UPDATE: Pro-LGBT creator of Vatican ‘Luce’ mascot also behind demon adult sex toy designs

Editor’s note: This article was originally published on October 30, 2024, but has been republished on October 31 due to an important update.

(LifeSiteNews) — Tokidoki, the Japanese-inspired brand responsible for the Vatican’s “Luce and Friends” mascots, is also responsible for a large range of sex toys in collaboration with Lovehoney, a large British producer of such items.

The toys were designed with a similar, distinctive tokidoki kitsch aesthetic to “Luce and Friends.”

NB: In the interests of Christian modesty, we will not be linking to any sites or including any pictures. The product descriptions and reviews available online are exceedingly graphic, and we have attempted to keep this article as clean as possible. Nonetheless, some may still find a proximate occasion of sin, and should close this page if this seems likely. 

In October 2016, Lovehoney launched its tokidoki product range. AVN Media Network wrote the following, naming Simone Legno (the creator of “Luce and Friends”):

Lovehoney has joined forces with tokidoki, a Japanese pop-culture brand with a name that means “sometimes” – to launch a range of whimsical designer sex toys.

Lovehoney’s most popular products have been reimagined for a new collection, which will feature never-before-seen designs created exclusively for the tokidoki x Lovehoney collaboration. The result is a vibrant “kawaii” (Japanese for “cute”) range emblazoned with characters designed by tokidoki’s co-founder and creative director, Simone Legno.

“We are thrilled to be working with industry leader Lovehoney and to collaborate on such an innovative range that promotes the importance of sexual health and overall well-being,” said tokidoki co-founder and CEO Pooneh Mohajer…

According to Kate Hodgson-Egan, Lovehoney’s international sales manager for the U.K. and U.S., “The tokidoki Pleasure Collection is like nothing else out there. The 18-30 market is key for us and we noticed there were high levels of interest in Japanese culture and Kawaii-inspired [“cute”] designs amongst this audience. This is the most design-inspired range we’ve had to date.

One of these products depicted a smiling red devil character holding a what is probably a trident, with a similar aesthetic to the “Luce and friends” mascots.

Lovehoney no longer stocks these products, although they are still for sale elsewhere. The Wayback Machine shows the official Lovehoney product description for one of the sex toys designed by the “Luce and Friends” creators, but it is too explicit to reproduce here. 

In 2017, a Canadian lifestyle blog “theNotice” reviewed a number of the tokidoki/Lovehoney products, praising them for being “cute.”

Also in 2017, Glamour magazine also published reviews to one of the same products, while praising it as “pretty.”

Another site wrote as follows: 

Iconic lifestyle brand tokidoki have paired up with industry leaders Lovehoney, a multi-award winning manufacturer of sex toys, to create a funky, fashion-forward range […]

The cult characters are inspired by Japanese “kawaii” [“cute”] culture and feature tokidoki’s much-loved characters and pops of colour.

The language and descriptions used in the product descriptions and the reviewers of tokidoki’s sex toys is strikingly similar to that employed by defenders and enthusiasts of tokidoki’s “Luce and Friends” Jubilee year mascots.

It seems possible that anyone who purchases “Luce and Friends” products from tokidoki’s site may also find themselves receiving marketing emails for other future tokidoki products—including, perhaps, items such as those discussed here.

Creator Simone Legno himself was raised a Catholic: 

I grew up in Rome in a Catholic family, where I learned the principles of a faith grounded in generosity and respect for others.

Despite this, tokidoki has also endorsed “LGBT Pride” and sold various products related to “Pride.”

Regarding “Luce and Friends,” Legno called the Jubilee a “unique opportunity” for the Church to engage with the youth:

The Jubilee is undoubtedly a unique opportunity for encounter and dialogue for millions of people, including many young people. I hope that the pilgrim Luce can represent the sentiments that resonate in the hearts of the younger generations.

It is not clear how or why the Vatican selected Legno as the designer of these Jubilee Year mascots.

Some have justified the choice to work with a promoter of degenerate sexual vice with reference to the imperfect morality of some of the great masters of the renaissance period. However, the quality of the artwork hardly seems comparable; nor is the public promotion of degenerate sexual vice comparable with personal moral failings, even if widely known.