God I can’t tell you have happy I am to be wrong about everything. Turns out this whole thing with Yamato and Mom’s drink was only a prank set up by Idolish7 and TRIGGER. But man THAT WAS SO RUDE!!!! I started suspecting something was amiss with the way Yamato seemed to be over-acting the role of the villain, it just didn’t seem like him at all. Turns out this was Riku’s idea from back when they were trying to figure out how to help Re:Vale out! HOW DARE YOU PLAY WITH OUR HEARTS LIKE THAT. It actually made me curse out loud. I wasn’t the only one who was mad about it, because even though Yamato wasn’t the only one in it as his job was to play the role as an antagonist, unfortunately Yuki already made him his target prank him at least ten times while they are filming together. He was quite mortified that he was fooled by the whole thing. However the prank did the job of proving to Momo just how much Yuki truly cares about him, and thanks to that Momo was able to confidently sing again.
That wasn’t the only surprise Idolish7 and TRIGGER had in store for them. With some luck and persuasion, they were able to find Yuki’s partner, and make the long overdue reunion finally happen. And the original member of Re;Vale was none other than Banri, who had been under their nose the entire time! I decided to keep my mouth shut about it last week because I felt there was no good way to talk about how obvious they made it that it was him since I have already told you guys I knew who he was. That cut of only showing his bangs and eyes, as well as his behavior was pretty much a dead give away. Another piece of clue they had left for everyone throughout the season was in Re:Vale’s ending theme, where they were looking at a blue line. Needless to say, I am glad they didn’t needlessly drag it out and allowed them to be reunited. It was very heartwarming to see Banri praise Momo and give him the acknowledgement an comfort he so desperately needed to truly feel comfortable with filling the void he had left behind. It is all thanks to Momo’s love and persistence that Yuki is still singing, and Re:Vale is still around. I was also happy that Yuki was able to get some closure as well.
I do feel bad for Yuki though (besides the fact he’s a bit of a fool for not knowing Banri’s full name), because the guy refuses to give him his contact info. Like come on man… Unless he’s just worried about Yuki texting him nonstop, seems to be something he would do, hahahahaha!
Much to my relief, the concert went on without a hitch. It was a bit of a shame though that we only got stills and snippets of TRIGGER and Idolish7 units’ performances. I am always hungry for their collabs, especially whenever Tenn and Riku are paired up because I just need Tenn and Riku having a good time together (such as holding the banner for the prank). It was also fun to see the two groups do the covers of Re:Vale songs together. It really goes without saying this friendship between the two groups is my favourite part about this series.
But it makes sense that they did it this way since this is Re:Vale’s concert, so they are the ones who need the best treatment. I definitely noticed they polished up the CGI for ‘Dis One’ performance. It didn’t feel as stiff as the earlier performance we had seen this season, so that’s a plus. I do hope it’s something they are willing to pay a bit more attention to next season.
It is truly a relief that nothing bad happened in the season finale, but that that didn’t stop them from stabbing us in the heart when Tenn was just trying to look out for Riku by telling him not to run, and then Riku snapped back at him with, “Shut up, you’re not my family anymore.” I guess you could say that makes them even after Tenn had told him to quit being an idol earlier on. But god damn it, don’t do that to me and please stop hurting each other, my heart can’t handle this!
As for Zero’s imposter, as suspected it was Kujo who was performing the act. Luckily Nagi had spotted him backstage so Idolish7 and TRIGGER both pursued him and the concert was able to be completed without an incident. Since Tenn already knew it was Kujo, he helped him escape after they had successfully cornered him. But it wasn’t until later when Tenn returned from the after-party when we learn that story behind Kujo’s actions.
And the truth is actually quite sad. But it just goes to show Kujo really needs to get professional help because of his inability to move on with his life. He is constantly living in the past, reminiscing of the good days, revealing this was never about creating a legend to surpass Zero, he just wants Zero himself so badly, that he’s unconsciously becoming him. That was why Tenn knows he will never be satisfied with his results. Unfortunately it seems only he is aware of this, as Aya seems convinced becoming the next legend will make him happy.
In the mean time, and the 5th Anniversary comes to a close with a special card supposedly from Zero himself, thanking Re:Vale for singing his song.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Coming into this season I knew there was bound to be drama, but maybe I underestimated what kind of emotional roller-coaster I was in store for.
If I had to describe this season, I would say it was overwhelming drama with some doses of wholesome content. And when I say ‘overwhelming’, I am not exaggerating. They were dropping bombshells left and right, and then smacking us with curve-balls. The fluffier and funny scenes were basically moments where we could catch our breaths. But even then, there were times when it was just too much and it actually left me feeling worn out. In fact, there were weeks when I actually dreaded the idea of watching the next episode. It just goes to show, although I absolutely love angsty characters and storylines, even I have a limit to how much drama I can take all at once.
Admittedly, while I still care and love this series, it is a bit sad that I don’t feel like I have come to love it anymore than I already did when I started this season. (Though TRIGGER is the sole exception because they are my bias and they were absolutely amazing!). In fact, as much as it hurts me to say this, there were actually moments when it felt like I had fallen out of love with the series before being reminded why I love it in the first place.
…Hm, sounds familiar?
The funny and rather ironic thing about this is how we actually saw this exact situation play out with the in-show Idolish7 fans. We saw how they were growing weary of the fandom’s feud and divide over who should be center, Riku or Iori, and then once talking amongst themselves about how they got into them in the first place, they fell back in love. Whether the writer did that to insert some self-awareness of just exhausting this shitstorm was or not, it is still an accurate representation of what some of us, myself included had went through.
But one of the things I really disliked about this season was how it was revealed that almost everyone in Idolish7 were directly or indirectly connected to Kujo. Of course in all fairness, to some extent, it does make sense because his history with Zero and how influencial his presence is in the entertainment field. However, this whole thing with Tamaki’s long lost sister Aya being adopted by Kujo was a ridiculous addition to stir up even more family drama. I see no reason for Aya’s character to get involved in this shitstorm. We don’t need more sibling separation drama. Riku’s and Tenn’s is enough as it is, and it is not about to be resolved anytime soon. This season was especially painful with the way they were attacking each other, the worst of it being when Tenn had the audacity to order Riku to quit being an idol due to his health. Sure while they continued to hurt each other they had some good and amiable moments and sort of resolved the spat they had at the end of the episode with Riku declaring he will work hard to convince Tenn he can be an idol, and get him to buy tickets once he becomes his fan, but it is overwhelming as it is. Not to mention, it doesn’t look like Aya is going to be around too much either, as she is studying to be an idol outside of the country, soooo…. what’s the point of this really? I just don’t see any merits from this kind of development.
That aside, let’s finally appreciate the great things this season had to offer! Starting with Tamaki’s amazing character development!
Out of all the characters, Tamaki was the one who benefited this season the most. Back in the first season, he was one of those characters I really couldn’t bring myself to care about, much less like. I had no patience for his bratty behavior, so seeing him get his act together and show his good sides was truly a blessing. It finally made me care about his character and appreciate his good qualities because Tamaki at heart, is a good boy. My favourite part was how he and Sogo were finally bonding, even though it kind of kicked off by Yamato’s lie about how much Sogo respected Tamaki. But at the very least, even though Tamaki knew it wasn’t true, it wasn’t all in vain because it became something he worked towards. It made him happy to make Sogo proud, and do well so he can be acknowledged by him.
That was also why it was so heartbreaking to see Sogo find himself in this horrible position of not knowing whether to tell him about meeting Aya due to the fear of him leaving their group. Luckily thanks to Ryu and Yamato, these two were able to make amends, but Sogo still has a long way to go before he truely becomes comfortable with relying on others.
Another character who we actually got to learn quite a bit about this season was Nagi. In fact I didn’t expect that at all this season, so it was a welcomed surprise. At this point, after toying with the idea that Nagi might be a prince, I have concluded Nagi is a royal retainer of a sort. His experience of fighting, disarming people, composure when doing a press conference and now constantly shouting, “GUARDS” to security seems to point in that direction. Curiously at the same time as we are getting all of these details, they story is starting to touch more around the mystery of Zero’s dramatic disappearance. As result, I am leaning towards the idea that there may be some truth rumors of Zero actually being royalty. We have seen Nagi did flinch and make an expression when Yamato and Mitsuki touched on that subject, so that’s something I will continue to keep in the back of my mind as the story progresses. Oh and on top of that, Nagi was also the one who asked Tsumugi how she would react/feel if any of them were to suddenly disappear. This raises the alarm for me because I am afraid Nagi might only have so much time until he has to make a choice between his original job and continueing to work with Idolish7.
As for Re:Vale, I love that they are the latest group to befriend Idolish7. It makes me so happy how have a circle of friendly rivals. It’s the wholesome content we don’t always get to enjoy in these type of music series. Both Momo and Yuki are endearing characters I have come to love, Momo especially thanks to his peppy character. He went through a lot this season, the crisis of losing confidence in himself and feeling like he could never replace Yuki’s original partner (Banri) to the point he couldn’t sing anymore. Yuki’s character was also fun, but I find I am mostly looking forward to seeing how his relationship with Yamato will evolve overtime. Despite their own little drama they went through, they certainly played a part in keeping me sane by offering a bit of light when needed thanks to their witty humor.
Last but not least, the ones who hard-carried this season from start to finish was none other than TRIGGER. Sure, the story revolved around Re:Vale this time, but TRIGGER were the ones who shined the brighest and (exluding the ugly spat between Riku and Tenn), they had come in clutch so many times, that they made me fall even more in love with them. I can’t tell you how many times they played a crucial part in holding everyone together, offering stability, and keeping us all sane as we weathered the stormy seas.
As a Ryu fan, I really appreciate that he finally got some more time to shine with serving as a reliable brother-figure for Tamaki to depend on when things got ugly. He was able to help mediate the tension and walk Tamaki through his emotions, all while enabling him to open up about his own insecurities. Also drunk Ryu is absolutely amazing and adorable.
Gaku also played a similarly big role when it came to sharing wisdom with others, but also never hesitated to defend his friends from slander. I love it how he doesn’t hestiate to call people out when it’s needed, putting his sense of justice ahead of his image as an idol. It was also very cute to see him, albeit, it looks like his love for Tsumugi will be one that remains unrequited. Poor guy, but it was pretty funny to watch him get rejected and roasted for it. Tenn also had his share of good moments, one of my favourites being when he just straight up declared TRIGGER, Idolish7 and Re:Vale are legends in the making. His charisma in that scene was top notch.
But out of all their moments, I think my favourite scene with the three of them was actually when Tenn finally admitted he considers them as friends. Gaku and Ryu have been trying very hard, and have been very patient with him about opening up. They weren’t entirely sure what he thought of them, so when he finally (and shyly) said it, my heart became all fuzzy. Best of all, that scene involved Gaku and Ryu vowing to support Tenn in becoming a legend, and promises to protect him, making it a memorable and wholesome moment they shared together.
And that’s about it! I am happy this season was able to be resolved without any further incident as I had initially feared! I also happy to that they had announced Season 3 is in the works! Last season we had to wait a while to find out, so this is great! They did a good job building up to it by introducing us to the the next group ZOOL. They weren’t shy about pointing out that these guys are not going to be friendly folks like TRIGGER and Re:Vale. We have been spoiled rotten with those two, but now enters the spotlight of the next bitter rival, and we can see how at least one of them (Isumi Haruka) is already quite hostile towards Tenn. I don’t know too much about their story besides a bit of their personalities, but I have listened to a couple of their songs, but they aren’t exactly to my taste, haha. Anyhow, I suspect there will be just as much drama, but I do hope that they will dial it back, just a bit.
Final Verdict: 8/10
The final episode does a great job with the balanced amount of drama, cheesy talk, humour and heart-warming scenes. I was excited to see how much Re:Vale has come to their final performance. It was full of meaning to both of them.
When I play/read the game, I didn’t feel this season has that much of drama…at least not at the same level as part 3, but the anime really did increase the tension a lot that when I looked back again I feel a little scared lmao. Being a game player but can still feel the excitement of looking forward to the anime, I guess that what the staff really has tried to do, the way the anime has been directed shows how much fun they have when playing with emotion.
Rather than “everything connects to Kujou”, I would say “everything connects to Zero”, and Kujou is just one part in that big spider web, tbh. Sougo’s uncle, Tenn and Aya being involved because of Kujou’s dream of Zero, and in turn involves Riku, Tamaki and Sougo to the Zero plot point; meanwhile, Nagi involves with Haruki who is also Zero’s friend, Mitsuki is Zero’s fan and we catch a glimpse on his thoughts about Zero, Iori wants to make Riku surpass Zero. Hmmm now I’m wondering if Yamato would involve with Zero in some way that we don’t know yet. The whole thing with Yuki and Kujou is also because of Zero, and I feels like Re:Vale is caught in this Zero mess just because we really need a “senpai” idol group that can actually have more influence to solve the Zero problem thing later, because despite all the overdramatic stuff, Idolish7 still tries to portray a realistic entertainment industry that a small group of idols like Idolish7 has no authority at all. It feels like every event in the series is built based on the question “how can it connect to Zero aka the main plot”, and while it can be very very tiring like you said, it would be very satisfying to see when everything finally can be solved and how careful the plot was planned.
Anw, I’m very surprised to see a new season being announced this early! The anime was trended on Twitter at rank 1 during the final episode broadcast, that’s amazing!
You’re right it would have been more accurate to say Zero being the center piece of this whole mess, and the behavior of Kujo is the result of that. With the story still on-going, I just hope there is actually an end game sorted out for this, because like you said, it’s exhausting, but if the plot is carefully planned then hopefully it’ll be all worth it. My biggest concern is getting burned out before then.
Shadow has told me the same about her experience of reading the game story. There is less tension/stress than the anime, but it might be because there’s so much more detail and life breathing into it.
One reason I can think of why this season feels mentally exhausted is because a lot of drama revolves around misunderstanding. I easily found myself being frustrated at Sougo or Tenn just because they are hiding stuff and are stuck between talk-or-silent situation, and those two dramas are what burnt me out, while I like the Mitsuki’s and Re:Vale’s one. For Tamaki and Aya, I just feel touching. If that also the reason why you feel burnt out then although there are more drama in part 3, it would feel easier to breath because…part 3 is just difficult events after difficult events and they have to get through all the shjts, no misunderstanding.
XD Character’s misunderstandings is a sure way of testing one’s patience. But yeah I think characters overcoming various obstacles tend to be more up my alley, so I’ll be going into Season 3 with a blank slate so that I don’t have any or certain expectations built up prior to that (which is usually for the best).
Maybe it’s because I’m familiar with the story through the game that I thoroughly enjoyed the anime. The sound effects following the story are also top notch—e.g. Shinbashi, Tenn’s roar— and the characters are also realized to detail.
Episode 6 had a masterful illustration to the conflict between Tamaki and Sougo with Oosama Pudin vs, tabasco sauce (the bottle’ label probably spelled Death, BTW), My money is on tabasco any day. Did you notice Sougo was holding something like a pipe when they cornered the fake Zero in the last episode? That right there is a very good reason for Tenn to help Kujo escape—with only a few steps that was saving everyone from the fall out of two groups of idols beating a Zero look alike.
I’m so happy with season 3 coming! Trigger can be sweet angels helping people but they can also throw great zingers around when provoked. I just hope we don’t have to wait too long. Thank you so much for covering Idolish 7; I greatly appreciate your work!
Thank you, it’s been my pleasure! Even though it was a rocky season for me, it was still fun to write about! I’ll be looking forward to Season 3!
This season was phenomenal for character development, so much so when I realized I neglected to mention Mitsuki (the other night im lying in bed and all the sudden I’m thinking, “SHIT I FORGOT TO MENTION MY SUNSHINE IN THE FINAL IMPRESSION!”). I am so happy he finally got some spotlight – even though it meant he had to suffer for a bit because it allowed him to face his lack of confidence and insecurities, and finally grow from it. He still has a long way to go, but I’m excited for how he will evolve as more and more details of Zero’s Mystery comes to the surface. I didn’t miss that look on his face at the end of the episode after Momo read the letter.
And yes, Sogo is always going for the kill when it comes to dealing with intruders! I expected nothing less from him! XDDDDD It’s so funny how he’s the guy to be like that. It never ceases to amuse me!