The ranks of Love Live!’s Nijigasaki’s School Idol Club‘s (Nijigaku for short) continue to grow as a new member joins the group of idols. Shioriko Mifune, played by Koizumi Moeka, will be the official tenth member of the cast. Shioriko is the first idol in the Love Live! franchise to join after the initial cast was announced and will be a part of the recently announced Nijigaku third album. It was also confirmed that Moeka will be performing as Shiriko during Nijigaku’s second live performance scheduled for later this September.
The third Nijigaku album, titled Just Believe!!!, will feature solo songs from the original nine members and will also include Shioriko’s title song Ketsui no Hikari. The titular song Just Believe!!! will be the final song of the album and will feature vocals by all ten Nijigaku idols. The album will be released on September 2nd, 2020. A preview of all the songs on the album is embedded below.
Shioriko’s story is played out in the Love Live! School Idol Festival ALL STARS mobile game. Some spoilers ahead! A harsh academic who places priority on achieving success, Shioriko challenges Setsuna Yuki for the position of student council president. She claims that she will disband the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club if she wins, due to her ideals clashing with Setsuna’s more laid-back approach to leadership. Shioriko does end up winning the position but in the process understands the passion and effort that goes into being a school idol and this newfound respect leads her to become the tenth member of the Nijigasaki School Idol Club.
During a live stream with the Nijigaku voice cast celebrating Shirioko officially joining the group, it was revealed by Moeka that Shioriko’s addition had been planned since the start of auditions. This means the producers had wanted a cast of ten idols since Nijigaku’s conception, a departure from the original Love Live! series and its predecessor Love Live! Sunshine!!’s cast of nine girls. One of the criticisms Sunshine!! receive was its over-reliance on anchoring its lore and format to the original series, so changing up the formula makes sense. The upcoming Love Live! Superstar!! anime will feature a starting cast of only five idols.
Although plot details for the Nijigaku anime have yet to be released, it can be safely assumed that a subplot involving Shioriko and the student council race will feature in the show. It seems that despite the length of time the Love Live! franchise has been going, the producers still have many more plans and surprises for fans in store.
