As we have previously mentioned, the popular convention Comic Market (Comiket) is a doujinshi publishing and selling event that takes place twice a year, once in winter and once in summer. This weekend, which runs from August 12 to 13, the new edition of Comiket is taking placebut a situation has occurred involving the popular franchise of Bocchi the Rock!.
It turns out that Rikuta Kiyoki, better known as Kerorira, who worked as character designer and animation director for the anime adaptation of Bocchi the Rock!, announced the release of a book titled “FROG SKETCH.” The 270-page color book includes some corrections to the animation of Bocchi the Rock! and a series of original illustrations. Little did the popular artist know that this would be the trigger for a true organizational catastrophe.
A large number of photographs became a trend on social networks showing a huge line that was heading towards a single point: the stand of the artist Kerorira where the book of Bocchi the Rock! was being sold. The so-called “Kerorira Row” began to spread by dozens and then hundreds of people who hoped to get a copy of the book that was only going to be sold within the event facilities, so people had no problem with being under the sun. scorching summer
One user even shared a photo of a map where you could see the direction the line was taking: two turns in the parking lot and the esplanade of the place, coming out onto the road and starting a second turn there. The amount of people who expected to buy the book of Bocchi the Rock! it was just spectacular. And no, it is not the line to enter the convention facilities.
The precious limited edition book (if Kerorira does not decide to print more) it was priced at 5,000 yen (around $35), pretty fair considering the number of pages it includes. However, due to its “limited” condition, some resellers have already appeared on Internet sales platforms and raised the price six times, to an average of 30,000 yen (over $207), taking advantage of Bocchi the Rock! fans.
This situation is common when there is a launch of this magnitude. According to reports, Kerorira limited the sale to just one copy per person, so we can be sure that those people only lined up with the sole intention of getting a copy of the book and then reselling it for profit. Of course, if Kerorira announces that he will release more copies of this precious book, the resale business will go down the drain, but it’s all in the hands of the artist.
Anyway, it was clear that the situation was going to attract a variety of comments:
- «Kerorira jobs are pretty hard to come by. Selling it is a great business opportunity».
- «Kerorira’s story is becoming a trend for Comiket every year since Bocchi the Rock! on the map… You may think that he should have foreseen this situation, but artists can only sell a limited number of copies so as not to break the law, because let’s remember that he is using intellectual property that does not belong to him».
- «It seems to me that the line was extremely long, but it did not make sense. If you’re a regular visitor to Comiket you know that artists can’t bring many copies of a stand-alone book. If you were all the way down you should know you wouldn’t have a chance to get it».
- «So is the book out of print or is it still available?».
- «Can you imagine that Kerorira himself saved a few dozen copies to sell them at a premium himself?».
- «I think when you have common sense you no longer stand in line where you know you have no chance of getting the product.».
