Mascot: Difference between revisions

** It probably didn't help matters much that in real life, John Hodgman is actually a very friendly, charismatic man.

** The Apple adverts in Britain featured David Mitchell and Robert Webb as the PC and the Mac respectively. They have been quite unpopular, and have raised questions about the duo's credibility. Not least because, like the US adverts, while Webb is the ostentatiously cool character, Mitchell generally comes across as the more down-to-earth and likeable (this is despite him often playing the role of an unapologetic quasi-intellectual). While hosting ''[[Have I Got News for You]]'', Webb explained to Ian that he had played the smug unbearable one whose product you were meant to buy, while Mitchell had all the fun lines and he was meant to be despised. He described it as a 'confused campaign'.

** Before 1991, SNK had the now pretty much unknown [http://pagesperso-orange.fr/neogeospirit/dossiers/gmantle/dossier_gmantle.htm G-Mantle].

** In Japan, Sega actually had a second mascot specifically for the Saturn: Segata Sanshiro, a [[Badass]] martial artist who would beat up people for not playing the Saturn. He eventually got his own video game, which was the last first-party game released for the Saturn.

** ''[[Atlus]]'' uses Jack Frost and his brothers from ''[[Shin Megami Tensei]]''.

* Fictional example: "Vault Boy", the wavy-haired boy in the vault-dweller jumpsuit who serves as the smiling figurehead for Vault-Tec in ''[[Fallout]]''. Fans call him "Fallout Boy" (no relation to the band or ''[[The Simpsons]]''), and he's come to serve as a mascot for the game series, as well.

** Not to be confused (although he often have been, even the developers of ''[[Fallout Tactics]]'' made this mistake) with "Pip-Boy", who is the redheaded pixie in the yellow and orange spacesuit, visible on the logo of the Pipboy 2000.

* Representing the web browser Firefox, Mozilla has the icon with the fox with the flaming tail curled around a globe, and [http://www.foxkeh.jp/ Mozilla Japan has Foxkeh]. The [[Ridiculously Cute Critter]] doesn't come much cuter.

 

 

** The slightly terrifying Hunger used to be the mascot for Shreddies, on the basis that it "kept hunger locked up...till lunch". Nowadays they use a group of old ladies who are knitting the cereal.

* Slightly creepily, Felix (cat) for Felix (cat food). Slogan: "Cats like Felix... like Felix."

* Applebee's had a talking apple voiced by Wanda Sykes Hall. The character was discontinued after new owners took over.

* Fast food chain Jack in the Box has Jack, a man with a clown-head who is both mascot and [[Kayfabe]] CEO of the company. Like the King, Jack is a subversion of an earlier mascot, a clown-head which stood atop the original Jack in the Box restaurant and which appeared on their drive-thru menus for many years. The ad campaign featuring Jack has run continuously since 1995, making it one of the longest-running in history.

* Ronald McDonald has gone pretty much un-subverted to this day thanks to becoming part of the greater American pop-cultural landscape.

** Save for a brief period in the mid '90s where he was depicted engaging in such activities as clubbing and playing golf as part of the ad campaign for the execrable "Arch Deluxe" burger (a "sandwich for 'adults'," as demonstrated by ads showing kids recoiling in disgust; [[Sarcasm Mode|surely the best way]] to convince someone to eat one).

* Weight Watchers has Hungry, an furry orange monster that constantly tempts you to eat junk food and thus ruin your diet.

** Anticipating Weight Watchers' hungry little monster, Sultana biscuits gave us [[Ridiculously Cute Critter|Mr Yummy]], [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97kNwRArK60 a brightly chequered muppet] originally meant to [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftmZD_r_sQ8 personify the munchies]. 2008 saw the manufacture of a limited number of Mr Yummy handpuppets, which sold out within weeks.

* The Chik-fil-A cows, exhorting people to "Eet Mor Chikin".

* Captain Birdseye, face of Birdseye frozen foods.

* Probably before anyone's time here, Alka-Seltzer was represented by a walking, talking antacid (in black and white, no less) named "Speedy Alka-Seltzer." (The voice was reminiscent of Beany in the ''Beany and Cecil'' cartoons from the 1940s & 1950s.) An author on the subject of commercials, in a book called "Down the Tube" noted that Speedy was so gay, that the new ad company who got rid of him did it so fast it must have been because he was caught soliciting a cop in a bus station mens' room.

** The voice of Speedy Alka-Seltzer was Dick Beals, a little person who dubbed kids voices and worked in voice-overs in cartoons.

* Michelin tires are hawked by Bibendum, a strange white bulbous fellow who looks like a cross between the Mummy and the Sta-Puft Marshmallow Man.

 

* The duck that quacks, "AFLAC!"

* Flo the checkout girl in the Progressive Insurance commercials.

* Churchill, the little nodding dog mascot of Churchill Insurance. All together now: "OH YES!!"

* The General, for The General Car Insurance.

* [http://centralcitytower.blogspot.com/2010/07/fuzzy.html Fuzzy and Acro] of Central City Tower.

* Buster from ''[[Myth Busters]]''.

** [[Pixar]] has adopted the hopping lamp from [[Pixar Shorts|one of their first shorts]] as their mascot, but has relegated him solely to the logo.

** [[Oswald the Lucky Rabbit|Oswald]] used to be one for Walt, [[Dork Age|but then....]]

* Bugs Bunny, for [[Looney Tunes]], as well as Warner Bros.' entire animation division.

* The former WB Network had Michigan J. Frog from the ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' short, "[[One Froggy Evening]]".

* In the early days of the official [[Cirque Du Soleil]] website (1996-97), the Baron from ''[[Saltimbanco]]'' served as the "host". From 1998 to 2001 or so, the Great Chamberlain from the retired show ''[[Nouvelle Experience]]'' took on this duty.

 

== Music ==

** Face Bones of [[Metalocalypse|Dethklok]].

** [[Gamma Ray (Music)|Gamma Ray]] has Fangface.

** Set Abominae, main character of [[Iced Earth]]'s ''Something Wicked Saga''.

** [[Dio]]'s Murray the horn-throwing demon, [http://pictograms.blogspot.ca/search?q=Dio who actually has a rather interesting story behind his creation].

** Thrash band Sodom has Knarrenheinz.

** Sergeant D. for the Stormtroopers Of Death

** [[Korpiklaani]] has Vaari, a forest spirit depicted as an old man with antlers.

** Riot has Johnny, a rather infamous mascot that seems to have human form with a weasel/rat/owl/seal-head. [http://www.metal-metropolis.com/riot.htm More information can be found here]

** In Flames' Jesterhead, who first appeared on the cover of ''The Jester Race'' and has undergone many transformations since. He's most known for his distinctive spiky jester-hat.

* Punk bands aren't too far behind in the mascot department:

** The Dictators might be unique in that their mascot is a real live human being, Handsome Dick Manitoba, who was the band's roadie/occasional vocalist and "Secret Weapon".

** [[Man On Fire|The boy on fire]] that appeared on Bad Religion album "''Suffer''" has appeared on several t-shirts.

** [[Flaming Skulls|Fire Skull]] of [[The Offspring]], though it may be closer to a symbol than a full-fledged character.

** [http://pictograms.blogspot.ca/2008/01/logo-151-social-distortion.html Skelly], created by Social Distortion.

** [[Looks Like Cesare|Monkey's Face]] from The Adicts.

** [[Blink 182]] have both a deranged [["Have a Nice Day" Smile|smiley face]] and a deranged [[Bunny Tropes|rabbit]].