Subway Japan Subman

Image from Subway Japan.

Anthropomorphic mascots are pretty common all over the world. Mr. Peanut was one of the earliest in my recollection. I'm guessing he wasn't created in a time when graphic design and marketing were as sophisticated as they are now. These days, companies have the chance to do surveys and focus groups to test the impact of an image on the market before they unleash it upon the unsuspecting population. For that reason, Subway Japan's mascot surprises me.

I have to say that I am more than a little disturbed at the idea of a bun with abs and pecs. I'm not sure what that's creepier than one with appendages and a face, but it just seems weird that muscles are being carved into bread. Even if one thinks that muscular baked goods are no weirder than those that can smile, the commercial featuring their mascot visiting the sandwich shop he represents reveals that most appalling of behaviors - cannibalism.

Subway Japan Coarse Ground Sausage Sandwich and Mos Lettuce Burger (product information)

Subway has decided that the best way to manage the super hot summer is to offer up a big old wiener sandwich. Why go for some cool cold cuts on a bed of veggies when you can eat a hot sausage with cream cheese sauce that weighs in at 445 calories. I'm not suggesting that Subway is always the epitome of healthy eating, but that is the way they sell themselves. I'd think it'd be better to opt for something lighter for summer than a bit of sausage.

Mos Burger, on the other hand, is offering a "lettuce burger" to allow the Japanese market to embrace low carb living. You can substitute lettuce, iceberg, of course, for the bun on several different burgers (fish, beef, chicken, teriyaki chicken, pork cutlet). Though I recognize the nutritional value of a bun is pretty much zero and that this is a better choice from that viewpoint, to me, a burger is not a burger unless it comes between two starched planes.