How Oshi No Ko and Perfect Blue Explore Idol Culture, Explained

Key takeaways

• Oshi no Ko gives a realistic look at the harsh realities faced by pop idols in Japan.
• Both Perfect Blue and Oshi no Ko emphasize the dangers of becoming an idol, both mentally and physically.
• Both series explore the isolation and inherent dangers of the entertainment industry for idols and celebrities.

Of Oshi noKo manga just ended, making now the perfect time to reflect on the series as a whole. Many idol anime and manga focus on the excitement and positive bonuses that come with being a pop idol. These anime and manga glamorize the large fan bases, international tours, and wonderful lifestyles that pop idols can afford. Too many vacations to justify filler travel episodes, the rush to appear on stage with your idol group who, conveniently, are all your best friends, and managers who actually have your best interests at heart are staples of the genre, and still have their place. Anime and Manga. This is fiction, after all.

Of Oshi no took a different path; They showed a realistic, albeit very dramatic, version of a pop idol's life. Mistakes, tight budgets, low incomes and even violent predators are all common realities facing pop idols in Japan. but Of Oshi no It's not just anime that has explored this before; perfect blue A cult-classic anime film by legendary anime director Satoshi Kon, and watching perfect blue and oshi no ko, It seems that the traumatic nature of the pop idol industry hasn't changed much in the time between the two franchises.

Differences

The Pop Star's External vs. Internal Struggle

Of Oshi noFor the most part, the focus is on external forces working against pop idols in Japan. And while the series largely focuses on stickers, a string of murders, and the dangers that come with that, it also explores other external struggles that are very common in the Japanese pop idol industry. Many industry leaders manipulate and exploit idols for more income. Even with success, becoming an idol rarely means you can pay your own bills, and even in the early chapters of manga Of Oshi no It became very clear that one wrong move can undo your entire career in the blink of an eye.

perfect bluePop, on the other hand, focuses heavily on the internal struggles that idols face. What about the fears that come with a job that might end your age, the online haters and tabloids trying to destroy your image at every turn, and losing yourself in becoming the perfect pop idol. The film focuses specifically on a pop idol's desperation to maintain fame as their career fades, and how this can affect a pop idol's mental health. While the film uses trippy imagery and implicit psychology to explore this film, all of these internal struggles are incredibly common in the entertainment industry as a whole, and are amplified by the peculiarity of the obsessive nature of Japanese pop idol culture.

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

Similarities

The perils of being an idol

A key theme that both these franchises explore is the perils of being an idol. Whether physically or mentally, becoming an idol will affect your health in the best-case scenario, and kill you in the worst-case scenario. Stalkers aren't the only mainstay in these two; They're incredibly pervasive in the entertainment industry as a whole, and have the potential to kill, as shown in both franchises we're discussing today. Christina Grimmie was an American pop star who died while signing autographs outside a concert. Selena Quintanilla-Pérez was a Latina murdered by the president of the official Selena fan club. John Lennon was another American entertainment industry icon who was shot five times in the back, and we still don't know who attacked him.

Both of these anime highlight a very real danger that your favorite celebrities should remember every time they meet people. Your favorite idols and celebrities don't know if you're their next stalker, if someone they interviewed is trying to find information to sell to tabloid magazines, or if their next management team will exploit them to the extreme. Burnout. One of the biggest themes that both of these franchises explore is that pop idols and other celebrities can't trust anyone but themselves, and the inherent problems and loneliness that come with that type of lifestyle.

Of Oshi no and perfect blue They may be over two decades apart, but their themes and messages remain the same. While it may take a long time to change Japanese pop idol culture, pieces of media like these two help pop idol culture fans slowly over time and consider the impact of their actions on their favorite idols.