Rin Hoshizora
| Rin Hoshizora | |
|---|---|
| |
| Kanji | 星空凛 |
| Romaji | Hoshizora Rin |
| Debut | Season 1 Episode 1 |
| Statistics | |
| Gender | Female |
| Birthday | November 1st |
| Year | 1st |
| Height | 155cm |
| Blood Type | A |
| Three Sizes | B 75, W 59, H 80 |
| Other | |
| Zodiac Sign | Scorpio |
| Favorite Food | Ramen |
| Disliked Food | Fish |
| Charm Point | Her cute and shapely butt |
| Portrayals | |
| Seiyuu Kanji | 飯田里穂 |
| Seiyuu Romaji | Iida Riho |
| English Dub | Faye Mata |
Rin Hoshizora is a main character in Love Live!. She was a first-year student at Otonokizaka High School until she graduated at the end of Love Live! The School Idol Movie. She is a member of lily white, a sub-unit under µ's. Her image color is yellow, though she is sometimes represented with turquoise.
Background
A member of the school idol group "μ's," formed with the goal of preventing the closure and merger of Otonokizaka.
In every medium, she is depicted as the childhood friend and best friend of Hanayo Koizumi.
Like Kotori Minami, she has her own official emoticon: ＞ω＜/. It’s pronounced "Tension agaru nya~" ("I'm getting pumped!"). There’s even an instrumental track on the anime’s soundtrack album with this emoticon as its title.
Fans commonly call her "Rin-chan" or "Ringabe" (from the lyrics of her solo song "Koi no Signal Rin rin rin!"), but because she often shakes maracas in ending themes and some PVs, she’s also nicknamed Maracas-neki. (マラカスネキ)
Initially, her image color was turquoise, but it was later changed to yellow. This can be confirmed by the color of the "RIN" part of the unit logo on the CD "Love Live! μ's Public Relations Department ~NicoRinPana~," which changes between Vol.2 and Vol.3.
The reason for the change is that turquoise was originally chosen by the staff for visibility in reference materials, but during live events, penlights in turquoise were hard to distinguish from Eli Ayase’s light blue and Hanayo Koizumi’s green.
In fact, the chemical light sold at the 1st live was turquoise, but from the 3rd Anniversary live onward, it was changed to yellow.
The call-and-response at lives was also updated mid-project due to this: "When you think of Rin-chan, what color is it?" "YELLOW!!!" 「凛ちゃんと言えば〜？」「イエローだよオオオオ！！！」
Her favorite food is ramen, and just like Hanayo’s love for rice, she is a huge ramen fan. According to SID, she goes out to eat ramen with Hanayo quite frequently. (When she first got a UR in SIF, her pre-idolized card art showed her happily eating ramen, and after idolizing, she’s still with ramen in a Chinese outfit. Based on her lines, she even became an image girl for an instant ramen company.)
Incidentally, among the many μ's members who are relatively good at cooking, she is the only one clearly revealed to be bad at it. Apparently, no one has ever eaten her cooking without getting a stomachache. As a result, her specialty dish is cup ramen (instant noodles), which is a bit sad.
However, in the main story of SIF, after receiving proper instruction from other members, her cooking skills improved, so perhaps she just never had a good teacher before.
Personality
Rin loves cats. She loves cats so much that she often adds "～nya" to the end of her sentences because of their influence.
However,
- She dislikes fish, which is a typical favorite food of cats.
- She has a keen sense of smell.
- If a stranger or someone she doesn't know well tries to take her friend (Hanayo) away, she gets defensive, but once she warms up to someone, she becomes very friendly. (For example: In episode 4 of the first anime season, "Why is Nishikino-san joining in on Rin and Kayo-chin's conversation!?" → After the three join μ's, "Maki-chan, Maki-chan, Maki-chaaaan!")
- On cold days, instead of curling up under a kotatsu like a cat, she’s the type to run outside and play. She’s very outdoorsy.
- She tends to fall asleep if she sits in a dark place.
- Her birthday (November 1st) is "wan (1) wan (1) wan (1)"—the Japanese onomatopoeia for a dog's bark.
- For the Love Live! collaboration cup noodles sold in stores, the catchphrase was "Ramen needs garlic chives/onions!" (Both are lethal to cats if eaten, and the same goes for dogs.)
So, her actual personality, traits, and preferences are far from those of a cat—in fact, she’s more like a dog. Even the cast members have pointed this out.
During a public event broadcast on Nico Nico Douga Live, her voice actress, Riho Iida, created the phrase "nyan nyan nyan♪" to compete with Nico Yazawa’s "Nico Nico Nii," inspired by how Rin sometimes ends her sentences with "～nya."
Later, this phrase became an official joke, with Rin saying it in SIF when a live show is successful.
Clubs and Hobbies
She is a sporty girl skilled in hurdles and soccer. Her hobbies include all kinds of sports (especially track and field), and her special skill is basketball shooting.
Appearance
Songs
General election results and positions
| Rank | Song | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Bokura no LIVE Kimi to no LIFE (僕らのLIVE 君とのLIFE) | ||
| 4 | Snow halation | |
| 6 | Natsuiro Egao de 1,2,Jump! (夏色えがおで1,2,Jump!) | |
| 8 | Mogyutto "love" de Sekkinchuu! (もぎゅっと"love"で接近中!) | |
| 8 | Wonderful Rush | |
| 4 | Music S.T.A.R.T!! |
Chronology
Dengeki G's Magazine
In the written media by Sakurako Kimino, Rin was different from the current anime version.
Her family consists of her parents and two older sisters, making her the youngest of three daughters.
Her strengths are her energetic personality, athleticism, and high potential for the future.
Her charm point is her perky butt.
Initially, she was a crybaby who often cried, but she was also overflowing with energy. Rather than simply being a crybaby, you could say she had a very expressive personality. Currently, the "crybaby" trait has shifted to her childhood friend Hanayo.
In the drama CDs, she has a mischievous, comedy-duo-like relationship with Nozomi Tojo, sometimes engaging in interactions that could be seen as yuri-like.
Before the anime aired (around 2012), illustrations of her in idol costumes showed her with orange hair, while everyday school life illustrations depicted her with slightly lighter brown hair. (From 2013 onward, her hair color was unified as orange.)
Manga
Rin was not only close friends with Hanayo, but also with Honoka, Eli, Kotori, and Umi, who all graduated from the same elementary and middle schools. Before entering high school, she looked forward to attending Otonokizaka with them and disliked students from UTX who made fun of Otonokizaka.
When Honoka started the school idol activities, Rin immediately joined as a member and performed together with her in their first live show.
At first, she called her upperclassmen "-senpai," but after joining the Idol Club, she began addressing them as "-chan."
Anime/SID
Rin encouraged Hanayo’s dream of becoming an idol and joined μ's together with her.
Her "crybaby" trait is mostly gone (though she still complains when things are unfair), and she’s known for her mischievous side, often scaring Hanayo with pranks since they were young.
She can be quite blunt, too. For example, when first seeing Nico’s "Nico Nico Nii" routine, while the others stayed silent, Rin honestly remarked, "Isn’t that kind of embarrassing, nya?" She also teased Honoka for being able to get excited about the same things every day, saying, "I envy people who can be moved by the same thing every day, nya."
Because she was teased for her androgynous looks as a child, she feels self-conscious about wearing skirts and girly clothes, believing they don’t suit her. However, she secretly admires cute, feminine outfits, and this is highlighted in several episodes.
In Season 2, Episode 5 of the anime, Rin is suggested as center because her build is similar to Honoka’s. However, she initially refuses because the center costume is a wedding dress, and the other five members wear tuxedos. Despite her longing to be called cute and wear girly clothes, her complex holds her back. But when a dress tailored to her size is prepared and Hanayo encourages her (just as Rin once encouraged Hanayo), she overcomes her complex and takes center stage.
Rin debuts as the center in the new song Love wing bell performing in a frilly wedding dress and fully overcoming her insecurities. After this, her usual practice outfit changes from cargo pants to a cute mini-skirt and knee-high socks, reflecting her newfound confidence in her femininity.
She is the only member to change her practice outfit twice in the series, and from Season 2 onward, she wears her hair in a side-up style during practice, possibly influenced by Kotori, who is known for her fashion sense.
Rin’s athleticism is top-notch. She can do backflips and cartwheels on wet concrete, and A-RISE even praises her agility as among the best of all school idols. She also has a keen sense of smell, which she jokes is "like a dog’s."
Academically, however, she struggles and relies on Maki and Hanayo to help her avoid failing grades. Though she’s athletic, she initially lacks flexibility, but overcomes this through Eli’s intense coaching.
She rarely plays games, but her physical ability allows her to score high in dance games.
In her interactions with Nozomi, there’s a memorable scene in Season 2, Episode 4, where Nozomi can’t fit between parked cars, but Rin easily slips through, leading to a humorous moment where Rin complains, "This isn’t fair, nya!"
Rin is often depicted as part of the baka trio with Honoka and Nico.
Her expressions are drawn to be even more cat-like, and in the "Korekara no Someday" PV, she plays the Cheshire Cat.
In SID, it’s revealed that Rin and Hanayo have known each other since kindergarten and attended Otonokizaka Elementary together (unlike the anime, which doesn’t specify the school).
Like in the anime, there are stories about her longing to wear cute clothes, and it’s also revealed she has a cat allergy.
In the sequel "Love Live! Sunshine!!", Hanamaru Kunikida is shown admiring Rin’s stage outfits in a magazine, inspiring her to join Aqours. Ruby tells Hanamaru, "Rin-chan always thought she wasn’t suited to being a school idol either," encouraging Hanamaru to join as well.
Just as Rin and Maki once pushed Hanayo to join μ's, and Hanayo and Maki later encouraged Rin, Rin’s story inspires others to pursue their dreams.
Rin is the only μ's member to be so prominently featured in the "Sunshine!!" story, highlighting her special status in the franchise.
In the manga, like Hanayo, she is depicted as a junior high school classmate and an original member of μ's.
Within the group, she is commonly called "Rin-chan" by the members, while Umi and Maki call her "Rin." She is especially close to Hanayo and Maki, and often interacts with Honoka due to their similar personalities.
All Stars
In SIFAS, Rin appears as both an admired figure and a friend to the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club.
She is proud of her athleticism and can easily keep up with the intense training led by Umi and Kanan. However, in a long-distance running contest, she gets so caught up in the fun of racing with Ai Miyashita that she overexerts herself and loses. This experience leads to a close friendship with Ai.
Rin is also an inspiration to Hanamaru and has appeared in Hanamaru’s activities.
In an event episode, when her favorite Chinese restaurant faces a staffing crisis due to many employees being absent, Rin gathers five helpers and successfully fills in as a substitute staff member