English Dub Review: Love Live Sunshine “Aqours WAVE”

Gymnastics routine.

Overview:

Aquors needs a new routine, and they need it fast. Love Live is mostly a popularity contest, and those with greater numbers in the audience can get more votes. Since the girls can’t rely on their school to back them, they need to create a stellar performance instead to make up for their lack of numbers.

Our Take:

The seniors do have a dance routine penned, but Kanan thinks it’s too dangerous. The last time they attempted to do this, Mari injured her leg, and they worry about doing it again. Dia and Mari think it’s possible, but Kanan doesn’t think so. Kanan comes off hard, but her worry is justified— if Chika injures herself, then they will have to withdraw from the competition. She isn’t actively discouraging, but she’s realistic. If Chika can’t nail the routine in a week, then there’s no point in her straining herself.

On the other hand, Chika is determined. Out of all the girls, she’s the one who’s the most attached to the Love Live competition, so she wants to put in the most effort. Unfortunately, the trick she needs to learn isn’t easy, and even she puts off sleep in trying to perfect it. She works hard, almost a little too hard, and nearly does injure herself in the process. Even if it’s just singing, on stage performance is very tasking, and Chika is doing something more strenuous than usual. A backflip isn’t easy, even for a beginner. Somehow her hard work pays off and she manages to perfect it right before the deadline. It’s a little unrealistic that she manages to perfect her routine in record time, but she did work hard for it.

The series is growing on me when it’s not trying to be overly cute. I’ve said that I’m fond of seeing girls work hard, and this is just that. Chika put in a ton of work, and she managed to succeed. Success through hard work instead of miraculous circumstances is a far better ending to have since it’s more of a reward for all the effort put in.

Score
7.0/10