Within recent weeks, seeds of malaise have sprouted with a sinister insistence amidst the wreckage of The Idolmaster franchise. Barbed stems curl around the hearts of those daring to call themselves Producer, each ill-conceived choice inflicting palpable sorrow. The arduous task of navigating through this tangle grows increasingly difficult as days wear on, fans desperately seeking out that elusive spark of illumination which once collectively propelled us forward.

I will avoid drawing on the particulars and unfortunate complexities of all that has ensued at this point in time, however there is an inescapable fandom-wide sentiment that being an Idolmaster fan these days is difficult. Melancholy shrouds how we interact, with there seemingly little to find joy in. In a feeble bid to stave off mounting acrimony which clouds my own perception of the franchise, through a series of intermittent blog posts I will highlight franchise songs which have captivated my attention for various reasons.

The first of which I will draw attention to is the 2020 piece Kimi no Stage Ishou, Hontou wa… (君のステージ衣装、本当は…), henceforth referred to as Stage Ishou. Serving as an ending theme for the fifth season of the Cinderella Girls Theater shorts series, the frisson-inducing song expertly interweaves the essence of pathos with its inextricably solemn tonalities. The frenetic cadence of drums beat in tandem with the agonized heart of the narrative voice, while piano flurries exude suppressed yearning teetering on an emotional precipice which is as dizzying as it is powerful. Overwhelming yet beautiful, Stage Ishou conveys unrequited love in all its bittersweet foibles.

Taking inspiration from a contextual framework relating to how Cinderella Girls explores the fundamental loss that arises with seasons drifting by; sands of time slipping through one’s hesitant grasp, a line which continues to resonate whenever my mind drifts to Stage Ishou is “I can’t seem to find the words to defy the seasons”. In future blog entries, I will draw on the magnificent seasonal quartet of CDs which the franchise released, where the passage of time and these lonely sentiments are addressed, but Stage Ishou could be regarded as an extension of this overarching thesis. Spring, summer, and autumn pass, leaving the narrator to reflect on moments shared with the object of their affections that are becoming hazy with time.

Despite the lingering melancholy, however, the piece is remarkably forward-thinking as it refrains from plunging the narrative voice into the stygian gloominess of possibilities irrevocably lost to its depths. As opposed to superficially comparable thematic pieces which opt for casting theoretical objects of affection through idealistic lenses (I’ve lost my one chance at love! etc.), Stage Ishou posits a graceful reconciliation.

There exists a recognition that, in time, seeds of tenderness will bloom profusely for another within their heart in turn lending an element of hope to otherwise poignant sentiments strewn amidst this time capsule of past affection. Such feelings, intense enough to result in this overwhelming musical cascade during the chorus, too shall gradually wane with the passage of time. Such is human nature, and it is this maturity which I find myself respecting Stage Ishou for.

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