“冇問題!” –Lanzhu Zhong

When a new mobile streaming application for School Idols is released, a competition dubbed the School Idol Grand Prix is hosted to both promote the app and give School Idols across Japan a chance to compete to see who’s the most popular in terms of ranking. Several of Nijigasaki High’s School idols become intrigued by this: Ayumu, Lanzhu, Kanata, Emma, Kasumi and Shizuku decide to participate, travelling to Okinawa, where they simultaneously enjoy the island prefectures warmth and attractions before setting about making the most of the setting: at the hotel’s pool, Shizuku breaks the ice and live streams a performance. While exploring Okinawa, Lanzhu and Kasumi gain a measure of just how many School Idols there are, and while Kasumi herself begins streaming, she’s incensed that her popularity remains low. Quite separately, while searching for a good spot to perform in, Emma and Ayumu meet Ten Akamine, who’s playing her sanshin in a quite garden. Kanata, after performing in an aquarium, notices a girl, Koito Ishimine, eying her show from the sidelines. When meeting up with other School Idols, the Nijigasaki School Idols end up swinging by the inn that Ten’s family runs, and here, Ten and Koito reveal that the pair had once been School Idols, as well. The next day, Lanzhu’s mother appears and offers to help Lanzhu out, but Lanzhu gains the impression her mother’s trying to give her the upper hand. Enraged, Lanzhu prepares to drop out of the School Idol Grand Prix. Emma persuades her to reconsider and suggests that she stay at Ten’s family inn. While Ayumu and Yū exchange phone calls, both end up growing worried about being apart from the other, and Emma, concerned about Ten, convinces Ten to open up – Ten reveals she and Koito had been aspiring School Idols, but after she hadn’t spoken up about Koito’s suggestion, the pair had a disasterous opening performance and since grew apart. Encouragement from Emma, to be upfront about things, leads Ten to perform alongside her, and recalling the fun being a School Idol entails, Ten reconciles with Koito, promising to be more direct about how she feels. Quite separately, Kasumi is worried about Lanzhu and confronts her mother, learning that Lanzhu’s mother had simply wanted to upgrade the girls accommodations for their comfort and explore putting new stages together in response to feedback. Realising that a miscommunication is what created this conflict, Kasumi brings Lanzhu and her mother together, driving the pair to open up and speak their intentions. Once this is cleared up, Lanzhu is happy to resume School Idol Grand Prix activities, and with Kasumi helping with the stage construction, Lanzhu and Ayumu end up putting on a solid performance. Earlier, Yū had flown out to Okinawa to check up on Ayumu, and Ayumu learns that Lanzhu holds her in high regard because she sought to lift up other School Idols, like Isla. Lanzhu and Ayumu’s joint performance is a success, and Kasumi realises she’d been so busy helping out she’d forgotten about her own performances. This brings last year’s Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club Final Chapter to a close, marking a touching and heartwarming return for the Nijigasaki School Idol Club as they navigate a new competition and setting on the white sands and blue waters of Okinawa.

Final Chapter proceeds in the same manner as its predecessors, emphasising themes of how shared objectives means that even as each of the Nijigasaki School Idols vie for their own success, they are more than willing to lift one another up and support one another. In Okinawa, Emma ends up lifting Ten up after the latter reveals that she and her best friend had a falling out of sorts. In going out of her way to help Ten, Emma exemplifies the sort of spirit that characterises School Idols, and Ten and Koito end up reconciling, enough to resume their School Idol activities together. After meeting Ten in a park and watching her play the sanshin, Emma and the other Nijigasaki School Idols end up accepting an invitation to enjoy dinner together with other School Idols at the inn Ten’s family runs. Later, when Lanzhu decides to abandon her accommodations in protest of her mother’s actions, Emma and the others suggest that Lanzhu lodges at the same inn, giving her some breathing space, and later, Emma would be the one to persuade Ten to return to the realm of School Idols. As it turns out, Ten and Koito had started their journey as School Idols together, but because Ten never expressed her thoughts and allowed Koito to call the shots, the pair ended up drifting apart after a botched performance. There are parallels in real-world relationships and partnerships: identifying and addressing problems as they appear allows individuals to manage them before they grow into something more challenging, or before feelings of resentment and under-appreciation set in, and being able to trust those around oneself is essential for facility such communication. In the presence of people one can trust and be open with, problems can be dealt with more swiftly, and once Ten and Koito reconcile, their future as School Idols becomes more certain. Thanks to Emma, Ten learns that it’s important to be forward and honest about how one feels. Emma, despite her gentle and friendly nature, is someone who will stand up and speak out when needed: she’s the first to challenge Lanzhu’s decision to drop out of the School Idol Grand Prix event, and back in the first season, when Karin had resisted joining the School Idols, Emma swiftly acted to persuade her to follow her dreams. After hearing Ten out, Emma puts on a performance that lifts up Ten and encourages her to reconcile with her friends, using a combination of leading by example and supportive reassurance to lift up a School Idol that she’d just met. In the end, once Ten and Koito have a heart-to-heart, the pair realise their dreams never faded, and the two resume pursuing the path of being School Idols together. Emma’s support of two School Idols she’d just met was remarkably touching and reinforces my appreciation for Emma as the most buono School Idol – despite being strangers, Emma is thoughtful and considerate enough to treat Ten and Koito as her own, supporting them with the same sincerity and warmth that she does her fellow School Idols at Nijigasaki High, brightening up the world around her and allowing her to capture my heart anew in Final Chapter‘s first act.

Final Chapter reiterates how that clear and open communication is essential in all interpersonal relationships through Lanzhu’s story. At the onset, Lanzhu gains the impression that her mother, a successful businesswoman and a sponsor for the School Idol Grand Prix event, is trying to give her the upper hand and feels insulted, believing that competition is meaningless if she’s not achieving thing under her own ability. This moment reveals more of Lanzhu’s personality and values – although highly competitive and very proud of her ability, Lanzhu is someone with a strong sense of integrity and believes things must be earned, the same as her mother. However, this pride, combined with her tendency to jump head-first into things, means that Lanzhu immediately concludes her mother wants to give her an unfair advantage. On the other end, Lanzhu’s mother legitimately cares for the School Idols and wants to help improve conditions after feedback was provided to the event organisers, but her tendency to act before thinking means her intentions aren’t communicated clearly. In the end, it takes mediation from Kasumi to rectify this: even though Kasumi herself had assumed Lanzhu’s mother was planning on acting unfairly, after she’s given a chance to hear Lanzhu’s mother out, her external perspective allows her to quickly spot that there’s a misunderstanding. This, in turn, gives Kasumi the information she needs to help mother and daughter reconcile. In Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, the comparatively relaxed environment and pacing meant that malice is never an issue, and conflicts stem from misunderstandings instead. With Lanzhu and her mother, the manner in which things are resolved shows how having a third party providing an ear and an alternate perspective can help people to work out their differences more readily, and in the process, although Kasumi quickly falls behind in rankings since she’d been focused on helping Lanzhu and her mother figure things out, Kasumi shows that when the chips are down, she’s someone who can rise to the occasion and set in motion the sorts of things that help to make things better for everyone around her – once it’s clear that Lanzhu’s mother had been keen on building an additional stage to accommodate additional performers, Kasumi herself spearheads the effort helps the event staff to prepare the stage. While Nijigasaki High School Idol Club is generally relaxed and laid-back, giving characters their chance to shine, Kasumi did previously feel like she was written to be the punching bag, someone who overestimated her ability and occasionally paid for it, so moments like these remind viewers that her outward mannerisms notwithstanding, Kasumi has what it takes to be a School Idol.

Screenshots and Commentary

• With a runtime of one hour, Final Chapter‘s first instalment briefly sums up everything that had happened in Nijigasaki High School Idol Club* *until now for viewers’ benefit – although for me, it would’ve only been a months since I wrapped up the second season, for Japanese fans, the first film would’ve released two years after the second season. Having a brief recap would help viewers get back into the swing of things, although I imagine that the most devout fans of Nijigasaki High School Idol Club would probably have the BD and have watched the series several times. In Japan, *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *is not quite as popular as the original series, but lovable characters, compelling progression and excellent musical performances meant the series accrued a dedicated following all the same.

• To put that in perspective, I’d started watching *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *for Emma and came to appreciate the other characters in full over time. In the past, I did not understand the appeal of idol anime because I perceived their stories as being very saccharine and optimistic, and sat out iconic classics like Love Live! School Idol Project‘s original run, as well as things like *Idolm@ster *– as a graduate student, I remember watching one of the Shiny Festa OVAs, got lost and never resumed. My first complete exposure was Wake Up, Girls!, which represented a very grounded and gritty portrayal of the world of idols: in a world where the characters didn’t even support one another, the WuG unit needed to build their skills and reputation from scratch, and often experienced devastating setbacks that challenged them to grow and improve

• In Love Live!, on the other hand, the School Idols are already inherently talented (Ayumu is an accomplished singer and dancer even before joining the Nijigasaki School Idol Club, and Lanzhu is counted as being one of the best performers around). Further to this, the universe of Love Live! is extremely accommodating, and School Idols receive plenty of support to pursue their goals. To the me of a decade earlier, the absence of real-world constraints made these stories feel too idealistic and easy. In the present day, however, I understand that circumstances need to necessarily be tailored to fit with a story’s goals. In Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, the lack of external challenge and focus on the School Idols themselves ensures that the story focuses on individual development. If financial limits or inadequate skill are no longer issues, this liberates the narrative to let the characters learn and grow.

• I vividly remember feeling this when switching over from *Wake Up, Girls! *to Locodol in 2014: whereas the former felt like dropping me into industry without any a priori software development knowhow, the latter would give an equivalent feeling of embarking on a software project with my lab for Jay Ingram. This was still exciting, but I would have the opportunity to learn at my own pace while at the same time, still had a very clear and tangible set of goals to work towards. *Love Live! *is more similar to Locodol than Wake Up, Girls! in this regard, and the gentler, more relaxed setting allows characters to bounce off one another. Amongst Japanese viewers, this approach would not be dissimilar to a slice-of-life work, and I expect that the combination of a generally peaceful environment, occasionally punctuated with a bit of interpersonal drama and internal conflict, creates enough excitement so that these works can be entertaining and cathartic.

• This is the side of idol anime that I did not fully grasp a decade ago, and had I clung onto these opinions in the present, I would’ve missed out on what is, in reality, a very enjoyable and warming series. By the events of Final Chapter‘s first act, Lanzhu, Mia and Shioriko are full-fledged members of the School Idol Club, and everyone’s gotten to know one another well enough – Rina’s clinging onto a Kanata plushie, and when Kasumi introduces a new mobile streaming app, a number of the School Idols become sufficiently intrigued that they become curious to give it a whirl. Adjacent to the app’s launch is a competition, the School Idol Grand Prix, to determine which School Idol can top the charts whilst in Okinawa.

• The idea of a competition achieves two things for Final Chapter: besides accentuating that this group of friends are competitors, it also offers a chance to show how large the world of School Idols is. Although *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *made it clear from day one that each of Ayumu, Setsuna, Kasumi, Ai, Rina, Shizuku, Kanata, Emma, Karin, Lanzhu, Mia and Shioriko are competitors, the eleven develop a very strong friendship with one another (to the point where the shorts, Nijiyon! has the characters going full yuri), and the balance between lifting one another up and supporting one another in difficult times, as well as individually excelling and standing out, becomes one of the central focuses of Nijigasaki High School Idol Club. In the two seasons, teamwork and friendship tended to win out: the idols are competent and able on their own, but together, they achieve things far greater than what would’ve been possible alone.

• Yū Takasaki represents the player character: a lifelong fan of School Idols, Yū is not an idol herself, but in time, develops into a songwriter and composer for the School Idols. Her relationship with Ayumu is strong, and towards the end of Nijigasaki High School Idol Club‘s second season, Yū and Ayumu found themselves at a crossroads about their future plans. Since then, Yū’s embraced composition and has since gone on to apply for another competition. For my part, I’ve found that in the past, pressure would always cause me to drop the ball. When I approached competition as an opportunity for feedback and learning, the pressure evaporated, and I found myself able to have fun in anticipation of learning something about myself and identifying areas of improvement. The fact Yū’s willing to participate in composition and songwriting competitions suggest she’s in it to gain feedback and measure her progress.

• Once the film’s premise is established, Lanzhu, Ayumu, Kasumi, Shizuku, Kanata and Emma fly over to Okinawa, where they participate in a variety of events and performances to impress their fans. It suddenly hits me that the Nijigasaki School Idols do things for the School Idol Grand Prix that would be expected of today’s travel influencers: they live stream themselves participating in a variety of activities and act in a manner that gives viewers the sense that they’re accompanying the viewers in-person. The fact that *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *has kept an eye on current trends is a nice touch, and it certainly makes things more relatable for contemporary viewers, many of whom would be familiar with streamer culture and communities. For my part, despite making mobile development my career (a field where things evolve constantly, and there’s always exciting new technologies to try out), I am a traditionalist when it come to entertainment.

• That is to say, I don’t follow Twitch streamers or Virtual YouTubers at all. With this in mind, I am now curious to watch School Idol Project: airing back in 2013, the first animated Love Live! story came out during a time when broadband was commonplace, but before streaming was widespread. Such a series would represent a glimpse into an older time, with older ways, and it suddenly hits me that there’d be merit in watching School Idol Project to see how School Idols rolled a decade earlier. In Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, while the School Idols may do the things influencers do, they are infinitely more respectful of others and considerably more adorable, making them far easier to support and root for.

• Okinawa, with its beautiful weather and distinct culture, is a hotspot for Japanese visitors and anime stories alike: distinct from the climate in Japan’s main islands, Okinawa represents a place that’s just different enough compared to Japan to make it a notable destination, but still familiar enough for viewers. The intersection of novelty and familiarity makes Okinawa an excellent spot for anime to utilise, and it is here that Nijigasaki’s School Idols have their showdown with School Idols from all over Japan. The warm, welcome skies of Okinawa turn competition into joy: under Okinawa’s gorgeous conditions, it is evident that here in Final Chapter, the Nijigasaki School Idols’ objective isn’t to beat anyone’s pants off, even if to Kasumi, her desire to show the world her cuteness causes her to be more competitive.

• The Nijigasaki School Idols’ exploration of Okinawa includes culinary experiences, and at several points in the Final Chapter film, there are places where attention is paid to the food that the girls enjoy, such as when Emma and Ayumu sit down to burgers at a small vendor early on. While outwardly appearing trivial, food is actually a vital part of memory-making: experiences are characterised by sights, sounds and tactile sensations, but taste and scent are also important. A memory that has all five senses becomes especially powerful, and this is why Final Chapter places an additional emphasis on food. This is actually why I make it a point to attach culinary experiences to the things I do – over the past weekend, for instance, I took advantage of an extended long weekend to do some Christmas shopping and wound up swinging by the farmer’s market in the south for lunch. While a beloved vendor, the J-Spot, was no longer there, the new vendor, Muy Bueno Burgers, offered excellent food, and I wound up going for something called “The Grill Box”, featuring delicious ribeye steak, grilled chicken and boneless pork ribs served with slaw and poutine.

• I subsequently went for my last acupuncture appointment for the year (since my company’s changing out health insurers, I figured it’d be prudent to use the benefits before we made the switch). The evening concluded with a meetup with an old friend from my health science days: after bubble tea, we spent the difference of the night at a board game café. I took yesterday easy, and today, I spent doing a day trip to Canmore with the intention of scouting out new locations for sunrise photographs. The forecast had specified that today would be extremely windy: sustained winds of 50 kilometres per hour were expected, but gusts could reach as high as 115 kilometres in some places. While I’d been a little hesitant to go out, the weather proved tempting enough that I found myself driving out to Canmore despite the strong winds.

• After exploring the Three Sisters Creek Trail and finding a delightful, secluded waterfall, I returned to town for a later lunch at the Grizzly Paw Pub, where I thoroughly enjoyed theirBBQ Mac and Cheese with fried chicken and a house-brewed cherry cola. Lunch proved excellent, and the afternoon was spent doing a lazy walk around the Canmore Engine Bridge Trail. It suddenly hits me that this is my first time in Canmore since I bought a full-frame camera, and combined with a slightly different view of the world, I found myself exploring different vantage points to take photographs of familiar spots. In this way, the afternoon passed by very quickly, and I wound up stopping at the Communitea Café for a brownie and hot chocolate before returning to the Three Sisters Lookout for an attempt at sunset photography under cloudy skies. Although by now, the Bow River’s waters have receded, a small icy patch remained on the ground, and I found myself with an opportunity to use this creatively in a spot that otherwise wouldn’t look quite as spectacular as it would during the summer.

• Within five minutes of sunset, the skies had darkened considerably, and I made my way back home, where a surprise awaited me: it turns out another coronal mass ejection was detected, and tomorrow night may see a G3-level geomagnetic storm. I had missed out on Friday, having gone to bed early so I could tend to housework before my day of Christmas shopping and acupuncture, but if conditions line up, this might be a fantastic chance to go back out for some auroral photography. Back in Final Chapter, after Kanata and Shizuku share a conversation at the local aquarium, Kanata decides to put on her impromptu performance here, using the magical lighting and ethereal setting within the aquarium to sing a song that matches her laidback, dreamy aesthetic.

• I had entered *Love Live! *with a predilection for Emma, but as I made my way deeper into the series, I found myself being drawn to Kanata, Ayumu and Setsuna, as well. All of the Nijigasaki School Idols are lovable, but for me, Kanata’s relaxed, more-reliable-than-she-looks demeanor made her quite appealing: as an older sibling, I completely relate to Kanata’s desire to do everything she can for Haruka. Ayumu is downright adorable, and Setsuna represents how size is no measure of spirit: we actually share similar backgrounds in that for the longest time, I wasn’t open about my enjoyment of anime, fearing judgement, but in time, I’ve come to accept that my enjoyment of Japanese popular culture is simply a part of who I am, and since it does not negatively impact my obligations and responsibilities, I see no reason to be ashamed of the things I enjoy.

• Since Shizuku and Kanata have now given live performances, Ayumu and Emma decide to step up their game and try to find a good venue for an impromptu performance. The pair stumble upon Ten Akamine, a sanshin player voiced by Miyuri Shimabukuro. With a quiet and graceful disposition, Ten gives the impression of being musically inclined and politely thanks Emma and Ayumu for their praise. Characters are rarely introduced without reason, and for me, this fact makes it easier to work out how a character will figure in a work where there are established characters: there’s a gentle melancholy surrounding Ten, and her introduction is framed in a way that paints her as having a deeper story, one which invites her into Final Chapter‘s main story.

• One trait I’ve long respected amongst Nijigasaki High School Idol Club‘s portrayal of School Idols is how approachable and friendly they are – necessary to foster strong bongs amongst the characters from a storytelling standpoint, the characters’ warmth and polite manner make them inherently likeable, and while there are some moments that can challenge this, the fact that Nijigasaki High School Idol Club* *tends towards presenting people as favouring kindness and civility overall means that whenever new characters and conflicts are introduced, my first inclination is to be patient and let the story provide all of the facts before passing any judgement: in Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, misunderstandings come about because of poor communication, and correspondingly, resolutions come from characters opening up and being truthful to themselves, as well as speaking candidly about their problems to others.

• Competition does not stop the School Idols from befriending one another, and as the first day draws to a close, the Nijigasaki School Idols accept an invitation to join the others in exploring Okinawa by night, as well. The presence of other School Idols in Nijigasaki High School Idol Club was one of my favourite aspects of the series – it gives the world a very lived-in feeling, one which makes all of the story’s events plausible. Because School Idols are a major part of this universe, their appeal and corresponding support translates to how the girls are able to put on impressive shows at scale. Because I’d entered Love Live! knowing that there’d been earlier instalments, a part of me had wondered if the characters of Love Live! School Idol Project and Sunshine would make an appearance.

• This never materialised – the other School Idols in *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *are all original characters, and this suggests that the events here probably happen after the characters of School Idol Project and Sunshine graduated, creating a clean slate for the franchise to explore different directions. The more I entertain the thought, the more merit I believe there is in going back and watching School Idol Project all the way through. Besides being the starting point for Love Live!, returning to see a portrayal of the world from a decade earlier would offer some interesting conversational topics surrounding the evolution of technology and social trends. This is one of the joys about anime that do incorporate contemporary technologies into their stories.

• Timeless stories, like Tamayura or Kiniro Mosaic, tend to de-emphasise the technology and may have characters using things like feature phones, giving them just enough to communicate with. In this setups, feature phones lack the same “always online” connection that smart phones offer, and this in turn pushes characters to live in the moment, creating a more nostalgic feeling. When contemporary technologies are incorporated, then, a show captures how technologies are being used in a specific timeframe. Although this outcome seems frivolous in the present, when we’re fully aware of how we use things like smartphones, in ten, fifteen or even twenty years, technology will evolve in ways that are difficult to foresee. For instance, smartphones were already commonplace a decade ago (and in fact, I bought my first iPhone exactly ten Novembers ago).

• However, smartphone culture in the 2015s primarily consisted of messaging and sharing of photographs over social media, from things like Twitter to Snapchat. The idea of a vertical short video was not popular back then, but in the present, this is the mode that most people consume their social media content in. Back in Nijigasaki High School Idol Club*, *the fact that Ayumu carries a little plush of Yū around is adorable, and here, she poses for a selfie whilst out and about. The fact she’s shooting in landscape orientation is quite unusual and acts as a very subtle reminder that even though *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *is a modern series, the producers indicate their respect for the old ways: the landscape orientation allows for wider shots that provide more context, and for my part, as a landscape photographer, I shoot almost exclusively in landscape orientation because my lenses are wide enough to capture everything I wish.

• If I subsequently need to emphasise verticality, I can always just crop down my image: today’s cameras have enough megapixels that one can crop a landscape image to portrait without degrading quality. On the other hand, if I shoot in portrait orientation, I only do so if there’s a clear reason in doing so (namely, waterfalls and buildings, or full-body shots of people). After Ayumu notices Kasumi, she panics and very nearly drops both her phone and the Yū plushie. Such a reaction suggests that Ayumu does view Yū as being a little more than an ordinary friend, and further to this, *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *has created a few moments where there is merit to this thought. However, the blurring of boundaries between what’s platonic and romantic, especially within anime, is more of a Japanese expression of closeness and are not necessarily indicative of a romantic relationship.

• As it was, Ayumu’s quickly recovers in time to take a photograph with Kasumi, and I was left wishing that such plushies exist: the Kuripan plushies are quite cuddly-looking, but they’re also significantly larger and therefore, not quite as easy to carry around. Some of my friends carry plushies around for their travels and use them as subjects in their shots, and online, I’ve seen folks bring Nendoroids with them to places. This would make travel photography a little more varied and exciting, and while I do have a number of Nendroids, I’m not comfortable bringing those with me into the field owing to the risk of losing parts. A small plushie would probably easier to carry and use as a photographic subject in this regard, and if such a plushie were machine-washable, it’d be a no-brainer.

• The visuals of Final Chapter are of an excellent quality, bringing every setting and experience to life. Produced and animated by Sunrise, the *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *series is of a remarkable quality – everyday moments are set in richly detailed environments, and the performances are polished so they do not become overtly “digital” in appearance. In other anime with idol-style performances, like *Extreme Hearts *and Luminous Witches, performances have often felt a little more jarring because of the choice to use CG for producing more dynamic and fluid movement. While this captures the feeling and aesthetic of a performance, studios don’t always have the time to polish up the 3D models ahead of airing, leaving them feeling distinctly blocky. Home releases tend to fix this, but this was not an issue in Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, where performances feel sufficiently well-done that they are all but indistinguishable from hand-drawn moments.

• When the School Idols stop at an Okinawan inn for dinner, they run into Ten again. The setup brought to mind the story in Non Non Biyori Vacation, which had Natsumi befriending Aoi, an Okinawan girl who works at the family inn and cherishes and ambition to play badminton. Here in Final Chapter, the inn provides a chance to show a quieter, more intimate side to Okinawa – Ten helpfully explains that it’s the off season and so, with fewer visitors, things are a little less busy, making it the perfect time to host an enthusiastic but well-behaved group. One touch I rather enjoyed here was how, as Emma and Lanzhu start on their noodles, the pair simultaneously respond in their own native tongues (buono for Emma, and 好好吃 for Lanzhu).

• During the quiet of dinner, conversations amongst the School Idols gives insight into the dynamics at Nijigasaki High School, with others expressing admiration at how despite being independent idols, the girls there have a very strong bond with one another. This point is driven home when Shizuku spoils Kanata. All of Nijigasaki’s School Idols are lovable, and while I’ve expressed a fondness for Emma in my previous posts, I yield that there’s a charm about Kanata, too – her laid-back manner conceals a very hard-working individual who cares very much for those around her.

• After dinner ends, the first of Final Chapter‘s conflicts begin appearing when another girl, Koito, appears and confronts Ten about her friendship with the other School Idols. Koito had shown up earlier at Kanata’s live performance at the aquarium and stood out because, amidst the cheering spectators, she alone had felt downcast and sullen, a far cry from the energetic and spirited audience members. In typical storytelling manner, this moment was meant to deliberately foreshadow Koito’s own views of School Idols, and her disapproval towards Ten here, in the absence of any context, creates a bit of friction amongst the other School Idols present.

• Kasumi is the first to react, similarly how she became incensed when Lanzhu challenged Emma and the others during the second season; the framing here, in having Kasumi standing at the centre of the group, illustrates how she’s channeling the thoughts the others might be a little too polite to openly express. Kasumi is an interesting School Idol in this regard – she’s impatient and quick to pass judgement, and her actions often stand in sufficient contrast with her cute demeanour, causing her to be branded as a “black-hearted type school idol” in her in-game description. However, because *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *is not about interpersonal drama, Kasumi’s mannerisms are meant to be a mild nascence at worst, and the fact she’s quick to stand up simply shows that she cares about those around her and maintaining the reputation of School Girls, showing her respect for the craft.

• By the day’s end, Kanata’s rendered exhausted and all but falls asleep during a bath, worrying Emma. I found it intrguing that Emma’s wearing cow-print pyjamas – amongst the Japanese fan art community, Emma’s having the largest bust of anyone in Love Live! is something artists are fond of depicting in their works, and artists sometimes portray Emma in outfits with a cow print to accentuate this point. The fact that Final Chapter subtly incorporating something from the community suggests that Sunrise is aware of trends amongst fans, and here, they’ve chosen to acknowledge those trends in a way that is both appropriate and respectful.

• While Yū’s back home in Tokyo, she’s been following the events of the School Idol Grand Prix closely and is rooting for everyone. Small moments like these break up the story and remind viewers that Yū, despite being absent from the proceedings, is still supporting her friends with all her heart. The choice to include a window in the hotel room’s bathroom was an interesting design, and while real world hotels are unlikely to have such windows, in Final Chapter, it allows Kanata and Emma to quickly join the conversation despite being in separate rooms, separated by a pane of glass. The symbolism in interior design is something anime have employed in the past to great effect, and much as how the little round door in the Misakino residence in Iroduku: The World in Colours was a show of increasing trust between Hitomi and Kohaku, the window here reminds viewers of how the Nijigasaki Schools are connected despite their diverging paths.

• The next morning, the Nijigasaki School Idols are seen loading their plates at the hotel’s breakfast buffet. This is a recurring trend I’ve seen amongst travellers whilst abroad, where tourists fill their plates at breakfast. Lanzhu and Kasumi explain they need to be fuelled up for a full day’s worth of school idol activities, and while the moment is probably meant to act as a bit of visual humour (Ayumu looks on in exasperation and has a more manageable portion on her plate), I remark that while I might’ve been able to eat in such a fashion not too long ago, these days, I tend to take what I need and nothing more because 1) there’s always more things to try whilst out and about, and 2) my metabolism isn’t what it was before, so I don’t particularly feel up to eating in such a fashion.

• During breakfast, Kasumi is infuriated to learn she’s actually fallen in the rankings despite posting a large number of videos. Lanzhu reassures her that there’s plenty of time to improve her standings, and while it is tempting for Nijigasaki’s School Idols to simply team up, since everyone is competing independently, such a strategy isn’t likely to be helpful. The girls end up deciding to do their best for the day and reconvene by evening. This leaves Kasumi to attempt a comeback, and here, I remark that, at least for me, Kasumi’s approach isn’t one that is likely to catch the hearts of viewers like myself – I’ve never been one to enjoy spectacle or manufactured performances, and this is why in reality, many of the internet’s most popular streamers don’t appeal to me.

• Instead, it is the people who have a more down-to-earth, grounded showing that win me over. Kasumi’s efforts are contrasted with Shizuku, Kanata, Emma and Ayumu. While Kanata addresses her fans, Emma is shown participating in glassmaking and even manages to draw a crowd of photographers rocking mirrorless cameras. Ayumu similarly does a lively broadcast about cherry blossoms and is shown signing autographs, suggesting that it is important to not just look the part, but one must also be able to connect with people. Emma, Kanata and Ayumu all excel in this department, and the environment in *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *allows the School Idols to be themselves: fans of the School Idols are respectful and friendly, and there’s no indicator that things like internet drama are an issue.

• *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *is, in short, a streamer’s dream come true: without the problem of parasocial relationships and the attendant drama, one could focus purely on building their community and leaving a positive impression on others. In this domain, *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *is extremely positive and optimistic, showing what an ideal world might look like for content creators. The reality is considerably messier and uglier, with streamers occasionally running afoul of both their community, other communities and one another.

• Things in Final Chapter become interesting when Lanzhu’s mother appears – a prominent businesswoman who acts as the chairperson to Nijigasaki and owns a hotel chain, as well as having involvement in the School Idol Grand Prix, she’s voiced by Yukana Nogami and, despite having an intimidating presence on virtue of reputation, was someone who ends up being affable and friendly (in typical *Nijigasaki High School Idol Club *fashion). Her arrival shakes up Final Chapter‘s first act and brings up an excellent point about competition. When Lanzhu’s mother proposes giving Lanzhu an upgrade to her accommodations and offers to intervene in the problem of School Idols not having dedicated places to perform for the School Idol Grand Prix, Lanzhu immediately takes offense, believing her mother to be playing favourites and implicitly doubting her ability to stand of her own accord.

• The moment firmly establishes Lanzhu as being someone who plays by the rules – Lanzhu believes that achievements are meaningless if one does not earn them in a fair fight, and in this regard, Lanzhu and I are identical. In the realm of science, control variables exist precisely for similar reasons, ensuring that any observed patterns or behaviours can be confidently attributed to changing up the manipulated variables. The same protocol for ensuring an experiment’s validity is used to ensure that in a competition, individual skill and ability are the only things being measured. In such conditions, prevailing is a show of skill, something to be proud of. Because Lanzhu is someone with a proud personality, she immediately feels slighted – openly, she disapproves of her mother’s words, but I imagine that someone like Lanzhu would also take the suggestion to be an insult, one implying she can only get ahead with help.

• This is what causes Lanzhu to contemplate dropping out of the School Idol Grand Prix. Before things can escalate, Emma steps up and implores Lanzhu to reconsider. Even at this early stage in Final Chapter‘s first conflict, the film already foreshadows the route that Lanzhu must take to reconcile with her mother, and the route Ten takes to reach an understanding with Koito. Although best known for her gentle disposition, Emma is someone who can and will step up when a moment calls for it: she grasps Lanzhu’s wrist, stopping her in her tracks, but almost immediately changes her tone and manner to remind Lanzhu it’s okay to open up and speak her mind. The Lanzhu at the start of Nijigasaki High School Idol Club‘s second season would’ve brushed Emma aside, so seeing Lanzhu pause and consent to tell her friends of what’s happening was a very clear indicator of how far she’s come since becoming a member of the School Idol Club.

• No trip to Okinawa would be complete without mention of A&W – this American burger chain is very popular here, and as Lanzhu explains her decision to her friends, there’s a burger and onion rings, with a mug of A&W’s iconic root beer, on the table. The restaurant opened Okinawan branches in 1963 to success, and a few years later, A&W Canada was acquired by Unilever. Canadian A&Ws are unrelated to their American counterparts and today, are most famous for their grass-fed beef burgers and sugarcane root beer. Over a fast food meal, Lanzhu explains her reservations, and her friends end up suggesting Lanzhu to hold off on her decision until she’s had a chance to clear things up with her mother. Emma suggests that Lanzhu lodges at Ten’s family inn for the time being, since Lanzhu’s reluctant to return to her hotel her mother owns.

• The fact that Emma ends up helping both Lanzhu and Ten reinforces my belief that Emma is Best Girl™ in Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, even if Ayumu is counted as the protagonist within the animated adaptation – she’s constantly looking out for the well-being of those around her. Although Emma’s presence in the *Love Live! *mobile game was characterised by her love of bread, and she was presented with a noticeably larger bust than the other characters, the anime would give her chances to shine as an individual, making meaningful contributions to everyone’s growth. Emma certainly embodies the concept of someone who leaves a place better than she found it, and after Ten agrees to the request, Emma even offers to stay the night with Lanzhu to remind her that she’s always got someone in her corner.

• Halfway through the film, Ayumu contacts Yū – seeing Lanzhu willing to stand down in the name of fair play prompts Ayumu to wonder if she has any right to take part in something like the School Idol Grand Prix, since her own reason is more rudimentary in nature. I’ve found that of the School Idols, Ayumu is the most lacking in conviction and confidence despite her obvious ability and talent: as Nijigasaki High School Idol Club‘s protagonist, she’s the character that viewers rally around as the novice, and her doubts are therefore quite valid. Against folks who are here to play for keeps and have a strong objective in mind, Ayumu’s desire to participate simply to learn and grow feels a little light at the onset, but it does not invalidate her intentions as a School Idol; one does not need a well-justified reason to try something new with the aim of learning and improving.

• The conversation between Yū and Ayumu is left ambiguous, causing Yū to become distracted – although she’d been focused on the composition competition until now, it’s clear that Yū is very concerned about Ayumu, enough that viewers will be treated to a very pleasant surprise later on. The “right” to participate in something or be somewhere is one that anime have covered in the past: Tamayura: Graduation Photo had Norie briefly consider quitting sweets-making after feeling she’d do the discipline injustice, and in My Dress-Up Darling, Sajuna similarly wished to quit after feeling her stature prevented her from adequately playing taller characters. In both cases, support from friends convince Norie and Sajuna that there is no metric for “worthiness”, and people should simply do the things they’d like to do.

• The growing friendship between Kanata and Shizuku was a nice touch in Final Chapter, with the friendly senior supporting a junior who’s content to spoil her senior. More often than not, Nijigasaki High School Idol Club focused more on the idol units and the entire Nijigasaki School Idol Club as a whole, leaving smaller moments like these out. Moments like these would reiterate that friendships do exist amongst the different members, and it is because of these bonds that the Nijigasaki School Idol Club is able to perform well solo and together. It is clear that Sunrise’s team had clearly put thought into Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, and for a studio best known for Gundam, Sunrise has stepped up and succeeded in bringing the world of School Idols to life.

• My favourite moment in Final Chapter‘s first act comes when Ten and Emma share a conversation together, one which clarifies Ten’s backstory. Giving Emma the role of supporting Ten was a big win for her – throughout Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, Emma had been shown as someone who lifted others up and only ever really becomes down when those around her struggle, and while this makes her a bit of a flat character, having her step up in Okinawa shows that Emma is someone whose kindness knows no bounds. While this can be detrimental from a certain point of view, Emma’s accustomed to lending a hand and represents someone who prefers to meet adversity with kindness. While she can be a little more direct if the situation calls for it, Emma has struck a balance between helping