Japanese ‘pear fairy’ Funassyi plots world domination

From the country that brought you Godzilla, Hello Kitty and Pokemon, comes a hyperactive “pear fairy” with a love for heavy metal that has taken Japan by storm - and now plans to conquer the world. “Funassyi”, a devil-may-care lifesize fruit mascot who risks life and limb by performing eye-watering stunts, has just returned from a triumphant visit to New York and on Thursday threw down the gauntlet to rivals such as Kumamon, a tubby bear with whom it once had a punch-up on national television.

They’re going to hang my picture in the Empire State Building, along with the Crown Prince and Yoko Ono.

Funassyi the hyperactive Pear Fairy

The genderless Funassyi, famous for its high-pitched shrieking, jumping and violent gyrating, shot to fame as the unofficial mascot of Funabashi city, 20 kilometres (12 miles) east of Tokyo, after videos of the chubby prankster on a treadmill and taking a bath went viral. Funassyi’s popularity is no mean feat given the ferocious competition among Japan’s “yuru-kyara” (mascot characters). Creations such as Kumamon and Pokemon have become part of the country’s cultural landscape, adorning everything from keychains to commercial airplanes.

I’m a one-pear act, a pear fairy with no agent. People saw me being rejected and started to show support for me. I still only charge about 1,000 pears an hour.

Funassyi the hyperactive Pear Fairy

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