Editing Doraemon (section)

== Creation and conception ==

=== Development and themes ===
''Doraemon'' is written and illustrated by [[Fujiko Fujio|Fujiko F. Fujio]], the pen name of Japanese [[manga artist]] Hiroshi Fujimoto.<ref>{{Cite web|last=IGN Staff|date=1996-10-01|title=Doraemon Creator Dies|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/1996/10/02/doraemon-creator-dies|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130618112937/https://www.ign.com/articles/1996/10/02/doraemon-creator-dies|archive-date=2013-06-18|access-date=2021-05-25|website=[[IGN]]}}</ref><ref name="Schilling 2004" /><ref name="Doraworld">{{Cite web|title=藤子・F・不二雄(ふじこエフふじお)|trans-title=Fujiko F. Fujio|url=http://dora-world.com/profile/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121222052637/http://dora-world.com/profile/|archive-date=2012-12-22|access-date=2013-06-04|website=Doraemon Channel|language=ja}}</ref> According to Fujio, it was originally conceived following a series of three events: when searching for ideas for a new manga, he wished a machine existed that would come up with ideas for him, he tripped over his daughter's toy, and heard cats fighting in his neighborhood.<ref name="Min Chew-2014">{{Cite web|last=Min Chew|first=Hui|date=December 23, 2014|title=Why Doraemon is blue and 4 other things you might not have known about the cat robot|url=https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/why-doraemon-is-blue-and-4-other-things-you-might-not-have-known-about-the-cat-robot|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705235759/http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/why-doraemon-is-blue-and-4-other-things-you-might-not-have-known-about-the-cat-robot|archive-date=July 5, 2015|access-date=January 18, 2021|website=[[The Straits Times]]}}</ref> To set up the plot and characters, he used some elements from his earlier manga series, ''[[Obake no Q-Tarō]]'', which involve an {{Transliteration|ja|[[obake]]}} living with humans, with a similar formula.<ref name="Schodt 1999">{{Harvnb|Schodt|1999|p=218}}</ref> Fujio said that the idea for ''Doraemon'' came after "an accumulation of trial and error", during which he finally found the most suitable style of manga to him.<ref>{{Harvnb|Schodt|1999|pp=217–218}}</ref> Initially, the series achieved little success as {{Transliteration|ja|[[gekiga]]}} was well known at the time, and only became a hit after its adaptation into an anime TV series and multiple feature films.<ref name="Schodt 1999"/>

''Doraemon'' is mainly aimed at children, so Fujio chose to create the character with a simple graphic style, based on shapes such as circles and ellipses.<ref>{{Harvnb|Pelliteri|2008|p=200}}</ref> He used the same sequences of cartoons with regularity and continuity to enhance the reader's ease of understanding. In addition, blue, a characteristic color of Doraemon, was chosen as the main color in magazine publications, which used to have a yellow cover and red title.<ref name="Fujio-1999" /> Set in [[Tokyo]], the manga reflected parts of Japan's society, such as the class system and the "ideal" of Japanese childhood.<ref name="Shiraishi 1997" /><ref>{{Harvnb|Schilling|2004|p=42}}</ref> Problems, if occur, were resolved in a way so as not to rely on violence and eroticism,<ref>{{Harvnb|Schodt|1999|p=219}}</ref> and the stories were integrated with the concept of environmentalism.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Izawa|first=Eri|date=2000|title=Environmentalism in Manga and Anime|url=http://www.mit.edu/~rei/manga-environmental.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010526162937/http://www.mit.edu/~rei/manga-environmental.html|archive-date=2001-05-26|access-date=2021-05-25|website=[[MIT]]}}</ref> The manga also insisted on the ethical values of integrity, perseverance, courage, family and respect.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Arico|first=Giacomo|date=2014-11-05|title=Ambientalista e di sani valori: arriva al cinema Doraemon, il gatto robot creato da Fujio nel 1969|trans-title=Environmentalist and of healthy values: Doraemon, the robot cat created by Fujio in 1969, arrives at the cinema|url=http://www.cameralook.it/web/ambientalista-e-di-sani-valori-arriva-al-cinema-doraemon-il-gatto-robot-creato-da-fujio-nel-1969/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141110031000/http://www.cameralook.it/web/ambientalista-e-di-sani-valori-arriva-al-cinema-doraemon-il-gatto-robot-creato-da-fujio-nel-1969/|archive-date=2014-11-10|access-date=2022-01-13|website=Cameralook.it|language=it}}</ref>

In order to underline the crucial role of the young generation in society, the manga's creator chose to have the act carried out in a "children's domain" where young people can live with happiness, freedom and power without adult's interference.<ref name="Shiraishi 2000-2">{{Harvnb|Shiraishi|2000|pp=292–293}}</ref> As Saya S. Shiraishi noted, the existence of the "domain" helped ''Doraemon'' to have a strong appeal in various Asian countries.<ref name="Shiraishi 2000-2"/> During ''Doraemon''<nowiki/>'s development, Fujio did not express a change in characters; he said, "When a manga hero become a success, the manga suddenly stops being interesting. So the hero has to be like the stripes on a [[barber pole]]; he seems to keep moving upward, but actually he stays in the same place."<ref>{{Harvnb|Schilling|2004|pp=42–43}}</ref>

According to Zensho Ito, Fujio's former student, the "length" of time in the universe is one of the ideas that inspired Fujio to make ''Doraemon''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=An Nhiên|date=2007-08-29|title="Độ dài thời gian của vũ trụ" là yếu tố cơ bản để nhà văn Fujiko F Fujio sáng tác nên bộ truyện Đôrêmon?|trans-title="The length of time of the universe" is the basic factor for writer Fujiko F Fujio to create the Doraemon series?|url=http://www.nxbkimdong.com.vn/?page=newsview&id=10943&cid=22|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071224012316/http://www.nxbkimdong.com.vn/?page=newsview&id=10943&cid=22|archive-date=2007-12-24|access-date=2021-06-01|publisher=[[Kim Đồng Publishing House]]|language=vi}}</ref> Frequently displayed in its stories is Nobita's desire to control time, and there exist [[time machine|time-control gadgets]] that he uses to satisfy that desire, particularly the "Time Machine", which lies in his desk drawer.<ref>{{Harvnb|Peters|2002|pp=104–105}}</ref> Unlike Western works on science fiction, the manga did not explain the theory nor the applied technology behind these tools, but instead focusing on how the characters exploit their advantages, making it more children-friendly.<ref>{{Harvnb|Peters|2002|pp=105–107, 109}}</ref>

=== Origin of the name ===
The name "Doraemon" can be roughly translated to "stray". Unusually, the name {{nihongo4|"Doraemon"|ドラえもん}} is written in a mixture of two Japanese scripts: [[Katakana]] ({{nihongo2|ドラ}}) and [[Hiragana]] ({{nihongo2|えもん}}). "Dora" derives from {{nihongo4|"dora neko"|どら猫||stray cat}}, and is a corruption of nora (stray),<ref name="Min Chew-2014" /> while "-emon" (in kanji {{nihongo2|右衛門}}) is an old-fashioned suffix for male names (for example, as in [[Ishikawa Goemon]]).<ref name="The Japan Times-2004" /> Nobita's home address in Tsukimidai ("moon-view-heights"), [[Nerima]] refers to Fujimidai ("[[Mount Fuji|Fuji]]-view-heights"), where [[Osamu Tezuka]]'s residence and animation studio is based.<ref name="Shiraishi 1997">{{Harvnb|Shiraishi|1997|p=238}}</ref> The name "Nobita Nobi" refers to "nobi nobi", meaning "the way a young child grows up free, healthy, and happy, unrestrained in any sense".<ref name="Shiraishi 1997" /><ref>This meaning is explained by Nobita's father in {{Cite book|url=https://www.shogakukan.co.jp/books/09140002|title=ドラえもん 2|publisher=[[Shogakukan]]|isbn=4091400027|publication-date=1974-08-26|pages=56|language=ja|trans-title=Doraemon 2|chapter=ぼくの生まれた日|date=September 1974 |trans-chapter=The Day I Was Born|access-date=2022-01-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423030708/http://www.shogakukan.co.jp/books/09140002|archive-date=2016-04-23|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Gadgets ===
[[File:任意門 (29052459944).jpg|thumb|upright=1.14|"Anywhere Door", a gadget in the manga series as seen in the Fujiko F. Fujio Museum|alt="Anywhere Door", a pink door used as a gadget in "Doraemon"; users can travel anywhere on their wish by turning the door's knob]]
Gadgets, or {{nihongo4|"himitsu dōgu"|ひみつ道具}}, are Doraemon's tools from the future, usually used to help the characters. Fujio said that Doraemon has a total of 1,293 gadgets;<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=2004-04-20|title=ぼく、ドラえもん 第4号|trans-title=I, Doraemon No. 4|url=https://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%81%BC%E3%81%8F%E3%80%81%E3%83%89%E3%83%A9%E3%81%88%E3%82%82%E3%82%93-%E8%97%A4%E5%AD%90%E3%83%BB%EF%BC%A6%E3%83%BB%E4%B8%8D%E4%BA%8C%E9%9B%84%E2%98%85%E3%83%AF%E3%83%B3%E3%83%80%E3%83%BC%E3%83%A9%E3%83%B3%E3%83%89-4/dp/B005NH6RU2|magazine=Fujiko F. Fujio Wonderland|language=ja|asin=B005NH6RU2|access-date=2021-05-25}}</ref> according to a 2004 analysis by Yasuyuki Yokoyama of [[Toyama University]], there are 1,963 gadgets found in 1,344 sketches.<ref name="The Japan Times-2004">{{Cite news|date=2004-04-03|title='Doraemon' fanatic boasts Ding Dong's 1,963 gadgets|work=[[The Japan Times]]|publisher=|url=http://search.japantimes.co.jp:80/cgi-bin/nn20040403f1.html|url-status=dead|access-date=2013-06-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129112232/http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20040403f1.html|archive-date=2009-01-29}}</ref> The most important gadgets include "Take-Copter", a small piece of headgear made out of bamboo that can allow its users to fly; "Time Machine", a machine used for [[time travel]]; "Anywhere Door", a pink-colored door that allows people to travel according to the thoughts of the person who turns the knob; "Time Kerchief", a handkerchief which can turn an object new or old or a person young or old; "Translator Tool", a cuboid jelly that allow one to converse in any language; and "Designer", a camera used to instantly dress-up the user.<ref name="The Japan Times-2004" /><ref name="Shiraishi 2000">{{Harvnb|Shiraishi|2000|p=296}}</ref>

Saya S. Shiraishi wrote that most of the gadgets were "an impressive testimony to the standards of quality control and innovation that exist in the twenty-second century".<ref name="Shiraishi 2000" /> The gadgets were an essential part of the series so as to reflect a positive point of view about the association of technology in children, and to express the wishes of modern society.<ref>{{Harvnb|Shiraishi|2000|pp=292, 296–297}}</ref>

=== Conclusion ===
The series ceased its original run in 1994 and was not given an ending before Fujimoto's death in 1996; this has since aroused numerous [[urban legend]]s throughout the years.<ref name="Rogolino-2017">{{Cite web|last=Rogolino|first=Letizia|date=2017-01-27|title=Doraemon, 10 cose che (forse) sapete sul gatto robot che viaggia nel tempo|trans-title=Doraemon, 10 things you (maybe) don't know about the time-traveling robot cat|url=https://movieplayer.it/articoli/doraemon-10-curiosita-sul-gatto-robot-protagonista-di-anime-e-film_16990/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201015429/https://movieplayer.it/articoli/doraemon-10-curiosita-sul-gatto-robot-protagonista-di-anime-e-film_16990/|archive-date=2017-02-01|access-date=2021-05-25|website=Movieplayer.it|language=it}}</ref> One of the most well-known "endings" of the manga was by an amateur manga cartoonist under the pen name "Yasue T. Tajima", first appeared on the Internet in 1998 and made up into a manga in 2005. The story takes place when Doraemon's battery dies, and Nobita later grows up becoming a robot engineer, potentially revive Doraemon and live a happy life. Tajima issued an apology in 2007, and the profits were shared with Shogakukan and the copyright owner, Fujiko F. Fujio Pro.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Miller|first=Evan|date=2007-05-30|title=Author of False Doraemon Ending Issues Apology|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2007-05-29/false-doraemon-ending|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070601154615/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2007-05-29/false-doraemon-ending|archive-date=2007-06-01|access-date=2021-06-01|website=Anime News Network}}</ref>

Ryūichi Yagi and [[Takashi Yamazaki]], the directors of ''[[Stand by Me Doraemon]]'', confirmed that it had only one opening, while the ending has been rewritten several times.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Guglielmino|first=Andrea|date=2014-11-04|title=L'afflato tragico di Doraemon|trans-title=The tragic inspiration of Doraemon|url=https://news.cinecitta.com/IT/it-it/news/55/14426/l-afflato-tragico-di-doraemon.aspx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180325171445/https://news.cinecitta.com/IT/it-it/news/55/14426/l-afflato-tragico-di-doraemon.aspx|archive-date=2018-03-25|access-date=2021-05-25|website=Cinecittà|language=it}}</ref> Because of this, Shogakukan had to clarify that only if the marriage of Nobita and Shizuka is finalized will the mission be accomplished, and then Doraemon will return to the future.<ref name="Rogolino-2017" />