Iida Kaori's son passed away

This news is a few days old by now, and I'm sure you've already heard it. But I wasn't sure if I actually wanted to post about this or not. It's hard to find words to say, to be honest. But I've decided to post about it afterall.

It was announced yesterday that former Morning Musume member Iida Kaori's son passed away at 6 months-old on July 27th, 2008 due to kidney failure.

Back in mid-2007, it was announced that she was 10-weeks pregnant and would be married to Kenji of 7House, a now defunct band formed by Tsunku. It was a shock, but everyone was happy and supportive. People were saying, "I'm sure she'd make a great mother." And then when she announced her son's birth on February 3rd, everyone was happy for her. We all assumed that the child was healthy. But it appears that immediately after birth the child was hospitalized due to kidney problems, and Iida spend alot of time in the hospital visiting her newborn baby. Her son was cleared and allowed to go home in April, much to everyone's relief I am sure. But his condition deteriorated and he died on July 27.

No one could have seen this coming. But the fact that they came out and told the media, and Kaori announced that she will return to work during the Winter Elder Club concert tour, shows that she has overcome at least some of the grief, and she says that by going back to work and singing, it will serve as some sort of personal memorial to the child. I was shocked when I read, and maybe I'm just a gossiper, as the first thing I did when I read it was to find the only person on MSN at the time (Hey, shwee!) and talk to her about it. There's no news like bad news. But it's difficult to find words to talk about it, I can't begin to imagine how the family would have felt about this. But I'll continue to support Kaori as her fan, and I know you all will too.

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Momo Beach

Before I go on. Let's just take a moment to enjoy that picture, shall we? I dunno what it is, but there's something so "eye-catching" about that picture. Nor am I particularly sure why I think it's so sexy. Perhaps it's one of those inner answers which requires deep meditation to discover. But I can wager a guess. Maybe it's the top she's wearing, which appears, at a glance, to be a little more revealing than it really is. Or perhaps I'm just falling in love with Momoko. It will go down as one of life's greatest mysteries.

That said, Momoko really is maturing, both physically and mentally, I bet. Although judging from her week of Yorosen, she's still as insane as ever, but it was more of an intellectual kind of crazy... Ah, who am I kidding? She's a kid (albeit about a year younger than myself). Even if I convince myself otherwise, or no matter who hard I try to rationalise my thoughts, it's still the case. (laugh)

So, Momoko's Photobook came out in the last week, I haven't seen any complete scans yet, but I look forward to seeing it. Going from the previews, this is likely to be her best photobook yet. Makes me wish I'd bought it, but alas, it wasn't on my wishlist at the time. Oh well, there's always time, I did buy the Yurina PB a full year after it's release. I'll maybe ask Santa to send me a copy. Hm... Do you think Santa is a Momo fan? He'd be a fool if he weren't a H!P fan, anyway.

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Family & Friends

Well, I'm sorry for not posting up the rest of the "Stories of a Collection" posts (although is anyone actually reading them?) but here's an entirely new post, and not something I've really talked about in the blog either.

By posting this here, I'm assuming that none of my family and friends actually read this blog. Oh sure, I've dropped the occasional hint, plugged my blog, whatever. But no bites. So I'm going to assume it's safe to say whatever I want.

So, what do these people actually think of my J-Idol "obsession"?

Well, let's start with my brother - some of you may know him as Azgaroth over at Hello!Online, I hear he's quite an active poster in the Reina thread. Anyway, I got into Morning Musume back in early 2007, which I've mentioned countless times before, I'm sure. At the time we shared a room, so I would be listening to Happy Summer Wedding, or whatever songs I was addicted to at the time, and he would sit there and complain about how crap it was. This was how things worked between us for several months. But one day, after having visited one of my friends, I returned home to be greeted with an all too familiar sound. Tou-san, kaa-san, arigatou! That sounds familiar indeed. Was I imagining things? Well, I stopped outside my bedroom door, and sure enough, it was coming from inside. Caught red-handed as it were, listening to the very song he had been calling "crap" for the last couple of months. Well, the rest is, as they say, history.

As for my parents... Well, when I first ordered my SEASONZ Photobook, my parents thought I was just wasting money, partly because they didn't actually understand what it was I was buying, but I'm sure if they actually knew, they would have been even more adamant in their "what a waste of money" way of thinking. I'm pretty sure they've kinda grown used to it by now. My mum even helped me make this poster;

That poster, created for me by Rina over at Musume-Central, took 9 A4 pages of glossy photo paper and about 2/3rds of my red ink to print. And my mum helped me stick all the sheets together, awful nice of her, don't you think? She probably doesn't have a clue who they are, but she thinks it turned out quite nicely. I agree. Don't you? Thank you Rina, if you're reading this. It turned out great. I know you were asking about it for weeks until I got around to printing.

My Gran said something interesting to me yesterday. She said that while out shopping she had "seen a jigsaw in the shop with a picture of a Japanese woman on it". I found this interesting because it means people around me assume that just because I like Japanese idols and dramas, that sorta thing, that I'd be interested to know or see anything remotely related to Japan. In some cases this may or may not be true, but what does it say about me when my family just assume that? Oh well.

Also, going back to the Berryz Koubou Photobook, SEASONZ... Which I'll talk about in an upcoming "Stories of a Collection" entry. My aunt said something not long after it arrived. I showed her it, (which she looked through back-to-front. Right-to-left, people!) and she made a strange off-hand comment which was "I can understand Japanese people buying that, but not here." At the time I didn't think much of it to question further, but afterwards I realised what she'd said. What did she mean by that? I fear I'll never know.

As for friends, I tend to just avoid talking about it with them. One friend (known by us all as "Cazi") said said countless times before that "J-Pop all sounds the same". Is he mad? Considering he is a fan of anime, you'd think he'd have a little more respect for the J-Pop genre. Oh well.

And another friend, he hates Japanese idols and the entertainment industry as a whole, for some reason. Claiming that Japan are about 10 years behind in their music? I don't think so. Despite that, he's probably a model example of "Yellow Fever". It's quite sad really.

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Hello!Project - Stories of a Collection! [Part II]

So, following the concert, I'd been propelled down the path to Berryz fandom, and ultimately wotagei. And I had decided that my next purchase would be dedicated to my new favourite Hello!Project group. And my chance came when the Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance previews came out. I instantly fell in love with it, and the PV just increased that sheer volume of win.

So I bought a couple of CDs...

That's right. Jingisukan and Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance. Argueably the best singles Berryz have done to date (although I do love MADAYADE). So let's talk about Jingisukan first.

Jingisukan was the first Berryz song I can remember hearing, no doubt I'd listened to them before, but I was still new to H!P at the time, and was still getting used to Morning Musume, I didn't pay the Kids groups much attention at all. But I do have a feeling that the first song I ever heard was Happiness ~Koufuku Kengai!~. But on to Jingisukan! There's really not much to hate about the song, it may be a cover but for some untangible reason, that made it feel even greater (and ultimately lent itself to the tarutaru mix, which I've posted about previously.) Of course, I was disappointed at the number of lines Maasa got (2 solo lines?), but she did get the best costume in my opinion. I hear you, "Dran, you old fool, all of the costumes are the same!" That may be true. But don't you think that it looks best on Maasa? No? Well, I think so anyway. And look at that cover! That's clearly one of the reasons the single sold so well. You don't have to have even heard of Berryz Koubou before to look at that CD cover in a store and think, "This looks pretty cool. I buy it and see what it's like!" The red, flaming background? The cute, smiling Japanese girls? I know lots of people who would buy the single just because of that cover... As shameful as it is to admit that.

Then there was the PV... Or rather multiple PVs. They were so much fun and so colourful. And seeing all those Elementary school kids spinning like mad wota during those wide-shots... It almost brings a tear to your eye. The next generation of wota, y'know? Actually, this raises an interesting question. I wonder how many of those kids were actually Berryz fans. And how many became fans after they got to be in the music video? Lucky kids anyway, regardless of wether they are fans or not. But my favourite version was the Mongolian Dance Shot Ver. I'm not sure why. I've heard a few people say it was the worst one. I guess the costumes just won me over. And the dance. It's simple enough that even I can follow it. How many of you actually know the dances to Hello!Project songs? Do you dance along? I try to, and ultimately fail every time. I've damn near got Kokuhaku no Funsui Hiroba down though. (wahahaha!)

Anyway. I seem to have been focusing alot on the visual side. So as for the song itself. The lyrics are insanely catchy. ("Jin Jin Jingisukan!") The melody will be hummed around the house all day. ("Hey brother, hoo brother") And you'll definately feel like dancing. Of course, there's the usual issues with the lines being spread out. Or rather not-spread out as Risako seems to get all the lines. Now Risako is awesome and has a great voice, but as a Maasa wota, I want the best for Maasa! Hear that UFA? More Maasa! (L-O-V-E Lovely Maasa-chan!)

Anyway, at the start of this entry I began by talking about Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance, lets go back to it, shall we?

After Monkey Dance was announced, I was looking forward to the previews with much anticipation. And when the previews came around, I loved it. I decided there and then that I wanted to buy it. Pre-ordered early, and recieved it the day after release. I, and many others, felt our prayers had been answered when halfway through the PV we see the girls in the infamous Monkey outfits. Those outfits sold the single to some folks I know, where others were put off by it and saw it as nothing more than a gimmick. But gimmick or not, it did what it intended to do, take everyones mind off what was essentially a very low-budget PV and make them just enjoy the show. If you get into the economics of wether UFA are spending enough on the PV, you stop enjoying it and start complaining about it. And Monkey Dance proved that even with a small pocket of cash, they can still produce something great. (Easily the H!P PV of the year, and if you're a Musume-Central member you'll know what I mean when I say that it'll get my vote.)

During the song Maasa got 6 solo lines. I kind of credit this song to the rise in Maasa's popularity as around this time, Maasa become one of the most featured members on Berikyuu! No complaints there, eh? And, even though Risako was still perhaps the center, Maasa and Chinami really stood out during the PV. Although Saki seemed to have been nerfed as usual. But you win some, you lose some. She did get more heavily featured in MADAYADE's PV, anyway. So all's well that ends well.

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Hello!Project - Stories of a Collection! [Part I]

Well, the 7th was pay day for me, and so the first thing I did was put in my order for several H!P releases that are either just out or bordering on release. Just thought I'd make a little entry to talk about the H!P goodies I've bought over the last 2 years.

Well... I say 2 years, but I didn't actually buy anything until the start of this year when I got my very first Concert DVD and H!P item. Hello!Project Winter 2008. This was an expensive first purchase, but worth every penny I spent. (I believe it consumed the remainder of the money I had "requisitioned" over Christmas) 4 Discs. (Wonderful Hearts, Elder Club, Haro!Pro awards, and bonus backstage footage), and the Wonderful Hearts concert instantly became my favourite concert. I've not enjoyed watching a concert before, nor since, WH Winter 2008. And it's probably the one I've seen the most often too (barring, perhaps, Berryz Koubou Summer 2007 ~ Welcome! Berryz Kyuuden, from which my blog's name so creatively lends itself to). I'd already been somewhat of a Berryz fan before it, so I enjoyed seeing most of what Berryz performed. And the M-C which featured Maasa, where she seemed to make some humerous remark about Makoto. (If anyone has a translation of that, I'd be deeply appreciative if you shared it.) But after seeing the performance of EVERYDAY! Yeah feat. Saki, AriKanna and MaiMai ... That sent me down on the path to C-ute fandom as well. I guess I owe Tsunku my undying gratitude for that song and Ookina Ai de Motenashite. Well... And damn near every other song he has written for H!P.
Also, the Risako / Sayumi performance of Robokiss was just filled with win. I'm not even that great a Risako fan (and in fact hated her when I first watched this), but despite that I loved it. I've heard people saying things like "they should have left that song alone" and "W were much better". But I'd like to announce here that these murder accusations are false! It was a great performance and, in my opinion (keeping in mind that I AM a 4th Gen fan) it was just as good as, if not better than, some of W's performances of the song. Lots of cute facial expressions from Sayu and I love the costumes. I haven't seen their duo in the Summer concert yet, because it has yet to be shipped, but I'm hoping it will be as good as the Robokiss performance.

The Elder Club concert I watched afterwards, and that may or may not have affected my judgement. But I didn't enjoy it quite so much. While I love OG as much as the next guy, and Yossy remains my favourite Morning Musume member to date, I thought the concert just wasn't as fun as Wonderful Hearts. I hade to use this word, but it lacked that energy that WH had - the X Factor, if you will. But we got to see Yuki Maeda, so no regrets. Mind you, knowing that this concert is one of the last times we'll see some of these Elder Club girls, perhaps I'll give it another chance. It's just a little dissapointing that it took the announcement of Elder Club mass graduations to make me say that.
That said, some performances I really enjoyed. Abe Natsumi's Iki wo Kazenemashou is one of my favourite songs by her, and this had me singing along like a 12-year old watching High School Musical. There wasn't enough Yuko in the concert, though. A complaint we've heard countless times before, I'm sure. But still true. And while I'm talking about her, don't you guys think that Yuko only gets more and more beautiful as she gets older. There's no way she doesn't have a boyfriend. She or UFA are probably just keeping it secret because it's not really the character she developed in her time as an idol as that "Beauty who can't seem to find the right guy..." You heard it here first.

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Layout Update

Just a quick entry to tell you guys about the new look of the site.

Some of you may have noticed last month that the place changed a little. Namely the position of the side-bar switched from the right to the left. This was just the first part in a (hopeful) number of changes being made to the look of the place. But now, as you can see, the banner is gone and has been replaced with an entirely new one (courtesy of Liamers over at Mayuge Madness) and a new colour scheme to match.

I changed, mostly because the colours of the old look were really starting to bore me, and I wanted a bit of a change. And since white technically isn't a colour, it can't be a boring one. Also, this new theme provides a lot of room for future updates to the look, where as the old theme was fairly static and there wasn't much I could really do with it. And I do have a few ideas for the future, I hope I can one day put them into practice, but for now... Please bear with me as I tweak the font colours, etc. And please look forrward to anything the future may bring!

Finally, I'd like to ask you for your feedback, anything you want to see or colours that you think would compliment the theme.

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LIFE: It's all about the bullies

Have you ever been bullied? No? Well I have, and I'm sure most of you reading this have been the victim to (or cause of) bullying at some point in your lives, albeit at work or school or even at home.

LIFE (or ライフ) is a story about bullying. The TV Drama was based on a manga of the same name by Keiko Suenobu. And it's not an average High School drama, in that this has slightly darker themes and plots than some may be used to with other dramas, and as such, is probably aimed at a slightly older audience. The focus is on bullying, but it does touch on themes such as suicide, rape and domestic violence.

The drama follows Shiiba Ayumu (Kii Kitano) who tries to get into Nishiko High School along with her friend Yuko, whom she calls Shii-chan. But because her studies are weak, she asks Yuko to help her study for the entrance exam. But when the time comes, she scores higher and passes the exam. Yuko, however, fails to meet the requirements and is not accepted into Nishiko. She blames the time wasted helping Ayumu for her failure, and fails to commit suicide after running in front of heavy traffic.

When school starts, she tries to avoid people, thinking it best because she would just end up hurting them, but Anzai Manami (Saki Fukuda) quickly tries to befriend her. However, after an incident between Ayumu and Manami's boyfriend followed by her refusal to join in the bullying makes Ayumu the victim herself. She only finds hope and the will to fight the bullying from her friends Hatori Miki (Megumi Seki) and Sonoda Yuki (Takahiro Hojo), even where the teachers and other students turn a blind eye to what is really happening.

I loved this drama. It really succeeded in getting strong emotions from me as I watched. You begin to feel for the characters and during those scenes where Ayumu is in danger, for example in the scene when they try to force her to swallow needles, you feel as scared and worried for her as she is. You may even find yourself talking to yourself while watching. I sure did. "Just fight them back! Just punch her!" Yeah. I'm sure I said those things. I think this shows that the story was well-written and adapted and the characters were portrayed very well.

And as a side note: don't you think that Manami (the girl in the center of the picture, at the top of this entry) bears some resemblance to Miyabi from Berryz? Maybe it's the hair. Or maybe it's just me. But I was thinking this throughout the drama. Almost distracting really.

The one thing I didn't like about this drama was the end. (I won't say anything about what happened. Find out for yourself!) Don't get me wrong, it was a great ending, but it felt incomplete. It felt like there should have been more. I wish there was more. A second series would have been great, because it felt like the writers got a little lazy towards the end and decided to just wrap it up where they had it and hand it over to the director.

And on that note, I think I'll wrap up this entry here too. I'd give this drama an 8/10 - spoiled only by the half-baked ending. But I reccomend everyone of you to go watch it. And if you are interested, you can stream the series from here.

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What happened to Berryz Kyuuden?

Well, I'm slightly dissapointed in myself, to be perfectly honest. Last month was looking to be my most active month yet with 6 entries by the 14th. Then I stopped. Even despite the ocean of great topics I could have written about. So I'd like to appologise to those who actually read this blog (that's right! All 3 of you!) for the inactivity over the last fortnight. But I'll work to update, and make this month even better than what I hoped for last month!

Anyway. Last week, I was in London at the London Games Festival, went to see Video Games Live on the 24th. Sadly it was the only event I had the chance to go to, as my train was leaving the morning after. But it was brilliant. And if there are any fans of games reading this, be sure to come next year if you weren't there this year. I may post about that when they announce the tour dates for the 2009-2010 tour.

Anyway, back to the world of Japanese Idolling. As I'm sure everyone is aware by now, all of Elder Club will be graduating from Hello!Project next year. I was incredibly annoyed when I heard the decision, but after a couple of hours, I started to see that it's a great oppertunity for Hello!Project. With all of those low-selling obaachan out of the way, it makes way for a cleaner, fresher H!P image. And with Berryz Koubou and C-ute growing ever more popular, these two groups can benifit a great deal. Without having to worry about Elder Club groups, wota will have more spare cash in their pockets to spend on the more important units. The Wonderful Hearts. During the Second World War, Stalin purged the Red Army of alot of it's commanding officers, for greater control over the Army. That seems to be similiar strategy to what UFA are using, but in a more Corporate form. Purge all the Senpai and there'll be no-one to complain about how things are better in the Golden Era right? This is the Golden Era, I wager. Bigger budgets for these groups almost always results in bigger sales. And with Berryz and C-ute already breaking into their own Golden Eras... Think how much higher all these units can climb! The sky's the limit in the world of JPop.

I have so many new releases to buy too. But I'm broke at the moment, what with the London trip, and then some other things I've bought on top of it all. I've nothing left. I get paid next week however, so I'll have to order this years Wonderful Hearts Summer concert then, as well as MADAYADE and perhaps I'll throw in C-ute's upcomming single in there too. This year has been such a big year for releases it isn't even funny. I'll get my hands on it all some way or another. Also; I'm still waiting for my Maasa shirt to be sent. But Ohta did say it could take up to 4 weeks before he even gets it. So I guess he should have it by next week. I'll be sure to share a picture or two when it arrives.

So...

I'm back!

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