The popularity of the My Dress-Up Darling anime has caused sales of the original manga series to skyrocket.
Shinichi Fukuda, the creator of the popular cosplay rom-com, announced on their personal Twitter account that the manga has surpassed a circulation of over 5 million copies. Fukuda also thanked fans for their support. Aniplex, the Sony-owned production company that helped to produce the anime series, further clarified that the manga has sold a whopping 1.5 million copies since the anime's premiere less than two months ago, on Jan. 9.
なんと累計500万部突破いたしました?ご購入してくださった皆様本当にありがとうございます！#着せ恋 https://t.co/CHKCJNETBk
— 福田晋一 (@fukudashin1) February 22, 2022
My-Dress Up Darling has been the surprise hit of the winter 2022 anime season. The series tells the story of Wakana Gojo, a timid high school student who has dedicated his life to crafting Hina, a type of traditional Japanese doll. Fearing that his peers will reject him for having a supposedly feminine hobby, Gojo keeps his passion to himself and has gone through most of his teenage years without having a real friend. Things change when Gojo meets Marin Kitagawa, an outspoken otaku who has nonetheless become one of his school's most popular girls due to her outgoing and bubbly personality. Marin pushes an initially reluctant Gojo into using his doll-making skills to help her achieve her dream of cosplaying all of her favorite anime and video game characters.
Fukuda's original manga premiered in the pages of Square Enix's Young Gangan magazine in 2018. The anime adaptation is being produced at CloverWorks, the animation studio behind Wonder Egg Priority and Tokyo 24th Ward. The show is being directed by Keisuke Shinohara, who previously worked on the acclaimed Devilman Crybaby and on studio Trigger's Little Witch Academia.
Both the anime and manga have received widespread praise for their positive messages and lovable cast of characters, particularly Marin, who has already become a popular subject for fan artists and cosplayers alike. Several professional artists who work on the show, such as animation director Jun Yamazaki, haven't been able to contain their affection for their character, and have begun sharing their own art of the character to their personal social media accounts.
The anime is available for streaming from Crunchyroll and Funimation, who are both hosting a simulcast of the series as it airs in Japan. The original manga is available in English from Square Enix.
Source: Twitter
