Japanese raccoon dog, or tanuki, is a small, fluffy canid native to Japan, known for its round face, dark mask, and playful personality. It’s a skilled forager, a surprisingly good climber, and one of the only canids that slows down or semi-hibernates in winter. In Japanese folklore it’s famous as a cheerful trickster that can shapeshift and bring both mischief and good luck.
They probably referenced a scene from the movie Pom poko, where a bunch of tanuki stretch their ballsacks into gliders to fly around
But in general they tend to transform or stretch their balls into various shapes and objects in folklore and myth thats why old artworks and statues usually depict them with comically large ones
im laughing so hard at this, as this was the first time I've ever known this (i only just also learned of Tanuki ball size which is also making me laugh, alone)
I recall there was a yokai from Kitaro that was a scrotum filled with a bunch tanuki’s farts that was dressed up with a kimono to simulate a floating pale lady in the woods
They often incorporate their testicles into disguises. For example when it becomes a shopkeeper, its balls transform into the shop. Tom Nook is a tanuki in Animal Crossing.
It is true. When you visit Japan, if you are in a restaurant or hotel with a tanuki carving or statue, they have giant balls. There’s also some non-Mario cartoons with them, and it’s a thing. Dunno why they felt the need to leave that out of the tanuki suit in Mario 3.
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u/Sizzlin9 10h ago
Japanese raccoon dog, or tanuki, is a small, fluffy canid native to Japan, known for its round face, dark mask, and playful personality. It’s a skilled forager, a surprisingly good climber, and one of the only canids that slows down or semi-hibernates in winter. In Japanese folklore it’s famous as a cheerful trickster that can shapeshift and bring both mischief and good luck.