Love Live![lower-alpha 1] School Idol Project is a Japanese multimedia project co-developed by ASCII Media Works' Dengeki G's Magazine, music label Lantis, and animation studio Sunrise. The project revolves around a group of nine schoolgirl friends who become idols in order to save their school from shutting down. It launched in the August 2010 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine, and went on to produce music CDs, anime music videos, two manga adaptations, and video games. A 13-episode anime television series produced by Sunrise, directed by Takahiko Kyōgoku, and written by Jukki Hanada aired in Japan between January and March 2013, with a second season airing between April and June 2014. Both anime series and film are licensed in North America, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand by NIS America, MVM Entertainment and Madman Entertainment, respectively. An animated film titled Love Live! The School Idol Movie was distributed by Shochiku and released in June 2015. A follow-up project focusing on a new set of idols, titled Love Live! Sunshine!!, launched in 2015.
Honoka Kōsaka is a girl who attends Otonokizaka Academy (音ノ木坂学院, Otonokizaka Gakuin). When the school is scheduled to be closed due to a lack of applicants, Honoka becomes determined to save it. Honoka goes to UTX, where her little sister planned to go for high school, and sees a crowd watching a music video of A-Rise, UTX's school idol group. Learning that school idols are popular, Honoka and her friends follow A-Rise's footsteps and start their own school idol group called μ's (ミューズ, Myūzu, pronounced "muse") to attract new students. Once they successfully prevent Otonokizaka Academy from closing, the girls from μ's set their sights higher. They participate in Love Live, the ultimate school idol competition featuring the best groups in the country. Despite winning the competition, the girls from μ's disband soon after for their own personal reasons, and because the third-years are graduating.
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.
Since the first issue of ASCII Media Works' Dengeki G's Magazine was published, the editors of the magazine have hosted reader participation games whose development is directly influenced by the people who read the magazine. The project was first announced in the July 2010 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine, which revealed that the magazine would be collaborating with the anime studio Sunrise and the music label Lantis to co-produce the project.[16] The project officially began with the August 2010 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine, which introduced the story, characters, and a more detailed explanation of the project.[17] The original plan for the story was written by Sakurako Kimino, who also writes the short stories for Love Live! featured in Dengeki G's Magazine. Original character design and illustrations are provided by Yūhei Murota.
Starting in August 2010, online mobile phone popularity contests have periodically been held to rank the characters, which influences the positions of the idols in the anime music videos produced by Sunrise. For example, the idol who ranks first in a given contest will be in the center position in the front row in the music video that follows. Other polls are used to determine different aspects of the idols, such as hairstyles and costumes.[18] Starting with the November 2010 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine, readers were polled to determine the name of the idols' group. After the editors narrowed it down to the five most popular names, readers were polled for a final time, ultimately choosing the name μ's. A similar polling system was used to determine the names of the three subunits: Printemps, BiBi and Lily White.[19]
A manga adaptation titled Love Live!, written by Sakurako Kimino and illustrated by Arumi Tokita, began serialization in the January 2012 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine. The manga ended serialization in the magazine's May 2014 issue and was transferred to Dengeki G's Comic starting with the June 2014 issue.[20] The first tankōbon volume was released on September 27, 2012,[21] and three volumes have been released as of May 27, 2014.[22] The second manga titled Love Live! School Idol Diary, written by Kimino and illustrated by Masaru Oda, began serialization in the June 2014 issue of Dengeki G's Comic.[20] The first volume of School Idol Diary was released on September 26, 2014.[23]
A light novel series titled Love Live! School Idol Diary is written by Kimino and contains illustrations by Yūhei Murota, Natsu Otono and Akame Kiyose. ASCII Media Works published 11 volumes between May 30, 2013 and August 29, 2014.[24] A fan book titled History of Love Live! was released on September 10, 2014, which features the Love Live! articles published between the July 2010 and February 2013 issues of Dengeki G's Magazine.[25]
A 13-episode anime television series produced by Sunrise, directed by Takahiko Kyōgoku, and written by Jukki Hanada aired in Japan on Tokyo MX from January 6 to March 31, 2013 and was simulcast by Crunchyroll.[26] The opening theme is "Bokura wa Ima no Naka de" (僕らは今のなかで, lit. "We're Living in the Moment"), while the ending theme is "Kitto Seishun ga Kikoeru" (きっと青春が聞こえる, lit. "Surely Our Youth Can Be Heard"); both are performed by μ's (Emi Nitta, Aya Uchida, Suzuko Mimori, Yoshino Nanjō, Pile, Riho Iida, Aina Kusuda, Yurika Kubo and Sora Tokui). An original video animation episode was released on November 27, 2013.[27] A second season aired on Tokyo MX from April 6 to June 29, 2014, also airing on TV Aichi, Yomiuri TV, and BS11,[28] and was simulcast by Crunchyroll. The opening theme is "Sore wa Bokutachi no Kiseki" (それは僕たちの奇跡, lit. "That Is Our Miracle"), while the ending theme is "Donna Toki mo Zutto" (どんなときもずっと, lit. "Always No Matter What"); both are performed by μ's. An animated film titled Love Live! The School Idol Movie was released in theaters on June 13, 2015.[29] It was released on Blu-ray in Japan on December 15, 2015. A second film, Love Live! Sunshine!! The School Idol Movie: Over the Rainbow, was released in Japan on January 4, 2019.[30]
Both anime series and the first film are licensed in North America by NIS America, who released the premium edition of the first season on Blu-ray on September 2, 2014[31] and an English dubbed version was released with the standard edition of the first season, along with the premium edition of the second season, on February 14, 2016, as well as the standard edition of the second season on April 12, 2016.[32][33][34][35][36] The series also began airing on Mnet America from February 5, 2016.[2] The film was released in North America by NIS America on June 28, 2016 in a premium edition, and July 26, 2016 in a standard edition, both with an English dub.[37] MVM Entertainment released the first series in the United Kingdom on July 27, 2015 on DVD, with plans to release it on Blu-ray Disc in 2016 with an English dub.[38] MVM Entertainment also released the second series in 2016.[39] Madman Entertainment released the first season in Australia and New Zealand on June 10, 2015 on DVD.[40]
A free-to-play game titled Love Live! School Idol Festival as developed by KLab and released by Bushiroad for iOS devices in Japan on April 15, 2013.[41] The game is a collectible card game with elements of rhythm game and visual novel genres. A version for Android was also released. The game was localized into English and released worldwide on May 11, 2014 for both iOS and Android devices,[42] and also received localizations available in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea.[43] At the end of September 2016, the English version of the game added Korean support due to merging between the two servers.[44] A new game titled Love Live! School Idol Festival All Stars, which also features members of Aqours as well as a new set of characters from Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, was released on September 26, 2019 in Japan.[45][46][47] The game released globally on February 25, 2020 with support in Thai, Korean, traditional Chinese, and English.
A series of three rhythm-action video games developed by Dingo Inc.,[48] titled Love Live! School Idol Paradise, were released on August 28, 2014 for the PlayStation Vita.[49] The three games were released as Vol. 1 Printemps, Vol.2 BiBi and Vol.3 Lily White. These games sold 88,169 physical retail copies altogether within the first week of release in Japan.[50]
Rin Hoshizora became the new face of the Puyo Puyo games in 2015 as part of a campaign by Sega to market the popularity of the anime by giving her a place on all of their current franchises.[51] A mobile gamed titled Puchiguru Love Live! revolves around the mini-stuffed dolls sold resembling the characters.[52] It was released on April 24, 2018 for Android and iOS,[53] and was shut down on May 31, 2019.[54]
Aside from individual and duet singles, the nine idols of μ's are divided into three mini units with their own singles themselves: Printemps (Honoka, Kotori, and Hanayo), BiBi (Eli, Maki, and Nico), and Lily White (stylized in all lowercase) (Umi, Rin, and Nozomi).[55] Seven of μ's' singles include an anime music video.
Some titles containing English words which are officially stylized in unusual title case are rendered below in normal title case.
Title | Artist(s) | Release date | Peak Oricon chart positions |
Certifications (sales thresholds) |
Notes | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
"Bokura no Live Kimi to no Life" (僕らのLIVE 君とのLIFE, Our Live, Life with You) | μ's | August 25, 2010 | 167[56] | μ's' first single | ||||||||
"Snow Halation" | December 22, 2010 | 74[57] | μ's' second single | |||||||||
"Love Marginal" | Printemps | May 25, 2011 | 85[58] | Printemps' first single | ||||||||
"Diamond Princess no Yūutsu" (ダイヤモンドプリンセスの憂鬱, The Diamond Princess' Melancholy) | BiBi | June 22, 2011 | 79[59] | BiBi's first single | ||||||||
"Shiranai Love*Oshiete Love" (知らないLove*教えてLove, I don't know Love*Teach me Love) | Lily White | July 27, 2011 | 81[60] | Lily White's first single | ||||||||
"Natsuiro Egao de 1, 2, Jump!" (夏色えがおで1,2,Jump!, Summer-colored Smile 1, 2, Jump!) | μ's | August 24, 2011 | 62[61] | μ's' third single | ||||||||
"Mogyutto 'love' de Sekkinchū!" (もぎゅっと"love"で接近中!, A Tight Love is Approaching!) | February 15, 2012 | 31[62] | μ's' fourth single | |||||||||
"Mermaid Festa Vol. 2 (Passionate)" | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta) and Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) | April 25, 2012 | 57[63] | Duo singles | ||||||||
"Otome Shiki Ren'ai Juku" (乙女式れんあい塾, Maiden's Love Formula Lesson) | Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) and Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) | May 23, 2012 | 64[64] | |||||||||
"Kokuhaku Biyori, desu!" (告白日和、です!, A Good Day for a Confession!) | Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) and Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) | June 27, 2012 | 43[65] | |||||||||
"Soldier Game" | Maki Nishikino (Pile), Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) and Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjō) | July 25, 2012 | 38[66] | Trio single | ||||||||
"Wonderful Rush" | μ's | September 5, 2012 | 30[67] | μ's' fifth single | ||||||||
"Bokura wa Ima no Naka de" (僕らは今のなかで, We're all Living in this Moment) | January 23, 2013 | 12[68] | Opening theme of the first season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | |||||||||
"Kitto Seishun ga Kikoeru" (きっと青春が聞こえる, You'll Surely Hear Our Youth) | February 6, 2013 | 8[69] | Ending theme of the first season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | |||||||||
"Susume→Tomorrow" (ススメ→トゥモロウ, Advance→Tomorrow) / "Start:Dash!!" | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta), Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) and Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) | February 20, 2013 | 11[70] | Insert songs from the first season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | ||||||||
"Korekara no Someday" (これからのSomeday, Someday in the Future) / "Wonder Zone" | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta), Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida), Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori), Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida), Maki Nishikino (Pile), Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) and Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) / μ's | March 6, 2013 | 7[71] | |||||||||
"No Brand Girls" / "Start:Dash!!" | μ's | April 3, 2013 | 5[72] | |||||||||
"Binetsu kara Mystery" (微熱からMystery, Mystery from Slight Fever) | Lily White | June 26, 2013 | 4[73] | Lily White's second single | ||||||||
"Cutie Panther" | BiBi | July 24, 2013 | 8[74] | BiBi's second single | ||||||||
"Pure Girls Project" | Printemps | August 21, 2013 | 10[75] | Printemps' second single | ||||||||
"Music S.T.A.R.T!!" | μ's | November 27, 2013 | 5[76] | μ's' sixth single | ||||||||
"Takaramonozu" (タカラモノズ, Treasures) / "Paradise Live" | January 29, 2014 | 4[77] | JP: Gold[78] | Special single to celebrate 1 million downloads of Love Live! School Idol Festival in Japan | ||||||||
"Sore wa Bokutachi no Kiseki" (それは僕たちの奇跡, That's Our Miracle) | April 23, 2014 | 3[79] | JP: Gold[80] | Opening theme of the second season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | ||||||||
"Donna Toki mo Zutto" (どんなときもずっと, Always No Matter What) | May 8, 2014 | 2[81] | Ending theme of the second season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | |||||||||
"Yume no Tobira" (ユメノトビラ, The Door of Dreams) | May 28, 2014 | 3[82] | Insert songs from the second season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | |||||||||
"Love Wing Bell" / "Dancing Stars on Me!" | Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida), Maki Nishikino (Pile), Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo), Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjō), Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) and Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) / μ's | June 11, 2014 | 3[83] | |||||||||
"KiRa-KiRa Sensation!" / "Happy Maker!" | µ's | July 9, 2014 | 3[84] | |||||||||
"Shangri-La Shower" | October 1, 2014 | 5[85] | Love Live! School Idol Paradise exclusive song | |||||||||
"Eien Friends" (永遠フレンズ, Forever Friends) | Printemps | November 12, 2014 | 6[86] | Printemps' third single, in collaboration with Love Live! School Idol Festival as celebration for reaching 3 million downloads in Japan[87][88] | ||||||||
"Aki no Anata no Sora Tōku" (秋のあなたの空遠く, Your Distant Autumn Sky) | Lily White | November 26, 2014 | 3[89] | Lily White's third single, in collaboration with Love Live! School Idol Festival as celebration for reaching 3 million downloads in Japan[88][90] | ||||||||
"Fuyu ga Kureta Yokan" (冬がくれた予感, The Premonition that Winter Gave Me) | BiBi | December 24, 2014 | 2[91] | JP: Gold[92] | BiBi's third single, in collaboration with Love Live! School Idol Festival as celebration for reaching 3 million downloads in Japan[88][93] | |||||||
"CheerDay CheerGirl!" | Printemps | December 25, 2014 | — | Released as bonus CDs for those who bought the Love Live! season 2 Blu-ray Discs from Gamers, Animate, and Softmap, respectively | ||||||||
"Onaji Hoshi ga Mitai" (同じ星が見たい, I Want To See the Same Stars) | Lily White | |||||||||||
"Silent Tonight" | BiBi | |||||||||||
"Mi wa μ'sic no Mi" (ミはμ'sicのミ, M is for μ'sic) | μ's | April 22, 2015 | 5[94] | Collaboration single with Dengeki G's Magazine | ||||||||
"Saitei de Saikō no Paradisio" (最低で最高のParadiso, The Best and Worst Paradiso) | BiBi | May 23, 2015 | — | Lottery prize during Love Live! The School Idol Movie | ||||||||
"Otohime Heart de Love Kyūden" (乙姫心で恋宮殿, Otome Hāto de Rabu Kyūden, A Palace of Love in the Young Princess' Heart) | Lily White | |||||||||||
"Museum de Dō Shitai" (MUSEUMでどうしたい, What Would You Like to Do At the Museum?) | Printemps | |||||||||||
"Angelic Angel" / "Hello, Hoshi o Kazoete" (Hello,星を数えて, Hello, Count the Stars) | μ's / Maki Nishikino (Pile), Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) and Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) | July 1, 2015 | 2[95] | Songs from Love Live! The School Idol Movie | ||||||||
"Sunny Day Song" / "?←Heartbeat" | μ's / Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui), Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjo) and Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) | July 8, 2015 | 2[96] | |||||||||
"Bokutachi wa Hitotsu no Hikari" (僕たちはひとつの光, We Are a Single Light) / "Future Style" | μ's / Honoka Kousaka (Emi Nitta), Umi Sonada (Suzuko Mimori) and Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) | July 15, 2015 | 2[97] | |||||||||
"Heart to Heart!" | μ's | October 28, 2015 | 3[98] | Special songs for Love Live! School Idol Festival | ||||||||
"Wao-Wao Powerful Day!" | Printemps | November 25, 2015 | 3[99] | |||||||||
"Omoide Ijō ni Naritakute" (思い出以上になりたくて, I Want It to Be More Than Just a Memory) | Lily White | December 23, 2015 | 3[100] | |||||||||
"Sakkaku Crossroads" (錯覚CROSSROADS, Illusionary Crossroads) | BiBi | January 20, 2016 | 2[101] | JP: Gold[102] | ||||||||
"Moment Ring" | μ's | March 2, 2016 | 2[103] | JP: Gold[102] | This single was considered to be μ's' "final" single before their hiatus | |||||||
"A Song for You! You? You!!"[104] | March 25, 2020 | 2[105][106] | μ's single with a music video for Love Live!'s ninth anniversary. Also the first single after a four-year hiatus since "Moment Ring" was released.[107][108] |
|||||||||
"—" denotes releases that were ineligible to chart. |
BD volume | Title | Artist | Release date |
---|---|---|---|
Season 1 | |||
1 | "Yume Naki Yume wa Yume Janai" (夢なき夢は夢じゃない, A Dream Without a Dream is Not a Dream) | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta) | March 22, 2013 |
2 | "Anemone Heart" | Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) and Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) | April 24, 2013 |
3 | "Nawatobi" (なわとび, Jumping Rope) | Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) | May 28, 2013 |
4 | "Beat in Angel" | Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) and Maki Nishikino (Pile) | June 21, 2013 |
5 | "Nico Puri Joshi Dō" (にこぷり♡女子道, Nico Puri Girl's Path) | Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) | July 26, 2013 |
6 | "Garasu no Hanazono" (硝子の花園, Garden of Glass) | Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjō) and Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) | August 28, 2013 |
7 | "Loneliest Baby" | µ's | September 25, 2013 |
Season 2 | |||
1 | "Shiawase Iki no Smiling!" (シアワセ行きのSMILING!, The Smiling Towards Happiness!) | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta) | June 20, 2014 |
2 | "Zurui yo Magnetic Today" (ずるいよMagnetic today, That Unfair Magnetic Today) | Maki Nishikino (Pile) and Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) | July 25, 2014 |
3 | "Kururin Miracle" (くるりんMIRACLE, Twirling Miracle) | Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) | August 27, 2014 |
4 | "Storm in Lover" | Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjō) and Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) | September 24, 2014 |
5 | "Moshimo Kara Kitto" (もしもからきっと, From If To I'm Sure) | Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) | October 29, 2014 |
6 | "Suki desu ga Suki desu ka?" (好きですが好きですか?, I Love You, but Do You Love Me?) | Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) and Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) | November 21, 2014 |
7 | "Soshite Saigo no Page niwa" (そして最後のページには, And On the Last Page is) | µ's | December 25, 2014 |
Film | |||
"Korekara" (これから, From Here Onwards) | µ's | December 15, 2015 |
Title | Artist(s) | Release date | Peak Oricon chart positions |
Certifications | Notes | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Umiiro Shōjo ni Miserarete (海色少女に魅せられて, The Enchanted Ocean-colored Maiden) | Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) | November 23, 2011 | 97[109] | Umi Sonoda's first solo album | ||||||||
Kotori Lovin' You (ことりLovin' you) | Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) | December 14, 2011 | 109[110] | Kotori Minami's first solo album | ||||||||
Honnori Honokairo! (ほんのり穂乃果色!, Faint Honoka Color) | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta) | January 25, 2012 | 90[111] | Honoka Kōsaka's first solo album | ||||||||
μ's Best Album Best Live! Collection | μ's | January 9, 2013 | 12[112] | JP: Gold[113] | Singles compilation from the franchise from August 2010 to October 2012 | |||||||
Notes of School Idol Days | μ's, A-Rise, & Yoshiaki Fujisawa | April 10, 2013 | 10[114] | Soundtrack from the first season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | ||||||||
Orange Cheers! | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta) | April 2, 2014 | 44[115] | Separated albums from Solo Live! collection Memorial Box II | ||||||||
Ice Blue no Shunkan (アイス・ブルーの瞬間) | Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjō) | 28[116] | ||||||||||
Junpaku Romance (純白ロマンス) | Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) | 37[117] | ||||||||||
Ao no Shinwa (蒼の神話) | Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) | 41[118] | ||||||||||
Ring a Yellow Bell | Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) | 53[119] | ||||||||||
Scarlet Princess | Maki Nishikino (Pile) | 31[120] | ||||||||||
Violet Moon (バイオレットムーン) | Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) | 59[121] | ||||||||||
Wakakusa no Season (若草のSeason) | Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) | 52[122] | ||||||||||
Momoiro Egao (ももいろ♡えがお) | Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) | 47[123] | ||||||||||
Solo Live! Collection Memorial Box II | μ's | 8[124] | Second solo album box set | |||||||||
Notes of School Idol Days: Glory | μ's, A-Rise, & Yoshiaki Fujisawa | August 27, 2014 | 7[125] | Soundtrack from the second season of the Love Live! School Idol Project anime | ||||||||
Love Live! 1st Season Compilation Album | μ's | April 28, 2015 | — | Compilation of songs from its respective season of Love Live! School Idol Project | ||||||||
Love Live! 2nd Season Compilation Album | ||||||||||||
μ's Best Album Best Live! Collection II | May 27, 2015 | 1[126] | JP: Gold[127] | Singles compilation from the franchise from January 2013 to December 2014 | ||||||||
Notes of School Idol Days: Curtain Call | µ's, Takayama Minami, & Yoshiaki Fujisawa | August 5, 2015 | 4[128] | Soundtrack from Love Live! The School Idol Movie | ||||||||
Memories with Honoka | Honoka Kōsaka (Emi Nitta) | March 28, 2018 | 56[129] | Separated albums from Solo Live! collection Memorial Box III | ||||||||
Memories with Eli | Eli Ayase (Yoshino Nanjō) | 36[130] | ||||||||||
Memories with Kotori | Kotori Minami (Aya Uchida) | 42[131] | ||||||||||
Memories with Umi | Umi Sonoda (Suzuko Mimori) | 44[132] | ||||||||||
Memories with Rin | Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) | 54[133] | ||||||||||
Memories with Maki | Maki Nishikino (Pile) | 43[134] | ||||||||||
Memories with Nozomi | Nozomi Tojo (Aina Kusuda) | 58[135] | ||||||||||
Memories with Hanayo | Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) | 50[136] | ||||||||||
Memories with Nico | Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui) | 55[137] | ||||||||||
Solo Live! Collection Memorial Box III | μ's | 11[138] | Third solo album box set | |||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 01 | December 25, 2019 | Separated albums (as "Chapters") from μ's Memorial CD-Box "Complete Best Box" for digital releases | ||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 02 | ||||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 03 | ||||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 04 | ||||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 05 | ||||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 06 | ||||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 07 | Printemps | |||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 08 | BiBi | |||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 09 | Lily White | |||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 10 | μ's | |||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 11 | ||||||||||||
μ's Complete Best Box Chapter 12 | ||||||||||||
μ's Memorial CD-Box "Complete Best Box" | µ's, Printemps, BiBi, & Lily White | 11[139] | CD collection of all μ's' songs up to "Moment Ring" single. Available for a limited time between December 25, 2019 and March 31, 2021, as part of Love Live!'s ninth anniversary.[107][140] | |||||||||
"—" denotes releases that were ineligible to chart. |
Title | Artist(s) | Concert date(s) | Video release date(s) | Format | Peak Oricon chart positions |
Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
μ's First Love Live![141] | μ's | February 19, 2012 | November 21, 2012 | BD/DVD | 206 (DVD)[142] 28 (BD)[143] |
Concerts |
μ's New Year LoveLive! 2013[144] | January 3, 2013 | April 24, 2013 (Part 1) June 21, 2013 (Part 2) August 28, 2013 (Part 3) |
BD | — | ||
μ's 3rd Anniversary Love Live![145] | June 16, 2013 | December 25, 2013 | BD/DVD | 49 (DVD)[146] 3 (BD)[147] |
||
μ's→Next LoveLive! 2014: Endless Parade[148] | February 8 & 9, 2014 | July 23, 2014 (Day 2) July 25, 2014 (Day 1, Part 1) September 24, 2014 (Day 1, Part 2) November 21, 2014 (Day 1, Part 3) |
BD (for both days) / DVD (for Day 2 only) | 7 (DVD)[149] 6 (BD)[150] (Day 2 Only) |
||
μ's Go→Go! LoveLive! 2015: Dream Sensation![148] | January 31 & February 1, 2015 | September 30, 2015 | BD/DVD | 10 (DVD Day 1)[151] 11 (DVD Day 2)[152] 61 (BD Day 1)[153] 59 (BD Day 2)[154] 1 (BD Memorial Box)[155] |
||
μ's FinalLoveLive! 2016: μ'sic Forever[156] | March 31 & April 1, 2016 | September 28, 2016 | BD/DVD | 5 (DVD Day 1)[157] 3 (DVD Day 2)[158] 55 (BD Day 1)[159] 22 (BD Day 2)[160] 1 (BD Memorial Box)[161] |
This concert was considered to be μ's' "final" concert before their hiatus | |
Love Live! μ's Live Collection | — | August 26, 2016 | BD | 3[162] | Collection of all music videos and animated sequences throughout the series and film | |
Love Live! Series 9th Anniversary: Love Live! Fest[148] | μ's, Aqours, |
January 18 & January 19, 2020 | TBA | TBA | Ninth anniversary concert which also featured Aqours and Saint Snow from Love Live! Sunshine!!, and the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club from their eponymous title.
Also μ's' first live concert after a three-year hiatus since μ'sic Forever concert were held.[164][165] |
Title | Artist(s) | Release date | Peak Oricon chart positions |
Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Love Live Radio Kagai Katsudō: Nicorinpana Theme Song DJCD (ラブライ部 ラジオ課外活動にこりんぱな テーマソングDJCD) | Nico Yazawa (Sora Tokui), Rin Hoshizora (Riho Iida) and Hanayo Koizumi (Yurika Kubo) | October 17, 2012 | 73[166] | Theme song from the Love Live! µ's Public Relations Department ~NicoRinPana~ radio program |
Anime News Network had two editors review the first season in 2013: Carl Kimlinger reviewed the first six episodes of the series, finding fault in some of the characters lacking depth and the use of 3D animation in the dancing scenes, but praised director Takahiko Kyōgoku for his use of visuals and for giving a realistic approach to idol groups.[167] Rebecca Silverman reviewed the latter half of the series, criticizing the 3D animation and the characters not breaking stereotypes but found it enjoyable because of its charm and offering viewers some characters they will like, concluding with, "When you're feeling down, give this a watch, because if nothing else, Love Live! has its heart in the right place and only seems to want us to smile."[168] Silverman reviewed the second season in 2014, commenting on its tendencies to get melodramatic and lack of equal attention to the main cast, but praised it for fixing the problems she found in the first season and providing genuine emotion from its characters, saying that "it is a lot of fun and one of the most enjoyable entries into the idol genre, a position it solidifies with this second season."[169]
In 2014, Love Live! won the Anime Work Award in the 19th Animation Kobe Awards, an annual anime event in Kobe, Japan.[170][171] In 2015, μ's won The Best Singing award in the 9th Seiyu Awards.[172] μ's ranked No. 8 among Oricon's best-selling artists of 2015. The group sold over 800,000 music CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray Discs for over ¥3.15 billion. This is the first time μ's has reached the top 10 in the annual list of best-selling artists. In 2013, μ's was ranked at No. 64, and was ranked at No. 13 in 2014.[173] μ's was ranked No. 10 among Oricon's best-selling artists of 2016, earning about ¥2.54 billion in 2016.[174] μ's is the only female idol group from anime that ranked No. 10 among the top 15 Nikkei Entertainment's Girls Group Ranking in 2016.[175]
Love Live! was ranked No. 1 in top-selling media franchises in Japan for 2016 and ranked No. 4 in 2015. The franchise earned over ¥8 billion in 2016 and over ¥5 billion in 2015. This includes the raw yen totals of Blu-ray Discs, DVDs, music CDs, novels, and manga, but not video games, film tickets, digital downloads, and other forms of media sales.[176][177] In 2013, physical media sales generated ¥2,516.3 million ($Template:To USD/data/2,013 million) in Japan.[178] DVD and Blu-ray sales of the anime's second season in 2014 sold ¥2,917.5 million ($24 million) in Japan.[179] The franchise's physical media sales generated ¥23 billion ($209 million) in Japan between 2015 and 2018.[176][177][180][181]
In 2016, μ's received the Special Award in the 30th Japan Gold Disc Awards and their second best album Love Live! μ's Best Album Best Live! collection II was also chosen as Animation Album of the Year.[182] The group even dominated Tower Records Japan's anime CD ranking of 2015.[183]
Fans of the English version of the Love Live! School Idol Festival game discovered that most of the homosexual subtext between the various girls depicted in the game were removed. In some instances, overt references to relationships between girls were changed to imply a relationship between a girl and a boy. Klab has since issued a statement on the controversy:
"We have reviewed the English version of Love Live! School Idol Festival in light of our gamers' thoughtful and heartfelt comments. Overall, we think that our localization effectively conveyed both the content and tone of the original. We also think that perhaps we could have done better with the translations of some of the dialogue. We view our relationship with our gamers are [sic] very much a two-way street: we hope to provide fun and entertaining games and are always open to feedback (including constructive criticism) where we can do better."[184]
An update released on June 30, 2015 made adjustments to the translated text to retain their original meanings.[185]
The "Hit or Miss" (2018) Internet meme originates from a TikTok video featuring a cosplay of Nico Yazawa.[186]
The content is sourced from: https://handwiki.org/wiki/Software:Love_Live!