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EP. REVIEW: Oshi no Ko


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L'Imperatore



Joined: 24 Mar 2014
Posts: 821
PostPosted: Wed Apr 19, 2023 11:04 pm Reply with quote
As an anime-only watcher, yeah, that twist won me over.
This show also gives me some (serious?) insight into Japanese idol showbiz (maybe not the first one that offers it, but then again, I haven't seen many idol shows...)
That's a plus for me.
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fuuma_monou



Joined: 26 Dec 2005
Posts: 1816
Location: Quezon City, Philippines
PostPosted: Wed Apr 19, 2023 11:25 pm Reply with quote
The show is also on Netflix Philippines as a non-exclusive simulcast, so it's probably available on other streaming services in Asia. Just watched the first episode last night. Did episode two just drop today? I forget when exactly the show debuted last week.
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Shay Guy



Joined: 03 Jul 2009
Posts: 2092
PostPosted: Wed Apr 19, 2023 11:33 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
Even though Ai is no longer physically present, her star power haunts every scene. She may have had the telltale side ponytail, but her story is far deeper than your average dead mom arc.


Not always, though! It was her signature hairdo on stage, but if you look back to episode 1, she wore various other hairstyles in her private life.

Ruby, though? Ever since she had enough hair to tie up, she's always worn it in that left side ponytail -- the hairstyle of "Ai, the idol", more than "Ai Hoshino, her mother". I think that says a lot about Ruby.
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JustMonika



Joined: 17 Jan 2022
Posts: 926
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 12:43 am Reply with quote
AOTY right here, folks
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Key
Moderator


Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18137
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 12:48 am Reply with quote
Review wrote:
Both the opening theme “Idol” and ending theme “Mephisto” are bangers, as you'd expect for a show about the entertainment business.

Yeah, the OP in particular is going to quickly become a favorite. Both have more punch if you can follow the lyrics, though, as the OP in particular speaks to the series' content. (See here for a translation of the lyrics to "Idol" and here for a translation of the lyrics for "Mephisto.")

Quote:
Even though Ai is no longer physically present, her star power haunts every scene.

I had that impression, too, and I'm being reminded of the great series Cross Game on that point. Ai's impact here, despite being dead for a decade, is every bit as pervasive as Wakaba's was in that series.

Side thought: Am I reading it correctly that Ai's name, when written in Japanese order and broken into three words, (hoshi no ai), translates as "star love"? Seems too perfect a fit for the series to be a coincidence.

Anyway, this is now officially my top-priority series of the season, as episode 2 proved that the series will be able to sustain is conceptual foundation. I look forward to seeing how Lauren's commentary on the series compare with my own.
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L'Imperatore



Joined: 24 Mar 2014
Posts: 821
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 12:56 am Reply with quote
JustMonika wrote:
AOTY right here, folks

Oh, already seen some claiming it to be GOAT. Needless to say, those attract heated "debate" between fandoms.
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Shay Guy



Joined: 03 Jul 2009
Posts: 2092
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 1:03 am Reply with quote
Key wrote:
Side thought: Am I reading it correctly that Ai's name, when written in Japanese order and broken into three words, (hoshi no ai), translates as "star love"? Seems too perfect a fit for the series to be a coincidence.


Given her association with stars and love, it can't be accidental. (The phonetic resemblance to "oshi" and the English word "eye" are a bit more of a stretch.) That said, her first name is written in katakana, so we don't get the meaning, and her surname uses the old Sailor Moon trick of ending in 野 (plain/field, pronounced "no") to get that effect -- though "Hoshino" is a real surname, too.

Aqua's name also has that ai/love kanji, by the way. Twice!
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Covnam



Joined: 31 May 2005
Posts: 3629
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 2:12 am Reply with quote
Enjoying everything so far. It will be interesting to see by the end of the season if it ends in a good place considering the quadruple sized first episode.
Good thing Ruby didn't end up in an underground Idol group. It seems to primarily be just the worst parts of the regular idol industry.
That image of Ai from this weeks episode was (fittingly) haunting O_o

Thanks for the lyrics @Key. Great Op song, but those lyrics sure nail it lol
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tintor2



Joined: 11 Aug 2010
Posts: 1804
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 7:35 am Reply with quote
I'm liking it but considering how much manga there is, there might be only one cour without a canon ending unless the author suddenly ends it.

I already liked Aqua and Ruby in the hospital scene considering how much comfort we had between a doctor and his patient. Then the two were adorable as toddlers but I feel we didn't get too much of the mother due to the point of view the narrative had. While I understand the need for a darker than a narrative, it's a shame the change Aqua had. Still, the second episode felt like the series also had romcom elements.
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JohnRhogan



Joined: 27 Mar 2018
Posts: 164
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 8:09 am Reply with quote
In the 1st ep movie, when Ai passes away, and the stars in her eyes go out, the animation style for that scene kinda creeped me out. Aqua has his own agenda, while Ruby wants to follow in her mother's footsteps. It's interesting how Aqua & Ruby remember their previous lives, and with Ruby, you see how she is now than how she was before (obviously). I've also noticed that Aqua's star eye goes dark when his personality gets dark. That's kinda creepy yet interesting at the same time. I lvoe the opening & ending credits, the songs are pretty good. They set a mood for the show.
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Animegomaniac



Joined: 16 Feb 2012
Posts: 4070
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 9:15 am Reply with quote
I'm still not sold on it; There was no need for all that isekai bull... Me: Reviewer, explain it. Reviewer ignores it. Fair enough, a lot of it was eye rolling. "If Aqua's... then Ruby's going to be her somehow... Yeah. Makes no sense but ok."

Was Ai 16 for about 5 years? Probably for the best if Ai was an "eternally 17, rather 16 here" idol.

The gynecologist was also treating a girl suffering from leukemia or was the cancer specialist... probably more a case of a writer trying to cross off too many boxes without having too many characters.

Story description for episode 1 "It was all a lie." That's the most truthful thing about it.

I didn't hate it but I was irritated by the 90 minute "not really a movie because there's no plot" special and it took me three tries to get through it. Episode 2 now, that's a different issue. Also, a different genre. Does this artist know how to age people or are we stuck in a time stop?

Why is it that I've seen over a thousand series in both shoujo and shounen styles but this is the first anime I'd call a soap opera? Right, most series have plots.

My overall reaction to the idea a grown man in a kid's body trying to avenge a proxy murder of his former idol crush/now actual mother ten years later: "Well, that's dumb. Dial it back."

Oh, I'm sorry. BESTEST ANIME OF THE ALL TIME YEAR! Just don't think about it.
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Raneth



Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 271
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 9:28 am Reply with quote
I enjoyed the premiere but it was one of those things where once the episode is over, it falls apart when I think about it too hard. Why have the two main characters be reincarnated as her children? (Other than to capitalize on the popular reincarnation trope?) If Aqua is essentially his own character by episode 2, what's the point of him having a previous life? I'm guessing the blood tie is how he finds his father who he suspects is the murderer, but that could very easily have been done or established without the reincarnation stuff. In fact, following them as normal (or maybe genius, if you want to keep Aqua in his precocious kid role) children and seeing them slowly discover why their mother was killed and by whom as they discover the darkness of the idol industry would have been a more interesting way to do things, IMO.

Again, I enjoyed the premiere, but when I'm left thinking "I would have done this differently" I think it becomes a case of "this show is good, but not for me."
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yurigasaki



Joined: 06 Apr 2015
Posts: 192
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 11:13 am Reply with quote
LET'S GOOOOOOOO

As someone who breezed through the manga totally blind some time ago and came away thinking it was interesting but not my thing, I've been very pleasantly surprised but how much the anime got its hooks into me. Ai is the standout, of course; I think the anime really perfectly managed to express just what it is about her that drives people crazy and it sure as hell worked its magic on me, too. Instead of brain, there is Hoshino Ai.

Curious to see how the rest of S1 is handled! I have a good guess as to where they're going to leave off in the manga's story, so seeing how they're going to handle all that material has me excited to see what's to come.

Animegomaniac wrote:
The gynecologist was also treating a girl suffering from leukemia or was the cancer specialist... probably more a case of a writer trying to cross off too many boxes without having too many characters.


Goro wasn't treating Sarina for anything – he explicitly states they just met while he was doing his residency work at the hospital and slacking off in patients' rooms on top of that. I get the impression based on your post that you probably weren't paying attention because it wasn't clicking with you, but that explanation is given in the episode.
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Angel M Cazares



Joined: 23 Sep 2010
Posts: 5406
Location: Iscandar
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 11:44 am Reply with quote
I was skeptical going into this show, but it sold me minutes into the first episode. Oshi no Ko is to me easily the best show of this season. I look forward to seeing if it sustains the quality throughout its run to become a contender for anime of the year.
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2023 1:50 pm Reply with quote
JoelBurger wrote:
Raneth wrote:
I enjoyed the premiere but it was one of those things where once the episode is over, it falls apart when I think about it too hard. Why have the two main characters be reincarnated as her children? (Other than to capitalize on the popular reincarnation trope?) If Aqua is essentially his own character by episode 2, what's the point of him having a previous life? I'm guessing the blood tie is how he finds his father who he suspects is the murderer, but that could very easily have been done or established without the reincarnation stuff. In fact, following them as normal (or maybe genius, if you want to keep Aqua in his precocious kid role) children and seeing them slowly discover why their mother was killed and by whom as they discover the darkness of the idol industry would have been a more interesting way to do things, IMO.


This is what happens when Cinemasins rots an entire generation's brains and makes them think nitpicks about stuff that just hasn't been elaborated on yet is valid criticism that makes the show "fall apart".

Of the, possibly quite literally at this point, thousands of isekai show that have come out, how many of them was the reincarnation aspect actually necessary to make the story work, I'd hazard below 5%. So odds are very good that they'll be entirely unnecessary while also introducing a big supernatural aspect that may or may not be useful.
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