Locale: en
A post on October 9, 2026 claimed that the Japanese comedy duo 8.6 Sec Bazooka had reappeared ten years later as the video creators Botirist. It sounds like the perfect comeback story: a television sensation disappears and returns under a new name.
Except the post's author later said it was a joke. They are different people. The real story of what happened to the older duo is stranger, and a little tougher, than the invented one.
1. Who are the two duos?
8.6 Sec Bazooka consists of Hamayanen and Tanaka Single. Their agency, Yoshimoto Kogyo, still lists those two stage names in its official profile.
Botirist consists of Chin and Oti, childhood friends who make short comedy videos. Their own channel descriptions explain their independent creative work.
Both are two-person comedy acts that found a big audience. That is not evidence that one pair secretly became the other. Human beings do not receive an automatic duo-name update every decade.
2. Why was 8.6 Sec Bazooka famous?
Formed in 2014, the pair exploded in popularity in 2015 with the rhythmic routine “Rassun Gorerai.” Matching red clothing, sunglasses and instantly recognizable call-and-response made them hard to forget.
In a May 2026 interview, Hamayanen recalled working as many as 22 jobs in a day, earning up to roughly ¥5 million in a month, and reaching about ¥20 million–¥25 million in a year at the height of the boom. Those are his recollections of peak earnings, not proof that such income continued every year.
Later, online speculation surrounding the duo contributed to controversy as their work declined. Hamayanen rejected those unfounded claims again in the 2026 interview. A story that merely sounds convincing can have a long life.
3. Who are Botirist?
Chin and Oti developed their own short-form comedy videos around 2021. Their sketches use misunderstandings, school situations and familiar everyday characters.
According to their channel description, Oti writes sketches and Chin handles editing. A video-tracking site reported roughly 1.8 million subscribers for their main channel in its October 5, 2026 update.
This is not an old television act in disguise. It is a different pair with its own history and audience.
4. Why did the joke seem believable?
It has an extremely convenient plot. Two famous comedians fade from television. Roughly a decade passes. Another two-person comedy act thrives online. Add the words “same people,” and a complete comeback documentary appears in your head.
A passing visual resemblance is not a reliable way to identify anyone. Nor does a popular post turn its premise into evidence.
The author did clarify the joke, but people who only see the first line can remember it as fact. The internet can turn a playful guess into a fake biography before anyone has finished reading the replies.
5. What are the original comedians doing now?
Hamayanen operates a food truck at events around Japan, selling foods including curry bread. He said he bought the vehicle for about ¥4 million in 2022. A May 2026 documentary followed him travelling for work; the red truck still carries words from his famous routine.
Tanaka Single remains named on Yoshimoto's official duo page. Reliable details of his individual bookings and income as of October 2026 are not available from the sources checked. It would be wrong to claim either that he performs every week or that he has retired.
Hamayanen has expressed a wish to perform their signature comedy routine together again.
6. Was there really no comedy work in 2026?
A report released on May 9, 2026 said that as of the end of April 2026, Hamayanen had received zero comedy jobs that year.
That does not prove the total stayed at zero through October or December. It also says nothing certain about his partner's bookings.
Still, the contrast with a peak day of 22 jobs is startling.
7. Does ¥10 million in food-truck sales mean he is rich?
Hamayanen reported around ¥10 million in total food-truck sales for 2025, with a best day of roughly ¥1.2 million. Impressive numbers, until you remember that sales are not take-home earnings.
At a two-day event in Tottori, sales were ¥100,900 while food, travel, event fees and other costs were about ¥430,000. The operation lost around ¥330,000 on that event.
A spectacular sales day and an expensive loss can exist in the same business. Likewise, a peak annual comedy income of ¥25 million is not a lifetime payment. Taxes, living expenses and years with less work still exist.
Apparently the “you made it!” screen in show business can be followed by an invoice for petrol and festival space.
8. Being remembered is not the same as being booked
Many people still recognize “Rassun Gorerai.” That does not mean the same number of people are paying to watch it this year.
Botirist, meanwhile, keeps making videos for its own audience. Subscriber totals alone cannot tell us how much either group earns.
Being famous, getting paid work and keeping a profit are three different things.
So no, 8.6 Sec Bazooka did not turn into Botirist. Hamayanen really is driving a red food truck around Japan. And the more surprising story may be that a man who once entertained an entire country still has to watch every event's costs.
References (7)
- Original viral post and subsequent joke clarification
- Yoshimoto Kogyo: official 8.6 Sec Bazooka profile
- ABEMA TIMES: food-truck documentary, May 9, 2026
- Sponichi: peak earnings and 2025 food-truck sales
- Nikkan Sports: April 2026 work count and interview
- Botirist channel figures, October 5, 2026
- Botirist's own channel descriptions
