IDOLiSH7: Third BEAT! Episode 26

Eva’s Impression

AHHHHHHHHHH I KNEW THEY’D LEAVE US ON A CLIFFHANGER LIKE THAT!
We have no idea what Ryo is planning (apart from one stunt which I’ll get to in a moment), but whatever “friends” he’s asking to show up concerns me greatly considering how he went as far to hire people to kidnap Trigger.

But worst of all, his encounter with Riku today was terribly alarming and very unsettling to watch. We already know Ryo has an unhealthy infatuation with him. So much so, that he is going as far as projecting the pain of being excluded from his family onto Riku. The way he went on about how he “understands” him, and how during the last episode of Lovely Night he could “clearly hear his frustration over begin excluded by his family”, and promises him that if anything happens, he’ll take care of him. And of course being suddenly bombarded by all of this made Riku extremely uncomfortable, to the point he wanted to get the hell out of there. And gosh, I’d want to run for the hills too. However Riku wasn’t exactly in the position to safely escape Ryo’s clutches, so he did what was probably the next best thing he could do at the moment, which was ask why he was being so nice to him. Thanks to that, we were able to get a proper answer from Ryo about why he is so taken with him. He truly believes that he and Riku are the same, and even went as far to say: “You are me, and I am you”. And to just add another layer of his obsession, for whatever reason, Ryo believes that he and Riku are already friends.

And this, is precisely what Momo means when he says Riku is in danger. We saw how Momo had to act the part of being “pouty/jealous” of Ryo and Riku are “friends now”. He needed to appease him, and it was very clear how his tone of voice tone switches from those who has taken a liking to (the softness you NEVER hear from him), and those he regards as a traitor (more often than not). My god it’s actually terrifying to listen to– gosh i got the chills with how quickly he flipped on the dime there. That’s why it’s really not safe for Riku to be alone at this time, especially with Ryo. Because as soon as Riku doesn’t meet his expectations, he will become a target, and god knows what Ryo will do to him.

But while Momo has promised to protect Riku, I think there’s a part of Riku that is just tired of constantly being protected by others. First Tenn, then Idolish7 and now Momo, and I can understand why he would feel that way. However the way Idolish7 “coddles” him is as result of the fact he failed to responsibly take care of his own health, and understand his limitations. So until he can actually earn enough trust to manage that on his own, they will all be hyper aware of reminding him, and making sure he doesn’t do activities that involves overexerting himself. That said, if Riku plays his hand right, he might actually be able to handle this on his own. What that involves, I’m honestly not sure, but in short, he needs to be very careful with his words. After-all, it doesn’t take much for his emotions to take the wheel. Nonetheless, this may also be an opportunity to show off some potential character growth in that regards, of being able to keep cool in a situation where he needs to avoid making an emotional outburst.

Then there’s Re:Vale and their counter strike plan. They are looking to take advantage of the fact the high-ups are set on blacklisting Trigger from the program, which is why despite having been voted to first place for ‘Friends Memorial Song’, they pulled it at the last second despite having aired the results. Fans naturally are in uproar about the tampering of the votes, which puts the spotlight on media blackout and the legitimacy of the charity. As result, the following tags then quickly began trending:

• TRIGGER Disappeared
• #FakeCharity
• #FoulPlaySpotted
• #DarkSideofFriendsDay
• #MrShimookaAbsent

This is probably what Re:Vale meant when they said they were willing to risk taking the hit in order to expose the manipulation that has been actively looking to screw Trigger over. Their plan is to have the revolution be led by the fans, meanwhile, Kujo tells Trigger that the fans cannot be stopped. That’s the power they wield.

In other words, if this turns out badly, this could get very ugly for Re:Vale. However this ‘list’ that they were talking about in this episode was referred to as people who are capable of protecting Yuki, so we’ll have to see how important and influential these people are.

That said, Idolish7 already got some concerns developing in the background they need to worry about, starting with Tamaki– because unfortunately his eyes were right: He spotted his dad, and guess who’s he hanging around with? Ryo’s guys. Lovely. Should the guy actually show up at the studio, this will be the one thing I saw coming a mile away because this is a live program, and Ryo is looking to do everything he can to tarnish Idolish7’s image. Hopefully Tamaki will be able to confront him without freaking out like he did last time. He has matured a lot, so hopefully he will defy Ryo’s expectations by being able to face his head without losing his cool. Sogo’s dad might have been a good trial run so to speak– but facing his own, who has done so much harm to him and his family, is an entirely different matter altogether.

So we know that Tamaki’s dad is among one of the many “friends” for the “festival” Ryo has planned for Friends Days, so who else might be in the mix? Well hard to say, but I actually half wonder if he will also look to expose Nagi’s background as well. He may also look to bring in some bad actors to stir up some trouble/chaos.

We’ll have to see how this unfolds, and it’ll be interesting to see if Ryo is counting on Trigger to show up at the venue at all. If anything, they may be barred from entering and would have to sneak in some other way if they want to get inside. Actually… now that I think about it: It would be pretty awesome to see Trigger coming to Re:Vale’s and Idolish7’s rescue just has they had been saved by them in the first cour. It would be such a poetic and perfect way to foil Ryo’s plans. Yeah, that would be pretty awesome, I’d be down for that haha. Ryo does look pretty pissed off in the preview, so something is setting him off.

Also if I may add: Trigger, you haven’t upgraded your disguises whatsoever HAHAHAHA!

Other than that, apart from the build up to the time bomb, this episode had a number of hilarious moments, especially involving the Izumi Brothers, which is always such a treat to watch. The way Iori wanted to be praised by his brother too, or how Nagi was trying to teach Iori how to be effective in ‘short and sweet’ with “I love you!“, and Mitsuki walking in seconds later only to do the same ahahahahahaha! (Also moment of appreciation for the high school girls cheering for Mitsuki! WELL DESERVED!)

Yuki was also greatly entertaining with the way he tried to make the most of sleep whenever he can, in some of the oddest places as well. Amazing how he was able to snap up perfectly awake as soon as the cameras started rolling. Truly a pro. I must say it was also quite fun to see his cute side during “Happy Days Creation”, it was so funny. But I’m not going to lie, I thought for SURE Yuki was gonna wake up as a grumpy monster when Riku, Iori and Tamaki managed to get the rest of Idolish7 to join in on the whole “energy song”!!!!

Unfortunately now we must wait till till February 5, 2023! to see the rest of it haha! It’s okay, only a month right? We’ll be FINE~! Until then, see you guys next time!

Happy Holidays everyone!