Japanese Fairies across the moe-yuru Continuum

• In Event: Evolutions and Diasporas of the Fantastic: Spirits, Supernatural Beings, and Fairies in the Imaginary of Japan

Abstract

A notable type of yōsei (fairy) takes the form of a local mascot character who serves as a representative of a particular place or a thing for which that place is famous. The mascots reinforce mechanisms for machizukuri ‘townmaking’ already in place which include forefronting of local particularities including food and other specialties. Called yuru ‘wobbly’ or gotōchi ‘local’ kyara ‘characters’, some of them present as flower-type fairies with strong moe potential or as elflike humanoids. They are more typicallly invented as some kind of fantastic entity, such as the fairy of natto (fermented soybeans), or Biiko, the fairy of the planet Gliese 581C in Libra, who most strongly resembles a cow. These mascots appear at public events, embodied in furry kigurumi suits, in order to interact with the public and prompt interest. As spirit entities emergent from terroir, their ontology perhaps echoes the early Western fairy but moreover resembles that of local Shinto gods typically embodied by fearsome looking costumed kagura dancers in festival settings. The majority of non-flower fairy yuru kyara tend to be of middle or indiscriminate gender, unlike Shinto gods who typically divide along binary heteronormative lines. Nonetheless, ‘Uncle Jam’ and ‘Butter Girl' are pseudo-parents in the kiddie anime starring their ‘son’ the breadheaded hero AnPan Man. Described as yōsei, they resemble ordinary humans. Such variety of yōsei images spans an aesthetic range from cute-sexy to fuzzy-cuddly.

Author

• Debra Jane Occhi, Miyazaki International College