SoraNews24 —Japan News—

Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.

TOP

» Japan
» Tokyo’s newest mascot character is a rabbit who’s permanently sad【Photos】

Featured

Weird
Studio Ghibli
Jobs

Tokyo’s newest mascot character is a rabbit who’s permanently sad【Photos】

Casey Baseel Sep 10, 2020
Tweet

But it’s not the rush hour crowds that have this Japan Railway bunny feeling blue.

Japan has a vast pantheon of mascot characters, with seemingly every company, community, and organization in the country represented by a cute illustrated/costumed spokesperson. So it’s not too surprising that Osaki Station, in Tokyo, recently debuted a mascot of its own, a rabbit named Ousaki.

Like pretty much all mascot characters, Ousaki’s main purpose is to put a smile on people’s faces. However, that’s not an expression you’ll see on the spokesbunny’s face, because Ousaki has a perpetually furrowed brow, revealing constant sadness.

https://twitter.com/compass_sigure/status/1302620337679380480

Posters went up this week introducing passengers to Ousaki, and also explaining the reason for the melancholy design:

“Why does Ousaki look so sad?”

“People are always saying things like ’There’s nothing interesting in Osaki,’ ‘Osaki doesn’t deserve to be a stop on the Yamanote Line,’ ‘I only got off there by accident,’ and it’s starting to emotionally weigh Ousaki down.”

See, Osaki Station is on the Yamanote Line, which encircles downtown Tokyo and is arguably the most important rail route in all of Japan. It’s the same line where you’ll find fashion meccas like Shibuya and Harajuku Stations, entertainment hotspots including Shinjuku and Ikebukuro, and cultural centers such as Ueno and Kanda. But Osaki is pretty much all office buildings and condos, with none of the aura of glamor, excitement, or importance that most other Yamanote Line stops boast.

More cheerful parts of Ousaki’s bio include a birthday of February 25, the same date Osaki Station opened on 120 years ago, a knack for waking up early (the Yamanote Line carriage depot is located there, so it’s he first station trains pass through in the morning) and a mouth that’s shaped like the kanji for “big,” 大, which is the first character in “Osaki” (大崎).

大崎駅オリジナルキャラクターのウサギがいるなんて初めて知った！
　#おうさき　 #大崎駅 pic.twitter.com/MPjCq6ajvQ

— けーたん✨🐍🦄✨ (@keitanhanaharu) September 3, 2020

On the plus side, there’s hope that Ousaki will cheer up in the future. “We want to see Ousaki smile,” says the bottom section of the poster, “so our entire staff is working hard to make Osaki Station a more attractive place to be!”

While it’s definitely a low-key part of downtown, the Osaki neighborhood has been the site of some pretaty cool stuff, like a beautiful sakura-style Christmas light display and the home of Japan’s first fried chicken-cooking robot. So while the shape of Ousaki’s mouth may be permanently set, hopefully one day the rest of the character’s facial features will look a little more cheerful.

Source: Togetter
Top image: Pakutaso
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

Follow Casey on Twitter, where he apologizes for not having room to include Takadanobaba in his Yamanote Line station shout-outs.