Disclaimer, when it comes to idol shows, I am very easy to please. Cute girls, good songs and good performances are really all I look for. That’s why I was pleasantly surprised to see how much more Nijigaku contained. If you’ve seen sunshine and SIP, which you most likely have if you’re here, you’ll recall how fluffy and cutesy those shows were. While we had the drama of the school being forced to shut down in both seasons, there never really felt like there was drama or tension among the girls.
Nijigaku deviates from that trend and actually introduces some pretty overt yuri romance/love triangle type situations with Ayumu, Yuu and Setsuna which I really liked. I felt like the tension between the three of them throughout the second half of the series was the best Love Live has ever been at. The story in general feels a bit more mature this time around. Of course there’s still the usual dramatisations that we have come to know and love, but in general things feel much more natural.
Sunrise went with a different art-style this time around, which I personally think is the best LL has ever looked. I liked Sunshine’s art over SIP, but would take this over both of the previous series. It feels much more “real” rather than the uber cutsey nature of Sunshine. The CGI also needs to be applauded. We have come a LONG way since the days of SIP in terms of quality CGI. At times, I could not even distinguish the CG from the drawn images.
Nijigaku has to be in my top 5 shows of the season and was probably the second or third most anticipated on a weekly basis. I think this season was an evolution for the franchise and bodes well for the future of one of my favourite idol groups. I’m looking forward to seeing what new heights the girls and this series reach. Love Live Nijigasaki gets 10 mics out of 10.
