i was not expecting ANY OF THIS | Oshi No Ko Episode 1 REACTION! 

watching this a second time makes it hurt even more 😭 this may be my favorite anime episode of the year so far. i cannot wait to see what comes next!!!

"She's not gonna die, right? She's not gonna get killed" Famous last words

I’m gonna throw out a oddball comment compared to what will mostly be talked about, but I really loved the development of the president’s wife. She never asked or even envisioned having to take care of some clueless idol’s children, and those kids had to threaten/bribe her to take care of them. But over the years she developed a relationship with Ai, Ruby, and Aqua, that by the time of AI’s untimely murder she grew attached, and out of her own volition with no strings attached she chose to become their adoptive mother. It was a brief respite in a time of total pain, and really amazing that she had gone from willing to sell Ai and the children out to wanting to care for them when they had nothing else left.

Some language things I found interesting: Ai's name is spelled in katakana, implying it should be read phonetically as a foreign word. It is both the first two letters of how Japanese spell the word "Idol", but also could mean 'eye'. Her full name could be read as Hoshi no Ai, or 'Star-eyed'. There is also another connotation, in that "Ai" is the Japanese word for "love", but being spelled in katakana it would imply the word sounds like "love" without meaning it, which has parallels to Ai's feelings on the matter.

Akasaka is a master in turning something that seems so kawai desu into a dark depressing story

This series is definitely written by the same author as Kaguya-sama, however, what you might not know is that canonically, this is actually set in the same universe too. Man sure can make a traumatic tragedy story just as well as wholesome stories….

Ruby uttering "Why is the internet like this?" is still living in my head rent free after watching this prologue. It just really sticks the question in my head on why some people just seem incapable of civility the moment they lose the fear of consequence due to anonymity.

This author is just blessed getting two god tier adaptations of his manga back to back😭 and the fact that they're both so different

Ai's last words to her stalker seem a bit crazy, but it makes me cry to think that she did it to protect her children from him.

This anime actually portrayed the dark reality of Idol-Fan relationship. Even in real world, fans don't hesitate to talk ill about their idol without knowing any reality. Internet is a scary place where people have excessive freedom of speech, especially in the case of comment section. People just hurt/insult eachother with their fake accounts, they just vent their insecurities and anxieties by insulting anyone, no matter if it's their idol. Internet is place where people use freedom of speech as an excuse to hurt eachother.

It’s easy to call the president and his wife self-serving at the start and they probably both were, but you can see how depressed both of them were when Ai dies. The president was legally AI’s guardian and it seems to have been genuine by the end. He was in effect the twin’s grandfather. He didn’t have to legally adopt them. He was gonna share that alcohol with Ai and you can see he was so depressed he didn’t even attend her funeral.

Man, Aka Akasaka is really fascinated with the ideas of "masks" covering your true feelings. First, in the Kaguya-sama movie, then in this. Pretty interesting, imo.

The author is actually a genius for his concepts of love. Im going to love this series

Based on just this first episode what I really like so far is that for as dark and brutal as this anime's depiction of the entertainment/idol industry is, it doesn't seem to just be interested in offering a moralizing message that one should stay away either as a creator or as a fan. Ai is a self-proclaimed liar but she also isn't cynical, she doesn't simply see her audience as easily-duped losers and she has hopes for how her work might change the way she thinks about and expresses herself. And though we have the image of the murderous "parasocial" fan, it's also hard to overlook that the series fundamentally involves transforming the idol/fan relationship into a familial parent/child one - if we're being honest, it doesn't get more parasocial than that. That seems to be the foundation this first episode has built up - that as much as this space is structured by lies there are also genuine feelings that run through those lies in all directions, and there are both beautiful and horrifying things that can result from that. That's the hallmark of a great story to me though - it evokes all of this complexity without treating it like it has easy answers, and for that reason I'm so excited to see where this goes next.

"Oh, a new story by Kaguya's author, that's gonna be a funny one!" *Cries in the first episode* Can't wait to see where this is going! Also, your commentary at the end (about how that's accurately how we react to celebrities death and all that)... Aka does seem to use this story as a commentary on so many messed up thing in society (idol business, crazy idol fans, the movie industry, the internet, etc.. )

I discovered the manga like a year ago and I knew that as soon as the anime starts it would be a bombshell to people. I was honestly surprised to see that the manga wasn't pretty much talked about at all on Social Media at least from what I saw. So happy that especially this part got the adaptation that it deserves.

The calmest reaction ever! Everyone I knew was bawling their eyes out

ngl i may or may not have been anticipating alana's reaction all day

Bro I read the manga but I still cried so hard at the ending. They adapted the manga so well and it might even be safe to say it surpassed the manga, as the emotional beats hit so much harder with the voice acting and music Also, it's Day 62 of requesting Alana to watch plastic memories

That episode was definitely a wild ride, completely unpredictable

Although main character is really good, but side characters are also attractive enough. That's one of strength that akasaka has when he made storyline. It's funny to see your reaction about you are thinking agencies are piece of shxt, but you will realize later you caught in aksaka's trap.

The manga has 11 volumes as of now and I am glad to say that I still read every new chapter with the same excitement as the last one, it truly is a great story.

The episode is Peak fiction 💯🙏

When I saw the episode I was crying so much😭 it was tearing me apart personally I'm up to date in the manga meaning Paul all I can tell you is what's going to happen a lot of things anyway thank you for your reaction 👌always a pleasure and the author of the manga is always so good in writing❤

30:58 she got stabbed in the abdomen and it cut open her aorta, that's pretty much a death sentence unless you get treatment within 3-5 minutes and even then the chance of surviving is slim. There was nothing he could have done. The aorta is the largest artery in the body so getting stabbed there is game over

This show absolutely broke me I started it knowing nothing about this thinking that it’s going to be about this idol who’s smart kids will show their mother what it means to love but I didn’t think it would be like this and with my empathy i felt the loss in the final scenes hard it destroyed me

Aka Akasa only writes S-tier stories, ngl

After seeing the episode, every time Aqua and Ruby visibly aged a little bit between scenes gave me anxiety, like a countdown to what's coming... pain...

Kaguya and Oshi no ko are also in the same universe, Kaguya has a cameo in one of Oshi no Ko extra chapters

Bruh this was brutal, like it played with every emotion like it was some joke.

I have known Doga Kobo only for doing CGDCT animes and OsaMake but this one hits hard. It was animated so great and I loved the animations. The crew did an amazing job. I kinda knew that this show would be dark but seing Ai dying holding her son in her arms and telling "I love you" with her last breath was the most-heartbreaking scene I have witnessed since some years. And yes, the depiction of (Japanese) showbiz and the fandom is not farfetched. There have been some cases where some idols committed suicide after being cyberbullied by fans. The last case I know about was Amane Shindou of BanG Dream! series was targeted at by parts of the franchise's fandom because her fictional band was implemented before another group which was established before Amanesu's group was introduced. Gladly, she did not harmed herself, but is crazy what people are willing to do to others. To answer your question about the manga. In Japan eleven volumes have been released while first three volumes have been translated into English.

The commentary on parasocial relationships is SO relevant today. People have an innate need for social relationships (Maslow's hierarchy of needs) but when their only social relationships are parasocial, that is a recipe for disaster imo. I don't think parasocial relationships are inherently bad but people need healthy relationships with tangible people so they don't go crazy like that stalker guy. I guess it's not too surprising that something written by Akasaka would tackle a relatively new and unexplored topic (Kaguya-Sama did cover revenge p*** after all) but I'm glad he's tackling it because I don't think we fully understand the impact of parasocial relationships on human psychology yet.

"I shouldn't have said anything!" Your lisp is so cute!!! 😆

Don't know if you want to wait for episode 2 to come out but a reaction to the opening would be nice aswell. It's amazing.

Top 10 anime betrayals Aka Akasaka and Kaguya-Sama fans who thought he only wrote happy cute stuff Man, i really didn't expect this, this is something Madoka Magica level of surprise i had with this anime, i didn't even read the synopsis

ALANA this plot is breaking my brain..

I was waiting for this for a while because of it looking cool, but didn't look into the story or anything. My god this first episode blew me away. How in an hour and a half they make you have that connection with the characters is such a testament to the story telling. So much so that I bought the manga straight away and pre order the rest of the series for when they release. I cannot wait to watch the rest of this series.

This is my favorite Manga (alongside CSM), and I'm so happy the anime is already looking sooo good! They really did it Justice, this Story is so amazing, I can't wait to watch it and also see your reactions to it

I’ve never been so early. Oshi no Ko is my favorite series of all time, and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I and so many other people do. This series is so much pain. But so so good.

one of the best first episodes ever, rly heartbreaking. All of the team from regisseur till artist do a awesome job. The light fading away from her eyes has hit me rly rly hard.

That after credit is just twisting the knife 🥲

Man I didn't expect it to be like this either. I THOUGHT IT'S GONNA BE A FUN SLICE OF LIFE ANIME WHAT THE HELL

This is my first time watching one of your videos, also first time watching a show i definitely LOVE ! and this is the perfect reaction ! Loved the way you pay attention to everything and try to plot everything yourself. I'mma rabbithole your playlists now to see what you've got :)

Yeah the Trauma, Anger, Pain, Emptiness i feel after finishing the Episode :> Aka Akasaka u dropped this👑

I wasn't planning on watching this, the "idol" aspect turned me off. I've never watched anything about idols, and haven't enjoyed clips from other idol shows i've seen. HOWEVER, i saw you (and other reactors i watch) start reacting to it, read the description to this video, then stopped watching and pulled up HiDive and watched the first episode. That was freaking incredible...thank you for being the reason i watched it

*her life flashes befor her eyes "She's not gonna die right? "

I expect this to be the show to crack open idol industry for the west and explain how it works. *The concepts will probably seem almost alien to people.* Like 9:39 kk 😅 It does sound dramatic for someone who doesn't know, but he's not being dramatic in the least. Everything he's saying would likely happen or even worse. Idol industry is no joke O.O I mean, they got killed for it. Damn, 33:08 . Ruby's VA was on point here. I really hope the anime adaptation can bring at least a bit of change in Japan bringing that stuff up. Or at the very least be a wake up call for some. It's much easier to harass people when you don't know a thing about the stuff on their side.

its heartbreaking how much ruby looks like ai

You held up emotionally a lot better than I did… I hadn’t wept this much watching an anime since certain episodes of Violet Evergarden. ^_^;; This story is certainly a commentary on the entertainment industry in Japan. Idols must remain “pure” for their fans, and even having a relationship would hurt their careers as they will lose their fans. In addition, some fans go overboard and some become scary stalkers. Former AKB48 member Minami Minegishi famously made an apologetic video shaving her head for being exposed to have dated another singer, other AKB48 members were stabbed during a handshake event (though it was not really a fan, but just a psycho who wanted to kill someone and the handshaking event was a convenient place), another AKB48 member was raped in her apartment by her fans, and a singer-songwriter was stabbed and killed by one of her stalker fans.

Hohohoho, I am so glad nobody spoiled anything, this setup is WILD!!

It would have taken 3 Episodes to find out, that she isnt the MC and that this is an revenge story. I am happy that they choose to do it like this, it had such an strong impact!

after watching ep 1 i read chapter 10-115 of the manga 😨 and yes the story gets more and more interesting even if it's slow paced

Jesus what a rollercoaster, the first episode could have been a movie all by itself. Easily my front-runner so far for anime of the year

There’s 115 chapters of Oshi No Ko out as of yesterday, and only 1 English volume. In response to your question at the end of the video!

That twins scene with the lightstick was amazing!

I've never seen such a sublime animation

at 29:02 Her: Im like so interested on where this is gonna go. Me: Well you about to find out

Damn, i’m 23 years grown man and yet ugly cryed by fiction story ,i’m so glad ive born in this crazy era when media around conecting people fell with eezz ,isn’t it gorgeus ? 🗿

this was probably one of, or maybe the best anime first episode that i've ever seen, i was mindblown, it was out of this world, omg

3rd time seeing this and can't help myself not to cry...

I watched it three times and it made me cry every time. ☝🏻😭

Honestly, I have been watching anime since 2020 and there were quite a few instances where I had felt void in my heart while watching them [Especially after watching I Want To Eat Your Pancreas (2018), Maquia: When The Promised Flower Blooms (2018), Violet Evergarden (2018-2020) etc.]. But, this episode would be the first time when I felt the same voidness into my heart, as in the first episode on any series! Who would've thought that an episode which started so beautifully turned out to be so tragic! Furthermore, I also have a suspicion about the name Tanujirou, which appeared into the tweets in this episode, of whether it is connected to Ai's murder.

Jesus christ, I just got through watching that and I'm honestly shivering right now.

Anime became the highest rated anime with just 1 episode😮

It is at the top of MAL for now... Let us see if it continues to be good.

Its so heartbreaking ngl😢. But all of theese things on the anime is facts soo i can feel the pain too. Entertainment world is cruel

Was waiting for this reaction!

The part about her being unable to be honest about saying "I love you" makes me think of Violet Evergarden

This reminded me a lot of Perfect Blue, which would be cool to see you react to if you haven't seen it.

The writing level is top tier and when I found out he did Kaguya as well. I thought to myself, "This dude is another level when it comes to writing, storytelling, and making a very intriguing premise to draw viewers." The youtuber Chibi Reviews said it best, Aqua feels like a modern day/Gen Z "Light Yagami"... And when I started the Kaguya series awhile back, I thought the characters had Death Note intelligence but put in a RomCom setting.

So glad you watched this!!

I started reading oshi no ko around a year ago and I’m so happy with its anime adaptation. It’s Truly a gift to get an adaptation at this level for the manga I love. One volume of the manga is available in english, the second volume comes out in may, and there are a total of 10 or 11 volumes so far

Yes,I thought this show is kind a like cheezy seinen.. but turn out to be heavier topic than I expected regarding how realistic and relatable to this extend industry.

This journey is gonna be one to remember!

I was just looking for a new anime to watch and then this ep dropped🥹

Aka wins yet again 🔥

It's cool how this show was four different shows in its first episode

Do not get carried away by the aesthetics of this story, in fact it is darker than you think.

Seeing this the same month as Violet Evergarden Episode X must be really the shock XD

the manga is illustrated by mengo yokokari who wrote and illustrated kuzu no honkai too. i hope alana can also watch kuzu no honkai ! it’s fcked up but amazing watch!

The president isn't all about himself, if you rewatched it, you can see him saying "Your career and my agency". Some stuffs are spoiler-y so I'm not gonna mention it

never read a manga before and after I watched this first episode I already miss her.

I was hoping youd react to this lol. Im also anime only for this and DID NOT expect anything that happened. The ending threw me so hard bc I assumed it was just gonna be slice of lifey but dang I cried a lot after that. Now I gotta know where the show goes from here. Cant wait for more.

Welcome to Aka-sensei's wild ride Alana.

Fun Fact oshi no ko and Kaguya dont only share an author they also happen in the same world.

even the 1st eps already feels like a full blown movie, that deserve live-action adaptation (as long as the babies are not CGi)

Saw this this morning.

In Japan there are 11 volumes of the manga (all with beautiful covers) but as for the English volumes there's like one or two as they were released recently

Ah yes, more pain 😭

Hell yeah Aqua better spin the block for his mama.

Other writers, I will create master pieces that will be remembered forever. Oshi No Ko Mangaka, "Time to mentally, emotionally, and spiritually Destory my readers/fans. Just like Bane. I SHALL BREAK THEM!

A few days ago I had just watched a true story/documentary video of something that was similar to what happened in Oshi No Ko. It was a story of the psychologically and emotionally unstable die hard fan, a male person. When he found out that the girl he idolized started dating someone he interpreted it as if the idol belonged to him and has betrayed him. He tried to kill the pop idol by making a "bomb book" and deliver it to the pop idol's address as a gift. Basically a book that when you open it, a bomb inside explodes. The authorities managed to stop the package from reaching the idol, and the fan had taken his own life. It was the story of the "Bjork Stalker" named Ricardo Lopez. And as an anime only when I finished watching Oshi No Ko episode 1, I thought that the author might have written Oshi No Ko slightly in reference to the Bjork Stalker story.

I watched this blind this morning and i can't stop thinking about it

Oh gosh I just watched this and got pleasantly surprised that your reacting to this 😍😍, btw i just found this channel a few days ago because of kaguya sama and I binged watched your reaction 😍❤️

Love your t-shirt. Super nice

Fun fact not only is this series by the same mangaka who did Kaguya-Sama (like you mentioned) but they canonically take place in the same universe

I legit thought that the manga is a one shot only since I heard from a lot of spoiler sources yt shorts and stuffs but when I finished watching it, thankgod I was not spoiled by reading the manga...wtf it broke me

I can't believe that this and Kaguya-sama share the same world.

It is definitely anime of the year material. it was soo unexpected The first episode was amazing they really baited us making it seem Ai is the main character i wonder how the story progresses in the other episodes maybe because i just wanna see Aqua take revenge. Oshi No Ko is deff one of the anime of the year. It really hit hard like I want to eat your pancreas type shet but this was just even more sad Ai was soo pure and didn't deserve this. Also How the hell did the author went from making wholesome romcom like kaguya sama, then proceeded to make something like this. This guy is built different definitely up there with the greats. The animation and music were superb Great reaction

just thinking that out of all the people i wanted to see react to this it was alana lmao