But one Japanese man may have temporarily taken the crown in this category: He spent $22,000 on a hyper-realistic, full-size wolf suit to realize his childhood dream of becoming an animal. Read on to find out who he is, what it took to realize his lupine fantasy, and why he’s not the first.
1 Costume Modeled on Timber Wolf
The man, who hasn’t been identified, spent five figures on the full-body suit and was said to be “delighted,” according to the Telegraph. The gray-and-white costume of a timber wolf was created by Zeppet Workshop, a company that specializes in cinema-grade models, costumes and animatronics. “At the final fitting, I was amazed at my transformed self in the mirror,” he said. “My order to look like a real wolf walking on hind legs was difficult, to say the least, but the complete suit looked exactly like what I imagined.”
2 Why He Did It
“Because of my love for animals since childhood and some realistic animal suits appearing on TV, I dreamed of being one someday,” he told the Telegraph. “Thanks to the studio, one of my childhood dreams has come true.” Representatives for Zeppet said the customer and creators looked at pictures of wolves in consultation on the construction process, which took 50 days. The man visited the company for fittings and adjustments. “It only took about three days from the final fitting to the delivery, but the three days felt very long,” he said. “It was a kind of excitement I have not felt for a long time.”
3 Commenters React
Commenters on the Telegraph’s site had some fun with the story. “I think he looks pretty foxy in it!,” said one. “He would not last long if he were to wear that suit in the US,” said another. “I had a dream as a child that one day I would resemble a portly South American Sloth,” said one man. “Unfortunately it’s come true.” “We are a highly imaginative and inventive species some members of which can too easily tip into madness,” offered another commenter. “Great suit though!
4 Previous Customer a Lassie Fan
Zeppet has previously helped a dog devotee realize his dream of becoming a human-sized collie. The Japanese man, known by the online handle Toko-san, paid $15,000 last April for the fluffy, eerily realistic four-legged suit, which took 40 days to make. “I thought that a big animal close to my size would be good—considering that it would be a realistic model, so I decided to make it a dog,” the man said. “There are restrictions, but you can move in it. However, if you move too much, it will not look like a dog.”
5 Human-Dog Transmogrification Tricky ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb
The company said making a human’s body match the physiology of a dog took extra effort. “The skeleton of a dog can be reproduced on the skeleton of a human,” a Zeppet employee said. “Since the structure of the skeleton is very different, we spent a lot of time studying how to make it look like a dog. In addition, we collect photographs taken from various angles so that the beautiful coat of the collie can be reproduced and devised so that the coat will flow naturally.”
Toko-san exhibited his purchase on social media, including on his YouTube channel in a video titled “I tried to become a collie.” If the 1983 NBC series Manimal—in which a human secret agent had the ability to transform himself into various animals—had lasted longer than eight weeks, this might be an even bigger industry.
