Warning: Contains spoilers for Oshi no Ko episode 3 and Kaguya-sama: Love is WarFollowing Oshi no Ko episode 3, the anime is officially in a shared universe with the hit romcom anime Kaguya-sama: Love is War. While the idea of a shared universe is largely associated with Western stories, two of the biggest examples being the stories of Marvel and DC Comics, anime, and manga have used the concept, as well. For example, many of Akira Toriyama’s works, most notably Dragon Ball and Dr. Slump, exist within the same universe, and while each anime has less explicit continuity than the one before it, the various Yu-Gi-Oh! anime are also supposed to exist within the same universe.
Shared universes are certainly a thing in anime and manga, and as of its third episode, the anime that dethroned Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood in popularity, Oshi no Ko, officially exists in one with Kaguya-sama. Naturally, both stories were written by Aka Akasaka, and while episode 3 only had a small reference, later developments in Oshi no Ko expand on the connections in a big way. Said expansion likely won’t be covered in the anime, but even so, it still adds a lot to both stories to have them connected, no matter how tangentially.
Oshi no Ko Takes Shares a Universe With Kaguya-sama
The big reveal in Oshi no Ko episode 3 is that Oshi no Ko takes place in the same universe as Aka Akasaka’s previous work, Kaguya-Sama: Love is War. Episode 3 revolves around Aqua and Kana acting in a live-action adaptation of a manga called Sweet Today, a manga that was referenced multiple times in Kaguya-sama. It’s only a small reference, but it does mean that the two stories take place in the same universe.
As for what that means for either story, it probably won’t amount to much. The themes and setting of Oshi no Ko are very different from Kaguya-sama: Love is War, and the fact that Oshi no Ko has supernatural elements sets it even further apart from a mostly realistic story like Kaguya-sama. Even so, the fact that there’s a shared universe, to begin with, still serves to flesh out the world of each story, and it makes getting invested in both stories all the more worthwhile.
Oshi no Ko & Kaguya-sama’s Connection Is Deeper In The Manga
While Oshi no Ko’s anime’s connection to Kaguya-sama: Love is War isn’t that big, the manga is an entirely different story. An extra chapter of Oshi no Ko detailed a photoshoot Ruby was involved in, and on the last page, it was revealed that her photographer was one Kaguya Shirogane. Not only does that completely confirm that the stories exist in a shared universe, with Oshi no Ko taking place years after Kaguya-sama, but it also reveals that Kaguya achieved her dreams of becoming a photographer and marrying Miyuki, allowing it to serve as something of an epilogue to Kaguya-Sama following its conclusion.
While Kaguya’s cameo doesn’t have any bearing on Oshi no Ko’s story, the implications of it are still great to see. After all the struggles and moments of uncertainty Kaguya went through in Kaguya-Sama: Love is War, it’s impactful to see that she finally succeeded in achieving her happy ending, and Oshi no Ko allowing it to be conveyed in such an organic way makes the moment even better. All of this is owed to the two stories existing within a shared universe, and as Oshi no Ko continues, there’s no telling how else it might provide payoff for Kaguya-Sama: Love is War.
Oshi no Ko releases new episodes Wednesdays on HIDIVE.
