I’ve noticed that Japan really loves their slice-of-life music anime, as there’s so many of them released that have gone off to become movies both live action and animated. Just when I thought I had seen them all, in comes Revue Starlight: Complete Collection by Sentai Filmworks. If you’re a fan of the genre but want something different like fighting with weapons thrown in, you’ll want to shine a light on these stars.
Karen Aijo is all about singing and dancing and couldn’t be happier that she’s part of the 99th graduating class of the Seisho Music Academy. Their latest project, Starlight, is a really big deal and could mean the difference between making it big or falling by the wayside. Naturally Karen wants to do whatever she can to give herself the edge she needs to be the best, and that’s where her friend Hikari comes in who seems to have everything needed to be the best cast member.
Wanting to know how she became so good, Karen follows Hikari one night to a secret elevator that goes way below to a special place where auditions for the leads in Starlight are being held. The thing is, these are no ordinary drama class practices, but instead an arena of sorts where the competitors fight with weapons as well as showing off their song and dance moves. Karen is determined to enter this crazy competition and be the best she can be or literally die trying.
Once I learned about the fighting part, I knew I had to see this series through to the end as I’ve never seen anything else like it. It was fun watching Karen and the other girls she comes across become friends and/or rivals while also seeing each of them go through good and bad times as they fight their way to the top of the list. High-definition visuals and audio help keep the drama intense, and there’s some cool extras such as clean opening and closing animations, some audio commentary on a few of the episodes, and some bonus animated shorts.
If you’re into music-focused, slice-of-life anime shows but want something different such as weapon combat tossed into the mix, you’ll want to shine a spotlight on Revue Starlight: Complete Collection and join these ladies for a song and dance you won’t soon forget.
