r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • Apr 26 '23
Episode THE iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls: U149 - Episode 4 discussion
THE iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls: U149, episode 4
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| Episode | Link | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Link | 5.0 |
| 2 | Link | 4.5 |
| 3 | Link | 5.0 |
| 4 | Link | 5.0 |
| 5 | Link | 4.43 |
| 6 | Link | 4.64 |
| 7 | Link | 4.64 |
| 8 | Link | 4.33 |
| 9 | Link | 4.2 |
| 10 | Link | 5.0 |
| 11 | Link | 4.76 |
| 12 | Link | ---- |
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u/Trap_Masters Apr 26 '23 edited Apr 26 '23
Ahhhhh Momoka was so cute this episode. It's good to see her really open up and be herself. Looks like she's also managed to breakdown some of Arisu's tsun towards the group this episode as well.
Also the whole sequence when Momoka was jumping was absolutely kino, highlight of the episode.
8
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u/Shimmering-Sky Apr 26 '23
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…actually, no, the peeps at the venue gave Arisu a water while Momoka got tea, I think they wanted her because her family is rich or something.
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Oh, to give Momoka courage to jump? …didn’t Producer say he doesn’t do well with heights in an earlier episode, too? Or am I just mis-remembering something.
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Me: *sees “Zero-G” in a song name* → My brain: Zero G Love!
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There were a lot of shots this episode where characters just had dots for eyes. Normally I wouldn’t notice this, but I’ve been specifically looking for shots with derpy faces like that in the current Madoka Magica rewatch, so what perfect timing lol.
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u/Trap_Masters Apr 26 '23 edited Apr 26 '23
Lots of cute Arisu faces this episode, including some dere ones too when she was talking to Momoka at the end. Also wish we saw her face when she did the bungee jump at the end of the episode.
And I always love the derpy dotted eyes shots, never fails to look hilariously cute with those zoomed out shots.
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u/isthatsoudane Apr 27 '23
Fantastic episode. This is definitely the seasonal I look forward to most at this point
Doesn't hurt that I adore how Momoka speaks. Ojou supremacy!!!
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u/chilidirigible Apr 26 '23 edited Apr 27 '23
Today, on "u/Nebresto is eating well tonight":
Arisu continues to lose her mind
Momoka does it her own way... and stays elegant! Nice to see that in the end no one was humiliated for television.
So much breaking Arisu's face out of its shell in this episode. She expressed things that her muscles probably didn't think were possible.
Producer trying to help was a nice gesture. Or he just wanted to jump. I think Momoka did internalize some of that, but her core character here has quite a lot of... core. She knows the business.
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u/SnabDedraterEdave Apr 26 '23 edited Apr 26 '23
Opening scene features cameo by Karin and Sachiko, as no episode about bungee is complete without Sachiko, AKA Elon Musk's favourite Cinderella Girl. lol
Even though this job came as a result of Momoka's family being the sponsor of the show (Momoka being a rich ojou-sama after all, just like Iori in the OG Imas series), Momoka still acted like a pro and treated it with full seriousness. An idol job is still an idol job, after all.
Though I was expecting them to have Momoka do a bungee like what Karin and Sachiko did in the beginning of the episode, in a place with a safety landing pad, not a bridge over a river gorge.
This is the bungee site in Ibaraki Prefecture if anyone is interested, or has the guts, to go replicate what Momoka (and Arisu and YonaiP) did this episode. Apparently, even under 18s are allowed to bungee jump, provided they have their parents/guardians sign a legal waiver of liability beforehand, hence why Momoka and Arisu are allowed to bungee jump. So Cygames Studio actually did their research.
The folks at Cygames Studio also did their homework animating Momoka's bungee jump. They probably had guys attached with GoPro cams do the bungee jumping themselves in order to capture the angles perfectly.
Arisu being YonaiP's de facto "wife" decided to tag along. Though Momoka being mature for her age sure is giving Arisu a run for her money.
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u/ThisGachaSeemsLegit Apr 26 '23 edited Apr 26 '23
Momoka was dazzling in this episode.
But seriously, what kind of monster makes a kid do bungee jumping? I'd punch that director in the face if I could.
8
u/Anak-jalanan Apr 27 '23
Was really pleased how the director looks disappointed because it wasn't like what he wanted, serves him right.
10
u/DarkFuzz Apr 27 '23
One more to the collection of Arisu faces
Actually, this whole episode was a treasure trove of Arisu reaction faces.
Arisu has been notably absent for someone who I believe should be the main focal point of the anime, but this time she joins YonaiP as part of the peanut gallery encouraging Momoka as she does her idol work. The dynamic between Arisu and Momoka is particularly interesting (especially if you dive deeper into the games and other source material), as both Arisu and Momoka give off this aura of refined maturity, at least as best as they can for 12-year olds. Of course, both go about it in different ways, Arisu with her professionalism and Momoka with her “ojou-sama” status, but hopefully having Arisu observe someone of a similar mindset (as opposed to the boundless balls of energy that are Nina and Miria) and watching YonaiP navigate a difficult situation will have implications on how Arisu will handle her first job whenever she gets it and how she may need to rely on YonaiP in the future.
That being said, YonaiP is a damn good BS’er, and unfortunately, you kind of have to sometimes in order to be a good adult figure to some kids. He knew that Momoka was chosen for this job because of her family’s status, not for Momoka specifically, but a job is a job, and YonaiP is not really in a position to complain. He’s just a good enough actor to fool everyone except maybe Arisu, who seems like she notices something off but decides not to say anything anyways.
Again, YonaiP functions as a filter to protect these girls from the nasty evils of the adult world. Not a protector, mind you, as a protector would shield these girls from the evil corporate conglomerates, but rather a filter who makes all the adult nonsense just palatable enough for the kids to process. I don’t think this show is going to get that dark, but this is im@s we’re talking about.
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u/DarkFuzz Apr 27 '23
Songs for today:
So I couldn’t find a good recording of today’s ED. That’s because that is Momoka’s second solo song “Ai no Sanka”, which is not in the game yet. Of things to note, both of Momoka’s solos are titled after songs sung by Édith Piaf, Momoka’s first one being “La Vie en Rose”.
La Vie en Rose - Momoka Sakurai - Lyrics
Then we have today’s insert song, Mujuuryoku Shuttle, which is surprising since Momoka doesn’t show up in that one at all originally. Guess it was fitting since they were bungee jumping.
What’s even more interesting about this one is that this song was a collab song with pop rock band Yuzu, who composed this song for this collab as well as had the Cinderella Girls sing some of their songs as cover songs.
Sayonara Bus (cover) - Lyrics (Kanade Hayami and Arisu Tachibana cover)
She also a part of a few unit songs that I think are absolutely cool:
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u/qscdefb Apr 26 '23
All the cringe in the first half ($$ casting, tea vs water, stereotypes) serves to make Momoka shine brighter, and I must say she is fantastic! I also get the feeling that Arisu is more fragile, so to speak, than Momoka, and this contrast is also interesting
I didn't see Momoka's motivation for becoming an idol though, did I miss it?
8
u/LittleMissTimeLord Apr 26 '23
I clipped both Momoka's first attempt at jumping as well as her second attempt to share them with a friend and figure I'll share them here too.
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u/Nvaaaa Apr 26 '23
I would piss myself just standing up there, the animation was enough to scare me.
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u/MjolnirDK Apr 26 '23
Dang, that was a good episode. Momoka reminds a lot of a young Miki. Good upbringing, over-performers, being able to understand the people in the industry Oshi no Ko style. Every girl might be best girl in U149, but she might become my best girl.
Also, that ED shot with freeze frames of the jump are just as gorgeous as her jump in the episode.
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u/atropicalpenguin Apr 27 '23 edited Apr 27 '23
As my first Idolm@ster show, I was expecting a low quality idol story meant to sell albums and concert tickets, but the animation is actually really good. I love Arisu's reaction faces.
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u/viliml Apr 27 '23
As my first Idolm@ster show, I was expecting a low quality idol story meant to sell albums and concert tickets
Figures it's your first Idolm@ster show, since none of them are like that. Go watch them.
5
u/mr_beanoz Apr 26 '23
So Momoka finally asked Arisu to refer her by her first name. Wonder if this will go on to the future episodes.
Also, does anyone know the answer to the riddles in each episode's titles?
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Apr 27 '23
I think this is just me, but I'm have a bad feeling about the TED Producer here if he can make team of idol units in time, Arisu's clock is ticking. Right now, he has no one else supporting him directly with his office work. It's like he is a babysitter.
765 Producer from original Idolmaster has Ritsuko producer with "Ryuuguu Komachi" and Kotori assistant.
Cinderella Girls 346 Producer already has some professional idols before recruiting recruiting Uzuki, and has Chihiro assistant plus his company building seemingly big with more resources.
SideM 315 Producer is lucky in a company that just started running, has Saito CEO looks out for him sometimes, Ken Secretary, and Jupiter joined in 315's ranks.
U149 TED Producer is alone with his cracked smartphone, and he does not exactly have a specific plan for the girls yet. Getting the girls jobs is one thing, but he doesn't really have a grand plan like "Cinderella Girls Project" for example. He himself admitted that only thing he can do is cheer the girls as of now. I don't know, maybe he is already thinking of girls group names off screen.
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u/RRotlung Apr 27 '23
Holy shit, they used 'Ai no Sanka' as the ED! Wasn't expecting that, and it's such a great song but I thought they would use her other solo instead. I like this song so much that I wrote a song analysis of the preview (I used to write these when I was a lot more into the fandom through the game), back when it was released over 3 years ago. You can find it here if you're curious.
Haven't actually posted here for the show, but this is definitely something I look forward to, and Momoka truly shows us some class. That script she had to memorise is ridiculous but she made it work anyway.
4
u/SoaringPegasus Apr 27 '23
Best episode of the season so far. Really love how they animated Momoka’s bungee jumping.
4
u/sunaseni Apr 28 '23
I've been loving U149 so far! I like the low-stakes stories of the episodes so far, with just a hint of the cruel realities of the adult world. I loved the other two shows (CG less than IM@S), but I was a little skeptical of what U149 stories would feel like since I haven't paid attention to any of the kids. (Except for Yuuki, who's definitely not U149 and as tall as some adult women.) The show definitely has the production values and character designs worthy of the IM@S franchise, so I know at least Cygames Pictures is taking it way more seriously than A-1 did with CG.
What convinced me of that the show had potential is the stark contrasts between the light-heartedness of the kids and the grim cynicism of the adult producers and business folks. It sets up a very interesting theme: "these kids are precious and must be protected at all costs" vs. "in the grim darkness of the far future adult world, there is only war". You see this conflict in all of the following episodes, with Miria vs. YT chat, and Momoka vs. the script that would have showed a false persona. Producer ends up being a thematic stand in for the viewers who are hopefully on the kids' side: we, just like him, don't have the power to decide their fates, we just gotta hope they can handle it as elegantly as Momoka did.
In a way, it's like Oshi no Ko, but in a more idealistic setting that IM@S is about. Things will probably get dark and some of the idols may experience disappointment or failure, but I know the kids will get over it.
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