Mashimaro (마시마로) or Yeopki Tokki (엽기토끼 "bizarre rabbit") in Korean and 流氓兔 ("hoodlum rabbit") in Chinese is a South Korean fictional character who resembles a fat rabbit, created by Kim Jae In (김재인). He debuted in a series of Flash animations (mostly without any dialogue, although the occasional word of Korean or English is present) on the internet. Mashimaro is far more often seen in merchandise, similar to Hello Kitty. (Mashimaro would in fact be best described as Korea's answer to Sanrio.) Mashimaro merchandise can be found on the internet and in Korean communities around the world.
| Mashimaro | |
|---|---|
| Flash animation cartoons character | |
 | |
| Created by | Kim Jae In |
| In-universe information | |
| Nickname | Yeopki Tokki |
| Species | Rabbit |
The original Mashimaro cartoons are full of toilet humour, and some of this is also to be found in the merchandise. Mashimaro himself is often portrayed with a plunger stuck to his head. In contrast to other hyper-cute iconic characters, such as Hello Kitty, Mashimaro is portrayed as an obese and obnoxious bully, often resorts to violence to impose his will on others.
At the first born of this character, directors decided to disuse it because they thought 'cartoon characters must have big eyes and positive attitudes'. But Mashimaro has razor thin eyes and he a too pessimistic attitude. So the creator Kim Jae made a series of flash animations on the Internet cartoon site and people loved it. Also directors changed their mind about Mashimaro and it became the first Korean hit character. After some years later, there came the company to professionally market this character.[1]
Mashimaro also has a look-alike, Chocomaro, who is brown. Chocomaro appears in two parodies of "Mashimaro" Episodes, including Episodes 2 and 3. Chocomaro tries to do what Mashimaro would normally do in these episodes, but always messes them up and ends up gets hurt. It is unknown exactly what relationship Chocomaro shares with Mashimaro, but most believe that he is the brother of Mashimaro.[weasel words]
The name "Mashimaro" came from the creator's niece/nephew mispronouncing the word "marshmallow" and this character was modeled on the creator's nephew.
See also
References
- ^ Han, Ji-suk (2004-03-02). "here comes the company to professionally marketing mashimaro".
External links
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