Latest news with #Chiikawa
Tokyo Weekender
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Tokyo Weekender
McDonald's Chiikawa Collab Causes Chaos and Controversy
McDonald's Japan released its highly anticipated Happy Set (Happy Meal) collaboration with popular character series Chiikawa on May 16. It sold out— in just two days. The collaboration features exclusive Happy Meal toys with various Chiikawa characters donning McDonald's staff uniforms. The first wave of toy releases — including a McDonald's cup-shaped pen holder with the titular character Chiikawa, a plastic calendar with the character Hachiware, a small container shaped like Usagi flipping a pancake and a rolling car featuring all of the characters — was scheduled to run from May 16 to May 22. However, McDonald's released a statement on May 18, notifying fans and customers that sales have ended prematurely due to most restaurants selling out of Happy Meals much earlier than anticipated. And while fan frenzy during new merchandise release days is typically nothing to cause a double-take, this particular occasion sparked quite the controversy, as viral social media posts showed alleged scalpers bulk-ordering Happy Meals solely to acquire the limited-edition toys and resell them at a markup. List of Contents: Chiikawa Fever Sparks Chaos Preparing for Upcoming Round Two Chiikawa's Kawaii Empire Related Posts Chiikawa Fever Sparks Chaos The promotion instantly became a chaotic event. An X post from release day got nearly 11 million views, after anonymously depicting a supposed scalper carrying a giant overflowing bag of Chiikawa toy boxes. The text translates, 'From a certain C-country…' — taking a Sinophobic turn for what was supposed to be a fun prize drop for children and fans to enjoy. Below the post, comments flooded with similar discriminatory sentiments. The post's top comment, with 169,000 views and 2,600 likes, suggested implementing the Kyokujitsu-ki imperialist rising sun flag or statements like 'long live Japan' into product packaging to dissuade resale in China. Another user angrily remarked how these individuals are 'anti-Japan, but want Japanese products.' マクドナルドの「ちいかわ＆マイクラ」ハッピーセットが中国人転売ヤーの爆買いにより即日完売。マックの中身は床に落ち、食べ物を何だと思っているのか？転売対策も虚しくフリマサイトに高額出品が相次ぎ、購入者から怒りの声。 ちいかわ公式サイトは販売終了を発表。 #中国帰れ #Chikawa — のうまにあ 願榮光 (@FreeAll_protest) May 18, 2025 Tension and frustration grew throughout the weekend. Another post went viral on X with over 16 million views. The video shows a McDonald's restaurant overrun with Happy Meal bags covering every counter surface in sight. The text claims that scalpers placed bulk mobile orders, snatched the coveted toys out of the takeout bags — and then abandoned the orders. The toys can't be purchased by themselves, so customers must buy the meal to receive a Chiikawa toy. With food continuing to pile up and some even spilling on the floor, it appears that McDonald's employees were forced to dispose of some of the innumerable uneaten meals. Many users reposted the video of food trays being chucked into the garbage bins, one X post with 24 million views perpetuating the narrative of Chinese resellers 'tarnishing childhood traditions.' While unverified allegations and Sinophobia continued to run rampant amid the mayhem, other users added disclaimers through X's user-submitted 'added context' feature to bring awareness to the fact that there is currently no evidence that the scalpers were of Chinese origin, or that all of the Happy Meals in the viral video were bulk-ordered solely for the toys. While McDonald's policy limited each guest to buy four Happy Meals, it seems like that rule was quickly overlooked. Toys immediately started to pop up on resale websites such as Mercari, for about six or seven times their original retail price. Some listings raised their markups to jaw-dropping levels such as ¥100,000 for a complete set of the four toys. Happy Meals start at ¥510. Preparing for Upcoming Round Two To the dismay of fans who were looking forward to getting their own Chiikawa and friends toys, McDonald's announced that the first wave of the collection has been prematurely suspended. The official statement thanks customers for sales far exceeding initial expectations, but does not mention any of the weekend controversy pertaining to food waste and scalper loopholes. The second installment of the collection release is still scheduled for May 23. The second wave features new exclusive toys, including a Chiikawa memo set, a Hachiware photo frame, an Usagi sticker dispenser and a Momonga pencil cap. Round two is intended to run through May 29, though based on the previous release it does not seem likely that that'll be the case. Chiikawa's Kawaii Empire Chiikawa originated as an online manga series written and illustrated by the mangaka known as Nagano. The series is named after the main character, Chiikawa (which translates to 'small and cute'), and follows adventures from daily life with friends like Hachiware, Usagi, Kurimanju and Furuhonya. The printed version of the series now has seven volumes, and has sold a total of over 2.7 million copies. In 2022, an anime television adaptation produced by animation studio Doga Kobo premiered on Fuji TV. Currently 260 episodes have been released. Fans of the series often cite their love of Chiikawa's relatability — the series explores themes of friendship, growing up and the everyday struggles that come along with it. Chiikawa's failures and continued persistence resonate with viewers who are experiencing similar hurdles. Related Posts A Chiikawa Park Is Coming to Tokyo in 2025 Manga Manners: How Sailor Moon and Eren Yaeger Are Teaching Japanese Etiquette in JR Stations Sonny Angels: The Viral Japanese Baby Figure Everyone Wants
SoraNews24
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Does Chiikawa's cuteness have a breaking point? Testing anime character's edible stickers【Photos】
Looking for the limits of Chiikawa and friends. Since Japan has an insatiable appetite for cuteness, it's only natural that the country is always searching for ways to make food cute. That search recently brought us to a way to incorporate the cast of anime/manga Chiikawa into our meals and snacks of, well, essentially anything. While poking around the official Chiikawa online store, we came across the Chiikawa Edible Stickers set, which gets you a sheet of illustrations of Chiikawa and friends made of thin strips of starch and agar. While they don't add any noticeable flavor or substantial texture, they do give food a sizable cuteness boost, and so we were eager to try them out ourselves. Though they're currently sold out on the official shop, we managed to find some on Amazon Japan here, priced at 270 yen (US$1.85) per sheet of 13 stickers. Sliding out the sheet, we were greeted by several stars of the main cast, including Chiikawa, Hachiware, Usagi, Momonga, and Kuri-Manju. With so many options to choose from, we decided to try using the Chiikawa Edible Stickers with a variety of different foods in order to test the limits of their cuteness-enhancing powers. We settled on a top-down approach, starting with foods that are already inherently cute, then working our way down to less-cute foods until they stopped making us go 'Awwwww!' when Chiikawa stickers are applied to them. ● Round 1: Sanshoku dango This traditional Japanese sweet of a trio of mochi dumplings doesn't really need any help being cute, as the bright colors and playful atmosphere of eating them straight from the skewer is enough to put a smile on our faces already. But would applying the Chiikawa stickers send their cuteness soaring to an even higher level? Yes. Yes it would. We're honestly amazed at how professional the results look. You'll want to make sure your hands are clean and dry when placing the stickers, and use a delicate touch, but get it right and they'll transform a pack of ordinary from-the-supermarket dango into something amusement park snack bars would probably charge you three or four hundred yen a stick for. ● Round 2: Warabimochi Next up, the jiggliest of traditional Japanese desserts, warabimochi. For our test, we picked out a pack of bite-sized spherical mochi pieces. Since warabimochi doesn't have much flavor by itself, the pack included kinako (roasted soybean powder) and kuromitsu (brown sugar syrup) to dip/cover them in, but we added the stickers first. Once again, there was a major addition of adorability, with the stickers looking like they were quivering in joyous excitement. Applying the extras seasonings does dampen the visual contrast, though, so you'll want to use them sparingly, or at least be strategic as to which angle you dip from. ● Round 3: Tamagoyaki Shifting from sweet to savory, we come to tamagoyaki, the Japanese-style fried egg omelet. This gave us our first broad, flat canvas to work with, but applying the facial-feature-only stickers worked great, making it look like Chiikawa and the others had morphed into egg form. ▼ Seriously, if they made plushie keychains/straps that looked like this, they'd probably sell a ton of them. ● Round 4: Konnyaku OK, now it's time to really start challenging Chiikawa as we introduce konnyaku to the test. A type of yam-based gelatin, konnyaku is healthy and low-calorie, but as a gray/beige block, it's not exactly cute… …or at least it's not exactly cute until you put some Chiikawa stickers on it. With konnyaku having a drabber hue than the more vivid tamagoyaki, there's sort of a humorous undercurrent to the cuteness here, with your brain telling you this probably shouldn't be cute, but somehow still is. Simmilar to warabimochi, konnyaku doesn't have much flavor on its own. One way to eat it is with miso, so we slathered some on, which turned out to be a very wise plan because it made it look like we'd covered our Chiikawa konnyaku up with a cozy blanket. ● Round 5: Shishamo OK, now it's time for the final trial, shishamo, or as they're called in English… …smelt. Yep, these are straight-up small fish that are served with the heads still on. Even by Japanese standards, it's an old-school dish, something particularly popular with older generations. So how well will it mesh with Chiikawa aesthetics? Hmm… OK, Chiikawa, that's enough for today. It looks like we've reached the limit of foods that you can make cute. Between the undulating nature of the fish's flesh and the visual unevenness of the scaly pattern and color imparted during grilling, it's hard for the character artwork to stand out. Since the linework doesn't pop, it seems to fade in and out depending on if you're directly looking at it, which kind of makes it look like the fish is haunted. For everything with more inherent cuteness than a grilled fish, though, Chiikawa Edible Stickers definitely create a cute dining experience, and one you don't even have to go to McDonald's for. Photos ©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]
South China Morning Post
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
As toys go viral, Hong Kong must grab a 300 billion yuan opportunity
Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at [email protected] or filling in this Google form . Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification Advertisement The Chinese fan base for anime, comics and games (ACG) is expected to grow to 520 million by 2026. This points to the potential of China's intellectual property-driven 'goods economy' , which was worth 169 billion yuan (US$23.2 million) last year and is forecast to reach 300 billion yuan by 2029. For Hong Kong, this presents a golden opportunity to be a key player in the booming market. The name of this game is emotional consumption, and successful intellectual property (IP) includes cuddly characters like Labubu and Chiikawa , which grow their fan bases through the integrated comic-anime-game ecosystem. Strategies like selling collectible toys in 'blind boxes' also drive revenue, with Pop Mart, the exclusive retailer of Labubu dolls, achieving a year-on-year increase in net profit of 186 per cent last year. Retail spaces on the mainland have transformed to capitalise on the trend. For example, Beijing's Wangfujing Xiyue shopping centre is dedicating entire floors to immersive experiences, while Wuhan's Trend Box X118 mall has seen a 32 per cent revenue boost after becoming an ACG space. Advertisement Hong Kong is starting to tap this market. At the retail level, some bracelets and coins from jeweller Chow Tai Fook's recent Chiikawa collection sold out within hours. At the IP development level, Incubase Studio and K11 Concepts Management are bringing in anime exhibitions, with the aim of developing the city into a hub for anime culture and creative innovation.
Japan Today
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Today
Sailor Moon and others teach foreign tourists Japanese etiquette in Manga Manners art series
By Casey Baseel, SoraNews24 Manners are important in Japan, and while most of the country's etiquette has its roots in common sense, certain points might not be so intuitive for visitors from other parts of the world. Thankfully, people in Japan are pretty understanding of innocent mistakes, and the locals are often happy to explain the most useful aspects of Japanese etiquette, and those helpful locals now include Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura. Manga Manners is a series of informative poster-style art panels featuring characters from popular series from publisher Kodansha who give quick single-point pieces of advice about Japanese manners and customs. The Manga Manners project made its debut in the international arrivals area of Narita Airport, and now it's come to Japan's rail network. The displays can be seen in the Shinkansen sections of Tokyo, Shinagawa, Nagoya, Kyoto, and Shin Osaka Stations, with six brand-new designs bringing the total number of represented series up to 17. The complete list of series consists of Chiikawa, Fire Force, The Seven Deadly Sins, Ghost in the Shell, Shota no Sushi, Sailor Moon, Tokyo Revengers, Skip and Loafer, Attack on Titan, Cardcaptor Sakura, Akira, Blue Lock, Parasyte, Cells at Work, Fairy Tail, Medalist, and Kaiji. ▼ There's also a Manga Manners pamphlet, available in limited quantities at the stations, showing the whole group. A broad range of topics are covered, some of which are rules which will cause genuine offense if not followed, such as the explanation that you're supposed to wash your body before entering the communal tub at public baths or hot springs, or that there are places in Japan where you'll be required to remove your shoes before entering. Others are a bit more on the side of advice to help you enjoy your time in Japan to the fullest, like Chiikawa teaching visitors that 'Kanpai!' is what you say as a toast when drinking together with someone in Japan, or Fire Force's Shinra letting you know it's OK to slurp Japanese noodles. The selected manga panels highlight the point being covered too. Sailor Moon for example, is dressed in a kimono on the poster where she explains that the left side of the robe goes over the right, even for women. Likewise, "Ghost in the Shell's" Major Kusanagi raises a sake cup as she informs everyone that the legal drinking age in Japan is 20 (and if you are old enough to drink, you'll know to give the Major a hearty 'Kanpai!' thanks to what you learned from Chiikawa). A few of the panels relate more to safety than etiquette, but are still good to keep in mind. Akira biker Kaneda's reminder that vehicles drive on the left in Japan is especially important if you're visiting from the U.S. or another drives-on-the-right country, since you'll need to remember to reverse your muscle memory and look first to your right to check for traffic when crossing the street, not to your left like you would at home. ▼ In a more manners-related corollary, Japan driving on the left also means that it's the custom for people to walk on the left on sidewalks, in station passageways, and so on. Really, the only point of advice that feels like it might be a little overblown is Cardcaptor Sakura's, which says that 'A bow at 45 degrees is customary to show gratitude.' Honestly, such a deep bow is probably a bit much for the kind of situations most travelers are likely to encounter (thanking restaurant staff at the end of the meal, showing appreciation for someone who pointed you toward the station exit you're looking for, etc.), and a less pronounced bending at the hips is fine, and likely a little more natural. That said, a 45-degree bow isn't impolite, and it is in keeping with Sakura's earnest, pure-hearted personality. The Manga Manners displays will be up until the end of June, but the advice they give will be useful no matter when you're traveling in Japan. Source, images: PR Times Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- Foreign tourists on Shinkansen bullet train break suitcase etiquette, angering local passengers -- Japanese Twitter rolls eyes at book teaching 'manners 90 percent of Japanese people don't know' -- Tokyo shrine hosts event for anime fans ready to let go and recycle character keychains, standees External Link © SoraNews24
South China Morning Post
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
‘Chiikawa' anime captures hearts with relatable themes and cute characters
After a long day at school, something small and cute can help distract us from the stress. Lately, for many in Hong Kong, this comes in the form of a cute character called Chiikawa. A Japanese artist named Nagano created this character. It went viral as a web comic in 2017. In 2022, it was adapted into an anime, called Chiikawa. Its name means 'something small and cute'. This show and its characters have become popular in Japan and other parts of Asia. In Hong Kong, Chiikawa fan accounts have tens of thousands of followers on Instagram. Ken Fung is a clinical psychologist at Jadis Blurton Family Development Centre in Hong Kong. He says the show is popular because it looks cute and has themes that young people understand. It often talks about fear and failure. 'At first glance, Chiikawa's appearance is cute ... but the episodes are far deeper than that,' Fung said. Why is this character so popular? In the series, Chiikawa and his friends need to work hard to earn money for the things they need. Their jobs are not exciting or fun; they need to hunt monsters, remove weeds and put stickers on fruits. These tasks are similar to what many students do every day. Chiikawa's friend, Hachiware, once complained: 'I wish the stuff we wanted would just pop out of the ground.' Even though they face many challenges, Fung said the characters openly talked about their sadness and fear of failure. He shared the example of how Hachiware admitted he did not know the answers to a test, so he just guessed. Chiikawa was relieved because he had done the same. 'The show ... helps [us] understand that these emotions are normal parts of life,' Fung said. Happiness in the small things The anime also shows the small moments of joy in life when yummy food magically appears or when Chiikawa has a meal with his friends. 'They really enjoy simple things like spending time together, even if it's doing nothing special and just eating together,' Fung said. 'These scenes show us that even ordinary, everyday life can be beautiful, and we often forget that.' The show's message about showing support for friends is also important for young people. 'I really like how the characters' relationships show that in a world filled with challenges, kindness can help them overcome even the toughest obstacles,' Fung said. Use the puzzle below to test your knowledge of the vocabulary words in the story. Suggested answers Before you read: Answers will vary. Stop and think: Fung says that this show can introduce kids to real and difficult topics such as sadness and failure. Even though it is a kids' show, it is not always happy. He also says the show highlights simple joys in life. It proves that everyday like is still fun. Consider: Chiikawa has to do boring and ordinary things throughout the day, such as pulling weeds and putting stickers on fruits. Students also sometimes have to complete boring tasks. Chiikawa also has a problem where he guesses answers on a test and feels bad about it, something students can relate to.
