It's been six months since "POP IN 2" was released. Thanks to MEM-Cho's hard work, B-Komachi is about to get their major break. Aqua is a multi-talented entertainer, and Akane's career as a talented actress is going smoothly. Meanwhile, Kana lost the cheerfulness she once had. To track down the truth behind Ai and Goro's deaths, Ruby keeps rising in the entertainment world.

Oshi no Ko is based onAka Akasaka andMengo Yokoyari 'sOshi no Ko manga. The anime series is streaming onCrunchyroll andHIDIVE on Wednesdays.

Has it really been only two years sinceOshi no Ko's second season captivated us with its alluring double-edged plot about the dark side of the entertainment industry? This fast-paced opener pulled me right back in with “Down Bad,” centered around Kana's tale of woe. With kaleidoscopic eyes and lovingly lined lashes and hair, these celebrity characters are still a treat to look at. But you barely have to delve beneath the surface of everyone's peppy, perfectly-packaged entertainment personalities for the darkness to peek through. Mixing manufactured joy with behind-the-scenes misery, it's a very on-brand return to form.

Even the fans can see something is up with the underground idol group B-Komachi. In a scene at an idol merch store, some regular Joes with zero inside knowledge wonder if something's up with the once smiling Kana and the once innocent Ruby. This scene in particular expertly utilizes the audience's knowledge to heighten the dramatic irony: we know that Kana and Ruby are profoundly changed by their experiences from the last season. Ruby's dark side will have to wait for a later exploration, while this episode features Kana having a really bad time. The visuals are gut-wrenching; when Kana reflects on the good times with Aqua, it is conveyed as a piece of paper burning around the edges… and suddenly, the huge twin galaxies that are her eyes go liquid. As Kana and later Aqua wrestle with the end of their romance that never began, it's Memcho who helps them pick up the pieces. Indeed, it's Memcho as the moral center of this episode. The hardest working in a cast full of hard workers, Memcho is putting her B-Komachi work above her ownYouTube channel work—and now she's playing therapist as well. This episode is split between reintroducing the full cast and their current trajectory to ever more intense superstardom, but it was the big emotions that really took center stage.

Now let's talk about the elephant in the room. Between the last anime season and this one, theOshi no Ko manga concluded with a real stinker of an epilogue. For me, it felt like the entire manga was pretty good up to that point, striking the right balance between guilty pleasure celebrity tabloid gossip and the real toll it takes on its cast. So even though the episode was as consistently good as the ones that have come before, it's hard to get excited knowing what this is all leading toward… or is it? The question now is, will the anime use its knowledge of the negative fan reaction to the manga's end to make changes? I can see a hint of a change already here. In the B-Komachiinsert song, there's a character with dark glasses on whom I don't think had been introduced at this point in the manga. Add in two fairly catchy songs (nothing will replace Yo Asobi's “Idol,” and I don't expect it to), andOshi no Ko should continue to be a good time. But if it doesn't look like anything is going to change from the manga, it's going to be tough for me to be as excited about it as I once was.

Back when they got their first season, I remember I was pretty surprised that a relative anime industry underdog likeHIDIVE managed to get as big asOshi no Ko was very obviously bound to be. It's anotherAka Akasaka title (Kaguya-sama: Love is War), after all—just seems like the kind of thing that a bigger fish likeCrunchyroll orNetflix would've been better positioned to get.Crunchyroll, which streamedKaguya-sama and you'd think would have a better and more direct understanding of its popularity, in particular. I remember being equal parts surprised and curious when I heardHIDIVE—who hadn't had anything anywhere near as big and popular at that point—ended up with it. Fast forward to 2025, and I must say, I'm equally curious about what must've happened (read: how bitterSony's tears were when they realized how hard they fumbled the bag, and how fat the subsequent check they must've written was) forCrunchyroll, in addition toHIDIVE, to now have it. The anime industry works in weird ways sometimes.

But onto the episode itself, it seems our protagonist's newbie days in the entertainment industry are now firmly behind them. They're all doing pretty well and getting steady work in their respective industries—with Mem-cho, in particular, putting in considerably more work by way of acting as a promotional agent and social media manager for the group. It's even escalated to the extent that she's putting in more work on the B-Komachi channel than her own. I always thought Mem-cho was one of the more underappreciated characters in this show, and this episode—which really let her shine, both as a friend and as a professional—really affirms that for me. Were it not for her efforts, B-Komachi wouldn't be anywhere near as successful as they're becoming—both in public and in private. She's the unsung hero of the group for sure, and they owe her much more than they probably realize. I hope she gets her flowers for all the extra work she's putting in.

But speaking of quiet contributors, it looks like Ruby has possibly found one in—of all people—her mom's old manager. And I want to be excited that this is going to lead to something big, but knowing this series' pacing when it comes to its overarching stories—I mean, we're in season 3 now. We're far enough in for me to know not to get my hopes up, and that does a lot to kill this series' momentum for me. Sure, it's cool that this is happening. But I know in my heart that if this amounts to anything, it won't be until the end of the season. So it's hard to get too excited, even though either of the twins (but Aqua especially, for obvious reasons) contacting him at some point seems like it would've been an obvious thing to do.

At his core, despite his cool, collected exterior, Aqua Hoshino remains a scared little boy, forever scarred by the violent murder of his idol singer mother Ai. Although in his mind he maintains continuity with the memories of his previous identity, the Ai-worshipping gynaecologist Gorou Amamiya, it's his experiences in this life, as Aqua, that drive him. He confides in YouTuber and idol singer Mem-cho that he still intends to study for college to keep future entry to medical school an option, but he doesn't seem at all certain that he really wants to follow in his past self's footsteps. Without the usual stars in his eyes, Aqua keeps moving forward, even making a success of his varied career in show business. Yet something's missing, and it's not merely his eyes' sparkle. His producer notes that he's almost always guarded, showing the camera only a curated image without human warmth. He hides his true personality behind sharp put-downs, playing a role in which appearing “heartless” helps keep him from addressing his own emotions. The only chinks in his armor are those related to the women in his life – such as Ruby, his twin sister.

Since Aqua gave up on his quest for revenge last season, unbeknownst to him, Ruby has taken up the mantle of haunted investigator, and she has literally stolen the star from Aqua's eyes. Now both of her pupils glisten with inky stellar darkness, a far cry from her radiant sparkle of old. Fans and colleagues alike notice the change in her – she's more calculating, almost artificial, and for once she's thinking several steps ahead. It's telling that Aqua hasn't even noticed this about her – he's been avoiding interacting with his sister's idol group B-Komachi, and presumably also his sister, mainly because he's deliberately avoiding her group-mate Kanna Arima.

Kanna's also changed, and not for the better. Her lack of enthusiasm and energy in her performances is obvious to her fans, friends, and her employer. Apart from his sister and adoptive mother, Kana knows Aqua better than anyone else in the world – they were child stars and rivals, perhaps even friends together. Her love for him is obvious, and since he started dating the pretty and caring actress Akane Kurokawa, she feels abandoned by him. The scene in this episode where Mem-cho directly confronts Kana's feelings about Aqua is exquisitely drawn – the way her eyes suddenly quiver is incredibly evocative.

When Mem-cho does the same with Aqua, confronting him about his apparent callousness towards Kanna, she's shocked to learn how wrong she is. Perhaps for the first time, Mem-cho sees a glimpse of the true Aqua, the broken little boy who's terrified that someone else he loves might be taken from him like his mother was. Aqua probably does love Kanna as much as she loves him, but he feels he can never reciprocate lest it draws an insane fan, incensed that an idol singerdares have a love life, to hurt her. All Mem-cho can do is pat his head supportively. She is eight years older than he, after all. Someone needs to be the adult in the room for him.

Oshi no Ko's back with an emotionally strong episode that quickly gets us up to speed with the characters six months (in story time) after we last saw them.Aka Akasaka's character writing is complex and nuanced, and it's enhanced by the beautiful visuals and wonderfully detailed animation that so effortlessly captures so many little gestures and aspects of body language that help the viewer to really get into the characters' minds. These kids make themselves give perpetually smiling, energetic public performances every day of their lives, to the point of exhaustion, and they're falling apart inside. It almost makes me feel guilty to watch and enjoy it so much.

Say what you will aboutAka Akasaka as a writer, but it's very clear that they have their thumb firmly on the pulse of what it means to be an entertainer both in the professional and online world. The first third of this episode hit me very close to home with how Mem was effectively breaking down how to steadily grow as an online influencer. I feel like a lot of other shows often portray a band or a group making it big after they just hit one viral song or concert. But this episode showcased that a lot of work needs to go into riding those different trends and maintaining a strong media presence. I also think this was a good way to effectively show how much time has passed between now and the end of season two. Almost everyone's status quo is different. Given some of the revelations that happened last season, utilizing the growth of the girls group to highlight that passage of time was very effective.

However, even that wasn't nearly as effective as the scene between Aqua and Mem on the couch. It has been a while since the show hit me so emotionally but I thought that whole speech Aqua gave was a fantastic way of showcasing just how much heart this series can have at its best. The fact that the episode set up Kana's growing discomfort with Aqua avoiding her only to turn things around and show that Aqua is tearing himself up inside to stay away from her because of his trauma was brilliant. When the musical cue came in and I saw that horrified look on his face as he recalled what happened to Ai, I got choked up a bit.

I think it's interesting that this season is starting with Aqua in such a tired, vulnerable place because it acts as a great contrast to Ruby. Ruby seems to be taking on the more dark and calculating elements that embodied Aqua during season one and a good chunk of season two. That was one of the more surprising narrative shifts from last season so it makes sense that this episode would be there to fully establish that dichotomy. What Ruby plans to do and how she plans to do it is now the next immediate mystery of the show. It's crazy how good this show is at reeling me in just as I was beginning to doubt it.