i don't think i'll be able to, the story is 35 chapters long, it's way too long to summarize without a massive amount of time dedicated to it if you're keen on details like i am ^^;

ohh i see what you mean now!! it seems that my research was flawed since the pieces i read seemed to concern browning's version as the original version he read, but it appears to be a long-dated legend huh...

in my thread, i tried intentionally focus on the original stories and general concept around each fairy tale, since they were handling general picture books during the scene, and because there were no specific versions named; i hoped to cover the general (and original if possible) fairy tale and the message it sent, in hopes that correlations to other interpretations and adaptations could be drawn.

if it helps, the specific tale wataru named is "ハーメルンの笛吹き男" which refers to the general tale!

personally, i think that the parallels between the pied piper and goethe/faust are intentional! the themes that wataru speaks about runs true through either...

but the storyline in the story is explained to be the one from the poem, of the pied piper drawing the rats away, drowning them in the river, then upon not being paid, draws away the town's children. it is worth noting it is yuzuru that gives the story summary, but wataru affirms it and agrees that a story about children being lured away isn't suitable for a family amusement park. he later clarifies to eichi that he was hoping that perhaps it could be approached from a different angle, one that gives it a happy ending.

no absolutely not!

i have a feeling this is referring to how eichi's physcial condition is improving in the story. but that's just that. he's been primarily allowing himself to rest throughout ESY1 by focusing on agency and office work; his new ESY2 profile states that he's considering increasing his personal work as his physical health allows for it.

in the story, wataru and eichi talk about how eichi appears to have lesser motivation when it comes to putting himself out there as an idol, and eichi insists that he's just opting for a slower approach to life now that he can afford it, and that he has always been this way.

wataru brings up that eichi's been able to recover enough that he'll be able to hold his own as long as he doesn't push himself too hard. eichi even mentions how his body's strength is still quite lacking compared to other idols. this is absolutely no indication of any chronic illness disappearing lol

i believe that's what i stated in my answer; that it was generally a 1-time thing that occurred the year before the war.

but, ritsu also calls out rei multiple times for "abandoning" him in JANUS, that that rei "doesn't care" about him, and that he "hates" him, so i felt it was something worth mentioning...?

it definitely was more baby-talk, and was nothing like a decision made. ritsu still continued to cling to rei afterwards, and it appears that reis big "abandoning" of ritsu which made him put up his walls and decide for good that he doesn't need rei anyway, etc. i always interpreted this fundamental change to be what really shocked rei, it's no longer the fussy "i hate you oniichan i dont care about you anymore" that filled their relationship as children.

i do find it relevant to the conversation that rei didn't just up and leave ritsu out of nowhere!

these questions are fine! unfortunately i haven't noticed any TLer mention picking up yet though!

I HAVE A LOTTT OF DISORGANIZED THOUGHTS but the short of it is like. i'm just REALLY REALLY invested in what's been presented so far...

and i'm also just REALLY invested in all the presented fairy tales and what they say about each character. i find it really really fun and telling of their characters... especially because the bookmark in Peter and Wendy means... eichi never finished it

and the eichi wataru conversation in the first chapters was also insane. it makes me wish i understood eichi more deeply as a character so i could write essays about what his lies mean and what the "boundaries" between his idol and real self blurring means, if it's actually happening, etc... like Wow

eichi's division of himself has always been so interesting, like with Supernova and his relationship with chiaki, we see a lot about how much heroes mean to him despite his apparent hatred... and so seeing this but with fairy tales makes me very intrigued. tokusatsu is often cited as escapism, fairy tales are also often cites as escapism, and the same goes with idols as well... i'm interested in how they connect to what another and why idols touch eichis heart so deeply compared to the others, or why eichi feels so hurt and betrayed by the others while not for idols. im just very invested in these details...

and packing this all in such a simple prologue of tori flipping through fairy tale picture books... i really love its set up! im so excited for part 2!

no idea, aside from niceP saying that he recruited ibuki bc he had potential as a solo idol, the game hasn't really hinted at any potential direction on how they plan to be handling the new kids. it was pretty surprising to see the game introduce them completely separately; it makes it even more unpredictable what the plans gonna be!

personally. i dont think there's any reason they have to be "fleshed out properly as a group" since they can be fleshed out through different interactions too. (though i would adore for them to get to interact eventually, with a future as a unit or not...) essentially, its so open-ended to me i'm just gonna sit back and wait til somethings announced. aka 11/9, but if nothing's revealed there i don't expect any huge changes until 10th anni ...

we do have the esupuri theory (which lines up with the theory debuting as a solo idol) but that's really just all speculation. and i don't really think there's much i can glean from the situation so i won't talk about it much lol

i don't unfortunately, i pay very little attention to the in-and-outs behind game campaigns... i heard ENGstars it's weirdly inconsistent compared to JPstars though? no idea about it

yes, he has self-admitted low body strength! it made The Arena a little tough because physical labor was the mathematically the most efficient in earning gold, but it's not the most efficient for him solely because of how much he struggles with it.

he was trying to calculate it's gold-earning efficiency when he collapsed from fatigue, he describes it as if his body stopped functioning; so he laid on his back and relaxed his muscles, which is a survival technique for preserving energy LOL

his CG is him getting up after jun lends him a hand! https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/ensemble-stars/images/b/bd/(The_Arena_of_No-mind)_Kanna_Natsu_CG.png

yes there's a looooot of other ES units! starpro for example has a LOT of newbie idols, and akatsuki, undead, and ra*bits all faced seniority issues with other rhythlin idols that have been there far before they entered the agency.

there are girl idols too; as hinted to by in Parallel World and confirmed in Matrix, there are girl idols within ES, but they are treated unfairly and given little to no recognition. we don't know the specifics such as "all-girl", but it seems to be implied since ES typically deals with units.

oh this is an interesting question... put my research boots on for this one. i'm actually not too sure, though! i know they all moved in at different times, whether they're graduates or not, though. for example when tori and yuzuru moved in, midori and sora had already moved in at the time.

i don't recall if it's ever been stated if graduates moved in first or not; it is an idea that's intriguing though! i'm just not sure if it holds any water.

alkakurei iirc were allowed to move in to the main dorms following the events of the main story! so sometime during the summer.

mika moved in later than the others after his lease for his apartment was terminated, following the events of Neverland. Neverland happened before the events of Beast Survival, but i don't remember if it was before or after the main story conclusion.

jun moved in a bit later (likely alongside kohaku), at around the time of Beast Survival.

during the initial move-in period, where everyone's slowly moving into the dorms though, i don't think it was ever detailed if the arrangements were decided as people moved in or not. however, i know for the dorms, they want the ES idols to live at the dorms, and therefore everyone gets a room, and is expected to a degree to live there, but they are not forced to. which might explain how (if i remember correctly?) ritsu had a room all to himself despite mika being having an apartment; he might've been roomed with him the entire time, but mika chose to live elsewhere.

as for assignments, i don't think it's ever been explicitly stated! most people assume it's been randomized. but, i also recall keito saying something like to come to him if there's any issues with roommates, and might've implied that he has control to change dorm assignments maybe? but i can't find the source of this for the life of me so take that with a grain of salt! but it might have contributed to the headcanon that he was in charge of room assignments.

i... definitely have these but i am having so much trouble picking them out from my brain LOL especially since in my head a lot of my hcs are based off appearances and not specific ethnicities i think... but some i do know i like, is filipino chiaki, latino mama, (half) thai hokuto, and (half) chinese hinata yuuta !!

hmm i'm not sure... but i know right now i've been really interested in figuring out how to portray esu's speaking quirks!

he has a very interesting approach to speaking that shows unfamiliarity with conversation. he uses words that are typically not used in casual japanese conversation, and has a habit of jumping subjects in a hard-to-follow way. this is likely because ever since the accident that hospitalized him, he was both closed off within the hospital, and seemed to have lost most interest in the outside world out of grief.

as someone who used to be sort of... a massive social shut-in, i see a lot of him in myself in this way lol.

so his speech is a little strong-armed (often continuing his sentence after sentence ending particles, or conjugating verbs oddly. he also seems to use kanji and other words you'd see in books and literature, rather than something you'd use in casual conversation.

for example, using 華 (hana, flower) rather than the more common 花 (hana, flower). 華 is nearly exclusively used in literature or old figures of speech.

my favorite is in VS PRINCESS where his speech uses 理解ってる (wakatteru, understand), rather than 分かってる (wakatteru, understand). typically you'd use that kanji like, 理解する (rikai suru, understand).

BUT... you can read 理解ってる as wakatteru, almost exclusively in literature!

but still, it was so unorthodox it warranted a writers note in the story LMAO, like 理解（わか）ってる it was so funny

it'd be a tough battle KLJSFSD even switch is always trying so hard and fighting for him to take care of himself, but he insists he's okay and that pushing himself is necessary if they are to make progress...

but he is slowly learning how to deliver happiness to himself too, ive been reminded recently of his 6th anniversary line where he says he hopes to deliver good fortune to others as well as himself, i find it sweet

but i find this a difficult hypothetical to work with because in all of ESY1 he's been so stubbornly and painfully unbending when it comes to taking care of his well-being, even though he seems to be aware that he should be taking better of himself....

but maybe he would grow to be more receptive to being taken care of, given a partner would have the position to insist it upon him

depends on ritsu's definition of abandon /j

generally it was a 1-time thing! it refers to rei's first year spent abroad. it's largely understood that this happened during rei's second year, where he spend largely his time abroad both dealing with family matters and searching for a treatment for ritsu's condition, his extended time away is what resulting in him being held back. although seeking a treatment was something done out of love for ritsu, it left him feeling immensely abandoned and hurt.

especially since what ritsu sought out wasn't a cure for his affliction, but just wanted to be able to get to be with his older brother... yet rei instead left out of his own "selfishness". of course, rei was also absent because of family matters, but ritsu has always felt abandoned when rei was busy with those matters as well.

ritsu regularly would feel this way growing up, even though being so absent wasn't out of rei's choosing. with their parents busy elsewhere, rei was essentially assigned adult duties since a very young age which would require a LOT of work regarding his family and their properties. he typically would be out of the house or elsewhere, and this left ritsu feeling regularly neglected throughout their childhood, and he would regularly lash out at rei for abandoning him. but, it i believe it was that incident that was the "final straw" for ritsu.

i don't think i was around the fandom enough to have a good idea of what the general consensus was...

but i DO distinctly remember that a lot of undeadP and 2winkP felt hurt and confused by it! they didn't understand why 2wink would betray undead, given they've always had a such close bond. undeadPs felt that undead was unfairly wronged, and 2winkPs were confused why 2wink would bite the hand that fed them.

on top of that a lot of people felt that those not in the sandstorm area (koga, adonis, especially rei) weren't given a proper role in the story. i know kogaPs were especially unhappy with how koga was bitter and angry at rei treating him coldly during the story, and felt that koga wouldn't have reacted so unreasonably.

definitely a lot of mixed feelings. it took me a little bit to warm up to the event too, since i had to analyze why 2wink acted that way. sandstorm was essentially 2wink's !! era breaking point, so there was a lot of unpredictable behavior here and there. gatekeeper wanted to find a way to suppress the dangerous and rebellious undead and sakuma rei, so he took advantage of 2winks volatility for that.

this is just about me but i personally think positively of the event now, since it's led to a LOT of really interesting development between specifically koga & adonis and the twins. and of course yuuta... i always really like this quote from MIRAGE;

Koga: It’s too late for me to approach him now, though.
Koga: No… I didn’t even have to approach him. I should have already been beside Yuuta, but I couldn’t even see his face.
Koga: I should’ve been able to understand what had been hurtin’ him and makin’ him angry more than anyone else.
Koga: It wasn’t until my hind legs got stuck in the sand did I realize that he was hurtin’.
Koga: I hurt him a lot, puttin’ on airs actin’ like some guardian there to protect him.
Koga: Even if I did try gettin’ close now, he’s not gonna like it. He’ll just run away.

and it helped break down the misunderstandings between undead and 2wink, since as pointed out in even Learning from the Past, it's foundation began as somewhat disordered; a unit desperately clinging onto something stronger than them to stay afloat, and a leader who couldn't help but see them as followers/believers rather than friends

and i also just plain adore kaoru int he story but... thats just because kaoru always make me very happy lmfao i love seein that guy. i love what he says in the epilogue. but that's just my own take on the story

probably from japanese wordplay!

14/10 my guess is... 1 - hi 4 - yo 10 - ju(n)

okok i had a general answer but i conscripted the help of 310mc so this answer is Super long hehe

most we know is think from observation... midori can be assumed to be greater than average physical strength! some of it comes from his physical stature, but he also grew up working as a greengrocer. he's seen carrying really heavy boxes of vegetables (often multiple at a time, definitely more than an ordinary person can handle), and he's also capable of carrying kanata as a first year (despite being pretty heavy), and can carry things like TV monitors no problem, and can carry his unitmates on his shoulders too. there's also a scene where he carries a ladder while shinobus still on it and shinobus like HOW IS THIS SO EASY FOR YOU

but as for stamina, that's where he lacks. he gets exhausted pretty easily, especially compared to those more sporty like chiaki and tetora. he struggles with stuff like muscle training because of this

as for sports; he is in the basketball club, but he is not all too good at it... most of it is because despite being the perfect stature for basketball when he joined the club he was an Absolute beginner. even during his 2nd year he was still only good at the basics. he's fairly good at being defense though because his size helps him a lot (with chiaki coining his ability as the takamine barricade). Flowers of the Wasteland makes for a good measure of how good he is at basketball! and any other basketball club story too

but being in the club and ryuseitai did help him with his physical strength even more! as of his 3rd year in yumenosaki we don't know exactly how he's doing strength wise, but he's been gradually improving throughout the years!

that would be Turn of the Century Wars (engstars War at the End of Century)! where they (pretend) to get a snapshot of mao with a girl (sora in ponytails) to try to force his arm on giving them permission to hold a dragon king competition dreamfes to cheer tetora up.

there's a TL by Sylph here! - https://alabastersylph.dreamwidth.org/757.html

i don't think there's anything in story talking about it since Jingle Bells, but based on his !! era Christmas voice lines, it seems his belief is still going strong! 💪✨

here's what comes to my mind, just keep in mind often things are just one to a handful of lines throughout the entire story! but the bigger ones i think are maybe Element, Wonder Game, and Next Door i'd say?

Element - TL by maluridae Wonder Game - TL by nanairo and bakemonoremy Devils - TL by bakemonoremy and royalquintet Next Door - TL by royalquintet Altered - TL by Mika Enstars The Song Spun at Blue Hour

hmm i don't know many nikis kitchen stories... maybe i'm forgetting some? but these are the ones i know

Yuzuru Fushimi Idol Story 3 - TL by Emily/harmonyleaf Season It As You Like - TL by MiRei The Flavor I Remember Is... - TL by Creampuffs Ardor and Decompression

a penalty of a normal order is just a deduction of SSL$, its wholly a mechanic part of the ss program, so it's easily deducted from their SSL$ i presume. gatekeeper did take over the whole thing, but there is still management haha

as for the penalty of secret orders; in Sanctuary its explained that while the orders were created through a contract with eichi, gatekeeper was particularly the one behind of the secret orders and was in charge of the threats to ensure they were being followed. i think he was the only one capable of this, he has the extensive power to actually carry them out if he so wishes.

it's sort of the whole thing; gatekeeper has the power of essentially the mob boss and has massive amounts of power (especially in the underworld). eichi has completely nothing to do with the upholding of the secret orders and worked on the regular orders to push the units past their limits (& to help units spur into action against the ss committee)

as gatekeeper described it, the orders were to act as leashes for the idols, so that gatekeeper could do what he indented to do without any rebellion. the secret orders were to force the idols further to act towards gatekeeper's goals. they were meant to as effective as possible threats, so that the order wouldn't be disobeyed;

it's also for this reason i doubt that these secret order punishments were made with gatekeeper readying to actually have to enact. carefully selected orders and punishments + knowing that the threat of the punishment is doable by gatekeeper is enough to ensure that the idols will abide by the rules in fear of the repercussions... well, most of them. look at trickstar. they're in the jungle now... but that instance was a secret order and penalty carefully selected in hopes that hokuto WOULD defy it and get penalized.

i wasn't able to take this request, but i was able to help proof for it ! TL by citrinesea