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Younghusband
Author

Younghusband

Date

July 27th, 2007

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A sign of defence?

New Japanese MOD logo

I present the newly adopted Japanese Ministry of Defense logo. A call went out resulting in 767 submissions, of which the above — designed by MIURA Masato — was chosen. Can you feel the élan? The honour? The distinction? My god… from the Greater Co-Prosperity Sphere to a green dude hugging the Earth. This seems more like a logo for the Environment Ministry. Then again maybe I shouldn’t be surprised… And maybe the dude shouldn’t be green but rainbow-coloured. The MOD should have got the guys that did this ad to do the logo. This is truly sad. I mean, even ze Germans have a kick ass logo. I have collected a few defence logos from around the world for your enjoyment and wonder:

Defence logos from around the world

Comments to this entry

Chirol
July 27, 2007
4:23 pm
Have drugs been legalized in Japan? I dont know what they were smoking when they came up with that =)
Hyalucent
July 27, 2007
5:08 pm
Looks like someone who's pregnant. Writing "Defense" under it makes me think it's an ad for safe sex.
Saru
July 27, 2007
5:51 pm
You shouldn't be surprised. Have a look at the �ん��読む防衛白書平�１８年版

p.s. YH, my HTML is rusty, so please fix that link if it needs it!
Brian
July 27, 2007
7:07 pm
How about Republic of Korea Ministry of National Defense Logo
[img]http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/rok/2002/guocguon.gif[/img]
strategist
July 27, 2007
11:34 pm
The ad is very cool - traditional but effective. The music was stirring, and the shot of the tanks roaring along the road with helos above particularly effective.
andres kahar
July 28, 2007
2:35 am
Well, at least no one could accuse that logo of summoning up Tojo...
Lexington Green
July 28, 2007
5:26 pm
That logo is all SysAdmin -- your Mom's army, or rather Self Defense Force. It does look like Mom giving the world a hug. Not what you do with guns, usually, which are not a snuggly type of artifact.

Finding a way to present the SysAdmin side of things without being wimpy is a challenge which has to be understood, let alone solved.

The TV add is all Leviathan. And Leviathan is guy stuff, and cool: Tanks, rockets, big gnarly ships, helos. But, how useful is any of it?
R. Elgin
July 29, 2007
12:18 am
The logo is not that bad. The old-fashion sharp, pointed sticks crossed underneath some mean-looking bird is old and nasty.
Younghusband
July 29, 2007
12:41 am
Lex, good observation. I wish I could find the original call for submissions, to see what kinds of things the MOD requested. It would be interesting to see what keywords they used. I looked around but couldn't find anything.

The one thing I don't like about it as a design, is it is too modern — Adobe Illustrator gradients are soooo 2005. I would've gone with something more timeless. Also, the font is a terrible pic. Rounded edges!? This logo was definitely designed for your mom.
17 Fearsome Defense Ministry Logos From Around The World
July 29, 2007
4:09 am
[...] guys over at Coming Anarchy have written an informative post about the logo of Japan’s newly-established Defense [...]
Younghusband
July 29, 2007
9:15 am
@Strategist: if you want to see some more lame recruiting ads "check these out":http://www.who-sucks.com/video/5-military-recruitment-ads-that-suck. The Simpsons parody ad at the end is pretty sweet (robotic King Arthur turns into attack helo and blows up Jason Voorhees before dropping off kicking Army rock band in a packed stadium... just what I thought the Army was all about!)
Jimm
July 30, 2007
2:33 am
Unless it actually depicts the "giant" of Japan with the world in a stranglehold...
Jayson
July 30, 2007
3:40 am
"My god”¦ from the Greater Co-Prosperity Sphere to a green dude hugging the Earth. "

Hmm... Kinda reminds me of this Marvel Comics "alternate history" story:

http://www.atomicavenue.com/atomic/IssueDetail.aspx?ID=227940

http://www.hulknews.com/alterniverse/wi_2_71.php

"Unless it actually depicts the “giant”? of Japan with the world in a stranglehold”¦"

Maybe that's what Eamonn Fingleton would think....
Matthew
July 31, 2007
4:06 pm
Seems fine to me.
The Signs of Japanese Imperialism at ROK Drop
July 31, 2007
10:36 pm
[...] to Younghusband, the Defense Ministry requested design ideas for the new logo from the public and 767 designs were [...]
Cameron
July 31, 2007
11:48 pm
I think Jimm may have an interesting point there. Japan's military is in a very delicate place right now. They want a strong but also apparently "soft" image.

In other news, the Japanese sense of design aesthetic is a little different to, say, mine. Go over to Tokyo and have a look at their magazines and ads - very cluttered.
Ultimate Stupidity » Blog Archive » 23 Fearsome Defense Ministry Logos From Around The World
August 31, 2007
3:48 pm
[...] guys over at Coming Anarchy have written an informative post about the logo of Japan’s newly-established Defense [...]
Lepetitekitty
November 7, 2007
2:15 am
This is awesome!!! I never seen such a 'zen' style logo that can mean so much like this one!!! You can feel that this is the new era of ministry of defence, not to kill and start the war (like some country did now!) but to keep this world in peace. That's so great!!!!

So much of Asain's philosophy! So cool!
Japan Self Defense Forces advertise on Mixi | Japan Probe
July 10, 2008
6:30 am
[...] ad uses the slogan “Make peace your job,” and features the Defense Ministry’s globe-hugging logo. Can you feel the [...]