Love Live! Superstar!!
Love Live! Superstar!! is a Japanese multimedia project co-developed by Kadokawa Corporation, music label Lantis, and animation studio Sunrise, a division of Bandai Namco Filmworks. The project is the third major and fourth overall installment in the Love Live! franchise after Love Live! School Idol Project, and Love Live! Sunshine!!. Superstar initially revolves around five schoolgirls forming an idol group named Liella! as an extracurricular club activity. With each passing school year, the group makes a name for themselves and go on to recruit several other members.
An anime television series by Sunrise aired on NHK Educational TV from July to October 2021. A second season aired from July to October 2022. A third season aired from October to December 2024.
Plot
The story is set in the Yuigaoka Private Girls High School that lies between the Omotesando, Harajuku, and Aoyama neighborhoods of Tokyo. Originally set to be demolished, the school has instead recently reopened to accept new students. Within a school that has not made a name for itself, along with no history or accomplishments to speak of, Kanon Shibuya and four other first-year students discover the existence of "school idols", and for one reason or another eventually join the school idol club in order to leave their mark on the newly reopened academy. As time progresses, Liella! gains popularity with the general public and prospective students, which leads to new members joining with each consecutive school year. The number of club members gradually rises from the founding 5 in its first year, 9 in its second year, and 11 in its third year.Characters
Where appropriate, plot descriptions mentioned below refer to the anime television series. Other parts of the franchise, such as the manga and novel series, feature some variations in the storyline. The original five members are first-year students in the first season, second-year students in the second season and advance to third-year students in the third season.Liella!
;Kanon Shibuya;Tang Keke
;Chisato Arashi
;Sumire Heanna
;Ren Hazuki
;Kinako Sakurakoji
;Mei Yoneme
;Shiki Wakana
;Natsumi Onitsuka
;Wien Margarete
;Tomari Onitsuka
Sunny Passion
An idol unit from Kōzu-shima, Tokyo, which serves as Liella's rival.;Yūna Hijirisawa
Others
;Aria Shibuya;Manmaru
Development
The franchise announced a brand new anime project following the release of Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club in January 2020, with the premise featuring a new set of characters who are all first-year students in a newly reopened school originally on the verge of demolition. The school lies between the Omotesando, Harajuku, and Aoyama neighborhoods of Tokyo. In addition, an audition for one of the main cast was held on March 12, 2020, but was postponed due to COVID-19. Atsushi Saitō serves as the character design adapting style of the series' original character designer Yūhei Murota. The school name was decided through fans' votes and concluded in May 2020 with Yuigaoka Girls High School. The main characters names were also announced: Kanon Shibuya, Tang Keke, Chisato Arashi, Sumire Heanna, and Ren Hazuki.The project's name, Love Live! Superstar!! was announced in July through the series' exclusive magazine Love Live! Days. In September, the school idol group's name, "Liella!" was also chosen through fans' votes. The name was chosen among 16 options that fans could vote for. The name "Liella!" comes from a combination from a French word "lier" which means "to connect", which is the same as Yui in the school's name in Japanese, and "brilliante", which means an "inner glow". Behind the group's name lies the feelings of the hope that the small stars of today who have their own brilliance will become superstars someday.
The cast of the initial five main characters was later revealed in December 2020: Sayuri Date, Liyuu, Nako Misaki, Naomi Payton, and Nagisa Aoyama. Date and Aoyama are members who passed the open audition that was held earlier in the year. The group's debut single, "Hajimari wa Kimi no Sora" released on April 7, 2021. The single includes an animation PV and released in two versions—each with different B-sides: "Minna de Kanaeru Monogatari" and "Watashi o Kanaeru Monogatari".
On April 28, 2022, four new characters were announced to be joining Liella!'s member lineup for the second season in an issue of the Love Live! Days magazine: Kinako Sakurakoji, Mei Yoneme, Shiki Wakana and Natsumi Onitsuka, and the second season's air date was given the time frame of summer 2022. In May 2022, the casting for each character's respective voice actress was unveiled: Nozomi Suzuhara, Akane Yabushima, Wakana Ookuma and Aya Emori. Suzuhara was also a participant of the initial open auditions in 2020, being offered a role for the second season. They are officially referred to as Liella!'s 'second generation' in promotional material and among group members.
Shortly after the confirmation of a third season in October 2022, a second nationwide open audition recruiting one cast member for Liella!'s 'third generation' was announced. On June 11, 2023, a new character named Tomari Onitsuka was introduced in an issue of Love Live! Days magazine. Additionally, supporting character Wien Margarete, an antagonist who first appeared in the second season, was confirmed to be joining Liella!. Sakura Sakakura was revealed to be the winner of the audition, respectively cast as Tomari. Yuina, who voices Wien Margarete, had simultaneously been promoted from a member of the supporting cast to series regular on the same day.
Broadcast and distribution
The anime television series is animated by Bandai Namco Filmworks and directed by Takahiko Kyogoku, with Jukki Hanada handling series composition and Atsushi Saito designing the characters. Yoshiaki Fujisawa returns from his work on Love Live! School Idol Project to compose the music. The series aired on NHK Educational TV from July 11 to October 17, 2021. Funimation streamed the series for international releases. Liella! perform both the opening and ending themes, titled "Start!! True Dreams" and "Mirai wa Kaze no Yō ni" respectively, from episode 2 onwards. Special animated music videos made specifically for the NHK Educational TV broadcast featuring original songs by Liella! air after each episode titled "Songs of Liella!".On October 24, 2021, it was announced during a live screening event of the first season that a second season was in production. The announcement was uploaded to the official Love Live! Series YouTube channel shortly after the event. The second season aired from July 17 to October 9, 2022. The second season introduces four new main characters as additional members of Liella!. Liella! once again perform the both opening and ending themes, respectively titled "We Will!" and "Oikakeru Yume no Saki de". The second season also features "Songs of Liella!" segments at the end of every episode when aired on NHK Educational TV.
A third season was announced following the conclusion of the second season alongside open auditions for a new main cast member. Sakura Sakakura won the audition and was cast as Tomari Onitsuka. The third season airied from October 6 to December 22, 2024. The opening and ending themes is performed by Liella! respectively titled "Let's be One" and "Daisuki Full Power". The third season also features "Songs of Liella!" segments at the end of episodes when aired on NHK Educational TV. Unlike previous seasons, the third season only features "Songs of Liella!" segments for half of the episodes in the season instead of every single one. In its place, several animated shorts starring the characters in the same art style were aired after certain episodes instead.
Other media
Various Liella! songs were playable through Love Live! School Idol Festival and its spin-off game School Idol Festival All Stars for limited amounts of time. SR cards of Liella! members were also made available through a special login bonus in School Idol Festival as commemoration of the anime series' broadcast.A spin-off manga, titled Love Live! Superstar!! Chii-chan Buchō wa Yūnō Desu!, written and illustrated by Yūta Taneda began serialization on Kadokawa Corporation's Comic Walker manga website on March 30, 2023. The manga is centered around the character Chisato Arashi. The manga's chapters have been compiled into a single tankōbon volume as of January 26, 2024.