Key the Metal Idol
Image of Miho

Utsuse Miho

Voices:
Shibahara Chiyako (Japanese)

Miho is an enormously popular idol singer (rock star) that is at the peak of her career. According to Sakura, up until a few years ago, she was a fairly good singer, but didn't really stand out from the crowd. Then, all of a sudden, she got really good. "It's like she's cool," Sakura says, "but not too cool for her own good."

Despite her popularity, however, little is known about Miho's private life. Outside of her albums and concert dates, almost everything else is unknown. Only Minos Productions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ajo Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., knows the truth behind Miho's recent success. This truth is kept obscure with good reason, for Miho is really a PPOR robot controlled by the real singer from a pod! Miho was, up until a few years ago, the actual singer onstage. As fine control of the PPOR robots became a priority research goal of Ajo's, he decided to create the ultimate project to that end: Miho would be replaced by a PPOR duplicate of the real singer, and her band would be PPOR robots made up as musicians. Miho no longer walked out onstage; her body double, slaved to Miho via the sensory helmet and proportional motion control instruments in the pod, would act out the concert for the audience.

Sustained, precision control of a PPOR creates an incredible strain on the operator, however. The real Miho is visibly ill from the effects of over-exerting herself during the long hours of the many concerts and practice sessions. In fact, by the time of her final concert of the year, she can't even get out of bed. Ajo, heartless as ever, informs her that she will sing, even if she has to do it on her back.

As weak as she is, Miho might have successfully completed her final concert...except for Key's presence. Key, entranced by Miho's singing (and not yet aware that the Miho she saw was a PPOR) went into fugue and (for lack of a better word) "synchronized" with the powerbox of the Miho PPOR. The resulting feedback imposed itself on the human Miho, causing excruciating pain and systemic shock.

In the finale of Program 2 (episode 13), Miho, drugged and barely able to operate the PPOR, is again beseiged by the shunt energy (I know I'm making up terms here, but you watch it and try to find better ones ;) caused by Key, this time knocking her into coma, perhaps even killing her.

I won't even go into the smoke-cubing of Beniko. ;)

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Christopher S. Rider --- syzygy@mcs.com