A man in Japan going by Uncle Richardson adopted a ground squirrel named Koi from a friend. He then got two more ground squirrels named Don and Tama and a chipmunk named Pon. This was the most sense I could get from pasting his Japanese descriptions using Google translate. One fun except from his YouTube about section translated to, “This is an inconsistent and sloppy fantasy observation record that adds an old man’s delusions to the daily fun of squirrels (lol)”. But good storytelling transcends language, as does solid action sequences. For example, me trying to understand what’s happening in the last couple Fast & Furious movies even though I speak English.
If you look at Don and Koi’s first videos in 2020, they’re all cute and nicely made videos of cute squirrel babies.
But by 2023, Don and Koi have gone full Super Sayian – With frantic action, suspense, and thrills. And on top of the quality filming and editing, we have to give props to Richardson for taking his pet squirrels out to enjoy nature. And for being able to keep up with them while filming!
His Instagram posts are mainly to hype his full-length YouTube videos.
Then last month, he dropped a trailer for an upcoming heist thriller. From the clips and via Google Translate, it says it’s Koi’s first birthday, and he wakes up to find his sunflower seeds and his origami gift stolen…
He just made the trailer for fun, with no plans for a full video. But because of the hype from followers, he ended up making it! You have to watch it all to see (or just guess) who’s the culprit!
Related: Meet Derrick Downey Jr. – The Squirrel Whisperer