#and so she starts projecting into Haruka's dreams because she has to do SOMETHING

[moghedien]

when I tell you I would commit federal crimes for Michiru's backstory from her pov....

[starshine-valley]

HI I’M BACK: MOVING ON TO MY SUN-KUN AU !! Might make a masterlist on this who knows. BUT ANYWAYS ONTO AN’S EXPLANATION !!

Before we start, just a few things before we begin (again).

1) This AU takes place after Light Up The Fire (An’s recent event story), stricken by guilt and shame at their defeat with Taiga, Vivid Bad Squad decides to stay in the Street SEKAI until they get their mojo back. Kohane realizes that there are manholes in street SEKAI. This transfers them to another universe’s SEKAI. Sooner or later, they start jumping to more realities because once they start, they can’t stop. Forgetting their original dreams and motivation on why they move realities (surpassing RAD weekend for VBS as well as having Nagi still being alive with An), they become the BAD Vivids who are hopping dimensions to ruin them and cause chaos (in the eyes of others that is.)

2) The RADders previously having street SEKAI is canon in this AU. In this lore, they only had Miku (which is why Miku is the mostly distorted one) and their sekai was only limited to a street SEKAI without the cafe.

3) Taiga is an anti-hero in this AU. Think of him as the Miguel to Vivid Bad Squad’s Miles in a way but at the same time, he’s trying. He’s chilling in the main universe until suspicious things start happening and he, Ken and the vbs npcs (Kotaro, Arata and Tatsuya) team up to find vbs and bring them back.

4) Both groups (RADders + NPCs and VBS) are trying to find their ways to each other to not make the multiverse fall apart or something.

5) Other main project Sekai characters are likely not to be too important but i plan that Ena, the Tenmas and MinoHaru and MizuRui will play a more major role than the others.

An Shiraishi

(Onto my girl)

-> Resides in Dimension X, Living with her dad where Aunt Nagi and Uncle Taiga frequently come and visit. Nagi and Taiga gives An tips on performing and she aims to surpass their main event, RAD Weekend!

wait.. why is this so familiar?

-> She asks her friends: Mizuki Akiyama, a girl who seems bubbly at first but has something hidden deep down, Her friend, Rui Kamishiro, a strange inventor, and his best friend, Nene Kusanagi but they don’t have the same drive as she does and in the end, decides to perform solo for the meantime.

-> She even asks her childhood best friend, Haruka Kiritani to sing with her for a while but alas, she still feels insecure being up on stage whether for idol work or not.

-> Feeling hopeless, she starts to sing on her own for a while, until she sees a girl her age with dark hair sing in WEEKEND Garage.

-> Mesmerized by her singing, she asks if she could join her. Before Kohane could say anything, she presses play on Sun-Kun, sending them to the broken SEKAI.

-> Miku (pink haired apparently, An is confused) gives more insight about their original reality and how their dimension hopping is effecting everyone.

-> An doesn’t listen. She just can’t believe there’s a timeline where Nagi is dead. She is in denial and doesn’t want to listen to Miku, thinking this is all a dream. She kindly asks Kohane to bring her back.

-> An doesn’t join the BAD Vivids until later when all members are complete and she finally lets herself grieve and move forward. Making new memories with everyone.

FUN FACTS:

WEEKEND Garage is always in every dimension they’re in. It is either abandoned (Akito’s and Toya’s dimension) or ran by someone else (Kohane’s dimension).

Nagi is the only person who stays the same no matter how distorted the reality is. This is because she is made up of memories and not actually being effected. She’s kinda like Chiaki but also not. I’m not sure what to do with her character just yet but there ya go!

AKITO AND TOYA’S LORE WILL BE POSTED TOMORROW!! I need to do work lol

[shiningwonderland]

Tokiya Ichinose (Repeat) Memorial

Translator: Koto (twitter: kotowari16)

Proofreader: Mimi (twitter: _mimisaurora)

I'm grateful

“...I really… hope this will be the last time… something… like this… happens….”

It may have been due to my relief at having saved her, but as soon as I sat down on the sofa, I was struck by a sudden drowsiness, and fell into a dream.

“Oh Brave One… Wake up, Hero Ichinose.”

A mysterious voice called to me, and I opened my eyes.

“… What's all this noise?”

“This world has been shrouded in darkness. Do you know why?”

The mysterious voice continued to address me.

“Well? I have no clue.”

All that talk of heroes and darkness couldn't possibly be more hard to believe. Actually, they should reveal themselves before saying such nonsense. 

But first, where exactly am I?

It's dark and there's not a single flashlight in sight. Is this... a desert? There are no buildings anywhere.

“There is but one answer! The Goddess Muse has been kidnapped!”

The voice continued to explain.

“It would be wise to look at this!”

An image of Haruka looking like a goddess was suddenly projected onto the empty sky. She appeared bound to a giant cross.

And yet!

A cartoonish looking musical note on her chest shined brilliantly....

Ah, come to think of it, that note looks a lot like the one Otoya often doodles in the corners of his notebooks.

If I recall correctly, its name should be… Onpu-kun.

But why Haruka? Is she just a look-alike? Or, was she actually the goddess?

“Muse has been captured by the evil villain, Howlings, and her musical talent is being drained by the Golden Onpu-kun.”

“What...? From the very beginning, this has all sounded like the setup of some kind of ridiculous tale. I don't know where to start with this one.”

“Oh spare me your commentary!”

“Now you're talking back?”

“Listen! Oh, Ichinose, Warrior of Soundja.” (sounja)

“What happened to the "hero" title from earlier? And what's with this "Sounja" name? You think you can just go about throwing out random names like that? Not to mention, going to rescue a heroine currently abound to a cross is so cliché. There has to be some kind of twist to the plot, otherwise the viewers will lose interest.”

“Then, are you going to abandon her?”

As the giant music note settled on her chest grew brighter, the girl groaned out in pain. Her face turned pale and her breathing grew heavy.

“…I…Ichinose-san…Don't…come…here…”

That voice…

So, it really is her.…?

No way, it can't be.…

Why is in this mess.…?

There are many things that don't add up for me, but from the looks of it, if I don't go, it will only get worse.

“What will you do? Will you go or not?”

“I'll go! I can't just leave her be.”

“Then, your destination is Pluto, the planet of darkness! You must hone your inner self and embrace the power of Harmony, lest you fail to leap through the cosmos.”

“…Pluto is no longer considered a planet. And also, living humans can’t go into outer space unprotected.”

“Wow, you and your level-headed remarks! BUT! I can take on the vastness of outer space on courage alone!”

“That's because you're not just anybody, isn't it? ... I mean, you've been acting like some mysterious figure, but you're Saotome-san, aren't you?”

“I don't know what you're talking about! Anyway, hurry up and go save her!”

And so, I set off on my journey.

Along the way, I encountered a dwarf who encouraged me to believe in "harmony" and taught me how to use some kind of supernatural power, I believe I even managed to defeat what I assume was a underworld guardian with my singing, but I can't recall the details very well.

Anyway, after all of that, I finally arrived at her location.... But…

“Ichinose-san…. Please live on… without me…. It was nice… to see you… one last time….”

She muttered in a feeble whisper, sounding like she was at death's door, before her head simply slumped forward.

“Wha— So that's what you say as soon as I get here? And why would you...? That sounds like the words of someone who is about to die.”

I just wanted to save you.

That was the only reason I fought my way through this absurd world!

I won't let it happen.

I won't let you die!

“HARUKA!!!!”

I reached out my arm as far as it could go, but I couldn’t reach her.

She was right in front of me, so close I felt I could touch her if I simply reached out, but the cross crept away like a mirage, drawn into the darkness.

“Wait, don’t go! Please don’t leave me!!”

She, along with the cross, disappeared further into the dark.

Just what I should do?

I came to save you.

Isn't it unfair to leave me here like this? Even in this blasphemous world, I came all this way because I didn't want to see you suffer. I really wanted to help you... but now....

It's impossible.

I… I want to save you!

I have to save you!

“Hn.…”

Huh!?! Isn't this the principal’s office?

It’s a bit scorched here and there, but it is without a doubt, the principal’s office at Saotome Academy.

Then, was all of that just now a dream…?

“Aah… I’m sorry. I must have fallen asleep.…”

Everything seemed fine.

She is right in front of me.

She definitely here, smiling at me.

Aah, that’s right.

We were saved, weren’t we?

I’m glad.

…I’m really glad.

She's by my side now.

That's more than enough for me.

In this moment, her presence brings me the greatest joy.

[s0nia246]

I haven't had any writing ideas for Project Sekai so I'm doing this writing practice for fun.

This inspired by League of Legends Star Guardian (Universe, might make into a au.

This was inspired by Star Guardian New Dream: Seraphine's Vlog

Minori is Seraphine

Haruka is Orianna

Ena is Senna

Y/N is Xayah

-The camera turns on-

Minori ran quickly to school trying to catch up to her friends. She pulled up her phone to turn her camera on when she spotted them. Minori turned the camera around catching her friends as they walked through the school entrance.

Ena was reading a book when Minori jogged over.  She immediately saw the phone in Minori's hand. She sighed in annoyance as she closed the book.

"I said no, Minori." Ena rolled her eyes at her friend as she walked away from Minori and leaving Haruka to deal with Minori.

"Come on! It's like...a diary! Or a record log?" Minori tried to convince Ena.

Haruka's eyes widened, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to  come up with something reasonable. She looked between the two girls before deciding to walk away from  the conversation and follow behind Ena.

"IT'LL BE FUN THOUGH!" Minori shouted after them as the school bell ring.

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ : Song Title 0:00 ───|────── 0:00 ⁿᵉˣᵗ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ↺ ʳᵉᵖᵉᵃᵗ ⊜ ᵖᵃᵘˢᵉ

Minori adjusted her phone's camera to focus on her. Sticking on her tounge in concentration,making sure everything was set up. She then pressed the recording button.

"Okay let's get started" Minori spinned around in her chair before starting to speak again "My name is Hanasato Minori." Cut to clothes laying on Minori's bed, her stationary materials she uses for her diary, and Minori playing with her pet Samo-chan's paws. "I'm in Animal Care! I love dogs, interstellar travel, and... I'm a Star Guardian!" 

To transition to the next scene Minori uses Samo-chan's paws to reveal her Star Guardian outfit.  Minori danced around the room for a bit, her Magical Mediums, Treble & Bass flying around her. On accidental she ends up kicking one of them, falling onto her bed as her microphone hits her hand.

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ : Song Title 0:00 ───|────── 0:00 ⁿᵉˣᵗ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ↺ ʳᵉᵖᵉᵃᵗ ⊜ ᵖᵃᵘˢᵉ

Humming softly,  Minori watches Ena draw in her sketch book. Ena was sitting alone in a empty classroom, she hadn't noticed Minori recording her.

"Whatcha draaaaaaawing?" Minori asked excitedly.

Ena first was startled before quickly turning into anger. As if on impulse, Ena throws her sketch book at Minori. The sound of Minori's laughter cut to the next scene.

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ : Song Title 0:00 ───|────── 0:00 ⁿᵉˣᵗ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ↺ ʳᵉᵖᵉᵃᵗ ⊜ ᵖᵃᵘˢᵉ

It was night time and the stars were shining brightly as a shooting star zoomed over.  The camera panned down at Minori, Ena, and Haruka. Minori winked at the camera,"Watch this!" The camera turned to face a stitched up doll that was put up on one of the higher building the girls were training on. The camera then zoomed out to show of Minori shoot out a ball of light that was orange in color.

"Damage...55.%" Haruka said, holding her Magical Medium, Tocker.

Disappointed with her, Minori sighed. "Aww...."

The sound of a loud lazer filled the air, startling Minori as it hit the doll, obliterating the doll. Minori turned the camera to face Ena. She was shooting out of her paintbrush styled cannon. She put her  cannon over her shoulder as she smiled smugly at the camera and Minori,"Ha."

"Damage...250.%"

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ : Song Title 0:00 ───|────── 0:00 ⁿᵉˣᵗ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ↺ ʳᵉᵖᵉᵃᵗ ⊜ ᵖᵃᵘˢᵉ

Minori was petting Samo-chan's head as she put head against Samo-chan's back, she looked nervous and anxious, "Am I- Are we ready for this?"

Y/N looked up the feather that they were focused on. They got up from Minori's bed and looked over towards Minori's direction, "I chose you because your ready. Don't forget that." Y/N spoke softly, their voice soft like silk as reassured Minori.

Minori smiled softly at the camera before turning it off.

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ : Song Title 0:00 ───|────── 0:00 ⁿᵉˣᵗ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ↺ ʳᵉᵖᵉᵃᵗ ⊜ ᵖᵃᵘˢᵉ

This was a little writing practice thanks for reading. Also here's some doodle I did

[harufallinwonderland]

Tbh I randomly got the urge so HERE ARE MY FAV CURE OF EACH COLOR PART 1 (inspired by science project 99 on YouTube)

All these choices are from the seasons I watched so far (I do not need to finish the season to count it as plus I know way to much about seasons I haven’t even watched yet so expect spoilers for the seasons anyway ) and I will NOT be including Black cures,golden cures or rainbow cures because black and gold only have 1 cure and I feel like rainbow cures belong to others colors anyway let’s start I’ll be listing reasons for my choices as well

Fav blue: Saaya/cure ange from Hugtto

Oh Ange my baby she is genuinely so gorgeous with such A light and gentle blue and her angel theme and the feathers with all her special attacks are amazing

Then there her development omg when it comes to how much I like certain characters developments it’s personal fav (aka when I can relate to the character arc cause of there struggles) or well written fav (when I simply like them based on how well written the arc itself is) and Ange is A well written arc but that hardly puts her down as she is in my top 5 fav cures.

One thing I loved was how she felt aimless at times with the fact that despite wanting to act with her mother it was never A end goal she really never knew what she wanted to do but was to scared to ever try full on with something else but she went from A shy girl to one with tons of determination and was headstrong on what she wanted and I also found it beautiful how she found what she truly wanted to do by having the confidence to expand her horizons for the sake of acting with her mother.

And how things went with her mother brung me to tears with how Saaya learnt so much about how her mom tried to be A great mom along with being A actor with her determination and how her mother clearly loved Saaya and loved the idea of acting with her and how it weighed on Saaya wanting to go through A different path in life.

AND SAAYA’S LAST CHARACTER EPISODE HEART BREAKING her mom wanting to be able to support her daughter with A smile genuinely feeling bad for wanting Saaya to stay A actress and how Saaya was able to give her comfort with letting her know that everything she done was amazing to Saaya and how despite her own feelings she was A amazing mother.

Honestly I love Saaya because of how she grew to be able to stand her ground and be ready to chase the path she wants while still being A gentle caring person (truly befitting of A angel doctor huh?)

And honorable mention goes to: Yuni/cure cosmo:

For my fav yellow is it: Kirara/ cure twinkle

First of all I love her designs and how the purples and yellows work amazing together (even though when I was watching the show with my grandma she was hating on it) and I love all the star related stuff she does I love twinkle humming.

Another case of well written fav but still amazing (in my top 5 too) I love her purely business drive to go to her goal of being A model making her straight up refuse becoming A precure at first seeming like she was kinda detached from others but showing how she really is kind to others and can be assertive when needed with others (the Haruka dress episode being the first example)

Another part is her habit to take initiative while it was A dumb idea I love the fact in one episode she decided to say “FUCK IT” and went to attack the final boss (of course it didn’t work but at least she tried) and she is someone who has no problem doing what is needed and tends to go to do what she thinks is needed without hesitation most times.

And her final episodes where she is at first depressed over losing A business opportunity but gets another chance later and in most cases they would force the character to choose one or the other but she said “nah imma continue to be A precure and we handling this shit before school ends” with such determination and that’s just what I love about her most.

She is kind,brave,and determined not willing to let go of her dream but refusing to let others get taken either even as someone without A big dream I look up to her pure strength of will amazing 10/10 love her

Honorable mention: Homare/cure etoile

Next up is the purple cure prob most known for there mid season cures and mines is: Milk/Kurumi/Milky rose

Oh this one is controversial huh? Well let’s start with probably the least controversial thing in the franchise HOLY CRAP HER DESIGN it’s regal and beautiful it gives off mysterious vibes while showing she ready to kick ass and all the rose motifs are *chef kiss*

Anyway let’s get into the character cause she kinda controversial thankfully she ain’t no Coco so it’s not like I have to explain why she isn’t A creep so let’s start

She has easily the most satisfying character arc in the whole series for me from Yes 5 to Otona (one of the few good things about it) it felt A constant stream of her growing from A immature low key bitchy girl to the prime minister of her land wanting to not only help Coco and Nutts but also the kingdom she loves

Her development in the original Yes 5 was good nothing to make me love her this much just A simple “don’t be A bitch” story with A bit of how she can become A better care taker THEN THERE IS GOGO I swear gogo is just the fairies season and honestly don’t mind Milk becomes Kurumi and is able to fight on the front lines and able to do shit herself and she shows it off amazingly from how she was introduced being mysterious with everyone but nutts not knowing she was Milk and how she wanted to be A mysterious girl not only for her ego but to make sure she can help coco and nutts without A chance of burdening them.

And how her bond with Nozomi grows so much that some people actually start liking her in Gogo and it’s cute to see and then how she takes everything she learnt in both yes 5s and apply it to her adult life and learning more from them and her shitty office job that leads to her eventually being able to become prime minister of her kingdom and how over the years she more then prove she is A strong figure with tons of conviction and strength that the faires went along with it.

She has A character arc that fucking make me scream by how it feels like it fits her and A proper elevation of her starting point in Yes 5 while showing how much she grew over the years and deffo benefited the most from having 2 seasons where she developed without A doubt my second fav cure.

And honorable mention goes to Ruru/cure amour

(Ingore the Emiru/Ma Cherie to the left)

Now for the other common mid season color red and on the table for this one is: Towa/Cure scarlet

Ok I know Moonlight is known as the most badass precure BUT PEOPLE INGORE TOWA WAY TO MUCH like her designs is so regal and screams she is above her in all ways.

AND HER FIRST FIGHT SHE FUCKING CURB STOMPED THE FINAL BOSS SO HARD SHE RAND BACK TO HER BASE LIKE HELLO!

Moonlight’s beat down of nearly all the villains was amazing 10/10 but like TOWA IS AMAZING TOO plus amazing arc with her trying to leave behind her time as twilight as A chance of saving her kingdom no less her brother.

Her friendships are amazing too learning something from all the other cures plus Yui is great to see and she grows such amazing bonds make me get hyped EVERYTIME she on screen honestly all around 10/10 top 10 cures for sure

Honorable mention: Emiru/cure Macherie

(Ingore Ruru to the right and yes before you ask I do love the hugtto cast that much)

Next up what is known to be the most fucked over color my fav green cure IS: Lala/cure Milky

Ironically she is my second least fav star twinkle girl but I still love her and honestly the greens don’t got much to them so Lala

Honestly while her arc didn’t resonate the most with me I still love her from her bond with Hikaru and everything related to the episodes about her planet she was charming and entertaining the whole way through.

And honestly her sometimes taking the role on the Mc from Hikaru helped her alot with her having a lot of moments where she shines amazingly being A perfect example of the shows themes of connections and how peoples differences doesn’t mean you can’t get along.

And her final moments of the show with Hikaru is easily some of the most emotional moments I’ve seen so far despite not getting A duo transformation you can tell that there friendship means legit everything to the show and how they helped each other grow is 10/10 love her.

For the honorable mention it is: Komachi/ cure mint

(OK IMMA NEED TO DO A FUCKING PART 2 CAUSE ITS ONLY 10 IMAGES MAX ON MOBILE imma prob work on it right away but next time it will be Orange,White and the leaders Pink cures)

[queen-of-bel]

A5. A12, B2, B4, C5, C12, D5, D10, E3,

General Yakuza/Judgment/LJ spoilers, so I'm putting under a cut!

A5. Favorite final boss(es)? Oh Kuroiwa, easily. The dynamic intro. The action sequence. The music. His second phase?? Actually, I can't even consider that a second phase. That's just redoing the entire boss fight again. Absolutely amazing.

A12. Favorite tattoo(s)? Maybe it's a bit basic, but I do really love Majima's tattoo.

B2. What’s a scene that never fails to make you cry? Pretty much the entire ending sequence to LJ. I've played the game 3 times and every time the tears start coming when Kuwana says that it'd be cruel to tear Reiko away from Mitsuru after 13 years and they didn't stop until.... the credits rolled.

B4. Who would you like to post more about but you don’t? Why don’t you? Tanimura!! I think it's because I just genuinely cannot take Y4 seriously (altho I don't mean that in a bad way). Y4 is just wild and a really fun ride for the most part. Tanimura's story is the only part that I was genuinely invested in because I really, really love his story. That being said, I guess I just can't really reconcile how seriously I take Tanimura's character and his story and my feelings on the rest of Y4 which is... the complete opposite of serious.

C5. Which character would you like to see as an antagonist? Ooh, interesting. I don't know if there's any specific character that I'd like to see as an story antagonist, but I think it would be fun for Kiryu to try and fight Miss Tatsu but still get his ass beat.

C12. Whose voice do you enjoy hearing the most? It might be a bit basic but I really like Majima's more serious voice like in Y0 or the Majima story in Kiwami 2. I just love those glimpses into more of who he really is, rather than the crazy persona he puts up.

D5. Which character do you think isn’t portrayed well/ is misunderstood by the fandom? Kiryu's relationship with Haruka, absolutely. Fanart led me to believe that Kiryu has a wholesome relationship with Haruka and he's a great father but like... that's not the case at all. Don't get me wrong, he does try his best, but he has messed up. A lot.

D10. What’s something everyone loves that you hate? (Mechanic, scene, character, etc) Mirei Park. I think she could've been a good character if the game didn't try and paint her in a sympathetic light. Her "heartfelt" scenes with Haruka are legitimately so damaging. The woman literally tells a teenage girl "Don’t be content just thinking you’re pretty enough the way you are". She projects her failed dreams onto Haruka, holds funding to the orphanage hostage, says that because Haruka thinks she's ugly, that's all the more reason she needs makeup, and then tries to buy her affection with fancy and expensive gifts. Oh, except she didn’t even give Haruka the pen as a present-- she just wanted Haruka to go meet Majima in her place.

This is a traumatized and very messed up woman who is doing shitty things. If the game just embraced that aspect of her and went with it, I think I would've really liked her character, but the fact that Y5 ended up romanticizing such a toxic person (and honestly the whole idol aspect in general) just kinda left me like

E3. Return: Shinada or Tanimura? TANIMURA TANIMURA TANIMURA TANIMURA. He is legitimately one of my favorite protags in this entire franchise, second only to Y0!Majima. I love Tanimura with my whole heart I hope he's living his best life in a mahjong parlor somewhere ♡♡♡

Thank you for asking!!

[niji-translated]

“Hold Your Breath” – Entame OVO -

Translation by me (Niji-translated)

[If you wish to use any of my translations, please ask]

Link to original interview -

Interview – Hulu Original ‘Hold Your Breath’

Murakami Nijiro “I’m full of complexes” – 2nd Generation Revels His Feelings

This work, which is an omnibus drama full of the charm of director Nakagawa, what did you think when you first heard about it?

I’ve known Director Nakagawa since I was 16 years old, we’ve been out to eat together, watched films together. But, recently there’s been a little distance, it’s been a long time since I heard the directors name close to me, so I was happy to get the offer. Director Nakagawa has a strong image of making single screen films, so I was surprised that he was going to make a Hulu drama. But I’ve been watching his recent works and had the feeling that the direction and focus was changing onto others, I’m looking forward to it.

The main protagonist, Miyashita Shinpei is a 24 year old man who works as a rubbish collector, how did you see your role as Shinpei?

He loves literature, he wants to be a novelist. But, in the current situation he’s clearly at ‘rock bottom’. There’s no one around who is like him, no one who has a common language with him. Surely they don’t have a lot of heart to heart contact at work, basically I think he’s lonely. Amongst that, the ex-girlfriend, Kotoha, was a big presence. I think that time with her was like a dream world. That’s why he was dragging it out so much. He is a person who never changes his values or encounters new worlds in his daily life, so I think that’s true. I think he’s a blue person, but not a shallow person.

This was your first time working together with Adachi-san, how was the filming?

Because it was only a very short time co-starring together, we didn’t really get to know each other that well. We first met on the first day of production. On that day, I was filming a scene with Yokota-san, who played Kotoha, and in the evening it was a scene with Adachi-san, before the shoot, the three of us, including the director, had time to talk together. Well, but, the three of us talked but the director didn’t really talk. (laughs).

“What did you do before coming on site?”, I was saying. “What kind of relationships have you had?” I asked him. (laughs).

That’s quite an in-depth conversation.

I was curious, so I thought I’d dive in and ask (laughs). I thought that he must have overwhelmingly different feelings to me, I wanted to know what kind of person he was. He told me various things, but, not quite everything yet.

This time, you have a love scene with Adachi-san. For Director Nakagawa, the scene with you both was the first time he shot a scene involving a man and woman. What kind of direction did he give you?

In the script there was only one or two lines written, in fact, when shooting started, there were actually more cuts that I thought. Ahh, we were shooting so much. The director is the type to not write much in the script but gets into it, huh (laughs). In particular, at the end, when they are holding hands, he was very thorough and even directed the angle. Then, the scene where Kotoha’s dress is put on and they embrace is very impressive. Longing for Kotoha, longing for Kotoko, it becomes ambiguous, but definitely looking for a woman, for maternal feeling in that scene, I think it’s a memorable scene.

In this work, there is a scene where it is apparent that Shinpei has a complex about his education and upbringing, do you yourself have any complexes?

Me, I’m full of complexes. For example, I have a complex about my small face. Still, on the screen it looks better, the bigger the face, the better it looks. Of course, I think I have my neutral features, which is one of my strengths, but I long something more physically manly.

How do you digest such a complex within yourself?

I don’t know about past lives or the afterlife, so for now, this life is what it is. I think I long for too many things. I love my parents, I love the way they express themselves, I’m proud to be their child, at the same time, I think I wish I could have been unknown. Not just actors, musicians also, there are various occupations that are hereditary, in that way, I think all people are descendants of something, though celebrities have very little descendants.

That is one answer I think. In the film ‘Soiree’, I co-starred with an actress named Imou Haruka, she is a daughter of a tatami maker from Kumamoto. There was an event, she fell in love with movies, in love with theatre, with that in mind, she came to Tokyo to become an actress. Listening to that, of course I admire it. I want to listen to stories like that. Usually, as a result, a lot of second generations gather together. That’s why, I want to listen to the stories of people from different environments.

Finally, a message to those looking forward to this work.

If you don’t know Nakagawa Ryutaro, I hope you will take this opportunity to get to know him. Also, this project, I think it is very new. There is a polarization between movies and entertainment in some areas, this kind of streaming service breaks down those barriers, it’s interesting to make a piece of work. Where you’re from, where you are doesn’t matter. Hulu and other streaming services, I think that’s the kind of field that we’re in. Such a field has finally appeared in Japan. From now on I’m sure it’s going to become a fun world. By all means, please come and witness it.

[dennou-translations]

Chou Animedia Interview with Chihara Minori

“Amy”, the theme song of the film “Violet Evergarden Gaiden” sung by Chihara Minori, is a gem birthed from the world of theatrical animes.

About a year and a half after its TV broadcast, the new work, “Violet Evergarden: Eien to Jidou Shuki Ningyou”, started being screened on September 6, 2019. Following the TV series, Chihara Minori, who was in charge of the opening theme song “Amy”, released it as a single prior to the theatrical screening! An interview about the highlights of the song and the appeal of “Violet Evergarden” was published in Seiyuu Animedia’s October issue. Here in Chou! Animedia, we will deliver a long version of it, which includes the parts that could not make into the article.

Raw || Index

■ “I was able to feel a worthiness and sense of accomplishment that I had never felt before.”

——Please tell us your impressions regarding the TV anime series “Violet Evergarden”, in which you appear and were in charge of the theme songs.

It is a wonderful story where a girl named Violet Evergarden meets people of all sorts of circumstances through her ghostwriting job while looking for the meaning of the words “I love you”, which were left to her by someone important, and everyone grows up. The one I play, Erica Brown, is an introverted girl with no confidence in herself, but after meeting Violet, she was able to pursue her dreams and move on. (The ex-soldier) Violet supposedly shoulders a past with incalculable pain and suffering. But I believe it is exactly because of this that Violet has the power to move people’s hearts. I feel that this series has the power to take away all our negative emotions and that there is a lot of love in it.

——What kind of appeal do you feel from its Gaiden, the new film?

It is a story centered in Isabella York and Taylor Bartlett, who had a fateful meeting with each other when they were younger, and Violet carries out the important role of reconnecting these two, who ended up living separately. There are times when Isabella is overwhelmed by the decision she made in the past and suffers because of it, but once she meets Violet, her heart, which had been closed up, melts down and she changes little by little. Through this work, I thought that Isabella, Taylor, Violet herself and every single one of us can overcome hardships if they happen, exactly because we have people who can serve as support for our hearts, and we live every day while being helped out by others. This Gaiden is also a story full of a kindness that only “Violet Evergarden” has.

——What was your impression when it was decided that you would be in charge of the theme song of the Gaiden, following the TV series?

Honestly, I was uncertain if I could write lyrics superior to “Michishirube” (smiles bitterly). I have sung the theme songs of countless serial shows until now, so for the part of the series that I bear responsibility, the sense of anxiety as to whether or not I could surpass my previous work was already there with me. However, I was not just the singer but was also in charge of the lyrics this time, so I felt for real the difficulty of renewing a musical composition from a serial show, as well as how high this bar was.

——How was the theme song “Amy” created?

I talked to director Fujita (Haruka) and the staff, and it was unanimously decided that “since the scene where Violet dances in a ball in the middle of the film is very impressive, wouldn’t it be nice to make it a triple-time waltz”. (Composer) Kikuta (Daisuke)-san also told me that, as this work was going to be released in theaters, the song was made in a way that would link the contents of the film and the animation in a sonorous fashion. So, when I first listened to it, from the intro to the conclusion, including the arrangement, I thought that the composition was as if I were watching a dramatic movie and it made me emotional.

——When you were chosen to write the lyrics, how did you come up with the concept?

I had crammed all my feelings towards this work into “Michishirube”, the ending theme song of the TV series, so I thought about writing these lyrics in a way that they would be close to the story of the Gaiden. “Amy” is the precious magic word that connects Isabella and Taylor, the two who were separated in this story, for all eternity. So just like this, from the title “Amy” to each of the verses, the song nestles one hundred percent close to the series. Also, the first-person pronoun is “boku” in the first chorus, “watashi” in the second, and lastly, it is both “boku” and “watashi”, which are sides of each character. When people watch the film, I think they will definitely understand the reference, like, “Aah, so that’s what it was about”. Director Fujita has tons of love for the series and she made this together with me while having discussions about it, being satisfied with it in the end, so I really felt a worthiness and sense of accomplishment that I had never experienced before, which made me happy. This song composition definitely would not have been birthed if not for this series.

——Did you like actually singing it?

Including the part of pre-projects and voice training, things had progressed carefully, so by the time we did the recording, I was already getting along with the song very well (laughs). People were going to listen to it in the theaters, so I sang in a way that they would be able to hear the words clearly, that it would be delivered to their hearts as if I were narrating it. During the first meeting, director Fujita said several times, “I don’t want to deny choices that someone made with love”. So I had something like a sense of responsibility that I should make this song into a warm one with salvation to it. Anyhow, I sing it while wishing for Isabella and Taylor’s happiness. For me, going out into my home’s veranda and singing this song at the end of the day has turned into a routine (laughs). It goes without saying that people will reminisce to the story they saw in the theaters when listening to it, but if they listen to it before bed, they might be able to have a peaceful sleep.

——The MV also displays the dance in a way that comes close to the film.

Indeed, the film’s dance scene is very impressive, so I suggested that it might be wonderful if I also danced it in the MV. But it was my first time dancing waltz, so I practiced for two days before the filming. The instructor chose steps and moves that even an amateur like me could manage.

——The scene where you were lifted by the male dancer was also incredible (laughs). It was amazing (laughs)!

At the end of the day, it is difficult to continuously keep a beautiful posture… There is a correct position for the head, face, hips, rear and everything else, so I had muscular pains all over my body (laughs). But we were able to make an extremely marvelous MV thanks to that, so right now, I am thinking of learning a bit of ballroom dancing (laughs). Also, since the story has been finished, I want people to pay attention to the outcomes of those two as well, and we did our best in the acting, so I would be happy if people could notice the characters’ facial expressions too.

——The coupling song, “Plumeria”, is also a wonderful composition.

It is a slightly fashionable and uplifting EDM. Amongst the song compositions of “Chihara Minori” from until now, which have always given full-out and were mostly strong and cool, there had not been a song that I was able to sing so relaxed and naturally as just myself. The sense of tempo is also very refreshing and comfortable, so it became a “breaking new grounds” kind of song for me. According to the director, it seems this song has the image of “an adult woman who plays around and makes bets looking at the sunset in a resort by the sea” (laughs). That’s why I looked up tropical flowers in my phone and sang it after getting a tropical feeling. Also, about the bit in the lyrics that goes “the place where I am myself when I come back to it”, when I searched for where that could be in my case, turns out it was the live concert stage. In the end, when I come back to the live venue and hold a concert, I can think “I’ll do my best once again from tomorrow on”. To me, my fans are the plumerias inside my heart.

——The other one, “Mikashokuman no Utage nite”, is also a live concert song that will surely rile up people.

This one was made for people to enjoy the live, as the theme song of SUMMER CHAMPION 2019. Since it is a live concert festival, I had requested a melody that would be perfect for festivities, as well as an arrangement that included a traditional taste overseas fans would also enjoy, and I was happy that the composition turned out as something beyond my expectations! When I actually sang it at the concert, the duets were spot-on, the venue’s voltage exploded in an instant, and it truly came out as an amazing song (laughs). When I think about how I can nurture this composition more and more in live concerts from now on, I end up looking forward to it!

——By the way, did you like listening to these three songs one after another?

To tell the truth, I have not listened to them in sequence (laughs). The three songs here assembled are of varied natures, to the point they can give people the impression that “Is it really the same person singing them all?”, so I wonder how the people who actually listened to them in order felt. Including this aspect of it, I look forward to doing this on one hand, yet it makes me nervous on the other (laughs)… But I am happy that I was able to deliver a “new Chihara Minori” like this once again. Having reached the fifteenth anniversary of my debut last year, I am really feeling the joy of being able to make something new one more time.

——You also had a birthday live in November to celebrate your debut’s fifteenth anniversary, right?

Since it is a live concert for my fifteenth anniversary, I wanted the contents to be something that would firmly touch upon the history of “Chihara Minori”. However, I released a “the best” album and did a best hits live on my tenth anniversary, so I did a lot of planning in order not to do the same thing. It was held at a live house, so I had concluded it was going to be a very intense concert. I will be transferring to a new agency and turning a new leaf in April, so I was really happy and looking forward to spending the very day of my birth with my fans in a year that would be the beginning of trying my best while feeling like a rookie!

——Please leave a message to your fans.

Again, a new work packed with love has been finalized. I believe this one was born thanks to my meeting with “Violet Evergarden”. I would be most satisfied if you all could go to the theaters and enjoy “Amy” together with the story as you listen to it!

[fuckyeahkagepro]

more... Kagepro (theories)? + it turned into a fic somehow

( CANON-BASED THEORIES COMBINED TO BECOME FIC SOMEHOW ) ( NOTE: IT GETS LENGTHY I APOLOGIZE ) Imagine: you’re Hibiya Amamiya. A “boy” from the “countryside”, who has a “weird sounding name” which means “TO ECHO”. 

You began this story simply as “that boy” “from the countryside”. During the summer break, you made up the excuse that you were going to “study for” “summer classes” “in India” so you could go into the big city with the “girl” you “liked”, Hiyori Asahina.

Name: Amamiya Hibiya: After being told that she wants to go to summer school to prepare for the middle school entrance exams, he is half-forced into staying for a summer in the city by Hiyori, who he has (unrequited) feelings for. They visit Hiyori's sister Ayaka's home, but because Hiyori falls for a boy they meet there, Konoha, he's hit by intense feelings of jealousy. In the middle of it he gets involved in a traffic accident while shopping with Hiyori and comes into contact with the Kagerou Daze. He is possessed by the snake of the "Eye Focusing" abilities, and acquires the power to perceive objects and details that are far away from an aerial (bird's eye) view. Name: Asahina Hiyori Ayaka's younger sister, and a little girl who admires the big city. She's incredibly active and also stubborn, and was the person who dragged Hibiya to the city with her. She's popular among her classmates, but not interested in such things, and even Hibiya is only considered a "convenient classmate who listens to what she says." She is dragged into the Kagerou Daze with Hibiya, but her whereabout since are unknown.

You also had one other major goal: “BUY” “A” “PHONE” You claim to “yourself” it’s because you want to “exchange messages” with Hiyori Asahina, the girl you “love”.

In reality, there’s another reason. You just didn’t know it. BECAUSE YOU FORGOT. (Or did you?)

The date is August 15th (or was it August 14th?) when you woke up upon your bed and in your phone, right there,

WAS A VIRTUAL CYBER GIRL CALLING HERSELF “ENE”

AND CLAIMING SHE WAS REAL. (NOT-VIRTUAL.)

^ Summertime Reload.

“ PLEASE HELP US ” “ YOU CAN’T FORGET ”

“ YOU’D BETTER NOT FORGET . ”

You, with phone in hand, go out into the “big city” except, this time, YOU DO IT VOLUNTARILY. YOU SCARILY KNOW YOUR WAY AROUND THIS “BIG CITY”

--- PERFECTLY.

Not because you had the excuse of “wanting to send messages” with the girl you like.

You find out: YOU’RE CAUGHT IN AN ETERNAL TIMELOOP.

Your name is Hibiya Amamiya. If you remember everything, you still die. If you forget? You still die. If you take ONE STEP out into the “big city”. You. Die.

Hiyori Asahina does, too. Repeatedly. (Weren’t you childhood friends once? Somewhere??)

No matter how many times you possibly attempt to save her.

Along the way, you meet another boy. A “white-haired boy” with a “strange-sounding name”. A “tall” boy who “does things at his own pace”. You claim to “hate” this boy because this boy

“ JUST STOOD THERE ” “ AND WATCHED ”

-- As Hiyori Asahina died.

[ Kagerou Daze / - In a Daze - ] Later on, you meet that boy, again. He tries to befriend you, but you reject it.

You don’t want his help.

You still die. Over and over and OVER and ----------

You try to ask for (or, give?) help. First, you interact more with that “girl” “with the red muffler” ( who is trying to recruit you ... ) But, that “girl with the red muffler” -----

Something changes. Suddenly, SHE’S TRYING TO KILL YOUR FRIENDS, TOO.

You decide she’s not a good person to ask. Or help. In some timelines. Possibly.

You try to (discreetly) (or maybe you genuinely don’t remember?) (“everything”?)

(^ “The Missing Children”, Kido speaking to Shintaro re: Hibiya)

( “ I don’t even know what’s going on ... ” ) --- recruit the help of someone else. An “idol” with “Captivating Eyes”. She can draw everyone’s attention towards her. It might be useful?

You become possessed. AGAIN. You push her off of the rooftop. AGAIN You killed her. AGAIN

She was YOUR         F R I E N D .

You WAKE UP, more and more desperate. The blue cyber girl can only help so much. The red muffler girl can only help so much. The Captivating idol can only help so much.

You don’t want to ask “the white haired boy”’s help.

You go to the next best option.

“Help us.”

“You’re trapped in this, too.” “Don’t you want to [   LIVE FOREVER   ]??” “Please, stop it.” “Just help us already.”

“ What’s in it for me ? ”

“Eternal life ? ” “In the end, won’t you, in actuality, LIVE ? ”

The being contemplates.

“Hmm~ you have a point.” “ If we keep the Kagerou Daze going on ETERNALLY ----- ” “You live ,” “ I live ”

“That’s right.”

“But aren’t THEY trying to stop me, too?”

“ I’ll keep them out of the way. ”

“Hehh~~ you have guts.”

“ Fine, then. Since you can’t ask my “Queen” to REPEAT THE TIME FOR YOU ,

I will . ”

Time repeats. And repeats. And repeats. And --------

A girl awakes upon her bed.

“ I failed this time, too . ”

Your name is Hibiya Amamiya.

You began this story simply as “that boy” “from the countryside”. During the summer break, you made up the excuse that you were going to “study for” “summer classes” “in India” so you could go into the big city with the “girl” you liked, Hiyori Asahina.

You also had one other major goal: “BUY” “A” “PHONE”

“ Are you anxious ? ”

--- You encounter a “white-haired boy”

--- Do you have something you want to --- CONVEY --- To this boy??

                                                   ( “ Yes ” )

[ “ I’m sorry ” ]

[ “ I didn’t mean it when I said ” ]

[ “ I hate you ” ]

YOU NEVER SAY IT.

You keep dying .

“ Today, too, I’ll surely see my dream.

Until you encounter me again, SETO. ”

- Mary Kozakura . ... ... ...

In the seemingly blue painted sky, the white clouds stuck closely together. Although it really seemed like a lie, could it be I couldn’t admit it as the real thing?

The overwhelming sunlight scorching the asphalt shook the atmosphere to and fro. But I couldn’t feel the heat, or even smell the asphalt. “You’ve realized already, haven’t you? You can’t exist here anymore. In a world without a QUEEN, you have no worth.” “Ah, you again? I wonder what makes you think that…….” Is this a conversation? Or am I talking to myself? It’s been a surprisingly long time since I’ve come to an understanding like this. Yet if I go back, I’ll forget everything, right? I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed that I started to speak considerably slower than I used to. At a break in the row of hillside trees in front of an intersection, a girl with an empty expression walks unsteadily down the crosswalk. How many times have I seen this scene before? How many times have I let this scene pass before me? I reach out my hand. It’s just within reach. “It’s useless. This isn’t your world. This is already "their” world. If you can’t figure it out, you have no control.“ The signal is flashing, but the girl doesn’t notice. She’s already right before my eyes. I’m close enough to embrace her. But I can’t touch her. My outstretched hand slips through her, and I grasped the sky without feeling anything. "Why……. Tch!” At that moment, it was already drawing near with a deafening roar. Then, the scene before me dissolved into darkness, as if it were a video encountering an error. Looking down, my body ceased to exist. “It appears that it’s already been decided. This is the end. Becoming hopelessly lost, acting this recklessly, and yet you’re still existing here–don’t think that it’s due to your own strength.” “This is your power, isn’t it? To give me such a strong body; how nice of you.” “It’s the body you WISHED FOR, nothing more. Don’t misunderstand. Now, I’ve got to get going.” “Ah, wait, one last thing before I die. Could you tell the other me something?”

“What is it?” “ⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹⅹ.” “……..I can’t promise it.” “Even so, it’s fine. Thanks for everything.” This is probably the end for me. Up until my very last moments, I was so gullible. Ah, if I could have one last wish granted, it would be to tell that girl who would always hit the gullible me….. - Konoha’s State of the World (Haruka’s POV), Novel 1

“’Everyone from the Mekakushi-dan, whom had accepted Konoha, were surely going through a horrible time at the moment. Thinking that it all had been brought about by Konoha… made me helpless.’

“Really, there’s nothing more frustrating. Ever since Konoha was possessed by ‘Clearing’, I became completely unable to see the other side’s situation.””

- Summertime Reload, Haruka Kokonose speaking/thinking.

“ Obviously, there was also the boundlessly callous fact that “Konoha-kun’s body would get thrown into that world”. Still, since Konoha-kun was being possessed, “ it was    not    as   if    he were      dead ”. ”

^ Kousuke Seto’s thoughts - Kagerou Project: Summer Time Reload (Final Novel / Novel 8) - Children Record -side No.3 (2)- (translated by dennou-translations)

- Summertime Reload (fuyuyuu’s summaries / later half)

“ BLUE “ and “ RED ” are the colors of the “ KAGEROU DAZE ”, [so   Hibiya   became BLUE ] and [  Hiyori  became RED ... PINK ]

- SIDU, (ONE OF THE MCA) INTERVIEWS re: their concepts

^ old Sidu fanart for wannyanpuu’s 2011 fanmade pv (“”non-canonical””)

^ very not related (official art of Clearing Eyes’ new form in COLOR) [ pls ignore the chibi style it’s all we have rn ]

^ “Mary’s Imaginary World” mini-manga (Mary speaking)

^ HIBIYA

^ Hiyori

(red: “ ??? ”) (AYANO? AYAKI? “   AWAKENING   ”? SOMEONE ELSE ?)

(YELLOW: K O N O H A ) (alternate accordingly)

(“Friend” “her” = ???” ) ( HIYORI ??? ) ( OR..... ) [ ENE SEEMS TOO EASY AND I HIGHLY SUSPECT @ JIN ] (ALSO SEE: MANGA ROUTE 2 + “FRIENDS’) (WILL GET BACK TO THAT)

^ Kagepro novels index “ - in a daze - ” (NOVEL 1)

BONUS:

[joanofrad]

I have read your post about western anime fans transing or projecting their own microidentities in anime characters and I suddenly started thinking in One Piece sjw fanbase. The worst is that most of the characters that they trans are either: based on homophobic/sexist stereotypes or characters that were socially ostracized for doing things that were not appropriated for their sex, such as, Kuina whose dream was to be a swordsman but her dad said that that was not posible cuz women are weak.

I was never a fan of “OnePiece” (the art style doesn’t appealed to me), but don’t worry, anon, I believeyou!

I think this currentdevelopment of transing characters (no matter if they’re form anime/manga, tvshows, movies, etc.) or transing actual real-life people (which is evenworse!), who don’t 100% live up to female or male gender stereotypes, is awonderful example of how misogynistic and homophobic the currenttrans/gender/q*eer movement is. Characters, who were in the past, hailed as great examples of gnc women or gncmen, now all of a sudden CAN’T be female or male, because they don’t perform sexist gender stereotypes the right way! Thebest example is really Tenou Haruka from “Sailor Moon”. Until a few years ago,nobody would have even thought about seeing her as anything else but a gncwoman and lesbian in a relationship with another gc woman and lesbian (perfectbutch/femme couple). Sure, some people didn’t like that and tried to turn theminto something else (*cough*cousins*cough* xd), but they were seen as reallyhomophobic! But now - all of a sudden - she is genderfluid for some, she isnon-binary for others and for the rest she is actually trans and that’s fine,because gender is “in vogue” now. It’s absolutely ridiculous and shows how muchthis movement is based on “the aesthetics”. Like, character is female, but hasshort hair and doesn’t wear dresses, so character can’t actually be female,because all female people have long hair and love dresses, so character must be[insert whatever gender identity you want here!]. Or like your example: womanwants to fight with a sword, but wait a second that can’t be, because no womanwould ever want to go near a sword, so character cannot be female! –> this really IS the thought process of a lot offans since a few years (and it’s the reason why I’ve stopped interacting withfandoms online).

[manabingu]

Haruka Nanami = soft girl

This has been sitting in my inbox since yesterday MY BAD! I wanted to answer this earlier but got distracted by deadlines of some stuff ANYWAY. Thanks for sending me an ask about Nanami CUZ I BEEN WANTIN TO TALK ABOUT MY HOME GIRL FOR AWHILE BUT NEVER GET THE CHANCE TO! So thanks~*~*~*

THIS GIRL RIGHT HERE. NANAMI HARUKA ^^^^ I WOULD DIE FOR HER.

Honestly, I’m that one person in every fandom that tends to fall in love with characters who I feel get undeserved hate or are either a minor character who gets glossed over. And be like….YALL??? Why you so mean to such adorable, innocent,sweet, hardworking, wouldn’t hurt a fly characters and then say that characters who are LITERAL murderers and criminals are the “precious cinnamon rolls who can do no wrong” only cuz you attracted to them??? yall thas sad. Listen…I’m honestly tired of people who bash on the anime and only play the games cuz they think it’s boring. Yes, you can have your opinion & I respect that, but I’ve seen some people whom have a pretty steadily growing following just bash on Nanami or some of their “not best boys” for reasons that make no sense to me & I been bottling this for awhile but Imma just SPEAK today cuz I’m on fire. ANYWAY BACK TO MY QUEEN.

LET ME HAVE MY NANAMI HARUKA TED TALK. Debunking complaints

Complaint I’ve heard: She’s boring

IN MY PERSONAL OPINION. NANAMI HARUKA IS ONE OF THE BEST LEADS IN ANY IDOL/ REVERSE HAREM ANIME I HAVE SEEN TO DATE.

She’s FAR from boring. She kind of reminds me of one of my other favorite lead heroines of all time. Tohru Honda from Fruits Basket. Both are humble & haven’t really had much in their life. Let’s talk about her story, she is a girl who was born with with bad health so much so that her parents sent her to grow up and live with her grandma in the countryside where the air was cleaner & less polluted than the city where they live. While she stayed with grandma, she learned to play piano by ear & she really didn’t grow up with much technology. She states in episode one that she didn’t even have a TV so anytime anyone in her class makes a reference to a famous celebrity she doesn’t know who they are. If I had to guess she only probably had books, toys, & a record player at grandma’s house AND I think she was home-schooled? Which means that that her only other friend besides her grandma & possibly the local neighborhood kids was grandma’s piano.

 I think she’s highly relateable too. I sure have had similar experience (trust me, my immune system is TerRibLe XD so I feel home girl) But I knew the moment I saw that part in episode 1 where she describes how music LITERALLY saved her life, THAT is when I knew I would protect this girl for the rest of my life cuz I just yelled at my screen SAME GURL! SAAAAAAME TTuTT/ In Nanami’s case, she went by herself to the city to visit her parents, she thought since she no longer was a kid, her health wouldn’t be too endangered but she she got there she got REALLY lost & the noise pollution was so overwhelming that her anxiety gave her a panic attack. AND THIS IS WHY I REALLY LIKE UTAPRI. BECAUSE THEY GET HELLA REAL HELLA FAST. THIS KIND OF THING IS NOT SOME KINDA MADE UP THING. LET ME SIT YALL DOWN AND TELL YOU A STORY.

Listen- I remember when I was like 16ish I went to New York with a cousin & as a person who comes from a small town- being in the city BY YOURSELF for the first time, it’s SO SCARY to someone who has anxiety. I was dropped off in Manhattan while she ran a work errand she gave me money for food & encouraged me to explore. As soon as they left, I looked around thinking OH GOD WHAT NOW?? I saw a cathedral close by and I RAN for it. I was so scared being alone I went to a small corner of the cathedral and started crying & tweeting, which got some comforting responses from native NY people that followed me & I texted the friend that was closest to me (if you count Virginia close lol) But he called me & just talked to me & helped me feel better. He encouraged me to not stay in one place & to go find a place I like & perhaps if I was too anxious, to go stay there till I was picked up. IT TOOK ME 30 MINUTES to get courage enough to walk to the Barnes & Noble/Starbucks that was close & I stayed there texting him the rest of the time. So ANYTIME people talk crap about Nanami’s panic attack in the city I’m gonna politely tell them to get out of my face cuz that’s a VERY real emotion. The thing that saved Nanami was hearing a singer in a giant screen singing a soothing song. THE MUSIC HELPED CALM DOWN HER ANXIETY. EXCUSE ME. YALL CAN’T SAY THAT YOU’VE NEVER BEEN SOOTHED BY A SONG IN YOUR LIFE. WE ALL BEEN THERE. WHEN WE WERE SO DOWN THAT LISTENING TO A SONG MADE US FEEL BETTER. I know that happened with me. Just like Nanami, I had a time in my life where I was just ready for death, I had lost hope to live but hearing ONE. SONG by my favorite singer, literally stopped me. So I can relate how she felt about HAYATO in the city. And how afterwards she was so inspired by it that she wanted to try to have a career dealing with music. HER REASON FOR WANTING TO BECOME A COMPOSER IS BECAUSE SHE KNOWS WHAT IT’S LIKE TO FEEL SAD AND SCARED. SO SHE WANTS TO MAKE MUSIC THAT CAN TOUCH PEOPLE’S HEARTS & IF THEY’RE HAVING A BAD DAY, SHE CAN CHEER THEM UP WITH A SONG. IF THAT ISN’T THE GREATEST REASONING TO GO FIGHT FOR A DREAM, I DUNNO WHAT IS.

AND SHE KNOWS THAT THE ODDS ARE AGAINST HER. BUT SHE DOESN’T THROW IN THE TOWEL EASILY. I FREAKING LOVE HER FOR THAT. NANAMI. HARUKA. IS. NOT. WEAK.

Once she was of age, she applied for THE most prestigious music academy in her area. She was nearly late to the entrance exam cuz she helped a lost child find their mom while she was running in a snowstorm to the school. And because she was noticed to have that high moral compass by the principal, she was allowed to take the exam and made it in. And even when she DID get in, she was bullied by all the rich kids for not being able to read sheet music & not being taught by a private piano teacher when she was asked to play in front of everyone. She KNEW that she can play piano but she was self taught & played by ear. ((THIS STRUCK ME HARD TOO. Because I am self taught too- as a singer, I thought that if I didn’t have access to all these things & I didn’t know how to sight read I’d never be taken seriously or that I was less worthy to be called a musician than my peers)) But did she give up??? NO. HOME GIRL RAN TO THE LIBRARY and she studied her ass off to not let her first assignment project partner down. I COULD GO ON FOR HOURS ABOUT THE FIRST SEASON ALONE. SHE WAS THROWN SO MANY CURVE BALLS TO CRUSH HER SPIRIT AND DESPITE HER ANXIETY KEPT FIGHTING FOR HER DREAM.

But you know what? She also showed me THAT IT’S OK TO FALL DOWN TO ROCK BOTTOM. It’s OK to feel like giving up especially when your confidence has been crushed to a pulp by everyone. YALL, I FREAKING BAWLED MY EYES OUT WHEN SHE FOUND OUT THAT STARISH - THE BAND SHE SINGLE-HANDEDLY  (and with some magical fate strings pulled by Cecil)) CREATED WAS GONNA DEBUT WITHOUT HER. She was asked by the principal if she thought HER music could compete with pros already established and household names already in the business. She didn’t want her friends to give up their dreams of debuting so she agreed to step down as STARISH’s composer AGAINST their demands for her to not give up. She went home and cried to her grandmother that she felt SO outclassed. And you know what? I’m GLAD Utapri shared this kind of story because I’m sure it has happened to a lot of people.

Nanami is a really kind, compassionate, selfless human being. She does anything and everything so that all her family & friends can be happy at the expense of her own happiness. She takes it to the extreme that she is PUSHED and forced to FOR ONCE think selfishly and do something for herself. Her purity & kindness won the respect of her classmates & teachers so much so that they always want to support her dream of  becoming a songwriter. When STARISH came to her house cuz they heard she ran away- she openly admitted  IN TEARS that SHE wanted to be STARISH’s composer, she didn’t want anyone else to write for them because she had fun with her friends and she didn’t want that to stop. ((The principal overheard her and said FINALLY! SOMETIMES ITS OK TO BE SELFISH WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR DREAM! Its ok to be kind but also think of your own feelings sometimes too. I think young, budding artists need to hear this. )) SHE GIVES ME HOPE CUZ I BE THE SAME WAY SOMETIMES WITH MY STUFF SO YEAH ;~~~~~;/

SOMETIMES When I watch a show that has harem elements to it, I really judge the protag that everyone is falling for and I think about if the harem people’s feelings are justified enough for them to actually fall in love with the protag. And you know what? In Nanami’s case?? ITS A BIG OL HELL YEAH IT’S JUSTIFIED.

FrICK- I fell in love with Nanami too??? How could I not??? I AM A BIGASS SAP FOR INNOCENT, SHY, CHARACTERS WHO TRY THEIR BEST EVEN THOUGH THEY SCARED AF CUZ OF CONFIDENCE ISSUES.

She’s a wonderful, compassionate, gifted person who just needs love and support and you know she’ll be there for you too and it’s mutual. She works SUPER hard at her job, she’s endearing, she makes you wanna just protect her cuz if she is sad lord I will probably go on a rampage. This girl doesn’t deserve to go through more than she already has. I love and respect Nanami. A female protagonist doesn’t need to be bitchy, slutty, or badass to be considered “interesting”. 

HECK, one time I heard someone say “This show would be 10x if Nanami was a guy. UMMMM???? WTF??? Ok, listen, I’m in the lgbt spectrum, & I’m sick of people saying that Utapri would be better if Nanami was a boy. Why is it so bad that she’s a girl?? Like- I would like ONE reasonable explanation that doesn’t involve fetishizing your personal fantasies. When people fetishize an lgbt relationship- you’re causing that type of relationship to not be taken seriously irl. If we wanna make this the norm, we gotta treat it like it’s a natural occurrence. Not force something for the sake of fanservice. There are barely any well written female protags like Nanami out there in the world and if we change her, we are taking out one of the best from the list. I want more shows to write good, memorable  female protags like Nanami. I wouldn’t be against her being a boy. But only if the reason was for good reasons and to explore character development dynamics. Cuz I enjoy content that has actual substance. SERIOUSLY- If Utapri was ONLY fanservice, I would despise it. BUT IT’S NOT. It tackles real issues & speaks about people in the industry and they don’t sugarcoat ANYTHING. They show you the harsh realities but they also give you hope to keep doing what you love even if you gotta work extra harder than your peers who might be more experienced than you.

And THAT is what I learned from Nanami Haruka. And I will defend my songwriting princess till I die. Thank you.

[amisbro]

Alright kids

Its TIME we go to school cos a friendo of mine on tweeter a.k.a. @baku5ds wanted to know WHAT my plan for a 5th season of UtaPri would be...well First we have to look at the way UtaPri has been wrote so far.  Now if we looked at UtaPri in the form that its in and the way it was being wrote we would notice THIS! In its current form UtaPri has been wrote with 2 Arcs of about 2 seasons + an OVA which ,all told, run 52 episodes (53 if OVA is counted).  When one Arc was finished they had to find a way to bridge to the next story they were going to write which...isn’t easy because how many events can you write for in the idol world unless (I think) you start thinking globally So far the Arcs they have been going with were UtaPri Awards Season 1 - Formation of STARISH Season 2 - The first encounter with HEAVENS Bridge - Shining Star Xmas (OVA) Triple S Season 3 - The Cross-Units/1st Entry Concert w/ Return of HEAVENS Season 4 - The 1st winner announced/duet project/2nd Election w/ Winner Now we have an interesting situation BECAUSE of the fact that STARISH won the big concert at the end of Season 4 so one would think the show is over Not...quite! If we are to assume that the Movie is going to “Bridge” to a new season and project then what we have coming is going to be interesting as far as the next Arc cos we have to assume its going to be another 2 season run (this is based off off the way they have basically done the show from this point before) So what would I do with Season 5?  Its a gamble BUT the big thing would be to do something that starts to establish HEAVENS more than what Season 4 did.  I firmly believe that HEAVENS was supposed to be focused on MORE in the last season but the producers got cold feet and went with the “safe idea”...even if the Oricon in some ways showed differently but EYYYY! The ideas that I had for the next season of the show were based originally around the idea that in Season 4 STARISH won first and then QN would take on HEAVENS OR The idea was going to be that HEAVENS would have faced STARISH in a best of 7 solo and then the winner was going to face QN...that was my original idea as convoluted as it was but now we basically have QN and HEAVENS it seems chomping at the bit...what do we do? Well here is an idea One of my big ideas for the season/arc would have been that HEAVENS stayed with Raging (and it looks like that IS happening) BUT they got a new composer to write for them.  Raging felt that Nanami’s songs WERE GOOD but not good enough to beat STARISH and QN so he needed someone with a bit more “Edge” to them.  He gets a new composer whom graduated from a music school not far from where HEAVENS is located (I have had it in my head that Raging and Shining have had studios and agencies pretty far apart from each other) and this person (let’s go with the idea that its another female but my original idea was a male composer) for some reason which gets explained through  the season HATES Nanami and wants her gone from the industry BUT... Eiichi had other plans Eiichi’s driving goal is to have Haruka as the composer of HEAVENS even if his Father wants this new girl.  He comes up with a plan to try and make this a reality He challenges QN to a contest at a NEO DREAM SPECIAL which would take place at the end of the season and if HEAVENS won they would get Nanami BUT if they lost...gone and DONE! QN agrees to the contest and through the episodes leading up to the final we get to meet the QN boys a little more and we get to meet EVEN MORE of HEAVENS’ character as each character got a solo episode...this works because of the idea that now we can really start to break down and learn the motivations of the HEAVENS boys and what makes each tick.  Yeah we got to learn A LITTLE through the duet project but that was mostly a rushed info dump or a third party.  This would be THEM giving us the info we never got and would build up the anticipation for the season finale. Finale comes and HEAVENS would win this round BUT it is going to make sense because NOW (as if they weren’t before) QN is pissed off because they lost Nanami to HEAVENS and now are desperate to get her back...to do THAT however they would need STARISH’s help and now its simple:  One final match between STARISH and HEAVENS whom, even if HEAVENS has yet to beat STARISH they had been the proverbial thorn in their side! STARISH would face HEAVENS one more time at the end of Season 6 and this time its a final!  It ends up being all groups goodbyes BUT STARISH would go on to get Nanami back one final time and that would wrap up the series! NOW....things have changed slightly! We still go with the idea of HEAVENS getting a new composer (Again female) but I thought about “softening” the character for this reason: The new composer from Raging’s Agency would work with HEAVENS but under QN’s watch as Juniors.  The idea is that QN knows how close HEAVENS was to being on the brink of elimination AND beating STARISH so they wanted to get to work with them.  Whilst the new composer might NOT be the biggest fan of this idea he/she goes along with it to get an idea of how QN works as a unit and then tries to incorporate that with the HEAVENS charges.  The season would MOSTLY focus on HEAVENS both Solo and as a group but we would definitely see QN help out their new kids to try and improve them before their next big test which would could down the line As the season progresses we do learn a lot more about the boys and how they work musically and in other ways to see what they could use to motivate them with their new songs.  The big thing though is that by the end of Season 6 (and yes this is only season 5 we are talking about) they have to be ready for one big test which we will call the “NEO DREAM SPECIAL” You remember Neo Dream right?  That was the show that MasaToki appeared on when they performed Original Resonance (one of my fave performances both in Animated and live form BTW)...yeah that!  Well the idea is that for the “Final Test” for his group Raging wants HEAVENS to perform on this special and if they won...they didn’t just win the contest but they won their freedom from their contract with him. Back in Season 5 for a minute and as we go and we learn about the new girl’s methods we find out she actually isn’t a complete militant and she actually is worried sick for HEAVENS (apparently Eiji told them about the tensions during the Triple S season) and vowed that no matter what they were going to make sure they were happy and they were safe from his abusive practices. By the time Season 6 comes their “Beginner’s class” with QN is over and now its onto the Master course and this time its when Shining AND Raging make it perfectly clear the end goal which becomes the NEO DREAM SPECIAL at the end of the season.  Shining also does inform them that the judges would be in fact his prize group in STARISH BUT...he makes one thing perfectly clear Should STARISH show ANY favoritism to QN they would be disbanded publicly at the show and he wouldn’t blink DOING IT!  He wants it to be a true fair fight and while the winner would be in the hands of his prize group that DOESN’T mean that he would let them just pick QN just because HOWEVER... During the season Raging legit lives up to his name and his temper starts to get the best of him!  He wants Shining in ruin SO BADLY that he starts to take out his frustrations NOT JUST ON HIS KIDS but also on Kira, Van and anyone within an arm’s reach! Eiichi panics and comes up with a plan with HEAVENS’ composer and Nanami whom he and Eiji call out of fear The NEO DREAM SPECIAL that they were working towards...he wanted a new condition put on it with Shining’s Blessing HEAVENS wins the contest at the NDS and HEAVENS can leave Raging and go to Shining’s agency HEAVENS LOSES and they become Raging’s slaves for all eternity Nanami gets a ho;d of Shining whom hears about the problems at Raging’s and agrees to the condition but he would have to go talk with Raging himself and Raging whom is so DONE with his Son agrees because he knows WHEN HEAVENS lets him down again it will be their grave! Now its an all or nothing fight for the freedom of a group that has been through hell and back to get out!  If HEAVENS wins they are free and if they lose its over for them...and STARISH IS THEIR PAROLE OFFICER! the NEO DREAM SPECIAL would be either the life sentence for HEAVENS...or their way COMPLETELY OUT of the hell “Daddy dearest” put them through...I think...we know how this ends up!

[ganbaramen]

Love Live! Perfect Dream Project: Member Profiles [Translation]

The new PDP members’ profiles were released! I tried my best to translate them~ I’m still new to Japanese (and to translation), so please let me know if there are errors.

Each girl has a brief bio and a message from them (called “意気込みコメント”, roughly “enthusiasm/passion comment”). The names are in the Western-style order: [given name] [family name].

Ayumu Uehara

A second-year at Nijigasaki High School. She's a hardworking person who puts her all into everything she does. She started as a school idol because someone invited her.

Nice to meet you, everyone. I'm Ayumu Uehara. Uh, since this is the first time I've written up a message that can reach everyone like this, I'm a little nervous, and my heart is beating quickly. But, since being a school idol is a dream that I want to reach for with an important friend, I'll live up to my name, and we'll try our best at making our way—step by step—towards fulfilling this dream! [TL note: taken a character at a time, “Ayumu” literally translates to “step-dream”.] I still don't have much experience with singing or dancing, and my looks are rather... ordinary? Even so, uh, well, since my speciality is working hard, please cheer me on! I'll be in your care!

Kasumi Nakasu

A first-year at Nijigasaki High School. Since she likes cute things, she's more into school idols than others are. She hates losing, so if someone calls her "Kasukasu" (a nickname), she'll get angry.

Hello—! It's everyone's idol, Kasumin! I'm aiming to become Japan's top idol, so I'm working hard every day at my singing and dance lessons! Of course, I'm also secretly working to become cuter—. I also send rivals scandalous information about them, and stealthily put coppepan [bread rolls] into their shoes: they're perfect crim—wait, hold on, that's a secret! C-cough! A-anyway, this is Kasumin signing off; please support me!

Shizuku Osaka

A first-year who was recently admitted to Nijigasaki High School. She's a level-headed honor student in the theater club. Her reflexes are good, but she dislikes baseball.

Hello, everyone. I'm Shizuku Osaka. I love performing in plays, so I joined the theater club here. We make our own costumes, and regularly put on plays for the public. I became a school idol to get better at acting. But recently, a senior student I respect encouraged me, saying "Let's reach for a higher stage as school idols!", and I had a realization. Plays and school idol activities are very similar: people come to enjoy themselves, to be moved, and to have us put smiles on their faces. So from now on, I'll try even harder to become a better school idol! With the acting skills I've learned from theater, I'll work diligently to make everyone smile. I may not know much about being a school idol yet, but I'd be happy if you came to see me trying my hardest! I'll be in your care!

Karin Asaka

A third-year at Nijigasaki High School. Her looks and proportions are beyond those of a high school student, and she's aiming to become a model. Though she looks like an adult, she also has a pure side.

Hi~! I'm Karin Asaka! Pleased to meet you ♪ Hey, what kind of school idol do you like? What kind of live show would you like to see? A super energetic kind? Or, a very cute one? What about a cool show? Regardless of what your answer is, here's what I want to show you... Something only I can do: a veeeery stimulating show. What do I mean by "stimulating"? As・for・that, can't you figure it out just by looking at me? Ufufu. With my self-confidence, I'll use this body to show you a sexy, passionate, dream-like, mature performance that'll arouse everyone's senses ♪ I definitely won't let you regret it, so it'd make me happy to hear your zealous, fiery cheers. I'll be waiting for everyone's passionate support. Ufufu ♪

Ai Miyashita

A second-year at Nijigasaki High School. As a suggestible person who's always willing to help, she has a lot of friends. Her style is flashy, but she has a big heart, and she's a granny's girl. Her favorite food is nukazuke [a kind of pickled vegetable].

Yo. I'm Ai Miyashita. I stumbled into being a school idol because my friend from school asked me if I wanted to! Everyone, I'll be in your care! I love you! Because I'm Ai! [TL: the pun here is that "aishiteru" can mean "I love you" or "I'm being Ai".] With that, Ai-san's special rapid-fire pun corner starts no— oh, I can't? ......Ah, OK, sorry. I'll be serious from here on. Seriously. Well, as you can see, I end up getting dragged into a lot of things, but I'm an honor student. You can't see that? Wait wait wait, but it's true! I'm good at both studying and athletics, and I’m stylish... you see? Anyway, the friend I mentioned before said to me, "I think the impression of the school idol world that you have is totally off. Sure you don’t wanna give it a shot?" That got me excited! I'm really prone to getting fired up from that kind of challenge. So! I decided that I'll aim to be number one in the world of school idols! I want to see this world that I haven't seen! And I want to show everyone that landscape! Let's soldier on in high spirits!

Kanata Konoe

A third-year who was recently admitted to Nijigasaki High School. Though she always seems sleepy, she's deeply passionate about cooking and looking after her younger sister Haruka. If she could do anything, she'd spend her whole life sleeping.

Good morning~ everyone…… I'm Kanata-chan~. Fufu, today's Kanata-chan has more energy than usual……. I want to be the best school idol, and then my younger sister Haruka-chan will praise me…… And she’ll respect me……. So, I worked hard on my self-promotion message…… If she could just read it…… Without a doubt…… Kanata-chan will win………………zzz …………………………ah. I-I'm not sleeping...... But, I guess I should change the topic……. From now on, I'll show you my greatest charm…… Just for you, as much of my sleeping face as you want……. So, I'm looking forward to your support………………zzz

Setsuna Yuki

A second-year student at Nijigasaki High School. A lot is expected of this school idol, who's gathered interest from other schools. She has an energetic smile and her performance is distinctive. Being busy with school idol activities, she's almost like an urban legend, with other students saying that they haven't seen her at school.

Is everyone doing well? I'm Setsuna Yuki! To be honest with you, I have a big dream! It's a little embarrassing, but I've gathered the courage to tell you. I want to become a school idol that can make the world overflow with love! In today's world, being honest about really liking something is kind of difficult, right? One might feel ashamed, or feel afraid of being looked down on, or feel that they're in a difficult situation. But, in the world of school idols, one can forget about those concerns. Both the idols and the people cheering them on love school idols, and are empowered to honestly show their love. It's a very kind world that shines brightly, full of fun. You can tell from the overflowing enthusiasm here, right? I want to open wide even further this world where anyone can express their love! Even if this is an impossibly big dream, I think that with everyone's help, this dream can become reality. Let's create this world full of love together! I'll be in your care!

Emma

A third year from Switzerland who's studying abroad at Nijigasaki High School. She's an easy-going, kind girl who loves the mountains and natural beauty of her native home.

Good afternoon, I'm Emma. I'm from Switzerland, a country overflowing with natural beauty. So I love mountains and forests. When I have free time, I might go out and take a walk in the woods or play in a river. What do I like besides that... ah, bread crust! The crust of breads in Japan are so fluffy~ ♪ Just taking one bite cheers me up! Similarly, just seeing school idols can be really exciting, right? That's why I wanted to be a school idol. Nothing would make me happier than if just seeing me could make a lot of people happy! Everyone, let's have fun together!

Rina Tennoji

A first-year at Nijigasaki High School, coming from the associated middle school. She’s not good at showing emotions on her face, so she communicates by drawing faces on a whiteboard she calls the "Rina-chan Board".

I'm Rina Tennoji. A very cute girl. Really! But, since I don't like showing emotions on my face, I always give off an antisocial vibe. [TL note: originally, I translated “I’m not good at” as “I don’t like”. Same Japanese word, less context.] So I thought up a solution. A secret item for communicating my feelings to everyone. It's called the "Rina-chan Board". On this board, I'll draw faces to show what I feel. Yes, this is perfect. I think I can share my feelings with everyone at live shows with this. Eh? You want to see my real face? Well, then, if everyone cheers a lot for me, I'll show it. When that happens, I'll show you the smile of someone who's trying their best. It's kind of weird, but I'd be happy if everyone would let me do that.

[sprinklesomekanyonlove]

Kudo Haruka!

It was announced that Morning Musume ‘17’s  Kudo Haruka will graduate from Hello! Project.

Kudo Haruka or Kudo for short is well-known for her husky voice, short hair and ikemen character not just within the group but with the entire Hello! Project. Everyone wants to be kabedon-ed by this handsome girl! But despite of her boyish look, we cannot overlook her cute-ness! Kudo is currently one of the main girls in the current line-up of Morning Musume, but her journey towards this essential position in the group was not that easy. Let’s find out how Kudo Haruka strived from ZERO to HERO!

Kudo started off as a Hello! Pro Egg way back in 2010 and auditioned for Morning Musume’s 9th Generation but she did not pass. Few months after she tried her luck again as a 10th generation member and this time she passed along side with Iikubo Haruna, Ishida Ayumi and Sato Masaki, all three of those members were not from Hello! Project, because of this, Kudo claimed to be the leader of her generation since she’s a senpai in terms of being under Hello! Project way before the other girls. After sometime, Kudo finally realized that having a generation leader was not necessary at all.

The 10th generation members’ debut song was “Pyoko Pyoko Ultra” in which Kudo received a solo line  which was “Onnanoko” (what solo line?) which can be heard in the  2:25 mins of the song.

This line is sang AFTER the 1st chorus which then means, the chance of singing it live is just 0.01% (exaggeration but you know what I mean). During the second single of Kudo which was “Renai Hunter” she did not receive any solo line (cries) but atleast we got to see her cute face. 

But luckily Kudo received a solo syllable in the next single, yes you heard it right, syllable which was “TE” in the song “ONE TWO THREE” (WHUT?!) and her voice was never heard again…. Just kidding, Kudo continued to receive little lines or words or syllables or sounds to the next few singles that they have released. Also, the beginning of the “ONE TWO THREE” Era signifies the beginning of Kudo’s Ikemen Era since she cut her hair very short and now she’s well known with this haircut and has been H!P’s crush ever since then.

On 2014 Kudo became part of a unit under Satoyama Movement “Triplet” together with Okai Chisato and Takagi Sayuki who were part of C-ute and Juice=Juice respectively. For the first time in forever, fans and non-fans heard Kudo’s voice clearly since she was able to sing legit lines.

Comments (from what I remembered) said that Kudo sounded like C-ute’s Suzuki Airi (you know Airi, every H!P fan knows AIRI) 

In the 2014 HINAFES something amazing happened, Kudo was given an opportunity to perform a solo song and she sang  “Moshimo” which brought her fellow generation-mate Iikubo Haruna to tears since she was so proud of her baby Kudo. Kudo performed with a smile and showing of her cool husky voice.

Despite not being featured most in their singles or concerts, Kudo continued to make her own name by releasing photobooks. Fans seem to love seeing this girl in photobooks. She released a total of 3 photobooks up to date(4th one announced already).   

Although Kudo’s character is the “IKEMEN” of momusu, Kudo is actually a cry baby. She cried in one TV show because she thought that people were making fun of her, she also cried in the graduation singles of Sayumi Michishige (previous leader of momusu) and Riho Sayashi (previous ace of momusu).

In 2015, the twist of all twists happened, Kudo and her fellow back girl Kanon Suzuki a.k.a. Zukki, became centers of their single “Oh My Wish” fans were surprised and delighted with this. During this era, Momusu was able to perform this song at Music Station (popular music show were in popular groups were invited) due to some circumstances Zukki has an eye patch while performing and because this Kudo was more focused than Zukki. Kudo was then named in twitter and other social medias not sure but as what I can remember as the “Cute Short Haired Center Girl of Morning Musume.”

In the same year, Riho Sayashi, the ace of Momusu that time announced her graduation, in one of her graduation songs “Endless Sky” she co-centered with Kudo, fans assumed that this is a sign that after Sayashi leaves Kudo will take her ace position. After Sayashi left, I’m not pretty sure if you could call Kudo as the ace of the group (I can say it’s either Maachan or Fukuchan) but she did became the center of the group as a proof you can see her in the center position during group photos. 

Kudo continued to have a secured position in the group, receiving essential lines, being featured enough in music videos, being able to stay at the center during group photos, but then despite being on her peak, a sudden announcement was made… In 2017 Kudo announced that she’s going to graduate from the group. Everyone was surprised, especially this little ol me. (Time to rant) I mean girl she worked hard for that position and without giving any signs (such as being gloomy and not smiling anymore *coughs* Maro *coughs* Meimei *coughs* Riho *coughs* Zukki) she decided to graduate. But what amazed me is that she has decided to go to another path or another dream since she already achieved one (and here I am not able to achieve any of my dreams) in her young age. It’s amazing that Kudo felt satisfied already of what she had achieved and did not wait any longer to be able to move forward. I love Kudo and I respect and admire her decision, I’m a little bit bitter about this because I still think that she still has much more to show in the group but then it’s her life we can’t do anything about it but support her. I wish you all the best Kudo and I look forward to your future musicals and hoping for dramas and movies too.

 P.S. I wrote this post early because during the time of Kudos graduation I’m not sure if I’ll be having a free time.

Disclaimer:

All media doesn’t belong to me. Dates were from Hello!Project wikia but other informations are not reliable since they were based from my memories.  

[wontonkatsu-blog]

Blog #13: POP! Reflection // Jessica Rahel

May 11, 2017 

On Tuesday, May 9th, we did our POP show with the other AAS 218 class. POP stands for Producing Our Power, which I think really fits what the performances in the show are about. I think it is about producing and earning the power that was not handed to us in the first place. Whether it be our age, the color of our skin, the languages we speak, our gender, or the way we present ourselves, there are people who look down on us. There are people who do not see us the way we see each ourselves and each other. Each and every one of us know our own strengths and weaknesses. POP was a way to express ourselves and to step outside our comfort zone.

Before POP, I was really clueless as to what I wanted to do. Because it is my last semester of college, I really wanted to take it easy for POP and do something that I’m comfortable with, like play the piano as background music or be an extra in a video. On the other hand, I was also very inspired by everyone in class to go all out for POP. It’s my last semester after all. If not now, then when? I felt conflicted.

I ended up going all out.

I ended up doing something that I’ve always wanted to do since I was younger. To star in a music video and record a cover of a song.

Our POP group, DNA, made a complete remake of the song and music video of the song “Awake” by Jin of BTS. I wrote a really long blog post about how I came up with the idea to remake this song, which you can read about here. I’ll write a shorter version of the story here anyway. I listened to the song for the first time at 4am in the morning on a Thursday (April 6), came up with the idea at 1pm, and pitched the idea to my group in class at 4pm. It was a really impulsive decision since everything happened within the span of less than 12 hours. I could not even keep up with myself that day. My excitement level drained my energy so much that I asked myself that night, “What the hell did I get myself into?” Here’s what I got myself into:

1. After forming our groups, I had to switch mindsets. I had to go from “I just want to take it easy” to “LET’S DO SOMETHING NEW!”

2. I re-learned how to breathe properly in order to sing properly with my old choir teacher, Rosa Ng.

3. I learned how to use a software that composes music. I’ve never done that before. I’ve always composed music on paper. Composing music on a computer felt so professional to me.

4. I learned that viola players read music in what is called an “alto clef”. I didn’t know what an alto clef was until this project happened. I didn’t know that such thing exists aside from treble and bass clefs. Thanks, KC, my friend who is an orchestra director, for telling me about the alto clef BEFORE I composed the viola part to the treble clef!

5. I experienced that feeling of being stuck in a recording studio for 5 hours, fueled by boba, water, and fries.

6. I started paying attention to how K-Pop males have their makeup done (I just wanted to look like Jin ok…)

7. I learned how to wear white. That’s considered a miracle, to those who personally know me.

8. I learned more ways on how one can move the camera to create beautiful shots. Thanks, Floris.

9. I experienced a wave of disappointment after realizing that we won’t be able to use any of the viola parts that we recorded. I worked so hard to compose it and even learned a new clef.

10. I got back on my feet after that disappointment and took it as a learning experience. I got to compose music for the viola! If I need to compose for a viola part in the future, I now know what to do.

11. I learned how to accept the things that I can’t change and change the things that I can.

12. I learned to let go and hand over big responsibilities. In the past semesters, I’ve always taken the big responsibilities so that I don’t have to worry about other people messing up. This semester, I had to leave it to the more experienced people and let it go. It was hard at first, but I finally convinced myself to just let go and focus on doing my part, which was to compose the music and look pretty for the music video.

13. I learned that I would rather die than have my group members skip a meal.

14. I am still learning that not everything has to be perfect.

15. I got some basic Mandarin lessons (IN COLLEGE) from “Professors” Hu (Chao) and Cheng (Peter).

16. I got to sing in Korean and Mandarin!

The end result:

Originally, I chose this song because I felt the lyrics when I listened to it at 4am that one morning. The chorus, “Maybe I, I could never fly… but I will still struggle and fight” really stood out to me. I always feel this way. I don’t think I’ll ever reach the “level” of where some of my friends are, but at least I can try to. My friends are earning higher degrees in college while I’m here graduating with a bachelor’s degree. I’m average in playing piano. I’m average at a lot of things. This could be due to how I’ve been spreading myself too thin throughout college. I did a lot of things, but I was average. I learned a lot of things, but I’m still average. I don’t stand out from the crowd, because I’m average.

To relate this to the concepts we learned in class, we decided to make this song about Asian-American success. What defines success? Is it becoming an accountant? Lawyer? Doctor? What about becoming a teacher and inspire children to be the best? A professional musician? A YouTuber? As Asian-Americans, we feel like we have to follow the crowd of other Asian-Americans. Our parents and society expect us to achieve a higher education. They expect us to become nurses, doctors, lawyers, or working in business. In the music video, I had 4 occupations: doctor, marketer, pianist, and a photographer. Other people expect us to become doctors or work in business. However, becoming and musician or a photographer is a big risk because it’s very hard for us Asian-Americans to succeed in those areas.

What about our own dreams? This song talks about how even if we don’t feel like we’re enough and that we feel lost in life, we can still struggle and fight for our own sake. It’s not too late. The word “awake” in this song, in my opinion, means that we are aware of who we are: not good enough. But we still keep going and run a bit more. It’s okay to not be what our parents or society expects us to be. Their meaning of “success” can mean “failure” to us. If we are rich and successful in someone else’s eyes yet we are unhappy, our success means nothing. If we are still seen as a failure in their eyes but successful and happy in our own eyes, then we have succeeded nonetheless.

This project is a literal example of how I relate to this song. I don’t know how to sing, but I’m going to try. I don’t really know how to compose music, but I’m going to try. I’m not that pretty, but I’m going to try to look pretty. None of us are professionals, but we did it. And we succeeded.

I love how everyone brought something to the plate. At first, I was concerned that not everyone will contribute because of the limited roles that I had written down. I wanted to be the only singer at first, but that wouldn’t include everyone else. Eventually, we added more singers- Lucy, Seoyoung, Haruka, and even Chao! I think Lucy’s voice stood out the most. She has no problem reaching those high notes that everyone usually struggles with. Seoyoung and Haruka are also really good, even though they said they can’t reach the higher notes. They have such beautiful and distinct voices. Chao honestly wasn’t that bad when he is serious about singing. When I heard him sing prior to recording, he wasn’t serious about it so he didn’t sound very good to my ears. I thought that was how he really sings, which was why I hesitated to put him on the track. However, putting him on the track gave the song a bit of humor because he’s the only male singer and the fact that a male suddenly sings at the end of the song. Peter and Chao helped greatly with translating part of the song to Mandarin and also starred in the music video. Eric helped Floris direct, and Floris put everything together. We all worked hard together and I’m so proud of everyone. Floris and I listened to the finished song in an Uber on the way back from a shoot. I was tearing up because it was so beautiful. Floris made everyone sound like little Sam Smiths (not really but close enough). I love the song and I love how we got to sing it for this class.

Shoutout to Cornerstone for letting us use their recording studio! :D

I also enjoy the music video. We were inspired by the original music video and re-created some of the scenes, such as in the beginning when I took off the earphones, the hallway scenes, and the Polaroids. Ever since I discovered Fort Point with my friend last year, I started bringing my other friends there. It was like a secret place to me. Fort Point is a beautiful place with dark hallways and has a great view from the rooftop. It’s free admission, too! When I found out that Floris wanted to shoot there, I was THRILLED. That place means a lot to me and I’m glad that we got to shoot there. I also love the shots that she took of me. She made me look like Adele (again, not really since Adele is bae and I’m lame). I learned a lot from her and Eric, and hope to make my own content in the future one day.

There are also some things that we could have improved on. For example, we could have found a better person to sing the first and second verse. Even though I can reach those low notes doesn’t mean that I should. The recording doesn’t sound as good as me singing it out loud, but what’s done is done. I also didn’t compose the entire thing from scratch. The music at the beginning of the music video was taken from the original music video all the way until the first verse starts. So, the piano at the beginning wasn’t me, and the violin part also came straight from the original. Also, throughout the song, the violin part was taken from a Youtuber named Jun Sung Ahn since we couldn’t use Allayne’s viola recordings (it did not fit well with the song).  If I had known that we couldn’t use Allayne’s recordings, we could have found a violin player who can play for us. This was a learning experience where I had to tell myself to let it go. So what, those parts are not from scratch? We still did our best. The deadline was coming up soon. There was nothing much else that we can do. In terms of the music video, I honestly could have looked better. The loose hair strand in the beginning of the music video bothers me more than I should, even though no one cares other than me. We did a great job overall. That’s what really matters.

Special thanks (This is going to get real cheesy)

Thank you, Professor Irene Duller, for this opportunity for me to live my dream and express myself in a way that I never thought I would ever get to do in my college years.

Thank you, Kevin, Mav, and Khanh, for believing in us, encouraging us, and helping us keep up the progress throughout this project.  

Thank you, Allayne, for learning the song and coming to the recording session.

Thank you, Uncle Harry, for taking the time off your workday to help us with the drums.

Thank you, KC, for teaching me more about orchestral music and helping me compose.

Thank you, Rosa, for being patient and teaching me how to sing again.

Thank you, my friends from outside this class, for your excitement, encouragement, and prayers.

Thank you, Troy (the only Wontonkatsu member who isn’t in our group) for your support for us and believing in us.

Thank you, DNA for all your hard work in making a dream of mine come to life.

POP Highlight

I loved every single moment of the show. I was really hungry and asked someone from the group chat to bring us food, and thankfully Chao saved the day with some bread and boba. First, I enjoyed Dreamer’s skit because Troy is in it, and seeing one of our own group members on stage gave me a proud big sister moment. In this skit, Troy was the main character’s friend and the supporting character. I think they did a really good job in touching upon a really touchy subject, which is depression, without overly exaggerating or offensive. I also enjoyed the fashion show. I could tell that they put in a lot of work putting together all the outfits. My favorite is Linh’s dress. I think it’s really pretty and feminine, and it looks like you can wear it to any kind of party without being overdressed or underdressed. And Dangerous Divas… I love how they stayed together as a group and kept their name. It just shows how powerful they are and what they can accomplish together. I recorded their entire performance because I love their dances so much. They did a really good job in showcasing what it means for women to be empowered. Shaolin Showdown was amazing. The spoken word guys were very powerful and their words really touched me. Allayne did a great job playing the viola in an intense fashion. The very last group ended the show with a brilliant dance performance that left everyone shook. We took photos afterward. It was an amazing night filled with lots of talent and fun.

- Jessica Rahel

[joethecasualnerd]

Laughing Salesman New: Episode One Review

The idea of shorts is very interesting. They take less time to produce, have a very simple plot to get through, and are built on the characters, rather than a story.

It should be something that I enjoy, and for the most part I do. Like what I said about slice of life shows, they are a breather after watching some heavy shows and don’t spend a lot of your time if you aren’t digging it.

Then we get shows that have a pair of shorts for one episode, much like the cartoons of the nineties and early 2000’s, which is great because you don’t have to wait another week to watch one short, getting two a week.

However, there is a bigger risk in finding a short that you don’t like, or getting both shorts to be ones that you don’t like. You can’t just skip one wait next week to watch another one, you must slog through a half that you don’t like, hoping that the next one would be better.

Sometimes, they are and sometimes they aren’t.

Does the same fate befall Laughing Salesman New, a franchise that had (up until this new series) never been released outside of Japan?

SPOILERS AHEAD

The first half of the episode involves an office worker, Nakajima. Just your plain as day office worker, who is very much an introvert.

One day as he goes to lunch, his friend in the office invites him to go to a bar. Nakajima makes the point that there wouldn’t be any bars open in the middle of the day, to which the friend just tells him to not worry about it.

Instead of getting out at the ground floor, they go the basement of the building and walk through the dark hallway to a glowing door labelled Club Daydream.

They go through the door and to Nakajima’s surprise, there is in fact a bar that is open and filled with beautiful women.

They start drinking water, with a couple of the hostesses goading them into drinking, Nakajima being entranced by one woman named Haruka, when the titular Laughing Salesman, Moguro enters the scene.

The friend, Sakamaki, explains to Nakajima that Moguro approached Sakamaki, who was looking for a place to drink in the middle of the day, and Moguro did indeed point Sakamaki to Club Daydream.

The two realize that their lunch break is long over, and they rush to go back to work, with Nakajima saying that he’ll be back later in the night.

After obsessing over Haruka for the day, Nakajima goes back to the club, only to find out that it doesn’t look anything like it did earlier. He runs out after meeting a less than attractive woman and then runs into Moguro.

Moguro explains that the club only becomes special in the middle of the day, and at night just becomes a regular club.

The next day, Nakajima, still obsessing over Haruka, asks Sakamaki if he wants to go back to the club at lunch. Sakamaki says that he doesn’t want to get in trouble again, but Nakajima says that he will pay for them both and that seals the deal.

Back at Club Daydream, the two begin drinking hard liquor and Sakamaki says that it is all Nakajima’s treat and the they start to go wild, drinking more and more.

When the bill comes, it is a staggering 480,000 yen, which is $4,314.18 as of writing this. Nakajima only has 10,000 yen, or $89.88, and says that he will come back tomorrow with the money he owes.

As they stumble back to work, which they are several hours late and presumably lose their jobs, Moguro is talking to Haruka, who is laughing at the fact that Nakajima thought that he could experience a wonderful dream for only 10,000 yen.

The half ends with Moguro saying that you need to be careful what you dream about, because reality can come back to bite you.

The second half begins with a new character, a woman named Takashima, an office woman who is having quite a rough day. She messed something up at work, her coworkers don’t like her, and overall just seems very depressed.

She does have a vice to cope with all of this, shopping.

Takashima loves shopping, but she tends to overspend and is almost always in debt.

She goes to buy a purse, but knows that she doesn’t have a lot of money and is debating whether or not to buy it, when Moguro comes up and correctly predicts that she has a problem.

He gives Takashima a business card and leaves. The next day, after Takashima did in fact buy the purse, she overhears her coworkers making fun of her, as they do.

She is walking home, lamenting on the fact that she can’t go shopping anymore, when she pulls out Moguro’s card.

Suddenly, Moguro appears out of nowhere and asks to talk to Takashima. Over drinks, Takashima explains her situation. Moguro then gives her a black credit card and says that the next time she wants to go shopping to use that card.

After another day of being made fun of by her coworkers, she goes shopping and uses the credit card and to her surprise, it works.

She goes on a major shopping spree and is very satisfies with her purchases. The next morning, she gets a knock on the door and two women in work uniforms greet her and barge right in, taking everything that she had bought the night before.

Moguro comes in and says that the stipulation to using the credit card is that he will repossess everything that she bought the night previous. She can sate her shopping habit and still have money to live, just so long as they take everything the next morning.

A few days of this go bye and while Takashima is satisfied with knowing that she can spend all she want, she’ still upset in that she isn’t able to keep the things that she buys.

At work the next day, she overhears one of her coworkers mentioning how they spent a day at the spa and another coworker complimenting on how beautiful and youthful she looks.

Takashima thinks that going to a spa would be okay, since they really can’t take that away (right?).

After spending a day at the spa, getting a full makeover essentially, goes on a date with a gorgeous guy and overall has a wonderful night.

When Takashima is walking home, out of an alley Moguro comes out and says that he needs to take what she bought.

The morning comes and back at Takashima’s house, she wakes up, hobbles to the mirror and see that her youth and beauty were taken away, leaving her to look like an old ugly woman.

Moguro posits how Takashima should have listened to what he said, they will take everything that she bought with the card.

REVIEW

Sorry that this review took so long, but in all honesty, there really isn’t anything to say about this show.

There aren’t any characters to get attached to, no significant development for the characters that are there, and some of those characters being unlikable.

I get that’s the point of the shorts, to show that too much of a good thing is bad and follow instructions or else face the consequences, essentially fables of how people are always in need of something, but always squander when they get it.

Other than that, the shorts weren’t very interesting. The only character to get attached to is Moguro, who is in the episode for a short time that the only thing you can get out of him is that he is some supernatural salesman with a smile that takes glee in watching people not follow the rules he has set up when he helps them.

I would be much more interested in the show if there was more of him, not necessarily give him a backstory (to keep him a mysterious figure), but more of how he chooses his clients rather than randomly appearing when someone has a problem.

On the plus side, the show does have some interesting animation, being overexaggerated and cartoony, which could be a negative, but it’s unique and will set itself apart from other shows.

I’m in a bit of a bind on what to score this show, but I can’t deny that I was bored throughout. Maybe someone else would find enjoyment in it, but this is not for me.

Pros

Interesting animation

Moguro is a good character

Cons

No other relatable characters

Not enough Moguro

Give a Chance or Hold Off?

HOLD OFF

Thanks for reading, and I do apologize again for having this review taking so long! Besides me not really having much to say about this show, I have a big project in the works that I hope is released soon.

It’s not anime related per se, but I do have interests other than anime and I hope you guys enjoy that when it comes out.

Thanks for reading, see you next time!

Peace.