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Anime 'Gate' tries to recruit for Self-Defense Forces

7 Comments
By Scott Wilson, RocketNews24

We’ve seen the Japanese Self-Defense Forces get quite creative with trying to entice new recruits, but never before have we seen them do an all-out official collaboration with an anime.

And "Gate" is the perfect anime for them to team up with. It’s about the JSDF traveling through a portal to another world, taking down monsters, teaming up with cute girls, and just generally making it look like joining them would be the most amazing thing ever.

You can bet the JSDF is milking it for every last drop they can, starting with posters that are giving us a strange urge to visit our local recruitment center.

If you’ve never heard of "Gate" before, it’s not surprising. Though it’s been incredibly popular in Japan, selling over 2.4 million volumes of books, light novels, and manga all together since 2006, it’s not that well-known overseas. However, with "Gate" becoming an anime this month, it may be only a matter of time before the series is known the world over.

"Gate’s" author, Takumi Yanai, himself is a former member of the JSDF, so his series shows the organization in a very positive light, always making sure that they’re the good guys. Other current JSDF members have praised the novel’s accuracy in representing JSDF weaponry and operations, as well as showing the relatable human side to the characters too.

With all of this high praise and the anime coming out, it didn’t take long for the real JSDF to hear about this, resulting in one of the most perfect collaborations imaginable.

The poster says: “Become someone who can protect someone.”

Unfortunately, it remains unconfirmed whether or not joining the JSDF will result in you getting a giant purple axe, magic wand, and/or bow and arrow, but we can only assume that everything on the posters is completely true to life.

Will "Gate" encourage more Japanese people to join the JSDF? Or will it just end up being another anime that people watch, forget about, and move on from? Either way, if the JSDF gets a bunch of new recruits who sign up because they want to “meet cute elves and battle dragons,” they’ll have no one to blame but themselves.

Source: JSDF Tokyo Provincial Cooperation Office

Read more stories from RocketNews24. -- Japan Self Defense Force Recruitment Posters Kill with Cute -- More JSDF recruitment posters get a moe makeover in Ibaraki -- Japan Self Defense Forces hoping to entice new recruits with… dancing avatar smartphone app

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7 Comments
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I am not sure if it is a good idea that Japan militarizes further but the growing threat from China and the strange foreign policy proposals from Trump may make it more necessary. Here a poll and debate about it. https://netivist.org/debate/japanese-army-today-security-peacekeeping

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Being an active duty Marine who fell for the dragon slaying commercial I just have this to say. IT'S A TRAP.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

We used to get pop up adds for US military during online searches aimed at young males. I don't notice this now, but SAT searches, for example, often had ROTC advertisements. We bought some US boys magazines and a few of them included CD-ROMs for military games aimed at young teens. I notice some train stations near particular Japanese public high schools have JSDF recruitment posters. Some males here get post cards with ads to join the military. When I was in my senior year of high school in the USA, I got direct phone calls from military recruitment centers. Eagle 810 radio station out of Yokota runs ads saying that people can get a commission on each person they encourage to join the military. List of incentives: http://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/enlistment-incentives.html

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if the JSDF gets a bunch of new recruits who sign up because they want to “meet cute elves and battle dragons,” they’ll have no one to blame but themselves.

Wow. Do you really want people like this protecting anything? Cute elves, dragons, hobos . . Seriously?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Hmmmm? Why didn't they use Outbreak Company then? If any new recruit joined because of some manga, then it is really an issue.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Usual childish nonsense you would expect of Japan.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Meh. What war isn't about being the good guys and saving the women and children and helpless people anyway? (while arms traders stuff wallets....)

3 ( +3 / -0 )

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