Mascot characters can be an insightful way of understanding Japan. I have been married to someone from Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture for more than 10 years (yay! Survived my first decade), but it was only until last year that I found out that it is apparently known for its Hinagu chikuwa tube-shaped fish cakes. True to Japanese spirit, the Yatsushiro authorities must have wanted to leverage the appeal of dogs (because the Japanese find dogs incredibly kawaii) because they created Chikuwan, which is a cross between a dog and chikuwa fish cakes.

This isn’t your usual marketing stunt, either. Chikuwan won first prize in Yuru-verse 2024 in Noto, an annual popularity contest aimed to determine the most trending mascot character for that year. Kumamon won this contest 13 years ago, so I guess Chikuwan might just become a household name in the future?

Incidentally, Yatsushiro is Japan’s top producer of tomatoes. I literally see tomatoes everywhere each time I return to her furusato (hometown).