Hisato Inoue and the fish who wanted to be a hero

Half fish, half boy, born under Halley's Comet — four decades in Hello Kitty's shadow, today an icon of a generation that values authenticity over perfection.

He was born under Halley's Comet. He dreams of becoming a hero. He's an aspiring comedian, has a romance with Sayuri the octopus, and eats shrimp. Hangyodon — half fish, half boy, created by Hisato Inoue for Sanrio in 1985 — was for decades one of the brand's more forgotten characters. Until now. Gen Z rediscovered him and made him an icon of that particular energy: cute, a little clumsy, decidedly imperfect. And that's exactly why he's impossible to ignore.

According to the official legend, Hangyodon appeared when the seal on a mysterious scroll in a temple storehouse was broken by the approaching Halley's Comet. Inoue designed his round eyes and full lips after his own face — which may explain why the character is so personal and so hard to classify.

Ugly cute and Gen Z

Hangyodon was never classically pretty — and that's exactly what Gen Z loved. The “adorably ugly” aesthetic, a mix of cuteness and strangeness, resonates with a generation that values authenticity over perfection. He dreams of becoming a hero, but his plans to save the world regularly end comically. He's a lonely romantic who can't talk about his feelings; he loves humour, but can be shy. He's a character with flaws — and that's why he speaks to us so much.

A comeback after 40 years

In 2023 a campaign supporting Hangyodon in the Sanrio Character Ranking exploded on TikTok. He took 7th place with almost 1.84 million votes, and in 2024 he was eighth. For a character who spent decades in Hello Kitty's shadow, it's a triumph — driven by fans who see in him something that can't be bought: character.

Follow: Hangyodon World · Sanrio