Heart Gear

Takaki was fond of the science fiction genre, so after the completion of Black Torch, Takaki wanted to create a science fiction manga. He ultimately chose to make it post-apocalyptic with robots, though he feared that it would be hard for some readers to understand. After discussing this with his editor, he ultimately settled on a young girl and a robot as the main protagonists in order to have two separate viewpoints to write from. When writing the robots in the series, Takaki recalled being fascinated with the human-like robots from the 1982 American film Android, so he used them as a model when writing the series. Takaki initially had trouble with the setting, as he wanted it to seem futuristic at first sight, but at the same time not become pure fantasy. In order to achieve this, he used things from his daily life like trees, utility poles, and buildings, along with photos on the internet, particularly those of ruins or famous places as a model. ==Media==

Manga Written and illustrated by Tsuyoshi Takaki, the series began bi-weekly serialization on Shueisha's Shōnen Jump+ manga website on April 3, 2019. In May 2020, the series was put hiatus due to the health of the author. The series returned from its two-year long hiatus in August 2022, before beginning another in December 2022. It resumed publication in January 2024. The series ended serialization on June 26, 2024. The series' first (bound) volume was released on July 4, 2019, while the seven and last volume was released on August 2, 2024. At New York Comic Con 2022, Viz Media announced that they licensed the series for English publication. The series is also licensed in France by Ki-oon. Volumes Other Chrome, one of the series' main protagonists, is featured in the video game Captain Velvet Meteor: The Jump+ Dimensions. ==Reception==

The series has sold three times more copies in France than in Japan. Critical response to the story and characters has generally been positive. Erkael from Manga News liked the setting. He also offered praise for the characters and the way they interact to advance the story. However, Erkael also felt that the story uses too many common elements of manga. Faustine Lillaz from Planete BD liked the relationship between the human and robot characters and the setting, though she also felt the world building was a bit too subtle. Skeet from Manga Sanctuary enjoyed the emotions of the story, particularly the less-serious parts. However, Skeet also felt the series was a bit generic. Marc Vandermeer from liked the post-apocalyptic setting, calling it realistic; he also favorably compared several elements of the story to The Girl from the Other Side: Siúil, a Rún. However, he felt the author gave Chrome too much power in the action scenes. Critical response to the artwork has also been positive. Erkael liked the artstyle, feeling that it helped to make the story feel more immersing and make the action scenes more intense. Skeet liked the variety in pencil strokes used by Takaki, feeling that it made the story feel more impactful. Vandermeer felt the artwork helped to make the story and characters, particularly the robots, feel more captivating and interesting. Though he also felt the artist had trouble drawing some characters' faces. ==See also==