Talking anime girl calendars let you stare at and listen to your live-in 2-D girlfriend

Popular voice actresses lend their talents to create an aural fantasy otaku can enjoy every day.

Many otaku like to put up posters of their anime crushes in their homes, making it feel like they’re living together with a 2-D girlfriend. So it’s not such a big surprise that Japanese stationery company Gakken Sta:Ful has created two spiral-bound calendars each starring a different character, both specially designed to appeal to fans in different ways.

But what makes Gakken Sta:Ful’s calendars special is that they’re not just eye candy, but a treat for the ears too. Both versions feature a total of 31 pages (allowing them to be reused for each month), and every day means a new vocal message from your anime girl housemate.

First up is Yukina Shirakawa, pictured above and drawn by illustrator Netarou. A mid-level employee at a major publishing company, Yukina has a hot-and-cold tsundere personality, which means you can look forward to passive-aggressive words of affection such as “You’re really late coming home…Bu- but it’s not like I was lonely or anything, you dummy! Just hurry up and go to bed already!” and “Ju- just today, I’ll say it. Thank you for always being kind to me. I love you,” coming courtesy of voice actress Ayana Taketetsu (Sword Art Online’s Leafa and My Little Sister Can’t Be This Cute’s Kirino).

Meanwhile, for those who like their sweetness without even a hint of sourness, there’s Riho Ichinose, designed by illustrator Shunsuke Taue and voiced by Aoi Yuki (SSSS.Gridman’s Borr and Persona 5: The Animation’s Futaba). Described as the calendar purchaser’s adoring childhood friend, the younger Riho has just moved to the town where you live to start school, and the two of you have shacked up together, which means you can look forward to her telling you “I was so excited for our date today that I couldn’t sleep last night” and referring to you as her figurative big brother as she lets you know “Oni-chan! Good morning! It’s time to get up!”

The Ii Koe (“Nice Voice”) Calendars, as they’re officially called, are 21 centimeters (8.3 inches long) and work via a free AR app that plays the day’s voice sample when you scan the day’s calendar page with your phone. The calendars themselves are priced at 2,916 yen (US$26) each on Rakuten and Amazon Japan, though if you’re committed to having your own harem by living with both Yukina and Riho, we recommend at least hanging their calendars in different parts of the house, so that they don’t get jealous of each other and also so that the AR system doesn’t get confused as to which voice samples to play.

Source: PR Times
Top image: Rakuten/Gakken Shop
Insert images: PR Times

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