Oshi No Ko and Perfect Blue Explain How They Explore Idol Culture

Key Takeaways

• <오시노코>realistically shows the harsh reality faced by Japanese pop idols.
• Perfect Blue and Oshinoko both emphasize the dangers of becoming an idol, both mentally and physically.
• Both series explore the loneliness and inherent dangers of the entertainment industry, focusing on idols and celebrities.

OshinokoWith the manga having just ended, now is the perfect time to look back on the series as a whole. Many idol anime and manga tend to focus on the joys and positive bonuses of being a pop idol. These anime and manga glorify the massive fan bases, international tours, and incredible lifestyles that pop idols can afford. Plenty of vacations to justify filler travel episodes, the rush of getting on stage with a group of idols who are conveniently your best friends, and a manager who actually has your best interests at heart are staples of the genre and still have a place today. Animation and comics. After all, it's fiction.

Oshinoko I took a different path. Although it was overly dramatized, it realistically showed the life of a pop idol. The constant barrage of judgment and hatred towards idols for minor mistakes, strict budgets, low income, and even violent stalkers is a normal reality that pop idols face in Japan. but Oshinoko This isn't the only anime that's explored this before. perfect blue A cult classic animated film created by legendary animation director Satoshi Kon. perfect blue and Oshinoko, In the period between the two franchises, the traumatic nature of the pop idol industry doesn't seem to have changed much.

difference

A pop star’s external and internal conflicts

Oshinokomostly focuses on external forces opposing pop idols in Japan. And while the series ends up focusing primarily on stalkers, a string of murders, and the dangers that come with them, it also explores other external struggles that are much more common in the Japanese pop idol industry. Many of the industry leaders manipulate and exploit their idols for more income. Even if successful, becoming an idol rarely pays for itself, and this is true even in the beginning of the manga. Oshinoko It was clear that one wrong move could undo your entire career in the blink of an eye.

perfect blueon the other hand, focuses primarily on the internal struggles pop idols face. As you get older, the fears that come with the job, internalizing online hate and tabloids that try to destroy your image at every turn, and what happens when you lose yourself in the pursuit of becoming the perfect pop idol. The film focuses on the desperation to maintain fame, especially as a pop idol's career fizzles out, and how this can be detrimental and downright toxic to a pop idol's mental health. The film uses trippy imagery and implied psychosis to explore this, but all of these internal struggles are very common in the entertainment industry as a whole, and are amplified by the uniqueness of the obsessive nature of Japanese pop idol culture.

“Look at me, I can do a little bit now. A performance that consumes everything around me.”

Similarities

The Dangers of Being an Idol

The main theme explored by both of these franchises is the danger of becoming an idol. Becoming an idol, whether physically or mentally, can affect one's health at best, and can lead to death at worst. Stalkers are not the main members of these two. They are incredibly prevalent throughout the entertainment industry and have a high potential for murder, as seen in the two franchises we are discussing today. American pop star Christina Grimmie died while signing autographs outside a concert. Selena Quintanilla-Pérez was a Latina woman who was murdered by the president of the official Selena fan club. John Lennon was another American entertainment icon who was shot five times in the back, and we still don't know who carried out the attacks.

These two animations highlight the very real dangers your favorite celebrities must remember every time they meet people. Your favorite idols and celebrities have no idea if you're their next stalker, if an interviewee is trying to dig up information to sell to a tabloid magazine, or if their next management group will take extreme advantage of them. Exhausted. The biggest theme these two franchises explore is the inability of pop idols and other celebrities to trust anyone but themselves, and the unique challenges and loneliness that come with that lifestyle.

Oshinoko and perfect blue They may have come out more than 20 years apart, but the themes and messages remain the same. Japanese pop idol culture may take a much longer time to change, but media like these two will slowly influence pop idol culture fans over time and consider the impact their actions have on their favorite idols. It helps you do that.