Sep. 2 is Shoes Day.
This memorial day has been established by Diana, a women's shoes specialize store, because of the word's play: 9 – Ku in Japanese and 2 – tsu, sounds like “shoes” (kutsu).
There are other shoes related anniversary, like March 15, which is the anniversary of the shoes established by the Japan Shoe Federation.
Some of the anime characters wear quite memorable shoes. There are various types, including bespoke models, flashy coloring, specific uses, and ones with strong feelings by the owner.
Here at Anime! Anime! we had conducted a reader survey titled “Which anime characters' 'impressive shoes' can you think of'?” During the survey period from Aug. 17 to Aug. 24, 68 people had answered.
The male to female ratio is about 30% for men and about 70% for women. The age group was about 50% for those under 19 years old, and about 35% for those in their 20s, with a mainly younger group.
■Shoes with special abilities are popular!
The most popular voted shoes was the kick-powering shoes worn by Edogawa Conan, the main character of “Detective Conan”. At first glance, it looks like ordinary red sneakers, but it is an invention of Dr. Agasa and can greatly improve the muscle strength of the legs.
Many readers pointed out how convenient it is as a weapon against criminals, which makes it impressive, “Anyway, those powers are great (laughs). It's cool to see Conan kicking the ball with all his might”, and “It's an indispensable item for defeating criminals!”
Some readers wish to wear it, but scared of its strength, “This outrageous shoes with a force that can broke the soccer goal net, can surely knock down a huge tree. It's amazing, but my legs might break.”
In this survey, shoes with special abilities, such as kick-strengthening shoes, are popular. For example, Kitaro's remote control geta from “GeGeGe no Kitarou”, “It is impressive not only as shoes but also as a weapon.”
About Subaru Nakajima's Mach Calibur from “Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS”, “It is a roller boot type device equipped with artificial intelligence. At first, it was an inorganic material, but it called its user Subaru as a buddy, and the development of gradually forming a human-like personality is hot!”
Comments about Asfi Al Andromeda's Talaria from “Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?”, “It's so cool that even women can fall in love with the battle scenes while flying freely in the sky!”
Many readers think that the red sneakers worn by the main protagonist from “My Hero Academia”, Midoriya Izuku, symbolize him, “The red shoes that stand out against the green costume are impressive”, “Wearing it together with the school uniform and hero costume, it's become a trademark of Deku-kun.”
Many fans voted because for an episode related to shoes, “I was touched watching how Izumi Kouta-kun wear the same red sneakers as Midoriya Izuku who protected him.”
Satoshi from “Pokemon” had a line about sneakers in the ending song “Type: Wild”. It is memorable because the feelings of wearing the shoes until it is worn out are transmitted.
Elizabeth from the “The Seven Deadly Sins” wears heels of different colors, white on the left and black on the right. Readers were pleased about coordination, “The heels design is very simple, but she wears black socks only on the left leg, so it's fashionable to be black and white together with shoes.”
Shoes that can bring out the owner's power, have lots of memories, and be reliable partners. The results of the survey are interesting that will surely draws your attentions to the shoes that appeared in the anime.
■Introducing characters who had multiple votes
“Which anime characters' 'impressive shoes' can you think of?”
“Detective Conan” Edogawa Conan “Kick power shoes”
“Shaman King” Asakura You “Toilet sandals”
“Pokemon” Satoshi “Sneakers”
“My Hero Academia” Midoriya Izuku “Red Sneakers”
“Gintama” Sakata Gintoki “Boots”
“Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” Kochou Shinobu “Zori”
“Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon” Sailor Mars “High Heels”
(Survey period: August 17 to August 24, 2020)
※This survey is part of a survey of readers regarding their “interest and attention to current anime works and characters”. Regarding the result, we do not intend to decide the superiority or inferiority of any character or work. We hope that this article will give you a chance to learn about new works and characters, and help you to deepen your understanding and interest.
