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INTEREST: Toyota USA Plays Hatsune Miku+Corolla Commercials


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Mad_Scientist
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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 9:59 pm Reply with quote
Wait, are this ads actually going to air on US TV? I had no idea that vocaloids were popular enough in the US to warrent such a collaboration.

I still imagine a lot of very confused viewers if/when these air.
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Duraccano



Joined: 05 Mar 2010
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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:03 pm Reply with quote
Holy shiiiiiiiiit
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Spotlesseden



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:09 pm Reply with quote
i would buy if it comes with Hatsune Miku.
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R315r4z0r



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:10 pm Reply with quote
These commercials seem to be of lower quality than of your standard car commercials. I mean, they even got her name wrong. In Japanese it's Hatsune Miku, but in English it's Miku Hatsune. Inverting the order is just poor grammar... unless the names were separated by a comma... in which case their choice of saying her name is just dumb.

Are these really going to be aired on US TV? I'd assume most viewers would be confused at who Miku is rather than run down to Toyota and pickup a new Corolla...


Last edited by R315r4z0r on Thu May 05, 2011 10:17 pm; edited 2 times in total
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gilnokoibito



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:14 pm Reply with quote
I think they're mostly trying to attract a younger crowd. Like the younger anime fan/video game/all around Japanese-related things crowd. Not only that on their Facebook Miku page it has a "What is Hatsune Miku" thing on it. Actually, even if it's just an internet thing, it's pretty cool just to get something like Miku recognized by something in the US like this. I think it's totally awesome!
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Niomo



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:14 pm Reply with quote
i highly highly doubt we will ever see these on "normal" tv channels. No American knows who miku is unless they are very into anime. I know a few people who only watch anime that has aired on TV, and they have no idea who she is.

Most consumers would just laugh at the fact that Toyota let a CGI little girl drive a car. (Let's face it, her body doesn't lend itself well to any other thought)
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Thunderbird-



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:15 pm Reply with quote
YES! They didn't horribly mispronounce her name!
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darkchibi07



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:21 pm Reply with quote
Is it just me or did I hear Crispin Freeman as the voice over?
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spoony



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:35 pm Reply with quote
I'm always glad to see Japanese pop culture coming to the U.S., but seriously? This is just weird. You have to not just like anime, but be a pretty damn involved anime fan to know who Miku Hatsune is as an American. Also I don't like the animation style in these commercials at all, and she looks way out of place among real people. What exactly are they planning on doing with these commercials? I really don't get it...
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Mad_Scientist
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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:40 pm Reply with quote
spoony wrote:
What exactly are they planning on doing with these commercials? I really don't get it...


I'm guessing we'll probably see some of them on Hulu and other sites that stream anime, for one thing. Aside from that, I suppose some cable stations like G4 and the like might air them, as there is a fair amount of overlap between video game fans and anime fans.

Aside from that, I don't know.
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SaiyanHero16



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:50 pm Reply with quote
Ok, that's just awesome
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Teriyaki Terrier



Joined: 26 Mar 2008
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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:52 pm Reply with quote
Although I know (to a certain degree?) what Hatsune Miku is, your average American television watcher most likely doesn't.

But I highly doubt this will ever run on standard stations (like CBS, etc) I can only imagine this ad ever being run on maybe AS or late night Fox network.

I know Toyota is trying to appeal to the younger generation, but Hatsune Miku was an interesting choice. I mean if they were really trying to appeal to the younger generation, why didn't use Peter Griffin (Family Guy) or something around that line.

I say Family guy only because he has been used before with a Subway commercial, so that is why I used him as a reference.

Honestly, if Toyota was going to do a anime themed commercial, it would have been interesting to see a Dragon Bal Z themed one. If you have seen Dragon Ball Z, you know what I am about to say. It would be hilarious if a "It's over 9000!!!" comment was throw in there somehow.
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MeggieMay



Joined: 08 Jun 2004
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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 11:02 pm Reply with quote
Mad_Scientist wrote:
spoony wrote:
What exactly are they planning on doing with these commercials? I really don't get it...


I'm guessing we'll probably see some of them on Hulu and other sites that stream anime, for one thing. Aside from that, I suppose some cable stations like G4 and the like might air them, as there is a fair amount of overlap between video game fans and anime fans.

Aside from that, I don't know.


I'm thinking Hulu and other streaming sites are a big possibility for where they're planning to air them, as well. Still, they may also be planning to show them on U.S. TV. If they do, I would have to wonder if this is an attempt to bring over the Vocaloids craze to the U.S.

On the other hand, while I personally doubt many mainstream TV viewers would know what a Vocaloid or Virtual Idol is, they might in fact have a idea of who Miku Hatsune is even if they don't know her name or what she represents. The Miku image shows up all over the internet. So viewers of these commercials may see this and go "oh hey, that's who that (anime/cartoon) girl with the blue hair I keep seeing!" and possibly pay attention to the commercial just because of that. There is also the WTF is going on factor in airing them, in that you'd have people stop and look just because of how different the commercials are and that's half the battle with advertising (they can lure interested viewers to come to the web site to find out who she is/what in the world is going on and sell the cars that way). So these commercials do have a potential to drum up interest, which is a marketing strategy and one that could be what Toyota is trying to use here.

BTW, did anyone else go to the website? There is a very scary version of Miku over there (looks like they got a US Comic artist to draw her or something Laughing ).
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kawaiibunny3



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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 11:10 pm Reply with quote
good to know my car is the best car I could've gotten as a vocaloid fan I guess.
(man, now i need a Miku bumper sticker...)
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taster of pork



Joined: 11 Nov 2008
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PostPosted: Thu May 05, 2011 11:34 pm Reply with quote
I think this is pretty cool. But most Americans aren't really gonna think much of it since Miku isn't known here. I'd have thought they'd give Miku a more expensive car, like a Skyline.
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