Change for Better or for Worse in Hello Project

A lot of H!P fans weren't too far off when they predicted that Niigaki and Takahashi would graduate together.  Niigaki announced that she will be graduating at the end of their spring tour.  They may not have done it together, but Niigaki sure didn't last much longer.  Although, I don't know why she didn't go with her.  I guess Niigaki didn't want to be overshadowed.  Now there are rumors flying around about graduations and new members being added to the other Hello Project groups.  Hello Project is being weird like that.  Their music and strategy at the moment seems to be to hold onto their core fan base, but with all the changes in members will they stick?  Or better yet, will the other members?  Key members of Morning Musume have jumped ship but that isn't surprising because it was only a matter of time.  However, s/mileage was a surprise.  

I've kind of lost interest in Hello Project.  The main reason is that I'm not very intrigued by their music.  S/mileage was a beacon of hope when they went major, but their singles following their first album were underwhelming like the rest of Hello Project (in my opinion).  I finally got what I wanted for Morning Musume: graduation of Niigaki and Takahashi and new members.  I fear that it won't help if the music side doesn't try harder.  I'm giving up on seeing Hello Project take risks.  I find it dull.  My new dream is that they quit and audition for NMB, HKT, of start a new idol group.  If they have ambition they would leave.  Sorry if that opinion hurts your feelings.  (Look at it this way.  I think the girls aren't living up to their potential.) 

Mina's 30 Day Idol Challenge: An Idol I Dislike

TAKAHASHI AI
This isn't anything new either.  There are idols that come and go from my dislike list, mostly due to fake behavior.  This might be due to the fact that I'm from the Midwest.  In the Midwest we don't tend to be upfront about things, so I tend to read in between the lines when it comes to behavior.  It is the small things.  This is kind of crazy because I adore Maeda Atsuko who gets a similar personality description as Takahashi.  What I think causes the difference is Takahashi over doing the sexy/ confidence thing and not being herself.  I'm not sure, but she comes off conceited to me.  It doesn't help she gets a ton of solo lines.  The good news is she will be graduating but not leaving Up Front Works.  That means she will do some TV appearances, musicals/ plays, maybe release a photobook, possibly join Dream Musume, and if she is lucky a couple of solo singles.  The agency hasn't been doing a good job with their talent backed up from Morning Musume graduates, so I don't expect to see her around much afterwards.

Only You Morning Musume

For those of you paying attention, this makes the 46th single of supergroup Morning Musume. I'll put the video first and my comments second.



First, I'm in love with the visuals, the white dresses (or shorts and shirts in some of the cases) and crystal theme is really pretty. The background, while fairly simple reminds me a bit of the Kimagure Princess setting, which is a good thing for me. The song itself is simply perfection for me, it's proving that even with the younger girls in the group it can still have a more mature song. I loved Aika's hair, reverting back to Onna to Otoko no Lullaby Game.

The negatives: Poor Kanon's hair! Seriously that was not a good look for her all pulled back as it was.

Tsunku, still milking Tanakahashi's vocal duo but at least Gaki is getting plenty of screen time and vocal time (even if they autotuned it but I think it fit nicely into the song so I'm not complaining. And being the next leader it's good to get her out in the front more.)

Really? Riho? She's as cute as a button but why give her all of the lines out of the kyukkies? Maybe this is just my favoritism to Kanon but where were the rest of the kyukkies? Or Aika for that matter? Anyone seen Sayumi? Beuller? Beuller? I think it's great that Tsunku is giving one of the kyukkies a chance to shine, but let them all show off. Here's to hoping that the rest of the girls will get a chance to show off when Tanakahashi is seperated.

Now I know I've talked down on Tanakahashi a lot but I still adore them my hope for the future is that they'll both graduate and form a sub-group of their own, because really, that would be a great duo.

I guess I'll wrap this up with some more positivity and some unrelated news. Mari Yaguchi is getting married! At the age of 28 she has finally decided to tie the knot (and her husband is over six feet tall! Talk about height difference!) So congrats to Marippe and her new fiance! Gambatte!

Another Graduation Announcement for Morning Musume!

Morning Musume's leader, Takahashi Ai (24), will be graduating after the 2011 Fall Concert Tour from both Morning Musume and Hello! Project.  This is quite surprising, and not.  She has been a member for about 10 years now, and has been a leaders for quite a while as well.  She is also getting to her mid-twenties which isn't really a 'girl' time of your life.  However, most fans weren't expecting it because of the recent graduations, the addition of new members, and the fact that she is basically the lead-vocalist of Morning Musume.

I know that a lot of fans will be quite upset by this news.  The only sad thing for me is that Niigaki won't be leaving with her (as far as we know).  Apparently, this was spurred by Tsunku himself.  He met with Takahashi to talk about when she would like to graduate.  I am excited because this means Morning Musume is likely to develop a new sound. What I am concern about is Tsunku rushing another album out.  Their last album, in my opinion, was a disappointment.  Tsunku will either try to pop out another album or just stick with a single or two so not to overload the new members.

Leadership will be passed onto Niigaki, but here is the new question: Who will become the sub-leader?  There is only two 6th generation members who are both 21, Sayumi Michishige and Reina Tanaka.  Both have expressed interest in leadership positions in the past.  Who do you want to become leader?  Who do you think Tsunku will select?  Who do you think will make a better leader?

My first thought was something like a victory lap in my mind.  My next suspicion was: Is Tsunku that desperate?  He might have a plan for Takahashi as a part of Up Front Agency or something.  But my thought was all the attention the recent graduations got.  Just think about Morning Musume's most popular and well-known member.  They did get higher sales on that graduation single.

Overall?  I am content with this news.  The group has already done the first two steps I thought it needed in order to turn things around (new members and new leadership).  Maybe Niigaki will be more like Captain than a Takahashi.

I Miss You Morning Musume

You will always remember your first.  Ayumi Hamasaki is who, I consider, my first favorite J-pop artist; I don't really consider her an idol even if it was from her earlier days.  Then, Morning Musume was my first idol group.  Recently, the OG performed with the current Morning Musume on Hey! Hey! Hey! during a special.  I heard something about them being banned.  Is that true, and does anyone know why?  Anyway, It was a great performance, which was a medley of their early (which were also big) hits.  (Notice how none of the songs are new or even included the current members when they were released.)  As expected, most of the solo lines went to the OG members, which probably doesn't bother the fans too much considering we miss them.  Unfortunately (also as expected), any good solo lines that went to the current line up went to Ms. Takahashi (I decided I won't refer to her in informally because I don't like her anymore and that is the Japanese way).  In fact, I would say the current line up was there out of courtesy and as good eye-candy and support for their senpai.  Considering that it is only a special, so there was a fixed amount of singing time, it does make sense that most of the attention went to the OG.  I enjoyed it myself, but I felt bad for the other girls.  Especially, the members that are about to graduate.  I would of given Ms. Takahashi's nice solo lines to Eri.  The members did get some good shared lines with the OG and some short solo stuff, so it is fine.

I still want to see Niigaki and Ms. Takahashi graduate because until that day Morning Musume doesn't stand a chance at evolving.  I think Reina would make a good leader and she still looks young and fresh, so she would make a good transition into a new era.  I think it is sad the Pandas are being forced out considering they never got a chance at the line-light.  They may of decided themselves that it was best to get out now, but LinLin's blog hints that it wasn't her decision.  I'm surprised Tsunku didn't use them for more attention because they had potential to be TV personalities like Shige-chan.  Shige (Michishige Sayumi) should also get more of a push.  I know she isn't the best singer or dancer, but she appears in a lot more outside work than most girls (magazines, TV shows, &ct).  What really got me depressed about the current line up was watching Fashionable, their new musical.  Of course it focused on Ms. Takahashi, but beyond that it was boring.  There weren't any good songs at all either.  (I must admit I wouldn't enjoy any songs if Ms. Takahashi sang them.)  I liked the concept of something fashion related because I adore Japanese fashion, but I was severely disappointed.  It did remind me (and her recent trailer) that I still can enjoy Niigaki's presence.  The plot was partly to blame, and the fact that the group numbers were pathetic.  Morning Musume's recent single made a good fit for the musical, and I actually enjoyed its place there.  (It is still not good enough to be a single.)  I wish the plot was more about the conflict among women.  Even a shallow bullying plot would of been better; I'm a sucker for those.  It seemed the conflict between the members left something to be desired.  I also expected that the members would be closer to equal footing during a musical.  It just reflected the similar state of the group.  Shige-chan got some good screen time, but I think that partly comes from her station as a TV personality.  Just saying.  (I am watching their DVD from when they went to LA and so far it is pretty interesting.  It makes me miss the members, but soon that will change.)

Now last but least, I will summarize and maybe share my thoughts on a recent appearance of Shige-chan on a TV special.  She appeared with another Morning Musume member, but no one currently in the group.  The one thing I have to say is that I wish the other segments, besides Shige-chan's,  were subtitled as well.  It was a two hour special, which is hard so I understand.  However, the focus sounded interesting and Sayaka (AKB48) was present.  They didn't even subtitle the showdown that we hear about.  I do think this is one of my better summaries, if I do say so myself.  It is more than just captions.

Usa-chan PEACE!  Wait isn't there a day for that like every month?  I need to check my post on Usa-chan Peace Day.

They are talking about girls who act differently in front of men than women and ones that don't get along.  Basically, it is about women who are cute and have issues with other women.  She is talking about how she tries to eat small food or small bites in front of men.  I find these open talks fascinating.  Not only because of the humor and watching my darling Mikitty and Shige.  (For some reason every time I hear Shige I think butt, maybe because it sounds like shake a bit.)  Also because they  not only reveal things about Japanese culture you wouldn't always find out until you went there, and general human behavior and communication.  AP Psychology was a good class.  Shout out to Mr. Ray (that doesn't read this).

See!  She explains the reasoning because she thinks it is cute and that concept of cute derives from anime which is two dimensional!  I just thought this would make an interesting essay or example in a thesis about anime or cuteness (LOL).

There is the same old fun of people being shocked by Sayu's behavior.  This one is particularly delicious because you don't only have Mikitty's and the other women's honest reactions but reactions by the guys that don't consider her cute.  Of course, I think Sayu is cute.  She isn't just cute because of her looks, which aren't off the charts but I wouldn't consider average either.  I think cute comes more from behavior and how you present yourself.  Amina Sato isn't the cutest girl on the block, however the combination of her eyes, long hair, style, and mostly her voice and behavior.  It is more about personality; looks do help though.

Mikitty, my favorite frank OG, is acting as one of the hosts.  I have to say her voice sounds higher than it used to be.

Look, Shige is even cute embarrassed.  See how her pinky sticks up slightly and how you can see her delicate wrist.  (Tip for being cute for women: wear your watch on the inside of your wrist/ the opposite side of how you would usually.  Yes, it is harder to show off in general if your watch is nice.  The trick is that when you look at your watch you will accent your wrist which shows off femininity.)  Mikitty was talking about the same subject, but this humanizes Shige.  She isn't perfect and has the same trouble most women have about weight.  I still can't understand how Japanese women hate her so much.  All I see is the act of being a TV personality, even if you don't find it entertaining wouldn't you be able to understand it is for entertainment purposes?

Look of that positioning.  I guess Sayu is someone who is naturally cute.

Oh come on.  Even her little profile pic for this special is unbelievably cute!

Next is Ms. Takahashi behind the scenes info about Shige.  It states that Sayu is actually really quiet backstage and when asked about it she says that she wants to save/ not waste her charm or energy.  (along those lines)  Shock and astonishment by the other celebs.  I knew Sayu was a quiet person.  If you have to put on an act all the time I bet you would be quiet.  Yes, I am sticking with my theory that Sayu is misunderstood and that she wants to be an idol really badly so she makes herself a character for attention.  Even with her being a personality she doesn't get much in Morning Musume.  I think this character gives her more push than the agency and Hello! Project gives her (even within H!P). 

A story about Mikitty and Sayu being themselves.

I do think that Sayu is a naturally cute person, either that or she really knows how to put all the details into her performance.

Now I don't know if this is a twisted story that she includes to project the character, but if it is it is a nice touch.  This would be something that would make me think poorly of Sayu.

This goes back to my theory that she has had issues with bullying and that she is lonely.  There have been polls done saying that she is one of the most hated people by women in Japan.  (Maybe not the most reliable statistic, but it was announced on TV.)  I bet she is really lonely, plus all those trolls on her blog can't be good for your self esteem.

I've Just Been Thinking Lately. . .

Is Himawari-gumi 2nd Stage the best stage ever?  I watched it for the first time and I loved both versions.  I've haven't seen that many of the early stages, but this one had so much variety.  One was similar to senbatsu and the other was Undergirls combined with a ton of graduates.  I might do a poll to see which is the most popular stage.  Should I review it?

Why didn't Tsunku abuse the shit out of Mitsui!  I mean they gave her a couple of lines for each song, but after Yossi graduated they just shoved her in the back with JunJun and LinLin.  I mean, AKB48 needs to use basically the same members to catch new fans, but Morning Musume was small enough they could feature all members.  I know they have the whole Aces and support theory, but still. . . It is a freakin' idol group.  How many idols group have a high average age?  She is the youngest, fresh faced, member: abuse it!  Before they had four strong aces: Yossi, Mikitty, Ai, and Reina.  On top of that you feature each member with solo lines!  Now you have Reina and Ai then a little bit more of Kame and Niigaki.  You can't just have Reina and Ai do most of the singing because then, in theory, you might as well just do a duo.  But, as Tsunku knows, Reina and Ai are not a strong enough duo to do it on their own.  Remember Resonant Blue?  The only decent solo lines went to three people.  The rest were left as back up singers and back up dancers.  WTF Tsunku. . . WTF.

What is with all the up skirt shots of all the members all of a sudden?  I know it comes from a magazine, but they have pictures from a while back.  AND they keep on doing it.  It is not even their real underwear.  They wear short shorts under their skirt.  Really?

AKB48 fans, I understand you want to make a point.  But so do I.  (The most common example is RIVER and the coupling song so I'll use that.)  The fan favorite is Kimi no Koto ga Suki Dakara (the Undergirls' track).  There is a reason that that song was not the senbatsu/ main song of that single.  It is clearly an idol song.  The music producers know you are going to buy the single.  They know that you love the members and know them.  You are the fans, basically you are a constant.  If they just wanted to make you, and only you happy, then they would have made it the title song.  However, RIVER is appealing to a wider audience (hence it becoming a number one single and AKB48's breakout song).  The coupling song keeps their core base happy.  Fans will always have something to say about the main track, because it is the main track.  Now this might not be completely true all the time, but the standard for the coupling tracks is lower.  Like how I thought Hikoukigumo is a great third track (it is a classic and fits the Theatre girls very well), but it should not be a title or (2nd) coupling song.  Another example is that my favorite song off their last single is Lucky Seven, but I would never have made that the single.  I may like it better than Heavy Rotation, but I have to admit that Heavy Rotation is a better single.  I prefer KnKgSD better than RIVER too.  I also would not have made that the main song.  Also the senbatsu members would not have fit the song as well, but I wouldn't want the typical senbatsu to sing the back up track.  Does that make sense?

Idols do not always get along, just like regular people.  But they need to say and act like they are all friends.  So when I said that I am confident that Ai and Sayu at one point didn't get along; I'm confident.  (Cause if they were just joking would Sayu really have that face of disappointment?  I don't think Sayu is that good of an actress, plus if it was a joke why would she go with realistic acting.)  If you are wondering why I used that ->
picture, it is because Mikitty was on a TV show and she was talking about members she didn't like while she was in Morning Musume.  She mentioned Tsuji and Ishikawa, but she also said she is friends with them after she graduated.  Tokyohive (blog roll) has a post about it.    

Why I Can't Stand Takahashi Ai!

If you follow me at all or have read my previous Morning Musume posts you probably know that I despise Takahashi Ai.  I never understood why.  Nothing makes clear sense, but these things never do.  She is a great singer, dancer, leader, and she releases great photobooks.  Is it that I naturally dislike the girl who is pushed to the front?  What really gets me is that I can't figure out when I turned against Lovely Ai-chan.

I thought she was generally funny as a kid, nothing that outstanding though.  Then she matured and I started to like her a lot more.  It started off in concerts.  Just random performances bugged me, from random concerts.  However, at other times I would think she was great.  More recently it has been more, completely, constant.  I can't watch her live!  It has also gotten to the point where I feel it in PVs and PBs.  What is it?  Her conceited look!  I swear she reminds me of the villains in J-dramas.  Her smiling, it is like the psycho chick from LIFE.  I just want her gone.  It doesn't help that she gets the majority of the lines.  I just thought I should explain considering how popular she is.

Morning Musume = love

So I may be one of the few that still finds Morning Musume one of the better groups. (Though I will not deny AKB48 nor any of the other girl groups out there of their awesomeness!)

I still find Morning Musume to be one of my favorite groups, Ai Takahashi has become a good leader (Even though she's hogging a bit of the spotlight) But I think that she's doing a good job leading the group. Their sound has changed a lot since the "golden age" of MoMusu and people see that as a negative, I, however, think that the group is just trying to adapt and grow to compete with not only other bands from Japan but the rising K-Pop influence!

As far as the older girls are concerned I'm placing my money on Ai and Risa graduating sometime after either the next single or the single after that. I hope that the leadership position will be given either to Sayumi, Reina or Eri seeing as they are the oldest. I think Eri's singing talent has been horribly unrepresented and I know that she's one of the stronger singers.

What I'd like to see as far as the group is concerned:
1. Tsunku brings in two to three new girls (starting Generation 9)
2. Ai Takahashi and Risa Niigaki graduate
3. Reina Tanaka becomes leader with Eri Kamei (or Sayumi Michishige) as sub-leader.
4. Reina, Eri and Sayumi graduate
5. Generation 10 is introduced
6. Leadership of the group falls to Aika Mitsui or Junjun (whomever of the two becoming the sub-leader)

Yes, Aika has quickly grown to be my favorite MoMusu!

Takahashi Picspam

News!

Momo from Berryz Koubou said she plans on going on to a University, which is great. I love to hear when idols continue on their education.

Here is the cover for Ai's new photobook:

Mariko Shinoda of AKB48 is also releasing another photobook, on July 2nd!

The members of Team Dragon (AKB48) are Maeda Atsuko, Takahashi Minami, Kojima Haruna, Oshima Yuko, Itano Tomomi, Kashiwagi Yuki, and Watanabe Mayu. So, mostly the front girls.  It is titled Kokoro no Hane, and it (according to the JPHIP forum) will be released TOMORROW!

Also check out JPHIP for new promotions for the 17th Election, the single comes out on the 26th!  I already ordered mine from CD Japan, use the link on the side of the page and help me support them even in college!  I feel like I need to vote for Sae, but she might be a sure thing.  Lovetan is also up there, but both are towards the end.  Amina is a giant question mark, so maybe I should vote for her.  What do you think.  Would I be betraying Sae if I voted for someone else?

Team PB won the competition.  Okay, I didn't know there was one.  I just thought it was basically shuffle groups.  Anyway, PB stands for Weekly Playboy.  YJ stood for Young Jump.  For more detailed info check out MELOS no Michi's post.  I preferred this team line up.  I know everyone and I like them all.  However, I enjoyed YJ's song more.












If you haven't heard Sayumi Michishige is releasing another photobook and DVD.

DVD Preview

Making Of (part 1)

News!

°C-ute - Campus Life ~Umarete Kite Yokatta~ PV
I like this PV, I also enjoyed Shock! but I didn't care for the blatant favoritism. I am glad Airi isn't getting all the lines. The outfits are cute, and so is the song. The disappointing results of the last album must of persuaded Tsunku to reconsider the direction he was heading. The single will be released on the 28th.

Oshima Mai - Mendokusai Aijou PV

I'm glad to see Oshima Mai finally going solo! The single is going to be released on May 5th.

Idoling!!! - Me Ni Wa Aoba Yama Hototogisu Hatsukoi LIVE

Idoling!!! - Me ni wa Aoba Yama Hototogisu Hatsukoi
Uploaded by idlg9. - See the latest featured music videos.
The single will be released June 9th. I give them major props for performing live even on TV programs, most idol groups don't.

Sayumi Michishige will be releasing a new photobook named 'La'(4/26) and DVD(4/28). I'm very excited!

Erina Mano will be releasing a new single on May 12th titled "Onegai Dakara..."

S/mileage will be also releasing a new single, their first non-indie one! It is named "Yume Miru Fifteen."

Ai Takahashi is getting people excited because she is coming out with another photobook(5/27) and DVD(6/02)

Referencing Another Wota

I know this may be interpreted as lazy, but I have been referencing other blogs lately. It is because someone said it first, I don't want to be a copy-cat unless I can bring a different opinion, POV, &ct. I completely agree with this entry, except I still don't like Ai-chan. (Still is really weird, I guess she just rubs me the wrong way. . . Okay {another tangent warning} when I mentioned Ai Takahashi 'Touch Me' from the Bollywood film Dhoom 2 started on iTunes. The universe thinks I need to come around back to Ai. I kind of liked her at one point.) I lost my original chain of thought. Darn tangents! Oh, I was about done anyway. The linking function does not work, or I'm doing something wrong so just copy and paste.
http://www.intlwota.com/aitakatta/2010/02/10/on-the-topic-of-the-akbske-aces-chapter-1-maeda-atsuko/

{here is the song that I mention: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdLrEa_p27A }

Evidence of Ai+Risa