Arale

If you remember Dr. Slump from the early 2000s—and you probably do if you grew up watching bizarre things on late-night German TV—you remember Arale as the character who had no business being as funny as she was. A female robot built by an insane professor, obsessed with poop jokes and old Godzilla films, somehow the most chaotic and lovable entity in the entire show. She didn’t have layers. She didn’t have depth. She just was, completely unfiltered, and that was the whole joke.

In Japan, the series never really died. It had a cult following that kept feeding itself, and Akira Toriyama’s design sense meant everything looked good even when it was deliberately stupid. The whole thing existed outside of normal time, which maybe explains why it’s still relevant decades later.

A Bathing Ape felt the same pull and decided to make a collection around the cast. Hoodies, long tees, t-shirts—the expected merchandise. The designs aren’t precious or clever, they’re just Arale and the others on fabric, which is exactly what they should be. No ironic distance. No winking at the camera. Just the character, solid and obvious.

I like that this exists. Not because it’s some brilliant creative decision, but because it’s honest—these are the things that mattered, these are the characters that stuck around, so let’s make them into something you can wear. It’s not about being cool. It’s not about making a statement. It’s about remembering what made you laugh when you were younger and not being embarrassed about it.