This Anime Is Impossible To Recommend 

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The fact that Ai remembered her stalker, his name, his gift, how he attended many of her concerts, and still offered a hand out for him kind of broke me. You could just see how Ai snapped him back to reality, out of his delusional rage, and into “oh god, what have I done?! I just killed my favorite person, my favorite human-being!”

I can't help but tear up a little every time someone replays those last 20 minutes

But in all seriousness the entertainment industry here is very dark. I mean one my fav VA / singers is still struggling with death Threats and she has not done any work in 10 years. it is very sad. All because she had a boyfriend it is fucking ridiculous. They are just Human for crying out loud. Let them live their life. what annoys me is that these people call themselves fans but they do shit like this. You are not a fan you are a creep.

31:00 THIS. More people need to hear this because this misunderstanding of the actual story has caused people to think that the story isn’t really moving. It’s not ABOUT revenge, it’s about characters, and the revenge plot serves not as the primary goal of the narrative but as a catalyst to dive deeper into and understand more about the characters. This is honestly why I love your videos so much. It seems in every video you display very good media literacy skills, which is so refreshing among the sea of weird takes from other videos and people online.

When Brandon explained about Hana Kimura, I couldn't help but almost cried from her situation. When other RU-vidrs described what happened, they just give a brief summary of it but, Brandon's explanation just felt more personal especially at the part when she last tweeted before her doing it...

My favorite part is when the mangaka saw that her blood and sweat were getting decimated by corporate greed. Her work is not being respected and is only being used to promote not the manga but the actors.

I have to say, they picked probably the best VA for Ai. Rei is extremely amazing as a VA and does well with emotional roles. She is easily my favorite VA and knew I had to watch the show once I saw her in it. I put the show off because of the concept but once i watched the first episode, just like everyone else, i realized that this is going to be a completely different show than i was expecting and it was going to be good. Binged it in about 2 days and will say: kana is best girl. The adoptive mom whos name im forgetting right now is probably my favorite character because of her massive change from the start to the end of the show. I genuinely hope aqua and ruby tell her "thank you for being our mom when we lost ours" in the future. She deserves it.

Aqua being like light.. that never cross my mind. And i occasional rewatch death 3 times a year. Light.. when he gets god powers becomes a bad person.. when he doesn't, he's decent. Aqua never lost his conscious. He hides his emotions, but he's generally a loving person to those he loves.

And some "fans" seemingly didn't watch EP6 at all as they shat on Hana's mother when she expressed her outrage over that episode. Also, ironically, they also did the same to Akane's English VA

only an idol would name their children after GEMSTONES

I actually didn't know it was a common thought in Japan to think about reincarnating as a celebrity's child. It kinda makes sense, I also had day dreams of being adopted by a famous person when I was a kid, mix that subconscious thought with the belief of reincarnation that's mostly in east asian cultures and I can see why this would be a common shower thought there.

If I saw two babies suddenly talk to me like full grown adults I'd first wonder if this is some kind of divine intervention, then I'd wonder where and when someone slipped something into my food and/or drink

I still think Ai is the main character. Even after her death, the story and plot still revolves around her. From the character motivations such as Ruby wanting to become an idol Aqua wanting avenge Ai's death and Akane imitating Ai's persona to grab the attention of Aqua, to her songs, photos and videos still present showing that she still has presence in the story despite being dead. Long after her death we still learn more about her character through the people that worked with her before. Oshi no ko subverted expectations from other anime with "the main character dying". Unlike AOT or JJK the main character of this show stays dead and ironically she was not reincarnated unlike her children. Ai never being reincarnated just proves the point that no one can replicate her and that she is one of a kind. Kana and Ruby have the challenge of living up to the legacy that Ai left.

Brandon is touching grass?!?!?!?! I cant believe he would do such an inconsevable feat

How could you forget Memcho? The person that resembles you most: being a RU-vidr. Jokes aside, I find Aqua an interesting character. The way I interpreted him was that he was influenced by Ai's words, "lies are love." And so, after her death, he puts on a mask. He wants to get revenge on Ai's murderer while also making sure Ruby's idol group is successful. Because, just like Ai, he's greedy. Also, I would argue that Ruby still has an important role in the anime, even after episode one. Because she hasn't experienced life beyond her years as Sarina, now's her change to live her life the way she wants. She takes up Ai's "innocence," except now it's literal. She doesn't want any lies and kind of has a hard time lying herself. This makes her the glue that holds the new idol group together. Sure, she may not have as much of a presence as Kana or Akane, but that doesn't make her role less important.

As an Oshi no ko manga reader before the anime even announce, it's a masterpiece that cured my depression of lacking Kaguya-sama: Love is war, now that Kaguya-sama has ended, luckily Oshi no ko is still ongoing to fill that gap. Anime adaptation is godly.

The Hana Kimura incident genuinely made me cry. It just reminds me of how much cancel culture really screws things up for people. It's just how fucked up this world is for people over the little things that makes me cry.

I think the best plot synopsis without spoilers is “A dive into the world of media and celebrities (mainly in japan, though can be extrapolated to the wider world) through the eyes of the twins of famous idol Ai Hoshino; the parts seen, the parts unseen, the ugly truths and the effects of the fans on both producers and celebrities.” Because that’s what I got in the first season. We have Idols, TV Drama, Child/Teen Actors, Reality TV, along with stuff with online media and the gigachad that is Pieyon and the one streamer girl. And with that, the effects of fans, mainly the negative ones because “one hateful comment blocks out 10 positive ones”, along with stalkers (the one episode where red hair girl tells them to not immediately post selfies in case stalkers do show up). Yeah there’s the overarching plot about the murder of Ai Hoshino, but honestly it’s more of a background thing from what i’ve watched, the invisible hand pushing Aqua to do more stuff in media to be the Actor he wanted to be.

I’ll admit, the part about Aqua kinda made tears well up in my eyes, especially with that music. I just want someone to make an entire video about Aqua. About his emotions and what’s underneath that edgy edge-lord mask of his.

Ai’s final scene in the first episode had me legitimately ugly crying. As a parent myself, that hit me wayyyyy too hard

I was absolutely obsessed with this anime and it's story until recently after chapter 143 of the manga dropped. I have never felt so betrayed and disgusted and will now go watch Love is War to remind myself the mangaka can actually make good things.

Yh this show made me almost cry and that says a LOT. I have to give compliments to the studio for knocking out of the park like they did. Making the 1st episode so long was just a stroke of genius. It prevented newcomers from dropping the show while also making sure that the end would shock them. If it was done in like 3 eps then the manga readers would've likely spoiled THAT moment towards the newcomers.

Ai's death, #1 scene. But the #2 scene for me is Akane pretending to be Ai and it completely spooks Aqua. The cherry on top that brings the scene together is the beginning of the ending theme playing hauntingly over that. Just chef's kiss. Sent shivers down my spine.

The Akane situation and with the Real life person, I see a lot of people talk about the mob group but barely any about how evil the team behind that was to intentionally fuel the fire.

In my opinion, Oshi on Ko was very amazing, especially in terms of character writing. Frankly, I was attached to all the characters, especially Ai and Aquam. Also, the story was really good, although there are some expected and repetitive things in it, but it also contains many new and innovative things. (But this is natural from the author of Kaguya-sama) Even the production was very good, whether in terms of drawing, animation or music. In the end, I consider Oshi no Ko one of the best new anime in 2023, and my rating for the first season is 8.5/10.

One of the best videos about Oshi No Ko as a story I have seen so far. Someone actually gets Aqua right for once!

As someone who once were in the entertainment business, this show hit home. I know how some of these characters feel, and the fallout of dangers of the field, especially Akane.

Fun fact, love is war and Oshi no ko are in the same universe aka cinematic universe

as a manga reader, the eyes are key, as is the line “maybe lies are the truest kind of love”. the star means they’re lying, dark star means extreme obsession/ambition. this is shown when aqua and ruby find out the truth about each other and the stars are gone, but when they talk to everyone else they have one star and sometimes two.

Just finished ONK last week and absolutely loved it. I can't put into words how happy your passion for this show makes me.

Ok binged it, what I did was basically saw you uploaded a vid , then looked at the anime name , watched the entire thing and then came back and BY THE GODS, it was worth it I did not see that twist in episode 1 coming at all. I mean it really caught me off guard

just wanna say, I fucking love your character analysies, I've heard a lot of criticism on characters specifically and never understood that.. Akasaka is an amazing character writer and OnK just further proves that. Also love your take on Akane's story.. Too many people were way too quick to criticize it based on surface level information, and dismissing the entire premise by saying stuff like "it happened too fast, not realistic" which is just ridiculous.

forgot about memcho.. an aspiring idol but went as a youtuber until she got old and got shy to even continuing her idol dream..because she got certain circumstances.. its just sad

OnK has quickly risen to one of my favorite anime of all time, and while episode one certainly helped cement that idea quickly, it was, as you said, the characters and their growth that really set the bar of quality. All of them have varying levels of development that all build over time and through their interactions with one another, all distinct and all highlighting various aspects of the entertainment industry, not to mention that they're all so lovable (especially Kana, I believe in Kana supremacy). The visuals and music are also both impeccable, it truly feels like a passion project. I've unfortunately been hit with spoiler after spoiler for a lot of manga events from later in the story, but even so, I'm very very excited to see what season two has to offer

I still cant help but cry, seeng the scene of Ai dying, i never cried so much in the first 50 minutes of an anime. Oshi no ko is truly a masterpiece.

Even tho the rest of the video isn't about the first episode anymore, you're right, no one's gonna complain. The way you presented the real life stories is really really great. Keep it up

Ohhhh this aged like milk

I swear this channel is so underrated, Brandon's videos are so amazing in a comedy and writing standpoint

This series would have been much better without the reincarnation plot. Not only does a confirmed supernatural aspect in the world dilute the serious attempts at delving into real world issues, but if it didn't exist (or at least the twins were unrelated people in their previous lives) we would have avoided the incestuous bits, not to mention the 12 year old girl in love with a 35ish doctor. I don't know, I feel like it's a plotline that has no reason to be this central and could've just remained a veiled hint that the twins were once other people and they both loved Ai, if it had to be anything at all. Edit: Akane is the best and deserves so much better.

Honestly, I think the Anime that do the reincarnation/isekai trope the best are the ones that bring in passion and knowledge from the author. From the city-building of Slime, to the crafty know-how and politics of Bookworm, to a random artist's obsession in Vending Machine. This anime, though not one I had heard of before, seems to channel that same spark. And that makes it something special.

Even though I cried watching/reading oshi no ko I WASNT EXPECTING TO CRY HARDER OVER THIS VIDEOOOO (Edit: I love this video so much and I am currently making my friend watch oshi no ko so I can send this to them XDDD)

I just watched this as well as your video on Mushoku Tensei. Both Mushoku Tensei and Oshi no Ko superficially were shows I thought I would never end up liking, but I'm glad I gave them the try as I loved them, and both of them made me tear up. But your videos on them actually made me cry. They are so beautifully written, and put what I feel towards these shows into words in ways I could never. Thank you.

I knew about the Akane controversy (the irony is unreal) but didn't know how much others parallels to reality are in it. I think that makes Oshi no Ko even better and sad knowing it's not that unreal minus the reincarnation.

To be honest, coming back to Oshi no Ko, the thing that made me drop it was exactly the revenge plot. I don't like it. It was super jarring for me when I've read the manga, to reach the part where Aqua was almost in peace with himself, that he didn't have to go through with his pointless revenge anymore... Only for the freaking killer father guy to make an appearance again. I hated it. It felt like a slap in the face. I never read anything beyond that point in Oshi no Ko, and I doubt I'll ever come back to it.

This video deserves more recognition. Our boy Brandon went full-on detective mode just to make a video about an idol anime ❤❤❤❤❤ your work mate🥰

As someone who read all of the manga up to date... the anime-manga shows a lot about the truth and "horror" of the industry while giving a good story... It's amazing

I went into this show needing a pick me up for the day because of my father passing the day it came out knowing it was the same author has kaguya i knew it had some darker elements but I expected I lot more of a light hearted story especially with me thinking that the doctor died not at the very beginning so I expected the episode to end on Goros death instead of was hit with a death that said no your not sleeping tonight

Ah, I see. You are a fellow Kana enjoyer. Proving yourself to be a true man of culture once more. Cheers mate!

The first episode literaly gave me enough energy to finish the entire anime in a day

gosh...how i love Oshi no Ko... i only watched the first episode (will definitely continue the rest) and id wished you didnt spoil the rest of the series, but its been a ride of a video, and seeing the first episode, i know i'll watch the rest anyway so it was worth it. also, that sponsor transition was hilarious lol

I originally dropped this anime less than 10 minutes into the first episode, I'm both happy and mad that I was peer pressured into finishing it. This anime broke me completely.

The video start with a happy tone and ends in depression just like the first episode of the anime, i admit my eyes sweat a little bit just a bit.

Dang bro you really made me cry at the end a bit, nice video it was awesome!

You’re the first RU-vidr that has like tricked me into watching your ads. Normally I skip through them but I don’t wanna miss the jokes you’re pretty funny.

6:00 no it's still weird even then

Everytime i see Ai's death scene, I cry SO HARD INSIDE and I almost cry outside too... it shows how much that scene hits hard.

That sponsor segue was absolutely brilliant. I was thinking of getting a VPN since I'm going on vacation soon and I'll get the one you promoted just because of that segue.

Brandon, i love how this video almost parallels oshi no ko.

So glad to see you back and better than ever. Man the production quality skyrocketed!

That Atlas VPN transition was so smooth lol. Also, great video as always! Glad to hear your perspective on one of the best shows to come out recently.

That's crazy that they put incest in a masterpiece

This video is amazing. Your script and the combination of really good editing was truly a pleasure to watch

thank you for making an interesting video that made me finally get around to watching oshi no ko, at this point in time i have completeted the anime and manga (ch125)

I was waiting for a new video to come out and this was a masterpiece like always. I loved the show and cant wait to see what you might say when season 2 comes out

Yes, finally, i was waiting for this video since the stream where you talked about the first episode, it was worth it, amazing video, cheers

I dont need an anime to tell me the obvious. You can tell the industry sucks by just seeing idols be idols.

oshi no ko is so great and your video too keep going dude!

I love how the eyes show characters passion and how them lighting up is the character being passionate or in awe.

James stabbing him with an ice cream spoon gave him PTSD

29:23 and on. Man, I honestly was not expecting to tear up but it really hits every time.

To this day I still have absolutely no idea how an anime with the premise "dude gets reincarnated as the baby of his favourite celebrity" got popular. People read that and, with no other information, thought "that sounds like the kind of thing I would like".

yAY! New Brandon video!! :DDD 💞

Took your advice and binged it before watching the video. It was amazing

Great video man. Dropped the show a while ago but this makes me want to keep watching

Amazing video!

Episode 1 almost make me cry every time I watch it to be honest

I'm glad this was made. Saved me the problem and time of watching or reading it

Wow, I didn’t know about all the real life correlations, and the way you covered it was super interesting. The synopsis for this show had put me off at first too, but it ended up becoming one of my favorite watches of last season which says a lot considering all the bangers that were airing. Great video, mate! Hopefully people watch this and give the show a chance.

I've read the manga and really enjoyed it, haven't watched the anime though but damn, you made me tear up with Akane's and the last 20 minutes thing holy shit, never thought that scene would be much much more painful. I kinda stopped reading on the chapter where Akane attempted the thing as I thought I was getting too affected of what's going on, or I might just be not in the right headspace at the time. This series is really interesting, it tickles my curiosity. I'll give it a shot again this week.

I was finally able to watch this video Since i just finished the first season of oshi no ko. The video has been on the backburner for a bit.

YO IS THIS VID WAS A 10/10 KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK

This OST alone brings back my tears. Also if you haven't watched it, there is this other romcom anime by the same author than Toradora that is called Golden Time, and you should really watch and possibly make a review. I think you will like it if you don't already do, because you have watched it.

First time watching a video on this channel and I gotta give you big ups for spitting bars about this show as an actual writer. This story is special and the plot and character writing of it deserves a proper critical analysis and praise for many things it does so well. The statement about the show being a character drama and not a murder mystery is an extremely significant point that I've seen some people miss. The story works because of how the characters interact with each other and how their relationships develop. The revenge plot was only set in stone to give Aqua more interesting character motivation and a far more complex character. Just because he's edgy and witty doesn't mean he's immediately just Light. That's just a baseless comparison of character and I think it does the writing a disservice to both stories because their characters serve different purposes in their own respective shows. Frankly, I hate this comparison. Though aside from the inspiration of Akane's character, I still have a few issues with the show. I haven't read the manga but I hope it doesn't turn into a formulaic story of the cast working in a certain part of the industry each arc and Aqua finds a clue to the mystery at the end of every arc. Obviously its how that formula is taken, interpreted, put into practice, and applied which determine the quality of each arc but it would be monotonous. Its would be good but repetitive, like only being able to eat Korean fried chicken for every meal for a month. Another thing is just a personal pet peeve of mine but I wish they explained how Aqua got a hold of Akane's location first because it just seemed like a Deus Ex Machina moment for me and I despise that trope. It's sacrifices the addition of a plot hole just to cut the need of writing an explanation of how the Deus Ex Machina moment happens. Like yeah they knew she was going to a combini but which one. It's either he stalked her house location and calculated where the nearest convenience stores are to her house and checked each one and got lucky with the timing, which would have been an ok explanation imo but it was just not explained. But yeah man great job on this video. Absolutely love your work and I look forward to watching your other vids. I salute you, fellow writer.

After seeing the intro to this vid I went to check out the anime with low expectations and now this is one of my favorite anime’s

Aqua and light or not similar. They both are very different aqua only ask edgy, but he is the most complex and caring character light is a psychopath. He does not care about the people he hurts. He just laughs like a psycho. I would say Aqua‘s father is more like light in chapter 109 he literally killed a popular actress.

4:36 I have that exact green wayer bortle at home

30:30 Fuck. Full on tears, man. Not fair. I loved this episode so much. I can barely see my damn keyboard, with that fuckin music playing. Great video, which said a LOT about Oshi no Ko.

ok.. I just finished the first episode and to have so much story packed into 90mins was just amazing..

the problem with "atlas-vpn" is that ai herself was the one who told her location to her former boyfriend, who in turn sent the stalker to her hospital, so i doubt any kind of vpn would have helped...

This show holds the record for most times I've cried within an episode. The answer is 3 and it was all in the last 20 minutes.

THE MUSIC THAT YOU PLAYED IN AI’S PART BRO 😭😭😭😭😭 I’M TEARING UP

:3 beautiful video. Ty

bro you had to make me cry again

I love how you used Emma's Theme as a background song in the beginning

The first episode made me go in a rollercoaster of emotions, its just WILD Anyways, I loved it. And amazing video.

I like how brandon goes outside, so we know that he indeed does touch grass.

Before I watched the episode 1, I already heard that Ai was deliberately taken out because she would've overshadowed the real MC, her twins. Talk about suffering from success, others once said. Also been blasting off IDOL by yoasobi, and the last lines really hit something in me. After the episode, I took a pause and realised, oh, so that's why she died. She already fulfilled her character arc. She learned how to genuinely love and be loved.

Sae my 1st vid of yours today. The Toradora anime that gave people post anime depression. Great vid, new subscriber. This was my 2nd. U on a roll

By far one of the best ways I've seen someone include a sponsor.