Super Smartphone: Research Notes

Tucker

Author

• Tomisawa, Hiroki 冨澤 浩気（とみさわ ひろき）
  • “Toe-mee-sah-wah, Hee-lo-key”

Characters

• Sagurada, Kyuu 探来田 究（さぐらだ きゅう）
  • “Sah-guh-la-dah, Q”
  • The first character in his family name means “search” and his given name is written as “research.” Pretty on the nose, huh?
• Noumaru, Yuika 農丸 結歌（のうまる ゆいか）
  • “Noh-maru, Yuh-ee-ka”
• Seomi, Nagi 瀬尾水 凪（せおみず なぎ）
  • Seh-oh-mee, Nah-ghee
• Kangan, Zen’ichirou  関函 全一郎（かんがん ぜんいちろう）
  • “Con-gon, Zen-ee-chi-row”
  • Family name means something like “gateway/entryway box” (perhaps a reference to a smart device being an entryway to info?)
  • Personal name kinda means “everything as one”...it’s a common male personal name, but it seems to be a very unusual spelling of it…most of the time it is supposed to start with the kanji 善, meaning “morally good”...but the author couldn’t have a villain have that character in their name, huh?
• Kangan, Zentoku
  • Con-gon, Zen-toe-ku
• Moura, Norenashi 藻浦 乗成
  • Moe-rah, No-reh-na-shi
• Imura, Tadayoshi 伊村 中義
  • Ee-muh-rah, Tah-dah-yo-shi”
• Seike, Kokoro
  • Say-ke, ko-ko-ro’
  • “Kokoro” means “heart,” of course
• Hakariyama, Riki
  • Hah-kah-ree-yah-mah, ree-kee
• Mochizuki, Ken 望月 健 nickname “Boken”
  • Mochi-zu-kee, Ken
  • Can’t find his nickname in Japanese, but I bet it’s supposed to be “Bouken,” meaning “adventure”...or, with a different spelling, “watching from afar.”
  • Nickname comes from most common readings for the the first kanji of his family name (望 is usually “bou”) plus the character from his personal name, 健 ken.

OTHER

• Googugu
  • “GOO-guh-guh”
  • A play on the Japanese pronunciation of Google (“guuguru”). It just changes the last syllable (ru) to be another short “gu”
  • You can look up a Japanese Android commercial to hear them say “o-kei guuguru”

MaxyBee

Writer: Hiroki Tomisawa

• Prior works:
  • Senka no Kanojo (2015, 5 volumes, 47 chapters, Young Magazine) - Boy asks girl out, world promptly ends as missiles destroy the city they’re in.
  • WHO I AM (2018, 2 volumes, 12 chapters, Weekly Young Jump) - made in association with WOWOW and their paralympic documentary series of the same name, this is a non-fiction work made as part of Shueisha’s deal with the Paralympics (which included its own magazine line, Paralympic Jump). WHO I AM the manga highlighted four real athletes and their stories: Ryley Batt, Safet Alibasic, Ricardo Alves, and Beatrice Vio. Technically not a flop, BUT WOWOW renewed the documentary. They did not renew this.
• Who they were an assistant for: Unknown.
• Notable assistants: UNKNOWN!

Artist: Kentaro Hidano

• Prior works:
  • ZIGA (2018, 2 volumes, 14 chapters + volume-only epilogue, Weekly Shonen Jump) - made with writer Rokurou Sano. Grim dark mediocre kaiju bullshit.
  • A bunch of one-shots with writers, including 2010’s Chrono Mansion, a Golden Future Cup entry that did not win.
• Who they were an assistant for:
  • Hiroshi Shiibashi (Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Yui Kamio Lets Loose)
• Notable assistants: None, BUT we have another classmate! Gen Oosuka of Doron Dororon and Golem Hearts fame. School buddies! FLOP BUDDIES!

Publishing

• Series it replaced: I GUESS ‘Ayakashi Triangle’ by Kentaro Yabuki? Almost lines up.
• Series that replaced it: 'Ichinose-ke no Taizai' by Taizan5 (of Takopi’s Original Sin fame)
• The series got to be on one group cover, for double issue 36-37

Manga Itself

• I’m not reading this. I didn’t even try it when it came out. I know a couple people who liked it, and I assume that’s the whole fanbase.