic strip serialized in the Sunday edition of Yomiuri Shinbun. In 1991 Froebel-kan published a selection of strips into three bilingual volumes, marketing them as English learning tools for children age 3+.[14] Unlike traditional tankoubon, these volumes are presented in a vertical "Garfield Format". The rest of the series run is currently commercially unavailable.

Anime

The first anime adaptation of Anpanman, consisting of a single episode, aired during Spring Break Children's Hiroba - Picture Book on NHK General TV on March 13, 1979. Like the early picture books, Anpanman's name in the title was written in hiragana (あんぱんまん) instead of katakana. The anime was narrated by Meiko Nakamura. Although the character designs were closer to the picture books released under the Kinder Picture Books label, the story and the worldview were almost the same as the second anime adaptation.

The second anime adaptation of Anpanman, entitled Soreike! Anpanman (それいけ!アンパンマン, Let's Go! Anpanman), is produced by TMS Entertainment. Over 1300 episodes have aired on NTV since October 3, 1988. In April 2020, it was reported the voice recordings have had been put on hold due to the  On October 2, 2020, it was announced that the voice actors will now be recording lines in separate booths in order to minimize the spread o. They will also be taking shifts.[16]

The anime series also received an English dub in India (along with other regional languages) which was aired on Pogo TV in 2009.[17]
Full-length movies

There are currently a total of 33 full-length films based on the Soreike! Anpanman anime series. The films are also produced by TMS Entertainment and have been released in Japanese theaters every year since 1989. Since at least 1995, the films have been released concurrently with storybook versions written and illustrated by Takashi Yanase himself. Each movie has the same general plot - A person (usually a princess) comes from a foreign land. Baikinman unlocks some dark secret and controls a weapon or monster able to polymorph people. And with the help of the aforementioned person, Anpanman defeats the said weapon or monster. Sometimes the person dies but is brought back to life by a tearful song from the characters.

In May 2020, it was announced that production on the thirty-first Anpanman film Soreike! Anpanman: Fuwafuwa Fuwari to Kumo no Kuni (それいけ! アンパンマン ふわふわフワリーと雲の国, Let's Go! Anpanman: Fluffy Fuwari and the Cloud Country) had also been delayed due to the pandemic. The film was slated to be released on June 26, 2020.[18] In June 2020, the film was delayed to 2021.

In 2021, TMS Entertainment dubbed ten Anpanman movies into English and Spanish exclusively for Tubi.[19][20] The first movie Apple Boy and Everyone's Hope was released on April 15, 2021 (which was the first Takashi Yanase anime production since Ringing Bell to be presented in the English dub).[9][10][21] The second movie Anpanman: Purun, the Soap Bubble was released on July 23, 2021. Seven other films were released on September 10, 2021. The tenth movie Anpanman: Twinkle! Princess Vanilla of Ice Cream Land was released on November 12, 2021. It was also announced on January 19th, 2024, that two new Anpanman films would be dubbed and released on Tubi in February of the same year....Video games
   
This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (February 2020)

There are currently a total of 42 video games on this list based on the Soreike! Anpanman anime series, ranging from adventure games to educational games. With the exception of Soreike! Anpanman Eigo to Nakayoshi 2 Tanoshii Carnival, the video games were released only in Japan.

Famicom

    Oeka Kids: Anpanman to Oekaki Shiyou!!
    Oeka Kids: Anpanman no Hiragana Daisuki
    Soreike! Anpanman: Minna de Hiking Game!

PlayStation

    Kids Station: Soreike! Anpanman
    Kids Station: Soreike! Anpanman 2: Anpanman to Daibouken
    Kids Station: Soreike! Anpanman 3
    Kids Station: Oshaberi Oekaki Soreike! Anpanman

Nintendo DS

    Soreike! Anpanman: Baikinman no Daisakusen
    Anpanman to Asobo: Aiueo Kyoushitsu
    Anpanman to Asobo: ABC Kyoushitsu
    Anpanman to Touch de Waku Waku Training
    Anpanman to Asobu: Aiueo Kyoushitsu DX

Nintendo 3DS

    Anpanman to Asobo: New Aiueo Kyoushitsu

Game Boy Color

    Soreike! Anpanman: Fushigi na Nikoniko Album
    Soreike! Anpanman: 5tsu no Tou no Ousama

Wii

    Anpanman Niko Niko Party

Sega Pico

    Soreike! Anpanman Eigo to Nakayoshi Youchiende ABC
    Soreike! Anpanman no Game de Asobou Anpanman
    Soreike! Anpanman no o-Hanashi Daisuki Anpanman
    Soreike! Anpanman Eigo to Nakayoshi 2 Tanoshii Carnival
    Soreike! Anpanman no Medalympic World
    Soreike! Anpanman no Minna de Kyousou Anpanman!
    Soreike! Anpanman: Anpanman to Denwa de Asobou!
    Soreike! Anpanman Anpanman to Tanoshii Drive!
    Soreike! Anpanman Anpanman to Kotoba Asobi
    Soreike! Anpanman no Medalympic World 2
    Soreike! Anpanman: Anpanman to Suuji Asobi
    Anpanman Pico Waku Waku Pan Koujou
    Anpanman to PC Renshuu!
    Gakken Anpanman to Chinou Up!
    Soreike! Anpanman: Anpanman no Chie no World
    Soreike! Anpanman Hajimete Asobu Pico Soft: Anpanman no Iro-Kazu-Katachi Nurie mo Dekichau zo!
    Soreike! Anpanman: Anpanman no Hitori de Dekichatta!

Advanced Pico Beena

    Soreike! Anpanman Hajimete Kaketa yo! Oboeta yo! Hiragana Katakana ~Gojūon Board Kinō-tsuki~
    Shoku Iku Series 1 Soreike! Anpanman: Sukikirainai Ko Genki na Ko!
    Anpanman no Waku Waku Game Oekaki
    Anpanman o Sagase!
    Soreike! Anpanman Card de Tanoshiku ♪ ABC
    Soreike! Anpanman Doki Doki! Rescue Drive ~Car Navi-tsuki~
    Soreike! Anpanman o Mise ga Ippai! TV de o-Ryōri Tsukutchao
    Soreike! Anpanman Waku Waku Eigo Game!

Arcade

    Let's Go! Anpanman: Popcorn Factory

Playdia

    Soreike! Anpanman: Picnic de Obenkyō

Theme music
Openings

    "Anpanman's March" (アンパンマンのマーチ, Anpanman no Māchi)

Endings

    "Courage Rin-Rin" (勇気りんりん, Yūki Rinrin)
    "Christmas Valley" (クリスマスの谷, Kurisumasu Tani)
    "Anpanman Gymnastics" (アンパンマンたいそう, Anpanman Taisō)
    "Anpanman Gymnastics: Dreaming Version" (アンパンマンたいそう ドリーミングバージョン, Anpanman Taisō Dorīmingu Bājon)
    "Sun-Sun Gymnastics" (サンサンたいそう, Sansan Taisō)
    "Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Anpanman" (ドレミファアンパンマン)

Reception

In 2011, research by Bandai found Anpanman to be the most popular fictional character among people aged 0 to 12 in Japan for 10 consecutive years.[25] Anpanman overtook Hello Kitty as Japan's top-grossing character in 2002,[5] and was Japan's top-grossing character as of 2019.[6]
Retail sales

By 2006, the Anpanman books had sold over 50 million copies in Japan.[26] By the time Takashi Yanase passed away in 2013, the Anpanman picture books had sold 68 million copies.[27] As of February 2019, Anpanman has sold more than 80 million books.[28] As of March 2021, Bandai Namco has sold 2.39 million Anpanman PC units since 1999, including tablet computers.[29]

Retail sales of Anpanman related products grossed an annual revenue of at least ¥150 billion consecutively for nearly 30 years....Legacy

There are five museums across Japan that are dedicated to Anpanman, such as the Yokohama Anpanman Children's Museum & Mall. There is also the Yanase Takashi Memorial Hall, a museum dedicated to Takashi Yanase himself.

Anpanman train livery is featured on some of JR Shikoku trains, such as the JR Shikoku 2000 series DMU and the JR Shikoku 8000 series EMU.

The Anpanman Official Shop Taipei, the first overseas Anpanman shop specializing in products related to the series, opened at the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi shopping mall in Taipei on September 10, 2015.[47]

Anpanman inspired the manga and anime series One-Punch Man (ワンパンマン, Wanpanman).[48] It is a webcomic/manga series created by One, with the title a play on the titular character.

The K-pop group BTS released a song in their hit album Love Yourself: Tear under the name "Anpanman" with many references to the series." (wikipedia.org)