Show By Rock!! is a series with a lot going on. Juggling half a dozen secondary sets of characters around central band Plasmagica, and it manages for the most part. An issue a lot of shows this crowded run into however is that individual events can often feel rushed, as the story tries to hit the beats it needs to while not sidelining any of the extensive cast. Show By Rock definitely runs into this at points, with the most noticeable example being Chuchu’s turn to the dark side in episode 11, which happens and is resolved in about 5 minutes. In any other series that probably wouldn’t work, but I think it actually adds to this one.

More than anything Show By Rock tends to coast by on the boundless enthusiasm of its characters. Everyone loves what they do and wants to keep doing it. Chuchu’s role as the slightly more serious member of Plasmagica often left her a little outside of this loop, but she’s not the only one. Every member of the band is an outsider in some way, Retoree’s social awkwardness leaves her unable to open up to her bandmates, Moa’s an alien spy and Cyan’s from another dimension, and none of that matters. When Moa comes clean about her origins nothing really changes, Cyan’s reveal is treated similarly, meanwhile Retoree is able to use music as a way of getting closer to and eventually befriending the others.

With all that in mind why should Chuchu be any different? She might be actually mind controlled by the villain but so what? they use a song she wrote to remind her how much the band means to her, the brainwashing wears off and that’s that. It’s not a big deal and everyone moves on. While they may be different Plasmagica, and all the other bands, are tied together by that shared love of what they do. So why let a little thing like evil mind control get in the way? Chuchu’s detour into villainy may have been brief but it still served a purpose, by not really being that big a deal it showed that she was just as much a part of the band as any of the others.

Now here’s some Shingancrimsonz being colossal dorks. Because it’s important.