KAREN AIJOU'S SONG AND DANCE

Wai Kwan Wu - Managing Editor, 3rd Year, Molecular Cell Biology

"The fault is not in our stars, but in ourselves." — William Shakespeare

SPOILERS FOR REVUE STARLIGHT THE MOVIE!

If nothing else, Revue Starlight was a very ambitious anime. Juggling a massive cast of nine in only twelve episodes, it played the daring game of balancing the stories of each character while seeking to deliver action-packed spectacles for nearly every episode. It wasn’t always able to keep up the momentum, and some characters were left a little underexplored, but Revue Starlight still managed to wrap up its story, complete with a neat little ribbon on top.

Then, the unthinkable happened: Revue Starlight was to receive a film sequel, promising to deliver further on the conclusion of a story that, at the time, was thought to already be finished. And well, that it did: Revue Starlight The Movie completely recontextualized the original story from the ground up, fleshed out character arcs that were originally left unanswered, and boasted setpieces and cinematography that surpassed that of the original. However, most interestingly, Revue Starlight The Movie revisited the story of Karen Aijou, the main character. The central character that the story revolved around, where the thematic conclusion of the show equaled her own conclusion. So, what’s left to explore?

Karen’s story centers around her long-lost childhood friend, Hikari, and their promise as kids: to become stars together. Sure enough, they accomplish this in the show, and the story ends. Yet, there was always something missing. Why would a small promise that Karen makes with her lost childhood friend have such a dramatic effect on her that it completely restructures her goal in life even a decade since the two last spoke to each other? The film seeks to debunk this question. Thematically, in the Revue Starlight universe, the characters’ world is the stage; their lifeline is the blood, sweat, and tears that they pour into their craft. In the film, we see that Karen used to be a shy, bumbling kindergartener with no goal in life. However, Hikari enters and the two quickly become friends, after which Hikari makes a life-changing move: inviting Karen to see a play. From there, Karen is exposed to a whole new world that she’s never seen before. The world of the stage, which inspired her promise with Hikari, and a dive into acting. Essentially, Hikari and their promise together was what bestowed “life” onto Karen, what gave her purpose. It is said that we all live life in pursuit of finding and fulfilling our purpose. Thanks to Hikari, Karen found her purpose, and she will live life in tireless pursuit of fulfilling her purpose, within the world of the stage.

However, the question remains: while Karen’s goal makes sense from a thematic standpoint, her promise with Hikari still holds an unrealistically large influence over her life, from a literal person’s perspective. The film itself critiques this: throughout the film, we are shown snippets from different points in Karen’s life, with the connecting thread being Karen repeatedly muttering her promise with Hikari to herself, in order to push forward with her single-track goal. This is almost as if she didn’t quite believe in her own promise, struggling to grasp onto it as the reason for her to continue. In fact, she eventually does succumb and break the promise, when she decides to look up what Hikari is doing abroad, despite it being forbidden by their promise. However, if Karen’s promise is her lifeline, and if it was broken, what would happen? Why doesn’t Karen just drop dead on the spot?

The answer? In the story, Karen attends the prestigious Seisho Performing Arts Academy, which Karen’s middle school friends note as being notoriously difficult to get into. So difficult, in fact, that it is incredibly unlikely to be accepted unless one is the utmost talented and passionate about performing. This is common across all of Karen’s classmates at Seisho, and well, Karen herself is no different. She was the one who translated the entirety of her favorite play into a different language, a feat that only those most knowledgeable and passionate about a subject can accomplish. Karen isn’t just a shell that was given life because of a single purpose. She is capable of feeling passion, excitement, and competitiveness. Jealousy and stage fright. Karen is human.

In the climax of the film, Karen realizes these emotions for the first time. The burning warmth of the stage lights. The prying eyes of the audience. For Karen, who had her eyes only on Hikari and ignored all else, this is too overwhelming, and she loses her life as a result. However, this isn’t the end for Karen. All of her past, all of the time she spent on her craft, all of her passion—they come together to drive Karen forward, burning up to become her fuel. Karen is revived, no longer tied down by her promise to Hikari and the role she has to play, but as a true human. And Karen, as a new human, has new roles to play, and new stages to step on.

“Revue Starlight—We’ve acted it all out. Right now, I might be the emptiest person in the world.”

“Then, go on and find it. Your next stage. Your next role.”