2020 isn’t exactly a year to remember, but it did have some shining moments such as the meteoric rise of VTubers. Sure, Virtual YouTubers have existed for quite a while now, but it was only last year when they shot up in popularity in the world stage, especially Japan’s Hololive.
Back in September, Hololive debuted their first English-speaking VTubers–HoloEN, and they quickly became incredibly popular. In fact, two HoloEN VTubers currently have over a million subscribers, with the other three not far off. This is thanks in part to the incredible popularity of Hololive last year, but it’s also a testament to HoloEN’s entertaining streams and their other unique content.
If you don’t watch VTubers, or if you do but haven’t fallen into the Hololive rabbit hole yet, you should definitely get started right now. In case you need more convincing though, here’s why you should watch Hololive EN!
To kick things off, we’ll start with Takanashi Kiara, the first HoloEN VTuber to debut. While you can start watching any of the five HoloEN members, watching Kiara’s streams is a great way to kick off your HoloEN experience!
Not your typical Idol
Hololive was founded as an agency for virtual idols, though the current Hololive roster is anything but idol-like. Takanashi Kiara is no exception; even with her cute and sweet design, she is one of the least idol-like members of Hololive. Not only does she have a sailor’s mouth, she also frequently spouts lewd statements—mostly directed at her fellow Hololive members. Her lack of idol qualities is so well known in the Hololive community that she is said to be in the “bottom left” of the purity and intelligence scale (meaning she is called the most lewd and is not the sharpest HoloEN member).
Given her distinct lack of “pure” (aka “seiso”) qualities, Kiara is a breath of fresh air, especially if you are a fan of “3D” Japanese or Korean idols. Coupled with the fact that she adores her Hololive senpai, Kiara is less an idol and more of an idol otaku. Essentially, she’s one of us!
Even though she’s often lewding over her fellow HoloEN member or displaying questionable decision-making skills, Kiara still very much has a heart of gold, and it shows in pretty much all of her streams.
Never a Dull Moment in her streams
Kiara’s usual streams involve her playing games, ranging from popular titles like Minecraft and Mario Kart, to more niche games like her favorite Atelier series. Whether you like the game she’s playing or not, Kiara is incredibly fun to watch, and that’s not just because of her “bottom left” moments. It’s also due to the fact that she’s a natural entertainer.
The origin of “bottom left”
In her streams, Kiara is often highly energetic, meaning there’s almost never a dull moment when you tune in to her. Whether she’s raging at Among Us impostors for killing her or fangirling over her favorite Fire Emblem character, Kiara is just a joy to watch.
Outside of her gaming content, it’s also worth it to tune in when she does superchat readings. Even when she’s not playing a game, there’s a lot fun to be had watching her chat and interact with viewers.
Pro Tip: If you can afford it, try sending her a red superchat with no message. You’ll enjoy the reaction!
Great Fan Interactions
Superchat readings aren’t the only way Kiara interacts with her fans though as she regularly plays games such as Among Us or Mario Kart with them. While she’s not the only one that does this, Kiara is one of the Hololive members who do it the most.
If you haven’t seen one yet, a stream where Kiara plays with her viewers is a riot! Whether it’s dedicated KFP crew (her fanbase name) letting her get a higher spot in Mario Kart, or if it’s a devious Among Us Impostor who kills her early, Kiara’s reactions are memorable and often quite funny. Plus, you’ll even get a chance to play with her if you’re fast (or lucky enough). While I have not been lucky enough to play with Kiara yet, I can assure you that even just watching it happen is a blast.
Kiara’s interaction with her fanbase don’t exclusively happen on YouTube though. Kiara is quite active on Twitter; reacting, re-tweeting, and even replying to a lot of fans who tag her. To top it all off, she’s a moderator on the official Hololive subreddit, so you can sometime spot her commenting and posting there.
The bridge between Hololive English and Hololive Japan
The five members of HoloEN have varying levels of Japanese fluency, though there is no doubt that Kiara is the most fluent of them all. Her skill in Japanese, coupled with her being a big fan of her HoloJP senpai, means she often collaborates with Hololive’s Japanese VTubers. In fact, she even has a recurring talk show stream where she interviews HoloJP members, all while translating on the fly for international viewers.
Thanks to this, Kiara might just be the best starting point for new Hololive fans. By starting with Kiara, not only will you get a great introduction to the world of VTubers, you’ll also discover more of Hololive’s roster of “idols”.
Bonus: Kiara isn’t just fluent in Japanese and English, she’s also a native German speaker!
This is the first of a five-part series on why you should watch Hololive English VTubers if you aren’t doing so already. Up next in the series, we’ll put the spotlight on our favorite reaper, Mori Calliope!