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Before I even start, I need to get something out of the way here: I am not a Love Live: Sunshine! fan or a fan of any other typical idol shows. I don't *dislike* them either, just isn't my usual thing.

That said, Genjitsu no Yohane caught my interest this season. Ultimately, it really impressed me, and I hope to offer a different perspective on this show as an outsider to the fanbase. I've done a small amount of digging into the parent show (Love Live: Sunshine!) for more context, but I haven't watched it as of writing this review. I can't promise the most comprehensive ... and knowledgeable review, but I hope someone finds my perspective valuable! There will be some mild spoilers (up to around Ep. 8) but I won't talk in too much detail about the last few episodes.

I did what I'm sure many non-Love Live fans did, which was see this cool looking fantasy show, go "Oh neat!" and then realized it was a Love Live spin off. While many probably decided against watching it for that reason, I decided to give it a shot. Sure, I know nothing about these characters, but who knows? Maybe I'll dig it.

As fate would have it, GNY was a blast. Namely because I had no idea what the fuck was going on at any given time. Starting from Yohane auditioning and getting rejected again, then going home to her mom fucking DIPPING and leaving Yohane with her talking dog, and then we've got a lady mayor with an Iron Man suit and a Tron motorcycle??? And a SWORD??? Fighting off some weird nameless miasma??? At that point I had no words besides "I have no idea what's happening or why, but fuck it, I'm down." It became a very relaxing and mindless show because it was throwing every possible thing into the pot and letting it boil. Idols, slice of life, modern fantasy, mech suits, magic, and genuine bangers (the songs are really fun - I'll get to it later).

Lots of the reasons for why stuff is happening is left unexplained, but that's fine. There's no time to discuss WHY three of Yohane's friends are vigilante superheroes or why the mayor has a mech suit. Going into it would take away the whimsy of it in my opinion, and it makes many of these moments land really well.

Now the pacing - it's all over the place. I watched the first episode and then didn't watch for about 4 weeks as it didn't really pull me in that much. I planned to come back to it though, and I'm glad I did. It picks up significantly following Episode 3 (I think that's when Dia debuts her Super-Suit?) and keeps that pace until around Ep. 7-8. It slows down quite a bit here, but I'm a slice of life guy and enjoyed the reprieve from the action and what-the-fuck-is-the-robot-frog-doing-here. The girls night was adorable too, and allowed a little time for the girls to build their friendships out a little more (because let's be honest, Yohane became friends with everyone without much preamble, considering she hated this town initially). The pace then ramps right back up until the end of the show, and I found myself eager to watch the last 4 episodes as they released. Despite this uneven pacing, I found the show worth coming back to due to how much else it has to offer.

Let's talk about the songs - they're really quite fun. I won't get too into it, but I'm a musician and love casually analyzing/digging songs, especially those I hear in media. Having gotten into a ton of Japanese artists over the past few months, I really appreciate the precision and the craft that goes into these songs. I'm less familiar with idol groups and how they typically sound, but a lot of these songs are really hip (especially the opening - never skipped it once). I don't watch any idol shows currently, but honestly, I would give a main series Love Live show a shot just to compare it to the songs in GNY.

I'm still glad they didn't put in *too* many dance numbers and full songs - while they were good, I think anything more would've been distracting. Yohane's singing is a key plot device, so overusing it might've made the high points in the last few episodes feel out of place.

50% of the reason I stuck with this show though was how *sick* the character designs are. Maybe some would disagree, and I don't know how it compares to the parent show, but this show is visually stunning to me. Each girls' outfit summarizes who they are (in a good way) the moment you see them. Yohane? Definitely wants to be an idol, but definitely isn't. Dia? That uniform is sick and she's totally The Government. Riko? Out-of-towner and academic. I could go on, but you get the idea: I really enjoy the character designs and think they do a good job of depicting each character's role in this show (and in the town).

It's at this point that I realize I haven't talked about Lailaps - while at times Lailaps was a bit much and made some strange decisions (the type that feel made specifically to cause another conflict or drive the plot forward a bit artificially), I can't really be mad at the talking dog, ya know? The relationship between Yohane and Lailaps is really sweet too - they clearly care about each other, and it comes across very clearly throughout the show, even when they're in conflict.

~ ~ ~

Overall, I really enjoyed Genjitsu no Yohane. Despite not being a Love-Live Sunshine fan, the character designs and premise were captivating enough for me to give it a shot, and I got a show that put as many different enjoyable things in the pot as it could - idols, modern fantasy, a bit of action, and some cozy slice of life to top it off. The pacing reflected this, being a bit all over the place, but GNY remained captivating and was a wild and fun ride. I keep hopping between 7 and 8, because while I wouldn't put this next to some of my most favorite shows, I have to give GNY credit for hooking me in despite totally not being targeted towards me at all.

I would recommend non-Love Live fans give GNY a shot, just to see what you think, and I hope any Love Live: Sunshine! fans can appreciate my perspective as an outsider to the fanbase. Cheers!