Gunma-chan wears many hats here, but one of the jobs he doesn’t do is police work. Perhaps he dreams of being a police man when he grows up, but for now, his horsey cousins have taken the reins (ba-dum-ching!)

Meet Joushu-kun & Miyama-chan, Gunma’s police force mascots. Gunma is of course famous for horses, and 上州 (Joushu) is the old name for the prefecture. Horsies in police uniforms is one of those things that may have seemed absolutely bonkers before moving here, but now makes perfect sense.

Kaze Pikapo and Ame Pikapo, protect and serve!

Speaking of absolutely bonkers, check out this epic list of police mascots from all over the country. Which one is the craziest?

There’s crime-fighting rice, crime-fighting mountains, and even a crime-fighting soccer ball! My favorite is the anthropomorphic gust of wind/rain drop combo, 風ぴかぽ (Kaze Pikapo)  and 雨ぴかぽ (Ame Pikapo). It’s so poetic! Don’t you feel safer already?

In other news, views and comments have been blowing up on our post about the 10,000 Free Tickets to Japan! We’ll be sure to let you guys know as soon as there’s any more info, especially when the applications go live! And don’t forget to tell us why you want to come to Japan!