Ever scrolled through Pixiv or Twitter and felt a sudden, cold chill from a piece of horse girl fanart? It's not the racing. It's not the idol performances. It’s that specific, heavy-lidded stare. That’s the still loves you uma musume phenomenon in a nutshell.
It's weird.
If you’re a casual fan of Uma Musume: Pretty Derby, you probably see the franchise as a high-energy mix of sports drama and cute girls doing cute things. You've got Special Week trying her best and Gold Ship being a chaotic gremlin. But there is a massive, shadow-drenched corner of the fandom dedicated to a "Yandere" interpretation that has taken on a life of its own.
The Core of the still loves you uma musume Meme
Basically, this trope focuses on the idea of an Uma Musume—usually one with a canonical streak of devotion—becoming dangerously obsessed with her Trainer. The "still loves you" part implies a history. Maybe you tried to quit. Maybe you tried to retire. Maybe you just didn't pick her for the next training scenario.
Whatever the reason, she isn't letting go.
In the actual Cygames mobile game, the bond between Trainer and girl is the emotional backbone of the story. It’s wholesome. It’s professional. Mostly. But the internet loves to take "mostly" and turn it into "terrifyingly intense." When people talk about still loves you uma musume, they are referencing a specific flavor of fan-made content where the horse girls use their supernatural strength and speed to ensure their Trainer never leaves.
Think about it. These girls can run at 70 kilometers per hour. They can pull heavy tires for breakfast. If a girl like Rice Shower or Manhattan Cafe decided you were her "Destiny," you aren't exactly going to win a wrestling match to get away.
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Why This Specific Trope Took Over Japanese Social Media
Fan culture in Japan, particularly around "Moegames," often goes through cycles of "Darkness." You see it with Kantai Collection or Blue Archive. But Uma Musume is different because the power dynamic is so skewed.
The "still loves you" tag usually features characters like Rice Shower, who is canonically shy and slightly insecure, or Agnes Tachyon, whose scientific curiosity can easily be written as "mad scientist obsession." Fans latched onto the idea that their devotion doesn't end when the race does.
One of the most famous catalysts for the still loves you uma musume trend was the sheer volume of "Yandere" fan-fics on sites like Pixiv and SS (Short Story) boards. These stories often follow a template: The Trainer tries to move on to a new horse girl, and the previous one... well, she has thoughts. Intense, heavy, "I've been watching you sleep" thoughts.
The Contrast Factor
Why do people like this? Contrast.
The game is bright. The colors are saturated. The music is upbeat.
When you introduce a still loves you uma musume narrative, you’re subverting that polished corporate image. It’s the "uncanny valley" of emotions. Seeing a character who is usually a symbol of sportsmanship suddenly standing in a dark hallway holding a halter is a shock to the system. It's effective horror because it uses familiar characters in unfamiliar, suffocating ways.
The Most "Heavy" Characters in the Meta
If you look at the tags, certain girls appear more than others. It isn't random.
Manhattan Cafe is a huge one. Her design is already "goth-adjacent," and her connection to the "Friend" (the supernatural entity in her story) makes her a perfect candidate for the still loves you uma musume treatment. Then you have Mayano Top Gun. In the game, she’s a bit of a flirt and very clingy. The fan artists just take that clinginess and crank it up to eleven until she’s locking the office door.
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Then there's Grass Wonder.
Oh boy.
In the anime and the game, Grass is polite, refined, and deeply competitive—especially regarding Special Week. Fans have transformed this "Yamato Nadeshiko" (the ideal Japanese woman) persona into a "Quiet Horror" trope. The idea is that the most polite girl is the one hiding the most intense, unbreakable obsession.
Dealing with the "Heavy" Sentiment
In-game, there is actually a term for this: "Omoi" (Heavy).
When a girl’s affection feels like a physical weight, the Japanese fandom calls her "Omoi Musume." The still loves you uma musume meme is just the logical, darker conclusion of that "heavy" feeling. It’s a reflection of the "Gachikoi" culture—fans who are "seriously in love" with a fictional character—projected back onto the characters themselves.
Honestly, it’s a bit of a psychological mirror. The player spends hundreds of hours (and often thousands of dollars) "training" these girls. The fan art just flips the script: What if the girl was just as invested in you?
It's not just about the horror, though. For some, the still loves you uma musume trope is strangely comforting. In a world where digital characters are fleeting and gacha cycles move fast, there’s a weird appeal to the idea of a character whose love is so permanent that it becomes a haunting. It's a twisted version of loyalty.
How to Navigate the Fandom Without Getting Creeped Out
If you're just here for the racing, the still loves you uma musume side of the internet can be a lot.
Most of this content is clearly tagged. On Pixiv, you’ll see tags like #ウマ娘プリティーダービー(二次創作) often paired with darker descriptors. If you see a drawing of Rice Shower where her eyes lack the little white "sparkle" (the famous "dead eyes" look), you’ve entered the "still loves you" zone.
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- Check the Artist’s History: Many artists specialize in this "dark" Uma content. If you find one piece, their whole gallery is likely a fever dream of obsession.
- Understand the Memes: Knowing that this is a community-driven "alternate universe" helps separate it from the actual characters you like in the game.
- Mute Keywords: If the "heavy" stuff isn't for you, muting "yandere" or "omoi" in Japanese characters (病んでれ, 重い) will clear up your feed significantly.
The Impact on the Franchise
Cygames is very protective of their IP. They have strict guidelines about "R-18" content and anything that damages the reputation of the real-life racehorses the girls are based on. Interestingly, the still loves you uma musume trope occupies a gray area.
It’s usually not "lewd" in the traditional sense. It’s psychological. Because it doesn't involve the real horses in a scandalous way, it tends to fly under the radar of the corporate lawyers, even though it's undeniably darker than anything the official brand would ever produce.
It’s a fascinating look at how a community can take a bright, commercial product and find the shadows in the corners. Whether you find it disturbing or deeply compelling, the still loves you uma musume phenomenon isn't going anywhere. It’s a permanent fixture of the subculture, a reminder that behind every "Good Luck!" and "Victory V," there's a fan-written story about a horse girl who refuses to let the race end.
If you want to dive deeper into this, start by looking into the specific "Scenario" fan comics on Twitter. They often use the "Trainer-san" POV to make the reader feel like they are the one being hunted. It's a masterclass in how to build tension with minimal dialogue and a lot of shadow. Just remember: in this version of the game, there is no "Exit" button that actually works.
Practical Next Steps for Fans
- Audit your feed: If you’re seeing too much "heavy" content, start following the official Uma Musume "PakaLive" updates to recalibrate your algorithm toward the wholesome side.
- Explore Character Lore: Read the official translations of the "Secret" files in the game; you'll see where the fans get their "heavy" inspiration—some of the official lines are surprisingly intense.
- Support the Original: If the fan-made "Darkness" gets to be too much, go back and watch the second season of the anime. It’s a pure, emotional rollercoaster about sportsmanship that reminds you why these characters were loved in the first place.