Anime name: The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls (also known as The IdolM@aster Cinderella Girls) and The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls Theater TV series as well as then ONA (web) series of the same name
Genre(s): comedy-drama (first series), slice of life, comedy (Theater)
Lauren’s Like Rating: First series: 10/10 Theater (TV): 7/10 Theater (ONA): 7/10 (First series: While not what I would usually be interested in, this series has a lot of heart and really cheered me up during a difficult time in my life. It was very well made, with endearing characters, beautiful visuals, and the music is so awesome that I’ve already started buying some of the CDs. I feel like I’ll be checking out other IdolM@aster series in the future. I liked so many of the girls that I had to make myself cut this post down to just top favorites! Theater: These were cute little shorts, but I’m not really into the cute factor, so I found them hit-or-miss whether I liked each one, but some were pretty funny and I gotta admit it made me happy seeing Rin do cute things.)
Character (s): Rin Shibuya, Anastasia, Producer, Ranko Kanzaki, Mika Jougasaki, Kaede Takagaki
Rin Shibuya is a cool idol who started out not wanting to be an idol at all! She was approached by the Producer, who told her she had a nice smile and asked her to consider it. After he accidentally makes a fuss at her school by showing up regularly and people misjudging his intentions, which leads to her meeting Uzuki and learning about her passion to be an idol, she agrees to try it out and winds up being good friends with Uzuki and Mio, with whom she forms New Generations. She is the most quiet one in the trio and keeps her composure well, but she is kind and caring and shows a more feminine and cute side when she gets flustered. She also helps run a flower shop and she has a dog.
Anastasia, who likes to go by Anya, is a half Russian, half Japanese idol who does her best to speak Japanese but isn’t fluent. She at times speaks Russian without thinking and sometimes needs help figuring out the words she needs, but she never fails to be a voice of reason and a good friend. She is a gentle, kind person and very supportive of the other idols. She and Minami form Love Laika together and become close friends.
Producer has a tough face, but a warm heart. Although he gets into trouble sometimes as people assume based on his looks that he is being bad, he is generally actually the person trying to help out. His dream is to help girls reach their potential and be happy, and although they don’t always understand his choices at first, it tends to work out well in the end.
Ranko Kanzaki is a Gothic-lolita idol who speaks in dramatic phrases rather than normal speech. Many people can’t understand what she means (Producer even writes down her phrases and a translation.) Although she is easily associated with horror by her appearance and behavior, she gets scared extremely easily and can’t stand scary or creepy stuff, so Producer gets her a Gothic themed project instead, which she really appreciates. She is the only one of the idols to not be in a unit and her stage name is Rosenburg Engel. Although she tries to seem arrogant and intimidating, she is actually sweet and a bit shy. After she deals with some of her insecurity and makes friends with the other idols, she encourages and supports them and even on occasion speaks normally.
Mika Jougasaki is the already successful older sister of Rika. She invites Rin, Uzuki and Mio to dance at a big performance to give them a confidence boost, and they love it. She beloved by the other idols both for her ability and her friendships with them. She is a very outgoing and positive person, and tends to lift others up with her encouragement and willpower.
Kaede Takagaki is a gentle and quirky idol, but once she starts drinking a whole other side of her comes out!
