Name: Makoto Kino
Birthday: December 5th
Sign: Sagittarius
Blood type: O
Fave colour: Pink
Hobby: Shopping
Fave food: Cherry Pie
Least fave food: None
Fave subject: Home economics
Least fave subject: Biology
Weakness: Airplanes
Special talent: Cooking
Dream: To be a Bride, confectioner & florist
Makoto Kino is the representation of a specific Japanese cultural idea, that the "Nail that sticks up, must be hammered down". Makoto, often referred to by her friends as "Mako" is tall, tomboyish but sweet and gentle, however she is often misjudged by her peers who believe she is agressive and the "Nail that sticks out". This leads to bullying and ostracism as shown by this conversation presented in the first sailor moon movie:Girl 1: She injured someone again.
Girl 2: She'll be kicked out for sure this time.
Girl 1: Who cares? She's so violent.
Viewers who know Mako's character will know that this is an unfair conversation. She is not violent although she does know martial arts and will use them in the defense of others. This is a fantastic story device for viewers who immediately feel that they are part of a good minority, who believe the best about this character. Makoto's ostracism will also make her accessable in that everyone has been an outcast at some point in their lives. However, the fact that she is ostracised due to a question of body image (her height is 5 foot 6 inches, a full 2 inches taller than the average height of Japanese women and an inch taller than the average Japanese man) will resonate with many people who have issues with the way in which they look. Mako can not even fit into the usual school uniform immediately setting her apart from any potential school friends.
Mako is a very lonely character. She is an orphan (her parents were killed in an aircraft crash, hence Naoko Takeuchi listing her weakness as planes) and lives alone in what (for Tokyo) is a fairly spacious flat. Teenage girls living alone in Tokyo is not uncommon as rent in Tokyo is very expensive and it makes more economic sense to move in the one child rather than an entire family when a single child wishes to go to school or work in Tokyo. However Makoto does not have any friends until she meets Usagi who immediately (in true Usagi style) accepts her for what she is.
Differing from public perception of herself, Mako is infact an ultra-feminine personality. She is an excellent cook, enjoys cleaning and tidying, loves flowers and is of a romantic disposition which makes her character sadder as many Japanese men will reject a taller woman off hand. In a way, she represents the broken ideals of many women for whom reality does not match up to the ideals delivered in books and films.
Makoto Kino is a lesson which we all need to learn; not to judge others by what we see or hear of them before actually meeting them. She is a loving, kind young woman who is constantly misinterpreted in each version of Sailor Moon. It is little wonder that when Mako becomes a senshi she fights so agressively to defend those who accept her for who she is rather than judging her by what she is not.
"A life is a life. They are the same." -Makoto Kino
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