…& The Genki Left The Room (Selective Hearing)
Miracle in the Hole: Kusumi Koharu (Conflict Productions)
The Kohole Begins to Collapse! (Berryz Kyuuden)
Open Letter To Koharu (Kakko-ii.com)
Goodbye my darling Koharu (Wotaku Now!)

Based on the amount of reaction posts this is just as big a deal as the Elder Club graduation.  When the news broke the other night there were an unusually large amount of people in or IRC chatroom.  There was sadness, shock, and joking around.  I haven’t yet read the reactions on the Japanese chat sites, but I am sure the sentiment is pretty intense…

Greg starts with a short pictorial that acts almost as a resume for her modeling career.  One thing is for sure…when you get past the goofy facade she definitely has “the look”.  He ends with an assortment of vids, including her stint as Sensei on Yorosen! and one of my faves…The Magic Restaurant!

Siggy ponders Koharu’s role in Hello! Project after Tsunku donned her with the “miracle” label.  While he doesn’t see her as fitting for that title, he applauds her for finding her own niche in the organization.  She is a hard working idol who plays her role very well.  Siggy posts more cute pics as examples of her modeling talent.

Dran sees Koharu as the “miracle girl” she always was.  Not only because she was his fave member, but because she was willing to “take one for the team” and force a shakeup in a group that might have been in dire need of one.  He also pokes fun at the general fandom for their usual overreaction to the announcement.

Zush’s letter to Koharu is a must read.  I won’t spoil it, but he salutes her for being courageous enough to take this giant step toward achieving her dreams.  Yes, I’m sure it was nice and safe for her in Morning Musume.  But if she is willing to take some major career risks to have what she wants in life…well, how many of you have the balls to do that?  Chalk that up as another reason she is a great idol.

Once again Shirow’s testicles are being punished with this news.  Never has this much depression been so funny.  And if you are looking for him he is probably sitting on his roof in a daze with a bottle Jack Daniels wondering why it wasn’t Mittsi instead.

There are still more reaction posts rolling in as we speak, so I may post one more set.