The iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls

If you immediately look at the poster and think, “That’s too many girls,” then know that this show is not for you. There are a lot of girls and not all of them are equally developed. However, if you’re able to look at the ones that do—and even look at the messages the show delivers using the wide variety of characters—then I believe that you may find some value in this series. I formed an incredibly personal connection to one of the characters in the series; I had never seen her issues portrayed and solved on screen like I did here. Among the other characters,while I did not enjoy some of their personalities, I enjoyed how the show used them to deliver several messages throughout each episode. One example is the young idol Miria, who I am not particularly fond of, but I was very fond of her arc where she learns to accept her place in her family. It’s a real struggle that I (and I’m sure many others) have actually experienced. If you can look past not knowing every intricacy of every idol’s life and look at the overall message, then it may be worth watching for you. Some of the problems focused on are struggling with the idea of not being good enough, balancing your outer self with who you want to be, expressing yourself when in a limited situation, being happy with yourself even when you’re in a tough situation, and finding out what you really like and want to do. The arc that I found most compelling occurred at the end. This paragraph could be considered vague spoilers, but you should also know that as soon as the problem is introduced in the show, the outcome is quite obvious (it’s more about how they get to the answer). One character tells her friends that she believes she is not good enough; no matter how hard she tries, they always seem to shine brighter than her. Looking at herself, she sees that the only things she is “good” at are not unique. This problem of “not being good enough” is shown in a lot of anime, but I’ve never seen it resolved the way it was here. Usually this involves characters accepting the other for who they are and telling them that they simply are good enough. It involves almost no change from the central character (or the origin of this change is from an outside source), and the problem is frequently considered “addressed” and done with. In Cinderella Girls, she is forced to examine herself and makes a promise to herself that she will keep trying. It is an active solution, one that she has to keep working towards. I really admired how the change came from making a promise with herself and that the end wasn’t her simply accepting everyone telling her that she was fine. She decides to look forward herself and accepts that the way she sees things can be true, but they can also be changed. As someone who struggled with self-esteem issues my whole life and has truly felt sometimes that I can work hard and never achieve the same as others, it was really inspiring to see a character on stage go through that change herself. Overall, an appreciation for Cinderella Girls relies on the ability to personally connect to any of the characters, problems, or solutions. There are many shows out there that one can appreciate simply because they are well written, executed, and without having to form a personal connection (I am thinking of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood). This is not one of those shows. The overall plot is nothing new. Most of the characters are nothing new. What’s new is how they interact with each other with music at the core. If you want to see characters find success with who they are as individuals, with some nice music as a bonus, then this is worth checking out for you.

(Some spoilers might be in here) As one of those clueless idol anime fans out there, I'll be honest here. I watched Cinderella Girls before I bothered to watch the original. Now, I was reluctant to watch the original after watching this because I thought to myself "wow, look at all these unique characters and great songs in Cinderella Girls", now that I look back at myself for thinking that, I want to slap myself as hard as I can this instant. So some people are probably wondering what the huge hate on Cinderella Girls is compared to the original iDOLM@STER, now I'll put this example asa real life scenario. You all have seen those food commercials on TV or on your computer and said to yourself "Damn, that looks delicious" and you decide one day to go out and get that food you saw on the commercial to try for yourself and you see it as half the portion and not even relatively close to the food you saw on the commercial, this is what it exactly is like. A pile of misleading directions trying to sway on how you really want to think. Story:5 "Omg, why is this guy rating the story 5 for Cinderella girls while he rated it 7 for original iDOLM@STER?!?! Aren't they both basically about cute girls singing cute songs???" No, just no, this is the statement that refrains new-coming anime viewers to avoid anime with these kind of genres. Cinderella Girls is probably inferior in mostly every way compared to the original iM@S series. While the original was based on starting from the bottom, working together with friendship and hardships, going through fun times and the sad times, Cinderella Girls is the complete opposite. The way they produced this was literally half-hearted, they plopped the girls into one big room and forced them to mingle and that's how 346 Cinderella Girls was formed. Art:7 Even though the art for the original and Cinderella Girls are basically the same and made from the same studio, Cinderella Girls didn't give the same feeling as it did in the original. In Cinderella Girls it had those very lazy intros to each characters, such as just putting a caption under the character with their name on it rather than in the original where they zoomed up to each characters face trying to catch the viewers attention, it was a very half-hearted thing to do. They also had very awkward moments when they dressed up different, I'll take Rin for an example when she was dressing up for Mika's TOKIMEKI concert. Her face and her clothing were very awkward looking when she looked at herself in the mirror. Sound:10 Why am I giving this a 10 if I said that this is inferior to the original in mostly every way? The keyword there was mostly. I'll be frank here when it comes to the song, it was very catchy indeed, the group songs were honestly better compared to the original group songs IMO (I have downloaded majority of the original iM@S Live The@ter series, the 765 Allstars pros, and their Solo Collection, same with Cinderella Girls, I downloaded all the Jewelry albums and some of their solos. I have to say that the group songs for Cinderella Girls is more pleasing to me while the solos for original is better, but that's just me. As far for how the characters sound, they all fit their character basically. Each character getting assigned to their personality with a specific Japanese artist, nothing too special. Character:6 Why are the characters such a low rating? Think of it this way, you go to your local Free Market just to see what's going on and you see a pair of Nike knockoffs that were smuggled in to be sold for a cheap price, let's say 20 dollars whilst you saw the same design of those shoes at the mall for 150 dollars. That is how you describe these characters, majority of them are just a half-baked knock off of the original characters while adding some new personalities to jazz it up and not get repeated. I'm not saying this is a bad thing because I love the Cinderella Girls characters also, but they just don't feel that attachable if you get what I'm saying. Each character has such a rushed development and doesn't make you feel that attachable to them. The main issue in this series were the separative groups such as Candy Island, Love Laika, and New Generations. This was a huge mistake in an anime such as this, I honestly think that this is what enraged some of the original series fanbase because the original had them all work together and go through the hardship together while in Cinderella Girls if they had an issue within the subgroup, it was their issue to deal with as the other girls just shrugged it off not trying to get involved with them. Enjoyment:6 Now I realize I sound hypocritical after saying at the beginning on how I watched this before the original series, but hear me out. I would've honestly given this an 8 or a 9 and the others a much higher rating if I never watched the original series, but this felt so inferior compared to the original after I watched it. They add melancholic drama to Cinderella Girls that shouldn't even exist. For example, when Mio got sad when she realized she performed in such a small crowd. I thought to myself "You fucking selfish bitch, you still performed in front of people tat a god damn mall, how do you think 765 felt when they got turned down from local auditions and had to perform in a country side full of middle aged people and elderly?!?!". This part is what infuriated me when I didn't even watch the original series at first, but after watching the original that specific part in Cinderella Girls just infuriated me even more. So for those who don't want to read this scumbag rant of mine I'll write a TL;DR below here TL;DR THE ORIGINAL IS BETTER THAN CINDERELLA GIRLS

Once upon a time I watched an anime called The iDOLM@STER. It was a likable if unremarkable show, its enclave of characters not standing out, its absence of story robbing their chance to shine, and only the gift of music and concerts to look forward to. The lack of a resonant tale on this first chapter would close the book on this series for many years. But one day, the clock started ticking, the pumpkin carriage was set, and a new generation of idols was ready to take the stage with sparkling glass slippers. This is The iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls With no relation to the firstanime outside of a few posters in the background, these girls are free to ascend the palace steps on their own terms. Uzuki Shimamura, Mio Honda, Rin Shibuya, Kirari Moroboshi, Miria Akagi, Rika Jougasaki, Kanako Mimura, Chieri Ogata, Anzu Futaba, Miku Maekawa, Riina Tada, Ranko Kanzaki, Minami Nitta, and Anastasia; these girls are scouted by 346 Productions for a new venture called the Cinderella Project But the magic isn’t just in the name. Any 1 of these 14 girls would have trouble standing out without cost to another girl. Limited time with this many characters would force any show to slide the scale between focusing on everyone and nobody standing out to focusing on a few at the expense of others. But this story wrote a miracle unto itself, focusing on everyone and conjuring a resplendent ensemble in this tale, climbing steps that are inconceivable to ascend It ascends these stairs by personalizing the girls into smaller groups, dedicating itself to focusing on a few characters at a time and letting these subunits tell a tale of their own. Mio and Rin are the classic high-energy/aloof duo, with Uzuki being the balance between them as she consolidates the trio. Kirari, Rika, and Miria create an amusing contrast of a young woman acting like a child, a precocious girl who wants to be a woman, and a girl who actually acts her age. The duo of the quietly forceful Minami and the exotically girly Anastasia create a feminine force balanced by the gothic chuunibyou of Ranko Kanzaki. And the wild rocker Riina and the catlike, feisty Miku who synchronize with each other more than the other would like to admit If there were one group who shined less than the others, it would be Kanako, Chieri, and Anzu, since the former two are more or less the same character, with only frogs and sweets distinguishing their shy personalities. Anzu, meanwhile, achieves the title of lackadaisical, often coasting along but putting effort when it really matters. The show itself could have coasted along, letting the magic in its name carry itself to Cinderella’s Ball. But from the poignant opening scene to the finale of season 1, this show proved to be something special beyond its namesake It wasn’t just how much this anime made so many characters shine, but how it connected all of its precious gemstones called idols into a gorgeous narrative crown. No matter what group of girls the tale focused on, it never lost sight of its other characters. Not once does someone outside the episode’s scope appear and feel like an out of place throwaway for fans of the character. They push each other to do their best, help one another through difficult times, compete to be the best, all the while becoming friends even with the most unlikely of partnerships. It is this connection between all the characters that makes every ascension from practice to performance all the more rewarding, each success encouraging another to dazzle even more However, the magic would not last. As resplendent as Cinderella was at the ball, her magically gifted luster faded as the clock struck midnight. Indeed, the graceful steps that let each of these girls climb on their own terms is abruptly taken from them in season 2. They must now prove themselves better than they envisioned themselves to be, faster than they thought they would go, or the Cinderella Project is done. As turmoil gripped upper management with what direction to take 346 Productions, these idols now had to abandon the ephemeral magic of Cinderella to achieve the everlasting presence of a true princess. The clock struck midnight, but their tale had just begun And it is not a tale that holds back, forcing the girls to confront problems from within and outside. The person you want to be conflicting with what you’re supposed to be. Feelings of envy and admiration that test friendships more than surface differences could ever hope to. A common responsibility to unite 2 very different characters. Channeling nervousness and anxiety masked by a group to stand on your own. The decisions you make to test yourself because of and -despite- your best friend What’s astounding is how some of these threads are built over the course of season 2, introduced in one episode as a road while other stops tell their tale along the way, only for the road to reach its destination after sitting just on the horizon. It plays the short fable and the longer tale, using the former to build the latter and using the latter to unify the former. And despite how emotionally thick the show can be at points, it never goes too far (except for this one episode in the middle of season 1...). There’s either levity at the right points or the characters are tested but never soured And nowhere is this tale more emotionally loaded than in the final chapter of season 2. An impeccable combination of close-ups, dialog, and even character positioning slowly build the strongest narrative this series has put to screen. From the clenched fists in its conception to a bridge that exemplifies the road a character takes, this is when the show hits its hardest with no reservation. It’s easy to see where it all goes, but it approaches like an inevitable tragedy instead of an innocuous predictability. But what tops it off so perfectly is how the resolution is anything but perfect, turning the fairy tale on its head. It’s this grit that pushes season 2 from an improvement over season 1 to an astounding tale in its own right The iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls needed season 2, and season 2 needed -this-. This show could have been content with a perfectly likable cast, but it goes the extra mile to stress test them from within and outside. To create empathy and a meaningful connection with each of them beyond surface likability. To test their own friendships and come out ever closer. In effect, this is a cast-driven tale motivated by individual hopes, dreams, and fears. And complementing this poignantly resonant tale is an astonishingly great soundtrack And I don’t just mean the memorable melodies from the subunits. From ‘Theme of Cinderella Girls,’ a light piano piece that transforms into a mixture of vocals and other instruments that exemplifies the sense of a new adventure, to ‘Passione,’ a wonderfully jazzy tune to fit with the hectic goings on with the characters, the less obvious music tracks do wonders in keeping every episode lively before the main event starts. But equally impressive is the show’s capacity to hold back its music and let the dialog and characters speak for themselves. It knows when to play, but it also knows precisely when to have confidence in itself to let the audience witness events unfold. It wields energy and silence perfectly, to say nothing of the superb songs from the subunits ‘Freshly Evo! Revo! Generation!’ is a reflective rhythm that captures the enthusiasm of New Generation, while ‘Trancing Pulse’ is saturated with a soprano reverberation befitting of the powerfully passionate and cool Triad Primus. ‘Memories’ from Love Laika marries femininity and coolness, creating an unexpectedly strong melody from the most unlikely of idols. 'OωOver!!’ is a journey in itself, opening with onomatopoeic ‘nya’s’ before it rocks out into a proper song, echoing the tale behind Asterisk. And then there’s S(mile)ING!,’ a solo serenade that begins in simplicity and ends in triumph, the pitch of lyrics adorned with louder and louder vocals as it culminates in a cathartic crescendo of happiness and resolution There are many more songs and instrumentals in this tale, as these are just the ones I liked the most. And I’d be remiss to not talk about how good the performances accompanying the songs are. Every concert is fully animated in traditional 2D style when it would’ve been quite easy for the show to use 3D models. The end result from song to song encapsulates every girl’s expression and movement with every song’s style and rhythm, making the tale that much more of a labor of love than love manufactured by labor If there was any problem I had with the animation at all, it’s season 2’s tendency to cut away from performances, though this is more of a directional problem than an animation one. But it’s a minor grievance, as the songs and performances are the send-offs to splendid chapters rather than a crutch for a lackluster story. It’s not a problem I’m excusing, but it’s definitely worth noting for anyone who wants more dance with their song But what’s magnifique about the visuals, especially in season 2, is the direction behind them. Though the final chapter is the best at this, the tale is scripted with powerful visual direction. The juxtaposition between an idol’s nervousness and the audience’s indifference to reflect her helplessness. The resolution between self image and expectation being hidden before a wide shot reveal. Two older characters having a heart to heart while one of them is obscured by a shoji wall to hide her vulnerability as she confides in the other. Or a quirky example from season 1 that cleverly deceives its audience The tale is as creative with the camera as it is diverse with the designs, and with 14 idols one of them is bound to be easy on the eyes. From the gracile and mature Minami to the younger and rotund Kanako, the Cinderella Girls have no need for the sorceries of fanservice to let their luster shine on its own. And indeed, the charm of personality to harmonize with their appearances is all the show does and needs. I’m still shocked I liked -Miria-, since her archetype is the last thing to blip on my radar But The iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls isn’t content with likable archetypes to distract until the music starts. It strives for characters tested as they emerge more resplendent, singing in jubilation. Its visuals don’t coast on its budget, but ride a creative brilliance. These girls could have been content using the franchise name alone, but they ascended higher than even the palace steps could reach. Though the midnight strike makes the magic ephemeral, their majesty is endless, their hopes and dreams real

Story My experience with the idol genre of anime can be summed up with “Love Live”. Based on that being the most popular entry in the genre, I didn’t hold out much hope that Cinderella Girls would blow me away. That being said, despite some preconceived notions upon starting, Cinderella Girls proved to me that the idol genre is basically a giant game of best girl and the only reason anyone watches anime of this type is to bitch about the crappy characters and gush over the good ones. So, in other words, Cinderella Girls cemented what Love Live had already taught me. But Cinderella Girls isactually a much better series. The focus here is on a large variety of girls and their backstage shenanigans. There’s no school life or anything like that, this is about training, promoting, and doing shows. The initial episodes introduce us to a trio of characters who I guess we can consider the main girls. Rin, Uzuki, and Mio are picked up by a producer to join an idol project known as Cinderella Girls. From there we are given a bevy of other characters who are put into units and gradually make CD debuts. After we get an idea of the overall dynamic, an episode is dedicated to each of the units which is then followed by the entire group coming together again. It’s pretty well done pacing, though suffers initially because of how boring the first three characters are. Once you get past that hurdle, the series is a lot less rocky and much more entertaining. There’s not a lot of story to be found though; no running thread or immediacy to the plot. Cinderella Girls plays out a lot more like a slice-of-life. While there is the occasionally painful drama piece (Mio walking away was ridiculously forced and underdeveloped) the lack of story gives the huge cast air to breathe and develop. I’m sure the second season is where we’ll see an actual plot given that the viewer is now pretty well acquainted with each cast member. Characters Something I enjoyed and found unique was that there was a male main character, the unnamed producer. While he’s not the most exciting person, being very stoic through most of the season, he does have moments of tenderness and comedy. I hope we see him open up more in the second season. Getting into the huge cast of girls would be a pain in the ass in the typical format. So I guess it’s time to play the biggest game of Best Girl this site has ever seen! BEST GIRL! 15. Miku Maekawa- The prerequisite cat girl who says nyan after every sentence annoyingly, Miku is a cancer. All she does is bitch and cry, treat other characters like shit, and continually do that terrible cat girl thing. She’s the worst girl and I’d fire her ass on the spot if I was the producer. She ruins the dynamic and really brings the entire cast down. 14. Chieri Ogata- The crybaby moeblob piece of shit. Go away. You’re useless. 13. Kanako Mimura- The fat one who eats and bakes a lot of sweets. This is when we move from bad characters to plain boring ones. 12. Uzuki Shimamura- Why do idol anime have to have a super girly, clumsy, and entirely uninteresting main character? She’s basically the exact same as Honoka. A “let’s do it everyone” attitude may be inspiring to younger girls, but to me, is way overdone and doesn’t create a compelling lead. 11. Kirari Moroboshi- Super tall and super unexciting. 10. Miria Akagi- The youngest girl. She’s cute but not very entertaining. 9. Minami Nitta- Neither here nor there. She’s just boring. 8. Rin Shibuya- She started pretty great but gradually became another bland character with little emotion. The hesitance to be an idol is quickly forgotten and she becomes the straight man. 7. Mio Honda- Her drama portion was shit, but her character isn’t bad. She’s preppy and tomboyish. The best of the main three by a longshot. 6. Rina Tada- Rina’s a rocker girl who wears typical British-punk clothes and has a collection of head phones. She’s obsessed with rock and trying to be a rocker. While not the most developed girl, nor the most exciting, she is fun. 5. Anzu Futaba- A seventeen year old who looks like the youngest girl in the show, she’s a NEET with very little ambition. Her portions, at first, aren’t that great but she grew on me as the show continued and some of the funnier moments of the latter half came from her. 4. Rika Jougasaki- The kid sister of popular idol Mika, she’s trying to emulate her sister however she can. She’s one of the most fun characters of the show. 3. Anastasia- A Russian girl who is still learning to speak Japanese, Anastasia is really freaking adorable. She enjoys looking at stars and that’s about as much as we get of her. But what we did get I enjoyed. I loved her. 2. Mika Jougasaki- A very caring big sister who is also the most popular idol who gets any screen time, Mika is really fucking hot. She loves looking sexy and being the center of attention but wants the best for the new idols. Not the most solid character but one of the most memorable. 1. Ranko Kanzaki- Seriously one of the most adorable goth girls in any anime I’ve ever watched. She’s a chunibyou who speaks like a total weirdo but only does it to hide a very cute interior that hates horror movies and is secretly in love with the producer. She develops a lot in the show, maybe more than any of the other girls, as by the end she’s speaking like a normal person and is a lot warmer than she was initially. She may not be the most complex or even the cutest character but she is definitely the best combination of both and my favorite character of the series. Animation For the most part, pretty solid. A lot of the characters don’t look unique enough to stand out while a couple (Ranko and Mika) are really memorable. During movement the animation is fluid though characters can look kind of strange. Even during still shots characters in the background can look a little derpy. But there’s nothing offensively bad and, thankfully, no CG during dance numbers. Sound I appreciated that, much like the cast, there was a huge variety in the music department. Each group got their own unique song and there was a new song for more minor things like training montages. While the music itself is vapid and sounds much like the rest of the idol J-pop of every other series, there are some decent ones like Ranko’s song. Entertainment It took a couple episodes before I really got into Cinderella Girls but once all the characters had been introduced, I found that this was a fun little ride even if most of it was vapid and pointless. Each episode did something new and the few really good characters brought a lot of charm and cuteness. I don’t think it’s a show that can be marathoned without getting bored, but it is a good distraction between watching other series. Overall At the end of the day, Cinderella Girls isn’t anything special but it does provide a more engaging and varied experience than Love Live, though not an overall more memorable cast. That’s the problem with having such a huge group of characters: some are bound to be tossed to the sidelines and never get enough development to be likeable or anything more than a facsimile of a singular character trait. So in that regard, because Love Live has a smaller cast, it does have the advantage in characters and development (well, that and it’s had two seasons so it’s unfair to really say that). But Cinderella Girls has a few wonderful characters, pretty decent animation, some good songs, and a few memorable episodes. If you liked Love Live, I’d definitely suggest giving The Idolm@ster: Cinderella Girls the viewership it deserves.

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