Youkai Watch

Youkai watch is a hugely popular anime and manga being shown in Japan that is rivalling the speed and spread of such other super popular cultural phenomenons like Pokemon and Yugioh.

Youkai Watch or Yokai Watch is a series of role-playing games developed and published by Level-5. The original game was released for the Nintendo 3DS in Japan on July 11, 2013, with a set of sequels, Yo-Kai Watch 2: Ganso and Honke, released on July 10, 2014, and then an expanded version of the sequels Yo-Kai Watch 2: Shin’uchi on December 13, 2014.

The background story of Youkai Watch goes a little something like this: One day, while searching for bugs in the woods in Sakura New Town (based on Tsukuba, Ibaraki), a boy named Keita Amano comes across a peculiar capsule machine next to a sacred tree. When he opens one of the capsules up, it brings forth a Youkai named ‘Whisper’, who gives Keita a device known as the Youkai Watch. Using this, Keita is able to identify and see various different Youkai that are haunting people and causing mischief. Joined by the cat Youkai Jibanyan, Keita and Whisper start making friends with all sorts of Youkai, which he can summon to battle against more ill-intentioned Youkai that happen to live in his town, haunting the residents and causing terrible trouble.

A ‘Youkai’ by the way is a Japanese word meaning ‘ghost’ or ‘phantom’, so a youkai watch allows the wearer to see these ghosts.

Youkai Watch Exercise

A competitor to Pokemon, or other such popular Japanese phenomenon aren’t exactly rare, but what makes Youkai watch so amazing is one of the ending credits songs going viral within Japan, you can view it below.

This song has become so widespread and well known in Japan that whenever the song is played as background music in shops, children immediately flock together and start singing and dancing along to the tune. It’s quite a hypnotic and catchy tune.

Youkai Watch Lyrics

It’s Lyrics are quite rude asking why one’s poop smells so bad and other silly things. So it’s a bit of a rude, crude song. But such is the nature of much of Japan’s pop media like this. The full lyrics are below in case you want to sing along. A full English Translation of the song can be read on the official website.

yo- deru yo- deru yo- deru
youkai deruken deraren ken
roire roire nakama ni roire
tomodachi daiji
youkai youkai youkai
watchi-chi!
kai kai kii kii
kui kui kei kei
koi koi youkai
watchi-chi!

kyou wa asa kara neboushita
yume no naka de wa okita no ni
doushite asa wa nemui n da?
doushite asa wa nemui n da?!
dowahaha!
yo u ka i no sei na no ne
sou nano ne
wocchi! ima nanji?
(ichi daiji)
whis!

yo- deru yo- deru yo- deru
youkai deruken deraren ken
roire roire nakama ni roire
tomodachi daiji
youkai youkai youkai
watchi-chi!
kai kai kii kii
kui kui kei kei
koi koi youkai
watchi-chi!

doushite ano ko ni furareta no
konna ni ikemen na no ni
doushite boku-chan furareta no?
doushite boku-chan furareta no?!
dowahaha!
yo u ka i no sei na no ne
sou na no ne
wocchi! ima nanji?
(kurai ze maji!)
whis!

yo- deru yo- deru yo- deru
youkai deruken deraren ken
roire roire nakama ni roire
tomodachi daiji
youkai youkai youkai
watchi-chi!
kai kai kii kii
kui kui kei kei
koi koi youkai
watchi-chi!

kyou wa piiman taberareta
itsumo wa zettai nokosu no ni
doushite piiman taberareta?
doushite piiman taberareta?!
dowahaha!
yo u ka i no sei na no ne
sou na no ne
wocchi! ima nanji?
(ikeru ze kono mi)
whis!

mou iccho
itte
miyo~u kai
doushite unchi wa kusai n da
tabeta mono wa kusakunai
doushite unchi wa pun pun pun?
doushite unchi wa pun pun pun?!
dowahaha!
yo u ka i no sei na no ne
sou na no ne
wocchi! ima nanji?
(kuso taimu!)
whis!

yo- deru yo- deru yo- deru
youkai deruken deraren ken
roire roire nakama ni roire
tomodachi daiji
youkai youkai youkai
watchi-chi!
kai kai kii kii
kui kui kei kei
koi koi youkai
watchi-chi!

In case you want to listen to the song again, here’s a Japanese school girl dancing and singing it.

If you search YouTube for “yōkai taisō odottemita” “I tried the Youkai exercise dance!” you will notice that a lot of users have posted their own dances.

Theres even famous Japanese tennis stars doing it