Skip Beat!

Have you ever been in a relationship where you practically gave your life to the other person only to be betrayed? Have you fantasized about taking revenge by becoming the world's biggest star? Yes, Me too. Fans of comedy, compelling characters, and tales set against the cutthroat Hollywood industry, enjoy! Skip Beat! is a highly entertaining anime and, in the end, is incredibly fulfilling.

The writer and director of the anime Skip Beat! is Kiyoko Sayama, while the music composer is Akifumi Tada. Originally shown on Sotsu, Pony Canyon, Hakusensha, and TV Tokyo Music, and animated by Hal Film Maker under the direction of Shinji Horikiri, Kosuke Suzuki, and Hiroto Kumagai. On October 5, 2008, it debuted in Japan and aired until March 29, 2009.

This lovely anime includes 25 episodes that span 24 minutes each, and it was adapted from the same-named manga. It serviced the Shoujo Demographic and belonged to the Comedy, Drama, and Romance Genres. Its topics included Love Polygon and Showbiz. It received a PG-13 for Teens 13 and older rating. Through a contract with TV Tokyo, the anime is also officially streamed on the website Crunchyroll with English subtitles.

Pied Piper obtained a license for the show and started a Kickstarter effort to raise money for a DVD and Blu-ray release of the show with an English dub. The Kickstarter campaign reached the initial funding target and the additional funding requirement for the Blu-ray release. As of April 2021, eight drama CDs had been published.

On February 15, 2002, Yoshiki Nakamura's manga series Skip Beat!, which he also wrote and drew, began serializing in Hakusensha's shōjo manga magazine Hana to Yume. On July 19, 2002, the first bound volume was published in Japan; 48 volumes have been published. Viz Media obtained the rights to publish the manga in English in North America under its Shojo Beat banner.

A Skip Beat! Taiwanese drama with the English title Extravagant Challenge was revealed in 2008 during a press conference in Japan. The principal roles of Gong Xi (Kyōko), Dun He Lian (Tsuruga Ren), and Bu Puo Shang (Shō Fuwa) were to be portrayed by Lee Donghae of the South Korean boy band Super Junior. It was to be directed by Niu Cheng Ze and produced by Gala Television (GTV). With 15 episodes, the show ran from December 18, 2011, to April 1, 2012. Japan, China, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines all broadcast the live-action adaptation.

Each episode was an hour long and followed the manga's narrative exceptionally closely, but with some comic additions. There have been questions about if there would be a season two of the series because of its conclusion (much like the anime, it left loose ends, but it still managed to advance the story). Many think the producers are waiting for the manga to complete to deliver a fitting finale.

The protagonist of Skip Beat! is sixteen-year-old Kyoko Mogami, who adores Shotaro Fuwa, her childhood buddy, but is deceived by him. She gained a lot of knowledge about hospitality and other related professions through spending a significant portion of her youth at Shotaro's parents' inn. Shotaro wants to avoid taking over his parents' company. To help him pursue a passion for music, Shotaro urges Kyoko to quit her high school and her life in Kyoto Region and go with him to Tokyo. Shotaro wants to avoid taking over his parents' company. When Kyoko first moves to Tokyo, she adopts an excessively frugal lifestyle and takes on many jobs to support Sho, as his admirers affectionately refer to him.

She spends no money on herself and devotes all of her time and resources to Sho, who eventually becomes Japan's ninth most well-liked male celebrity. She overhears Shou discussing how he doesn't care much for her and only sees her as a maid, which breaks her heart.

Kyouko juggles three part-time jobs, is upset over being exploited, explodes into a passion, and vows to get revenge on her ex-crush by breaking into the entertainment industry and outdoing him. She keeps running into individuals who push her beyond her comfort zone, which makes joining the rigorous and harsh entertainment business difficult. Kyouko is determined to work hard and succeed in getting revenge. She had long, black hair until Kyoko realized that Sho Fuwa was simply employing her as a housekeeper. She usually had her hair up in a ponytail owing to Sho's costly preferences, but when she let it down, it was unruly and wavy.

Kyoko is a good-hearted and diligent young woman who constantly puts others before herself. She spent most of her life trying to win people over. She demonstrates her intellectual prowess by passing the high school admission exam with the best scores possible, 100%. Nevertheless, she is a little bit naïve and dense across several areas. She believes in fairytales and always imagined Sho, her so-called "prince charming," as her husband until he crushed her heart. She consistently undervalues her worth because of bad childhood experiences.

One of Japan's top artists, Sho Fuwa, prefers to keep his actual name, Shotaro, a mystery since he thinks it to be archaic and conventional. When he was younger, Sho had dark brown hair and steel gray eyes; it is speculated that he has since dyed his locks blond. He also had a thin figure and a robust build. He thinks Kyoko is the one who knows him best, despite his attitude toward general possessiveness about Kyoko, who has been his faithful companion and servant throughout infancy.

For the first time, we have a self-sufficient female protagonist who does not rely on a knight in dazzling armor to save her. It's almost the reverse because she's already disappointed with her prince, who took her to the big city to perform his tasks. That's partially correct. She has grown to despise the prince and seeks vengeance for his use and manipulation of her. Kyoko is a refreshing and unexpected character. We witness a lot of her inner battle of striving to be adored by the populace while still being full of hatred towards Shotaro. This struggle made a significant increase in character development.

The art is clearly of high quality. The people are all beautifully designed, and the surroundings always suit the situation. The animation quality could be better, but it is still nice. Also, the background might appear a little vacant, but that's not a significant concern because it's generally enough to carry the ambiance.

The background music/sound frequently goes overlooked, which may be a positive thing. This isn't because the audio could be better, but rather so the viewer can concentrate on the tale. The generous's "Dream Star" is the first opening theme. 2BACKKA's "Namida" is the first closing theme. The generous's "Renaissance" is the second opening theme, while Yūsaku Kiyama's "Eien" is the second closing theme.

This animation exposes all that goes on behind the cosmetics and flawlessly lit images while being professional, non-cliche, and joyful. There is no unnecessary drama, ridiculous tabloid-induced scandals, or phony love connections. It may have gone down the reality-show route of "Look, celebs are real people, too! They have lunch precisely like us!” But, thankfully, it did not. I admired the anime's ability to engage the viewer while tackling the problem of filmmaking. This anime moves at a nicely calibrated pace, blending plot progression with hilarity. I recommend it!