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Japanese Commercials Pit Six Pretty Women Against Spicy Cups of Soup

Pokka Sapporo Food & Beverage's line of spicy soups, Karaō ("King of Spice"), appeals to those who find the standard broths in instant soups too tame or bland. To promote the brand, Pokka Sapporo enlisted the efforts of six attractive ladies — voice actress Yū Serizawa, cosplayer Nekomu Otogi, actress Rena Takeda, gravure idol Anna Konno and idols You Kikkawa and Minami Sengoku — some of whom like spicy food, while others not so much. The commercials' tagline is "Be Moe with Spiciness."

Yū Serizawa (Pretty Rhythm Rainbow Live, Dog & Scissors, PriPara) puts her voice acting chops to good (?) use by pretending the soup is, in turn, her big brother, her upperclassman, and her "lord" (master, as if she were a maid).

Nekomu Otogi eats her soup while surrounded by heaters — and while wearing a catgirl costume.

Rena Takeda (Assassination Classroom, Prison School) says she doesn't like spicy food, so her task is to eat the soup without changing her expression. She doesn't do very well, but in the end she says she did better than she thought.

Anna Konno says she doesn't sweat much, so the producers make her exercise, wear a gray shirt, and drink the spicy soup to bring on the perspiration.

You Kikkawa and Minami Sengoku get along well in real life, so they are enlisted in a classic Japanese comedy bit: ninin baori, where two people wear the same coat and one manipulates the other, usually feeding them.

While the women in the commercials all eat one flavor — yukgaejang, a beef and vegetable soup from Korea — Karaō is also available in tom yam kung (Thai shrimp soup) and green curry flavors. Each soup costs 160 yen ($1.42).

[Via moca]