#like how did someone try lure me in with oh theres another black woman that also gets ignored

[brainwashedsmogbreathingprincess]

Finding out about shows through their fandoms is always cool cause you'll go into it like "wow I'm really excited for this gay couple" and while sometimes they are or have that vibe usually I discover that to make that ship work their ignoring the hot POC girlfriend that is cannon.

[dreamss-of-boston]

Rise - ch1

Sonya Romanova of the Underground is brought to the surface on the condition that she join and serve the Survey Corps. As she comes to grips with what the surface world is actually like compared to her dreamy fantasies, she finds herself becoming more and more enamored with the stoic Captain Levi.

---

hello i suck at summaries like everybody else in the world but this is gonna be a pretty slow burn,, i haven't written fic in a while and i really wanna try and explore the world of the underground and the corps throughout this fic. if theres too much exposition i understand and im sorry and i promise things will pick up lmfao. if y'all want smut lmk cuz im down to write it but i gotta know if other ppl are interested in that kind of thing. ok sweet thanks for reading love you bye

-the start-

link on AO3! https://archiveofourown.org/works/16998978/chapters/39961167

“Your name is Romanova—don’t ever forget that.” Maria stopped, and coughed out the drag she had just taken from her cigarette.

Sonya grated the clothes against the washboard, focusing only on the bubbles sloshing in the water.

“Yes, mother.”

“I don’t know who the hell your father was, but who gives a damn? He never did a thing for you.” Maria took another drag. She coughed. “When did smoking become so tiresome? Sonya, darling, get me something to drink.”

Sonya knew that getting something to drink did not mean water or tea, but any assortment of alcohol stashed within the house behind her. She dropped the clothes into the soapy bucket, dried her hands on her apron, and turned to venture inside the kitchen.

Brothels had kitchens—and bathrooms, and a backyard, and balconies, and of course bedrooms. Today, Sonya was seventeen, and her mother couldn’t hold onto her any longer.

“Don’t look so stressed, sweetie.” One of the girls, Herschel, rubbed a soothing hand on Sonya’s slender back. Herschel was voluptuous to say the least: beautiful black hair cascading in curls down her back, soft, thin lips which held a deep, sensual voice within. Suffice it to say, she was very good at her job. Sonya, on the other hand, was quite small—smaller than normal seventeen-year-old girls. Unfortunately, she was gorgeous. Her eyes a golden green, chestnut brown and curly hair, and lips and cheeks so rosy it was hard to believe she’d never seen sunlight. The girls had already been cooing and teasing about how she was soon to become a number one item on the menu. Yes, Genie’s Palace was the best in the Underground—sometimes people from the surface would even venture down there to get a taste of the deprived and sensual ladies of the brothel.

“We’ll give you one of our regulars first—he’s real gentle.” Herschel was folding napkins: a necessary staple for hygiene in every room. Sonya looked down at her silk night-gown her mother had suggested she wear in order to lure in as many customers as possible. She crossed her arms.

“I’m cold.” She said—Herschel laughed.

“You’ll heat up soon enough. The first time don’t hurt as much as they say, honest!” Herschel gave Sonya’s arm a gentle squeeze. “And they usually finish up quick anyways.”

Sonya didn’t say anything—she just poured her mother a glass of vodka and hurried out of the kitchen.

She dropped the glass off at the small side-table her mother sat next to.

“Mother, I’m going to go for a walk. Is that alright?” Sonya asked quietly.

“Oh, alright. Just don’t take too long—you need to wash up properly before you get your first one.” Maria took a sip, and seemed somewhat relieved from the bitter drink.

Sonya drew her lips into a tight line, and grabbed her black coat from her chair. She pulled it on as she exited onto the lamp-lit street, feeling a little more like herself as she left the brothel behind and had something covering her shoulders.

Banners and tables lined the street; it was a strange sight, to say the least. She furrowed her eyebrows, looking closely at the insignias of the banners: a white and a blue wing, crossed over each other guarding a shield. This was foreign to Sonya—she’d never seen actual Survey Corps members in the Underground. It was almost always MPs, or the occasional Garrison soldier who could dare to afford a girl from Genie’s.

“Ah, Sonya!” A familiar voice caught Sonya’s attention, and she turned with dismay to find one of Herschel’s regulars approaching her with a signature swagger. He was called Kurt, a high-ranking officer of the MPs, and a disillusioned asshole. He actually believed what he paid Herschel to tell him, and as a result, had never been able to sleep with a woman for free. “I thought I recognized you. What are you doing out here? I thought today was the first day you started.” He looked her up and down, very obviously. “I knew you were worth more than just a cocktail waitress.”

“What are all these banners for?” Sonya nodded to the Survey Corps members, standing behind tables with clipboards and interacting with the people of the Underground.

“Oh, the Survey Corps just lost a couple hundred of their own recently on one of their foolish expeditions.” He rolled his eyes. “Now they’re trying to lure these poor suckers in for a chance to live up top.”

“What? Seriously?” Sonya tensed up.

“I know—ridiculous, really, who would ever want to join the Survey Corps?”

“No, I mean—you can live up there if you join?”

“Oh, darling.” Kurt smiled sympathetically. “You wouldn’t want to live up top—it’s just more of the same.”

“But there’s sunlight. And fresh air.” She paused. “I want to know what the rain smells like.”

Sonya had been staring at the booth for a while—there stood behind it a tall, stoic man speaking quietly with a woman with dark hair and glasses, and a shorter man with black hair. The woman with glasses seemed to notice Sonya, and she turned to her with a smile. Sonya, taken off guard by her blatant kindness, smiled shyly back.

Before she knew it, the woman had begun to make her way towards Sonya and Kurt just as he was attempting to whisk her off her feet by suggesting they go somewhere a bit more private so he could wish her a proper happy birthday.

“Pardon the interruption, Kurt!” The woman said brightly. “I know you’re down here a lot, so I’m sure this local won’t mind!”

“Wh-where did you hear that?” Kurt seemed very flustered, and Sonya had to hide a laugh.

“Oh, around!” The woman maintained her smile, and turned to focus on Sonya. “Hello. My name is Captain Hange Zoe—I’m one of the officers part of the Survey Corps.” She extended her hand to shake.

“Oh—hello.” Sonya shook her hand, amused by Captain Zoe’s remark to Kurt. “I’m Sonya Romanova.”

“Good to meet you!” Captain Zoe gestured to the table behind her, rife with clipboards and other soldiers of the Corps. “We’re recruiting people to become soldiers in the Survey Corps. Our mission is to venture into the outside world, beyond the walls, and attempt to understand why we are enclosed within these walls, what the titans are exactly, and how we can break our way free.” She stood with her hands on her hips, proud of herself. “Interested?”

“Well—” Sonya paused. “How far have you gotten?”

“Huh?”

“How many titans have you killed? Are we any closer to finding out the truth?”

Captain Zoe pondered the question, studying Sonya for a moment. “We’ve gotten a little closer—every time, we’ve made some kind of progress.” She nodded. “Asking questions like that, though—that is the true mark of someone who would make an excellent Survey Corps soldier.”

“And I could live up there?” Sonya asked eagerly—Kurt groaned in annoyance.

“Yes, of course!” Captain Zoe grabbed a clipboard off of the table. She practically shoved the pen into Sonya’s hands. She eagerly began to sign her name on one of the numbered slots, when a voice from the other side of the table gave her pause.

“You can only live up there if you make it past training.” It was the short, dark-haired man. He was almost glaring at Sonya—she was taken aback. “We won’t keep you if you’re useless.”

Sonya glanced at Kurt—a potential customer if she stayed where she was. She looked back at the clipboard, and pointedly signed her name. She looked back at the dark-haired man.

“Then I won’t be useless.”

[-]

“I won't be useless.”

That was what Sonya had vowed the day she signed up for the corps five years ago.

And today, standing at salute in front of Commander Erwin, she knew at her core that she had made the right decision. Her heart swelled with pride as she stood among her fellow soldiers, listening to the impassioned speech Erwin was delivering.

“Soldiers.” He called, gazing down on the crowd with pride. The flickering torches surrounding the soldiers and the stage cast a soft, almost theatrical effect that entranced Sonya and vaguely reminded her of the Underground.

The Underground. Her previous hell-- right after she had signed up, Sonya fled from her home without even going back to pack anything. She had asked Hange Zoe-- or maybe begged her-- if she could take refuge with her for the time being, before she was brought up to the surface to join the corps. Hange hesitated at first, but Sonya explained her situation, rife with embarrassment, and then Hange understood. She even let Sonya stay with her in the little hotel provided for soldiers stationed in the Underground. Unfortunately for her, that hotel was rife with MPs who were frequent customers of Genie's Palace. For the three days Sonya was there, they would sneer and jeer at her, offering her money to spend the night with them, and a few even touched her when she would walk past in the dimly lit hallways.

But that was behind her-- she had escaped, clawed her way through training, and somehow she was standing here.

She had just barely made it into the top ten-- if she was a normal recruit, she would be able to join the other nine soldiers in the interior, but even if she wasn't already destined to join the Corps, she would have died before joining the MPs.

Sonya glanced at Captain Levi-- he stood next to Erwin, looking rather bored and pained to be there. Now that Erwin was Commander, he had allowed Levi to form his own squad of handpicked elite soldiers. She wanted desperately to become part of that squad-- if only to prove to herself that she could, but also to prove to Captain Levi. He was the one who had cautioned her not to be useless all those years ago. And now, she had made it into the top ten, and left the Underground far behind.

Sonya had heard that in three days, the Commander would be leading her generation of Cadets on their first expedition. She knew that she should have been terrified of the prospect of meeting Titans face to face, but a part of her was indescribably excited. Sonya had loved every second of being on the surface, of feeling the sunlight and the moonlight, of tasting fresh air and hearing birds outside her window every morning. While her fellow recruits despised waking up early, Sonya was grateful that there was a sun to designate time. In the Underground, there was one clock which everyone simply had to trust-- and even then, nobody really cared what time it was. Only she and two other people from the Underground had made it past training-- the others who had signed up were too malnourished to build any muscle or stamina, and so were sent back to the depths. Sonya Romanova, Peter Wagner, and Anna Weber were the only ones standing among the recruits born on the surface.

As Commander Erwin pontificated, Sonya’s mind wandered, entertaining the thoughts of killing titans with her new friends, staying up late and talking about life with them in the cramped living quarters of HQ… she even thought of when she might-- in her wildest dreams-- be invited to join Squad Levi. She smiled dreamily at him, and when Commander Erwin finished his speech, those who did not wish to join the Survey Corps left, leaving only Sonya and about a hundred more soldiers standing at attention.

“Welcome to the Survey Corps.” Commander Erwin smiled, and Sonya and her compatriots cheered.

[-]

Two days came and went in a flash-- mostly, the new recruits were told to do chores which the veterans were too lazy to do, involving cleaning the stables, changing bed linens, mopping the floors and such. Whenever Captain Levi deigned to speak to the new recruits, he would make bitter remarks about how their cleaning was subpar, and if he was in an especially bad mood, he would sentence them to even harsher cleaning duties.

One such day, Sonya was subject to said punishments.

“Your cleaning is atrocious, Romanova.” Levi scoffed at her as she was cleaning the windows lining one of the expansive hallways of HQ.

“Apologies, sir.” Sonya said dutifully, although in her opinion her cleaning was exceptional.

“Honestly, if a soldier can't clean a window properly…” He muttered, and turned to leave.

Against Sonya's better judgment-- perhaps it was exhaustion making her particularly feisty-- she made a smart-ass remark.

“I must not be using the proper cleaning solution, sir.” She stood at salute. “Want me to spit on it?”

That had landed her a full days work cleaning the stables-- alone. Sonya had to admit, though, it was a little worth it to see the look of absolute disdain he had when she spoke up.

Being above ground, Sonya had found a new sense of confidence. Underground, she was used to being ogled at by slimy men in dimly lit rooms, but above ground, people were generally nicer, and she got compliments quite often, which caused her self esteem to sky-rocket.

Granted, those compliments were usually geared solely towards her appearance rather than her actual performance in training, but she took what she could get.

Over the course of her five years on the surface, she had grown much closer to Peter and Anna. Peter was quite a tall, handsome man with sharp features and spiky red hair. His family owned and operated one of the few taverns in the Underground, so he had come from what Sonya considered the upper middle class. He was the type of person to tell stories of his daily life as if they were comedic performances-- sometimes people were entertained, but the tired soldiers usually got annoyed by Peter’s seemingly constant energy.

Anna, on the other hand, was quite stoic, and shared very few words with anyone who wasn’t Peter or Sonya. Anna had come from the streets-- her parents had died before she really knew them, and by the time she was six years old, her aunt had abandoned her in a drunken haze, and Anna never saw her again. Sonya had thought that Anna would never make it past training, but she persevered and was now standing about in the stables while Sonya raked away at the hay.

“You’re so stupid.” Anna remarked.

“I’m stupid a lot-- be more specific?” Sonya grinned.

“What you said to Captain Levi: ‘should I spit on it?’ Honestly, what did you think was going to happen?”

“I thought maybe he’d get down on one knee and say, ‘Oh, Sonya! You’re so funny and strong! Join my squad!’” Sonya even added the theatrical gesture of getting down on one knee in front of Anna. That earned a shy smile from the black-haired girl.

“You’ve been spending too much time with Peter.” She said. “I think he likes you, by the way.”

Sonya rolled her eyes. “Peter’s probably the most annoying person I’ve ever met.”

“He told me he wants to join Levi’s squad, too.”

“What?” Sonya threw her rake down in disgust. “That bastard’s just trying to copy me!”

“Maybe he’s trying to get your attention… or he’s trying to protect you!” Anna clasped her hand over her heart. “How romantic! It makes sense-- Levi’s Squad seem to always be put in the most dangerous positions.”

“Well, given my recent stunt today, I think my chances of getting in are pretty slim.” Sonya admitted. “I don’t think the Captain likes me very much-- I always smile and say good morning to him and all that, but he never even gives me the time of day except to make me do more chores.”

Anna shrugged. “Captain Levi’s just like that.”

“Maybe.” Sonya tossed the last bale of hay onto the compost heap, and sat down on a bench with a sigh. “Are you nervous about tomorrow?”

Anna nodded. Whenever Anna was nervous, she hardly spoke about what was truly on her mind. Sonya tended to talk too much-- they were a perfect fit.

“Me, too. I’m just hoping…”

“We’ll make it back alive?” Anna said with a wry smile.

Sonya let out a breathy laugh. “Yeah.”

The two girls sat in silence for a moment, allowing the sounds of the world to take over their conversation: the wind rustled the trees around the perimeter of HQ, wooden carts puttering over cobblestoned streets in the city outside-- Sonya leaned her head back with a smile.

“I’m never gonna get tired of life up here.”

Anna smiled back. That was the main thing they could relate to-- how awful their lives were down there. Anna especially spent every minute that she could outdoors-- she had even taken up woodworking, and had whittled a few little figurines as of late in her free time.

“Hey.” Anna said-- Sonya looked over to her. “If things get bad out there… I’ve got your back.”

Sonya nodded solemnly. “I’ve got your back, too.”

[-]

“Beautiful day to kill some titans!”

Peter Wagner adjusted the saddle on his horse, and glanced around with a smile to see if anyone would notice his remark.

“Shut up, Peter.” Sonya mounted her horse, patting his neck gently. Another thing she loved about being on the surface was the abundance of non-rabid animals-- she was assigned a horse at the beginning of her training, and this guy had stuck with her through thick and thin. She had named him Chuck.

“What, don’t tell me you’re scared, Romanova?” Peter grinned, mounting his own horse in turn.

“Of course I’m scared-- anyone who isn’t is stupid.”

Peter scoffed. “Anyone who’s scared probably didn’t train enough.”

“Hey, are you finished bickering over there?” Anna called from her section in the formation-- the Corps were currently arranging themselves in their planned positions they would fall into once the gate opened. Sonya, Anna, and Peter had all been placed in the same section-- near the back, but not too far towards the outer area that dealt with all or most of the titans.

Sonya and Peter trotted over to join Anna, and Sonya flashed Anna a reassuring smile. She was incredibly tense on her horse, gripping the reins like her life depended on it.

“All troops, move out!” Commander Erwin called from the very front of the formation, and the gate was lifted, and off they went.

[queen-of-hearts92]

Revue Starlight Theory and Goddess Symbolism: The Star is a Lie.

Normally I’d put my theorizing in my review/blog posts for this series, but I really feel the need to talk about this now in a separate post.

You see, theres something off about these auditions. They take place in an underground stage, the girls get mysterious phone calls, and the girls can’t tell anyone about these auditions outside of their fellow Stage Girls or else. It feels very fishy. I’ve had that feeling since episode one and it’s only increased each passing episode. Hikari’s behavior only makes me think this more. So here we go.

Theory: The auditions, aren’t auditions for getting into the Starlight troupe. Not really, no. This class and particular set of girls have been chosen for a ritual. If the auditions go as planned, then all of them are doomed. Especially the one who wins Top Star. This ritual is to power the Heavenly Tiara, which is a gift from two goddess that has long since been corrupted, with radiance. The Top Star will be drained and trapped until every last bit of their radiance is gone and the rest will either be killed or pretty much hollowed out. Breaking the system involves uniting againist the broken system and building something better together.

You might be wondering how I could even get to this conclusion. It’s just a silly over dramatic theater girl show right? I could indeed be looking into it too much but, the symbolism is SO in your face and everywhere it doesn’t seem like it was done willy nilly. Let’s break it down, I’ll show you how I got there.

>Hikari’s reactions and behavior

Hikari’s behavior in the story towards Karen so far is odd, especially when it comes to her joining the auditions. It could be that she doesn't want to fight/compete with Karen therefore she rather that Karen is kept out but if that were the case wouldn't losing be a good thing? To discourage Karen from fighting anymore? That doesn’t make any sense with her behavior, Hikari has been acting like she’s afraid of something. I’m getting a very Homura vibe from her, she knows more than she lets on and she’s determined to keep Karen away from the truth. In episode 1 she looks horrified that Karen entered the stage and was crying afterwards, in episode 2 Hikari tried to verbally push Karen away, and now in episode 3 she decided to keep Karen away physically by locking her up. When Karen escapes she frantically chases after her and when Karen goes down to the stage Hikari grabs a crowbar and starts beating the elevator door down to get in and stop the auditions. But she’s too late and the audition is over and Karen loses. 

Near the end of the episode, right before she slaps Karen, it’s a little hard to see at first due to the rain but Hikari is crying. This isn’t a normal reaction to auditions that supposedly are just for getting into a troupe, no these are acts of desperation. Hikari is scared of something in the auditions, and she doesn’t want Karen to find out what it is nor be exposed to whatever it is. How she knows these things isn’t known yet though.

>Karen was lured in, she always was meant to be there.

I think Karen herself was lured into joining the auditions, like think about it. If there are multiple duels going on at once like episode 2 and 3 implies, then it’s awfully convenient that Karen was dropped into Hikari and Junna’s fight out of any other ones going on at the moment. Remember, the secret elevator only works when it’s time for a Stage Girl to audition. We also see in episode 3 that while Karen used the elevator to get down just fine, Hikari couldn’t. She resorts to trying to break the door down instead. In episode 1 Karen was not only able to get the elevator to go but Giraffe didn’t seemed surprised that she dropped in. He later wonders why Karen wasn’t chosen beforehand but he quickly comes to the answer of she would not have joined unless Hikari was involved.

If whoever is running this wanted to lure Karen in to join, then it would be wise to drop her into a audition duel involving her childhood friend. So when Hikari seems like she’s in danger, Karen steps up and joins the audition and stays in it to stay close to Hikari and to fulfill her dream. This set up would be a smart thing to do for someone who has a lot of potential but doesn’t have the drive to trample others. Instead she’s baited in and she took it hook, line, and sinker.

>The tiara is evil

The Heavenly Tiara in the show is stated it will go to the person who is Top Star. The tiara and the stage it’s in is very eerie and ominous, you can see it shining like a beacon in the underground. Even creepier, the light from the tiara can be seen all over the place above ground, like it’s following the girls. Like it’s watching them. I think what this tiara wants, or whoever owns or controls the tiara, is radiance. I’m thinking it needs to be powered by a resource only young aspiring theater girls can provide, radiance would be all over the place there. 

This audition isn’t for getting into a troupe or the lead role in the play, it’s a test. To discover who gives off the most radiance or shine. Whoever wins will become Top Star and either be absorbed into or be drained by the tiara. The rest of the contenders will also be killed or disposed of in some way, can’t let anyone else know right?

Now the term Top Star is a legit Takarazuka term. For those who don’t recall or don’t know in a Takarazuka troupe there’s always a Top Star, that woman plays all the main roles in the troupe’s plays/musicals for 2-4 years. Think of it being like a Prima Ballerina in a ballet troupe. Being a Top Star is any actress in this profession’s goal, it’s really hard and stressful to become one and you need to be in the industry for awhile before you are even considered to be chosen as one. After being Top Star the actress often retires for there is no more goal to reach for. You shine bright for a time and then go out very quickly, just like a real star in the sky.

So in the context of this show, what if the Top Star is more literal than we think. What makes me think Top Star should be taken more literally is due to the conversation between Giraffe and Junna in episode 2. Junna asks him if she becomes Top Star does that mean she’ll get a leading role. In real life yes but, Giraffe gives her no answer. That’s a little alarming. If the audition was supposed to be a regular one then why didn’t he say anything?

The tiara sits at the top of the tower and shines like a star, the girl who wins becomes or powers the tiara. When the tiara is close to using up the energy, another Top Star is needed to be found and the cycle starts again.

This would work as the industry criticism metaphor this show is going for, Top Stars are put on high and given all the lead roles. Then when their time is done they retire, all their energy and shine has used up and they fade away so to speak. I think the tiara, if we going mystical here, was a gift from two goddesses. It once was good but it became corrupted over time due to being fueled over and over again by helpless souls for too long.

In the very first title card in episode 1 the logo goes from pink to black and that might be symbolic of the radiance being drained out. The pink is the star’s color after all. 

Also I noticed Karen has become seemly more tired after each fight, and not just her. Yes singing and fighting takes out a lot of energy but something is odd, the girls seem fatigued like someone yanked the life outta them. Karen seemed out of it in episode 2 and in episode 3 she couldn’t even wake up fully until Mahiru drags her to all the way to school, that’s worse than in the previous episodes. Junna faints in episode 2 out of exhaustion and while I think it is partly cause she wasn’t caring for herself I wonder if it has to do with the auditions too, the pink glow of the tiara appears right next to her after all. Then in episode 3 Claudine missed all of her morning classes cause she was too exhausted to get up. This doesn’t seem normal, something is wrong here. That’s the impression I’m getting.    

>The goddess symbolism

In the Starlight play the story is about goddesses that were drawn into the glowing of heaven (and we don’t know much else about it’s story besides that). In this anime, two particular goddesses have a quite presence of sorts here. As in the symbols that are associated with them are everywhere and episode 3 is the one that made it super obvious that this was happening.

One is the greek/roman goddess Aphrodite/Venus. The biggest tip off is in Maya and Karen’s duel. Maya’s stage is covered in greek/roman architecture for starters, and also birds. Particularly swans, the swan are one of Aphrodite’s symbols. Doves are also on the stage and they are also one of Aphrodite’s symbols. Another symbol is the white myrtle flower, Maya has a white flower in her hair during the flashback. The statue(s) we’ve seen all around the school is Venus de Milo, Maya stands right next to in the similar pose increasing her connection with the goddess. Maya is the top dog, the highest ranked, therefore closer to the heavens and the goddesses. Her stage ends up influenced by it. One more thing with Maya, I don’t know if this one is on purpose but it’s funny how the one associated with Venus also shares the same hair style of Sailor Venus from Sailor Moon. It’s that something?

Aphrodite is also associated with mirrors, what did the previous audition duel have? Oh yeah, mirrors. I called them windows in my post but they are kinda mirrors too. There were also the reflective masks the dummies wore. I think Maya has more of her symbolism but I wanted to show that Aphrodite’s symbolism has appeared before. Plus the Venus de Milo not only has appeared  in every episode so far, but in several places on the campus. Venus/Aphrodite has always been here. She isn’t the only divine presence though.

When I looked up Heavenly Tiara to see if the name was associated with anything I found something. It’s called the Crown of Immortality. They are crowns(or tiaras or laurels) that are used in art and books to indicate the wearers immortality, one of the ways to represent that is with a crown of stars. The Sumerian goddess Inanna (also called Ishtar) is also associated with wearing a crown of stars.

Yes, Inanna is the other goddess that has her symbolism all over the place and she shares some things with Aphrodite/Venus. Both of them are associated with doves and of course love and passion. Inanna is also a goddess of the sky, war, and combat which goes rather well with a tournament arc style story. The connection to Inanna and Aphrodite/Venus is pretty intense, however Inanna is the dominant force here. The planet she’s associated with is Venus after all, and this association leads to a primary symbol of Inanna. It’s an eight pointed star called the Star of Ishtar/Inanna, also called the Star of Venus. Interesting in a show with a star motif would have all this right? 

The real kicker is we can see the star in the show, it’s in Karen’s gem on the hilt of her sword. I counted only seven points in the screenshot but the angle might have prevented me from seeing the eighth one and even if there isn’t eight points it looks very close to the Star of Inanna. And no, the circle in the center isn’t a shine glinting off the sword, I checked other screenshots and the circle is still there.

Additionally the stage is underground right? One of the stories Inanna is famous for is her going into the underworld to get her husband back. This hasn’t fully come into play as of now but the fact the stage is where it is makes me think it will at some point. The fact that both goddesses are love goddesses is also notable, you can even argue that Maya represents Aphrodite/Venus (all of her symbolism is on Maya) and Karen represents Inanna (going underground to save someone they love). Also I must mention, on the translated staff page there are two more characters listed that we haven’t seen yet. Or at least as far as I can tell. So maybe when we see them they’ll have something to do with all this.

Another primary symbol of Inanna is a lion. We haven’t seen any lions in the show as of now but. Well, let’s talk about the giraffe in the room.

>Giraffe’s role

So, there’s a giraffe in here. A talking giraffe, there has to be something up with him right? Hell Junna is even wondering that, she’s seen trying to find what Giraffe is in episode 3. Right now, my best guess is he is a Qilin or a Kirin in Japanese. To briefly say what a Qilin is, they are mythical animals that appears before wise and kind rulers, casts judgement on the wicked, and brings good fortune and protection. The idea of Qilin came from giraffes, a giraffe was brought to Japan and it was declared a divine animal. I don’t blame them, if I had never seen or heard of a giraffe before I’d be like “Holy crap this MUST be a mythical animal!” They tall and long. Anyways, about the lions I was speaking about earlier. There's a dance associated with Qilins in new years celebrations, it’s called the Lion Dance! Qilins also are often shown to have the tail of a lion so they do have a connection with them and therefore Inanna.

I don’t see how it could be anything else so assuming this is correct that raises the question of why is he here? Qilins are beings of fortune after all. Well I got two guesses, one he is here to protect whatever is in or controlling the tiara and therefore loyal to them. OR he is here to protect the girls. It’s possible he is keeping the girls from getting instantly drained or keeping whatever is in here in and not out. 

The scene I mentioned with him and Junna earlier, him not answering could mean he doesn’t want to answer. He doesn’t want to tell her whatever the awful truth is. So he is either a protector for the higher ups or for the Stage Girls but he doesn’t stop the auditions and just lets them happen anyways. That could symbolize those who see the problems in the theater system but chose not to do anything about them.

>Possible story

Ok now that I’ve laid out what lead me to think this is a ritual, here be what I think could be going on here. This is more speculative about the background of this universe, so note this is more guessing from the puzzle pieces I’ve collected over the past three episodes.

A 100 year old musical theater for girls houses a secret. Deep underground there is the Heavenly Tiara, it is said that if you are summoned for the mysterious auditions for this place you can become the Top Star. But, is that really such a good idea?

The Heavenly Tiara and the play Starlight were gifted from the divine, they were two goddesses of love and passion. It helped the school grow and become popular. The tiara shines for the troupe known as Starlight and they have become loved by many. But, the tiara wasn’t meant to last forever. The tiara is powered by radiance. A radiance only a girl with the true drive and passion for her craft can create. The tiara’s radiance started running out, and the higher ups wanted to keep it going. So a ritual was created to keep it alive and bringing good fortune. 

Every several years or so, a class of students are chosen to perform the play Starlight for their three years. On the second year the auditions begin, nine girls out of the class are chosen to join the auditions. The winner is crowned Top Star, she is commanded by the tiara to mentally break the remaining girls with the sheer force of her radiance and execute any they can’t break. After all, they either are in supporting roles or just stepping stones to a Top Star’s glory. They aren’t needed to be anything else anymore. The girls who live are indeed in the troupe but they’ve been hollowed out, never to shine again. The tiara then takes the winner’s radiance and their life and the radiance of the Top Star shines for several more years. Oh the explanation for what happened to the girls for the outside is simple, they simply graduated early and are now in the Starlight troupe. Don’t worry about it. As for who’d be the center? Well the tiara takes the form of whoever won recently and is the center. Every time, all the time. Shining on forever.

During the auditions, there is a judge. A Qilin who appears as a normal giraffe is that judge. He knows the truth but he thinks there’s nothing to do about it, all he can do is to at least be a fair judge and give the girls a chance. It’s better than the tiara just wiping them all out instantly. As for the goddesses, they may not be around but their powers and influences are everywhere. The tiara was from them in the first place after all. The one who is ranked number one is the closest to the goddess’s power so their symbols start showing up during their auditions. Other girls have their marks or influences from the goddesses too but the highest ranked have the most and are the most obvious.

All of these years, not a single Top Star has been able to fight off or resist the tiara’s influence once it is on their head. Not a single girl has made it out unscathed by the end. The entire stage echos with crushed dreams and cries of despair, hidden underneath the bright lights and the dazzling stage.

Side note: Following this telling then Hikari, somehow learning about this process, finds out Karen’s class was chosen. She doesn’t want Karen to fall to the terrible fate awaiting her if she auditioned. So, Hikari moves back to Japan and gets into the school. She keeps her distance from Karen as best she can, last thing she wants is Karen to get too close to her and be hurt. She joins the auditions thinking now she’s the 8th girl, there can’t be anymore so Karen is safe. But she was wrong, nine are chosen. Karen came to the audition anyways, because Hikari was there. She didn’t save Karen, she sealed her fate. Hikari has been desperately trying to stop Karen from going ever since.

Another side note: It’s possible the divine aren’t involved in this at all, this is just the vibe I’m getting since this anime is taking cues from deconstructive anime that has those elements like Princess Tutu, Utena, Penguindrum, Evangelion, and Madoka Magica.

>Am I right at all?

Now you could argue that all this symbolism is just there cause it looks nice but, it’s so specific to the two goddesses (and two that are so closely related to each other) that I don’t buy this was all put in just to look pretty. It either means these two are literally here in the show or there's something like them at play. Something or someone divine. Venus and Inanna could’ve at minimum left their influence on the school and the stage, that’s why there is statues of Venus everywhere for example. 

The metaphor that would work with all this is how the system pits girls against each other, the Top Star’s glory is short lived and draining so one can never shine again afterwards. Love and passion are more important than short lived glory. Performing should be fulfilling like it’s meant to be and there are those who just stand by and do nothing so you gotta do it yourself. Gather your friends and change everything! Break it all down and renew!

I could go on but I think this is good for now. We’ll find out if I’m right about any of this as the anime goes on. I hope I’m at least a little bit right cause this seems COOL. And messed up. Hope you enjoyed reading! Thanks!

Also if you haven’t seen this anime yet WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? WATCH IT WATCH IT! It’s only 3 episodes and they are easy to find subbed. Go for it, this could be turning out to be a masterpiece. ouo