The name "5th Birthday Edition" was a bit confusing because it wasn't really focused on birthdays in general, but there were several birthday-inspired comic strips scattered around the magazine so it wasn't really false advertising. That didn't mean that the articles in general weren't interesting, as there were some really interesting ones.
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One followed the sudden surge in hermaphrodite Animalians. The article, Hermaphroditism in Science and Mythology, not only included animals that were LGBTQ+/hermaphrodites in nature as well as why, some of which were surprising to some people, but also showed people/spirits/etc. from various mythologies that were hermaphroditic, due in no small part to the new surge in Tanukis.
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Another article talked about myths/legends/etc. about things like Knights, Samurai, and Ninjas as well as the facts behind them. While a lot of said myths were debunked as either "tied to popular culture" or having to do with "cultural standards at the time" there were a few that were surprising. One such thing was that, around the time of Japan's "withdrawal from the world", it wasn't unheard of for foreigners to be named Samurai due to proving themselves "on the basis of merit" to a feudal lord. What was considered the most surprising was the fact that William "Anjin" Adams, was not only the main character in the videogame Nioh, but also a real historical figure, both in Europe and in Japan.
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A third article talked about the planned Animalia colonies in Greece and India, as well as the one in France. While the "infrastructure" revelation had slowed down the development of the French colony, with some plans going back to the drawing board, literally, it was considered a good thing since there were other things that the French Government hadn't considered at the time, such as a "Claw Coliseum" where Animalians could fight against each other without too much repercussion.
The Greek Animalia Colony was confirmed to be "Greco-Roman" in origin, both in society and mythology, with "modern amenities" reimagined as more primitive versions. There was also a sub-article that talked about some of the famous Greek/Roman thinkers and inventors such as Archimedes and Heron of Alexandria, and the inventions that would be present in said colony.
The Indian Animalia Colony would also be inspired by Indian Mythology, but there would be some key differences, such as no "flying cities" and/or "vimana", since these were confusing at best, or used as "proof" of "Ancient Aliens" at the other end of the spectrum.
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There were also some rather unexpected news articles about how Animalians handled certain things. What was probably the most unexpected, but had the best outcome, was when Professor Nova successfully disbanded a "UFO Cult" and got some new "recruits" for Animalia.
As usual, sensationalists would take the news and blow it up bigger and bigger than it really was, but Nova and the authorities released an official statement that showed how stupid/crazy these people were. In it, Nova had discovered a self-proclaimed "guru" in the nearby desert who was gathering people who were resentful of the previous and/or current government and "enthralling" them of a utopian alien society that was watching them, and where things like "war", "politics", "taxes", and similar things simply didn't exist.
Not only did Nova call him out for being a "charismatic idiot", she did so in such a way that would easily win over his followers.
"There's just one thing you've never considered." She had told the cult leader. "If there IS intelligent life out there that is watching us, that would mean that they're smart enough to know... to stay away from us."
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Another minor article talked about Animalian conversions that didn't go as expected. The "best" and most recent example was Juan. While he did still want to be a fox, he decided, upon seeing the different choices, to go with a "golden" fox to provide a "silver and gold" contrast for him and Miss Juliet, but all the fat had been "funneled" into his musculature, leaving him greatly surprised at the result, but really "stoking Miss Juliet's fire", much to his chagrin.