In a rather odd piece of news, the fictional Pokémon character Pikachu has been appointed as an ambassador to promote the Japanese city of Osaka.
Perhaps, Ash Ketchum’s trusty pal does succeed in this new role, Legendary’s next live-action Pokémon movie will be Politician Pikachu.
There is a reason for this odd brace of appointments, with the Japanese government roping in Pikachu and Hello Kitty to support a specific campaign.
It will be interesting to see if the Japanese government’s decision to employ these iconic creatures as official ambassadors will pay off, with regards to the World Expo.