Yukkuri

“Yukkuri shite itte ne!!!” (ゆっくりしていってね！！！, lit. “Take it slow!”),¹⁾ or Yukkuri (ゆっくり), is a Touhou Project-related AA phenomenon that went viral around June 2, 2007,²⁾ though the original artwork was initially made in April 18, 2004,³⁾ based on a work by “Deep Takezaki” (Ｄプ竹崎).

As people find them cute, many derivative creatures have emerged. Since then, Yukkuri have managed to maintain relevance through playthrough videos.⁴⁾ In terms of copyright, they are 'free to use', as long as you comply with the Touhou Project derivative guidelines.⁵⁾

History

In 2003, Touhou Kourindou was announced on December 4, 2003 and the preview generated discussions on Reimu Hakurei's design, which “Deep Takezaki” (Ｄプ竹崎) made text artwork of, and this was posted in the “Touhou Series General Thread” on 2channel's /gsaloon/ board by December 5, 2003.⁶⁾ In the following week, it was edited to have knives,⁷⁾ then another user made a 'big head' version on April 18, 2004.⁸⁾

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　　　|_______,く__/_,,|,___ヽ___>　　　 []　[]
　　　　　　　｀'~ｲ_ト~ヽ_ゝ~´
　　　　　　　 i´__ノ　　(__｀）

^{The original text art of Reimu, based on the early previews of Touhou Kourindou in Colorful PUREGIRL.}

　　　　　　　　 ,---、, --、,---,
　　　　　　　　,'ゝ-´、⌒,'´-´、_ゝ
　　　　　　　/==--　　　　 　　ヽヽ,　　　　　　　
　　　　　　 ,ｲ 人_,＼iﾉ人／|_入ゝ i　 、 | ,　　
　　　　　　　ヽi i.ｲ[)　　 [~)ｱi ｲ.ヽ | ─,　 ─ 
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　　　　　　　　 | |｀' -,　-,イ/| |　(|　/ /i
　　　　　　　　 ﾚ' ／<Ｖ>＼ .ﾚ'　　./ ,ﾉ.|
　　　　　　　　 ,ヽゝi 入　/／ヽ、_/ ._i /
　　　　　　　　,く_　L_λ__ヽ、　　//ヽ/
. 、-------.,─'_ｲ'/ /Tヽ、ヽ,ト´ノ
　ヽ、～～～|￣,く__/_,,|,___ヽ___>
　　　￣￣￣ 　｀'~ｲ_ト~ヽ_ゝ~´
　　　　　　　　　 i´__ノ　　(__｀）

^{The edited text art featuring Reimu wielding two knives, whose head would serve as the basis for Yukkuri Reimu.}

However, the head didn't have any notoriety until June 2, 2007, when it started to appear in Touhou Suimusou thread on Shitaraba's Touhou Series Board.⁹⁾ Some users made manjuu bun or Kirby jokes,¹⁰⁾ then it exploded into a board-wide phenomenon by June 14, 2007 as people started customizing it.¹¹⁾ Eventually, the Yukkuri Marisa was made, and the “yukkuri shiteitte ne” phrase was born.

　　 _,,....,,_　 ＿人人人人人人人人人人人人人人人＿
-''":::::::::::::｀''＞　　　ゆっくりしていってね！！！　　　＜
ヽ:::::::::::::::::::::￣^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^Ｙ^￣
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　|::::ﾉ　　　ヽ､ヽr-r'"´　　（.__　　　　,´　_,, '-´￣￣｀-ゝ 、_ イ、
_,.!イ_　　_,.ﾍｰｧ'二ﾊ二ヽ､へ,_7　　　'r ´　　　　　　　　　　ヽ、ﾝ、
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r-'ｧ'"´/　 /!　ﾊ 　ハ　 !　　iヾ_ﾉ　i　ｲ　iゝ、ｲ人レ／_ルヽｲ i　|
!イ´ ,' |　/__,.!/　V　､!__ﾊ　 ,'　,ゝ　ﾚﾘｲi (ﾋ_] 　　 　ﾋ_ﾝ ).| .|、i .||
`! 　!/ﾚi'　(ﾋ_] 　　 　ﾋ_ﾝ ﾚ'i　ﾉ　　　!Y!""　 ,＿__, 　 "" 「 !ﾉ i　|
,'　 ﾉ 　 !'"　 　 ,＿__,　 "' i .ﾚ'　　　　L.',.　 　ヽ _ﾝ　　　　L」 ﾉ| .|
　（　　,ﾊ　　　　ヽ _ﾝ　 　人! 　　　　 | ||ヽ、　　　　　　 ,ｲ| ||ｲ| /
,.ﾍ,）､　　）＞,､ _____,　,.イ　 ハ　　　　レ ル｀ ー--─ ´ルﾚ　ﾚ´

This was also a turbulent time, with Niconico and Pixiv on the rise, and their popularity was cemented with an illustration by “Maso” (まそ),¹²⁾¹³⁾ ranked tenth on Goo's /gline/-related survey,¹⁴⁾ placed third in the 2008 Internet Buzzword Awards,¹⁵⁾ and there was even a The☆Net Star! segment that interviewed ZUN in 2009, but he couldn't really say much as the phenomenon spontaneously happened without him.¹⁶⁾

Derived concepts

Yukkuri Live Play

Yukkuri Live Play (ゆっくり実況プレイ, Yukkuri Jikkyō Purei), also translated as 'Yukkuri Let's Play', refers to a genre of gameplay commentary videos that may feature Yukkuris and synthetic voices (e.g. SofTalk). They have been cited as a major contributor to Touhou Project's long-lasting popularity.¹⁷⁾ In a way, this genre can be construed as a precursor to the Virtual YouTuber trend.

Yukkuri Cruelty

Yukkuri Cruelty (ゆっくり虐待, Yukkuri Gyakutai), or Yukkuri Abuse (Abyuse),¹⁸⁾ is a Genocide Boom-type backlash to its popularity. It usually consists of overtly detailed Yukkuri that aims to 'dehumanize' them, thus justifying a sadistic urge to kill or torture them, but they usually zone themselves off with proper tags, unlike the international community's tendency to just blend and mismash everything together.¹⁹⁾ Oh well.

Osatou Yukkuri

Osatou Yukkuri (おさとうゆっくり), or OsaYuku (おさゆく), is a special type of Yukkuri with limbs that was drawn by the mangaka, “Osatou” (おさとう), on May 26, 2009²⁰⁾ who later compiled his comics in a video.²¹⁾ However, most people may be familiar with the four-panel comic by “Tani Takeshi” (たにたけし), who acquired an interest in them around March 15, 2010.²²⁾²³⁾ now updating irregularly.²⁴⁾

Yukkuri Farce

Yukkuri Chaban(Farce) (ゆっくり茶番),²⁵⁾ also known as Yukkuri Chaban(Farce)-geki(Play) (ゆっくり茶番劇),²⁶⁾ is a genre of animated videos where Yukkuris perform a comedic skit, though it is technically scripted. This genre would become the center of a trademark registration controversy in 2022–23,²⁷⁾ like Nomaneko and Takara Giko. Outside of that, the genre is very Japanese, so it isn't really well known outside of Japan.

List of notable Yukkuris

This chart is old, but serviceable.

Source Character(s)	Tag(s)	Pixiv	Nico	Additional Notes
Reimu Hakurei	ゆっくり霊夢 Yukkuri Reimu	[p]	[s]
Reimu Hakurei	ゆっくりれいむ Yukkuri Reimu	[p]	[s]
Marisa Kirisame	ゆっくり魔理沙 Yukkuri Marisa	[p]	[s]
Marisa Kirisame	ゆっくりまりさ Yukkuri Marisa	[p]	[s]
Cirno	チルノフ Chirunov	[p]	[s]	A derivative of Aramaki Scarchinov whose name can also be translated as: Cirnov, Chirunofu, Cirnofu, Chirunof, Cirnof. That aside, she wants to eat Udon.
Patchouli Knowledge	ヨコハマパチュリー Yokohama Pachuri	[p]		Refer to Yokohama Sakuya's notes.
Sakuya Izayoi	ヨコハマサクヤ Yokohama Sakuya	[p]	[s]	“Yokosaku” (ヨコサク) for short. She was born in late March 2009²⁸⁾ and her expression is a reference to Yokohama Rubber's memetic “Smile-drive” mascot. Anyways, she smiles and normally doesn't speak.
Remilia Scarlet	れみりゃ Remirya	[p]	[s]	She says things like “Uu~! Uu~!” (うー！うー！), “Remi☆lia☆u~!” (れみ☆りあ☆うー！), and “Rawr! I'm gonna eat you!”(ぎゃおー！たーべちゃうぞー！).²⁹⁾
Remilia Scarlet	うーぱっく U~ Pakku	[p]	[s]	This is a box, presumably called the “Uu~♪ Package”.
Letty Whiterock	ゆっくりレティ Yukkuri Letty	[p]	[s]
Alice Margatroid	整形アリス Seikei Alice	[p]	[s]	“Plastic Surgery Alice”. She came from /gline/ and her name refers to her peculiar looks.
Youmu Konpaku	ゆっくり妖夢 Yukkuri Youmu	[p]	[s]
Youmu Konpaku	ゆっくりみょん Yukkuri Myon	[p]	[s]
Tewi Inaba	ウザテイ Uzatei	[p]	[s]	Recommended viewing.
Reisen Udongein Inaba	うどんげ Udonge	[p]	[s]	Paired with Tewi, but often gets bullied. As a warning, this is also just normal Reisen's middle name.
	ゆどんげ Yudonge	[p]	[s]	Alternate tag. Less susceptible to being tagged with the actual Reisen Udongein Inaba.
	きもんげ Kimonge	[p]	[s]	The hideous, greedy, two-faced one.
Kaguya Houraisan	テルヨフ Teruyov	[p]	[s]	A derivative of Aramaki Scarchinov whose name can also be translated as: Teruyofu, Teruyof.
Yuuka Kazami	のうかりん Noukarin	[p]	[s]	The aunt-like Yukkuri who wears a straw hat and farms.
Nitori Kawashiro	にちょり Nichori	[p]	[s]	One variant of the Yukkuri Nitori looks horrifying to some people.
Aya Shameimaru	きめぇ丸 Kimeemaru	[p]	[s]	Her smug face was put on diagonally, thus the name. She is known for her condescending “Oo, kowai kowai” (おお、こわいこわい, lit. “Ooh, scary scary”).
	うぜぇ丸 Uzemaru	[p]	[s]	Kimeemaru's alternate name.
	あややぼん Ayayabon	[p]	[s]	A variant of “Kimeemaru” from a video series that was made by “Aobata” (青ばた) on August 8, 2008.³⁰⁾
	きめら丸 Kimeramaru	[p]	[s]	Kimeemaru, after some or many significant changes.
Shizuha Aki	静HARD ShizuHARD	[p]	[s]	Shizuha's portrait only comes out on Hard or Lunatic Mode of Touhou Fuujinroku. She used to be depicted as cranky due to the low popularity meme.
Sanae Kochiya	ゆっくり早苗 Yukkuri Sanae	[p]	[s]
Komeiji Sisters	男前古明地姉妹 Otokomae Komeiji Shimai	[p]	[s]	The “Handsome Komeiji Sisters” who wear suits.
Shou Toramaru	ゆっくり星 Yukkuri Shou	[p]	[s]

Notes

The usual synthetic voices for Yukkuri are SofTalk and AquesTalk.

External links

Yukkuri on the 2ch AA Illustration Project
Yukkuri on Pixiv Encyclopedia
Yukkuri + Kehihi Reimu on Niconico Encyclopedia
Yukkuri on Japanese Wikipedia
One Yukkuri Place (OYP) - Reluctant mention. The dictionary page may be useful.

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ascii, touhou related, yukkuri

¹⁾

The phrase's common translation is “take it easy!!!”, but it could also be rendered as “take it slow!!!”, “do it slowly!!!”, “take your time!!!”, etc.

²⁾ , ⁹⁾

"東方萃夢想　攻略・雑談スレ45" (May 28, 2007). Shitaraba /computer/6306/.

³⁾ , ⁸⁾

"糞符「東方シリーズ総合スッドレ 316/316」" (April 18, 2004). 2channel /gsaloon/.

⁴⁾

"Many learn about Touhou via Youtube then Nicovideo, usually through Let's Plays that feature Yukkuris, blobhead versions of Touhou chars." (August 9, 2017). Twitter.

⁵⁾

"【ゆっくり解説】真相解明！ゆっくりの歴史と著作権の真実" [3:09] (October 8, 2020). YouTube.

⁶⁾

"庫符「東方シリーズ総合スレッド 106/106" (December 5, 2003). 2channel /gsaloon/.

⁷⁾

"刹符「東方シリーズ総合スレッド 114/114」" (December 13, 2003). 2channel /gsaloon/.

¹⁰⁾

"東方萃夢想　攻略・雑談スレ47" (June 10, 2007). Shitaraba /computer/6306/.

¹¹⁾

"東方萃夢想　攻略・雑談スレ48" (June 14, 2007). Shitaraba /computer/6306/.

¹²⁾

"ゆっくりしていってね！！！" (February 2, 2008). 2ch AA Illustration Project.

¹³⁾

"東方・ToHeart2・アイマス　アキバの「ゆっくりしていってね！！！」" (March 4, 2008). Akiba Blog.

¹⁴⁾

"「いいえ、ケフィアです」「○○はわしが育てた」--印象に残るネットの「ガイドライン」ベスト30" (September 2, 2008). CNET.

¹⁵⁾

"ネット流行語大賞2008結果発表、金賞は福田元首相の「あなたとは違うんです」" (December 1, 2008). Gadget Communications.

¹⁶⁾

"NHK番組「ザ☆ネットスター」にE3外人4人組と東方「ゆっくりしていってね」が登場" (December 5, 2009). My Game News Flash.

¹⁷⁾

"Many learn about Touhou via Youtube then Nicovideo, usually through Let's Plays that feature Yukkuris, blobhead versions of Touhou chars." (August 9, 2017). @NForza26 on Twitter.

¹⁸⁾

Would this be considered animal cruelty, child abuse, or something else entirely? While 'abuse' is the common translation, I do wonder if translating it as 'cruelty' stirs any emotions or sets off a flag.

¹⁹⁾

These 'discussions' will usually cycle through some 'fucked-up Tamagotchi simulator', decade-old stuff, then somebody brings up the 'Koyukkuri' or 'Jissouseki' for the hundredth time. Yeah, real invigorating.

²⁰⁾

"「・・・・・・・・・」" (May 26, 2009). Pixiv

²¹⁾

"東方の皮を被った何か" (December 22, 2009). Niconico Douga.

²²⁾

"ダブルスポイラー記念【ネタバレ】" (March 15, 2010). Pixiv.

²³⁾

"烏" (March 19, 2010). Pixiv.

²⁴⁾

"【東方4コマ3283】仮装" (October 29, 2020). Pixiv.

²⁵⁾

“Chaban kyōgen” (茶番狂言, lit. “tea server's wild words”), later shortened to “chaban” (茶番), is a short nonsensical comedic skit performed by amateur actors. It originated during the Edo period where tea servers, or waiters, doubled as entertainment and performed a short kyōgen to humor the guests.

²⁶⁾

“Chaban-geki” (茶番劇, ~~lit. “tea server drama”~~) is best translated as “farce play” or “farce drama”.

²⁷⁾

"Breaking News: The Outcome of the 'Slow Commentary' Trademark Controversy - Dwango Releases Notice of Rejection Reasons" (November 22, 2023). Monolith Law Office.

²⁸⁾

"ゆっくりしていってね！！！！！！！！！！！" (March 26, 2009). Shitaraba /computer/41116/.

²⁹⁾

This line is actually spoken by Remilia in Stage 4 of Aya's scenario in Touhou Hisouten.

³⁰⁾

"あややぼん" (August 8, 2008). Niconico Douga.

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