Rating: B+
Aqua and Ruby are the centers of this series, and that’s not going to change. As much as character development might focus on other characters, these two are the impetus around which all of the major events in the series happen. That being said, I am increasingly convinced that the true star of the show is actually Kana. If I were to give a mid-year award for Best Character Development across any anime title, she would, at worst, be a top contender.
Kana was initially an irritating presence, a character seemingly designed for Aqua to contrast against and to serve as an example of one of the flaws in the entertainment industry. When she reappeared during Aqua and Ruby’ teen years, she filled the role of both the jaded veteran who could help bring idealism back to reality and a potential love interest for Aqua. Over time, however, Kana has become more than just a role player, as her own brand of insecurities make her an intriguing character on her own. While she may not be the prodigy that Akane is, she still has enough acting talent that even Aqua respects her and directors notice it. She may not have been successful in her attempts at being a singer, but she has enough talent in that realm that even two idol otaku are willing to cede their dearly-desired claims to being the group’s center to her. And while she may not be the beauty that Ruby or the class’s models are, she still has plenty of cute factor going for her. She’s had enough desire to stay in the spotlight to experiment widely, too. But she (understandably) can’t helped but focus on how she’s failed rather than what she can do.
Essentially, Kana has boxed herself into an ugly headspace here. Whether she’s come to those conclusions on her own or taken social media commentary too much to heart, she has become convinced that her failures over time have dragged others down with her. Whether fair or not, that’s more blame than should ever be laid on someone so young. For all her cynicism and jaded insight, she’s desperately afraid of doing the same again here. Aqua pretending to be Pieyon (because Kana will listen to him more than Aqua at this point) helps at first, but it takes some comments from Ruby to convince her that she doesn’t have to take the onus all on herself even though she’s taken on the key role of center. Though a veteran in other ways, she’s a rookie at being an idol, just as Ruby and and MEM are, so they will succeed or flop together. The end of the episode, as the new incarnation of B Komachi prepare to go on stage, shows a determined Kana, and as she’s shown before, when people work with her, she can pull off some amazing feats.
Ruby gets some spotlight time, too. She spills to Kana under the guise of talking about her current-life past, which both firms up what we already knew and (more importantly) clearly shows Kana that this is not some flight of fancy for Ruby. Combined with later scenes, this helps both girls get their feelings in order. Aqua’s efforts are also a nice touch. Despite his dark goals, he does genuinely care about both his sister and (apparently) Kana.
Will the group triumph in next episode’s concert? In any other idol series, I’d say that was a given, and I’d love to see all three of these girls succeed; if nothing else, the show has convinced viewers that all three girls are worth caring about. But I won’t rule out that some additional big twist awaits.
USA Anime 