Rottara Rottara PV (Midori’s J-pop Overanalyzations)
Lotta Love Lotta Love for Buono!’s Rottara Rottara (H!P Fangirling like Nobody’s Business)
Lotta Love Lotta Love ! BUONO! Rock Way ! (hello!musume)
Lotta Love, Lotta Love Full PV (Hello!Blog)
Buono - Rottara Rottara video (Morningtime)
It’s Buono! … but not as we know it (Wotaku Now!)

Corny title, I know, but I HAD to do it… XD Anyway, the PV for Buono!’s upcoming single has been out for about a week now, and lots of reaction have already surfaced.

Midori goes over the amazing and the not so amazing. It looks like Midori’s a big fan of the song… The PV, not so much. She goes into quite the rant touching on various aspects of why this was a “terror of a PV”.

DJ_MaiMai of H!P Fangirling is a little confused with how to write out the song title, but that doesn’t stop her from loving the song. Though, like Midori, DJ_MaiMai has quite a few issues with the PV.

On the opposite end, Nakane of hello!musume loves the song, as well as the PV. She’s loving Miya’s hairstyle, and I have to agree! “That girl is so HAWT !”

Tom of Hello!Blog is a little disappointed in the low budget of the PV, but finds that the trio of Buono! can pretty much do no wrong. Being a hardcore Miyabi fan (obviously) I’m a little disappointed in her placing for his favourite for this PV, but if you’re going on a cute factor… Well, Miya’s hot in this PV (as mentioned by Nakane). Enough said. XD Tom mentions that he originally wasn’t that taken with this song, and I have to agree. But man, is this song ever addictive. Like Tom, I’m now in love with this single.

morningtime makes a comparison between Buono!’s pv and the new group Twe’lv’s PV for Seishun Oden. morningtime hopes for Buono!’s continued success in sales, for they like the way Buono! is able to pull off their style without looking like a “manga cartoon gone wrong or just a wota’s wet dream”. morningtime goes over why they think Buono!’s the best group in H!P at the moment, comparing their singles to the recent releases of other H!P groups… But I must ask - what happened to C-ute in these comparisons?

Shirow of Wotaku now is loving the new song, but is wondering where the edginess of Buono!’s style went with this PV. Unlike the other posts, who all just have the PV embedded, Shirow goes a step further and includes quite a few screen caps, showcasing how lovely the girls are looking in the PV.

So it looks like Buono!’s latest song it getting a lotta love, while the PV is evoking a little less enthusiasm.

Momoko ♥ mouse

Shirow discovered a video clip featuring Tsugunaga Momoko and Kumai Yurina of Berryz Koubou. It’s definitely an amusing clip, but at the same time, it’s hard to believe that these girls would be so amused by a mighty mouse… Have they never seen a wireless mouse before? o_O

Yurina gets owned by a tomato
Berryz are bigger than Jesus

In an older post, Shirow takes a look an episode of Berikyuu where Berryz Koubou members Shimizu Saki and Kumai Yurina have to eat some food that they randomly choose out of a box. The Berryz Caption does quiet well with her challenge, but the gentle giant of Hello! Project doesn’t fair quite as well. I just have to say, I’m with Yurina on this one. Tomatoes do not sit well with me. I probably wouldn’t cry eating one, but I’d most likely be “recoil[ing] in pure disgust” like Yurina…

In this more recent post, Shirow posts photos and a video of Berryz Koubou arriving in Korea for the Asia Song Festival. I’ve watched a few videos of their arrival, and boy did they ever get a massive welcome from their Korean fans. The girls are all looking lovely, but Shirow singles one girl out, and I have to agree with him… “just LOOK how stunningly radiant Miyabi is looking …”

Helium + Power + Finesse…Hello! Project’s J-Pop utopia rolls on! XD

Recommended reading. MorningBerryz is catching up on all the recent J-pop releases that have been piling up. In this review, we get MB’s view on Buono!’s latest single (and my favourite one thus far) - ‘Gachinko de Ikou!’

Before getting into the single itself, MB shares his thoughts on the new Shugo Chara Egg unit, and what that may mean for Buono! as a group. While I have no problems with the type of music Buono! has been releasing and I’ve never really felt like the anime tie-in has held them back, I certainly wouldn’t be complaining to see another side of Buono!, for the possibilities are endless with this powerhouse trio.

However, I do have a question about MB’s breakdown of Buono: “Helium + Power + Finesse = Buono!” I get who the helium is (that one’s a no brainer) but who’s the power and who’s the finesse? I’d say both Airi and Miyabi have a good amount of both, though I’d probably give Miya the edge in the power department.

MB goes back in time and shares another group under the Pony Canyon label who enjoyed success in the late 80’s to mid 90’s - Ribbon. He draws comparisions between the two groups and shares some audio files to give us a taste of the similarities.

MB takes a detailed look into the Single and Single V, sharing screen caps, scans, audio and video of pretty much every thing included on the CDs and DVDs. As always, MB keeps a wonderful running commentary as he shares each piece with us. The girls are looking absolutely gorgeous, and I totally agree with MB. It would be a dream come true if the girls actually took up instruments… <3

Finally, I just have to say that I never figured out what the name of that one game the girls play in the PV is (the one where the Buono! character’s head flies off the barrel). But, I think MB’s description suits me just fine: “pop goes the tennis ball head thing…”

Berryz Koubou - 5 (FIVE) [5th Studio Album] (Amai Wana)
[Album Review] Berryz Koubou - 5(Five) (Wings of my Heart)
Berryz Koubou 5th Album [5(Five)] review (Sazaki’s H!P Weblog)

Recommended reading. More blogs have their thoughts to share on Berryz Koubou’s 5th album and it looks like there’s a positive response going around.

amaiyume of Amai Wana is generally impressed with Berryz’s 5th album, finding only a few weak points. amaiyume goes through the entire album, giving a rundown the strengths and weakness of each song. Overall, amaiyume found that the girls gave strong vocal performances, however some of the instrumentals/melodies just weren’t memorable for amaiyume.

Julia of Wings of my Heart chimes in with her thoughts and surprises even herself with her desire to write a review on BK’s latest album. It looks like Berryz Koubou were able to bring themselves out of the rut they settled into in Julia’s H!P world - a rut caused by their recent string of childish releases. Julia takes a detailed look into the songs that have really caught her attention, with some passing thoughts on the rest of the album. Like amaiyume, Julia find that the vocals are pretty strong on the album. And Julia, I totally feel your pain…

…Okay, and I wish there was more Miya, once I start thinking about it. I really love her. I might just need some quality Buono! time right about now.

Sazaki is very impressed with this album. They go through each track and give a score out of 10. While not particularly in depth, you can feel Sazaki’s enthusiasm for the album. The one downer looks to be the Special Generation remix, which they find sounds like a fan-remix). While I agree with Sazaki that BK’s 5th album “overcame and surpassed C-ute’s album”, I can’t quite agree with their following conclusion:

I must say that this is the best Berryz Koubou album, if not best in all Hello!Project.

The best in all of Hello! Project? That’s 10+ years of material to go up against, with albums by Golden Age Momusu and Matsuura Aya in her prime… That’s definitely a bold statement to make. However, to each their own. XD

My most precious Buono!

Zush is savouring his autograhped Buono! poster that recently came in the mail, taking pictures of each member’s signiture design. Momo’s is pretty stellar, what with her big face and beady eyed little drawing covering poster space.

Too Long Have I Been Neglecting Buono

Recommended reading. After putting it aside for some time, Celestia finally gets around to taking a good look at Buono! and sets out to determine which of Buono!’s 4 singles is the “Buonoest” of them all.

This is quite an enjoyable read with some very amusing categories, for example: “Category 2: Largeness of Miyabi’s hair (PV)”. It’s quite sad that Miya failed Celestia in Gachinko’s PV. I realize it’s not big hair… But… Man was Miya looking gorgeous in that PV, large hair or not. The hotness factor should outweight largeness of hair… But that’s just me, and I’m slightly biased. XD

Celestia goes through a total of 10 categories and through thorough analysis comes to her final conclusion… Which single do you think is the Buonoest, and do you agree with Celestia’s results?

Slam that bass Baby!

Recommended ogling. zush shares screencaps from Part 2 of Buono!’s Making of Gachinko Ikou! from their latest Single V. I must say that Miya’s looing smashing in all of them. Also, where did this hat of Airi’s come from and why wasn’t she wearing it in the PV?

Buono! Days - Hip Wrestling

Zush gives us an amazing preview of the new Buono! FC DVD, Buono! Days.  Hip Wrestling?  Are you kidding me?  Can I be a member of the Fan Club…Please???

If you are the type of person who enjoys watching cute J-pop Idols bashing their butts together, then this post and DVD might just be for you.  Zush has a brief synopsis, and plenty of eyecandy to document the action.  Who won the match?

All I can say is when Buono! decides to “wrestle”, everyone wins!

[Review] Oh, we have new Berryz covers?

Vee has a blast going inch by inch over each version of “5″, and no member is safe from the line of fire of Vee’s snark!  Momo’s hair, Risako’s hat (or Balloon, not sure) and Yurina’s chest are some of the highlights.  I’ve never seen an album cover put under the microscope quite like this!

And my favorite part is Chinami and Maasa’s missing legs on the regular edition.  That is great!  Isn’t anyone working in the “quality control” department at UFA?  Recommended.

Girls browsing The Web

The girls of Buono! take a break from a “Gachinko de Ikou!” photoshoot to browse a very special blog. But how in the world did they get Internet Explorer 7 working on their MacBook?

Buono! And Their New Kick-Ass Single, Gachinko de Ikou!” (CK’s H!P Blog)
..::Is This the End of Buono!::.. (Eternal ~♥~)
Gachinko de Ikou! (Shanimuni Paradise)

Recommended reading. CK has noticed that recently, H!P PVs have been appearing much closer to the actual release date of the single than they had been earlier in the year. I had actually been wondering what was taking the PV so long to come out before it appeared on Dohhhup! CK wasn’t originally too taken to this PV, but after a few plays, it grew on him, though he definitely seems to enjoy the song itself much more than the PV.

amyrulez of Eternal ~♥~ is liking the single, though he is does miss the mellow interlude found in previous Buono! releases. He enjoys the PV quite a bit, loving the more serious side of Airi, the constant bubbly Momoko and the perfection that is Miya (got that right! XD). However, I must say that I’m quite jealous that amyrulez can’t remember the last time he was bitten by a moqsuito. I was bitten more than 5 times just yesterday…

Tsukiki of Shanimuni Paraside has a new favourite Buono! PV. She likes the games, the dance and that there’s an actual band in this one. I understand that in ‘Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!’ they were just pretending to play, the ‘Honto no Jibun’ PV had a live band… The live band has been mentioned in a few of these reviews, and it just seems like ‘Honto no Jibun’ just keeps being overlooked. Tsukiki goes on to compliment how amazing the girls look in this video and how Momoko is acceptable to her in this video. I’d have to agree with her and say that it is Berryz that is keeping Momoko filled with helium. I don’t quite understand why they won’t let her sing normally in Berryz releases.

Berikyuu! 8/6/08- Maimichan & Momo perform Watanabe Misato’s “My Revolution.”

The format change of Berikyuu! into what is essentially Uta Doki! Pop Classics has MorningBerryz writing about the show. In this episode, Yajima Maimi and Tsugunaga Momoko combine to cover Watanabe Misato’s “My Revolution”. MorningBerryz notes that it is a challenge for Maimi and Momoko to cover this song, but end up working well together in the performance.

Gachinko de Ikou! PV (H!P Fangirling like Nobody’s Business)
Buono! - Gachinko de Ikou PV (Mayuge Beam!)
Gachinko de Ikou! Full PV by Buono! (Love マシーン)
Gachinko de Ikou! PV (「☆☆☆」)
I wasn’t gonna do this, but… (Aoi♥Usagi)
The Shifty World of ‘Buono!’ (itsumo genki)

Recommended reading. The PV for Buono!’s upcoming single has been up for a few days now, and many bloggers have something to say about it.

DJ_MaiMai at H!P Fangirling is absolutely loving the PV, though I got a little bit confused with the reference to a having non-H!P people being featured as a first… Has Buono!’s first single already been forgotten? XD As for a girl swooning when she sees a hot girl dress like a guy and pull it off, I had a male friend who was gay swoon over a female friend dressed as a male greaser… Opposite genders, but same principle. XD

James at Mayuge Beam! is worried about Buono! breaking up with the 1st season of Shugo Chara! coming to an end, but as mentioned in an earlier post here, Shugo Chara!’s going for a second season. He takes a look at the new arrangement of the girls in this PV (ie. Miya’s not in the middle here) and uses her role in previous PVs to explain her movement to front and centre, goes into a synopsis of the PV and takes a look at each of the girls. I was a little confused in his talk about Momoko… “She can NOT look cute EVER.” Is a word missing in this sentence? o_O And yes, Miya is totally hot in this PV…

markusantoine of Love マシーン has the PV embedded, and is amused by Momoko proclaiming herself as the leader of Buono! However, I have seen an interview with Buono! somewhere where Miyabi and Airi both said that Momoko was the leader (even though Airi jokingly [I think] said that Miya should really be the leader).

Bri of 「☆☆☆」 likes the mellow rock feel of the song, and proclaims it her new favourite Buono! single. She gives a list of what was written on the dart board and what each girl landed on during the dart throwing. I don’t quite see what she saw in regards to Miyabi’s attitude in the PV, but she’s loving Airi here (and in Buono! in general).

Usa-chan of Aoi♥Usagi feels obliged to review Buono!’s PV, for in the reviews she had read prior to her post, no one had mentioned a specific section that stood out to her. She looks at each of the girls and explains the role each girl plays to become the cohesive awesomeness that is Buono! She also goes over the dance and concept of the PV before giving us a screencap of why she wrote this review… I must say it’s a very cute screenshot.

isilwentari of itsumo genki loves the PV and the nonsensical pseudoplot. Buono! has not been a constant winner for isilwentari, but it looks like everything done in this release was done right. However, can you really blame them for mentioning “Kokoro no tamago” in multiple songs? If you’ve watched any Shugo Chara!, I don’t think anyone would question it. I mean, they’re a group that was made to sing for this anime… You need to make the references in the songs for it to stay relevant.

Gachinko de Ikou PV

Wendy of Renai Revolution 21 uses her loveable comedic touch to review the Gachinko de Ikou PV. She starts off by showing us how far Buono! has come in such a short amount of time, and I must say I am shocked having not thought about it that much. She moves on to explain how she feels about the PV in a short but effective way. I, personally, am really enjoying Buono’s switch from punk/pop to a more simple pop-style. It really does suit them better.

Shugo Chara! Magical Girl Anime’s 2nd Year Green-Lit

Obviously, most H!P fans know that Buono!’s latest PV is available for viewing, and multiple PV reactions have been posted. One thing I’ve noticed is that many people are fearing the end of Buono! because the anime’s supposedly coming to an end. That made me look in the archives of IW, and it seems this topic was never covered (this was announced on July 20) but…

Shugo Chara! has been given the green light for a second year. I haven’t heard any word of a new group being brought in to do the music for series, so I’d have to assume that Buono! will continue on doing their thing. Hope that helps to reassure Buono! fans.

Gachinko de Ikou! Full PV  (Hello! Blog)

Buono! - Gachinko de Ikou!  (Wotaku Now!)

I would play Buono! Pop-up Pirate  (ChanceChanceBoogie)

The full version of Buono!’s new single, Gachinko de Ikou! premiered yesterday.  While there hasn’t been an avalanche of blog reviews, the initial reaction has been positive overall.

Paul of Hello! Blog feels that Buono!’s perfect combination of fun, humour, cuteness and sexiness sets them apart from the other H!P units.  He also notices a comedic dynamic that totally had me thinking of the Three Stooges (Miyabi-Moe, Airi-Larry, Momo-Curly, or Shempf)  After giving it a few listens he feels this might be their best release to date.

Shirow feels the PV sticks to the usual Buono! formula.  Highlights for him include Airi’s hotpants, Miyabi’s hotness in general, and Momoko’s dance routine which he titles the “special butt bash attack”

Max loves the song and the PV, but is troubled by the possible symbolism of the chalkboards at the end of the video.  Could the coming end of the anime Buono! is associated with possibly mark the end of the group as well?

Personally I love the song and PV  But Max’s “buzzkill” at the end of his post now has me worried.  If UFA and Pony Canyon are smart, Buono! will be sticking around for a while.

Miya rehearsing for CM + One important reminder
Sporty Berries

Recommended ogling. Our zush has a lot of screencaps of Miyabi from the Hello! Project DVD Magazine Vol. 15. I love Miya in this outfit. That hat is so cute on her! I need to watch this at some point. I love silly Miya!

Up next, zush gets ready for the Olympics which start up in a few days by posting photos of the Berryz girls from the 2006 H!P Sports Festival. The girls look so young (and cute, of course)!

Buono! - Gachinko do Ikou! (radio preview) (Wotaku Now!)
Buono! 4th Single : Gachinko de Ikou! (Full Rip) (hello!musume)
Gachinko de Ikou! Radio Rip (Stardust)

A radio rip of Buono!’s 4th single “Gachinko do Ikou!” is up for your listening pleasure. I personally haven’t listened to it yet, but that’s because I don’t want to taint the lovely Miya’s voice with 64 kbps quality sound… That just won’t do. However, for those who are impatient and can’t wait for better quality, the blogs that have posted these songs seem to be enjoying it. I know I liked what I heard from the Shugo Chara ending theme.

And yay! Larger versions of the covers! I just have to say that Miya’s hair and outfit are awesome!

Berryz Art - Natsu Matsuri
Yuke Yuke poster

Zush has more Berryz art to share with us. Here, he’s got a drawing by Maasa to celebrate the summer festival season.

Up next, zush has received his Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance promotional poster. I really wonder why these outfits never made it to the PV, for I love these outfits 100 times better than either of the outfits the girls actually wear in the PV. zush also hands out some awards to the girls based on their presence (can’t really use the word performance here.. XD) in the poster.

They Shoot Saki’s, Don’t They? ~ The Nakayoshi Battle Concert

Recommended reading. CK’s copy of the battle concert has arrived and he quickly gets down to business, determining who won the battle. He breaks the concert down into rounds, tallying winners for each round. Leading into his review, he points out that though his favourite H!P Kid is from the C-ute camp, as a whole, he prefers Berryz Koubou over C-ute… How will this affect his judging throughout the concert?

One thing that CK mentions is the bashing that the youngest Berryz member, Risako, often gets.

“She gets bashed a lot on the posts. A lot more criticism than she deserves. Jeez, she’s just fourteen years old for cripes sake! Give her a break.”

I’m guilty of Risako bashing at times, but using her age as a factor to defend her shaky performances is a little bit weak, seeing as she performed “Very Beauty” with her good buddy Airi who just so happens to be the same age as little Risako, and as CK puts it, “Airi was just amazing on this song!!!”

Overall, this is a fun, enthusiastic and amusing review. Want to know who won the battle? You’ll just have to read on to find out!

Saki, you sexy beast!

Recommended reading. Usa-chan has a track by track review of the H!P Kids battle concert, and if you couldn’t tell by the title of her post, she was loving the performance of “Natsu Doki Lipstick”. I’ve noticed that there seems to be a concensus on Chinami owning Dschinghis Khan, whether it be in the PV or in live performances.

What amused me in this review was her monitoring of Miyabi’s hairdo. As much as I love Miya, I have to agree with Usa-chan… Her hair was something else in this concert… The first time I saw her hair, I cringed. That couldn’t have been fun to comb out afterwards. XD

7 + 7 = 14
Monkey Fever

Zush has another fan art piece at his blog, and we’re dealing with a group picture involving Berryz Koubou and C-ute. The picture’s pretty neat, actually, although I couldn’t tell who was who half the time. I am, as you all know, a dumbass though, so it could just be me.

An earlier post sees Zush talking about the details of BK’s Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance first week sales, and there’s a little room for him to wonder what direction the H!P group might be taking and what it could mean in the long run. It’s only really a passing thought, but it might be worth considering. Anyway, the joy from the post derives from three screen captures of Momo pulling faces in that monkey suit.

~Berryz Kamen vs Cutie Ranger~ Concert Review

Recommended reading. Our Celestia has watched the H!P Kids concert extravaganza and was not disappointed. She likes that the battle concert places the two groups on a level playing field, even though Berryz will always have seniority over C-ute simply because they debuted as a group a few years earlier.

Celestia makes a passing comment about whether the Berryz girls are truly happy for their H!P Kids group counterpart, and it’s a legitimate question… I’ve often wondered about that myself.

Celestia then goes over the concert track by track, giving the highs and lows of each number. And, as in her usual concert review fashion, she names a “winner” for each performance. Who comes out on top in this concert? You’ll have to read on to find out!

Berikyuu! Idol The Final Results! ^-^

MorningBerryz closes out the Berikyuu! Idol contest and announces both the winning idol and the lucky participant who correctly guessed both the finalists and the eventual winner. Am I surprised at who won? Yes, and no… But you know, now that I think about it, I don’t think I ever got around to voting. The final two performances really left me torn on who to vote for… XD

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?

Momoko’s On A Costume Hunt. . .

Our own maiZe has been giggling while browsing just released “2008 Spring Document Berryz Kobo” photo book. That’s the one which has lot of snaps taken in back stage situations during BK’s & C-ute’s battle concert tour. When you see Momo and Yurina next to each other you just start wondering is latter one still shooting up. Or is Momo shrinking?

Berikyuu! Idol “The Final Two.”

Berikyuu Idol is back with the final showdown! Starting with 14 girls, we’re down to 1 girl from each of the H!P Kids groups. With my favourite girl out of the running, I’m quite interested to see how this final vote will go. I’m still trying to decide who to vote for. Voting is open until midnight of July 11, so you’ve got some time to make your choice… Who will be the first Berikyuu Idol? Suzuki Airi or Tsugunaga Momoko?

Berikyuu! Idol Week 3 results show. ^-^

MorningBerryz is back with the results for week 3 of Berikyuu! Idol. This week’s elimination brings it down to the final 2 girls fighting for the title of Berikyuu! Idol. Who was able to hold on and make it to the final battle? Read on to find out!

Berryz Art - The real monkeys
Gettin’ hungry now?

zush has some Berryz art to show us. Now the monkeys he’s got here are monkeys that I can deal with. zush also gives a background into the Chinese horoscope sign that some Berryz members fall under - the Water Monkey.

Up next, zush has some photos from a new photobook which has just been released with backstage pictures from the Berryz vs. C-ute battle concert. There’s a C-ute sighting on BK International! And man, all that food looks really appetizing… What’s there to eat around here?

Some Berry ♥ C-ute visual screens!…and a gift from Ohta. ^-^
It’s Aloha Friday! Hello! Project Style!…(hmm just how well does your favorite H!P girl flirt?!)

Recommended reading/ogling. First up, MorningBerryz has received a shipment from Ohta and man, oh man, MB got some C-ute and Berryz Koubou visual screens. I’m partial to the Maimi one, but 4 visual screens is impressive. He can have a mini H!P Kids party. In addition to the screens, Ohta also sent along a few UFA photos as a gift.

In the second post, MorningBerryz takes us back to the summer of 2002 and the Morning Musume Hawaiian releases. The Hawaiian versions of Morning Musume songs are so summery and so relaxing that reading this article makes me want to pull them out and really get into the mood of summer with some Hawaiian-flavoured sounds. MB closes out the post with screencaps from the Morning Musume Single Medley~Hawaiian~ pv. Which H!P girl has the best flirting ability? Who can sweep the ukelele playing Boo Takagi off his feet?

W.T.F.G. 須藤茉麻!!! (CK’s H!P Blog)
Do the Saru! (Berryz Kobo International)
Berryz Koubou Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance PV (Mayuge Beam!)
Berryz Kobo - Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance! (Wotaku Now!)
Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance PV (Let’s Laugh! Hello Project)
Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance Full PV (Hello!Blog)
I like monkeys too, Berryz! But.. (70%) (musical GAME)

Recommended reading. Berryz Koubou’s latest PV continues to be a hot topic as more bloggers chime in with their thoughts.

Chris of CK’s H!P Blog is concerned with the direction that Berryz Koubou seems to be taking. He associates this latest release with something that Koharu could do… That’s a scary thought for me. However, he takes solace in the fact that there are a lot of Maasa sightings in the PV. Though, if I were a big fan of a less ‘in the spotlight’ member, I’d be a little disgruntled that the PV she gets more screen time is one where she’s dressed up on a monkey costume. However, Chris finds Maasa cute in the monkey outfit, so I guess it’s working for him.

Our zush clues us into the fact (for those of us who didn’t know) that Risako’s favourite animal is a monkey. Do you think she enjoyed the theme of this single? zush is not at all impressed with the outfits for this PV, but he’s quite taken with the song itself.

James of Mayuge Beam! likes almost everything about this single… The one exception is the monkey outfits. In his eyes, Maasa and Chinami steal the show for this PV.

Shirow of Wotaku Now! is on the same wavelength as James, and also sees Maasa and Chinami as the stars of this PV. However, he is not in agreement regarding the monkey suits, for he LOVES them: “The monkey suits multiply the awesomeness by a thousand”.

Beth of Let’s Laugh! Hello Project is another fan who is enjoying this release. We seem to have quite a few bloggers in this batch who peg Maasa and Chinami as the top Berryz in this PV. Captain also caught her eye, possibly because of her “un-captain like-ness”. I’m not quite sure if that is something that should be taken as a compliment or an insult towards Captain… It really depends on how you feel like reading it. XD

Tom of Hello!Blog is loving the funny, laid-back feel of ‘Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance’, for he feels that H!P releases have been a tad too serious lately. Berryz is bringing back the fun to H!P in his eyes. Again, Maasa and Chinami are two of the standout performers for Tom, but he also sees Yurina sharing the spotlight in this PV.

Our freehummingbird of musical GAME is not quite impressed with the single, but I don’t quite get how this could rank in with 70% if the “PV is a stink bag”. The grading here was a little confusing to me because while the analysis of certain sections were almost completely negative (ex. fashion sense and choreography), they still got 70-75% grades.

It was four years from now

Recommended viewing. Our zush has some adorable scans of Berryz Koubou from their debut year, back in 2004. I’m hesitant to recommend this as ogling, but it’s definitely some nice eye candy. You can see how much these girls have grown up in the past 4 years, even though their latest release may be trying to bring their personal growth back to the level which it was at when they first formed the group.

Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance, AKA the greatest video in existance. (Renai Revolution 21)
Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance PV (★ Morning Musume Again ☆)
Monkies Like This (Shanimuni Paradise)
It was the best of times, it was the blurst of times (True Life Seek)
Yuke Yuke Monkey Fail…I mean, Dance - Berryz Koubou (ºAbsol-ute ºC-ute)
Going bananas for “Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance” (I couldn’t help myself…) (Kira Kira Bomb)

Recommended reading. Here’s the next set of ‘Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance’ responses. Like the first batch, feelings regarding the PV are very mixed.

Wendy at Renai Revolution 21 is loving the PV and relates the silliness of the PV to golden age Morning Musume. While I can understand where she’s coming from, I don’t quite agree with what she’s saying there, but that’s an argument for elsewhere.

yanki07 at Morning Musume Again is not a huge Berryz Koubou fan. Well, this is certainly an interesting release to take notice of them with… I don’t know if this is a good thing or bad thing. yanki07 likes the song, but the PV…. Not so much.

Tsukiki of Shanimuni Paradise has 2 PV reviews in this post. First up, she watched Kuroki Meisa’s ‘Like This’ PV and she wasn’t impressed. While she’s sexy and can dance, it seems the singing is subpar, which is a huge turn off for Tsukiki. Following it up, she reviews Berryz’s ‘Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance’, and it doesn’t fare much better. Tsukiki likes the line distribution in that everyone gets to sing, but feels there’s too much Risako overall. I feel horrible, and I don’t actually want this to happen, but Tsukiki really amused me with one line in her review:

God, Risako, please get into some really horrible scandal and leave H!P forever. PLEASE.

broomhead of True Like Seek has a detailed review of the PV and why it has disappointed him so greatly. The roles of Maasa and Chinami within Berryz is highly frustrating for him, and he is the first person I’ve seen who mentions how bad the monkey costume is to poor Yurina. I thought the same thing when I watched this PV.

These costumes are horrendous to Yurina. She sticks out wearing a monkey costume in a group of people wearing monkey costumes. Wow.

Amimi of ºAbsol-ute ºC-ute is another fan who is not getting into this PV. She’s more of C-ute fan (obviously), but even she’s complaining of the unfairness of the releases being given to Berryz. Her review is pretty thorough, and she does her best to try and find positives for each aspect of the release that she comments on.

To round up this set of reviews, Valentine at Kira Kira Bomb sandwiches the negative responses with a positive one. Here is one blogger who is absolutely LOVING the monkey suits… And the giant banana in the background.

Monkeyz Koubou Dances (Shiny Days)
One, two, Monkey three … (LOVE Tantei)
Berryz Koubou - Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance (hello! girl)
OMG THEY REALLY DID WEAR MONKEY SUITS (I guess it really is Yuke Yuke…) (H!P Fangirling like Nobody’s Business)
“Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance” initial reactions (Midori’s J-pop Overanalyzations)
See No Tsunku, Hear No Tsunku (The J-Pex)

Recommended reading. The PV for Berryz Koubou’s upcoming single is up and a lot of blogs have piped in with their thoughts.

Charmy of Shiny days is highly amused by this PV, but wonders how this will affect Berryz’s credibility in the future.

Chibon of LOVE Tantei is surprised by how much they’re enjoying this PV. It’s interesting to note that the thing that Chibon found most annoying in Tsukiatteru’s PV is they are loving so much here.

hello! girl is not too impressed with the song or PV.

DJ_MaiMai of H!P Fangirling like Nobody’s Business is loving the latest release. I’m surprised with one line in this review, though: “I’ve never noticed how beautiful Chinami is <3333″. If you’ve watched Tsukiatteru or Dschinghis Khan, I don’t know how in the world that could be, because Chinami was stunning in both those PVs.

Midori likes the line distribution, but like hello! girl, is not too impressed with the song overall.

Pex finds it hard to concentrate on the song due to a number of reasons listed in the post. Pex also has an interesting theory on how Yuke Yuke Monkey Dance came to be.

More PV reactions to come in an upcoming write-up. There’s a lot to go through…

C-ute, Berryz, and MoMusu rankings

Slasha discovered Hello!Blog’s H!P poll and gets to ranking the girls of H!P’s 3 most successful groups. The reasoning behind the rankings aren’t very detailed, but there are some highly amusing quips which made this a fun read. I particularly enjoyed the write ups for Morning Musume’s Sayumi, and C-ute’s Hagiwara Mai.

And ha! No Miyabi chin jokes here!

I, unlike others, think that her long chin makes her prettier.

Berryz Koubou in Kindai

Hello!°C-ute has scans of Berryz Koubou who have recently been featured in Kindai magazine. I’m assuming that they’re promoting their upcoming single, seeing as they’re all in their cover outfits. The quirky style of their outfits aren’t really my thing, but man… Some of their hats are hot!!

Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! - Buono! Review!

Amimi is very thorough in this review, covering absolutely every aspect that I can think of. I think Amimi could do good by using more puns. She complains about how Tsugunaga Momoko loses appeal when there are explicit jokes about her being short - and then goes on to say she is tired of Momo getting the “short end of the stick.” Sometimes, little (Ha! See I did it!) things like this are all it takes to make me laugh.

The short Momoko stuff… I groan a bit when the jokes are so explicit too. But then I realize that Buono is appealing to kids, who need it to be obvious.

Berryz工房　ジンギスかンTシャツセット

MorningBerryz, the continual collector of all things Hello! Project, has purchased and received Berryz Koubou’s Dschinghis Khan promotional shirts. When I first saw the black and white version of this shirt, I had dreams of running around yelling “Uu!! Haa!” while spinning to show off the proper side of the shirt.

MorningBerryz has pictures of the shirts as well as a photo set that came with the red/yellow shirt. He ends off the post with some very cute and entertaining Berryz promotional clips for Dschinghis Khan.

Morning Musume UFA New Set
Very Beauty, Or The French “Renaissance”

Recommended ogling and reading. First up, Nakane has a bunch of new Morning Musume UFA photo sets up, and the girls are looking quite cute. I am particularly enjoying the blue/yellow/pink outifts the girls are wearing. They’re simple, sleek, and it doesn’t look like anything exploded or regurgitated onto them (which is a problem many H!P concert outfits seem to have).

In the second post, Nakane takes an interesting look at Berryz Koubou’s ‘Very Beauty’ PV and finds French connections to it. It is definitely a beautiful PV, and Nakane does a nice job of sharing tidbits of the French renaissance that relate to this PV.

Basket full of berries
Kiss me! Kiss me! Kiss me!

Recommended ogling. First up, our zush has wonderful photos of the Berryz girls lounging and hanging out. Lots of peace signs to be found here.

In the second post, zush promotes Buono!’s ‘Kiss!Kiss!Kiss!’ Single V. He gets around to posting screencaps before I had the chance to even get screencaps… But if you’re a fan of either Momoko, Miyabi or Airi, this Single V may just be your cup of tea. I nearly died of a Miya overload as I watched through the 4 - yes, 4! (lol… what’s with the number 4 tonight?) - versions of the PV… Not that I could ever get enough of Miya…

Berikyuu! Idol The Final Six “Idol heads back to the stage.”

Recommended reading/viewing. MorningBerryz is back with the next round of Berikyuu idol competition. The top 6 girls show off their stuff, and the competition is getting stiff.

As with the previous installments of this series, the judges all have something to say. Randy and Paula are spouting their love, while Simon is… well, Simon. XD I could say more on the individual performances chosen, but I don’t want to influence votes… So come check it out and have your say on who the first Berikyuu idol winner will be!

Attempting the H!P Break

Recommended reading. Julia continues to try and find a balance for her H!P fandom. It’s interesting to read as she reasons out why it doesn’t make sense to just stop listening to H!P all together. I mean really, why would you stop listening to things you enjoy just to make a point?

It looks like she’s going to focus on certain H!P personalities and skip everything that annoys her. It’s a good policy to employ, and it definitely helps keep ones sanity. While Julia is obviously a Koharu fan, I keep myself sane by pretending that Koha does not have a solo career… To each their own, right? XD

[Album] Cafe Buono! - Buono!

Recommended reading. Second Blossoming has discovered the Café Buono! album and was pleasantly surprised at the variety this album brings to the table. He sees the potential of Buono! being something huge within the H!P universe, though I worry about the future of Buono! what with Shugo Chara ending soon.

One thing that I want to clarify for Second Blossoming: the group was formed to do the opening and ending themes for the anime, rather than them having formed the group and subsequently being chosen by the anime producers.

He goes through each song and they all get a thumbs up, with the exception of Internet Cupid, which seems to throw him off. I think his love for ‘Last Forever may be influenced by his love for Miya’s heels in ‘Kiss!Kiss!Kiss!’, but who am I to talk about being partial to something Miya-related, right? XD

Recommending reading. ºAbsol-ute ºC-ute is a new H!P blog by Amimi. She started it less than a week ago and already there’s a nice mix of news stories with commentary, a review on C-ute’s ‘Namida no Iro’ and an eyecandy post featuring Buono!.

Her latest entry is on Buono!’s  fourth single and I agree with Amimi in wishing for something along the lines of ‘Janakya Mottainai’.

Buono! 4th Single - Gachinko de Ikou! (2008-08-20) (Totally Hello! Project)
Buono! 4th Single: Gachinko de Ikou! (★Strawberrie★)
Gachinko de Ikou! (Hello!°C-ute)

Reports bring word of Buono!’s upcoming 4th single, “Gachinko de Ikou!”, which will be Shugo Chara’s new ending theme, to be released in August. It’s great to see Buono! continuing to dominate the landscape, Natsuyaki’s non-scandal notwithstanding.

The hair styles of Hello! Project
Up! Front Agency creates phsycopath
Two years of waiting for . . Ogawa Makoto

Actually Sakura Ichigo says she likes music from classical to heavy metal but in her blog there seem to be focus mostly on H!P artists. She has posted already three entries in June and they all are worth of checking.

I’ve never kept my eye on Hello! Project girls coiffure so it’s quite interesting to read SI’s remarks on those ever changing hair styles of various girls. Well, I must admit that there are TWO girls whose hair style changes I know very well and also those are mentioned in SI’s post.

In her second blog entry Sakura Ichigo talks about some evident things related to this so-called-Miya-scandal. SI is disappointed that those kissing scenes are even called as scandal. She makes a good point when saying:

“It is ethically wrong to fire a person because of their love interest. That kind of paragraph should be erased from their contract. It’s discrimination towards women. Girls should have basic human rights.”

Can’t agree more.

Lastly SI feels happy because Makoto is back to business and she wonders what kind of role H!P is offering for Mako now. Is Ongaku Gatas a good option? I think it could be. And I also hope that Makoto is going to be regular member in haromoni@ again.

Two Album Reviews In One Post! (I’m not dead…)

Hotaru reviews Buono!’s Café Buono! as well as C-ute’s 3rd Love Escalation.

For Café Buono! Hotaru isn’t too impressed with the song order of the album, but finds it to be okay overall. However, to say there were some “down right icky songs” was a shocker to me, but I’m biased and love this album to death. What I like in this review are the categories that Hotaru has. She breaks it down into Most fun song, most amusing song, prettiest song, most boring song (though this one almost killed me…) and worst song.

For 3rd Love Escalation, Hotaru is loving the Chisato moments, and I totally agree with her there. For categories here, she’s got best song, most fun son, most boring song and the strangest song.