Original project "Lovelive! has now been No. 1 at the box office for three consecutive weeks. And the game adaptation "Idol Master" series has also received rave reviews. It can be seen that the idol theme has become the object of everyone's scramble, and some media have reported on it recently.

As of June 29, Lovelive! TheSchool IdolMovie has already surpassed 1 billion yen and grossed 1,194,423,320 yen at the box office. As a theatrical adaptation of a late-night anime, "Idol Master Towards a Glorious Future", which was released in nearly 100 theaters last year, also achieved a cumulative box office of 678,422,000 yen. If you want to talk about the common denominator of these two works, then it must be "today's popular idol animation".

■The starting point is not animation!

And although they are both sequels to late-night animations, the theatrical versions of "LL" and "Idol Master" actually didn't start with animation.

"LL" is a two-dimensional idol project created in 2010 by Japanese animation company SUNRISE, music publisher Lantis, and the monthly magazine "Dengeki G'smagazine". At that time, in addition to publishing the members' short stories in magazines, they also listened to the opinions of fans by openly soliciting the names of the teams. In view of the success of AKB48, the official form of "general election" was adopted, and the voices of fans were actively reflected in the work. In addition, the anime and mobile game "LoveLive!", which began in 2013, further contributed to the popularity of the work.

On the other hand, "Idol Master" is an arcade platform development game released by Namco on July 26, 2005. Players will take on the role of the producer of an entertainment company, aiming to train their idols to become top personalities, and to make the concert a success by choosing their idols' songs and costumes. In 2007, he officially produced the animation "Idol Master XENOGLOSSIA" based on the game character, and in 2011, he released the TV animation "Idol Master" based on the game. At present, in addition to the continuous release of new home game console platform works, there are also spin-off works such as the social game "Idol Master Cinderella Girl", which has more than 200 new characters.

In addition, works adapted from games to anime and even theatrical versions can also list "Idol Event", "Wonderful Melody" and so on, but these two works are basically girl-oriented card games. And the animation did not choose a late-night file, but was broadcast in the evening with children as the main viewing group. Therefore, in essence, it is different from the fan base of "LL" and "Idol Master", and of course it does not deny the existence of "Otomo". In addition, although the theatrical version has not yet been released, the TV anime depicts the active expression of male idols in the female work "His Royal Highness the Prince of Songs" is also adapted from the original game.

■ The inspiration that imperfect idols bring to us

"LL" tells the story of Otonogihan Gakuin, a traditional high school in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, which is in danger of abandoning its school due to a sharp decline in the number of students enrolled. Nine of them came up with a clever idea to become idols, and if they became idols, the school's fame would increase and the number of students enrolled would also increase. In this way, nine girls with distinct personalities decide to work together to become idols, hoping to save the campus they love by increasing the number of students with the fame of their idols. To do this, the heroines need to make their own clothes and determine the stage performance. On the other hand, "Idol Master" is the appearance of some idol newcomers. The characters in both works who appear as idols are not perfect at the beginning, which is also one of their characteristics.

The form of fans paying attention to the growth of idols has appeared as early as the 70s of the last century, and the way "LL" and "Idol Master" cultivate idols is actually the same approach adopted by AKB48. This method can make fans feel protective that they can't live without me. In addition, the concert plot of the anime and the game will also be shown in the form of a voice actor in the real world, which greatly enhances the influence of the idol animation itself, so that a work can gain popularity in both virtual and real life. And fans can have a place to cheer for their idols and feel satisfied with it, so as to further cultivate loyal users.

In addition, whether it is the amazing box office "Lovelive! TheSchoolIdolMovie" is also "Idol Master Towards a Glorious Future", and the characters in the two works have achieved the transformation from ordinary girls to idols in the TV anime, and the theatrical version is a sublimation of them, and is closely connected with the next generation of idols. And the popularity of the theatrical version is also due to the fact that the work captures the brilliance of these characters at the end.

In addition, on the one hand, there is the practice of cultivating idols by fans in places other than TV anime, such as "LL" and "Idol Master", and there is also a completely different system that combines real idols and anime. This is "WakeUp, Girls!", which will be released in a theatrical version of the anime in September this year.

In July 2013, it was announced that the seven-member idol group "WakeUp, Girls!" would be formed by director Hiroshi Yamamoto, who had previously worked on productions such as "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya", and in January 2014, it was announced that it would form a theatrical version and the first season of the anime at the same time. Compared with LL and idol masters who have regular fans, WUG's pace is relatively fast. And since the voice actor is a real "newcomer" and the character name is related to a real person, it is clear that the connection between reality and animation is obvious. And what kind of results this work will bring, let's wait and see!