About “Oshi no Ko” in a few words:

“Oshi no Ko” is a Japanese manga and anime series written by Aka Akasaka and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari. The story follows the lives of Aqua and Ruby, two twins who are the children of a famous Japanese idol. However, their lives are complicated by their past lives as the doctor who helped deliver them and one of his patients, respectively. The series explores their struggles in the entertainment industry and their quest for revenge against their father’s killer.

Meet the characters from Oshi no Ko

Ai Hoshino

Ai is this incandescent, larger-than-life idol who somehow feels both impossibly polished and heartbreakingly human at the same time. She smiles like she’s handing out sunshine but there’s always a secret in the wings (no, really, she’s full of tiny secrets, some cute, some heavy). Fierce protector? Yes. Playful stage animal? Also yes. She can be warm and maternal and then, in the next breath, shock you with a razor-sharp decision — like someone who knits and plans world domination on weekends.

Aquamarine Hoshino

Aqua is the weirdly calm, laser-focused one — thinks like a surgeon, moves like a shadow, and can be cruelly funny in a dry way (he pretends not to care about snacks but will demolish a cake in private). Obsessed with the truth and very stubborn, he’s simultaneously a brilliant planner and emotionally compromised in the most human way. He’s broody, yes, but also annoyingly competent at everything (annoying to everyone but mostly himself). You get the sense he keeps a notebook full of little grudges and brilliant ideas, sometimes both on the same page.

Ruby Hoshino

Ruby is sunshine with a little extra glitter and an insanely stubborn bedrock of determination — she wants to be an idol the kind that makes people cry happy tears, and she’ll thrash and rehearse until it happens. She’s sweet, a bit impulsive, and honestly more strategic than she lets on (don’t let the plushies fool you). She can switch from giggling to laser-focused in 0.2 seconds, and I love that unpredictable flip — also she has a weird habit of saving every single stray hairpin.

Kana Arima

Kana is the cold, brilliant child actress who treats acting like a sport and is terrifyingly good at it (and also enjoys bubble tea too much, which is a very human contradiction). She’s blunt, a tiny bit sarcastic, and secretly soft where you’d never expect her to be — she’s competitive but painfully loyal to people she trusts. There’s an intensity about her stare that makes directors both giddy and nervous. Sometimes she’s annoyingly precise (her head-tilt when critiquing a scene is iconic), other times she’s inexplicably goofy; the contrast is why she slaps on-screen chemistry like nobody’s business.

Akane Kurokawa

Akane gives off this sweet idol aura at first, all smiles and approachable vibes, but there’s an undercurrent of steel — she’s socially savvy, sharp, and not as simple as the promotional photos. She’s popular for a reason (talent + timing + an adorable wink), yet she can be quietly ruthless about protecting her image and those she cares about. Sometimes she’s playful, sometimes very serious; she collects tiny lucky charms (I might be projecting but picture a charm bracelet). She’s the sort of person who smiles at cameras and writes plans in invisible ink — soft on the surface, tactical underneath.

Mem-Cho

Mem-Cho is the deliciously chaotic online whisperer — part theater critic, part gossip poet, and entirely a mood who loves to stir the pot with a flair for dramatic punctuation. Anonymous, theatrical, and weirdly perceptive, they spill tea and then analyze the teacup like a private detective with a flair for comedy. They can be petty and profound in the same post (you’ll laugh, then squint, then take notes). Honestly, they’re like that friend who remembers gossip details and also writes haikus about them at 2 a.m. — a little unreliable and totally captivating.