Happy New Year once again! How is the new year so far for you? For me, it's a new start, kinda? I had a bit of a situation change in my workplace, so I kinda have to learn new stuff again, but to be honest, there is new stuff every day, so does it matter at this point?

Ain't she cute?

Anyway, back to the topic. Once upon a time, I talked about Love Live Superstar. It's been quite a while since. I did not speak about Love Live Superstar season 2 separately for a reason: That is because season 2 ended in a cliffhanger and will need season 3 to close the story. Anyway, time to speak of both seasons together. You ready? If yes, then let's go!

WARNING:-

SPOILER ALERT! This post is very likely to contain spoilers for this anime. So, if you are planning to watch the anime without any spoilers, you can either continue to read this post or move on and watch the anime.

P.S. If you want to be spoiled, well, go ahead and read it. You HAD been warned. Don't blame me for it if you INSIST on continuing to read this post.

Introduction

Love Live Superstar!!!!

Love Live! Superstar!! Well, I have introduced this series last time, so I will just make this a quick one. I will talk about seasons 2 and 3 as I talked about season 1. Anyway, back to the topic.

Love Live Superstar season 2!

Season 2 started in July 2022 and ends in October 2022 on a really huge cliffhanger. I heard that SIF2 did not do well, so I was a bit worried about its season 3. But, well, Season 3 did happen. It was aired from October 2024 to December 2024. I would say what a way for me to end the year. Anyway, as for any other plans for the franchise to stay alive, I dunno because the franchise is not exactly doing that well in terms of the game part at least. Just worried that it could imply something even worse than it is now. Anyway, let's move on.

Love Live Superstar season 3!

Plot

Practicing for the next Love Live

After their defeat in the Love Live Tokyo preliminary qualifiers against Sunny Passion, Liella!, the school idol group from Yuigaoka Private Girls' High School, is embarking on a journey to beat Sunny Passion, win Love Live and get new members to join for this mission to win the Love Live competition.

Kinako's first step into Tokyo

Before this, one girl named Sakurakoji Kinako came from Hokkaido to attend school in Tokyo and became lost when finding the living place that she planned before she came to Tokyo. Well...she accidentally "joined" the club...well, until they realised that it was their mistake, they then helped her to get to the place where she will reside when studying in Tokyo.

The recruitment is becoming a failure...

Well, they had an issue getting new members, though. Why? All the students in the school who are not members of Liella are afraid to join them because they do not feel that they are worthy to join them. Well, understandable, given that their aim is to win, and most students are not exactly confident in winning Love Live. Fair enough.

That moment with Shiki and Kinako

In the end, they managed to get four girls to join them. First of all, we will start with Kinako. Kinako started her school idol journey with them after Liella's effort to recruit new students by having a special live performance on the school's rooftop area. She was also hilariously aided by another student who would join Liella later on. LOL!

I think Kinako needs help there

Two other people will join Liella in a later episode: Wakana Shiki and Yoneme Mei. Wakana Shiki is the one who hilariously aided Kinako in deciding to join Liella. Before that, despite troubles with their strict regimen on recruitment and Kinako having a hard time following up, they all decided to keep the strict regimen in the end. Also, this time, Liella once again went to the Yoyogi School Idol Fest. They didn't win again because this time, another person, Wien Margarete, won it. Despite this, the other students from Yuigaoka came to encourage them to move forward.

Shiki and Mei

As for the story of how Shiki and Mei join Liella, well, Mei stalks Liella as usual. She was a stalker throughout the anime so far. With the help of Shiki pushing Mei and Kanon's advice, Mei and Shiki have decided to join Liella. In that same episode, Chisato decides to become the school idol club president, just as Kanon suggested to her in private.

Natsumi's plan

Natsumi being part of Liella

As for Onitsuka Natsumi, she will also join Liella because she wants to use Liella to get views and then follow the first-year student members to go on a training trip to Kinako's hometown. Initially, when her intention was found out, she then tried to split the first-year student from Liella, but it did not work; instead, she became their cameraman during their training in Kinako's hometown. Well, with Kanon coming to visit Natsumi after doing favours for her father in Hokkaido, Natsumi decided to join Liella for real.

What an entrance by Margarete

After this, things were pretty smooth, even with the challenge from Wien in the Love Live preliminary competition. Yes, Liella won that. After that, the dilemma for Kanon is: To be or not to be. Will she go to Vienna to further her musical studies or not? Initially, Kanon decides against going there until Chisato decides to push her to go there. Well, Kanon decided to do so after getting advice from multiple people. Anyway, with that, Kanon and Liella power through the finals and win Love Live. Kanon then will be going to Vienna, and so we thought...Well, nope. All of a sudden, it was decided that Kanon is to stay another year before going there and help Wien grow and achieve her dreams.

Margarete in Yuigaoka?!

Kanon's decision...

So, season 3 comes and starts from where season 2 left off. Where did it leave off? Well, it left off at the part where Kanon's trip is suddenly cancelled and instead instructed to stay to guide Wien on her musical pursuit. This leaves Kanon in an awkward position. Not only does she have to explain her current situation, but Wien's insistence on making another new school idol club in Yuigaoka is making things more complicated for her new life. In the end, she decided to join Wien's new school idol club to help Wien in her musical journey and push the rest of Liella's members to new heights.

Tomari out of nowhere

Just when Kanon was trying to join Wien's team, another person appeared and requested to join the team. Who is that? Well, well, well, it's none other than Onitsuka Natsumi's younger sister, Onitsuka Tomari, the girl I showed at the very beginning of this blog post. Anyway, she was kinda meh about joining as she only comes out to practice with Wien and Kanon whenever it is "necessary". The odd dynamic of the new school idol team is born. Having two school idol clubs in the same school is new for the Love Live franchise. Anyway, back to the topic.

The new school idol club's first live performance

Another Mei and Shiki moment. Gae.

The first stage for the new school idol club (named TomaKanoTe) was the Yoyogi School Idol Fest. Well, they didn't get anything because of Wien's previous comments on Love Live, but in the end, Wien enjoyed that stage performance regardless. That event triggered Liella's fighting spirit because of TomaKanoTe popularity after that stage performance. They make Shiki the centre for their next stage with some hurdles and troubles. With the help of Chisato and Mei, it all works out for Shiki and Liella.

The Onitsuka sisters when they were younger...

And now, this moment...

After that, trouble brews for the Onitsuka sisters. They are having some issues because of the past. The poor Natsumi had a lot of dreams, and none of them even succeeded when she tried them. It even came to a point where she was so depressed that she decided to earn lots of money instead, which broke Tomari's heart. After a bit of struggling, Natsumi, with the help of Mei, Shiki and XX, managed to get Tomari to see her determination to be a school idol.

The moment before the Shanghai live

After that, another problem arose. Keke is returning to Shanghai during the summer vacation. The vacation seemed normal until team Liella and team TomaKanoTe received flight tickets from Keke's older sister. With the push of Kanon, Keke decides to pursue a musical career beyond her school idol days. Also, during the school idol fest in Shanghai, Liella and TomaKanoTe did a special joint live performance.

Battle time!

After that, before the start of the Love Live preliminary competition, Liella and TomaKanoTe have to compete with each other. While the members of Liella! want to merge with TomaKanoTe, Margarete is determined to win against Liella, and Tomari is also against joining Liella. Because of the rules of Love Live, only one group from Yuigaoka can participate in Love Live. Well, that will be a battle of a lifetime.

Meeting time...

That hangout moment

Anyway, to ensure that both teams could accept the battle results, they decided to have representatives from both sides make a song for their battle. Meanwhile, Kanon decides to have a sleepover with the rest of the members of TomaKanoTe in her house. It was an interesting affair where we got to know that Tomari likes sweet things and jellyfish.

That intriguing moment...

After all that ordeal, the members of the TomaKanoTe decided to join Liella after the battle ended. Well, it is only the wishes of all of Yuigaoka students. With that out of the way, there are a few obstacles other than the opponents in the Love Live competition, like Margarete's initial poor integration with the rest of the members, Kinako's trouble in making lyrics for Liella's new song, Ren's struggle to find a successor for the student council presidency and Kanon's future school after graduation.

Another victory!!!

After successfully overcoming their troubles, including defeating their opposition in Love Live, they successfully hold the Love Live crown for the second time. Well, well, well, that's when the emotional graduation segment begins. The juniors are crying, especially Kinako. The one part that interests me the most is Tomari's request on having Kanon's ribbon because she admires her since starting school idol. Interesting. Well, with the encouragement of the senior members of Liella and the seniors gave them their special final live performance as they graduate, the rest of Liella members move on to aim for a third consecutive victory in Love Live. The end. I think.

The seniors' final live for the juniors of Liella

Anime Rating

Season 2

Story (Rating: 10/10)

The story mainly continues from the previous season, just like the previous series. There are some key differences:-

1. Liella is constantly finding/adding new members throughout the series

Unlike the previous series, the previous Love Live winners (like μ's and Aquors) never further recruited new members. All of them have gotten 9 members and retained them throughout the series. BUT for Superstar, it was 5 members on season 1, then 9 members on season 2 and then 11 members in season 3. Well, with the seniors graduating, Liella will be left with 7 members.

Keke is trying hard to recruit new members

2. Liella is constantly dealing with member integration throughout the series

Imma be real. Liella is a different beast altogether in Love Live. As they increase members each season, they have much bigger obstacles to overcome and have issues integrating the new members into the team. Striving for success and growth is not a new theme in the Love Live franchise, but Liella brought it to a different level. With new members unfamiliar with being a school idol, they have challenges that are unique to the previous Love Live series. They MUST gain even more recognition and support and overcome personal doubts to win Love Live.

What a moment this was...

3. Liella had to overcome a "school idol civil war" in their own school (Season 3)

"School idol civil war"?! Well, that is new. That is unheard of in the Love Live franchise. Unlike μ's and Aquors, Liella had to face Margarete's new school idol club's challenge and having Kanon and Tomari joining forces with Margarete. That challenge brings a new spark to the series and inspires them to improve more. Well, this only happens in the next season (season 3), though.

The new school idol club

To conclude this, THAT IS A TOUGH RUN for Liella. It is definitely a tougher run as compared to all (if not most) the groups in the Love Live anime series. Great stuff. Good plot. Great flow and pacing. What more is there to be said? Well, maybe it's that the new elements in Love Live Superstar are truly a breath of fresh air compared to the previous ones.

Another live from Liella in the school fest

Art and Animation (Rating: 9/10)

Well, there is nothing much as the arts and animation build upon the foundation of the previous seasons. Pretty solid. There's not much to say.

Last live for Kanon?

Sound and Music (Rating: 9/10)

Same. Great stuff. The foundation of the previous season is being used in this season, too. Good songs are being inserted in the anime whether in the opening, in the middle or in the ending. Great stuff.

Season 2 opening sequence

Characters (Rating: 10/10)

Gaining new members and making sure that they fit or even complement the existing dynamic of Liella? That is not a simple task, I say. Good job to the crew. Anyway, the girls' growth and interactions are interesting, fun and great. Getting those new girls to work with the existing members to work and strive for success together...well done to the story writers for making it coherent and good.

Special moment for the juniors

Enjoyment (Rating: 10/10)

What more can I say? I liked it even though it ended on a cliffhanger, which is the reason why I only decided to do this post right now. Anyway, this season builds upon the previous season's foundation and goes beyond that. It still has the tension and some of the nostalgic feel. Great stuff. I would like to watch it again.

That moment of Keke and Sumire

Overall Rating: 9.6 (9.5)/10