Mameshiba (franchise) explained

is a Japanese merchandise franchise created by copywriter and Korean Japanese national Kim Sukwon. The Mameshiba are different varieties of beans (and other legumes and nuts) that have dog-like faces and answer a trivia question. The name is a pun based on the Japanese word for "bean", ; the toy version of the Shiba Inu, called ; and the Japanese word for "trivia", .

Mameshiba became popular through a series of animated interstitials produced by Dentsu that were sold to Japanese television networks to air instead of commercials. Their popularity in Japan and Asia eventually led to their release in the United States via Viz Media, Hot Topic, and some Mameshiba are sold at FYE. They were famous in France thanks to the now-defunct television network Nolife.

Characters

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Notes and References

  1. Book: Lau, words by Carrie Shepherd ; comics by Gemma Correll ; design by Fawn. Meet Mameshiba!. 5 July 2011. VIZ Media. San Francisco. 978-1-4215-3972-0.