is a Japanese television series that aired from April 2, 2017, to March 25, 2018, on TV Tokyo. The show is the first installment of the Girls × Heroine Series conceived by Takara Tomy and OLM, Inc. with the assistance of Shogakukan and EXPG Studio, aimed towards a female demographic between ages 2 to 6. The general director of the series is Takashi Miike, supported by a staff full of newcomer screenwriters and directors. The series stars Asaka Uchida, Suzuka Adachi, Yuzuha Oda, Rina Usukura, and Mio Nishiyama. The plot is centered on Japanese idol girl group Miracle² (pronounced "miracle miracle"), elementary and middle school girls who transform into Idol Warriors to retrieve the Sound Jewels, artifacts from the Music Kingdom, to stop the Demon King from taking over the world.
Auditions were held in December 2015, and the cast was announced at Ciao Summer Festival in August 2016. Filming took place from September 2016 to July 2017, combining elements of dance, song, and drama, with assistance from dance and vocal teachers at EXPG Studios and emphasis on cuteness and natural femininity. In addition, the show utilizes special effects for the transformation and battle scenes, which were later added after principal photography. The show also launched a brief singing career for the main cast, with Miracle² holding music activities in real life to promote the show.
Despite low television ratings, the show was a success for its primary demographic and was credited as the start of a "new genre" aimed towards elementary school girls, especially because of Miracle² music activities and the show's toy line. The series achieved a wide demographic appeal to girls, due to it being a live-action show centered on female interests, and with parents, who enjoyed the dancing and music. Two manga adaptations and a video game were released. Along with several dubs in Thailand, South Korea, and China, the show also received an Italian remake in 2018. Following the show's end in 2018, it was succeeded by Magical × Heroine Magimajo Pures!
Synopsis
The Music Kingdom, a separate harmonious world that guards music, contains note-shaped gems called Sound Jewels; the Sound Jewels together produce the "Song of Blessings", a powerful melody that purifies and soothes people's hearts. However, they are stolen by the Demon King, who corrupts them into Negative Jewels and covers the Music Kingdom in darkness. Through the Dokudoku-dan, the Demon King's henchmen, the Negative Jewels are used to turn humans into Negative Jewelers. The Negative Aura spread by the Negative Jewelers allows the Demon King to compose his "Song of Darkness" to conquer the human world. In order to recover the Sound Jewels, the goddess of the Music Kingdom sends the Poppun, Rockie, and Clanosuke to the human world to seek help.
In the human world, Kanon Ichinose and Fuka Tachibana audition to become part of a new idol group called Miracle² with Mai Kanzaki, which was also partially held to recruit Idol Warriors to help Mai recover the Sound Jewels. Miracle² is later joined by sisters Akari and Hikari Shiratori of the American girl group KariKari. Becoming Miracle Tunes, the girls fight to purify the Negative Jewels back into their original forms to stop the Demon King. As magic uses up Harmony Energy, Miracle² must harvest energy by performing as idols in their daily lives.
Cast and characters Miracle Tunes The main characters are in an idol group named Miracle² (pronounced "miracle miracle") who is signed to a fictional record label called Raspberry Music. They transform into Miracle Tunes using their Miracle Pods and Idol Jewels, a type of Sound Jewel given to them by a Rhythm. Each girl is given a Miracle Takt and using Special Jewels would allow them to change music genres with using their Miracle Pods to defeat their enemies. Originally consisting of Kanon Ichinose, Mai Kanzaki, and Fuka Tachibana, they are later joined by Akari and Hikari Shiratori, who transform with the Miracle Braces and fight with the Miracle Tambourines. Halfway throughout the series, the characters each recover a Crystal Jewel, which they can use to transform into Final Mode. During this time, Kanon's Miracle Takt changes into the Final Tune Takt. Asaka Uchida as , a Grade 6 student. She is a bright and cheerful girl who sometimes can be scatterbrained. Suzuka Adachi as , a second-year middle school student. She is the leader of Miracle² and a top idol. Her father is Seitaro Kanzaki, a conductor working overseas, while her mother was a pianist before her death. Yuzuha Oda as , a first-year middle school student. She is a dance prodigy who is serious about performing, causing her to disagree with Kanon sometimes. Her parents are doctors who travel abroad to dangerous parts of the world, while she lives with her grandparents. Rina Usukura as , a first-year middle school student. Born in the village of Amerimura, Akari and her sister Hikari lived in the United States where they debuted as KariKari before returning to Japan and joining Miracle². Akari is stubborn and unwilling to lose without a fight, but passionate about her friends. Mio Nishiyama as : Hikari is a first-year middle school student and Akari's sister, the two previously debuting as American pop duo KariKari before joining Miracle². Hikari is a perfectionist and pays close attention to her appearance except for when she relaxes at home.
Raspberry Music Mayumi Ono as , is Miracle²'s manager who knows the true identities of Miracle Tunes. She is later revealed to be a former idol and Idol Warrior. Sasuke Otsuru as , Miracle²'s make-up artist and stylist who is also openly gay. He is Yuzuhara's friend from high school where he was a delinquent. Akiko Hinagata as , the dorm supervisor of Miracle². Takumi as , Miracle²'s producer.
Music Kingdom as , the queen of the Music Kingdom who communicates with Miracle² through a mirror in the studio's make-up room. She is later revealed to be Mai's mother. Mari Hino as (voice), the Fairy Rhythm of pop music and Kanon's partner. She tries her best in everything and loves to eat and sleep. Makiko Hiraguchi as (voice), the Fairy Rhythm of rock music and Mai's partner. Rockie has a cool and cheeky personality, but he gets scared easily. Yuko Mori as (voice), the Fairy Rhythm of classical music and Fuka's partner. Clanosuke is a diligent fairy and a crybaby. Reika Yoshimoto as (voice), a Fairy Rhythm who is one of the Goddess' attendants and Sopra's older sister, later becoming Akari's partner. Alm is very confident and has a personality like a "queen." Chitose Morinaga as (voice), a Fairy Rhythm who is one of the Goddess' attendants and Alm's younger sister, later becoming Hikari's partner. Sopra is gentle and loves cleaning.
Dark World James Jirayu as , the ruler of the Dark World who devastated the Music Kingdom stole the Sound Jewels needed to play the "Song of Blessings", the only thing that can purify him. His ultimate goal is to cover the world in darkness once he finishes composing the "Song of Darkness". Baruto Kaito as and , twin demons created by the Demon King to replace the Dokudoku-dan. After Miracle Tunes acquire Final Mode, Uno and Sano are purified into a tortoise and a hare.
Dokudoku-dan The are three Deluxe Negative Jewelers who serve under the Demon King as his commanders, using the Negative Jewels to turn people into that spread a Negative Aura for the Demon King's use in composing the "Song of Darkness". as , a Deluxe Negative Jeweler who is the Dokudoku-dan's acting leader. as , is a Deluxe Negative Jeweler and the Dodukdoku-dan's sole female member. Satoshi Tomiura as , a Deluxe Negative Jeweler and the Dokudoku-dan's eccentric genius.
Recurring characters Daijiro Kawaoka as , Kanon's homeroom teacher at Angie Private Academy. Naoki Sasahara as , Kanon's classmate and sits next to her. Andrew Night as , Kanon's half-Japanese classmate who lived abroad before returning Japan. He is a big fan of Akari. Kohaku Suda as , Kanon's classmate who is one of the top students in class. Tsubasa Nakagawa as , a popular child actor.
Production Idol × Warrior Miracle Tunes! was a collaborative project between Takara Tomy, OLM, Inc. and Shogakukan, the publishers of the manga magazines Ciao and Pucchigumi. The production also included a toy line produced by Takara Tomy, featuring the magical items, weapons, and accessories depicted in the show. The show was primarily aimed towards a female audience between the ages of 2 and 6. The show was advertised with the catchphrase,
The story's concept was originally developed by under the penname Miyabi Nakamura. Takashi Miike signed on as a general director for the series. Additional staff members included Yoshitaka Yamaguchi, Takeshi Yokoi, Kenichiro Nishiumi, and Ryusuke Kurahashi as episode directors, with Hisako Fujihira, Kana Matsui, and Mao Aoki as the main writers for the show. The dances were choreographed by EXPG Studio. Miike noted that the staff working on the show were young and relatively new to the industry, having little experience in writing dramas and working with newcomer actors. Despite the difference in experience between Miike and the main cast, Miike's attitude towards the project was consistent with his other work, with OLM producer Fumio Inoue stating that they worked without dismissing it as "simply a kids' show." Reiko Sasaki, the project manager at Shogakukan, stated that after integrating dancing and singing, she came up with scenarios on how to integrate the toys into the show.
Principal photography for Idol × Warrior Miracle Tunes! began in September 2016 and ended in July 2017. Transformation and live finish scenes were filmed at a studio in front of a green screen, where CG effects were later applied. Nishiumi mentioned that scenes were shot with discussion from Miike, who wanted the show to be portrayed in a "cute" manner. The staff focused on the elements of "dance", "song", and "drama", with dance and singing supported by teachers while filming focused on the "natural femininity" from young girls. Miike also stated that the staff worked hard at bringing out the energy from the cast. Episode 38 was filmed in the headquarters of Takara Tomy, with the live performance filmed first and the episode plot afterwards.
Casting Auditions were held by Ciao and Pucchigumi in December 2015 with the aid of LDH. Five girls were selected out of 11 finalists. The winners were revealed in August 2016 at Ciao Summer Festival, consisting of core cast members Asaka Uchida, Suzuka Adachi, and Yuzuha Oda. The first press conference for the show, depicting the cast in costume, took place on January 17, 2017. Rina Usukura and Mio Nishiyama were cast at the same time as Uchida, Adachi, and Oda, but were officially announced to the public during a press conference in June 2017.
To prepare for their roles, all five main cast members took intensive singing, dancing, and acting lessons in the summer of 2016. Ito was in charge of their dance lessons. Nishiumi assisted the cast with acting lessons, which began in June 2016. Prior to joining production, most of the main cast had dance experience, including Oda, who had been part of the idol group Amorecarina and Adachi, who had been part of EXPG Studio's female U-14 trainee team Kizzy and Bunnies. Usukura was a 5th generation member of the female U-12 dance and model agency Roni Girls. Nishiyama was the winner of Roni Girls' Catalogue Model Award in 2013 and the Smile Award at the Ciao Girl Audition in 2015. The only cast member without any dance experience was Uchida, who noted that training was "difficult." Oda choreographed her solo dance scenes with the assistance of her dance teacher.
Broadcast