Ever since the first time I laid eyes on the character Badtz Maru, I have always thought he was the coolest thing going in the Sanrio stable. My boy Tony T (Happy bday kid!!!) used to work at the Sanrio store in Aventura Mall (MIA represent) and hipped me to the bad ass penguin that made its home alongside such adorable mainstays as Hello Kitty, My Melody, The Twin Little Stars, Keropi the Frog, and Monkichi the Monkey. Now listen up... Sanrio has hundreds of characters (click here for a complete list), but none have the edge that Badtz posses. While most of the characters are cute and cuddly, Badtz is much darker and mischevious. This has lead to his immense popularity that has propelled right up to the top of the Sanrio character list. He is almost as recognizable as company spokes-character Hello Kitty... although people rarely know his name! His birthday is April Fools Day 1993, and he is one of the few characters that has his own subset of characters himself. He is often featured with Hana-Maru the seal, Pandaba the girl panda, and Pochi the watch dog (he is really an alligator... those crazy japanese!!!)So in honor of my boy Tony T of Stixfigure Clothing's bday yesterday and this event jogging my memories of Sanrio & Badtz, here are a few pics of Badtz to enjoy. Hope you like 'em! Who is your favorite Sanrio character? Tell us in the comment section below... we want to know!
