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Dangan Ronpa and Ted come together for some bear-y cute naughtiness!

Preston Phro Aug 27, 2013
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Though Ted may be the most-well-known naughty teddy bear in the world, he is by no means the only one. We imagine that Monokuma, of the murder-mystery game/manga/anime Dangan Ronpa, may be a close Japanese second with its cackling and murderous tendencies. For fans of both of the animated characters, it might seem like a perfect match to have these black-humored bears on the screen together.

Alas, there’s probably no one mad enough to approve that combination, right?

Well, someone clearly is that crazy, because this collaboration is already happening!

As you probably know, Ted won fans both in the United States and abroad and became the highest grossing R-rate comedy ever. Of course, the film was a great success in Japan as well, thanks in no small part to the voice acting by popular Japanese comedian Hiroyuki Ariyoshi.

With Ted newly available on DVD and Blu-ray in Japan and the Dangan Ronpa anime DVDs and Blu-rays to be released this week as well, it was the perfect opportunity for a little bit of marketing collaboration!

The poster you see above is already up in Ikebukuro Station in Tokyo. It reads, “Over the summer of 2013, watch out for a bear infestation all over Japan!” Featuring Ted blankly enjoying a beer and Monokuma about to chow down on a raw fish, the poster does a perfect job showing off the appeal of the characters. While Ted might be a foul-mouthed, obnoxious jerk most of the time, underneath lies a guy who just likes to have fun…with hookers. But still! A guy who just likes to have fun.

▼Not pictured: clean, wholesome, family fun.

Monokuma, on the other hand, is the homicidal villain of Dangan Ronpa who keeps high school students trapped in a school while the world outside burns. For those not familiar with the franchise, the students are locked in the school until all but one has been murdered. Each time a student is killed, a trial is convened, and if the students can deduce who the murderer is, the murderer will be punished with death. If the murderer can get away with it, though, that student is allowed to leave, and everyone else is killed. A fairly gruesome concept in and of itself, Monokuma takes it one step further with its constant glee and joking at the young people’s misery. Like Battle Royale with an evil two-faced teddy bear instead of Takeshi “Beat” Kitano.

In addition to the poster, a TV commercial will also be broadcast around the beginning of September. In the commercial, Monokuma, voiced by the beloved Doraemon-voice-actor Nobuyo Ooyama, sits on a sofa, eating popcorn and watching Ted. The evil bear says “How trashy this movie is!” turning redder and redder, before adding, “I’m going to get three copies of the Blu-ray—one for pleasure, one for home, and one to smash to pieces!!”

▼Pictured: The cutest psychopath this side of Serial Killer Hello Kitty.

The TV commercial will be on TV and YouTube, so keep an eye out for it!

Internet commenters found the concept fascinating.

Arayoshi vs Ooyama Nobuyo! LOL! This looks soooo funny!!

I want to see Ted in Dangan Ronpa!

I burst out laughing at this line: “You don’t think she’s going to be expecting something big, do you?” “Like anal?”

If you just showed me silhouettes, I wouldn’t be able to tell them apart.

Ted is basically about things 30-something American guys are familiar with, so Japanese people can’t really enjoy it that much. At most, we can just laugh at the over-the-top dirty jokes.

The last comment is pretty weird, isn’t it? We’re not really sure what enjoyment people got out of the movie besides all the dirty jokes—unless he’s talking about Mila Kunis, but who doesn’t love her?!

Anyway, hide your kids! The teddy bear summer of 2013 is just beginning, and it’s clearly rated R!

▼ In case you haven’t seen Ted yet, here’s a Japanese trailer. Be warned, though, that this is not safe for work.

▼ And for those of you who haven’t heard of Dangan Ronpa, here’s a surreal trailer for your mind-bending enjoyment.

Sources: Jin115, Dengeki Online
Image sources: Kakaku, Yahoo! Japan, Jin115