Aikatsu Stars!

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Alternative Titles

Japanese: アイカツスターズ！

Information

Type: TV

Episodes: 100

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Apr 7, 2016 to Mar 29, 2018

Premiered: Spring 2016

Broadcast: Thursdays at 18:25 (JST)

Producers: TV Tokyo, Echoes

Licensors: None found, add some

Studios: Bandai Namco Pictures

Source: Original

Genre: Slice of Life

Themes: Idols (Female), Music, School

Duration: 24 min. per ep.

Rating: PG - Children

Statistics

Score: 7.72¹ (scored by 6,821 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #1190²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #4830

Members: 20,400

Favorites: 346

Available At

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Resources

AniDB

ANN

Synopsis

Yume Nijino has been accepted into Four Stars academy, home of the beautiful and talented S4 idol group. She and the other newcomers are determined to discover their talent, with a choice of specializing in beauty, singing, dancing, or drama. A tough road lies ahead of them, and they must rely on each other to overcome their weaknesses and develop their unique strengths.

At the first-years' opening performances, Yume performs stellarly but faints and is unable to remember being on stage at all. Struggling to find her talent, she meets Rola "Laura" Sakuraba, and the two develop a friendly rivalry, working together to learn and improve.

Though they have their differences, all the students share the same goal: to become the next S4 idol. But hard work and determination, along with teamwork, are needed if they want to join the elite S4.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

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Related Anime

Alternative setting:	Aikatsu!, Aikatsu Friends!
Side story:	Aikatsu Stars! Movie
Other:	Aikatsu Planet!

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Nijino, Yume

Main

Tomita, Miyu
Japanese

Sakuraba, Rola

Main

Asai, Ayaka
Japanese

Saotome, Ako

Main

Murakami, Natsumi
Japanese

Kasumi, Mahiru

Main

Miyamoto, Yume
Japanese

Hoshimiya, Ichigo

Supporting

Morohoshi, Sumire
Japanese

Kiriya, Aoi

Supporting

Tadokoro, Azusa
Japanese

Oozora, Akari

Supporting

Shimoji, Shino
Japanese

Toudou, Yurika

Supporting

Numakura, Manami
Japanese

Shibuki, Ran

Supporting

Hikami, Sumire

Supporting

Wakui, Yuu
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Hosoya, Nobuyuki

Producer

Hara, Hirokazu

Producer

Kimura, Hiroshi

Assistant Producer

Satou, Teruo

Director

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Opening Theme

	1: "Start Line! (スタートライン!)" by Sena and Rie from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 2-25)
	2: "1 , 2, Sing for You!" by Sena, Rie, Miki, Kana from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 26-33)
	3: "Star Jet!" by Sena, Rie, Miki, Kana from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 34-50)
	4: "Stardom!" by Sena, Rie, Miki, Kana from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 51-75)
	5: "MUSIC of DREAM!!!" by Sena, Rie, Miki and Kana from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 76-100)

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Ending Theme

	1: "episode Solo" by Ruka, Nanase, Kana, Miho from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 1-25)
	2: "So Beautiful Story" by Ruka and Sena from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 26-50)
	3: "Bon Bon Voyage!" by Risa and Miho from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 51-75)
	4: "Pirouette of the Forest Light (森のひかりのピルエット)" by Sena and Ruka from AIKATSU☆STARS (eps 76-99)
	5: "Start Line! (スタートライン!)" by Sena and Rie from AIKATSU☆STARS! (eps 100)

Reviews

Apr 6, 2018

gomennasai

Recommended

Before I started Aikatsu Stars (AiStars from now on), I was kind of worried. I’ve heard from multiple places that it ruined Aikatsu, that it turns to crap at a certain point of a show, stuff like that. Since I’ve heard those things about the 2nd season of Aikatsu and I ended up very much liking it*, I said, okay, how about watching it and finding it out yourself? It was indeed a disappointment, but in a positive way. In the end, it became my favorite show of all time second only to Ichigogen, also known as the first 2 seasons of the original Aikatsu ... (OGKatsu from here on). And after marathoning OGKatsu, especially after Akarigen, it felt refreshing.

Those who seek out the same kind of writing as in OGKatsu: you’re going to be disappointed. AiStars is a much more plot-driven show with a darker theme, even though it’s still a character-centric show at heart. If you outright hate drama or drama-centric episodes, this show is probably not for you. Friendly rivalries aren’t gone, but they’re much more serious, especially in the 2nd season; characters can be outright hostile to each other, with deep ideological differences. Idols no longer have to cater to each and every whim of the brand designers in order to acquire new dresses: they’re the brands themselves this time around, designing their own dresses. This goes hand in hand with the show’s main theme, self-producing. Special appeals, which were a big thing in OGKatsu, do exist, but they never get explained; this actually makes the story better, as it has other priorities. Yume is a much more expressive protagonist compared to Ichigo (or even Akari), not hiding her frustration, even capable of tantrums when things don’t go her way – she’s 12 years old after all. That doesn’t make either of them less of a great character (Ichigo is still one of my favorite characters of all time), just make either of these shows different. It has a much more modern feel to it: while OGKatsu felt like I’m watching a show from another decade (not that there’s anything wrong with it), AiStars has a much more dynamic feel to it, feeling very much like an anime from 2016. All in all, it ended up being its own thing without being unapologetic about it.

AiStars is not a perfect show, that’s not how I give out scores. Perfect shows simply don’t exist. It’s especially impossible for a show with 100 episodes. The CGI for the stage events is a stepback, for example. Characters who would’ve deserved to have their comeuppance ended up being redeemed without much of an explanation. Plot points ended up being abandoned and never much mentioned again (and don’t let your nostalgia goggles fool you: this was the same case in OGKatsu as well). Some side characters would’ve deserved their own stage events *cough*Haruka Luka*cough*

But there are plenty of other things making up for it. The characters are well-written and have complex motivations. You’ll end up caring for them, investing in them. The music is catchy as hell. The show is looking beautiful and as I’ve said earlier, dynamic. The voice acting is stellar, especially Yume’s – she’s voiced by Tomita Miyu, the same VA who voiced Riko in Made In Abyss; remember this name in the future.

If these things ended up convincing you, watch Aikatsu Stars. You’re not going to regret it.

*yeah, I’m a DreAca apologist, and I’m not sorry

PS: Koharu is best girl

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Dec 11, 2018

MetaThPr4h

Recommended

After the amazing experience I had with the original Aikatsu, Stars had a big challenge to face trying to live up to its quality, did it succeed? Definitely!

Aikatsu Stars keeps most of what makes the franchise shine with it's wholesomeness, heartwarming moments, and the constant pain in your mouth due to how much you're smiling watching it, but what this entry has is considerably more drama and serious moments through the story attached to the character development of the cast. If you prefer that this is a big bonus towards trying out Stars, while not really being a negative if you liked the original and ...

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Apr 5, 2023

wildheartz18

Mixed Feelings

Honestly, I had pretty middle of the road expectations. Previously I was watched a few episodes of Aikatsu friends when it debuted and it was very alright. It was honestly a surprise to be a lot more engage with it. With Stars, there's a focus given by the story and world building. There wasn't an episode where it felt force because the general plot help give the characters some focus, even if said episodes had nothing to do with the story.

I really appreciate the constant theme of having the girls lose, being able to grieve for their failures before trying again, usually by changing their ...

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Poll: Aikatsu Stars! Episode 53 Discussion valvravetruth - Apr 20, 2017	13 replies	by aloradear »» Apr 20, 3:25 PM
Poll: Aikatsu Stars! Episode 100 Discussion Florete - Apr 2, 2018	16 replies	by VivaceRex »» Mar 13, 2:19 AM
Poll: Aikatsu Stars! Episode 99 Discussion Hyuse - Mar 23, 2018	8 replies	by VivaceRex »» Mar 13, 12:51 AM
Poll: Aikatsu Stars! Episode 98 Discussion VanishingKira - Mar 19, 2018	7 replies	by VivaceRex »» Mar 12, 11:18 PM
Poll: Aikatsu Stars! Episode 97 Discussion Florete - Mar 10, 2018	7 replies	by VivaceRex »» Mar 12, 10:16 PM

Aikatsu Stars!

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Background

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Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Nijino, Yume

Sakuraba, Rola

Saotome, Ako

Kasumi, Mahiru

Hoshimiya, Ichigo

Kiriya, Aoi

Oozora, Akari

Toudou, Yurika

Shibuki, Ran

Hikami, Sumire

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Opening Theme

Ending Theme

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Aikatsu Stars!

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Synopsis

Background

Visit MALxJapan MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Visit MALxJapan
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