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(CHINADAILY) Netizens have taken the title "ugliest monkey in history" from CCTV’s Year of the Monkeymascot, Kang Kang, and branded it on the main attraction at the Taipei Lantern Festivalvenue.
The "Fu Lu Monkey" ("Fu" means happiness and "Lu" means good fortune in English), is themascot for the upcoming Lantern Festival in Taipei's Flower Garden Park. Since "Fu Lu"shares a similar pronunciation to the word "gourd" in Chinese ("Hu Lu"), the lantern isdesigned in the shape of a gourd. At 14.2 meters in height, the giant lantern will be the firstattempt for local artists to undertake projection mapping on an irregular curved surface.
However, footage of the simulated light effect on the lantern prompted huge waves ofcriticism, with thousands of netizens calling it the "ugliest monkey" on earth.
"It's really super-ugly," wrote Sina Weibo user @Max Yan Liang. "Are you sure it is not a'Teletubby'?" said another user named @Gou Gouwanshenmeweibo. "Is it a competition forugliness after all? "asked Weibo user @0 Da Liaomao oZZ.
Many pointed out that the Taipei lamp saved Kang Kang embarrassment as the ugliestmonkey. CCTV’s mascot was criticized for its quirky look and color design.
"Compared with that Fu Lu Monkey, I finally realized that Kang Kang is much better," said@Chang Ci Yi Wang. "Hey, Kang Kang, you've finally got a brother!" wrote @ZhenchengdeHam.
"The appearance of Fu Lu Monkey largely relieves the pressure on another monkey - KangKang," said the 21st Century Newspaper.
Meanwhile, a series of funny versions of the Taipei monkey created by Internet usersprompted laughter online.
Facing the critics, Lan Shicong, the director of the Civil Affairs bureau of Taipei City, quicklyand positively responded. He invited visitors to take a look at this "ugliest yet funniest andmost creative lamp" on the festival day and said that the public comments on the design werelikely to be included in the final design to enhance interaction with audiences.
However, the story does not end easily. Recent humid weather in Taipei apparently made thepaint on the giant lantern peeled off, generating the assumption that the pattern may not beable to last until the festival.
The grand celebration for the Lantern Festival will be launched in Taipei's Flower GardenPark on Saturday when the "Fu Lu Monkey" will make its debut.
