Again, add this to the “we-don’t-get-it” column. Located in Kobe, Japan, this gigantic Gigantor statue, which in case you didn’t know is designed to help protect the city from an alien invasion, is a 50 ton, 18-meter high robot thingy.

Yes, it’s a robot statue. Or the worlds biggest action figure. Or, the world’s biggest homage to all that is nerdy. Look, we appreciate Asian, specifically Japanese culture in this case, but sometimes things just come from that corner of the world that simply defy our comprehension. Having a giant statue of a cartoon-comic robot from the 1960′s is a cooler idea than some hunk or weird metal art that nobody understands (which seems to proliferate in parks found in modern US metropolises), but really, what is the point? Is having a giant robot a symbol of peace? Prosperity? War? Who cares. We like the music though, and the guys in the tuxedos.

What’s next? A Hello Kitty skyrise?