Over the past few years, Super Expo and hololive fes (a hybrid conference and live music event) have established themselves as the premiere event not only for hololive but for all of VTubing. This year, “hololive 5th fes. Capture the moment” concluded an incredible 365 days that saw the launch of two new generations, a series of 3D debuts and other milestones, all culminating in a series of four giant concerts.
The big visual change, this eye is a new three-stage setup for live audiences. By having three stages (one at the front and two at the sides), it gives different sections of the crowd a better view of the action at different times. This doesn't matter much to people like me watching via the live stream, but I appreciate the effort on behalf of those attending in person.
In preparation for the 5th festival, I watched Blu-rays from previous years as well as videos of other concerts. While this year's event is truly bigger than ever, it also truly feels like the latest point in every VTuber's journey. Seeing the progress of your favorites is part of the idol experience, but what I find notable in this situation is how holive encourages fans to meet talent “where they are.” live in”. Improvement is relative to the self, not absolute, and can involve circuitous and unpredictable paths.
Because there are dozens of real talents involved, I will only write about a few. That means, even if I don't list your favorites, you may still find them that fit into one of the categories below.
Debuting on the Big Stage
For the 3rd generation of hololive Indonesia, this is their first hololive festival, marking an important milestone in their VTubing career.
Kobo Kanaeru showed off his versatile voice and endless energy. Vestia Zeta shows off her graceful dance moves but decides to go a cuter route than the hip-swinging routine of her 3D debut. Kaela Kovalskia took a simpler and lighter route to suit her “crushing gamer” personality. The diversity of their personalities was on full display, especially when performing the song “Save Our Hearts” by ID gen 3.
Make progress
Some talents, often by their own admission, are not the best singers or dancers. However, it was clear from their performance at the 5th festival that they have taken steps to improve.
Himemori Luna is famous for her non-existent stamina, once even having to sit down in the middle of a performance while everyone else continued. However, at the 5th festival, Luna looked like a new person, showing no signs of serious fatigue. On top of that, her song choice—“Kamippoi na”—is a far cry from the cute and bubbly tunes she usually favors. The contrast between her famous baby voice and her eerie sense of numbers was a pleasant surprise.
Amelia Watson was initially so bored with her singing that one of her YouTube stickers was a bleeding ear. But after many karaoke sessions and an original song, everything changed. At the 5th festival, she covered “Sugar Song and Bitter Step”(ending theme of Blood Blockade Battlefront), and became a full-blown idol for it, not only showing off better vocals but also including including dancing a more complicated routine than in previous concerts. Amelia's karaoke livestreams are some of her most popular because they make her feel like she's singing with a friend, and she maintains that feeling on the big stage even when she has developed.
Push the limits
Progress comes not only from those who are incompetent but also from those who are highly skilled and take things to the next level. For example, Inugami Korone went from a walking front flip two years ago to a reverse flip last year and now a completely unsupported side flip.
I've had many words for La+ Darknesss' mesmerizing performances and I think the 5th festival was her best performance to date. The song she chose was her first original song, “Aien Jihen,” and its inclusion held special importance. La+ first performed it during her 3D debut and that's when fans realized what a phenomenal dancer she is. However, she used a pre-recorded song due to the difficult choreography (which she came up with herself!). At Waku Waku Dark Nightmare (her Nissin-sponsored live solo performance), she tried to sing and dance at the same time, but the audience was all online. This time, La+ was there in front of a crowd of more than 11,000—and she killed it.
Additional choreographic adjustments made her look sharper, her voice remained mostly strong throughout, and her overall movement felt more complex and daring in the 4 fes. In his own words, La+ thinks the 5th festival “Aien Jihen” is stronger than Waku Waku Dark Nightmare and I tend to agree. I'm so happy to see my favorite hololive song performed so beautifully.
Takanashi Kiara is also a similar case. When Myth, the first generation three-dimensional English, appeared in official 3D for the first time at the 3rd fes 2022, Kiara made a big impression. There is no doubt that she is one of the best dancers in hololive, as she displays a grace and confidence that few can match. Then at the 4th festival the following year, Hakos Baelz's amazing debut performance actually made Kiara claim Bae is the best dancer in EN. Over time, other powerful dancers joined the hoolive and it felt like Kiara was becoming “powercrept,” so to speak.
Then Kiara took the stage at fes 5 and blew away all previous notions. While singing a brand new song, “Chimera,” she moved in a way I had never seen before. Most (all?) of her previous choreographies have been choreographed by a professional dancer named kianna, and Kiara’s “Chimera” looks closer than ever to matching that level of expertise. It really feels like Kiara is there to show the world that you can never write her off and she's willing to put in the time and effort to prove this point. As I watched, I wondered if Kiara would outshine the others this year.
Change the conversation
Then Hakos Baelz steps in and points out how meaningless the comparisons can be. By that, I don't mean to say that she is intrinsically or objectively better than Kiara or anyone else, but that she has decided to flip the script in a way that makes such discussions moot.
Since her first 3D appearance at the 4th festival, Bae has brought very high quality and energy to each performance. However, because she has always been excellent, the question is how can she surpass herself this time. Additionally, Bae herself also commented that her plan could lead to failure and fan speculation was inevitable. What dance feats will she perform this time?
To my (and apparently everyone else's) surprise, Bae went in a completely different direction. Breaking away from the high-octane routines she is famous for, Bae performs a slow and passionate interpretive dance to “Uta yo” (aka “Gales of Song”) from the movie Belle by Hosoda Mamoru. Looking at her, I could feel my emotions rising at her amazing choreography, the shock of witnessing something so unexpected, and the boldness of Bae's decision. Furthermore, her voice is haunting in a way we rarely hear from her.
The next day, when she performed again on the hololive x Honeyworks stage, Bae did something more typical for her, and the contrast between those performances made her sheer ability all the more impressive. more impressive. Bae then also said that 1) she had never danced interpretation before and 2) she only needed to be here for about 2 hours to fully learn a choreography. It all goes to show how ridiculous she really is.
Back in style
In some cases, certain shows are like reunions. Some hololive members took time away from YouTube and social media, and their circumstances meant that their presence at the 5th festival ultimately felt like a reunion with their fans. Surname.
Murasaki Shion has been on hiatus for the past few months, and this is her first public appearance since her leave. The roar of the crowd was like a loud “welcome back” and seemed to convey the idea that her supporters were by her side through thick and thin.
But while it was already known that Shion would be there, there was actually a talent whose performance was completely out of left field. Last year, Haachama was hospitalized not long after the 4th festival and she had to take an eight-month break from broadcasting. Because so much time had passed and there wasn't much time for her to practice after returning, Haachama was not scheduled to attend the 5th festival.
Then, without any previous fanfare, Haachama blinked his way onto the stage. While watching the broadcast, I could hear a slight delay as the general confusion in the crowd turned to pure excitement. Haachama sings “Idol,” the opening of Oshi no Ko—a song with a suitable content for an unpredictable girl who calls herself the “World's Strongest Idol.” At the end, she turned one of the lyrics into a scream of “I love you!” as if wanting to show my gratitude to everyone watching.
There's another reunion, though it's more of a story that goes in circles. One of the last songs of the event was “Last Frontier” performed by Hoshimachi Suisei and AZKi. Both are among the best singers in the entire company and sound naturally great, but the song also has a special meaning: It was originally written by AZKi for Suisei when Suisei was transitioning. from hololive's music label INNK to the main branch and AZKi is considering retirement. However, the two remained with the hololive, and Suisei even secretly rewrote some of the lyrics to shift from sending someone off to achieving new goals together. When Suisei read the letter to AZKi about their time together, AZKi couldn't hold back her tears.
Final thoughts
It's funny just seeing how big Hololive has grown. In those early blu-rays, it's clear that this whole project was a much more modest affair. Concerts just feature sizable (but not huge) crowds sitting in front of screens displaying their favorite VTubers and actively buying into the illusion presented. Now, everything is so smooth that it feels like another world. A bit of intimacy was lost in the process, but despite that one drawback, I think this change has been good for hololive and VTubing in general.
All of the different journeys detailed above, combined with a variety of performances, make for an emotional rollercoaster. There are even tons of great shows I haven't mentioned where the stories aren't as dramatic but are still great to watch unfold — even simple shows like “They Brought a Great show that audiences love.”
My only worry is that the 6th season in 2025 looks like there will be at least 10 new talents joining and I could see my free time (and my sleep schedule) slipping away.
The official VOD is available now until April 17.