Aikatsu!

And here's the ED.

edited 1st Oct '15 3:16:39 AM by Chariot

Season 4 is proceeding nicely. The Potatoes have avoided being too similar with older characters despite some blunt parallels with Ichigo and Aoi. Nina was awesome, and the fact that we're not getting more of her is a tragedy. Sumire deserves to win the Starlight Queen Cup. Too bad she probably won't.

Potatoes. Heh. I don't think any of the new Aikatsu girls match up with that starchy moniker bland LN/Harem leads get though.

Honestly with the loss of Ichigo the series has really taken a huge hit in the personality department.

They really need to push Akari into the background, she does not make a good lead at all she entirely devoid of interesting personality elements. Maybe push Nono in front since she is at least kinda funny.

x3

I'm not too fond of Nina personally so I'm glad she doesn't get much focus. I'm more upset that VCP have basically been delegated to background roles this season.

I disagree. Akari is similar enough to Ichigo that she can fill the main character role without it seeming forced yet different enough that she isn't a blatant Ichigo clone. Don't get me wrong, Nonochii and Risappe are my favorite characters introduced this season but I like that their focus episodes are spread out so that we don't get too much of them at once.

Akari is Ichigo but lacking the one aspect that Ichigo has. Ichigo is quirky as all heck and really really blunt and honest. In contrast Akari really has nothing, especially this season.

edited 4th Feb '16 2:46:22 PM by Memers

I liked Akari. In season 2. When she sucked. A nice contrast to all those super idols who were good the moment they went on stage. Nowadays she's just there. Sumire is the superior idol, and Hinaki is the better quirk. It doesn't help that they're making her out to be some amazing idol who rose up from nothing, but she's done nothing to justify being top 2 for her gen. Weather girl is nice, but not that nice.

They also need to stop trying to make Sena a thing we care about. Because it's not going to happen.

Do we actually know how highly ranked she is? I know Luminous came in the top 2 at the end of season three but that was a group effort and not Akari by herself. That is entirely subjective. Even the imageboard that shall not be named ships it for the most part and I for one think Akari x Sena is cute. Just because you yourself don't like it doesn't mean you can speak for the rest of us.

edited 3rd Dec '16 10:06:26 PM by Chariot

Getting to play the arcade game and the mobile adaptation made me want to catch up...if not for the fact that I have like 60+ episodes to do that, but I might as well do that or I couldn't appreciate the newer characters.

As a side note, should I make a new works page for the mobile game or just merge it with the current one?

Akari and Sumire were in the last Aikatsu 8.

If you can make a separate page for the mobile game, go for it. I assume it's got fairly different gameplay from the 3DS games after all.

Speaking of Photo on Stage, is the hard difficulty supposed to be doable by human beings? I've tried the game, and that difficulty is just insane.

Even the first 3DS game plays like Taiko Drum Master.

Photo on Stage, on the other hand, plays like jubeat. The hard difficulty of the former is more or less 7-8 rate extreme difficulty of the latter. Having adults as target demographic might have to do with it, though. I saw a random comment that you will need six fingers to play. I can at least C rank the combo medal on hard. Perhaps only the real hardcore gamers, presumably to be Japanese, can full combo hard and legendary difficulties.

edited 6th Feb '16 7:49:23 AM by murazrai

I can never get higher than C rank on easy. I can't even imagine how hard it must be to get a C rank on hard.

x2

That's not really the same as being in the top two though. Granted Akari probably shouldn't be in the top 8 either but I don't mind it since she is the main character after all.

Bumping but it seems that Aikatsu! will be dying soon and being replaced with Aikatsu! Stars.

We don't know much about it but we do know that the card game that Aikatsu! is based off of is getting an overhaul. Current rumors are that Noelle (Seira's sister) will be the main character and that DreAca will replace Starlight as the main setting but as those are just rumors I'd take them with a healthy dose of salt. Especially since the rumors also say that the Akari Generation/season 4 will end with the SQC in April.

Considering how much I hate Akari I am fine with this. I hope an older Ichigo can take the Mizuki spot.

Confirmed to start in April. Now we wait for details because all we know is the title and month it starts so far.

Double post but we have a press release for Stars! Starts April 7th with Noelle as main character deconfirmed. Scroll down to see the key visual/character designs. Rough translation of the anime section that I saw posted online:

The new MC is cute though the four in the back looking like Aoi, Ran, Ichigo, and Kii is a bit offputting since it being them is unlikely.

edited 21st Feb '16 6:44:32 PM by Chariot

Well seeing the latest Aikatsu episode the rumors were correct but its not in Stars.

However Stars will be taking Aikatsu's timeslot so the current gen is ending, we will never get to see Noelle shine... :(

This latest ep was clearly a goodbye to the Dre Aca characters.

edited 21st Feb '16 10:46:05 PM by Memers

I have made the page for the mobile game, but since that I don't play often it is barebones. But if the franchise is going to be rebooted, why NBGI make the mobile game anyway, with new songs debuting from it?

Back to Aikatsu! Stars, I might skip where I have stopped and watch it straight away, but hopefully the idol unit sharing the same name gets to sing and the series share the same universe.

Where did you stop? Getting to the end of S2 + movie is worth it, after that meh.

edited 22nd Feb '16 9:36:21 AM by Memers

Season two is the worst season though. And I say that as someone who likes Dreaca.

Hardly, so far S4 is the worst and probably why its getting canned only half way through the usual 50 episodes.

S1 was great, S2 was ok, S3 had a good first half terrible terrible second half and S4 has been shit.

I can't call the second half of season 3 terrible when it introduced Rin and finally gave Shion her just desserts. Though it was the start of Akari winning everything because.

I can't call any season worse than season two because no other season has been the hell that is every competition ending in a tie. Akari may or may not be a Mary Sue (I personally don't think so but I also don't like the term at all) but at least her generation doesn't end in constant ties and for me at least she's likable enough that her winning all the time doesn't annoy me.

Bumping because we have a preview for Aikatsu Stars! Start about 9 minutes in.

176. And the Starlight Queen Cup was going so well too...