Forum - View topicREVIEW: IDOLiSH7—Episodes 1-17 Streaming
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#861208
Posts: 423 |
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Edit: I realize this came off as rude, but it just... really... bothers me how this is the one series that escapes the hate that's thrown on male idol series - and bishounen series in general - even though it isn't that different.
It's not hate to say "This is bad." and provide reasons. Do you mob every reviewer who gives a show you like a bad grade? Hate is if you say "This show is ****ing garbage and anyone who likes it is a poopy-head". Saying, "Do you see how this and this are different?" - "Do you see how this panel from (insert latest widely-trashed manga) and this panel from (insert latest critic's-darling manga) are different?" - is not hate. Having an opinion is not hate. ______ The music is bad, though. I made a post about this on tumblr, actually - their music is simplistic, same-y and boring. (Edit: .... I just realized this post is out of context. I'd made a previous post saying "I wish more people would recognize how the music in TsukiPro and Marginal #4 are just so far ahead of everything else. If there are any really technically good songs in any of the other series, please tell me," not just, "Hey everyone! What music do you like?" or something like that. And the person did come back and tell me they saw my point.) The anime has more of a plot - a direct adaptation of the game's plot - but that doesn't make it better. The characters are cliche, and I don't know how people get emotional over these characters' stories when, if they've watched any anime at all, they've seen them a thousand times. You don't like TsukiPro because the anime wasn't made for people who haven't heard the drama CDs. I think this is a problem, too, but I don't think it's fair to just dismiss the whole franchise based on only one part, especially since those groups (and one other series, Marginal #4) are the ones really "raising the bar" for idol music. Their stories are slice-of-life, but that doesn't make them bad. And if you actually look at the episodic stories, you'll see that they do put together a picture that's more complex, interesting, and out-of-the-ordinary than what I7, or EnStars, or any of the other more popular series have to offer. (I feel like if you gave them a chance, you'd really like Quell's story. Quell or Soara). Just listen to any of SolidS color albums (Black, White, Red), though. How can you say any of I7's music is even nearly that level? Last edited by #861208 on Thu Jun 07, 2018 2:17 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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arzi5
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@861208 I disagree. Yes it is is simplistic, but i7 music is not at all boring. It has a certain charm to it and I like it more than most of other male idol series' music and yes including any SolidS color albums. The reason I don't like it as much as i7 music? the same as yours, I just feel that the music is same-y, boring and somehow sounds confused/convoluted. It's a matter of perspective I guess.
Also for your argument on i7 characters. Yes they are cliche, but what matter the most (at least for me) is that they are relatable which I rarely found on other male idol series. |
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wolf10
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Wow, hate right off the bat? And when the review barely mentioned the music at all.
I personally liked this anime because I've finished the game's story up to what should be considered the third season. There are a lot of nice little plants for future plotlines (pay very close attention to the smear campaign), and some of the events are communicated way better in animated form than as a visual novel. Episode 7 especially had some nice reinterpretations of events (and may have turned me into a 7x1 shipper  ), though vocal performances overall were enhanced by the cast's knowledge of later revelations.
I also give the music a pass, because even if it's not Grade A Idol Pop (and I will concede that MemoMelo is kind of a compositional mess), the lyrics are generally written like they're songs in a musical, with references to plot events and character interactions from whatever part of the story that song is from. ("Fly Away" is the most obvious in the first season, though "Good Night Awesome" has a lot of hidden meaning. The best from later seasons is "Taiyou no Esperanza," which serves as a taunt to the big bad of the third season, in addition to just being really catchy). Unfortunately, it appears the anime's director wasn't given that memo, so the songs aren't used as well as they could have been. Later seasons will hopefully fix this, as the concerts are better integrated with the larger plot. HOWEVER, this season should have been 20 episodes (since it was 20 "episodes" in the game), because cutting "The Funky Universe" was a crime. (But seriously, assuming you did listen to everything that poor anon recommended, check out "Dis one", "Negai wa Shine on the Sea", "In the meantime", and especially "Poisonous Gangster" and its B-side "LOOK AT...", and then start blogging about i7 as a musical failure.) |
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BlueOla
Posts: 161 |
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Let me translate what you said: "You and I have different music tastes, but mine is superior so you are wrong and I am right. Also you don't like my favorite series, so that means your opinion on all male idol anime is invalid." Like come on, man, music isn't objectively good or bad because the words "good" and "bad" are subjective by nature. Like how do we define good? By how catchy the music is? Then i7 has great music! Do we define it by how complex the music is? Then TsukiPro wins all the awards. Do we define it by how many fans it has? Then both lose to UtaPri. I get that it's frustrating but TsukiPro's anime was difficult to like for newcomers imo - I watched like 5 episodes and I ran out of the motivation to continue. There's a place for slice of life anime, but the issue is that most idol anime nowadays seem to be slice of life and it just gets a bit boring - i7 was a breath of fresh air because it had a plot (as typical as it may be) and it was more realistic than others. Characters are also a matter of taste, but I'd argue that being archetypical doesn't inherently make them unlikeable. I think what truly marks the difference between i7 and TsukiPro, apart from their different source materials, is the most important thing - the seiyuu they involve. i7 hires some of the most popular seiyuu currently in the industry - all of whom are also good singers - and I think that makes a difference. Sure, TsukiPro may have Saito Soma, Umehara, Hanae Natsuki, Eguchi Takuya and even Toyonaga Toshiyuki or Ono Yuuki, (of whom Soma and Eguchi are also in i7), most of the seiyuu are either unknown or very niche, compared to i7 almost all-star cast. I also feel like the seiyuus in i7 come together better and just come off as better singers. Saito Soma and Hanae Natsuki may be big names but their singing is slightly above average at best. My favorite idol franchise is UtaPri because it's the one that really got me into anime idol groups, but I'm painfully aware of how weak of a franchise it truly is, especially when you consider its incredible popularity. All the characters are very basic tropes and their backstories aren't very interesting, in most cases (and when they are, they're just plain bizarre), the plot in the anime is nonexistent and in later seasons, the MC loses all relevance. Honestly, by most standards, it's bad. But there's one thing that I think makes people always come back for more - the seiyuu. Miyano Mamoru, Taniyama Kishou, Suzumura Kenichi, Shouta Aoi, Maeno Tomoaki, Suzuki Tatsuhisa and Morikubo Shoutaro are arguably some of the best singers in the industry and to put them all in one franchise and in many group/duet/solo songs is a recipe for success. Both the seiyuus and most of the fans realize how dumb the franchise is, and yet we all come back for the songs - regardless of their quality - because of all the great singers. And even the seiyuu who don't sing that well, like Shimono Hiro (that man can't sing to save his life), Suwabe Junichi, and Takuma Terashima have a large fan-following because of their personalities. It just works despite being a terrible franchise story-wise. TL;DR: Idol franchises can stand on one of two things - either a solid story (like i7) or on popular seiyuus, most of whow can ideally sing very well (like UtaPri). Having a game also helps with the popularity. TsukiPro is still very popular, considering what it is and where it started. |
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ringoiero360
Posts: 73 |
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Idolish7 has the best music and I hope we get a second season! I really want more animated Re:vale (my favorite group).
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zztop
Posts: 650 |
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I heard the 17 ep-count was a deliberate pun choice, because it sounds like i7, or shorthand initials for Idolish 7. From accounts, the anime about covered Part 1 of the source game. Expect more Drama in subsequent parts. |
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#861208
Posts: 423 |
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So, every music theory professor in every university is just a troll trying to hate on AKB48 fans and Justin Bieber fans? Okay then.
Is every art professor just a troll hating on Dynamic Chord, then? Is every literature professor just trying to make Sword Art Online fans feel bad? Art theory is a thing. I'm not saying universities have all the answers. They definitely don't. But theory is a thing, and being more thoughtful about art doesn't make you a hater. If it does, then why do these reviews have grades? TsukiPro does have all the popular seiyuu, in the first series. And Suwabe (not in TsukiPro but in StarMyu) is a far better singer than a certain member of I7 who I won't name, but who is also in TsukiPro's first series and StarMyu. (Aoi, Maeno, Toriumi, KENN, and Hatano are also in TsukiPro's first series.) And popular does not automatically equal better singers. Check out Quell's Shu and Issei, or Marginal #4's Rui. Their seiyuu aren't popular, but they're phenomenal singers. Also, what was that about Rikka? (I would use a StarMyu example for how great Hanae's singing is, but those would mostly be spoilers. But if you've seen it, check the part in s2e7 when he's alone in the practice room.) Honestly, listening to some of I7's music, I felt bad for the seiyuu in there who are really good singers (like Iori) because the songs were not written to his skills. Not saying Magi4 and TsukiPro never do this (Atom's solo is a tragedy), but check out Magi4's "Masquerade", and the TsukiUta duet "Innocentia" (Masuda and Yuuki Kaji - how's that for popular seiyuu?) Different things are catchy to different people. I don't find I7's music catchy, or IM@S, after having watched several episodes of both (original IM@S and SideM, but not Cinderella Girls), and listened to as much of the music as I could stand online. Also - and I'm seriously asking this, not assuming you don't - does the I7 fandom (or EnStars fandom or IM@S fandom) consider and follow the composer(s) of the music, and think of their work and how they contribute to the series, or do they just fade into the background, like I know they do for StarMyu and Love Live (though both of those series do definitely have a few great songs)? I'm not going to judge anyone's like... sports play, or something, because I don't know anything about that. If I watch a basketball game tomorrow and pick a favorite player, and then someone who actually knows about basketball tries to tell me that that player made a lot of mistakes, I'm not going to call them a hater. I'm going to listen to them, and say, "Oh, now I notice those things, but I still like this player because of this, this, this, but thank you for showing me a different view on it." I'm also not going to call them a hater if they point out how a basketball anime is badly researched. I'm also not going to call them a hater if they tell me that some part of a series I like isn't good. I know most of the shows I like have bad animation. I still find the Detective Conan parody episode of TsukiAni really charming, even though the casual-wear choices are stupid, the idea of having a limited wardrobe in a slice-of-life show is stupid, and the animation is crap. I know those things, and I still find it charming and cute. If you can't stand the show because of the visual issues, I'm not going to call you a hater. I'm just going to say, "Okay, but check out these other parts of the franchise. Check out the drama CDs, check out the stage plays, check out the music. Don't let the bad animation impact your impression of those things". Last edited by #861208 on Thu Jun 07, 2018 12:21 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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rahzel rose
 Subscriber Posts: 831 |
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I enjoyed I7, but by the end I was much more invested in TRIGGER than the main guys. TRIGGER’s music style spoke to me much more, although I did enjoy some of I7’s songs. But I just found that I wasn’t as interested in I7’s issues and storylines. Tamaki was probably the worst for me. I get that he was obsessed with finding his sister, but his personality was just so obnoxious. KENN was a point in his favor, but it wasn’t enough. Yamato (and kind of Riku) was I7’s saving grace, IMO.
This show still has nothing on Im@s SideM for me personally, though. That and TsukiPro. (I’m obsessed with Takeuchi Shunsuke now.) They’re my top two out of what’s out. Unfortunately I’m still waiting on Tsukiuta to get brought over from Funimation so that can watch it on Crunchyroll.  That’s the only one I haven’t seen out of all the male idol shows, I think.
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pocketlibrarian
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Thank you very much for posting a review of I7. It was one of my favorite shows from winter/spring and I'm glad the reviewer seemed to enjoy it.
It has been hard for me to get into idol shows, but I always try to give them a fair shot. I really liked UtaPri's first two seasons but, I started losing interest during the third season. It got way too bizarre. B-Project and TsukiPro lost me right away within the first couple of episodes and I almost dropped I7, but got hooked after ep 3 & 4. I didn't drop those two shows because of the music, but due to the fact that I could barely distinguish the characters from each other and it felt like there was no plot. I didn't have that problem with I7. Tamaki with his cat hoodies and king pudding obsession is my favorite. I couldn't stand Nagi's voice at first either, but it does grow on you. He started to be one of my favorites as the series progressed. It blew my mind when I learned Nagi and Hasegawa from Sanrio Boys have the same VA as they sound nothing alike. I hope more seasons are made or that the game is brought over, or both! I want to learn more about Re:Vale and ZooL. |
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#861208
Posts: 423 |
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No one springs fully popular from the head of Zeus. Seriously, anyone who hasn't heard this guy, look him up, he's amazing. |
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rahzel rose
Subscriber Posts: 831 |
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I’m glad I have another wonderful lower register seiyuu to add to my list. Yasumoto Hiroki is probably the most recent one who I can compare him to, at least in terms of speaking voice. Takeuchi’s singing is so great, though. |
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BlueOla
Posts: 161 |
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...What? How did you jump to those conclusions after reading my comment. I just said that "bad" and "good" are pretty much inherently meaningless words because they're fully subjective.
No offense, but acting like your opinion is more important because you're following "art theory" doesn't help your argument. Your opinion is just as valid as everyone else's, but not superior. Theory is just theory too - it doesn't necessarily mean anything, nor is it always applicable.
I'm not talking about TsukiUta, strictly about TsukiPro the animation. TsukiUta was based mainly on the popularity of its seiyuus, I'd argue and the songs were all mehhhh at best, imo. (The two OPs were catchy though) Also, are you talking about Ono Kensho? Most idol franchises do him dirty but I've heard him elsewhere and he's surprisingly competent. Not a favorite but not a tragedy.
Obviously, but it's popularity of the seiyuu that sells a series, in many cases. Many female fans check out new anime based on what seiyuu appear in it and stan the idol groups that feature their favorites - skill is arguably less important. Like I only care about SOARA because it has Toyonaga in it. Though obviously, it's ideal when they have both the skill and the fanbase.
I just can't get into Hanae's singing voice - it's so breathy and flat and he clearly struggles with any higher or longer notes. It's smooth, at the very least and he's musical alright, but it feels very bare bones to me. Maybe that's the appeal - I don't know.
Yeah, but like you said, that kind of goes for every idol franchise, like Suwabe was kind of mediocre in UtaPri but much better in StarMyu. I don't even like i7 that much but your sense of superiority bothers me. I get it, you like TsukiPro more and you're frustrated that it's not getting the sort of attention that i7 is getting but getting upset on forums won't make TsukiPro more popular. It just makes you seem spiteful and jealous. |
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BlueOla
Posts: 161 |
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I agree, I always looked forward to TRIGGER more haha, they were definitely the highlight of the show for me. But from what I hear, the same is true in Japan - TRIGGER are the real stars, though i7 also has a lot of fans. How is SideM? I only saw the first episode (or episode 0 or whatever they called it) and I hadn't had the time to continue yet. Does it focus on one group or do you jump around a bit? I know the game has many units, so I've been wondering. |
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rahzel rose
Subscriber Posts: 831 |
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That’s one of the things that made me sad about I7. I have several of OnoKen’s singles and an album and I think he’s got a great voice. I don’t know if it was the songs or what, but the show really did not do him justice. |
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rahzel rose
Subscriber Posts: 831 |
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I loved SideM. It always made me laugh, the animation was great, I liked 99% of the characters and I liked most of the songs and seiyuu, too. It jumps from group to group, but there are always other members around in each episode. HighxJoker is my favorite because I love Shiki. (That group also has Yamato’s seiyuu in it.) Yeah, some of it’s corny and it’s not a perfect show, but I’ve watched it twice, and want to do a third run. I can’t wait for the blu-rays to come out. |
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