Roko Sekino

*"Wait! So was I supposed to be the leader?!"*

**Roko Sekino** (関野 ロコ, *Sekino Roko*) is one of the five main characters in Dropout Idol Fruit Tart.

## Official Description

Roko is a second-year high school student and a former child actor who struggles to find work. She was once loved by many for her role in a popular series of broccoli commercials.

## Appearance

Roko has waist-length plum hair that is tied in twin buns with bangs swept on the left side, matching color eyes and rosy red cheeks.

She wears a white flat top hat, a light blue jacket with dark blue and white patterns on it and a blue bow over a white button up shirt. She also wears a navy blue skirt over a frilly white skirt and long tan colored boots.

## Background

Despite being a sixteen year-old high school student, Roko stands at only 140 centimeters (4'7") tall, a somewhat humble reminder of her ten years working as a child actor. She is known by many TV viewers as "Brocco," the precocious heroine of *Sore Yuke!! Brocco-chan,* alongside her anthromorphic vegetable sidekicks, Broccoman and Caliman. Roko had joined Rat Productions after forcing herself out of the agency that kept pushing her to play Brocco, which was a character seven years passed its prime. After *Fruit Tart* was formed, Roko would eventually learn that she was in fact the group's leader.

Roko has a younger sister named Chiko Sekino who is a member of Cat Production's idol group, *Cream Anmitsu*.

## Personality

While her days of performing as a child actor are over, Roko has a tendency to still act rather childish and be brought to tears whenever something annoys her, such as the constant teasing from her sister, Chiko Sekino. She can be somewhat hostile to Hoho Kajino, whose incompetence and low-budget opportunities offered to the girls often infuriates Roko. Roko can be especially sensitive about her height and sometimes wishes to be at least a little taller than any one of her peers. However, Roko seems to find solace in Nina's friendship, who shares the same high school, as well as a similar insecurity.

Roko is somewhat oblivious to the impact she has made on others through her role as Brocco, especially among her classmates. As an idol, Roko is very much popular among women in their 20's and older.

She has a fondness for fluffy objects, and can lose all motivation when deprived of contact with anything big and soft. Roko is also a huge fan of *Doki Kira*, a long-running animated series for kids and a staple of her childhood.

## Commentary

> *"The thing about Roko is that she's a former child actor trying to branch out in show business, and so naturally you would expect her to mature along the way. But as you keep reading the comics, you realize that she never really stops being a kid. That's why I want to capture every amusing quirk about this hard-working and adorable little shorty!"*
> -**Risa Kubota**, the voice of Roko.
>
>

## Etymology

* Roko's surname **Sekino** means "barrier, gate" (関) (**seki**) and "field, wilderness" (野) (**no**).

## References

1. ↑ Dropout Idol Fruit Tart, Volume 2, Pg. 40
2. ↑ Manga Time Kirara Carat, June 2019, Pg. 26
3. ↑ Dropout Idol Fruit Tart, Volume 2, Pg. 103
4. ↑ Manga Time Kirara Carat, December 2019, Pg. 4.