My Stage

ALRIGHTY.

So, I was trying to calm down when I saw the digest video for Ensemble Stars! Extra Stage Judge of Knights.

Last April 16, I saw the news that Ensemble Stars will have another production, just as I suspected. I was only relying on the outcome of the first stage, and I still can't believe that Knights and Ra*bits were not complete, though Shino Hajime (played by Sakurai Keito) had a solo performance, whereas Knights members Izumi Sena (Takasaki Shouta) and Narukami Arashi (Kitamura Ryo) only performed in the last two song numbers.

What I'm saying is, they never got to perform ANY of their unit's songs namely Checkmate Knights, Voice of Sword, Silent Oath, and Fight for Judge. That fact alone made me think that there would probably have another stage, if not for Knights, then the unit is included at least.

April 16, the day after the event for Ensemble Stars game's second anniversary, came. And I was extremely happy almost screamed my lungs out if only it wasn't 2am when I found out about the news.

• The game's main story would have a full voice.
• There would be a Dream Live
• There would be a 3rd batch of unit songs; and most especially
• A new and 3rd stage was set to run in September

There were other announcements too, but I specifically focused on these four, and I was still disappointed by the delay in airing the anime version.

I was already hyper upon knowing the news, can you just imagine how crazy I went when they said that it would be a Knights-centered production? That very moment, I was screaming out loud and my Mom had to shout at me to prevent me from making any more fuss.

ALRIGHT. THE NEW ACTORS FOR THE CAST.





Last year, I saw this picture of Hashimoto Shouhei and Arisawa Shoutarou, making a V-sign with the poster of Ensemble Stars behind them. I still had no idea what the stage was that time. I thought it could be a production from an otome game or an anime I wasn't familiar with. I thought they were both part of the production, but I was oh-so wrong. I did my best to find the title of this stage production and when I found out about it, I was partly disappointed because the two were not part of the cast. But Yamamoto Ikkei and Takasaki Shouta were there, both of whom I have taken a liking to prior to that time. So, I gave it a shot, and was not totally disappointed by the production only that the songs were lip-sync.

Back in 2017, on April 11 to be precise--four days before the Ensemble Stars anniversary event, Kitamura Ryo posted this tweet, saying that he was working on a job with Hashimoto Shouhei and that it was still a secret, asking everyone to look forward to it.

I already had a hunch that time, even before they announced the new production. My friend and I started to think that if ever Ensemble Stars would have a new production, Shouhei would probably have a role in it. Five days later, my friend and I started to think of the possible roles that would fit Shouhei, and we were thinking of him as a member of Knights, specifically, Sakuma Ritsu. Well, he played Saitou Hajime in Hakuouki Musical, right? And Hajime's character has always been quiet, so I thought he could play Ritsu well.

Turns out that we won't see Saitou Hajime's character in Shouhei, but Haikyuu's Nishinoya Yuu. LOL. Since Shouhei is already used to playing the loud and mighty Noya, I don't think he'd have problems playing the always MIA and loud Tsukinaga Leo.

Now, if he's not gonna play Ritsu, then who will? Apparently, it is none other than Aramaki Yoshihiko.

I've only seen him thrice in stage as Kai Yuujirou (Prince of Tennis Musical season 2), Yamanbagiri Kunihiro (Touken Ranbu stage), and as Yatogami Kurou (K Project), but those characters were far from being the silent and always-sleepy Ritsu. So I guess he's one of the actors that I'll be observing. :)

And then there's Kitagawa Naoya. I honestly haven't seen him in any stage productions, and I haven't watched TeniMyu season three's Yamabuki match (him, playing Yamabuki captain's Minami Kentarou) so I'll also be keeping an eye on him haha!

AND NOW, THE SONGS.

Though I love all the songs of Knights, I don't think RnB like Checkmate Knights would fit the concert-showdown type of atmosphere the Ensemble Stars stage has. There was also Silent Oath, which I honestly believe is like a K-Pop song, and Tsuchida Reiou's (Suoh Tsukasa) voice is perfect for that kind of song. Voice of Sword has a catchy beat, and probably one of my favorites among all the Ensemble Stars songs. But, among those four, Fight for Judge was the only song I could think of that they could perform best. With that, I started to imagine them singing and dancing Fight for Judge since that song is meant to be performed in high spirits.

BUT, the staff announced that the plot for Judge of Knights will follow the in-game story event. I forgot the title, since that time, I haven't played that event yet. It was only a few months ago when I found out about revival events.

Anyway! I started to freak out when I thought that they might not perform Fight for Judge, as I was  thinking that they'd probably sing those songs included in the 3rd batch of unit songs, Article of Faith and Knights the Phantom Thief. Crush of Judgment is a given because...

But a few days ago, they released the digest. Actually I was too focused on the story that I didn't notice the background song, so when I listened closely, I started to scream. FIGHT FOR JUDGE WAS PLAYING IN THE BACKGROUND AND KNIGHTS WERE DANCING TO IT. It was like a dream come true, seeing my favorite unit complete and dancing in their princely uniform.
Those imaginations I had were all worth it and I can't wait to see them when the DVD is released. LOL.

I just hope I would have enough money by that time so I could buy the DVD. :D