If you wish to get off, please touch the man wearing full-body tights.
Japan has this tendency of anthropomorphizing things in order to create mascots. The latest example of this amusing and sometimes baffling practice comes thanks Nishitetsu, a train and bus operator based in Fukuoka.
The video below, which was released on January 30, shows a new mascot character called Tomarimasu Botan-san, or when literally translated Mr./Ms. Stop Button (san can be translated as both Mr. and Ms.). Not much more than a person in full body black tights and a head piece modeled after the button passengers on Nishitetsu buses push to indicate they would like to get off at the next step, Tomarimasu Botan-san is certainly not the cutest character around but even despite its strange appearance Mr./Ms. Stop Button has managed to catch a whole lot of people’s attention. In just the span of about a week this silly video has gotten well over 250,000 views.
Check out the video below.
Unfortunately, prospects for monetizing Mr./Ms. Stop Button seem poor. After all, who wants a plushie of a guy in full body tights.
Source: Travel Voice
Image: とまりますボタンさん (Nishi Nippon Railway YouTube)
