Overview Oshi no Ko is a manga about the journey of the protagonist, Aquamarine Hoshino, through the world of show biz. Aqua was reincarnated as the son of famous idol Ai Hoshino, whom he greatly admired in his previous life as a doctor. Oshi no Ko shows the bad and ugly of the life of celebrities, and does not hold back. This manga's ability to send messages about real life problems of every day people is second to none and extremely relatable for some, including me to some extent. Let's dive right into it!The Story Thus Far There are 4 completed arcs so far: Prologue, The Entertainment World, Dating Reality Show, and The First Concert. The current ongoing arc is 2.5D Stage Play. The prologue, as you can assume, is an introduction to the series. It mainly talks about Aqua, his twin sister Ruby, and their mother, Ai. Ai is an idol for the group B-Komachi, which is managed by a small company called Strawberry Productions. The first 10 chapters follow her and her journey as an idol, as well as her life as a 16 year old single mother with 2 kids. I will talk more about Ai in the character section of the review.

The next arc, The Entertainment World, fast forwards around 10 years, and now the focus is completely around Aqua and Ruby. Ruby is aspiring to become an idol just like her mother, but Aqua does not want that to happen (I can't mention why because of a huge spoiler sorry!). He eventually gives in and Ruby ends up creating her own idol group with Strawberry Productions once again. Aqua and Ruby are then reunited with Kana Arima, who is introduced in the Prologue. She is a year older than the twins, and was called "The Child Prodigy" because of her acting skills. She meets the twins again after 10 years at their new high school, which is made for teenagers who are in the show business.

The Third arc. Dating Reality Show. Here we are introduced to one of the most relatable characters I've ever seen, Akane Kurokawa. Aqua is now starring on a dating reality show with a total of 6 high schoolers. This arc really takes a deeper look at the effect of social media. The reason I love this arc so much is because of how applicable it is in real life to most high schoolers, including myself. Another topic that is touched upon in this arc is that it is every man for themselves in the real world. People will use you to their advantage, and if you are not tough enough to stop it, it will really effect you. I really related to this part because I'm generally a nice guy, and although it has not happened to me yet, many people have warned me that I'm too nice and need to stop doing favors for others.

The 4th arc, The First Concert. This arc mainly revolves around Ruby and her idol group, which also includes Kana. They are invited to perform at a huge concert in Japan. We get to see cute and funny banter between Aqua and Kana as well as Ruby and Kana. Kana's character is also looked at a little more during this arc.

The Characters

Aquamarine Hoshino. He is the reincarnated son of Ai Hoshino, and a doctor and his previous life. He uses that to his advantage, and at a young age, he is smarter than everyone around him. In his previous life, he was a huge fan of Ai, as well as an old man, so when he has to be breast fed or is in the bath with Ai, he closes his eyes or looks away.
MAJOR CHAPTER 9 SPOILERS

Spoiler, click to view

Aqua is deeply affected by Ai's death, and blames himself for what happened to her.

Aqua then changes and becomes more distant from everyone. Like Ai, he sets up a barrier of lies around himself, not showing his true colors to anyone, not even his twin sister. We see in the later chapters Aqua's past self, holding him back from being happy. While he hasn't been fleshed out yet, there is so much potential in his character, and I'm really looking forward to it.

Ruby Hoshino. The twin sister of Aqua. She inherits Ai's good looks and charm. However, unlike her mother, she is extremely straightforward and honest in everything she does. She wants to follow her mother's footsteps and become an idol. She has not gotten as much screen time as Aqua or Kana or even Akane, which is my only major critique of this manga. However, I strongly believe that once she gets an arc of her own, she may even surpass Ai.

Ai Hoshino, the mother of Aqua and Ruby. She is by far the most fleshed out character in the manga. She is part of the idol group B-Komachi, and known for her charm and good looks. The following is explaining her character in detail so if you have not read the manga I advise to not click the spoiler.

Spoiler, click to view

Ai does not know how to love because of her upbringing in an orphanage without parents. Ichigo Saitou, the director of Strawberry Productions recruits Ai to become a model. Ai believes that idols shower their fans with love and joy, and that she is not fit for the job because that is the complete opposite of who she is at the time. Saitou goes on to tell her that the show biz in general is all made up of people who are made up of lies. He tells Ai to take up his offer because she's a good liar, and that she might even be able to find true love through her job. Ai then goes on to have a successful career as an idol and give birth to 2 children. But even after all this time, she has not found true love. She still has not told her kids that she loves them as she does not want to belittle the meaning of the words "I love you." Only as she is dying she is able to realize true love and tell her kids "I love you."

Ai is not focused on much after the first volume, but through 10 chapters, she has become one of the best characters I have ever seen. Her bubbly yet air-headed personality makes her an extremely likeable character.

Kana Arima AKA best girl is the genius actor that is introduced during the earlier chapters, but becomes a main part of the story during the second arc. Kana's seems to be the deuteragonist of the story, as she her story interwines with the twins. I love her character, as she guides the twins through the world of show biz as their senior. Her interactions with them are humorous but at the same time realistic. While she did say something very questionable in chapter 50, I still love her character with all my heart, and I you will too.

Akane Kurokawa, one of the actors alongside Aqua in the dating reality show. Her character is one of the most realistic I have come across. After an incident during the filming of the show, she begins to receive extreme hate on social media. Akane has a very strong sense of responsibility and takes everything at face value, which doesn't help her in a business filled with liars who'd use you the first chance they get. While I don't relate to her, many others do, which is why she has quickly become a fan favorite. Her parallel with Ai is one of my favorite in animanga, and her cute side is too cute. Although I like Kana more, she is still an extremely lovable character.

Conclusion

This manga explores the dark side of show biz that cannot be seen from the outside. You can decide for yourself how realistic it is, but it seems Akasaka has really done his research with this manga, and as someone who's in the industry himself, it seems that everything that happens in Oshi no Ko happens in real life. This manga explores the effect the internet and social media has on our lives, and being yourself. Every character is extremely enjoyable, from their interactions to their backstories. I highly encourage everyone to give this a read!

NOTE: This is my first review, so please give me any feedback you have!
(52 chapters released at the time of the review)