Dia, the 4th Egg

"Amu-chan. Release it, your radiance!"

So, who is this diva?

Dia is a character from the anime and manga series Shugo Chara. She is the 4th and final of Amu Hinamori's Guardian Characters. Guardian Characters are these tiny fairies born from the egg of a child's heart, called the Heart's Egg. No Egg or Chara are alike, each representing the hopes and dreams of a child. Guardian Characters are hatched after someone experiences strong feelings. Guardian Characters are invisible to (not all) adults and kids without Guardian Characters. She is voiced by Kanae Itō, who also voices Amu.

In the Anime, Dia is... mysterious. Calm, wise, but cheery. She often keeps to herself, often staying in her egg and only appearing when help is needed. However, during the last season of the anime, Shugo Chara! Party, Dia started appearing more and more. In the manga, Dia is more like her sister Suu and behave like a bubbly, cheery idol. She is also obsessed with shiny things. Dia represents the radiance that emits from Amu's heart and her desire to be an idol like Utau Hoshina, which explains her pop star appearance.

History

Dia first appeared as an unhatched egg in episode 29 of the anime (Chapter 18 in the manga), Amu becomes depressed and stressed due to the many changes in the spring school term and Dia becomes corrupted, becoming an X-Egg. in the following episode, near the end of an altercation with Utau and her Charas, the X Diamond egg hatches and leaves with Utau.

As X-Dia, she is anti-social, distant, and only saw the flaws in people, not accepting those she deems without radiance. The next time Amu confronts X-Dia (Episode 43), she finally learns to accept her imperfections and radiance. This causes Dia's X to be removed and turn back to normal and is returned to Amu. Soon she and Amu tranform together and become Amulet Diamond, persumably one of Amu's most powerful transformations and the one with the most potent purifying capabilities.

For the rest of the anime, Dia has made sparse appearances, often retreating back to her egg. She has more appearances in the the short series: Shugo Chara! Pucchi Puchi! where the majority of the interaction involve the guardian characters only.

What does she mean to you??

There's a lot I can say about Dia but I think it's pretty sinmple: I was intriuged by her character; her demeanor and how wise she is compared to her sisters. Dia sees the beauty and capablities in all people which is a trait I've been trying to emulate for years. All and all, she continues to inspire me after all these years.

Apart form this, I always considered Dia's general aesthetic very pleasing to eye, even more than Miki's. Shades of yellow and orange, the diamond motif, the pop star look, and the penchant for shiny things. It all adds to the charming aura she has, she's like what we expect from an idealized celebrity, pop star type of person. I always found that refreshing. This character continues to make a impact on me, even after years after the orignal anime aired. I sometimes come back to this show but I always stay for Dia.