It has been discovered that Kumamon is not really a bear. 

Born in March 2010 and employed to help promote tourism to the mountainous Kyushu prefecture, Kumamon has been the most successful character in Japan’s yuru-kyara (soft character) boom.

He was celebrated as a bear genius, appearing in YouTube videos and dancing for the Emperor 

The mascot’s barely-a-bear black figure is pear-shaped. He has wide white eyes and fire-engine-red cheeks. His overall figure has been described as “doughy.” Like most yuru-kyara in Japan, people wouldn’t know he was a bear if they hadn’t been told. When every character imaginable has already been imagined, it’s no wonder new icons look nothing like real animals; the idea is to invent new ones.

The mascot’s name was derived from the first kanji of the prefecture name, kuma, which means bear. So endearing is the mammal, you’d expect to find him donning ice skates and touring with a holiday show on ice.

Unless you’ve become a cute-aholic like the Japanese, you may consider the Kumamon craze unbearable

Much of Kumamon’s appeal was in his inspiring life story, in which he told of having lost his parents, members of the prominent Ursidae family, due to the logging of Japan’s forests. The tale was gullibly swallowed by a country fascinated by soft characters, where international homegrown superstars like Hello Kitty and Doraemon are the source of great pride. 

“The bear was famous for activities such as bungee jumping and dipping into hot springs. As the sales manager for Kumamoto’s agricultural products, he gave press conferences, ‘lectured’ at Harvard University and flew to France for an Expo. He’s not your average bear.”