is a fictional character created by

Tsuji Santa is a Japanese surname meaning "crossroads". Notable people with the surname include: Arts * Ayano Tsuji (born 1978), a Japanese pop singer * Ayumi Tsuji (born 1984), a Japanese voice actress from Ehime Prefecture * Daisuke Tsuji (born 1982), Ja ...

for the Japanese computer and video game software company

Nitroplus Nitroplus Co., Ltd., currently styled as NITRO PLUS, formerly stylized as nitro+, and formerly known as "OKStyle", is a Japanese visual novel video game developer that has developed a number of visual novels, including eroge. They also have been ...

, first appearing as a

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...

for a Nitroplus-sponsored music festival in 2006. Nitroplus has since developed the character into a

media franchise A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program or ...

that includes music products,

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

series, computer and

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

, toy

figurine A figurine (a diminutive form of the word ''figure'') or statuette is a small, three-dimensional sculpture that represents a human, deity or animal, or, in practice, a pair or small group of them. Figurines have been made in many media, with cl ...

s and other merchandise. An

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

White Fox , is a Japanese animation studio founded in April 2007 by Gaku Iwasa. The studio's most successful productions include adaptations of '' Steins;Gate'', and '' Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World'', and ''Akame ga Kill!''. History The stud ...

based on the character aired in Japan between January and March 2014.

Characters

Super Sonico

Super Sonico is a fictional character created by Tsuji Santa of Nitroplus. Her debut appearance was on October 14, 2006 as the mascot for Nitroplus' annual live music festival event "Nitro Super Sonico", which took place at Shiba Park in Minato-KU. Nitroplus was initially focused on computer games based on visual novels, but every year since 2000 they have also held a music festival. Sonico appears in the various media as an eighteen-year-old college student. She is depicted as an attractive young adult woman with light peach skin, large red eyes, and straight light pink hair. She keeps her hair long in back and in the front it covers her forehead, around her eyes, down to the bridge of her nose. She is always shown wearing her signature

headphones Headphones are a pair of small loudspeaker drivers worn on or around the head over a user's ears. They are electroacoustic transducers, which convert an electrical signal to a corresponding sound. Headphones let a single user listen to an au ...

on her head. Her depictions show much variation in her facial features and body proportions between the different artists, while always keeping her trademark traits; headphones, pink hair color and large bust. She also appears as a popular

gravure idol A model is a person with a role either to promote, display or advertise commercial products (notably fashion clothing in fashion shows) or to serve as a visual aid for people who are creating works of art or to pose for photography. Though mo ...

as well as the vocalist and guitarist of the fictional band . Sonico also studies marine biology at Musasaka University and lives in Mushashino-shi, Tokyo. She is prone to sleep in a lot, often requiring help to wake up, and her favorite foods are

macaron A macaron ( , ) or French macaroon ( ) is a sweet meringue-based confection made with egg white, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond meal, and food colouring. The macaron is traditionally held to have been introduced in France by the Ital ...

s, and her bandmates refer to her as "Nico". Sonico plays a heritage cherry red Gibson SG electric guitar with a batwing pickguard and black pickup covers named "Daydream." An older piece of official art incorrectly shows the guitar with a Gretsch logo on the headstock.

Associated characters

; : :The young female founder and bassist of the band ''First Astronomical Velocity''. She has light green eyes and straight, long black hair. She is of average height and build, but appears thin next to Fuuri and Sonico. She is often seen wearing a pink nurse's uniform and often attempts to dress up Sonico in dubious outfits. ; : :The young female drummer of the ''First Astronomical Velocity'' band. She has a full figure, violet eyes and short wavy brown hair. She is shy, good natured and is usually seen either eating or sleeping when not playing in the band. She and Suzu first appeared in Nitroplus' 2010 visual novel computer game ''Axanael''. ; : :Sonico's manager, a tall man with orange-yellow flame-styled hair and always wearing a

hannya The mask is a mask used in Japanese Noh theater, representing a jealous female demon. It is characterized by two sharp bull-like horns, metallic eyes, and a leering mouth. Etymology is the Sino-Japanese pronunciation of ''bō rě'' (般若 ...

mask and carrying a

katana A is a Japanese sword characterized by a curved, single-edged blade with a circular or squared guard and long grip to accommodate two hands. Developed later than the ''tachi'', it was used by samurai in feudal Japan and worn with the edge fa ...

on his back, under his coat. He is particularly protective of Sonico, ready to strike at anyone threatening or attempting something inappropriate with her. When not defending Sonico, he is friendly. Despite his demon mask, he is sociable, talkative and actively seeks modeling work for Sonico, sometimes over-committing her. ; : :Nitroplus's former mascot, who is seen in the Super Sonico Animation. Ouka serves as Sonico's co-worker at the modeling agency. She is a

tween Preadolescence is a stage of human development following middle childhood and preceding adolescence.New Oxford American Dictionary. 2nd Edition. 2005. Oxford University Press. It commonly ends with the beginning of puberty. Preadolescence is ...

-age girl, of short stature and slight build. She has short orange hair, her right eye color is orange and she wears a riveted brown leather eye patch over her left eye. She wears a frilled

tiara A tiara (from la, tiara, from grc, τιάρα) is a jeweled head ornament. Its origins date back to ancient Greece and Rome. In the late 18th century, the tiara came into fashion in Europe as a prestigious piece of jewelry to be worn by women ...

on her head, with grooved silver disks that cover her ears. She is confident, extroverted and constantly looking for her spot in the limelight. However, she is inexperienced with handling clients, and unlike Sonico, she does not have a protective manager, and so she often ends up in bad predicaments.

Toys

A popular and extensive line of PVC

s of Super Sonico has been produced for Nitroplus by well-known toy designers including, among many others, Max Factory, FREEing, Orchid Seed and

Hobby Japan is a Japanese publishing company known for publishing and releasing books, magazines, light novels, games, and collectibles. Founded in 1969, the company owns and distributes such publications as the eponymous ''Hobby Japan'' magazine, as well ...

. Figurine styles have included the highly stylized Chibi,

Nendoroid The series is a brand of plastic figures created by the Japanese Good Smile Company in 2006. They typically depict characters from anime, manga or video games and are designed with a large head and smaller body to give them a cute appearance. T ...

and Figma designs in addition to the more realistic designs drawn directly from the character as she appears in games, manga and anime. Sizes have ranged from 1/8 to 1/2 the size of the young adult woman character as she appears in the media.

Action figures An action figure is a poseable character model figure made most commonly of plastic, and often based upon characters from a film, comic book, military, video game or television program; fictional or historical. These figures are usually market ...

have also been produced.

Media

Music CDs

To date, there have been six singles and three albums released featuring Sonico. ;Singles *''SUPERORBITAL'' (released November 24, 2010; GRN-021): First studio single and first theme song for the PC game ''SoniComi''. *: Second single introduced at the 2010 Summer

Comiket , more commonly known as or , is a semiannual ''doujinshi'' convention in Tokyo, Japan. A grassroots market focused on the sale of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, Comiket is a not-for-profit fan convention administered by the volunteer-ru ...

, also as an insert song from the Adult PC game ''Axanael'' by Nitroplus. *: Solo single sold on the

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

and

Amazon MP3 Amazon Music (previously Amazon MP3) is a music streaming platform and online music store operated by Amazon. Launched in public beta on September 25, 2007, in January 2008 it became the first music store to sell music without digital rights man ...

to raise revenue for earthquake relief following the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six minutes ...

. *: Third single released in collaboration with

Earth Star Entertainment is a Japanese publisher based on Shibuya, Tokyo. Accounted by the equity method of Culture Convenience Club, it was founded on June 5, 2006. In addition to publishing magazines and photobooks, the company also produces and sells home videos a ...

's ''

Comic Earth Star was a monthly Japanese shōnen manga magazine published on the 12th each month by Earth Star Entertainment since 12 March 2011. The magazine announced in their November 2014 issue that the print version would cease publication, and instead be r ...

'', as the theme song of the magazine. The single was used to collect aid funds for earthquake relief. *''VISION'' (released July 29, 2011; GRN-027): Fourth single as the second theme song to ''SoniComi''. *: Debut solo single. The single included an additional costume patch for the PC game ''SoniComi'' on the CD-ROM. ;Albums *''GALAXY ONE'' (released November 11, 2011; GRN-028): First studio album. *''Love & II+'' (released June 27, 2012; GRN-030): First Cosmic Velocity's 2nd album that contains three discs with Love＆II+ LIVE gokko!, Love&II+, and SoniComi: Communication with Sonico Original Soundtrack. *''SONICONICOROCK Tribute to VOCALOID'': Third studio album containing vocal covers of assorted

Vocaloid is a singing voice synthesizer software product. Its signal processing part was developed through a joint research project led by Kenmochi Hideki at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, in 2000 and was not originally intended to b ...

songs.

Manga

4koma , a comic strip format, generally consists of gag comic strips within four panels of equal size ordered from top to bottom. They also sometimes run right-to-left horizontally or use a hybrid 2×2 style, depending on the layout requirements of ...

manga series by Chika Nonohara titled ''Super Sonico SoniKoma'' began serialisation on March 12, 2011 in ''Comic Earth Star''. Another manga series titled ''Sonicomi'' with art by Imusanjo serialised in the ''

Monthly Comic Blade was a Japanese shōnen manga magazine published by Mag Garden. It was first published in February 2002 and was sold on the 30 of each month until July 2014. It restarted in September 2014 as a free online magazine titled ''Online Magazine Comic B ...

''. A 4koma manga series titled has also been featured in Enterbrain's '' MAGI-CU Comics''.

Games

SoniComi (2011/2016, PC)

is a computer game for

Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

released on November 25, 2011, developed by Nitroplus and published by Nitroplus and

Enterbrain , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing founded on 30 January 1987 as . Magazines published by Enterbrain are generally focused on video games and computer entertainment as well as video game and strategy ...

. As a

visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

game, the player takes the role of Sonico's cameraman. The game features events where the player is able to take gravure photographs of her. A

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...

adaptation with improved visuals, titled , was released on March 20, 2014. The PS3 version received a ''Famitsu'' score of 30/40. The game was released worldwide with English translation by

JAST USA Jast may refer to: *Joint Advanced Strike Technology (JAST) project was merged with the Common Affordable Lightweight Fighter (CALF) project to make the Joint Strike Fighter program. *JAST USA *Jast, a member of the Dalek variants#Cult of Skaro, Cul ...

through

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...

featuring dubbed voice by

Jessica Nigri Jessica Nigri (born 1989) is an American-New Zealand cosplayer, promotional and glamour model, YouTuber, voice actress, and fan convention interview correspondent. She has been cosplaying since 2009 and modeling since 2012, having served as ...

SoniPro (2014, 3DS)

is a game developed by Nitroplus and

Imageepoch was a video game developer based out of Tokyo, Japan. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2015, due to its declining sales and debt. History The company was founded in June 2005 by Ryoei Mikage. Their first release was the tactical role-playin ...

for the

Nintendo 3DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It was announced in March 2010 and unveiled at E3 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS. The system features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS video games. As an eighth-generatio ...

announced during the 2013 Wonder Festival. As an idol-producing game, the player takes the role of Sonico's producer, who aims to train her to become an idol. The game was released on July 31, 2014.2013-07-28
SoniPro 3DS Game Has You Training Super Sonico To Be An Idol
Siliconera ''

Famitsu formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the fo ...

'' gave ''SoniPro'' a review score of 30/40.

Appearances in other games

Sonico has made cameo appearances in various games, including '' Le Ciel Bleu'', the visual novel ''Lovesick Puppies'', the Japanese online games ''Web Knight Carnival'', ''Mechanical Girl War Z'', ''Dragon League'', ''Dungeons Lord'', ''Momoiro Daisen Pylon'' and ''Blue Sky Dragon Guild'', and will be a playable character in ''

Super Heroine Chronicle is a crossover tactical role-playing game developed by Banpresto for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita. The game crosses over heroines from various anime series in a style similar to the ''Super Robot Taisen'' series. The game was published by ...

''. Sonico appears as a character within the eroge ''Axanael'' developed by Nitroplus. She also appears in

Square Enix is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...

's ''

Kaku-San-Sei Million Arthur is a Japanese media franchise created by Square Enix, consisting primarily of a series of video games. The first release was an online free-to-play card battle game titled , which was released for iOS and Android in 2012. A sequel gam ...

'' between March 11 and March 23, 2014. Super Sonico and Ōka appear in the '' Nitroplus Blasterz: Heroines Infinite Duel'' fighting game, appearing as a support character in the arcade version and as a playable character in the console version, while the latter playable in all versions. Sonico also appeared in '' Senran Kagura: Peach Beach Splash'' as one of the DLC characters along with the three characters from

Koei Tecmo is a Japanese video game, amusement and anime holding company created in 2009 by the merger of Koei and Tecmo. Koei Tecmo Holdings owns several companies, the biggest one of those being its flagship game developer and publisher Koei Tecmo Game ...

Team Ninja is a Japanese video game developer, and a division of Koei Tecmo, founded in 1995 as a part of Tecmo. It is founded and formerly led by Tomonobu Itagaki, later by Yosuke Hayashi, and is best known for the ''Ninja Gaiden'' action-adventure game ...

's '' Dead or Alive'' series, four characters from a manga ''

Ikki Tousen , also known as ''Battle Vixens'' in North America, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yūji Shiozaki. Loosely based on the classic 14th century Chinese novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', the series revo ...

'', two characters from ''

Valkyrie Drive is a Japanese media franchise created by Marvelous, which was announced at the AnimeJapan convention in March 2015. The franchise consists of three projects; , an anime television series produced by Arms Corporation, which aired in Japan f ...

'' and the titular character of

Idea Factory is a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded by former Data East , also abbreviated as DECO, was a Japanese video game, pinball and electronic engineering company. The company was in operation from 1976 to 2003, and released 150 ...

’s ''

Hyperdimension Neptunia is a series of role-playing video games created and developed by Compile Heart and Idea Factory. The series debuted in Japan on August 19, 2010, with the video game of the same name for the PlayStation 3, later re-released as an enhanced rem ...

''.

Anime

An anime television series titled was announced at the Nitro Super Sonic 2013 event held at the Tokyo International Forum. Produced by

, the 12-episode series aired in Japan between January 6, 2014 and March 24, 2014 and was simulcast by

Crunchyroll Crunchyroll is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Sony through a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex. The service primarily distributes films and tel ...

. A DVD and Blu-ray release of the TV series in Japan was announced for March 19, 2014.

Sentai Filmworks Sentai Filmworks, LLC or just Sentai, is an American entertainment company owned by AMC Networks. Located in Houston, the company specializes in the dubbing and distribution of Japanese animation and Asian cinema. Its post-production arm is S ...

have licensed the series in North America and will release it on Blu-ray Disc and DVD on May 26, 2015. The Anime Network began streaming the series February 6, 2014.

MVM Films MVM Entertainment, also known as MVM and MVM Films, is a British licensor and distributor of Japanese animation. The company also sub-licenses anime titles from US anime companies such as Media Blasters, Geneon, Nozomi Entertainment, Urban Vision, ...

have licensed the series in the United Kingdom. In Australia and New Zealand, Hanabee licensed the series within the region. The main opening song of the anime is by Super Sonico (Ayano Yamamoto). The opening theme for episode one is "Beat Goes On" by

Ayano Yamamoto is a Japanese actress, voice actress and idol. She is affiliated with the agency Amuleto. She is known for her involvement in Nitroplus' franchise Super Sonico. Career Yamamoto began her career as an idol in 2002. From 2005 to 2008, she was a m ...

, whilst a different ending theme, each performed by First Astronomical Velocity (Yamamoto, Mai Goto, and Mami Ozaki), is featured in each episode.

Episode list

Other media

Gravure books featuring Sonico were released by Enterbrain on July 7, 2011. An internet radio show, , began broadcasting on March 24, 2011. A Sonico-themed non-game networking software application for

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...

has also been released.

Endorsements

Sonico was used to promote the International Exhibition Center station of the Tokyo Waterfront Area Rapid Transit Rinkai Line. She is also being used to promote the brand of beer from

Nara Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the northwest, Wakayama P ...

, as a collaboration based on the similar-sounding name. Sonico was also the mascot for the 2013 Anitamasai Convention in Saitama. The Super Sonico Tab is a special edition ASUS MeMo Pad ME172v

tablet computer A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being comput ...

featuring an artwork of Sonico on the rear of the device.ハイホー × すーぱーそに子コラボレーション！
, hi-ho