Labubu is quite on trend, especially in China.
The social context is – today’s young people mostly grew up in relatively protected environments. (Especially in China, you may be the only kid who got undivided love from your parents.) This smooth early life left many of them unequipped to handle failure, delay gratification, or regulate emotions.
The bad news is, now they are facing economic downturns and zero-sum competition without warning. That mismatch creates a deep emotional fatigue. We know we’re not ready, and we fear we will be abandoned, cuz we are not confident we will get that conventional success and be “valuable”. (Most of us have learned to rely on external worth – performance, status, wealth – to feel deserving of recognition). AND, that pressure challenges our emotional stability, turns us more “spiky”, which further harms our relationships.
“Ugh, no money, no good personality — what a combo.”
“… I still want to be loved and accepted, even though I have no money but lots of attitude.”
That’s why we want to escape, and hide ourselves in this fairytale: I am spoiled, but I’m still be loved. ❤️🩹