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Ronald McDonald is coming to Yoyogi Park to celebrate spring, because…marketing?

Preston Phro Apr 10, 2015
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In case you hadn’t heard, McDonald’s hasn’t been doing too well in Japan recently. After the drubbing it took in sales last year, it seems that no one here likes their commercials or even their new products. It’s almost enough to make you feel bad for the multinational fast-food chain! Almost.

So, what do you do when no one wants what you’re selling and they openly mock your commercials? Well, we’re not sure what most companies would do, but it looks like McDonald’s Japan has decided to send their emissary of heart disease to try to cultivate some good will in Yoyogi Park. We’re not sure a clown will be enough to get anyone to eat a Big Mac, but at least you’ll get the opportunity to take a picture with the creepy fellow.

If you’re free this weekend and somehow have nothing better to do than get your picture taken with Ronald McDonald, or if you have a thing for corporate mascots, then congratulations! You now have plans for Saturday at noon!

▼Almost as much fun as going home for the holidays.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ronald McDonald Official (@ronaldmcdonald)

So, as you can see, Ronald (who is called Donald McDonald in Japan for reasons entirely unknown to us) will be in Yoyogi Park on Saturday at noon, ostensibly posing for photos, since he’s telling us to bring our cameras. Hmm…maybe it’s a sign of how hard the times are for McDonald’s — Ronald can’t even afford a camera anymore! Hopefully he didn’t have to pawn his old one to feed his burger addiction…

Also, we can’t help noticing the incredibly ominous “let’s have some #fun.” That’s what serial killers say before turning their victims into hamburgers!

Still, we do have to give McDonald’s some credit for being topical. This is supposed to be a “spring celebration” and they did manage to get plenty of cherry tree petals in the photo…though we’re not sure how many trees still have the flowers after the rain this week. Well, we guess they can just throw wrappers in the air instead.

▼Or they can spend a few hours trying to explain this.

And, in case you’re wondering, yes there is a McDonald’s in Yoyogi Park. It even has a not-at-all bad rating of three stars on Tabelog, a Japanese site similar to Yelp. However, not everyone approves–like this guy, who complained about their constantly changing prices and confusing menus. On the other hand, this Tabelog user was pretty happy with the place…because they have electrical and LAN cable outlets. Even better, he was able to stay there for around and hour and a half for only 220 yen (about US$2.00)! He doesn’t mention how good (or not good) the food is though.

Well, we unfortunately already have exciting plans this weekend, but if you happen to be around Yoyogi Park on Saturday, be sure to get a Ronald McDonald selfie and share it with us in the comments section below!

Sources: Tabelog, Instagram
Images: Instagram