You’re never too old to chase your dreams.
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Arina Tanemura
Translation/Adaptation: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
What They Say
To pursue missed chances at love and success, 31-year-old Chikage Deguchi takes an experimental drug that changes her appearance back to how she looked at 15. Chikage has debuted as the teenage idol Akari, but now she must compete with Yuko to have Hibiki produce her CD. Tokita, the only one who knows Chikage’s secret, continues to help her while trying to atone for the past…
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Author Tanemura made a smart choice to start off this second volume focused on Tokita, as one has to wonder why he’s so devoted to helping Deguchi relive her youth. It’s one the best chapters of the series so far, and we get a glimpse of Deguchi and Tokita’s younger years as classmates as well as a better understanding of Tokita’s motivations. It may seem like Tokita is rescuing Deguchi now with his miracle drug, but as we dig deeper into their pasts we see that he may actually be returning the favor.
Meanwhile, Deguchi continues to work toward her dreams and immerse herself fully in the idol world, including going up against another young idol for a chance to produce a debut CD with Hibiki. This naturally brings her closer to Hibiki, and like Tokita, we get a glimpse of his life in this volume as well. Unfortunately, Hibiki still reads to me as the stereotypical “refreshing” and “misunderstood” love interest with a heart of gold, complete with difficult family circumstances. I don’t dislike his character really, more so that I just have no particular affinity for him.
There’s still a lot to like in this second volume, though: I laughed out loud during Deguchi’s shopping trip (as an adult) to buy clothes for her upcoming idol debut performance. Seeing Deguchi progress in the idol world slowly but surely is entertaining, and it’s nice to see her confidence shift there some. I also can’t help but root for Tokita as he struggles with his feelings for the 31-year-old Deguchi versus him encouraging her younger idol dreams with Hibiki. All that said, it does seem like Tanemura enjoys depicting teenage Deguchi more than adult Deguchi though, and it’s obvious her character writing strengths and preferences fall squarely on younger characters. Idol Dreams is easy to like because it’s a fun and entertaining ride, but don’t come into it expecting fully realized adult characters just yet, if ever.
In Summary
The only thing I outright hate about this series is that we’re just about caught up with the Japanese releases, which means we won’t be seeing that third volume for a bit. The only good thing is that it gives readers plenty of time to catch up with this fun series — something I recommend.
Content Grade: A-
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: Teen
Released By: Viz Media
Release Date: March 1st, 2016
MSRP: $9.99
