The anime Skip Beat! is based on the eponymous manga by Yoshiki Nakamura. Aside from the manga and anime there is also a dating sim game, a drama CD and a novel of this series. Skip Beat! follows Kyoko Mogami, a 16 year old girl that is trying to survive in Tokyo to be as close to her childhood crush, Sho Fuwa, as possible. Kyoko puts all her ambitions and aspirations aside to be able to support him in his dream of becoming the top pop idol of Japan. In the first episode Kyoko’s image of her childhood crush is quickly altered, when she finds out he only asked to Tokyo because he needed someone to take care of him and create an income so he could chase his dream.
After watching a LOT of romance animes I expected that Kyoko would put in even more effort to make Sho fall for her after this. Luckily nothing was less true, she did the opposite; Kyoko used the experience to fuel her need for revenge. And how better to get back at him than to go into showbiz herself and become even more successful and popular than Sho?
In the opening and ending of the anime there are many little hidden hints about how the story is going to develop, on top of this I really loved the music that was chosen for the intro and outro. The music sounds inspiring and the lyrics portray that as well.
The biggest downside to Skip Beat! is that it accurately follows the storyline of the manga, which is why the 25 episodes are very eventful, but if you’re very focused on the romance aspect, as I am, it’s very disappointing. There are hints of future romances, but not much happens in this department in the anime series.
The storyline is original and has a lot of surprises in store for the viewer. Of course I’m not going to spoil these, it’s much more fun to find out about them yourself by watching the series. I will say this: Skip Beat! is definitely worth watching, Kyoko develops from an insecure girl that’s very much in the background and keeps quiet into a strong woman. Although her motives aren’t loved by everyone she runs into she does leave a lasting impression on the characters around her. After the harsh blow she received from Sho she has to learn to open up to love and friendship and this makes for a very interesting story.
Because I was unable to stop after 25 episodes I started reading the manga, which has 37 volumes and 223 chapters at the moment. I really recommend reading the manga as well, it shows even more of Kyoko’s journey to becoming a star and romance wise a lot more happens in the manga than in the anime. It’s a waste the anime didn’t continue after two seasons, because the manga still has a lot of surprising and fun events in store.
Studios: Hal Film Maker Start
Started airing: 6th of October 2008
Number of episodes: 25
Rating: 80/100
