While last year’s Pokemon Go fever may feel like a distant memory, children of all ages still love Nintendo’s “Pocket Monsters”. The Japanese video game manufacturer still cashes in on the Pokemon craze with all sorts of licensed products, from candy and competitive card games to plush toys and… this.
インドネシアのゼニガメが卑猥 pic.twitter.com/2LSS3zPiyu
— 海外の万国反応記 (@all_nations2) May 6, 2017
“This Indonesian Squirtle is obscene”
The viral photo above, tweeted by Japanese Twitter user @all_nations2, depicts a Pokemon-themed version of a certain type of body pillow called a guling (aka a Dutch Wife), which is popular in Indonesia. The head atop the pillow is that of Squirtle, a water-type Pokemon and one of the three starter creatures you can choose from in the original Gameboy game.
The photo got retweeted over 2,500 times around the Japanese Twitter-sphere, with most comments, not surprisingly, referencing the pillow’s undeniably phallic appearance (turtle head just happens to be a very popular Japanese euphemism for the tip of the penis).
But the OP did not present any evidence that the pillow was of Indonesian origin. So, being the very serious journalists that we are, we scoured the interwebs and found proof that this product is indeed being sold in Indonesia and even appears to be an officially licensed product and not a cheap rip-off.
That’s right, you can purchase the Squirtle Pillow from Indonesian e-commerce site Blibi.com right now. According to the product photo, it’s got the “Original Licensed Characters” seal and under product features, it mentions “To accompany your child during their rest time”.
There are also Charmander and Pikachu versions of the pillow.
Are we juvenile for thinking this is hysterical? Yes, absolutely.
But, on the other hand, people take these matters very seriously in Indonesia. A local children’s book that attempted to address the issue of masturbation, featuring a young boy having a little too much fun with his “Dutch Wife”, was condemned for being vulgar and pulled from distribution.
Children's sex education book about masturbation causes stir in Indonesia.https://t.co/N0oQmPFHmn pic.twitter.com/9466blsAxA
— BBC Asia (@BBCNewsAsia) February 21, 2017
Will a similar outcry put an end to the scourge of Squirtle pillows in our children’s’ beds? Well, in the immortal words of Squirtle, “Squirtle? Squirtle squirtle squirtle. Squirtle! Squirtle…”
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