vinyarb

I have no doubt many of you would have seen an episode, or at least a snippet of the popular Japanese anime, Doraemon.

Typically, it involves Doraemon and his owner Nobita Nobi, getting into a spot of trouble with friends, bullies or going through a series of unfortunate circumstances, but almost always ends up resolving the issues while learning (implied or otherwise) about certain values like friendship, perseverance and honesty.

But how many of you really know the backstory behind Doraemon?

What exactly is he, and why is he here?

Well, it turns out that the story has a very interesting parallel with The Terminator. (Or should I say events behind The Terminator could be inspired by Doraemon, given the manga was first published in 1969!)

Doraemon is a robot cat manufactured in the year 2112, and came to be in the possession of a little boy named Sewashi Nobi. Sewashi sent Doraemon back in time to improve the life of his Great Grandfather, Nobita, so that in the future, his descendents may enjoy a better life.

In the original timeline, Nobita was frequently bullied, and led a sad, miserable life with poor grades. This resulted in a eventual burning down of the business Nobita had set up, thus throwing his descendents into a financial rut. Sewashi initially wanted to send a super robot to protect Nobita, but could only afford factory reject, Doraemon.

So despite the light hearted tone to the series, it actually underscores a very moving story of attempting to alter history to better one’s predicament.

Fun fact

Doraemon’s ears were eaten by robotic mice. Although he can still hear perfectly well, it has given him a series-long phobia of the creatures.