Andromeda Shun and the Saint Seiya Menko Tradition

A 1980s Saint Seiya Menko Card Featuring Andromeda Shun and Unicorn Jabu

The Menko: Japan’s Original Game Card

Menko are thick cardboard playing cards with roots stretching back to the Edo period. The traditional game is straightforward in concept: players take turns slamming their own card down onto an opponent’s, trying to flip it over by force of impact. That kind of active, physical play is precisely why well-preserved examples are uncommon today — these were made to be used, not stored. By the postwar era, manufacturers began printing menko with pop culture subjects: baseball players, professional wrestlers, and eventually anime characters, turning a folk toy into a vehicle for licensed character goods. In the 1980s, the format reached a peak, with anime menko sold at low prices in dagashi-ya (small neighborhood candy shops), kiosks, and stationery stores across Japan.

This card belongs squarely to that era. The full-color artwork on the front is characteristic of late-1980s Toei animation — bold linework, vivid color fills, and the cel-paint aesthetic of that period. The copyright notice reads “© Masami Kurumada / Shueisha · TV Asahi · Toei Doga,” confirming it as an officially licensed product. That final credit is also useful for dating: Toei Doga changed its name to Toei Animation in 1998, so any item carrying the “Toei Doga” credit is verifiably from before that year. The exact manufacturer is not identifiable from the card face alone — several printing and toy companies produced anime menko under license during this period — but the official copyright is clearly present.

Saint Seiya and the World of the Bronze Saints

Saint Seiya began as a manga by Masami Kurumada, serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump from January 1986 to November 1990. The anime adaptation aired on TV Asahi from October 1986 to April 1989, running 114 episodes and produced by Toei Doga. The story follows a group of warriors called Saints — each wearing a mystical armor known as a Cloth, representing a constellation — who fight to protect the goddess Athena. Its central concept, warriors who ignite their inner energy (called Cosmo) to surpass their limits, drove a passionate following among young viewers. In Japan, Saint Seiya ranked alongside Dragon Ball and Fist of the North Star as one of the defining shonen anime of the late 1980s. Internationally, it aired in France as Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque, and built strong audiences across Spanish-speaking Latin America and Italy during the 1990s — a fan base that remains active today.

Shun and Jabu: A Pairing Rooted in the Galaxian Wars

The two characters depicted on this card are Andromeda Shun and Unicorn Jabu, both Bronze Saints. Shun is one of the five main protagonists, immediately recognizable by his long green hair and gentle demeanor. His weapon is the Nebula Chain, and his twin brother is the fierce Phoenix Ikki — one of the series’ most striking supporting characters. Shun’s blend of quiet resolve and underlying power gave him broad appeal across the series’ international audience, with a particularly devoted following among fans in Europe and Latin America.

Unicorn Jabu wears the Unicorn Cloth, identifiable by the distinctive horn on his helmet and his purple armor. While not among the five lead protagonists, he appears early in the series during the Galaxian Wars arc — a tournament-style storyline near the beginning of the anime. Shun and Jabu are matched against each other within that arc, which likely explains why both appear on the same card: the pairing directly references a specific early confrontation in the story. For fans familiar with the series, the combination carries that immediate narrative context. For those encountering Saint Seiya through its original Japanese merchandise, this card offers a tangible piece of the anime’s first broadcast run, made at the moment the series was actively airing on Japanese television.