The gateway to Idol stardom might have opened for the newly formed singing group Wake Up, Girls, but the path to fame is full of perils and pitfalls. And for Mayu, Airi, Minami, Yoshino, Nanami, Kaya and Miyu, it's going to be especially difficult knowing who to trust, as their manager Matsuda's lack of experience could give other, less scrupulous, individuals a chance to take advantage.
That's a situation that quickly comes to a head when Green Leaves' president suddenly disappears with most of the money, and things only get worse when the replacement producer seems more interested in getting the girls into revealing swimsuits than promoting their music.
As malicious gossip begins to surface regarding Mayu's past membership in a rival group, and internal tensions begin to tear the team apart, they'll need more than just ambition to survive. Singing may be a business, but friendship and a love of music is what will keep everything together.
(Source: Sentai Filmworks)
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Stark700
Note: watch the movie BEFORE you start watching the first episode. You’ll thank me later. Success doesn’t come easily for anyone. No one is born with talent and although there are some that possesses exceptional abilities, or otherwise labeled a ‘prodigy’, everyone must try something in order to succeed. For idols, there is no exception to that. The people you see on live television performing dances and songs worked long and hard to reach where they are. Why? Because they love performing for the audience. But for a small seven-girl unit called ‘Wake Up, Girls’, they don’t have much of an audience, at least not yet.Directed by Yamaken, Wake Up, Girls is the first show he works on three years since Fractale. And as an original work, one would expect some natural feeling coming out of his writing. While that seems so, there’s suggestions that the show itself builds more for just the road to earning success. It suggests that the characters themselves are on their personal road to not only become an idol but also to change themselves. But for a show to succeed in this way requires development, something that is staggering for just 12 episodes. It’s also important to watch the movie (Wake Up, Girls! Shichinin no Idol) before venturing on to this series. It’s the prequel after all.
And 12 episodes really is just like pouring oil into water. The end result isn’t pretty and neither is the overall direction of this show altogether. But for starters, Wake Up, Girls does a decent setup with its general concept a bit differently in some ways. Compared to some other idol theme series such as Idolmaster, Love Live, and Akb4008 Stage, WuG has a more realistic vibe. The main characters aren’t famous and in fact doesn’t seem different from your average day folks. They all come from different backgrounds and it takes some time for them to come together as a group with a united goal – to become a professional idol group for the world to recognize. The diversity could be perhaps something to expand on and one such character hold a more distinctive stand than others. Her name is Mayu and was recognized as a centerpiece figure in a former group she was once part of, the I-Club. Unlike them, WuG is more like a freshman. I-Club is not only their rival but also their senior as a group of experienced idols. What the show brings together is to see how WuG climbs a ladder to success in the entertainment industry. Against such a rival, that’s no pushover.
Mayu is perhaps a character of various complexity. Most of this revolves around her past as a former member of I-Club. Her talent has earned the nickname ‘Mayushi’ where she also has a fanbase on the Internet. Yet, her decision to quit the group now has backlash from fans that invites insecurity to such attention. Regardless, Mayu still stands out as perhaps the most prominent character in WuG as the series explores her dynamics. But from basic perspective, it’s easy to cherry pick her present state of being. From her first encounter with WuG’S manager Kōhei Matsuda, one can tell that she no longer wishes to be an idol, at least in the entertainment field. So where does that lead her now? After some convincing, she does want to become an idol again but not without some tough love. There’s also an exploration of her persona and inner psyche at the surface level. But what the show doesn’t do right is dealing with how she copes with this and her seemingly resolve seems rushed. At the same time, some of her development lacks sympathy despite the feelings she tries to reach out to others. It may feel realistic on some stances but the way it conveys itself is lacking. On the other hand, her relationship with her mother can be relatable in some ways. Remember when your parents sometimes disagree with you on topics such as your future? Mayu’s scenario is not so different.
Other characters comes from a variety of backgrounds although they all have the ambition to become an idol. A few of them stands out more than others such as Miyu and her hyperactive personality or Yoshino as a defacto leader with her experience. Unfortunately, not all of them get enough characterization as the show focuses on their path to their future, rather than their past. Only a few characters get spotlight with Mayu being the centerpiece. What that past does explore is the rivalry between her and Shiho, the current center spot of I-1 Club. Yet, that rivalry is frivolous and lacks impact on some aspects. Through the few encounters they have, it’s shown that I-1 Club always steps ahead. This should be no surprise considering their experience while WuG is more of a newbie. Still, their progress feels rushed and lacks integrity.
What the series does have is realism, defined in a rather natural way especially for the idol group WuG. Most of them seems to stay themselves rather than trying to become someone who they are not. They also take their work seriously and have fun while at it. At the same time, they group develops a strong bond with each other despite the hardship of being an idol. There’s no competition among each other to see who is the best unlike Mayu’s past days as an idol in the I-1 Club. Everyone stays united and when life becomes tough, they look out after one another. There’s a certain appeal for WuG as well when they take the stage to please both the audience and people who supports them. The story itself also gets to the point right away rather than pushing buttons to drag itself. It’s important for a 1 cour show to focus on this aspect to truly and realistically show just how difficult it is to become an idol. It takes skill, determination, and integrity. WuG delivers that with the extensive training programs, their coach’s method of discipline, and rivalry with other idol groups. Even the audition will invite tension and make it realistically challenging to high degree of credibility. It’s a hard life out there.
Animation wise, we get a moderate and average delivery. None of the characters stands out in any particular way with their character designs. They look simple and even the first episode has the idol group dance on stage in school uniforms, a classic of what you may see during childhood days. The Green Leaves Entertainment agency itself also seems to lack any distinctive features although it once again demonstrates credibility. Because it’s near bankruptcy, you’d expect a simple design and that’s what you’ll get. There’s also small bits of fan service that may be distracting but most of it isn’t depicted as shock value.
As an idol theme show, soundtrack is a key element that empowers WuG. The music has a way to clearly describe itself as artistic with the enthusiasm. The downside is the rather repetitiveness the show seems to demonstrate with a lack of diversity in its songs. What the singing festival present lacks strength with how the song is performed. Fortunately, the OST finds itself to balance this with its well-coordinated tone. A quiet atmosphere with a small group of idols, the soundtrack creates realism from all angles. On the other hand, the OP song isn’t very easily to appreciate with its weak artistic features.
WuG isn’t a show I’ll remember for long. Yet, it depicts more of a realistic way of how the entertainment industry works as being an idol and reach success is a very challenging task. It’s not a joke considering the minimum amount of comedy demonstrated by each episode. Yet, the girls of the group has that spirit, the dream to reach success as a group united by an ambition. Just don’t expect any deep enthralling story or strong character development as the show isn’t trying to write a tale of success. Rather, it tries to create a story of an idol life. Did it reach success? I’d say so-so.
Cheapo
-WATCH THE MOVIE FIRST- It is episode 0, and highly relevant to the series. Let me be first to tell you that I'm not a huge fan of slice-of-life anime which this falls SQUARELY into.Also, I am not a big idol fan either. But WUG! is a masterpiece of art, idol management and hype. Here are some facts about the WUG!: 1. Every SINGLE one of the 7 main characters are completely new voice talents. For all of them this is their first major role. The one with the most experience is being train announcer in an another anime before this gig. 2. All the main charactersshares their name pronunciation with their respective voice actresses (this only makes sense if you know some Japanese), and shares facial features with them too.
3. The "next week's preview" segment shows the voice actresses in real life in the studio.
The above facts translates to a direct attachment between the real life voice actresses and the characters they portray in the anime. As the group grows from a bunch of rag-tags to a solid idol unit you can not help but grow attached to them. The writers/managers clearly made this anime with the fullest intention of launching and promoting the idol group that is Wake Up, Girls!
What is amazing is that they delivered. Whilst AKB0048 tried a fantasy approach to describing what being an idol is like, WUG! takes the full reality approach and lays it all out for all to see. Everything is of course a bit more exaggerated for drama but none so far-fetched that you can convince yourself that it will never happen in real life (though some may argue otherwise).
I find it refreshing that they didn't go the ecchi route either and just turn it into yet another one of "those" animes. This lets the audience find the moe elements in the character's personality and character developments. There was one thing that i didn't like as much, and that was the costume designs, they were pretty ordinary.
The songs from the movie, OP, ED, various other inserts are REALLY good. Watch them on a live performance on youtube if you don't believe me. At the end of the day, they're an idol unit, and idol unit make or breaks with their songs, unless you're AKB48, they can pretty much do anything they want and get away with it.
Oh, and Hanazawa Kana (and lots of other big names also make cameo appearances).
Overall, you can see that they went for a marketing ploy, giving rise to a new idol group through an anime, generating hype, interests, fanboys, and you know what, it worked for me. I thoroughly enjoyed WUG! as an anime and it made me want to pursue them as an idol group.
silverwalls
Nowadays, idol music groups are a firm part of otaku culture. So it doesn't really come off as a surprise that anime more and more includes idols as a theme as well - and it does it quite successful! Wake Up, Girls! is another anime that tries to hop on the moneymaking bandwagon of idol-focused series with a huge original project including a movie, a TV series and of course lots of music. So, how does Wake Up, Girls! (WUG from now on) compete with other popular idol anime series? Not too bad, I would say. While the 50-minute prequel movie (which you definitely should watchbefore the series) focused on the auditions and the forming of the seven-member idol group Wake Up, Girls!, the TV series follows our idol group on the way to stardom. It's a basic plot, really - we watch them face various challenges, like difficult jobs and also struggles of individual members of the show. A key character in that case is Mayu Shimada, a former member of the extremely popular idol group I-1 Club, who is now a part of WUG and makes her a rival of I-1 Club.
Over the 12 episodes a story of their rise from a small local idol group to a firm part of the most popular groups of Japan is told, and as WUG is an original production, we luckily get treated with a pretty satisfying conclusion.
The way the story progresses is cliché in lots of ways - typical tropes get used, things like an injury before an important appeareance, tragic backstories and of course the power of friendship. Some of the clichés seem annoying, others you don't mind. While the whole progress of the story is cliché itself too, you still find yourself cheering for the girls somehow and hope for their best. The story may not be perfect - but for what it's trying to be, I think WUG does present it's story rather solidly.
The main characters are presented quite decently too. As we have 7 main characters in a 12-episode show, it is not easy to develop much, but for that it's doing pretty well. We get some insight at backstories and individual struggles of the girls some episodes in. At the beginning though, you might have a bit of trouble relating to the characters, or even differentiate between them (which is also due to the same-face-syndrome which is present in the series). But when we actually get to see the development, we more and more feel with the characters and also cheer for them at some point. The side characters are rather irrelevant to the story though. Matsuda and the president Junko are completely useless, only the songwriter Hayasaka and I-1 as rivals are somewhat important. But the side characters barely are focused on anyways, so it's not that bothersome.
I usually don't put that much focus on music, but since WUG is an idol show, music obviously plays a huge part. And I have to say, it delivers! As typical for idol groups, WUG is filled with J-Pop songs that are absolutely catchy and quite enjoyable. I think it influences the enjoyment too, as the good songs influence that you cheer for WUG more and more. For their first voice-acting and singing job, I think the voice actors do their job quite well.
On the art and animation - I loved the character designs (even despite the same-face-syndrome), and the sceneries were pretty too. The animation was rather average though - it was rather inconsistent and lots of quality issues were visible.
So, is Wake Up, Girls! a good idol anime? To summarize my thoughts - even though it is not good enough to be considered a "classic" in the music anime genre, for a one-time watch it is quite fun indeed, and the songs are enjoyable too. This results in my final score 7/10.
Taufirec
This is a series that attempts to showcase what true idols are like, it does so fairly well by using characters who are not particularly talented aside from a few who have some singing experience or dancing experience. Doing this allowed the series to focus on the hardships they faced as they practice as well as the hardships of trying to draw a crowd of fans despite their lack of talent which served the show very well. All 7 girls got a chance to have their personal lives expanded on during the series which is a good thing to see for a short show likethis, and it was handled well compared to a similar show. The art was fairly basic, but served the show fairly enough, and looked good during their dance scenes. The music might have been the best aspect of the series, it was upbeat and enjoyable, yet simple and easy to have stuck in your head. For a 12 episode show, it was wholly enjoyable, and with any luck a second season will happen allowing more WUG to be enjoyed in the future.
tosabori
In order for me to write this review, I have spoilers from Wake Up, Girls! and a few from Love Live! I think I needed Wake Up, Girls in my life more than I realized. I started watching it shortly after Love Live! School Idol Project Season 2 ended, and I was upset. I love idols, especially the concept and realization of them. To see a group of girls save their school, as well as win the national championship was the feel good story I needed. Love Live! ended on a really depressing, positive note and I wanted more. Enter Wake Up, Girls! A story not ofamazing triumph, but the tribulations that come with it. The opening scene of a nervous group of girls, performing their heart out. Then you realize, there’s only a few people in the audience. Each member carries a heavy backstory, few are marked with privilege like the members of μ’s. Mayu, a washed up idol who caused the decline of her parent’s wealth and relationship, or Kaya, who left home after her childhood friend went missing at sea and her depression was too much to bear. The drama and struggles are so real and relatable it hurts. You want them to be happy and you want them to succeed.
I know I keep comparing it to Love Live! but I can’t help it. There’s no other relative show like it. Idolm@ster wasn’t really that music based, as odd as that sounds. The stories are relatively parallel between WUG and Love Live! but here’s my final thought on Wake Up, Girls!, yes, yes to everything. Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt. On my recent visit to Anime Expo, Yamamoto Yutaka (the director and producer of WUG) gave a quick Q & A and he mentioned that the only real reason that WUG was given a green light was the idea of small town dreamers in a place like Sendai, could work hard enough to get there. And it’s true. You see every step of the music process (sort of) with Wake Up, Girls! From the production company booking jobs, to spending countless hours practicing, even hiring writers to write their songs. Love Live! had, well, Maki, allegedly writing and recording full pop songs and Kotori designing outfits.
As much as I love Love Live!, watching a serious idol show was such a great change of pace and I really wish somewhere in the future, we can get another OVA showing the aftermath, or another season.
JAKQ7111
This show did not start off well at all. The characters were interchangeable, the music (except for the ending theme) was mediocre, and there wasn't even enough of it for a solid idol show. Also, the dramatic backstories and attempts at plot devices fell flat on their faces for most of the show. The last three episodes were a huge step up in the show's quality, and saved its score from being very bad. If you liked AKB0048, Love Live, or Idolmaster, you're better off watching those and skipping this show.
RundownPaper4
So. Wake Up Girls! Let me set this clear first before I continue with this review, this is my first idol show that I've watched (TV series one at least) and as such I had pretty much no expectations of it whatsoever. My first impressions of this anime (after watching the 7 Idols movie) was that it was a surprisingly realistic anime that wasn't sugercoated. And the show carried that throughout in terms of plot. Story: 10/10 Art: 8/10 Sound: 8/10 Character: 10/10 Enjoyment: 9/10 Overall: 9/10Plot wise, this story is amazing. It shows the trials of a small and upcoming idol group that struggles with internal and external disputes. It also shows how each character/idol has her own problems and how they work to overcome them. It's a really moving story in that sense.
Art wise, it's... nice. There's all there is to it. It wasn't bad by any means, nor did I find it particularly spectacular. The animations were a little rough around the edges, but that kind of made the art style what it was. I like it that way.
Same goes for the sound.
Character wise, it was interesting to see the characters grow. There wasn't a significant amount of change, but the idols in particular did undergo changes in themselves as a result of the stress of being an idol and interacting with each other. I really enjoyed seeing that.
Overall enjoyment was a 9 because well I cringed mostly when watching this because of how realistic I felt the plot was. I wasn't prepared for that, but maybe I've been watching too many flowery shows. Who knows. But besides that it was a really really good show worth watching. Recommend it if you want a more realistic and serious plot as compared to flowery anime.
Hope that I helped someone decide whether or not they're gonna pick up this series.
MindFaze
Wake Up, Girls is a great idol anime with catchy songs and nice characters but above all, it has a moving and realistic story. Having finally watched Love Live!, I must say it was an anime that I enjoyed incredibly. It is entertaining, funny and the characters’ lifelike interactions are delightful to watch, which comes as no surprise, from an anime which has broken so many records. The songs are of high quality both melodically and vocally, and there is ample character development as we watch the girls struggle to save their school and train to become school idols. Story-wise, I find it to be lacking inthis department compared to WUG. There is a lot of sugar-coating, which makes it difficult to appreciate as a realistic idol anime. Pretty and talented girls dancing and singing cheerfully in flamboyant costumes is something which the idol industry wants us to see. How the industry really is is hidden from us and we are all aware of that fact. Why are we still watching idol animes and concerts when we know what’s happening?
It’s because deep down, we have a selfishness that is nurtured and fostered by a capitalistic and individualistic society. We tend to care for ourselves primarily and nothing is further from the truth. Do we attend concerts to gratify ourselves or to truly appreciate the artistes and their talents? What comes first? Is it myself or others? No doubt, many will not admit to this and this is why the idol industry is still booming as we bask in the melodies of their bubblegum pop.
When I watched the first episode of WUG, I initially thought that what it was doing was tantamount to suicide, killing off its own self and deterring its potential fans. After all, which idol fan wants to see him or her as a contributing factor to an industry where there is cut-throat competition and girls are subjected to constant and arduous training to perform well for their fans? No one does. What we want to see are stories of girls following their dreams and singing upbeat songs to get us on our feet.
This very aspect which brings WUG down, exposing the harsh realities of the idol industry and life, how idols become idols is also responsible for garnering its following. WUG is not afraid to shame and humble itself by delivering hard hitting-truths despite being an idol anime at its core. This very delicate balance of trying to present itself as an idol anime yet in a way, reflecting on real-world problems and discouraging the viewer from supporting it is what really makes it stand out.
The standard of animation and some say, music in WUG may not be as high as that of Love Live’s but the lessons it holds are priceless and invaluable. Should you follow your dreams? Should you continue supporting these girls because they are following their dreams or should you not? The many thought-provoking and often conflicting questions which WUG poses to its viewers are what make it a modern and highly relevant 21st-century animation masterpiece.
Watching this anime has transformed my life incredibly. Episode after episode, I have found myself with tears streaming from my eyes. If you are someone who watches anime for entertainment and fun, then this anime may not be for you. Sure, the songs are catchy and the characters are appealing but you better be prepared to face an inner conflict within yourself. Even if it isn’t your cup of tea, maybe you should watch it to knock some sense into you and come to terms with reality. The decision of changing yourself lies in your hands ultimately. As its apt title says, it may be time for you to WAKE UP.
* It is advisable to watch the prequel movie, 「Wake Up, Girls! Shichinin no Idol」 first before watching the actual anime series. As with all great works, there is a method to best appreciate it. *
Thanks to Kuro for watching WUG and inspiring me to write this review.
jeikobu11
Some say watch the movie before the series but didn't and I'm glad. Going into this series was really hard, the main reason is because it was always cringe for me from episode 1-12. The wake Up Girls try to get popular and work them selfs to the top. This is the part that annoyed me. Every time they go on stage or do something idol related, they always fail in some way leading to cringe. I feel the need to skip scenes all the time because of this. At the first stage performance of the anime, it was horrible and couldn't be anymore disapointed.Especially when they used bikini's... it was not fan service or a good performance in my eyes, it was entirely cringe... just looking at them thinking they were doing good was even more cringe.
The flaw in this anime in my eyes is the lack of balance. The balance of going through bad and good times. That goes with success and failure too. Not going to name individual music anime but balancing that out could of improved my rating and thoughts of the anime. Honestly though, who would always want to see failures and depressed faces ( if u watched idol Jihen then u would know what I mean even more). Anyway this is the area that made me cringe every episode, no great moments on stage until the last few episodes and just absolutely embarrassing themselves. I mean this quite seriously, they were annoying AF.
Moving away from the bad sides of the anime, I will dedicate this paragraph to the good points (thank me). First, From only being local unknown idols they went through some god-like development to get into the finals in episode 12. They didn't get as much training as their opponents but that was without a doubt inevitable, you will understand when if you watch it. Improving after failures is supposedly a good point but there's also a point for how much a watcher can handle these fails. Moving fowards towards their dreams when they hit slumps and get into fights, that was probably difficult for them but they didn't ever give up ( looked like some nearly did though) so I give them credit for dedication and motivation.
The characters in this were sometimes just "no good", like for instance crap directors who look like they are just trying to show the idols bad sides. The art was nothing special but a few face designs made me think for a few moments thinking stuff like,"what's up with that chin outline but we all get that like for Occultic Nine. The sound was the best thing I enjoyed about the anime, the lives and the music in general is good.
With that all said, no anime can be perfect so if your going to watch this then prepare for the things I said. This is all my thoughts so it may differ with your views. Allow me to take some more of your time to give you a review based on how the anime is in general not based on my likes and what not.
Its not a garbage anime at all, if anything it has high potential. It improved and did a great job with making the watchers emotion go wild. Its definitely worth the watch but its not a steady ship with no waves, it's a rocky ship at night during a storm. Either way you end up at the destination of your desire. So we are going to take the route of hardships and watching over the troubled idols but it's still entertaining in the end.
I'm ending this review here, please keep my review in mind if your planning to watch it. Hope I helped.
SkyNoHoshi
I actually wanted to watch this since it came out during its seasonal airing. But, I decided that I would watch it later. Wake Up, Girls! is another idol anime, produced by Ordet and under the direction of the infamous Yamamoto Yutaka. Before its 12-episode anime, there is a movie to be watched first. I really, really recommend that you watch the movie because it shows how the idol group under the same anime name, “Wake Up, Girls!” (WUG), started. In the anime series, the group faces problematic situations, and it tries to manage and keep it going. Sadly, the story didn’t shine really well among other idolanime. I would say that there are a lot of clichéd moments, especially during the introductory movie. Also, there’s a lot of idea repetition among members of the group and it really gets annoying hearing from them.
I really hated the first two episodes, because it sudden introduces fan-service, which I felt that it shouldn't be included. However, it needed to be in just for the context of the story. sigh…
Despite the mediocre story, it still have some positive points in the anime. I like how the story sets around 2013-2014. It even made references to real life events, such as the tragic earthquake and tsunami in the Tohoku region, although the anime don’t really focus much on it. Also, the group managed to work their way up to something spectacular, which I think is the best moment in the anime.
I question myself how scary is the idol industry in Japan. The anime showed another bigger and successful idol group, called the I-1. Watching them suffer really irk me. Would such methods from the group be similar to some idol groups in Japan? That’s where reality prove otherwise.
I would say that all the characters in the idol group are varied. Each of them have their own qualities and personality. They have their own reasons to why they want to be an idol, and I find (most of) them quite sweet. Some of them have interesting background which affect who they are.
Character development is okay. I would say some of them continued on after their struggle, thanks to someone else. Overall, I think the group did develop since its formation. And of course, there has to be one character that was from another idol group. Thanks, clichéd anime!
Animation is good, but not great. Starting from the characters, I would say the idols have the same freaking face. Also, there is inconsistent drawing of the characters, making them out of their body shape. The character design is fine, except the awkward hair colour choices. The facial expressions from the characters are nice. The scenery is good-looking, but not special. Also, I like how the performances is mostly 2D-drawn, instead of 3D-rendered.
Although it is an idol anime, I would say music isn’t heavily focused in it. I was a bit disappointed, because I know there are other idol anime that lots of songs sung by the respective idol groups or even solo acts. But still, I love the songs sung by the group. The OPs and ED are sung by the group and they are awesome in their own ways. The background music is fine. Voice acting is okay, but very few voices just don’t really match the characters well.
So, have I enjoyed Wake Up, Girls! like any other idol anime?
My answer would be “only the last few episodes”. The other episodes bore me to sleep (yes, I did sleep when marathoning it) due to the cliché the anime gets all the time. I think the anime really tried its best to be a good one, but honestly I doubt so.
I think I'm the type of person who enjoy more on the glee side of the idol industry, instead of the seriousness. Hence, I would recommend this anime only to people who enjoy idols a lot.
jdvz
People ask me very often: what is your favorite idols anime. OK, I’d like to live in peace with myself, so I’m going to answer to my imaginary friends. Firstly, I’m not familiar with the idols culture, I don’t understand it, but I really like idols-anime, it’s a piece of sterilized happiness, straightforward success with songs and dances. Suddenly Wake Up Girls is not an idol anime. It’s an anime about everything, about friendship, about success and failure, even about idols, they’re shown as antagonists and, of course, it’s about weird potatoes, y’know. But the fact is this is the best, so let’s begin. 1. Plot. Score: Canonical. A smallagency in the small village named Sendai is looted by a big corporation of enterprising idols i-1. The agency director decided to hire seven idols to defend their village. They recruit one experienced idol, four average idols and one half-idol, eventually they succeed in hiring an pro-level idol and are ready to protect their village. Oops, I think I made a detour, everyone knows this tale, we don’t need to spend time on it.
1. Story. Score: Magnificent.
The story in WUG isn’t straight, but easy to follow. It explains the problems, it doesn’t have dead ends and avoids inconsistency. It doesn’t spend your time to focus on unnecessary things or details that have no further development. The good things is that they not only tell you a story, but also show it. Every word has a proof, so if someone doesn’t have enough skill we can see it in a dance, but without comic situation when someone is so clumsy that he can’t use the stairs without risk (sorry Haruka, sad but true). WUG narrates the story very well, we can see how character skills are growing, as they train, they have a problems, they can literally bump into each other in a dance, take wrong position, but they work on it day to day.
WUG’s story moves characters up, then drops down for the sake of rising again. It has some standard idolmovies thingies like person who doesn’t give up, person with another goal in life and so on. But it’s appropriate and, to be honest, sometimes it’s unexpected. On the other hand, the world around is more realistic, it means they don’t have to explain how this world works, but they have to show how these girls solve their problems. It’s not so easy without common useful tricks like a rich member in the band or completely filled performance schedule without any reasons or the magic from Love Live that makes everything they imagine appear. It isn’t good or bad, these are the different ways to show character development. Thus it allows us to better understand the actions of every character.
2. Characters. Score: Amazing.
Foremost, they don’t have Nico Nico Nee. (It doesn’t mean I hate Nico. I don’t hate anyone, even Honda Mio). They don’t have a green eye`d noone, a noone from another world, a noone who has a talkative hamsters (you know).
And again. Seven different personalities from the real world. But creating different characters isn’t enough. A character shouldn’t be static, only development of a character makes it real, only relations between them makes us believe in them. From the beginning someone is shy, someone is funny, someone doesn’t fit the level and ready to give up, someone has a different goal in life, someone has a bad story in a past. What is the real pleasure is how all of them communicate to each other. Of course Yoppi is a leader, Mayu is the first star of the band, Airi simply is Airi, it looks like these trio has a little bit more time than other, but it doesn’t mean the other characters are merely playing the supporting roles only. It’s a real pleasure watching their interactions between the team members. It’s very important, nobody has a favorite, however Mayu and Airi are friends, but Nanami helps Airi with trainings after her day off, Kaya has a private talk with Mayu, consequently it causes a response action later, because every step is has reasons.
However, a couple of words about each person in chaotic order.
Airi. The weakest, the person who wants to be an idol not because it’s her real feeling, but only because her relations with Mayu. She can’t imagine anything different by herself because of her uncertainty. She’s not talented, she’s uncertain, she doubts herself. She’s hardworking, but it’s not enough to be in the same level with the others. But the main reason of her having a part in the movie isn’t her personality, but her relations with other band members. In these relations she’s a kinda conscience. At the end she believes in all other girls more than everyone else and, unfortunately, much more than in herself. Her animation is truly unbelievable, i.e. during their debut gig she misses the beat frequently, at least twice. It’s not so obvious, it’s not at focus, the movie doesn’t make your your eyes linger on it, but it works through subconsciousness, proving the words they’re talking about as a fact.
Mayu, the star, the center of common admiration, she raises awareness to the band. She’s kind, responsive, but because of her problems in the past she doesn’t want to get close with anyone, except Airi at the beginning. She’s really talented, but somehow she lost her target, so her main goal is to find herself and understand what the idols world means specially for her.
Yoshino, officially she’s a leader of this band, but she avoids making decision, because she’s not sure of her own solution. Her first resolution proving her a true captain happens only when she understands, it's not only her demands, but the whole band answer. Her skills are really high, so she envies Mayu occasionally, they have a confrontation until they understand they have the same goal.
Kaya sometimes looks impulsive and even silly, especially after her first introduction, but the reason of her behavior is her sense of justice. She’s crazy in her own little way, it’s true, but she knows what responsibility is, she’s really like the band, so she could make more than expected and could put up with accidents she has never allowed before, her attitude to WUG is clear from her words: “if this were one of my jobs I’d have quit a long time ago”. It’s absolutely clear only she could pull out all fears from Mayu’s mind and resolve understatements.
Next two persons don’t have a good story arc, world isn’t perfect, even the world of Wake Up Girls universe. They show the current air in a band via reaction, so if they’re tired we can see if it is OK or not.
Miyu. Twin tailed and incompetent, it’s her own explanation of herself and it’s partially true. Not in the case of incompetence, but in the case of honesty. Sometimes she’s the first person who’s ready to react, while others in a reflection. She can switch attention with a joke or some unimportant sentences, what allows to relax if it requires. She’s responsible for quick changes in others' mood.
Minami is the same character, may be she’s more stable than Miyu who’s really prone to crying. But she’s ready to share the most valuable thing if she thinks it can help.
Kouhei Matsuda. Initially he’s looks like an anonymous manager-san from The Idolmaster, but his explanation is such funny, it’s started from a daydreamer lying on the bench and thinking about … simply thinking. His faults are totally embarrassing for the band members, but they support him anyway. He isn’t the best manager, but he’s a member of the band after all.
Nanami. Oh boy, my adorable Nanami. What an amazing character she is. She trained hard with everyone, she helped Airi, and after that in private talks with Kouhei announced her departure from the band and went to a cafe with everybody as if nothing had happened. And when the decision is made, her next step is “the hell with it, I’m staying here”. She’s clever, skillful and canny and she is impulsive and sensitive. She’s really self-confident, she knows her own worth and somehow she’s kind and tender.
Digressing from the subject, I want to mention: returning of Nanami one day is the most unexpected expected scene for me and it shows the real development of characters.
It is worth paying attention to visual introduction of every person as a new band member. Airi tells tells Mayu about it and apologized. Kaya opens the letter in the small closed storeroom, Nanami has taken the pass for granted and starts to picking up her outfit, Minami and Miyu are celebrated with supporters and I’m not sure Yoppi had seen her offer before her photo session was started. Different behavior almost without words. Is this one minute of a different short actions add much more extra capacity to a a person rather than explaining their behavior through personal story? The same things in audition: someone preparing (fyi Nanami), someone is relaxing, someone is nervous (guess who).
3. Music. Score: Fascinating
I’m afraid all songs in this genre are similar, sometime it’s a little bit better, sometime worse. I beg your pardon, but my favorite song from the all idols songs is “Baby!” from AoButa. All other songs sounds similar for me. WUG’s songs is not so pathetical like Love Live’s ones, but not as naïve as the Idolmaster’s. It’s important that this is the songs girls can sing and dance on a stage. Anyway it’s very difficult to be objective in estimating the songs' value here, when I listen to it, I associate it with the universe and get pleasure from it.
Background music is well, not boring, not distracting and very appropriate. It provides you with a real mood in a key moments. It’s perfect.
4. Art. Score: Inimitable
For me the worst dance in idol movies is any dance from Love Live Sunshine. They say there are some good graphics there, but I see only chaotic movement with shaped model against the static background from random angles. It’s suxx. To be honest I’m not familiar with art estimating, but I’m very meticulous about the small tricks. In the first movie they show Mayu in the past shining in the colorful stage with sparkling eyes and later in the next frame she’s sitting in the monochrome class with her hair casting a shadow on her eyes. It’s a perfect work. It really makes a difference. It’s not the only one moment, there are lots of them, I like the moment, when the band members are going home after the first training with Hayasaka-san, everyone is really tired, they stoop as they walk, Mayu is following them without any problems. It explains the situation better than thousand words. It’s a real art for me, not the frame per second race or quantity of leaves on the tree in the background. Frankly graphics is cheap, but the animation is perfect.
WUG’s dances is near the first Love Live, just for me it’s the best quality I’ve waited for. Herewith, Tachiagare in the ending of the first movie is the best dance I’ve ever seen. It’s a fact that technically Chika dance is better, but I’m not talking about technical details, cute movements and some other tricks without context. It’s all in one, the mood, the graphics, the music. This dance is the real show of themselves, their faith and confidence. This dance means “All is lost save honour”.
Summary. Score: Outstanding
I don’t know why this series is estimated so low, it might be the wrong targeting. I found it while looking up for idols anime, but this is not the idol movie, I think it’s less idol-anime than Zombieland Saga. If I had to find something similar, I could mention “Sora yori mo Tooi Basho” or “Hibike Euphonium”, these stories have much more in common, than, probably, any other names from the review. But the difference is too big too, these two story I have mentioned are optimistic and full of happiness, this story is melancholic and kinda sad, but it gives hope.
My opinion is very subjective, it looks like this world touched my heart. It’s up to you to decide, if you should spend time on it or not. The first movie is about one hour, it follows three episode rule. In the best case you find something to watch, in the worst case you don’t. Anyway, if you are reading this you are already interested in it, aren’t you?
Ps dedicated to Wake Up Girls band disbanding in the March of 2019
Plankton_LL
Note: This is my first time writing a review. It might be biased but hear me out before asking why. Also, I tried my best to be an obedient chap and followed the guidelines so it should not contain any spoilers whatsoever. Writing this in 2016 wants me to say this: This is the future. Wake Up, Girls! is this kind of idol anime that started from literally nothing into something. It's about seven girls aiming for a spotlight at Tokyo's booming idol industry. And so I rate. Story: 8/10 While I enjoy watching this without watching the prequel movie first, this anime is something that will make youthink. "Is this how AKB started? Is this how the folks at 765 Pro and 346 Pro started? Why is it so different from any idol anime currently available on this time and age?" A journey of seven girls and a (startup?) production company will literally take you to a journey that will make you feel like you're a part of it. They might not be school idols saving the school from closing, but they will definitely save themselves from quitting being an idol.
Art: 7/10
While I'm still in it, the fact that the story was great doesn't mean the artwork was good. I haven't watched the TV release, so I heavily relied on BD's I have. I think the same problem on every anime remains: when the character is away, the animators have the tendency to minimize the drawings on the background, making the characters at the back look like stick drawings with color in it. And it's still there at the Blu-rays. Nevertheless, the colors were nice, and the right colors were shaded on the parts that it requires it so well, you might think of it as an anime released during Summer 2016 (I'm looking at you, ufotable.)
Sound: 9/10
I expected the ED to be an upbeat, but instead it's a melodic song that will instinctively tell you that "these idols might be graduating from WUG!", or something like that. The OP got me, though. "7 Girls' War" is something to be looked upon. It's an upbeat song that will make you feel like you're watching Lucky Star! or something similar that has a bubbly, kawaii and moe plot along the way. But, it's common knowledge to viewers that their song, "Tachiagare!" stands out the most. The moment I laid my ears on this song, I instantly knew that I'm into a great, great cruise while watching the series. I wish for them to create more songs that will stand out among all idol animated series for a long time.
Character: 8/10
I rate the character like this because the development of the characters were explained and shown properly, even for me who haven't watched the prequel beforehand, which is quite impressive. Folks might not understand the first few episodes, but as it progresses, you will realize how they struggled to reach their goal: Kouhaku Uta Gassen (in reference to White vs. Red that some of them are talking about). I wish for them to reach it someday. That aside, the drama, and their struggles had made a solid impression that they are not just your everyday idols. They are someone to admire for, and someone that will inspire someone to aim high no matter how hard the stones life has been throwing at you. "Eh, but isn't that kind of biased? Anyone can do better than that, right?": It isn't. This is a genuine struggle. This is life teaching you how to dream, and how to achieve that dream. I've never seen such anime series executed the same wave of drama before, and it surely hits home whenever I recall some parts of it.
Enjoyment: 10/10
Of course, it's an idol anime, after all. And that all idol anime must be enjoyable no matter how they executed it. (Remember that I'm writing this in 2016, so.) Love Live! might make you laugh and cry, but it will never have the same enjoyment as Wake Up, Girls!. It's been written in such a way it will distinguish itself from the rest of the anime universe for quite a long time until it fades from the spotlight. It is, truly, a worth of a watch. And worth of a journey too, when you're at it. It isn't your world-class entertainment, but it's your everyday entertainment that you will enjoy every day.
Overall: 9/10
This is the future. It might be underrated today but I'm sure that they will make it bigger in the future. With the right formula and charisma, I'm sure of it. I will keep watch until the end, since I finally found an idol anime worthy of laying my life upon.
They will make big. If they don't, the fans will make it happen. "Let's do our best! Wake up, Girls!"
Tringapore_98
Every now and then, I decide to take a break from watching seasonal anime to watch non-seasonals instead. The non-seasonal anime that I decided to watch this time was Wake Up, Girls! because of a certain voice actress called Tanaka Minami. However, even though I did decide to watch this anime mainly because of her, the anime proved to be quite enjoyable to watch. Seeing the main characters growing to become a semi-professional idol unit from their very small beginnings did make me warm inside. Story: The story has good pacing. Even though most of the episodes showcases a story of a different girl, it alsohas its own story development. The group, Wake Up Girls(WUG) starts off almost as a dysfunctional unit and has many difficulties initially, but as the anime progresses, WUG gains more popularity and becomes more cohesive unit. However, they also faced countless difficulties along the way, including clashes within the group, members facing the grueling task of coming to terms with their past and the group struggling to get the hang of the songs that they were given. In the end, they overcame the obstacles and emerged as a fascinating and exciting idol group. One great aspect of the show is the way it manages to create suspense at the end of every episode. It keeps the viewer glued to his seat wanting to know what will happen in the next episode. However, the show can also be dull at times which may bore the viewer watching it.
Rating: 7/10
Animation:
I was quite impressed with the way the choreography was animated but at the same time, I was quite put off with the mediocre character animations which look like they've been butchered at times.
Rating: 6/10
Music:
Catchy opening, especially the first opening Tachiagare. In addition, the various songs that the group sang were also groovy to listen to.
Rating: 8/10
Character
The anime has great character development as each character has different personalities. In addition, the anime gave great backstory coverage of the main girls.
Each girl has her own struggle to overcome, with the main girl Mayu having to come with terms with her past with her old agency I-1, while Airi had to overcome her lack of talent with pure hard work and perseverance. I was especially impressed by how Mayu was able to come to terms with her past, overcome it and become the idol that she wanted to become. If I were to share my favorite character of the anime, it's a hard decision, because I love both Mayu and Minami. Initially, Minami caught my eyes because of her bubbly personality and cute voice but as the series progressed, I became impressed with Mayu's determination to prevail over her past and become the idol that she wished to become in the beginning. For that, I have to say that Mayu is my favorite character of the series.
Rating: 7.5/10
Overall, Wake Up, Girls! is a quality idol anime. Not only does it have an interesting and suspenseful story, it also has quality character development and excellent music! If you're not put off by the sometimes sub-par animation, Wake Up, Girls! is a stellar idol anime to watch!
Final rating: 7/10
Revisionary
Admittedly, "Wake Up, Girls!" has some issues. That's not to say, however, that it isn't a good show. As an idol show, it makes an attempt to do something new, which makes it quite a refreshing take on the genre. And while it does succeed at a lot of things, the show is also pulled down by some others. Story: (+) A more realistic take on the idol industry (+) Interesting overarching story (+) Likeable characters (+) Excellent pacing (-) Underdeveloped characters(-) Cliched near the end
Art:
(+) Non-CGI dance sequences look good for the most part
(-) Characters almost look the same
(-) Animation quality fluctuates from terrible to decent
Sound:
(+) Catchy songs
(+) Good voice acting for the most part
(-) Song selection is low compared to idol shows like "Idolm@ster" and "Love Live"
(-) Matsuda's voice can get on your nerves (although this may just be my opinion)
Character:
(+) Characters are likable
(+) Backstories are convincing and relatable
(-) Not enough screen time on certain characters
Remarks:
This show was a surprisingly good idol anime. Of course, as mentioned earlier, the animation quality tends to fluctuate and the story occasionally misses its mark. Nonetheless, if you're a fan of idol anime, I strongly suggest you watch this, as it paints an image of the idol industry that is far different than that of more cheerful shows like the "Idolm@ster." As a matter of fact, I would say that "Wake Up, Girls!" is more or less the "Idolm@ster" in terms of the concept of an underdog idol agency crawling to the top.
At the time of this writing, the real life Wake Up, Girls! group is on a live tour. I am hoping for a second season, as this show has a lot of potential.
8/10
TCTriangle
Recently, there has been a flood of idol-related anime. These shows usually follow the tried-and-true "new idols struggling to make it big" formula. Among these, the two most popular seem to be The IDOLM@STER (IM@S) and Love Live! (LL) (and to a lesser extent, AKB0048). I strongly believe Wake Up, Girls! (WUG) has the potential to join these other properties to become another great idol anime series, but some flaws hold it back. Throughout this review I will be mentioning IM@S and LL as points of comparison to WUG because it is unavoidable that this show will be compared to its more well-known brethren. Story: 8/10 Thestory follows a newly-formed idol group called Wake Up, Girls! and its struggles to gain recognition first in its native Sendai region, and then in all of Japan. The story is truly one of this anime's strongest points. Unlike IM@S, in which most of the girls seemed born ready to be idols, the WUG girls each have their weaknesses, past histories, relationships, and other problems to deal with and overcome before they could truly become great idols. Even up to the last episodes, it was not a happy-go-lucky, rainbows-everywhere type of story.
Of the 3 idol series, the struggles of WUG are the harshest and most realistic. Moreover, throughout the series there is the looming threat of the I-1 idol group, the best group in the nation that is clearly superior to WUG in almost every way. Our protagonists have to overcome this threat, which is much more menacing than any antagonist in the other series. As such, the viewers can really sympathize with the girls and the burdens on their shoulders.
Note that there is a movie out that explains the origins of WUG, but the movie is only supplementary; it is not necessary to watch that before watching the series.
Art: 5/10
The art is honestly the biggest flaw of WUG. Compared to IM@S and LL, the dance animations are mediocre at best, and it was clear the animation budget was not as big as those of its rival shows. It didn't help that the character designs were not very unique, either. This might have been the show trying to keep the character appearances as realistic as possible, but ultimately it was a detriment to the series, as it was very hard to keep track of who was who when every girl looked the same.
Sound: 7/10
With a catchy OP and even better emotional ED, the music of this series was solid. Unfortunately, maybe due to the budget yet again, the song variety could not match those of IM@S or LL. There were maybe 4 or 5 songs tops in the series roster, and for an idol anime, that is not a very impressive number. But what songs are there were very well put together.
The voice acting was great as well, and despite the fact that none of the girls (to my knowledge) was a big name veteran, great performances were delivered.
Character: 8/10
Like I said in the "Art" section, the characters' physical appearances are not particularly appealing. Regardless, the character development of each of the girls is another great point for WUG. Unlike IM@S, which seemed to either breeze through each of the girls in an episode or less, or LL, which focused mostly on the 3 main girls, WUG tries its hardest to give each of the girls a proper backstory, a unique personality, and relatable struggles. In the end, not all of the girls are equally developed (some get a lot more screentime than others), but characterization was pretty well done compared to IM@S and LL. It really helps that there are only 7 girls in the group, as opposed to IM@S's dozen or so.
Enjoyment: 7/10
The series has its ups and downs in terms of enjoyment. Seeing some of the girls' dreams broken and their dignities abused made me cringe at times. But all that just made their triumphs all the more satisfying. Overall, I personally greatly enjoyed the series, but I can see how some people won't enjoy this series as much as other idol anime. It's not as sunny and optimistic as the other idol series, that's for sure, but that is what will contribute to WUG's appeal for some people.
Overall: 7/10
If you have been wanting to get into idol anime, but found IM@S and LL too flowery, colorful, and optimistic, then WUG is perfect for you. Its realism and its ability to make you feel for the characters make this a very good entry into the idol genre.
If, on the other hand, you watch idol anime purely for the dancing, the animation, and the music, then this series may not meet your expectations. Its animation and character design are sub-par in comparison to those of its competitors (IM@S and LL), and the music is not the catchiest, either.
But ultimately, I believe that of all the idol anime released so far, WUG has the most soul and the best realism, and for that alone, it is worth checking out.
___________________
If you liked this anime, I recommend The IDOLM@STER, Love Live!, and AKB0048.
Groupanimenight
Tadgh: I'm not into the idol scene. We choose our anime from a random list so we can watch new things. Honestly I didn't enjoy the subject matter much. That said, the anime itself was OK. They made the characters very individual and made it easy to get invested in their struggle. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who doesn't like the real life Wake Up Girls! but it was an ok slice of life. Laohoam: This isn't the first idol anime i have watched, it also isn't the best. that being said it wasn't unbearable. The story progressed well. Reflecting the issueof each girl and the bond that helps them overcome each solution. Though the level of drama was a bit extreme, which is what killed it for me. if you have nothing else to watch give it a try.
Rasanaph- Honestly this just isn't my type of anime, i fell asleep each time we got together to watch it.
Dr.R.Dash: SO In short I wish it was better but, I really did enjoy all the seven girls and the back story about who they are , how they all came to be in wake up girls I really enjoyed the music, and dance routines it reminded me of the pure days of EVIL when I was a cheerleader because my coach was Terrifying! and she made us suffer if we messed up a dance , i got a little chill of nauseating nostalgia, another reason This is not my favorite is personally I Hate girl drama- Tis BS thats why I only wasted some life being a cheerleader.
