As a franchise focused on the friendships between girl bands, heartwarming moments are abound.
- Chispa’s new drummer giving Saaya a gift of new drumsticks, showing that there isn’t any bad blood between Saaya and her old band.
- Chispa’s original members are still obviously worried about Saaya although it’s implied they haven’t talked in a while. They must have shared a deep bond before everything went south for them.
- Saaya cheers for Chispa in their Space audition.
- And in the second season, Saaya finally learns to confide in Natsu, just like Chispa always wanted her to. It also shows that to a degree, they still consider each other close friends despite everything.
- Just Saaya’s self-sacrificial nature in general: she’s quit her old band just to take care of her sick mother and her siblings. That’s extremely mature and thoughtful for a teenager.
- More subtle is the fact that Saaya constantly gives out free buns from her bakery to her friends. It can’t be good for business, but speaks volumes about her kind nature.
- Kasumi doesn’t even know Glitter*Green personally, and is shaking when she goes up on stage. Yet, she stands there and continues to sing Kira Kira Hikaru, all so she can buy time for a band she has no personal connection to. This even inspires Rimi to finally step out on stage and play the bass.
- Throughout the entire arc where Kasumi loses her voice and is an obvious slump, it’s great to see the rest of Poppin’ Party so worried about Kasumi. Even the resident Tsundere Arisa is obviously worried, in her own way.
- Asuka, despite thinking her sister is annoying on most days, quickly realises that something’s wrong with Kasumi and tries to comfort her and talk Kasumi out of her slump.
- Made doubly Heartwarming when the girls all try to split the load of performing their song at the Space audition among each other, each taking several lines... and at the end, Kasumi finally finds her voice. The happy smile on her face as she says, “I sang!” is so adorable you can’t help but feel happy for her.
- The gradual improvement of Sayo and Hina’s relationship.
- Sayo goes from being unable to stand Hina’s presence and constantly making snarky quips at her to apologising to her, then to reading the books Hina loves in order to understand her sister better, in the course of a few events.
- Just how obviously Hina loves Sayo counts. Hina clearly never resented her sister for the rift between them and only wished they could be as close as they were as children. Even though Sayo keeps pushing away and Hina doesn’t understand what she’s done wrong, she obviously cares. Seeing her sister collapse from exhaustion after practicing guitar too much leads her to run into Sayo’s room and check on her even though Sayo then tells Hina to leave her alone.
- When Sayo finally tells her the reason why she constantly pushes Hina away, the only thing Hina is actually angry about is, in her own words, that Sayo lied to her when she said they’d motivate each other to practice guitar. That’s right, of everything Sayo has done, this is the only thing Hina actually yells at Sayo for.
- Just how close the twins were as children counts as well. It’s revealed in one story that the whole reason Sayo hates carrots in the present is because she ate them for Hina, who hated them, but then couldn’t finish her own and got scolded as a result. One of the sweetest forms of Taking the Bullet.
- Amidst the storm that is Sayo and Hina’s relationship, Ako and Tomoe have a sibling bond that is more stable and is incredibly sweet. Ako looks up to Tomoe, thinking of her as the coolest drummer ever, while Tomoe does her best in taking care of and supporting her younger sister.
- During the Steadfast Pride, Piercing Sunset Event, after a heated exchange between Afterglow and Roselia, leading to the announcement of a joint concert to serve as a contest between the two bands, Ako comes home worried that Tomoe will be angry with her. Tomoe calls her to her room, assures her that the band stuff doesn't come before them being sisters, and after listening to Ako's explanation about Roselia's motives, Tomoe tells her, with sisterly affection, that theirs is a Friendly Rivalry who will always strive to challenge one another to reach the pinnacle of being "cool."
- Just how quickly Sayo and Tsugumi grow close in their event after talking to each other about their similarities. It even ends with them hanging out together after the baking class is over.
- Seeing the serious Sayo finally taking some time off for herself to spend time with friends is a step forward in her character development. This is the same Sayo who used to think playing in a band is pointless if one has no skill, after all.
- The simple fact that Lisa is so dedicated to her Childhood Friend Yukina. Even at the beginning of Roselia’s band story when Yukina has grown distant from Lisa, Lisa still obviously cares and is looking out for her longtime friend.
- It's why Episode 24 of Garupa PICO Fever is a crowning episode of heartwarming.
- Yukina’s obvious soft spot for Kasumi and Poppin’ Party is simply adorable.
- Most of Yukina's Area Conversations with Kasumi have her being gentler than her usual self towards the younger girl. Not only that: just the idea of the super serious and very band-focused Yukina unhesitatingly hanging out with the fun-loving Kasumi whenever Kasumi invites her over.
- Yukina worries that she was too harsh on them after telling them they weren’t ready to put on a self-sponsored live show.
- Equally as heartwarming is when during Roselia’s second band story, Yukina runs into Kasumi, who then worries about her state after getting into a fight with Ako and Rinko. Yukina agrees to watch Poppin’Party’s live show, after Kasumi makes it clear it’s her way of trying to help Yukina. After asking each of the members how they felt when performing, Yukina understands and feels inspired to bring her own band back together again.
- In a one-panel loading screen comic, Kasumi does Yukina’s hair for her, making it resemble her own ‘cat buns’. Yukina’s mesmerised expression is both hilarious and cute.
- Aya’s efforts selling Pastel*Palettes tickets in the rain pay off, granting the band admiration of her determination from the public and many deciding to give Pastel*Palettes a second chance. Made even sweeter as this comes after Chisato disparages Aya for being naïve enough to think hard work is all she needs to succeed.
- This could be seen as Aya taking Chisato’s words to heart and applying them to her current situation. Selling tickets in the rain without an umbrella or raincoat probably qualifies as going above and beyond plain hard work.
- It’s revealed in Kaoru’s white day musical event that Kaoru remembers the name and personal requests of every single fan she has. And at the end, she even writes personalised letters for Misaki, Maya, and the other theatre club girls. It shows that Kaoru’s truly grateful to all of her ‘little kittens’ for their support.
- Misaki deciding to keep Michelle’s true identity a secret from Kokoro, Hagumi and Kaoru after realising the smiles Michelle brings to them.
- The event where Kanon befriends a runaway penguin from the aquarium is just an adorably fun time.
- The fact that Sayo spends an entire day helping Rinko find a club she’d like in one game event. There isn’t anything in it for her at all: she’s using her own time to help a friend and fellow bandmate.
- Rinko finally lands a target when she hears her friends cheering for her. Made even better when you consider she’s been trying for hours at this point and outright refuses to go home without landing the target.
- Ran’s father finally accepting that Ran is serious about being in a band with the rest of her friends after seeing them live. From then on, he sends all of them gifts every live, much to his daughter’s embarrassment.
- Ran finally taking up flower arranging as a hobby, after she spent majority of Afterglow’s first band story being vocally against inheriting her family’s flower arrangement school. Together with her father’s support in her band activities, it can be seen as another step in direction of Ran and her father finally laying to rest their differences and reconciling.
- In the Sundays at a Distant Park event, Kasumi and Hagumi find their childhood tanzaku wishes. While what’s written seems at first to be surface level, we then find out in a flashback that behind the scenes, child Kasumi and Hagumi are eagerly professing their wishes to stay friends forever.
- Chisato and Kanon’s friendship. The two met in middle school, and you can see just how refreshing Chisato finds it that Kanon treats her just like any other student despite the fact she’s a child actress. In fact, from the very beginning, Kanon is one of the only girls Chisato treats in a genuinely kind manner.
- The Afterglow Christmas event, featuring child versions of Afterglow and how they met Ran, is just adorable. Ran even hides behind her father when they first approach her!
- At the end of the Prelude’s Replay event, Rinko is finally able to step onto the concert stage and play the same piano piece she failed to play as a child. Rinko resolved to challenge herself, and succeeded.
- Season 3 of the anime has several.
- After Roselia suffers a defeat in a head to head against RAS, Moca reveals to Roselia that all of Afterglow voted for Roselia, and even wrote encouraging messages to them. Ran, Luminescent Blush in place, tells Yukina that it's not the end of Roselia's story. Yukina quietly acknowledges her.
- After Sayo collapses from pushing herself too hard after Roselia's defeat, Yukina tries to slip off alone to talk to her without telling the others. Lisa informs her they're well aware of what she's doing and that they're going with. They find Hina cheerfully doting on Sayo.
- Sayo reveals She's Back by mildly scolding Hina for coming into her room without knocking, but it's equally clear there's no actual hostility or malice in the scolding.
- CHU2 apologizing tearfully to PAREO, as RAS finally comes together as a band that cares about each other.
- While visiting a hot spring, the drummers for all the bands get together to chat. MASKING even reveals herself to be a fan of Pastel Pallettes' Maya.
- Ran and Yukina have a chat at the hot springs about why Afterglow was sitting out the BanG Dream contest. Ran explains that getting to Boudokan was an aspiration for Afterglow, and they'd get there on their own terms, and that the finals were on a day of another festival that Afterglow had already committed to, so they were holding to their own path and commitments. Yukina accepts this, showing a trust and understanding of her rival.
- The Owner of Space bestowing the title of Best Band on Poppin' Party with a warm smile, a far cry from the taciturn woman who nearly sank them two seasons earlier.
- Poppin'Party, Roselia, and RAS all winning a title at Boudokan.
- In one of the 4-koma, #77 "One Classroom Away", Tomoe, Himari, Moca, and Tsugumi have all decided on a beach trip, and say that now they just have to ask Ran. Tsugu points out that they have to be careful how they ask her, or it will seem like they decided without her, which would leave her feeling left out. Tomoe quickly states she'd always counted on Ran being a part of the trip, and Himari says if Ran can't make it, they won't go. When there's a break between classes, they go to ask Ran, who had, of course, heard everything from her class next door, and can only blush as she quietly agrees to go with them.
- In another 4-koma, Lisa has been reading a romance novel and was crying over one scene. Yukina spotted her from her bedroom window, and texted her, telling her whatever the problem was, she could talk to her about it. Lisa has to call Yukina after that to clear up the confusion.
- When MyGO finally come together to play one tear-soaked song in episode 10 of It's MyGO!!!!!
