A massive recent study reveals that Japanese school kids admire Oshi no Ko's Ai Hoshino more than their actual fathers.
Via PR Times, the Benesse Corporation in Japan released the results of its large annual survey in December 2023. The survey was conducted between Nov. 10-26, targeting third to sixth-graders. 12,850 girls and 4,728 boys were surveyed, forming a total of 18,802 participants. They were asked a range of questions regarding their lives post-COVID, including about their hobbies, favorite words, ambitions, news topics and notably, who they most admired. The survey revealed that Oshi no Ko's Ai Hoshino ranked third on the list, just below "Mother" and "Friends." Fathers ranked eighth, while the Frieren: Beyond Journey's End titular character ranked joint 10th with Japanese Minecraft YouTubers Colorful Peach. Spy x Family's Anya finished third in the 2022 edition of this same question.
Top 10 Ranking of Figures Japanese Kids Most Admire in 2023:
The survey reveals that the reasons for Ai's high ranking were because of her singing and dancing ability, cuteness, positivity, idol talent and compassion for others. Shohei Ohtani, who recently signed the most lucrative contract in sports history, ranked sixth on the list. Ohtani is also a huge manga fan. Similarly to Google's 2023 most searched keywords, Yoasobi's "Idol" was the 7th most popular word among Japanese schoolchildren.
Meanwhile, animator/manga artist/illustrator ranked third on the list of children's future ambitions. The recent shocking report into how the Bleach anime director agreed that AI could replace animators highlighted how industry professionals are calling for more anime boot camps, targeted at kids interested in getting involved. Interestingly, while "animator" ranked second for girls, it didn't make the top 10 for boys. Notably, outside of anime, kids wanted parents to extend the amount of time they could play games, for parents to be kinder and to quit smoking, and to stop comparing them with others.
In many senses, 2023 was Oshi no Ko's year. The franchise ranked on several lists, such as MyAnimeList's Top-Ranked Titles of 2023, MyAnimeList's Top-Ranked 2023 Anime Characters, the Kadokawa's Global E-Book Store's List of Top-Selling Manga and Light Novels of 2023 even CBR News Picks: The 10 Best Anime of 2023. The anime will campaign for another successful term later this year, as revealed in the recent Oshi no Ko Season 2 trailer.
Fans interested in what's so admirable about Ai Hoshino can check her out on HIDIVE, which streams the first season of Oshi no Ko. The anime there is described: "Dr. Goro is reborn as the son of the young starlet Ai Hoshino after her delusional stalker murders him. Now, he wants to help his new mother rise to the top, but what can a child do about the dark underbelly of the entertainment industry?"
Source: Shinkenzemi Elementary School Course survey via PR Times
