User blog:Lucy554/Aikatsu! Mysteries Episode 1: Cards!

Hello everyone! For anyone who read my previous blog post, you know that some of the mysteries and the Aikatsu! franchise frustrate me. A lot. And, while I used to be fine with leaving them untouched, I'm sure I'm not the only person who is left frustrated by the insane complexity of the Aikatsu technology. Today, I'm going to try to explain it! Even though it's likely we will never get a proper explanation for the Aikatsu System unless the creators of the franchise reaveal it to us, it never hurts to speculate!

Mystery 1: Aikatsu Cards

Aikatsu cards have been present in the Aikatsu! world even before there was an anime adaption! They were present in the opening episode of both series, and, as of now, we have never met an idol who has been confirmed to use stage dresses without storing the in cards. Although it can be speculated that Masquerade from the original series did not use cards, there was never any real proof with exception of their unit coords being displayed in the archive room, not in card form. As a matter of fact, in the original series, Aikatsu Cards were referred to as being an idol's life, as in "an idol cannot exist without cards."

Cards are not present only in Aikatsu! either. Similar devices for holding clothes can be seen in the form of PriTickets, from the PriPara franchise, as well as Prism Stones, from PriPara's predecessor, Pretty Rhythm. The difference between cards and these devices are that Aikatsu is the only franchise to not only show us a brand's designer, but show us dresses outside of card form.

Although never seen in stars, in the original series we are sown a case which is appearently within every designer's home, as well as Dream Academy's designer branch. This case can be used to hold an clpthing peice, as well as instantaneously turn it into a card. A prime example of this ability is when Seira asks a girl in the designer branch to turn Kii's hairclip into a card to use in her audition in episode 55 of the original series.

Now that we have covered everything we presently know about cards and their equivalents, it's time to speculate. The Aikatsu! System is suppoesedly a database of sorts. It can show idol rankings, produce stages, and recognize cards. (Note that last one.) My theory is that when a item is  turned into a card, it is a assigned a number in that database, and there may be only one card of it, or thousands. The cards have recoginition numbers on them, which are tied to the clothing peice's number in the database. Before a show, an idol informs their venue of their top picks for coords that they might use, and the company uses the database to order these oufits so that they may be put in their fitting room. When an idol inserts their into the fitting room door, the system scans it and recognizes the number. From here, the fitting room acts accordingly and helps the idol put on their coord through its mystical means. (Which we will address in the next episode of this series of posts.) This process differs for premium rare dresses, which are kept safe by the idol's academy or their manager, and are transported the venue accordingly when an idol needs to use them. as apposed to being ordered from the database. As for how the dresses disappear in their cases when turned into cards, it could be assumed that they are stored in a unit of sorts behind the case and transported to a storehouse later. Personal cards and items (like Kii's hairclip) are kept by the idol and taken to the venue with them to be put in the fitting room. Keeping it sahe is their responsibilty because it is their peice of clothing.

Thank you everyone! This was just my speculation, and by no means real in-universe unless my theory is confirmed! In my next post, I'll be looking into the issue of fitting rooms and their inner workings! See you then!