Novelty Lotion

Yeah, I’ll admit I can be childish, but this lotion I found in a shop in Akihabara really takes the cake. It’s, #ehem#, love lotion. For use when you know what happens, mind strong, body weak kind of thing. The reason I post this isn’t just a way to get cheap hit on search engines, but also to show one of the most wonderful aspects of Japanese commercial culture. They are not scared. They copy, rip off, modify and upgrade just about everything. And the local companies endorse it! They love it! If this had been the States, Coca-Cola corporation would have been ripping into this lotion maker like a Yokohama school girl at a Disneyland ticket give-away. There is no way you could get away with wonderful stuff like this in any other country.

 

The Cola-Lotion bottle features a scantily clad manga babe, the other bottle is a rip on a very popular green tea brand. Oi-Lotion. Wonderful stuff. This ties in with so many other things I hope to show you later, like fan made comics, music parodies and brand mash ups. Louis Vuitton and Hello Kitty anyone?  

 

Oh, I haven’t actually opened the bottles yet so I don’t know about any flavor issues, but the bottles say clearly “Not for consumption”. I don’t know how good your Japanese is, but prospective learners can try their hand on the sexy haiku on the back of the green bottle. 

 

Who ever thought Japanese would be the first to mash up poetry, novelty sex goods and green tea? Anther reason to love this place! 

 

(Lamtera, Akihabara, price 600-800yen)

 

Cola-Lotion, front

 

Cola Lotion, Right

 

Cola-Lotion, Left

 

Oi-Lotion, Front

Oi-Lotion, Back (with Haiku)

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