You might say I welched. That I did the flipflop which didn’t involve any footwear. That my convictions took on the grand crumble. All I said in my review on the first season of Love Live! Sunshine! that I would pass on season two. To be precise, I used the phrase ‘rain check.’
Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that it rained. Conscience appeased … I can go on.
So, I did take in season two with the thought that the Love Live! franchise continued into two new series beyond. Hardly a fatal blow. So, there might be something commendable about Sunshine! Round Two. So, after 13 episodes ...
Well, I have good news and bad news …
Let’s start with the GN: Love Live! Sunshine! did develop a powerful theme in the young girl’s search for the thing that sparkles in her life. The search for happiness when the world crashes in on you. It was, in this case that Aquors could not do what µ’s succeeded in. Their high school will close down … but the idol spirit goes on, seeking the consolation prize of a school that won Love Live! before the demise. Then, there was the development of characters, much along the lines of Love Live! School Idol Project's first season. While Sunshine! should have done this in season one, they crafted excellent stories throughout the series, even presenting the featured character in the last scene of the closing theme. Each girl had her own backstory, and some were intriguing.
But now, enter the BN: Characters were still close matches to the first rendition of µ’s, and often any differentiations were based on many enhanced eccentricities and bizarre catch phrases (‘I'll do my Rubesty!’ ... cute but klutzy). The plot ran ragged, with only the odd mixture of undying optimism and undrying tears ruining moments. There were no other notable idol groups other than St. Snow, a no-show at Love Live! finals. And the finals ... no-show as well. All we hear are the results (guess who won?). Supremely anticlimactic.
After two series of Love Live!, it is too easy to compare character vs. character. As for the principles, Honoka and Kotori have it way over Chika and You. Nico over Yoshiko for group crackpot. While both are delusional, Nico didn't have to resort to the dark side for her laughs. In the category of piano superstar, Riko vs. Maki ... well, talent at the keyboard is talent period. Call this one a tie. Ruby and Dia as sisters gave Sunshine a dimension that one could say gave their series a huge advantage. In fact, Dia excels over Eli for force of resistance to the idol cause. For bizarre speech patterns, Rin vs. Hanamaru, two with odd tics (or, two normal girls in search of some oddity to make them stand out … well, I like cats so, congrats Rin.
In short, Sunshine! will always have the stigma of playing it too close to School Idol Project. There was a crying need for the sequel to have a distinctive look and feel and missed on this. This leads to predictability problems.
Animation used high quality CGI for all the routines, which were comparable to SIP for intricacy of choreography. the Christmas motif particularly stands out. The music was as expected of the idol genre, first, lively, and two, wedded to the ‘sparkling girl’ premise.
In the end, Sunshine was a fine sequel which took on the challenge of taking a concept and advancing it. The first year seemed so much like repeating the formula, but the second year began to explore new territory. But there's more (much more!!!) to explore for the next idol group (Go! Nijigasaki High ... you're up next).
You might say that Love Live! School Idol Project gave the franchise impetus. Love Live! Sunshine! gave it direction.
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