It shows the lives of idols as you've never seen them before.
It has long been known that behind the idealized images of idols that are so popular in Korea, Japan, and China, there are sometimes truly horrific stories. Yet the industry continues to thrive.
The anime Oshi no Ko is one of the few works of pop culture that honestly tells what happens on the other side of the stage. For that alone, it is worth watching. And also for the detective story, charismatic female characters and an unusual story of reincarnation.
What is Oshi no Ko About?
B-Komachi is a popular Japanese girl group led by sixteen-year-old Ai Hoshino. Ai has many fans all over the country, including a young doctor named Gorou who works in a provincial hospital.
Several years ago, he had a patient named Sarina who was suffering from an incurable disease – it was she who introduced Gorou to the group.
Suddenly, Ai appears at Gorou's hospital – it turns out that the girl is pregnant. Gorou, knowing what kind of resonance this could cause, promised to do everything to keep Ai's pregnancy a secret. But one night, as he was returning home from duty, he was attacked by an unknown person and soon died.
But he awoke in the body of Ai's newborn child. The girl gave birth to twins: a boy named Aqua and a girl named Ruby. Gorou was reborn as Aqua, and his old patient Sarina was reborn as Ruby and both remembered their past lives.
Oshi no Ko Shows Us the Ugly Side of Popularity
Oshi no Ko is the second major work by author Aka Akasaka. He became famous for the romantic manga Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, about the rivalry between two genius student council leaders. Based on it, a popular anime series was released in 2019.
Fans of Kaguya-sama eagerly awaited the release of the adaptation of Oshi no Ko, and it did not disappoint – now, Oshi no Ko has a near-perfect 96% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Idol anime tend to follow tried-and-true formulas, but Oshi no Ko breaks the mold. It looks at the dark side of the entertainment industry and raises important questions about the unrealistic expectations placed on those at its center.
Oshi no Ko's Number of Episodes & Streaming Platforms
The first season of Oshi no Ko is now out and consists of eleven episodes, and the second season is currently airing – seven episodes of the planned thirteen are currently available.
All previously released episodes are available on Crunchyroll, Hidive and Hulu, but availability may vary depending on your region.