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Joining a Japanese pop “idol” group is almost like enlisting in the military. There is constant practice, a rigid chain of command, and a strict code of conduct—but absolutely no boyfriends allowed. Yet, aspiring idols continue to dream of fans’ adulation. Kazumi Takayama would know. The “graduate” of the powerhouse female idol ensemble Nogizaka46 wrote the revealing serialized novel on which this anime feature is based. Young Yuu Azuma has the drive to become a successful idol, but the high school students she carefully grooms for her group might not be so ready for primetime in Masahiro Shinohara’s Trapezium, produced by the CloverWorks animation studio, which has special nationwide screenings this Wednesday.
Plenty of rising idols crashed and burned on their way up, but Azuma did her homework. She believes she knows how to lay the groundwork during her group’s early days to avoid bad press later. Before becoming an idol group they must be an organic friend-group. They also need some kind of novelty hook, so she scours social media to recruit members from all four compass points of her Joshu neighborhood, north, east, west, and south, making them “NEWS.”
Azuma attends the conventionally middle-class Joshu East High. Kurumi Taiga is a shy but cute robotics genius at West Tech Vocational. Ranko Katori looks appropriately elegant to attend tony Holy Teneritas Southern Girls Academy, but her school’s snobbery makes her uncomfortable. Finally, Mika Kamei is an old elementary school friend Azuma is thrilled to discovery has since blossomed into a beauty and conveniently attends Joshu North.
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Their new friendships offer Taiga and Kamei the social and emotional support system they needed. Yet, Azuma has greater ambitions. Shrewdly, she maneuvers her friends into the right place, at the right time, for local talent spotters to “discover” them. However, as NEWS’s popularity skyrockets, Taiga withers under the sudden stress and scrutiny.
Anyone watching Apple TV+’s K-Pop Idols should understand how much pressure the Idol industry exerts on rising stars (obviously, it is set in Korea rather than Japan, but the similarities remain pertinent). This is a serious business, for which Azuma has well prepared. However, she metaphorically throws her three friends into the deep end of the media pool, expecting them to swim.
Shrewdly, Shinohara and screenwriter Yuko Kakihara devote considerable time to Azuma’s recruitment process, in much the same way The Dirty Dozen and Seven Samurai did, but with teen idols rather than warriors. These care-free pre-fame days contrast dramatically with the grind of professional idoldom, which leads to a feeling of imbalance between the two halves.
Nevertheless, like its source material, the anime adaptation of Trapezium takes teen drama seriously. It shows how all four girls deal with some serious issues in realistic ways, without bogging down in manipulative melodrama. Each have very relatable virtues and weaknesses, especially Azuma, so viewers cannot help rooting for their happiness.
©Courtesy of Crunchyroll
Still, the idol-centric subject matter might not resonate with viewers who do not share an interest in Asian pop (but, presumably, the growing international market for J-pop should be sufficient to fill theaters.) The film probably also skews towards female audience, even though plenty of male anime fans should readily identify with Shinji Kudou, Taiga’s nebbish classmate, who becomes Azuma’s confidant during her quest for idol glory.
Of course, fans of J-pop will love the soundtrack, because it is legit. The primary Japanese voice cast, definitely including Asaki Yuikawa as Azamua, also sound appropriately youthful and expressive. They help bring their earnest and rather vulnerable characters to life.
And why shouldn’t fans embrace the anime NEWS, considering AI-generated K-pop groups are building an international following? You can argue there are more human inputs in NEWS, thanks to the voices of Yuikawa and her colleagues, as well as the animators at CloverWorks. In fact, the scale and attitudes expressed in Trapezium are often more “human” than that of many live action movies. Recommended for anime fans, particularly those who are also J-pop fans (presumably a large overlapping Venn diagram), Trapezium screens this coming Wednesday (9/18), for one night only.
Grade: B-
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Here’s the trailer of the film.