I’m quite impressed with the MikuNoPolis concert. At the moment I’m trying to remember what the set list was like compared to the two other ones (39sGiving Day & Live in Tokyo). The opener was the same as the 39 show, but it quickly escalated into showing off new costumes, songs and dance moves. I have to say that it truly felt like SEGA was trying to 1up the 5pb production, as Miku and company got to show off new threads. And goddamn that mini-skirt yukata plus thigh-high combo from Miku and Luka. My heart nearly exploded from such a beautiful sight. I have to commend whoever worked on the new animation and models. They were superb eye candy. I want to say they made the animation more lively as well thanks to 5pb upping the ante there. Miku and Rin’s eyes in the 39 concert were rather glass-like and unmoving, which may be a bit of a stretch to say. I do prefer the 39 concert at this point due to having access to the BluRay of it, which means the audio was cleaner and mixed properly afterwards. But in terms of presentation, Live In Tokyo had the Vocaloid girls (and Len) moving about with more emotive expressions and attitude. If SEGA can just add in the attitude that Miku had in the previous concert, MikuNoPolis would have been an absolute winner.

I can’t ignore the music either; they really did a great job with the set list. Sure, it might have been a very safe structure with the middle lull, but it’s also a necessary thing. Can’t always have the audience pumped forever, and you also have to give the ears a rest. I can’t really remember what else that was on my mind while watching, other than enjoying the music. [and the outfits. hnng.] I was able to simply listen and absorb the experience since I don’t particularly have strong favorites. No one should really be complaining about the music unless you have irrational reasons for loving one and deriding another. I did enjoy the Meldown song a lot. The strings section really added an extra dimension that gave more drive during the breakdown.

All in all, it was worth the 18USD I paid to see the “HD” stream. I mention it in quotes, but in reality, it was good for being a live steam. Lucky enough I was able to head to Ariolander’s house to watch it on a much more capable internet connection than my own. This might be worth mentioning, but it really was more enjoyable to at least watch the concert with someone else. Live streams are quite nice: All that is required is one high bandwidth connection, someone with a viewing ticket, and as many friends you can pack into the area.

You can bet your arse our next podcast will probably be AnimeExpo stories from Koda and more impressions on the Miku Concert. If this ends up false, you are allowed to send me one angry email. Two if you’re really angry. I will also attempt to reimburse your lost arse. No promises though. Also, who knew all I had to do was scroll down to see the stream? Talk about being blinded by moon runes. And apologies for any inaccuracies. I know vaguely that two different groups/entities were responsible for the difference in production between the concerts — just don’t know who did which (at the time of this post). Hopefully I’m correct.

Hachi-P’s Matryoshka would have been an interesting song to hear live. Maybe next time.

-maserbeam