Halloween always comes early, especially if you attend this city’s oyster festival. Five years of waiting was worth it to be discovered by attendees and the internet alike, see how this oyster costume finally became the nightmare of your fever dream.
It took a bit of time, but it was only when a recent guest of the Halifax Oyster Festival in Nova Scotia posted a tweet, commenting on the chilling appearance of the festival’s mascot.
Looking at the mascot, it was easy to see why the character got the feedback it did. With almost thirteen or fourteen eyes on a gray bumpy exterior and a vacant soulless expression, who wouldn’t shiver? Many of the festival goers and people on the internet felt exactly that, creeped out to the core.
People organizing this festival are surprised it took five years to get this sort of recognition. Even with a two-year hiatus, this mascot Pearl appeared in 2017 and was followed up by the debut of her male partner Earl.
Don’t look too closely at the biological logic behind these roles, technically it’s weird to assign these mascots genders because oysters have both male and female reproductive organs, and oysters can switch roles throughout their life. So why did these creators create a male and female oyster? It probably gives the oyster characters more…human qualities…if there could be any human traits at all. We know cuteness sells, so it’s interesting to see what the designer did a hard right turn away from traditional, approachable appearances. Even though these oyster costumes could be on the set of a horror movie, we can at least say that the creators of these mascots were trying to create a bit of depth and… pizzazz. I’m not sure if I’d want to eat oysters after looking at these mascots though…
The internet craze over the frightening mascots has created an interest in the upcoming festival, and ticket sales have increased. Whether it’s negative press or not, shocking images do sell!