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A review by christinecc
Kageki Shojo!! Vol. 1 by Kumiko Saiki
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Guaranteed feel-good, wholesome content about young girls at a professional theatre academy.
The Kouka Acting Troupe school is dedicated to training the next class of professional Takarazuka, all-women theatre actors--basically a particular style of Japanese musical theatre. (I recommend looking up the Rose of Versailles musical as a reference.)
And here we meet our two protagonists in a much, much larger cast of characters: Ai is a former teen idol jaded by her career as the object of affection & creepy obsession of faceless, possessive fans, and Sarasa is a super tall super nerd who loves (LOVES) Kouka theatre and dreams of playing the star role of Oscar in the Rose of Versailles show someday (see why I recommended it?).
What I love about the series so far is that (1) it's basically a continuation of its prequel series ("Kageki Shoujo! The Curtain Rises" aka the one with a single exclamation point instead of two) about Ai and Sarasa's growing friendship in spite of vastly different personalities, (2) the campus setting is perfect because it gives us a large cast of characters who each feel like real teens with different upbringings, personalities, and approaches to new challenges, and (3) we get to see the girls work through problems and band together so they can grow and become fast friends! What more can I ask for?
The "cliffhanger" at the end of this volume isn't so much a cliffhanger as a twist we should have seen coming. Without spoiling too much, it's a note about one of the characters' approaches to acting and showmanship, and it tells us that she's going to have to dig deep in a real way if she wants to reach her goals. I loved how it didn't feel contrived and made perfect sense, but also the fact that this challenge stems from a perfectly valid approach to acting being unsuited to another. There's no wrong answer. We just have to see if our protagonist can make the switch... unless she finds a secret third option?
Highly recommended as a series I've been looking forward to for a year now. Perfect for fans of campus stories, coming-of-age stories starring girls, and theatre enthusiasts who want to see a refreshing and practical take on how much work and passion goes into becoming a triple threat (acting, singing, and dancing).
The Kouka Acting Troupe school is dedicated to training the next class of professional Takarazuka, all-women theatre actors--basically a particular style of Japanese musical theatre. (I recommend looking up the Rose of Versailles musical as a reference.)
And here we meet our two protagonists in a much, much larger cast of characters: Ai is a former teen idol jaded by her career as the object of affection & creepy obsession of faceless, possessive fans, and Sarasa is a super tall super nerd who loves (LOVES) Kouka theatre and dreams of playing the star role of Oscar in the Rose of Versailles show someday (see why I recommended it?).
What I love about the series so far is that (1) it's basically a continuation of its prequel series ("Kageki Shoujo! The Curtain Rises" aka the one with a single exclamation point instead of two) about Ai and Sarasa's growing friendship in spite of vastly different personalities, (2) the campus setting is perfect because it gives us a large cast of characters who each feel like real teens with different upbringings, personalities, and approaches to new challenges, and (3) we get to see the girls work through problems and band together so they can grow and become fast friends! What more can I ask for?
The "cliffhanger" at the end of this volume isn't so much a cliffhanger as a twist we should have seen coming. Without spoiling too much, it's a note about one of the characters' approaches to acting and showmanship, and it tells us that she's going to have to dig deep in a real way if she wants to reach her goals. I loved how it didn't feel contrived and made perfect sense, but also the fact that this challenge stems from a perfectly valid approach to acting being unsuited to another. There's no wrong answer. We just have to see if our protagonist can make the switch... unless she finds a secret third option?
Highly recommended as a series I've been looking forward to for a year now. Perfect for fans of campus stories, coming-of-age stories starring girls, and theatre enthusiasts who want to see a refreshing and practical take on how much work and passion goes into becoming a triple threat (acting, singing, and dancing).