#emerald magic

Song

This is a song that's amazing for its execution rather than its essence. The melody itself is very simple and repetitive, but the vocals and instrumentals make it good.

This song is probably my favourite out of Sumire's songs, though it's also the least Sumire-like. It has less of a pop feel than her other songs. It's a fashion show song instead of a live song. It's got a complicated beat with realistic drum samples rather than a simplistic electronic beat. It doesn't really have any undertones of sweetness. Most of Sumire's songs have a vibe that's sort of like stylish, slightly retro, haunted club music (?) whereas this one feels more like 'nerd music' to me... reminds me more of video games, prog rock, D&D, that kind of vibe. It's hard to explain.

The one thing it does have in common with her other songs, though, that it's not quite theatrical enough for my tastes. I'm just saying, can you imagine if the chorus had dramatic orchestral chords, a pounding drum beat, the occasional church bells, and maybe a few timpani rolls to sound like thunder? That's not what they did, and it's fine that they didn't, but I just think it would be a lot more exciting if it was something like that. (But I guess Tarte Tatin already has those elements in a way, and they wanted to make this song different. Fair enough.) Despite the eerie vibe, it's a fairly chill song that doesn't really have those dramatic high and low points that usually happen in songs given to characters who are good at singing. I mean, it does have some build-up, but it could have more, and it could have a more dynamic melody. It almost feels like she's singing over a video game track. It feels like the instrumentals are the main focus, and the vocals came after.

Don't get me wrong, though – I do like the instrumentals. The thing that really tops it off is the eerie sound effects, particularly the creaky wooden-sounding noise that happens between the two halves of the chorus. It's not in-your-face, but it's so, so effective, and makes me feel disoriented when I hear it. The voice-like electronic noise in the intro, which gets more and more frequent as the song builds up, is also very effective at evoking chills, but I personally find it so annoying that I usually skip the intro.

Vocals

I sometimes feel disappointed that Sumire, a character who is exceptionally good at singing, is often given such simple songs to work with. But Sumire's talent is being able to sing a simple song in an outstanding way. This song would sound repetitive and flat if it was sung by certain characters, but Sumire/Mona manages to give it a lot of character. She puts a lot of strength into the low notes in the first verse to make them sound extra deep. In the second verse, her voice becomes soft, especially when contrasted against the first verse. And then the long note at the end of the song is so good... the way it sounds almost like a howl, and then fades out... it's just so good! I love that last note!

Lyrics

They're kind of different for Aikatsu lyrics. They're about a journey, and about bravery. I don't really have much to say, but they fit well with everything else.

Choreography

It's a very strange dance. I think I once read a wiki comment saying that the dance might look odd because it's referencing different characters from The Wizard of Oz. Even so, it does... not... fit the music. It seems to only match up with the rhythm every now and then, as if by coincidence. It's especially weird how her dancing becomes stiff and robotic during the part where her vocals become softer.

Visuals

Out of all the story stage designs, this one is easily the most faithful to the original fairy tale. The Wizard of Oz is probably considered one of the less dark and serious fairy tales out there, but this stage helps completely reimagine it as something cool and epic. It also has a very video game-y look to it, which I think fits well with the music.

The lighting in the first half is absolutely beautiful. It makes me wish Aikatsu had more performances set in dark forests so they could use this lighting again.

The camera shutter/eye closing effects in the game version are slightly bothersome, but also help create that eerie, slightly disorienting atmosphere that the song is going for... ESPECIALLY at the part with the creaking noise. I swear, the game's visual effect makes that noise twice as disorienting.

Good points: Good vocals, good use of sound effects Bad points: Main melody is very repetitive