The best way to fit in at a new school? Start a band! Anon has just transferred to Haneoka Girls’
Academy where girl bands are all the rage. But she started school late, so there aren’t many girls
left to recruit. Then she meets her first friend and Haneoka’s misfit, Tomori, who’s hesitant to join.
Still, Anon is determined to persuade Tomori and experience the true power of friendship and music.
(Source: Crunchyroll)
~~~webm(https://v.animethemes.moe/BangDreamItsMyGO-OP1.webm)~~~ #####~~~(Video includes audio. Be sure to unmute)~~~ *BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!* has its characters start at the lowest point imaginable – a band having broken up, friendships fractured, and feelings hurt. Togawa Saki rubbed salt on a wound so quickly and ruthlessly that any chance at repairing things reads as nonexistent. Considering how much the franchise up to this point has relied on its sense of communal fun, it seems like the most-antithetical, experimental, and sure-to-fail approach that could have been taken. To be sure, the franchise has never been afraid to dip its toe into the more-dramatic aspects of its universe; the two-part *Episode of Roselia* film series and the arcs from seasons two and three certainly showed that. But to start at the absolute bottom and with that melancholic overhang? It’s making a sincere ask of its audience by doing so. And it’s not the only gamble it took, either. After 2022’s *BanG Dream! Poppin’ Dream* film, the animated franchise as we knew it was over. For three seasons, many specials and MVs, and that most-recent outing, the series had well and truly run its course. The final performance seemed to encapsulate everything that the series had been blooming at that point in time, relying upon both its fun music and its fun characters to create something that meant smiles and “kira-kira-doki-doki” were never in short supply. But what was also present was the finality of it all; the performance within the context of that film clearly indicated that if things were to continue onward, it would not be in the same way. A change was needed to inject some life into a franchise that, while not old or long overstaying its welcome, had to create something new. You can only rely on the same seven bands up to a certain point. Even though only one band is featured in the course of *BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!*, it’s really a story of two separate(?) bands. Left in the wake of CRYCHIC’s breakup, the cast is left socially and spiritually adrift, made all the easier by them attending three different schools. The breakup haunts the characters like a ghost, dogging them and their motivations nearly every step of the way. Some of the lingering relationships, such as the one between Takamatsu Tomori and Shiina Taki, are more stable than others, while Nagasaki Soyo cannot seem to stop trying to talk to Saki, the breaker of CRYCHIC. Kaname Raana is disparagingly referred to as a “stray cat” by Taki, coming and going to RiNG whenever she feels like shredding on her guitar. And all the while, a new girl named Chihaya Anon enrolls at one of the schools and wants to form a band of her own, not realizing the emotional tempest she’s wandered into and how it will clash with the emotional baggage she has brought herself. ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/ooFiU43.png)~~~ ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/gLdYHVW.png)~~~ ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/Q9RicZm.png)~~~ #####~~~(The series has the characters failing, arguing, or metaphorically stumbling woven into its fabric more tightly than in previous installments, which helps distinguish them from their predecessors as a narrative and presents genuine obstacles for them to overcome)~~~ Everyone presented has their own reasons for wanting to form the band, yet the result is that *BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!* allows all its main characters to assume the antagonist role—either directly or indirectly—at some point or another, with their own fixations and motivations steering the ship. Bossiness, assuming too many responsibilities, and a sense that the band is boring are recurring and longstanding. These are not situations that are resolved via quick gags or in one-episode spans; temporary respites or patchwork solutions might stop the bleeding, but the lingering wound remains. Abandonment and being effectively “lost in the wilderness” stains all the CRYCHIC members, Anon, and Raana, whether that came in the form of it being imposed on them or them carrying that weight long after the fact. It creates a deliberately infused disharmony, with everyone operating on separate wavelengths that only happen to align with each other every once in a while. It’s not until the final few episodes that the familiar mold of *BanG Dream!* starts to manifest, but the shape and color therein are distinctly *MyGO!!!!!’s* own, never to be confused with any of the prior bands or seasons. As such, its sense of communal atmosphere is also wholly unique to itself. ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/rfm6B2I.png)~~~ #####~~~(Despite being the person who broke CRYCHIC, Saki is not hastily written out of the story, creating an ever-looming throughline for some of the band members to reconcile in their own way. And that’s not even getting into what Saki has been up to in the meanwhile…)~~~ Most surprisingly in this respect however is its humor; the jokes (both one-off and running) throughout, while not on the same wavelength as the previous installments, still are unmistakably *BanG Dream!*-esque. However, they also utilize the inherent disharmony I alluded to before as one of the central ingredients to making the drama work as well. Of note here is Raana; since she functions as the show’s wild card in terms of personality, she’s more or less off in her own world, moving wherever her whims take her. That comedic chaotic energy acts as a rather effective bridge to lead into *BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!’s* more dramatic moments. The comedy therefore acts as an orientation for the next phase of the drama, or a simple little indulgence for a moment. It’s not a crutch, but a part of its integrated whole. In that spirit, it’s the most experimental that the franchise has been in this respect, which makes even its not-really-that-funny gags feel funnier than they might have been otherwise. ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/e1Ra3zV.png)~~~ ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/2X2tox8.png)~~~ #####~~~(*BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!* resides more within the dramatic than before, but takes great care not to drown within its own melancholy. Raana is the most-prevalent form of comedic levity the show has, with her fickleness and propensity to be chaotic a most-welcome presence)~~~ I used the word “experimental” before when describing both the show’s comedy and drama. In using that word though, I don’t want to be misunderstood. This is not anime arthouse, but in the context of the rest of the franchise, it certainly feels experimental. *BanG Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!!* made the effort to avoid stagnancy, and in so doing, breathed new life into the franchise. It dared to bring the dramatic to the fore, to have its characters argue while musically sucking and getting on each other’s nerves, and SANZIGEN made its 2D and 3D animations smoother than ever. It did all of that while not betraying the franchise’s communal spirit. It asserted its right to exist by having it come together, and ranks as one of the more unusual, yet somehow still bizarrely magnetic, installments *BanG Dream!* has had yet. ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/oSsPAYF.png)~~~ ~~~img550(https://i.imgur.com/2VsF3sg.png)~~~ They won’t be lost forever.
*Disclaimer: This review contains light spoilers, but they shouldn’t negatively impact your viewing experience* ~~~ > “Why is it that we can never say the things that are most important?” ~~~ Communication is hard. Even if you know what thoughts and feelings you want to relay to others, choosing to do so can be an entirely different matter. Even if you intend to speak your mind, the wrong words may escape your mouth in the spur of the moment. Even if you manage to express what you were trying to say, you never know for sure how your partner interprets your message and how to interpret someone else’s – such is the very nature of communication. It is all a black box. ~~~img(https://files.catbox.moe/oya512.png)~~~ This is especially true for Tomori, a character who undoubtedly exhibits neurodivergent behavior. As such, making sense of other people is often a Herculean task for her, especially because people are often alienated by her quite unusual interests. Although she made a few friends in school, she can never shake the feelings of loneliness, and the dissatisfaction with her own eccentric behavior brings forth a desire to be like *the others* – “human”. However, there is hope: when she is suddenly approached by a stranger from her school, a talented musician named Sakiko, who appears to embrace Tomori’s hobbies instead of outright rejecting them, she can’t help but join her band CRYCHIC. Random scribbles, screams of Tomori’s heart from the midst of her depression, are turned into melancholic yet beautiful songs thanks to Sakiko’s music with the help of the three other band members – Mutsumi, Soyo, and Taki. Everything seems perfect, and the five of them successfully pull off their first live performance without any major issues. But then, disaster strikes: Sakiko, the girl who founded the band and is arguably the central piece of it all, suddenly announces her retirement. Soyo, CRYCHIC’s bassist, can’t give up on it so easily, but her friends Mutsumi and Taki do. And so, to Tomori’s shock, the band, the only thing that was ever dear to her, shatters in front of her tearless eyes. ~~~img(https://files.catbox.moe/eqfx4o.png)~~~ ####~~~“I want to become human”~~~ This incident, despite laying in the past, not only represents the foundation for the predominant drama in *It’s MyGO!!!!!*, but also introduces us to the characters with some of their flaws and establishes some important character dynamics. Tomori is eager to express her true feelings, but is unable to do that on her own. The impermanence of what she believed to be permanent became painfully obvious. And after this event, she is once again exactly where she started: disconnected from the people around her, incapable of properly expressing herself and still unable to achieve her goal of becoming “normal”. However, the experience with CRYCHIC also noticeably damaged her psyche, and she’s now blaming herself for the breakup because there were complaints after the concert about her passionate singing. One thought permeates among the former members: the regret of not having properly communicated with each other before things reached this point. In the present day, a girl named Anon joins Tomori’s class in the middle of her suffocating school year. Despite initially showing little interest in each other, the two of them quickly discover their common interest in bands. Anon has a stark interest in joining a band because it’s all the talk in class, but Tomori has grown too insecure and declines an invitation to form a new one. Only after one of the old CRYCHIC members, Soyo, decides to join Anon in an attempt to get closer to her old bandmates, does she seem to take an interest. But then, something you seldomly see in anime takes place: Anon gets Tomori, Soyo, and Taki, the three members of the former band, to sit down together and talk out everything about the CRYCHIC. This simple idea turns out to be a perfect opportunity for the three to finally put into words what weighs on their mind and clear all the misunderstandings that arose in the midst of the chaos. I find this solution to the difficult relationship between the three particularly interesting because of how straight to the point and down-to-earth it is – the drama is not dragged down for episodes on end. Sitting down together and having a chat can work wonders. As such, proper communication is established as the principle of the new band. But of course, not all wounds can be healed so easily: Tomori, in an attempt to not make history repeat itself, persuades the others to swear that they will stay with her for their whole life, further revealing her insecurities. They decide to at least stay together until the first live performance, a chance which would soon arise. And so, the unnamed band has been founded and the rehearsals begin. ~~~img(https://files.catbox.moe/fyivfe.png)~~~ However, it is quickly evident that Anon is not a very experienced guitar player, especially compared to Raana, another guitarist who suddenly joins the band on her own because its other members pique her interest. Controlled purely by the desire to have fun playing music, she is a very unreliable person, but every time she appears on the screen, it is bound to be humorous. This might make one dismiss her as a character who is there entirely for comedy’s sake, but there is more to her character than that. Throughout the series, Raana acts on her own on multiple occasions, sometimes even against the wishes of her bandmates. But every time, her actions ultimately result in a positive change in other people, which makes me believe that she is doing this intentionally to help her friends. She might not be the best at verbal communication, but makes up for it through other means, even if it might not seem like that on the surface – and that arguably makes her the band’s most reliable member. ~~~img(https://files.catbox.moe/e63ovu.png)~~~ As Anon starts to practice the guitar to catch up to Raana, she quickly realizes just how hard of a skill it is to learn, and decides to go with the easiest solution: giving up. As we learn, it is not the first time she backed up from a major challenge, and she gets called out for this multiple times. However, using Tomori’s own insecurities as an excuse, she attempts to obstruct the other members, which inevitably leads to a rising tension in the band. Anon has an emotional outburst, but Tomori manages to remind her of her own conviction back when she was persuading Tomori to join the band. Together, they want to find a path even if they’re lost, and move forward, together. This convinces Anon to take her newfound hobby more seriously, and expectedly shows major improvements. It is only a band-aid for the band’s suboptimal interpersonal relationships, but a step into the right direction – take many steps in the right direction, and you end up where you want to be. The idea of the girls being “lost” surfaces multiple times during the series, and turns out to be a fitting descriptor for each one of them in one way or another. This is even acknowledged by the girls, who subsequently decide to name the band “Maigo Bando”, literally “Lost Child Band”, which later gets turned into “It’s MyGO!!!!!”. If you are familiar with the other entries in the *BanG Dream!* franchise, you might notice that *It’s MyGO!* is quite an unusual artifact. Most notably, it often prioritizes its deep-rooted drama over comedic sequences, even if it still is, at its core, a very positive and life-affirming series. Over the years, *BanG Dream!* has accumulated a large number of bands whose interactions and dynamics shape most of the story, a recipe that has proven itself to work thanks to its absurdly diverse cast built for comedic relief. But that’s also precisely what makes *It’s MyGO!!!!!* such a fascinating anime: it intentionally breaks away from the franchises’ formula for success, and instead focuses on only a handful of characters. This break is what enabled them to build the dramatic case study that is this particular entry without having to deal with other bands interrupting the flow of the drama. Regardless of whether this works for you, I believe that it is a fascinating and commendable decision. ~~~img(https://files.catbox.moe/iqlywj.png)~~~ *It’s MyGO!!!!!*’s focus on the drama and the disconnect from the rest of the franchise enables it to dive deep into the five main characters’ personalities and issues. It particularly stands out thanks to its intricate and diverse cast, as well as its positive representation of neurodiversity that enriches the bands. All the while, it still offers numerous comedic elements that make it identifiable as a part of the bigger *BanG Dream* franchise. The question of how to best communicate your feelings is raised multiple times, and music as a potential solution is simply beautiful. Maybe Tomori was the most ‘human’ all along.
There really isn't anything that is a guaranteed mark of quality, I feel. I mean, I never hesitate to bring up the mediocrity of Bandori s1, so people are probably well aware I don't think the series alone would be a mark of quality. And indeed, it is *not*. Not even in combination with SANZIGEN. I mean that only confirms the animation quality. ...Though with this the outlines are too soft for no reason... __Music:__ There is so little new music it is pain. Unlike the main series, they don't do *any* non-background inserts while the band is forming, the only such insert in that part of the anime being one in a flashback from the old band... But, when they do start putting in more inserts, they are pretty good~ In short, super low quantity, good quality~ The opening, too is really cool. However the ending... is literally the most boring song I have ever heard, I swear. Even other ~~(Bushiroad)~~ endings that I curse for being meh or boring at least have *some* distinct beat to them... I don't actually have much else to say, probably in no small part due to the low insert quantity. __Story:__ I must say, I was initially a bit off-put by how they said almost everyone at Haneoka is in a band and is super interested in band-stuff in the synopsis. Because even with a pro-musician senpai, several pro-musician alumni and some non-pro senpai at a similar level, that's just unrealistic. It's not a freakin' music school after all. They never presented Haneoka (or Hanasakigawa) in such a way, either, in the main series. And a fixation that immense shouldn't sprout up in only a year... which it does appear to have done. It feels mostly only important to being the MC's motivation... but hell that should be something stronger. Besides that point, which is really just in the background of the story... yeah I feel like the contents of ep3 probably would have made a better start, to be honest. Giving some new music and some really emotional moments right of the bat and just... the fact it was a lot more interesting than the first two. I also am frustrated at how long the main band took to form but that's just normal I ought to learn to ignore it... The drama, as is natural, kicks in around the midway point. Though, it really only kicked up at the *very end* of ep7 which makes it... a bit later than usual but *shrug* It largely revolves around the most boring character and... it couldn't do anything to make me care for her. It was too little to late for that. And afterwards she just returns to being boring, anyway, soo... Ep11 finally saw some actually fun moments and ep12 featured an *amazing* performance. So it does pick up at the very end but... again, it's too little too late. Ten episodes take almost *four hours* to watch, after all...~ And four ~~*(probably actually 3.5, 'cause ep3 *was* good)*~~ hours of being bored... yeah you can't make up for that so quickly and easily...~ Then the finale focuses on the formation of presumably the titular band's rivals. Naturally they are cool but come on why couldn't they have formed earlier to provide more interesting drama? Also... it feels a bit *too* disconnected from the plot up until that point...~ A plot structure even just a *tiny* bit more akin to ARGONAVIS probably would have been a *massive* improvement, I'm sure. What's the point of a rival band, if they don't participate in the plot, after all? And a slightly rushed but interesting plot is better than a slow and boring one. __Characters:__ Even if the MC doesn't embody that *infuriating* archetype, it's still somewhat rare to see a music anime that has a not-annoying MC... this unfortunately is not is not one of those rare cases. Also just in general... the cast isn't that interesting, for some reason – it's very hard for me to pinpoint any defining character traits in any of them, which is a sign of a forgettable cast. Anon is just... narcissistic isn't the right word but it's all I can think of. Self-important, maybe? In any case, she's annoying, but I can't *exactly* place my finger on why... She is also very forgettable. Tomori is also kinda annoying, being a bit of an airhead... or something similar. Again I'm not sure what word is the best to describe her – as I mentioned, it's really difficult to figure out how to describe them, concisely or not, which isn't great... But she also has an emotional backstory and some emotional moments later on. She's basically the only even mildly interesting character in the titular band. Soyo who? She literally has no discernible personality and thus is the *most* forgettable character. The focus she gets later is, like I've said multiple times already, far too little too late. And she still has no personality. Taki is very aggressive and kinda maybe a bit tsundere, but she isn't particularly fun, unlike a certain other character in this series with a similar personality. Indeed, she never lashes out at the weirdos being weird or annoying and... actually, I was wrong in saying "very" aggressive – she never really raises her voice that much, she just says very harsh things in a mildly annoyed tone... She is *literally* a far less fun and interesting Arisa. Why would they do this? Raana appears to also be a type of airhead, though *ordinarily* I think she'd be the funny sort. But by the time she was properly introduced, I feel like it was too late for me to really care about one of the characters that quickly, without some sort of emotional moment or few... At any rate, she also feels like a less fun version of another character – in this case, Moca. Also literally everyone in the main band, except Taki, sound *so* damn similar. Like I get it's hard to find musicians who can be good VAs, but... they've found 22 people like that for this series before. And they all have very distinct voices. ~~(though Rinko's old VA was pretty similar to Sayo's)~~ Anyways. Then, we have Sakiko, a harsh and mysterious figure. Honestly she's the one I found the most interesting... but we barely know anything about her...~ One of her childhood friends whom she has not spoken to in a while, is also a friend of Soyo's who *actually* has more personality than Soyo, despite being a super-minor side character, in that she is a super shy girl. And then there's some random duo that isn't even a proper band ~~Bushiroad *stop*~~ and is... moderately relevant in that one of the members is another old friend of Sakiko's. Neither girl in that group has any personality but their relevance is so little I don't think it matters. And uhh... yup two other random girls whose relevance is so little it doesn't matter. These not-relevant characters aren't a problem, though. In fact, it's actually something kinda good. Just, it's kinda a non factor. If the main cast were more interesting and/or memorable, then the minor characters' lack of focus would be a benefit, as it gives more time to see the main cast. It is a good fact on its own, but as it is, it makes no difference. __Overall:__ ...It's just boring. The characters have annoying or boring personalities, the drama for the most part falls flat and there aren't enough jokes or inserts to make up for it. It has a few good moments, such as the performances and ep3 and the final few episodes... but for the most part it is just *so* boring. A big issue I think there is... is actually the fact it is Bandori. If it weren't for that, it wouldn't have been so popular and highly praised, thus my apathy wouldn't have turned into outright hatred and... it wouldn't have been such a massive disappointment. Remember, 50/100 (the score *on my list*) means perfectly average, nothing particularly good or bad, boring, etc. It does *not* mean *bad*. I initially gave it a bit lower than that, for some of the characters being annoying and the lack of inserts, but the final few episodes being kinda fun raised it a tiny bit. But like I said, that really couldn't make up for the majority of it being just ***boring...*** too little to late. I just decreased the score on this review because of how much of grown to resent this spin off.
This anime review needs to start with some personal backstory. I've been a fan of the Bandori franchise since 2018, which by standard metrics means I'm ancient around here. I've seen the addition of two other bands to the original five the franchise (re)launched with, both with their issues in being folded into the story well. When MyGO (I'm not typing out five exclamation marks every time, I'm sorry) was revealed to be the eighth band in this universe after existing for a year IRL with no information where they existed in the franchise, I was extremely pessimistic. When they were revealed to be first year high schoolers (for the most part), I was pessimistic because the franchise just made the large step of graduating its oldest characters into university, opening up the story to new experiences. And shortly before the anime debut, when they were revealed to be getting added to the mobile game, I was pessimistic because the game's writing has been relatively poor in character development and even event distribution and focus for the past two years. So saying I was going into this anime looking at it with as much dislike as I held for Aqours at the end of the µ's era is an understatement. I didn't expect much - just wanted a decent narrowly focused show akin to season 1, showing how a new band gets formed. From the first episode, my expectations were met. From the third episode, they were blown away. The premise written, about a girl, Chihaya Anon, who starts the school year late because of reasons revealed later, wanting to join a band when everyone else is already in one, except for their class "weirdo", Takamatsu Tomori, doesn't even scratch the surface of what happens. From the beginning that shows the result of what happens when a band has a catastrophic break up, how that affects every member involved there, to Anon who walks into this minefield and attempts to navigate it stepping on multiple mines along the way, to what's needed for this band to actually form in the end - it takes the entire season, but the feeling of the the payoff is immense. On to the characters. Each one of these characters is flawed and human. Tomori can't communicate her feelings or words well in speech, and feels everything that goes wrong is her fault. Anon runs away at the first sign of any extra work needed to succeed. Taki's overprotectiveness of Tomori and initial inability to accept others help cause her to become combative to others. Rana only sticks around when she finds things interesting, later revealing she's been trying to find another place to belong after her grandmother's live house shut down (yay season 1 callback!). And Soyo, who looked at older characters Sayo, Chisato, and CHU2 who were all disliked by the fandom at their introductions and said "hold my tea." Soyo's arc takes up the majority of the middle portion of the series, the threads of her arc being hinted at along the way before her turn, her mask cracking, and her eventual acceptance of what has happened in her life post-CRYCHIC. And that's only the characters in MyGO proper. This story couldn't be told without five others, the girls that eventually form the group Ave Mujica at the end of the season in the final episode. Sakiko, probably the new most disliked character in the franchise, drives the plot train of "why did she break up CRYCHIC?" that started the series, leading up to the final reveal of her situation in life currently. Mutsumi, her friend, Soyo's friend, someone who has been strung along and used by others. Uika, a popular singer in an idol group, who is also Sakiko's friend, and the one who spurred Tomori to perform again. Umiri, Taki's classmate full of snarky banter, who also gave Tomori her best wishes. Nyamu is the character who just "exists" the most, but her two-faced influencer personality is setting up for trouble. There are little bits here and there to remind existing fans that this is taking place in the same universe at the current point of the timeline, which I appreciated as it was not heavy handed. Of course the girls would run into Saya and Kasumi at Livehouse RiNG, as both frequent or work there. Of course they would meet Afterglow at a live, be inspired by Morfonica, or see the Roselia posters in the old astronomy club room. The only band to not have any representation is Hello, Happy World!, which while on one hand makes sense with the overall melancholy of the series, but as they are still a band that exists here, some showing would've been nice - Misaki at school, a Michelle sighting in town, Kanon at the aquarium, basically anything grounded for them. As this is a music-themed franchise, the use of music is of course important. Most importantly are the use of the vocal songs - typically in these series you get the short cut and just assume the groups performed other songs off screen. Instead, MyGO uses multiple full length songs, where some were even re-recorded from the anime to sound rougher if needed - Hekitenbansou in episode 7 being the main example of this. This does make a couple of the episodes be half performance/song, but in the first case it's their first performance as a group and sets up Soyo's arc, and the second case in episode 12, it's their first performance as a true band. The camera and scenery work is top-notch and a great example of what CG animation can do. Sanzigen levels up with every series they do, and comparing Bandori S2 to D4DJ First Mix to this demonstrates how they've started blending in more 2D for more varied expressions and movement, and improved their lighting in backgrounds. Stand out moments are every time Soyo is framed in slight darkness, the varied spacing and views of characters in rooms to show distance or discomfort, and the entirety of episode 3 being from Tomori's first person POV - the most unique way to do a flashback episode that I've ever seen in an anime. The only flaws I have with the series are relatively minor - the opening sequence, while a great song, doesn't have too many interesting shots compared to previous Bandori seasons (the second version of Kizuna Music is one of my favorite OPs ever). Episode 13 is more of a victory lap for MyGO, before heading face first into a prologue for the upcoming Ave Mujica anime, which if you're not invested in that group can feel like a non-ending. Additionally, there's a few non-Sakiko related loose ends between MyGO that have probably been saved for the mobile game, which if you don't play that, tough luck, go wait for other people to play it and upload stories to Youtube. For English server players it's an even longer wait as MyGO isn't being added to that server until spring 2024. This is the sleeper hit of the summer 2023 season, the one that'll be always called criminally underrated and brought up as something worth watching in future threads about animes you love but no one talks about. Which is a shame, as it deserves to stand next to series like K-ON! and Bocchi the Rock that are some of the most frequently recommended music anime.
I would like to preface this review by saying, I am not a fan of idol shows. To me, so many idol shows just seem like the same thing over and over again. With that being said, I'm always open to trying new things. I watched BanG Dream! It’s MyGo!!!!! as a part of my college anime club. There's a lot of avid idol fans in the group and one of them suggested this show to us to watch. At the time, episode 13 had yet to air but we previewed the 1st episode anyways and I was shocked by how intriguing it seemed to me. I really wanted It’s MyGO to be the idol show that I could finally say I like but as the mountain of flaws grew the more and more I watched, I finished the show more and more confused, conflicted, and shocked at how quickly it fell apart. With that being said, there were quite a few points to It’s MyGO that I really enjoyed and I would be remiss if I didn't praise them. After summing up my enjoyments and disappointments spoiler free, I’ll then have a spoiler section where you can read about my thoughts with a bit more detail. ~~~img500(https://i.imgur.com/NSBDcZt.png)~~~ ~~~__The Good__~~~ To start, like I said, there really is a lot to like about It’s MyGO that really helped it stand out amongst idol shows, the biggest of which was its premise. To summarize, It’s MyGO follows a girl named Anon Chihaya, who transfers into a new school where being involved with music is extremely popular. After befriending a loner girl named Tomori Takamatsu, Anon learns about Tomori’s involvement in a band previously where the band’s leader, a pianist named Sakiko Togawa, had a sudden change in heart and broke up the band just as they were beginning to gain momentum. They did not break on good terms and many of the band members were left with hurt feelings and damaged relations. It’s MyGo tells the story of the two girls making a new band of their own while working though the pain that was caused by the previous. I thought this premise was extremely interesting. Like I said, I don't watch many idol shows but I can tell that this story is unique. I think especially if you’re a big idol fan, you’ll really get a kick out of this. Especially in its first 4 or 5 episodes, they build up a lot of extremely compelling character drama that left me very interested in watching more. Also, over the course of the story, Tomori’s character arc is very nice and really shows a lot of growth that's very good to see. It made me very happy. ~~~img500(https://i.imgur.com/JpJAX82.png)~~~ I also really enjoyed the production. I for one really do not like 3D CGI animation but It’s MyGO is one of the few I’ve seen that I thought looks good. And I think it looks really good. Apart from a few small weird moments here and there, movement is extremely fluid and the quality is very sharp. The concert scenes look especially good. The movement of the characters look really nice compared to other idol shows I’ve seen and it was really cool to see. Speaking of the concert scenes, I really liked the songs. A lot of the idol/band shows I’ve seen have songs that sound like anime songs to me, but the songs from It’s MyGo felt a lot more like regular songs that I'd actually listen to. Of course this is all just my music taste and my music taste is probably garbage but hey, that's how i feel lol. ~~~__The Bad__~~~ Now onto the flaws. Like I said, I'll have a part below this that includes spoilers so I’ll keep it more general for now. It’s MyGo’s biggest problem begins to become clear about half way through the show when I began to realize that a lot of the characters' deeper motives would not be brought up. While some characters receive character arcs, there are others that are extremely flat and are given very little deeper meaning and a lot of these characters are those who are tied to the deeper plot, so by the end of the show, we get to the final scene and realize that very little context for anything was given and everything is extremely vague. There is no clear deeper meaning with a lot. This is no clear deeper cause for anything that occurs. Starting with the middle point of the show, every episode deeper in that continues to not give context, the show just begins to spiral more and more out of control until it ends with the confused mess that is episode 13. To be entirely honest, I don't really want to go into much more detail that I have from this point without getting into spoilers so I'll just leave it at that. ~~~__ This section contains spoilers __ ~! To start with the show's lesser but bizarre issues is the show's extremely uneven character development. Tomori, and to a certain degree Soyo, are just about the only characters that are developed. Anon is extremely shallow. She had some goofy backstory about going to school internationally in the UK but she screws up her introduction, feels isolated, and goes back to Japan shortly after. Her entire motivation to be in the band is to fit in and that's where it starts and ends. While it's a valid reason and her backstory makes sense with her motives, I still found it extremely odd how shallow her character is. Additionally, Raana and Taki are given almost zero deeper character. I get it with Raana, as she is kinda just the mysterious character that just shows up from time to time but Taki was extremely bizarre. Given how important her relationship is to Tomori, the character that is developed the most in the story, it's very strange that they did very little to get into the friendship apart from just implying that Taki is protective of Tomori, Like I said, this is a lesser issue to what I think is the shows biggest issue, but still, I had to say something. This show's biggest problem is the very thing that made the show interesting to me in the first place, the previous band CRYCHIC and most importantly, Sakiko Togawa. When I say that they give absolutely no context for anything when it comes to Sakiko’s actions outside that fact that she was the one who broke up the band, I mean, ABSOLUTELY ZERO reason is given. Why did the band split? I don't know. Why did Sakiko suddenly turn against her bandmates? I don't know. Why does the band’s guitarist Mutsumi always back her up? I don't know. Why does Sakiko want to create a new band after seeing MyGo!!!!!’s promising start? I don’t know. I DON'T KNOW!!! It's extremely baffling to me how little reason is given for Sakiko’s actions. I get that there will be another season after this, but that's no excuse for leaving so many fundamental questions regarding this entry's deeper story and meaning to be left blatantly unanswered. Then I got the mess that is episode 13. Sakiko’s plan to create a new plan comes into fruition and she recruits a bunch of side characters from earlier that get more and more baffling. First Mutsumi. Like I said earlier, I have no idea why Mutsumi just follows exactly when Sakiko does like a drone but It atleast makes sense why she would join. Then there's Uika Misumi. This character appears a few times previously who gives Tomori some advice but is also implied to know Sakiko and to be friends with her. While I find it a bit odd that she probably knows about the CHYCHIC break up and doesn't really do anything, It's not really her place to do so, so it's fine. Then there's the Youtuber or whatever. The youtuber, Nyamu Yuutenji, who had only shown up like 2 or 3 times previously as just youtube videos that Anon watches in earlier scenes I guess knows Sakiko? It just feels like such a random inclusion out of left field. Then the final member is Umiri Yahata, Taki’s friend from school. I get that she plays some sort of role where she helps bands fill in spots but I found it extremely weird that Sakiko knows her and that she's involved with it. I don't know. A lot of this can be considered a coincidence maybe, but it's still just extremely weird to me. I don't know why this band exists or how these people know each other or their deeper meanings. Obviously, there is the upcoming season that is purely about this band so we’ll surely get more context later but the fact that they ended this show with an episode pretty much devoted to this plot line that comes out of nowhere, It's very strange. It almost felt like it should have been like the first episode of the upcoming season. Oh and this new season too. Sakiko is extremely unlikable and toxic and now she's the main character of this entire new season and new band. Where does this come from? They imply some not so good homelife around her in episode 13 but that's no excuse for the way she treats others (especially with how little context is given for her behavior up to now) and I completely fail to understand why she is given the spotlight now. The last thing I'd like to mention is not really an issue that I think most people have and It lies with Soyo. The midsection of the show reveals Soyo’s deeper desires of wanting to reform CRYCHIC instead of their new band. She couldn't care less about Raana or Anon and at this breaking point after their first performance, she isn't afraid to make it known. In once again breaking up the new band, hurting everyone, and leaving everyone behind just to beg Sakiko to reform CRYCHIC, she basically does exactly what Sakiko did to CRYCHIC. While I know this will be an unpopular opinion, I think the new band, instead of getting upset by her and disbanding, should have cut off Soyo. I thought she proved herself to be nearly as toxic as Sakiko and I think the fact that they refused to move forward properly until she agreed (somewhat reluctantly) to rejoin later on shows that it's almost like they didn't learn anything from the CRYCHIC situation. What happened to the message of all of that? I get that they remake the band and everyone is happy for the most part (now with Soyo being kinda arrogant) and we even get a bit of self awareness from Soyo in episode 13 talking about her hypocrisy. I liked that we got to see her acknowledging that side of her. I'm not saying that she couldn't have rejoined later or something but It just feels like they didn't learn anything from the first time around and I felt like a lot of the meaning was lost because of it. Like I said though, I think most people don't have this issue but it bothered me a little bit so take it as you will. !~ ~~~ ~~~img400(https://i.imgur.com/WbNE8kM.png)~~~ _~~~Literally me watching episodes 7-13~~~_ ~~~__Final Thoughts__~~~ Bang Dream! It’s MyGo!!!!! is a promising idol show that fails to answer any of its own questions. In an effort to be unique, It’s MyGo creates an initially compelling character drama but is unable to bring any of its drama and deeper meanings to a conclusion that is satisfying. While it has great animation, great songs, and occasionally good characters and moments, It begins to slowly fall apart at its midpoint and completely dissolves into a completely confused mess at its end as it completely fails to answer most questions I had. Like I said, I don't like idol shows all that much. They all just feel the same to me. I thought Bang Dream! It’s MyGo!!!!! was going to be the idol show that I could say I actually liked. That's what made its eventual collapse hurt all that much more for me. For reference, I consider a 70/100 to be a baseline average for me and the score I gave this show reflects how much I enjoyed the first half and how confused and disappointed I was with its second. I know I went on and on, so idk if anyone even made it this far but thanks for giving this review of Bang Dream! It’s MyGO!!!!! by a non idol fan a chance. Maybe I'll write more in the future? :) ______
What captivates me about exploring anime beyond my usual preferences is the element of unpredictability, and for the most part, I really enjoy this. It is shows like this that provided me with the most fulfilled journey. However, even though "BanG Dream! It's MyGO!!!!!" falls into that category for me, I can't quite say that it resonates with my taste. Let's start with the positives because, despite my reservations, "BanG Dream! It's MyGO!!!!!" has some commendable aspects. Let's begin with the story. Don't get me wrong; I don't like the story of MyGO by itself. It is, in my opinion, rather weak. However, I appreciate the unconventional and experimental storytelling method they chose for the show. I enjoy anime that doesn't strictly adhere to traditional pipelines. The writer is clearly going for a more realistic feel, which I think complements the animation style. Speaking of the animation style, I really like it. It's one of the best 3D animations I've watched. They incorporated a lot of 2D animation techniques in the 3D, which is unconventional. For instance, there are several shots where they don't move the camera but only the rendered frame. Sometimes, you can clearly see that the perspective projection is not perfect. The result is a 3D animation that looks surprisingly 2D. Also, in earlier episodes, the director used some more manga-style framing, which is uncommon for original animation in general. The songs in the show are also above average. I personally really like the voice actress of Tomori, the main singer of the band. Her voice is soft, yet you can hear a deep desire in it. I think the voice fits Tomori perfectly. However, despite these commendable elements, MyGO is far from being a good show. I will share the spoiler-free version of my criticism before diving into specifics. All the events that happen in the show feel extremely forced and lazy to me. I don't personally have any issue with characters experiencing drama, but I dislike drama that is perfectly predictable and where everyone still makes a big deal out of it. Not to mention, the character development in the show is rather weak. Even after 13 episodes, I still couldn't care less about any of those characters. Having all these events happen to characters I have no invested interest in doesn't make it an entertaining show. Now let's talk about the specific problems of the show. ~! One major issue with MyGO is the inexperience of the writer for this type of show. This problem has been evident since the very beginning of the show. In episode 1, we see the CRYCHIC disassembled, and later in that episode, we learn Tomori had some trouble joining a band with Anon. Even though it might seem like a trivial thing to point out, it shows the writer's lack of understanding of storytelling. The background story of CRYCHIC is entirely redundant in the episode, as we will learn it anyway. It would be much more interesting if we saw an otherwise cooperative girl like Tomori suddenly having a big issue with forming a new band. It would provide the viewer with some questions that would be answered in the latter part of the show. The only reason why the story is told that way, based on my speculation, is the writer thinks a non-chronological timeline would be cool. But the thing is, any storytelling techniques are just tools for telling a story, and they are not going to be interesting if the story doesn't fit the technique. Another problem with the story is how forced it seems. The characters never organically create any events; it's always the events that come to the characters. If you have watched the show, you probably know the name of the band MyGO sounds like Japanese 「迷子」, which means getting lost. In order to emphasize this rather mediocre wordplay, literally every character has to "get lost (from the band)" at some point. This might make sense for some characters like Tomori, who is autistic and is just like me frfr. However, it doesn't make sense for characters like Anon, who psychopathically wanted to form a band for no clear reason. She experienced countless rejections and even verbal abuse. Yet after all of that, she still has a strong will to form the band. But suddenly the writer just realizes, oh wait, Anon also needs to get lost, so she has to suddenly change completely and leave the band, but that will also be too out of character, so she goes back to the band almost immediately. It felt really weird for me when I saw her leave the band. The reason for the departure doesn't even match up with her character. It would make more sense if she left the band because she wanted to be in the center, but the rest of the band wanted Tomori to be in the center. That would make so much more sense but will be impossible to do because the fact that Tomori is the singer has already been decided long before the show has aired. The same thing can be said about the very foundation of the show: why does it have to be these people? Under any normal circumstance, they will just disassemble and find someone else to join or find something else to do entirely. There isn't anything bounding them tougher. They are not even friends, especially for Rana. The bond is important for characters to constantly have issues. For LoveLive, it was the school, for Shirobako, it was the company. In MyGO The band members are not even in the same school. I am pretty sure Anon and Tomori can find someone in the same school willing to form a band. Why does it have to be those people? Because they just are, duh. The style of writing reminds me of the Magical Girl Raising Project. If you have watched both shows you are likely to agree with me: you know what will happen after just a few episodes and there is absolutely no reason for why things are happening. For MyGO, it was very clear after a few episodes that they would spend an entire season just so that the characters could get tougher and form a band, which makes the outcome of each event so predictable. Since you know those characters are going to keep having daddy issues until the last few episodes, the entire show just feels repetitive and unrewarding. The characters in the show are weird. I won't go so far as to say they're inherently bad or unworkable. On paper, each character possesses an intriguing persona. However, the real issue lies in the lack of proper development for almost all of them. While Tomori is the most developed character in the show, she still falls short compared to well-written characters like Gotou Hitori from Bocchi the Rock. To be fair, I don't necessarily think this one is a skill issue of the writer. In fact, I would be surprised if the show managed to introduce any truly compelling characters at all. Similar to most mobile games, the abundance of characters poses a challenge. For those who have played the game before, the desire to see their "oshi" (favorite character) in the show is strong. Crafting a narrative around existing idols is a daunting task. If I were the writer, I wouldn't dare challenge the assumptions made by the passionate idol fans about their "oshi." In such a position, I'd likely opt to intentionally create bland characters to avoid upsetting anyone. This is why many game ads take on a sitcom format—it aligns with what works best for the genre. However, I still believe the creators could make an effort to trim down the number of characters. Everyone seems to have classmates, and all of them talk and appear to be important characters when they are not. It becomes unclear who the audience should genuinely care about. For instance, in the first episode after the disassembly of CRYCHIC, there's a sense where Anon bumped into a lady in the UK. One might assume that both scenes share the same amount of narrative weight, given their proximity, and you don't usually bump into strangers without some consequence. However, that lady is never seen again, and the incident served no purpose whatsoever. One could argue that bumping into random people is normal. While that's true, just as it's normal to go to the restroom every hour, it would be extremely odd to see characters on a show randomly going to the restroom to pee without any relevance to the plot. In the later part of the show, there were apparent production issues. The cuts and framing become less interesting over time. However, this issue is relatively minor and doesn't pose a significant problem. !~ In summary, I consider MyGO a substantial waste of time, offering little in terms of reward or entertainment. However, in evaluating this experience, it's crucial to recognize the significance of learning not only from successes but also from mistakes. Despite the show being a complete disaster, it imparted a valuable lesson on how not to tell a story.