Chim Pom's 'Super Rat' Exhibit: Taxidermied Pikachus (VIDEO)

So! Here's one way to deal with a city rat problem. A Japanese performance art collective called Chim Pom used nets to catch rats off Tokyo's Center Gai street -- known as "super rats" for their supposed ability to withstand human-made poison. Then they taxidermied the rats, painted them yellow, and stuck wires in their tails. Voila! Real life (dead rat) Pikachus! Gah.

For those not familiar, Pikachu is a species designed for the "Pokemon" media line, which includes video games, manga and an anime series that stars Pikachu and other Pokemon. Plus the backpacks. Never forget the backpacks. Pikachu's catchphrases range from the cute (piKAchu) to the unbearably cute (pika-piKA chu). Amidst all this cuteness, though, is the dirty secret the members of Chim Pom don't skirt: "Pikachu is also a rat."

Highlighting the latent creepy ratness in an agressively adorable overlord is exactly what Japanese art collectives should be doing. There's something very Emperor's New Clothes about it. As in, Pikachu is the Emperor, being a rat equals being naked, and Chim Pom is totally the little boy who speaks truth to power. In an interview with Ping Mag, Chim Pom member Ushiro said they're also commenting on "the type of girls that hang around Center Gai" dressed up as Pikachus. These girls are most likely tweens and sorta harmless. But also...they dress up as Pikachus. Soooooo yeah. Boo that type of girl!

Chim Pom slapped the exact right title on their taxidermied Pikachu project ("Super Rat") and released it just in time for the filming of Pharrell's Tokyo documentary for Palladium shoes. What timing! And now we've got a behind-the-scenes clip on the making of. Watch out for the rats.

WATCH:

Comments

[Bor Zoi]

11:32 PM on 10/27/2011

Curiously, this is still more dignified and respectful of the dead than The Bodies exhibits.

[oberlinkay91]

09:38 PM on 10/26/2011

umm.......okay to each their own I guess

[VinyaLulz]

05:13 PM on 10/26/2011

except Pikachu is a mouse pokemon, not a rat :/ There's a big difference between the two...soooo...their message is kinda idiotic.

[ETV444]

04:40 PM on 10/26/2011

Kinda cute.... makes you not hate rats....

[burtongrl]

11:24 AM on 10/26/2011

Weird, artist and concept...very weird

[lite9389]

08:31 PM on 10/25/2011

BIZZZARRRRRRRRRRRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[see-ellen2001]

08:17 PM on 10/25/2011

My pet Jack is now traumatized...I think he caught sight of my iPad. I find this really grotesque.

[Annette Hammond]

06:09 PM on 10/25/2011

Weirdos!

[EmpressT]

05:09 PM on 10/25/2011

Poor rats...

[ginausa]

03:55 PM on 10/25/2011

Those are super rats? Please.. I had a rat here in Detroit run under my car and it was the size of my 40 pound dog! It was so huge and black and it zoomed under my car and sat there. I had to run to my car, jump in real fast and I was in such a hurry to close the door I slammed it on my ankle! lol The door bounced off it and I screamed, pulled my leg in and shut the door. UGH! Rats the size of dogs! Can you imagine? All because the guy who lived in the last house on the block was a horder. There wasn't that term coined for those types of people back in the 80's so they were called PACK RATS. That's exactly what he was packing... RATS! Ok, the Pikachu rat at the end of that video was funny but at the same time it's pretty nasty! lol

[jnuntz]

03:30 PM on 10/25/2011

If they think thats a 'super" rat because of it's size, they have never seen a rat from Milwaukee!

[BigWillyG]

04:02 PM on 10/25/2011

Yeah or ship's rats. My dad has pics from the navy of ship's rats the size of a fat house cat. Pretty sure they're twice the size of most purse dogs.

[Rafael Perez]

03:33 AM on 10/26/2011

raichu?

[BigWillyG]

03:18 PM on 10/25/2011

I wonder what animal you're stuff and turn into a charmander?

[BigWillyG]

03:55 PM on 10/25/2011

You'd not you're. Again I wish there was an edit function.

[raanghaus]

02:43 PM on 10/25/2011

PETA!!!!!

[tumorimmunologist]

02:15 PM on 10/25/2011

PIKACHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[TrotskyMemo]

02:14 PM on 10/25/2011

Another world over there in the East. That's all I can say.