Teacher ShelleNara's Mascot Battle
 Ever since his horned head was unveiled in February, Sento-kun has been the target of ridicule and revulsion. Now the mascot chosen to mark the 1,300th anniversary of Japan’s ancient capital being relocated to Nara is in danger of being usurped. Designed by Satoshi Yabuuchi, a sculptor and professor at Tokyo University of the Arts, Sento-kun is a boy who resembles a young Buddha crossed with the antlers of a deer, for which Nara is famous. Selected from 21 entries in a competition organised by the local government, Sento-kun has been pilloried for being disrespectful of Buddha, an odd human-deer hybrid and, most damningly, being simply not cute. "Yes, we have heard that it is not popular," said Keichi Minamihata, a spokesman for Nara Prefecture. "People say that he is not cute, but 5 million yen (£24,410) was spent on the design to mark the anniversary so we have no plans to replace Sento-kun." Local people are not taking the decision laying down, however, and members of the Creators Forum Yamato have come up with a rival mascot. Manto-kun is a roly-poly orange blob with a wide smile, discreet antlers and a temple as a hat, reflecting Nara’s religious significance. Most importantly, Manto-kun meets the cute qualification. In Japan, every self-respecting corporation, local authority, university and tourist spot has a mascot that appears on official stationery, as cuddly characters for annual events and myriad tourist trinkets. source: www.telegraph.co.uk |