(L) Love Live! School Idol Project (1st Season)

[novalysis]

The ED was the worst part of this episode.

Seriously. The Happy Go lucky ED utterly RUINED the immersion of the climax of this episode.

Why didn't the staff axed the ED out? Urgh. Ending the episode there and then would have been brilliant!\\

Though Love Live and Garupan share different premises, I detect the same spirit animating both animes. I wonder whether we would see another anime of their like in Spring 2013.

[Triple_R]

Best death scene since Superman vs. Doomsday.

I look forward to next episode's "Funeral for a Friend(s)" where all of Honoka's fellow Justice LeagueMuse members mourn her death, especially BatmanEri.


Seriously, the drama levels in this episode was just off the charts. Personally, I loved it, but I can see why FlareKnight thought it might have gone overboard.

While listening to the BGM, there were times when I thought "Man, this could almost pass for something like The Lord of the Rings".

The inspirational notes the BGM hit was downright moving. The people behind this show are certainly pouring their heart and soul into it.

Love Live! has certainly taken on a larger than life quality to itself. It's truly engrossing. I can tell this is one show I will remember for a long, long time. And I'm honestly amazed at how well they've draped Honoka in a "hero" motif. And now the great hero has the classic heroic fall where her efforts worthy of song and dance has finally left her completely exhausted. Amazing what this show has done with the School Idol concept.

Practically speaking, I was fine with Honoka's words and actions until she went for that jog through the rain the night before the big day. Yeah, that was a bit foolish. That's when she went a step too far. But this is a great "flaw" because it's like watching an Olympian that doesn't know when enough is enough - I can't help but respect such impeccable drive and determination even when it portends collapse.


As for Kotori, I suspect she's been accepted into a very prestigious school somewhere, and/or has just received an excellent job opportunity that will force her to move. Whether or not she'll be able to continue as a Muse member until Love Live! itself remains to be seen, but my suspicion is that whether her current school is saved or not, Kotori won't be spending her final year of high school there.

Given how this whole School Idol effort is about saving their school, I can certainly understand why Kotori wouldn't want to share this news with her friends at this time.

[Kanon]

I loved how dramatic they made the drawing (epic BGM, slow motion, tense faces) only to have Nico fail

Originally Posted by Triple_R

Practically speaking, I was fine with Honoka's words and actions until she went for that jog through the rain the night before the big day. Yeah, that was a bit foolish. That's when she went a step too far. But this is a great "flaw" because it's like watching an Olympian that doesn't know when enough is enough - I can't help but respect such impeccable drive and determination even when it portends collapse.

It was plain stupid. I understand how much is riding on that performance, but common sense should have told her running in the rain the night before the big show was a very bad idea, especially she was probably already tired. Resting is also very important.

Honoka's incredible single-mindedness, tenacity and energy is a double-edged sword. It brought them this far and yet it might also be their downfall. The girl should learn to think before acting. Heeding her friends' advice wouldn't hurt either. Umi warned her!! If only she had listened.

[karuroso]

I just hope Honoka fainting won't lead to a bitter ending, with the girls saving the school but they failed to enter Love Live and Kotori decided to go away.

[blakstealth]

Honoka?

Honoka?!

HONOKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's over. She's dead. I know it. ;__;

Dramatic tendencies aside, the lottery scene was hilarious. The expressions the girls make makes me rofl every time. Seeing Nozomi rubbin her necklace thing in her hands was funny, too. xD

[playmaker2k]

^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwnPFryXF6g

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Kanon

It was plain stupid. I understand how much is riding on that performance, but common sense should have told her running in the rain the night before the big show was a very bad idea, especially she was probably already tired. Resting is also very important.

Honoka's incredible single-mindedness, tenacity and energy is a double-edged sword. It brought them this far and yet it might also be their downfall. The girl should learn to think before acting. Heeding her friends' advice wouldn't hurt either. Umi warned her!! If only she had listened.

I think you're being a bit too hard on Honoka here.

As a big pro hockey fan, I'm aware of instances where players did truly insane things to help their teams win games. And it worked.

Spoiler for Sports analogy, non-sports fans can skip over.:

This story is still the stuff of legend for pro hockey fans.

"...Baun is remembered for his performance in game six of the 1963–64 NHL season Stanley Cup finals against the Detroit Red Wings. On April 23, 1964, having broken his leg earlier in the game, he returned in overtime and scored the game-winning goal. The Leafs won the next game 4–0 to win the best of seven series, and secure their third consecutive Stanley Cup championship."

Bold emphasis mine.

Was Honoka's jogging decision foolish? Yes, definitely, but she can be on my team any day. I'd rather have the problem of trying to get someone to ease off a bit, then have the problem of trying to get someone to put more effort into it.

And in fairness, Eri's strong support was very influential, especially on Honoka herself. Eri told Honoka that she'd have to work twice as hard as everybody else, which Eri probably regrets saying after this episode.

Honoka was hearing one thing from Umi, but something completely different from Eri and Kotori. So I wouldn't say Honoka failed to heed her friends' advice. It's just that said advice wasn't uniform to begin with. I'm pretty confident that if Eri and/or Kotori had openly agreed with Umi, that Honoka would have rested more.


Honoka's incredible single-mindedness, tenacity and energy is indispensable. She can take it too far, but I wouldn't characterize it as a "double-edged sword". It's much, much more of a positive than a negative.

I suspect that next episode Honoka will apologize for going too far and "ruining the concert". I suspect that those who attended the concert will be deeply concerned over what happened to Honoka, but I think this will add to her fame and the fame of Muse. You might even see them rise up the standings a bit.

And I think that Muse will do like any good team does, and rally around their fallen leader. I think we're in for a great comeback story, though it will likely be tinged with some sadness due to Kotori's situation.

[EroKing]

[YourIdeas]

Originally Posted by novalysis

The ED was the worst part of this episode.

Seriously. The Happy Go lucky ED utterly RUINED the immersion of the climax of this episode.

Why didn't the staff axed the ED out? Urgh. Ending the episode there and then would have been brilliant!\\

Though Love Live and Garupan share different premises, I detect the same spirit animating both animes. I wonder whether we would see another anime of their like in Spring 2013.

I've noticed that the ending is just terrible for this series in general, when a lot of the scenes seem to end on some pretty big cliffhangers. (though half of the cliffhangers tend to be trolls. ) At the very least, it shouldn't fade into a scene.

In any case, this slow-motion thing should be the norm for anime. American live-action spams it, and it's worked wonders for these pillow-fight and lottery ball scenes.

Just wish Kotori wasn't such a downer in the group though. First she's hiding that she's Minalinsky (which I was fine with, it had a lot of build up), now she's getting some important letter that could force her to leave the group? (Probably an offer to study abroad in America) Dayum girl, put that shit on Maki or something. You shouldn't get all of the attention.

[blakstealth]

Originally Posted by playmaker2k

^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwnPFryXF6g

The only thing that can save her now is nano machines. D:

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by YourIdeas

I've noticed that the ending is just terrible for this series in general, when a lot of the scenes seem to end on some pretty big cliffhangers. (though half of the cliffhangers tend to be trolls. ) At the very least, it shouldn't fade into a scene.

This show probably would have benefited from a somewhat darker/edgier ED. I'm thinking of the K-On ED that playmaker2K's avatar is from. Something like that.

The OP being upbeat is good, but yeah, given this show's love of cliffhangers, an edgier ED would have been nice.

[Kanon]

I came across as harsher than I intended. I think what Honoka did in this episode was stupid and reckless, but I agree her qualities are indispensable to the group. She's still a character I appreciate a lot. Double-edged sword might not have been the best term, however we have to keep in mind her overzealousness might have cost the team its place in Love Live, which is a major deal. We can't exactly blame her because she was meaning well, but if they fail, she will bitterly regret it for a long time. Obviously, everything will turn out well because it's not that kind of story, but their plan to save the school might have come to an abrupt end there. Some self-reflection is needed. This shouldn't be brushed off as a minor incident, or it might happen again and things may not turn out so well next time.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I think what Honoka did in this episode was stupid and reckless, but I agree her qualities are indispensable to the group. She's still a character I appreciate a lot. Double-edged sword might not have been the best term, however we have to keep in mind her overzealousness might have cost the team its place in Love Live, which is a major deal. We can't exactly blame her because she was meaning well, but if they fail, she will bitterly regret it for a long time. Obviously, everything will turn out well because it's not that kind of story, but their plan to save the school might have come to an abrupt end there. Some self-reflection is needed. This shouldn't be brushed off as a minor incident, or it might happen again and things may not turn out so well next time.

I pretty much agree.

Honoka, and Muse in general, are at a critical juncture here. Especially for an amateur operation built from the ground up like they are. They have come a long way, and had to win over a lot of people (about half of their own members were major struggles to even get into the group! ). They're now at that point where victory is within sight. It's right there. One step... maybe two steps... away. It's a pretty heady place. It's important to keep your bearings, and keep your cool, as you make those final steps.

Honoka herself, and Muse in general, needs to step back a bit. Regain their bearings. Realize that their own physical well-being and health has to come first. Continue to work and push hard, but within those limitations.


All of the above being said, I can't help but love Honoka's character. Such boundless spirit. And I like the new dynamic between Eri and Honoka, even though it may have contributed to Honoka's fall this episode. I think that Eri finds Honoka very endearing. Eri might even love her now (and I mean this in a general sense, not necessarily in a romantic/yuri one).

[Nork22]

Originally Posted by novalysis

Seriously. The Happy Go lucky ED utterly RUINED the immersion of the climax of this episode.

I won't say the "Happy Go Lucky ED" ruin the moment since the ED song is an inspirational song about "youth" however going a darker ED piece isn't what Love Live is about.

Plus it's not like Honoka died, although Sunrise is known to make things like this a bit too dramatic.

[Chiaki_chan]

Maki x Nico's time \(^_^)/ :

[playmaker2k]

Spoiler for size:

Maki-sama's Thigh Meat

I'll contribute to the cause as well.

Originally Posted by blakstealth

The only thing that can save her now is nano machines. D:

I hope they don't add FOXDIE to her bloodstream.

[Chiaki_chan]

Maki-sama sexy time !! \(*o*)/ :

Spoiler for Maki-sama:

[Master_Yoma]

Oh no Honoka pulled a Yui

[Julio C]

Originally Posted by Chiaki_chan

yes is beach episode and yes I look AKB0048, why?

I'm just wondering if anybody is also into it. Personally I'm not into AKB0048 and I chose this show over that one instead.

So anybody got a favorite idol already? I'm really liking Maki a lot, and I wanted to like Hanayo more but she lost that appeal she had when she lost her glasses.

My only problem with this show is the voice acting since most of the cast are new or have very little experience. I can right away tell that some of the acting is off or force. It's not a really big deal, but at least some have good vocals.

[Enternal]

Yeah I have to agree with everyone that what Honoka did was just completely foolish. However, at the same time, I like her for this very point. She clearly wants the whole thing to succeed. So she ends up working very very hard to the point where she no longer sees the potential consequences. It may be easy for some of us to call her stupid (seems like there's quite a bit of anger from some users on Twitter as well) but as I have said some time before, it's easy for us to see the negatives of others but not when the negatives involve us. There are times when you may worked really hard because you want something to succeed and there are also times where you worked a bit too hard but just not enough yet to cause a catastrophic problem like in the case of Honoka. It's not that we see that if we worked too hard then there's a problem but it's just by chance that we we were lucky that it did not caused a problem. Honoka was probably just working as hard as she's been before preparing for this concert but would have never thought that the rain would cause such a problem since she did, after all, have a hood on. It's just she's really unlucky this time and ended up with a fever.

On a side note, I also love the interaction between Eri and Honoka. Also... I guess that having Umi all to herself is not enough, she also wants Honoka.

Anyways... my goodness. I just nicely sorted out my folder of a bunch of images and then... people spamming more wonderful pictures... CONTINUE THE SPAMMING! I WANT MOAR!