Myaku-Myaku and the Year of the Mascot

At the start of the year, one of the biggest questions in Japan was if Osaka’s World Expo, a multi-billion dollar project under intense media scrutiny, would succeed.

It did — but perhaps not for the reason anyone expected. Visitor numbers slightly undershot targets, however, the event turned a larger-than-expected profit thanks to one thing: a blue-and-red multi-eyed Lovecraftian terror named Myaku-Myaku.