Bow down, when he comes to your town.

I know that Akashiya Sanma is one of the legendary comedians of Japan, but exactly how legendary, I wasn’t quite sure. I don’t watch other J-entertainment programs besides NMB and some AKB, and some J-Dramas.

Well.

Holy crap.

When Maachun and Ripopo fall to their knees and bow down, you know you are dealing with something serious.

Football Hour is even more nervous than NMB.

Sanma reacts to idol introductions.

It’s one thing to be funny on your own show, but it’s another thing to be a legendary comedian on a show that teaches idols to be funnier. It’s like Michael Jordan visiting your high school basketball team.

Milky is fearless.

One thing I noticed about Milky is that she just dives straight in. She walks right up to Sanma and says “I’m from Nara!” while everyone else is cowering from being starstruck. She tries to get Sanma to suberi to see how to escape it, and he outplays her. As much as I harp on Milky for not improving and just relying on being cute, I like how her personality just takes over you. Sure, she’s known for fishing, but that’s because of how strong her social aura is. I still remember watching an episode of Naruhodo High School when they’re trying to figure out how a certain magic trick is performed, and she walks up to Acchan and starts talking to her about what she thought he was doing when other people of her generation would crap their pantsu standing next to her.

On the other side, Sayaka has admitted that she turns into a pansy when she’s with AKB (and resolved to change it).

And you can’t stop Riichan from being Riichan.

Maachun asked Sanma what’re some good things to keep in mind during adlib sections, and he tells her that tempo is key. So Riichan lazily walks in front and Sanma smacks her with the fan saying WTF, don’t do that, I was just talking about tempo. And when he goes to tsukkomi her again, Riichan was already standing in front again and he can’t find her. THEN when he asks who’s next, she doesn’t raise her hand.

Maybe this is why Milky and Riichan get along so well. They have these personalities that are just so strong.

Sanma is the same thing, this is supposed to be instructional and yet he’s still extremely funny while teaching them how to be better.

Yui is just giddy when he says she does a good job.

Nerves are super high, people are super nervous yet are really excited when they get praised, and heartbroken when they’re not.

Have you ever seen Fuuchan this flustered?

Too flustered.

Milky and Sanma continued to have great chemistry. Sanma hinted to her to say “oooooooh” as if she was confused so that he can say “Oooooh Mambo!” She didn’t and she got slapped. Then she says it and she still gets slapped. Then she uses the “etto” setup that Fuuchan did and gets slapped again. Then she randomly says “Oooooh” when the camera’s not on her.
And yet somehow Sanma responds perfectly every time.

This combination could rival Gotou/Nana.

Gotou admits he’s learning a lot too.

Honestly I thought Milky’s joke was a fail, but the chemistry was just so good that you had to give it to her.

One of the pleasant surprises from Geinin has to be Akarin. She seems so diva-like and high class, whether it’s because of her characters or even because of the scandal, but every single time she shows up her jokes have been awesome. The theme was about a teacher you wouldn’t want to have.

Akarin – “I don’t really want to say this, but let’s all close our eyes, and whoever stole Tanaka-kun’s money needs to raise their hand.”

*raises her hand*

Lavish praise deserved!

It’s really a shame that Sanma was only there for 10 minutes. He was a bit mad about it, and so am I. The DVD extras better be good!

After the drama part wrapped up, which confused me, there was also a surprise heart-to-heart.

Legit letters.

Legit tears.

Yui announced that she’s transferring and gives out various postcards (which I *think* was her comedic gimmick in the show if I remember correctly) and the surprise was that the message on the postcards was actually related to her stay with NMB. I’m almost certain that the rehearsal had different things on it, since I believe Nana said something about that.

Either way, really nice to see how they acted in response to that. Poor Ripopo. When she said “I’ll listen to your radio show,” as part of the script, she said it all choked up and I had to try not to laugh.

Our final manzai was Yokoyamada.

And it was a little too short…

It’s a shame that this is the last memory of Yokoyama in NMB. Her manzai was decent, good even, and I’m really gonna miss what she offered to NMB. I really liked Yui in Bimyo and I liked her just as much in Geinin. She has a knack for comedy in the idol world and it’s just a shame that she won’t be able to develop it further in NMB.

Farewell, Geinin…

And thus wraps up another season of Geinin. I really enjoyed it and it was something I looked forward to every week, especially since I stopped watching AKBingo! and I needed another weekly show to keep me going in this fandom. I’m hoping something else pops up to replace it. And not just another TV show like a Black Million, but another show in this style where we can just see them act goofy.

So here’s to Suberi Devil Nana, an always annoyed Sayaka, the adorable Milky, the silly Maachun, the depressed Ripopo, and the deadpanning Yuihan. Here’s to a great supporting cast of Momoka and Anchu. Here’s to a final appearance of Hitomin. Here’s to a lively Fuuchan, a high-class Akarin, and the puppy-like Riichan.

And last but certainly not least, perhaps actually the most, here’s to Football Hour. Gotou had superb performances and carried a lot of the improv sections with his wit, and we didn’t get much Iwao this season but his bit parts in the drama were hilarious.

Bye bye, Iwao!

Original Article: http://www.sponichi.co.jp/entertainment/news/2013/06/25/kiji/K20130625006079800.html

丁寧な対応から「難波の握手会の女王」と呼ばれ、ブログなどでは思わせぶりな態度でファンを魅了する。“釣り師”渡辺美優紀（１９）は、取材でも小悪魔 スマイル全開だ。先行するはずのスタッフより早くインタビュー現場に現れ、小首をかしげて「よろしくお願いします」。顔の近くで両手をひらひらと振って 笑った。

She mesmerizes fan through her blog and other means, and is respectfully called “Namba’s queen of Handshake Events.”  The “Fisher” Watanabe Miyuki devilishly smiling, even for this interview.  She’s arrived earlier than our staff to the meeting place, and with a slight tilt of the head, says “It’s nice to meet you.” Using both her hands, she fans her own face and laughs.

日産スタジアムでは「みんな、大好きだよ！」とド直球の愛情表現を客席に投げ込んだ。総合プロデューサーの秋元康氏（５５）が 「釣りというか、もう投網」と表現するほどパワーアップしているが「私は釣り師じゃないです。一番大事なファンの皆さんに、好きっていう気持ちを伝えてい るだけなんです」と必死に否定する。

At Nissan Stadium, in a show of love, she directly said “I love you everyone!” to the guests like a baseball thrown straight over the plate. Although Producer Akimoto Yasushi has stated how her charm has powered up and that she is no longer a simple fisher, but now casts a wide fishing net, Miyuki has fervently denied it. “I’m not a fisher. It’s just that the fans are the most important thing to me and I want to communicate that to them.”

しかし、唇をとがらせたり頬を膨らませたりして、むくれるしぐさもさまになるのが、やはり釣り師の才能か。

However, with the way she pouts her lips and puffs up her cheeks, and the way that she throws her fit, this is the power of her fishing.
３度目の挑戦で初の選抜入りした総選挙には格別な思いがある。初参加は一昨年。速報では圏内に名を連ねたが、本番でランク外に終わった。会場となった武道館で席を離れるまで、おえつ交じりに涙を流し続けた。

It brings to mind how she had finally made it to Senbatsu in her 3rd year of participating in the elections. Her first time participating was in the year before last year. She was in the preliminary rankings, but when the actual event ended, she failed to rank in . At Budoukan, the event location, she was sobbing and weeping until she was forced to leave her seat.

「初めてだったので、悔しさとファンの皆さんの期待を裏切ってしまったという気持ちでいっぱいで。確かに感情を表に出したのは、あの時だけですね」

“It was my first time and I felt regret, that I betrayed the fans expectations. That was the only time I really let my feelings surface.”
ＮＭＢ屈指の“プロ意識”の持ち主だ。ファンはもちろん、スタッフにも苦’や努力の陰を見せることはない。「やらされる努力は嫌いなので」とレッスン場で はなく、自室で一人黙々と練習に励む。ＮＭＢ加入後は間食は一切せずに野菜中心の食生活を徹底。「体重は量らないんです」と多くは語らないが、デビュー当 時と比べて明らかにシャープになった顔立ちが、その努力を物語っている。

She is now the owner of the title “NMB’s Preeminent Professional.” She no longer shows pain nor anguish that arises from working hard–not just to the fans, but also to staff members. “I hate it when effort and work is forced on me (ed. – as opposed to working from the heart)” as she continues her lessons even in her own room, practicing in silence. Since joining NMB, she has completely altered her diet, eliminating snacks and focusing on vegetables. She insists that she doesn’t weigh herself, but compared to her debut, her looks have thinned out and they reflect the effort that she put in.

そんな渡辺が鋭い目を見せたのは「ＮＭＢが、ＡＫＢに届かないと感じる部分は？」と尋ねた時。質問を遮るように「どこが負けてるんですか！」。机の上に乗せた両手をきゅっと握りしめ、そう言葉をかぶせてきた。

We saw a sharp-eyed Watanabe when we asked her “What parts of NMB do you think will never match AKB?” As if to interrupt the question, she clenched her fists that were resting on top of the desk, and charged back at us saying “Where exactly are we losing to them?”

昨年３月からＡＫＢのチームＢを兼務。柏木由紀（２１）や小嶋陽菜（２５）らトップメンバーと同じ舞台に立ち、山本とダブルエースとしてＮＭＢをけん引する自覚からか。

Since March of last year, she held a post and has worked with top members like Kashiwagi Yuki and Kojima Haruna, and she worked as a double ace with Yamamoto to keep pushing NMB forward.

「みんな真面目に頑張って、アイドルとして全力で取り組んでいます。決して他のグループに負けていません」と言い切った。

“Everyone’s working so hard and they are giving it everything they’ve got. We are not going to lose to other groups without a fight,” she declared.

いつも柔らかく笑顔を振りまいている渡辺の、内に秘められた硬く強い芯が、このグループの明るい未来を予感させた。

While Watanabe is always tenderly smiling, inside she has concealed an unyielding and relentless spirit. It foretells a bright future for the group.

 

Translated this because 48-family linked to it. Thought it would have some good insight into Milky.

I liked this interview. Show them that Namba pride, like I’ve been saying. At this point I honestly feel that NMB is superior to AKB’s new generation in every way. Variety is better, talent is better, fan reception is better, the songs are better…

My only worry, of course, is infighting between NMB wota, such as what happened with the Sayanee song on Youtube. There are better things to worry about than shaming your favorite idol’s partner in crime.

If you guys run into any articles or short clips that you want translated, please let me know. I need to study for JLPT N1 and the more exposure to the language the better. Incidentally, you will benefit so it all works out!

That Ainyan article that Veni wanted is taking a lot longer than I thought. I think I finished the first two pages so far. It’s actually kinda cool, and it makes me wish I read more articles because you really get to see some things about their personalities that aren’t normally shared.

One of the funny things is that I’ve actually been keeping up more than ever with NMB, but I haven’t finished watching any shows. I’ve been watching half of each show.

Nana is just so proud of herself when she has no makeup.

For example, I saw the documentary, which was kinda cool. I completely disagree with how they come down on the girls, if only because it seems like preening for the camera and not legitimately criticizing them. (Oh my God! The horror of these poor girls being berated!)

And I would just absolutely love to see this rendition of Kirigirisujin by NMB48.

When I joined the AKB48 fandom, I really liked Takamina. She was clumsy, boyish, not really good looking, yet she was highly revered as one of the integral parts and the heart and soul of AKB. Unfortunately, I really feel that her progress has stalled, and while I initially supported her, her singing voice has not really improved from the start and that worries me.

With that said, if Takamina is the heart and soul of AKB, then seriously, Nana has to be the heart and soul of NMB.

When people gather around you for a speech and you’re not even the captain, you know they respect you.

I also still really like Maachun. Maybe because she’s hilarious. And that’s all she needs to be.

And she looks so much better with her hair down.

I also watched the final day of the Eastern Japan Tour concert, and it was spectacular like usual. Even had a surprise appearance by Yuihan. It really is a shame that they cancelled her concurrent position. Of any of the concurrent positions, that was probably the most impactful, as it helped both AKB and NMB. I can’t really the same about any of the others.

Sayaka also appeared on some quiz show, hosted by Hamada of Downtown.

Man, this was impossible for me. If Japanese people don’t understand this level of Japanese, then how am I supposed to?!

I’m still waiting for Sayaka’s claws to come out on variety shows. On NMB shows, she’s always been a huge presence, but on other shows, she only shows a fraction of that. I think she’s getting there though, with her Thriller dance when she centered Heavy Rotation for winning musical chairs. Just a little more…

Lately, I’ve surprised myself by being interested in a 4th-gen. Usually I don’t care about KKS, mostly because they don’t get enough exposure besides stage shows which I don’t really watch, so I could care less. But this girl…

On the left… NAGISAAAAAAAAA

There’s something about Shibuya Nagisa. She just has that something that makes you want to pay attention to her. I’m not even sure what it is. The funny thing is, yeah, she’s getting pushed, but she’s totally deserving of the push. It’s not like Jou, where’s she’s thrusted into the front before her fanbase had time to develop, but Nagisa is in the front because her fans are putting her there.

There’s also this appearance by this unlikely trio on a random music show.

Poor Uuka. She didn’t rank in. She did say she was happy for Shu because she repped BII, which is cool. I’m really liking the closeness of the teams now. I think a reshuffle would be odd, but I would support things like Nana transferring. BII is definitely gaining ground in my book. Something about Uuka is making me pay more attention to her, Shu has a magnetic smile, Anchu gets me hype. And right now, that Ijiri Anna girl is piquing my interest…

Anyway, that’ll do it for now. Maybe next time I should completely finish a show.

Things are a little busy and hairy in my life. Still working on translating that Ainyan article that Veni linked when I have time, should be able to get some semblance of a normal schedule… well, never. But I’ll keep trying to work on this blog for the 3 people that read it to get NMB information. =)

I’m kinda tired of watching NMB48′s regular shows. Not really into Manabu-kun as I hate getting information from TV shows when the wide world of the Internet is out there, and Black Million just never appealed to me.

So with that said, I saw these two shows and thought it would be interesting to watch.

1: Midnight Comedy

This show seemed to be some Yoshimoto late night TV. It’s also live, which is kinda cool since we don’t get a lot of those shows in the US, except for probably Saturday Night Live, I guess.

Special Guest Tamuken, heh.

The premise is pretty simple. Basically, you have to hook up and be a couple by the end of the day or they kick you out of school.  Riichan is asked very quickly and she just says yeah. There’s a third girl who’s fat and unattractive, so naturally everyone wants to hook up with Momoka. Ensure hilarious hijinks.

All three girls.

Other than that, it’s pretty atypical. It is pretty funny, and anything that helps me learn Japanese to laugh is always a plus.

Something about comedy and learning Japanese.

When Momoka hooks up, the others try to get with the other girl.

To prove they were really hooked up, they had to kiss.

But she ain’t having none of that.

Randomly there was this really hot girl that just showed up and dressed slutty and was supposed to be the school nurse or something. Looked her up (not literally) and turns out she’s a gravure idol called Arisa.

You have something coming out of your shirt there…

A fairly decent appearance by NMB, but mostly damsel-in-distress so not much they really did. Riichan had like 3 lines and 1 of them was so poorly acted, lol.

2: Sekai Gyoten

I had no idea what this show is, but it had Milky and I wanted to see what’s she was like when she appeared on a show carried by others. Plus it had Gotou! Remember that guy?

I remember this girl.

I think it’s kinda funny that when I see AKB/NMB members show up next to “real” celebrity girls, I just almost forget about them.  Aya-chan looks spectacular as usual. I almost forgot Milky was there.

I want that card.

The first part of the show had a magician doing card tricks, and he was really, really good. His first trick, he had Aya-chan select a card, put it in the deck, and he would guess it. He picked out a different card and asked if it was it. Since it was incorrect, he ripped it up, then asked for the right card. He pulled that one out, waved that card over the ripped card, and suddenly the card that he was holding became the ripped card (but not ripped) and the ripped card became the original card.

Well, I am terrible at describing magic tricks.

What I didn’t know about Sekai Gyoten was that it was a somewhat sensationalist news program. They’ll make a minidrama/documentary based on a real event. I think I watched the one about Charice and how she was estranged from her father or something.

So I spent 30 minutes watching this documentary about a pyramid scheme. Well, I didn’t know anything about that. And it was actually pretty informative, but it wasn’t what I really signed up to watch. It was kinda nice to learn about it though. Obviously, Milky didn’t really do much there except have her face occasionally in the box where you can watch other people watch the clip.

ONE OF US. ONE OF US.

At the end she says something like “You shouldn’t really expect to earn anything unless you put in hard work,” which was probably her 3rd sentence on the entire show. And she said in a really cheesy way too.

To be fair though, SMAP’s Nakai carried the show and did a great job. I just wish I knew what I was watching beforehand so I could temper my expectations accordingly.

Aya-chan~

First of all, I am the worst.

I will finish translating that Fukumoto Aina article tomorrow, I swear.

Ok, now on to this show, Gokujo Kuukan. The premise of the show is that they just drive and talk. I think I’ve seen a couple before. The one that comes to mind is when Gushiken, a former boxer and now TV talent, drove with Kasai and some other people. I don’t remember much about it, just Gushiken singing Heavy Rotation incorrectly and hilariously.

“We’re not even gonna drive. We’re just gonna sit in here and talk.”

So, one thing I hate in life is driving. It’s dangerous and I hate traffic. Unfortunately, Los Angeles is a car city, so if you don’t have a car, you can’t do much. Everything is really spread out. With that said, I appreciate how in Japan, cars are generally smaller. A Camry is comparatively huge. And it’s nice when everyone drives a small car… I don’t know why that’s nice, but it feels nice. I’ve heard it’s the same in Europe as well.

Today’s pimpin’ ride.

The talk is…relatively interesting, they cover things like auditions, their relationship with AKB, etc. Also some interesting background on Kenkoba, like how smart he was in school, and how he got 7th place nationwide on his placement test in junior high.

Also he put down idolish answers for his profile. Like how he likes salad, though in reality he likes meat, lol.

I think I am coming to like Riho a lot more. She looks great and there’s something about the way she carries herself that’s very… celebrity-like. Some of the footage from her talk event seemed like she was born to do standup just by the way she walked and talked. Unfortunately, the contents of her story are actually quite weird, and in this episode she does go off on her tangent about zombies. (This includes a hilarious line where Kenkoba was talking about delivering low kicks to get away, and Riho said she only thought about how to kill them and not how to get away.)

They stop at an amusement park.

And I had no idea there was an amusement park in Asakusa.

When I think of an amusement park, I think of these gigantic sweeping parks, like Disneyland. I remember when my cousin took me to the amusement park in Vancouver 2 years ago… it was like, the same size of a carnival here.

Also, there’s a white girl in the back!

This reminds me of that one episode of Manabu-kun when Nana went up to the French people. Man, foreigners have no idea what they’re in… if only they knew.

The other place they went to is a Takoyaki place.

OH MY GOODNESS THAT LOOKS DELICIOUS.

Whenever I try to remix Japanese food it’s terrible. Well, I am totally looking forward to my trip to Japan in October so I can see how they remix it. Also, the other day I went to Ralph’s and they had Yamaimo. Yamaimo at Ralph’s. Man, that was weird. (I also needed buttermilk and they didn’t have that. So they had yamaimo,  but not buttermilk. What a country!)

Sayaka does her intro with utensils. She better watch out where she points those things, haha.

Don’t eat Takoyaki in one bite.

Why did they make them do that? If I did that, then my tongue would be burned, and I couldn’t taste anything. And then they make them eat that super delicious cheesy takoyaki with the egg and ahhhhhhhhh nomnomnomononomobnmobmbobnom.

Well, anyway, it was a pleasant show. I just like these simple shows where you can really get the personality out of everyone. The jokes aren’t superfluous and everything is just nice and easy.

Nice and easy.

In my country, they look at you funny if you’re 40 and you take a picture with college girls in school girl outfits.

Yeah! I did it! It took me a while, though.

I don’t quite know what the best way is to format it, so if it’s hard to read, let me know.

――卒業を発表して4ヶ月と少し。実際にこの号が出て、この記事を読んだときには福本さんは卒業している、という読者も多いと思います（卒業公演は7月1日）。具体的に卒業を決めた時期はいつだったんでしょうか。

Since announcing her graduation, the remaining four months were fleeting. By the time you read this article, she may have already graduated. (Her graduation performance is on August 1^st.) At what point did you really decide to graduate?

「去年の年末ぐらいですね。実際に申し出たのは、今年に入ってすぐくらいです。」

“Around the end of last year. I really came out with it around the start of this year.”

――なにかきっかけになるようなことがあったんですか。

Was there some sort of defining moment?

「元々、将来的にバラエティのほうでやっていきたい、という気持ちでNMBに入ったんで、卒業はいつかするやろう、っていうのはあったんですけど、私の中で大きかったのは大阪マラソンに出させていただいたことですね。」

“From the start, I wanted to be on variety shows, and it was with that in mind that I entered NMB. I knew that I was going to graduate someday. That desire really grew within me once I finished the Osaka Marathon。

――あれはすごかったですよね。タイム（4時間8分）もそうだし、とにかくペースが一定で、アスリートか！ていうくらいで。

That was really something. You finished with a great time of 4 hours and 8 minute, and your pace was uniform throughout the race. You were the spitting image of an athlete.

「ほんまにすごいのは愛菜よりずっと一緒に走ってくれたマネージャーさんなんですけどね（笑）。走りながら携帯でNMBのブログを更新していましたから（笑）“福本さん、がんばれ！ってメンバーがいってくれますよ！”みたいな感じで（笑）

“What was even more incredible was my manager, who was running with me. While running, she updated my blog and would constantly inform me of the other members cheering me on,” she said with a laugh.

――どんだけ優秀なんですか（笑）。それはさておき、そういう活動が卒業への意思を固めた、というのはどいうことですか？

What an excellent manager! (laughs) Putting that aside, what about that event made you solidify your decision to graduate?

「NMBとは違うお仕事をやらせていただいて、そういうスポーツ関係だったり、あと去年は「駐在さん」（熱血！人情コメディ　しっかりき駐在さん・・朝日放送）にレギュラーで出させていただいたりもして。今までより強く、タレントとしてのお仕事を中心に頑張りたい、っていう風に思うようになったんです。卒業を決めて、また新たに踏み”、って」

“It was different work than what I do with NMB. The sports-related things, as well as being a regular on last year’s Chuuzai-san  (A show broadcast on Asahi TV). I’m a lot tougher than before, and I was thinking that I wanted to focus and commit more to being a TV talent. I decided to graduate and take yet another step forward.”

――そのことを誰かに相談したりはしましたか？

Did you discuss it with anyone?

「いちばん最初に相談したのは家族です。でも両親もいきなりだったみたいで、“今じゃなくていいんちゃう？”っていう感じで止められました」

“The first people I discussed it with was my family. However my parents thought it was too sudden and not well thought out, saying things like “Isn’t it better not to do it now?” so I stopped thinking about it.”

――それは、NMB48もどんどん上に行こうと頑張ってる時期だし、みたいなことですか。

Is that because NMB was in a period where they’ve been hitting their stride and getting more popular?

「それもあります。なんやろ、NMBというグループがあって、“あいにゃん”っていうんやったら知ってくれてる方も多いかもしれないですけど、卒業して肩書きがなくなるとまだまだ知名度が無いから、それやったらもうちょっとNMB48として活動して、全国的に名前をしってもらってからのほうがいいんじゃないか、っていうこととか。私も、もちろんそういうことはわかったんでえすけど、自分の中では“今や！”って思ったんです」

“There was that too. In NMB, sure there were a number of people that referred to me as Ainyan and that once I graduated, I would no longer have that and have no more name recognition. And if that were so, it would be better to stay in NMB48 and work until my name was recognzied all over the country. I understood that, and yet, deep inside, all I could think was ‘The time is now!’”

The two members that supported her decision

 ――卒業のことを、メンバーにはどうやって伝えたんですか。

How did you break it to the other members?

「若干、みんなうすうす気付いてたっていう感じだったみたいなんですけど、はっきりと伝えてたのは（山本）彩と（山田）菜々だけで、他のメンバーには卒業発表当日まで言ってませんでした。」

“I think little by little, people were starting to notice that I was giving off that feeling that I was going to graduate, but I only directly told Yamamoto Sayaka and Yamada Nana. All the other members weren’t told until the day I announced it.”

――キャプテンの山本さんと、同じ最年長の山田さんだけだった、と。

So just the Captain, Yamamoto, and Nana, with whom you are the same age.

「菜々とは一番何でも話せる仲で。目指してるものが違うのと、だから感じ方も違うっていうこともあって、一緒にご飯行った時とかに仕事仲間として意見の交換というか、相談をいろいろしてたんです。止めるとかじゃなくて、応援してもらった感じで。彩は最初はなんか、“納得いくまで説明してもらわないと”っていう感じでしたね。ふたりきりで話し合って、今までの仕事を通してこんな風に思えるようになった、とか、これからはこういう活動をしていきたい、っていうことを率直に伝えたら、彩も“背中を押す”って言ってくれました」

“Nana is the the number one person with whom I can talk to about anything.  Because our goals are different, we also have different feelings, and we’ve had many discussions over meals as work partners. She didn’t say to stop, she only said that she was continue to support me.

At first, with Sayaka it felt like she was saying ‘Until I am convinced, you must continue to explain it to me.’ We spoke, just the two of us, and I admitted how I felt about the work and what kind of work I wanted to continue doing, and finally Sayaka also said that she would have my back.”

――なるほど。思えば、NMB48って福本さんが目指すバラエティの道につながるような活動ってすごく多いですよね。

Ahh, I see. When I think about it, NMB48 has always been connecting you with a lot of variety shows and other work related to that.

「ほんまに（笑）。私、今まで番組の罰ゲームでめっちゃ虫食べてますよ（笑）。竹虫とか、コオロギとか、サソリとか。まさかこんなに食べるとは。初めてのときは、ガチでたべさせられうんや、って思いましたもん（笑）」

“They really have. For punishment games, up until now I’ve eaten a lot of bugs. Things like moth larva, crickets, and scoprions. I might have gotten used to it. When they first made me eat it, that was my honest reaction.”

――でも、デビューしてからこんなに短期間でこんなにいろんな経験ができる人って、ほんとに少ないと思うんですよね。テレビやラジオに出てグラビアを撮って、って。

But, since your debut, in such a short period of time, you’ve had a lot of different experiences, it’s still been a short time, don’t you think? You’ve had TV appearances, radio appearances, gravure shoots…

「ほんまに恵まれてるな、って思います。「ドッキング４８」（関西テレビ）の“チャレンジ48”でもいろいろ体張ってきたつもりです（笑）。ほかのアイドルさんはわっかんないですけど、NMBは体当たり的なロケだったり、番組の企画だったりが多かったから」

“I’ve been really blessed. On Docking 48’s Challenge 48 series, I had planned to really spread myself out with activities. I don’t know about other idol groups, but NMB was type to really just go all-out with locations, and the TV show had all sorts of different plans and ideas.”

――純粋にお笑い力が試される「げいにん！」（日本テレビ）ってのも。

And your comedy strength was really tested in the show “Geinin!”

「私がキャラ的にツッコミキャラになってる、っていうのもあったかもしれないけど、全然使われてないですよ、私のボケ。スベるすぎて（笑）。私がしゃべったら現場がほんまに凍りつくんですよ。この間「げいんいん！」のDVD観直したら、初回から自分で“スベリキャラです”みたいなことを言ってました（笑）。楽しかったですけど、全然アイドルっぽくないですよね（笑）。私、公演をやってるときだけが“自分はアイドルっていう気持ちでした（笑）」

“While my character ended up being tsukkomi, my boke was never really used. It bombs way too much. When I’d talk on stage, it’d become really cold. The other day I was rewatching the DVD and I had somewhat of a joke bombing character. Even though it was fun, it wasn’t at all idolish. The only time I felt like an idol was when I performed on stage.”

Despite many painful memories, there isn’t a single regret

――NMB48の一員として、3年足らずの活動でしたが、いろんなことがあったと思います。いちばん印象深いのは？

As an NMB48 member, although you’ve been working with them for a little under 3 years, you’ve went through a lot. What left the deepest impression on you?

「そうですね……私、去年に足をケガして、東京のTDCホールであった「見逃して君たちへ2」の「誰かのために」公演に出られなかったんですね。その時かなあ」

“Hmm, for me, last year I had a foot injury and I wasn’t able to appear in our performance of ‘Dare ka no tame ni’ as part of the ‘Minogashite Kimitachi e 2′ series. Maybe that time…”

――苦い思い出だった、と。

That must’ve been a bitter memory.

「きついし、つらかったです。でもその時、沖ちゃん（沖田彩華）に助けてもらったことが、私の中にすごく残ってます。公演の前日に、出られないっていうのが決まって、その日にすぐ沖ちゃんが大阪から東京まで飛んできてくれて、愛菜のポジションを全部覚えて出てくれて。ほんまにNMBってすごいチームやな、って思いましたね。そういう風に、すぐに対応できるメンバーがいるっていうことが。」

“It was really tough. But that time, Oki-chan (Okita Ayaka) really saved me, and that left a deep impression. Before the concert, when it was determined that I couldn’t go on stage, on that day they flew in Oki-chan from Osaka to Tokyo, and she had memorized all of my positions and roles and appeared on stage. It was then that I thought that NMB was an incredible team. In that way, there were members that could adapt to anything.”

――それがどれくらいすごいことかってやってる本人じゃないとわからないですよね。福本さんが同じ立場だったとしたら……。

How incredible was that? Unless you were the actual person you probably wouldn’t understand how incredible it was. If you put yourself in her shoes…

「あーもうムリ、絶対ムリです。1日で1曲覚えるのが精一杯ですもん、私（笑）」

“Oh, it would be impossible for me, absolutely impossible. It takes me an entire day to remember one song.”

――アイドルの人たちって華やかな部分が目に付きますけど、みんなちゃんと努力してますもんね。

Certainly, idols are known for catching attention with just their looks, but really, everybody’s putting a lot of work in.

「レッスン、きついですよ～（笑）。特に私の場合、周りの他のメンバーが覚えるが速い分、置いていかれてる感がすごかったです。それに期日までに覚えるやな、っていうプレッシャーも。「青春ガールズ」公演のときなんか準備期間が2週間しかなかったんですよ！必死でしたね。寝たいけど、ここで寝てしまったらダメっていうような状況にまでなってたんで、家で練習してきても、みんなで合わせてみたら“あれ？全然違うねんけど？”みたいなことばっかり。きつかったけど、でもそのことで後悔したことはないですね」

“Lessons were tough. Especially in my case, the members around me could remember everything very quickly, and I felt like I was defeated all the time. There was always this pressure of whether I could remember the steps on the date of the performance. When we did ‘Seishun Girls,’ we only had 2 weeks to practice and prepare! It was do-or-die. I wanted to sleep, but it was a time when we couldn’t afford to sleep. We’d practice at home but when we gathered together there were so many times when we thought “Wait, that looks completely different.” It was tough, but I don’t regret a thing.”

――今回のインタビューはNMB48メンバーのレッスン場でやらせてもらってますけど、そういう話を聞いたら、卒業インタビューをするにはふさわしい場所だったような気がします。じゃあ最後に今後の自分について、所信表明というか、“新しい福本愛菜”になるために思うところを語ってもらえますか。

Since this interview is taking place in the NMB48 lesson room, after hearing that story, it seems that having the graduation interview here was quite appropriate. Lastly, can you leave us with some sort of convincing statement about the new Fukumoto Aina?

「NMB48として活動してた時は、定期的に握手会があったりして、ファンの方と直接話をしたりするイベントがありましたけど、卒業するとその機会もなくなっちゃうわけで。そのことを残念だって言ってくださるファンの方が多くて。だからもう一回、そういうファンの方が参加できるような大きいイベントが開けるくらいの、一人で活躍できるバラエティタレントになって、みなさんの前に戻ってきたい。前を向いて、これから頑張っていこうとおもいます！！」

“With NMB48 I did handshake events where I could directly talk to the fans, but when I graduate, I won’t have that opportunity anymore. Many fans have told me that it’s a real shame. Therefore, I want to become a big variety talent to the point where I can have such a big event again, and I want to return to see everyone. I want to look forward and give it my best!”

――あいにゃん、いままでありがとう！

Ainyan, thanks for everything!

So, my hard drive where I store all my stuff got nuked.

Important stuff, like my photos for the last few years, have all been wiped.

But less important stuff, like my idol collection of TV appearances and my music collection has also vanished!

It might be a while before I get online with this blog again, so take care.

My hard drive crashing was pretty bad, but I also realized has some music on my boot drive which only has 120GB of space. Turns out I had a bunch of old music!

And then while listening to it, I came across this glorious track.

Err… the track name isn’t even on the cover?

It’s funny how the smallest thing led me to this entire group.

It all started one day, when I decided to switch all my music from English to Japanese. Don’t get me wrong; I still like music that originates here in the US, but for the purposes of language study, I decided to adopt Japanese-language only music. And it’s not really that I think Japanese music is really unique either, I just find that the music I enjoy is pretty much the same across the ocean.

The only exception being J-Pop, which I find completely different than American Pop. I kinda get the feeling that the Japanese trends are like 3 years behind US trends though.

This song, Kimi Shika, got me to stay a while, and listen…

I downloaded a pack of Oricon Top 50 stuff, and the no3b Kimi Shika single was one that found a spot on my playlist. It wasn’t my favorite song of the pack, but I did like it. I had no idea who no3b was, I just knew that I liked the song.

There was also another song in that pack, Team Dragon – Kokoro no Hane, which I found to be kinda lackluster… oh, the irony.

Being bored one day, I decided to watch the PV. I had made a post earlier today about how I thought that certain music resonates me because of the context in which I hear the song, and sometimes, I watch PVs to get some of that context.

After viewing it, I thought the pudgy girl was cute but she looked pretty young and everyone looked kinda whiny and a bunch of crybabies.

And then, one day…

One day, I was messing with my brand new Samsung Galaxy S. (No, I didn’t leave a number out. It was the original Galaxy S.) I was feeling lazy and I didn’t want to get out of bed, so I decided to play with the Youtube browser.

“Hmm, no3b… I wonder if they have any other songs…”

Oh, they do.

It was this song, Kisu no Ryuusei, that really got me interested in the group. I don’t know what it is about this song that I really like, but I just liked it. I looked at their other singles, and Tane was really cute, but I wasn’t a big fan of Relax! or Lie. But THIS song. I loved everything about it. The vocals, the dance, the costumes. It was simple, not too crazy, and fun to listen to. Even the name is cool; all it is is a simple pun.

One thing led to another… I wanted to know more about the group, which led to watching more clips on Youtube, eventually moving on to AKBingo… and the rest is history.

I’m actually somewhat disappointed that they aren’t as active anymore, as I really liked all their singles: Answer, Kuchibiru Furezu, Pedicure Day, Kirigirisujin. The unfortunate timing of Miichan’s scandal, along with the elevation of Takahashi Minami to General Manager level kinda killed it off.

I hope you guys like farming.

Also includes some lady on the left.

If you like chemistry, I’d suggest watching this. You get to see Shu-chan and Yuki just berate the hell out of Ayaka.

I actually like Ayaka’s character now, though it sometimes comes off as a little try-hard. The MC I saw of her at the concert was pretty terrible, so she definitely needs to work on her consistency.

Anywho…

For whatever reason, Yuki wanted to do some farming, and Shu wants to ride in a harvester, so they decided to combine their plans and thus we have this program.

And Ayaka hops along for the ride even though she wanted to go to an onsen.

So off we go to a farm to harvest rice.

When they get to the farm they introduce themselves in their idol fashion.

The guy on the right looks hella pissed though.

Outfit change!

One thing I liked about Osaka is that people are tacky, but they strut it with attitude! When I saw Ayaka’s towel I laughed on the inside. You see those kinds of in-your-face fashion, whereas Tokyo is more reserved. Unless you go to Harajuku, but that’s another story altogether.

First, the manual harvesting

By the way, if you ever go Japan, please try and fit an inaka (country town) into your schedule. I really love the casual laid-back atmosphere there and it’s really unique to Japan. The only problem is, they’re usually hard to get around since it’s spread out, trains aren’t as convenient. Okay, that’s not the only problem, there’s also usually not much to do. But still, I like being there, and it’s worth spending a little bit of time on your vacation to see what it’s like.

Shu-chan and Yuki compete with funny faces to see who gets to harvest first.

It’s actually really cool that these two enjoy farming. At least, I hope they do and they’re not just acting. So much of Japan is centralized into the big cities.

While Yuki and Shu-chan are having a ball, Ayaka is having a terrible time

This photo says a lot.

After harvesting by hand, they finally bring out the automatic harvester.

You can feel the excitement!

After Shu-chan and Yuki ride, they make Ayaka earn her ride by doing one-shot gags since she techinically didn’t want to go on the trip in the first place (she wanted to go to an onsen).

Her gags were awful.

Let us never speak of them again.

Once they’re done harvesting, it’s off to mill the rice.

This magic machine mills the rice into brown rice grains.

Then they go here, where they can de-hull the brown rice for white rice.

I still think it’s really cool that they have rice hullers. Coin operated ones! It’s almost as nutty as the 24-hour rice vending machine/stand thing that I saw.

Apparently there’s a second episode of this, so let’s see if they keep making fun of Ayaka.

1: Jou’s back.

I know you!

Man, I’m really excited for this. Things were tough on her. “I know you’re 12, but you’re gonna be the next Maeda Atsuko. Here, you can be the first KKS to get a solo song at Seibu Dome.”

You wanna talk about pressure?

I think this is better for her. Instead of being gifted everything she’s now working as a KKS in an established group. She’s not Jou-senpai but Jou-chan to the 4th gens. It’s a much better way to unleash her potential.

The other thing is that I wonder if her old character of acting all wide-eyed and innocent will still work. Her stuff on Geinin 1 wouldn’t be funny if any other member did it, but because it was Jou flashing the adorable kid smile, it was funny in that cute-kid way.

I’m very excited for her return. However…

2: Shibuya Nagisa.

You ever get that feeling where you forget to breathe?

I’ve been so hypnotized by Nagisa lately, but I never really wrote about her here. She’s like the girl that would sit next to you in class and was strikingly pretty but not necessarily popular. The one that you would get a crush on, and sit at home and think of various ways to deliver the perfect line or confession to ask her out.

But you wouldn’t act on it, because you were too nervous.

Yet, you would see her every day, and it would eat you inside, and you allowed it to happen because thoughts of her would just make the day better.

Of course, there’s some incongruity, since now I’m old(er), and I don’t get crushes. If I like someone, I talk to them right away and try to get things squared away quickly instead of developing these strange fantasies, because they will inevitably be crushed by reality, in either a positive or negative way.

In this case, that can’t happen. She’s too young for me and the reality is that I would be bored.

But when I look at her, I imagine my younger and dumber self that gets love-struck so easily, and I get crazy feelings of nostalgia of the good ol’ innocent days.

I’ll definitely continue to follow her, but for how long, I don’t know. Maybe until the child inside me dies. Hopefully I’ll have a real girlfriend by then!

3: Paying attention to Team BII.

I want to like B2 because they’re the scrappy underdogs of the franchise, but unfortunately they don’t get very much coverage outside of stages, so I’ll have to watch more stage shows. I probably should, because my Japanese listening skills are horrid, and MCs are good practice.

The other day I watched their Shonichi for Tadaima Renaichuu just to get to know them better.

-Uuka seems to be looking better. I think she’s getting taller? Either way she seems more and more ready to try and challenge Shuu for center. She’s rapidly moving up in my book.

-Mako changed her style, she looks cuter now. No more forehead girl, I guess.

-Anchu always manages to amuse. She has this ego about her, but she’s also so willing to let it go for laughs and general entertainment.

Hanging out like bros.

-Yuuri looks adorable. Like heart-meltingly adorable.

-Emichi seems very capable as a singer, she’s the only one that seemed to capture a song with Junai Crescendo. Muro is the opposite… she looks really good, but her actual performance is meh. I’ve also generally liked leader types with Takamina, Sayanee, and to some extent even ShimaRena and Akimoto Sayaka, and she does look like a good leader type.

-My favorite part was during the introductions when everyone’s kinda excited and lastly Konomin goes up with this spacey look and does her introduction and everyone starts laughing, she gets disturbed and asks “WHY IS EVERYONE LAUGHING?”

Enoki! Bombaye!

-I like Shuu but she seems to be lacking in terms of performance. She’s entertaining in variety, though.

Overall the stage was mildly interesting. Now, I wasn’t a big fan of AKB back in the stage days, so I had to watch this concurrently with the original to see how it’s done, and there was some disappointment.

They look so good, but they need that strange vocal range that Itano has.

I really wanted to like Faint. I usually like the cool songs and when it started playing I got a bit excited. Plus, Uuka and Anchu! (Uuka is actually known for dancing really well, during one of the MCs, Yuuri and Mako admitted to imagining themselves as Uuka in order to learn the dance.)

But… there’s this weird vocal range hits that Itano has, and that no one else in the entire franchise has, and because of that the song is missing the “epicness” that it had in the original.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalmost.

Like I said earlier, Emichi actually seems to add her own style to Junai no Crescendo. Muro looks good but her voice doesn’t seem to be all there, and Kurokawa is decent but doesn’t possess you. It’s also hard to compare when the original is none other than No3b. But I like that Emichi stood out.

Other than that, there are my typical complaints of lip synching, but overall I’m coming out positive on B2.

4: Joe is back… for now.

I decided to stick with this hobby. It’s one of those things where I reached a crossroads… “Is it boring because I’m not putting enough of myself into it? Or because it’s intrinsically boring?” I’m gonna assume the first one, because I’m having somewhat of a crisis with my hobbies, so I’m just gonna pour a ton more much energy into this and see if it is rewarded.

So yeah, I’ll be here to stay, though I don’t really know how many of you actually miss me. Maybe the blogs, but me?

Man, remember when I used to watch these? These used to be fun. I guess they decided that having little girls stumble when reading the teleprompter was not as entertaining for the morning crowd.

Now only one woman remains standing.

I used to crush on this girl! She seems older now for some reason.

Was this always her logo? It looks so… tacky.

Instead of random NMB members, it’s just Nana and her newscaster buddy.

And surprisingly she seems to have gotten prettier. The newscaster, not Nana…

And today we’re going to talk about the sport Squash. In Japanese it becomes Skasshu. Uh, okay, I don’t know how that happened. It’s almost as confusing as how things like “donuts” and “peanuts” are the Japanese word for “donut” and “peanut” too since there’s so singular/plural distinction. I would like one donuts please.

“It is said that Squash is the healthiest sport.” I don’t believe it. Maybe in terms of cardio, but come on.

I used to play racquetball in university. And by “play racquetball” I mean that we’d go to the gym on campus, rent the rackets, and then just hit the ball with little regard for the rules actually were. I think one day I actually looked up the rules, but I stopped there. Like hell I would actually play by the rules!

Squash is different from racquetball, though. They have a lot of similarities but they’re different. Kinda like… DotA2 and LoL.

This is not one of the rules.

Nana looked straight out of the early 90′s. I swear I saw that costume in Saved by the Bell.

So our lovely ladies walk us through the rules and do a few practice shots and then it’s game on.

Don’t get hit on the head with the ball though.

Nana ends up taking the match 5-4. I mean, it goes about as well as it could for beginners, where pivotal moments are decided by whiffing the ball.

Look at her smug expression!

I’ve actually been looking for a cardio solution since I can’t really run due to my flat feet. I don’t think squash or racquetball will be that solution, though. It looked cool, it made me want to try it again, but I don’t think it’s doable.

And that’ll do it for this segment. I actually do miss this show. I remember analogizing it do Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, and such a show is really helpful when it comes to learning about niche stuff and vocabulary. Just a shame my hard drive went under.

SHE’S ALSO TINY. WAT

So I started reading people’s Google+ again and all the NMB peoples were like “Did you watch us on AKB48 SHOW!”

Obviously I didn’t. Heck I don’t even know what AKB48 Show is, so I decided to give some of it a shot.

There was an opening skit, but I didn’t know the girls so I just skipped it as well as their song.

Then there was a Yokoyama skit.

Look at how she carries herself!

I might say this till the end of time but I miss Yui in NMB. I feel like her comedy skills were good but rudimentary in Bimyo and her time on Geinin helped her improve and excel. And it showed here too.

One of the funny things I noticed was that I was watching Shimura Ken just before this, and there is a veritable difference in terms of comedic timing between this show and that one. Obviously the professional comedians are much better than the little girls, but with certain girls like Yui, you can see that there is some potential there. Maybe not the best of potential, but there’s something.

Now, I have no idea what this other KKS unit is, this Tentomu-chu. However.

Stop looking at me, I need to breathe.

I swear, Nagisa is soooooo close to breaking out, but she still needs a lot of tuning. She has the charisma but hasn’t turned it into anything yet, she’s super cute, and she sings Kinjirareta Futari live even though her voice isn’t that good yet.

The stars, I can see it!

Still didn’t watch this unit, whatever it is.

I don’t know what the next section is, seems like some serious talk between Paruru and Takamina.

The jersey look on Takamina is sooooo tacky.

I don’t really like Paruru. It’s not like I hate her because hate is such a strong word, but I have no idea what she offers. And she doesn’t seem excited about anything. If she doesn’t care, how can I care?

Also her expression reminds me of Jaden Smith.

Why do you look so sad all the time?

Then there was this section that was unintentionally hilarious, where they try and teach concepts about AKB to non-AKB fans… which wouldn’t be so bad, if it wasn’t in poorly acted English.

Especially this guy. Worst boke ever. Bet he’s getting paid though.

You have this really stern looking teacher getting all mad when this guy who seems high out of his mind confuses AKB center Maeda Atsuko with Hiroshima Carp center fielder Maeda Tomonori.

I just… this is just so awful.

WHY IS IT ENGLISH?!

Was it worth it for the NMB performance?

OH MY GOD WHAT DID THEY DO TO YOU NANA

I really thought they had a much bigger role and that it wouldn’t just be a performance. The performance was good, HA! is one of their best songs for not being a single, and it’s the extended version too.

But why did Nana’s forehead appear? I thought it was Mako at first.

Given that they did live acoustic Dazai Osamu wo Yonda ka, I really like the performances from this show, but the rest is crummy variety. Especially the English portion. Oh man.

One time my Japanese friend from Hawaii came and visited and he was watching this show on his laptop and randomly exploding in laughter. I tried watching too, but I didn’t really understand it.

I do now.

From the start it was funny. He comes in with “something” wrong all the time that may not be immediately obvious, though this one is.

This was only obvious when he turned around.

I’m not sure if I’ve professed my love for Momokuro here lately, but yeah, I really enjoy this group. Their concerts seem insane and a lot of people love them because they’re 120% idiotic. They just run with it. I love it.

Look at them in their pretty little colors.

I feel that Momokuro fills a lot of the holes that 48 groups are missing for me. They sing live, they’re over the top, the concerts are absolute spectacles, the songs are very unique and creative, the fans are equally as insane. 48 groups have their own merits too, like I wouldn’t want to follow Momokuro on G+ to see all their jokes or follow their growth the way you would watch someone like Nagisa bust out to be come an ace. It’s just that Momokuro seems to address all the problems I have with 48 groups so it makes for a nice balance.

Speaking of which, if you closely you can spot Noro Kayo in the crowd.

Don’t mess with Dachou Club!

KURURINPA

If there’s one thing I love about following NMB48, it’s the fact that I get exposed to so many comedians and comedy routines. It’s really fun to just randomly hang out with friends and then struggle to say something in simple Japanese and they’re like eh… and then all of a sudden you bust out like SONNA NI KANKEINEE, HAI OHPAPI and everyone just busts up and is surprised that you know comedy routines.

I’m telling you. It’s a great way to make (and keep) Japanese friends!

Momokuro’s comedy skit was alright. They would basically ring this bell and funny stuff would happen.

The other girl in this show? None other than…

Dear J

There was a really funny part where this guy shows up to try and rescue her and the lord of the castle.

Yo I got this!

Get ready!

Oh God.

They play all this hype music and he goes through this cool motions and then the guy just hits him the back.

One of the reasons why I liked Itano is because she is absolutely terrible at containing her laughter. The plot point for this was that her family was too poor to afford a doctor to cure her sick father.

Gravely sick.

Not a laughing matter.

Of course, Shimura Ken would force it by having the most ridiculous reactions to a sickness. The story concludes by the family suggesting that they visit a shrine a 100 times to pray for his well-being. It’s a cultural thing, where they visit, ring the bell, pray, run back to the entrance, run back to the shrine, ring the bell, pray… 100 times. Barefoot.

The funny part is that they make the sick guy do it.

Also he runs funny.

Then he dies.

The rest of the show is pretty notable too, but one of the big things that stuck out was this one girl with the nickname of Danmitsu. The lord can’t sleep so he gets a visit from the sleeping fairy.

It’s kinda hard to sleep when she’s moaning while counting sheep.

Then for some reason, she watches him pee. Even asks him if he named his dick. Really odd…

Overall, this show is actually really hilarious. I should probably watch it more. I did see Rola’s appearance and… well, that’s a story all in its own.

I also have to say that Itano is refreshing outside of the AKB world. Towards the end it seemed like it was bad for both parties since she really didn’t support AKB too much and they didn’t support her with her plummeting ranking, so it’s nice to see her get out. She did seem like a member who could have a decent solo career.

There was always this joke at work, where we say that we’re taking sexual harassment training, but what we really mean is sexual harassment prevention training.

I bet you would be sued in Japan for that joke. This episode was either enlightening or depressing.

I’m not even sure if the guest lawyer was trying to look like that one idol-loving comedian.

I don’t think I’ll ever get a pair of red glasses like that. It creeps me out too much.

So this episode covers more than just sexual harassment, but also “power harassment”, or abusing your position as boss.

This year there were 10,000 cases of sexual harassment. That seems low for some reason.

The comedian demonstrating obvious sexual harassment in terms of touching someone.

Apparently you can get sued for asking the age of a girl, or even for asking if she has a boyfriend as that infringes on your privacy.

Man, if that were true here…

I don’t particularly like it when people ask me my age, or ask if I’m seeing someone.  Doubly so when people make fun of me for not seeing someone or not being married already. I get really pissed off about that because they kinda look down on me. And man, if I wanted to look down on people for sucking at something, I can come up with a laundry list, but I don’t because I’m polite.

Well, I’m angry now.

“If your confession makes the other person uncomfortable then it can be sexual harassment.”

I find this funny. Obviously they can’t read the other person’s feelings, because if they would they wouldn’t confess. Of course it might look bad to socially experienced people, but that’s not always the case…

B2 represent

Since I’ve been paying more attention to things like stages and radio, I was starting to think that NMB wasn’t N-centric anymore. I forgot about this show…

Also, since I’m developing into a big Uuka fan, I actually looked up her reputation online and it turns out she occupies the “loli with big boobs.” Uh. Awkward. I’ll stick with the beaver thing. Wait, that didn’t sound right either.

Ugh.

Maybe it’s sexual harassment. I don’t know.

Also, you can get insurance for sexual harassment. And Sayaka is still shining brightly.

The segment about power harassment was kinda boring, although I swear, if those rules were in effect in the US, I would be able to get my boss fired. Ah well, that is neither here nor there.

Milky and Nana getting into a little tussle.

Nana and Milky seem to have a lot better chemistry lately. I’m not sure why. Maybe they secretly miss being on the same team.

For Challenge 48 or whatever they’re calling it, we go to the circus.

KONOMIN

Spacey Konomin is here! She’s like a cooler version of Komorin. She acts and seems ditzy but there seems to be some intelligence behind her actions… like she knows what she’s doing, but she just *seems* spaced out.

ATLASPHERE

After taking a ride on this weird Atlasphere-esque machine, they move on to the Eliminator to watch the circus and learn some roles. Rika will handle the trapeze, Muro will do some hula hoop business, and Konomin will act as a clown? Or something like that.

Muro struggles because she can’t understand the English-speaking instructor.

Well. That’s a blow to English fans =)

The training footage seemed pretty sparse, though there was a lot of focus on Rika.

Showing off her blisters

I’m confused why they didn’t give her chalk for practice to rub on her hands. Isn’t that what they normally do?

Also, sometimes I feel bad for Rika. She’s really big. She’s not fat, she’s just… big. But she might get mistaken for being fat. That saddens me.

That wrapped up the challenge section, next week is when they actually perform.

I decided to give this show another go, mainly because I need to continue to shore up my Japanese, and because it’s been a long time since I’ve seen “Senbatsu.” I say that, but their role is still pretty minor in this show. Man, I really wish they had a Naniwa Nadeshiko 2 or maybe a Geinin! 3 or something. I feel like it’s those shows that keep me as a fan.

I can’t even think of a witty subtitle for this entry.

So, the premise of this appearance on Mechaike is that all the girls are gathered together in a surprise fashion, then they all take a test. Or at least they usually take a test to see how dumb/smart everyone is, and many laughs are had.

SURPRISE

I don’t know how often they do this, but apparently they did one with Momusu 10 years ago. As usual, they have the setup where they trick people and then voila, they’re on the show.

I remember this pair. They were such a nice pair.

I remember the old days when Sashihara was mid-tier and was always paired with Kitahara. What happened to Kitahara, is she still around? What does she do?

WHO ARE YOU?

What the heck happened to Jurina? When did she become really pretty looking? Like… whoa. Plus she seems like she’s really matured in terms of screen presence. Wow. If I didn’t know her back in the days and just started watching she might have been Nagisa 2.

You had to answer the question and run through the right door. She guessed wrong… twice.

I still think she’s awesome.

For some reason, Ricchan still doesn’t strike me as dumb. I think she says dumb things, but she’s not dumb, if that makes any sense.

However, unlike last time where they usually give exams, this time we’re going on the athletic fields of justice for a PE competition. Or whatever it’s called. Athletic festival?

What a Cool we are? What the hell is this?

Watching it was pretty nostalgic. They start warming up with morning stretches and they’re supposed to spread their arms out to keep their distance from everyone to stretch. Just seeing them do that took me back to the good ol’ days of PE in grade school.

They also marched pretty funny.

While they did their stretches, they would read profiles for everyone.

Yui used to be a baller. Makes her extra cool in my book.

I love the cockiness. “Specialty: Everything. Weakness: None.”

And just to screw with everyone, they picked Ricchan and Kojiharu to read the opening speech. It would be fine if they could read the kanji… I’m not sure if I’m allowed to laugh because I can’t read much of it anyway.

Kawaei mis-read the first two characters as “ware R” because the 々 looks like R. It’s supposed to be “ware ware”, or in English, “We”.

I’ve felt recently that the top level of AKB doesn’t feel like idols anymore. They feel like normal celebrities. There’s a big difference from people that are sort of rough and needing improvement like Nagisa, and someone top level like Yuuko, and it’s difficult to even view them in the same light. One of the reasons why I liked idols to begin with was because they weren’t the best at first and it’s fun to watch them get better.

On the other hand, some of the people at the top of AKB seem really mature. Mayuyu, especially, has grown on me as a celebrity.

SHE’S GOT THAT SERIOUS LOOK. SHE WANTS TO WIN.

JK YOU’RE SLOW

The first event was the 40m dash. It’s kinda weird to think that some of the top athletes in the NFL can run 100m in the time that these girls can run 40m. I mean, obviously that’s expected given that the NFL is composed of the best athletes in the US and I’m comparing them to untrained girls, but still, that difference surprises me. Humans are amazing, I suppose.

Sasshi racing Rena was the worst thing I’ve ever seen. Okamura fell down and got back up and was still faster than Sasshi.

Also interesting to see Paruru get hella worked up when she lost. Here she was mad because Yukirin told her that she’d be alright because she sucks at running too, but then she just up and beats her in the race.

I’m glad that she did well and came out swinging.

I didn’t really expect Ricchan to be a good athlete, but she’s actually very capable. I still very much doubt that she’s that dumb.

Kojiharu laughing when she runs.

In a strange break-time, giant Akimoto comes out.

I don’t know why…

Next up is the high jump event.

Sayaka going out of control

I never did any track in high school, but I always wondered how to do a proper high jump, as well how high I would be able to jump. It doesn’t look like I’d be able to do well though. All the Olympians are jumping from one leg, and my one-legged jumps suck.

Mayuyu warmed up with what looked like an elbow drop.

Bye bye?

Bye bye.

Miichan getting pumped up.

I didn’t know who Gouriki was until I Googled her. I did see her before. In fact, she starred with Yuuko in Watashi ga Renai Dekinai Riyuu. I saw a lot of her ads on my trip to Japan and she seemed like had gotten cuter.

I also didn’t know she could dance really well. Miichan doesn’t do her justice.

Speaking of Miichan, I’m glad she’s back and healthy. The scandal and the reaction was utterly ridiculous and left a bad taste in my mouth. She seems happy and she seems back to her old self and I think the whole group is a lot better for it.

Back to high jumping, this time Kojiharu shows her incompetence.

The third event is a gymnastics move which is called “Saka Agari.” I don’t know what it is in English because this is the first time I heard about it.

Yuuko crushes it, just like she crushed all the other prior events.

Earlier, Paruru was saying that she practiced a lot when she was a kid so she would be able to do this.

One more chance, please

I think that’s the first time I’ve ever seen her look frustrated. I think she’s better served acting like that then acting like a dull bored person.

Surprisingly, only 5 people are successful at this. Again, I wonder if I could do this. I probably can’t. I’m really fat now. Well, not that fat… but I dunno, I’m 200 lbs but I don’t look anywhere near it so I have no idea where it is.

Anyway, that’ll do it for now, I’ll wrap up the rest tomorrow.

Continuing from the last entry…

Once the saka-agari finished, everyone took a break and ate some food from whatever TV station was running this program. Apparently they have some sort of theme park or food park or something, and the food place was called G-kyuu, for Giant.

GIANT CORN DOGS

Later on, they were trying to promote some sort of tomatoes, and to do that, they made minestrone soup. Off the top of my head, I don’t know what it is, but the girls were getting hype over it. What? Really?

I mean, look at Annin’s eyes!

The pictures just made me want to eat tacos, though.

It was then followed up by a ridiculous comedy section. I mean… just, absolutely ridiculous. It all started with the mascot getting mad and taking off his mask, at which point Mayuyu tried to calm him down.

Calm down, sir.

Then things escalated, when he started making fun of Mayuyu.

I’m pissed now.

Then a brawl broke out and they were going at each other!

Go for the leg!

Get tossed in the boxes!

It culminated in a spectacular event where Mayuyu started driving a golf cart and the guy hopped on the roof, and in a fit of madness she drove into a building that blew up.

I am not making this up.

There he is on the roof…

And there’s the explosion.

Then they made up.

I’m actually really glad they picked Mayuyu for this. She played it really well. I might not like her as an idol, but I sure as hell like her as an actress and an entertainer. Apparently, I did miss something when in a previous episode that guy performed a Giant Swing on her and she did not receive it well.

After that strange and entertaining diversion, we resume the athletic festival with some sumo matches.

Yuuko and Ricchan had an epic match, even though she got disqualified in the first 5 seconds, the ref let them play on.

In the pre-game trash talk, Annin only had these words to say. “I saw your video on Youtube.” Holy hell.

The last event was the relay race, they were split into four teams.

My NMB honeys were doing so well!

… and then a wild Rena appeared.

I don’t understand how Rena is so weak that she can’t do a single situp. That doesn’t make sense to me at all. It doesn’t even look like she’s trying. I don’t really care that much for the results, but it’s funny how Sayaka and Milky built up a huge lead, and Rena was so slow that Ricchan couldn’t recover at all.

It’s okay though, at least the end was… sort of close. Yuko was head-to-head with Jurina for most of it, and then she just pulled away and destroyed her just like she did the rest of this competition.

I don’t see anyone else around, do you?

I think she was actually crying a little when she lost.

All that’s left were the standings, and that was actually pretty cut and dry. It was pretty easy to see who was top and who wasn’t, so there wasn’t much suspense. At least with the exam, it’s usually not so obvious who’s top, mid, and bottom tier.

They were split into 3 tiers: A class, B class, and Shit Seven.

No surprise to see Yuuko destroy everyone.

Sayaka also did well. I miss the days when she first joined NMB and she looked invincible. She looked like she could practically do anything.

Also glad to see Ricchan have some sort of redemption.

And dead last was so obviously Rena, which they celebrated by having her put on a poop costume.

And everyone danced around with poop. The end.

The whole program was actually quite entertaining. Okamura is such a great comedian. And after not having followed AKB for so long, it’s cool to see some of the old faces and how they’ve improved by so much. I was really impressed by Mayuyu, she definitely has a bright future. And Yuuko is still shining on, I really need to start watching Android or whatever it’s called. Jurina looks a lot prettier than I remember her to be, Miichan looks to have finally recovered, and Ricchan proved that she’s still worth paying attention to.

Source: http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20131119-00000501-sanspo-ent

(Also source to 48-family, lol.)

NMB48 Offered a Spot on Kouhaku! Everyone “Took the top!”

The sister group of AKB48 based in Namba, Osaka known as NMB48, has been offered an appearance on the 64th NHK Kouhaku Utagassen on New Year’s Eve today on November 18. Continuing with AKB and SKE, NMB is the third group to make a solo appearance. This year they performed under the slogan of having their own solo appearance on Kouhaku, and thus have made it true to their word. Singer-Songwriter Miwa (23 years old) has also been confirmed.

For the group that has set their sights on appearing on Kouhaku, their ticket has been punched to appear on the stage of their wildest dreams.

Last year, the sister group SKE had their solo appearance. NMB was filled with a lot of regret and accordingly this year they aimed to appear on Kouhaku. In January, they released their first album “Teppen Tottande!” in January. The front cover of the album featured NHK Hall in Shibuya, Tokyo, the site of Kouhaku, and energetically offered us the words “Take the top!” in Osaka dialect.

Then, in June, they had their East Japan tour in June. There, on that same stage, Team N Captain Yamamoto Sayaka promised to her fans, “We shall return to this stage, running with all of our might!” on a show that was broadcast on the NHK-BS Premium channel.

They didn’t just have passion, but they also had results. For the first half of the year, Teppen Tottande! held the number one spot on Oricon.  From last year’s single “Virginity” to their latest song “Kamonegix,” they have 4 straight singles that entered the number one ranking.

Also appearing on Kouhaku for the first time is miwa.  After making her major debut in 2010, she had a string of hits with songs like “Hikari e” and  had musical tours with her acoustic guitar and was able to show her ability.  In this 4th year (March of this year), she had a successful performance at Nippon Budoukan and gained attention for her amazing ability. She continues to raise the bar on New Year’s Eve with this performance.

I’m actually somewhat mixed. I’m pretty happy just because it’ll get them some attention. I had this conversation many times with friends in Japan.

“Oh, you’re into idols, right?”

“Yeah, actually…”

“Like AKB48?”

“Actually, I’m more into NMB48.”

“What’s that? What’s NMB?”

“It’s Namba.”

“What’s Namba?”

“Oh, it’s in Osaka…”

“I see…”

So it’s good to see them finally getting out there and possibly enter the vernacular of regular Japanese people. Maybe I won’t have to be embarrassed all the time for liking idols!

The reason why I’m not too thrilled is because it doesn’t seem like they did much that really differed from previous years. They went on tour and made a movie, which is kinda cool. But I don’t feel like they were that much better than before. They certainly did not make up any ground between them and any of the 48 groups, and it feels more like it’s Yoshimoto’s money talking than it is getting there through talent or popularity.

I wanted them not to make it this year just so that they have to try even harder, pushing themselves to do new and creative things, improving on their variety, and so on. I’m somewhat concerned that this is all that it takes to achieve their goal. Perhaps the goal isn’t lofty enough anyway, and they’ll set even more goals in the future, and I’m just being a downer.

Still, I have to say, it’s always great when you fulfill one of your dreams! We made it, guys!

I’m also hype that miwa is on there. Some of her music is great, particularly “Hikari e”. Lately I’ve been liking her ballad version of “Delight,” and she also performed a lot with MomoKuro and they have a lot of great collaborations.

I’m watching this, and I can’t stop smiling.

It’s perfect. It’s everything I’ve wanted from Team N. It exhibits their skill, their personality, their performance ability, and yet it retains such great individuality for all the members.

I gotta keep this short because I really need to sleep. Well, shorter than what I would write given infinite time…

Shake it, Maachun.

Rikanyan playing the conductor.

The first two songs, “Aoi Tsuki ga Miteru Kara” and “Radio Name” have such an awesome progression. I feel like Aoi Tsuki is such a strong start, a great intro song that leads in to the entire stage. “Radio Name” will have a neat trick where they’ll actually read your email on stage, and feels so right as a second song. It’s a drop in tension from the first song that sets you up for the Stage’s title song, “Koko ni datte, Tenshi wa iru.”

Angels in the outfield!

Something about the song made me laugh… perhaps it was the cheap early 2000s Eurobeat rhythm that seemed to appear out of nowhere. I’m not too fond of the next song, Cattelya, but the way the music works, it seems like a perfect end for Act I.

And that’s what I really enjoyed about this stage; there’s something about the music that just seems to tell a story, that’s very narrative-like.

The unit songs are really special.

I’m so… in awe.

If only they actually played the guitar…

Sayaka’s solo, Yume no Dead Body, just looked so good. I really that she has the performer’s aura, that she’s destined for stardom.

With that said, however, her performance here was lackluster. She didn’t seem to hit the notes she wanted to hit and the electric guitar was not hooked up. Even though she was playing notes they didn’t sound. It makes me a bit sad that it wasn’t as sharp as it should be. Now, yeah, I understand that everyone else lip synched in the concert (well, almost) but based on the progression of the stage, it feels like this should be the climax and it missed it.

When she tightens it up, it’ll be an awesome song. I’m just disappointed that the first impression was not a good one. If she nailed it, this would’ve been forever etched in my heart as the pinnacle performance of Team N.

This was easily my favorite performance of the night.

“Nandomo Nerae” was the surprise hit for me. With silly Hanshin Tigers-esque costumes, a plate/dice theme, and the overall silliness of the members that perform, to me, it really brought out everyone’s individuality. There was sort of a “secret playfulness” that came out from the everyone.

O-New? Oh you…

Again, great arrangement. All 3 fit the song perfectly and they performed it well. They had a clear theme and they went with it, putting all 3 of the “cute” ones together. I was also surprised at one point when they showed Mirurun’s stomach against the light and she looked really cut.

2 Live songs? I must be dreaming.

“Kono Sekai ga Yuki no Naka ni Umoreru Mae ni” took me by surprise when they all sang it live. The singing was mediocre, but it wasn’t horrible. However, one reason I like this is because the four members (Rika, Aika, Yuppi, and Koga) all have decent singing voices. Again, they need to tighten it up to make this song epic, but with that core group, I believe that they can.

The only thing you need to know about “Zipper”.

Okay, well, that was a pretty big deal. However, I didn’t feel like it was a cheap slutty song. It had a “Grease” like feel for me, a very 70s/80s vibe, and it there was a hotness about it that didn’t feel cheap. The three girls were perfect for the role, combining the devilish pair of Warukii/Akarin with the mysterious Keicchi, and I would not be surprised at all if this song becomes the most popular song of N3.

The next few songs demonstrated why I fell in love with Team N to begin with.

A captivating entrance by the Captain.

Followed by some of the most difficult choreography I’ve ever seen in the 48 group.

“Hajimete no Hoshi” and “100nen Saki Demo” were great to watch after the unit songs. They didn’t have the whole group, they were excellent songs that had quite a bit of isolation for the members participating in it, and the choreography was excellent.

The choreography.

I still remember when Nagiichi came out and was disappointed that the dancing wasn’t as complicated or cool as it was in U-19. The choreography here restores my faith in their ability, and although there were synchronization problems, they all looked very sharp. I’m just so… proud.

And then the cheerleader song.

I actually enjoyed “Ribbon Nante Niwanai”. It’s very idol-ish, and everything comes together just right. It’s not the sharp choreography of the two songs before, but it still manages a cheery atmosphere.

Our 3rd act ends with a soft ballad.

And Kanakichi demonstrating her ballet skills.

I love this song. Again, it shows some individuality from the members, particularly Kanakichi, Keicchi, and Riichan, who demonstrate their ballet skills while the rest of Team N sings softly around them.

And then… what the hell happened to their uniforms?!

“Jounetsu Highway” is a great encore song, but what’s up with those costumes? Very interesting choreography too, the dance is really silly, but the beat is pretty hype.

But again…

What’s up with the costumes? Is it to show off how tacky Osaka can be sometimes? How can you have a hat with Tsuutenkaku with colors that call to mind Kuidaore?

Wheee!

And they glow in the dark!

While I wasn’t a big fan of the second-to-last song, “Sukoshi Nigai Jinsei Soudan”, “Fumou no Tochi wo Mankai ni” sets the perfect ending to the whole list. Again, sharp choreography that is reminiscent of Kamonegix, and a chant of “N-M-B! Here we are!” leads the final act out perfectly before starting the medley.

I don’t understand the nuances of music well, but the stage seemed arranged like a well-told story. I can’t explain how or why, but the themes were all there, and it felt as if the themes were the Team N members. They got songs that were tuned and tailored to them, and thus they were able to bring a performance that showed their soul… it’s not about “Well, Sayaka has a good Bird rendition, but it’s Takamina’s song.” It’s more like, “Yume no Dead Body IS Sayaka.”

And that’s why I was so thrilled. The progression of the stages which felt like a story, also felt like a story told by the members. I feel like I just watched a musical, but there were no musical parts.

If there was some criticism, there were definitely some parts that needed some clean-up and more practice. They seemed to have their characteristic precision towards the end, but some of the sync was a bit off. None of the songs except maybe Zipper seemed to jump out at me right away saying “This is a god-like song,” but there were a lot of very good songs. And while I’m already turned off by lip-synching, for some of the songs the lip-synching was just terrible anyway, so I can’t even pretend that they’re singing when their timing is completely off and their lips aren’t even making the right movement for the sounds that they’re moving.

But overall, I’m very pleased and very thrilled to have watched N3, and it accomplished everything that I hoped it would accomplish. If they needed identity, they got it right here. The biggest gripe I have now is that the original stages for M and B2 are gonna be sooooo far away… not good, especially because I want to adopt B2 as my underdog team.

And this entry wasn’t short at all! What the heck?!

It’s evolution, but it’s not the fighting game tournament.

This episode is about the theory of evolution. Yes. Seriously.

Let’s be glad that they didn’t air this episode in the Deep South of the US. I’m sure many religious groups would take offense.

The word for evolution is “Shinka.” It does not mean “Sinker pitch.”

As you all may know, the theory of evolution was proposed by Charles Darwin.

WHY WOULD YOU RAISE YOUR HAND AND RANDOMLY GUESS PIERRE?

Because I’m slow, I didn’t realize until halfway through the episode that the entire gallery is all of Team M.

oooooooooooooooohhhhhhhh AARIN. I mean, Arii.

Did you know that that is ShimaRena’s natural hair color? She went on G+ to deny dying her hair. What a crazy world.

Darwin proposed his theory after visiting the Galapagos Islands.

The same animal would have different properties depending on which island they appeared on.

Evolution being caused by genetic mutation.

When you think about it, it’s actually kinda crazy that they were able to hypothesize about evolution without even knowing about DNA and genes. And then even crazier is that this was discovered only 130 years ago. Research sure moves quickly. Let’s pause 10 seconds for station identification to wonder about how great the human race is.

The next topic details the evolution of the giraffe, and why its neck is so long.

Momoka says they use it to get the other giraffes away.

Rena, well… I have no idea what she’s saying.

Rena is my sleeper pick of Team M. She seems absolutely dumb, but there’s something to her that’s more than meets the eye. She originally caught my eye because she looks like Mayuyu sometimes, and then she caught my ear because of her mega high pitched voice. I’m not sure if her suberi is intended or not. She’s also had some really quick witted answers during MCs.

Anyway, the common hypothesis was that longer necked giraffes would have easier time eating from trees, but actually…

It’s a fake! The longer neck makes it harder to drink water which is more important for a giraffe.

It turns out that the evolution was just by chance. Huh.

It’s said the the giraffe evolved from the animal on the left for no real reason.

We then move on to a discussion about humans.

Like Bonobos, who apparently have a very peaceful society.

Everyone applauds for peace.

Humans have 94-99% genetic commonality with both chimps and bonobos, and chimps have a more warlike society whereas bonobos are really peaceful and cheery, so there is some thought that it was mix of the two.

“What makes humans different?” Nana’s answer: We have teeth.

Nana was uh… quite, slow today. She really needed to watch herself because she has 4 of the baka badges that they award to the dunce of the classroom after each episode. If you get 5 baka badges, you have to go skydiving. (Conversely, you get a prize if you get 5 of the good student badges.)

The homosapien clique. It’s actually kinda weird to think that all of these related human species went extinct and only the homo sapien remains.

That’s enough evolution talk. I’ve forgotten how this show can really lull you to sleep. It doesn’t seem like the hosts have really improved either.

And for your take home message, 99% of humans are gonna die.

Continuing from the Challenge 48, it’s back to the circus with Rika, Muro, and Konomin. And we even get last episode’s audience back.

What a squad!

I don’t know how it happened, but somehow Konomin and the rest of the BII Faint Unit jumped up to be my BII Oshimen. Konomin just has this air of coolness while looking spacy.

And she makes an adorable clown! Sayaka approves!

Lookin BAWS

I get the feeling that Konomin is also liked by the senior members, as Sayaka and Milky were calling her kawaii throughout the performance. And somehow, almost anything Sayaka likes, I tend to like…

(BKB! BKB! BKB! Hiiiiiya~ Omatta~)

Murokana becomes a hulahoop expert. Maachun becomes… well, I don’t know.

I get the feeling that Murokana will be super hot when she grows up. But as of right now she still needs a bit of work. I can definitely see her building a following soon and increasing steadily in popularity, though.

Rika what did they do to you?!

They didn’t work you on the trapeze well enough though.

I still remember when they had people do the trapeze on Challenge 48. My favorite part was Maachun, since she was acting all scared, and she got on the trapeze and was like “AHHHHHHHHHH” before executing the transfer perfectly.

Rika didn’t seem to have enough practice, and she failed. But that’s it, there’s nothing crazy, no habanero juice to drink.

Back to the evolution episode, ShimaRena earns the good student award. And the idiot award?

We’re going skydiving.