Middle-Aged Man Trading Cards Go Viral in Rural Japan Town

Children in a small Japanese town are obsessively collecting trading cards featuring local elderly men rather than popular fantasy creatures, helping bridge generational gaps in an aging rural community.

In Kawara, Fukuoka Prefecture, the 'Ojisan TCG' (Middle-aged Man Trading Card Game) features 28 local men with assigned elemental types and battle stats. The collection includes a former fire brigade chief and a prison officer-turned-volunteer whose card has become so sought-after that children request his autograph.

Created by Eri Miyahara of the Saidosho Community Council, the initiative has doubled participation in town events. 'We wanted to strengthen the connection between children and older generations,' Miyahara told Fuji News Network. 'So many kids are starting to look up to these men as heroic figures.'

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