WARNING: While this article contains NO spoilers to the main story plot, it DOES contain images and “Easter eggs” that some might consider spoilers, so click away if you do not want to see these.
SEGA Saturn fans have seen an absolute downpour of love & fan-service for their favorite underdog console in the form of Kadokawa Shoten‘s serialized manga, Isekai Ojisan 異世界おじさん (aka Uncle from Another World), recently adapted into a full blown anime series premiering on AT-X and Netflix.
Manga Issue 1
The manga, written and illustrated by Hotondo Shindeiru, started serialization on ComicWalker back in June of 2018. Since then, seven volumes have been released and have also been translated and published in North America by Yen Press. The anime series adaptation by AtelierPontdarc began its premier just this month (July 2022), and Saturn fans have been super hyped!
Official Netflix Teaser
Basically, the series follows the story of Takafumi Takaoka, a college student, left to care for his middle-aged uncle who’s recently awoken from a 17-year coma after being hit by a truck. Takafumi finds that there is much more to his uncle (Ojisan) than meets the eye, and comedy ensues as he attempts to help him adjust to 17 years of technological and social advancement. (basic plot info from the trailer).
However, aside from being a fairly solid and humorous anime, many SEGA fans (and folks in the Saturn community specifically) have found the show’s almost constant nods to Saturn gaming to be the real hook. This manga & anime really get’s us…
“Truly, a man who chooses a Sega console cannot live an ordinary life…”
Finally, a series that acknowledges the lonely road we SEGA and Saturn fans have walked… (The curse of being a SEGA gamer…) Filled with so many clever and loving nods to our favorite game company (at least back when it was the company we all love and remember), it’s impossible for a Saturn fan not to smile from ear to ear while watching this show.
Anime Intro Showing All SEGA References
From the joys of online auction pickups to the comforts of 2-player co-op side-by-side on the living room floor, Isekai Ojisan really knows how to play on a gamer’s “heartstrings”.
While this show undoubtedly hits many Japanese viewers with a megaton of nostalgia (since Saturn was so popular and successful over there), it feels almost like an incredibly bizarre treat for us western Saturn fans… I almost feel the need to pinch myself as this simply should not exist by any logic. Yet exist, it does… Saturn fans, rejoice!
The manga is also packed with Saturn content…
We can’t really say much else (for fear of spoiling the series’ actual plot) other than YOU MUST WATCH THIS SHOW! As a SEGA and/or Saturn fan, you OWE it to yourself to tune in every Wednesday as each new episode becomes available for streaming.
Official Netflix Trailer #2
Or check out the manga, if that’s more your speed… Either way, be sure to experience this incredibly rare showing of love and support for our wonderful SEGA Saturn!
A massive Saturn fan since Christmas ’96, Dave is enthusiastic about growing the community and spreading Saturn love and knowledge to fans old and new. Co-founding the SEGA SATURN, SHIRO! podcast back in 2017 and creating the SHIRO! SHOW in 2020, he seeks to create interesting and engaging Saturn-related content for the community. Dave’s interests circle around game preservation, and he is a huge fan of game magazines and developer interviews.
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