OP Rainbow

Greg

You need to buy this.

It's been a long time since a OP product outside the manga has made me truly happy but here it is at last.

Yellow was a nice touch but the original info was a mere smatter compared to the goldmine that was Blue. Furthermore, Yellow isn't as attractive as a black and white mass of text. But Rainbow is something every OP fan should add to their collection. The biggest sin is that it isn't the size of the Animation Log but its forgivable.

I don't have a lot of time to go over it at the moment, but first a message from Oda included that you HAVE to know. I'm so happy he addressed this and I don't doubt his discussion with Kishimoto at JUMP Festa brought this up. It's regarding Chopper as a mascot character for the series.

Oda reveals that he hates people who create mascot characters. Mascot characters are say, Stitch for Disney (in Japan anyway) Elizabeth for Gintama, Luna for Sailor Moon, Penpen in Eva, etc. Basically cute things made to be turned into toys and merchandise. When Oda created Chopper, he originally designed his snout similar to a regular reindeer. Of all the characters in OP, his was easily the one with the biggest and fastest 'change'. I noticed this when doing the profiles a few years ago and figured he changed his mind. But this turns out to be the real reason.

Oda intended him to be 'cute' in his way of constantly moving ahead no matter what obstacles he faced. Even with the ugly snout, he intended to make him 'cute' by way of his backstory. This is because he was opposed to big glossy-eyed characters designed to sell to the masses. However, the person in charge of animation design at Toei, a Mr. Koizumi, drew an incredibly cute Chopper different from Oda's creation. This began to change Oda's mind. But the wall came down when he heard Otani's voice as Chopper. From that moment his heart changed and he retracted his beliefs on the non-mascot Chopper.

He called the scenario a 'fierce battle' between him and Koizumi but admits the only one who thinks so is just himself.

Anyway, more cool shit when I have time but that stood head and shoulders above everything I've seen thus far.

ybmc

I kind of figured that he had no initial intentions of Chopper being a cute mascot. Chopper's first appearance was nowhere near as cute as he was nearly 50 chapters after his appearance, and Oda had drawn even cuter animals before that in my opinion. As cute as Chopper is, he just never stuck out as a mascot in my mind like Pikachu or Penpen. I'm glad that Oda gave us that little tidbit of history. It's definitely one of the best things I've heard outside the manga in a while.

Buuhan1

Yeah, I never saw Chopper as a mascot. However, Chopperman seems like one now..

And yeah, I noticed the Chopper as he first appeared wasn't as cute as he is now. He's more round.

kaizoku_Chopper

thath was intresting!!!
do you have scan of the book greg?

Greg

Yeah, I never saw Chopper as a mascot.

He wasn't intended as one but he is. The very existence of Chopperman is a result of Chopper's influence as said character. In fact, if you pull up the JUMP Festa thread, it's one of the things Kishimoto said he was jealous of OP for having.

When you go to arcades in Japan an overwhelming number of OP goods will be themed Chopper goods be it seasonal or otherwise. Oda never wanted it that way but he's happy how it turned out which is kinda cute.

I don't have a scan of it and I don't intend to scan it. I'm sure someone will at some point but at 15 bucks it's not something I'm eager to destroy the spine of.

FireFistAce 0

Come to think of it, most series have a sort of mascot that they use to promote the series. I can think of a few you didn't mention:

Bobobo: Dengaku-san

Trigun: Kuroneko-sama

Hellsing: Schrodinger

Bleach: Kon

DBZ: Karin, Kame-Sennin's turtle, among others

Dr. Slump: Gatchan

Gensomaden Saiyuki: Lirin, Goku

Rave Master/ Fairy Tail: Pluu

Yuyu Hakusho: Puu

In fact, it's harder to think of series that DON'T have mascots. It's something that Oda really shouldn't be so critical of.

Rixter

So, what else is there aside from that quote? I thought it was an animation book, which doesn't really make me very excited…

Traitor_Jim

@Greg:

Oda never wanted it that way but he's happy how it turned out which is kinda cute.

Generally I dislike the idea of those nauseatingly-cute mascots, but at least he's happy with it, so that's alright. It's good as long as he doesn't resent the way the character turns out to be. :ermm:

Moria

What is it? I'm in the USA so the only One piece merchandise besides the manga volumes and anime discs are One piece Color Walk 1 and a bunch of figurines and plushies.

kaizoku_Chopper

pics from the book in the k-f forums:
http://www.kaizoku-fansubs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=26&p=33

KaizokuFan22

@kaizoku_Chopper:

pics from the book in the k-f forums:
http://www.kaizoku-fansubs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=26&p=33

Wow… That looks cool. Loks like the book covers alot in the OP world and the real world!

Jirogomi

Thanks Greg!

I was wondering about this mascot concept the other day! I always wondered whether Oda was pressured to include Chopper but decided to go about it his own way and develop him into a stronger character.

Tokoro Ataru

Probably one of the best things that Oda did with Chopper is to make him one of the family as opposed to a mascot. Instead of standing around acting cute, he is consistently trying to reach for his own dreams of becoming the world's greatest doctor while having a unique shape-shifting battle style through his Zoan fruit and Rumble Ball. (somehow, only Oda can actually have the idea of creating a "human" fruit…since most stories involving animals forget that humans are animals too) As for Chopper's design evolution...somehow I more saw him change in the volume he was introduced in, going from a weirdly-designed reindeer-man in his first appearance to the cute "tanuki-like" being we know and love by volume's end.

As for Kishimoto's worries, well he could have done it with Pakkun...or Akamaru...or one of the toads...

Angel emfrbl

Chopper's dream isn't to be the world's best… Its to expand his horizons (though did state he wanted to be a doctor who could cure any diease in his Drum island flashback).

Tokoro Ataru

@Angel:

Chopper's dream isn't to be the world's best… Its to expand his horizons (though did state he wanted to be a doctor who could cure any diease in his Drum island flashback).

Yeah, a bit too much excitement in my post, but basically by finding the universal panacea, he still will be seen as one of the great doctors. (then again, Hogback used to be a great doctor…before his current zombie experiments)

Zephos

@Fire Fist:

DBZ: Karin, Kame-Sennin's turtle, among others.

I'm going to have to say no on those.
A very big no.

@Fire Fist:

Come to think of it, most series have a sort of mascot that they use to promote the series. I can think of a few you didn't mention:

Bleach: Kon

DBZ: Karin, Kame-Sennin's turtle, among others

Dr. Slump: Gatchan

Rave Master/ Fairy Tail: Pluu

In fact, it's harder to think of series that DON'T have mascots. It's something that Oda really shouldn't be so critical of.

Kon is definitely Bleach's mascot, or Don Kanonji. Maybe Mr. Popo for DBZ, more likely the gatchan brothers for Dr. Slump, and "Pluu" is spelled Plue

fixius

i never read the JUMP festa,time to search it up!!!!

sabret00the

Chopper as a mascot killed chopper though. instead of him progressing to become more and more human, he's stuck as a chibi-cute thing. it's more than annoying.

Kishi could make a ton of his characters into mascotts. in fact he could always make naruto's relationship with the small frog (forgot his name) more prominent.

Traitor_Jim

I actually never noticed Chopper as a mascot thing up until I hear his anime voice shudders After I started watching the anime, yeah, Toei's intention became obvious.

Mr. Luffy

@Traitor_Jim:

I actually never noticed Chopper as a mascot thing up until I hear his anime voice shudders After I started watching the anime, yeah, Toei's intention became obvious.

Kind of the same thing with me. I always pictured him with an older voice in the manga. His voice in the anime came as a bit of a shock, even though I've grown to like it.

Traitor_Jim

AHAHAHAHAAAA XD
I know, I just imagined his voice like a normal guy. Isn't he suppose to be 14 or something?

Zephos

@bravewarriorofthesea:

Kon is definitely Bleach's mascot, or Don Kanonji. Maybe Mr. Popo for DBZ, more likely the gatchan brothers for Dr. Slump, and "Pluu" is spelled Plue

Huh??
People and thier DB/Z weirdness.

Who are those two guys on the third pic on the bottom left?

http://www.forumsigs.com/users/crossbones/One_Piece_Misc/Rainbow-pt4.jpg

fps_anth

It's been ordered :)

Mr. Luffy

@DougyDougyGiro!*:

Who are those two guys on the third pic on the bottom left?

http://www.forumsigs.com/users/crossbones/One_Piece_Misc/Rainbow-pt4.jpg

Good question:ermm:

Mr. All Sunday

Anyone know where I can order one of these? Looks pretty awesome.

tonitonichopper

@Fire Fist:

Yuyu Hakusho: Puu

I would not say he was the Mascot, I would say Koemba (SP?) would be the mascot. Though I'm not sure the series really has one.

@ Greg - Are you saying that they changed Choppers design entirely?

Cap'n Carter

I was going to make a threasd in Other Anime/Manga discussing mascot characters, but this one seems to be just as good..

But yeah, Chopper is much more of a character than a mascot. He's sitll the mascot, but he has an actual personality and a role.

Dragonball honestly doesn't have a mascot I can think of. Well, maybe Shenlong, but he's not a mascot in the "cute" sense. More like a symbol for the series. Oh, maybe Oolong and Puar early on, but they don't amount to anything once Kamesenin comes into the picture.

Puu, from Yu Yu Hakusho… probably the worst mascot ever. (edit: And I see that someone got in before I did. No, Puu is a mascot, a really ugly and useless one, and one of the most contrived attempts at making a "mascot" I've ever seen.)

I'm not hugely familiar with Gintama, and maybe there's extensive merchandise on it in Japan that I don't know about… but is Elizabeth really a "mascot"? I always thought that thing looked kind of ugly, and I always figured that the dog thing would be the series' "mascot."

@DougyDougyGiro!*:

Who are those two guys on the third pic on the bottom left?

http://www.forumsigs.com/users/crossbones/One_Piece_Misc/Rainbow-pt4.jpg

Probably anime-ized versions of the singers of that OP song. I'd imagine.

Kitanokokoro

@Mr.:

Anyone know where I can order one of these? Looks pretty awesome.

http://www.yesasia.com/
http://www.amazon.co.jp/
http://www.hlj.com/product/SYU74099 (but it's already backordered)

@DougyDougyGiro!*:

Who are those two guys on the third pic on the bottom left?

http://www.forumsigs.com/users/crossbones/One_Piece_Misc/Rainbow-pt4.jpg

The guys who sing the current OP opening "Crazy Rainbow" (Tackey & Tsubasa)

Mr. All Sunday

Wow, I didn't even think to look at Yes Asia. Thanks a lot.

Gorlom

@DougyDougyGiro!*:

Who are those two guys on the third pic on the bottom left?

http://www.forumsigs.com/users/crossbones/One_Piece_Misc/Rainbow-pt4.jpg

It's the two unknown Youkou!!!!
(hehe no sorry im just in afunny mood atm =P)

maybe its from a filler episode or something? there seems to be a T-rex i havent seen before on the very same page so…

btw why did Oda give chopper a 50 belli bounty if he doesnt really like the idea of him beeing a mascot?

Traitor_Jim

@Gorlom:

btw why did Oda give chopper a 50 belli bounty if he doesnt really like the idea of him beeing a mascot?

I think that's the joke, really. He's making fun of people thinking Chopper's a mascot/pet through the marine's misunderstanding.

Mr. Luffy

@Cap'n:

Puu, from Yu Yu Hakusho… probably the worst mascot ever. (edit: And I see that someone got in before I did. No, Puu is a mascot, a really ugly and useless one, and one of the most contrived attempts at making a "mascot" I've ever seen.)
.

God, Puu…I must have blocked him out of my memory

As far as One Piece is concerned, I think the closest thing to a mascot is Pandaman, although not really in a marketable sense.

Buuhan1

@Gorlom:

It's the two unknown Youkou!!!!
(hehe no sorry im just in afunny mood atm =P)

maybe its from a filler episode or something? there seems to be a T-rex i havent seen before on the very same page so…

No. -_-

Have you even watched Crazy Rainbow's opening? The T-Rex is in it. Those two men are anime versions of the two people who sing the opening song, Tackey & Tsubasa. They were put in the opening for April Fools I believe.

Read before posting from now on, as this was answered a few times.

Kitanokokoro

@Gorlom:

maybe its from a filler episode or something? there seems to be a T-rex i havent seen before on the very same page so…

Actually it's a two page spread devoted to the current OP opening ("Crazy Rainbow"). That's where the T-Rex fits in at any rate.

edited: oops…Buuhan beat me to it....

Gorlom

Buuhan1: no i havent seen it and only cap'n carter had answered it when i posted and he seemed unsure to me… (Kitanokoro edited his post 5 min after i posted to include the explanation.)

but thank you for clearing that up.

boiga

So Greg,

Do you think that Chopper's 50 berry bounty as the Mugiwara "pet" was Oda's joke on himself for allowing chopper to become more of a "mascot?"

At least chopper has his less cute alternate forms to fall back on and give his character more credibility. It would be difficult to argue that Monster Point is a mascot.

Also, during the most pivotal moment in the series, the burning of the WG flag, Oda pointedly used chopper's gorilla form instead of the chibi "mascot" form. The use of less than adorable forms during moments of high drama allowed Oda to avoid letting Chopper's saccharine cuteness detract from serious moments in the series.

Considering that Toei repeated that scene two dozen times, Oda made a good call.

mr3

from kunlun

http://bbs.ikunlun.net/?action=show_topic&topic_id=114359&forum_id=27&class_id=0

Tokoro Ataru

I know this is a stupid question to ask but…why the heck did they make Sanji's Wanted poster normal? (probably to match him up with everyone else but still...it takes away from the gag)

Greg

Regarding the idea of a mascot character.

There seems to be some confusion.

A mascot character isn't a character that represents a series overall within the story itself. It's a character from a series that's easy to market outside of the story.

ie. put on a Santa hat and you have a Christmas version.

put on shades and you've got summer version.

put on a cape and you've got hero version.

put on a kimono and you've got Japanese version.

That is to say, Chopper doesn't represent everything that is OP. But his design lends him to be an easy marketing device outside of it.

In layman's terms, a character with a simple design that can easily be manipulated and appeal to the public.

Buccaneer

I can't see Chopper as anything but a mascot.

sabret00the

Basically adhering to what Buc said, in order for Chopper to progress he needs to put the chibi form behind him. but in reality i can't see Oda really being allowed to do that.

Rai

@Greg:

Regarding the idea of a mascot character.

There seems to be some confusion.

A mascot character isn't a character that represents a series overall within the story itself. It's a character from a series that's easy to market outside of the story.

ie. put on a Santa hat and you have a Christmas version.

put on shades and you've got summer version.

put on a cape and you've got hero version.

put on a kimono and you've got Japanese version.

That is to say, Chopper doesn't represent everything that is OP. But his design lends him to be an easy marketing device outside of it.

In layman's terms, a character with a simple design that can easily be manipulated and appeal to the public.

Well, if it's like that no one can really help it right? It's the kind that happens on his own, no one's the actual criminal.

I actually don't see Chopper as a mascot at all. He doesn't need to be one. Luffy's hat does a decent job, along with the flag patterns. Chopper's in the crew.

Cap'n Carter

@Greg:

Regarding the idea of a mascot character.

There seems to be some confusion.

A mascot character isn't a character that represents a series overall within the story itself. It's a character from a series that's easy to market outside of the story.

ie. put on a Santa hat and you have a Christmas version.

put on shades and you've got summer version.

put on a cape and you've got hero version.

put on a kimono and you've got Japanese version.

That is to say, Chopper doesn't represent everything that is OP. But his design lends him to be an easy marketing device outside of it.

In layman's terms, a character with a simple design that can easily be manipulated and appeal to the public.

Yeah, but how is Elizabeth more marketable than the dog thing from Gintama.

Jirogomi

@Cap'n:

Yeah, but how is Elizabeth more marketable than the dog thing from Gintama.

More often than not animation studios look to acquire properties and characters that are 'toyetic', something that is easily turned into merchandise (Elizabeth is basically a blanket with a beak and feet) , whether or not the character was intended to be a mascot.

It may also be because the penguin thing is more child friendly. When Stitch began to be marketed to the public, most of the initial stuffed toys had closed mouths so as not to frighten the children.

Greg

Yeah, but how is Elizabeth more marketable than the dog thing from Gintama.

You'd be surprised. It's freaking everywhere. I didn't even know what it was because I don't read Gintama until finally I asked one of my students what the creepy albino penguins on her tissue box were.

Well, if it's like that no one can really help it right? It's the kind that happens on his own, no one's the actual criminal.

Well….see....I personally don't care about marketing and advertising. That's the whole idea, to get people to buy a product so at the end of the day people can make money. Oda's just saying that he was first opposed to such an idea himself but when he saw how cute Chopper turned out and how well it suited him, he changed his tune.

About why they changed Sanji's pic. Yeah...I know.... You'll notice the backgrounds are different as well. That's mainly because Rainbow comes in a plastic case and you can change the cover to be any SH member and I guess they didn't want Sanji fans rampaging.

Buuhan1

But really, I don't know of any other "mascots" which turn into a 30 foot rampaging monster and beat someone nearly to death, stunning quite a lot of us.

Roz

It's nice to know that Chopper apparently wasn't really meant to be the "token cute character" as I originally assumed.

Malintex_Terek

This topic is just depressing. Oda comes in with his own ideas but stereotypical confirmist Japanese societal values force him into a corner he can't escape from. Same fudgin' theme for the recent generic ghost arc I haven't even bothered to read. ._.;