13 posts tagged “berryz koubou”

Hello!

I won't be doing a review of Morning Musume's new PV, because it's just so awesome, so I'll post it here, and from my Buono! PV review, I hope you can know what I think about it.

 

 

1. Ame no Furanai Hoshi de wa Aisenai Darou?- This song just illustrated why the new H!P is so different from the old H!P. The newer girls sounded okay, but the second that the Elder Club started singing, it was appearent how much better singer singers they are. Their tone and their showmanship is amazing! The little dance that the eggs started off with was kinda cool, but essentially pointless. The camera work in this concert is just amazing! I love how they actually made an effort to get as many of the girls in close-up shots as possible, and the panning shots looked really good with how the girls were set up. Junlin sound amazing as usual, and they've only improved!

2. ManoPiano- Mano just frankly sucks. I'm sorry, but this song is really incredibally terrible and her vocal tone is really nasally and young. Is she really 17? 'Cause she sounds like she's 12. At most. Also, there are many parts where she seems to go quite flat. Why did they give her a solo carrer again?

3. Minna No Tamago- I didn't fully appreciate how short these girl were until seeing them standing on that stage. Yuuka is quite obviously the only one singing live. She manages to pull it off quite well, but you can tell even without looking that her microphone is on from the way that her voice sounds compared to the others. This was really cute, and because of the cutesy song, they have complete justification for sounding so young, but the 3 in the new unit have to sound much better to pull off any other song.

4. Come Together- The wotas seem really off beat in this song with their "OI's" for some reason. Maybe it's just me. When I saw the dance for this live, it's extremely obvious that it's way too easy for any of the girls. And while Misa is right (I admit defeat, Misa) that the majority of H!P aren't good dancers, this dance is still a piece of cake for them. Give them dances that challenge them, and they'll get better. The performance isn't really spectacular either. The wotas even seem to lose interest by the end. They sound about half as loud at the end as they did from the beginning.

5. Kenchana ~Daijoubu~- While I will admit she's talented in singing, and that she has a jazzy voice, her music isn't good for her voice, and the wotas can't get into it. It's too boring. It's too much of a difference from the loud dance music of the rest of H!P. And while the other elders sing soft songs, at least they come with some sort of beat.

6. Uwaki na Honey Pie- Now, that's better. I like how since they needed girls to harmonize behind her, they put in eggs, but still gave her all of the important stuff. The eggs match her well on stage for this situation. They really know how to back someone up! I can also appreciate the cowboy hat and boots, because weather it was intentional or not, they fit the whole country musume thing.

7. Kuyashi Namida Porori- Look at those wotas go! I really worship the light-stick wota who made light-sticks into the shape of her name! She looks really happy up there, and she looks happy to be retiring from idol-dom. It's long past time for her. I love her in H!P, and I just think she's a great entertainer, but I think she'll be much happier out of the idol bussiness. Even if she's just a TV personality, she won't be tied down by some of the harsher rules of it. She sings this song like the pro she is, and I love the way that she melts some of the notes at the end of the phrase. I highly doubt that if anyone else was doing this song, that I'd like it. It's also nice how she takes the ear things out at the end so she can hear the fans, not herself. That's a true idol.

8. Hapi Hapi Sunday- While Koharu was okay, as usual, she was totally outshined by those two little girls. They may not be quite good dancers or singers yet, they totally make up for it in their own way of just being energetic and cute! They seem so happy to be up there, that they totally outshine Koha who seems to just be doing her job. While these two aren't quite ready to do anything, I think they'll be very good if they take a few more years to devote to training with their new group, and then when all of those girls are 10 or so, and go through non-harsh but weekly or so training for 3 or 4 years, they're group could be very nice.

9. This Is Unmei- KICKS ASS! Not only is MK in the best shape ever, they also manage to get the wotas off their feet and screaming their hearts out for the first time in this concert. From the second they come out, I love how they really work the crowd as a whole, and some of the wotas wearing C-ute, Berryz, and Momusu shirts are just so into this throughout. This is why these girls deserved so much more than they've gotten, sales and music-wise. I also really like how the choreographer used the stage to have them yelling and pointing accross at eachother. It really looked very effective. The girls really looked like they were about to get into a major idol-argument. If there's one group that the H!P eggs and kids need to learn from, it's this one. I also like how when they said "jigoku" (hell) the whole place went black except for the bright red part of the stage they were standing on.

10. Forever Love- Even though I recognise that Berryz deserves more attention because they've been around longer, C-ute continually owns them. The lighting and their expressions work so well during this, but they still didn't steal the show. I think with time, they'll become a great group, but for now, they're doing just amazing!

11. Dakishimete x2- With this dance, it seems that Berryz is attempting to beat C-ute at their own game, and well, quite frankly it doesn't really work. While the singing is just fine, except for a certain Risako's, they don't put out the performance factor quite as well as C-ute does. They don't seem to be as confident, and they just don't own the stage like C-ute. They still do seem to be improving in both areas, though, so maybe having C-ute as a sort of rival is pushing them to do better.

12. Tanpopo- YAYS! More elders again! During this concert, I feel that I'm enjoying the elders 100x more than the younger girls. Maybe it's the vocal quality, or maybe it's their showmanship. First generation Tanpopo owns this. Their vocal quality is so nice. The second that the other 4 stepped on stage, you could feel that this song just wouldn't sound as good. And... as a side note, why is Risa holding her stomach like Kaorin did when she was pregnant? O.o

13. Baby ~KOI NI KNOCKOUT!~- Maybe it's the song, but the wotas are really pumped up for this one! The dance looks fantastic, and they all sound fantastic! I'm surprised that Kei can still dance like that! Yossie looks feirce in all of her close-ups. I really love this trio as pucchi moni. The energy just doesn't stop! Also, their voices fit this kind of music. Then again, Kei's voice fits all kinds of music. Speaking of Kei, her high note at the end was just great! And her face at the end... she must've been possesed by Yossie or something!

14. Chocolate Damashii- Ayaya sounds great here, as she always does and always will. It's kinda freaking me out how her earpiece is shiny. Are they trying to make it obvious or something? I hear no wotas chanting here, so it's either that the song is way too new, that the wotas are still in the process of finding a cheer, or she's just failing at working the wotas into a frenzy like she used to.

15. YEAH! Meccha Holiday- Does she really have a broken toe? The wotas here still aren't quite as worked up as if this had been 6 years ago, but they still are getting into it by this point. It's really funny that you can see some wotas doing the dance at points. She seems kinda boring at the beginning, but when the wotas start going nuts, you can hear her getting happier and more into it herself. She's very good at the dance now compared to when she did this when the single was released.

16. Egao ni Namida- I didn't really like this particular song. It just didn't really work for me. The dance and the way that it was sung just didn't seem good, instead they seemed kinda awkward at points. Anyways, why does she get 3 solo songs? -.-

17. Hare Ame Nochi Suki- This was a really good performance. While I still like the way that Aibon sings her parts, so I was sad that she wasn't there, it still was nice. By the way, why are they singing this song again? At this same concert two years ago they did exactly the same thing with this song: same people, same costumes, same song. They could've at least done Sakuragumi's other song, which they seem to like to forget exists at every recent oppourtunity to perform it. Also, the line changing with Aibon out would've been easier: you could've just stuck Nacchi into singing her part.

18. Ai No Sono ~Touch My Heart~- While I heavily perfer Otomegumi's 2nd single to this one, I still like this performance, but again, instead of a repeat of 2 years ago, could we have had their other single at least? Is it too much to ask? I liked the smooth transition between the groups, and the girls just started to pump the crowd up from the beginning. Nono's singing has improved slightly, but her dancing seems a little awkward, probably due to her long time off stage. (I wonder if her husband was there to see this?) They also manage to work the crowd quite well, but MK still owns everyone in that aspect.

19. Co.No.Mi.Chi.- Someone's slightly flat on the high note in the beginning. Otherwise, this is typical, cool Buono!. I love how quickly they move around the stage. Momoko sounds like she has a bit of a stuffy nose here, but she really seems to be doing her best to ignore it. She's probably the one who was flat. Still, they seemed to do very well here!

20. Debut! Lian Ai Deng Chang- I don't think that they were ready to debut this early, but I guess they did. They still seem quite awkward on stage, and their singing isn't the best. The dance really doesn't look very good either. With more practice, they might improve, but for now, they look like some kids at a school talent show.

21. Hitoshirezu Mune wo Kanaderu no Aki- This song is such a nice one. I love their singing on it. This is such a nice song for women about their age to sing. It's not extremely mature, but it's very slow and sophistocated piece. This song has such a nice melody, and the background music is made more to compliment it, not to match it. The chords at the end are so beautiful I could cry!

22. Magic of Love- These two look so great on stage together. Their personalities are good matches for eachother. This song fits so well with their voices. I think that both of them singing this song was meant to be. I love how they not only look like they love what they're doing, but how they also seem to be so into the song. They may be on the older end for H!P, but they're cetainly not on the end that seem disconnected to their music.

23. Screen- This was very similar to the version of this performed at the elders club concert, so just refer to that one.

24. Suki Na Sempai- This is the second time that they've sung this song and that they've said it's their last time performing together. With how they're always together, and their great chemistry on stage, somehow I doubt it. This song sounds so much better than it did 7 years ago when they first sung it together. They seem so happy to be together on stage and singing. This is the generation that seems to be the one most likely to reunite later.

25. Romantic Ukare Mode- Miki's improved so much since she first joined H!P, that I would usually have a problem with her singing this. Of course, She sounds great as usual, but she doesn't really seem to be as happy singing cute songs, for which the reason is quite obvious: she's older and probably knew that she would soon be a married woman.

26. Kachoiize Japan- While Biyuuden still sucks at singing, they seem to have gotten better here. I liked the starting set up for this. And while they didn't take the usual Biyuuden wears skimpy stuff route, they chose the show off their boobs one, which is equally effective. They make a great group, to the point where it just seems like they became inactive, not broke-up. I love the way that while the Kids are there, they're there to compliment, not take over.

27. Naichau Kamo- I don't really even want to comment on this since this was also a repeat and the members aren't graduating.

28. Resonant Blue- Resonant Blue sounds good when it's just Morning Musume. While adding other girls in doesn't change the sound, it's kind of really pointless on a song with line distribution like this one. This is a good performance, and I think by now the girls can do this in their sleep, and it looks like they're doing just that. It seems so rehearsed, and not in a good way. This song has to seem spontaneous and kind of like a fit, similar to Shabondama.

29. Namida no Iro- These costumes look just fabulous on stage. Also, Airi's hair appears to be channeling Tracy Turnblad's here. It's even puffier than earlier! The C-ute girls dance just wonderfully during the dance break and generally just own. They seem to be way more into this than Morning Musume, but I can see how considering that they are a lot younger than Morning Musume, and that this is the first song in a while.

30. MADAYADE- Berryz really shouldn't have sung this one instead of something else. I don't know why, but Madayade just doesn't look good the way that they performed it, and for some reason, they just don't seem on top of their game. I can't say that I don't like Berryz, but they were definately given the wrong songs and the wrong expectations for this show.

31. Morning Coffee- I love how the first generation is singing their exclusive 1st generation song. Their voices make such beautiful music in the harmonizing on this song. I love how they sing it. The harmonizing can't be done nearly as well by anyone except the first generation. They also seem like a very close generation. I think that they seem to enchant when they're singing, whereas the other H!P members pump them up. There's something to be said for good old performing, not just acting hyper on a stage.

32. Koko ni Iruzee- This is the other side of Morning Musume: Hyper and fun. The way that they all burst onto stage like that is surprising, and then they go straight into the song. I've always loved the lives of this song because of the enthusiasm that goes into it. While some Morning Musume songs are insanely hyper like this one, this one really seems to be the most fun of them to perform. They just look like they're having fun doing such a crazy dance! Also, when Makoto says "I'm here!", you can really tell how good she's gotten at english. She seems to be a pro at that line. It's also kinda funny how you can see Ai really quickly kick her leg over Makoto's head while she's singing! I can kick my leg over someone's head who's taller than me, but she seems to do it so effortlessly and fast that it's hard to notice!

33. Love Machine- JunLin own the "Oo's" at the beginning: they're the only two I've seen sing them where you can hear their voice over the back-up. Iida does her priceless "Deiyaa" face, and all of Morning Musume performs together one last time before their next anniversary rolls around. I love how they don't seem bored with this song, even after preforming it close to 500 times!

34. Michi Naru Mirai He- I skipped over this for no appearent reason.

MC: Graduation- This really made me cry! It was so emotional. I started bawling when Yuko and Ai traded letters! I think that it was just so emotional!

35. ALL FOR ONE & ONE FOR ALL- This is such a perfect ending, I can't describe it! I think that this song is such a great way to see how H!P has changed over the years. I love how they're singing the "H!P Anthem" one last time as it was meant to be sung, in the order that H!P was built up, before the moment has to be over.

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Your Bawling Blogger.

-Midori

HEY!

I know this is really late, but I've been insanely busy with life in general.

For this post, I'm going to go back to the original post, and re-list what I like & don't like about H!P members & groups.

Here it is, so you can see how my opinions have changed.

Okay! Now on to the post!

Morning Musume has, and I think will always be, my favorite H!P group. While Buono! is tied with them, because Buono's awesome, I think that Momusu just can't be beat in their history and their style. I love all the Morning Musume girls from the 1st to 8th generation, and I think that each girl can and has made an impact on the fans, weather it be Gocchin, who skyrocketted Momusu into J-pop history, or Asuka, who was only a member for only a little while. I really like all of the current line-up, but Ai is a definate standout. All of the girls have their own special place in my fandom, including Koharu, no matter how much I bash her. Everything Momusu does helps dictate what H!P does. I think that they could still choose much better singers in the future, and release more mainstream, mature, and sexy music to get back into the mainstream, but they probably won't do that for a while. Also, I would do them a world of good if they started appearing to talk/perform/bust in on heaps of variety, quiz, and music shows. AKB48 had a drama and has a variety show, and look at how well they're doing.

Berryz Koubou- The kids group that I really don't like at the moment. The only Berryz stuff that I like at the moment is their older stuff. Their new stuff is annoying, too idolish, and getting increasingly farther from mainstream. The decision makers of UFA really need to tap into these girls' individual talents. Saki can dance REALLY well, and if they did a hip-hop or a more mainstream release, she could be the lead dancer and the center of the single. Miyabi & Momoko (but only if she uses her more mature voice) should be the lead singers, and Risako should be left without ANY solo singing time, but still being the center of stuff because of her popularity. I think that Berryz could be successful if they made some major changes in their line distribution, and changed their music style like Momusu.

C-ute- They really need to take the mature route. I love them when they sing their mature songs, and I love how consistant they are live. C-ute could be amazing if they just ditched everything C-ute about them and went to full-time B-adass. Really though, I love all their mature stuff, but the second they turn cutesy, I want to plug my ears and run. Their voices are suited to the mature stuff, and I love how connected they seem to it. They seem almost in pain when they try to act cute, and it's completely natural when they act mature. Airi of course is my favorite C-ute girl because of her singing and maturity, and who can not love Maimi's dancing? Chisato also has an amazing voice, and Erika could be a really great asset to the group if they got her out and on TV more.

Buono!- What's to hate about this group? While I hate their recent shift towards the more pop side of pop rock, they all really do well with what they're doing, and when they're on stage, they make magic. Buono does really well as an anime group, but if they broke into the mainstream with more TV appearences, radio shows, and pop-rock singles and albums, they could potentially be amazingly popular in Japan, and they already have a sizeable international fanbase. Miyabi has the consistant and awesome voice to carry the songs and is good on stage and on TV, and Momo is a good leader for the group. Airi's mature and very strong voice fits great with Buono's music. Airi also seems to speak a little english, which may be good if they do decide to sing for more animes. The back-up band is also really fun and unique for H!P, so I love it! Particularly since it's an all-female back-up band!

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So, my opinions of H!P have changed. Maybe only a little, but they have.

-Midori

Hello!

Wut? H!P revolution? And to think I just had a 1-hour lecture about the Russian Revolution today.

1. Resonant Blue - all- YES!!! My wish came true! I really liked how the other girls really were back-up, but they complemented the song nicely with the dance during the dance break. The leads sound great as usual.
2. LALALA Shiawase no Uta - all except Shugo Chara Egg- This is always 100x more fun the more people that do it, so it was fun, but really, I'm sick of this song already. Why did they mention that SCE wasn't joining in? I didn't notice the eggs at all in either of these songs...
3. Minna no Tamago - Shugo Chara Egg- NOOOOOOO! They all sound like 2-year-olds! NEXT!!!
4. Happy☆Happy Sunday - What? I listened to this and Koharu was live and my ears didn't bleed? Wo0T! This shows that if she tries to sing like the 16-year-old she is, and not the 3-year-old she wants to be, she may have something there, no matter how small.
5. Tan Tan Taan! - Milky Way- YAY MILKY WAY!!! Too bad they're not going to be around much longer. Again, the other two totally outshine Koha.
6. FOREVER LOVE - ºC-ute- This. Was. Intense. My god does C-ute need to get more exposure.

7. Meguru Koi no Kisetsu - ºC-ute, Tanaka Reina and Mitsui Aika- Okay, I'm sorry, but I really don't like this combo. It sucked.
8. MADAYADE - Berryz koubou- They sounded feirce, but I couldn't stand to look at them, so it really wasn't a stand-out perfromance for me.
9. Koi no Jubaku - This was actually a nice combo, but I still think that it could've been better.
10. Lalala Sososo - Mano Erina- I skipped it, and on the one line I did hear, she sounded as young as Koha usually does, which isn't good. At all.
11. Rottara Rottara - Buono!- BUONO ROX MY MULTI-COLORED TOE SOCKS!!!
12. Naichau Kamo - Morning Musume- I like this live, and they all sounded amazing, so I don't really have any comments.
13. Mikan - Niigaki Risa, Kamei Eri, Michishige Sayumi, Kusumi Koharu, Mitsui Aika, Junjun, Linlin, Yajima Maimi, Sugaya Risako- I really didn't care about this performance. It didn't stand out, Risako somehow managed to get so many lines that so many other girls could've sung so much better, etc.
14. Jingisukan - All- Umm... this wasn't fun or exciting for me, and this song has never really been my favorite, so...
15. Shiroi TOKYO - Nigaki Risa, Yajima Maimi, Tokunaga Chinami, Nakajima Saki, Hagiwara Mai, Mano Erina- This was actually much better than I thought it would be. Besides the fact that it had a really nasally and as young as the original group.

16. Natsu Doki Lip Stick - Yajima Maimi, Kikkawa Yuu, Maeda Yuuka, Fukada Kanon, Sekine Azusa, Ogawa Saki- This was all Maimi, no eggs. Maimi just owns this song. I'm sorry eggs, but Maimi owns everyone in every way everytime she sings this.
17. Baka Ni Shinaide - Shimizu Saki, Natsuyaki Miyabi, Kumai Yurina, Sugaya Risako- This was feirce. I didn't like the dance for the music, but it was actually fun to watch. A good follow up song to Natsu Doki Lip Stick.
18. Mr.Moonlight Ai no Big band - Takahashi Ai, Umeda Erika, Tokunaga Chinami, Nakajima Saki, Okai Chisato, Arihara Kanna, Saho Akari, Sekine Azusa- There's only one thing to say: Ai-chan is pimpn'.
19. Soku Dakishimede - ℃-ute- This has vastly improved since C-ute first sang it. Again, these girls need a lot more credit than they get.

20. Gyagu 100kai bun Aishite Kudasai - Berryz Koubou- The sad part about this, is while I like how it was sung, it really pisses me off that they don't sound at all different or improved in any way, and this shows just that.
21. Darling I LOVE YOU - Berryz Koubou, ・℃-ute- The one at the battle concert was better. Hands down.
22. Take off is now! - Takahashi Ai, Nigaki Risa, Tanaka Reina- I LOVE THIS SONG LIVE! It's so much fiercer live and it's just so much better all around live. It's always exciting to watch, and that dance is just kickass at the beginning and end.
23. Renai Revolution 21 - Morning Musume- I just skipped this I was so sick of it.
24. Guru Guru JUMP - All- I LOVE JUNJUN AND LINLIN!!! THEY OWN MY WOTA'D OUT SOUL!!! They just own this! They're really moving up in the world, with solos at a major concert! YAY!!!
25. Ame no Furanai Hoshi dewa Aisenai darou - All- The JunLin bits sound great, but if all the really good singers got solos, why did Risako get one instead of say, Miyabi, Momoko, Captian, or some other Berryz girl? (Not meant to offend Risako fans, but she sucks compared to Miyabi and Momoko in singing. I must say though that she has a great stage presence.)
26. Go Girl Koi no victory - All- I skipped this. Why do I hate this song? I don't know, but I do.

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Overall: 8/10

-Midori

Hello!

I saw the music video for Koda Kumi's "Showgirl," which I thought was great, and I was hit with the inspiration I needed to post.:

Why is this PV so good, but Hello!Project PVs so bad?

To answer this, I'll go into the plots/concepts of a few recent H!P PVs, one from Ayu, and "Showgirl" from Koda Kumi.

Nai Chau Kamo-

This PV is a danceshot with the girls looking all sad and dejected in the rain. That's about it.

Co.No.Mi.Chi-

This PV is a danceshot with Buono walking around infront of cheap CG-ed backgrounds. There's also minimal close-up shots added in here and there.

 

Madayade-

A danceshot and the Berryz working in an office along with danceshot closeups.

 

FOREVER LOVE-

C-ute watching their own danceshot with a few close-ups thrown in.

 

Marionette-

Ayumi is asleep in a creepy old room, all alone. She dreams of being held on a delapidated carosel, and being manipulated like a marionette. In the end, she wakes up and goes over to a mini, delapidated carosel like the one that she and a few other puppets were on, and sees that no one is there. As a bonus, at the concerts, they showed extra footage from it where the real Ayu actually was being manipulated like a Marionette by the men who were trapped on the carosel with her.

 

Showgirl-

Koda is dumped by her boyfriend, and decides to get back at him by becoming famous. She goes into a theatre and sees a dance troop. When she finds a poster that says that the group is holding auditions, Koda tries out and gets in. In fact, the judges like her so much that she's placed front and center in the group. After a great 1st performance, she talks to the dazzled fans and media. Her old boyfriend comes up to her, trying to woo her, but she promptly turns him down. It also shows her and the other dancers, who are very jealous of her, backstage after the show, where she shows them an expensive necklace she got from an admirer.

 

So, do we see the difference now?

Hello!Project PV's are just... bland. They have no story, no engaging theme, and not a hint of symbolism. I mean, while you could interperet the fact that Ayu is manipulated like a Marionette to mean that maybe she feels like some people are manipulating her in her real life, or that she feels too restricted by her carrer. Showgirl implies that Kumi has fun being a star and that she can take is all in stride.

What does NaiChau Kamo mean, the girls sometimes get sad? Do the sparkles placed by the girls in the Madayade PV mean that they're pretty?

And why do we care about that? While we may not know the deeper meanings that Ayumi's PV implies, I'm sure that we all knew that idols get sad and that they're pretty or cute.

The plot also makes a huge difference in this. While there doesn't need to be symbolism in a PV to make it good, there should at least be a plot. As I've written above, Kumi's PV has a story to it, and it's fun to watch and see what happens. It's kind of like a short little movie to watch while you're listening to the song. The stories can be engaging, sad, or funny. They aren't just "girls watching themselves dance" or "girls walking through bad representations of real places," they have a good story to them that you actually have to watch the PV to get.

While the girls' cuteness may draw wotas to them, and the pop music may draw the little girls straight that way, how are you supposed to draw teenage girls, who are some of the best patrons in most music markets, with a PV that doesn't interest them. If you had never heard of either H!P or Avex trax, and you had to watch both music videos, would you rather pay attention to the one that draws you in with a plot, or the one that just has cute girls walking around?

Furthermore, some may argue that you'd need a budget to do PVs with stories, but, there are ways you could turn these around with minimal extra money:

NaiChau Kamo- Show a guy, whose face you don't even need to show, dumping one of the girls, then spend time on having that girl talk and/or bitch to her friends (aka the rest of Morning Musume) about how stupid that guy was and have the other girls try to cheer her up one-by-one.

-Downsides: Bitching fans because one of the girls would get substantially more screentime than the rest. And possible angry extreme-wotas who are offended by even the thought of their favorite girl having a bf.

-Extra things needed: A random guy (hell, you could even just pull one off of the streets and pay him minimum wage if you don't show his face), a few chairs or couches and maybe a rug(which you could borrow), some games for the girls to play(the games you could probably borrow too), and a plain and simple room to put the stuff in. (which could probably just be a simple 2-white walls set-up.

Co.No.Mi.Chi- This has some of a plot already, but you could have the girls planning where to go and then finding themselves lost and trying to find their way back. (Yes that's a lame plot, but there are several movies like this, so why can't it work?)

-Downsides: It might be a little more expensive, but considering how well it's selling, that shouldn't be a problem.

-Extra things needed: A room for the girls to start and end in, and a tour around Tokyo with a camera. (or maybe just better CG)

Madayade- The girls just got hired at a foreign company, and they can't find ways to commuinicate with their bosses who only speak english. They proceed to study english with eachother until their boss finds them doing so and yells at them for slacking off or something.

-Downsides: This might be hard to get if you miss the parts of the PV with the girls and their english textbooks.

-Extra things needed: English textbooks or Japanese-English dictionaries

FOREVER LOVE- The girls are working a security center, and see some girls (Maimi and Erika dressed as robbers) running through the halls, and proceed to try and catch them. Regular Maimi and Erika guide the girls with their cellphones to robber Maimi and robber Erika, who keep evading them. At the end, the younger C-ute girls catch them right before they reach the exit.

-Downsides: There would be no room for a danceshot.

-Extra things needed: two robber costumes, a hall set with a turn and an exit (it can be reused for multiple shots from different angles), and fake cell phones (the chasing girls) and headmics (for regular Maimi and Erika)

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That's pretty much it...

-Midori

Hello!!!

I'm sugar-high from Halloween, and proud of it!

For those who were looking at this and think it had nothing to do with a picture, here's your part of the post:

I've noticed that the elders club is graduating in late March, and Erika (Yes, the one from C-ute) is turning 18 in May. Coincidence? Will C-ute no longer be an H!P kids group and become a full-fledged H!P group (which they practically are already), or will Erika have to graduate because she's not a kid anymore? We'll have to wait to find out.

Next order of business- the picture part of this post! I saw this image on Wotaku Now, and I just had to point out how bad it is when you look at it closely. I spose this post would be under the same category as Celestia's recent post with badly edited pictures. While all of the H!P kids have had absolutely terrible pictures, I believe this is the first that doesn't do anything for anyone. With C-ute's bad group picture, they were just dressed funny. This is different. They just look terrible. I'll do the best I can with the names, but I can't remember all of their names. If you're wondering who it is, I'm going in the same order as the picture, right to left.

Risako- This picture makes her look like they made the dress 5 sizes too big, so they decided to just make her wear four other costumes under it. It just makes her look heavy. We all know she's far from fat, but this picture makes her look like she gained 30 pounds. Her head also looks scarily disproportionate, and in general, I think this is just a terrible picture.

Momoko- She looks like one of the best, but her head looks disproportionate too, and I don't think anyone can argue with me when I say that it looks like she has no neck. In fact, I think she may have had her head photoshopped on for this one. (Yay for digital de- and recappitation!)

Yurina?- I don't know what it is, but she just looks so scarily skinny that it freaks me out! It looks like they took her picture and made it taller and skinnier- to the point where it's not natural anymore.

Chinami- Again with the bad editing! Her body looks really slim while her head looks really wide. Are they photoshoping everyone's head on? (The only one I don't have strong suspiscions about would be Yurina. I'm 99% sure Momo got her head edited on.)

Miyabi- For some reason, Miyabi looks the most human out of all of them. Besides the fact that her head also looks photoshopped on.

Saki- Her picture looks like it was taken separately and photoshopped in. Why? Because she's facing a noticably different way from the others. Also, she seems to be a victim of the same sideways body-crunching Yurina was subjected to.

Maasa- Again, her body seems completely out-of-place here. She just seems really awkward, and while the others have good lighting, the last two have no lighting gradient on their dresses, but their faces are... really white.

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I'm sorry, berryz fans!

-Midori

Hello!

Yes, I know that's an uncalled for title, but anyone who's ever looked at Danny Choo's otaku blog probably know all too well that some otaku in Japan like not school girls, but OLs (Office Ladies). It appears with Berryz's new PV, they're trying to appeal to this crowd this time, in full OL style.

This will be short, because Buono's new PV is also out. (And we all know how much I love Buono.)

The Good

• Extras- I really like the use of extras in H!P PVs, it shows that they have a good budget. The fact that this PV at least has a basic hint of a story going on in it with the girls being yelled at for goofing off shows that H!P PVs are again on the quality rise from a dance shot, a close up, and shots of the girls just messing around. Also, the extras actually get a good amount of screentime, unheard of in H!P PVs.
• The Budget- Again, the good costumes and the cool set make this PV nice to watch. Maybe this is what H!P was up to, firing the Elders Club?
• The Song- I like it. It's not my favorite Berryz song, but it's definately not my least favorite. It's good, and the slightly poppy, but slightly more mature pop sound fits Berryz's age group better.
• Momoko- FINALLY! She isn't filled with helium for a Berryz single!
• The dance- It's hard to call this either way when a PV doesn't have too much dance shot. (Which is good in a way.) I like the dance, and it looks very good and streamlined compared to previous dances in H!P kids PVs.

The Bad

• One of the non-regulars gets lines, but otherwise, only the 3 usual leads get any real singing time.

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Told you that was going to be short.

-Midori

Hello!

I had to stay home sick today with strep throat, so I wasn't happy in the least. Until I decided to look on Dohhh up!.

For weeks, ever since I heard Ame no Furanai etc. etc. I was hoping that this song would be the one that Dohhh up! would use as the preview video for the concert. Fortunately, my day was turned up-side-down when my wish came true. And it's better than I ever could've hoped! I'll do my normal bullet-point review of the performance.

First, the amazing footage:

 

The Epic:

• The singing is amazing! I love this song! I want to sing it in choir now! Grr... must... find... sheet music! While I'm suspecting some of the girls are lipsyncing, the most important two, Junjun and Linlin, and probably almost everyone aren't, which is great! No one sticks out, just like in a real choir, you can't her one girl over the others unless it's a solo.
• JunLin & their solos! I now will bow eternal devotion to these two! They're too amazing here! I almost cried at how well they did! I was so happy for them, and they looked really happy for eachother. I could listen to just their solos and get teary-eyed. It's just so amazing and up-lifting. Their part was really uplifting, and was the part that made my day. They were just so amazing! I could go on like this for hours, but I won't.
• The camera work is good. While we get single-person close-ups for morning musume, they are the lead group of H!P, so what else can we expect. The kid's (not so kiddish anymore, eh, UFA?) all get two-person close-ups when they're not doing a solo, which is a vast improvement from previous all-H!P songs throughout the years. What I was most surprised about was that the eggs got some good face time for being eggs, and towards the end got an egg-exclusive shot.
• More equality for H!P! The Morning Musume, C-ute, Berryz, and Eggs were all evenly distributed throughout the microphones, so you could see them all, and the eggs weren't hidden completely! (For once!)
• The Pandas! How many times will I say that I can't get enough of their solos? I don't know.
• I liked that how for each group a distinct color is developing- just like how each girl in a group has her own color, each group has their own color now. It all started last summer, and it deals with finale costumes: Melon Kinenbi are green like melons, but they aren't there; C-ute is a cute color- pink; Berryz is a blueberry color- blue; Biyuuden was yellow in their day; and Momusu is the fierce and dominating red.

The Only complaint:

• The costumes for the eggs, Mano Eri, and Momusu are all good (despite the two latter ones being excessively shiny), but C-ute and Berryz, particularly Berryz, have unflattering and even more excessively shiny costumes. The major complaint though, is those ugly mini-hats on their heads. When will UFA start putting cute things on their heads?

 

Oveall, now I'm a devout Panda fan! Go pandas! Give them more solos! Power to the Pandas!

(I'm going a little insane at this point. ehehehe...)

-Midori

Hello! I didn't think I'd write anything for a while because of how busy I've been, but my daily routine to Dohhh! up and Hello!Online saw some new zeal to the units by none other than UFA.

First, Berryz's new single is coming out relatively soon, but instead of that PV, UFA has decided to release ANOTHER tar tar remix PV today. (Why?) It has brand new footage, footage of the original group, and now the sheep is fully animated! Lets call this version 4.0 (Original PV, Mongolian dance shot PV, Original tar tar remix PV, and this)

It's new and most certantly improved! Here it is:

 

Okay. I still don't like any of these PVs very much, but this one's hilarious.

NE~XT!

A new unit! YAYS! It might be one even my sister can enjoy, complete with an engrish name, the new [super]-unit:

HANGRY ANGRY

Hello!Online has the full song preview and more details, but I'm liking it:

A punk-rock unit with Ishikawa and Yossie! It's sponsored by a clothing store, and there are of course other factors going for it (It's NOT H!P style music in any way, shape or form), so I'm hoping for some big success here!

I'll write more when the PV comes out, but the news at H!O is here.

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-Midori

Hello!

This post was supposed to be on Monday, but oh well. As many of you know (probably all) Miya just had her sweet 16!!! I'm really happy for her! YAY! As my sweet 16 is coming up in less than a month now, I know it won't be anywhere near hers, but I'll make a list of H!P related items that I wish I had, and might just pre-order with that birthday money (If I get any -.-) But first, pointless Miya and Miya-related video spam to celebrate her 16th!

 

YAY! W with Miya!

 

Buono and their greatness live!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

 

Berryz speaking English. Miya has a girlfriend! *shock* Just kidding.

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Now onto what I'll hopefully get one way or another-

• Cinderella- I REALLY want to see this, and seeing it on the bigger TV which would be a present in itself, would be awesome! Just need to find a DVD player for the right reigion.
• New Morning Musume Single- a must order! Even if it's off iTunes, I WANT it.
• New Buono! Single- Again, I can't help but have every possible Buono! song on my iPod at all times.

That's all I can think of right now that I desperately want, but it would be awesome to have the summer tour DVD also. >.> First, I've gotta get that DVD player to be able to play japanese DVDs.

-Midori

Hello again!

What I mean by the title, is that when Berryz and C-ute's concert was announced, it was described as a battle concert. Immediately, I thought the theme would be Berryz Koubou VS. C-ute in an all out battle. I was wrong. It was Berryz and C-ute together fighting against a common, power-rangers monster-of-the-day type of enemy, though that isn't to say I didn't enjoy this concert. In fact, I loved it to death! It was one of the few H!P concerts that actually had a recurring theme throughout, and it was a fun, exciting theme. The VTRs were actually good, and they were a lot of fun. I had fun watching the girls see the monster, than summon their friends in a way reminiscent of Sailor Moon, and do a dramatic pose/meet-up scene.

Stage Set-up: 5/5

Concept: 5 (Bonus)

(Costume reviews and song reviews will be done as they come)

On to the music!

Introduction/Darling I Love You

The intro was so over dramatic for such a hyper song, but fit the general mode of the concert.

Darling I Love You was a generally good performance, though some of the girls were off at times, or their voices just didn't blend great with the others (Volume or otherwise) and it made parts of the song sound rather bad. The dance was cute and pretty together. I'd never heard this song before this concert, and I don't know if I'd buy it, but this is still a very good, high energy version of it.

Costumes: 3.5/5 The fluffy dresses are cute, but they're badly accesorized, and only fit the first song in the set.

Performance: 4/5 The dancing and energy was great, but the singing was sketchy at points.

 

 

Special Generation

I don't know if anyone who's reviewed the concert has mentioned this, but those powder-puffy skirts go terrible with this song. The combo of the dress colors (Berryz wearing blue, C-ute in pink) made me remember the winter version of this. The voices in this still don't blend the best, but the singing is much better overall. I love how the two groups do parts of the choreography back to back, so you couldn't see the other group, and the X shape at the end was really cool. The formations in the song looked amazing from above with the different dress colors.

Performance: 4.5/5

Ooki na Ai de Motanashite

The beginning formation with the alternating blue and pink is again a good choice, and it looked great. The hand movements were really together, and the over all performance shows how much these two groups have improved since they did this at the 2007 winter concert. The eggs and their low costume budget come in here, and that becomes rather distracting on the C-ute side of things where the costumes don't match. The ending is really cute, and the singing in this song was the most confident and nice sounding yet!

Warning: This post may contain content that may insult Risako and madden her fans. This isn't meant to do so, but there's a high chance it will.

Performance: 5/5

VTR

This was the single most awesome VTR ever featured in any H!P concert. That's all there is to say. (The Erika/Chisato part was total win)

Overall: 6/5

 

 

Namida no Iro

I liked these costumes much better than the PV ones, though they're very similar. This live made me have a whole new respect for the dance, which I didn't like when I saw the PV. Maybe it's the lighting. All the dancing is simply amazing, and the singing is great, but most of it is lipsynced from what I can see.

Costumes: 5/5

Performance: 3.5/5 (Partially lip-synced)

Munasawagi Scarlet

This was the first Berryz single I listened to. I like it, and this performance is no exception. The singing is much more mature than when the song first came out, and the dancing is good and confident. The costumes are just how I like them: rather normal and non-idolish. They fit the song much better than the original ones did. The only problem I have with the costumes is song specific. Where they picked up part of their gouches in the original dance, they now have no fabric to hold onto, leading to a really awkward-looking dance move.

From here on out is where I agree with maiZe, that Miyabi just keeps singing well, and Risako, well, just sucks at singing. Risako sounds terrible from now on out, and, frankly, I would like to see someone besides her get lines, someone who can sing consistantly great live. (Again, not to insult Risako and/or her fans)Pr

Performance: 4.9/5

Costumes: 5/5

LALALA Shiawase no Uta

This song has never really been one of my favorites, but it's still a good performance, no matter how terrible the costumes are for it. I love the costumes, but they portray the opposite of the song. Overall, the singing is very good, and this is live, compared to Namida no Iro. That doesn't mean it's bad though, in fact, this song sounds more full of energy when it's live. The dance was the main point-docker, as it was off at some points.

Performance: 4.5/5

Dschinghis Khan

This perfomance was all Berryz in my eyes. For some reason, they just seemed to be having a lot of fun singing this, compared to C-ute's almost forced-looking beginning dance. Risako really sounds off during some of the group parts, but during her solo parts, she gets slightly better.

Performance: 4/5

Tokkaiko Junjou

How can I hate any performance of this song? I can't. Even the fluffly fairy version of it. Everything is perfect again with this song, and Maimai looks and sounds so grown up. Airi's vocals are amazing during this, and I think she sounds better and better as it goes on. The dance is awesome as always, and the amazing sound of their voices blending is something that they have as an advantage over Berryz. In Berryz, someone is always louder than everyone else, as if it's their solo, but in C-ute, they all sound the same volume, and their voices work really well together, as if all seven girls are really just one.

Performance: 5/5

Tsukiatteru no ni Kataomoi

I want to deny this song ever existed, so I skipped it.

Very Beauty

Very Beauty is by far my favorit Berryz song, and after reading maiZe's review, I wasn't looking forward to this, though, even if Risako butchers her parts of this great song, I couldn't wait for Airi's lines. It went just as maiZe said, Risako looking slightly drunk when she walked to the center stage and generally sounding more nassaly and annoying than ever. On the otherhand, Airi sounded like she was born to sing this. If this is ever sung by Airi and Miyabi, or all of Buono!, I think I'd die of happiness.

Risako Performance: 1/5

Airi Performance: 5/5

Bokura no Kagayaki

I've never really liked this song, and while this was a good, solid performance, I still don't like the song. I don't have much to add to that.

Performance: 3/5

Sayonara Hageshiki Koi

This started off very hyper, but the vocals sounded rather young. Overall, though, I really liked this performance. All the girls sounded great, and the dance was cool. I think that this performance, again, wasn't among the best in this concert energy-wise, but the vocals and the overall dancing was great.

Performance: 4/5

That's the Power

The costumes are something that I've never seen in any H!P concert since Coconuts Musume in 2000: schoolgirls. They're cute over all, and fit the theme of transforming superheroes. (Magical girls anyone?) The song is very B-sideish, and the english lines are really awkward sounding. I didn't really like this, but maybe I just didn't hear enough of it.

Performance: 4/5

Costumes: 4.5/5

Do Don Ga Don Ondou

Not only does the title remind me of Odoru11, the opening notes and the general gist of the song do too. I don't like this song, or the dance, it's too traditional japanese (in the musical sense) for me, but I still like the fact that Erika gets a big solo for herself even though she's often pushed to the back of everything. She should get more oppourtunities to do stuff in H!P singing-wise, she's more talented than some of the girls who get more lines than her. (Please, Tsunku, I know you don't read this, but let Erika sing more!!!)

I like how she thanked the audience in her singing at the end.^^

Performance: 3.75/5

Honto no Jibun/Renai Rider

I'm pretty sure everyone knows Buono is awesome, and by far my favorite H!P kids group. I didn't like this Honto no Jibun at first, but now I love it. These outfits are really cute, and I like how they work for both Buono songs in the set. The singing is great, and the only fault I have with this entire set is that it's really short by my standards of Buono awareness. Buono needs two things: to be made a permenant group (After Biyuuden, H!P doesn't have any trio groups besides them, and to boot, they sell as well, if not better sometimes than the other H!P kids groups.) and to get a tour.

Performance: 5/5

Costumes: 5/5

Natsu Doki Lipstick

I've never really been a huge fan of Maimi, but she really owns this song. After seeing this, I don't want want anyone else to sing this song. Even though her voice is hard on my ears, it still fits this high-energy dance piece. Also, even though I'm a girl and straight, I'd admit that if I was a guy, and saw that dance danced that well, I'd be totally turned on.

Performance: 4.5/5

Massara Blue Jeans

This song is one I always, habitually skip over during concerts. That's my only reason for skipping it. I'll just put something about the costumes here:

Shiny x1000

Costumes: 4.9/5

Jiriri Kiteru

I can't say how much I love this song. It was the 3rd Berryz song I really love. The color contrast in the costumes is again amazing, and the overall dancing and Miyabi's singing makes up for Risako. The blend in this song again is really painful to the ears for some reason. It sounds a lot like they just reverted their singing ability back to 3 years ago. Hmm... This is probably one of the works performances vocally in the entire concert for no appearent reason. They all just sound really off. One thing I do like though is the awesome choreography and formations used throughout this. The rotating X was really cool, and looked great.

Performance: 3/5

Jump

JUMP! A song that's a rare case where it's better live than the recorded version. Maybe because they let loose live, but are bored singing the same thing over and over in the recording studio. Whatever the case, It's a really fun song. You can tell who does the dance more from who jumps higher. They all sound exhasuted when they're singing, but overall, it's pretty good, and Erika's solo line is AMAZING!!! You can feel the energy during this.

Performance: 4.5/5

Yuujou Junjou oh Seishun

I've only heard this live. It's a song where I love the general singing parts, but I don't like the instrumental only parts. They're just not the best ever. This performance is even more energetic that JUMP and it really made me wonder how these girls keep going. Overall, this is great, and a lot of fun, overall, the main complaint I have is Momoko. I love her Buono voice to death, but here, she's pure helium.

Performance: 4.9/5

MC

This is the only MC I'll review, because it's the most fun. It gets back to the plot of fighting the monster, and is basically a skit, not to say it's bad though. It may be cheesy, and it leads to a song, the same one that was just in the VTR, but it's still fun.

Warera! Berryz Kamen

A song that really fits the super hero theme. It's a lot like the Sailor Moon theme song, but it's much, much better. This takes place during the battle, I guess, and they sing to eventually defeat the generic monster, but it's still fun, and even though we heard this playing during the VTR, this version of the song was better and involved some acting here and there. It's a lot of fun to watch the girls sing something that mactches their costumes, and of course, the badly animated monster blow up.

Performance: 6/5

Sakura Chirari

I have no idea who put this song to these outfits, but it's really awkward. This song never grew on me, and I'm still not a fan of it. The repetitive dance is a little boring, and I don't like it too much. The song is predictable, and the wotas jumping in the front row seem much more energetic than the girls on stage. (The wotas really stole the show energy wise) It seems as if they're lipsyncing through the whole thing to me, but threre aren't many good shots that would help me tell.

Performance: 3/5

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That was a long review. After I get back, be sure to look for a review of the Morning Musume concert too!

-Midori