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When I first saw the previews for this show, I was heavily reminded of idol shows, such as Love Live and BanG Dream. Being a franchise of Bushiroad didn't really push the idea away either. I initially came to watch this show to make fun of it, to laugh at all the cliches that come with idol shows, to fill up my time as I waited for other summer seasons' episodes. But as I came to learn while watching the anime and following the franchise, “They are not idols. They are stage girls”.

Shoujo☆Kageki Revue Starlight is first and foremost about the world of theatre, or ... more specifically, it is heavily based on Takarazuka Revue, which anime such as Sailor Moon and Utena have been inspired by. While I am not well-versed in how Takarazuka works in great detail, this series is essentially a commentary on the Top Star system that Takarazuka employs. With this in mind, a great deal of the anime's story and design choices have quite an astounding amount of depth that I had not realized before learning about Takarazuka.

What initially drew my interest into the anime were the Revues. The dynamic camera work and the animation for the first Revue made me change my mind about my initial impressions. I would even say that this anime has my most favorite transformation scene of all time. Each Revue is heavy with symbolism, focusing on the character's mindset and personality. They did not retract from the story, and in fact, enhanced the plot and characters through the song lyrics and the stage design.

What got me to stay for this show, however, was the characters. I came to love the show's characters for all their quirks, failings, and successes. While some of them appear to be idol-esque in character initially, the anime did very well in making them more than just what they seemed. The songs, the roles they played in the story, their interactions with each other--I learned to love every single one of them, not just the main characters (and in fact, there were times where I enjoyed learning about the others more than Hikari and Karen).

All in all, this was a wonderfully hidden gem that I am glad to have stumbled on, and I would never forget the experience this anime gave me. Not only did it increase my knowledge of Japanese culture, it was just in all enjoyable to watch every week.