Fans of an Iconic Anime Series Want to Launch a Spear to the Moon

Think about all the things that we chalk up to human instinct. Reproduction? Yeah, that’s pretty instinctual. Survival skills? It’s amazing what the human body will do under duress. Parenting? For the most part.

Based on a recent small sample of empirical evidence, I think we can semi-jokingly posit that “launching stuff to the moon” should be grouped with the above. This Swedish artist wants to send a self-assembling cottage to the lunar surface. Penn State wants to send its own probe. Ralph Kramden wants to send his wife.

And now this, from The Daily Dot:

“When you really love a TV series, sometimes you want to do something to show your support, like cosplaying or writing a fanfic. Or, alternatively, by donating the best part of a million dollars to send a replica prop to the moon.

Right now, Japanese fans of the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion are doing just that. Using the crowdfunding site Readyfor, they want to raise 100 million yen (about $840,000) before April 5, and they’re already 34 percent of the way to meeting their goal.”

I’ll spare you the intricate details, but the prop they’re referring to is called The Spear Of Longinus, named for the weapon that allegedly killed Jesus Christ. Here’s an example of what the spear looks like in the anime (h/t The AV Club):

After destroying the creature in the video, the spear keeps flying until it ends up in the moon. Thus, now we’ve got an effort in place to send a replica spear on a one-way trip to the moon to commemorate Evangelion’s 20th anniversary. At the very least, it seems like a better investment than potato salad.

I don’t know enough about the exact specs of the plan; I’m just going off this translated version of the crowdsourcing page, as well as the other resources linked here. You’d think it unlikely that a mere $840 grand would be enough to pass through the necessary red tape to attach a prop on a moonbound rocket, but apparently they’ve already done a lot of homework:

So, I guess, why not? If they want to put up the cash to send an anime spear to the surface of the moon, I’m all for it. If you’re as gleefully ambivalent as I am, you can consider ponying up at the crowdfunding page.

Read more at The Daily Dot and The AV Club