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A self-proclaimed vampire who possesses a wealth of knowledge, but is vulnerable in the morning. He has a strong connection with the comrades he considers family despite being so philosophically profound.

Dotes on his younger brother Ritsu Sakuma. With a mellow voice that entices the audience, his performance is tender yet powerful.

A member of Rhythm Link, as well as UNDEAD's leader.

I am Rei Sakuma, an idol performing in the unit UNDEAD, working under the group, Rhythm Link. …Hm? Oh, my manner of speech? Well, I am a vampire after all. My speech patterns are akin to that of the elderly, due to my old age♪ Though fear not, for my seniority has no effect on our performances on stage. If something is expected of me, I shall execute. No matter what the desires of the audience may be… First and foremost, you should watch my live performance with your very own eyes.[2]

Rei Sakuma-senpai is in charge of UNDEAD, and is our unit’s leader. He is a man full of mystery, and one simply cannot explain him in a handful of words. As an idol, Sakuma-senpai has plenty of skill and charisma, however he also occasionally partakes in odd activities, like sleeping in a coffin. …Will this suffice for an introduction? I still struggle a bit with speaking, so this was quite difficult… With all that said, I thoroughly respect Sakuma-senpai. I too, as a member of UNDEAD, will put forth my best effort to one day stand toe-to-toe with Sakuma-senpai.[2]

AdonisAdonis ES

Ensemble Stars! Introduction

A self-proclaimed "vampire" who finds it hard to be active during the daytime thanks to his weakness to sunlight. One of the "Three Eccentrics" and once a member of the former "Five Eccentrics" as well.

Rei talks like an old man and knows a good deal about the academy's history. He's the eldest among the third year students after having spent a year studying abroad. Though he dotes on his little brother Ritsu Sakuma often, the person in question actually loathes him.

A member of the unit UNDEAD, as well as its leader. Though he watches over the mismatched members of his group with their strong personalities that often clash, he tends to let them act freely.


Appearance[]

Rei is a tall young man with a good build. He has slightly long, wavy black hair that stops at his shoulders and curves inward, and red eyes. He wears a black-striped, loosely-fit mid-sleeved shirt with a cross chain around his neck, tucked under his shirt. He also wears dark-washed jeans with a long link chain clasped to the side and red stud earrings.

On stage, Rei wears UNDEAD's uniform, a black jacket with a small fur collar, silver accents and a dark purple lapel. The jacket has a black and gold epaulette with thin silver ropes flowing from it on the right side, as well as gray side strip on the sleeves outlined with silver, and a strap on the lapel tied and clipped to look like a small belt. Attached to the jacket is a long, black/purple layered tail coat with a silver outline. On Rei's left arm is a purple arm-band embroidered with a gold design, resembling a bat. Underneath the jacket is a gray v-neck shirt. He wears a black belt with a silver buckle and chain accessory hanging from the loop. Rei wears black jeans with small yellow buttons, and knee high lace-up black boots with silver lining and gold buttons, a flap in the front and a small zipper on the side. Rei wears a black choker with a gold belt buckle, as well as a black pointed cap with silver lines. He also wears black palm gloves with gold lining.

Ensemble Stars! Appearance

Rei is a tall young man with a good build. He has slightly long, wavy black hair that stops at his shoulders and curves inward, and red eyes. He wears the school uniform with the white shirt unbuttoned at the collar and a green tie. Over the shirt, he wears a dull brown sweater with dark gray buttons under his school blazer, which is left unbuttoned. He also wears black loafers and red stud earrings.

On stage he wears UNDEAD's uniform. It includes a fur-lined jacket with half sleeves. It has double buttons on the front, outlined in red. The sides of the arms of the jacket are grey with a white pattern. The lining on the jacket is white. He wears a dark gray v-necked shirt that's tucked in. He also wears a dark gray belt, with a golden buckle. On the side, there's a dark gray bandanna with a white pattern. It has a golden beaded chain. He wears black pants and high black boots that cross down over the top. He wears a silver cross necklace, and black gloves with holes on the back of the hand. The outfit also has a black peaked cap, decorated with a silver beaded chain across the top.


Personality[]

Rei, at first glance, appears to be distant yet wise, taking upon the persona of an immortal vampire with boundless knowledge. During his time in Yumenosaki, he spent most of the daylight hours sleeping in his coffin, and was very disconnected from the rest of the school. He still has a soft spot for his little brother, Ritsu. However, deep down, he is highly empathetic and loves humanity greatly, yet consistently struggles with isolation and loneliness.

During The War, Rei was best described as a slave to humanity’s whims and his own empathy. During his last year at Yumenosaki Academy, he had become unnaturally distant and closed off as a means of self-preservation. Post-Repayment Festival, Rei finally becomes able to move forward, and consolidate these both extremes into one human, and enter society as himself; not as a god or a vampire high above society.

Most of Rei’s actions and feelings stem from a lengthy history of loneliness and isolation, ever since he was a child. Growing up, his disease prevented him from living a normal life outside and making friends; he instead developed an affinity with books and would read in excess. Even as just a child, he was considered more well-read and more intelligent than most adults.

He is a highly empathetic person, and loves humanity to the point that he cannot ignore a person who is suffering. However, this high emotional intelligence of his led him to his reputation as a “god”. His high intelligence and proficiency in giving advice resulted in him beginning to be exalted as a god-like figure, as adults would approach Rei to have their problems solved by him.[3] Unable to refuse a person in need, Rei took on that emotional burden and began to attribute being a vessel for advice and guidance as a core part of his existence. Rei began to notice people his age fearing him and avoiding him, isolating him further.

By his first year in Yumenosaki Academy, he was disillusioned with the world, and by his second year, he was bored of the world and continually sought out excitement.[4] However, he never was able to distance himself from humanity, and continues to take on burden after burden of helping others. Hyper-aware of his place in the world, Rei felt he had to continually prove himself out of fear. If he couldn’t respond to the constant demands of people around him, he was scared he would be deemed a failure, and lose his place.[5]

And so, he disciplined himself and responded to every demand in order to “affirm his existence”. This need for affirmation ultimately led to his destruction and execution during The War. Every time Rei went abroad, he would make acquaintances, get deeply and emotionally involved in them, and then become loved and relied on by everyone. The emotional burden of catering to everyone’s needs, and then having it be weaponized against him[6], finally took its physical toll on Rei; resulting in the Rei we see in the !-era.

Rei from then on resolved to change himself, as a means to protect himself. He began to make efforts in distancing himself from humanity, no longer meddling in others’ personal matters—and if he did, he would take a backseat approach. He begins to take on the persona of an “old man”. When asked about it by Tsumugi, Rei tells him that it’s because he's physically weakened from The War.[7] In truth, this new persona of Rei’s grants him the image of feebleness, so people wouldn’t demand or expect things from him. Through this, Rei is able to alleviate himself of the unconscionable burden of his intelligence and prowess. In another attempt to detach him further from humanity as he heals, Rei also strengthens his vampire persona, taking on an inhuman identity and describing himself as more akin to a monster.

In the end, however, Rei cannot fully reject his core values, and remains to crave connection with others.[8] He still continues to meddle with other’s affairs, often without permission, as seen in Setsubun Festival and Romantic Comedy.

However, when it comes to himself, he has become rather careless and forgetful. He's been shown to forget to eat and drink expired tomato juice without paying attention.[9] Once, Rei wanted somewhere cool to sleep and ended up sleeping on the cafeteria floor, despite Mao's concerns about how that may be unsanitary.[10] Both UNDEAD and the Aoi twins are shown to look after Rei, who teasingly plays up how helpless he is (being elderly) without assistance.[11][12] However, Rei often does make genuine blunders and requires physical assistance, but he acts as if he were merely playing up his old man persona so he is often not taken seriously.[13][14]

As time passes, Rei’s able to rediscover his own humanity through both UNDEAD, and later Ritsu[15]. By the time the Repayment Festival comes around, Rei’s persona as an “immortal vampire” has broken down, and he is able to accept himself as human. Using Keito’s words; time begins to move forward again for him[16], and Rei’s growth is able to come to fruition.

Etymology[]

Rei's first name (零) means "zero". “Saku” (朔) in his last name refers to the first day of the lunar month, which begins with a new moon. “Ma” (間) refers to an “interval of time”. Together with his first name, this gives a meaning of a moonless night. The moon motif also complements the Tsukuyomi imagery that he represents in the Three Oddballs.[17]

Family[]

For more information, see Rei Sakuma/Family.

Not much is known about the Sakumas, they tend to keep familial matters private as can be and appear mysterious to the public to really sell the image of a vampire clan; "living in the darkness", as Rei describes it. They resort to extremes in order to do so, such as when they threatened a detective sent by Eichi to gather information on the Sakumas[18] while plotting Rei's downfall. Ritsu warns Eichi from there on out that his family dislikes their affairs being looked into. Eichi describes the Sakuma clan as a "social minority".[18]

The Sakumas have a long history of worshiping vampire mythos and see the symptoms of their hereditary illness as a mark of pride because they resemble vampiric characteristics, such as the sustenance for blood (which can be linked to anemia, which Rei suffers from) and weakness in daylight, causing the Sakumas to be more active after the sun sets which in turn results in preferred nocturnal sleeping habits. Due to the pride in their lineage and worshiping habits, they actively choose not to find a cure for their illness, going as far as stopping Rei from looking into it when he was overseas. Rei's brother, Ritsu, is especially affected by his condition, disabling him more noticeably than Rei. This played a major part in why Rei was eager to find a cure.

An image of Rei Sakuma welcoming the Sakuma clan members to the Resurrection Sunday ritual held at Yumenosaki. He is standing amidst the crowd of Sakuma clan members, with a spotlight shining on him. He holds one arm out and the other over his chest, facing the crowd, but his eyes make contact with the viewer instead.

The Sakuma clan appear to dress in Victorian Era clothing in modern times, as seen when Rei greets them in Resurrection Sunday. They also annually host a family gathering at Transylvania, where the infamous Count Dracula originally hailed from, and celebrate Easter by drinking the blood of a "sacrifice", which Rei has expressed distaste for, despite the clan abandoning the idea of actually sacrificing someone as time went by.

The Sakuma clan appear to be distant towards their own relatives, since Rei had to take care of and raise Ritsu himself, despite also being a child at the time. They express little to no sympathy from the impression Rei and Ritsu have of them. This takes a toll on Rei emotionally and mentally, as seen in First Dreams when he was worn out at the thought of their scolding upon hearing the news of his long-awaited graduation, rather than praise him for this accomplishment. It's worth noting that the pressure they placed on Rei as the next head of the clan almost caused Rei to quit being an idol and feel obligated to heed his family's wishes before his own, which Ritsu speaks up against.

Trivia[]

  • He shares the same birthday as Izumi Sena.
  • Rei is the only one to not have a spoken line in the first verse of Melody in the Dark.
  • He can play the violin, and, like Ritsu, he can play the piano. It is shown he can also play the drums.[19]
    • He used to play the electric guitar, but has since stopped some time in his second year, as he is shown giving it away to Koga.[20]
  • He can't stand the taste of blood and takes iron tablets instead and prefers tomato juice.[21]
  • Rei uses kaomojis in his texting habits, having sent one to Wataru when telling him he couldn't be at his party.[22]
  • Rei is often so careless he'll forget to eat and drink expired tomato juice without paying attention.[23]
  • Rei states that his coffin, built by Natsume[24], also doubles as a living space, and by tricking it with excellent arranging skills, he's able to fit in items such as manga borrowed from one of the Aoi twins, gardening magazines, clothes and even a refrigerator full of dry-cured ham.
  • Madara is Rei's successor.[25]
    • Though it's unclear what exactly being Rei's "successor" entails, Madara has referenced he's learned a number of underhanded means of persuasion from Rei.[26]
    • Ritsu states that Madara is often over at their home for that reason.[27]
  • Rei, despite his vampiric persona, is actually not adverse to garlic. Once with the light music club, he begins admiring garlic bulbs that Koga had grown before Adonis comments on it, reminding him that garlic and crosses are not something vampires should come into contact with.[28]
  • Rei used to be the student council president until Eichi took over.[29][20]
    • Rei states he only took over this position because Keito asked him to, as he considered Keito a friend from childhood.
    • Rei implies his fondness for Keito initially from the fact that, whereas the people around him would be taken in by his charisma and grow dependent on him, Keito, as a child, would continue to try and defy Rei.
  • Rei, Keito, and Koga were once a part of a unit called DEADMANS (also translated as "DEADMANZ" and "Deadman's").[20] This unit was later transformed into UNDEAD.[30]
  • Leo states that Rei would often fall unconscious around school and Leo would often be the one to find and help him.[31]
  • Ever since Rei was a child, he was considered beautiful and intelligent. He would wander around graveyards and adults would come to him for advice, and he accidentally developed a following of devotees who would live by his every word despite his young age. This continued even as he grew.[20]
    • Keito describes this as being reduced to "zero," like Rei's namesake, as Rei was so capable and intelligent that, in his opinion, it meant there was no point in existing so long as Rei did.
  • Koga states that while during his second year Rei spoke and behaved in a free-wheeling, punk-like manner, after "breaking down," Rei began to speak like an old man.[32][20]
  • Ritsu and Rei's vampiric condition is a genuine illness that makes them nocturnal, weak to sunlight, and thirst for blood as sustenance.[20]
    • This condition is hereditary, and Rei explains that much of his family, which worships vampire mythos, sees it as a mark of pride.
    • Their family believes themselves to be vampires, and perform a "blood drinking" ritual on Easter, and have a yearly reunion in Transylvania.[30]
    • Because of this condition, he has a coffin which he sleeps in a lot. The only way to wake him up is the sound of a flute or when it’s night time.

Voice Actor Comment[]

"I felt that this is a character very worth portraying. He speaks like an old man; he has to repeat a grade; everyone treats him like a weirdo; and most of all, he's Dracula. I had a lot of fun acting out this character with so many quirky traits. Sakuma Rei... a great character, indeed." (Enstars!)

"Congratulations on the release of the new chapter of Ensemble Stars!! Basic and the new application Ensemble Stars!! Music. There's still so many doors waiting to be opened, and nothing could make me happier than performing as Rei as he continues to change. Thanks for all your continued support, so strong that it even rivals the way they always keep trying their best!" * (Enstars!!)

Rei Sakuma
Rei Sakuma Circle

Story IndexIdol Story Birthday Story  Appeal Talk Minitalk

Sub Story Management Story Mini Event Intimate Event Greeting Event Produce Course

UNDEAD Rei Sakuma Kaoru Hakaze Koga Oogami Adonis Otogari
Characters
[Expand]
fine Eichi Tenshouin · Wataru Hibiki · Tori Himemiya · Yuzuru Fushimi
Trickstar Hokuto Hidaka · Subaru Akehoshi · Makoto Yuuki · Mao Isara
RYUSEITAI Chiaki Morisawa · Kanata Shinkai · Tetora Nagumo · Midori Takamine · Shinobu Sengoku
ALKALOID Hiiro Amagi · Aira Shiratori · Mayoi Ayase · Tatsumi Kazehaya
Eden Nagisa Ran · Hiyori Tomoe · Ibara Saegusa · Jun Sazanami
Valkyrie Shu Itsuki · Mika Kagehira
2wink Hinata Aoi · Yuta Aoi
Crazy:B Rinne Amagi · HiMERU · Kohaku Oukawa · Niki Shiina
UNDEAD Rei Sakuma · Kaoru Hakaze · Koga Oogami · Adonis Otogari
Ra*bits Tomoya Mashiro · Nazuna Nito · Mitsuru Tenma · Hajime Shino
AKATSUKI Keito Hasumi · Kuro Kiryu · Souma Kanzaki
Knights Tsukasa Suou · Leo Tsukinaga · Izumi Sena · Ritsu Sakuma · Arashi Narukami
Switch Natsume Sakasaki · Tsumugi Aoba · Sora Harukawa
MaM Madara Mikejima
Double Face Madara Mikejima · Kohaku Oukawa
Others Anzu · Jin Sagami · Akiomi Kunugi · Seiya Hidaka · Gatekeeper · Hitsugi Kurone
Supporting Characters Pets · Mademoiselle · Bishoujo Idol · NewDi President · Mr. Writer · GFK · Godfather · NEGI · Kaname Tojo · Maguro Mikejima · Shu's Grandfather · Macky · Mitsunari Samejima · Samejima's Manager
Collaborations Hello Kitty · Yume100 · Welcome to the Ballroom · Merc Storia · Last Period · Yowamushi Pedal · King of Prism

Sources[]

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