Welcome to Montreal, where we play God with genetics!

August 18, 2011 8:06 AM

Squirrog, anyone? How about a bullguin? No, you're not hallucinating, Montrealers and visitors, that is in fact a "foxtuan" you're seeing around town. Courtesy of marketing agency Sid Lee, Montreal's tourism board has dropped $6 million for the interesting campaign. They're even on YouTube. Creative? Unforgettable? Or just plain weird?
posted by Kitteh (17 comments total)

Sooooo Montreal is really the Land of Wuz?
posted by Shepherd at 8:13 AM on August 18, 2011

Montreal does not need to spend money to convince me that I might like to be there, so I have no idea if this will work. But I like the illustrations.
posted by Hoopo at 8:13 AM on August 18, 2011

Issuing a press release, even to the NYT, does not make an advertisement news.
posted by DU at 8:17 AM on August 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

NYT. Metafilter. Pure marketing gold. Sid Lee, you earned your loonies today.
posted by chavenet at 8:17 AM on August 18, 2011 [4 favorites]

This is why I sleep in a tree. Wolvogs can't climb.
posted by shakespeherian at 8:23 AM on August 18, 2011 [6 favorites]

Didn't Atwood get there first? If there's any city that needs wolvogs or rakunks, it's Toronto.
posted by randomination at 8:26 AM on August 18, 2011

As a denizen of Montreal, this is interesting because it's the first time I've ever heard of this ad campaign. Probably because if Montrealers knew that 6 million dollars were being spent on ads instead of fixing our roads and bridges, they'd be pissed.
posted by Premeditated Symmetry Breaking at 8:32 AM on August 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

This really needs to be run through a Churnalism filter for North America.
posted by a womble is an active kind of sloth at 8:32 AM on August 18, 2011

Premeditated Symmetry Breaking, I hear you. I still hate driving across the Champlain at any time.
posted by Kitteh at 8:40 AM on August 18, 2011

That 6 million would just go to hiding the latest engineering reports, anyhow.

Every time I drive in the Ville Marie lately, I get a little adrenaline rush, like is this the time it will collapse on me and I will die?
posted by jeather at 8:43 AM on August 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

Dr. Moreau: Have you forgotten the house of pain?
Sayer of the Law: You! You made us in the house of pain! You made us... things! Not men! Not beasts! Part man... part beast! Things!
posted by ranchocalamari at 9:07 AM on August 18, 2011

We've got a triptych of animal hybrid drawings hanging on the wall: an alpachyderm, a giranguin (penguaffe?) ... and hell if I can remember what the last one is, even though I walk right past it a dozen times a day.
posted by uncleozzy at 9:36 AM on August 18, 2011

Didn't Atwood get there first? If there's any city that needs wolvogs or rakunks, it's Toronto

They had them, but they got eaten by your raccoons. Toronto raccoons are among the nastiest creatures I've ever seen.
posted by Hoopo at 9:37 AM on August 18, 2011

One of these is a list of fanciful creatures. The other is a list of actual SUVs:

Squirrog
Bullguin
Foxtuan
Wolvogs
Rakunks
Deerus

Actyon
Aerostar
Antara
Captiva
Dualis
Jackaroo
Routan
Terracan
Tribeca (yes yes I know)
Tiguan
Xterra
Venza
Vitara
Winstorm
posted by Herodios at 9:40 AM on August 18, 2011 [3 favorites]

Enjoy learning about Rule 34, Montreal.
posted by Wolfdog at 10:14 AM on August 18, 2011

Wolvogs can't climb.
This is absolutely true. Just climb a tree and you're totally safe. Really.
posted by Wolfdog at 10:19 AM on August 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

To quote Truman Capote: That's not climbing, that's typing.
posted by shakespeherian at 6:53 AM on August 19, 2011