Yoku Hata

Who is Yoku Hata?

Yōku Hata is a stand up comedian in Japan. He rose to popularity in 2004 with his character "The Guitar Zamurai" on the program The God of Entertainment. Dressed in a yukata, his skit always follows the same form. He says a supposed quote about someone famous, and then mocks the quote and says "残念!" Then he imitates the person and finishes that section with a "切り" as he makes a sword slash movement with his guitar. At the end of a set, he usually says some self-depreciating remark and ends yelling "切腹!". His popularity in this persona earned him an animated cameo in the Crayon Shin-Chan movie, "Crayon Shin-chan: The Legend of the Buri Buri 3 Minutes Charge" in which he played a monster that made fun of the sliding timescale of the cartoon.

After the novelty wore thin on the gimmick, he began to intermittently make appearances on variety shows under the Yoku Hata pseudonym and in regular street clothes. He has recently begun to bring back the "Guitar Zamurai" character sporadically, to play on its nostalgic appeal. In 2008, he formed a clique of other one hit wonder comedians on the quiz/variety show, Quiz! Hexagon II called "Ippatsuya 2008".