Berryz Koubou wins again with Dschinghis Khan!

I realize that I'm behind on the times, but I got a little caught up with Kawaiirrhea's "Hello! Project no Puzzle desu yo." on ★MINI MONI MANIA★. But I finished the puzzle and I felt very accomplished when it was done. It's so much fun! :)

So, to get back to my blogging, I'm here to finally get my word in on Berryz Koubou's new single, Dschinghis Khan. Before I go into my review, I just need to give mad props to Berryz for being so fabulous. There were a lot of doubters when this single was announced (with many people bashing it before hearing or seeing anything other than the title), but with the release of this PV I've definitely heard many more positive reviews than negative ones. So, with that out of the way, onto my thoughts!

When I first heard about this single, I had never heard the original song. However, at some point, I saw a link to the original PV with Berryz audio overlayed. I must say that the video was interesting to say the least. I wasn't too sure about the single, and decided to give it time and wait for the PV.

So I did, and I must say I was not disappointed. While it's not my favourite Berryz single (I'm not actually sure what would qualify as my favourite... I'm going to have to break those down much like I did with Morning Musume at some point), it's cute.

The song itself is fun and I've found it constantly gets stuck in my head. I randomly start humming or singing it at the office. It's earned me some strange looks from my co-workers, but they all know of my love for J-pop (I get my yesasia deliveries sent to work) so it's not a problem.

I find myself a little annoyed take Risako gets 2 solo lines when there are a total of 4 solo lines in the song. But what can you do? We all know that the management loves her. The song is at an amazingly high-pitch. I can sing fairly high, but I need to go into falsetto singing this one at parts to spare myself and those around me. You can definitely feel the Dance Man influence in this song. During all the "Ooh, ha" parts, I always want to go double time like in Koi no Dance Site.

Now for the PV, I absolutely adore this PV. Normally, I wouldn't like costumes like this, but they just fit the mood of everything so well. The girls all look lovely in this PV, and I have to say that for the second PV in a row, Chinami has just knocked me off my feet. I'm pretty sure I mentioned at some point that I like her hair shorter, but even though it's growing longer now, I think she looks gorgeous in this PV.

I love the hallway scenes. The girls are so cute as they mess around. I've read that lots of people have not been enjoying Miya in this PV. I'd have to agree that she's the most, shall we say subdued, of the girls in this PV come the hallway scenes (I think she's great in the dance scenes) - though I do enjoy her opening moment, and her bits with the glasses and tamborine. But in general, I find that Miya is at her silliest when the others are around her. Just watch any of the behind the scenes or making of videos. But when it's just her alone, she seems a little uncomfortable, at least in regards to being silly.

What really made this PV for me was Chinami. In addition to her looking absolutely amazing, her hallway scene at the 2:17-2:20 point was just so GOLD! Who wouldn't love that? Even if the rest of the PV had sucked (which it didn't) I think those few seconds of Chinami would have saved it for me. It was simply that great.


My one criticism of this PV would be that at some points during the dance shots, Risako looks as though she's losing interest. The other girls all look like they're having the time of their lives (I mean, this song is just so hyper, and the pitch is so high, it can't help but give you a high... It's like musical crack), while Risako has this blah look on her face. It's not a constant blah look... She does get into it at times, but at those blah moments, she kinda brings the mood down for me.

So there we have it. Berryz Koubou wins with another fabulous release. At this point, they have yet to release a single that I have failed to enjoy, so 16 for 16 is a pretty good statistic, if you ask me. ^_^

MM, Berryz and C-ute rankings from Hello!Blog

I'm still working on my final installment of my Morning Musume singles ranking, but in the interim, I thought I'd join the ranks of blogs posting their results from the poll on Hello!Blog.

First up, C-ute!


Not much has changed since my last C-ute member ranking, except Erika is no longer at the bottom of my list. The more I hear of NakaSaki's voice, the more I shudder. It pains me to great degrees that she gets solo lines in singles while Chisato, who has such an amazing voice, gets zero, zip, zilch, nil, nada, etc.

Next up, Morning Musume!


Again, no real changes from my original MM ranking, except that the ties are no longer ties. I still adore both Ai-chan and Risa (and watching Ribon no Kishi just increased my love for them both). Eri beat out Reina due to the fact that I like Eri's voice more than Reina's and Eri was just so win in the MouTube vids she did with Risa. ^_^ Junjun is my top 8th gen member because I like her voice best, and Linlin is my bottom 8th gen member because I like her voice least, which leaves Aika in the middle. And the bottom two... Well, I established my reasons for not favouring them in my original post.

And finally, Berryz Koubou!


Now here we have some crazy changes going on in compared to my original Berryz ranking.
1. No change in the number 1 spot, with Miya still taking home the gold!! :) I think my layout speaks for itself in that regard.
2. Risako has been bumped out of spot #2, which will be explained when I get to her. Yurina has moved up one spot due to Risako's drop. Yurina edged out Chinami mainly due to her being featured more.
3. Chinami has also moved up one spot due to the drop.
4. Risako's moving down on my list, but I'm having a hard time placing her below Momoko, so she sits here in spot #4. Basically, I starting to fall a little bit into the "Risako is overrated" club. I still like her in general, but as I watch more recent lives and whatnot, she isn't as amusing or interesting as she initially was for me.
5. Ahh!! Momoko's moving up the ladder! I'm telling you, it's all Buono!'s fault! However, she still bothers me as a member of Berryz, I don't know what it is. Maybe the punk-rock style of Buono! just suits her better, and the songs Buono! sings allow her to use a more mature voice, compared to Berryz singles which call upon her high-pictched squeak. That high-pitched squeak is unfortunately stopping her from climbing my Berryz Koubou ladder.
6. Maasa beat out Captain for 6th spot. Exact reasoning, I'm not sure... Possibly due to the previously mentioned funny character she played in their stage play "Geki Haro "Edo kara Chakushin!? ~Timeslip to Kengai!~".
7. I'm sorry Captain, but someone has to go to the bottom of the list. But that doesn't take away from her awesome dancing abilities. :)

I had some family visiting from California over the weekend, so I didn't have much time with my computer. Thus the lack of my top 14 MM singles. Hopefully that will be up within the next few days. Until then! ^_^

C-ute's mini album; C-ute vs Berryz

Just recently got around to listening to C-ute's mini album （２）mini～生きるという力～ (after watching a live performance of Bokura no Kagayaki, and realizing I could hear some quality Chisato on this album).

Listening to this album definitely solidified my top 3 C-ute members. There really is a big gap between my affection for my top 3 and the other 4 girls in this group.

The opening song "That's the POWER" has a really carnivale feel to it. It's bouncy and upbeat, but I don't think it will get too many plays on my list.

The 3rd track "Disco Queen", unsurprisingly, isn't quite my fancy, seeing as it features Mai and Saki, neither of whom quite have the quality of voice that I enjoy.

Airi's song, "Tsuugaku Vector", is okay. Not much to rave about on my part, surprisingly. I definitely still <3 her (one song won't change that), but this song won't go down as one of my favourites.

I really enjoy Maimi's solo song "Natsu DOKI Lipstick". I really need to see this song live and see how well Maimi pulls it off. The chorus is so catchy, and I just love the high note that she hits at the end of each chorus (except the 2nd last one). I don't know if it's just me and my bad memory, but I feel like most H!P songs don't have a key change within a song. I think because of that, the key change within this song really stood out to me. It makes the end of the song much more potent (not quite the word I'm looking for in this situation, but I like the sound of it XD). I really like the quality of Maimi's voice. She's definitely the most mature sounding of C-ute at the moment.

*EDIT*: My brother tells me I do have a very bad memory and that many H!P songs do actually have a key change (ex. Koko ni Iruzee!). Hmm... seems I need to brush up on my old school H!P songs.

However, I'd have to say my favourite song on this album would have to be "Bokura no Kagayki" which features Chistao, Erika and Kanna. Can you guess which of the 3 I'm particularly enjoying in this song? In the live I saw, Chisato was definitely the strongest performer, IMO. I love the guitar in this song. It's not overly complicated... Makes me want to figure out the chords... Hmm... there's an idea. I also enjoy the drum pattern in this song. It makes me want to go out and play this song on Drum Mania (if it were on Drum Mania, that is... Unfortunately I can only play fake video game drums. My coordination isn't good enough to handle different beats between my hands and feet).


To go off on a tangent, I've been think a lot recently about the C-ute vs. Berryz debate and who's better. Thought I'd get my two cents in.

Berryz has been getting put down a lot from what I've been reading. While everyone's entitled to their own opinion, I don't think it's quite fair to compare C-ute at this stage to Berryz when they were at the equivalent stage in thier careers.

First, when Berryz released their 3rd major single "Piriri to Yukou!", the members were at an average age of roughly 11.75. Compared to C-ute's 3rd major single "Tokaikko Junjou", C-ute's average age is almost 2 years older, at roughly 13.57. C-ute also had 4 indie singles prior to their major releases, so they had the chance to build up a fanbase, as well as get more comfortable with their position/roles as idols than Berryz did initially.

As for the most recent releases, most people have either loved or hated Berryz newest, while many seemed to thoroughly enjoy C-ute's latest. Well, can't do much there. It's not Berryz choice on what song they're given, or the choreography that comes with it. But at the same time, I think people need to give Berryz more credit (though it's so ironic that with the bashing of "Tsukiatteru no ni Kataomoi" before it's release, it ended up outselling all of the most recent H!P releases, with the exception of Buono!'s "Honto no Jibun").

*EDIT #2*: Someone pointed out that "Tsukiatteru" outsold in first week sales, and not total sales. That's what I mean to say, it just didn't occur to me to specify that when I originally posted.

Look at what Berryz has done in the 3 (almost 4) years they've been a group. They are currently on their 15th single (almost 1 year earlier than Morning Musume in regards to time from 1st single release to 15th single release). In addition to the singles, Berryz has also released 4 albums (albeit one was a mini album), just like MM had released by their 15th single. MM did 3 movies, 2 musicals and 6 concerts, while Berryz did 2 stage plays (I think it's 2... They just completed one recently, if I'm thinking correctly) and 9 concerts. Keep in mind that Berryz got to this point 1 year faster than MM. I think that's just mind boggling.

I'm not saying this to bash on C-ute in anyway, 'cause I definitely love C-ute as well. Call me non-confrontational (heck, I'll be the first to admit that I'm non-confrontational), but I just don't get why we need to bash on one group to raise up our favourites. They're 2 different groups with 2 different sets of girls. C-ute's gotten off to a good start, but just because they got the supposedly better song (once again, I say different groups, different sounds), you can't totally throw out all that Berryz has accomplished over the years.


And finally, forget a tangent... I'm gonna take a complete 180, and return from Japan back to Toronto and make my first real mention of the Toronto Raptors in my blog.

Watched the game tonight against the Hawks. This was our first game back at full strength since having injury problems with Bargnani, Bosh and Ford starting Nov. 20. So what happens in this game? First Jason Kapono goes out with a wrist injury. Initial X-rays came up negative for damage, but no futher info. Then just before the start of the 4th, Jose Calderon goes to the locker room for what seemed to be a dislocated finger. Luckily, he was back on court within a few minutes.

But the major kicker happened with about 1:30 left in the 4th. TJ Ford made a steal, and as he's running down the floor going for a layup, Atlanta's Al Horford went for a block, but instead pulled on TJ's head. It took TJ off balance and he crashed into the ground, his head bouncing hard off the floor. He lay completely limp. It was terrifying to watch. A few years ago, Ford suffered an injury that required neck surgery and kept him off court for a year. It could very well have been a career ending injury. Since then, he's had a pretty sensitive neck/back and has suffered a few stingers from hard fouls. Tonight just left me with a terrible feeling inside, wondering how bad this injury is.

It was like watching the game against Boston last season where Jorge Garbajosa went to block a shot, but when he landed he broke his ankle (as in his food was 90 degrees/perpendicular to it's usual angle, with the bone sticking out). He has since come back to play, but ironically, he just had a second surgery on that ankle, I think it was tonight.... And then Ford gets this injury...

New shipment in!!

They have finally arrived!!!



I ordered this from yesasia way back on Nov 8 or something along those lines, and seeing as I didn't want to pay extra for shipping, I had to wait for "Tsukiatteru no ni Kataomoi" to release. And for some reason, it took forever to reach me. Usually it only takes 4-5 business days from shipment date. This time it took 7 days.... Hmm... I think I was just really impatient for this shipment, since I ordered it so long ago. It's only 2 days late, now that I think about it...

Anyway, I love them! I've obviously listened to all the songs before, but it just feels so nice to own them and have the wonderful pictures and CDs in one's hands.

I love Berryz's new single. The PV is growing on me, and I so enjoy doing the dance along with the girls as I watch. As for the CW for this single, not a favourite, but it's nice to hear the others get a chance to sing. Miya, Momo and Risako don't get one solo line in the CW. I found that quite fascinating. When I first heard the CW, I immediately thought of a superhero movie... But not I can't recall which superhero I thought of... Oh wells.

As I've said after reviewing the PV, I just love these outfits, and the girls all look so beautiful, with the exception of Momoko, who is still weirding me out with this single. Not to say she looks ugly or anything, just... odd... Which is strange, 'cause while her voice drives me nuts, her appearance doesn't tend to phase me. And I enjoyed her in Buono!'s "Honto no Jibun", even though I didn't like her hairstyle. Oh well.



I <3 Very Beauty! I love Miya's outfit in this song, as well as Yurina's, even though it makes her look even taller than she is (I think it's the vertical stripes in addition to the pants which make her legs look ridiculously long). Yay for the limited edition photobook! Not much else to say about the single. It's been out for a while, but I just got obsessed with Berryz recently, so just got it now. :)



Tokaikko Junjou!! This song is absolutely fabulous! I wish I could do this dance!! >_< Unforunately, my body is stiff and I can only handle dances of the "Para Para Paradise" variety, with basic arm movements and side stepping. Anything that requires more fluidity makes me look very stupid. Thus, I feel silly trying to dance along with them. I just recently saw a translation of the song, and I hadn't realized that this was basically a love song. A techno-vibed love song. Coolies! :)



Am really getting into C-ute now (but Berryz is still my fave). I watched them on Music Fighter, and their segment was very amusing. I particularly liked Chisato's rollercoaster roleplay. XD

Now that I've watched a little bit of C-ute's stuff, here's my initial feel on member ranking (I'll do it in the opposite order from what I've done before... More suspenseful that way... Or maybe not, since I've given away my favourite member in a previous post... Oh wells):


7. Arihara Kanna
I need some time to see how this girl develops. Right now, she seems very awkward on camera (at least in my eyes). My brother gets a freshly joined Takahashi Ai vibe from her, and I'd say I have to agree with him. I really wasn't a big fan of Ai when she first joined, but now she's one of my favourite H!P members... Maybe Kanna will surprise me in a similar way... But at the same time, I wouldn't put her in the same category vocally, so maybe not. Only time will tell.

6. Hagiwara Mai
She's cute, but I'm not a fan of her voice. And in the lives of Tokaikko Junjou, she's always been delayed in delivering her "Demo ne Demo ne Dakedo" line. I'll give her some time and see how it develops. I mean, she's only 11 years old. I'll let her go through puberty first and see if it matures nicely.

5. Umeda Erika
Also don't like her voice very much. In addition, I don't find her particularly attractive, and haven't been too taken by her live appearances. She just doesn't really catch my attention.

4. Nakajima Saki
She's very pretty. That's the main thing I've got down for her. Her voice is meh... Not one of my favourites.

3. Yajima Maimi
I think I'm becoming a little obessed with Maimi. I was on the road the other day, and there was this delivery truck that said "We deliver from Toronto to Miami", and my first thought was "Maimi? ... Why is Maimi's name on a truck...?" Did a double take and smacked myself for my dyslexia. >_< But really, I like her. I also find her to be very pretty and I like her voice.

2. Okai Chisato
As I said, above, I find her amusing. LOL with the rollercoaster and pretty scenery. :) I think her voice is absolutely fabulous, and she really needs to get some more lines. I hope that a trend starts in her favour, but I won't hold my breath. Talent doesn't seem to be a major factor when it comes to decision making regarding who gets lines in H!P (however unfortunate the truth is). She's also a very attractive girl. She has a subtle pretty, that doesn't jump out at you when you first see her, but there's just something about her.

And #1.... Suzuki Airi
The final 3rd of Aa! I have loved her since I saw that PV. At that point (I think she was 10), she already had a great voice, and she sang well live. That hasn't changed. I'd place her more into the "C-ute" XD pile rather than the pretty/beautiful pile in regards to looks. She's just so darn adorable.

I guess that's all for now, 'cause I have an early morning tomorrow (or should I say today) with lots of driving, so I should get rest...

Hanson concert!

A proper H!P update should be coming soon, since I'm fully expecting my yesasia shipment in any day now (I actually thought it'd be in on Monday, but it seems I was sorely mistaken)...

Anyway, I thought I'd post about the Hanson concert I went to this weekend, since I did mention that there would be random posts interspersed in this blog unrelated to H!P. Hanson wins in this regard! :) (Raptors posts will eventually come, as interesting things happen during the season.)

For those who still picture them with long hair from their Mmmbop days, a current photo.

L-R: Issac, Zac, Taylor.

So, Hanson was in town this past Sunday and their concert was superb (as per usual). Pre-concert, they did the 1 mile walk that they've done at every tour stop to raise awareness for poverty and AIDS in Africa (today's show in Ottawa was the first stop with no walk, due to extremely cold weather conditions).

The devotion these guys have put into raising awareness for this cause that is so dear to them is truly inspirational. They have donated all sales of their single "The Great Divide" from iTunes to a hospital in South Africa that works with kids who are born with HIV/AIDS.

They also just recently returned from a trip to South Africa, joining up with TOMS shoes to do a shoe drop (more on that later). On their website, they recently posted a video showing them with their photographer giving a check for $15,000 to a local school. Their photographer posted on his blog the idea to sell some shirts he had recently ordered for $30 each, and any purchases would go to the school. He was hoping to raise a few hundred dollars, if anything. In 14 hours, he had raised $2000. So, they decided to see how much they could raise during the few days (I think it was 3 or 4) they had left in Africa. To help out, Hanson allowed their photographer to take a picture of them in one of the classrooms, and sell 10 limited editions of this photo (framed and matted, with the guys signing the back) for I think it was $750 each. They had a goal of $10,000 in mind, and surpassed it beyond their wildest imaginations with the $15,000 they raised.

At their concerts, along with their regular merchandise, they've been selling TOMS shoes. Basically, for every pair of TOMS that is purchased, another pair will go to a child in need. That was the reason for their recent trip to South Africa. They met up with TOMS to help give out some of the shoes to the children (this current shoe drop is giving 50,000 pairs to kids in Africa). So, of course, I had to get myself some TOMS (since I unfortunately had been unable to join them on the walk, though I really, really wanted to). Also got myself some other goodies:


They're finally selling V-neck shirts, and I love the design, so I had to get one.

The performance was fabulous, as I've come to expect from Hanson. They're always energetic and entertaining. You can see on their faces that they have a passion for what they're doing. Zac on the drums is just soooo HAWTTTT, and Taylor on the piano...*melt* And Ike plays one mean guitar.

Only down sides: I was really hoping they would play "Georgia", but alas, my dream was denied. Also was hoping for a repeat of "Yearbook" live, but a no go to that as well. Oh well, at least I was able to make it to their previous acousitc show, where they played "Yearbook". I waited 10 years to hear that song live, and I wasn't disappointed! Oh... A few more down sides, but not Hanson-related so much as crowd related. 1. Someone FARTED!! It's a normal body function, but man, it's not nice in such close quarters when it's that ... shall we say fragrant, to put it nicely? >_< 2. A couple next to me kept making out. I mean, come on! OMG! Get a friggin room. No one needs to be seeing that.

Thus ends my Hanson post.

One final thought, H!P related: Berryz Koubou's new single wins!! After all the talk of C-ute's Tokaikko Junjou outselling all Berryz single sales ever, Tsukiatteru no ni Kataomoi goes and beats, Tokaikko, Mikan and all previous Berryz singles in it's first week! (well, not total sales of Tokaikko and Mikan in the first week, but it beat those two singles first week sales). So go Berryz!!! Omedeto Berryz!! :D However, it did fail to beat Buono!'s first week sales, but Buono!'s fabulous!!

First H!P shipment in!

I have gone an H!P ordering spree (more like Berryz Koubou/related spree) on yesasia and CDJapan. My first order, (which arrived yesterday!!!) was for Buono!'s "Honto no Jibun" and Berryz 4th album.



I was able to get a first press limited edition of "Honto no Jibun" with the DVD. Yay for the first press trading card! I just love the energy of this song. And it doesn't hurt that it features Miyabi and Suzuki Airi from C-ute. I was a huge fan of the subgroup Aa! (though Miyabi definitely did not get enough lines). Airi was such a baby in that PV, when I saw her more recently ('cause I didn't really follow much of C-ute until their newest PV) I simply could not believe that she had grown so much. She was so short back in the Aa! days. :) And I enjoy the dance of this song. I'm very glad that the DVD has the dance shot version on it. I have learned the dance for the song. It's quite enjoyable to do. ^_^




I absolutely love Berryz's 4th album. I liked all 4 of the singles released from this album (particularly "VERY BEAUTY" and "Kokuhaku no Funsui Hiroba"... Which many people seem to not have enjoyed due to their more ballad-like feel). For the album songs, I really enjoyed "Sayonara Hageshiki Koi". It's a good high energy, intense song... And I just saw that it means "Goodbye Intense Love", so it's good that it's an intense song. :) This was also the limited edition with DVD, but not first press (no trading card).



Am waiting on the "Kokuhaku no Funsui no Hiroba" single from CDJapan, and then a shipment with Berryz new single "Tsukiatteru no ni Kataomoi" first press limited edition with DVD, "VERY BEAUTY" with limited edition photobook, and C-ute's "Tokkaiko Junjo (Don't stop Junjo)" regulard edition from yesasia.

My personal H!P members ranking - Berryz Koubou

I've recently been wandering around on other blogs and forums, and have seen many lists of favourite H!P members or rankings for favourite members within the various groups, so I thought I'd get my say in.

Let's start with Berryz Koubou...
1. If you can't tell from my layout, the #1 spot goes to Natsuyaki Miyabi! I have just gotten into Berryz fairly recently (not that I haven't listen to their stuff before. I was a huge fan of "Piriri to Yukou!", "Special Generation", "Nanchuu Koi wo Yatteruu YOU KNOW?" and "Munasawagi Scarlet", but I didn't take the time to get to learn who the girls were until maybe 2 months ago). However, Miyabi was the first girl I had noticed from a concert that I watched a long time ago. I asked my brother back then who she was, and I haven't forgotten the name or face of Miyabi since. She caught my eye because I found that she was the most consistent during the live performance that I was watching. Since then, I find that she is still the most consistent of Berryz, and I'd say one of the most consistent in H!P overall. The quality of her voice doesn't vary from performance to performance. You can always count on Miyabi to produce! I also find her to be a pretty good and energetic dancer. Judging from the behind the scenes stuff I've watched, she's funny and easy going, and a good friend to the other members in the group. You can particularly see how she looks out for the others in the Hello Days FC extra DVD at the amusement park, first with riding alone on the rollercoaster since Momoko was obiously having a heart attack just at the thought of riding it, and then comforting Risako when they went up on the Ferris wheel (though I totally can totally relate to Risako in that scenario 'cause I hate heights and ferris wheels). And she has the coolest ability to produce a spark between her fingers just by spinning her hands around each other, as seen on their Music Fighter interview promoting the release of Munasawagi Scarlet.

2. Up next would be Sugaya Risako. She was the second Berryz member that I remembered the name of simply because she's so gosh darn cute! I don't find that she has the strongest vocals in the group. She's fine in the singles, but come live performances, she definitely a hit or miss kind of person. I like her voice better when she's not trying to belt it out. The quality sounds nicer when it's softer (unlike Miyabi who could be whispering or at full volume and she always sounds fabulous). A good example of her quieter voice would be from the song she sings with Momoko in the 4th album, "Watashi ga Suru Koto nai Hodo Zenbu Shite Kureru Kare". I also find that she's not the strongest dancer. It's not that she's bad, but definitely has her lazy dancing moments when she doesn't fully extend her arms and just looks kind of sluggish. But she's my #2 because she's such an amusing/cute character. I loved Berryz first live performance on Music Station for their first album. All the members introduced themselves. Risako was last, and she lost the rhythm of the intros, darting her eyes around for a few seconds trying to figure out if she should start talking. She was so adorably uncertain. Unfortunately, she also had a crazy out of tune line at the end of the performance, but tied in with her funny intro and her mike bouncing all over the place as she moved around, it wasn't too disconcerting. And she's a beast at PuyoPuyo. :D

3/4. I have a tie for 3rd and 4th between Kumai Yurina and Tokunaga Chinami. My reasoning behind this is not quite defined. Yurina's fairly constant in live performances, and she's just so freaking tall, I find that so cool. (Seeing as she was the tallest member of H!P from the age of like 13, I think...) Chinami's so cute, always so energetic and bubbly. Although I have to say I much prefer her hair shorter. When I go back and watch old PVs and performances, I can never recognize her, always wondering "Who was that?" when she flashes on screen. One particular note: I thought Chinami should have gotten lines in "Kokuhaku no Funsui Hiroba" simply because everyone else got a line. To balance the song out, I feel she should have gotten Momoko's lines from the 2nd verse.

5/6. Tied for 5th and 6th are Shimizu Saki and Sudou Maasa. I really enjoy how the audience calls Saki "Captain" at the concerts... I can't call to mind a recent one where I've heard a chant of "SAKI!" I should go back and check old concerts. When I first saw Saki, I thought she was the youngest, simply because she was the smallest. Imagine my surprise when I found out she was the oldest Berryz. However, I wasn't a big fan of Saki when she was in ZYX. As for Maasa, I enjoyed her funny character in their stage play "Geki Haro "Edo kara Chakushin!? ~Timeslip to Kengai!~". These two are futher down in my list because I don't find anything particularly outstanding in the qualities of their voices and they also don't get much coverage in general since they're not lead singers.

7. My least favourite Berryz, by process of elimination if you've been keeping count, is Tsugunaga Momoko. This is purely my personal preference. Her voice is really not my cup of tea. That's basically the main jist of it. I find her amusing to watch when she's not singing, but singing wise, it's just far too cutesy for me. It's a very different kind of cutesy in comparison to someone like Ishikawa Rika, who I have always found to be very endearing when she sings, even though the quality of her voice isn't the best. I would lump Momoko's voice more into the same category of Michishige Sayumi's voice, which I also do not enjoy. However, I will give Momoko credit in that she is another fairly consistent singer in live performances.

In general, I enjoy the group of Berryz immensely. They're currently my favourite H!P group. I started paying attention to H!P back in the summer of 2001, around the time of Nakazawa Yuuko's graduation, just before the addition of the 5th gen. But with almost all of my favourite Morning members gone, and not being particularly WOWed by the 8th gen (and definitely not Koharu) my MM enthusiasm has diminished somewhat.

My next post will go over my MM thoughts, and my overall favourite H!P performer. :)

Berryz Koubou's Tsukiatteru no ni Kataomoi - Take 2

So, after watching the PV a few more times:

1. I still feel Risako looks very very tall. I think it has to do with the flowiness of her skirt. I feel like the outfits also make Yurina and Maasa look really tall (even though I know they are), but not as much as Yurina's outfit in Very Beauty. She looked like a giant in that one. As for Risako's hair, I was trying to figure out what it was, and my brother pointed it out to me... I like her much better with bangs. The completely bared forehead just feels a little off to me.

2. I definitely like the sound of the song. It's catchy and happy. Though I would say that I enjoyed the last 3 singles more. I think that the PV brings down the feel of the song a little simply because it feels a little out of place. But then again, I don't understand what I'm hearing. But seeing as theppn says that the title translates to: "Even Though We're Dating, it's Unrequited Love" it doesn't seem like the PV has much to do with the lyrics.

3. Regarding the outfits, I'd have to say I like Yurina and Maasa's best because of the pants under the skirt. The tops would be Saki and Miya's. But in general, I just find the girls all look so nice in this PV. Miya, Yurina, Saki, Chinami and Maasa all look spectacular. I like the hairstyles of Miya, Yurina and particuarly Chinami. The wispiness of her hair is very flattering. Risako looks really pretty, except the hair is throwing me off a bit (she's reminding me of someone else, but I can't pinpoint who... Though I've read some other people's thoughts, and I just don't understand how anyone could possibly be mistaking Risako for Miya in this video). Unfortunately, my initial feeling wasn't incorrect and I get a weird vibe from Momoko in this PV. Some of her scenes look really forced to me, which is keeping me from enjoying her moments. But then again, I've never been the biggest Momoko fan, all the way back to the ZYX days.

4. I find one strange moment at around the 3:16 mark of the Dohhh UP! version. It's just as the instrumental part is ending and they're getting back into the vocals. As the girls are striking their poses, it flashes a close up of Miya for a split second and goes back to the group view. It feels very jerkish to me in midst of the rest of the PV.

5. One thing that completely boggles my mind is the story in this PV. I just don't get it. What's with Risako being all by her lonesome and getting the cloth from heaven? And then at the end, why are they all flying? ...o_O

So my overall feel: Nice new song... I'm enjoying it (which is good 'cause I already pre-ordered the single due to my faith in Berryz releasing good singles - haven't had one that I haven't liked so far; unlike Morning Musume who I feel have had a few duds). But the PV setting is awkward to the perkiness of the song.

Berryz Koubou's new PV: 'Tsukiatte Iru no ni Kataomoi'

The new Berryz Koubou PV has just been posted on Hello!Online and I watched it once (yes, I know I'm at work)... So here are my inital thoughts:

1. Risako looks strangely tall in this PV, particularly in the dark scenes where she's alone. Has she grown taller (which is a possibility, seeing as she's only 13) or are they camera tricks? Also, not the biggest fan of her hairstyle in this one.

2. I like the set. I find it visually pleasing and very serene looking. Unforunately, it seems out of place with the feel of the song which is very upbeat.

3. The scenes of the girls sitting/lying down reminded me much of the Morning Musume Shabondama PV. I'll have to rewatch it later and see if I still feel that way...

4. I need to watch it again and pay more attention to the outfits to see how much I really like them, but in general the girls all look very pretty in this PV (even though not liking Risako's hair so much, as mentioned above)... Except I was getting this weird creepy vibe from Momoko for some reason. Again, must re-watch to see if I was just imagining things.

5. I enjoyed the song, but something was up with the sound quality, so I need to hear it on my speakers at home and see if it was just something with the set up of my computer at work (which I never use to listen to anything).

That's all I can recall at the moment. Will update this post later tonight once I've re-watched it at home.

And I just realized why those outfits looked so familiar to me... A picture of them in those outfits has been on theppn for a little while now on their profile page. It thought I was going crazy for a minute... >_<