[3-choice quiz] Can you get them all? Showa Quiz

music writerKOH-1
Started working as a music writer as a side job while employed at a record shop, and for over 18 years I’ve contributed to music magazines, disc guide books, mooks, and web media. As a writer my main field is Western music, but as a listener for over 35 years, I always try to keep my curiosity alive with the motto “I like what I like.” I have experience playing in bands, where I was a bassist who handled songwriting and composition. Instruments I’ve played include bass, guitar, and piano. I began studying English in my mid-40s and continue to do so today.

We’re in the Reiwa era in the 2020s, but what’s capturing the attention of many young people is Showa-era culture.

Under the label “Showa retro,” people are incorporating Showa-inspired culture and fashion, as well as items with a nostalgically Showa-like vibe, into their everyday lives.

In particular, it’s said that the digitally native generation admires the uniquely “analog” feel of the Showa period.

In this article, we present a variety of Showa-related topics in quiz format.

We also explain some fun bits of trivia, so whether you’re from the Showa generation or from a younger generation, be sure to check it out!

[3-choice quiz] Can you get them all? Showa Quiz (1–10)

In 1977 (Showa 52), which idol group disbanded saying, “We want to return to being ordinary girls?”

Triangle
Pink Lady
Candies

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Candies

Candies, often said to be the first idol group to succeed in Japan, suddenly announced their breakup at the end of a concert in 1977, when their popularity was at its peak. Including the moment when Ran, one of the members, cried out, “We want to go back to being ordinary girls!!,” it’s fair to say they became legends.

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What is the dollhouse/doll from Japan that was released in 1985 (Showa 60)?

Sylvanian Families
Licca-chan doll
Teddy Bear Story

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Sylvanian Families

Since their release by Epoch in 1985, the Sylvanian Families sparked a massive boom. Although there was a period of decline after the craze subsided in the 1990s, sales later recovered, and it’s still fresh in our minds that brand-new fully 3DCG animated works were released in 2022 and 2023.

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Which is the oldest building among the following three symbols of Tokyo?

Tokyo Tower
Tokyo Skytree
Tokyo Dome

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Since its completion on December 23, 1958, Tokyo Tower has been not only a symbol of Tokyo and a popular tourist attraction, but also one of Japan’s most famous towers, well known even overseas. Until the Tokyo Skytree was completed later on, Tokyo Tower was the tallest self-supporting steel tower in Japan.

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[3-choice quiz] Can you get them all? Showa Quiz (11–20)

What is the title of the manga that drove the unprecedented tennis boom that arrived in the late 1960s?

Sign is V!
Attack No. 1
Aim for the Ace!

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Aim for the Ace!

Since its serialization began in 1973, Aim for the Ace! has been a landmark of Showa-era sports manga that sparked a nationwide tennis boom among boys and girls. Following two anime adaptations, a theatrical film, and an OVA release, its enduring cross-generational popularity was further cemented by a 2004 TV drama starring Aya Ueto.

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In 1971 (Showa 46), where did Japan’s first McDonald’s open?

Ginza Mitsukoshi
Matsuya Ginza
Ginza Wako

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Ginza Mitsukoshi

McDonald’s first restaurant in Japan opened at Ginza Mitsukoshi in 1971 (Showa 46). At the time, it was a takeout-only shop, and there’s a story that it opened after a crash 39-hour construction. Incidentally, the oldest surviving McDonald’s in Japan is the Yoyogi location, which also opened in 1971 as the second store.

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A certain idol’s hairstyle that represented the 1980s became popular. What is its name?

Hime cut
Seiko-chan haircut
Techno Cut

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Seiko-chan haircut

The “Seiko-chan cut,” known at the time as the “Seiko cut,” is, as the name suggests, the hairstyle worn by the eternal idol Seiko Matsuda when she debuted. It’s characterized by downturned bangs, outward-curled layers, and inward-curled hair at the back, and back then many young women eagerly copied it.

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What is the official name of the axolotl that took Japan by storm during the Showa era?

Mexican salamander
fire-bellied newt
Japanese gecko

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Mexican salamander

Officially named the Mexican salamander and also known as the axolotl, the “wooper looper” was adopted as a commercial character for Nissin Yakisoba U.F.O. during the exotic-pet boom of the 1980s. It’s said that the name “wooper looper” was given as its trade name at that time. In other words, it’s a trademark!

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