Love Live! Nijigasaki Gakuen School Idol Doukoukai

“The tiny melodies blend together (Our Colors) Let’s paint this arch, now. It resonates throughout the city (reaching for far blue sky!)” - lyrics from Nijiiro Passions! This show came as quite the pleasant surprise. Given the nature of spinoffs, it’s not unusual to believe that they rarely ever live up to or exceed the quality of their original counterparts and tend to fall short. But that is not the case here. Along with having several noteworthy changes and improvements, this installment to the Love Live franchise came in as something incredibly refreshing and serves as an excellent starting point for the girls of Nijigasaki. As someone who’sseen the previous Love Live shows, I had some anticipation going into this. The original laid the groundwork for school idols thanks to the influence of μ's and while Sunshine shared many similarities in its story and structure, there were certain aspects about Aqours that were able to stand out. Naturally the prospect of another entry got me interested in wanting to see how it would stack up. There were some mixed feelings when seeing the change in art style but upon watching the first episode, those worries were quickly put to rest. This show has not only been able to meet my expectations but somehow managed to surpass them. THIS is how you do a spinoff. Love Live Nijigasaki is the third animated series in the franchise following the previous titles School Idol Project and Sunshine. Though unlike the latter, which sought to follow closely behind the footsteps of the original, this entry has its own separate story with no callbacks to past shows or idol groups which is a breath of fresh air. It shows that the series is willing to be innovative with trying new ideas instead of going for more repetition which already makes this show feel more distinct. One criticism that many had with regards to Sunshine was how closely it tied itself to the original despite being its successor. As a result, it ended up following many similar story beats such as the school closure plot point all while drawing constant mention and praise to the previous group: μ's. Nijigasaki on the other hand, sets itself apart by beginning with what I would say is a stronger and more impressive start than either of those two shows. Instead of starting out with trying to become school idols in order to prevent their school from shutting down, this time it's finding out why the idol group that was already established in their own school decided to disband. With this change, it allows for the show to focus more on exploring the different aspects about being an idol such as expression and being able to connect with fans rather than having a constant worry over our heads (Besides, this school is so large and robust anyway that it doesn’t need to worry about closing its doors). It eases us into the mindset of the girls and what being a school idol means for each of them whilst providing meaningful characterization instead of having them simply become one because of an outside threat. This is helped by the less arduous process of recruiting members as many of them were already part of a smaller group. This also allowed the show to feel more grounded with its story and characters as well as its handle on drama. Each of them is presented with the question of what they want to invoke to their audience which provides for some variety. All of them have different answers yet none of them are incorrect as the appeal of idols vary from person to person. Compared to the more ambitious starts of the previous shows, this story starts out as more simple and intimate with wholesome character interactions between the two main leads Ayumu and Yuu as well as a brief glimpse of the other girls. After being inspired by their first performance, which was done by an idol from their own school rather than another, they seek to understand what caused the idol club to disband and try to reestablish it. Later on it becomes about how each girl in the show will try to stand out as individuals as they strive to become school idols. Understanding other people’s viewpoints, being honest with oneself, and accepting the different sides of your identity are all obstacles they must face in order to get there. While the lack of a familiar looming threat such as school closure did cause the show to feel more open ended and lighthearted overall given there’s less stakes involved, it also allowed for some flexibility as we steer away from the somewhat tired narrative plot point giving Nijigasaki its own unique flavor which many may find to be a welcome change. The show instead focuses most of its attention purely on character development and with it comes the concept of solo idols which was interesting to see as it adds a new dynamic to the series and to the way live performances work. Nijigasaki is putting more emphasis on the individual, with each girl having their own color that corresponds to them, instead of the group which results in them not actually having a group name like in the other entries. While the show does fall into a formulaic rhythm with each episode focusing on a different girl who would inevitably get their own song at the end, repetition doesn’t necessarily mean bad here as it gives us something to look forward to. This is mostly because each episode feels distinct from one another being able to stand on its own merit with each character having their own problems unique to them making it interesting to see how it unfolds. They all get a chance to shine and develop this season which is something Love Live hasn’t done before. One of the biggest flaws with past entries was that there was not enough time spent fleshing out all the characters by the time the plot started rolling along. With such a large cast, there would usually only be a few characters who get their own episodes per season leaving the rest of the cast feeling both underutilized and underdeveloped, but here they all do. Another interesting change to the series are the visuals. How does it compare? Well to put it simply: it’s utterly gorgeous. Love Live has maintained a similar look for its first two installments, but here the art style is distinctly different especially in terms of the character designs which come off as less shiny but more vibrantly colored and crisp. Some of the background art coupled with the lighting in this show are absolutely superb and exceptionally detailed making some scenes really pop out especially during the performances. I was particularly awed by the setpieces used during some of the songs which all have a strikingly rich color palette like Ayumu’s glorious pink stage. While the general look of previous entries are fantastic in their own right (not to mention that I have a strong fondness towards it), the style chosen for Nijigasaki works surprisingly well especially with the CG. Studio Sunrise, having made the previous Love Live shows, truly stepped up in quality for this one. There’s no jarring CG, no awkward movement...it’s clean, smooth, and gorgeous. The CG in this franchise has sure come a long way and now it is some of the best I’ve seen compared to most anime out there coupling amazingly well with the 2D. There’s some incredibly stunning and fluid animation and several unique visual effects that are a first for this franchise as evident in the first song of the show: CHASE! with its interesting but effective use of fire effects as well as many others. The series made some notable improvements here. With that said, Love Live is not a show that will impress you with having complex ideas or a deep intricate narrative. It has a simple and fairly straightforward story but more importantly, it is a character driven show first and foremost with the aim of eventually becoming school idols in order to achieve their end goal. If you don’t like the girls, then you probably won’t like the show. As for me...there was not a single character that I disliked or found underwhelming. Even the side characters, which mostly consist of fangirls that the main cast garnered over time, eventually became a welcome and benevolent presence whenever they were on screen. It can be a difficult task having to adjust to a completely new cast of characters if you already have an attachment to either, both, or even neither of the previous groups. However, I found it rather easy to get invested in the cast of Nijigasaki. Naturally when you find one girl you like in the group, you want to find reasons to care about the others and the show does exactly that. It does a fine job of portraying them in a more subtle and natural way with relatable issues which made the girls here endearing and fun to watch without being overly obnoxious or unlikable and not feeling like shallow characters. They have some depth to their personalities and have more going on with them than meets the eye instead of merely identifying with one particular character trait or cliche. No one is constantly spouting deadpan one liners even if they were somewhat cute or comedic before. But that’s not to say the show isn’t without its humor. The funny moments can be utterly hilarious with the characters being fun and goofy with playful banter whether that be hanging out in the club room or working hard on becoming school idols. Coupled with good dialogue, interactions are unique and quirky without feeling overdone and this leads to the show having a smooth and energetic pacing throughout which complements well with the lighthearted tone. The voice actresses really did a great job in bringing these characters to life adding a bit more detail and personality to them such as the subtle playfulness in Kanata’s voice when she’s sleeping or the little mumbles and outbursts from Kasumi whenever she’s feeling frustrated. Handling of character drama has shown great improvement compared to previous first seasons as they feel genuine and built up with resolutions that feel more down to earth while not being forced down my throat with excessive melodrama or unnatural reactions. But it’s not smooth sailing all the way through as the conflict in the last few episodes felt uneven at times and a bit out of place given how far things went which clashed with the consistently toned down nature of the rest of the show. While it did provide some interesting and insightful context to the mindset of a certain character, there’s a lingering thought that it could’ve been handled in a less bothersome way. Now onto the girls themselves who make up the wonderful cast of Nijigasaki: First Years - Kasumi serves as the cute lovable goofball of the group. I won’t lie when I say that she might easily be one of the funniest and most entertaining characters I’ve ever seen. I appreciate the studio for going the extra mile in emphasizing and exaggerating her movements and facial expressions by adding in some nuanced animation in many of her scenes to strengthen the fact that she’s over the top and hilarious. While there are some obvious similarities that can be drawn to Nico, there is a bit of distinction between them. Kasumi strives to be the cutest idol but doesn’t put up a facade or have an alternate personality. She might be overenthusiastic and flamboyant at times (albeit for comedic purposes) but she is self-aware about other people’s feelings and deep down, she can be helpful to her friends and pull through when it matters. Rina is someone who is good with using technology and has excellent programming skills but she has difficulty expressing her emotions and making friends. She is a unique character to the series being the first who covers her face during performances. Shizuku has a passion for acting and because of this she is in the drama club. But below her calm exterior lies someone who is afraid to show and express her true self to others. The way in which the show portrayed her inner monologue is commendable as it works well both visually and thematically. As far as first year trios go in this franchise, I find Nijigasaki’s to be quite compelling as their character growth is apparent and carries over to the later episodes with a lasting impact. Rina and Shizuku’s episodes in particular coupled with their performances and songs were the ones that stood out to me as some of the strongest in the show and perhaps the franchise as a whole. Second Years - Setsuna is a standout character as she is a stunningly beautiful and passionate girl who performs in the first episode and is an inspiration for Ayumu and Yuu. She has a serious and hardworking side to her but also an energetic and vibrant personality. Plus she happens to be a fan of anime which earns some points in my book. Now concerning Ayumu...one may be led to believe that she serves as the lively leader of this Love Live group like how Honoka or Chika were for theirs, however, she is not at all similar to either of them. While those two characters shared attributes of being energetic and poised on becoming school idols, Ayumu is more shy and easily embarrassed. I would say that her friend Yuu serves the leadership role better and actively does so throughout the show. While she does have a strong attachment and reliance towards Yuu, she is a rather sweet and adorable person especially when she’s doing the Ayu-bun. Ai is the helpful and friendly athletic type. She has a strange affinity for puns though thankfully, this quirk of hers is not overused. With her laid back personality and positive attitude, she provides an added level of fun and liveliness to the group. Third Years - Kanata has an easy going and playful personality. She seemingly looks like a girl who only loves to sleep a lot and is not particularly flexible but there is more going on with her that results in this. It paints her as a far more interesting character than at first glance. Karin is a model with a more mature and cool headed personality who sort of serves as the Nozomi of the group i.e. the big sister figure who quietly watches from behind the scenes which is a welcome homage to the original. Despite her calm demeanor, she has a sweet and more innocent side to her. Emma is a girl from Switzerland who loves eating food. She has a kind and understanding personality which allows her to play a more supportive role in the group. Normally that would be it for the main cast, but in Nijigasaki there are now 10 main girls instead of the usual 9. It seems Love Live has indeed added one more to their already copious roster of female characters which at first glance would seem rather trivial but the way she’s utilized in the story is quite intriguing. Yuu more or less serves as a self-insert lens for the audience as well as someone for Ayumu to bounce off of. She is all about supporting her best friend and everyone else in the group and that can also be said for any fan who wants to cheer for these girls’ success. But she is not just a blank slate or a useless character. Even though Yuu herself does not want to become a school idol, she plays a pivotal role in bringing together several members acting as both a voice of reason and of motivation leading to some emotionally satisfying moments (and building up her harem all the same). She has a likable and charming personality while being reliable which makes her interactions all the more meaningful and in some cases absolutely hilarious. Of course it wouldn’t be Love Live without the music and suffice to say there are some straight bangers in this one. While there are some that stood out to me more than others (CHASE!, Solitude Rain, etc.), I somehow found myself listening to all of them an unhealthy amount of times. Now I liked quite a few songs from both the original group and Sunshine, but this...just hits different. Compared to previous entries which had primarily group songs, Nijigasaki focuses more on the individual with solos for each character reflecting their own ‘color’ and personality. This is even more emphasized by the different types of music they sing and their styles of performance such as the vocaloid-esque display from Rina or the stunning theatrical from Shizuku which all showcase the exuberant appeal of idols. Each one feels like a music video with its aesthetic, lighting, visual cuts and dynamic camera. As expected from this series, there is a keen eye for detail in the directing and choreography as well as overall fluidity with hair, mouth movement, and facial expressions. Everything matches up well with the lyrics. Since the main theme seems to be the girls coming together to represent a rainbow, the songs themselves signify each member being honest with themselves, moving forward, and ultimately accepting what they can bring to the group as a different color and standing side by side. That being said, while the new style is extravagant, it is noticeably different from past entries as most of the songs are not performed in reality but rather in a ‘dreamlike’ world where visuals are exaggerated. There also isn’t the familiar group song setting. In previous shows, the girls from μ's and Aqours had the capability of bouncing off one another. Here they have to perform alone which they do address in the show and have legitimate concerns for. But despite the fact that they are performing by themselves, I never got a sense that it was an inferior experience to past shows because each individual was able to stand out thanks to the emotional support from the other members of their group and the gradual buildup of their characterization from each of their arcs. Credit to the show, everyone seems to be on equal footing making it feel all the more worthwhile to believe that if the time comes for them to perform together, they can all stand proudly as school idols. Coupled with smooth and improved animation and amazing performances from the voice actresses, every live show is distinct and riveting. The OP “Nijiiro Passions!” is bursting with energy and excitement coupled with gorgeous visuals and for lack of a better term ‘pizzazz’ while the ED “NEO SKY, NEO MAP!” has its somber yet uplifting tone with vocals from each character giving the episodes a strong sense of closure. Both are worthy additions to an already stellar lineup of OPs and EDs in this franchise. The soundtrack is also great as it fits the upbeat and energetic scenes as well as some of the more somber moments pretty well. To sum up, Love Live Nijigasaki has proven itself to be a worthy addition to this franchise. It stands to reason that both Love Live fans and non-fans will likely find this to be a solid if not a fantastic entry and may end up being a little surprised by it. It certainly has a case for being the best. Despite whatever hiccups there were along the way, it was an absolute joy to watch. For newcomers, this can serve as a good starting point to the series as prior knowledge of past shows is not necessary. From the smooth and clean art style, improved animation, a different and fresh story, amazing songs, likable and memorable characters...it’s the full package. It improves on what the other entries lacked while also being distinct, having its own identity, and all while adding some new twists to the formula. It managed to implement all these changes yet none of them I feel were unwarranted and it was still able to maintain the charm Love Live has with its enjoyable goofy moments. Sure idol anime might not be everyone’s cup of tea but as someone who enjoys a more lighthearted show with cute characters that have a lot of personality and passion, this is one of if not the best I’ve seen. It managed to become a surprisingly meaningful experience and showed me that this franchise still has so much more enthusiasm to express.

Love Live Nijigaku represents the next stage in the evolution of the best ongoing idol franchise. It takes everything we know and love about the series to new heights and breathes new life into the Love Live series. Disclaimer, when it comes to idol shows, I am very easy to please. Cute girls, good songs and good performances are really all I look for. That’s why I was pleasantly surprised to see how much more Nijigaku contained. If you’ve seen sunshine and SIP, which you most likely have if you’re here, you’ll recall how fluffy and cutesy those shows were. While we had the drama ofthe school being forced to shut down in both seasons, there never really felt like there was drama or tension among the girls. Nijigaku deviates from that trend and actually introduces some pretty overt yuri romance/love triangle type situations with Ayumu, Yuu and Setsuna which I really liked. I felt like the tension between the three of them throughout the second half of the series was the best Love Live has ever been at. The story in general feels a bit more mature this time around. Of course there’s still the usual dramatisations that we have come to know and love, but in general things feel much more natural. Sunrise went with a different art-style this time around, which I personally think is the best LL has ever looked. I liked Sunshine’s art over SIP, but would take this over both of the previous series. It feels much more “real” rather than the uber cutsey nature of Sunshine. The CGI also needs to be applauded. We have come a LONG way since the days of SIP in terms of quality CGI. At times, I could not even distinguish the CG from the drawn images. Nijigaku has to be in my top 5 shows of the season and was probably the second or third most anticipated on a weekly basis. I think this season was an evolution for the franchise and bodes well for the future of one of my favourite idol groups. I’m looking forward to seeing what new heights the girls and this series reach. Love Live Nijigasaki gets 10 mics out of 10.

„Never get dragged into Love Live! idol hell or your wallet will hate you.” - everyone who has already spent too much on Love Live! After the Aqours movie "Over the Rainbow" (Love Live! Sunshine!!) in 2019 we finally get a Love Live! continuation with a new setting. All those fans who are already familiar with the Love Live! mobile games know what Nijigasaki is about. Even if the main goal is not the Love Live! competition this time, we feel that our girls are doing their best to make everyone happy. Lean back, relax and just enjoy the wonderful world and music ofNijigaku! The “Nijigasaki High School Idol Club” initially started with 5 members led by Setsuna Yuki (she is the same person as Nana Nakagawa, the student council president). But because of different goals and opinions, it was dissolved. Thanks to Yuu Takasaki, later becoming the manager of the group, it was brought back to life. The main difference to the previous Love Live! series is the solo idol performing by each of them. Since there is no threat of closing the school here, it is not necessary to win the Love Live! competition, our solo idols do not pursue this goal. Although they are rivals through their solo careers, they support and push each other. The deep friendship can be clearly felt. The Niji adaptation focuses on our nine idols and their manager and song composer Yuu. She is the budding school idol enthusiast of Nijigasaki High School. Her love for school idols blossomed after seeing the performance “CHASE” of the legendary school idol, Setsuna Yuki. She is Ayumu's inseparable childhood friend, the two support each other in every situation. The dynamic relationship between Yuu and Ayumu is particularly striking. Ayumu quickly becomes jealous when Yuu is hanging out with Setsuna. After stumbled upon a school idol performance for the first time with Yuu, a new path suddenly appears in her world. Despite not being able to sing or dance, Ayumu would nevertheless venture on to become a school idol herself. She is a hardworking girl that puts her everything into what she does. She tries her best to be helpful to others. In most of the full unit songs from Nijigasaki, Ayumu is also the person taking the center place most of the time. The third second year of them is the most popular idol Setsuna. She has an energetic smile and a distinctive style of performing. With her love for anime, manga and video games, she shares the same interest with us. She lights up whenever she is asked a question about these. She has not only a lot of knowledge about idols, but is also one of the best in the other school subjects too. Ai (愛-LOVE) is someone who’s always in a good mood and can cheer you up with her incredibly sociable attitude. Because she is a gyaru, she can be mistaken as the type to skip school or be rebellious. However, she has very good grades and is excellent at sports as well. She is also very caring, especially with her family and friends. Rina is Ai’s best friend. She admires Ai for her confidence and friendliness since she Rina is not good at conveying emotions on her face. During the performances on stage, she wears her self-created “Rina-chan Board” to show all the emotions. As a school idol, she hopes that people will cheer for her so she can show everyone her true smile. Another first year is Shizuku, our level-headed and mature honor student. She is considered a traditional Japanese beauty with her polite attitude. Besides dancing and singing, she is talented in acting and performing in plays, even being a member of the school's theater club. “Kasukasu” (she doesn't like this nickname actually) had always dreamed of becoming an idol. She is the one always believed in the club and is determined to keep the dream alive. Kasumi loves all cute things, her love for idols is unrivaled in strength and inspiration. She wants to be number one in any competition she's in, and often resorts to cheating or even sabotage to achieve that goal. If you liked Nico-Nico-Nii from School Idol Project, you will love Kasu-Kasu-Miin. Let’s take a look at our third years starting with the most mature girl in the whole Love Live! Series: Karin Asaka. She can use her adult-like looks to her advantage. Karin often tries to tease her underclassmen, or teach them lessons on how to be sexy and cool like her. Besides being a school idol, she works as a model for magazines. Her roommate Emma from Switzerland has the biggest Bazookas of the whole Love Live! Franchise, even bigger than our shrine maiden Nozomi. Coming from a family with eight younger siblings, she would leave her home country to pursue becoming a school idol in Japan. Emma is very cheerful, pleasant, and tries to look after the other idols. She aims to be encouraging and to help others smile. Finally, we have my favorite character from Niji: Sleepy Goddess Kanata. Her little sister Haruka can also be seen in the anime. As the nickname suggests, Kanata loves sleeping and short power naps. At times, she will appear to be sleeping but is actually awake and listening to what's going on around her. Despite seeming always tired, Kanata is motivated as a school idol by her younger sister and others' praise. She takes care of the others, she works hard, she can cook, she is the "sleeping beauty". Without the help of many other students and friends, our idols would not be able to realize their dream. In addition to our ten members of the club, we see many other support characters. They also give everything to make the perfect show possible! If you are already familiar with the art style from the previous Love Live! series, you will feel comfortable right away here as well. Love Live! always gives you a colorful and beautiful animation. I have to admit that there are small differences if you compare the style with School Idol Project! and Sunshine!! Nevertheless, you can still directly say after first sight: This is Love Live! It’s beautiful! What is very important for every idol anime is the music. Love Live! has never disappointed us in this point, we experience the wonderful music world of the idols once again here. Since Niji focuses on solo idols, we hear a lot of solo songs. From the fiery "Chase" from Setsuna to the beautiful "Butterfly" from Kanata, each girl shows us her personality with her own song. The singles are just nice to listen to. But this anime does not only delight us with singles, with the OP "Nijiiro Passions!" and ED "NEO SKY, NEO MAP!" we also get to hear two wonderful group songs. The Love Live! feeling can be felt directly, they managed to win our hearts with stunning music again! As someone who loves the idol group “μ's” more than anything and also enjoy “Aqours” a lot, Niji was definitely a must-watch for me. I always have a lot of fun watching and following Love Live! When the game "Love Live! School Idol Festival ALL STARS" was released on the Japanese Playstore, I was already able to find out a lot about our Niji members. But seeing them animated is a much bigger highlight and way better! Although I'm not a big fan of solo songs, I still loved the singles. But of course, the OP and ED were just overwhelming. The Love Live! hell has a tight grip on me, but I love this hell. I can and will not escape from it! For every Love Live! fan there is no question whether Niji is worth watching, you have to do it! For those who has not been with Love Live! familiar before, I recommend starting with School Idol Project! first to find out how everything started. However, it is not necessary since in the anime Niji and μ's have no connection in common. So just enjoy Love Live! All parts are great! In the end, I'm curious to see whether we will see the second season of Niji (not announced yet, but I am convinced it will happen) or even the latest project Love Live! Super Star !! first. No matter which one it will be, all are SUPER!

*this review does contain spoilers* I have been following Love Live for quite some time now. I love the original series and adore Sunshine!! just as well to the point of creating art folders on my computer and even getting some minor merchandise pieces like keychains and cards. Believe it or not, I expected a lot from the third Love Live generation anime despite not knowing what it was going to try to represent. What I received was wasted potential and large disappointment. Not sure what to start my rant with, but I guess getting to the story first would be fitting because there is literally none ofit. Unlike previous two parts, this had no to zero significant plot. Got to admit, it started kind of well. The first episodes seemed to show what might have ended up being a good storyline. However, once the characters got together (which as I remember happened about 3 episodes in) the whole thing went downhill with next half a show being what’s supposed to be ”character development” which is one of the points I will get back to later. After 10 episodes passed, it remembered it had something to tell. This is the moment we are introduced to… School Idol Festival. What even is that thing and where did they take our very own “Love Live”?... the thing this very show is supposed to be about?... the thing this show is basically named after?... Apparently, the thing that the first two parts were based around and named after simply does not exist in the Nijigasaki timeline. Why is this named Love Live if there is not a single word said about what was the main thing of the original series??? This should not be called Love Live. The story part has more to be told about and I am going to talk about those details in the next paragraph. Moving on. What I consider the main problem of Nijigasaki crew is the crew itself. Characters. Character development is made in the worst way possible. Instead of being naturally developed with the story (which as I mentioned earlier does not exist in the case of Nijigasaki) going on, every single character is forced into the viewer by having an entire episode dedicated to each of them. What’s so bad about it being like this? Let me explain. Imagine a narrator introducing characters giving a quick description of them in order they appear on the screen. Yes, those short descriptions explaining who the character is, what their interests are, their relations to the rest of the cast etc. In Nijigasaki anime, the descriptions are episodes and the order is the episode order. Every single episode until the SIF introduction just gives us information on characters the viewer is supposed to follow with literally zero further development. You have to accept the characters as they are. In fact, you are forced to do so. None of the characters in this show can be considered main. Every single one becomes main during their own episode. After that they vanish to just hang around for the rest of the screen time. Every time a certain girl appeared on the screen, it felt like they are here just to remind us what their quirk they were introduced in their episodes with is. Kasumi constantly being self-centered, Rina constantly taking out her Rina-board, Kanata constantly reminding us how tired she is etc. These went from fun little things to GOD PLEASE MAKE IT STOP ALREADY. When there was “drama” going on, I had no idea what my reaction was supposed to be. Why would they put the most uninteresting character aka Ayumu in a totally unnecessary drama? Just to show how she does not care about anyone but herself? I guess in her case being a bad character is better than being absolutely nothing because unlike her pals she does not have any specific characteristics other than being Yuu’s friend. How am I supposed to react to characters I never got to care about? Where does the drama itself come from when the whole cast is just having fun while being in literal fillers? The story does not move with the drama too, making it absolutely needless for both nonexistent plot and character development. This show does have good sights too. Sound and design. Not going to give any comments on the sound part, because, well, this show is centered around music (in fact it barely is, but at least it was supposed to). The character design is close to flawless. Love Live has always had great design, I just wish it was used on the right characters this time… All in all, the third generation Love Live anime is an awful show. It takes everything good and charming about its predecessors and throws it in the trash bin. This was likely made as a fanservice material for the game fans, which I do not belong to the group of. I guess it is exciting to see characters you have known for years finally getting their own series. I understand why game fans and other people enjoy it and I respect their opinions. I, however, did not like this show. Not just as an alternative setting for two previous Love Live parts, but as a separate thing too. Yes, I would rather watch another “our school is on the edge of getting closed so we have to become school idols to save it” than this. Ratings: Story - 1/10 Art - 8/10 Sound - 8/10 Character - 1/10 Enjoyment - 2/10 If season 2 of Nijigasaki ever gets announced, I will not get excited for it as much as I was for this. But I really hope it is going to have something more to it other than unnaturally introduced characters and absent story the first season managed to get us through in its 13 episodes. “Nijigasaki? – more like Nijigasucky”, - I would say if I were to be Miyashita Ai, because making puns is what her entire character is about.

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