An earless blue robotic cat, one pocket bulging with gadgets from the future and a lifelong fear of mice: Who is he? Japan roars the answer — but English readers may be stumped. Because, even though he's a government-appointed "cultural ambassador" and a familiar face in more than 30 countries, with his antics translated into dozens of languages, there has never been an official English version of the manga in which he stars. Until now.
"I would say there are very few Japanese people, of any age group, who've never heard of Doraemon," believes Matt Alt, of AltJapan, the company in charge of translating and localizing the "Doraemon" manga for English speakers. "Doraemon is A-grade Japanese pop culture, and Japan's single most popular character if you are looking at things in terms of gross sales and merchandising. He's been with us literally for decades."
Forty-five years to be exact. And Fujiko Pro, the company formed by Hiroshi Fujimoto, the Japanese manga artist who created "Doraemon" under the pen name of Fujiko F Fujio, hopes the friendly robot cat is ready for his ABC's. "Up until now, 'Doraemon' comics have been widely translated in Asia and Europe. We now want to focus on areas that have not yet experienced an official comic version of 'Doraemon,' starting with North America," says a Fujiko Pro spokesperson.