H.C.Staff

Rocket said, in a comment on Aya’s lecture on privacy:

There is a significant business opportunity in moetic C.S. degrees. I suspect a significant intersection of target audience…

At first I was like, “yeah, right”.

And then I learned about Nareru! Systems Engineer.

Now, the term Systems Engineer doesn’t necessarily imply being in the field of computer science, but the whole moe CS thing doesn’t seem too far-fetched anymore. (I’m a Systems Analyst myself, and all my work involves computer programming.)

From Dengeki, publishers of Shana, Toradora, Railgun, and Okami-san, comes the story of Kouhei Sakurazaka (at least, that’s how I think the name 桜坂工兵 is read), a boy in his first year as a member of the Japanese workforce. Kouhei finds a job as a Systems Engineer, and gets trained under senior employee, Ritsuka Muromi (again, I’m not sure of the proper reading of 室見立華, it could be “Rikka” or “Tachibana” or something else, those are the same kanji in here).

Nareru! Systems Engineer’s female lead, Ritsuka(?) Muromi

Kouhei finds to his dismay that Ritsuka is a super workaholic who works him into the ground in ungentle fashion. Will Kouhei survive and become a full-fledged Systems Engineer?

Nareru! Systems Engineer is illustrated by moe-specialist Ixy, who is actually a Systems Engineer himself.

I’m not even fluent in Japanese and I’m already recommending this book. Ixy is a fantastic artist, much better than I could hope to be, and this should be a welcome break for those who are tired of the abusive, tsundere loli Dengeki female leads.

Somewhere, J.C.Staff is considering adapting this.

You just know it.

From the Anime Nation News Blog:

The original game stars an orphaned teen boy and his tsundere twin sister who return to their grandfather’s rural village where the boy develops romantic relationships with his sister, a reacquainted childhood girl friend, and other girls in the neighborhood.

Yosuga no Sora is a visual novel (sometimes referred to as a “dating sim”) like hundreds of games before it. You take on the role of some boy, meet a bunch of girls, and eventually end up in a romantic relationship with one of them based on your decisions over the course of the story.

Unlike Kira Kira, Yume Miru Kusuri, Kana – Little Sister, Hourglass of Summer, or Family Project, all of which I have played, Yosuga no Sora has not been officially localized, and thus even when I get my copy, I won’t be able to understand it.

But somehow, Yosuga no Sora has influenced me more than all those other visual novels put together.

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Mao Akatsuki, also known as Cotora, gives a clear heads up about the “LOLI, SHOTA, KEMONO” content of his website. And he’s not kidding either. But questionable contents aside, Mao Akatsuki is the illustrator everyone should know when it comes to cute kid characters, with or without animal ears.

Mikan from Wanko to Kurasou

Mao Akatsuki is perhaps best known in the west as the illustrator of Ivory’s Wanko to Kurasou (not to be confused with Cuffs’ Wanko to Lilly, which also features dog-girl heroines). Wanko to Kurasou is a visual novel about a college student named Yuuichi, who adopts an abandoned dog-girl named Mikan, and their relationships with the humans and humanoid pets around them. The game is reasonably highly rated for its story as well as Mao’s artwork.

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Wandaba Style, an anime about a boy scientist who recruits a team of aspiring idol singers to travel to the moon, is largely a waste of time.

But the significance of Wandaba Style is that it is what has introduced the Western world to the artist known as Goto-P. It is unfortunate that a work severely lacking in literary merit would serve as the introduction of such a great artist.

Goto-P is an essential part of a balanced moe diet.

We here in the United States must either check out Clannad Another Story or wait until the translation of Narcissu Side 2nd if we want to experience a story worthy of Goto-P’s artwork.

Narcissu Side 2nd is a visual novel where the player takes on the role of a sickly girl named Setsumi as she comes to terms with her mortality or something.

Name: Setsumi. Gender: Female. Blood type: O. Bracelet color (identification bracelet used by hospitals to mark their patients): Blue. Age: 19 (although the official site also says 15, and that she looks like a middle schooler even at age 22).

Goto-P, and his artbooks such as Nagomi Hiyori, are highly regarded by myself, Stripey, Shin, Samukun, and other bloggers whose tastes in anime girls tend more toward highly underage-looking screen names start with “S”, because of his choice of subject matter. Goto-P depicts nostalgic and carefree scenes with young female child characters, in his own words “wonderful days remembered through all eternity.” His soft coloring style gives his pictures a relaxing feeling.

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A site calling itself Establish Nechoes (NSFW) has appeared, supporting the establishment of Nechoes everywhere.

But, you may ask, what are Nechoes?

They sell mugs of sleepiness.

They have an artbook called Smart Nekomimics, featuring art from eight professional artists, some of whom are only five or so years ahead of me in terms of skill, but some of whom are so astoundingly good I’ll never reach their level,

such as Rikose (of Denki Shiki)

and puni-puni loli specialist Kito (of Sorahate).

Now, is it clear to everyone what Nechoes are? Good!

I must say, Establish Nechoes is one of the best names for a site since TwinsCatEar.net.