Parents Bonding with Children through Heroes Spanning Two Generations

SAWADA Ken-ichi's family, which lives in Akishima city, Tokyo, has a custom to go out together as a family on weekends. The favorite entertainment for their children Kabuto, 5, and Taito, 3, are the "Masked Rider" (Kamen Rider) and "Ultraman" shows held in amusement parks, and they often visit amusement parks with these shows.

The Masked Rider series is based on ISHINOMORI Shotaro's cartoon which began in 1971. The deep-rooted popularity that transcends gender and generation has continued to the present day. As Masked Rider's new hero "Kabuto" appeared in 2006, Ken-ichi's son Kabuto, who has the same first name, is very excited.

Ultraman is the name of a special effects TV program created in 1966 and produced by Tsuburaya Production, which was founded by TSUBURAYA Eiji who created "Godzilla." The program was so popular that viewer ratings exceeded 40 percent and the series evolved into movies, DVDs and cartoons. Besides these series, the ranger series that began with "Go Ranger" (Five Rangers), that today's parents used to be crazy about when they were children, to "Maji Rangers" (Magic Rangers) have continued and are still as popular as ever.

Masked Rider and Ranger series related products are found everywhere in the Sawada family home. Kabuto and Taito are always playing with models of their heroes,' monster figures and picture books. Whenever they take a bath or go out, they always take some of their favorite figures with them. This is not a phenomenon particular to the Sawada family - it is also seen in many other Japanese families.

Parents' influence is instrumental to this popularity. In fact, Ken-ichi's imagination was captured by Masked Rider and Ultraman when he was a child. These heroes now remind him of his childhood. In recent years, handsome actors have appeared in these programs and are capturing the attention of mothers.

Common scenes in these series involve heroes that can change themselves into very powerful beings and use their strength to punish evil. Ken-ichi says, "Children yearn for these heroes that fight against many monsters and evil, and seem to wish that their parents would be like an Masked Rider. Parents are probably asked by their children for love, justice, might and courage."

These series are good for parents and children to watch together and contribute greatly to strengthen their bonds. As well as that, parents and children applaud these heroes, which help remind them that human beings have pure love and justice in their hearts.

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