Gifu town under fire for using busty No-Rin character to boo(b)st tourism

norinposter

One city in Gifu is trying to put a little bounce into its local tourism by using Kocho, the top-heavy character from No-Rin, on its promotional media.

In November, Gifu Prefecture’s Minokamo Municipal Tourism Association began advertising a stamp rally (a stamp card campaign) open to visitors of participating bars and eateries in the area from November 7, 2015–January 31, 2016.

But what at first seemed like a fun event to support small businesses is now catching flack from residents and netizens alike for the association’s use of busty anime characters to promote it.

▼ Collect all the stamps! You haven’t already forgotten about the stamps, have you?

皆様御無沙汰しております！今年も１１月７日（土）よりアニメ「のうりん」とコラボしたスタンプラリーが始まります！今回も３つのお店でスタンプをゲットすると景品をプレゼント！景品は特製ウッドバッチ（３種）です。奮ってご参加くださいっ！ https://t.co/d3wXwYNypB
—
美濃加茂市観光協会 (@minokamo_kanko) November 04, 2015

So why such a suggestive choice for their promotional poster? A large part of the reason, according to the association, is because the Kamo Agriculture School nearby was basis for the design of Tamo Agriculture School in the series, where No-Rin’s story takes place.

▼ Kamo Agriculture School, Minokamo City

kamoagrischool

As for the other part, it seems they’re trying to attract a certain demographic that may not normally display much interest in events like these.

While many users don’t necessarily mind the city’s ties to the anime itself, whose characters have appeared in a number of association-sponsored advertisements, a large number of users particularly objected to the sexual nature of the Kocho poster above, deeming it as “sexual harassment” or “unsuitable for families and children”.

The tourism association claims that the image was previously used by Gifu Prefecture’s Red Cross Center, where female employees were asked about how comfortable they were with the image beforehand. (Although the men were not asked for their opinion, we’re going to go out on a limb and say most probably voiced no objections, either.)

In the Red Cross’s case, after using the image they experienced an increase in blood donations from young adults, and no doubt Minokamo Municipal Tourism Association is trying to replicate the results.

Would you consider this a wise move or just plain silly? We’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter.

Source: Twitter/@minokamo_kanko via Kinisoku
Feature/top image: Twitter/@minokamo_kanko
Insert image: Anime Culture