We're pretty used to seeing moe girl itasha (decorated cars-- literally from the words “itai,” painful and “densha,” car) in Japan, but usually they're on real cars that have been decorated by fans or, more recently, professionally by anime companies to advertise their works. These Toradora cars, on the other hand, are part of the Illustrated Tres Bien Anime Character Car Collection, which sells itasha model cars for ¥2100 (about $21.34 USD, today). They're 1:72 scale and released by Takara Tomy, and they're pretty darn cute, too!A more typical itasha setup is this one, in which an anime is being advertised on a bus and a taxi cab-- but it's definitely not a moe show. It's Sengoku Basara, the historical action drama. The bus and cab will be seen around Miyagi Prefecture's Shiroishi, which is north east of Tokyo. Why this city? Because Shiroishi dates back to 1602 when a vassal of Date Masamune-- the main character of Basara –was made lord of the Shiroishi Castle. These cars will be seen throughout Golden Week as a promo for the show.I hope we see more itasha models; I'd love to buy some for a few of my favorite shows, but I'm just not a huge Toradora fan...
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