Doraemon Museum With Kids

We love Doraemon. My kids, aged 7 and 9, could sit and read Doraemon comics for hours. We could all relate to the mischievous Nobita-kun and wish we had a friend like Doraemon with his pocketful of amazing gadgets. I purchased tickets to the Fujiko F. Fujio Museum a.k.a. the "Doraemon Museum" at a nearby Lawson (Japanese only, which was a bit stressful for me as I was afraid of making a mistake). Information online was helpful for me to prepare to go there but I'd like to share our actual experience of the place:

1. The bulk of the exhibit are pages and pages of original art

Yes, we love Doraemon, but we were expecting something other than wall after wall of framed comic pages, and row after row of glass encased drawings. The first exhibit upon entering -- a hologram video of how comics are produced -- was both informative and captivating. But what the website touted as the "heart" of the exhibit, that is, the original artwork, is a bit boring for my kids who were looking for something more interactive. Adults, however, would probably not mind slowly walking through this two-dimensional exhibit and appreciating the art.

2. The indoor interactive play area is limited and requires extra fees

I was looking forward to the People's Plaza, an indoor area where "Slightly Strange Experiences" can be enjoyed. Unfortunately, the only two free experiences were a wall mounted pinball-like set-up and a miniature model of Nobita's house with iPads you could point at with to view Doraemon. Much like a game arcade, you have to pay as you go for the other experiences.

3. The outdoor play area is disappointingly small

From photos, the outdoor play area looked huge so we were hoping to spend some time here running around. In reality, the outdoor play area is only as big as the extent of the building, which isn't much. There are three major photo ops (the iconic pink Dokodemo door, the dinosaur with Nobita and Doramon on it, and the concrete pipes where the gang plays. The museum is almost always crowded so it is quite impossible to play freely.

That said, my kids spent the most time reading in the comics library. Also, the short film that can only be viewed at this museum and nowhere else is worth the ticket cost.