Before I start School Idol Project Season 2, there is apparently this OVA for me to check out. I’m kind of surprised to learn of this installment as Love Live! almost never does one. The only OVA produced after this particular one is Nijigasaki Next Sky and that came out ten years later.
To be honest, I’m not sure if this episode actually counts. It is not included in Crunchyroll’s stream for the show and it wasn’t dubbed by NIS America when they had the show’s license. Its canonicity with the parent show is dubious. Primarily, the episode serves to promote µ’s sixth single, “Music S.T.A.R.T!!”. In fact, one third of the episode is entirely dedicated to the song. The concert scene at end of the episode was released separately as its own MV and one physical edition of the single included a Blu-Ray of the OVA. So I don’t know, maybe this isn’t required viewing for me. Still, some sites such as Wikipedia and MyAnimeList count this as part of the show so to play it safe, I’m covering the OVA.
In the OVA, Maki mysteriously disappears. Everyone else at the idol club assumes Maki is sick and decide to pay her a visit. While retrieving a textbook from her classroom, Eli notices a shadowy figure and tries to chase after it, only to end up back with her friends. All of a sudden, the day turns to night, leading everyone to assume they’re in a dream. The shadowy figure reveals herself to be a younger version of Maki and she proceeds to tell everyone how she truly feels about them, before reverting back to the Maki we’re more familiar with. Dream or not, this is definitely the second weirdest thing I’ve seen in the Love Live anime. First place still goes to a scene that happens later in the franchise, during Sunshine!! Season 2’s tenth episode (you know the one, Sunshine!! fans).
I’m aware that Maki is a fan favorite but to be honest, I currently don’t understand why that is the case. I like her tsundere tendencies but she doesn’t really do much in Season 1 and the thread about her becoming a doctor when her real passion is music is completely forgotten after it’s introduced. For what it’s worth, I found little Maki’s scene to be pretty adorable. Maki isn’t very good at expressing how she feels about her friends so it’s funny that her younger self is much better in this department.
Other than that, this episode doesn’t do a whole lot before getting to the MV. You’d think, since this episode takes place in a dream, we’d get treated to some trippy stuff but all we get is Eli chasing after little Maki and the visuals are nothing to write home about. I imagine this episode was made on a lower budget and a tighter schedule but be that as it may, it’s disappointing that the show doesn’t take much advantage of the surreal setting.
See, you know this episode might not actually be canon because the MV has Maki as the center, rather than Honoka as per usual. From my understanding, it’s more common to see this happen in MVs produced outside of the TV series. Funnily enough, Maki generally has Honoka and Eli perform next to her. I guess Honoka hasn’t entirely given up the center role to Maki. Joking aside, I think that’s a nice touch when you consider the events of Season 1. Eli struggled with being honest with herself and Honoka lost her way towards the end of the season so it’s fitting that they serve as wingmen for the guarded and aloof Maki.
Oddly enough, the episode doesn’t even show the girls waking up from the dream. It fades to black as soon as the music is over. It doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things but it is weird to set the episode in a dream and not address it in the end. For all I know, these poor girls are still dreaming or Season 2 will take place in the Matrix.
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