Kang Kang (Photo : CCTV)
It is not only Chinese Zodiac-inspired designs of top fashion brands that get the thumbs down from Chinese netizens because of ridiculous designs of the monkey. Two weeks after the jewelry of the designer brands were ridiculed on social media sites in China, on Thursday, it was the turn of a TV mascot that was the center of ridicule.
The unfortunate victim of online bashing was Kang Kang, the mascot of China Central Television’s Spring Festival Gala which was shown to the public for the first time on Thursday to herald the Chinese Lunar New Year. The observation of many is that the 3D animation of the monkey looked ugly compared to the original design of a cute monkey.
Kang Kang’s arms are extended, while its different body parts have different colors. Part of the tail, the right leg, left arm and right face are colored green, while the end of the tail, the left leg, right arm and left face are yellow. The torso and eyes are red, and the hair and ears are brown, earning the mascot the moniker “The monster of traffic lights” because of its colors identified with the “stop, go and caution” commands of a traffic light, reported China Daily.
The colors made one netizen think King Kang was designed by a traffic policeman. This led some to make a meme of the mascot and hang it at a busy crossing. Another Internet user placed the mascot with other colorful fruits such as almond, cherries, apples, lemons and kiwi.
The mascot is usually the first thing featured on the CCTV Spring Festival TV gala, although viewership of the show had declined over the years since it premiered in 1983.
Han Meilin, the Chinese artist who designed Kang Kang and the mascots of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, said in his WeChat account that he only designed the monkey’s head and did not have any idea of the final look of the mascot. He explained that it combined Chinese tradition with the happy and gay atmosphere of the gala which puts together perky and childish traits of the Monkey King character.
According to Liverpoolecho, the monkey is the ninth sign of the Chinese zodiac. People who were born in the past years of the monkey are those who came out of their mothers’ womb in 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 19982, 2004 and 2016.
Since the animal is known to be smart, quick-witted and smart, people born in the year of the monkey are gentle and honest, but could be short-tempered and jealous, according to Chinese zodiac.
