Mascots introduced in 1998

mascot of Japanese NHK TV network

fictional dragon who is the protagonist of the Spyro video game series

Swedish comic strip

puppet character

fictional character from Soulcalibur

official mascots of the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano

thumb|Tarepanda, described by creator Hikaru Suemasa as "strange", with a "fixed gaze" Tarepanda (たれぱんだ) is a kawaii (cute) panda-like character released by the Japanese company San-X in 1998. The term means droopy in Japanese. The character was created by , who was inspired by being exhausted at work. Three picture books and a fanbook by Suemasa were published in Japan. A Tarepanda video game was released for the WonderSwan in 1999, and another one for the PlayStation in 2000. A Tarepanda OVA was released in 2000.