7 Doraemon Gadgets We Wish We Had During the Pandemic
By Ryan General
Admit it. We all once wished we had an earless robotic cat from the future who can get us out of a sticky situation.
Nobita Nobi and his friends really had it good with Doraemon helping them out with incredible gadgets sourced from his four-dimensional pocket.
Iconic Franchise
Created by Japan’s mangaka duo Fujiko Fujio, Doraemon (ドラえもん) was first written as a manga in 1969. This was followed by an anime series in the ’70s, which turned Doraemon into one of the most loved franchises in the country, according to the Japan Times.
In the anime series’ 1,787-episode run, spanning over three decades, thousands of these gadgets have fascinated generations of fans.
These gadgets, which have aided Nobita, Doraemon, Shizuka, Giant and Suneo in their adventures over the years, have become as iconic as the characters themselves.
While most episodes would start with Nobita misusing these tools for questionable motives, there was always a lesson for viewers to be had by the end.
Still, we are often left wondering how cool it would be to use some of Doraemon’s gadgets in real life.
Our Favorites
Since we can’t list them all here, we’re jotting down our favorite gadgets featured from the celebrated franchise that can make this current crisis suck a bit less.
4D Pocket
Built into Doraemon’s tummy is the 4D Pocket, which stores all of his cool stuff inside via a small portal. As his default storage, it is the most-used tool in the series.
Real-Life use: With this gadget, you don’t need to throw or donate your assorted things from your house that don’t bring you joy. Just hide the clutter in the fourth dimension and you’re good.
Anything-Controller
The Anything-Controller is a steering wheel that turns anything into a car just by attaching it into the subject. Aside from furniture and other everyday objects you can “drive” with the tool, the Anything-Controller can also be used to control people, which usually results in pretty dangerous situations.
Real-life use: Driving down a street on a dining table or a sofa might not get you that far with your local traffic enforcers. Just be safe and attach the thing into a perfectly working car that doesn’t have gas and…Ta-dah: free gas!
Obtaining Bag
The Obtaining Bag is a very powerful gadget that lets its users pull out a thing or even a live person that they can think of. It can backfire really quickly if the living thing or person targeted refuses to be taken, which results in the bag electrocuting the user with a light shock.
Real-life use: Great for retrieving lost items, risky when trying to reach long lost people.
Anywhere Door
The Anywhere Door (Dokodemo Door) can transport its user to wherever they desire simply by saying the place they want to go and then walking right through it.
Real-Life use: Breakfast in Paris, lunch in Thailand, an afternoon stroll in the Alps. What’s not to like?
Hopter
The Hopter or the Bamboo Copter (Take-copter) is a miniature helicopter blade that lets its users fly to great heights and long distances. To use, simply attach the Hopter to the user’s head and then press the white button on top to fly at a top speed of 49 miles (80 kilometers) per hour.
Real-life use: Who has not fantasized hovering over your neighborhood in a tacked-on propeller that you can control with your brain?
Shrink Ray/Magnify Ray
Shrink Ray and Magnify Ray both look innocently enough like a funny-looking flashlight. The Shrink Ray is used to make objects and people smaller while the Magnify Ray enlarges them. The effect lasts for a short while and the subject returns to their original size after.
Real-life use: Before you get any ideas, realize that the magnify ray enlarges the entirety of the object or person and not just a specific part. That being said, these gadgets could still be useful when trying to access hard to reach places.
Time Machine
Among the several tools that enable Doraemon to travel through time, the time machine is his most useful and versatile. By traveling in a “tunnel” of spacetime, the machine resembling a flying carpet allows its passengers to navigate through both time and space.
Real-life use: Want to take a quick break from 2020? Or this planet? Most of us could probably use a ride or two from it these days.
Feature Image Screenshot via Doraemon in Hindi
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