Spring Dramas 2012

Because of finals and graduation I didn't have time to pick up any dramas from the Spring season.
That or nothing really interested me.

I did however pick up Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou.  During drama announcements for the season, I didn't think this drama would be any good and the fact that it had AKB48 members really turned me off, but seeing everyones reactions to the drama I felt intrigued to try it out despite them being in it  Not to mention I AM a sucker for anything Johnny's related (.... usually haha)

This drama really impressed me and I'm actually finding myself not wanting to wait for the next episode to release.  I might end up doing an episode-to-episode review of this drama, but im not sure yet.

The Future For...

NEWS.

This group was my everything back in 2004.  This group had just debuted (officially) so the fanbase was building.  I remember when "Cherish" released, that's when the fanbase grew huge internationally.  That was the time when forums were in, and having the chance to meet so many new people online and actually getting a chance to talk with everyone.

As much as I make fun of them now, and as much as I can't stand to even look at them, they have a special place in my heart.  They were definitely the group that pulled me in, I'm not ashamed to say that.  Im also not ashamed that my xanga still has a "Forever 8 as 1" banner haha.

Well, the point of this post was to share my opinion of the latest news revolving around well... NEWS.
My Twitter and Facebook were COMPLETELY spammed with news about Yamapi and Ryo leaving NEWS, leaving Koyama, Shige, Massu and Tegoshi to form a 4-member NEWS.  It's shocking, yet it's not surprising.  I think we all knew for a long time something was going to happen to the group eventually.  With their long break of no activities, speculation was going on and it turned out to be true.  Yamapi going solo and Ryo just sticking with Kanjani8.

I feel bad, I really do.  I'm sure if I was still a huge NEWS fan I'd be devastated.  I remember hearing the news that NEWS was going on hiatus after Kusano and Uchi's "scandals".  It sucked.  It really tore apart the fandom and we slowly drifted into new fandoms.  I really hope for success with just the 4 of them (didn't we used to call them Bebex4? hahaha).

Over the years, NEWS has been slowly degrading as a group.  To go from 9, to 8, to 6, to now 4, it's really getting to the point where it's like, why not just disband the group and stop letting us fangirls suffer lol.  But really though, I do hope they do well as a group of 4 and maybe a change in music styles? Although I can see this group going the cute, ballads road only because TegoMasu is 1/2 of the group...

When You Think of Johnnys...

I came across this on the aramatheydidnt LJ.
So basically people were polled to see what was the first, erm.. group (I guess..) they thought of when they think of Johnny's.  The poll came out as:

1. Arashi (18 791 votes)
2. SMAP (11 098 votes)
3. Kanjani8 (1437 votes)
4. KinKi Kids (1402 votes)
5. TanoKin Trio (1304 votes)
6. Hikaru GENJI (1252 votes)
7. Kiss-My-Ft2 (1162 votes)
8. KAT-TUN (953 votes)
9. Hey! Say! JUMP (902 votes)
10. NEWS (843 votes)
----------------------------------------
11. Other (712 votes)
12. Shonentai (674 votes)
13. Johnny's Jr (466 votes)
14. V6 (442 votes)
15. TOKIO (411 votes)
16. Tackey & Tsubasa (392 votes)
17. Ikuta Toma (294 votes)
18. Shibugaki Tai (124 votes)
19. Otokogumi (98 votes)
20. NYC Boys (63 votes)

I'm surprised, but not really about the first 3 choices.
1) SMAP may be popular still, but Arashi has been seriously gaining some way in the last 2yrs or so.  They are really following the footsteps of their senpai doing huge concert venues, massive amount of cms, acting, TV-variety, etc. 
2) The fact that Kanjani8 is #3 seems odd to me.  I haven't been in the fandom for a long time, so I'm not sure how big groups really are, but I would have thought that a different group would rank at #3.  Much that Kanjani8 would be AFTER KAT-TUN.
3) Kinki Kids at #4.  I knew they were gonna be high up, but I would have guessed #3.
4) KAT-TUN is below Kisumai.  That's shocking to me.  I would have suspected them higher, but I guess after Jin left, their popularity isn't as high as it used to be?
5) Hikaru Genji is in the top 10!!! Glad to see that even a group from the 80's can still be recognized that well.  Though if I could choose, I would think that Shounentai would have been up there as well, especially since they're still active!

This is a really interesting poll.  Even though I'm not so much of a Johnny's fan anymore, it really shows me how much the fandom has changed since I first got in (2004) to when I started losing interest (2008-09) to now.

Credit: aramatheydidnt   - Original: Goo Ranking

Kis-my-Ft2 Debut Success

I feel like a proud mom seeing the success of their kids.  Even though im not a huge fan like I used to be, I'm really happy to see the turn out of their debut.  I remember watching them on Shounen Club all the time, back when there was 4 members, plus Massu, trained by a former Hikaru Genji member (fun fact: I have Hikaru Genji's last concert dvd!).  Performing to Hikaru Genji songs.  Them and their Sketcher roller skates.. LOL.  I still remember those times.  Those were the good old fandom days for me, really nostalgic.

I haven't been this excited for a debut, since KAT-TUN (my KAT-TUN days were crazy!).  Kisumai's debut was definitely an extravagent debut, having it outdoors, riding in convertibles on the red carpet, welcomed by THOUSANDS of fans.  This is insane, and to see their smiles during as they greeted fans, it's really heartwarming.  I can only wish them a long, successful career (no scandals please) and hope that they'd be able to perform overseas with as much passion.

Small note: "Everybody Go" (their debut song, fyi lol) is stuck in my head and I've only heard it TWICE. Now that's catchy for you.

Funny Thought

Im checking out some entertainment blogs and see that Kanjani8 is releasing a single for the drama Zenkai Girl and I'm all thinking "why are they releasing it, shouldn't it be NEWS?" Since Nishikido Ryo is starring in it.  Yeah.... I totally forgot Ryo was in Kanjani8.  How and Why? I have no idea.

Pre-Ikemen Desu ne Thoughts #01 (and HanaKimi #04)

I'm about to go crazy fangirl (which I know I shouldnt) by the end of this post and you'll see why when you get to it.

I realized I haven't really said much about Ikemen Desu Ne, but that's primarily because I haven't seen any other promo pictures or CM's besides the ones that first aired what the actors look like for their roles.  I usually check tumblr twice a day for ouran and hanakimi picture updates, but havent for Ikemen since it's not really a drama I'm exactly waiting for, but after seeing the latest Hanakimi CM, I think Ikemen just ranked above it for drama priority, which I'll explain at the end (can you sense the crazy fangirl moment yet).

So, like I've mentioned, I know nothing about this drama other than the fact that Takimoto Miori is playing a girl, playing a boy (twin brother) as his replacement in his idol band...? is that right? Anyways, the story is based off of Korea's "You're Beautiful" which a lot of people are not very happy about, because, let's face it, fangirl's not only have high expectations, but they also hate remakes.  At least fangirls have something to be happy about, that the lead actors are all Johnny's (as if that would satisfy them, they'd want the older ones yeah?).  I sound as if I'm bashing fangirls, but I'm not.. really, I'm not.  Even that last line sounded like I'm being sarcastic, no but really, I'm not bashing, I'm just stating facts although you cant generalize.

I'm getting really off topic here. So, I've never seen Takimoto act before, but it also seems that she hasn't done much acting as is.  I think this will be a big break for her and she'll start to get more roles, so we'll see what happens after the series airs.
I'm mainly just watching this drama for Taisuke, I don't really care much for the other two.  I need to also mention how much younger Taisuke looks with his current hairstyle and now he looks very cookie-cutter and younger than his actual age, but I really like the way he looks right now.

As for my FINAL thoughts on Hanakimi and yes it will be my final pre-thought about this drama.  I've sort of lost interest after seeing the latest promo vid.  I'm not impressed.  And of course you're all thinking "you haven't seen it yet" and that's what I've been trying to convey in earlier posts that i'm sounding like a hypocrite right now, but that 1min promo kind of left me feeling that this drama is gonna be aalllllll bad.  I don't want to say that they're copying the first one, but there were some parts that really did look like they were copying the first.  Maeda's voice is super annoying! not to mention really girly.  Putting on guy's clothes and changing up the speech to mimic a guy is not gonna make you a guy, lower the frequency of your voice please.  The guy playing Oscar doing the voice scales... sounded so fake.  I can go on and on about this, but I feel like I should wait until the actual series airs and put my 2cents in to see if it confirms my thoughts.
And because of my new thoughts, this drama is definitely going to get pushed back as a side drama (not my usual MUST WATCH).  Shohei... why must you be part of this drama?! Making it so hard for me to choose. If he weren't in it, I probably wouldn't even bother watching it at all.

HSJ Scandal

Who would have expected a scandal to come out of Hey!Say! JUMP? Especially coming from little Morimoto.  Well, I must say that little Morimoto isn't so little anymore.  He's 16 and pictures are surfacing of him smoking at the age of 14, a couple months before he turned 15 (where there's another picture of him).  The Jimusho has taken action and they have suspended his activities for now because of underage smoking and will go on hiatus indefinitely.  I don't see him dropping out of HSJ, but from what we've seen before, he'd be on suspension for a year, start off as a Jr again and MAYBE be brought back into the group.

I could easily joke around about this since I'm not an HSJ fan, but I do feel bad for the kid and I do understand how HSJ and Morimoto fans are feeling.  During my crazy days as a fangirl, I remember going through the underage drinking scandal for Uchi and Kusano which led to NEWS' hiatus as a group.  I think this is what primarily sent me and my NEWS fangirl friends to slowly stop liking NEWS and start floating towards other fandoms as a replacement, but that's another story.

I don't think Morimoto is going to suffer the same fate that Uchi and Kusano did, but let this be a lesson.  You're an idol, you're going to be in the public's eye, so you should take into consideration of those around you which your actions will affect.

Kis-my-Ft2 Debut

So it's finally happening.  Kis-my-Ft2 is finally going to debut after.. how many years (since 2005.. yikes!)?
I'd be more excited if this were like 6yrs ago when I actually liked them, but now I'm just pleased that this group is getting a debut.  Since I haven't been part of the Jr. fandom in a long time, I wasn't sure how big of a fandom they had, but it's definitely bigger than I expected, especially since they'll be debuting all over Asia, including the Philippines.

My favorite members are and have remained the same. Kitayama Hiromitsu, Fujigaya Taisuke and Yokoo Wataru (and Iida if he stayed in Johnny's), the original members of the group.  Though I should say, recently, moreso Taisuke than Kitayama as opposed to back then.  I would have forgotten about these guys if I didn't take the chance to watch Misaki Number One.  The drama was so-so, but it was nice to see these guys act in a drama, leading roles as well.

I need to go through my Shounen Club files again to kind of get familiar with this group once again.  I don't see myself going fangirl crazy like I used to for their senpai's, but I'll be waiting for their single to drop.

I'm also anticipating Taisuke's and Tamamori Yuta's drama "Ikemen Desu Ne." Not so much as Ouran or HanaKimi, but It'll be nice addition to the already Ikemen summer lineup that's coming out this season.  I wasn't planning on really watching this drama, maybe a side one, but after seeing the cast interview, I think it'll be a cute, fun drama to watch.  (Note, I don't watch Korean dramas, so not only am I going into this blind, I could care less if it's a mistake to remake this drama).  I just wish they would have picked someone else besides Hikaru to play in the drama (unpopular opinion: not a big fan of HSJ).

very OT but there's a Jr. group called "Little Gangs".... really? what.the.hell.

Pre-Ouran High School Host Club Thoughts #03

Final pre-thoughts:
I think this drama is going to go by really fast since it's only 30min long.  When I mean fast, I mean that the stories and character development are going to have to build really fast.  I can see each character getting their own focus in an episode, but to build up the romance between Tamaki and Haruhi is gonna have to go by quick.  I don't think you can tell the "whole" story within the average 11 episodes, especially if it's going to be half an hour long.  I'm hoping that they'll get to a point in this series where they can stop the story then make a 2nd season for a primetime slot.  Ratings will definitely affect the outcome, but at a late night time, especially on a Friday when people are out, hopefully they'll get something higher than 8% (Shima Shima is averaging 2.5% at this time slot right now)

Lastly, the comment about "Why aren't there any JE guys in here" or "It'd be better with JE",  Absolute crap.  This is coming from a Johnny's fan.  I think it's crap that people think that a drama will be better if a Johnny is in it.  Yes, Johnny's bring in viewers, but that doesn't make a drama better at all.  Johnny's act, but they are not actors.  These guys are trained to sing and dance as their primary job, not to act.  Honestly, I don't think that a majority of those who have acted in dramas or movies are that good at all.  There's only a handful that can act and act well (ex: KimuTaku and Nino, there are others, dont get me wrong).  I support those who are outside of the Johnny's world, because they have great talent to be the next big star.  Sometimes I feel those who are outside of Johnny's are underrated and overshadowed, which isn't fair since they have to work twice as hard, instead of landing a job because they have a Johnny's status on them.  That's just my opinion.

One last note character note:
Ryusei Ryo as Umehito Nekozawa - Adding this character to the main cast is kind of odd isn't it?  He's not a main character in the series, but since he is in the main cast, that means he'll have a bigger role in the drama.  When the promo photos were released I definitely did not recognize him.  I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing, but definitely not the way I've seen him before and this is definitely not a role he's done before.  Someone who's played the popular guy twice, going to play this guy is going to be really interesting to see.