Idol Dreams (31 Ai Dream) is a josei manga by Arina Tanemura, notably the first of her works to not run in a shoujo magazine. It began serialization in Melody in 2013, and is licensed in English by Viz Media.
31-year-old office worker Chikage Deguchi feels disillusioned with her current life, and longs for the days when she was 15 years old and in the prime of her youth. She's humiliated at her middle school reunion when it's revealed that she's never had a boyfriend. When she runs off in despair, her former classmate Kanshi Tokita offers her an experimental drug that temporarily ages her down to 15 for 5-6 hours. Feeling as though she's got nothing to lose, Chikage takes the drug.
When Chikage goes out to enjoy being 15 again, she's found and scouted to be an Idol Singer. Despite the confusion, she decides to take this chance to make the most of her newfound youth, starting a double life as the supposedly 15-year-old idol Akari.
Tropes:
- Fountain of Youth: 31-year-old Chikage tries a drug her former classmate offers her that ages her down to 15 years old, and lasts for 5 to 6 hours. She decides to keep using it after she's roped into becoming an idol.
- Genre Throwback: According to Tanemura, the story is meant to be a throwback to the older Magic Idol Singer anime and manga of the 80s and 90s (and of which Tanemura's previous work, Full Moon, is also an example). However, this series is aimed at an older audience, the main character ages herself down instead of up, and she uses a drug rather than magic to become an idol.
- Idol Singer: Chikage is roped into becoming one when she first take the aging-down drug. She decides to go along with it, going under the name Akari Deguchi.
- Old Maid: Chikage is 31 and has never had a boyfriend, and this is used to humiliate her at her middle school reunion. Her coworker Hanami tends to rub it in with the fact that she has a boyfriend herself.
- Older Alter Ego: Inverted; Chikane's alter ego as the idol Akari Deguchi is the result of aging herself down from 31 years old to 15.
