A few days ago, Omo posted this:

What is left is trying to know all the songs, and that is a task too tall even for me, lest I get serious. But I just want a short fling with iM@S! I don’t want to turn into [Author] (I jest).

When I saw it, I thought that he only needs to be patient and the urge will pass. However, here's Shin, a new convert, twittering:

iDOLM@STER ruined Berserk and BRS. For some reason it makes good artists forget about their current projects and focus on im@s instead.

It is difficult to say how far the franchize can go. Who knew that Miku is going to be that amazing? And I do suspect that Kadokawa expected more from Haruhi.

I thought IM@S was going to burn itself out long ago. I looked how Hibiki was a PETA-addled Makoto, and thought that the creators were scrapping the bottom of the creativity barrel. And the crazy trio? A victim of teenage pregnacy, seriously, is that what it takes now?

But that was before the TV anime. It was before Shinkan Shoujo. Before Omo knew Ami from Mami. Before Haruka questioned what it was being an idol.