10 Forgotten Sanrio Characters

When people talk about Sanrio, they almost always think of the big stars like Hello Kitty, My Melody, and Cinnamoroll. These kawaii icons are everywhere, and yes, they deserve the love they get.

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1. Wee Marylou Was Too Soft to Stand Out
2. Fun Come Alive Was Tied to One Brand
3. Boo Gey Woo Stayed a Small Story
4. Gimmefive Was Too Different
5. Culture Shock Was Too Complex
6. Youkai Kids Was in the Wrong Era
7. Okigaru Friends Didn't Have a Star Member
8. Pink no Corisu Suddenly Disappeared
9. Nemukko Nyago Was Outshined by Gudetama
10. Pop’n Berry Was a Short Collab

But Sanrio’s world is so much bigger than that. Over the years, this kawaii Japanese company created around 450 characters with cute stories, colorful personalities, and even big dreams of becoming the next fan favorite.

Some were popular for a short time. Some had strong support at the start. Others quietly appeared, then slowly faded away. Today, let’s take a quick trip back in time and discover the forgotten Sanrio Characters waiting to be rediscovered!

1. Wee Marylou Was Too Soft to Stand Out

Wee Mary Lou (うぃーめりーるー) is a gentle little girl who loves ribbons more than anything in the world. Her room is filled with them, and she treats every ribbon like a treasure. Because she was so kind, a ribbon fairy came to visit her one day and gave her a gigantic ribbon as a thank-you gift. From then on, Wee Marylou and the fairy became close friends.

Wee Mary Lou appeared in Sanrio materials around 1980 and was mostly seen in early Sanrio merchandise and catalogs. Her design was sweet and soft. However, around this time, Hello Kitty was becoming more popular because of her simple design and strong branding. Wee Marylou couldn’t compete with that, and she slowly faded into the background.

2. Fun Come Alive Was Tied to One Brand

A group of sporty, stylish bears, Fun Come Alive (ふぁんかむあらいぶ) studies at the Los Angeles Bears Academy on the West Coast of the United States. They love teamwork, sports, and Ivy League fashion. These bears are full of energy and friendship.

They aren’t just cute characters in stationery, though. They were so popular back in the early ‘80s that they were chosen as ambassadors for Hyakujushi Bank. Many promotional items were made using their designs. However, when the bank replaced them with new mascots in the late ‘90s, Fun Come Alive quietly disappeared.

3. Boo Gey Woo Stayed a Small Story 

Boo Gey Woo (ぶーぎーうー) are a group of three little pigs who live in a small rural town in the United States. But instead of building their own houses, they built and opened a restaurant! Boo is the oldest brother and the main cook. Gey is the youngest and loves eating, especially croquettes. Woo is the caring older sister and the face of the restaurant.

They appeared mainly in the mid-1980s and were last seen in older Sanrio catalogs. While their story was cute and homey, it did not stand out as strongly as other Sanrio characters, who had a clearer and more modern personality.

4. Gimmefive Was Too Different

Created in 1985, Gimmefive (ぎみーふぁいぶ) loves sports, teamwork, and friendship. They play baseball, soccer, and rugby, all with matching uniforms. They’re a group of sports-themed human boys, which is different from most of the Sanrio icons who are animal-based and kawaii. You might think they’d be more popular because of their uniqueness, but maybe this difference isn’t really what the Sanrio fans were looking for.

5. Culture Shock Was Too Complex

One of Sanrio’s most detailed and story-rich characters, Culture Shock (かるちゃーしょっく) follows two samurai, Yumenosuke and Tetsunoshin. Together, they traveled from late Edo-era Japan to Paris because they wanted to experience “culture shock!” There, they learned about Western culture and wanted to share it with Japan.

Although these two are regarded as a duo character, they get individual merch with their own stories. Tetsunoshin is kind and dedicated but a bit stubborn, especially when it comes to learning new things. He’s also usually seen in traditional samurai clothing. 

Yumenosuke, on the other hand, is always curious and excited to discover new things. He likes wearing a mix of Japanese and Western-style clothes.

Their story was told through Sanrio goodies and publications like the Sanrio newspaper, Strawberry News. They appeared throughout 1985 and 1986, and Sanrio hoped they would become very popular, especially with high school students. The company even hoped Culture Shock would be Sanrio’s new face. However, they were never strong sellers. Culture Shock didn’t rank well in character polls and stopped releasing collections by the late 1980s.

6. Youkai Kids Was in the Wrong Era

This group of mythical creatures from Sanrio came from spooky legends, but they’re not scary at all! Youkai Kids (ようかいきっず) dream of growing up to become strong and respected “yokai” or supernatural beings. For now, they attend Yokai School, where they are all students in the Fireball Class.

When they first appeared, the mix of cute and spooky was not something most Sanrio fans were looking for at the time. Back then, sweeter characters were more popular. It would be years later when spooky-cute characters like Kuromi and Hanamaruobake became popular. Youkai Kids simply arrived a little too early.

7. Okigaru Friends Didn't Have a Star Member

Another group of cuties created by Sanrio is the Okigaru Friends (おきがるふれんず), with O-chan, an anthropomorphized dog, as the main character. Other characters are Ki-chan the cat, Gan-chan the bear, Run-chan the rabbit, Furen-chan the penguin, and Zun-chan the panda. Their names were chosen through a public contest held by the Hello Kitty Fan Club, and the first part of each name comes together to spell “Okigaru Friends!”

When the group first appeared in 1997, they were popular with older fans like students and office workers, not just kids. They started strong and reached 10th place in the 2003 Sanrio Character Awards. However, it can be harder for a group to stay popular unless one member becomes a breakout star, and sadly, that never happened here.

8. Pink no Corisu Suddenly Disappeared

Also known as Pinkuruchan, this kawaii pink squirrel is a princess from the planet Pinkuru. Pink no Corisu (ピンクのこりすピンクルちゃん) has a magical flower with a diamond on her head, which is used to make flowers bloom. Pink no Corisu loves to play pranks and is always full of energy. She is very curious and can easily make friends with anyone.

Did you know that Pink no Corisu was once extremely popular? She even ranked 9th place in the 1999 Sanrio Character Ranking. But even with that success, she suddenly disappeared. There was no clear ending to her story, and many fans still wonder why she was not continued.

9. Nemukko Nyago Was Outshined by Gudetama

Nemukko Nyago (ねむっこにゃーご) is a sweet tabby cat boy who loves sleeping more than anything. His favorite item is his super-soft cushion, and when he is awake, he enjoys lying around with friends. Nemukko is very easygoing and tries not to worry too much about little things.

He appeared briefly in the early 2000s in Sanrio merchandise and character rankings. Later, Gudetama became the face of lazy characters, which pushed Nyago out of the spotlight.

10. Pop’n Berry Was a Short Collab

Does Pop’n Berry (ぽっぷんべりー) look familiar, like you know you’ve seen it somewhere, but you can’t figure out where? That’s because its design comes from two of the most well-known Japanese companies, Sanrio and Bandai. This colorful trio of puppies, who are also fruit fairies, looks like a mix of Jewelpets and Pretty Cure fairies.

Pop’n Berry appeared in Kitty’s Paradise, starred in its own flash game, and was part of a fortune-telling game called Pop’n Berry no Fruits Parfait Uranai. But even with these fun appearances, it did not last very long. Being a collaboration may have made it harder for them to continue once the partnership ended. As Sanrio shifted its focus back to characters it fully owned, Pop’n Berry quietly faded away.

As we come to the end, it’s clear that Sanrio is famous for its big stars, but these forgotten Sanrio characters show that there are many stories worth remembering. Who knows? One day, a few of these characters might come back and surprise everyone.

Which forgotten Sanrio character caught your eye the most? Or did any of them bring back a childhood memory? Let’s have a nostalgic chat in the comments below!