CK’s H!P Film Festival Pt. 3 (My new favorite h!p movie)

In this installment of the h!p film festival, CK watches and reviews “VICTORY Futto Girls no Seishun”. It’s a soccer themed movie featuring Ayaya a cheerleader. Admittedly, I’d never heard of this one, but if it’s CK’s new favorite h!p movie, I’d better watch it. I can’t help but wonder what Dexter would have thought of it though…

celestia_414 • Jul 15th, 2008
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Don’t We All Love Subliminal Messages and Hardworking Actors/Boyband Members?

Stereo Love suspects that the NewS/Kanjani member’s abusive habits may extend beyond his character in Last Friends. There’s some amusing evidence of his questionable behavior in NewS’ “Weeeeeek” PV.  Does that look like about the right number of ‘e’s to you?

celestia_414 • Jul 14th, 2008
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Doga-Doga 7 Tsunaga Momoko’s English language introduction

Morningtime brings us very cute clip of Momo introducing the Doga-Doga 7 site in English. I just love it when they try to speak English, don’t you?

celestia_414 • Jul 14th, 2008
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Newly Assessed Reviews: Entertainment Weekly Style

All of these reviews are short and sweet. Perfect for people who prefer to-the-point reviewing. The reviews are Amuro Namie’s “Play”, Utada Hikaru’s “Heart Station”, BOA’s “The Face”, Koda Kumi’s “Kingdom”, and Hamasaki Ayumi’s “Guilty”.

celestia_414 • Jul 10th, 2008
Avex Trax, Blogs • 1 Comment

Interesting Jpop in Anime

There are a few videos with some Jpop anime themes for you to check out. Even if you don’t like anime, you can’t deny that it plays a big role in introducing Westerners to Jpop, so these songs are probably worth paying attention to.

celestia_414 • Jul 10th, 2008
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What they really sayin’…H!P girls True Japan Story

Nekocafe takes a humorous look at some pictures of h!p with suggestions of what they might really be saying. Some of them are vastly inappropriate which only makes it better.

celestia_414 • Jul 7th, 2008
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The first survey I respond to (Andra’s Blog)
Moar Surveys? (Morning Kuri)
Survey SAYS! (Renai Project)
~Bikkuri Survey~ (Aoi Usagi)
I know this is long, but deal ;D (Hanachan)
Bikkuri Survey (LOVE Tantei)
A Very Bikkuri Survey (Time to Fall)
So what does Bikkuri mean anyways? I feel like I should know (Cutie Party)

Sorry for letting these back up. I was having some computer troubles. More responses, and more creative answers for you. Oh, and Misa, “Bikkuri” means “surprise”. Mostly I use it just because I like the way it sounds.

celestia_414 • Jul 3rd, 2008
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Mano Erina… Super idol in the Making

Very cute and simple. Shirow thinks it’s a great start for h!p’s newest soloist.

celestia_414 • Jun 29th, 2008
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My Answers (Bikkuri Project)
Survey Says (The J-Pex)
Pikkurishita! Save no Bikkuri!~ (Mayuge Beam)
Bikkuri Project Survey (Shanimuni Paradise)
Survey, yay: Bikkuri Project Version (Amasugita Kajitsu)
Bikkuri Project Survey (Slasha’s Tatami Mat)
Another Survey? (Raid My Minibar)
Another survey! YAY! (musical GAME)
~Bikkuri Project Survey~ (Midori’s J-pop Overanalyzations)

Yayayay! Lots of responses to my survey coming in already, and a lot of the answers are really interesting (IMHO).

celestia_414 • Jun 29th, 2008
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KAT-TUN’s Ueda to Hold Solo Concert (Tokyograph)

KAT-TUN’s Ueda Tatsuya’s Going Solo~!! (Shanimuni Paradise)

Tokyograph reports the details, and Tsukiki brings the fangirling. Reportedly all of the songs in the show will be written by Ueda himself. Well that’s not something you see idols do every day! This marks the second of the 4 “forgotten” KAT-TUN members to get some individual attention recently. Anyone want to place bets on who’s next, Taguchi or Tanaka?

celestia_414 • Jun 27th, 2008
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On Blogging: Time Well Spent

The post begins with a some ranting about the old too much to do and too little time problem, but CJ comes around to the main point here in the second half: where blogging fits into that busy schedule. More importantly, with so many other priorities, how high a priority can/should blogging be? It’s a somewhat “train of thought-ish” read, but one thing that comes through loud and clear is that writing is very important to CJ. I found the last paragraph in particular to be downright inspirational. Recommended.

celestia_414 • Jun 25th, 2008
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CK Goes to the Movies…H!P Style

This is the first in what promises to be a multi-part series of CK (and his cat) trying his hand (or paw) at being a movie critic., or, more specifically, a H!P movie critic. This installment features “silly” movies including Tokkaekko, Morning Cop, and the Minimoni movie. There need to be more h!p movies, don’t you think?

celestia_414 • Jun 25th, 2008
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JE Still Owning Oricon

Oroistme breaks down the half-yearly singles chart and finds that Johnny’s is dominating once again. In fact, a full 50% of the top 20 come from JE. Really though, is anyone very surprised by this?

celestia_414 • Jun 25th, 2008
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Cinderella CM (screencaps)

Love Tantei brings us a few pictures of Morning Musume in their Cinderella musical costumes. You can take a pretty good stab at who will be playing what role. As far as I can tell Ai=Cinderella, Risa=Prince Charming, Reina/Eri= Stepsisters, Jun/Lin/Koha= Some kind of palace staff, and Sayu/Aika= Courtly Forrest Fairys???

celestia_414 • Jun 25th, 2008
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Arashi- One Love [22nd Single]

Amaiyume reviews Arashi’s latest single, describing it as “made for smiling along to”, which strikes me as a pretty good description. This single is definitely a winner for Amaiyume. She even loves the bagpipes.

celestia_414 • Jun 24th, 2008
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Tokyograph- EXILE Dominates Music Sales for First Half of ‘08

Wiki- 2008 Oricon Top 100 Singles- Half Year

Wiki- 2008 Oricon Top 100 Albums- Half Year

Tokyograph summarizes the Oricon half year charts for 2008, noting that EXILE ranks in first for total sales. Other top sellers were Kobukuro, KAT-TUN, Hikaru Utada, and Hideaki Tokunaga. I’ve also linked the ppn articles with the charts for top singles and albums in case you’re interested.

celestia_414 • Jun 23rd, 2008
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Three New Hello! Pro Egg Members

All we’ve got so far is their names, but I’m looking forward to finding more out about these girls.

celestia_414 • Jun 22nd, 2008
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Yuichi Nakamaru’s First Solo Stage

Tokyograph reports. Really? Nakamaru?? He’s like the least popular member. Perhaps he’s hoping to change that? Well, good luck to him.

celestia_414 • Jun 20th, 2008
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Tsuji Makes An Appearance

Strawberrie reports that Nozomi Tsuji has resurfaced at Yuko Nakazawa’s birthday concert. She brought her a cake and sang happy birthday! We can only hopes that this is a sign that she’ll be returning to show business soon. Seems like all of h!p’s prodigal daughters are returning lately. There was KonKon last year, then Makoto, then Kaori, and now (maybe) Tsuji. Even Maki and Aibon have recently announced their return to show business, all be it not with h!p.

celestia_414 • Jun 19th, 2008
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Sometimes, Utaban isn’t all that boring

Raid likes his Tackey & Tsubasa shirtless and cuddling in a bathtub. How about you?

celestia_414 • Jun 19th, 2008
Blogs, Eyecandy, Johnny's • 1 Comment

Morning Musume’s Event V “Resonant Blue” Delivers a Stylish Cover & a “One Cut Dance Version”

MorningBerryz really loves this cover art, so be prepared for more eyecandy than you can shake a stick at. As usual for MorningBerryz blog, it’s a very thorough summary of exactly what you get with this DVD.

celestia_414 • Jun 19th, 2008
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The heart of the matter

Pengie needs our help! Does anyone recognize this singer?

celestia_414 • Jun 19th, 2008
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Great Activity

A track-by-track review with a few downloads available. This album earns very high marks, so it’s probably worth checking out.

celestia_414 • Jun 19th, 2008
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Taking Back Things That Were Never Ours to Begin

Vee responds to an article by AiWish dealing the concept of “wota”. It’s an interesting look at how what once was, and largely still is, a negative term has been subjugated and turned into something that people belonging to that group may be proud to call themselves. There’s a bit of ranting in there about the “more knowledgeable about Japan than thou” crowd (it’s pronounced Mahn-gah, not Main-guh you noob! *rolls eyes*), but it all comes back to the the idea of “the Western Wota” and accepting the fact that if you’re reading this, you probably are one. Recommended Reading!

celestia_414 • Jun 17th, 2008
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Countdown! The Top 100 H!P PVs: 60-56

I’ll admit, I had lost faith that Kirarin☆Snow ☃’s countdown would ever be completed, but I’m pleased to see that she has decided to continue. Her creative interpretations of these PVs might be too smart for me, but they’re certainly amusing. Recommended.

celestia_414 • Jun 17th, 2008
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Do They Know We’re Listening?

CJ considers each Musume’s answer to the question, “If you were asked to release one Morning Musume song overseas, which song would it be?” He touches briefly on the topic of his title “do they know we’re listening?” opening the door for more on that later. I, for one, would be very interested to know the answer to that question.

celestia_414 • Jun 16th, 2008
Blogs, Hello! Project • 2 Comments

6 Gatsu no Kaijitsu Cover

Dang. I’ve never seen Airi look so mature.

celestia_414 • Jun 16th, 2008
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Happy Music

Julia shares her thoughts on the “happy” genre of music, sorting out what she likes from what she doesn’t. Then she shares some happy news of her own and the music that expresses her current feelings. Listen to every song that she mentions if you want to turn around a bad mood or feel like celebrating something, because this is a whole lot of happy all in one place. What makes me the happiest is that there is no mention of certain Morning Musume member’s third solo single.

celestia_414 • Jun 16th, 2008
Blogs, Hello! Project, Johnny's • 1 Comment

An actual entry about Johnny’s

NewS in particular seems to be her gateway drug.

When I heard songs by male groups I used to roll my eyes in disgust- then what happened? Along came a good-looking guy…

Iza04 relates the story of how she became a NewS fangirl, leading her into interest in Arashi and KAT-TUN as well. I say it’s time for any of you who are still resisting to follow her example and give in to the pretty boys. Why yes, I do have an evil ulterior motive here.

celestia_414 • Jun 16th, 2008
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Hello!Project 2008 Winter 3rd Concert: Kettei! Haro Pro Award ‘08

Madara completes the H!P Winter 2008 trilogy with this review, finding a lot to like, “It’s pretty much one solid act after another”, but a few issues with the venue and camera-work. The review touches on all aspects of the concert, including the backstage footage. Recommended

celestia_414 • Jun 15th, 2008
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Hirai Says The Darndest Things

I’m not going to spoil it and tell you what Raid’s beloved Ken-kun said, but let’s just say that it’s not exactly the nicest of father’s day presents. As usual, Raid’s snarky commentary is snappy and laugh-inducing.

celestia_414 • Jun 14th, 2008
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Arashi- One Love

Oroitsme quite enjoys the song, especially the chorus. It’s full of love, rainbows, and sappiness, so pretty much par for the course for Arashi.

celestia_414 • Jun 14th, 2008
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Thirty-one Thoughts on a Lot of Stuff

From serious to silly and from Johnny’s to Hello Project, but mostly silly and mostly Hello Project.

celestia_414 • Jun 14th, 2008
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Tackey & Tsubasa- 恋詩-コイウタ / PROGRESS

A nice, thorough review of the dynamic duo’s latest single, a double A side. Amaiyume gives both high marks, noting that the songs complement each other very well.

celestia_414 • Jun 11th, 2008
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In Which the Japanese Entertainment Industry Is A Science Experiment…Not

Kimitsu begins this piece with some ranting on how scandals are handled in Japan, along with the justified plea to “stop shoving it in my face”. Then she segues into the use of variety shows in Japan to showcase the imperfections of their stars, making them more human, but in a controlled manner. That’s where it really gets interesting for me. The willingness of Japan’s stars to play stupid games, endure ridiculous “punishments”, and engage in other silly shenanigans is one of my favorite parts of being a fan of Japanese performers. Our A-list celebrities wouldn’t be caught dead on a game show with meat strapped to their heads in order to tempt a large iguana, and that’s a crying shame. An interesting read. Recommended.

celestia_414 • Jun 11th, 2008
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Hey!Say!JUMP Sings For “Kung Fu Panda”

Hot on the heels of “Dreams Come True” the youngest debuted Johnnys are set to release their third major single entitled “Your Seed”. I can’t be the only one whose mind immediately jumped to a horribly inappropriate interpretation of that title, right?

celestia_414 • Jun 11th, 2008
Johnny's, News • No Comments

Takahashi Ai Can’t Stop Touching Her Face

You know, Ai-chan’s little face touching habit never bothered me until this PV, but I think sticking that hat on her head somehow made her face even more irresistible to her hands. Anyway, Vee likes the song, finding that, for once, all the details came together well.

celestia_414 • Jun 2nd, 2008
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Tsunku on the Musical

Strawberrie shares a translated message from Tsunku with his thoughts on Morning Musume’s upcoming Cinderella musical. There’s also a picture of a very cute card, signed by the Momusu, congratulating Tsunku on the birth of his children. I just wish it was a bigger picture.

celestia_414 • Jun 2nd, 2008
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Momusu visiting Hawaii in September

Morning Berryz Blog shares the news that Morning Musume will be having another fanclub tour in Hawaii this year. The downside is, though they will be tantalizingly close, American fans won’t be able to attend. The upside is that lots of merchandise will be available, and you can count on new pictures of Aika in a swimsuit.

celestia_414 • Jun 2nd, 2008
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No Korean Musume for now

Bad news for everyone hoping for a Korean addition to Morning Musume. Looks like plans have fallen through. Chibon also has some reports about the concerts in Korea, and it sounds like they were a success.

celestia_414 • Jun 1st, 2008
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Thoughts on Recent News

Some short opinions on all the latest goings-on in hello project.

celestia_414 • Jun 1st, 2008
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Kami-sama, Kasa wo In Sasete Kudasai

Hocchan has a short review of the 2nd installment of moutube fairies on haromoni. I especially like the screen-cap of JunJun and Cabbage-san.

celestia_414 • Jun 1st, 2008
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I’ve Compared the Red Sox and J-Idols So Many Times There Is Now a Tag For It

I can’t help but wonder what Number 46 (or Jacoby-chan as Hana calls her) would think if she found out about IW’s growing obsession with her. Read the post to find out why Hana calls her “Jacoby-chan”.

celestia_414 • Jun 1st, 2008
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Talk About Bad Timing

Apparently AKB48 is planning to expand into Sakae district in Nagoya with a new project named SKE48, and Cat is understandably concerned. Will girls from AKB48 be deported to Nagoya to join this new project? Will they actually audition 48 new girls? Will anyone actually be able to remember the names of 48 more girls? Is there any chance of this project being a success? On the other hand, I’ve heard that trying to get a ticket for an AKB48 show is getting to be kind of ridiculous, so maybe opening a new theater does make some sense.

celestia_414 • Jun 1st, 2008
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PUZZLE! TIME Solutions!

Looks like this puzzle was a bit more challenging than the last one. Congratulations to the winner!

celestia_414 • May 30th, 2008
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Berryz New Profile Picture

Fresh from the official h!p website. Presumably these outfits are for their new single. They’re cute and colorful, though I really want to know what Miya’s hat says. Kinda looks like “Berry Stick”

celestia_414 • May 30th, 2008
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New Star Fan Photos

Nyago shares a link to lots of fan photos and short video clips of the Taiwan h!p New Star auditions. Looks like there are lots of cuties going through. I really hope that footage of the actual audition show will also make its way to the English-speaking community.

celestia_414 • May 27th, 2008
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Tegomass- Ai Ai Gasa

It seems that Tegoshi Yuya and Masuda Takahisa, of Johnny’s group NewS, are set to release their 3rd single. The duo formed when NewS was on hiatus to reflect on their member’s misdeeds (go sit in the corner and think about what you did young man!) due to two members getting caught drinking underage. The interesting thing about Tegomass is that they’ve continued to release singles as a duo since then. Subgroups that release multiple singles are a real rarity in Johnny’s. In this post, Oroitsme favorably reviews both the single and the PV.

celestia_414 • May 23rd, 2008
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Puzzle Time!

I’m excited to report that Kawaiirrhea has made a new h!p puzzle. This time it involves identifying CDs, and if you need extra incentive, there’s a $20 prize for the winner.

celestia_414 • May 23rd, 2008
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What Sakakibara Yui Thinks

Santos shares a news item about a Japanese singer/voice actress who publicly stated that she dislikes wota-geis and demands that her fans stop doing them at her concerts. She doesn’t pull any punches in her criticism, so while one part of me wants to cheer her on, another part of me worries about how this will affect her career.

celestia_414 • May 21st, 2008
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