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BART's Anime Mascots
- zaptrem 2y agoLol why do the info sheets include blood type?
- creata 2y agoGiving the blood type of the character is common in anime and manga. Wikipedia links it to a belief that blood type can predict personality. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_type_personality_theory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_type_personality_theory
- godelski 2y agoOkay, but why are we importing pseudoscience?
- bitwize 2y agoBecause it's fun. I don't believe astrology is real, but I've assigned birthdays to some of my characters based on zodiac signs which are said to align with their personality, simply because it's cute and fun. I was inspired by the characters of Sailor Moon, each of which have a birthday in a zodiac sign ruled by their associated planet. (So Moon is a Cancer, Mercury is a Virgo, etc.).
- godelski 2y agoI guess to each their own. I can see how it can be fun but when zodiac signs are discussed it is disproportionately about more than "fun" and that certainly biases me (and I think many others).
- Lammy 2y agoHomestuck and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race (Terezi is my fav)
- 29athrowaway 2y agoYou can also see it in Street Fighter II: The World Warrior.
- joshdavham 2y agoIt’s from Japanese culture. Knowing a person’s (or a fictional character’s) blood type is something they find interesting. A bit like how we in the west find astrological signs interesting.
- UncleEntity 2y agoFor when BART police accidentally grabs their gun instead of their taser?
- AStonesThrow 2y agoThis is really cute and friendly. I like it; very much in-character for the BART. My own transit system has sort of developed two mascots. They are not as artful or clever as BART's, but they are designed with a utilitarian purpose: to demonstrate good vs. bad behavior while onboard. https://www.valleymetro.org/blog/2019/10/quick-guide-light-rail-etiquette https://www.valleymetro.org/blog/2019/10/quick-guide-light-r... The characters are named "Right" and "Rong", both humanoids who are differentiated primarily by color and mood. Right, of course, does all the right things and abides by the rules, while Rong is a classic example of the scofflaw you wouldn't want sitting next to you.
- bitwize 2y agoReminds me of the perennial standbys from Highlights for Children, Goofus and Gallant. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goofus_and_Gallant https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goofus_and_Gallant
- AStonesThrow 2y agoYes it is totally Goofus/Gallant style! Right down to the simplistic verse of the slogans in the window decals. Thanks for making that comparison. I am sure they drew from that fabled tradition, so to speak!
- archagon 2y ago(I kind of unironically want every public service to have a cute mascot that could be turned into a plushie.)
- romanpoet 2y agoThis has precedence for the LA Metro in 2017. https://observer.com/2017/10/la-metro-promotes-transit-etiquette-with-bizarre-superhero-psas/ https://observer.com/2017/10/la-metro-promotes-transit-etiqu...
- repeekad 2y agoObligatory reminder that BART is going to run out of its emergency funding by spring 2026
- echelon 2y agoDoes that mean BART ceases operation?
- thaumasiotes 2y agoThe only way that could happen is if San Francisco was vacated. Most likely would be that they provide more "emergency" funding.
- ddtaylor 2y agoEverything in government is always failing. It's a funding mechanism.
- godelski 2y agoI do like the idea of mascots, but truthfully I think they are better done as non-human mascots and need to be simple. I think Japan got this right with Yura-chara[0]. There seems to be a strong preference for non-human characters and when there are human ones, they're still overly simplistic. Seems like same rule about flags[1]: a child should be able to draw it from memory. Only Barty seems to fit these conditions. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuru-chara https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuru-chara [1] https://nava.org/good-flag-bad-flag https://nava.org/good-flag-bad-flag
- Lammy 2y ago> I think Japan got this right I like DPS-kun from beatmaniaⅡᴅx copula: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcfmIKKMu7Y https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcfmIKKMu7Y They made a plush of him that's very cute too
- yellowapple 2y agoAgreed. Nyango Star is another example of this sort of mascot done right. He's an apple, a cat, and a heavy metal drummer; what's not to love?
- spondylosaurus 2y agoThe first BART mascot has a little blue chibi goat next to the human girl, and I can't tell if the chibi is supposed to be an alternate form of the girl or a completely separate entity, but either way it seems like it could be a solid yura-chara.
- bobthepanda 2y agoNot for a transit system per se, but the ORCA farecard in Seattle has a mascot named Boop, who is an orca: https://info.myorca.com/news/meet-boop/ https://info.myorca.com/news/meet-boop/
- godelski 2y agoI would feel offended if they chose anything else lol. But the orca mascot is cute. Well done Seattle
- pinoy420 2y ago[dead]
- cosmicgadget 2y ago> The reincarnated bunny spirit of a legacy car who has seen it all. Not how I picture a BART car that has "seen it all".
- cultofmetatron 2y agono kidding.. I lived in SF during the peak of the influx of tech and was a daily BART rider. there's things I can't unsee.
- Lammy 2y agoI'm glad I got to experience the carpeted cars with cloth seats even if they got gross some times.
- cobbzilla 2y agoCloth seats on BART must be among the worst design decisions ever made. Seating on public transit must be something that can be hosed down with bleach, and not a material that will forever hold whatever funk is deposited into it.
- Lammy 2y agoIt was way more comfortable to sit on, soft surfaces help keep noise levels down inside the car, and I wash my clothes regularly :p
- flomo 2y agoI took BART a lot (uhhh) 30 years ago. The trains were very clean and highly policed. I wouldn't even bring a coffee on board, much less smoke crank or whatever. Different era.
- SllX 2y agoSounds like the dream. All I want is a more frequent police presence in and around the station infrastructure and on the trains for both BART and MUNI. Like why is that a different era? Why can’t that be the current era?
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- cubefox 2y ago[flagged]
- geraldwhen 2y agoThe first character is 6’2. Odds of being male are very very high
- KennyBlanken 2y ago...except for the "she" in her character card.
- KennyBlanken 2y agoPlease explain what you're trying to say here.
- cubefox 2y agoIt's seems hypocritical. I also doubt I would have gotten downvotes and a flag if I had pointed out the counterfactual opposite bias.
- kappasan 2y agoWe have something similar here in Kyoto! But we're Japan so there's an actual anime [1] and a character relationship chart [2], both straight from the city government. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OInuZFHeQo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OInuZFHeQo [2] https://www.city.kyoto.lg.jp/kotsu/cmsfiles/contents/0000215/215552/210907_final_ol-3.jpg https://www.city.kyoto.lg.jp/kotsu/cmsfiles/contents/0000215...
- neilv 2y agoThey're all female? I wonder whether the BART officials know all the connotations of different kinds of anime/manga fandom.
- _bin_ 2y ago[flagged]
- rKarpinski 2y agoBaylee is 6' 2"?
- zghst 2y agoThis train has a lot more history than you think. Something, something about the NSA and mind-reading. You would not believe it. The Anime Mascots are a good touch.
- TulliusCicero 2y agoOh damn the heights on the mascots are very anti-stereotypical, 6'2" for the woman and 5'2" for the dude.
- CoastalCoder 2y agoIt's possible that some of the characters are written as trans-gender. It would be consistent with (at least my conception of) SF's public messaging.
- notpushkin 2y agoThis is kinda cool, but... Coloring sheets? Seriously?
- bigcat12345678 2y agoGood, no wifi, but Mascots. Yeah, I'd like some price hike as well.
- irusensei 2y agoEverything is better with anime characters
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- clayhacks 2y agoOk but when’s the actual anime coming? They need new revenue streams. I’d love a romanticised anime about these characters working to save Bart or the Bay Area or some nonsense