Mameshiba (character)

Mameshiba (豆しば^?) is a Japanese merchandise franchise created by copywriter and Korean Japanese national Kim Sukwon. The Mameshiba are different varieties of beans (and other legumes) that have dog-like faces and tell trivia. Their name derives from a series of puns. The Japanese word for "bean" is mame (豆^?), a toy version of the Shiba Inu is a mameshiba (豆柴^?), and the Japanese word for "trivia" is mamechishiki (豆知識^?, literally "beans of knowledge").

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 f.y.e. They are now very famous in France thanks to the network television Nolife.

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