Bundled package includes selfie stick and draws styling cues from multiple magical items used by the anime heroine.
Though it fades into disuse as the series goes on, early in the first season of the Sailor Moon anime, the Sailor Senshi are sometimes aided in their adventures by the data gleaned from a tiny portable computer. As the smartest member of the team, Sailor Mercury keeps it on her person and is the one who operates it in times of need.
Back in 1992, this felt like an imaginative bit of fictitious technology. Fast forward to today, though, and not only are smartphones rapidly becoming ubiquitous, they’re also so simple to operate that even less-intelligent Sailors, like Sailor Moon, would have no trouble operating them.
Maybe that’s part of the reason why, high-tech though it may be, the new Sailor Moon-themed smartphone features star of the show Sailor Moon herself, and not the brainy Mercury.
Surprisingly, the phone doesn’t come from Sailor Moon’s native Japan. Instead, it’s being produced by Meitu, the Chinese technology company and mobile app developer behind such programs as photo enhancer (and humor source) BeautyPlus.
The M8-model smartphone is decked out in pink and gold trim, mirroring Sailor Moon’s primary image colors. The case’s backing is decked out with a silhouette of the magical girl striking one of her memorable poses in front of the crescent moon, with a recreation of her Cosmic Heart Compact above.
Considering Meitu’s background in photo apps, it’s no surprise that the phone comes bundled with a selfie stick and remote control to click the shutter. The stick appears to be modeled after Sailor Moon’s Spiral Heart Moon Rod, although Meitu’s stick features a pink heart at its top, whereas the one seen in the anime is red, making for a puzzling discrepancy between Meitu’s officially licensed product and the source material.
Pricing for the phone in the Chinese market is expected to be equivalent to roughly US$440, meaning it’s aimed squarely at grown-up Sailor Moon fans and their nostalgia puppet-stringed wallets. Production will be limited to 10,000 units, though an on-sale date has yet to be announced.
Source, images: PR Times
Follow Casey on Twitter for periodic displays of Sailor Jupiter favoritism.