[Oshi no Ko] 3rd Season

Episodes 1-10 of this anime were really executed fantastically. Top notch art style quality, really good acting, and the anime even outshined its original manga source material. Song animations are especially the best aspect of this anime. Ranking the 10 episodes alone of the season I would probably give it a score of 8-9. However this is where the good part ends, and we enter episode 11 that undermines the entire massage of how bad the idol industry is in Japan, and transforms it into a meme with forbitten sister brother relations plotline. I was hoping that anime adaptation would avoid this plotline, and change it into more anime original one, but it looks like they are going to stick faithfully to the manga version that was really controversial in the fandom.

Objectively, Oshi no Ko season 3 is the best the show has ever been narratively. Subjectively, this is by far the worst season of the show for anyone who likes Akane. Doga Kobo consistently disrespected she and her fans by butchering and reshuffling her big moments, not drawing her with the level of attention and detail other characters(Kana) get and even the way the social media team handled this season showed an utter lack of respect for a huge portion of the fanbase. More on that later. If you are one of those weirdos who are somehow not invested in any of the girls, don’t care for stan wars or just want to watch the story play out, well congratulations, you’re in for a treat. The stakes, drama and tension are at an all time high in this season and that magic from season 1 that made the series so popular has returned. Doga Kobo do put in some of their best work ever in this season in the terms of direction and storyboarding. I just personally cannot overlook how one of my favorite characters of all time was done. Your mileage may vary. What made Oshi no Ko so special in the first place was 1: Aqua’s revenge plot and quest for Ai’s killer. 2: The critical examination of the Japanese entrainment industry. This season nails both of those. Whether it’s showing how directors take advantage of up and coming idols, idols covering up relationships and hickeys, etc., I think this season hit a lot of this stuff on the head. It’s so messed up how constrained Japanese entertainers have to live. The idea of living purely to please others while you’re deeply unhappy and suffering on the inside is horrible. There’s so many toxic and unhealthy practices normalized within this industry and even though it’s an anime, Oshi no Ko does a halfway decent job shedding light on them. Is it going to change anytime soon? No, it’s an industry that thrives on parasocial behavior and the same sort of toxicity that hurts idols, keeps them employed. It’s a brutal cycle that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Compound that with the fact that most of these idols haven’t even finished high school and are pretty ignorant of the real world and you have a recipe for disaster as we see during Kana’s arc in the first half of the show. Aqua is such a difficult character to talk about because on the one hand, he’s an incredibly talented actor and supremely intelligent.. on the other hand he’s a manipulative egotistical emo dweeb who makes awful decisions because of his guilt. If you’re a fan of his, you’ll love what he gets up to this season, pulling strings from the shadows, trying to keep his family from falling apart, etc. If you didn’t like him from the first two seasons, well, he’s not gonna do many favors here. He’s a particular flavor of character that’s not for everyone. My personal thoughts on him this season are.. well, I stand with Ruby. I just cannot stand Aqua as a character. His obsession with revenge has blinded him to so much around him, including best girl who was literally willing to die for him? Not to mention betraying his sister’s trust in a huge way this season. Watching him is like watching someone slowly descending into madness and you know there’s only one way it could ever end. Again, if you like that, more power to you. This season is basically season 1 aqua on steroids. As a loyal Akane fan from day 1, this season hurts. Aka’s writing sucks, but for the studio to deliberately butcher her big moments and show so much bias towards Kana is just crazy to me. I don’t think I have ever seen a studio be more shameless about something like this? We have all joked before about studios preferring certain characters in shows, but it was usually over minor stuff and us just joking around. In Oshi no Ko, Doga kobo decided to change chapters around which lessened the impact of Akane’s big moments, they cut certain scenes and then when they did partially adapt stuff, the way they animated Akane took away all her ferocity and personality that make her unique as a character. If you want objective proof of this bias, simply take a look at the Oshi no Ko social media pages that immediately posted Kana’s big moments the day of or the day after at the latest, while Akane’s scenes were posted a week later if ever. Multiple staff members are on record saying they prefer Kana and I don’t mind that, but it shouldn’t come through so blatantly in your work. It’s a disservice to the story and to fans of a character. I know this isn’t a big deal to a lot of people, but again, I’m a huge Akane stan and she’s already been shafted so many times by the author himself, so I wanted to at least see her get the respect she deserved in the adaptation.. that didn’t even happen. Gross. This is without a doubt some of the best direction Doga Kobo have done. I think Ruby and Aqua’s been bust up after the events of the Kana arc is one of the best scenes in the entire series. Akane and Aqua’s bridge conversation and the hour long finale.. all incredibly cinematic moments that ooze quality. There’s no doubt this staff are supremely talented, it’s just an issue of what they choose to spend that talent on that doesn’t sit right with me. Alright, I yapped way more than I intended to on this season. I really only reviewed this because I felt this season was an injustice and disrespectful to longtime fans and needed to vent on it. Casuals will love it, people with no skin in the best girl war will love it and fair play to them, I wish I could go through shows and not get attached to characters. Sadly, I’m a romantic and can’t help but fall in love with characters as I watch shows. A blessing and a curse. Oshi no Ko season 3 gets 5 stars out of 10.

I have a rather unpopular opinion: Oshi no Ko got bad far earlier than a lot of people think. Personally, I never thought it to be an anime/manga that was ever exceptional. It was always a narrative that existed in the boundary between something good and something decent. Still, works that are simply solid in my eyes, and even better, works that are nearly impressive, are far beyond the rest, as almost everything else I watch or read, I usually have a "mixed" perception of. So, it's incredibly disheartening to see a narrative that was as entertaining and thoughtful as Oshi no Ko was become as ridiculously lazy and poorly written as it is now. Oshi no Ko, as far back from the beginning of the Mainstay arc, or more aptly put, episode one of season three, became mediocre, and it's been a freefall ever since. The medium of animation continuously evolves, and its much more likely that an anime will deliver consistent and solid production. Oshi no Ko S3 is far above average in this aspect: it is animated beautifully, the score is solid, the camera work is good. From a production standpoint, it's more than satisfactory. Oshi no Ko doesn't necessarily excel in any of these categories, aside from being visually stunning. It's no Samurai Champloo, but that doesn't hold that much weight because good animation and production is only suppose to support the narrative. Just like good prose supports a novel's story by enhancing the flow of the plot or readability. And Oshi no Ko's animation and what not does that. It being more than acceptable and incredibly consistent when it comes to the technical side of things is good, because animation is first and foremost a medium, and solid directing and production should be praised(its a hard thing to do). However, an anime needs more than just pretty visuals and okay sounding music to be considered a good sequel. A good, strong sequel progresses it's narrative, it's world, it's characters and it's ideas. Is Oshi no Ko S3 a decent installment in comparision to its predecessor? Far from it. Oshi no Ko, as a whole, has three main things it uses to hook it's audience—and a fourth thing it treats as somewhat unimportant until this season. The eventual rise of B-komachi, the exploration of the darker side of the entertainment industry, and Aqua's, and now Ruby's, quest to avenge their mother. The fourth thing is unimportant for now. These three things are what drives the story, and therefore, it's laughable that this season of OnK fails to add any substantial depth or progression to any of these core parts, except for maybe the last one. It actually completely skips the first one: we immediately enter this season after a timeskip. B-Komachi is one of the most popular idol groups in Japan. The slow, eventual journey to stardom is completely irrelevant now because of course it is. It's the beginning of a trend. It's Oshi no Ko telling the audience how lazy it will be for the entirety of this season and whatever tf it puts out afterwards. Ruby is getting all different sorts of roles now. Akane is....ion know idrc. Kana is just sad now(more on this bs later). And Aqua is into acting. Aqua is a character that was always interested in acting and directing and whatever, but his obsessive want to get revenge for Ai always greatly outweighed that. Uptil now, Aqua is a character that has always lived for others. He wants to commit murder to avenge Ai. He saves Akane's life. He does these little things to continuously encourage Kana to help her become livelier and fight for what she wants, when he doesn't need to do that. You even see it in the prologue. It's Aqua who sees the gruesome, bloody sight of Ai dying in front of him. Not Ruby. I'm highlighting all of this, because while Aqua isn't completely selfless, he is very caring, and overall, is selfless. And more important to what I'm talking about, Aqua hasn't done anything completely for himself. He is a person who lives for revenge, and so, him continuing to act is him expressing his genuine love for it, and moving past his trauma and his harmful want for revenge. It is poor and lazy writing to skip over this change in Aqua's characterisation as he is a character that is so blinded by his desire to get revenge that he only saw acting as a means to an end, who directly says: "Acting is a means for revenge" Skipping over him deciding to continue acting, when it no longer serves his goal, is lazy. That's Aqua trying to better himself, trying to overcome his trauma, and it's just skipped through a timeskip. Glossing over important and necessary development is amateurish writing. It's outright bad, and instead of an entire arc being dedicated to Aqua and his development to what we see him as post timeskip, we get the Mainstay arc—a mediocre, boring rendition of the 2D Stage Play arc, in the sense that it also somewhat focuses on the production side of things without any of the wit or nuance that arc had, and it only really serves to see Ruby being "twisted" like Aqua. It's also a bumass version of the Reality TV show arc. This recycling of ideas does not stop here, but it's just very disappointing. The Mainstay arc quite literally treats Aqua like a NPC. He doesn't serve any purpose to the plot, and any insight or development on Aqua bettering himself is ignored. It's bad that Aqua going over deciding to finally live a more normal life is never really explored because firstly, it's just dull, and secondly, it's because of the second half of this anime. The Scandal arc is an arc layered in issues. It's an arc that does progress its plot and characters, but not in anyway that is substantial or actually engaging(except for that plot twist), and it also recycles ideas. Some praise should be given because at least this part of the narrative does attempt to be an actual decent sequel. It just fails miserably. As previously discussed, Aqua is now trying to live a normal life, but then he finds out his dada is still alive, and then he regresses back to his former self. This is purposeful regression, and that's fine. Regression done right(Thorfinn, Punpun, Bojack) can birth some of the most complex characters ever. This was not done right due to the anime skipping over Aqua choosing and trying to live for himself. The inner conflict he experiences is not compelling. It doesn't hold any weight, because the story never treats Aqua living for himself as having any substantial weight. So why would it be compelling to see him struggle between his desire to live a normal life and overcoming his past, or him falling back into his unhealthy obsession with revenge, when clearly what he always regarded as more important was his revenge? And I say that because of him placing a tracking device on Akane(random bullshit + illogical writing), and the fact we don't get to see him grow towards moving forward. He says he's more fulfilled living for himself, but how can that be conveyed properly when it isn't focused on? It can't. His internal conflict is presented as a tough decision, but the conclusion was already forgone, and rather than feeling pity that Aqua was regressing back to who he was, I was disinterested. This arc mainly focuses on this, and the scandal Kana experiences. It was frustrating enough to watch an anime desperately try and fail to character assassinate one character, but it wasn't enough. Nah we don't have to try to ruin just one character, let's try to ruin two of em. Kana(queen) is my favourite character from Oshi no Ko, and so its somewhat sad to see her become stagnated as a character. Firstly, it's really contrived that Kana gets put into the situation she is in. She's the centre, therefore should be seen as the face, of B-Komachi(and how Ruby gets allat love and adoration we will never know cuz Akasaka didn't want to draw allat out, and the anime mirrored the source material near-perfectly). She's also an actor with an experienced background. So, if B-Komachi is popular, if Ruby…

Oshi no Ko season 3 continues to take our central cast of aspiring entertainers deeper into both the more unsettling realms of the industry and the final stages of Aqua’s revenge plan against Ai’s killer. Be it social media flame wars, idol scandals, or the fundamentals of pitching a film to producers and investors, this show’s penchant for covering an excessive amount of ground in excruciating detail leaves me captivated for nearly every second, with excellent pacing and smartly-composed dialogue to keep the hook in me every step of the way. It also continues to be one of the best “soapboxing” anime I’ve seen, a term I normally use pejoratively to describe manga authors using their characters to go on rants about things they don’t like and how much smarter they are for being correct, but feels much more naturally implemented here, with the constant gripes about an industry’s practices stifling creativity or progress stemming from a genuine yearning for something better while still begrudgingly participating in the system at it stands instead of whining about how much better they are for seeing its faults. This sense of being trapped in an imperfect system nicely parallels several of our core characters’ arcs in this particular stretch of the story, be it Aqua and Ruby’s stubborn commitment to their varied approaches in how to take revenge for their mother, eventually driving their relationship to the most strained it has ever been due to their further perpetuation of lies and cunning schemes, or Kana’s growing malaise and stagnation as she desperately seeks out stronger acting roles and nearly getting crushed by the unforgiving nature of public opinion as a result. There is a profound complexity at play that keeps me coming back for more, even when the few bits of supernatural elements seem mostly unnecessary or a certain reveal in the finale bears potential to send the entire story spiraling into an unimaginable trainwreck. And, as usual, Doga Kobo continues to present an unbelievably gorgeous production to convey all of this. It cannot be overstated how immensely beautiful these character designs are, with so much detail in their linework, facial expressions, and character acting that I’m simply blown away. The few compositing issues I noticed from last season seem to have vanished entirely, the intensity of the framing, especially with close-ups, leaves insane levels of impact, and the deep saturation of the color design is both alluring and threatening. Though I have a few concerns about where this is all heading and I occasionally wish it went a bit beyond its PG-13 nature, if this story manages to stick the landing, we could be looking at one of the best thrillers of the decade.

A third season that fixes certain aspects of the story, but you can't hide the truth. We'll say the same thing we said about the previous seasons. Doga Kobo has made Oshi no Ko truly seem like a serious anime. The level of visual quality and animation is simply on another level. Even in the comedic parts, you can see the care and effort they put into this IP. Even in this season, they tried to make small changes so that certain moments wouldn't feel so forced or cringeworthy. Doga Kobo deserves all the credit for making Oshi no Ko the monster it is. Now, the story itself—that's beyond repair. The story's problems are so significant that no matter how much you try to sugarcoat it or how many beers you drink, you'll always be able to see the ugliness of the script. It's in this season where all the characters, except for Aqua, become chameleons who can change as the script demands. The Edgy Ruby appears out of nowhere and doesn't really contribute much to the plot. In fact, Ruby's character is left in a rather gray area after this season. Ruby was characterized as an airhead, an idol lover who advanced in the industry through sheer willpower. By edgyifying her, they simply created Aqua 2.0, which was necessary since Aqua had already been converted at the beginning of the season. Oshi no Ko is a story that relies heavily on Aqua to be told. It was clear that when he was removed for a few episodes, Ruby didn't have what it took to carry the story. The key point of this season was the Arima Kana scandal. Unfortunately for her, this arc is used to set up the final arc, sacrificing her along the way. Arima Kana is one of the most mistreated characters in the story. While the rest of the characters advance in their careers, Kana is the only one who remains stagnant. Which doesn't make much sense because after the play, one would expect her to receive more recognition from the industry. That didn't happen, and she had to take a risk to get a role under a director who abused his power. Again, Doga Kobo saves the day, and that whole part doesn't feel as heavy-handed as it does in its manga counterpart. This makes the whole thing more digestible and allows us to address the real issue, where Kana is the victim, not the perpetrator. Even so, as I said, in the end, she's a expendable pawn so the story can move forward. The crow girl alone is a whole other issue. I've never seen a character more useless to a plot, and yet they still try to force her so much. The crow girl serves no purpose in the story. She tries to be an element that adds a certain mysticism to the plot, but Oshi no Ko was never a supernatural story. The anime is a drama with social commentary on the entertainment industry. Having a character related to reincarnation was superfluous. No one in this anime ever questioned whether there would be more reincarnations; we all assumed it was a random occurrence. Even so, they try to make it clear, wasting screen time that could have been better used for other characters. The ending, oh my god, it didn't need to be an hour long. It's painfully obvious that it's two 25-minute episodes strung together. You have two events that individually could have been great finales: the reconciliation of the brothers and the story of Miyako and Ichigo. These are moving stories that could have been worthy of closing the season or opening the next. Even so, the regular ending of the episode feels somewhat unfinished. They close with an attempted joke involving the crow girl that makes your hour-long investment feel unsatisfying. It's only redeemed by the post-credits scene, but once again, it's Ai Hoshino who saves the day. Now all that's left is to wait for the fourth season to close the Oshi no Ko cycle, one that gets heavier as we approach the end.

[Oshi no Ko] Season 3, or should I say [Lobotomy no Ko] Season 3: A Near-Perfect Adaptation, Setting Up the Series’ Upcoming Disaster? After the perfection of the 2.5D Stage Play Arc adaptation, as well as the mini Private Arc a year and a half ago, the Oshi no Ko anime continues with the Mainstay, Scandal, and the prelude to the Movie Arcs. Season 3 shifts to having Ruby as the main POV of the show, following Ruby's awakening of "Mangekyou Staringan (black-starry eyes)" after discovering the corpse of her beloved doctor, Gorou Amamiya, as well as Aqua's relief of learning that Ai's killer "had died a long time ago." The anime adapts all three arcs flawlessly, though they made some minor errors that could be fixed in the Blu-ray version. Ruby being the main POV of the show is certainly fresh. Watching Ruby tease her assistant director, acting tough as a mastermind like Aqua, successfully lifts the tension. The turning point is also handled well, using the perspectives of TV news reports, bystanders, and disappointed fans instead of simply the lead characters' POV. The rearranged chapters are not issues at all and instead are becoming smooth transitions. Visually, it's similar to Season 1's quality (except episode 1), but clearly not better than the directing of the entire 2.5 stage play arc. However, while almost all the macro productions looked stunning, as well as how well Oshi no Ko portrayed the dark side of entertainment, the series deserved criticism for leaning more toward being too good to be true in one of the adapted arcs. In reality, the aforementioned action would've already led to cancellation and blacklisting. Its second half can also be considered the early 'downfall' of Oshi no Ko. In my defense, the practice is actually common in anime and manga, although it was certainly not prevalent in mainstream series that sold over 25 million copies. It is certainly disappointing that, at its worst, Oshi no Ko Season 3 has devolved into a fandom shipping war during the discussion of each episode, whether on MyAnimeList or social media, among overseas or Japanese fans. As a huge Akane (my beloved) fan, it indeed feels sad to know that Hiramaki sanitized Akane's aura from the manga, but it's more disappointing to know that Akane fans complained about it more than they focused on the story. The same things happened when Kana scenes got either cut, flipped, or replaced. Can they appreciate those "too-long" Kaburagi scenes? Would they appreciate those Miyako scenes? Would they appreciate Dogakobo's tiny details that contain deep symbolism if they couldn't care less about the plot? [Lobotomy no Ko] might actually be real, and I'm proud of being a part of it. In short, Oshi no Ko is still Dogakobo's golden child, and every single minute of the anime is still extremely enjoyable to watch. You are welcome to continue if you want to know more about the series' simple exploration of the dark side of entertainment and how each character fakes their persona, but mind you, the final season is regarded as the series' most hated arc, proven by the 2024 live-action movie's IMDb rating. Anyway, just stick to Perfect Blue and read other showbiz manga if you are looking for deeper content because Oshi no Ko seems to simplify their entertainment contents. Just read love-polygon romcoms if you want to host some toxic shipping wars!

After watching this season twice I can say that it is the best season of Oshi no Ko yet. They really went above and beyond for a part of the series that manga readers said is the fall off point of the whole show. The animation quality has improved from the previous seasons, and it really just makes the important scenes so much better. The way they use the eyes in this show to express the character's emotions just fits the show so well, and without it the show wouldn't be nearly as good. This season is also full of twists and turns that makes you want to watch the next episode immediately to see what happens next. Season 3 has so many unexpected outcomes that it makes season 1 look tame. If you are into anime that constantly keeps you on edge, then I would seriously recommend Oshi ko No.

We are back in show business and what a dark and ugly place that is. Once again we are brought into it, only to see Ruby and Aqua once again deal with all the ups and downs there is in that industry. In this season we are once again following much of the same cast as the last seasons, with some new characters being introduced. It follows a bit after Ruby having learned of Aqua’s former self’s death, with us then seeing how she reacts to the news and what effects it has on those around her. The show as a whole is starting to take a more dark turn, since we are moving closer to what should be the end. For the plot of the season it is still rooted in the entertainment industry, with it being flavored with drama between characters and the hunt for revenge. The show once again brings out dark and some good moments of the industry, but at this point it is mostly the negative side we see. The show brings up the different subjects fluently through the plot and the characters, and lets the viewer really see the details, showing how wrong somethings really are. The plot all together has a nice flow to it, and is clearly preparing for the end of the series, with it letting the ground work for the final arcs. So the season does not have a plot like the previous seasons, and instead goes towards the darker and more heavy plots of the show, which is enjoyable, but can be more difficult for some people. The characters like the last seasons are very much the same people, and each gets to have their growth, with some having more than others. Of the two main characters, Ruby is a bit more in focus, but both truly get to shine and we start to see their relationship develop more. This gives a more focused look at the show, since their individual things start to overlap more, bringing both plot and characters more together. They also let the side characters develop with the main characters, with us seeing how the web of relations starts to complicate further. Combining this with the theme of the plot are there some very interesting developments between the characters, bringing an already great cast of characters to an even more intriguing situation. The production value of the show is as high as it was previously, with great animation, design and voice acting. The animation follows the same style as previously, with it still keeping up with high movement and intense drama scenes, keeping the show feeling smooth and enticing. Design is also amazing with them still knowing how to use their abstract art in the high emotion scenes and beautiful character designs overall. But what sometimes really drives the show home is how emotional or lack of it, the voice actors are showing when bringíng the characters to life. Overall the production value is as high as it has been the other seasons, which keeps making the show an enjoyable experience to watch. One thing that is important to note for the show as we get further into it, is how we are going deeper into the dark world of show business. This means that the happy moments we saw in season one are becoming far between and the show is becoming somewhat heavier to watch. This is not necessarily bad, but it is something a viewer needs to keep in mind, since some do not like it when a show's content becomes more heavy to watch. But to combine it all is it a great season, that brings the show in position for the final season. So if you are ready to dive into the deeper and darker world of this industry and wanna see how the characters get through it, I can only recommend this season.

Really good season, the best one so far,the story was so good, the pacing was nearly perfect, the animation was crazy good, but the ending was so mid, such a downgrade compared to the other episodes, and so long for which reason? Was there really so much in this ep that they needed 50~ mins to show it? I don't think so, it'd have been better to just stick to the regular 20~ mins duration then. Maybe I would've digested better. This season is a 9 but it's a 9 unfortunately very weaken by a poor ending, so like a 8.75 maybe even 8.5

Again, Oshi No Ko showed me why it is so popular in the first place. Art and Animation: 9.5/10 -Amazing as always. This anime is quite known for its vibrant and lively color (and sometimes dark as well, when needed.) Season 3 is no different. It's clear that Doga Kobo has nothing but love for this project. Plot: 8.5/10 -Now, I do admit that I've never read the manga before, so I can't really say much about the anime, but some important scenes in the finale do feel anticlimactic. But overall, there was very good character development for Ruby, Aqua, and other cast members. Music: 9/10 This is one of my favorite aspects of the show. ONK just does not mess around with their music and sound design. I've added many songs to my playlists from this single anime alone. My overall rating is 10/10. This is an absolutely unforgettable show and definitely recommended whether or not you are a veteran anime watcher or not. The coming arc is boutta be insane (like S2). On that note, Season 4 has been confirmed so get hyped for that

Oshi no Ko Season 3 was an extraordinary transition season. Once again, it raised our heart rate perfectly with its emotionally powerful scenes. The story felt both engaging and refreshingly unique thanks to its deep dive into the showbiz world, and even when certain developments were somewhat predictable, they were still highly enjoyable because of how well they were executed. As a showbiz anime, it naturally delivers top-tier opening, ending, and OST tracks. The art style fits the tone of the series perfectly, especially during performance and emotional scenes where the visuals truly shine. The characters are well-rounded, with clear strengths and flaws that make them feel human, and their development throughout the season is satisfying. Their reactions to events feel realistic and grounded, which makes the drama hit even harder. We can say the director did a great job this season. It was faithful to the manga and felt complete without missing elements. The 50-minute finale was also a very nice touch. I honestly can’t find anything negative to say this season was a solid 10/10, and it’s a series that most viewers, especially those who enjoy drama and character-driven stories, will absolutely love.

I made this review spoiler free so I'm sorry if it sounds a bit ambiguous: I would like to start by salient that even though the main cast are teenagers and that this anime on the surface can come off as a shonen… well it isn’t. This a seinen. You can probably see where I'm going with this.... A big majority of people who saw/will watch/are watching this anime are part of the shonen age target audience... this is not that kind of anime okay? I think you can clearly notice it by the mixed reactions and reviews about this anime in general especially the ending if you got spoiled already. This is NOT a story that was made to please the majority of people which is completely fine and a huge plus if you are part of the niche that can appreciate it. In this particular season the story is coming to a close... we finally see the progression towards the goals of the characters... a bunch of stuff got revealed.... There are characters that went through a lot of strong and different emotions.... Needless to say we throughout the whole show noticed the characters developing face their own hardships... we see them taking stances positively and negatively instead of being "neutral" towards each others. The Animation and the sound direction were also fantastic. Look.... This is the best Hoshi no Ko has ever been. When I first watched that first episode of season 1 it was so good that i got concerned about the follow eminent drop of quality.... But I was so wrong.... This season kept me proving wrong again and again effectively shattering all of my expectations which were high... to the point this might've just become my favorite anime. That itself alone says all that it needs to be said about it. My rating for this season is a 10/10. It's amazing I feel like I can't praise it enough.... If you are mature enough, like psychological dramas, mystery, darker themes/settings, emotional shows, are bored of "cliché" story telling and it so happened to be curious about the industry surrounding the Japanese different forms of media culture this is the show for you. Like the old saying goes “it’s about the journey not the destination”, not everything must have a purpose or a meaning neither things go our way most of the time.

I'm simply in awe of the consistency in three consecutive seasons. It’s been three seasons. The first one was great. It focused way more on the revenge, and it worked so well as that, but the second one ditched that for a little bit. Focused too much on the showbiz, abandoning the great stuff it set up, while still being great. It felt like a set-up season that did bring exactly what it should’ve in this one, season three. Aqua is a flip-flopping character that I love watching. His trauma always bounces him around each piece of information he knows terribly. Each toxic mindset he acquired through his life ruins his relationships, friendships, and always makes him push himself to a part he shouldn’t. At the same time, we get such a bigger focus on Ruby, and how the same blew up in her face. Her character was riveting, with how the effects of her past finally caught up to her. Instead of just a set-up season, this one sets the fourth one, while being incredibly fantastic on its own. Did not expect the deeper questions it makes about parenthood, and real, negative emotional sacrifices that families make in sickness. That was heartbreaking, and it managed to pull some tears outta me. It’s incredible writing, how much the show can let us see everything. How the dialogue works, how some characters you might think are in the background become essential. You remember, so many times, “Oh my God, that’s right, I almost forgot how great this person is”. It’s an anime that remembers character history, and the seasons aren’t isolated from each other. They carry on so much information that balances telling and showing better than many others. I’m trying hard to avoid my tainted knowledge of what will be the final season. I can only describe to you how great this season was, and how excited I feel despite my knowledge, not on the ending, but its quality. Character arcs, their hardships, their new developments, and the ever-changing narrative was awesome. It might be predictable, but not in a way I hate, more in a “if they do this, that’s awesome”, and they do the awesome thing. Loved all of this season, minus a few moments where they still exaggerate the emotion. 8.5/10. Instead of highs or lows, this season was the most consistently good, with some awesome moments that allow it to stand out a lot.

I often wonder how Oshi no Ko manages to be a pseudo-documentary of the Japanese entertainment industry, given how it can be extrapolated into ludicrosity or bore you with too much jargon while trying to balance an ensemble cast in a drama with many moments of psychological themes. But that is what Oshi no Ko manages to accomplish. Of course, we cannot forget about the former anime that laid the path for Oshi no Ko to thrive on, thanks to the many insights gained from our incredible creators of the past. It should be obvious that Oshi no Ko still follows the very old, strong formula that older productions have done while infusing it with some personality from the creators of Oshi no Ko, Aka Akasaka. Going into the 3rd season, it is uncommon to find an anime that has consistently been going great for 3 consecutive seasons without any drop in quality. Much of it could be said thanks to the story going forward with our good girl gone bad, enhancing the darker themes of the story without losing the whiplash the series has been known for. For that, I have to give my gratitude to the studio behind this production and the staff keeping up the amazing quality for our dark, yet giggly Oshi no Ko. As I stated about the whiplash earlier, I have to say that Aka Akasaka has quite a tendency to provide facts during story-building times, often presenting as a "Did you know?" trivia to us, the audience, just for a little context to understand behind the scenes. This, of course, is in line with the agenda Oshi no Ko wanted to go for, an insider's perspective of the industry. However, it is no surprise that the industry has gone through massive amounts of scrutiny to this day. Oshi no Ko continues to provide that perspective for anyone interested, as it debunks the good, the bad, and mostly the ugly sides of the entertainment industry. This has continued to be Oshi no Ko's biggest selling point as an anime. However, we have to move along with the criticisms surrounding Aka-sensei's tendencies. Continuing with Aka-sensei's quips with writing and attempts at cleverly put self-imposed insertions, he has been quite a tease (and massive at that, I'll tell you) with the romance baits, so much so it has started to get on my nerves with how slow the relationship Aqua has established because as soon as it does that, the story would immediately move on to the next character with its very own side story. For example, a Twitter crashout, certain people appearing through a variety of TV shows, like it's nothing, without any progression on the supposed main story we need to care about. It is apparent that Aka-sensei likes to take his time with the story, with some defending his approach as trying to "flourish" the story with more lore and detail. Although I beg to differ, as it sometimes makes the story go awry, or more accurately, bloated with details that have very little to do with the main plot in general. I am confident that nobody really remembers the sideplots Oshi no Ko went for with the other supposed side characters, given how it's trying to balance both the psychological horror and thriller with how the story treats them afterward. To summarise, let me tell you this. Aka-sensei is proficient at making these characters shine with these distinct and unique characteristics that make your eyes glued to them. However, if you are familiar with his earlier work, you should know by now that he has been famous for dragging out certain important themes that should have been concluded earlier. While Oshi no Ko for all 3 seasons has been an excellent adaptation, it is more like a more-than-average story with your usual insider dive. Treat it as a pseudo-documentary for your best enjoyment. My enjoyment with the show has been a bit waning over time with how slow the story has been progressing, so forgive me. Thank you for reading.

This is my favorite season up to date. Yes, I like it even more than season 1. Why? THINGS GOT REAL. This season follows Aqua and B Komachi as they continue down their path. This is a spoiler free review, so I don't want to give away too much. Let's talk about why I rate this season a 10/10. #1 - CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT. I knew Ruby was going to get her chance to shine, and freaking finally she does! She came in guns blazing. Mentally broken aftering finding out her sensei was murder, she goes to the dark side and plays the game that Aqua and other have been. And it was legit scary how good she was. But along the way, you see her broken pieces start to add up as she has to make a decision about what kind of person she ulitmately wants to be. IMO, the strongest character this season. I really like that she finally puts away the fake fascade, and sees reality for what it is. Second place is Aqua. Man, my boy cannot catch a break. Again, no spoilers but as you already know he always puts everyones happiness in front of his. This season, it's more of that and some. Aqua is crossing a line that he can never come back from. That said, I do like ultimately he is still a caring person. Arima gets a lot of love too. Her arc...man my heart was pounding the whole time. I felt so bad her, and the show did a great job wrapping up how strong of a person she is. The rest are good too. You even get backgrounds and growth of Akane, Memcha, and Miyako. They're all great, but Akane's was straight up terrifying. All in all, every character ends up making tough and life changing decisions. That's what makes a show great. #2- The story is so damn intense. I was on the edge of my seat almost every scene, wondering what will happen and who will show up. Unlike previous season, I feel there was no bridge scenes. Like, every thing was done with a purpose, and everything circled back to the murder of Ai. It's a perfect blend of mystery, supernatural, and drama- mixed in with cute moments here and there. #3-Character interaction. Oshi no Ko is always great at this, but this season stepped it up another level. Characters love. Characters hate. Characters forgive. Characters argue. Characters support one another. The dialogue can go from serious to hliarious in seconds. IMO, whoever wrote the script did a tremendous job. The way the lines were written for each character was bullseye. #4- This one probably doesn't doesn't need to said, but should be mentioned- TOP NOTCH VA AND MUSIC PRODUCTION AS ALWAYS. Every single VA is amazing. Every single one. The opening OST is a complete banger, and even better than season 1. Adding that to my music list for sure. To sum up, this season finally put the kiddy gloves away, and gave us even more of what makes this show amazing. More twists. More plot thickening. More character devloping. More intense and heart breaking and aching moments. CANNOT WAIT FOR SEASON 4!

" Peak Revenge Drama " The level of insanity which oshi no ko delivers is a mystery . Many anime tried to do this but eventually failed or degraded with time . The build up for raw emotions from the start to end never stops , it gets interesting ep to ep . The other thing which makes this anime a masterpiece is addressing real life issues in film or idol industry , it allows viewers to get a overview like how cruel and dark is industry . Revealing private info or stalking can disturb some people mentally and physically as well . Some viewers are here for revenge not some documentary on film industry , which lead to many baseless negative criticism . They can't understand that without addressing the motives and actual problems you can't move to conclusion . So , you need to give some time to plot to mature naturally . Now if we talks about details like animation , ost , op ed etc there isn't any complain all top notch quality but Akane fans are furious because of less detailed work on her in comparison of others . The sentence demons live among us fits for this anime because some people can do too much bad to others which can fuck their lives . Season 4 already announced high hopes .

I had to sit on this review before doing the full writeup because Oshi No Ko's third season was what I hoped this series would become. Yes, it does that, and then some. Story & Characers: After the completion of the LalaLai theatre show and then the B-Komachi show, we now turn to Ruby and Aqua, who have gone to being members of the Dig Deep! show. This, of course, is in order find out more about their mother's murder. Whenever you're taking the opportunity to look into something so dark, you're going to run into trouble, and the whirlwind of emotions fly fast and far for our two main characters. They go through a LOT here. Aqua, debatably, goes through less highs and lows than Ruby, but man... he does a lot to advance the plot here. The first big thing probably wasn't in his grand scheme of things, as it does side track the attention away from certain characters, but then it does a lot of our audience and it starts to reveal more and more about what's going to happen next. This does, however, put a dent in his relationship with his sister, Ruby, but by the time you reach the finale, you can kind of tell that everything comes together like a puzzle. It does wonders to bring the plot together and then further advance it. I admire how they were also able to put all of these plot points into the same season because leaving any of this until the next season would bring this one down. Yes, I'm talking about things that happen in the middle of this season, right to the end. Ruby goes through a lot, and not just because of what I described above. While she does admire the idol life, she now aspires to get into the acting field. There are obvious similarities in both, but with a drastic change of heart and not a ton of education and training to back it up, there's a lot to get through. She does this all, in part, for a very specific reason that turns up near the end when Aqua makes a proposal. It's the plot point that I figure will be the main point of the next season, which has been confirmed to be the final one. MEM-cho, Kana and Akane round out our main cast here. MEM isn't terribly relevant outside of the first episode, though she's still around. Some of Kana's story can get buried underneath what's going on with the twins, but she still has a very good arc early in the season. It puts some more resolve into what she wants to do, even if it does feel like she's trying to chase for Aqua's attention a little too much. It's cute at times, and it gives her motivation to do her best. Akane, similarly, has some smaller story arcs, but doesn't do a ton to stand out. Sure, she has her moments, but she's less the focus here, even if she is the girlfriend of our main character. Other characters weave into the story here and there, but there were so many major storylines that are so impactful to the story that it almost feels like there's not going to be a whole lot left to get hyped up about when the final season rolls around. Can they top it? You'd like to think so because the groundwork is certainly there. I admit, it can get a little confusing when they're looping in all the characters related to the final season - there's a lot of names going around. While it's not of the upmost importance on getting to know each name, you mostly need to know that they're part of the same arc. If you've hung around as long as this, you really have to finish this series' story when the final season rolls around. Storytelling and character development take centre stage here, and weaving all the details together finally starts to happen here. Sure, we got details in the first two seasons, but nothing of this magnitude. I hope it continues. (Story: 10/10, Characters: 10/10) Art: Animation feels to be roughly the same as last season, which is solid. No complaints there. Putting animation together with the emotional moments had to have been a priority and that's gotta be a success. (9/10) Sound: Very, very strong OST and music here. They added a bunch of insert songs too, which I've been listening to a lot lately - with dolphin being one of my favourites. VO work also remains strong with Kristen McGuire (Akane) likely being my favourite. Jack Stansbury (Aqua) and Juliet Simmons (Mem-Cho) both remain strong too. My one minor issue is that with Ruby going through so much, I don't feel like Alyssa Marek (Ruby) was at her best here. I don't watch a ton of her work and while there's a lot to take in here, I don't feel like she takes hold of this one. It doesn't ruin anything, but I feel like there could have been more here. (9/10) Overall: Oshi No Ko Season 3 is the peak, peak of what this series was meant to be. I wasn't completely puled in on seasons 1 and 2. I am now. I can't wait for this thing to wrap up - whenever that is! (10/10)

Well, the third season is a brutal, soul-crushing Seinen Masterpiece — the darkest and most intense season yet. This isn’t just anime anymore; it’s a psychological knife to the throat that keeps twisting. Season 3 is heavier, darker, and far more vicious than anything before it. The intensity kept rising with every single episode, especially during the heartbreaking moment between Aqua and Akane, followed by his short but painful falling out with Ruby. Ruby’s psychological transformation this season is absolutely chilling. After that devastating discovery, she goes from the cheerful, starry-eyed idol to a cold, calculated avenger with those terrifying “black starry eyes.” You can feel her innocence being stripped away as she embraces the dirty side of the industry. She stops being just the bubbly little sister and becomes a force willing to manipulate, scheme, and destroy whatever stands in her way. That shift is masterfully written and genuinely unsettling. By Episode 10, I truly felt the drama and intensity deep in my own core. The emotional weight became so heavy that I started wishing the show would ease up a little, just so I could catch a breath and let off some steam. That’s why I was genuinely relieved and happy when the second half, especially Episode 11, suddenly turned into pure meme territory. It was the perfect heart-relieving breather after all that high blood pressure tension. Story & Themes (9.9/10) This season goes full savage on the entertainment industry’s rotten core. The Mainstay Arc and especially the Scandal Arc rip apart tabloid manipulation, media slaughter, leaked lies, and career assassinations without mercy. The psychological toll on every character is merciless. Illusions get shattered left and right, and the final episodes deliver devastating emotional payoffs. Pure seinen excellence at its most unforgiving. Characters (9.9/10) Ruby completely dominated this season with her dark evolution. Aqua remains a tragic, broken masterpiece. Kana’s struggles cut deep, and the supporting cast gets dragged through hell. Miyako continues to be one of my all-time favorite waifus — her quiet strength and depth this season only made me love her more. Animation, Music & Voice Acting (10/10) Doga Kobo delivered their best work yet. The emotional peaks and dramatic sequences are visually breathtaking. Both the new Opening and Ending songs are absolute bangers — they perfectly capture the darker, more aggressive, and obsessive tone of Season 3. They slap every single time. Overall Score: 10/10 Season 3 is darker, meaner, more emotionally brutal, and psychologically devastating than ever. It takes everything great about Oshi no Ko and pushes it to the absolute limit. This is peak seinen storytelling. Mature viewers only. Overall, a true Masterpiece WATCH IT. You won’t regret it — but prepare yourself.

I just finished this show, and I don’t typically write reviews, but I needed to get down why this resonated with me while also being so entertaining. First off, the most obvious thing: the entire show is eye candy. All of the openings are masterfully done, with great music and equally great visuals. OP 1 and 3 were genuinely hard to skip, and I skip almost every opening, even ones that are already considered great. People really underestimate how much a good OP affects your perception of a show — it sets the whole “vibe.” In addition, many scenes were stunning enough that I had to go back and rewatch them multiple times. The symbolic “star power” eye patterns combined with the galaxy-like colors are especially notable, and overall the show is just oozing with visual character. Speaking of characters, they were fantastic. There were multiple characters the show tricks you into hating initially, only for you to slowly end up loving them without even realizing it. It really speaks to the idea that “you never know what’s going on in someone else’s life.” Someone’s actions may seem to display bad character in a vacuum, but once you understand the context of their circumstances, your perspective changes completely. The show pulled this off multiple times in a believable way — though admittedly, not always. This might just be a personal thing, but I really enjoy the “galaxy brain” archetype when it’s done correctly. There’s something incredibly engaging about slowly figuring out what another character had planned from the very beginning. Another thing: as someone who knows basically nothing about the showbiz industry, this series was genuinely interesting from an educational standpoint. There were a lot of moments where I caught myself going, “Huh, so that’s how that works.” The series also felt culturally in touch in a way I didn’t expect. A lot of moments made me think, “This show is totally aware of the real world,” and I didn’t expect an anime to poke fun at modern culture so naturally. That was something I also loved about Kaguya-sama: Love Is War. “I think the kids nowadays call it being down bad, sir,” is a good example from that show. Overall, what I think this show nailed was grounding itself in realism. Most of the story felt believable — like these events and people could actually exist — while still amplifying the intensity for cinematic effect. The characters felt like real people, and their progression and motivations were excellently handled. The plot was also highly addictive. I’m not a critic, so I won’t get into pacing or technical analysis, but it felt extremely well thought out and explored a lot of emotionally deep concepts in unique ways. It genuinely felt like thought was put into how these characters would psychologically develop after reincarnating with the memories of their past lives. Each character seemed tied to an important concept or lesson, that someone somewhere actually lives. Another thing, going back to what I mentioned earlier, is how refreshing it was to see a show that actually feels in tune with the modern world and culture. The internet, social media, and fame were all handled surprisingly accurately. It’s honestly hard to pick a favorite character because they were all so well done — almost like trying to pick a favorite person in real life. The show also did a great job of constantly keeping you on edge, teasing future moments and promises, then eventually delivering on them in spectacular fashion.

This season focuses on the main plot, with a clear sense that the story is approaching its conclusion. I’ll review it through the main characters: Ruby “Dark Ruby” was the central driving force and the most prominent character this season. Her actions pushed the story closer to its end. Her transformation imitating Ai and manipulating others to achieve her goals was a complete shift from her original personality. We see how this change stems from inner emptiness, isolation, and self-hatred. Her past with her mother was very harsh and highlights the consequences of parental neglect parents should support their children in both joy and hardship. Her panic attack and her struggle to understand who she is, who truly loves her, and her difficulty accepting her reality especially her mother’s neglect and the tragedy involving the doctor were all powerful moments. The final episode speaks for itself. Aqua He had reached a state of inner peace, but discovering the truth completely reversed that, bringing back his manipulative, calculating personality. His decision to distance himself from Kana was understandable due to his past, even if he didn’t want to. Kana’s actions only made things worse. With Akane, he remained supportive and dependable until the shocking twist, followed by his powerful line: “I’ll go to hell alone. I won’t take you with me.” Akane The smartest character the true investigator of the story. Thanks to her sharp intuition and intelligence, she figured out who the father was, his age, and how he met Ai. During the bridge incident, we saw what she was willing to do, which was shocking she’s not just someone who analyzes, but someone who’s ready to act. Since Season 2, when she said she would help kill him, it was clear how serious and extreme her mindset is. She is the most suitable to play Ai’s role in the film, but the author chose Ruby for dramatic purposes. Kana This season, she can truly be described as a “drama queen.” It feels as if the author gave all of her intelligence to Akane she comes across as foolish in almost everything except acting. A whole year has passed, yet she still hasn’t moved on from Aqua and Akane’s relationship. She sees Aqua sitting alone on a park bench in the rain, clearly distressed, but instead of understanding his emotional state, she assumes he hates her and runs away. Then comes the disaster her meeting with the director in his apartment. She initially thinks someone else might be there, but the apartment is empty (a clear red flag), yet she still stays. She ends up being exploited. While I sympathized with her when she cry, her poor judgment continued even after he stope because she cried, she stayed talking with him about Aqua until morning, which led to her being photographed. She then falls into a mental breakdown. While the scene is emotional, it’s also frustrating, because she put herself in that situation. She later claims she won’t rely on Aqua and that she’s strong, but in the end, Aqua still saves her from the scandal. Miyako She can be described as the “unsung hero.” She acted as both a mother and a manager. In the final episode, we finally see more focus on her, learning about her past and her struggles in the entertainment industry before reaching her current position. Overall Oshi no Ko continues to deliver strong storytelling and remains one of the best drama series. and The characters are excellently written, with each one having a distinct personality and a background that adds real depth to the story. Those who started watching it just because of hype may have dropped it by now there are no flashy fights or destructive battles here. As usual, the studio delivered excellent opening and ending songs, with high-quality visuals and subtle foreshadowing. ✧ ✧ ✧ يركز هذا الموسم على الحبكة الرئيسية، مع شعور واضح بأن القصة تقترب من نهايتها. سأستعرضها من خلال الشخصيات الرئيسية: روبي كانت "روبي المظلمة" القوة الدافعة الرئيسية والشخصية الأبرز في هذا الموسم. دفعت أفعالها القصة نحو نهايتها. كان تحولها، بتقليدها لـ"آي" وتلاعبها بالآخرين لتحقيق أهدافها، تحولًا جذريًا عن شخصيتها الأصلية. نرى كيف ينبع هذا التغيير من فراغ داخلي وعزلة وكراهية للذات. كان ماضيها مع والدتها قاسيًا للغاية، ويسلط الضوء على عواقب إهمال الوالدين، حيث يجب على الآباء دعم أبنائهم في السراء والضراء. نوبة الهلع التي أصابتها وصراعها لفهم من تكون ومن يحبها حقًا وصعوبة تقبّلها لواقعها خصوصًا إهمال والدتها والمأساة المتعلقة بالطبيب كانت لحظات قوية. الحلقة الأخيرة تتحدث عن نفسها. أكوا كان قد وصل إلى حالة من السلام الداخلي، لكن اكتشاف الحقيقة قلب ذلك رأسًا على عقب، وأعاد إليه شخصيته المتلاعبة والحسابية. كان قراره بالابتعاد عن كانا مفهوماً نظراً لماضيه، حتى وإن لم يرغب بذلك. أفعال كانا لم تزد الأمور إلا سوءاً. مع أكاني، ظلّ داعماً لها وجديراً بالثقة حتى تلك المفاجأة الصادمة، التي أعقبها عبارته القوية: "سأذهب إلى الجحيم وحدي. لن آخذكِ معي." أكاني الشخصية الأذكى، المحققة الحقيقية في القصة. بفضل حدسها الحاد وذكائها، اكتشفت هوية الأب، وعمره، وكيف التقى بآي. خلال حادثة الجسر، رأينا ما كانت مستعدة لفعله، وكان ذلك صادمًا فهي ليست مجرد محللة، بل مستعدة للتنفيذ. منذ الموسم الثاني، عندما قالت إنها ستساعد في قتله، كان واضحاً مدى جدية وتطرف تفكيرها. هي الأنسب لتجسيد دور آي في الفيلم، لكن المؤلف اختار روبي لأسباب درامية. كانا في هذا الموسم، يمكن وصفها فعلاً بأنها “دراما كوين”. يبدو وكأن المؤلف أعطى كل ذكائها لأكاني، حيث تبدو ساذجة في كل شيء تقريبًا ما عدا التمثيل. مرّ عام كامل، ومع ذلك لم تتجاوز بعد علاقة أكوا وأكاني. تراه جالسًا وحده على مقعد في الحديقة تحت المطر، ويبدو عليه الضيق، لكن بدلًا من فهم حالته النفسية، تفترض أنه يكرهها وتهرب. ثم تأتي الكارثة لقاؤها مع المخرج في شقته. في البداية تعتقد أن هناك شخصًا آخر قد يكون موجودًا، لكن الشقة فارغة (وهذا تحذير واضح)، ومع ذلك تبقى. في النهاية يتم استغلالها. ورغم أنني تعاطفت معها عندما بكت، إلا أن سوء تقديرها استمر حتى بعد أن توقف لأنه رآها تبكي، بقيت تتحدث معه عن أكوا حتى الصباح، مما أدى إلى تصويرها. بعد ذلك تدخل في حالة انهيار نفسي. ورغم أن المشهد مؤثر، إلا أنه مزعج أيضًا، لأنها وضعت نفسها في هذا الموقف. لاحقًا تقول إنها لن تعتمد على أكوا وأنها قوية، لكن في النهاية أكوا هو من ينقذها من الفضيحة. مياكو يمكن وصفها بأنها “الجندي المجهول.” قامت بدور الأم والمديرة في آن واحد. في الحلقة الأخيرة، نرى أخيرًا تركيزًا أكبر عليها، ونتعرف على ماضيها ومعاناتها في عالم الترفيه قبل وصولها إلى مكانتها الحالية. بشكل عام يواصل "أوشي نو كو" تقديم سرد قوي ويظل من أفضل الأعمال الدرامية. الشخصيات مكتوبة بشكل ممتاز ، حيث يمتلك كل منها طابعًا مميزًا وخلفية تضيف عمقًا حقيقيًا للأحداث. من بدأ مشاهدته فقط بسبب الترند ربما توقف الآن لا توجد معارك مبهرجة أو تدمير للمباني هنا.وكما هو معتاد، قدم الاستوديو أغنيتي بداية ونهاية رائعتين، مع صور عالية الجودة وتلميحات ذكية.