Forum - View topicAnime Mascot Characters - opinions on them
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IchigoK90
 Posts: 1634 Location: Scarborough, Ontario |
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Well I was just thinking about some characters in shows that I've watched and I suddenly thought of all the mascot characters I've seen. After thinking about them I was wondering to myself whether they added or detracted to the series in how I enjoyed them. With some series I found the mascot character to be useful to the storyline and also proved to be an enjoyable character to watch. However with other mascot characters I felt they were completely pointless and didn't really add much to the series in terms of my enjoyment.
For those who don't know what I mean by a mascot character here are some examples: Kon - Bleach Tony Tony Chopper - One Piece Tama-Chan - Love Hina Plue - Rave Master |
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JacobC
ANN Contributor
 Posts: 3728 Location: SoCal |
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Well, they usually don't hurt much.
Mokona of Tsubasa annoyed me to no end, but he/she/it usually served a good plot purpose. The plushy I bought for it was huggable, too! (But it ended up being someone else's Christmas present, so my hold on the darling was sadly temporary.) 
My favorite mascot character of all time is Calumon from Digimon Tamers because not only was it cutesy and adorable, but he was able to serve the drama and be serious and comforting when the need arose. Brianne Siddall did a great job with the voice, too, as its not overly high or annoying, but fairly sympathetic while being sugary-sweet cute. And Kuroneko-sama of Trigun never hurt anyone. It pops in, meows, pops back out. Gotta love that for pleasing cameos without being a cutesy nuisance. Same with Ein of Cowboy Bebop. But I guess most of my favorite series don't have mascot characters... "Pi-ka-chu!" 
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HyugaHinata
 Posts: 3505 |
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I think they can be beneficial when used well. Some series are inherently dark such as Shoujo Kakumei Utena, and humour and light-heartedness can make it easier on viewers. Depression is likely to turn viewers away from a show, even if they enjoyed other aspects of it.
Personally, I enjoyed the following mascots: With - DNAngel Chu-chu - Utena spoiler[ironicaly, "chu" means "smooch" in Japanese, and yet in all 39 episodes...] Dead Naruto - wait - that never happened.  :p
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Kelly
Posts: 868 Location: New York City |
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Haven't seen the anime series yet, but as far as I'm concerned Mokona is certainly working in the manga - and I'm not generally a mascot fan. Fai's Kurogane tormenting tends to be even more amusing when they tag team him, and in the last manga volume of the English translation spoiler[Mokona's reaction to events even managed to make the situation even more pitiful and gutwrenching than it already was.] It's really all on a case by case basis. When it goes wrong is when they're shoved into the story (and down the audience's throats) in series where they clearly don't belong simply for merchandising purposes. At it's worst, that situation can ruin momentum in an otherwise great dramatic series to the point that it's knocked down a rating or two. |
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fokkusuhaundo
 Posts: 346 Location: San Diego ♥ ☼ ▓ |
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One of my favorite mascots are the Tachikomas in GitS SAC. They're tanks with artificial intelligence and synchronized memories yet they spoiler[learn to be curious and develop individual personalities], adding a more light hearted approach to an otherwise serious show as well as bring up the question: spoiler[can AIs develop their own ghosts?].
Of course, I'm sure there are those that think otherwise and can only find their childish voices and personalities annoying, but hey do serve an important role in the plot throughout the series. Oh, I can't forget about Momo, Fuu's pet flying squirrel in Samurai Champloo. A flying squirrel has to be one of the best idea for a pet ever.
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murph76
 Posts: 3291 Location: Akron, OH |
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I think one of the better mascot characters would be Ryo-ohki from Tenchi Muyo. (I'm basing this off the 90s OVA series, which I finally got around to watching recently. I haven't seen any of the other Tenchi products yet.) She's adorable, playful and does have a role in series because spoiler[she becomes a spacecraft from time to time.]
I'm not really sure if this qualifies as a mascot character, but Babbit from Kodocha really annoyed me. Apart from popping up every now and then to react to something, it really played no role in the series. I also agree with that's been said already, it depends on the series and how well they're used. If the creators feel a mascot is necessary, I'd rather see one have a role in the plot than just hang around and look cute. -Murph |
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Murasakisuishou
 Posts: 1469 Location: NE Ohio |
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Gotta go with the Tachikomas for best mascots. Not only are they incredibly entertaining, but they also play an important role in the series. It's kind of an interesting combination of storylines; on one hand, you've got individuals becoming more robotic and sharing their consciousnesses on a broad scale, and on the other you've got robots who are becoming more individual and developing separate consciousnesses. Just another reason why Stand Alone Complex is awesome
Another one of my favorite mascots is Densuke from Dennou Coil; sweet, loyal, and cute, in an ugly sort of way. He's almost exactly like my dog. |
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kizzmequik_74
 Posts: 302 Location: QC, Philippines |
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I'll go on the Tachikoma bandwagon. Easily the most endearing sentient robotic tanks ever created, bar none.
But, yes, the vast majority of mascots are written in for merchandising purposes, and unfortunately, are very irritating. The mascots in Pretty Cure come to mind. I also consider the token children in mecha shows as a sub-class of mascot character: they too are mostly irritating. But, even for those kinds of merchandise-driven mascots, it all depends on the execution on a case-to-case basis. That said, one of my favorite mascot characters is Mesousa from Pani Poni Dash!, if only because he serves the traditional mascot role in reverse: adding depression and gloom into an otherwise bright show. Essentially, he's a somewhat cruel parody of the traditional mascot role. |
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LydiaDianne
 Posts: 5634 Location: Southern California |
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I would have to say that my favorite mascot's are Luna and Artemis from Sailor Moon. Not only are they the mascots but they alsospoiler[advise, train and support the Senshi in their endeavors against evil. And, on occasion, the storyline circles around them.]
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_Emi_
 Posts: 498 Location: Langjökull |
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As their using it in the series, chu is the Japanese onomatopoeia for a mouse squeak. Interesting choice considering he's a monkey. Count me in as another who likes the Tachikomas. Easily my favorite mascot characters. I like their growth across both seasons and even thought they were cute. I found the Tachikomatic Days shorts to be amusing. Would CEO Jameson be considering a mascot character? Because I liked him to, though not nearly as much as the Tachikomas. |
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NocturnalUX
 Posts: 448 Location: Portugal |
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Chu-Chu from Revolutionary Girl Utena is a mini-Akio
Mascots do not bother me much as long as they do not detract from what is going on and/or further the plot in one way or another. Luna and Artemis from Sailor Moon have been mentioned and wisely, too, for they are a perfect example of useful mascots that add a lot to the story. To the point that they are more "real" characters than mascots, actually. With this said I have a soft spot from that Ecchan creature in Detective Loki, for some odd reason. Maybe because he (she/it?) looks like a bunny/dolphin hybrid to me. |
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Murasakisuishou
Posts: 1469 Location: NE Ohio |
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Ooh, I forgot about Ecchan! I'm usually not one for the shapeless-blob-with-bunny-ears mascots, but I'll make an exception for Ecchan and the Mokonas from xxxHoLiC and Tsubasa. |
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IchigoK90
Posts: 1634 Location: Scarborough, Ontario |
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anyone here a Plue hater like me?
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18445 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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I bought one of the original Ryo-Ohki plushies marketed in the U.S. and did once use it as my personal mascot during a major CCG tournament. It still sits atop my couch to this day, and is too damn adorable for even a guy to deny.
You aren't alone on that. I despise side-commentary characters like that in whatever series they pop up. (Animation Runner Kuromi, Rosario to Vampire, etc.) |
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jetz
 Posts: 2148 Location: Manila, Philippines |
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Why? He's cute He looks like a living snowman pretending to be a dog 
I can't believe no one mentioned Kero from Card Captor Sakura yet. I love him - he's hilarious. He's not entirely useless either. He's the one who made Sakura a Card Captor, after all. |
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