The NUMBER 1 Idol in the Universe | Who is Nico Nico Nii?

If there was a single term to describe who Yazawa Nico is, it’s not cute, it’s not smile, and it’s not even Nico Nico Nii, her classic catchphrase that everyone has memed to death. No, these words are merely facets of this character who is so important to the story of Love Live despite how many consider her to be nothing more than a simple gimmick or mascot character. The term I think of when describing Yazawa Nico is simply:

“Liar.”

It’s very interesting to me that above any other Love Live character, be it Maki because of the Knuckles meme, Nozomi because of Snow Halation, Umi because of the reaction face and Kotori because of the photobomb, Nico remains the most popular and recognizable character in the entire series, be it for whatever reason. Most people focus on her catchphrase, her bad attitude and her cutesy and iconic appearance, and all of this is highlighted towards this persona that the character Yazawa Nico creates for herself: the Number One Idol in the Universe Nico Nico Nii, the perfect idol who smiles to make others smile. It’s this mask that Nico created for the goal that she wants: in essence a lie that she created and is desperate to become at all costs.And what’s more interesting about this is that Nico lies at the core of μ’s journey to the legends that they became, because while Nico’s goal is to become the greatest idol in the world, the shine that μ’s embodies is that of a school idol. Nico’s journey to become the greatest idol on her own transformed into a journey of genuine love and passion alongside nine.

So to understand who she is, I think it’s best that we jump right in.

This is Yazawa Nico, the Number 1 Idol in the Universe.

I feel it’s appropriate as always to start with who Nico is from an outside perspective, because understanding said outer layer is how we see Nico’s journey throughout the story. When we’re introduced to Nico, it’s actually in episode one, wearing a mask and sunglasses in awe of the shine of A-RISE, bumping into Honoka who had experienced the shine for the first time. In this scene we see a very stark contrast that’s highlighted throughout the show in this dynamic between the light of Honoka versus the pessimism of Nico. Both are enraptured by the shine of A-RISE, but it’s the naive Honoka who views their light as a symbol of hope, while Nico looks on solely in admiration and a desire for something she does not have. This jealousy is carried over in her respective appearances, notably her reaction to the performance of START;DASH in episode 3. This moment of hopelessness for μ’s is being witnessed by Nico with a look of jealousy on her face, but she can’t help but continue to watch the moment they push past it shining as brightly as they can, the look on her face changing from judging stare to longing. And in her principle episode, she begins to strike back, attempting to tear them down in any pitiful way that she can, always hiding behind a mask or running away at the last moment until its the six members of μ’s who come to her and force her to open up to them…and it’s only now that we see the persona and the infamous Nico Nico Nii.

At this point, the words “jealous” and “liar” should be in your head whenever Nico is onscreen because that is not only her defining character trait, it’s the most important part of her journey as a member of μ’s, especially highlighted during any moment the mask of Nico finally comes down and she finally exposes what she’s really like when the genuine side of her is out in the open. Because the lie isn’t for others, even as much as she continues to spout her greatest belief towards what idols should be: that they should smile to make others smile. The lie, and especially that Nico Nico Nii, is something she uses in order to tell herself to justify her actions as being for the sake of others.

If there’s something you’ll notice about every character’s journey in School Idol Project, it’s this constant need to break down the walls that prevent others from reaching their hearts and understanding who they truly are. But more importantly, a majority of characters have this lie that they tell to themselves that forms the very basis of why they need to be school idols in the first place. Take Nishikino Maki, for example, who kept telling herself that her future had no place for frivolities like “fun” and “passion,” because in her own mind she didn’t need anything like that, so her distance from others is built off of that lie that she continued to tell herself until the members of μ’s tore that wall down and exposed the desire to pursue her love for music with all that she had, because the duty she had as the daughter of a hospital director was something for the sake of someone other than herself. Hanayo told herself that she wasn’t fit to be an idol. Rin told herself that she wasn’t girly enough. Eli was telling herself that she wasn’t worthy of shining onstage because she was a failure who would be disrespecting the shine that the others around her had. And Honoka was lying to herself at the end of School Idol Project’s first season when she insisted that she didn’t want to be a school idol anymore, and again when she said she didn’t want to compete in Love Live, justifying this by saying she didn’t want to ruin it for everyone again or that the school was already saved. And interestingly enough, both times the first to become furious with her is none other than the biggest liar of them all.

This lie that’s justified for the sake of others is highlighted not just in Nico’s personal philosophy, but in the Nico Nico Nii itself. Given to her by her dad as a way to make her feel better, she internalized that as what she needed to do: Nico meaning smile, and a smile that’s meant for the sake of others just as that was given to her. It’s highlighted further in episode 4 of School Idol Project Season 2, where it’s discovered that Nico had been lying to her own family that she hadn’t failed as an idol and was still going strong as the Number One Idol in the Universe, and when asked why, she justifies it as doing it because she was their hero and it was too late to tell them she had failed and watch the disappointment in their eyes. It’s always justified as for the sake of others…yet it’s very clearly for selfish reasons that she does what she does.

But what’s even more interesting is that Love Live! at no point villainized selfish interest as a bad thing, only doing so if the selfish actions are at the expense of others. In fact, looking throughout the whole of the franchise, we see moments of “selflessness” being the core problem that stalls the progression of these girls towards their goals. Kanan and Mari’s entire relationship collapsing isn’t the fault of selfish interest, but rather a misguided love that was meant to be for the sake of another that was wrong because of the simple fact that there was a deeper desire that wasn’t being communicated. Kotori cared too much about hurting Honoka’s feelings until it was too late and the damage was done, not taking into account that she just needed to be selfish and tell that she wanted to be with her. It’s not selfishness at all that’s shown as being detrimental, and that’s something interesting regarding why Nico is all alone. She wants to shine, but justifies it as “smiling for the sake of others,” because that’s what an idol is supposed to do. But that’s at odds with the truth of her desire: she wants to shine simply because she wants to. It’s not for the sake of others, for her family or anything like that, it’s just because she wants to be an idol.

That’s something I find interesting regarding the journey of μ’s to the legends they became. Sure, their end goal was to leave the world of school idols so that the whole could shine independent of them, but the more prominent reason behind all of their actions is simply because that’s what they wanted. This is the entire crux of the end of School Idol Project. They already saved their school, so they weren’t winning because of that. They already had the support of others, so it wasn’t just to repay them. They wanted to win Love Live because that’s what they wanted to do. A selfish desire that they pursue wholeheartedly because it’s what lies in their hearts. That shine is only for people who want it with everything they have, and while it can be for the sake of others, to be able to shine is only possible for someone who wants it with all of their hearts. But that doesn’t mean ONLY for yourself, because as we all know, μ’s is a group defined not by one individual desire, but hearts united as one bright light.

Nico’s assertion that she is the Number One Idol in the Universe is one that indicates that she’s alone. Even when she became a school idol in her first year, she pursued that shine without considering the feelings of the other members she recruited, isolating herself and pushing them away because she continually forced her own standards onto them and didn’t consider what they wanted, painting that idea that she was better off working alone. This is why she’s so jealous of μ’s when they’re succeeding despite making those same failures. They’re not to her standards, yet they look like they’re having so much fun. They’ve failed, yet they were able to stay together where her same failures pushed others away. They were alone but were able to gather more members where she tried so desperately and ended up by herself. Yet even through all of that jealous vitriol, they still reached out to her, because while they did need the room for selfish reasons, what made them happier than anything was seeing that she was happy. And that’s what I find the most interesting, because her philosophy that an idol should smile to make others smile isn’t even wrong, it’s just missing the important element: making others smile makes her happier than anything. It’s a selfish desire that is also for the sake of and considers the feelings of others, a mindset reflected in that group of girls who saved her from her loneliness.

μ’s continually worked to slowly break her walls down. She never seems to truly embrace the fact that they are not just dancing alongside her, but they are only as bright as they are because of each other. Nico was only ever able to come out of the darkness of loneliness because she had the nine by her side, and as much as she wanted to deny it, they were the reason why she was able to pursue her dream of shining onstage once more where she previously failed. But as she danced alongside them and created bonds with each of the members, she was able to help them when they also needed her.

It was Nico who played a major role in getting Honoka to realize that she wanted to compete in Love Live solely because she wanted to do it. The idols that she loved are what continued to push her, while Honoka did nothing but wallow in her own failure, and Nico knew what that was like all too well because she did the same. It was Nico who pushed for them to compete in Season 2 when she challenged her for the position of leader because competing in Love Live meant that much to her. It’s a love that pushed her, and seeing Honoka doing the same thing she did for years was frustrating. Honoka was the one telling her that she needed to be a school idol yet here she was hesitating because of one failure that she was justifying through the past pain she inflicted on others.  And it’s so fitting that the one person who failed the hardest and did so because of her forcing her ideals on others is the one saying this.

Selfish desire is not inherently bad, but done so without considering the feelings of others is because what matters when pursuing that desire is how it affects those you love the most. Selfless sacrifice is not inherently bad, but done so at the expense of your own feelings, and even worse the feelings of others around you is directly in conflict with their own selfish desire to make you smile. And what’s most ironic about Nico’s desire is that she constantly says that an idol’s job is to smile…but it’s only by becoming a school idol with μ’s that she ever achieves that desire because a school idol’s inherent difference from a regular idol is that they are never alone. It’s a goal pursued by united hearts that can’t be achieved by a single light. It’s bonds formed by a mutual desire and love, and of course Nico was never going to succeed as a school idol if she was pursuing her dream with a mindset of shining alone. The stage of Love Live is won by united hearts reaching for a goal that they decide together. μ’s changed the world because they did something together that no single one of them could do alone.

This brings us back to the moment that Nico cast away her title of the Super Idol, where she, alongside those girls she was referring as backup dancers, proclaimed to her brothers and sisters that she could only ever shine with the nine by her side, and not just that, but doing so was her greatest desire: her dream. Because what μ’s gave her was nothing short of a miracle, something that reached her when she was all alone and now she would be pursuing that goal together with them with all of her heart.

The greatest idol in the universe became so not because of her own individual efforts or for her singular pursuit of a goal, but because nine gave her the chance to pursue it with all of her heart. To smile and make others smile because doing so fills her with a joy that couldn’t be compared in the group with no center because all of them equally reach for their shine with all of their might. And even now, in the world of Love Live, it’s no longer a lie that Yazawa Nico is the Number One Idol in the Universe. Through exposing her genuine feelings with all of her heart with others who care about and love her, through acknowledging her selfish desires with others who understood and shared that desire, and by tearing off that mask, the lie became reality. “Nico Nico Nii” is a phrase that embodies who she is, a girl named after a smile. Originally a smile that she wore as a mask to hide who she really was, at the summit of Love Live where she found that shine, that smile was nothing but the truth.

This is Yazawa Nico, the Universe’s Greatest Idol and a proud member of the miracle that changed the world.