Gawr Gura returns in massive stream as new vtuber Sameko Saba

Former Hololive star Gawr Gura has returned to the vtuber scene as independent performer Sameko Saba, and her debut stream drew more than 200,000 live concurrent viewers, making it one of the biggest vtuber debuts ever seen.

The debut of independent vtuber Sameko Saba made waves when fans figured out it was the return of Hololive’s shark girl, Gawr Gura. The former Hololive vtuber left the agency at the beginning of 2025 due to disagreements with management. This didn’t necessariliy surprise her fans, but they were delighted when they heard Sameko Saba’s voice in a teaser video and deduced that Gawr Gura was returning as the independent vtuber.

Sameko Saba continued to post teasers on her X account and eventually shared the date of her debut. The vtuber didn’t extensively advertise her debut, but Gawr Gura’s fans followed her to her new identity regardless. Sameko Saba’s debut reached over 200,000 peak live viewers, with her numbers continuing to increase in the stream as she went along.

Sameko Saba debuts her full vtuber model

Fans finally got to see the look Gawr Gura will use as her new persona, Sameko Saba, and viewers couldn’t stop praising the vtuber’s new model.

Sameko Saba had already teased her new model in her tweets, so fans knew more or less what to expect, but the vtuber surprised them with just how diminutive she now is. The long golden hair was just as fans expected, and the vtuber used lifebuoys as accessories for her hair, maintaining her previous iteration’s ocean theme. She also has fuzzy ears and a blue shark tail.  Her outfit is a short white skirt that looks like a sailor uniform, and she wears a blue wristband.

The vtuber didn’t waste much time with her model reveal and immediately displayed that the outfit’s shirt could be modified to her preference. The vtuber highlighted that she had put in much effort into her model by showcasing the various expressions it can display. She showed a happy face, a sad look, a smug expression, and many others.

Sameko Saba continuously stated in her stream that she was doing this all for the first time, but fans who recognized her as Gawr Gura playfully rebutted that she was holding back on directly revealing her past life. It’s normal for vtubers who go independent after graduating to not talk about their past lives. However, the fact that many fans recognized Gawr Gura is why Sameko Saba’s debut stream shattered records and became one of the most-watched vtuber debut streams in history.

The vtuber’s YouTube subscribers and channel membership also increased significantly during the stream, and the numbers are still going up as of this writing.