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Quick Rilakkuma
Character Guide
Created 1/3/2022 12:59:00 PM in kawaii |
rilakkuma | character | guide |

Find out all about San-X's

Rilakkuma and the other
adorable characters it calls its
friends!

Rilakkuma is arguably San-X's

most popular character ever, and
for good reason -- this huge brown
bear is kind, cute, and cuddly to
boot! Watching it lounge around
and be content doing its own thing
is the perfect way to get yourself
smiling whenever you're feeling
blue.

As you've no doubt noticed on

merch and other forms of media,
though, Rilakkuma isn't alone in its
laid-back lifestyle: there's a host of
other bears, animals, and humans
that join in on all its relaxing
escapades.

If you've ever wondered just who

Rilakkuma and those other
characters are, you've come to the
right place!

In this blog post, we'll explore the

mascot's back story and get to
know both it and its friends a whole
lot better.

Let's dive right in!

Contents
Who created Rilakkuma?
Where did the idea for
Rilakkuma come from?
Character #1: Rilakkuma
Character #2: Kaoru
Character #3: Kiiroitori
Character #4:
Korilakkuma
Character #5:
Chairoikoguma
Rilakkuma's popularity
continues to soar
Over to You!

Who created
Rilakkuma?
In 2003, San-X ordered its sta"
members to create a character
each month that could be used as
the company's new mascot going
forward.

Exhausted with daily o#ce life,

employee Aki Kondo came up with
a bear (kuma) that simply loved to
relax (rilakkusu).

And so, with a bit of clever

wordplay and catchy creativity,
Rilakkuma was born!

Where did the

idea for
Rilakkuma
come from?
Now that you know who actually
created Rilakkuma and its universe,
the next natural question is: Where
did the idea come from?

The answer: TV!

Kondo saw a television segment

where a chihuahua was living the
easy life: well fed, well groomed,
and well cared for, to the point of
being spoiled rotten. In fact, the
dog seemed so carefree that Kondo
started to think how nice it would
be if she herself were a pet, even if
it meant -- and this is important --
jumping into a full-body animal
costume! It was a busy time in the
o#ce after all, and work fatigue
can certainly make you want to
escape from it all by whatever
means necessary.

What exactly do animal costumes

have to do with adorable San-X
bears, you ask?

Read Rilakkuma's profile below and

find out!

Character #1:
Rilakkuma

In a nutshell
An adorable brown "bear"
(we'll explain in minute)
Loves nothing more than to
laze around the house
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Closer look
Rilakkuma shows up one day in the
apartment of an o#ce clerk named
Kaoru, who -- despite not knowing
where the unexpected visitor
comes from -- welcomes it with
open arms. Talk about leaving a
good first impression, right?

What's intriguing about Rilakkuma

is that it has a zipper on its back,
beyond which you can see some
light-colored cloth with blue polka
dots. This seems to imply that
Rilakkuma isn't actually a real bear
at all, but rather someone (or
something) inside a bear costume.

And while the stop-motion

animated series does provide us
with some visual clues to back this
unexpected reality up -- a
wardrobe full of spare costumes, a
washing line where costumes are
hanging out to dry -- what's
noticeably absent is any sign of
spare Rilakkuma heads.

Could Rilakkuma just be a bear in a

bear costume after all?

Could it actually be creator Aki

Kondo herself, fulfilling her desire
to escape from the hustle and
bustle of professional working life?

Nobody knows for sure,

unfortunately!

Personality
As touched on above, Rilakkuma is
a portmanteau of "relax" and kuma
(the Japanese word for bear). True
to its name, its hobbies include
lying around, sleeping, watching
TV, listening to music, and soaking
in hot springs. It also loves
dumplings, pancakes, Japanese
omelet rice (omurice), and
pudding.

What it most definitely doesn't like,

though, is spicy food and summer -
- perhaps because of the amount of
physical exertion needed when
dealing with both. That being said,
it's not too fond of the rainy season
either, because the climate
conditions are just right enough for
fungus to grow inside its costume.

Despite being lazy, Rilakkuma does

seem to become emotionally
invested a lot of the time. It cares a
lot about its friends -- whether it be
treating Korilakkuma like a younger
sibling, or being visibly shaken at
the thought of having to say
goodbye (when Kaoru
unintentionally implied that she
wanted Rilakkuma to go away for a
while).

Such an adorable, wholesome

character, don't you think?

Character #2:
Kaoru

In a nutshell
Relatable working adult in her
twenties
Her apartment acts as the new
home for Rilakkuma and
friends

Closer look
A down-to-earth o#ce clerk who
looks after Rilakkuma and its
friends.

Though competent at her job,

Kaoru's female colleagues don't
seem to like her that much -- to
them she seems overly serious (to
the point where they don't even
bother asking her out to social
gatherings). All in all, she feels so
underappreciated at work that she
even considered going back to her
hometown and taking up farming.

Kaoru lives alone in a rundown

apartment together with her pet
bird, Kiiroitori, whom she thought
was just a normal bird -- until she
found it outside its cage, feeding
pancakes to an unexpected visitor
(Rilakkuma).

Personality
Kaoru is, in a word, a trooper --
one who tries to soldier on with
head held high in spite of adversity,
loneliness, and (perceived)
hopelessness.

Just like many other working

professionals in their twenties,
Kaoru feels like time is passing her
by. Her friends are busy with work,
romance, and their own families --
leaving her in the dust of single life
and a mediocre career.

It's not like Kaoru doesn't try to

keep up, though.

Case in point: She actually has a

huge crush on her deliveryman,
and finds herself buying things
online just for the chance to see
him when he does his rounds. Sure,
her wallet takes a beating, but at
least she gets to see him every day!

Character #3:
Kiiroitori

In a nutshell
Kaoru's pet canary
Neat freak and caretaker
(bear-taker?) in Kaoru's
absence

Closer look
Kaoru's pet canary (kiiroitori
literally means "yellow bird" in
Japanese) and loyal friend that
looks after Rilakkuma et al when
Kaoru is away from home.

Kiiroitori lives a peaceful life inside

its cage, but is by no means
confined to it; in fact, unlike your
typical pet bird, it can actually
waltz in and out of its own accord.
It just never did so until Rilakkuma
and friends arrived on the scene.

Personality
Kiiroitori is like the anchor holding
down the ship: diligent enough to
keep the laid-back Rilakkuma in
check, and steadfast enough to act
as fragile Kaoru's rock. Indeed, in
this hectic house, Kiiroitori might
just be the MVP!

What no doubt helps to no end is

Kiiroitori's unwavering focus on
cleanliness. With bandanna and
feather duster at the ready, you
can be sure it'll leave no stone
unturned when it comes to ridding
Kaoru's apartment of any soot,
stain, or spill that comes its way.

Though you can easily imagine the

lazy Rilakkuma letting things slide,
Kiiroitori is the type that will call
you out in an instant if it's
something dear to its heart. After
all, it was positively hu#ng and
pu#ng in anger when the humid
weather resulted in a fungus
outbreak at home.

Character #4:
Korilakkuma

In a nutshell
Fun-loving "bear" that follows
Rilakkuma around
Trademark red button

Closer look
Like Rilakkuma, this small white
bear suddenly shows up in Kaoru's
apartment one day -- without
rhyme or reason. The two
characters didn't actually know
each other before, though, as
evidenced by the fact that
Rilakkuma straight up asks it
"Where are you from?"

If you ever find yourself slightly

confused about which bear is
which, just remember that ko
means "little" in Japanese. That
makes this character quite literally
Little Rilakkuma! In fact, Kiiroitori
gives the character its Korilakkuma
name precisely because it was
always mimicking everything
Rilakkuma did.

One glaring di"erence between the

two characters apart from color
and size is their design: As
mentioned above, Rilakkuma has a
zipper on its back, which really
calls into question the nature of its
existence. Korilakkuma is
completely zipper-less, but it does
sport a charming red button on its
chest. Obviously whether it's a real
bear or just a costume (or
something else) is still up in the air,
but a button is definitely not as
suspicious as a literal zipper!

Personality
Korilakkuma is like a lovable child:
mischievous yet well-meaning,
bursting with energy, and always
with its favorite toys (radio-
controlled duck and stu"ed
penguin) by its side.

In fact, you could very easily say

that Korilakkuma is the perfect foil
to neat freak Kiiroitori.

For starters, while the canary

enjoys cleaning up mess,
Korilakkuma is all about creating
mess! It loves to play pranks and
scribble (read: gra#ti) everywhere
and anywhere, often to the chagrin
of even the rather chill Rilakkuma.
(Drawing on Rilakkuma's face when