In the country hospital where he works, doctor and idol enjoyer Gorou Amemiya meets the famous and beloved idol Ai Hoshino. He is surprised to discover that this sixteen-year-old idol is pregnant, but promises the safe delivery of her twin babies.
Unfortunately, Gorou is mysteriously murdered and when he opens his eyes again, he is in the body of Aquamarine Hoshino, Ai’s newborn son. With his new twin sister Ruby, the pair happily cheer Ai on until tragedy strikes yet again and the pair become embroiled in the dark side of show business.
There are certainly a lot of idol anime out there, but few go to as much effort to creatively and engagingly show the dark side of being a celebrity in Japan like Oshi no Ko does. If you are looking for more anime recommendations like Oshi no Ko, head on down below.
Anime Like Oshi no Ko
For Fans of Idols
Idolish7
On her first day working for her father’s production agency, Tsumugi was certainly not expecting to become the manager of the agency’s new idol group.
Making her job even more difficult, deeming the group too big, she is asked by her father to cut four boys from it. However, after hearing them perform, she declares she won’t cut anyone from the group and dedicates herself to making them stars.
There are many idol anime series out there, and they all kind of look the same and in general you get similar sorts of stories. Oshi no Ko is notable for being a “dark” idol anime exploring the darker side of show business. However, while looking like a standard-issue idol anime, Idolish7 is is also what you would call a “dark” idol anime as it explores the inner politics of the industry and the unhappy stories of those that work in it.
However, while Oshi no Ko focuses on the murder mystery and the main character’s revenge while also showing off the deep dark flaws in the entertainment industry, Idolish7 actually tells darker stories that have more of a positive overall message. Idolish7 may have darker stories to tell, but they are often more personal stories. In the end, it is still an idol anime and it focuses on the characters being driven to “make it” in the industry despite everything they have to go through.
Wake Up, Girls
The newly formed idol group Wake Up, Girls has had some initial success in making their debut, but they have a difficult road ahead that grows more perilous by the day.
While initially unsure of their manager Matsuda’s lack of experience and fearing the potential for less scrupulous individuals to take advantage of their idol group, things get even more serious when the president of their management company disappears with most of the company’s funds. Now the replacement producer seems to be dead-set on getting the girls into revealing swimsuits to market their music.
With the stress of events already leading to tension in the group, things seem like they may reach a breaking point when malicious gossip starts to spread online about their lead idols’ past membership with a rival idol group.
Neither Oshi no Ko nor Wake Up, Girls are your standard idol anime where the girls may have problems in the industry but cutely struggle through them. Instead, what you get are anime that shine a light on the struggles that people in the entertainment industry face on the brutal climb to the top that we, idol enjoyers, don’t see.
Both series showcase management issues, inter-group issues, and hateful backlash from fans on the internet. However, the key difference is that Wake Up, Girls is still an idol anime. They are struggling to the top, it is just that they showcase the difficulties of reaching that a little more realistically. Oshi no Ko is a series that drew many people in with its other plot points outside of the idol struggles, but if you want more of the “dark side” of the entertainment industry behind the camera, Wake Up, Girls is a good option, though perhaps lacking a bit of finesse in the storytelling.
If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die
After receiving a flyer from idol Maina Ichii and seeing her perform live at a concert, Eripiyo dove hardcore into being a ‘wota’ for this shy rising idol star.
With her pink jumpsuit and endless passion for Maina, Eripiyo is soon recognized as Maina’s most dedicated fan and she does everything to support her despite Maina’s seemingly cold attitude towards her. It is her dream that, with enough support, Maina can perform at the world-famous Budokan arena.
Unlike Oshi no Ko that is from the perspective of the idols and the actors in show business, If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die is more from a fan’s perspective.
While If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die is a comedy anime, it also pokes at the realities that idols face from their fans. It takes a rather light tone about it, but the problematic nature of it is right there for you to see.
Zombieland Saga
For Sakura Minamoto, she started her day off normally, right up until she skipped outside and got hit by a speeding truck.
She died, of course, but 10 years later, she wakes up as… a zombie.
However, her story is just beginning as a man wants her and several other undead girls from throughout Japan’s history to become a regional idol group to save Saga from becoming an obscure prefecture.
While they do so in different ways, both Oshi no Ko and Zombieland Saga subvert the long-standing genre of idol anime by daring to… not be another anime about idols cutely struggling to be stars. In a very similar way, they also shine a bit of a light on how idols are treated like tools and products by those that manage them.
The big, almost crucial difference is that Zombieland Saga is a comedy anime (about zombified idols). It is a pretty good comedy anime, but decidedly different from the more serious tone that Oshi no Ko has.
For Fans of Murder Mysteries
Erased
Recently, the detached, struggling manga artist Satoru Fujinuma finds himself going back in time to just minutes before tragedy strikes around him.
He has saved many lives with this power of “Revival,” but when he is wrongly accused of murdering someone close to him, Fujinuma finds himself sent back to his childhood. As he discovers, the recent death in his life is somehow connected the kidnap-murder of three children in the area that is about to happen.
This time, he may be able to use his power to save more than just one life, easing his past regrets in the process.
While each series has its different “hook,” both Erased and Oshi no Ko are murder mysteries. You have characters that experience a death, determine that it may have a connection to a certain person, and aim to figure out who that person is. However, while Oshi no Ko features a young character growing up but still having the mature mind of his previous self, Erased is about an adult man being sent back in time in the form of his younger self, but also still retaining his mature mind.
This means that the detectives trying to solve this murder mystery are mature in the head, but young enough that the killers don’t see them as a threat.
While Erased and Oshi no Ko, when examined in the finer details like that, actually have a lot in common, the biggest thing they have in common is how good they are at engaging you. They make you really invested in the mystery by making you so invested in the characters.
Monster
Dr. Kenzou Tenma has the perfect life as one of the world’s most renowned brain surgeons. However, one night he is presented with a doctor’s most painful choice – to save an injured child or the mayor, both mortally wounded.
Against his colleague’s advice, he saves the kid. However, when a series of crimes start happening around him, all evidence points to the child he saved.
It feels weird recommending Monster, anime’s most acclaimed thriller, as an anime recommendation for a show about idols. That said, while Monster enjoys waxing philosophical quite a bit more, both series are about a doctor trying to catch someone who manipulates people into committing murders.
Monster is definitely not for people who can’t stomach older anime, but while in vastly different settings, both Oshi no Ko and Monster have a similar way of creating interesting, flawed characters and crafting the story so that you really just want to see what happens next.
Odd Taxi
Blunt walrus Hiroshi Odokawa drives a taxi for a living, which has caused him to get to know his various eccentric customers.
One day, his simple life is turned upside down when a missing person case is tracked by the police back to him.
Now a person of interest to both cops and yakuza, he becomes increasingly entangled in this complicated case.
Don’t be put off by the animal people, Odd Taxi, like Oshi no Ko, also revolves around the murder of an idol. However, instead of the story being told by someone related to the idol like Oshi no Ko, or even the police, the story is told through some random taxi driver that ends up caught in the middle of the intrigue.
While being about idol-based murder mysteries is about the only plot-based thing these two shows have in common, they also share a certain high quality when it comes to creating characters that audiences find interesting. You watch to unravel the mystery, more so in Oshi no Ko, but you also keep watching because you are intrigued or entertained by the characters and want to see how everything ties together.
For Fans of Entertainment Industry Drama
Skip Beat
Although extremely bright, Kyouko Mogami’s naivety shines brighter as she toils endlessly to support her childhood friend and rising pop star, Shou Fuwa.
However, when she learns that all her hard work is like free servitude to her friend, she decides to get back at him by joining the ruthless world of entertainment herself.
While for different reasons, both Oshi no Ko and Skip Beat are about people navigating the showbiz industry in order to get some revenge.
However, the differences are in the details. Both series follow main characters that start from zero, but enter show business to either gather information or to just show up a guy that spurned them. Yet, while Oshi no Ko is focused on its darker murder mystery, Skip Beat is distinctly more of a shoujo affair. This means it is a romance anime as well as a drama. As it is also an older shoujo anime, the drama is sometimes a little ham-fisted.
Opera Girl
After being forced out of her idol group due to a stalker fostering her discomfort with men, Ai Narata seeks to use her talents at the prestigious Kouka School of Musical and Theatrical Arts. This school has gained renown for producing the best actresses, and Ai fits their criteria even if her demeanor alienates her from her classmates.
Upon entering school, Ai meets the tall and eccentric Sasara Watanabe who causes friction of her own with her classmates. Together, these girls find that they will need more than just talent to succeed at the school and earn their prestige.
Opera Girl isn’t about idols or actors in the industry. In fact, the main character was an idol who was involved in some controversy and now is taking a step back from the industry. While not the focus of either show, both Opera Girl and Oshi no Ko give a good glance of what idols think of their fans and how they struggle with it.
While the school in Oshi no Ko isn’t really a focus, both series take place in high schools that are training those who want to be entertainers. Opera Girl builds its whole plot around those students who are trying to become top performers at that school.
Opera Girl is a lot more positive in its storytelling and has quite a bit of yuri-baiting, but it does also explore some of the darker and dramatic sides of those who want to thrive in the entertainment industry.
Ya Boy Kongming
As a general in China’s Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang Kongming had endured countless battles that shaped him into an excellent strategist. However, on his deathbed, his only wish is to be reborn in a more peaceful world.
This results in him being reborn as his younger self in modern day Shibuya, Tokyo.
After being dragged around by partiers, Kongming becomes taken with the songs of a struggling singer who ends up sheltering him. He decides to use his tactical genius to make her into a top star!
Both Oshi no Ko and Ya Boy Kongming provide a more intimate look inside the modern entertainment industry. It is just that Oshi no Ko is more idols and acting while Ya Boy Kongming strictly sticks to indie music.
While Oshi no Ko adapts a darker view of things and features that whole murder mystery element, Ya Boy Kongming doesn’t exactly sugarcoat the process that musicians have to go through. It does, however, make it quite fun to watch with its campy Chinese warlord main character and also fun to listen to with its dope EDM beats.
Perfect Blue
After two years with the J-Pop idol group CHAM!, Mima Kirigoe decides to leaves the group in order to pursue an acting career. While she hopes her fans will continue to support her, she receives mixed responses.
After her departure, Mima tries to shed her idol image by taking a role on a crime drama. As her acting career grows more taxing, Mima grows uneasy with an obsessed fan unwilling to accept that she is no longer a “pure and innocent” idol and who has started to stalk her. Furthermore, a new website has launched that impersonates her life in vivid detail, and CHAM! seems to have started thriving without her. Each disturbing new development begins to push Mima closer to the edge as she becomes increasingly unhinged.
Traditionally, I don’t include movies in recommendations for series, but sometimes they really merit a mention. Perfect Blue is a movie, and if you were quite into the dark view of the entertainment industry that Oshi no Ko introduced, well worth watching.
Perfect Blue is also a stark shining light on the dark realities of girls in the entertainment industry and idols. While it is also dark like Oshi no Ko can be, it is definitely more of a mindfuck sort of darkness.
Do you have more anime recommendations like Oshi no Ko? Let fans know in the comments section below.
