The Surprisingly Fierce Competition of the Hello Kitty & Sanrio World

Nationwide Entertainment Character 2020.04.25
The internet is reeling with the thought of saying goodbye to some of their favorite characters from the Hello Kitty family.
  • Mario and Pikachu might have their own big fanbases, but there's no denying that Hello Kitty is one of the most popular characters to come out of Japan. But Hello Kitty was created by Sanrio, and she's certainly not the only popular character to come from the company. Check out the 2020 Sanrio Character Ranking and you'll see just how many cute creatures have come from Sanrio's hallowed halls. A total of 80 different characters (or groups of characters!) are involved in the 2020 ranking, from the famous Hello Kitty, My Melody, and Gudetama to relative unknowns.
  • A Fierce Competition for Lower-Ranked Charaters
    A Fierce Competition for Lower-Ranked Charaters
    The whole point of the ranking is for fans of all kinds to vote for their favorite characters, so we can see who's ranked near the top, and which characters... are a little less beloved. Certainly an intriguing project, but to make things even more interesting, Sanrio is showing no mercy for characters near the bottom of the ranks.

    Any character who doesn't make the cut will receive... "a prompt notice."
  • This may be your first time seeing him, but this strange little friend is actually a relatively popular Sanrio character, called Hagurumanstyle (歯ぐるまんすたいる). The notice below is one he recently received on Twitter, becoming a hot topic among fans.
  • The Announcement Reads...
    The Announcement Reads...

    Notice


    Mr. Hagurumanstyle

    Characters who rank 33 or lower in the 2020 character ranking will have their Twitter accounts shut down the day after results are announced.

    Let's clench together and try our best~

    〜〜〜

     

    Not only was the message simple and harsh, they even used Hagurumanstyle's very own catchphrase, "Let's clench together and try our best~" (くいしばっていこ〜). Fans couldn't take it.

  • It's Not So Easy Being a Sanrio Character
    It's Not So Easy Being a Sanrio Character
    Fans reacted with an outpouring of sympathy, commenting things like "this is just too much for a hard-working character like Hagurumanstyle!" And inciting action, telling everyone "we just have to pour our hearts into voting and campaigning for him in the ranking!"

    This whole ranking is just a lighthearted event among cute characters, but something about the fierce competition seems a little too close to real life. It's rough imagining cute, lazy characters like the eggy Gudetama working hard and struggling behind the scenes to maintain a high ranking.

    Personally, I'm a Hagurumanstyle supporter myself! :)
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