Love Live! Sunshine!! is “a youthful school drama about nine girls who aim to shine!” To be a school idol is what Chika Takami always wanted. She was so mesmerized by school idols, particularly by school idol group Muse, and wanted to share this interest and obsession with her friends. In the prequel to this anime, Love Live! School Idol Project, which provides an alternate, yet similar storyline, Chika creates the “school idol club” and their group, Aqours is born. As we follow Chika and her friends, we observe the ups and downs of the girls working to become rising idols.

In comparison, Love Live! Sunshine!! and Gi(a)rlish Number share a colorful and likeable cast, with vibrant, bright animation. They both highlight the journey to reaching your dreams and the difficulties that you can encounter. Although one is about the anime industry and the other music, there is some realism to each theme with an abundance of climatic drama and comedic relief. The secondary overall message for both anime wishes to relay that everyone should have a positive outlook to every situation, no matter how grim things may appear.

Sore ga Seiyuu! is a comedic, slice of life that follows three young ladies, Futaba Ichinose, Ichigo Moesaki and Rin Kohana, who all aspire to be prominent voice actresses in the seiyuu industry. The leading character, Futaba, is on the quest for any and every audition and casting calls she can nab in order to establish her place in the industry. Collectively, the three girls strive to undertake the competitive realm of voice acting, facing many hardships along the way.

In both Sore ga Seiyuu! and Gi(a)rlish Number, they discuss the trials and tribulations of voice acting. The two anime take different approaches to sharing the seiyuu world, but they do provide a little insight to how things are like, along with some humor to not make each series entirely somber. The group of girls in both anime offer each other support and nurturing that is ultimately needed in such a cut-throat domain.

Aoba Suzukaze is a recent high school graduate, ready to impact the workforce by being employed at a popular gaming company. Aoba has been into games throughout her life . Incidentally, the individual who happened to create the game Aoba loved as a child, is her supervisor. In addition to her excitement, she is working on future installments of this very game that drew her into games in the first place. In awe and admiration, Aoba is compelled to put in her greatest efforts at the company in order to be as successful as her predecessor. We also see the collectiveness that comes together in creating such imaginative productions.

In comparing New Game! and Gi(a)rlish Number, Chitose and Aoba, our heroines, strive to become part of the entertainment industry, trying to make a name for themselves in society. They are both new to the field with a lot to learn and experiencing various events that contradict their previous ideals in their respective fields. Both anime feature an adorable cast, which we believe spotlight the innocence Chitose and Aoba possess in starting out on their endeavors.

In Wake Up, Girls!, we begin to see the seven member group off to a rough start. The girls make their debut, but have little luck establishing a fanbase and popularity. In their fruitless debut performance, the girls are knocked with more misfortune, as their manager takes off with their earnings, resulting in their label, Green Leaves Entertainment, and the band itself being on the brink of nonexistence. Later on, we see the girls experience a turn of events, they’re offered a second chance at their dream; of course, paired with much turmoil, but nonetheless the girls are willing to bear it. As such, we watch the girls take on the demanding and taxing musical industry.

In similarity, we watch both groups of young girls fight hard for the place they want to be and the goal they want to attain. We experience their heartfelt crusade, recognizing that this lifestyle and field of work, music and voice acting, is more than just fame and flashing lights. More so, these girls are ambitious, an admirable trait that is essential in such a competitive environment.