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  1. #1
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Shine Post

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    "Although the idol group TiNgS is chasing after big dreams, so far their accomplishments have only been small — and now, suddenly, they're facing a potential break up! Hope seems lost, but when a new manager with a special skillset takes them under his wing, the members of TiNgS find themselves shooting for the stars all over again.

    Source: Sentai Filmworks"

    Genre(s): Idols, music, drama, supernatural

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    This got off on the completely right foot. I liked just about everything this episode did. The characters were cute, distinct, and felt to have more personality than your typical idol piece where each girl gets one character trait or speech tic to differentiate them. The dilemma and goal of 1000 patrons to not break up is tough, but fair given the group's age and the only questionable story element is how they haven't already been assigned a manager when they are clearly struggling so much currently. Naoki has a fun twist that is "shown not told" until the end of the episode that adds to the dramatic tension he brings to the group, and his low key character doesn't clash at all with the exuberant girls. There are rumblings of at least two potential dramas set up here from unclear motivations and past work associations, so the story has material to draw from on the journey. It was a complete package of an introduction.

    The story elements resonating with me is all well and good, but the real star of this show is the animation. I don't get to call television anime overanimated often, but here... I just hope this isn't a case of the episode one budget blowout syndrome, because this is beautiful. The cells, the camera work, even the (shudder) CG is used where appropriate and looks as good as it can. The animation isn't just exquisite, but it serves to further characterize the girls. Haru's walk of dancing excitement tells me all I need to know about how stoked she is to be working as an idol. It got me excited to see her succeed. The dancing number at the beginning is worth a watch no matter how interested you are in idols just for the cuts, and even the vastly inferior practice dance (complete with squeaky sneakers) later in the episode has me worried about how they can possibly keep the animation quality up for an entire cour.

    This just shot to the top of my watch list. Highly recommended.

  2. #2
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Maybe its the gorgeous animation, but there's something about this that is fun to watch.

    I like that the idol nerds immediately began criticizing these newbies before their performance- like the audience was a beast and this was a low growl before committing to devouring its prey, but it didn't come off as mean spirited or overly serious like otaku/hipsters tend to be in anime. Manager's plan was simple, but effective in putting the girls in a position to grow.

    The 'reveal' that one of them was simply weaker at dancing was great and matched what the animation clearly shows since last episode. I also like that apparently her clumsiness isn't a dealbreaker, but I'm not sure what exact je ne sais quoi of Haru manager-kun was talking about that turned the performance around. Was the idea that she turned her compensation/adjustment efforts efforts away from Rio and to the audience?

  3. #3
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    That's what I understood.
    She's a social high level monster, she adapts to any situation. So when dancing she felt clumsy and offbeat because she was adapting in realtime to her partners movements.
    Manager kun changed her aim to the audience's reaction and it was the detonator to their explosion to the world of idols.

    As a side bonus, I wonder if her gift is superior to manager-kun's in that he can't know when she lies because her adaptability is so strong she can hide a 'social' lie even to his gift.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

  4. #4
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Interesting idea. That would be a nice wrinkle if she's been lying but comes off as so sincere that it avoids 'the glow' (must be a Japanese cultural idiom) that manager-kun picks up on.

    I also meant to mention I like that his seeing lies (that often) hasn't made him into a cynical jerk who expects the worst from people, as is common in anime. He has the maturity to know that sometimes people want to avoid telling the truth because, in their judgement, the cons outweigh the pros. I'm just glad he doesn't flaunt people's dishonesty in their faces and act superior because he has a sort-of super power.

  5. #5
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    We don't know how efficient his power is. We don't know much about that power actually.
    The lies the girls said were more a way to motivate themselves.
    As for center girl, it might be she's got a power too with one of the effects being to disable Manager-kun's.
    But truth is my cynical mind just remembered politicians are fairly good at deceiving lie detectors

    As for manager-kun, he might not be a jerk, but it certainly affects his life an interactions with people.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

  6. #6
    Yorha Unit- shinta|hikari's Avatar
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    I think you guys are reading too much into this. Haru is the typical pure and honest protagonist. Naoki's power is infallible. Those are the conclusions with the least amount of assumptions from what we've seen so far.

    As for what Haru changed, she shifted her focus from coordinating and balancing her two team members to observing the reactions of the audience. She watched how the crowd reacted and what they focused on and adjusted her performance based on that.

    The fact is with her being the center, the audience will look at her the most. Her previous attempt at supporting her other teammates was detrimental because it led to her losing focus on her own performance.

    A good thing to note about this is her eyes while performing. Previously, her eyes darted left and right to check on her teammates and coordinate their movements. That is a no-no because the dancers, especially the center, has to be looking and smiling at the audience, regardless if you have her observational skills or not. Her darting eyes would be seen as amateurish and a sign of a lack of skill/talent/practice, or worse, a lack of interest in pleasing the audience.

    With her trying to make herself "shine", and using her observation skills on the audience to see how to best do that, she was able to improve the entirety of the performance, or at the very least how it was perceived by the crowd.
    Last edited by shinta|hikari; Wed, 07-20-2022 at 10:48 AM.
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  7. #7
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by shinta|hikari View Post
    I think you guys are reading too much into this.
    That's how we drag more people into the discussion!

    3,4

    I loved Kyouka's resting idol face when Haru is trying to give her a pep talk that isn't landing! Also, the simple but beautiful cut of Rio getting excited over finally tasting popularity when giving out tickets (she turns away to process). So cute it hurts to think about, and the voice work added to it.

    Getting to the meat of this arc, it is explained that Kyouka's been traumatized by a failed leading performance in the past and is now content to be an MC instead of center. Manager-kun knows this is a growth opportunity for Kyouka and the idol unit both, and he imposes that she must be the center for the next show, much to her protest. She predictably hems and haws over it but is given 'encouragement' by the one of the ghost members of TiNgS. Yukine's frustration with Kyouka served as the only weighty counterpoint to her frustration and reluctance at engaging the center role again. That, plus a 'fated' encounter at the golden arches, gives her the resolve to face this new challenge whole heartedly.

    Admittedly, there were no new ideas or even twists, really, in this arc, but I was entertained anyway. This is, perhaps, the greatest difference between a show that has 'proven itself' to me versus one that has not. I'm overjoyed for my twenty minutes of Shine Post each week and lap up whatever they throw at me.

    One fun aspect is that Kyouka, aside from being the girl with the 'average person complex', has a surprisingly negative and nasty attitude (by idol standards). She has a low temper for being imposed on and does not see advice as an inherently positive influence. She has some texture, and her facial expressions sell it well. She bounces off of Yukine well as 'rivals' and their conflict scene was great. I really enjoyed the quasi-dream sequence with the fans recognizing her at the fast food place- not too hammy and a little somber. She was downright nasty (again, by idol standards) when her chirpy little friend dragged her to her first idol gig, and while I should deduct points for re-using some footage from the first episode, I had too much fun with the added scenes to care.

    Manager-kun is doing a good job in both senses- in the story working on the girl's obstacles, and metacontextualy by not getting in the way as an overbearing character in the story and distracting the audience from the girls or serving as some half hearted audience insert. The use of his lie detector is not overdone or dramatic.

    Also of note that while I am used to the quality of animation now, I still can appreciate the nuance it continues to bring. Kyoka's stiff face (and transformation) when unsure of the outcome of her performance, the dancing still being offbeat among TiNgS members, and all of the subtle movements convincingly show me that they are still rough without another word of dialogue. Chef's kiss.

    Simply put, this is giving me exactly what I want, or is telling me what I want and I can't argue so far.

  8. #8
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    There's a nice blend of CGI that feels handcrafted.
    Mouths seem to be tuned to the songs.
    I noticed a very subtle yet great detail: left breast of Hotaru in the traveling, Hotaru is written upside down and you get it when she starts to move and her star cut blazer progressively shows the letters as the camera moves.

    Mouths and eyes feels a bit plastered on faces, but that is a minor problem compared to every other cgi anime so far.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

  9. #9
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Sweet little Rio is finally getting her arc. What a cute character. Best girl here, and that's just science.

    I'm glad to be affirmed that the haughty klutz thing is both an act and an extension of her personality, and a marketable trait. She has 'I must protect this smile' evocation at a level of mastery few can survive if directly exposed to. I foresee many glowsticks being crushed in angst as she stumbles on stage.

    Seriously, her struggle is another internal battle against her own worst critic: herself. She is the weakest, technically, of the three, she will likely never catch up with the other two, and she acutely knows it. Her desire to see her friends succeed ("You don't have to come for me") is saccharine, but it hits different after the location shoot where she is directly compared to the other pro idol who knows how to be properly fake about things. The manager and tagalong already knowing her appeal lies in her ditzyness was great- the audience knows it already, so no need to explain why Rio's appeal can be an asset.

    So her quest will be to gain confidence (the real kind). Confidence that people will support her even when she is awkward because she wears it so well.

    Also, can we get an "f" in chat for manager-kun's faith in humanity? Lies flying at him like bullets in a Matrix movie.

    **edit: Forgot to mention I'm enjoying the story so much that I didn't mention the animation took a step back this episode. Not ugly by any means, but no grand motion or super detailed facial reactions. They gotta save some frames somewhere, and this is perfect.

  10. #10
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Yessssssss, my heart melts!

    So Rio's desire to simply not want to cause trouble to anyone, ultimately warped into the persona that we know. What remains cute about it is that she does not go hard in being a queen. Multiple times she breaks down and is just a sweet girl, and never fully envelops the act. Even at the end of the performance she can't stifle her tears on stage after being accepted (cute cry for days). She puts her try-hard effort into better things, like secret practice. I've seen it a hundred times before, but this... hits different, as the youth say. I get misty watching this for some reason.

    Rio's singing voice being angelic I should have seen coming. If she can't dance, she must have had something, as manager-kun said, to be chosen as an idol. Unfortunately, her auditions' flashbacks didn't show any hints of that, meaning Mrs. Owner-kun must eccentric to feel out Rio's kindness and give her a chance. Never the less, she is here and yes, a beautiful singing voice is more immediately appealing to 'normies' than the technical dancing that draws in the hachimaki crowd.

    The sequence was animated at a level that sold the mood quite well, but the smooth movements contrasted with Rio-Sama's entire character design, to my chagrin. Thankfully they said ahead of time that they were all but removing the dancing to focus in her strength, so slide it may.

    The whole scene, while quite cliché, was riveting (likely in no small part because of my investment in Rio's character arc), especially the cruel juxtaposition of the audience assuming one of the other two would be the center, and the 'shine' on the fan playing along with Rio-sama's posturing. Great "show, don't tell".

    Now, manager-kun has set his sights on filling out the ranks!

  11. #11
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    And I think Rio's mouth animation was following the song too.
    I did not anticipate a ballad, but it fits for her strenght that is her voice and eludes the dancing problem.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

  12. #12
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    An elegant solution, in more ways than one, to be sure.

  13. #13
    Yorha Unit- shinta|hikari's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by neflight86 View Post
    her auditions' flashbacks didn't show any hints of that, meaning Mrs. Owner-kun must eccentric to feel out Rio's kindness and give her a chance.
    She most definitely sang in those auditions. That's like half of what an idol does. Those scenes were just omitted for the impact of this episode's reveal that Rio was, in fact, as talented as her peers.
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  14. #14
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    I figured TiNgS was kinda faking it till they made it, including not really giving Rio much to do other than look cute. It's also not hard to believe she was too nervous to sing to her full potential in most of her interviews, not having all this support.

    In other bad news, looks like the rest of the episodes are getting pushed back due to Covid: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/new...vid-19/.188732

    Boo.

  15. #15
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by David75 View Post
    We don't know how efficient his power is. We don't know much about that power actually.
    The lies the girls said were more a way to motivate themselves.
    As for center girl, it might be she's got a power too with one of the effects being to disable Manager-kun's.
    But truth is my cynical mind just remembered politicians are fairly good at deceiving lie detectors

    As for manager-kun, he might not be a jerk, but it certainly affects his life an interactions with people.
    Now we get a clearer picture.
    Manager-kun's power is not so much detecting lies, but more the uneasyness that comes wirh hiding something with that lie.
    The perfect power for his job of promoting idols to be: he can find their weaknesses and work on them.
    Haru never activated his power before because she had yet to find a hurdle she could not pass... except her genius idol abilities made Yukine quit TINGS and it becomes a hurdle she can't pass until she spills the beans.

    Now we understand why she's so hyper and full throtle: she thinks anyone can do something with the will to do it, because she certainly can.

    She could probably become a solo idol, but she probably wants to be in a group. Maybe she needs friends, as geniuses often get shunned or exclude themselves. Hence how she always tries to adapt to everyone around.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

  16. #16
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Thanks for clarifying. I still looked at it as a lie detector. I can't remember if she said anything like that (I always do my best) previously, but an interesting point.

    Yukine was frustrating for not explaining any of her reason for quitting, but I suppose that was to set up this twist reveal, and it worked well enough for that. I just wish the lead up were a bit more truncated or had more hints about the reveal. I almost expected a Dr Jeckyl / Mr Hyde transformation for a second...

  17. #17
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    My hunch is still a bit weak but Haru's face/body language was the push I needed. Hurdle/uneasyness seems to be the factor in his power more than the lie itself. As most lies we've seen were the lesser ones. Even the director's was a very weak lie.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

  18. #18
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    Way to go, hiding an actual slick reveal behind a convoluted scheme of trying to not hurt each other's feelings in the most roundabout way possible. All of these things are the result of everyone being too nice and thoughtful. It's honestly a bit much, but idol shows tend to focus a glorifying interpretation of the girl's rendition of "teamwork, friendship, and victory"... maybe with something about loving fans tacked on for good measure, so I'm not surprised, and I'm invested enough that it still works plenty.

    The anime theme/trope of "overwhelming talent is isolating" is one of the more interesting ones to me (at least it's not yet worn out), and I see it explored most in shounen/sports and idol anime. I should have seen it coming.
    Last edited by neflight86; Tue, 10-18-2022 at 09:34 PM.

  19. #19
    Awesome user with default custom title neflight86's Avatar
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    This is, in all likelihood, among the best compromise between CGI and traditional cell animation I've yet seen in a show (the other being, ironically, another idol show, Idolly Pride, from some years back for the same reasons). It uses CG exclusively when the shots are far out to obscure the fuzzy linework, preserving the fluidity of 'less detailed' movement while keeping the sweet, sweet cell animation for the upper body close up shots. I expect that this, while not easy per say, freed up resources for the constant motion and even a full 360 rotation shot. Beautiful performance, and worth a watch even if you have to youtube it.

    As for the drama leading up to it, it is worthy of recognition that the narrative has remained compelling at all given just how derivative and worn this particular premise is among idol shows, at least. As mentioned last episode, Haru is so good it hurts, literally; her co-idols, that is. As per usual, the issue of personal accountability is cleanly sidestepped in that her less talented flashback friend should have maybe taken her frustration and channeled it into more practice to improve her situation, but no. Shine Post expects the audience to buy, at face value, that (improvement) was not an option, and Haru was not wrong to quit to preserve her friend's ability to be an (inferior) idol. That is frustrating, but these are ultimately first world problems, so I cannot muster the full might of my internet deconstruction and petulant whining.

    How the show adresses the question of Haru's radioactive stage presence with her current crew is somewhat more agreeable. The other TINGS members decide to come up to her level, and her personal hurdle is- get this- believing that they are even capable. In what is maybe the weirdest flex this season, Haru admits to herself that she has been keeping quiet about mountains of improvements the girls would need to even stand on stage with her if she accidentally tried at all. I paraphrase, and Haru doesn't come off like that, but boy is it funny to recontextualize essentially the same message like that.

    Even manager-kun confesses to Haeu his struggles with hurting idols by being some combination of too nice and not nice enough (the scene kind of lost me), leading to Haru giving them a chance. Thankfully, by the power of off-screen practice, the other girls are able to ascend to the level required for Haru to... be comfortable popping off on stage?

    Don't get me wrong; I'm still loving this, and any deeper investigation of themes or side character motivations would not be in the spirit of the show (SP is firmly in the uncynical camp of idol shows), but it does always get me thinking when problems are navigated in such saccharine ways by such sweetly written people.
    Last edited by neflight86; Tue, 10-18-2022 at 09:37 PM.

  20. #20
    Burning out, no really... David75's Avatar
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    Haru should go solo. She'd smash it.
    It was not explained clearly but we can guess the other girls were already trying their best, full throttle. Haru is just in another dimension.
    It also happens in sports.
    I remember that 14y old boy, already 3rd division in volley-ball, same age as we were. He played against our full team alone. Our coach wanted to show us.
    We never scored. All we did was too slow and/or predictable.
    And I remember watching a boy in a soccer match, it was as if all of his movements were slow, but no one was able to catch him or prevent him from moving freely around the field and score whenever he wanted.

    These are the two instances I remember telling to myself that there are people so good it's hard to understand.

    Haru ? She just is in a league far higher. She catches a choregraphy first seen first try. That is telling.
    Last edited by David75; Wed, 09-14-2022 at 10:36 PM.

    All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.

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