The opening song for a movie musical needs to have a rainbow in it somewhere if that's the title for the thing.
The opening musical number had the girls of Aqours say goodbye to the seniors after they graduated.
The first bits of drama for the former Uranohoshi school members were finding themselves being placed at a branch facility way too small for them, You meeting a BOY who turned out to be her cousin who goes to the new school, and then trying to prove to the parents of the new school that their girls are serious about club activities. The Uranohoshi School Idol Club are the national champions, so that should be easy, right?
The girls hadn't practiced any of their choreography with just six people, so their performance was a total disaster. So, nothing at the new school changed and Aqours still have to figure out what to do as a new group without the seniors. They called in Leah and Sarah from Saint Snow for advice, but they have their own issues because Sarah graduated too.
Before anything can get discussed further, Mari's mother, in a scene with just a bit more flair than Mari's triumphant return to Uranohoshi High School, came to enlist the help of Aqours because she lost contact with her daughter and friends during their graduation trip. Tellingly, Kanan and Dia are only referred to as "Hug" and "Death Wa." Yohane enthusiastically agrees to hunt down Mari, Hug, and Death Wa in the supposedly ancestral home of O'Hara in Italy. Yeah, none of that made sense to me, especially since they were being paid in chocolate coins, or something.
The girls landed in Venice, did the usual tourist sightseeing, and then got back to the mission of tracking down Mari, Kanan, and Dia. Along the way, there were missing person posters of the three girls, with Kanan named as "Hug," and Dia identified as "Deathwa~!" Mari's mom never did learn their names... The three senior girls realized that Mari was just following the younger ones to track them down, and quickly made their escape.
Hug, Deathwa~, and Mari gave the other girls clues to look for them in Florence, the home of Johannes (Don Giovanni), which excited Yoshiko to no end. There, they learned why Mari was avoiding her mother — she didn't want to talk about an arranged marriage.
Unfortunately, Mari's mom was still able to track them down. They struck a bargain, however. If Aqours can show how important and worthwhile the School Idol project is, Mari won't have to go on the conventional life plan.
Seeing girls street performing gave us a hint about what the Aqours girls were going to do, but first, they needed to fill Hanamaru's belly. The meat and lasagna were ottima, zura!
Somehow, they quickly went to Rome and performed on the Spanish Steps, delighting the other tourists. Tsuki seems very amenable to whatever Aqours wants to do. There might be a story behind that. So, Mari's mom was satisfied and stopped bothering her daughter. The other girls flew back to Japan, ignoring Yoshiko's celebratory transition scenes like usual. They still need to figure out what to do get out of that little abandoned school house and what a new Aqours would look and sound like.
The girls who knew Yoshiko best didn't care about Yohane the Fallen Angel so much, but some girls who knew her in junior high and go to the new school are huge fans of her videos. Yohane's angelic heart isn't ready to meet her adoring public.
Saint Snow was another school idol group dealing hard with the transition to a new form as a senior member graduated. It's harder in Leah's case because the one leaving is her sister Sarah. Sarah and Aqours realized Leah needed some closure from missing out on the finals because she fell in the semifinals and didn't compete directly against Aqours. Since Aqours needed their own sense of farewell, they figured they should have their own version of the finals for the School Idol contest.
Saint Snow's hard rock vibe always had a more aggressive sensuality to their choreography than Aqours's fluffy air. There's just more hip shaking going on. I was ready to say Saint Snow would have won head to head with their performance, until I saw Aqours's final one. They're just better at singing and projecting their personalities. I also noticed how the seniors left their jackets on during the sunbreak shot to emphasize they wouldn't be making the change to the new Aqours. It was a nice goodbye performance.
Meanwhile, Aqours and their schoolmates are making a stage and planning a school idol performance to show off just how seriously their school takes the activities of their School Idol Club. Seriously, it's no accident Aqours became national champions. I have to believe Mari's Stewshine had something to do with it. A small something...
Tsuki showed up with many Numazu High School girls to help Aqours and the other Uranohoshi girls prove they're serious about club activities. Oh, Tsuki is the student council president, if you didn't know! Their help let Aqours revisit their old school and charge their emotions for one last show together.
I will never get tired of how Love Live Sunshine never showed Chika's father's face. Mari's mom showed up later to the concert, so the only set of parents we never saw belonged to Kanan. We also need an Love Live Mama Shine special episode. Chika's dad can wave his glow sticks.
The Aqours girls psyched themselves up in their new formation, with a heavy dose of spirit from their graduated members.
See? Mari's mama cares. Just not enough to learn Dia and Kanan's names, but she knows Hug and Death Wa will always be a part of Mari's family. The new Aqours danced and sang on stage, somehow carrying the spirit of Dia, Mari, and Kanan. All we need to know is that their concert worked and the Uranohoshi girls joined the Numazu campus properly.
Was this the end or the beginning for Aqours? We don't know, but the epilogue included different girls in a future time visiting the beach as an Idol Shrine, recalling that concert they gave on that day, and wanting to join the School Idol Club at Numazu. The next generation in the school idol project feels just about ready to make their animated debut.
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