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Cosplay as wacky Japanese comedy duo, get free sushi and yakiniku for all your friends!

Evie Nyan Jan 3, 2015
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Screen Shot 2015-01-03 at 1.53.00 AM

Do you like a good laugh, free stuff, and also stuffing your face with sushi and yakiniku? Then you might be interested in this new promotional campaign that’s going on in Japan right now!

Stamina Taro, an all-you-can-eat sushi and yakiniku chain in Japan, has enlisted the help of female comedy duo Nippon Elekitel Rengo to help drum up extra business over the New Year period. All you have to do to score majorly discounted or even FREE sushi and grilled meat is dress up like one, or both, of these super-funny ladies.

Nippon Elekitel Rengo, which translates as something like “Japanese Elekiter Alliance” is a female comedy double act who have been around since 2008, and are still going strong. (Ahem, okay, so an “elekiter” is apparently a sort of device that was used for static electricity experiments back in the olden days. Now please, no more questions!) Japanese comedy can be particularly hard for foreigners to fathom, as it relies heavily on word gags that are hard to puzzle out even with a good working knowledge of Japanese. Comedy that’s a bit more on the physical side is easier, although you might find the convention of the “straight man” (or woman) whapping the “idiot” partner upside the head a little overused (if you’re interested, that’s known as tsukommi and boke).

Luckily, we found a handy clip on YouTube of the Elekiter ladies trying out their act in a couple of other languages on a bunch of unsuspecting foreigners (English from the 5:00 minute mark!). Check it out to see if their brand of Japanese comedy tickles your funnybone or not!

Okay, now back to the food! Visitors to Stamina Taro who show up at one of the restaurants between now and January 12 can score half-off coupons for everyone in their group (to a max of four people) if one of them shows up wearing “Akemi-chan” makeup! If one of your group is Akemi-chan and the other is “Hosogai-san”, then everyone in your group eats for FREE! Wow!

▼Top: Akemi-chan makeup!

▲ Bottom: Hosogai-san makeup!

It’s not as easy as slapping on a bit of white paint and eyeliner, though – the campaign conditions clearly list a multitude of “features” which must be included in one’s makeup in order to claim that tasty prize. For example, if dressing as Akemi-chan, you must also be rocking a short, black bob with bangs. And don’t even think of skipping on Hosogai-san’s moustache – you and your friends will be paying full price for sushi and you’ll STILL have to sit through your meal looking like a twit!

There’s also the issue of trying to decide whom among your circle of friends must volunteer as tribute for the sake of everyone’s gluttony. Personally, we’d prefer to take one for the team ourselves, especially as that would mean there was one less maniacally made-up person to have to look at while we’re trying to eat. There’s a touch of the demented clown about Akemi-chan’s look, so it might also be a good idea to tactfully avoid extending a dinner invite to some of your more coulrophobic friends.

While this is a pretty inventive idea that’s undoubtedly mutually beneficial for the promotion of Stamina Taro and Nippon Elekiter Rengo, we’re not sure how many people will actually be brave enough to take on this challenge. Then again, the lure of a free feeding frenzy can be difficult to deny.

Source: Weekly.ascii.jp
Images: Gachimake