The raise of artificial entertainment characters is an idea so obvious that even Hollywood took a stab at it (fortunately, I forgot the title of that movie). However, why stop at what already is? Enhance the entertainers! This actually happens today, just look at Miku's impossible hair. I'm pretty sure the real Sharon Apple is not going to look anything like the anime one.

Speaking of Miku, there's something called Miku Miku Dance, which I think runs on Wii. It's a different software core from Idolm@ster, and the video it produces does not look quite as refined, but it is very flexible. The two most famous clips are Balalaika (via Evirus), where Miku copies someone from Morning Musume, apparently (I wonder what J. thinks about Miku's progeny displacing his faves), and inimitable Gekido.Obu.Hatsune: poor Shamus became second best with his bowling video.

As far as realtime kinematic and dynamic are concerned, there is an Western game called "Catch the Groove" or something like that. It plays like a fighting game, only the opponents dance as players mush buttons instead of pummeling each other. No motion capture, that. All that's left is taking the Groove's real-time mechanics, Idolmaster's real-time rendering, and maybe Miku's flexibility, and we'll create a monster: hikkis from all over the Internet race to create their own Sharon Apples... And one of them might even win.

UPDATE: J. e-mailed to let me know that he had posts dedicated to the lady dancing with Miku, and he's not a fan. He writes: "Koharu's dancing would be fine if she just never opened her mouth. :-)" I can see now that my shoutout may be read in different ways. I meant that once Miku is done destroying Koharu, she's bound to move to someone more talented. And she's a singing computer program in the first place.