Rumiko Takahashi's Train Mascot, Marin
by Dylan Acres
Rumiko Takahashi has created numerous iconic characters in her years as a manga creator. In fact, her teacher, Kazuo Koike always stated that the character was the most important thing in manga. In fact, in an interview he stated that “Strong manga can only be made when you create a strong character.” [1] But how does one go about creating not a fully fleshed out, realized character that the reader will spend years reading about, but a character who will have barely anything written about them? A character who will act as a mascot, or icon only? What will make them memorable?
None other than Osamu Tezuka, the proclaimed “God of Manga” created many mascot characters for companies in his lifetime. He loaned out Leo from his manga Jungle Emperor as a mascot for the Seibu Lions baseball team, and created original characters like Burua for Yokohama Expo ’89.
In 1990 the East Japan Railway Company completed the Keiyo Line running along Tokyo Bay and, connecting Tokyo and Chiba. The route has numerous high-profile sites such as Makuhari Messe, a convention center known for hosting Jump Festa, Wonder Festival, and the Tokyo Game Show, as well as numerous concerts and sporting events for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The rail line also provides access to Tokyo Disney and Chiba prefecture’s black sand beaches.
With Japan’s love affair with all things train related, the unveiling of a high profile route dedicated to such a glamourous area was an important event for JR East. The company decided to celebrate this opening with a new mascot for the line. And to create that mascot they went with Japan’s then richest woman and massively popular manga creator, Rumiko Takahashi. While Takahashi would be the one to decide on the look of the character, the public were given the opportunity to submit names for the new female mascot. And so Marin was born, and her profile was revealed.
Profile
Age: 22 years old
Occupation: Office worker at a trading company in an high tech building in Makuhari.
Friends: Lots.
Boyfriend: Not yet.
Personality: She is a pampered girl at heart, but in front of others, she is a hard worker. She loves a challenge.
In a word: She is the most "modern" urban girl.
Marin’s merchandise was only available for a very limited time, and so the character could well have been easily forgotten were it not for fans of Rumiko Takahashi who have valiantly scoured and archived the materials that were made upon the Keiyo Line’s opening.
While Marin’s time in the spotlight may have been brief, her design and the contest to name her have left a lasting impression on train fans that carries on to this very day.
Footnotes
- [1] "Kazuo Koike - The Dark Horse Interview 3/3/06." Dark Horse.com. March 3, 2006. Accessed July 25, 2023. https://www.darkhorse.com/ Interviews/1261/Kazuo-Koike---The-Dark-Horse-Interview-3-3-06.
- [2] "Mascot Character" Tezuka Osamu Official. Accessed July 25, 2023. https://tezukaosamu.net/ en/other/mascot.html.
You can watch a video by Dylan Acres via the embedded clip above that has the full article in video format.
Rumic World
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