Postman and Bicycle
Review by JoshB
Here's something different. Shitamachi Omoide Jitensha is Japanese for "Shitamachi Memories of Bicycles". These are small gashapon-like dioramas that come in cubes that you assemble and decorate. What makes these so interesting is not the toy itself, but the subject matter.
The term Shitamachi literally means "Down Town" or "Low City" but what it means today is an expression of a certain time and aesthetic. In the old days, people who lived in the Shitamachi section of Tokyo were the hard workers, the entrepreneurs with strong values and respect for their heritage. One could compare it to the mythical "Main Street USA" of America's golden years, only in an urban setting. There is a museum devoted to all things Shitamachi in Ueno, the heart of old Shitamachi.
This series of toys depicts scenes of everyday life in Shitamachi, seen through the context of the Bicycle. Each diorama replicates a scene, with a replica of an authentic period bicycle.
This particular diorama is "Postman and Bicycle". The set depicts a postman delivering mail with a traditional red single gear bicycle, with mail bags on the front and back. You have to put the set together.
It comes with gum. Don't eat the gum. Trust me.
Included is a Japanese Mailbox, and a bunch of stickers that replicate various posters and notices that you can apply as you see fit.
It's a neat idea, and an interesting take on what we here at CollectionDX think of as a Japanese Toy.
Comments
9 comments postedI read about this line in Patrick Macias book "Cruising the Anime City."
Hey, I like the gum...
While more realistic in style, it still reminds me of the British postman Pat animated show. Pretty nice stuff.
I really enjoyed this review, thank you Josh. I majored in Anthropology and will be working on Japanese Folklore for my Masters so this was kind of right up my alley. Nostalgia factors in greatly when it comes to both Japanese Anthropology/Archaeology and Japanese Folklore and I have read several books on how the Japanese long to remove themselves from modernity and live a more simple life. This explains many surges of interest in things like folklore, yokai and this. I didn't know much about Shitamachi and this review has sparked an interest in this subject. I do recommend books by Lafcadio Hearn and Yanagita Kunio if anyone is interested in an old romantic and folkloric vision of an older Japan, as well as Michael Dylan Foster's serious academic studies of Japanese Folklore.
Say Josh, just out of curiosity--may I ask what does the gum taste like?
I mean is it really chewing gum or just plastic gum?
-R78
It tasted like chalky wax. With a hint of sugar.
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CollectionDX Admin
Yuck, I think I'll just stick with the Bazooka Joes for now on.
I wonder if Japan's got their own Bazooka Joe bubble gum that comes with a mini-manga. Hmmmm....
-R78
Josh,
A nice and neat item. I have a feeling we are going to see a lot more different types of Japanese toys and models on CDX this year! Awesome!
Leonardo Flores
CollectionDX Staff Writer-West Coast Bureau
Great little review, I adore this sort of thing especially since hours can be spent doing some super detailing. I actually bought a little 1/43 scale diorama (by Motormax) of a scene from the film Rain Man (a personal favourite). While the model car in the diorama is great, everything else will be repainted & detailed.