Meet our 2012 Olympic mascots

[davidn]

I don't know if America heard about this or not, but last year there was a huge uproar in Britain over the awful 2012 Olympics logo and either its nondescript nature or its resemblance to a fellatory Lisa Simpson (see diagram if unsure). Naturally nobody thought they could outdo that, but yesterday our Olympic mascots were revealed.


Wenlock and Mandeville

Out of the available options, they seem to have gone for the much-ignored but promising "Freudian monstrosity" theme. They were created to inspire school pupils and make sports appealing to them, and to continue the great British tradition of using children's entertainment as just an alternative to loading them up with a barrelful of hallucinogenic drugs and ensuring that they get a bit messed up in the head later on in life.

These cycloptic abominations aren't leftover monsters from Doctor Who, rejected by Steven Moffat for being too disturbing, but are alleged to have been created from the steel of the Olympic stadium and were brought to life by a rainbow, according to a rather Studio MAXish video. Each of them has London cab light on its head, and a camera in their single eye from which they unblinkingly watch the population and presumably exterminate any wrongdoers. Continuing the Matt Groening theme, though, many people are now pointing out their disturbing similarity to Kang and Kodos, the one-eyed aliens from The Simpsons.

Makes you proud to be British, doesn't it?

Comments

[kytheraen.livejournal.com]

Oh god. They do look like Kang and Kodos, don't they D:

[ethelfleda.livejournal.com]

Awe inspiring in the bad way.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

I still insist that the 2012 logo is that of the UK.

The first 2 is England (http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/Images/England_tcm19-7062.gif) (look at location of london)
the Zero is London (http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/Images/London_tcm19-6798.gif), hence location of the olympic rings.
The 1 is Wales (http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/Images/Wales_tcm19-7906.gif)
and the second 2 is made up of Northern Ireland (http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/Images/Northern%20Ireland_tcm19-46757.gif) and Scotland (http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/Images/Scotland_tcm19-6808.gif)
Obviously all of them are angular, a bit like the reporting scotland symbol.

Although even the organisers don't seem to see it.

[davidn]

I remember that it took me about ten years to realize what the Reporting Scotland logo was meant to be :)

That does make a lot of sense - I'd heard the explanation before, and it's a shame that the organizers don't see that, because it would have granted some sense back to the whole thing.

[ravenworks.livejournal.com]

I didn't even watch the whole thing, but that video has got to be flat-out the worst use of cel shading that I've ever seen.

[davidn]

I didn't even know what style it was trying to be. It looks to me like I'm viewing a video in Win 3.1 with a grossly insufficient colour depth.

[tamakun.livejournal.com]

I keep looking at that picture and I'm expecting a nose somehow floating inbetween the two mascots.

I think you've summed up all the amazingly creepy things about these mascots and the Olympic logo in one shot. Good show!

[crassadon.livejournal.com]

The owl from Vancouver 2010 kicks Wenlock's butt!

[davidn]

I have to concede this, yes.

[akuro.livejournal.com]

Ya think that's bad mascot design?
Let me introduce to you: the GERMAN police mascot for the World Soccer Cup of 2006!
http://www.polizei.bayern.de/content/1/4/4/0/1/logo_wm_2006_gruen_250x250.gif

[davidn]

It does look like it's about to devour my soul... and has it been remarked upon that the shading on the football makes it look unfortunately like he has a... well, a toothbrush moustache, at first glance?

[diarytypething.livejournal.com]

I will never again be able to look at that logo without seeing the blowjob. You have utterly ruined the Olympics for me by dragging the memory of some ancient Greek guys innocently meeting up for naked wrestling through the mud of sexual innuendo.

[ravenworks.livejournal.com]

Why is Wenlock's head shaped like an M, and Mandeville's head shaped like a pair of Ws?

[davidn]

Mandeville's head is meant to resemble the swooshes of the Paralympics logo (yes, I think it's fairly tenuous as well) - I really couldn't tell you about Wenlock!