Episode 71 - The Glittering Aquarius

The Glittering Aquarius (キラめきはアクエリアス) is the 71st episode of Aikatsu! TV Anime series and the 21st episode of it's "Second Season". The episode aired on February 27, 2014.

Synopsis
''The rumors about Futuring Girl's new Premium Costellation Dress is overflowing at Starlight Academy and Aoi was chosen to receive it. It's exciting news but Aoi isn't confident in whether she can perform a Constellation Appeal. Meanwhile, Tiara mentions something bothersome…''

Summary
Ichigo and Ran watch as Aoi gives a younger student some advice on her individuality. She thanks her and runs off and they comment on how often she's been giving advice since they became third years, and they are joined by Sakura, who mentions how she hasn't been wrong yet. Due to how kind she is about it, she has also gained a lot of underclassmen admirers.

Meanwhile, in Orihime's office, she has just received a call and has news to deliver for Aoi. After hanging up she remarks on how she will have to overcome a hard trial, going on to locate her and inform her that she is being asked to partake in a debut concert for Futuring Girl's Constellation Dress. Aoi is surprised to have been specifically asked as Orihime also mentions that this concert will be a test to see if she can pull off a Constellation Appeal. After telling her to do her best she leaves.

As she walks outside, Aoi thinks about how complicated this will be. Sometime back she had let Ichigo take the stage instead of herself, because she knew she could do it and realizes now that she needs to work harder. Especially since Orihime had originally placed her trust within her and she let her down after asking Ichigo to do it in her place. Suddenly, Aoi nearly runs into Tiara- who is now standing before her. They make conversation as Tiara comments on how pressured Aoi must be suddenly, causing her to ask Tiara for an honest opinion on herself as an Idol. She asks her not to hold back, and Tiara struggles for a moment to think of something; comparing Aoi to water. Before she can explain the meaning behind it, Naoto interrupts to remind her that she's late for her meeting and the siblings take off.

As the others train, Aoi sits alone while stretching. She thinks about what Tiara said and tries to determine what everyone else is like if she is water. When Ichigo takes a break, she asks her what she thinks about "water", and she answers that it is cool and delicious, but she actually never gave it much thought since it's used so frequently and she drinks it every day. Aoi is worried and brings up that it doesn't seem to be very noticeable, leaving Ichigo confused as the other girls watch and remark on how badly they feel for Aoi.

Later, Aoi makes her way back to the dorms and thinks about the time Mizuki said something during the Tristar Auditions. When deciding who would join Tristar, she wanted someone who could shine alone or in a group- causing Aoi to wonder if she is unable to shine on her own. She approaches the doors to find Ran waiting for her to give her a small Ebi-pon charm. She explains how it helped her whenever she had to do her first Constellation Appeal and she thinks it will help Aoi too. Aoi is a little concerned, since Ran cares so much for Ebi-pon, but she assures her it's fine, so she thanks her and promises to return it after seeing how worked up she actually is.

They head inside and Ran takes off after assuring Aoi that if she needs any advice she can come talk to her. She is then joined by Yurika, who gives her a bottle of the energy drink she does commercials for. Aoi thanks her, and Yurika is quick to claim that she didn't do it because she thought Aoi was looking down though. Then, she is grabbed by Otome and Sakura and they bring her back to Otome's place where they have ordered a bunch of sweet foods and wish for her to have them. She promises to eat later and returns to the dorms in a better mood. Which continues as Kaede appears with some fresh sushi for her.

Feeling better (and full of food) Aoi tiredly lays down on her bed as Ichigo joins her. She offers to help her out until the performance comes and while Aoi usually accepts it, she realizes that Ichigo is part of the problem. She needs to learn to shine by herself, and while she has managed to calm down she still needs to push herself to the extreme if she wants success. So she decides to go and train in the mountains.

She tells the girls of her plans, and while they are concerned, they wish her luck and see her off.

Up in the mountains Aoi continues to think about her weaknesses as she makes her way up. She needs to find a way to shine brightly; enough to block out everything else around her and recalls her failure to becoming Starlight Queen. She lost in the final round to Otome that prior year, and she realizes she was lacking the strong will to push herself forward to win it. She then thinks about how Ichigo is always willing to climb any cliff that comes her way without any hesitations- and because of that, the girl who comes on top will always be the ones who run head first into things.

Arriving to the very top Aoi happily remarks on having nobody else to rely on. She sets up her items and decides to do some camping- although the tent suddenly bounces away when a strong breeze blows it. She recaptures it and pegs it down to keep it still and decided to look for some food. However, she can only find some mushrooms- which may or may not be healthy for her. However, she did bring some rice, and with a water spick nearby she is sure she can make something edible- until it is shown not to work at all.

Later, Aoi is exhausted as she realizes she is down to half a bottle of water. She is also starving by now, and with everything needing water (including Otome's snacks, which absorb the water in ones mouth), she isn't willing to use it at all since she needs it to drink. As evening comes along she sits by the small fire she made and comments on how quiet the surrounding area is. She observes the sky and feelings lonely without Ichigo; who much to her shock is next to her all of the sudden.

Ichigo sits down with Aoi and explains her concerns for Aoi, who didn't grab her favorite pillow before taking off. So she grabbed it and some other items- like food, which she allows Aoi to have. She also shows the tea and water she brought with her, and Aoi gratefully accepts this while bringing up how Ichigo was easily capable of working by herself while in America. While this might be true, Ichigo reveals that it was because of the letter that Aoi gave her to keep her going. She never opened it, because while countless times things would get bad and she would want to, she would think about what Aoi could have wrote and it made her feel as though she was beside her. The letter was what supported her throughout that year, so she felt it would be a waste to open it. She also feels that now it has no expiration date and she can keep using it in times of need.

Later the girls set up their sleeping bags, and Ichigo assures Aoi that she can do this because when she is with Aoi- she feels nothing can stop her. While she tends to only think about herself, she knows that Aoi is always watching over everyone else, because she has been with her for a long time now. Aoi expresses concern, admitting to Ichigo that she thought her kindness had been a weakness. But knowing that someone appreciates her to that level has changed her mind now, and she notices the water has started to boil, causing her to realize what Tiara might have been referring to now. She decides not to explain though, and suggests she and Ichigo drink their tea.

On the day of the event Raichi and Noel are searching for Aoi. Raichi plans on doing a lot for the day- due to being her fan and all, and they run off when he suddenly picks up her idol scent.

Meanwhile, Aoi is over looking the cards she will be using as Tiara comes inside. She feels bad for interrupting and was hoping to continue her water discussion from the day before, until Aoi assures her that she was able to understand. Normally water may not stand out, but it's necessary in all sorts of situations. Tiara then reveals her concerns for Aoi by bringing up her discussion with Orihime the other day, and because Orihime felt that she has to have more faith in her abilities, she is also more faithful and believes Aoi can do this as well. With that she takes off.

Aoi runs to the changing chamber and reveals her brand new Premium Constellation Dress, the Crystal Aquarius Coord. On stage, she performs "Prism Spiral".

After the performance she heads backstage to find that she has earned a Constellation Mark. The others run back to congratulate her and Aoi realizes that while she may not be like Ichigo, she has nobody else to be like other then herself. She will be like water, and she will help others bloom as beautiful as they can by just being herself.

Character Appearances

 * Aoi Kiriya
 * Ichigo Hoshimiya
 * Ran Shibuki
 * Sakura Kitaōji


 * Orihime Mitsuishi
 * Tiara Yumesaki
 * Naoto Suzukawa


 * Otome Arisugawa
 * Yurika Tōdō
 * Kaede Ichinose


 * Raichi Hoshimiya
 * Noeru Otoshiro


 * Seira Otoshiro (Flashback)
 * Rei Kamishiro (Flashback/mentioned)

Trivia

 * Aoi recieves her third premium rare in this episode.
 * The Crystal Aquarius Coord makes it debut in this episode.
 * This is the first time the song Prism Spiral appears as a live song instead of a fashion show.
 * This episode showed that the Starlight Queen Cup had a second round, which took place after Ichigo and Mizuki left, in which Aoi was revealed to be the runner-up.
 * This is the first episode in the 2nd Season where no Dream Academy idols appeared in the present episode.
 * However, Seira appeared in one flashback scene.
 * The Aikatsu! Movie was announced for Aikatsu! Aphorism, in place of the usual aphorism.

Gallery
Main article: Episode 71 - The Glittering Aquarius/Image gallery