Stardate 20031206.2129

(On Screen): Pachinko is a Japanese gambling game which is sort of half-way between pinball and slot machines. There's no skill involved and no real way for the player to increase their chance of winning. But like slot machines and pinball, the basic machines are decorated in endlessly varied and highly colorful ways and are covered in flashing lights and make lots of marvelous sounds, all of which serve to distract you from the fact that the machines are all essentially the same – and that you routinely lose when you play them.

Maruhon Industry seems to be a supplier of Pachinko machines, based on this web site. Some of their machines are huge and futuristic, while others are decorated with cartoon critters of various kinds, such as dinosaurs, strange little people, fighters, samurai, cute lovable ninja, cute lovable yakuza, cute lovable monsters, birds, and... well...

...and a character which is a public relations disaster just waiting to happen if they ever try to export any of them to the US. (You can watch that guy in a 3.46MB mpeg, or see him in an animated GIF.) If the new sensitive left saw these on our shores, they'd have apoplexy.

Update: As Bill said to me recently, "I am nowhere near afraid enough of the Japanese."

Update: Not even close to afraid enough.

Update: Oh, brother; I just noticed that the first picture of the character is named "001boy.gif". GOOD choice of a label, that one is...