The iDOLM@STER Movie: Kagayaki no Mukougawa e! Episode 1 Discussion

HowTragic said:
Was pretty pumped from the opening scene, but ended up being rather mediocre.

Not enough Miki in this movie as it focused primarily on Haruka and the wondrous ways that she can one-sidedly pander to an extra character while giving the rest of the cast the middle finger. Problem is, that I literally have an imaginary list of all the fucks I don't give about the new characters. The only one I remotely liked was Shiho, and they made her apologize to Haruna even though she was spot on with her points. Bringing personal feelings into a professional life is unprofessional and realistically spells a recipe for disaster. It just so happened to have worked out because this is anime and apparently you can go from fatass to model within a week in anime. *Slow clapping*

Overall about a 6/10 in my book. The finale bumped it up half a point just enough to round up to 7. It would be 1-2 points higher if Miki was the lead without the suffocating piles of sentimentality.

Expected grand concerts and many catchy new songs. Got pretentious plot riddled with melodrama.
Much disappoint.

Fui said:
I think you're confused about the franchise, because your expectations are bizarre. It sounds like you pretty much missed out on (or disagreed with) every point that the movie was trying to get across. I have no idea why you're watching idolm@ster, and it sounds like you should steer clear of it based on your expectations from it and the way you think in general. I mean, you obviously missed out on why Haruka was chosen to be the leader and not Miki (who acknowledges Haruka as being a more suitable leader). The movie directly addressed this issue with the entire Shiho-Haruka conflict, and it was resolved with the conclusion that it's fine to have different ways of thinking about it (clearly you prefer Shiho's way of thinking), but ultimately Haruka is more suited for making the choices as the leader because of her caring nature and her strong desire to understand others and keep the unit together. The entire movie revolved around this concept, with other points being made along the way, like the insecurities that amateurs face early on in their careers but the importance of following what you truly want regardless, and how the pros were once in their same shoes. It's fine to not look for these sort of traits in a film, but then it comes back to, "what were you expecting from idolm@ster?" TL;DR: im@s is not for you.

HowTragic said:


Your 1st grade teacher called. She wanted you to learn the definition of "opinion".

You're confusing your personal opinion as the "correct" way to watch an anime. I watch for the music, and like the series for the sincerity of efforts they put into getting to where they are today. I like to see the hard work and dedication that brings people who start from rock-bottom performing in the streets to stardom because it's inspiring, as opposed to idol groups that simply "win" without any indication of effort in a sudden, illogical outcome.

You obviously idealized why Haruka was chosen as the leader. She's the main character of the series. Go figure. And for the record, Miki's interjection could hardly be taken as contextual support, as it was more of a resigned effort to calm personal discontent, and a reflexive consolation to a friend. If you can't even read through that level of social construct, you hardly have the credibility to criticize me for the way I watch im@s. Iori noted towards the end that while Haruka is a leader to them, she would completely collapse in a professional setting. Haruka's strengths that you've noted are great for keeping an amateur unit together. Unfortunately, 765 Pro are professional idols at this point. This is not situational like the previous point because it is a valid addition in a strictly open-discussion setting when the girls were discussing the future of their concert. Not to mention, most of the cast also felt this way, as there isn't another reason why they just watched and let a simple backstage dancer talk smack to the leader of the idol group. Iori, considered the more confrontational character of the cast, finally stepped in to tell her she said too much. Linguistically speaking, "言いすぎ" does not imply that what was said was wrong, just that it was inappropriate to say it directly.

But that's not even the point of personal distaste. I don't even mind if this was the "point that the movie was trying to get across". What mattered was the execution in doing so. While I agree that the major point of contention is Haruka's dilemma and the movie built-up tension between the cast appropriate for this cause, their sub-par deliverance of the underlying reason for this dilemma made all the effort put into it a joke. The original im@s TV series introduced similar developments in Chihaya's arc, but Chihaya's personal trauma held a significantly higher level of spiritual and emotional appeal. In heavy contrast, after all that disagreement and argument for what? A girl who can't control her own eating and turned fat? It made the entire plot difficult to take seriously. I don't take it seriously. It's definitely not what I expected from one of my favorite idol series out there known for the sincerity of its story to have a girl quit because fatocalpyse, then magically get skinnier/better after a sentimental reunion right before the concert despite the entire cast chanting that they were out of time 40% of the movie. That shit's almost Love Live! tier bullshit. I'm sure if they were trying to get the point across that people have different ways of thinking (ironically applicable to this discussion) or that amateurs face troubles along the way, they could have structured and chosen a more appropriate climatic/post-climatic conclusion.

TL;DR: Leave your basement once in a while. There's people out there who have different ways of thinking than you, and they aren't wrong. Blasphemy, I know.

I'll be the judge of what anime is for me.

Fui said:
I made no criticism of your personal take on how the situation should have been handled, and stated that the movie explicitly expressed this viewpoint, as Haruka said to Shiho, "We have different opinions, and that's fine." I said your expectations from the franchise are off base, and you clearly weren't a good judge that this anime would be for you, because this movie obviously left you frustrated with the way they resolved the situation. The conclusions made from the movie closely follow the character personalities and general stance that the franchise takes. You criticize something like someone losing some weight over a short period of time, but praise Chihaya's scenario? In im@s2 she developed a disease that would ruin any chances of her singing career, but it was miraculously cured overnight after a conversation she had with her spiritual brother as a bird. Or in the TV series, after weeks of depression and the inability to sing, at the last minute on the stage of her performance she saw a ghost of her brother in front of her, and along with the help of nakama power at that moment she miraculously went from not being able to produce a single note to singing something perfectly and better than she's ever sung before. You really want to tell me those are more believable than exercising 24/7 and dieting for a week or whatever and losing some weight, and that anyone should expect them to handle this show as a grimdark edgy "realistic" show rather than for the purpose of giving people hope? No, you're definitely mistaken in what you're expecting from this series.

Also, you're just projecting what you think Miki is thinking. That's what you think she's thinking. And for what reason? Why do you have the right to assume she didn't acknowledge the fact that Haruka would probably make a better leader? The show gives many reasons why Miki is not suitable for a leader, and she probably acknowledges those flaws. She's lazy as hell despite being extremely talented and doesn't care about others nearly as much as Haruka does, as Haruka is repeatedly the person who tries to reach out to people with problems (like how she reached out to Chihaya in the TV series). Regardless of how "realistic" the decision is, it's the expected conclusion based on the natural progression of the series.

As a final note, the fatness wasn't even close to the central conflict. If you think the fatness had any relevance to the central conflict or messages they were trying to convey, then you took it wrong. The central issue was her having a passion for being an idol but having insecurities and problems in the early phases, leading her to quit despite that not being her true desire. It's tying to tell people not to make that mistake, but I shouldn't have to spell this out since it should be obvious.

HowTragic said:


So according to you, watching a music/idol series primarily for, and expectant of the music/performance portion is a "bizarre" and "off-base" expectation. Does that mean you also marvel on a daily basis at how bizarre the people around you are when they want to eat because they're hungry or sleep when they're tired? Some people eat because they love the taste of food, or sleep because they love sleeping. It's not in anyone's place to judge how appropriate that motive is. Please note that not everyone watches im@s to get their daily dose of slice-of-shit, and that does not mean they are a poor judge of what is suitable for their tastes.

I criticized fatocalypse not only because of the abrupt deus ex they pulled at the end when this "lack of time" element was so central to the challenges persisting the cast, but also because of how trivial it was. At the very least in both of Chihaya's cases, she had a significant spiritual or emotional challenge that could realistically be considered as a special type of circumstance that one had no control over. In contrast, Kana(?; Naka? what was her name?) exhibited a disgusting lack of responsibility and self-control in an entirely controllable situation. You don't make someone fat as a dramatic climax to a serious story, you do it as a joke. And it is a joke. If that's too hard to understand, Disease/Trauma/Family conflict >> Getting fat due to lack of self-control. How did we know they were "exercising 24/7 and dieting for a week or whatever?" Did the movie even bother showing the process that they went through to successfully reach the concert? No? Then that's just you interpreting and twisting the plot to satisfy your argument. If you think im@s is here for "the purpose of giving people hope", then I think you're the one who's "mistaken in what you're expecting from this series." God that's some shit-tiered hope-giving that you're praising.

I'm not even going to bother with this. The topic of who is the most suitable leader for 765 pro is strictly subjective, as there is no concrete proof in the movie that points towards any specific character as dominant to the rest. Argumentatively, Miki is the most suitable because anyone familiar with the im@s series knows that she is the most talented out of all the idols, both inherently and practically. One might also remember that Miki's arc addressed her initial "lazy as hell" attitude, and the game even has separate "覚醒美希" route to trivialize the concept of Miki's laziness holding her back. A leader, first and foremost, needs to be competent in the field and capable of making calm and logical judgments in times of crisis. If the leader's overwhelming concerns are "caring about others" and scrutinizing members to make sure they answer to the basic level of responsibility, then that not an idol group that'd get even the crumbs of the industry. If they have the time to waste on these types of amateur problems under Haruka's leadership, then Haruka's not only unsuitable to be leader, but she'd also be the weight that drags the group down.

Kana getting fat was the whole foundation of the central conflict, because without it, there is no central conflict. That seems like it's "relevant" enough to me. It's like having a noble goal of helping people (1), and when asked what the ultimate outcome of this goal was, you answer "I gave 10 cents to a hobo" (2), followed by the reason "because my mom told me to" (3). Guess how serious people are going to take you? Haruka dismissed the opinions of other backstage dancers who, along with the rest of the idol group, worked even harder to prepare for the concert in favor of reaching out to one unresponsive extra who just so "coincidentally" happened to get along with her (1:"noble goal of helping people"). Without taking into account the severity of all this, she trivialized their efforts due to an inclination based on a disgustingly blatant favoritism (2:"because my mom told me to"). But even going beyond this, what was the ultimate result? After all that suspense building, it comes to light with a laughable result of a girl who, due to a purely personal incompetence, was the cause for this central conflict. Haruka put everyone's work and efforts in risk so she could ultimately console a fatso who reaped what she sowed (3:"I gave 10 cents to a hobo"). That was the ultimate result irrespective of what they or you expected it to be. It's trying to tell people to not make that mistake? Well then, since this movie went so out of its way to tell me this, I guess won't be an incompetent that grows fat from a lack of self control, and trouble other people because I don't answer to my obligations and all I can do is subsequently mop in bed.

After all this analysis, it seems to me that I might have given this movie an even higher score than it deserves. I certainly can't believe I risked failing my parasitology exam to sneak a watch before subs and full mainstream.

Fui said:
I think you're confused about the franchise, because your expectations are bizarre. It sounds like you pretty much missed out on (or disagreed with) every point that the movie was trying to get across. I have no idea why you're watching idolm@ster, and it sounds like you should steer clear of it based on your expectations from it and the way you think in general. I mean, you obviously missed out on why Haruka was chosen to be the leader and not Miki (who acknowledges Haruka as being a more suitable leader). The movie directly addressed this issue with the entire Shiho-Haruka conflict, and it was resolved with the conclusion that it's fine to have different ways of thinking about it (clearly you prefer Shiho's way of thinking), but ultimately Haruka is more suited for making the choices as the leader because of her caring nature and her strong desire to understand others and keep the unit together. The entire movie revolved around this concept, with other points being made along the way, like the insecurities that amateurs face early on in their careers but the importance of following what you truly want regardless, and how the pros were once in their same shoes. It's fine to not look for these sort of traits in a film, but then it comes back to, "what were you expecting from idolm@ster?" TL;DR: im@s is not for you.

sImssLovers said:
Bored,Bored,Bored,Bored,Bored

actually first 5 minute is pretty good
but what the fuck is going on in the rest is fucking fatty
Honestly
we don’t care about dat overdranatic scene
we don’t care the new girls

we need Spectacular concert, Impressive Song
CGI in the last make me headick

Fuck the A-1 studio
u made show suck overall