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New Licca-chan doll from Japan has unnervingly rapid hair growth

Katy Kelly Jun 26, 2021
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There’s a reason some people might be hesitant to give this doll to their daughters..

Much like how Barbie is the must-have toy for doll-loving kids in the West, youngsters in Japan clamor en masse for little Licca-chan dolls. Licca-chan is fashionable, pretty, and comes with soft brushable hair. But while she’s had some unusual versions released over her 54-year career, June 19 saw a brand new, never-before-released version of Licca-chan.

▼ Introducing Magical Long Hair Licca-chan!

As demonstrated in the video, Licca-chan can transform her hair. After seeming to do it by pure magic and sparkly special effects, Licca-chan concedes that she actually used a tool that’s included with the doll: a magic hair iron.

▼ Clamp the hair between the tongs and pull gently to unfurl her long locks.

And if you decide that Licca-chan looks better with a shorter style, you can wind her hair back into her scalp using a magic stick that’s also included in the set.

▼ If only it was this easy in real life.

The hair can be extended up to 30 centimeters (11.81 inches) whereupon it can be styled into any number of sophisticated hair masterpieces.

This might not seem too wild for a Western audience, who are very used to dolls that can “grow” their hair. For a Japanese audience, though, it inevitably summons up the image of another well-known Japanese doll that isn’t as cute and sweet as Licca-chan is.

▼ This tweet compares Licca-chan to haunted dolls that grow their hair.

セットで、髪が伸びるお菊人形もどうぞ！( ﾟДﾟ)ﾉ https://t.co/VMz25nfDGx pic.twitter.com/jPCapahIdF

— ぱなすまきあ (@panasmakhia) June 19, 2021

There’s an alleged supernatural phenomenon in Japan called the Okiku Ningyo. A specific doll from Hokkaido was said to be haunted by the spirit of Okiku, the girl who owned it, named it after herself, and then tragically passed away. The doll Okiku kept is enshrined in Mannenji Temple in Iwamizawa. The hair and nails on these haunted dolls are said to continue growing, longer and longer, no matter how often they’re trimmed.

So to many Japanese netizens, the new Licca-chan is an easy target for jokes about the curses she’ll lay on you if you pay the 4,950 yen (US$44.60) it costs to own her.

“Rather than growing her hair, my Licca-chan doll calls me on the phone every day. And wherever I go I’m followed by the message ‘I’m right behind you…'”
“I see, so every night her hair grows a tiny bit longer.”
“So you know, there’s this story about a cursed Japanese doll…”

This isn’t the first time that Licca-chan’s courted creepiness, either, as one of her April Fool’s Day pranks involved her bearing her organs for all to see.

Source: Takara Tomy Licca via Hachima Kikou
Images: YouTube/タカラトミー TAKARATOMY
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