Afternoon Drive with Jeff & Carly

Have you seen the mascots for the 2010 Olympics?  They were revealed the other day: Sumi, Quatchi and Miga.  If you haven’t seen them yet, check them out here.  They’re based on characters from aboriginal legends and myths, but they kind of look like Japanese anime.  For those of us unfamiliar with the mascots’ folkloric roots, they can be confusing.  Sumi’s wearing a hat that appears to have been constructed out of tin foil for communication with aliens.  What is Miga?  A cross between a penguin, a panda and Alfalfa from the Little Rascals?  And as for Quatchi, I get it - he’s a sasquatch (or a samsquanch, as Bubbles from the Trailer Park Boys would say), but his name rhymes with Crotchy - not good.

Still, they’re cute and cuddly-looking, so you know kids will like them, and that leads to lots of “merch” sales, so organizers and retailers will love them.  Perhaps they’ll draw attention to aboriginal culture, which is a good thing.  So is there a down side?  What do you think of the mascots?  Have your say in the reply section below.  We’ll conduct an informal poll.

MASCOTS is today’s bonus code.  You have until December 1st to log into your Jack Nation account and score 100 points - woo hoo!