Two icons will meet when Nickelodeon and Johnny Lau, the creator of Mr. Kiasu, collaborate on a coffee table book that features everyone’s favourite yellow sponge, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Singaporean comic figure, Mr. Kiasu. To celebrate 20 years of SpongeBob SquarePants, the coffeetable book is a localised tribute to the number-one kids’ animated series on TV and titled ‘When Mr. Kiasu Meets SpongeBob SquarePants’. This will launch at the Singapore Comic Con, held on 7 – 8 December 2019.
Conceptualised by Nickelodeon and Lau, the book features the unique illustrative style of Lau who blends the two characters into each other’s world. Bikini Bottom will meet Singapore in this clash of worlds, when SpongeBob runs into Mr. Kiasu and both embark on an epic adventure.
Dennis Tan, Vice President, Brand & Retail Marketing Asia Pacific, Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products said, “To continue to commemorate SpongeBob’s 20th Anniversary, we wanted to partner an artist to highlight SpongeBob’s influence on pop culture through a distinctively Asian lens. This partnership with Mr. Kiasu is all that and more. It juxtaposes SpongeBob with the truly local Mr. Kiasu but also shows what they have in common – imagination, humour and a whole lot of heart – that makes this combination compelling for fans.”
“As a pop culture enthusiast and a longtime fan of SpongeBob, I couldn’t be happier to re-imagine him with Mr. Kiasu and create a unique take on SpongeBob in Asia,” said Johnny Lau.
The concept mashup will also extend into licensed merchandise ranging from apparel to home décor items, designed by local creator and retailer Meykrs. Look out for tees, pouches, notebooks, washi tape, cushion covers, coasters etc. which are priced from S$4.90 – S$24.90.
The ‘When Mr Kiasu Meets SpongeBob SquarePants’ coffeetable book is a 64-page full-colour edition priced at S$18.90, published by Shogakukan Asia. The book and licensed merchandise will launch exclusively at the Shogakukan Asia booth (C6) and SpongeBob x Mr Kiasu booth (C4) respectively at the Singapore Comic Con.
Fans can also get their books autographed by Lau, who will conduct fan-signing on both days. Thereafter, the coffeetable book will be available at leading bookstores from 9 December onwards. The merchandise will retail at Area65 and VivoCity Toys“R”Us.
