Comic Market 84: Digital Lover / Yuka Nakajima / D.L. Action 78 & 79

Vanguards of the Digital Lover empire meet a new challenger at Comiket 84

Digital Lover has been nothing if not ardent in their devotion to their muses, OreImo's Kuroneko and Index/Railgun's Misaka Mikoto--21 of the circle's last 33 books have featured the Czarina of Chiba or the debutantes of Academy City, with those other 12 books' attention spread across six different series.  Suddenly, a new challenger appears, and with a considerable network of friends to call upon should circle artist Yuka Nakajima be so inclined.

Shinobu Oshino, nee Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-Under-Blade, vampire princess of the Monogatarisphere, has been given the cover of D.L. Action 79.  This marks the first expedition in to the world of ghosts for the circle, and the mind simply reels at the prospect of the circle's mining the rest of the spirited cast for future books.  Shinobu also appears on the circle's C84 omake book, Rough Sketch 77.

As was suggested at the tail end of Sankuri 60's D.L. Action 77, D.L. Action 78 returns the focus on the Railgun girls, with Misaki Shokuhou and Mikoto Misaka sharing cover duty, Mikoto in a trademark sweet plaid pattern while Misaki goes the glamorous gold-trimmed (and two sizes too small) route.  A B5-sized, 36-page effort, this book will surely have a considerable amount of conduct for us to consider. 

Kuroneko fans will have the opportunity to relive former glories with their tsundere queen with the release of Digital Lover's second character-centered soushuuhen.  DL-Kuroneko will be released at Comic Market 84, a B5-sized, 172-page book collecting D.L. Action 55, 56, 57, 59, and 60, which were released between September 2010 and May 2011.  The circle's previous character-centered soushuuhen?  You guessed it--Mikoto Misaka's omnibus from Comic Market 81.

Overheated otaku of the black cat persuasion will be able to display their devotion with a fan and a totally sweet don't-pick-me-up-by-there netsuke, while BiriBiri fans will be whisked away to the seashore with a B2-sized tapestry.

Finally, Nakajima revealed an iPhone case featuring his character designs of the girls from Full Metal Panic! author Shoji Gatoh's newest comedy novel project, Amagi Brilliant Park.

Sunshine Creation 59: Digital Lover / Yuka Nakajima

Kuroneko reclaims center stage in circle's April offerings

The expectations of fans of doujinshi circle Digital Lover should be sky-high at present, with the recent ending of Haganai NEXT and the current seasons of OreImo and A Certain Scientific Railgun S underway.  21 of the prolific circle's last 30 parody doujinshi have featured heroines from these three series, dating back over more than four years of work, so it's certainly reasonable to expect more work from those series in the near future, and we've learned just recently that OreImo tsundere majeur Ruri Gokou will have the first crack at heading the playbill with new items at this month's doujinshi events.  First, at April 14th's Sunshine Creation 59, Kuroneko graces the cover of Rough Sketch 74, Digital Lover's long-running series of genga books, which occasionally serve as a preview of coming attractions.  The circle also looks to offer what looks to be a microfiber sports towel featuring an adorable illustration of Kuroneko and her alter ego, Kamineko.

Of perhaps greater interest to the circle's and the character's fans, Digital Lover will offer a dakimakura of Kuroneko at late April's Comic1☆7.  She'll be sporting her winter school uniform and, of more prurient interest, the same cat tail that she flaunted in Comiket 83's D.L. Action 73.  Fans of Digital Lover's work will no doubt be devastated that Nakajima has decided to have both sides of the dakimakura be a face-up view of the character, knowing what they know about that extra appendage from 73. 

Comic Market 83: MEKONGDELTA

It’s a well-kept secret, not listed on Toranoana, not listed on their own website even, but MEKONGDELTA did indeed have a Comic Market 83 release, and it’s OreImo's Kuroneko once again on center stage.  This is the third straight Winter Comic Market release of this particular Kuroneko-centered series.  Between these and the Glass Cat’s books of Spring and Summer 2012, I would venture to say MEKONGDELTA may have found their muse, though they may need to ask Digital Lover for some elbow room at the altar...