tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73341814332504387592024-03-05T17:06:36.219+00:00Berryz KyuudenA blog by Dran for all the latest in Hello!Project and Japanese Idol news。
The blog mostly focuses on Berryz Koubou and C-ute, however other Hello!Project groups are also covered, as well as Japanese movies, TV dramas, etc.Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-66061352036235930892012-11-05T23:50:00.001+00:002012-11-05T23:50:30.569+00:00The Happy Idol Family
Imagine a world where all Idols co-exist in peace. Where AKB and H!P fans are united by a common love of Japanese Idols and the billion-dollar industry that they live and work in.
It's a peculiar idea, but it's one that seems to come in waves. I'm not even one hundred percent sure why this idea persists so much, perhaps just out of naiveté and wishful thinking.
But perhaps even more Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-28514765699296023672012-07-29T14:24:00.002+01:002012-08-02T12:02:49.588+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 8
We're back after having to postpone the show for a couple weeks.
Our guest, Oroboras, has a somewhat busy work schedule, so the only day we could feasibly record on was a Thursday. And when a thunderstorm caused Ren to lose all internet access a couple hours before we were about to record, it was decided that we'd have to postpone.
This is episode 8, and the second episode featuring Ren Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-20545623274291221252012-07-04T11:00:00.000+01:002012-07-08T13:23:14.375+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 7
Last night we released the 7th episode of Wota-kai!?
It comes as we pass the middle of the first season, and Sazaki Ren takes up the reins as host for the coming few episodes, while I myself am relegated to co-host for the duration - though my work behind the scenes hasn't lessened by very much.
This episode proved to be the most difficult yet, that much is certain. The internet troublesDranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-63516392723430273292012-06-19T00:00:00.000+01:002012-06-22T12:23:05.942+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 6
Earlier today we released the sixth episode of Wota-kai!?, the Hello! Project news and discussion podcast hosted by myself and Sazaki Ren.
This week the special guest was alita87.
It's actually the first time talking to a user whom I didn't know prior to the recording, which, as I pointed out last week, was probably the challenge I was most looking forward to having a crack at with this Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-47227917889109134152012-06-09T23:58:00.002+01:002012-06-20T12:48:39.726+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 5
Wota-kai!? is back for its fifth episode.
Making this episode turned out to be more complicated than any other episode we've done thus far, as on the initial recording day we were plagued by technical problems and Skype was simply not stable enough for recording a podcast to be viable.
Much of these problems persisted throughout the week and, though we managed to successfully record the Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-58919990743115573922012-05-23T20:41:00.003+01:002012-06-20T12:11:43.043+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 4
It has been 9 weeks since we released the pilot episode. Now we're releasing the 4th.
With each passing episode I feel more and more at ease with this show. I don't think anything will ever help me get over my hatred towards the sound of my own voice, and indeed, the editing process, which often lasts several times the length of the podcast itself, is something of an exercise in trying to Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-60211270258222530802012-05-07T22:36:00.001+01:002012-06-20T01:40:15.826+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 3
So the show returns for its third episode. The support from you guys, however vocal or silent, has been a huge boon to us, and I thank you.
In some ways, Aika's graduation was something of a godsend. Definitely a shocking turn of events, and tragic for her fans, and of course the dejected Gaki fans who feel that they have had something stolen from them, but with regards to this podcast, it Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-82448021695326305722012-04-26T13:19:00.000+01:002012-06-20T00:55:37.859+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 2
The show has returned after the pilot proved more successful than we could have ever imagined!
Some scheduling issues got in the way last week. We had hoped to record and have it released by Monday last week, but Ren proved to be too busy on the recording day, and following attempts to postpone the recording by a day or two proved to be unworkable. So we had to cede defeat and resume Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-60969908608103940002012-04-02T22:33:00.002+01:002012-06-19T23:44:44.916+01:00Wota-kai!? Episode 1
This is something that we have both been thinking of doing for quite some time. But a recent conversation with Sazaki Ren proved to be the catalyst for turning it into reality.
For whatever reason, the conversation turned to a few ideas I had floating around in my head, including a few upgrades to this blog. And I told him about my idea for a regular H!P podcast. The reply was almost Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-45733781168776759892012-01-07T22:32:00.000+00:002012-01-12T00:46:54.066+00:00A New Captainist Era of Hello! Project?
It was announced a while ago that Niigaki Risa would be graduating from Hello! Project. Naturally this announcement was met by all the usual reactions from her fans. Though, and don't hold me too accountable for this, as I didn't give it too much attention, I don't think anyone found the news as shocking as other recent graduations.
In fact, the shocking part was that it took so long for Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-26555369638388915832011-12-18T13:08:00.002+00:002011-12-18T13:09:37.195+00:00Idol Collections
It's a strange topic. Kurisu from Mexican idol blog Hello!Wota once said that "Americans are not wota. Americans are collectors." Is that true? I'm not here to debate the distinction or the true nature of being a wota. At least not now. I've done that in the past, and I'm sure it'll crop up time and time again, but today I'm focusing on the "collector".
After all, short of seeing them in Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-74334805189986610882011-11-14T14:59:00.001+00:002011-11-17T13:23:59.387+00:00Berryz to attend AnimeNEXT
Seriously? I can't believe it. Mere hours after I wrote "I'm still holding out for Berryz to get invited to Japan Expo" in my previous entry about Buono's concert in Paris this February, news broke that they have been invited to a tiny convention on the US' east coast by the name of AnimeNEXT.
My dreams for this year are shattered.
But maybe I can still put them back together.
While I Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-1392903251792529472011-11-13T01:52:00.001+00:002011-11-17T13:23:23.184+00:00Buono! Concert in Europe... again!
It has been 2 years now since Buono! announced their ill-fated trip to Stockholm to perform at the Japan Expo. Now, in early 2012, they're planning to make a second attempt at performing in Europe.
Back then I was pretty excited. It was to be the first time that any Hello! Project group was to perform outside of Asia. That was big news. Morning Musume were set to appear a few months laterDranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-91098070253970902702011-11-01T12:02:00.001+00:002011-11-01T12:12:45.454+00:00Expanding horizons?
This week the Daily Yomiuri featured an article about the potential for overseas expansion of Japanese pop culture, including a few comments from Takahashi Ai.
I felt I wanted to weigh in with my own perspective.
The main focus of the article seemed to be an the apparent boom of popularity enjoyed by South Korean artists at the moment. While a decade ago it was cool to like Morning Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-67761988247814229712011-10-28T19:10:00.000+01:002011-11-01T12:21:02.574+00:00Is S/mileage Doomed?
In the aftermath of the Yuuka graduation announcement, this is something that many blogs (even International Wota - though was perhaps said with more irony than truth) said. Yuuka graduating = death of S/mileage.
Is it the case? I really don't think so.
That isn't how this industry works. If a graduation, even of a popular member, signalled the end of the group, then I'm afraid to say Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-91284101107481591102011-10-24T20:29:00.001+01:002011-10-24T22:11:02.751+01:00More Graduations? Yuuka to leave Hello! Project?
A story published in one morning newspaper in Japan has just caused a frenzy online.
It reports that 1st Generation S/mileage member, Maeda Yuuka, is set to graduate on the 31st of December this year.
Apparently she commented that the wants to leave her duties in Hello! Project in order to focus on her schooling, so that she can get into a good university.
It wouldn't be the Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-31033148413085303562011-10-22T12:51:00.001+01:002011-10-22T12:52:44.328+01:00Michishige Sayumi - Sayuminglandoll Previews
By now, we've had quite a few previews released of Sayu's upcoming photobook, as release bears down on us from less than a week away.
The PB certainly takes a unique approach, when compared with other photobooks of Sayu's, or H!P photobooks in general.
Interestingly, the PB seems to be quite heavily influenced by 60s media, photography and fashion, and such. Even the excessive useDranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-22534325591724235152011-10-17T21:04:00.000+01:002011-10-17T21:07:23.285+01:00Okai Chisato 2nd DVD "Imp Girl"
This week we had UP FRONT revealing previews for Okai Chisato's new DVD, titled "Imp Girl".
It's been almost a year now since the release of her first solo DVD, "Chissa~". And, although it was right at the peak of H!P's dreaded Image Videos, it still proved to be a pretty good release - especially for the numerous Chisato fans out there.
It was one of those releases that we, at KIDS, Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-77416243511022282732011-10-10T01:48:00.000+01:002011-10-10T01:48:05.708+01:00The Difficulties of Fansubbing: Brand Loyalty
In this (likely to be final part of the series) entry I'll be talking about what happens after we've finished working on a project and release it, and how predicting response is near impossible.
High viewership ratings is not something we aim for. I always use the logic that, if we were, we wouldn't be subbing Hello!Pro Kids releases. We are there simply because we want to fansub. However,Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-1884459386868766152011-09-27T23:47:00.001+01:002011-09-27T23:53:34.148+01:00The Reasons for Graduations
Every time a H!P graduation is announced, I suddenly find myself surrounded by the same cynicism as the previous umpteen times. What really brought the issue home recently was Ogawa Saki's sudden graduation, and with the recent departure of Takahashi Ai from Morning Musume it has managed to remain somewhat topical.
What exactly is the issue? Graduations, and the motives behind them.
WhenDranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-6799307515018667142011-09-25T22:47:00.001+01:002011-09-25T22:47:17.207+01:00The Difficulties of Fansubbing: Of Politics and Collaborations
This is something which I never understood before becoming a fansubber and, even as I type this, I'm not sure if you guys will understand it either. That said, it has been an integral part of my experience in this, and I want to write about it.
I think I may have already touched on my personal experiences of it in my previous two-part series on fansubbing, so I'll try not to repeat myself.
Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-66871734210576924692011-09-19T23:22:00.001+01:002011-09-20T01:30:14.295+01:00The Difficulties of Fansubbing: The Process
The simple act of fansubbing can be a long, drawn out process. I've been involved in this hobby since the second half of 2009. I had dabbled a little in it before then, but only a small bit as I subbed performances under the name Berryz Kyuuden Fansubs, and then when I joined Hello!Fansubs' trainee program. But it was from joining ICU-Subs in August 2009 that I really start counting myself as Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-88695455492089604412011-02-23T21:07:00.000+00:002011-02-23T21:07:17.083+00:00Berryz Koubou "Heroine ni Narou ka?" PV
Well, Berryz Koubou's new single "Heroine ni Narou ka?", to be released the first week of March, now has a PV which, it appears, has attracted very mixed reactions.
I guess I'll throw my own into the fray.
The PV is good. Like everyone else, I'm sure, my first reaction upon seeing it was "Holy crap, it's Lady Gaga." So let's get this out of the way first.
The whole Lady Gaga controversy (Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-30208783648339273792011-02-07T15:02:00.003+00:002011-02-09T18:52:04.862+00:00Discovering Takekawa Ai
Takekawa Ai is something of a rising star in Japan. She is a singer-songwriter who has been honing her skills with, not only singing and songwriting, but piano and guitar, from a young age and is now proficient in all of them.
But at the end of 2009 she got her big break and was signed by Avex with her debut single "I WILL" hitting stores that November to both critical and popular success. Her Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7334181433250438759.post-84100182015410162772011-02-03T13:38:00.001+00:002011-02-03T13:40:28.989+00:00Berryz to resume blogging!
For much of November and December the girls in Berryz Koubou began blogging to varying degrees of activity, which I reported at the time on the Church of Maasa. But come the end of the festive season and, more importantly, the Autumn-Winter concert tour, the blogs suddenly ended. Though they did remain online, no new posts were made.
But it's been reported that, beginning around Valentine's Day,Dranhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11113134272800009317noreply@blogger.com0