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editrevue · 8 months

Note

UHHH Top 5 best Arcana Arcadia moments

gosh making me choose just 5 is so cruel but the rules are the rules jHASDKS I'll leave it under the cut for rambling purposes teehee [ask]

Yumeoji Sisters

TamaRui

Revue Frontier

the actual parts of the play??

YachiMei

honarary mentions: chitose, kuromaya flirting, nana slips up vs maya, "death has gentle eyes", kaoruko & tamao's revue

hm. a lot of my answers are probably personal but i guess that's half the fun and half the point! and these are in no particular order either because I just love Arcana's overarching story overall :

The Yumeoji Sisters. people who know me already know that I adore them both so so much and it's no surprise that I'd love their arc because I am a very big Shiori Yumeoji kinner. I wish that we had the satisfaction of seeing it through to the end before Yachiyo started hearing boss music but honestly the note it left off of and the interpretation that you can take away from their revue's ending had my lying on the floor. It started so rocky and ended so sweet, it felt like such a normal sibling quarrel and just... so like them?, yknow? like of course they're going to be super petty and then hang out that weekend. so real! Shiori's desperate struggle to get an honest answer out of Fumi and inability to let go or move on, Fumi finding her stage and realizing the kind of person she wants and needs to be, aiming to overcome their pride; Michiru and Ichie's honest efforts to bring those strong and opposing traits out of the two of them in their own revues prior. AUGH. Shiori gaining confidence as a stage girl, and as a younger sister, to stand up to and alongside her older sister for the first time in months... when Fumi finally acknowledges Shiori's growth to her face, and when they made a new promise oh my god it was such an irreplaceable feeling to watch happen. like girl has the RANGE. Sun and I often talk about her roles and compare them, like say Belle or Aries for an example but then you see Shuten-Doji or Holly Taker?? INSANE!! Honorary mention that ties into this too actually is when Michiru threw her coat down and let Shiori win, recognizing her determination and passion, and allowing Shiori to reach her sister and confront their promise, like Michiru wishes she had the strength to do with Akira. god god their revue struck so many chords with me. things that did not have to be so personal. For the sake of everything I'll just lump everything involving Shiori and Fumi together, which includes the revues with Michiru and Ichie, and just say their whole arc together and separate during Arcana made me sob like crazy. I've seen someone say this and I agree, I'd give literally anything to see this revue specifically animated!! i'm so serious

TamaRui. when me (Tamao) and Rui have our little spat and then all of Rinmeikan shows up. they're all saying words of encouragement and are like. awawawa okay okay okay let me get the screenshots or i won't make it out alive hold on. here:

WHEN I SAY THIS REVUE CHANGED ME FUNDAMENTALLY AS A PERSON. Another kinnie moment unfortunately but it's like they literally took me and put me into the source. Tamao balancing good and evil in her head, with the weight of decision constantly on her shoulders. You can see up until Arcana when it comes to a head her wavering slipping through cracks, her internal struggle to choose which path best suits her and her goals. The personality changes resonated with me, something I can relate to as a person today. Actually, and more importantly, Rui's development in Arcana is also one of my favorites overall. good! for! her!! gosh she deserved this growth and it's one of the most important things for her to have gone through. That she can healthily detach and be her own person outside of Tamao while still looking up to her as a role model and as a friend. I could talk for hours about Tamao's issues as a stage girl and as a person, but what made this moment in arcana so impactful for me is Rui loosely doing unto Tamao what Shiori did with Fumi, and that's create a new promise together while also diverging their own paths. I absolutely love that Rui brought back Yuyuko's "spell" and used it in their revue, I love that Rui learned what kind of stage girl SHE wants to be, I love that Rui was inspired by someone other than Tamao to realize these goals and dreams. All while keeping her love for Tamao so dear to her heart. Rui's proclamations of love, her fighting back against Tamao for her truth and not faltering once even when Tamao raised her voice and struggled to fight back, goddd all of it just made me so emotional . The fact it ended on such a positive note for everyone too and helped them all move forward together better than ever I'm (clutches my heart) Rinmeikan means so much to me

Revue Frontier. um. uh. um. not only is What Shines the Darkness literally like my favorite arcana arcadia song probably but everything about Frontier in this oh my god. very similarly to rinmeikan their whole dynamic and found family together is just something so special, something so pure and beautiful and absolutely unmatched. OH AND ALSO. Elle's inclusion in the story!!! can i mention that!!! I'm grouping that part of the story with this even if it's not until the end of arcana just because she is a part of frontier and their story anyway!! The fact that Elle decides to join Frontier when she's older warmed my heart so much it was such a touching moment for me. I love Frontier and wish they got more attention, their part of the story in Arcana was so memorable and so integral. I love their found family and each of their interactions with each other. it broke my heart when Aruru ran away and everyone was just so scared and lost. The irony of this when their part of the story before arcana involved the others being lost and Aruru having to find them and "bring them back" to her stage, it's just so cathartic and poetic. such a beautiful arc

The Play! this is a cheesy silly answer probably but i don't think people talk about the actual parts of the play enough. which i wholeheartedly get because the most important parts of arcana is the actual character interactions and the revues between them. but I absolutely loved the actual play parts and getting to read them with Sun out loud on call. We voice acted the lines and did our own little private performance it was literally so fun!! it left a very positive memory with us and I just think getting to see the starira characters actually play their roles adds to the emersion of the game itself. it's some of my favorite parts of the game overall. the songs, the story, the actual play, getting to see how the play is put together in the intermissions (shoutout to masai and amemiya for real! plus it was really fun to see michiru get included in creating the play as well actually I enjoyed how they went about that), and also the fact that it's based on tarot. Each arcana fitting the character it represents down to both the positive AND negative traits, ah, you love to see it. I own a few decks irl and have been around tarot through my mother, so a source I'm this passionate about that has ties to another interest so dear to me just adds to its charm. I own the official bushiroad starira arcana set!! i'd love to show it sometime if anyone's curious :3c

YACHIMEI. "it's dangerous to go alone, take this!" but seriously when Mei Fan handed their weapon to Yachiyo I literally didn't even know how to process it at first. Not only was it really awesome to see the two of them up against Akira in the first place, but Mei Fan turning the tide in their favor but giving Yachiyo the fighting change and final blow was just icing on the cake for me. I was just as surprised as when Michiru removed the coat for Shiori to earn the win. When YCHM shouted their Frau Platin introductions I was so proud of both of them too, that was such a defining moment for the two of them. Another moment like the yumeoji sisters I'd LOVE to see animated. A whole series just based on the arcana arcadia arc would be a dream come true... but, seeing Akira laugh in pride and challenge them further, Mei Fan faced with his pride and jealousy towards Yachiyo, Yachiyo being tested to stop holding herself back "for the sake of others", it was the perfect storm in my opinion. A great way to showcase all of their strengths and weaknesses, and in general was a very entertaining matchup. Just the live2d wasn't enough I need more :sob:

Honorary mention: Chitose! When we got a glimpse of her and when Yachiyo finally was able to come to terms with her feelings involving her sister in the revue between yachiyo and kuromaya. I love Yachiyo and Chitose so much, but I know that whole dynamic and their story mean everything to mod Sun. She'd appreciate this being one of my answers for sure. I loved getting to learn what kind of soul she is, even before her more official appearance in the Gemini bond story (PLEASE GO READ IT) it was so interesting. Nothing will be funnier to me btw than when Yachiyo is talking about Chitose and then Claudine and Maya start openly flirting with each other. iconic

kaoruko and tamao's revue made me insane. no further questions

honestly every part of arcana arcadia matters and I purposefully left out the Intermissions/Bond Stories because I feel like those are more separate pieces to the whole I could tackle in a completely different train of thought. don't ask me about emperor intermission . please

#✧. ┊ moon intermission #✦. ┊ star performance

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booksandchainmail · 9 months

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So I've been rewatching the revue starlight relive arcana arcadia main story (I made it partway through the third one before I stopped playing, planning on watching all the way through this time), and noting down some thoughts on Part 1:

I like how much of this part is about Tamao, and how abruptly she's changed! Rinmeikan Downfall story was a hell of a time for her, and it's great to see her shed some of her helpful kind self-effacing senpai persona and lean into being a leader and a bit of a schemer. Also it seems to be doing wonders for her acting!

About the revues themself: on the one hand we have Rui vs. Yuyuko, two best friends with a love triangle tearing at them. On the other we have Junna vs. Kaoruko, who... are in the same class? Do they have any kind of beef? I'm not sure they've ever had a conversation. This also happened in the anime, though mainly as a background thing: whenever we saw other revues in the background of the focused one, it would just be random combinations since the auditions were pretty much a round robin.

Also, RIP Junna, whose role in Revue Starlight is mainly getting bodied in round one. I think this does help define her character though: person who is not naturally talented but works hard is pretty common in anime, but it's mostly undercut when they start winning as an underdog. Meanwhile Junna keeps getting beat, because basically everyone around her is both talented and hardworking. But she just keeps trying and working and aiming to improve.

It sucks for Junna, but it's a good character note for Kaoruko: as soon as she takes things seriously, she starts winning. She just mostly doesn't put in that effort in daily life, and winds up slipping behind only to make up the ground all at once. This of course feels deeply unfair: we see her opponent clearly with the upper hand, and more deserving of the win, and then Kaoruko will put together some motivation in the second half and instantly curbstomp them. She is genuinely as good as she thinks she is!

For Rui and Yuyuko's revue: a good push for character growth for Rui, who this section points out has the potential to rocket into being one of the best actors like Nana did, but mostly lets herself fade into being a supporter. Absolutely heartbreaking for Yuyuko, who has spent the entire story falling in love with her best friend, who is blatantly in love with someone else. Please read some Sasameki Koto and experience emotions. A bit of (condensed) dialogue, from after Rui (as always) calls out for Tamao:

I'm the one who's standing on the stage with you right now. You see... I like your acting. It's clumsy and pure... But you always try your hardest and occasionally appear really big... Just like you love Tamao-senpai... I also love you on stage. Yet... You say you can no longer play those roles without Tamao-senpai. If those performances were all done for Tamao-senpai... those of "us" who have had our hearts stolen by the Stage Girl Rui Akikaze... how pathetic.

For the story segment, very funny that the evil religious authority is explicitly catholic (the vatican guard!), given that the story is mostly fairytale-like otherwise. I think there's also a continuation of the anime's themes there, in how the Hanged Man rejects the High Priestess's faith and miracles and embraces the curse of damnation in order to follow his principles and save lives. Reminds me of Karen refusing to accept that the ambition Hikari had was a sin.

And now that I've brought up Starlight, I'm wondering if there's a connection there with this amnesiac star girl searching for someone she made a promise with, kept away at the end of the moonlight... Starlight also uses lost memories, and the original ends with one of the two locked away high above, and the other cast out to wander blindly.

#revue starlight #revue starlight relive #shoujo kageki revue starlight #arcana arcadia

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the-sun-princess · 4 months

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Hell, I'm always down for new fic prompts. Can't promise I'll know any of em, but what're some examples of these rare pairs what're on your mind?

well. im always down to just List off my rarepairs lol. they're almost all just bandori and revstar ships that just haunt the back of my mind

BanG Dream

yamabuki saya/udagawa tomoe: big sisters who drum growing up in the same neighborhood who are both very kind and helpful and Understand each other on a deeper level than most (plus. have an event where tomoe bursts in to stop saya from marrying someone else. it was a wedding photoshoot not a real marriage but the dynamic is real)

okusawa misaki/matsubara kanon: the two sane people in a band of crazies who lean on each other. esp since kanon is the only one aware misaki is Also the DJing bear mascot. very early on one crazy made misaki confess to kanon (as an acting exercise) but they're still very close n admire each other a whole lot

futaba tsukushi/yashio rui: not Exactly the only two sane people in the band but the ones more likely to be strict. tsukushi also doesnt tend to dismiss rui's way of approaching things the way others do and is often mediating between rui's harshness and the rest of the band

shiina taki/takamatsu tomori: baby gays. taki is angy blunt gayby who is protective ANd crushing over tomori who is a sensitive shy beanie baby

wakaba mutsumi/yahata umiri: nonverbal girl and the One person who has been genuinely nice to her in the past year even if it was like 2 lines of dialogue

(the last two are partly bc they new so they have less canon content. also mutsumiri was maybe onscreen together for half a minute)

Revue Starlight

tsuyuzaki mahiru/kagura hikari/aijou karen: roomates who's dynamic gets thrown off by the arrival of hikari, karens childhood friend, suddenly transferring and they had a big important promise to act together and mahiru feels left out, unwanted, and worthless. after Struggles and Talking karen n mahiru n hikari manage to get past the jealousys and issues and end up having a really cute dynamic of mahiru taking care of the more physical things while hikari n karen cheer her on emotionally

akikaze rui/tomoe tamao: Extremely Shy And Anxious rui starts acting bc she sees tamao on stage and wants to be up there with her as close as she can be. and tamao is the densest person in the entire world bc rui is Not subtle about her crush and tamao has No idea about it. but she thinks rui is adorable and also swore to be gayer with rui than her rival is with Her gf.

tsuruhime yachiyo/yumeoji shiori: fashionista genius actress yachiyo who also makes costumes but has always kind of kept a distance from others being charmed by shiori's genuine hardworkingness and appreciation of all the details in yachiyos costumes and understands the themes she puts into them. also they flirt/are paired off quite a lot and do cute widdle pda like laplaying n such

ebisu tsukasa/kano misora: probably have the 2nd-least amount of content. but. pretty older girl who has genuine grounded advice to give and energetic younger girl who admires the hell out of her and is the reason misora even went to frontier bc she was so captivated by tsukasa's acting. they are Also kind of the 'saner' pair of frontier students

honami hisame/yukishiro akira Or honami hisame/yanagi koharu: honestly idk how to describe either of these more than 'hisame stubbornly tries to communicate with the aloof cool leaders she meets on stage and she melts them both in different ways'

no biggie if ur not into those fandoms or anything i dont expect anyone to write me stuff, esp not since they smaller fandoms and i also tend to be. pretty picky lol

just sometimes i go so long in canon between getting my nibbles of content i want fanfic to tide me over and there's just. nothin. so i whine about it

EDIT: i added descriptions bc i like saying why i ship them too lol

#ask #edited ask

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fireycircus · 2 years

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Two directors and their shining stars

I’ve always thought that WxS paralleled aspects of revue starlight with their characters and stories to the point I’m convinced that there was at least a tiny bit of inspiration.

Nana and Rui are my two favorite characters of all time and they have some similar struggles. Both having an extremely lonely childhood and a fear for the future. I’ve wanted to draw them for a while now and the new Rui focus made me sit down and finally do it.

I like to think that if they took place in the same universe, WxS and Seisho would meet after their graduation. Seisho would be doing a show as starlight kukugumi for old times sake and Nene or Tsukasa invite everyone to go and see them. I think maybe Emu would approach them and then the rest of WxS follow after her and they would talk. Hikari and Nene would get along, Claudine and Tsukasa have similar vibes, Karen and Emu are on each other’s wavelengths. And of course Nana and Rui would talk since I like to think Nana takes up directing jobs.

Idk I’m just very emotional about my theater kids and I’m drowning in Ruikasa and Junana thoughts

#project sekai #revue starlight #rui kamishiro #nana daiba #tsukasa tenma #junna hoshimi #ruikasa #junnana #prsk #revstar #kamishiro rui #tenma tsukasa #hoshimi junna #daiba nana #starira #FireCircusArt

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leecherish · 9 months

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7 10 13!

thank you friend ^_^

7. what is one thing you wish could have been handled differently storywise?

already answered but I'll elaborate a little on here: my problem with Arcana Arcadia in general that while it's not perfect, it teases some incredibly interesting character arcs, which upon being wrapped up, are just forgotten and never referenced again in future cards or event stories. Aruru and Rui are the biggest offenders in this for me because they both have certain traits that are a very intense part of their personality (Aruru's constant cheerfulness, Rui's obsession with Tamao) that get subverted during AA (Aruru's cheerfulness was just a facade brought upon her by trauma and fear of people leaving her, and Rui being challenged to overcome Tamao) and when everything is said and done, nothing changes about the characters fundamentally. Aruru is still the same as always and Rui still fawns over Tamao, and so on. I understand it's due the nature of the gacha game where there isn't really a room for grandiose character development that sticks since for people who don't read the stories, you can't just change a fundamental thing about a character they know and love but... yeah, just a tad dissappointing sometimes.

10. explain a gender headcanon for any character in only 7 words.

tamao gender envies death (character). realizes things

13. how did you get into revue starlight? how long did it take you to get into the game after watching revue starlight (if you did)?

saw mutual on twitter go insane about it back in 2019. watched the anime at a bad part of my life so it kinda all went over my head and i didn't like it. rewatched it in 2020-21 (can't recall exactly when) after i saw revolutionary girl utena and read a bit about the history of takarazuka. went "holy shit i get it now". rewatched it again. and again. fell down the rabbithole. watched the movie. downloaded the game last august and will uninstall soon because after reading the stories all remains is the pain <3

#revstar #answered #tamao is genderqueer To Me but in a way that is only clear To Me and can't communicate to others

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transimailisa · 3 years

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i am tragically not the ichifumi anon. but please share your AA thoughts because that entire set of episodes made my brain go bzzzzzzzzzzz

ooooo there's a lot to unpack but here goesss

the festival performance feels like the need to catch up how she won't be in the last part of elysion for fumi. she laid out all the work to be part of siegfield legendary play only for her to fall and not reach that high.

ichie could be the same. she was on a popular idol group but was cut short of her dream in a similar way. that being they all were in a group that were pushing them to overpass themselves to reach greater heights only for the same group to be their downfall.

they both dealt differently with it obviously [gestures vaguely at everything] but the most important difference is how fumi grew resentment of siegfield as a fuel whereas ichie's fuel was to make sure that nothing like that happens again. sidenote this is absolutely why i love fumi and shiori having the green color as their colors. both can be easily interpreted as this vile petty envy but also as grounded and on the way towards growth.

already in the early chapters of AA, i felt Something of how fumi was starting to act with tomoe. it was so different but in a way familiar and then it hit me. there's that hint of fear and admiration how she has with akira. and then all the parallels grew more obvious and i was so happy when ichie confirmed it. yes. rinmekan is starting to turn into siegfield's stage.

ichie not winning this revue when she have done so easily is coming right into fumi's ways of siegfield. not playing your all and more when you should and could. being content of what you have and grow what you already have.

ichie is so worried for yukko and rui. and while fumi wants to make rinmekan to grow for them, it's mostly to Redeem herself that she want to do it. she left her sister and a whole school look at her dirty now. better try to get something out of it you know.

ichie being the sun card is so cool here for several reasons. she obviously fits the meaning of the card but i like the image of being confronted to the sun. you can't hide yourself from it, it's blaring right in front of you, it leaves no space for any hidden intents. fumi not only reveal herself to ichie during this fight, more or less directly, but most importantly to herself.

and honestly i can't talk about how this revue is so impacted by tomoe's death. both death and the sun have the parallel of not being able to being confronted right on you have to find your way around it. except that death is death. you only get this conclusion from being around it. the sun can bring way more from being around it. you can grow with it. ichie noticing how tomoe seem to trap herself in her acting while ichie gets to have adlibs that are considered good enough to be added to the play is a great exemple of this.

fumi being temperance between the two seems to be a very imaged version to her trying to grasp to her old self and habis to grow which is obviously a self doom way to go.

#ask #leefi #i got a Lot of Thoughts and i tried no to go to too many places at once but yea.#conclusion being they should smooch u know #thank u for giving me the chance to articulate haha #revue starlight

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doubleca5t · 5 years

Video

What Your Favorite Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight Ship Says About You

YouTube // Twitter // Patreon

Transcription below the cut

Hikari/Karen - You either watched Love Live and wished HonoUmi was plot relevant, or you loved MadoHomu but wished Madoka Magica was less depressing.

Karen/Mahiru - You just wanted good things for Mahiru, probably because you pray to the Patron Saint of Tragic Lesbians

Hikari/Mahiru - You believe the best way to resolve a love triangle is by ignoring the axis

Mahiru/Hikari/Karen - Someone once told you you can’t have your cake and eat it too, to which you responded: ‘screw that, I’m writing fan fiction, I WILL have my cake and eat it too, cause I’m gonna have two cakes, two wives and no conflict and there’s not a damn thing any of you can do to st-

Futaba/Kaoruko - Your ideal relationship dynamic is service top/pillow princess.

Futaba/Claudine - Your ideal relationship dynamic is that thing they do in rom-coms where the two leads are both in separate bad relationships and they bond over it and fall in love.

Claudine/Maya - Your ideal relationship dynamic is someone who THINKS they’re a top getting out-topped.

Tamao/Rui - You just wanted good things for Rui, probably because you pray to the Patron Saint of Disaster Lesbians

Tamao/Yuyuko - You have been diagnosed with sleepy bitch disease

Ichie/Yuyuko - You believe that every good genki girl needs a low energy lass to balance her out

Rui/Yuyuko - Your interest in Rui's all consuming thirst for Tamao is outweighed by your interest in Rui getting dunked on

Aruru/Misora - You’re always a slut for childhood friends

Ichie/Fumi - Your ideal date begins with pulling a YouTube prank on your significant other

Akira/Mei Fan - Your ideal date involves getting stepped on

Aruru/Lalafin - Your ideal date involves drinking five five hour energies at once, resulting in twenty five hours of continuous energy

Junna/Nana - You just want good things for Banana, and really, who wouldn’t?

Yachiyo/Shiori - You were that kid in high school who would try to get your really sheltered, innocent friend to watch hentai or read dirty fanfic just to see their reaction

Tsukasa/Shizuha - You love team mom characters so much that one day you were like "hey, you know what's better than ONE team mom? TWO team moms!”

Akira/Michiru - You are a firm believer in the inherent eroticism of deceiving appearances

Yachiyo/Mei Fan - You are a firm believer in the inherent eroticism of trolling

Akira/Yachiyo - You are a firm believer in Yachiyo shutting the fuck up

Akira/Shiori - You’re always a slut for anything that reminds you of this image

Yachiyo/Fumi - You are a messy bitch who lives for drama. Even if you have no idea what said drama actually is.

#Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight #revue starlight #revstar #revue starlight relive #hikaren #hikahiru #mahikaren #futakao #kuromaya #tamarui #tamayuyu #ichifumi #akimei #junnana #yachimei #yachifumi #akishio #akiyachi #doubleca5t OC

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sailorportia · 4 years

Text

Femslash February 2020, Day 1

Fandom: Revue Starlight Relive Pairing: Tomoe Tamao/Akikaze Rui Prompt: Meet Cute

approx. 1,800 words, rated T

also available on AO3

Summary: Thirteen year-old Akikaze Rui finds a way to change her shy demeanor in her middle school's drama club. More importantly, she wants to perform on the same stage as that gorgeous senpai. All she needs to do is work up the courage to apply...

Tags: Meet Cute, Comedy, Puppy Love, middle school!Rui, middle school!Tamao

Akikaze Rui, thirteen years-old, didn't know what to expect from her school play. It was the day of her middle school's cultural festival, and she had been wandering from attraction to attraction until her curiosity led her to the auditorium. Little did she know that her life was about to be turned upside-down.

The actors were average at best. It was a middle school play, after all. But there was one standout performer, a shining star against a night sky of amateurs: a girl with long, dark hair.

She played the role of a princess, her character beginning the play as a regal and refined woman who is pushed into taking up the sword and becoming a fierce and formidable warrior. The actress's transformation was incredible. Rui wouldn't have believed such a dainty girl capable of such ferocious yells and impassioned speeches. It was inspiring, to say the least.

Up until now, Rui had been a leading member of the Going Home Club. She was too shy to join any social group she didn't have to, and her only extracurricular interest was kendo, but she was already enrolled at a dojo and had surpassed what most middle school students were capable of. After seeing this play—more importantly, its starring actress—Rui was inspired to try acting. She wanted to change herself, and she might be able to do so through the medium of acting. She had to join the drama club.

Rui knew she had to strike while the iron was hot. There was a chance that if she waited, the fire burning in her chest might die down and she would give into her shy nature. It had to be now.

As the other students filed out of the auditorium, Rui snuck backstage. It wasn't until she was hiding behind a prop tree that she realized she didn't have a plan. She peeked out behind the tree periodically in search of her new idol, her determination waning with every passing second. Maybe she should just leave and go to the drama club sometime later...

She stepped out from around the prop tree just in time for another girl to come out from behind the stage. Rui recognized her immediately as the actress who had turned her world upside down. The girl was still wearing the princess costume that she had on during the play. It hadn't been apparent at a distance, but now that Rui was up close she could see that this girl was astonishingly pretty. Like, "melt your brain" pretty.

"Oh, I thought everyone left," the girl said. "Are you one of the girls who volunteered to help put away the props?"

"Um, I, uh..." Rui had trouble getting words out of her mouth at the best of times, and talking to a beautiful girl she admired hardly counted as ideal circumstances. The phrase "I want to join the drama club," had seemed so easy to say when she decided to sneak backstage.

The other girl seemed unperturbed by Rui's verbal fumbling. "Could you help me with this zipper?" She turned around, showing Rui the zipper on the back of her dress. "I think it's stuck, and everyone else in the drama club has left already."

"O-okay!" It was easier for Rui to think now that she wasn't looking the gorgeous girl straight in the face. She pulled down on the zipper slowly, careful not to tear the fabric around it; indeed the zipper was stuck, and Rui had to use both hands to try to free it. Her fingers grazed the bare skin of the other girl's back, and she felt the strongest urge to apologize, though she didn't know why. What's going on with me? Rui asked herself. Why am I getting so flustered? We're both girls...

At a later date Rui would recognize this moment as her gay awakening.

The zipper jam finally gave way and the metal teeth parted. Rui pulled the zipper down just far enough to make sure it was fixed, then jumped away. "Um, it's not stuck anymore."

The girl turned around and flashed Rui a smile that turned her insides out. "You're a life-saver," she said. "We haven't met before, have we?" She looked to Rui's uniform. "You must be a first year. I'm Tomoe Tamao. Hopefully in the future I can be a more reliable senpai to you."

Rui struggled to introduce herself, as if she had forgotten her own name. She was rescued by the unlikely appearance of a third year student.

"Ooh, looks like Tamao-chan has a fan!"

Rui's idol, Tamao, frowned. "Senpai, you left me all alone. I had to ask this nice first-year to help me with this faulty zipper."

"Don't complain. Plenty of girls at this school would jump at the chance for a little private attention from her."

"What do you mean?" Tamao asked. "Is she someone famous?"

"You don't know her? That tall glass of water is Akikaze Rui-chan. She's the talk of all the athletic clubs."

Rui blushed.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Akikaze-san," Tamao said. "What club are you a member of?"

The third-year chuckled. "Akikaze-chan hasn't joined any clubs. That's why they're crazy about her. She's the tallest first year in the school, and she looks like she's only going to get taller. All the sports teams tried to recruit her at the start of the year, but she turned down all of them."

"Recruit" was a delicate way of putting it. The athletics clubs had practically waged a war over which of them would get to claim Rui. The poor girl had been forced to sneak around the school, dodging her athletic upperclassmen at every turn. For someone with social anxiety, the experience had been terrifying. It was all she could do to stutter out a polite rejection every time one of them found her. Eventually they got the message and left her alone.

"Um, that's what I wanted to talk to you about," Rui said to Tamao. "N-not about the sports clubs! I want to join the drama club. Your performance this afternoon really inspired me!" In fact, it was the most moving performance she had seen, but she was afraid of coming on too strong by saying so.

Rui was afraid that her sudden declaration would weird her out, but Tamao's eyes glittered with joy. "That's wonderful!" She took Rui's hands in her own, oblivious to the way her kouhai stilled at the contact. "You can't imagine how glad I am to hear that our play touched somebody that way."

"Jeez, you can't be a respectable senpai if you melt over a little praise," the third year said with a laugh. "Tamao-chan takes her acting seriously. A little too seriously, if you ask me."

Tamao pouted (a sight that nearly knocked Rui off her feet). "You don't take acting seriously enough, senpai."

"Don't let the busybody scare you off, Akikaze-chan. Make sure you fill out an application form." The third year cackled as she walked off. "I can't wait to brag to the other clubs that we snagged their dream member right from under their noses."

"Honestly." Tamao sighed. "I know that she's busy preparing for entrance exams, but she could at least pretend to be diligent about acting. I promise the other members of the drama club aren't like her."

The other members of the drama club could be juvenile yakuza for all Rui cared. She only had eyes for Tamao. "I promise I'll give acting my all," she said, and she meant it. If she could act half as confidently as Tamao, she'd be satisfied. If she could perform alongside Tamao—that would be a dream come true.

"I look forward to taking the stage with you, Akikaze-san. Hopefully you'll have my back in the future as you did today," Tamao added with a chuckle.

Rui's heart skipped a beat at the reminder that she'd undone her senpai's zipper. "Uh, anyway, that senpai said you're really serious about acting. Do you want to be an actress?" For some reason she felt the need to know this near-stranger's life plans.

"Ideally, yes. "I'm going to enrol at Rinmeikan School for Girls, like my mother and grandmother before me. The school has a performance department with a century of tradition."

"I'm going to enrol too!" Rui, in fact, had never given a moment's thought to what high school she would attend.

Tamao didn't question Rui's declaration, nor her transparent motivation. "I'm glad to hear it. Not enough people these days respect traditional arts." She smiled. "Maybe it was fate that we met today, Akikaze-san."

"Y-you don't need to speak so formally to me, Tomoe-senpai," Rui stuttered. Being referred to so stiffly made her feel odd for some reason. She wanted the two of them to become... closer. "You can call me by my first name. If you want to, I mean."

"Of course, Rui-chan. But if we're going to be friends, you'll have to return the favour." The corner of her mouth turned up into a sly smirk.

Rui blushed. Friends. Yes. That was good. Great. Fantastic. "If you say so, T-Tamao-senpai."

Three Years Later...

"Awwww! Baby Rui was so cute!" Ichie squealed. "She was still taller than her senpai even back then."

During a lunchtime picnic out on the school grounds, Fumi had idly expressed curiosity as to how Rui and Tamao had become friends in middle school. Tamao related her side of the story, embellishing Rui's "gallant rescue" of her from the gnashing teeth of a stuck zipper. She pulled out her cell phone and showed the group a picture of herself and the drama club's newest member, visibly flustered by her senpai's hand on her arm.

"Rui-chan has grown a lot," Tamao said with a smile. "She's changed so much in three years, but she's always been a talented, beautiful young woman."

"Three years, huh?" Fumi looked to Rui with pity.

"Let's see more," Yuyuko said with a devilish grin, no doubt hoping for something she could tease Rui with. She scrolled through Tamao's photos, revealing a seemingly limitless supply of pictures featuring Rui.

"...that's a lot of pictures of Rui," Fumi noted.

"We made a lot of memories together," Tamao said with a smile.

"I don't remember that!" Rui yelped, blushing up a storm. Displayed on Tamao's phone was a selfie that she had taken with Rui's head resting on her shoulder. She appeared to be asleep, and Tamao held a finger to her own lips in a shushing gesture.

"That's pretty shady, Tamao-senpai," Yuyuko cackled.

"Is it a crime for me to keep pictures of my number one fan?" Tamao's subtle, sly smirk had lost none of its power of Rui.

#shoujo kageki revue starlight #revue starlight #revue starlight relive #starira #tamarui #tomoe tamao #akikaze rui #fanfiction #my fanfiction #yuri #girls love #femslash #femslash february #FauxGhostsFSF

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flibbityflob · 5 years

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When the Last Sword is Drawn/Music Revolution!! (Yukigumi, 2019)

After 6 viewings and the shinko, I'd say I've seen this show a lot. I had high hopes going in, and for the most part, this show met them. The movie is stunning, and the story at its core is heartbreaking. The revue didn’t immediately stun me, but after watching it as many times as I have, it’s really grown on me. Beware for Many Many spoilers within. Also this thing is LONG, it’s a fairly detailed summary and i have a LOT of opinions about this show, this troupe, and the revue.

In brief. Or as brief as I can be with this confusing show. In a framing device, we see a ball at the Rokuemeikan in 1885, attended by a group of high ranking people; Matsumoto Ryoujun (Nagina Ruumi), his wife Toki (Chikaze Karen), and Nabeshima Nagako (Himehana Yukino). It's interrupted by a group of thugs who are swiftly defeated by Police Inspector Saitou Hajime (Asami Jun) and his deputy, Ikenami Rokusaburou (Agata Sen). The doctor and nurse of the Rokuemeikan, Oono Chiaki (Aya Ouka) and his wife, Mitsu (Asazuki Kiwa), come by, and it turns out there is some kind of history between Saitou and Mitsu's long dead father.

(For eases sake, I'll skip commenting on the rest of the transitions, just know they're there at fairly regular intervals. I'll get to my opinions on those soon).

We flash back around 40 years. Yoshimura Kanichirou (Nozomi Fuuto) proposes marriage to Shizu (Maaya Kiho), who, after some teasing, accepts him. They're poor, but happy with each other. She meets Yoshimura's best friend, Oono Jiroemon (Ayakaze Sakina), the lord of their domain, who at one point also wished to marry her. After a short scene with Oono's mother, we skip forward 20 years or so. Yoshimura's mother has just passed, and his son, Kaichirou (Ayami Sera), comes to tell him the news that Shizu has attempted to drown herself. After rushing home, he finds Shizu safe and alive. It comes out she tried to kill herself because she's pregnant again, a third child that they won't be able to feed, they're struggling as it is with the harvests as poor as they are. He'll have to find another way to provide for them, and he resolves to abandon his position as a samurai and join the Shinsengumi in Kyoto.

In Kyoto, we meet the Shinsengumi. The introduce themselves with their theme song (something I have not been able to stop singing). The three most important members are Saitou Hajime, only now with long hair, Hijikata Toshizou (Ayanagi Shou), and Okita Souji (Towaki Sea). They lead the rest of the group in a number excelling how good they are. After some conversation, the group has a photo taken of themselves, one ruined by Tani Sanjuurou (Souno Haruto), a man trying to push his brother to succeed Kondou Isami. He is not popular.

Yoshimura leaves his home, gifted a travel pass to allow him safe passage through the country by Oono. Yoshimura and Shizu sing a duet as they part in the snow, Yoshimura leaving his children and wife behind to ensure they survive another year. Yoshimura swears to return home no matter what and after a really fun song sung by Ai Sumire, he's officially part of the Shinsengumi.

This is one of my favourite scenes in the whole show, it's this chaotic mess of a scene where everyone is doing something fun. Tani is entertaining the crowd, whilst his brother Shuuhei (Manomiya Rui) looks on ashamed. Agachin and Nagakura Shinpachi (Machi Yuuka) are bickering in the background. Yoshimura is running around keeping the sake flowing, and soon sits next to Saitou, who he enthuses about his homeland of Morioka to. Saitou fucking hates him almost instantly. The next scene, Saitou tries to kill him for being a sappy, uneducated, family man from the country, before Yoshimura handily bests him.

The Shinsengumi too, do not approve of Yoshimura. He constantly asks after money, not caring much for propriety, and he doesn’t care much for the senseless violence that most of the Shinsengumi are rather famous for. Back home, we see how Yoshimura’s family is. Shizu, Kaichirou, Mitsu, and the baby have been left in the care of Otora (Satsuki Aina) and Okane (Anno Konnomi), who steal the money Yoshimura sends back. In essence, they’re unhappy, still poor, and often ill. Shizu has to sell a hairpin Yoshimura gave to her in order to pay for the medicine her youngest child needs. All in all, nobody is particularly happy.

Back in Kyoto, Ogawa Shintarou (Kujou Asu), has been accused of theft. Hijikata tries to make Souji, Harada Sanousuke (Tachibana Kou), and Nagakura all take on the role of his second (the person in a seppuku who beheads the one killing himself), but all resist his commands. Saitou argues the one who should act as second should be his division comander, Tani, and Hijikata agrees, but Yoshimura will also aid, given Tani’s reputation. During the seppuku, Ogawa fails to properly cut his stomach open and Tani fails to behead him. After a small scuffle, Yoshimura beheads him (in a truly fantastic bit of design, wherein Asu and Daimon head behind a screen, and by using lighting design, sihlouettes, and sound effects, it genuinely does look like a beheading). Many of the Shinsengumi call for Tani’s death, but as personal disputes are banned in the Shinsengumi, Kondou puts a stop to this. Saitou is not happy. Yoshimura begs Hijikata for more money, and after he leaves, Saitou comes onstage to tell Okita, Harada, and Nagakura his plan to eliminate the man they all hate. Some members of the Shinsengumi have defected, and during a fight they know will be happening soon, they can take advantage of the confusion to execute him and pass his death off as casualty in battle.

After a brief interlude in Morioka, where we hear that Oono is moving to Osaka with his family, and that by and by, Yoshimura’s family are doing well, we come to the Aburakouji incident. Kondou and the Shinsengumi ambush Itou Kashitarou (Kiraha Reo) and Toudou Heisuke (Suwa Saki), who are attempting to asssasinate Kondou. After a scuffle, Yoshimura excecutes both Itou and Toudou, and soon after Saitou assasinates Tani. This leads to my favourite encounter in the whole play, wherin Nagakura and Harada “discover” Tani’s body. They comically overact the whole thing, and Okita and Saitou make some snide comments about how bad of a pair of actors they are.

Following this, we’re introduced to Miyo (also Maaya Kiho), the daughter of the family hosting the Shinsengumi in Kyoto, who’s been in love with Yoshimura for years and wishes to marry him. She wants to convince Kondou and Hijikata to let Yoshimura leave the Shinsengumi and lead a peaceful life.

Saitou comes across Yoshimura investigating the body of Tani, and Yoshimura quite deftly points out that there’s no way Tani could have died in the brawl, and that the only person who could have assasinated him was Saitou (Saitou wields a sword with his left hand, and the wound was inflicted by a left hander). Yoshimura blackmails Saitou into paying him off, and walks away twenty ryou richer. Shuuhei comes on, desperately screaming at the murder four (Saitou, Okita, Nagakura, and Harada) to bring his brother back. Hijikata pays Saitou back the twenty ryou he paid to Yoshimura.

After another of the framing device sections, we come to the marriage interview between Yoshimura and Miyo, Yoshimura clearly completley distressed by the whole affair but too terrified of losing his position to say anything. Hijikata and Kondou speak of their plans to let Yoshimura divorce Shizu, and to leave the Shinsengumi. Yoshimura cannot find the words to reject them, but Ikenami steps in and tells them all how they don’t understand the pains of the common people. Yoshimura slaps him, hugs him, and then leaves, followed by Miyo, who he waxes lyrical to about his wife. This leads into a beautiful tanbata scene, where Yoshimura allows himself for just a second to indulge in hugging Miyo, before the guilt gets the better of him and he runs off.

The people of Kyoto and Oono’s forces in Osaka sing of the troubling times as the Shinsengumi begin their march to Osaka, ending as the curtain rises on the thoroughly beaten and bruised Shinsengumi. After some time, Hijikata orders a retreat which Yoshimura rejects, leading a suicide attack on the government’s forces, during which he is shot and stabbed. He makes his way to his clan’s storehouse, to get permission to return to Morioka to be with his family, and meets Oono there. Oono, bound by his duty, orders him instead to commit seppuku, which he does, after a truly heartwrenching sequence in which Yoshimura counts the money he was going to spend on things for his family. His sword and hair are brought back to his family, and his son resolves to fight alongside Oono in the upcoming conflict. Both die in battle, with Oono dying heartbreakingly so onstage.

We return to the framing device, where the Meiji players contemplate what kind of man Yoshimura was. Ryoujun leads a reprise of Yoshimura and Shizu’s duet, which they take over, as the whole troupe joins in and cherry blossoms finally bloom.

I loved this show a whole lot. A whole whole WHOLE lot. My tastes lie deep in “tragic nihonmono that don’t involve a lot of politics,” “Nozomi Fuuto as a dad,” and “Agata Sen having just The Best Time.” I got all three in SPADES. This show is a character driven one, in my eyes, with the core conflict being internal. Yoshimura does arguably terrible things to keep himself afloat, and to keep providing for his family, and all the while daimon ACHES with this need to return home. Whenever given the chance, he waxes lyrical about how much he loves his homeland, his family, and especially his wife. When dying, the last words he speaks are his wife’s name. Yoshimura loves his family more than anything else in the world and it comes through with literally everything Daimon does. The tragedy is clear from the start, and once the last 15 minuites or so start you know there’s only one ending. But there’s even more beautiful tragedy that I can’t bring myself to spoil that just makes everything worse, more painful.

My biggest issue with the show is the framing device. Whilst I don’t mind it too much, I know others hate it a LOT more than I do, and I get why. Every so often, the Rokumeikan crew will walk along the ginkyo or across the stage and exposit about where certain people were at certain points, and it did have the effect of completely breaking the flow of action and tension. Hime and Agachin stand out as the MVPs of those scenes, but Agachin was only in a few of them and Hime can only do so much alone. I didn’t hate them, but I do get why one might.

Nozomi Fuuto as Yoshimura Kanichirou was fucking fantastic, genuinely one of the best performances i’ve ever seen her bring. She has the unenviable task of delivering a really nuanced, sad character whilst also speaking perfectly in a very strong accent, and does it without breaking a sweat. I don’t have enough good things to say about her accent, by the way. I feel like it could be a touch controversial, and it does make her impossible to understand (my Japanese friends agreed, it’s a HARD one), but it adds so much to her character. Daimon’s face was designed to look good when sad, and this show is no exception, she has a kind of mastery over these faces that just ache lonliness like nobody else in the world does. Her voice as she’s dying is so broken, these little gasps of pain are just sublime and her voice as she’s counting out the coins she’s earned over her six years is so beautifully sad. Her performance is exceptional in how subtle it is. She doesn’t bring anything big or ballistic to the table, she just tries to create a picture of this man desperate to do what’s right for his loved ones and to his own code of honour to the table. His last moments are so desperaetly sad because you know full well he regrets everything he’s done to get there, and in the same breath knows it’s his supposed duty as a samurai to have done what he did. Yoshimura is a hard role and Daimon made him look easy, and carried off the accent too. I can’t imagine anyone else in this role.

Maaya Kiho played two roles in this, and I fucking loved them both. I will say, I wish her role as Shizu had been given a little more weight, but I loved Miyo enough that I can’t stay too angry. She plays Shizu at two points in her life, first young and giddy in love, and then older, married, a mother, and far far more tired. As that younger Shizu she plays her with such life, her Shizu is teasingly affectionate to Yoshimura, but clearly in love with him. On my last performance I noticed that during her first scene, before Yoshimura proposes to her, she’s fixing up her hair and kimono, making herself look as pretty as she can. It’s adorable. As the older Shizu she carries this utter grace with her, world weary and hard done by. Her and Daimon have amazing chemistry together, they play this old married couple so well, both softly amused by their children even when it’s their last moments together. Her maturity is so quiet, so calm, and it’s another half of these two incredibly subtle performances the top combi give. As Miyo she’s a bratty selfish teenager, and it’s her earlier maturity as Shizu that makes Miyo even more entertaining. She’s selfish in that way only spoiled kids are, saying she’s completely in love with Yoshimura when she’s barely shared a conversation with him, and acting as if he’d be perfectly willing to abandon his whole family to marry her. It’s not the biggest role but she imbues it with such grace and charm I can’t help but adore it.

Ayakaze Sakina was unfortunately typecast again as the best friend, and it’s absolutely detremential to her. Oono, in my eyes, is just straight up not an interesting character. His major role is acting as the exposition dumper, and his few scenes of humanising moments don’t work for me like they should because I don’t buy him as a character properly. I want Saki to get a good, interesting role that forces her out of her shell as just the best friend and I’m annoyed she didn’t get it here.

Asami Jun was the nibante, to be frank. Her Saitou was gruff and angry and simmering with barely restrained loathing for Yoshimura, and I fucking loved it. It didn’t blow me away like I think that role could have but Aasa I think tried her damn hardest, biting onto what she got given and trying with all her might. The relationship between Yoshimura and Saitou didn’t land quite as it could have, and I can’t blame all of that on the writing (only a decent chunk of it). Aasa’s Saitou hated Yoshimura too much, which I think made her sudden face turn at the end of the play towards sympathy to Yoshimura feel a little flat, but I’ll be honest, I wasn’t really looking at her during that scene at all (and we’ll get to why soon).

Shou is still our sanbante but it’s entirely in name only at this point. Hijikata is a tiny role, she gets to sit and scowel, and grumble “Mendoksei, mendoksei” at the murder four, and it’s just. Not interesting. And I so wish it was, because I love Shou. She’s quietly endeared, to my eyes, by their nonsense, which I think was perhaps more of Shou than the role, but it was rather fun all the same.

Towaki Sea got a role on the smaller end too, but definitely one bigger than Shou. Okita Souji is a fun role, a violent shitty dude, but also a really fun genki one. Her and Aasa have a really fun dynamic together, really fed up with the bullshit of everyone around them, especially from Yoshimura and Tani, who they hate for very different reasons. Her adlibs with Aasa, Macchi, and Tachi were really fun, and she really played the heart of that group, if a very violent angry one. I don’t know what I CAN say about her Souji, though, because he wasn’t the biggest role in the world. What I can say is that Hitoko is putting her heart and soul into everything, even moreso than I think she was in mura, what with the looming transfer and all.

Aya Ouka was… I don’t think she’s tracked any more. On paper she has a role the same size as Agachin’s but whilst Agachin was taking what she was given and running with it, Ayana was projecting at a brick wall. Ayana played Chiaki, Oono’s son, who I think could have acted as another half of the emotional core of the story, but it would have required a damn sight more than what Ayana was giving. I don’t want to be too harsh on her, but she just wasn’t bringing anything at all to the show. The script wasn’t amazing towards her but I think she well could have made something of it. I know this, because…

Agata Sen fucking DID. I have fallen completely and utterly head over heels with Agata Sen and anyone who knows me knows that fact but I am writing this with as little bias as I can be (but I WAS watching her with opera glasses for literally every show so like. Only so much). Ikenami Rokusaburou also wasn’t a huge role on paper, and could well have been boring and forgettable but Agachin did SO MUCH for it. Ikenami is one of the only survivors of the Shinsengumi, and ends up a police inspector with Saitou. She’s present in the Shinsengumi scenes and ends up forming a very sweet bond with Yoshimura in the process, going from actively antagonising him (with the aim of sucking up to Kondou) to defending him in a really lovely scene, calling out the bullshit of Kondou and Hijikata, and how they just don’t get the struggles of common people. Her line delivery of her speech to Kondou and Hijikata told a story without saying any of it, and it’s absolutely fantastic. And she’s the fucking BEST in the background, I know full well the blu-ray won’t capture any of it but every single day she and Macchi were pulling out new types of bullshit and I think Macchi is going to kill her sometime soon. I love her so very much and she’s going to be Something very very soon. Just you wait.

Kacha was. There. Completely irrelevant and doing nothing for the plot, just awkwardly hanging around during the Rokumeikan scenes. I don’t think anyone enjoyed this role, she didn’t actually DO anything, and I took particular insult to her starting off the finale because there was no emotional reason for her to do so! I didn’t like this role and I can’t imagine her die hard fans did either.

Other people of note

Mana Harutou was a really fun Kondou, playing him as a rather useless leader, stuck in indecision and almost inept at points. It was a nice role, and I hope she keeps getting roles like this, not enormous, but still big. She’s one of my favourites.

Kiraha Reo is still playing two roles in a show (though only one of them matters) and I can’t help but laugh. Itou isn’t the biggest role either, but she gives him a decent amount of depth, clearly holding some resentment towards the Shinsengumi from the start, and dripping with loathing as they take him and his rebellion out.

Kujou Asu gets the worst role of the lot, a nothing samurai who has to commit seppuku and fails terribly at it, but she has a lot of fun running around with her hair loose, covered in blood.

Souno Haruto, our new Kumichou, also having the time of her life as the comedic side relief Tani Sanjuurou. Every day during one scene she’d force Manaharu into a love suicide and every day it had me quietly losing my SHIT. She’s the best.

I’ve wanted better things for Ai Sumire for the longest time and so hearing her get a solo in this? Thank the LORD. she’s a great singer and it’s great we’re using her more.

I just really like Manomiya Rui, y’all? She has the friendliest otome picture and her energy is so nice. She was fun as Shuuhei.

Tachibana Kou and Macchi Yuuka were my absolute favourite part of this show by a country MILE. Comedic side relief and vicious killers all at once. I can’t wait to see how absolutely awful their fake acting gets by raku.

Music Revolution grew on me. It’s a Nakamura revue and it is, to its core, a Nakamura revue, but in my eyes it’s one of his best. Not just because of copious amounts of Agachin but good GRIEF she is a spectacular dancer and this revue shows that off.

The theme song is a complete banger, black and dark grey outfits and some really genuinely tight choreography from Yukigumi. Daimon’s voice could fill the whole theatre without a microphone and so could Kiichan’s and they absolutely owned the show. Daimon seems absurdly full of energy, and it’s REALLY nice to see her leading the troupe having so much fun at the same time. Everyone on the track gets a little moment, even down to Agachin and Ayana, and I can’t help but feel an enormous amount of pride for the whole troupe. I love them, they feel like home so very much.

The revolution scene fucking OWNS. Daimon leads a group of argentinian revolutionaries against the forces of the British army and comes out on top. Everyone’s singing at 200%, especially Maaya motherfucking Kiho, and dancing in really tight formation. They look and sound amazing. Aasa and Hitoko lead the British forces and they also look DAMN good in those red uniforms, and dance REAL good too. I would say it’s my favourite number of the revue but practically every number is, so.

Then comes your standard Nakamura B jazz number, led by Saki with Agachin and Ayana behind her. It’s a really fun couple minutes, just the whole troupe leaping around and dancing, culminating in a fake music duel between Agachin on the trumpet and Ayana on the saxaphone, and it’s super fun! Agachin does this flying leap every day and it’s fucking fantastic, I love watching her dance. Aki and Hime get a duet (a reoccuring feature, and not one I’m mad about, they’re really fun together), and it’s just a really good time.

The chuuzume I couldnt love more. It goes on forever and yet every single kangeki I was sitting in my seat BEAMING when Aasa starts singing and neon lights blast, it was so fun. It goes from one extreme to another with lightining speed, and yukigumi moves in absolute harmony, and it’s just. Great. Every day Daimon, Kiichan, Kacha, Saki, Aasa, and Hitoko find new nonsense to do on the ginkyou as the rest of the troupe goes into the aisles and it’s just such a warm feelgood time I can’t help but be happy watching it.

Hitoko gets a really fun little number, to fucking Pachabel’s Canon, which I went in expecting to hate (as a musician i’ve heard that damn song too many times) but ended up loving (I’m a sucker for electric guitars). Following the transfer announcement the amount of applause Hitoko got for this scene skyrocketed and that’s something I can’t help but love. She’s an excellent dancer (not that i’d know it. Agachin was in that scene. I was looking at her literally every single time).

Inexplicably Nakamura decided to add in a taidan number for Daimon and Kiichan, though I suppose the real taidan is for Hitoko’s heart (poor dear is already starting to crack and will absolutely be a wreck by raku). It’s fun and catchy and it’s nice to see the remaining 89ths have fun together, and for Daimon and Kiichan to just be completely nerdy.

We finally, after two years, have a Daimongumi kuroenbi and it’s absolutely fantastic. Everyone looks stellar in tailcoats, we dance with precicion and order and Daimon sings like nobody’s business. They look good, they sound good, and it’s just. The best.

I adore the duet dance. Daimon and Kiichan gently dance whilst Ai Sumire sings and it’s just overall really really nice. It’s almost ethereal, purple outfits and a shit ton of smoke and Daimon and Kiichan clearly just. Adore each other. Their freindship is clearly so strong and sweet and they really suit each other.

I loved this whole show. Whilst I think I prefer Hikarifuru as a show, this takes the cake for my favourite pairing of shows. They’re both super strong and I can’t help but love the shit out of them. Daimon and Kiichan’s chemistry feels so easy and comfortable, two people who just Get Each Other, and it’s so nice to see them play off each other. I wish Kiichan had more to do, but like. She deserves everything. Fingers crossed our next revue does right by her (please give us an Uekumi revue i’m BEGGING you).

#takarazuka #yukigumi #nozomi fuuto #maaya kiho #ayakaze sakina #my reviews #this is long and not proofread and goes from highly analytical to me crushing on agata sen you cannot make me change or stop #also dont read if you dont want spoilers for this show ajdknjasd it is spoiler heavy

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