"Anpan" means "red bean paste cake" in Japanese, and perhaps the most famous children's action hero in Japan is "Anpan Man," which means "Red Bean Paste Cake Man." In other words, their action hero is based on something almost all Japanese children eat. I'm trying to think of a parallel in American culture. Our action figures are full of action, not red bean paste. I'm writing about this because my son has fallen in love with his Anpan Man doll, a little stuffed cloth figure with a bright smile, bright red cheeks and a small brown cape, and a little smiley face on the front of his shirt. It was sent to him by one of his relatives in Japan, and he coos every time he sees it, then reaches for it and bites its nose--his current version of a kiss, I think. He also coos when he sees the little wind-up Anpan Man toy we also have. It's about two inches high, and spins around the dining room table while he's eating.
I don't know why he's so fond of these toys, but they are extremely kawaii for sure, in other words, "cute." Basing a toy on a sweet cake is also kawaii, in that Japanese sense of the word which means so much more than simply "cute." And I think I see for the first time how extreme cuteness can be, sometimes, a virtue.
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