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I am aware that you moved to AniList, I also have an anilist. However most of my friends are still on MAL. So i update here and there on Anilist, but it's fine.

I have your videos in the past, and I saw you had a mal. So i friended you.

Congrats on your brother’s marriage btw!
Couldn’t shoutout on AL cause of the temporary ban.

Hey! I follow you on AniList and just came across one of your reviews on MAL and recognized the name so I figured I would give a FR. I enjoy reading your reviews.

Nice to meet you and no worries at all! I really
Need to join AniList too at some point when I can be bothered to move everything over..

I have since moved on from that format as well, it is good for beginners but it is easy to limit yourself when you have to stick to the format of "characters, sound etc." Personally, I try to adapt and admire a writing style that ties in one's insights with the anime at hand, such that the arguments presented aren't superfluous or broad, as well as appropriately responding to what the anime has to offer. After all, it is all about a conversation between the reader and the author [or whatever it may be in anime].

I completely agree that a lot of reviews are rambling pieces meant to flame those who dislike/ like the anime. It does not engage in the anime in any way and is insulting to what a review is meant to do. Reviews are not meant to win an argument- there is no argument to begin with, but rather to express yourself through your response to the text, as you said "a central theme or thought". I also dislike vague reviews that target "writing", "character development", buzz words that hold zero meaning if they are not elaborated upon. "Writing" could mean plot development, coherency, dialogue quality, nuance etc.

Writing well is hard. I have had enough of writing reviews on this site but I am still happy to share my thoughts through anime notes or through comments with like-minded individuals. I am open to writing more if something interesting comes along, and I will be happy to read more of yours too :).

P.S. I also like OG reviewers like Fleure who write more poetically. Its another writing style I wish to explore in the future

Your welcome! I just wanted to express how your reviews capture your thoughts and each anime series' strengths better than most anime reviews right now, which are sloppily written/ very brief many of a time.

I also appreciate how you keep the structure simple but layer a lot of nuance that makes them easy but meaningful to read. You also have great taste :)

Thanks for accepting the FR!

Thank you! <3

Happy New Year! 🎉 Wishing you a year filled with joy and new adventures. May 2025 bring all the success and happiness you’ve been working towards. Cheers to a fresh start and exciting possibilities! 🥂✨

I'll definitely give your write ups a good read whenever I can!

From a glimpse of it though, I caught on to a few things that I agree and disagree with, as well as some that I've never considered/will need to read more about. I'll drop them here and hopefully elaborate in a reasonable time.

Agrees

1. Akane is not well-written.

2. The existence of crow girl in general.

3. B-komachi sidelined was a bad decision

Disagrees

1. Aqua's planned is flawed (my opinion about this might change depending on the details, but if what you are saying matches the critiques I've read and heard throughout Chinese forums, I'm pretty sure I have a decent counter-point).

2. OnK does not know what it wants to be about, or rather, it's about so many things that it loses focus and cannot properly execute on any one of the things it wants to talk about (partial agree on this one, but I also think there's another way to think about it).

3. Love triangle taking up too much of the story (sorry if I'm miscontruding your point).

4. The ending fakeout with Nino/Kamiki was terrible (it wasn't great, but I think there were some honourable meta-elements in play).

5. OnK does not show the entertainment industry is "evil", or at least, the characters we see do have to contend with the "evil" side of the industry, and that's a fault.

I don't knows

1. Ruby's weird position in the story.

2. Ai is not interesting.

3. Fluctuating intelligence of the cast.

Don't worry about that, it's just something I have to work on myself!

On the season 2 and Margarete point. I've never even considered Superstar could've gone down that direction, and you're right in that it would've been so much more interesting than what we had here. I perhaps have the luxury of not having watched that many idol shows (Bang Dream MyGO, which is definitely a-typical in the space, Love Live OG and Superstar, and maybe K-on and Bocchi, if those even count), so the stagnant-ness of Love Live hasn't necessarily got to me yet.

Thanks for your clarification, also. I gave the Anilist version a glance as well, and in addition to clearing up what you meant in those paragraphs, it added a certain je nais se quoi that showed it was definitely written with images in mind. Whereas here you sound a level-headed critic that occasionally enjoys your idol anime. On Anilist, in contrast, the review reads like a fan's begrudging admission of the slow creative death of a series they hold dear.

I still remember being so angry about season two that I swore to not support any Bandai's ventures w/ Liella, I lost my rational mind somewhere along the way, and you helped me find it back. Again, I couldn't praise your style enough.

Alright, let's move on to OnK.

We have talked about previously how the cruelty/perils of the entertainment industry only ever serves as exposition but almost never actually happens to the characters themselves, and how that rips any tension out of the interesting (i.e., grimmer) parts of OnK. I can totally see going down the darker route was something the manga definitely could have done, but don't necessarily think that alone deserves docking that many points.

Judged on its own merits, I think OnK has a decent central message of, ironically, moving on. And this becomes increasingly clear as OnK wraps up: characters are straight up villains if they didn't and the "good guys" all eventually find their way out of the misery. Saitou from Ichigo productions didn't for years, and then his life got a lot better when he did; Aqua almost lived happily ever after the theatre arc until he plummets back into his destructive habits, he then died in peace at the end once realises he has moved on from Ai, instead doing it all for his sister; Ruby learnt to handle loss properly and her eye's literally turned from black to white from that moment on. I can go on and on, but you get the point.

This is on top of the great job Aka did with characterisation and interesting quasi-insider information we get from the series, which I see as fun trivia than anything plot substantial. All of which ultimately lead me to giving OnK a 7. Some plot holes (such as Ai's murderer being the partner of one of B-Komachi's then member's partner, the biggest and most recent example) left me wanting but overall it was a fun read.

Hope this all at least kinda make sense. I'm sure there'll be something I need to clarify/rethink about, it's almost 4am now for me and my mind is not minding properly anymore!

EDIT: Oh my god sorry! I accidentally deleted your reply from my previous comment! I am so sorry!

Thanks for such a thoughtful reply!
I actually agree with your assessment of Margarete and her position as a solo rival, though! It shows the show’s refusal to fully commit to embracing risks, like the potential exploration of why Margarete almost beat Liella. I too would have loved to see more of that introspection—it could have added real depth to the group’s arc. Agree with your "have its cake and eat it too"; it captures how the season felt stuck between its ambitions and its commercial constraints.

Okay, again, enough of my rambling as a fan—thank you so much for your critical approach to this anime. As a fan, it’s easy for me to have a clouded and biased perspective, so I appreciate how your insights help me see it from a different viewpoint.

Hey ZNoteTaku, what a well-written review for Superstar S3! I want to share my opinion as a fan of Liella the group and have my thoughts on the anime after reading your review.
I personally still enjoyed the third season, but agree that it had so much potential or "promises at each reconciliation that they can change and become better" like you said in the review but was bogged down by bad writing (especially in Season 2) and its persistence to not deviate from the usual "formula", probably because they are treated as the "roots" or "conventional" groups like μ's(SIP) and Aqours(Sunshine) while Nijigasaki and Hasunosora are the "experimental" ones.

That said, I completely understand where you're coming from in your critique. Love Live! has always walked a fine line between heartfelt sincerity and commercial calculation, and for long-time watchers or even fans or those seeking more narrative depth, it can feel frustratingly stagnant. While I personally still find joy in the music, the performances, the cute and fun characters, and the growth of the seiyuu themselves as a real-life Idol Group, I do agree with the storytelling in Superstar!! season three still fell short of its potential (I still think they need more episodes and/or runtime to explore the characters, motivations, and interactions because they need to rely on visual storytelling such as symbolism and sequence of tableaux). The decisions made with Margarete's arc and the handling of Kanon's involvement felt particularly rushed and at odds with the more daring direction it initially seemed to be taking.

Not gonna lie, as a fan of Liella!, it's hard not to feel a little defensive when reading such a critical review like yours. Still, I appreciate how you articulate your points with care rather than dismissiveness. It’s clear you’ve put a lot of thought into why the series no longer resonates with you, and I really genuinely respect that. I think for newer fans like me, it’s about balancing the love for what works—like the vibrant songs and the seiyuus' energy—with the frustrations about what could have been.

Then again, I’m grateful for the parts of the franchise that still bring me happiness, even if I understand why they no longer work for everyone, including you.

Thanks again for the thoughtful review. It’s always good to see different perspectives, even when they don’t entirely align with my own.
And congratulations on your graduation from Love Live! series!

Hey ZNote, it's me again! Nice Superstar review. Glad someone else put into words my immense frustration towards the series for butchering its own potential. Although I personally still enjoyed the third season (with much annoyance, I don't like that I'm occasionally a sucker for hardcore otaku pandering shows) and operate on rating/reviewing shows on a pure enjoyment basis, I couldn't bring myself to praising Superstar all that much on a technical level.

I think I've said it before, but you always have a way with words and such a clear line of thought that gives me a sort of inferiority complex.



Was such a wake up call for me from a dream that I clinged onto desperately.

Some points I don't agree with, but that's just the nature of things. You mentioned that the warning signs started in season 2, for example, but that's being way too generous. Season 2 of Love Live Superstar to me was already an unequivocal declaration that the series was not going to part from it's roots.



I found this quite cryptic as well. What point were you trying to make with this specifically? I'd just like to know.

Also, if you still remember, sorry for never getting back to you after the Oshi no Ko comment I left, it was certainly something that I needed time to digest. One thing lead to another and now it's now more than a year old now and thought it's now too late. If you're still interested I'd be very happy to restart that conversation.