As the opening day of the Hokkaido Shinkansen approaches on March 26th, Hokkaido’s Hokuto City has unveiled plans to commemorate the occasion with a bronze statue of a manga character from “Fist of the North Star”. The new statue will be erected at Shin-Hakodate Hokuto Station, which will be the Hokkaido Shinkansen’s final stop.
Fist of the North Star or “Hokuto no Ken” in Japanese
“Fist of the North Star,” is a popular post-apocalyptic manga and anime series featuring a warrior hero whose most famous catchphrase is “You are already dead!” The series is known in Japanese as “Hokuto no Ken”, so the good citizens of Hokuto City clearly found a striking pun there, that they felt would add some punch to the newly renovated Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station. Apparently the creators of “Fist of the North Star” have been consulted on this project and have offered their full cooperation.
Shin-Hakodate Hokuto Station, was formally named Oshima-Ono Station but has been renamed and undergone extensive rebuilding in advance of the new high speed link-up with the shinkansen network. The statue, is at present still in production, but will be unveiled at a special ceremony on March 26th, when the shinkansen service is launched. A new Hokuto City Tourist Center, jointly operated by the station, will be opened on the same day. Let’s hope the city’s plans are a big hit with tourists and manga fans alike!
Article by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.
