Tomoka Tenkubashi

Tomoka Tenkubashi is one of the new idols introduced in THE iDOLM@STER: Million Live! series. She is voiced by Kotori Koiwai.

Personality
Tomoka is a young girl who acts and speaks in a polite and refined way. She calls her fans "piglets" because “it’s cuter than calling them lost sheeps”, and she thinks of herself as the Virgin Mary.

To explain what Tomoka is really like can be quite a complicated task. At first glance, she looks like a refined young lady, but when she opens her mouth, what comes out is polite but insulting words. Coupled with the fact that Tomoka calls her fans “piglets” and talks about how happy they are to be dominated by her, it’s easy to assume that she's a sadistic girl. Which might not be entirely wrong, but that isn't entirely true either.

First of all, a sadistic person is someone who inflicts pain, psychically or mentally, on others for the sake of their own pleasure, but look at Tomoka's hobby: making her fans happy. There are many moments in the game that show that Tomoka really loves her fans and works hard to please them. That isn't something a sadistic person would do. So one could say that the way she treats her fans is just a way she shows her love. It might be strange and twisted, but it still loves nonetheless because she really believes that they're happy to be dominated by her.

Along with the fact that she's always kind to her fellow idols and helps them whenever she can, it shows that she's not just a sadistic girl who looks down on others, but really what she claims herself to be: a holy mother who gives love and hope to the lost and the pitied. It’s just that she gives them love by becoming someone who they can worship and serve. In return, she’ll give them unconditional love, like the Virgin Mary.

In short, Tomoka is a kind girl who loves all people equally like a holy mother, but also she demands worship and total loyalty from all. She would like nothing more than a world where everyone can get along happily with each other, but she also believes that the only way the world can become such a happy place is by her domination over everyone as the holy mother.

Her image song “Maria Trap” also shows what she is really like (though this song is quite hard to interpret). The song is about the two sides of “Maria”: the kind and lovely “Maria” and the twisted and dominatrix “Maria”, and the madness that comes from conflicting two sides.

Her personality might come from the fact that she is loved by everyone she met since her childhood and it's hinted in the game that she might be Christian (her family owns a chapel, and she says things like “the lost sheep”, “the voice that cried out for (her) salvation”, etc) although it might or might not have influenced her ideals. Despite her personality, Tomoka still has a more normal and childish side, which she sometimes show to the Producer if they become close.

Etymology

 * The name Tomoka means "companion, friend" (朋) (tomo) and "flower, blossom" (花) (ka).
 * Tomoka's surname Tenkubashi means "heaven, sky" (天) (ten), "sky" (空) (ku) and "bridge" (橋) (hashi/bashi).