Idol Project

Idol Project
Logo from the series
アイドルプロジェクト (Aidoru Purojekuto)
Genre	Parody
Original video animation
Directed by	Yasuchika Nagaoka
Studio	Studio OX
Released	1995
Episodes	4

Idol Project (アイドルプロジェクト, Aidoru Purojekuto^?) is a short, four-episode long OAV (Original Animated Version) series produced in 1995 by Studio OX. This anime follows a cute 14-year-old girl named Mimu Emilton, who dreams of becoming a singing idol, much like her own idol, Yuri. Yuri brought world peace through her music, and became the world's president. Mimu has a chance to audition in her hometown of Starland in front of Yuri, with the help of 6 "Excellent Idols" (Yuri's successors).

However, before Mimu has the chance to sing in front of Yuri and the Excellent Idols, they (minus Yuri) are kidnapped by aliens and taken to another universe. The group land on the Tropical Dimension's Bali Hawaii, where they are warmly welcomed. A competition is to begin in two hours to raise Bali Hawaii's sun, and idols from all over space arrive to take part. The owner, Mr Bananaan, desires for the Excellent Idols to win, since they are his most recent obsession. The competition includes several activities, such as the Swing Ski, Muddy Quiz Contest, and Water-Scooter Fight. After several comical events, Yuri mistakenly is named the only one able to help the sun rise again for the first time.

After the competition, Mimu must save up enough money to make it back to Starland, her hometown which is universes away.

The anime, also referred to as an OAV (Original Animated Version) was released in 1995 by Studio OX (known for Burn Up W, Ultra Maniac, and Wild Cardz). Although it was popular enough in Japan to be dubbed into various languages including English, it was not accepted with the same sort of popularity internationally. Most of the appeal in the series comes not from the storyline, or even characters, but the all-star cast of extremely famous voice actresses that starred as the main characters of the series. It was directed by Yasufumi Nagaoka and the character designer/animation director was Noritaka Suzuki.

Idol Project's appeal is hands-down in its upbeat music, performed by its all-star cast of voice actors.