Shanghai launched a shock and awe campaign on Tuesday, December 18 with the unveiling of the Shanghai World Expo 2010 mascot, a plush, blue, square-headed creature with a Nike-style swoosh of hair and a body reminiscent of Gumby. We were vaguely reminded of bad dental hygiene commercials that involved people dressed as large molars ... our first reaction was to ask, "Where's Listerine Man?"

How does the mascot reflect Shanghai? Haibao, the name of the mascot, means "treasure of the sea" or "treasure of Shanghai." Its shade of blue reflects the "nearby" coast and its hair, a wave (no, not a gob of toothpaste and yes, we thought so too). So, if not an ode to Gumby, then what exactly is it? Haibao is meant to resemble the symbol "人," ren meaning "people." Calligraphy, got it. But here's the rub. The contest was open to the entire nation. Submissions came in from hopefuls aged 3 to 83 from home and abroad. And after 26,655 entries solicited over four months ... the best they could come up with was a deformed Teletubby?

It was a cunning move to solicit the input of the "人" in the design process, but in the end the contest was decided by 11 judges, experts in art, design, culture, sales, cartoons (and obviously slapstick comedy) who chose to go with local Shanghai design company Yokan Corporate Identity. The design was then "revised" over three months before reaching its current form. In true fashion, there is a doctrinal overtone to this image. According to Shanghai Expo, Haibao's two strokes supporting each other reflects that a harmonious society requires the support of the people (hence, ren)—surprise! At any rate, immediately after Haibao's debut, a variety of Haibao merchandise hit the shelves. Your very own Chinese Gumby will run you approximately RMB100.