Moss-chan in Paradise



Moss-chan in Paradise (モースちゃんの楽園 Mōsuchan no Rakuen, lit. Moss's Paradise) is a media franchise started by The Creator. The main series centers around a young girl named Moss and her quest to survive her 8 cats.

The primary series began with a one-shot in Bessatsu Friend which then spawned other media such as anime, films, books, video games, music, and plays.

Plot

 * See also: List of Moss-chan in Paradise characters

The main story follows the adventures of a girl named Moss who's about to enter high school when a cat, who she names Zenna, comes from the street and eventually has a litter five kittens in her house. One night, as Moss slept on her bed, she felt something heavy climb in her bed. At first, she thought it was some sort of rapist that entered through her window so she fought back. When she turned on the lights, she found a naked teen girl sitting on the floor, crying. The girl doesn't talk, and she insists on acting like a cat.

For days, she tries to find the girl's parents as well as trying to find Zenna, who has apparently gotten lost. Moss begins to lose hope and thinks of turning in the girl into the authorities. One night, the girl climbs on the bed and begins biting the blankets in the same way Zenna used to do. Moss shakes the cat food to see if she would get a reaction, and sure enough, she does. The girl runs on all fours, the same way Zenna does, all the way to the plate of food and begins eating it. As soon as she does, she turns back into Zenna.

Production
According to sources, development on the original story began in ancient Egypt. Heiroglyphic tablets, some dated since 2600BC, have been found with the outline of the story written by ancient scribes. Experts believe that "Paradise" referred to the afterlife, which the ancient Egyptians were avid believers of. Ancient Egyptians were also known to worship cats, which are featured prominently in the manga.

While there is no single writer credited as the source of these scriptures, at some point in the 20th century, these ancient scriptures were discovered and deciphered by The Creator. There is much speculation as to who "The Creator" actually is, whether it's a single person, a collection of mangaka under a one title, or a chat group brainstorming anime cliches over Skype. Regardless of The Creator's origins, he/she was able to modernize the scriptures and update Moss-chan in Paradise for a contemporary audience. The Creator's writing style is known for paying homage to other works of anime and manga.

Media

 * Main article: List of Moss-chan in Paradise media

Manga

 * Main article: Moss-chan in Paradise (manga)

Anime

 * Main article: Moss-chan in Paradise (anime)

Reception
Overall, the franchise has been hailed as one of the greatest masterpieces the world has ever known. The original manga has sold over 1 billion copies. Scanlation sites refused to host it because they felt that it would be an extreme disservice to it. The anime has received universal critical acclaim for its dark themes and deep philosophical writing while maintaining itself accessible to everyone.

The series has served as an inspiration for many mangaka who would go on to become legends in their own right. Osamu Tezuka has cited Moss-chan In Paradise as one his major influences for his magnum opus Phoenix. Katsuhiro Otomo was quoted on Twitter saying "Akira is actually a ripoff of Moss-chan, but my editors don't know shit, because I sell them that real strong kush #420smokeweedeveryday".