"Love Live! Superstar!!" is a story about "school idols," high school girls who perform idol activities at school, and centers around the activities of an idol group called Liella!. The first season aired in July 2021, with the second season scheduled to air in July 2022, garnering much attention. Speaking of the Love Live series, rival groups are also a highlight. Just like A-RISE is to µ's and Saint Snow is to Aquors, this work introduces a school idol group called Sunny Passion, who act as friendly rivals to the main characters. In this article, we'll be introducing the group Sunny Passion, who are rivals to the main characters!
Introduction: What kind of story is it?
The first batch of new students has enrolled at the newly established Yuigaoka Girls' Private High School. Yuigaoka High School is divided into a general education department and a music department. Five students, led by protagonist Shibuya Kanon, have decided to form a school idol group with the theme of "A Story We All Make Come True," in order to realize their dreams and achieve their aspirations. Next up, we'll be introducing the members of Sunny Passion and their voice actors!
Who are Sunny Passion? ?
Sunny Passion is a school idol duo that rivals Liella! in the series. They hail from Kozushima Island in Tokyo and are talented enough to be selected to represent Tokyo. They are the school idols that Tang Keke admires, and it's no exaggeration to say they inspired her to become a school idol. She first became aware of Kanon and her friends in episode 3, when she watched their performance when Kanon and Keke formed the unit "Kuka." She seemed to like their performance, and even though she had the opportunity to meet them in person, she chose not to, commenting, "I want to save the fun for later." Later, they visit Kanon's family's shop to invite her to an event on Kozushima Island, and then perform a live performance at Sumire's family's shrine. Not only KaKa, but even Sumire, who considered school idols amateurs, were overwhelmed. They have appeared frequently since, influencing Kanon and her friends in various ways.
Do they look like that famous character? ?
Some may have been reminded of a famous anime series when they saw Sunny Passion's live performance costumes. Viewers and fans have been voicing their resemblance to characters from the Pretty Cure series. Indeed, the name Sunny Passion is related to Pretty Cure. Characters named "Cure Sunny" and "Cure Passion" appear in the Pretty Cure series. Furthermore, Chihaya Yoshitake, who plays Yuna Hijirizawa, has sung the theme song for Pretty Cure. The resemblance to Pretty Cure is no coincidence; many aspects of the character's atmosphere are likely intentional.
Mao Hiiragi
A member of Sunny Passion, she is characterized by her purple, wavy bangs. She's a quiet character with a cool, intelligent air about her. As a senior school idol, she offers advice and counsels to Kanon and her friends. She doesn't offer direct advice, preferring to speak in a roundabout way that helps the student realize their true nature. Just before the Love Live finals, Kanon wonders why everyone is so obsessed with winning. Mao responds, "Just sing at Love Live and you'll understand." After actually singing at Love Live and Sunny Passion's defeat, Kanon's desire to win became even stronger. It was Mao's words and the existence of Sunny Passion that sparked this desire. By winning and demonstrating their greatness to the younger groups, they naturally encouraged their growth and demonstrated their presence as senior school idols.
Yuna Hijirisawa
Another member of Sunny Passion. She has blonde hair and distinctive jagged teeth, and a very cheerful and friendly personality. Unlike Mao, she is the type to speak her mind directly, and when Sunny Passion appears, Yuna is often the one to take the initiative and speak. Not only is she cheerful, she also has excellent observational skills and is adept at sensing various situations from the words and actions of others. When she saw "Kukar" perform, she predicted that they would be a threat to them, even though it was her first time seeing them. When she came to invite Kanon and the others to Kozushima, she highly praised Chisato's abilities, and commented that Chisato would surely have been a threat if she had been in the same group as Kanon and the others. Furthermore, from Chisato's words and actions, she realizes that there may be some distance between them for some reason. She then approaches Kanon and realizes Chisato's true feelings. She can be said to be a character who combines brightness and innocence with sharpness and shrewdness.
About Mao Hiiragi's Voice Actor
Mao Hiiragi's voice actress is Yuna Yuki. She's originally from Chiba Prefecture and is affiliated with Houei Shinsha. This is Yuna Yuki's first appearance as a voice actress. Her memorable debut will be in the Love Live series.
About Yuna Hijirizawa's Voice Actor
Yuna Hijirizawa's voice actor is Chihaya Yoshitake. She hails from Hiroshima Prefecture and specializes in dancing. While attending an acting school, she was encouraged to pursue a career in voice acting, which led her to pursue that career. She also has a diverse range of activities, including singing with Sunny Passion and forming a chorus unit.
Summary About Sunny Passion
Sunny Passion is Liella!'s mentor and rival among school idols. Much about Sunny Passion is shrouded in mystery, and there have been no episodes that touch on their past, so there's still a lot we don't know about their characters. Perhaps we'll learn more about them in Season 2! That's all for today. Thank you for reading.
