Well, i really wasn’t planning on posting about this, because it bugs me a lot and I’d rather think about different stuff, but as long as this is an AKB blog, it needs to be up to date with the latest news, so here goes:

1. Saotome Miki graduated on the latest AKB48 NHK concert: This is shit. Mikipomu deserved so much better than the way she was treated and it bugs me a LOT. On the other hand, I’m glad that they let her have a small ceremony to say goodbye to her old team mates. I have nothing against Kikuchi Ayaka, but really, what they did with Mikipomu is exactly the opposite and it pisses me off to see an organization pulling off all this kinds of crap.

2. Uriya Akane also graduated on that date: Uriya Akane was the only first generation Kenkyuusei who survived the mass firing massacre they had a while ago, yet she never got added to a team. I guess she was fed up with it and realized that she had better chances of recognition out of AKB, so she called it quits. I’m always saddened when a Kenkyuusei graduates without making it to a team before, it’s so frustrating! Congratulations, and I hope that you have a very bright future ahead anyway, Akane

3. Officially, Kawasaki Nozomi, Oshima Mai and Hayano Kaoru graduated in that concert too: But this is old news, so let’s move on

4. New AKB single, Namida Surprise, to be released on June 24th. The following members will be featured: Maeda Atsuko, Kojima Haruna, Fujie Reina, Minegishi Minami, Takahashi Minami, Kitahara Rie, Nito Moeno, Kashiwagi Yuki, Watanabe Mayu, Miyazawa Sae, Oshima Yuko, Ono Erena, Kasai Tomomi, Itano Tomomi, Shinoda Mariko, Miyazaki Miho, Sashihara Rino, Matsui Rena, Matsui Jurina, Komori Mika

See a new name in the list? Well, NOT REALLY. It’s the same line up as always. I always LOL when I think about MM singles, where people complain that 8th gen doesn’t ever get enough lines. Most AKB girls don’t even appear as props in singles XD

Anyway, I’m sad that they’re shafting Sayaka again, because she’s awesome. And I’m also sad that Komori Mika was picked for this. *puts on flame suit* You’re all going to hate me for this MIkapon fans, but this shameless pushing members down our throats thing AKB is doing lately is pissing me off. I don’t care about Jurina for the most part, although I don’t like her either, and I think Rena is like 1000 times cuter, but come ON! There’s something about Jurina that makes her stand out, and she’s a good dancer and well rounded performer, but Komori isn’t. She’s awkward and lost and frankly, kind of boring to look at whenever she’s on stage. I don’t mean to be mean, really, it’s nothing personal, but what’s the point on being “In training” if you’re going to be in singles already, pushing out of the way other members with WAY more experience than you. Just NO. I don’t like this and I never will, even if I become Mikapon’s No. 1 fan in a month or something crazy like that.

That isn’t all there is to this single, though. 10nen Zakura was pushed with a million handshaking events, but this time, the trick is even more blatant. There will be another new single release in August, and the catch is that if you buy Namida Surprise you’ll get a ticket to vote for the member you want to be in senbatsu for the single that will be released in August. “Senbatsu” means “selected member” for a single, BTW. So yeah, basically, if you want… say… Naruse Risa in the next single imagine the amount of singles you will buy just to make sure that she at least gets a good number of votes.

I think that this is plain mean because unpopular girls simply won’t be voted much for, and that puts a huge pressure on them, so I wish they didn’t do this. The usual senbatsu members will still 100% certainly be in the next single, but I don’t think that there will be many surprises, after all, the fan favorites are the ones pushed to the front the most, of course.

I know that my opinion will be a shock for a lot of people, who see this as an opportunity for their favorite underdog to make it big time. But let’s face it, Acchan’s hordes of fans won’t skip the voting just to give an underdog the chance to shine, it’s sad but it’s the way it is. I don’t want to sound mean, because my favorite member always gets chosen, but I’m a HUGE fan of 2 team B underdogs who will probably never be there, and I don’t think that they should be put through so much stress for something like this… Just my 2 cents…

5. AKB Team A goes to Paris! Well, good news for the european fans Have a blast, guys!

6. AKB management turns the whole Akihabara48 business upside down: There’s a new theater, Tokyo Dome G-rosso, that is going to serve as an alternate venue because the Donki theater is overcrowded and there are too many fans who don’t fit in there. Also, tickets are becoming extra hard to obtain because of the ever growing fan base. What’s the point of having a group be called AKB48 if they won’t be located in Akihabara? XD I’m just joking about this one, it will never be the same as being in a tiny theater and getting eye contact and reactions from the girls, but it’ll get the job done, and people like us, foreign fans, stand a bigger chance at watching them live anyway, so w/e…

No more “gacha gacha” prizes, which means, no more 2-shot polaroids, 3-shot, 4-shot, and many many more random prizes. WOW. This is awful for all of us who always dreamed of going to the theater, meeting our favorite member and taking a picture with her. I’m glad I could meet Yuko while it was still possible, but still… it’s sad in a way.

On the other hand, I completely understand that with the growing popularity of the group, it was a really big burden for popular girls, who also have other jobs, to spend lots of extra hours in the theater meeting fans and decorating pictures. So, from a business standpoint, I can see the reason behind it. 

I don’t want to make any further comments about this issue, because I haven’t really wrapped my mind around it, so please bear with me.

Also, no more theater pictures: BLTs or Gacchas. Well, this doesn’t affect me at all since I’ve never bought any pics anyway, but it’s a low blow for people who collected them or traded them…

There must be more to this, and fans are very shocked and, for the most part, disgruntled. I  kind of think that we all saw this coming, and for the most part, I think that the less that the girls get overworked, the less likely it is for them to graduate soon, so it’s a good thing. Come on, let’s look on the bright side people.

On the other hand, losing the fan-idol interaction that set AKB apart in the idol world is a dangerous move, I think. It’s true that the group has gotten lots of new fans, but I think it’s the die hard wotas who support them the most. They are the ones who ran out and bought 50 copies of a single to shake hands with their favorite girl many many times, they were the ones who bought full boxes of gachas to get pictures and a chance to meet their favorite girl and so on. Casual fans might drop by the theater once or twice, but without the “meeting your idol” experience and closeness to the girls I doubt that a theater based group who performs the same list for almost a whole year will have lots of hope.

Let’s wait and see. As for me, as long as there are Stages, with great songs in them, I’m a fan. I must be in the 1% minority who isn’t into AKB for the cute girls but for the music and the good performances.