It’s the one collab you never knew you wanted. Sanrio is combining their adorable powderpuffs with Junji Ito’s tragically doomed or murderous characters in a pop-up coming later this summer to early autumn.
The Junji Ito x Sanrio special collaboration will appear exclusively in Parco locations in Tokyo from August 23 to September 9, this year, before moving to Osaka from September 27 to October 14. So, if you have plans to see the leaves change color, why not swing over to Parco and pick up some merchandise?
The goods for sale are strangely pastel and innocent, despite the collaboration. Though there are only three characters from Junji Ito’s series on display. The first is naturally the self-healing and replicating Tomie, who’s most prominently featured with Sanrio mascot Hello Kitty. Though she’s also paired up with Pompompurin and My Melody and is wearing their iconic head gear. Whether that’s a red bow, a beret, or a bunny-eared bonnet.
The next two characters are the spirits of the intersection from the four volume manga Lovesickness Dead. That includes both Pretty Intersection Boy in Black, who gets a cameo with Lloromannic Berry, while Pretty Intersection Boy in White gets Cinnamoroll. Sorry, Cherry!
The pop-up up features all sorts of merchandise, including holographic stickers, keychains, coasters, tote bags, and t-shirts. I can almost guarantee that the tee featuring Tomie with Hello Kitt’s bow will sell out first. $30 USD is almost a steal!
Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that this pop up will make its way out of the country. Which is a shame, because the images are pretty iconic. The only thing I’d change is a little more spiral iconography and maybe a shark on metal legs terrorizing the Sanrio family. Fortunately, if you’re craving that Uzumaki touch, there’s an anime coming soon, too.
For more information on the event, check out Asobi Factory’s website here.