To this day, Tokyo Mew Mew is still one of the most well-known and well-regarded entries in the magical girl anime and manga genre. Originally running as a manga for three years, the series spawned a popular anime adaptation and even a few video games. Typically mentioned in the same breath as Sailor Moon, it's arguably second only to that franchise in the genre.
Sadly, Mia Ikumi, the artist behind the original manga series, has recently passed away from a brain hemorrhage, although her unshakable legacy will undoubtedly live on in Tokyo Mew Mew. With an anime reboot coming out this year that Ikumi sadly will not be here to see, what is it about Mew Mew that's kept the franchise alive and still so warmly received over the years?
What Was Tokyo Mew Mew?
Tokyo Mew Mew began as a manga back in 2000 by Reiko Yoshida and the aforementioned Ikumi. The series follows a girl named Ichigo who, along with a few other girls, is affected by a mysterious light during an earthquake. After a strange endangered cat combines with her, she finds that she now has the power to transform into the catgirl Mew Ichigo. Together with the four other Mew Mews, she has to fight the violent Chimera Anima monsters created to wreak havoc on Earth by their alien controllers.
The original manga was followed by the sequels Tokyo Mew Mew à la Mode and the recent Tokyo Mew Mew 2020 Re-Turn, the latter of which was Ikumi's final manga. There was also the Tokyo Mew Mew Olé! series, which traded in the girls for a team of boy Mew Mews. The anime adaptation was most notably brought to the West as Mew Mew Power, although it's perhaps best known for its Americanization and censorship. Still, after all of these years, the franchise is highly recognizable, with the upcoming anime reboot likely only increasing its visibility. Given how long it's been out of the "mainstream," why does this magical girl series still have so many fans?
Why Is Tokyo Mew Mew Still So Well-Regarded?
It's mainly a nostalgia aspect that keeps Mew Mew in the hearts and minds of many. As mentioned, Tokyo Mew Mew is second only to Sailor Moon as far as recognizable magical girl franchises go. In fact, for those too young to have gotten into the Pretty Guardian, Mew Mew was very much the Sailor Moon of their generation. To this end, it defined magical girl shows for several young girls in the same way that Naruto and One Piece were equivalent to Dragon Ball Z for some young boys.
Given how highly regarded magical girls are in Japanese anime culture, this automatically elevates the status of Tokyo Mew Mew. The same can be said even with the changes made to the American version of the anime, as it was released during a time when many kids were first being exposed to anime. Thus, amid all the shonen shows, Mew Mew Power was probably the biggest "girl anime" that some grew up watching in the West.
There's also the environmental aspect, which almost made the franchise feel like a throwback to '80s and '90s Western cartoons. Each of the Mew Mews is tied to the DNA of an endangered species, and their general mission to save the Earth from aliens who mutated and polluted the DNA of animals feels right at home with the growing trends of environmentalism. Add in the fact that the animals lend themselves to incredibly unique designs for each of the girls and it's easy to see why the series stood out, at least visually, for people when they first saw it.
Now is currently the era of bringing back anime from the past 20-30 decades, with '90s hit series Digimon and former fellow 4Kids program Shaman King both getting reboots. Mew Mew is next on the list, and it should hopefully tap into what made the series last so long in the first place.
