Any fan of Ghibli was probably squealing when they saw him appeared.
I didn’t think much of it. I recognized the character, but I’ve never really watched My Neighbor Totoro before. All I knew is that he’s one of the most famous icons of Japanese animation and that his cameo was a friendly shout out by John Lasseter.
I guess when it came to Japanese icons, Pikachu from Pokémon was mostly the type of character I knew best in an anime.
You must rent My Neighbor Totoro and see what the fuss is about