The iDOLM@STER Prologue SideM: Episode of Jupiter

Episode of Jupiter is a wonderful way for fans to go from idol girls to idol boys.

A lot of what makes this prologue so compelling is evidently Jupiter: The work they're willing to put into making their fans happy and alleviate the burden of the staff that help them. Them striving to prove that they have worth and can make it on their own is a solid method of utilizing the goodwill they have garnered because of the aftermath surrounding 961 in the original anime and builds a solid base for Side M, considering they'll probably play a prominent role in that show.

The interview scene ... is the strongest example of characterization featured in this 30 minute episode: their posture, their body language, their way of talking, it all feeds into what each of the trio's charm points are. The way the scene ended was a pretty great treat too, it conveyed how close they are in an incredibly adorable way.

The scene where they ran into Haruka felt very much like the passing of the torch. We see that not only was it an essential moment for her to get her motivation back, but it also pushed Jupiter to realize that they can't please all their fans the way they were, they had to aim higher. Both parties putting their past conflicts aside and genuinely hoping for each other's success while a piano rendition of the first iDOLM@STER opening played was not only an incredibly touching moment, but also the last step the viewer took, alongside Jupiter, to get past the threshold into the world of Side M.

The performance scene is the most worrying part. They managed to hide the parts where they had to use CGI models of the characters well enough, but the quality of the animation isn't nearly as good as in previous installments, which isn't reassuring considering the animation of the tv anime will probably be of lesser quality than what was shown. That said, it was still a pretty fun scene.

The prologue has everything it needs to get the fans of the series excited and hopefully the full show will be just as entertaining to watch as this was.

For me as a Jupiter-Fan this prologue was amazing! Since I'm a fan of them I wished for an OVA starring the 3 boys and here it is. I'm also glad they took the best songs - I mean my favourite songs "Alice or Guilty" and "Brand new Field". The animation was amazing. Especially the dancing choreography. And now we could see the 3 boys privat. My favourite was Hokuto from the beginnig but in the original series you couldn't see a lot of him. Only from Touma. So it was so georgous to see more and more of Shouta and Hokuto, too.

Now for Idolm@ster ... SideM- Beginners or Not-Jupiter Fans: I think Idolm@ster makes the first step into a very good Idol-Anime with boys. I mean most of the male Idol-Series are so gay or like reverse harem. But I want to see a pure bromance. A normal friendship or just hard working male idols who just do their job. And Idolm@ster Side M gives it to you. I'm not a big fan of A1-Pictures but they make a great job for the Idolm@ster franchise. So Idolm@ster is generally a good anime for Idol-Beginners. In The iDOLM@STER Prologue Side M: Episode of Jupiter you also see not the typical "Let's scout some Idol"-thing. The first what you see is a concert of Jupiter. You see the everyday of them. And thats refreshing. I have to say the characters aren't hyper special unique but they are sympathic and likeable. Okay I'm not good in this so let's go to the point of this review. For everyone who wants to see a male Idol-Anime or just a good Idol-Anime: Here you go!

Hey! So I wanted to give my perspective on this as someone who never watches Idol Anime.

I thought it was good, the music was fun to listen to and thought the characters were easy to root for. I got the sense that these guys were really close friends and had been through a lot together. Looking at how hard they worked as idols without a company was pretty endearing. I liked how they were so kind and courteous to the people who owned the venue and seemed to really respect the opinion of their fans.

Toward the end when they realize that not everyone can ... be happy was kind of sappy. I mean...idk, maybe it's just me. But all of that seemed obvious to me. But it got the group to join the production company so...whatever.

All in all a good special and I'll be checking out the other shows in the franchise.