Boo! Did I scare you? No, well, just look over there and—Boo! What about now?

Oh, you say I'm just annoying?

Well, I never let irking a few people ruin my fun. And apparently, I'm not alone. You might recall, for example, a Twitter user who covered his parents cars in haunting snow sculptures after a night of heavy snow in Tokyo. There is also, as we’ve covered before, the childhood prank known as “kancho”--or the "dreaded kancho" among ESL teachers. It's too graphic to cover in detail here, but I will say that it involves sticking fingers where they don't belong. I'm sure you can imagine the rest.

All things considered, despite the common conception of Japanese culture as kind and considerate, there is undoubtedly room for horseplay.

A Samurai prank

Recently, YouTuber UpTown PRANK posted a startling video to the online platform. The post features the vlogger dressed in a samurai suit as he “stands guard” in Asakusa:

The video begins with a cinematographic build-up, complete with tense music, showcasing the Senso-ji temple in Asakusa, Tokyo. Sure enough, dressed in his samurai outfit, UpTown PRANK seems to fit right in, even after hours when all the shops are shuttered.

The first victims soon enter the scene, two young women curious and gawking at what seems to be an ornate statue. The vlogger performs a sudden shuffle and, unsurprisingly, the pair is shocked. They exclaim "bikkuri shita" ("How suprising") and laugh as they walk away.

As the video continues, UpTown PRANK startles numerous passersby. Sure enough, most seem to notice him as they pass but assume he is a statue. As such, the vlogger simply salutes, reaches for his sword, or does a sudden shuffle to send pedestrians scrambling. However, everyone seems to be chuckling by the end.

Slender man on the street

As it turns out, UpTown PRANK seems to have created quite a following. Another popular video on the channel features the dreaded slender man who, by the way, has a very impressive stature:

Again, this slender man video begins with dramatic effect. Admittedly, the idea is pretty intimidating. A towering, faceless figure standing alone on a dark street is scary no matter who you are.

That said, passersby understandably react as you might expect they would. As you can see, the vlogger sits and waits in the shadows as pedestrians approach. As they near, he stands up or moves his arms and that's all it takes. Everyone is sent running. That is until the police show up….

Other pranks

As you can imagine, UpTown PRANK's channel is full of various prank videos. There are a few more I would particularly recommend:

An alligator prank video: terrorizing swimmers in a river.

Another scary one. A headless body prank filmed in a creepy tunnel.

And finally, for the winter season (although a bit late), a psycho Santa video.

If you like these videos, you can find more on UpTown PRANK’s channel. Enjoy!