If there is a word--or rather, a two-word phrase--to describe AKB0048, it is probably simply “a lot”. Few series pack as many disparate elements into their runtime. Let’s condense it this way; an idol show in which the idol troupe our protagonists wish to join is also a paramilitary organization with its own planet that fights repressive governments and anti-music terrorists, with the benefit of mecha and all other sorts of advanced weaponry. Also, it’s a space opera. AKB, regardless of its actual quality, might just qualify as simply one of the conceptually silliest anime ever made. There is an almost gleeful commitment to piling ridiculous--sometimes outright stupid--concepts, and execution, on top of each other. There’s gaudy CGI, diehard otaku who fight with glowstick missiles, light sabers that spring from microphone grips--10 points if you correctly guessed that these are called “mic sabers”--combat and idol training taking place side by side and being treated as equivalently difficult, that’s not even mentioning the anti-art terrorist group DES, whose missiles are, as the camera reminds us every time they show up, hilariously stamped with a massive logo reading “NO IDOLS” and a struckthrough silhouette of a performer. That I somehow managed to get a whole paragraph in without mentioning the dynasty of idols that one member of the titular space idol troupe belongs to, or the shinto shrine inner sanctum hidden inside their starship, says a lot about how truly caution-to-the-wind AKB0048 is. This is a show that genuinely, truly, through and through, does not care if you think it’s ridiculous.

You can only get so far on sheer silliness, though, especially for something that’s not actually a comedy anime (indeed, for being as funny as it sometimes is, 00 is surprisingly bereft of many actual jokes, and the ones that do get made tend to fall firmly in the “so bad they’re funny again” camp, if they land at all). No, 00 would be completely lost if not for the fact that the anime has a very, very big heart, and wears it on its sleeve. It’s a classic love it or hate it type thing, either you’re a sap like yours truly and will find this immediately endearing, or you’re, well, not, and will find it incredibly grating. There’s not a lot of wiggle room with 00, and I suspect that that’s the reason the franchise doesn’t seem to have had much of a longtail despite the real-world star power backing it up.

The writing, meanwhile, has its ups and downs. It’s impressive all on its own that the large cast largely manages to stay distinctive. The show ostensibly “centers on” the core trio we’re first introduced to, three young girls--Nagisa, Suzuno, and Yuuka--from a planet called Lancastar who (along with a fourth, Episode 2 inclusion Chieri) witness a 00 concert as young girls, and pursue their dreams to become idols within the troupe as proper “successors” to the current performers (something the show does establish as being complete with a full-on name change. Second-stringer Shiori is introduced to us as Minami Takahashi V). The truth is though that the cast balloons quickly, and some members get more screentime than others. Still, as said, they all manage to remain distinctive (sans perhaps Q-lister Megumi, whose main trait seems to be vague jealousy), which is impressive enough given the large size. Where this largely falters is when the show attempts to delve into a more serious / “darker” side of the galactic idol biz. Revue Starlight this is not, and the show’s attempts to handle these aspects are generally where it falls flat.

Really if 00 has a major problem, it’s that it’s not always aware of its own best quality, which is being deliciously over-the-top. Too often, the series takes an unfortunate dip into either rote performance melodrama one could get in any idol series (there are enough “why does she get this position / I wanted that position” scuffles in the series that listing them isn’t meaningful) or in one particularly ill-conceived instance--the entirety of episode 10--hacky ecchi comedy. When 00 is aware of its own strengths though, conversely, it leads to moments that are genuinely affecting, such as the Lancastar Quartet meeting their first group of fans on an entertainment-banned world. Ultimately what sabotages 00 the most, when it doesn’t work, is its own nature as an idol series, and by necessity, as a promotional vehicle for the very real AKB48. 00 can’t be as idealistic as it would need to be to truly measure up to its own world. The universe that AKB0048 paints is one where pop groups genuinely have the power to save entire planets, but unfortunately, the kind of story that that calls for--a very focused, tightly-paced narrative that doubles down on its thematics first and foremost and is built around a strong central protagonist--is not what we get. 00 is too scattered for that. Instead, we have a flawed series with a big heart, one that understandably chooses to go out like it began--with the AKB0048 members, now including the Lancastar Quartet, kicking ass against DES while singing their hearts out, and it’s moments like these when the series truly shines.

Sadly, they’re probably too few to make the series a truly easy recommendation. 00 is, premise-wise, certainly among the more out-there anime, but that kind of novelty wears off, and what you’re left with is a show that shoots for the moon but misses. It’s frustrating in a way, because maybe if 00 wasn’t shackled to a real idol franchise it could’ve had more freedom to either subvert or double down on its theme of reaching for your dreams, and been truly great instead of merely decent, but, one reviews the show they watch, not the one they wish existed. Still, if you’re in the mood for idols and mecha painted with the same CGI brush, and Idolmaster Xenoglossia just doesn’t sound up your alley, there are far worse ways to spend 6 ½ hours than with AKB0048. Plus, hey, “RIVER” is a banger.