shirenu's blog

Ten generations of H!P Eggs

I hadn't realized that there were already 10 generations of Eggs until today I saw the latest 3 girls added into the mix. I think 10 generations is some sort of an achievement, so I shall celebrate it by finally writing down my latest thoughts on each H!P Egg, along with other blabbery!

For the record, H!P Egg generations are not official (as far as I know), but are something that Japanese fans have come up with to keep up with the ever changing roster. I like the concept so I'm sticking with it!

Awesome graduated H!P Eggs

There are some H!P members who started out as Eggs before graduating and being given more prominent work. I would like to begin by celebrating some of these members! (Notice I'm not mentioning all of them, just my favourites.)

From left to right: Kanna Arihara, Erina Mano, S/mileage.
Kanna was a 1st gen Egg and graduated to become a member of C-ute. Sadly, she has left C-ute by now, but she was a great addition to the group. She was a bit of a touchy-feely, cute monkey girl who was good at dancing, as well. It's good to know that she seems to be doing alright, based on the pictures that fellow ex-member Erika has posted on her blog.

Manoeri was a 2nd generation Egg and seems to be doing everything now that she has a solo career. I still wish that she would become more popular, but going from H!P Egg to being featured in magazines in tv shows is still pretty awesome. I like most of her songs, as well, since I find piano a lovely instrument.

S/mileage is like the cutest unit ever. All of the girls were 1st gen Eggs, so they really waited a long time to get this opportunity. I can honestly say that I love all of these members. I'm very happy for them and look forward to their future projects!

Additionally, Yuri Sawada never got to have a major debut before her graduation, but because I liked her very much, I'd still like to dedicate a little spot for her.

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Sawachan was one of my favourite Eggs. I thought she showed a lot of passion for performing. She had a cute smile and her personality seemed a bit quirky. As sad as I was to see her go, I understand that there probably were no huge plans for her future in the company, so to her personally it was probably a better decision to continue her studies... Or to just get free so that she could hook up with guys, who knows. lol!
 

I'd also like to give an honorary mention to Arisa Noto, aka Nocchi.

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She was the oldest H!P Egg for a long, long time, kind of becoming the personification of 'H!P Egg'. Now that she has graduated H!P Eggs, I believe her title is Upfront Egg, which kind of makes me angry. In my mind an Egg is someone who is still being trained... Nocchi has excelled a long time ago at being an idol, so I don't really get it. She has a great personality, different talents (manga, performing)... Why should she still be called an Egg? Anyway, she is pretty awesome. Girl draws her own manga, is a total geek about it, has released her own photo book after graduating, and some music of her own. She's always worked hard and that is cool.

Current H!P Eggs: 1st Generation

Anri Tanaka is now sort of the 'leader' of H!P Eggs, as she is the oldest of 1st generation. Even if she has been an Egg forever, it feels like I still don't really know her because she hasn't had any prominent jobs and she's not usually even at every Egg concert. She seems to have a nice personality and voice, but isn't one of my favourites for the reasons above.

Minami Sengoku is a lovely girl with a flirty smile. It's fun to watch her perform because she has charisma and energy. She's the last one standing in H!P Eggs of the original Ongaku Gatas Eggs, so you could say I'm worried that she's going to leave, too... She doesn't really have a standout personality or the best voice, but because she is attractive, it doesn't really matter. I think her smile could melt icebergs.

Konatsu Furukawa is someone that I liked initially a lot, then liked her less after seeing some concert backstage footage because I felt she was trying too hard to get camera time and so on. But I guess I got used to it (or realized that it was in her natural character) and now we're cool again. She's one of the best dancers among Eggs and personalitywise totally fearless; if there ever was a Melon Kinenbi-type group formed out of Eggs, she should be in it for sure. I'm a little sad that her outgoing personality is kind of going to waste, as the only time we get to see it is pretty much in the concert backstage footages. It's particularly sad because H!P has so few naturally outgoing girls these days! I think she would make a great girl for tv show hosts to poke fun at, like a new Kei-chan. Hell, other Eggs already do that with her. But I guess it's something that we'll never get to see.

Mia Sainen has grown on me since the early days. I first thought she was hopeless at dancing and not very cute. But seeing that she has become more energetic at dancing has made me like her a bit more. She's still not a favourite of mine and I don't expect her to become a huge star, but when she smiles I'll smile and it's all cool.

Saki Mori I think is becoming cuter. I don't feel like I've learned anything new about her personality in a long time, but she used to be this quirky H!P fangirl and do things the morisaki way, which was great. I think she must still be the same, I just really can't remember anything recent. If there was a 'funny, weird girls' unit formed of Eggs, she and Konatsu should totally be in it.

Sayaka Kitahara... I still like her personality a lot. She's just fearless and funny and great at doing a scary angry expression. Recently I've noticed that she has a nice figure; her abs have got attention before, but she's been getting some junk in her thighs, which is great as well. Haha. And she does still have a unique singing voice, too, one that could be pretty cool if controlled properly. I would throw her in the 'funny, weird girls' group with Konatsu and Morisaki, lol.

I love Akari Saho! I think there was a moment when other Eggs got my attention more, but Akari is just lovely. I love that she's in the new formation of Aa! because there she really gets to show off her talent and potential. I really like her voice and she keeps improving her performance, as can be seen in "Yume to Genjitsu". I love that she has a gorgeous smile, but when she needs to be fierce and serious, she can pull that off, too. She's still young so even if she didn't make it to S/mileage, I hope she gets another chance for major debut.

Asuna Okai is kind of cute, but I haven't really got especially attached to her. I feel like I haven't seen or heard enough of her to really decide what to think (even if she is a 1st gen Egg!). Maybe I just don't notice her among other girls. It's likely that she'll stay with the company like her sister Chisato, though, so maybe there's still plenty of time to change that.

Azusa Sekine looks and performs older than her age (14 in June). Great voice, great smile. There are prettier Eggs than her, but I hope that her voice will give her a chance to do more than just Egg concerts in the future. She doesn't seem to have a stand out personality, though.

Adorable little Irori Maeda has a lot of energy and childish fearlessness. I used to think of her as quite an ace, but then happened Karin. Haha... The stakes are getting higher! Regardless, Irorin is very cute and has a cute voice, and I look forward to seeing more of her in the future. I think she is doing well in Shugo Chara Egg.

Manami Arai seemed like a bit of a sleepwalker in the earliest Egg concert, but she's improved since then. I don't think she's amazing now, but much better, yes. I wonder what her role in Eggs will be, as some younger and newer members have got more prominent jobs than she has. In some concert backstage videos she seems a bit random and fun at times.

2nd Generation

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Momoka Komine is not really one of the cutest Eggs, but still somehow pretty. I used to find her a bit forgettable, but when I saw her in "Hajimete no Happy Birthday" something had changed. She totally stole my attention in that. She's not really one of my top favourites, but I like having her around. I heard that like S/mileage's DAWA she says strange things sometimes, which is cool, but not very helpful when your Japanese is kind of bad like mine. In any case, I like her.

3rd Generation

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Yuu Kikkawa has really become more and more likeable to me as I've come to notice her kind of 'quiet humour/personality'. She smiles more often than before. Her reactions to things aren't loud and exaggerated, but are still funny - there's just something about her attitude that is great. She doesn't take things too seriously, but it doesn't seem like she doesn't give a fuck, either. Also, Kikka is good at performing.

4th Generation

I have to say that 4th generation is one of my favourites. I liked the girls the moment I saw them. It's strange how it feels like they've just got here, even if there is already a 10th generation... But still, when I first saw them in some concert backstage footage, it looked like they fit right in.

I call Mizuki Fukumura 'Princess Mizuki' or 'Princess Fukuchan' depending on how I'm feeling. She just seems like a princess to me (not in the prissy spoiled sense). She's very pretty, seems a bit quiet/shy, but more in a cute than painful way. I really like her singing voice and I'm happy that she's in Shugo Chara Egg! I hope it means that the company has a lot of plans for her in the future, too. I think there is something special about Fukuchan.

Rie Kaneko just makes me smile. She's a bit weird looking, but I still find her very cute. Her body language is kind of hilarious. I can't really explain it in words, but I really like seeing her around. Her smile performing is adorable, and her singing voice is cute, too. Ricchan is an Egg I always look forward to seeing again for reasons above.

Akari Takeuchi is absolutely adorable. Otherwise she hasn't really stood out to me, but you can already get quite far with cuteness. She seems to make good combos with other Eggs, like Irorin and Karin.

5th Generation

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Karin Miyamoto is da bomb. Haha. She's a future pro. She talks with quite a loud voice and seems completely fearless. Her expressions are so honest and pure; when she smiles it always feels like she is really amused by something, and not just smiling for the camera. She has a special twinkle in her eye. I already have great expectations from her, as she is so energetic, entertaining and adorable just by being her little self.

6th Generation

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Ayano Sato is still quite new, but I can say that I think she's cute (particularly the nose) and that she seems pretty cool. I was a bit surprised, but happy to see that she got to dance in the latest Manoeri PV. You go girl.

7th Generation

I have to admit, when I first saw the 7th generation it was a bit of a wtf moment. But I think both girls are growing on me...

Tomomi Hirano is now the oldest H!P Egg, even a year older than me at 26. But it's not her age that makes her weird to me. She's a graduate student at university who hasn't seemed very enthusiastic in any Egg stuff so far; I haven't seen her be playful with anyone else, or spend any time being friendly with the camera except when she's forced to do so... So I really wonder what the hell she is doing there. Maybe she just wants to improve her performing skills and get some part-time money? I don't really understand why she passed the audition. I guess that as a brainy girl she's a bit of a fun 'freak' to have around the other girls. I just don't understand any of it: why she would want to be there, and why the agency would want her to be there... But all this weirdness kind of makes it fascinating. And partly because we're around the same age and are both in uni, I may be particularly interested in seeing how she does.

Rina Katsuta definitely isn't one of the cutest Eggs, but when she introduced herself next to Tomomi, it was clear that she had good energy and enthusiasm. I don't really know her well yet, but I think she will be fine. She has a good attitude.

8th Generation

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Sayuki Takagi has a nice, energetic smile, so I'm interested in seeing more about her. Unfortunately, at the moment, I don't think I've even seen her perform once.

9th Generation

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Nanami Tanabe is so cute, aww. For such a little girl she seems to be doing alright. I've already heard her cute voice and seen a bit of her performing thanks to Shugo Chara Egg, and can't wait to see her in some concert recording, whenever that is.

10th Generation

Finally the 10th gen; unfortunately I've only seen pictures of them (just like of Sayuki, actually).

Runa Kizawa isn't the prettiest of the three newbies, but I like that her smile has energy. It's always a good sign, lol.

Wakana Nagasawa still has an awkward newbie smile, but she's trying and that's good. She's pretty, but it's a bit weird how she looks like a mix of other J-idols (like ex-Viyuden's Erika Miyoshi).

Haruka Kudo is tiny and probably ridiculously young, not that that's anything new. Anyway, her face is so angelic! It's crazy. She could be crap at everything and still be loved with a face like that. There have been many ridiculously cute girls in H!P and in H!P Eggs before, but I think Haruka's look is somehow new. She's like some fairytale little girl come to life, haha.

Anyway, this has been fun. I haven't been the best at keeping track of H!P Eggs recently, but I really look forward to getting to know all the Eggs better and meeting the next 10 generations of Eggs, haha. I hope they start coming at a bit slower tempo, though. It's getting a bit out of hand.

The 2009 Awards

It's that time of the year! How crazy that I only updated my vox twice in 2009. Oh well.

Music
Best band discovery - Cherry Boom, a Taiwanese girl band. At first I only liked their eerie song 'Dear Prince', but now I like many of their beautiful and slower/mellower songs.
Best artist discovery - Lady Gaga. I don't need to introduce her, right? I like her because she doesn't half-ass anything. She's a 100% entertainer and performer who has fricking catchy songs and a strong voice. She has rekindled my interest in English language music in general, so I look forward to more discoveries next year than I had this year.
Best music rediscovery - Not any band in particular. Stuff from the 90s because this year many times I was reminded of how the 90s were so awesome for music and this decade just hasn't felt the same.

Hello! Project
Best Hello! Project single - Buono! - MY BOY. It just gets me pumped as mad. It's so energetic and hyper and awesome!
Best new Hello! Project group - S/mileage! They've had 3 indie singles so far, none of which I've disliked. The members are awesome. This unit is about as adorable and huggable as a pile of puppies.
Best Hello! Project Egg - Ayaka Wada. Her personality and cuteness have really become more visible this year and I can only hope for more in 2010! I think she has also improved as a performer.
Best C-ute member - My best Berryz member is the same as last year, so I'm going for C-ute this time. Anyway, Airi Suzuki! I've always thought she was 'ok', but I think I've allowed myself to like her more this year, especially because of Buono!. C-ute without Airi just wouldn't be C-ute at all.
Best Morning Musume member - Ai Takahashi. Normally I would give this to Koharu because I liked her and this was her last year in MM and all, but Aichan's been talking about Final Fantasy and I can't help but fall in love with that! Haha. Aichan has been as charming and lovely as ever, gotta give her props.

Television
Best new series (in Finland) - Fringe. I'm pretty sure I only started watching it this year when the first season was aired in Finland, then I caught up with the US. I love this show!! The first season was good, but the 2nd season so far has made me fall in love with it. At first I wasn't feeling Olivia a lot, but she's more relatable and loveable now. I like the mysteries and the craziness (word of advice; don't eat when you're watching Fringe).
Best continuing series (in Finland) - Criminal Minds. Season 4 was fricking brilliant. So many episodes that I loved during that season. I used to think of Criminal Minds as just an ok show that I mostly watch because I love the cast and I'm fascinated with serial killer storylines (and hoi CM has one in each ep)... But season 4 also seemed to have generally better writing, more interesting cases, some very dark stuff and ah ah. It was just so good! 
Best new TV actress crush - Agent Emily Prentiss from Criminal Minds = Paget Brewster, haha.
Best new TV actor crush - Hmm, maybe Miles from Lost? I think all others were old ones. Fringe's Peter is nice, but now I like Olivia more... Heehee
Best reality series - The Amazing Race, the one won by Tammy and Victor (I think those were the names). I haven't actually been watching The Amazing Race before much at all, at least a season that was airing in the US at the same time, and I found it quite enjoyable. It was nice to have some other reality show to watch when Survivor disappointed me with annoying main characters that totally turned me off the show after 2-3 eps.
Best Big Brother contestant - I have to say Freddie from BBUK. There was a moment when I didn't like him anymore, but most of the time I was really rooting for him. He seemed like a genuinely nice and intelligent guy who had funny moments, as well, but was unliked by other housemates. Once the show was over and I saw some videos of his on Youtube I actually begun to understand why his fellow housemates found him so annoying haha, but I still don't think that they handled the situation in the best possible way. It was painful to watch and only made viewers support Freddie lol. 

Idols, celebrities
Favourite western actress - Gosh, I think it's still Amy Adams. I'd like to mention someone else to avoid repetition, but I can't really think of anyone I liked better this year.
Favourite western actor - Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I think... Because I saw him in two roles this year that were entirely different: the disturbing Mysterious Skin and the sweet (500) Days of Summer. And he was excellent in both roles. I also saw his SNL hosting intro and I had no idea that he could do a musical number, too, haha. I want to keep following his career now.
Favourite western celeb personality - Matthew Gray Gubler! I've liked his character on Criminal Minds ever since it started airing here, but for some reason only this year I really made the effort to find out what the actor is all about. And he is about the sweetest person ever. Creative, funny, cute, all the good stuff. I think this fandom will last.F
Favourite Asian actress - Vicki Zhao Wei. Haha, only because I really liked the Red Cliffs and I now have a crush on her. I'm definitely looking forward to watching Mulan, though! 
Favourite Asian actor - My favourite actor generally is Tony Leung Chiu Wai, but I think this year I'll give the award to Takeshi Kaneshiro. In 2009 I really started liking him more after seeing House of the Flying Daggers and the Red Cliffs, and now there's no going back. He's talented, ridiculously good-looking and seems to choose his roles well, so what's to hate?
Favourite late night host - I only made this category to give props to Craig Ferguson. He's hilarious and amazing. lol I
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Other entertainment
Most addictive PC game - The Sims 2 still. I have started to play Sims 3 a little, but Sims 2 still has the full control stuff that I like, not to mention all the custom content and expansion packs of my preference...
Most addictive PS2 game - I've tried to continue playing FFX, so probably that, haha.
Best novel - Ahh I liked the Game of Thrones very much, but I completely fell for Jane Austen's novels this year, so I must mention one of them. Persuasion, I think! I love love love this romantic stuff, and I think Persuasion stood out because the main character in it was older, and somehow more relatable than in the other ones.

S/mileage b/loggage

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Hello! Project Eggs have finally got a proper unit and I still haven't written an entry about it - shame on me!!
I'll try not to do a member-by-member babble this time, partly because I might be doing one about all Eggs later today, and partly because if I do separate analysis I might miss the fact that this is an actual unit.

Anyway, above picture from left to right: Saki Ogawa, Yuuka Maeda, Ayaka Wada, Kanon Fukuda.

I love my Eggs so when I heard about a major unit debut in the future, I was really happy. What I wasn't so happy about was that the line-up was exactly the same as Shugo Chara Egg, minus Akari and plus Sakichy. It felt a bit like "neener neener Akari, you're not good enough, sry kthxbai", which felt harsh because Akari is so lovely. Saki Ogawa is also someone that I have very mixed feelings about; when it comes to line hogging she's like the Airi or Aichan of H!P Eggs, except without the voice. Yes, Sakichy is quite impressive vocally for her age, but when she sings it doesn't make you listen quietly in awe like the first time when Airi sang in Aa! or Aichan sang in Morning Musume's 5th gen audition. Especially live, her voice is more of the whiny kind (strangely it sounds good in S/mileage songs, but I generally don't like her versions of other H!P songs). When it comes to Eggs I want to hear as much of everyone as possible, so when one girl is hogging most of the lines in group songs and doesn't have a magical voice to make up for it, it does get on my nerves a little bit. Of course, none of this is her fault, but the management's...

Nevertheless, now that some time has passed, the whole Shugo Chara Egg thing seems less important, but it's a shame that such good news at first left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth because I couldn't help but feel sorry for Akari.

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I can see that this line up works, though, and I do think that Saki has deserved her debut as much as the other girls. All of them have been Eggs since the audition in 2004(!), that means 5 years of training and dreaming. They simply look good together and because they all have sort of cutesy voices, as a fan of adorable voices I can really see myself liking them vocally. (Even when it comes to Shugo Chara Egg, I always listen to their version of Omakase! Guardian instead of Guardians 4. It's so cracky with their sugar voices!!)

These kids have been training together for ages and it's cute to see friends work together towards a common goal. They must already have a common bond and hopefully they'll be ambitious together once they debut officially and realize that they might actually be able to battle the older units.

Personality-wise though, a lot rests on Ayaka 'DAWA' Wada's shoulders. That girl is just hilariously strange, to the point where she's become my favourite Egg (and when S/mileage graduates H!P Eggs, she might be my favourite H!P member, assuming that they stay in H!P). Besides Dawa, Yuukarin seems to have a surprisingly anti-idol mentality despite her 100% idol looks, and it's lovely how genuine she always seems to be. However, she is a quiet girl and if I hadn't read some translations of things that she has said, I wouldn't have any idea that she actually has a personality. Sakichy and Kanon also both seem like 'regular kids'; Kanon has a wota thing going for her since she's been a huge H!P fangirl and been vocal about it, and she's also skilled with using a computer and a 'charisma blogger'. But when you see her being interviewed, nothing that interesting seems to be happening, and she seems to stick to a few basic lines (how many times has she said that her favourite food is strawberries?!). Maybe I'm being too harsh on them because their ages are 15 and below, but as far as cuteness can take you in the idol world, it can take you that much further if you have a memorable personality to go with it. Right now I think Dawa is the only one who would stand out instantly for her quirky ways. Luckily she is the leader of the group; maybe that means that she will get some extra chances to talk.

As time goes by, I expect and hope to see their on screen personalities develop more!

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Now for their songs. Their first single was nothing too memorable in my opinion, though the PV was quite lovely and cute. However, their 2nd indie single Asu wa deeto na no ni, ima sugu koe ga kikitai ('Even if we have a date tomorrow, I want to hear your voice right now') is so cute it makes me happy to be a H!P fan. It reminds me of Tanpopo's 2nd generation songs, which is not a bad thing at all. Tanpopo was known for sweet, cute love songs with heart-warming melodies about prince-like boys and first dates, and that kind of innocence is something that I've really missed. Their songs really make me want to have a crush on someone; they make the anxiousness of worrying about how to dress up for a date seem like the most desirable feeling in the world. And S/mileage's song, to me, also really captures that feeling... "I wonder what he's doing right now? Is he waking up?" etc. I'm so addicted to that song right now and I'm sure it will join my list of classic favourite H!P songs as time goes by. Sugary songs like this make me so happy! I actually hope that this had been their first major single.

Of course, nobody can tell whether S/mileage will keep having songs like Asu wa in the the future. But I think this type of image really fits them and their voices, so I hope it does stick! (Though I wouldn't mind some Jiriri Kiteru type teen angst, either... But H!P units don't typically stick to one style, anyway.)

As performers all of the girls are quite top notch and only seem to become better. They have bright smiles on stage and lots of energy.

Well, in the middle of typing this I had to go for a long shopping trip, so I've actually forgotten what else I was supposed to say. But I guess in the end, I think S/mileage has a lot of potential to become a top group among Morning Musume, C-ute and Berryz Kobo, if only their management doesn't screw it up. They're a pretty solid group where skill-wise nobody is obviously better or worse than the others; Dawa might be the weakest vocally, but on the other hand she has the strongest character. They're all cute and charming in their own way. So I'm hoping for a bright future for them!

Hello! Project Eggs present: Teeth

A blog post outta nowhere!

I went to the dentist today and that reminded me to make this entry. I think this post is going to make me look like a freak who's always staring at people's teeth, but that's not really the case. There were only a few Eggs whose teeth stood out to me instantly, and the rest of the inspiration for the entry came as I went through a bunch of pics.

I was going to call this entry the best and worst teeth, but that's not really the point here! I don't want any of these girls to change their teeth unless they need to do it for health reasons, or it's something they really personally want to do.

None of the pictures have been resized, only cropped, so click for full pleasure (or pain).

Dental Dreams

First, a friendly reminder that not every Egg has teeth all over the place! I could've posted more girls here, but I chose Yuu Kikkawa and Akari Saho as the examples of a nice, straight Pepsodent smile. I think anyone should be happy to have their teeth.

The Classic Fang

Wada

Ayaka Wada is a good example of the Classic Fang. Many girls in Japan and even in H!P seem to have this one tooth poking out into the wild, including Morning Musume's Eri Kamei. Sometimes it's hidden way at the back of the mouth and can only be seen when the girl smiles extra widely, but Ayaka's is of the clearly visible, "sometimes pokes out between the lips" type. I think it adds to a charming, cute smile.

Aside from the Classic Fang, Ayaka's teeth are somewhat big and cartoon-like (not to the extent of Risako's, though). So I'd say that she has quite adorable teeth.




The Chihuahuas

Sakichy

Why did I call Saki Ogawa's teeth the Chihuahuas? Well, because when I think of Chihuahuas I think of dogs that are small but fierce. And that's kind of what Saki's teeth are like. In addition to her teeth being small, she has these two sharp spikes on both sides of her mouth. It's weird because one wouldn't necessarily think that this set of teeth would instantly stand out, but I think Saki's teeth are quite recognizable. I always remember those two sharp teeth that could possibly do some harsh damage. Hmmm piranha teeth? Yeah, that sounds good...





The Bunny Lite

Yuuka

Yuuka Maeda's teeth are pretty much perfect for her. They're not a perfectly straight Pepsodent row of teeth, but they're not all over the place, either. They're just unique enough to add to her character. The bunny name comes from the two front teeth that stand out from the rest of the teeth. However, Yuuka's bunny teeth aren't as obvious as, say, Arisa Noto's, so her teeth shall be called the Bunny Lite. So why am I posting Yuuka if she's only the Lite version? Well, because her teeth really compliment her overall soft look where there's absolutely nothing harsh or offensive. If her teeth were more obviously bunnyfied, it would break the harmony. I guess one could say that Yuuka has the perfect face for cuteness... That lucky bitch.

The Unfortunate Pigmentation

Asuna

For the record, I have no idea whether Asuna brushes her teeth or not. But I'm assuming that she does, and that she is the victim of unfortunate pigmentation. It's not visible in every pic where she smiles, but sometimes her teeth just look plain dirty. I actually kind of feel for her because my teeth have looked yellow ever since I was a kid, so if it's a result of genetics it's just too bad, eh?

Other than that she also has a case of a hiding tooth. (It's the one there behind one of her front teeth.) But it's not really that much of a stand-out feature.




And now for more intense stuff...

The Teeth of Attitude

Sayaka Kitahara has one of the most stand out sets of teeth among the H!P Eggs. She not only has the Classic Fang, but she sometimes smiles with a lot of gum (see the bottom picture) and many of her teeth are a bit all over the place.

But what is totally awesome about Sayaka and her teeth is that while some people, at least in the western hemisphere, might be embarrassed or discouraged to smile because of teeth like this, she almost seems to be flaunting at times. Well, maybe that's a bit exaggerated, but she does love to smile and laugh openly and it's really beautiful to see such confidence and attitude, especially in a teenager like her.

So yes, her teeth may look a bit scary at times, but because of her attitude they become a cool and cute part of her look and character.





The Secret Teeth

I feel almost bad for Kanon Fukuda - not because her teeth are obviously worse than anyone else's (because they aren't), but because she doesn't seem to be too happy about her teeth. She is kind of like the opposite of Sayaka.

Kanon never really smiles 'normally'; she always either smiles with her lips closed or with her mouth open like pictured on the left. See, when you smile with your mouth open like this, you actually show less of your teeth than when you smile widely (see all of the pics above for comparison). The best moment to see Kanon's teeth is when she's talking, but even then it's almost like she's trying to open her mouth as little as possible. When she laughs, she closes her mouth and it looks like she's trying to supress the laughter.

So Kanon does have some weird stuff going on with her top teeth, but it's her own attitude that makes it bad or sad for me. I mean I'm not an expert on body language, but to me it seems that she has some confidence issues when it comes to her teeth. If I'm right about this, I'm hoping that she does get a chance to have them straightened eventually (like Risako Sugaya, Maki Goto and Nozomi Tsuji to name a few).


Wtf

Arai

Manami Arai's teeth are definitely one of a kind. Her set of teeth is kind of like a summary of wacky teeth stuff that may go on in the mouths of Japanese idols. Fang? Check. Overbite? Check. Hidden tooth? Check. Just plain what-the-fuckery? Check. When her mouth is closed, you can see that her teeth are just waiting to grace us with their presence again. But would we really have her any other way? ..Well, I suppose we would, but without these teeth I think she might actually be more forgettable. They kind of fit her, if that makes sense!






The One-Toothed Miracle

Anri

Anri Tanaka. Her teeth are so off-center that it looks like she only has one front tooth. It's quite amazing, actually! I'm fascinated by it. Add the friendly fang poking out from the side and you have quite a unique set of teeth! Her smile is pretty nice, so I'm glad that she doesn't seem to have any teeth issues in her mind.

Would I find her prettier if she had straighter teeth? Yeah, I probably would. But would I really notice her as much if her teeth were 'perfect'? Nah, I probably wouldn't. There are tons of gravure idols, actresses and the like with her look in Japan, only with straighter teeth, and I don't give a damn about them. So sure, Anri is a H!P Egg and that instantly makes her worthy of my interest, but even then I think the teeth add a little bit of extra something to make her more interesting to me (lookswise, of course. Anri also has voice and other good qualities going for her).


Something to end with...

My Favourite Smile

Sengoku

Just to end with something extra fangirl-y, I'd like to pimp my favourite smile among the Eggs. I like Sengoku's teeth because they aren't Pepsodent perfect, so they aren't boring (lol), but they're still quite nicely in a row like little pearls. There is a wee bit of Bunny Lite effect to be seen, as well. Shortly put, she has cute teeth and an absolutely beautiful, bright and wide smile that also appears flirty at times. Hot stuff!

The 2008 Awards

A bit early this year, but time for some annual awards... For I sure love handing them out.

Music
Best music discovery - Wonder Girls, although this is a bit of a pity vote, since I only listen to 3 of their songs. I'm not sure I made any great music discoveries this year... I guess that's something I need to fix in 2009. I'm interested in finding more good music sung in Chinese
Best music rediscovery - Garbage. I finally gave a re-listen to my long-time favourite band (all my teen years, basically) and remembered how much I love them
Best new group of the year - Buono!. They officially debuted in 2007, but most of their releases have been in 2008, so there. The ultimate chipmunk vocal unit, they are cute and awesome and have cheerful songs

Hello! Project
Best Hello! Project single - Lotta Love Lotta Love (or Rottara Rottara). I instantly fell in love with it. It makes me happy and bouncy
Best new Hello! Project group - High-King, because I already mentioned Buono! above and this unit had another single I loved this year (c/w included). Great choreography that is so rare in H!P. I also liked seeing Yuuka get some spotlight and as a result, more people become interested in her/H!P Eggs. Too bad it was a temporary unit
Best Hello! Project Egg - Sengoku Minami. During the past year her charm has just really won me over. Her smile is irresistible, and I'm not the only one who has noticed her
Best Berryz Kobo member - Tsugunaga Momoko. She is pretty much my favourite member in the entire H!P currently and this year has only strengthened her position. I'm loving her personality, her voice, and the PBs she released. Momo makes me smile even more than before, if that's possible, and I'm not getting tired of her at all. There's just nobody else like her
Best Morning Musume member - Tanaka Reina. While she isn't my favourite member in Morning Musume, she's the one I gained more respect for during the past year. I thought she was really good in High-King and realized that she has always been good and will always be
Best DVD release of the year - BC Concert Tour 2008 Spring - Berryz Kamen vs Cutty Ranger - I don't really remember much of it right now, but I remember liking it at the time and watching certain performances more than once. (Actually I liked the H!P Egg Shiba concert better, but I don't want everything to be about Eggs, kek)

Movies
I actually kept a list of all movies I watched this year and watched more movies than usual. I'm planning on writing about them separately on my LJ, so I don't feel like plunging into them right now.

Television
Best new series (in Finland) - Madmen. It only started a bit more than a month ago, and I skipped last week's episode because I felt I wasn't getting that phroarrr feeling from the show... But watching last night's episode brought my faith back and I think I'll keep watching now. In the end it's surprising how few new shows I've started watching this year.
Best continuing series (in Finland) - Lost. Usually I would avoid naming the same show again for two years in a row, but Lost season 4 was so damn good. If not Lost, Dexter season 2 was also amazing.
Best hospital series - ER, seasons 1 - 3. I started watching this show from the beginning and I was surprised to notice how much I remembered of it (I thought I'd only seen bits and pieces of it since I was so young when it was first aired here) and how funny the show is in addition to all the drama. Witty dialogue
Best new TV actress crush - Yunjin Kim/Sun from Lost. I've been watching Lost since it started, but only this year really got into Sun (probably because her character leveled up during Season 4)
Best new TV actor crush - I can't remember anyone... There's Faraday from Lost, but that was only a temp
Best reality series - Survivor: Micronesia. Best final 3 ever, best winner ever. Parvati <3 This season had so many blindsides, so much entertainment and classic moments that I'll probably watch it again when it's finally aired in Finland
Best Survivor contestant - Parvati. She's a shameless flirt and pwned everyone. Personalitywise not as entertaining as someone like Courtney from China, but I don't think it can be denied that she provided entertainment in Micronesia. (I haven't been watching Survivor Gabon for more than 4-5 episodes so I can't really say if there's someone more likeable there)
Best Big Brother contestant - Brigitte from BBAUS. This girl just cracks me up. I think I have a thing for this type of female characters on reality tv: girls who seem really dumb/have poor common knowledge, but don't feel shame and turn out to be good judges of character (Brigitte could see through Nobbi for one). AND are hilarious in the process. Brigitte would say things like "I hate you" or "break a leg", but instead of finding it offensive I just ended up finding it hilarious. It really is quite strange. I really feel like watching this series of BBAUS again. I think it was really underrated and I'm sad that my first season of BBAUS turned out to be the last
Best America's Next Top Model contestant - Anya. I've actually stopped watching ANTM because it's so ridiculous, and I didn't see all of Anya's cycle... But I did love this girl for as long as I did watch it. She was just so genuinely sweet and funny and.. yes, a bit of an airhead. Other than that, she was fierce in all her pictures. If that show was really about crowning the best model she would've won, but I'm kind of glad she didn't so that she won't have to drag around the embarrasing crown of ANTM in her career

Idols, celebrities
Best gravure discovery - Sato Rika. I'm pretty sure I discovered her earlier, but I re-discovered her again this year thanks to Masa. She is THE cutest little gravure idol
Hottest Korean pretty boy of the year - T.O.P. from Big Bang, he's a pimp and he loves it.
Most beautiful Japanese actress - Shibasaki Kou, and yes, I only made this category for her
Most beautiful western actress - Amy Adams. I'm not sure if she's the most beautiful, but I certainly fell for her in 2008. I love her hair, smile, and cuteness
Best personality in a western actor - James McAvoy. Previously this category was for actresses, which is weird... But anyway, McAvoy is a charming Scottish lad who makes me laugh, even when I don't know what he's saying

Entertainment
Most addictive PC game - The Sims 2. There's no other game that fits my personality better, since it gives me free hands to do what I like
Most addictive PS2 game - Can't say I've been playing it much...
Best novel - Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, not that there's much competition because I'm a lazy reader, but it's really a good book, okay...

And that's that. A bit lame. Oh well.

H!P Egg Shiba Kouen STEP!

Finally, a second H!P Egg concert released on DVD! I can't skip this chance to write another review on my favourite fandom topic, H!P Eggs. I'll try to both write some general things about the concert and look into the members one by one, by taking also my old opinions into consideration. I'm curious to find out how my opinions have changed, the girls have improved, or if I've made any predictions back in the day that now make sense (or the opposite!).

First of all, the setlist for this concert was pretty damn good:

1. ＪＵＭＰ   全員
2. ラブ＆ピ～ス！ＨＥＲＯがやって来たっ。    能登・田中・仙石・吉川・古川・森・北原・古峰・和田・前田（ゆ）・福田・佐保・岡井・関根・小川・前田（い）・新井
3. 印象派ルノアールのように   能登・吉川・関根・小川
4. ＳＨＡＬＬ　ＷＥ　ＬＯＶＥ？   田中・仙石・北原
5. デート日和   古川・佐保
6. 行く！ZYX FLY HIGH   古峰・和田・岡井・前田（い）・新井  
7. 恋はひっぱりだこ   森・福田
8. １００回のＫＩＳＳ   前田（ゆ）
9. ＥＶＥＲＹＤＡＹ　ＹＥＡＨ！片思い   岡井・前田（い）・新井
10. 色っぽい女～ＳＥＸＹＢＡＢＹ～   田中・北原・古峰
11. ロマンチック浮かれモード   吉川・関根
12. 大阪　恋の歌    古川・森・前田（ゆ）・福田・佐保・小川
13. １７の夏   和田
14. 手を握って歩きたい   能登・仙石・譜久村・金子・竹内
15. 浮気なハニーパイ
16. ザ☆ピ～ス！
17. BYE BYE またね

JUMP and Love&Peace! are both high energy songs that will get the crowd going, followed by two 'sexy' songs. Most notably there's only one ballad, which is great news to me as a bit of a ballad hater (I just prefer songs with energy and some beat). Romantic Ukare Mode is a H!P concert classic that never fails, and BYE BYE Mata Ne a great ending song, since it brings a tear to my eye, and I hear I'm not the only one. There are quite a few cute, fun songs to boot. Nothing wrong with the setlist, really.

Generally speaking the Eggs have improved vocally and as performers significantly since the first H!P Egg concert. Most noticeable are "the little ones" who seemed to be a bit lost on stage still at the first concert. But they are by no means the only ones who have got better. Honestly, there were times when these girls didn't seem any less talented than the current Morning Musume. Egg fans have a reason to be proud and non-Egg fans have a reason to be worried, since they may get utterly charmed by some of these girls in the near future.

Time to finally start the member by member babble. Man, taking these screencaps took way too much time. Let's start with the newbies, aka FRESH MEAT! 

(Always from left to right)

Takeuchi Akari
I thought that there was no way that H!P Eggs could get cuter once I'd seen the likes of Fukuda Kanon and Maeda Yuuka. And then little Takechan came along. She really is too adorable! I was surprised to see in the concert backstage videos how relaxed and at ease she already seems to be around other Eggs. Heck, she doesn't mind if others play with her cheeks. (Seems like I'm not the only who finds her adorable, huh?) The cameras also seem to interest her, since whenever one was around and she noticed it, she'd approach it or at least curiously look at it - like a little puppy learning her surroundings.

Kaneko Rie
For some reason, Ricchan makes me giggle. During the concert she sometimes has the funniest expressions. Based only on her picture I thought that she wouldn't be someone I'd notice easily, but on the contrary, she stood out to me instantly. There's just something very funny about her. She'll make a great source for gifs and screencaps...

Fukumura Mizuki
I find this girl very, very pretty. I also find it adorable that she cried after the Shiba concert (I believe this clip is only on dohhhup, not the bonus video that came with the concert). Somehow the teary eyes made her even prettier. But that's all for now, I don't really know her all that well yet.

All in all, these three new members are a great addition to H!P Eggs. They're quite different from each other, and all likeable in their own way. They also seem to have settled in nicely. Hopefully little Miyamoto Karin has received as warm a welcome. And now onto more experienced Eggs...

Saho Akari
Previously I had commented on her nice 'clear' singing voice and how I had liked her for no obvious reason. Well, I still like her (although possibly less than before, for no obvious reason), and her voice turned out to be even better in the Shiba concert. It was funny how Akari was paired with Konatsu in a Date Biyori performance. It was like watching two opposites: Akari with her mild expressions and Konatsu with her over-the-top faces. But I think she did well enough. Overall, she doesn't seem to stand out too much, though. I wish her luck with Shugo Chara Egg - it's likely that she'll be the least popular one of the four.

Tanaka Anri
The previous time I was impressed with her performance skills. I'm afraid to say that this time, while she did as well as in the first concert DVD, the other Eggs have been working hard and reached her level or even surpassed her. However, she seems to have a very likeable personality, both big sister-like and goofy. I have to admit that a lot of the time I'm unable to concentrate on anything else that she does because I've noticed that her teeth are so off-focus that it looks like she only has one front tooth, right in the middle. It's really distracting. I'm not usually an ass about teeth but this one really bothers me... Ok, time to move on to the next person.

Noto Arisa

I've only ever had good things to say about Nocchi and the same continues. Cute, energetic, good voice. I don't think more needs to be said.

Okai Asuna
I've said earlier that Asuna doesn't seem to be a natural idol, and that still holds true. I think she might be the only Egg that hasn't improved noticeably since the first concert DVD. She still dances with a serious expression on her face and doesn't seem to be 100% into the performance. At least her voice seems to be nice, just like her sister's, but not as strong. In the end, she's not very memorable compared to other Eggs.

Wada Ayaka
Dawa is one of my new top favourites, although I've always liked her. Her physical awkwardness, ditzy personality and cute face result in one adorably loveable package. Her solo performance in the concert was too cute, her angry expression in the backstage video too awesome for mere mortals. And her voice isn't bad, either. If she one day grows out of her awkward phase, I might actually feel a bit sad for a little while. Until I get used to it.

Sekine Azusa
Sekkii surprised me last time with her stage presence and she certainly didn't let me down this time, either. Moreover, it was not only her stage presence that was good, but her singing, as well! I'd say she is easily one of the best Eggs vocally. It's hard to believe that she's only 12 years old. She's such a natural on stage and also looks older than her age. This girl is really quite awesome.

Maeda Irori
Irorin continues to be radient and cute. In addition, her singing voice is quite good. I was surprised. (I feel like I'm praising everyone's singing, but they really were better than I'd expected!) She really seems to have been born to do this - it was almost scary how she was able to put on a mature expression during Iku! ZYX FLY HIGH. Young promise indeed.

Fukuda Kanon
Kanon was great vocally and with her stage presence, as usual. I'm looking forward to seeing her in Shugo Chara Egg, should be fun to see her in a proper unit (I'm aware that there is already some footage of this, but I need more). The performance with Kanon and Morisaki was pretty awesome: it was the two H!P fangirls/bloggers representing. Singing Berryz, too (Morisaki is a huge Momoko fan). Good times!

Furukawa Konatsu

Konatsu can be really over-the-top in energetic songs, which is both good and bad. Good because she stands out, bad because she's too OTT to my liking. I prefer her in more serious songs like Osaka Koi no Uta where she can calm down a bit but still show her dancing and performing skills. She used to be one of my favourites, but because I feel that she sometimes even tries too hard, I've lost some interest in her... But I still love to see her dance because that is her strength.

Arai Manami
Manami has definitely changed from the first new face concert. She used to look completely lost on stage, forget to smile and such. Now she's cheerful, cute, and can sing well enough. One of my favourite bits from the backstage bonus video was by her, a weird little dance (with Konatsu standing behind her). She's still a bit quiet and there's room to improve, but I was really impressed by her nevertheless.

Sengoku Minami
Sengoku in SHALL WE LOVE? = death! As my friend Stryfe said, "she could seduce a rock". She's a very attractive performer: she moves well, she has a great smile and sparkling eyes, and she sings well enough (even if she might be one of the weaker vocalists in Eggs. It's hard to tell sometimes). Her hair is great, too, and adds to her attractiveness. She has definitely become one of my favourite Eggs. Very charismatic.

Komine Momoka

Last time I wasn't that impressed with her on stage, but I think she has improved and, at least, is trying her best. She seems like such a normal girl that it's really easy to like her. Her tone of voice doesn't stand out that much, but she sings well enough. I don't find her particularly charismatic, but she still caught my attention now and then in the Shiba concert. So I suppose that she's still a member whom I like for no obvious reason...

Mori Saki
She might be one of my least favourite vocalists among the Eggs (just because it doesn't sound like her voice flows freely - I don't really know how to explain, but it sounds weird). However, I like her personality. She's still a weirdo who tries hard to be a good idol, just like I've previously thought. She didn't stand out to me that much this time, though. Maybe when I watch the concert for the 3rd time.

Ogawa Saki
Little Sakichy is still an impressive performer for someone her age (12), but sometimes the push she gets feels a bit redundant. I guess I'm just bothered that she got pretty much the same lines in Osaka Koi no Uta as last time when they could've shuffled it or even had another song. Osaka Koi no Uta was one of the best performances in the first new face concert. In this one, at least during the first viewing, it was one of the least exciting ones (but I did like it better watching it for the 2nd time). It's a bit horrible, but I feel like I'm already getting bored of her. I guess still, after over a year, I don't understand why she is the one being promoted so hard... I think I will only understand why once she is actually put into a group or turned into a solo act. Seeing her in that different kind of context, promoting her own songs, might do the trick.

Kitahara Sayaka
I feel like I've made some wrong predictions when I've called Saya one of the 'beauty Eggs' in the past. Maybe it's the teeth, maybe it's the shorter hair, but her looks aren't that special to me right now. However, her character has impressed me - she seems to have a gutsy, tomboyish personality, also evident in her role in Kirarin. Her voice stands out a lot. It's quite "raw" and strong and you can usually distinguish it even if there were several people singing. I think her singing needs more control, but if she succeeds in that, she'll be fun to listen to in the future. Oh, and she has killer abs.

Kikkawa Yuu
Definitely one of the best singers among Eggs who has improved her performing in general, too. Earlier I've felt a bit iffy about her, but I think I'm finally starting to like her and notice her presence. She's not really a 'happy happy joy joy' girl like most of the rest, which should be taken into consideration. Strangely enough, she has felt a bit like an outsider to me when it comes to Eggs. Maybe it's because she auditioned for Morning Musume, I don't know. But it helped to see her smile and perform with Sekine in this concert. I'm also grateful for every Egg who's over 16 years old, HEH.

Maeda Yuuka

Yuukarin has the most adorable singing voice and is basically sugar all over. She's become a better performer, smiling warmly and having twinkle in her eyes. I definitely noticed her more than in the first concert DVD. So good for Yuuka!

I would write a nice conclusion here, but this post has already taken way too much time (why do I feel like I always end my posts like this). So instead I'll just tell everyone to go watch this DVD if they haven't already. It's really quite enjoyable and everyone is really cute. So go go go!

Birthday Countdown Fun

This is not a serious post, so please don't take it seriously. :3

I don't know if it was the same everywhere for H!P fandom, but at least at the places I hang out at, a fun period seemed to be when the three 6th gen members Eri, Sayu and Reina weren't 18 yet, and everyone seemed to be looking forward to their birthdays and having fun counting down to the days when they'd be 'legal' by western standards (the ones widely used on the Internet). You know, a harmless bit of fun. But for a while it's been pretty quiet, hasn't it? Seems like there haven't been any exciting 18th birthdays for a good while. However, fear not! There are currently quite a few sweet sixteens/seventeens that should make the next year or two either fun or agonizing (depending on how you view it).

(I guess I should mention that at my home forum, it's against the rules to say pervy things about H!P members under the age of 18. That's why fans have to wait until the 18th bd to open their floodgates, which makes for some hilarious 18th birthday parties...)

So here it is, the best of "not a giiiiirl, not yet a wooomaaan" in Hello! Project/TNX!

Aina0080

Aina Hashimoto (The Possible)
Age: 16

What makes Hashimon stand out? Well, besides the cute singing voice... her chest. If you haven't noticed the size of it (especially if you've seen her bikini pictures), you must be blind. By Japanese standards, she is very well endowed. There's no way around it. Doesn't help that much like Yui Okada of ex-Viyuden, she is not afraid of showing off her goods. However, if it wasn't for her chest I wouldn't be including her here... So I suppose I'm mentioning in my opinion the least exciting one first. But I can see her becoming a valuable bikini-idol for TNX.

Miya2479

Miyabi Natsuyaki (Berryz Kobo)
Age: 16

Miyabi has really become increasingly attractive as time has gone by. She has always been a cool type of girl, but it seems to have evolved into something more. She's dangerous now, definitely someone to keep an eye on! I hope there won't be any more stalking scandals before she actually turns 18... And I hope that she keeps having awesome hairstyles. I think she also benefits from being in Buono! because of their awesome outfits (hotpants, short skirts, rock/punk-inspired clothes, and what fangirl can forget her once being dressed in a suit all handsome).

135582

Koharu Kusumi (Morning Musume)
Age: 16

Most of the time Koharu is her goofy ol' self, but when she tries to be cool and mature, I'd say she can pull it off. Because of this I expect more and more people to add her 18th birthday on their list of birthdays to look forward to. Heh.

Sengokuu0029

Minami Sengoku (H!P Egg; Ongaku Gatas)
Age: 17

There's no way she wouldn't make this list. Sengoku has a very flirty air about her, especially on stage... But I think her eyes have that special sparkle even when she's interviewed, appears in backstage videos and such. A combination of those wicked eyes, a great smile and great hair, and you get a dangerously attractive little package. I can't wait until I can start shamelessly converting more guys to become her fans. I've already had some success, but it's not enough!

Emwh2008_034

Erina Mano (solo)
Age: 17

I actually don't find anything but extreme cuteness in this girl. So while I wouldn't be excited about her 18th birthday, I can imagine that some guys might be. The thing is, because of her air of innocence and inexperience as a performer, even if her birthday is only 6 months away she seems more 'loli' type to me than the others I've mentioned... And as a result she'd not cater for the taste of the guys that I'm friends with. But to anyone who likes the innocent type, she'd be perfect... So I suppose I'll throw her in here anyway.

Maimi2405

Maimi Yajima (C-ute)
Age: 16

Maimi has a lot of things going for her. She's one of the all-time prettiest Hello! Project members, she looks good in a swimsuit, she can dance her butt off and looks good in hotpants. And all this while having a sweet personality, too. I'm not surprised to hear from guys who have fallen for her, but I think in two years it'll be even better (assuming she'll still be out there). Definitely one of the girls to look forward to.





So these are the girls I chose to feature, but among Berryz, C-ute, H!P Eggs, SINA and The Possible, there are also several others aged 16-17:

Maasa Sudo (16), Konatsu Furukawa (16), Erika Umeda (17), Chinami Tokunaga (16), Yuu Kikkawa (16), Kaede Oose (17), Anri Tanaka (17), Ai Suma (16), Nana Nakayama (16), Linlin (17), Momoko Tsugunaga (16), Yuri Sawada (16), Saki Shimizu (16), Yurika Akiyama (16)...

I only chose the ones who I can see attracting the most attention in this regard. For example, Momo is one of my favourite members, but she is so "never-changing" that I don't really see any guy having a field party over her 18th birthday. Heh.

Finnish Idol: Girl sings Koi*Kana, makes it through

Since I've mentioned it everywhere, might as well post it here, too!

In tonight's episode of Finland's Idol, a girl sang our dear Koharu Kusumi's song Koi*Kana (as well as a Finnish song by PMMP), and made it through to the next round!

I have to admit, I was prepared to get embarrassed by her, but she had such a beautiful personality that she completely won me over. She was the perfect person in my opinion to represent us crazy Japan fans.

I've uploaded a video of her audition on youtube, so check it out!
You may also see two of her pictures here.

I'm not sure if she has enough talent to make it much further in the competition, but she definitely has the attitude and charm! Maybe this time they'll let someone different in the semifinals just to see if the audience will like her? If that happens, she has my vote.

Taiwan Hello! Project Audition - Under the radar?!

I return from the dead to wonder about the Hello! Project audition in Taiwan. I'm quite shocked that the entire audition process seems to have got almost zero attention by the English-speaking fan community. Sure, it made news headlines when it was announced, and now that the winners have been chosen, there have been a couple of blog entries revealing the winners. But for example, at my home forum, nobody ever mentioned that there's an actual television show in Taiwan for the audition. I only found out two days ago when I found pictures of the winners at a Japanese site! I looked up the show on youtube/tudou and spent the entire weekend catching up on the show.

I guess the lack of interest on the audition show is what's shocking to me. Here we basically get a Taiwanese version of Asayan and nobody's interested? What the heck? Isn't this kind of juicy audition drama what everyone's been missing? Or is it just not good enough because it's in Chinese? I don't understand a word of Chinese (well, I understand 'thank you', but that is literally everything), but watching these girls perform needs no translation. It actually reminded me of when I first got into Hello! Project and didn't understand a word of Japanese. Regardless of the language barrier, the personalities and cuteness of the girls stood out to me back then... And the same happened with these girls from Taiwan. Ah, I don't know... Are foreign H!P fans getting lazy? Or maybe just the majority of fans in general aren't interested in auditions... But I've always loved them, so I guess that's why I don't understand why there have been so few reports on this.

Anyway, I'd love to babble about the girls who won the audition, but I haven't found trustworthy romaji versions of their names (if anyone can read Chinese, I'd very much appreciate them). The Stardust H!P blog had some names, but the blogger was unsure of them herself/himself... So until reliable versions come up, I guess I'll refer to them with the nicknames that I've given to them. Heh.

  First, "Sayulite" (her nickname given on the show seems to be Lightbulb). She was my favourite from the moment she first walked on stage. I nicknamed her Sayulite because some of her expressions reminded me of Sayumi from Morning Musume. When interviewed, she seems lost in her own world and it takes a while for her to come up with a reply... And her replies seem to be strange/funny, since everyone cracks up at them. Even I get amused and I don't even know what she's saying. Her character is definitely what I first loved about her... But later on, she also turned out to be quite a decent singer (in H!P standards) with a cute voice, and she can play the piano, as well. Not to mention that her Japanese pronunciation is pretty good, and she is attractive. This girl is definitely someone I want to see more of in the future!

If you want to see Lightbulb for yourself, you might like to check this youtube link. :D

"Risalite" (guess where the nickname came from)... She is extremely cute, can dance sexily, has a hot body and a great smile... But despite all these physical advantages, the reason why she got my attention was because she actually has quite a good singing voice! In H!P standards, very good, actually. I just hope that her hair will be changed in the future, because right now she reminds me too much of Risa, and it's not good for idols to look that similar in my humble opinion.

"Umedalite" (...Erika Umeda of C-ute. She doesn't really look like her, but she did in her winner picture). This girl can't sing to save her life... But she seems to be fun enough and I quite like her looks, even if she seems to look completely different on different days! (Just look at the three pics above.) I like her much more after going through her picture album. What can I say, I'm easy to please.

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"Minimoni" (thanks to some of her childish/weird outfits <3). Dear lord, I did not recognize the girl from this picture in the show for AGES (actually, the same happened with Umedalite and even Sayulite, maybe it was the youtube video quality but I was so lost). When I realized that this girl was one of the winners, I was quite happy simply because she's one of the girls who stood out to me instantly. Her dancing is very good, even if some of her moves were too mature for her age in my opinion... But it's not like they'll make her floor-hump the first thing in H!P, so it's okay. And she was in my opinion much cuter on the show than in this picture, even if this pic isn't bad, either. I don't believe I've ever heard her sing so no comment on that. But I think she's a good little idol package.

The two "where did they come from?" girls. They actually weren't featured on the audition show at all that I know of, only the final when Tsunku revealed the winners. Even then they didn't get a chance to speak, even if they were holding mics. Anyway, the funny thing about these two girls is that before finding out about the show, and only having seen pictures of the six winners, these two were the girls that I picked as my favourites based on looks. And both of them turned out to be some pre-selected or randomly dug out girls. How weird is that? I believe I chose these girls based on the pics because I thought they were cute, but not in a similar way to any previous H!P members. All the other girls reminded me of someone already in H!P (except Minimoni, who just generally looked like she could be in H!P Eggs). So I thought that lookswise, these two would bring something new to Hello! Project. Yup.

All in all, I'm happy with Tsunku's choices and will probably try to support these girls in the future, if I can only afford it. I also really enjoyed watching the auditions... Some of the performances were legendary, from their awfulness (unicycling girl singing Ayaya horribly) to their greatness (there was some impressive dancing in there). I do recommend watching this show to anyone who has the time and likes cute girls.

The show's name in Chinese: 早安家族New Star

Sources:
Lightbulb's blog for 2 pictures
Umedalite's blog for pictures
Risalite's 2 pictures
Hello! Project Taiwan website
New Star website
Stardust H!P blog

Spring time in a fandom

I've been so uninspired to write about anything, but now there are some things I'd like to discuss. It's going to be a random entry, so bear with me!

First of all, there were the news of now ex-H!P Egg Erina Mano graduating from Ongaku Gatas and finishing her training in H!P Eggs, to pursue a solo career. I was naturally thrilled by this piece of news, not really as a Manoeri fan but as an Egg fan (since Manoeri wasn't one of my favourite Eggs personally, but I can see the potential in her). Well, it's way too early in my opinion to guess what her future career will be like, since we don't even know for sure if she's going to be a singing idol or perhaps go for acting instead. It would be a first, eh? A bit farfetched perhaps, but we really don't know, do we. Every time I see her do the opening for Berikyuu I can't help but think how much she looks like an actress from some drama series, which is why I brought up the idea of her going for acting, but looks aren't - - well, actually looks ARE everything in this business. But nevermind.

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Out of curiousity, I dug up the first comment of mine on Manoeri that I could find. And it said "I think she's really cute..." I think that must have been most fans' initial reaction, since she seemed to become so popular (relatively, we are talking about Eggs you know) in such a short span of time. The picture above on the left has the first picture of Manoeri that was ever available to us (and also what I commented on as being 'really cute'), and on the right Manoeri now. But let's move on to our next topic.

So, our next topic is Sayaka Kitahara as Noeru on Kirarin Revolution - well, mainly in the live action clips on Oha Star, since I don't watch the anime. Her character is a tomboy sporty girl, which I had no idea about before I started watching, so I was very pleasantly surprised. The role seems to fit her perfectly and makes her seem very cool. I'm surprised I haven't seen that many screencaps of her around (I took these ones myself), and it makes me fear that fanboys (who usually take the caps) aren't that excited about her tomboyish role. But I think girls are very open and even inclined to like this kind of image (just look at Yossi's success... and hell, I'm buying it) so maybe Sayaka has a chance to gain more female fans. Or maybe I'm reading too much into it. Either way I think everyone who's curious should head towards Hello! Online and grab at least one of these clips to hear Sayaka's tomboy voice and see her tough girl attitude!

Pictures from top to bottom:
1. Simply Sayaka as Noeru
2. Noeru is too cool to shake hands with random dudes. (Who knows where that hand has been)
3. Noeru meets tambourine

Her character's story seems to be that Kirari is determined to have Noeru join her as an idol, but Noeru isn't as excited about the idea. But in the end she gives in to it, after noticing that being an idol is also hard work (like sports).

I guess that's enough about Sayaka...

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Then, a little bit about Yuuka Maeda. She's going to be in a special unit for the Cinderella musical that Morning Musume is working on. What I would like to briefly praise her for are her singing and looks. I listened to the recording of the latest Shinjin Kouen where Yuuka performed an Ayaya song solo. I was surprised to hear that she actually did a decent job! I knew she had potential in singing from earlier performances, but she was still better than I had expected. I've been underestimating her a little, I think. Ah, and as for her looks... She's been cute all the time, but now it feels like she's reached a whole new level of cuteness. What on earth happened?! Maybe she just grew out of her 'awkward phase' (you know, the one that all teens go through). But her most recent official pics are just mind-numbingly adorable. Can't wait to see her in the special unit!

Then for something a little different. About a month ago, at JPH!P (the forum I go to and moderate) we started a "girl of the week" feature in the H!P Girls Threads section. Now it's not a huge feature thing, just that a certain member's thread gets stickified for a week and people are encouraged to post special comments and such in her thread. And especially visit threads they usually don't. So anyway, I actually noticed that this little feature has helped me to start paying special attention to certain members, even after their week is over. I'm mainly talking about Reina Tanaka and Risa Niigaki here.

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I've been over-looking Reina for ages now for no particular reason. But when it was her week (she was the first one up), I was thinking about all the things I liked about her and decided that she deserved more of my attention. And shortly after that Resonant Blue, the PV where she's pretty much the main featured girl (she opens and closes the 'another version'), came out and I was able to think "oh yeah, this girl definitely knows what she's doing". So I was able to pay more attention to all her good sides and start liking and respecting her more. It was rewarding!

To a smaller extent the same thing happened with Risa; during her week there was a conversation in her thread about her difficult early days in Morning Musume and current leader potential, which me notice her a bit more than usual, too. (There wasn't much new information for me in the conversation, but sometimes a mere reminder works wonders.)

I really haven't been paying attention individually to several H!P members, so I'm really looking forward to more "girls of the week" who I might end up appreciating in a whole new way. I realize that fans who are only interested in supporting a few particular members aren't going to benefit from something like this, but to anyone who wants to be a fan of the whole Hello!Project, it is beneficial to sometimes take the time to pay attention to each and every girl separately.

I'm going to end this post with one random wish: I want H!P Sports Festival back!!