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Japan (Japanese: 日本 Nihon or Nippon), also known as the "land of the rising sun," is an island nation located within Asia, off the coast of China. It is a monarchy and the sole remaining country to retain the head of state title of "emperor." One of the cities, Yokosuka, was utilized as an American forward operating base since the post-World War II era. It also was the country that created the Godzilla films.

Mercenary and survival master Kazuhira Miller was born in Yokosuka of the Kanagawa Prefecture[1] in Japan, and was a former member of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. The lab assistant of Para-Medic, a.k.a. Dr. Clark, was Japanese, and served as egg donor for the Les Enfants Terribles project. Dr. Clark and to a lesser extent Colonel Volgin were Japanophiles (the latter being familiar with the Japanese martial art Judo and also tending to recite a Japanese nursery rhyme, "Kuwabara, Kuwabara" whenever it rained to ward off lightning), and Hal Emmerich was a fan of the country's anime. At least one era of history was the Kamakura period, which had women wearing white makeup, elaborate black hairstyles, and stylish Kimonos. At least since World War II, due to blond hair being considered a Western/American trait, dying hair blonde was considered a social taboo and an indication of rebellion against a Japanese household, with naturally blond Japanese, such as Miller, often being mocked as a result.[2]

The Japanese also had a strict honor system, including killing to save other lives as well as suicide and execution. One manner of suicide was known as seppuku, which was suicide via disembowelment. Another is Kaikashu, which is where one executes a dishonored soldier via decapitation.[3] Whale was also a popular food in Japan since at least the post-World War II era, largely because it was cheap and the country could not afford more expensive foods, though by the 1980s they gave up on whale as a meal due to the International Whaling Commission banning the hunt on whales, although not without making a strong effort at trying to stop the ban.[4] The primary language was Japanese, which included various dialects that depended on the region/district the person was native to, including Nagoya, Niigata, Hiroshima, and Kansai (the last of which was prevalent in regions such as Osaka and Kyoto). They also held to some rituals, such as a ritual dance that they use on doors that are locked.[5] Holidays for the region include the Gion Festival,[6] a festival occurring within July that celebrates the end of Summer in Japan. Besides whale, the meals in Japan include Jingisukan,[7] apples,[8] soba (including Wanko Soba, izumo, and Okinawa soba),[9] beef tongue,[10] Kiritampo,[11] cherries,[12] ramen and peaches,[13] natto soybeans,[14] strawberries,[15] yaki-manju,[16] senbei crackers,[17] peanuts,[18] sushi (a form of seafood where the fish isn't cooked, with variations including Trout sushi),[19] rice,[20] snow crabs,[21] grapes and peaches,[22] tea,[23] Miso Katsu,[24] Japanese spiny lobster,[25] funazushi,[26] takoyaki,[27] akashiyaki,[28] apricots and mikan oranges,[29] pears,[30] millet dumplings,[31] okonomiyaki pancakes and oysters,[32] puffer fish,[33] sudachi,[34] sanuki udon,[35] minced jack mackerel,[36] mentaiko with mustard,[37] maruboro cookies,[38] sara udon,[39] horse meat sashimi,[40] toriten,[41] charcoal cooked jidori chicken,[42] Berkshire steak with imojochu liquor,[43] and Miso soup.[44] It also has Buddha statues (some of which were of gargantuan size[45]), and also has Chinatowns in Nagasaki, Japan.[46] Japan was also well known for its horticulture and gardens,[47] as well as geisha dancers.[48] It also had a variety of deities, including Oyama, who was known to be androgynous.[49] Japan also invented some new meal types, such as Instant Noodles[50] as well as retort pouches for various forms of curry, including Bon Curry (the latter specifically being invented in and originally exclusive to the Hanshin District of Japan).[51]

Japan's first encounter of the outside world barring Asia was when some Dutch traders supplied weapons and items in exchange for learning their culture in trade. One of these items was the Tanegashima musket rifle, although it was also given to another region of Japan by mistake due to navigational errors, originally intending to be shipped to Okinawa. During the 1930s, Japan attempted to invade China, and later got involved in World War II after bombing Pearl Harbor, siding with the Axis powers of Nazi Germany and Italy. By the time the Allied forces got to Japan in the Pacific theater, they started firebombing Tokyo, leaving several buildings either destroyed or heavily damaged.[52] Shortly thereafter, Nagasaki and Hiroshima were hit with nuclear bombs Littleboy and Fatman, respectively. Japan was then occupied by the allied forces, with some Japanese women also sometimes surviving by servicing the troops via prostitution.[52] After the war, Okinawa served as a major U.S. port with cooperation with the Japanese government, although there are some protests by the Okinawans, often leading to some revisions.[53] In addition, Japan created the three nuclear principles,[54] and was under the nuclear umbrella during the Cold War, being of strategic importance to America and the West due to its close proximity to the Soviet Union.[55]

Japan also had a family register being a requirement to being considered a Japanese citizen. This resulted in Kazuhira Miller's childhood being difficult due to his technically not having a registered father due to his father having already left Japan by the time he was born, although he implies that some work was being made to changing the system by 1974.[52]

As a result of the war, Japan instituted Article 9 to its constitution, which mentioned that Japan can not maintain an army. However, the Japanese did create an armed forces group called the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF), which was created for matters of self-defense, although this move was considered controversial.[53] In addition, as part of reforms during the post-war period, the Japanese Emperor also renounced his divine status. During the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1963, various people in Japan started panicking over the prospect of entering nuclear war due to the standoff, with a then-teenage Miller witnessing this.[56] On November 25, 1970, the Japanese author Yukio Mishima travelled over to the Ichigaya Camp, the headquarters for the Eastern Command of the JSDF, and conducted a coup d'état with four members of the private militia Tatenokai in an attempt to restore the divinity of the Emperor, only for him to commit seppuku as a result of the failure of the coup d'état. This event partially influenced Miller into resigning from the JSDF to become a mercenary, despite his disagreeing with Mishima's vision.[57]

In addition, Che Guevara also visited Japan as part of an economic delegation after the Cuban Revolution was won, and briefly visited Hiroshima, and was devastated at what happened at the location.[58] Japan underwent several student movements between 1968 and 1969 that tended to get violent even amongst themselves, getting the police involved. The various student movements eventually crashed and burned by the time of the Peace Walker Incident in 1974.[59]

Behind the scenes[]

Japan is the country of origin of the Metal Gear series, produced by Konami and its subsidiary Kojima Productions. As such, despite its characters being primarily American, many entries in the series include references to Japan, its people and its culture, including cases where such references would be obscure to international audiences.

In Snake's Revenge, one of Metal Gear 2's targets was to be Tokyo, Japan. Japan was also mentioned to be one of the countries whose food was imported by Gindra in Metal Gear: Ghost Babel.

Although the Kamakura period was never given a direct reference in the games themselves, Kojima did reference the period in his commentary for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, where he admitted he was scared of the design Yoji Shinkawa chose for Sokolov's wife due to it reminding him of women from that era.

In Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops' online mode, as well as Portable Ops Plus, passcode unlockable soldiers were unlockable representing each of the prefectures in Japan. Unlike the other passcode unlockable special soldiers, these soldiers were counted among the soldier list, and as such have a general bio for each of them that implied that they were joining FOXHOUND specifically to get experience for later mercenary work, as well as a specific bio for each of them. Owing to their country of origin, each of their bios references a particular cultural element and dish for Japan.

Owing to Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker's not only being made in Japan, but also being focused more on the Japanese audiences than usual, the Japanese version of the game had four extra AI voices, one specific to each AI weapon in the game (excluding Metal Gear ZEKE), that represented a specific dialect in Japan. Pupa, for example, possessed a Niigata accent, Chrysalis possessed a Kansai dialect, Cocoon possessed a Hiroshima accent, and Peace Walker (titled Basilisk in the DLC) had a Nagoya accent. Miller's description of being mocked by the Japanese children for his more Western appearance, particularly his blond hair and blue eyes, in his upbringing tape was an indirect reference to a known social taboo in Japan since World War II where kids who dye their hair blond are considered to be rebelling against the family due to it being a trait of Western, and particularly American culture.[2] In the 4th chapter of the Snake & Kaz: Meeting radio drama from Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker - Heiwa to Kazuhira no Blues (covering an extended version of Miller's recollection to when he and Snake first met), after Big Boss used Survival Viewer to eat an entire Arowana in seconds, Snake when Miller expressed disbelief at Snake doing so asked if he thought Japanese were the only ones who ate fish raw. This was a reference to sushi, which is known to not be cooked. Similarly, although the game itself did not directly specify where in Japan Miller originated at outside of it having a large American presence, Tomokazu Sugita clarified in the Outer Ops "Boss Radio" segment of the same source that Miller was born in Yokosuka.

The character Monsoon was originally supposed to originate from Okinawa, Japan, due to his use of sais, although it was changed to Cambodia due to it fitting his name better.

Notes and references[]

  1. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker - Heiwa to Kazuhira no Blues ("Kaz Radio. Outer Ops "Boss Radio"), Konami Digital Entertainment (2010).
    Tomokazu Sugita: 「横須賀出身のカズにとっては故郷の歌でもあります」 ("There is also the hometown of the song for the Yokosuka-born Kaz").
  2. ^ a b Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010)
    Briefing Files > File Library > Miller > About Himself > Upbringing
    Kazuhira Miller: My hair and eyes were different from the skinny, downtrodden Japanese around me. I told myself I'd leave this country someday and return to my true homeland.. [...] My father arranged for a car to pick me up. It was jet-black. When the neighborhood kids who'd always made fun of my hair saw it, their jaws practically hit the ground.
  3. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker - Heiwa to Kazuhira no Blues
  4. ^ Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Kojima Productions (2015).
    Mother Base [1] > Whaling Ship Heiwa Maru
  5. ^ Para-Medic referenced this ritual regarding a sealed door in an optional radio conversation at Graniny Gorki's exterior.
  6. ^ Kyoto prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  7. ^ Hokkaido prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  8. ^ Aomori prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  9. ^ Iwate, Nagano, Shimane, and Okinawa prefecture Japanese soldier bios in Portable Ops Plus
  10. ^ Miyagi prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  11. ^ Akita prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  12. ^ Yamagata prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  13. ^ Fukushima prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  14. ^ Ibaraki prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  15. ^ Tochigi prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  16. ^ Gunma prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  17. ^ Saitama prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  18. ^ Chiba prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  19. ^ Tokyo and Toyama prefecture soldier bios in Portable Ops Plus
  20. ^ Niigata prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  21. ^ Fukui prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  22. ^ Yamanashi prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  23. ^ Shizuoka prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  24. ^ Aichi prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  25. ^ Mie prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  26. ^ Shiga prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  27. ^ Osaka prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  28. ^ Hyogo prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  29. ^ Wakayama prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  30. ^ Tottori prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  31. ^ Okayama prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  32. ^ Hiroshima prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  33. ^ Yamaguchi prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  34. ^ Tokushima prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  35. ^ Kagawa prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  36. ^ Kochi prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  37. ^ Fukuoka prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  38. ^ Saga prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  39. ^ Nagasaki prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  40. ^ Kumamoto prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  41. ^ Oita prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  42. ^ Miyazaki prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  43. ^ Kagoshima prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  44. ^ Mentioned in one of Kazuhira Miller's sleep talks regarding his mother in the Date Kaz extra mission of Peace Walker.
  45. ^ Nara prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  46. ^ Kanagawa prefecture soldier bio in Portable Ops Plus
  47. ^ Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Kojima Productions (2013)
  48. ^ Para-Medic alludes to geisha dancers when talking about the Calorie Mate with Naked Snake in an optional radio conversation.
  49. ^ Naked Snake mentions this in a radio conversation relating to the Oyama face paint to Sigint, and implied that he learned of this via Para-Medic.
  50. ^ Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Konami Computer Entertainment Japan (2004).
    Para-Medic: You got some instant noodles, huh? // Naked Snake: Instant noodles? // Para-Medic: Uh huh. It was invented in Japan just recently. Add some hot water and it's ready to eat. It's cheap and be stored for a long time. And besides, it's delicious. It's like a miracle food. // Snake: Wow. // Para-Medic: Speaking of which... // Snake: Yeah? // Para-Medic: Are you going to eat that? // Snake: I was planning on it, yeah. // Para-Medic: ...Oh, all right. // Snake: Is there some reason I shouldn't? // Para-Medic: No, that's not what I meant. // Snake: Then what did you mean? // Para-Medic: I was just going to say that if you weren't going to eat it, you should bring it back to me. I've always wanted to try some. // Snake: ...
  51. ^ This is mentioned in the model viewer description for the Bon Curry item in Peace Walker.
  52. ^ a b c Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > About Himself > Upbringing
  53. ^ a b Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > Peace Constitutions > Peace Constitution in Japan > Article 9 and the JSDF.
  54. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > Peace Constitutions > The Three Non-Nuclear Principles.
  55. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > Peace Constitutions > The US-Japan Security Treaty > The Nuclear Umbrella.
  56. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > Situation in Central America > The Cuban Missile Crisis
    Kazuhira Miller: No kidding. Those 13 days starting October 15, 1962 were probably the closest we ever came to all-out nuclear war. The Russians deployed nuclear missiles to Cuba. America responded with a naval blockade. Then Russia shot down an American spy plane... I was still a teenager back then. But I remember what it felt like to be one step away from nuclear war - the adults were freaking out.
  57. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > Peace Constitutions > The JSDF > Why Miller quit the JSDF
  58. ^ Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010).
    Briefing Files > Briefing Library > Miller > A Great Leader > Che's visit to Hiroshima
  59. ^ Although not directly mentioned by name, Big Boss refers to the Japanese student movements in the "May 1968" tape, where he, while explaining how France had a better job with its May 1968 efforts, cited "while [Big Boss heard that] Japan's student movements crashed and burned."
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