ueki-chan

うえきちゃん

Ueki-chan (from 植木 or うえき, meaning plant) is a Room Item designed by Miyamoto Frederica's voice actor, Takano Asami, for THE IDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls: Starlight Stage.

As part of a promotional web talk show, the voice actresses of the series participate in a Room Item Design Competition, where each of the hosts design and draw their own Room Item. The drawing voted highest by viewers gets implemented into Starlight Stage. On May 18th, 2016, on the broadcast promoting Tulip's CD release, Takano Asami submitted her drawing of what she called Ueki-chan, a large potted tulip costume that idols could wear, with her character, Miyamoto Frederica, wearing it as an example. The peculiar design, incorporating what looked like a tree trunk into what was supposed to be a tulip, as well as the particular way Frederica's face was drawn, drew an immediate reaction from both viewers and the other co-hosts that was compounded even more when the design won. The victory seemed to surprise even Asami, who issued an apology herself when the hosts returned after the following segment. Ueki-chan was nevertheless implemented, though the game version does not incorporate the costume aspect of the item, and instead bears Asami's rendition of Frederica's face by default.

The item has since become infamous, appearing not only in fan art, but also as a doodle on the log-in screen for Starlight Stage, and even receiving its own merchandise.

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