The adorable Platelets continue to gather head-over-heels followers on pixiv♡ [Recent Buzzwords]

A platelet is one among the different cells in our body and it's also one of the characters in Cells at Work! (はたらく細胞; hataraku saibo).

血小板ちゃん

by young-in

Why are the platelets so popular?

Nothing sums the answer better than the following post on pixiv Dictionary.

Circulating the human body, the platelets are smaller by nature compared to other medium-sized blood cells. So when these cells are anthropomorphized, the result comes in the shape of little girls who are old enough to be kindergarten or elementary school students.

Also, true to their appearance, these little girls speak and behave in a childish manner, like any run-of-the-mill little girl. Long story short, these cute and little platelets have the ability to gradually snatch the hearts of the audience, readers, and their fellow cells. Damn it! Why are the platelets so cute!?
pixiv Dictionary

The platelets' skyrocketing popularity on pixiv

On July 13, a day after the TV series' premiere, the keyword "Platelets (Cells at Work!)" claimed the 8th spot on the list of pixiv's most popular keywords among men. Since then, the keyword continued to climb the ladder and 2 days later, the keyword "Cells at Work!" reached the number 1 spot.

Each new episode reels in new fans, male and female alike, and as of July 26, the keywords "Platelets (Cells at Work!)" and "Cells at Work!" ranked first and second, respectively, on the list of pixiv's most popular keywords among men. Meanwhile, on the list of the most popular keywords among women, "Cells at Work!" has managed to snatch the second spot. On pixiv, it is indeed rare for a new anime series to quickly become a smash hit among everyone, regardless of their gender.

▲ pixiv's lists of the most popular keywords among men (top) and women (below) on pixiv's Creative Ideas page. ※As of July 26, 2018

The 6th chapter Heatstroke also went viral

Perhaps out of consideration for the people who had to deal with consecutive days of sweltering heat, an original "Cells at Work!" manga chapter titled "Chapter Six: Heatstroke" was released on July 25 for everyone to read for free. The release quickly went viral on various SNS platforms.

まだまだ暑い日が続きますね！　漫画「はたらく細胞」より「第６話熱中症」を特別無料公開します。熱中症に皆さんお気をつけください！(担当編集Ｎ) https://t.co/LWnu6TcqAV
#はたらく細胞　 #熱中症　 #hataraku_saibou #CellsatWork pic.twitter.com/6xi4NTF5KO
— 『はたらく細胞』公式 (@hataraku_saibou) 2018年7月25日

The TV series involves not only the platelets but also other charming characters. The eager and clumsy Red Blood Cell and White Blood Cell, who's famous for his bloody fighting scenes, are also popular characters. The public is also waiting excitedly for the rest of the characters to make their appearance in the TV series.