HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA


...HA!

I'm sorry, I shouldn't laugh. Or I shouldn't type out my laughter at least. But I'm sorry, I can't help but laugh when a shocking announcement about any idol group comes up. As long as said announcement doesn't cause pain or misfortune for any of the members in the group. You all probably know what I'm talking about now: the announcement of AKB48's Team 4 being revived! Nope, nope, but we will get about that later because that's shocking news in a different way. So what happened today that has caused me to erupt into bounteous amounts of laughter? The 12th Generation auditions for Morning Musume! Or the... result of the auditions. Because today, Tsunku, the eternal member of Morning Musume, that no one from the final round of the 12th Gen. auditions had been added the group? Why? Because apparently, the current lineup is so strong that they don't really need more members, and of the pool of auditionees, none of them were really qualified to be in Morning Musume. And so, for the first time in eight years, a Morning Musume audition has ended with no one being chosen. Yes, as most of you will recall, the seventh generation auditions technically ended with no winner either. However, most of you will also remember that a 7th generation was eventually added to Momusu: Kusumi Koharu, sole member of her generation and designated "ace" of Morning Musume. Whether or not she lived up to that role is still highly debated today among fans. Annnd, I'll just leave it at that! Like with any collective reaction to news about Morning Musume, the international fanbase has yet again imploded on itself and caused a rip in the fabric of the universe. Figuratively speaking. Though to be fair, this is a pretty big deal. Since auditions and graduations are at the foundation of Morning Musume, the fact that a 12th Generation was not picked is worth discussing. I mean, this is only the second time this has ever happened, and the fact that it even happened a second time took nearly everyone by surprise. And now what are we left with? Not a bunch of fans giving thoughts and critiques on the new members, but a bunch of fans reacting to the lack of new members.

And as you may have deduced from the beginning of my reaction to this news, I'm taking it pretty well.

I mean, don't get me wrong, I am very shocked at this announcement. But at the same time, I can't help but do what I do best and laugh about it. I have to laugh with all the other fans who are just as amused about this announcement as I am. I mean, laughter is a coping mechanism, even I'm not really upset that 12th Generation wasn't selected. I even think when I first read the news and saw the video, I was happy so yeah... This announcement's really taking a toll on my mental state, huh? Look, I think I'm getting more worked up about Perfume's Level 3 album than this announcement. I think it also has to do with the fact that I didn't even really hear a lot about the 12th Generation auditions. After the announcement, way back in March (yeah, it's been five months now), it was almost like the auditions had never even happened. Sure, I'd hear something about it every so often, like a wisp of information passing through the night before disappearing, never to be seen or heard of again. I didn't even see the training camp footage until a few days ago. Hell, we didn't even learn the names of the finalists, or the number. And to be frank, none of the girls I saw in the video stood out to me. They all looked young, sounded squeaky, danced decently... there was one girl in the process of doing a card trick, which is pretty cool. But beyond her, no one really stood out to me in talent or personality. Considering this audition was focused on a "Mirai Shoujo" type of girl, is it really that surprising no one was picked if these were the finalists to chose from? I don't know, maybe if we'd seen more of these girls' personalities beyond a 1-minute clip, I'd have felt more strongly about the lack of a winner from these auditions. But we weren't, and I barely had any information about these auditions when the announcement was posted. I'd already felt indifferent towards the auditions, and even now, I'm still rather indifferent to this whole ordeal.

Honestly, I'm actually relieved that a 12 Gen. wasn't picked right now. Back in March, when the auditions were announced, I was not very thrilled about it. I'd almost even say I was downright apathetic towards the news. Or I tried to be at least. I have a very love/hate outlook toward the Morning Musume auditions. On one hand, they can be very exciting and interesting to watch. You get to see who the future members may be and try and figure what each girl could add to the group. Then when the results are out, you can make guesses and predictions about the new members' roles in the group: who will be pushed, who won't, who's going to stand out, who will stick around the longest. The auditions can be very entertaining but at the same time, they can be very tedious and painful to watch. I think it might be because I'm someone who frequently auditions myself (not for idol groups but for theatre stuff), but I can't help but feel bad for the girls who don't get in, and that they're being broadcasted and scrutinized in front of an entire crowd of people. Auditioning can be a very intimate and emotionally tolling process, much like applying for a job. You have all this pressure stacked on you along with a desire to be talented and lucky enough to pass, you feel like you're on an emotional roller coaster, and you pretty much have to bare your soul in front of a group of strangers and hope that they like what they see. So yeah, there's my soapbox about the pains of auditioning, but even without that aspect of the Morning Musume auditions, I still don't find them to be completely amazing. I don't like that they're dragged out, and I especially don't like how a lot of the fans will rip each other apart during the audition process and after the auditions have passed. And then there's the whole fiasco about "Are X Generations auditions really necessary right now?" Though I was on the bandwagon that getting a 12th Generation was too soon for Morning Musume.


I mean, look at the group right now. Really look at the lineup. Doesn't it look balanced? Doesn't it look like a group and not just a mishmash of inexperienced newbs who are still adjusting to the idol life? Ever since Reina left (and this really shows in the latest Momusu PVs), I feel like the 9th, 10th, and 11th generations have really grown as idols and developed group chemistry. They've proven that they can still stand as a strong group without Reina, especially vocals wise. Personally, I'd be happy if this was the lineup for say, the next year or two. Maybe Sayumi graduates in the next year or so and it's all 9-11th generation. I'd be okay with that. And by that time, I think I'd be more open to another audition to be held. Besides, I think ten is a good number for Momusu. Why? Because... look, I've noticed over time that there's this pattern with Morning Musume and their hierarchy of who gets promoted/pushed. Usually you have around four or five girls who get excessive attention in the group. In this case, those girls at the moment would be Sayashi Riho, Oda Sakura, Fukumura Mizuki, Sato Masaki, and Ishida Ayumi. You could also count Iikubo Haruna and maybe Kudo Haruka, but I'm just going off the vocal and visual distribution. Then you have everyone else and they... don't get that excessive attention. Don't get me wrong, they still get attention, just not as much. I feel like that's become a pattern with Morning Musume that UFP rigidly sticks to, and just adding more girls isn't really going to shake that pattern up too much. They'd just take up more space, and very likely only a fraction of the girls in the 12th Generation would even get added to that "push-list." So in conclusion, I'm pretty glad that the 12 Generation hasn't been added right now. I want to see more of this current lineup in action before more girls are thrown into the mixture.

Something I should also mention is that while the 12th Generation auditions brought about no winner now, Tsunku also said that he intended to hold another set of auditions for the 12th Gen. Take that as you will, but I'd think that in the near-future, this process will start back up again. I'd say around the end of 2013 or early 2014. And then we can have that all-out meltdown that occurs in the H!P fandom we were all anticipating! So now, for better or worse, the member count for 12th Gen. is zero. Are you one of those fans running up and down the streets screaming obscenities or are you like me and laughing at all the jokes about Tsunku being the 12th Generation?

Yes, you heard it here, you heard it all around the idolsphere, Team 4, the once-discontinued AKB48 team, has been revived! Happy day! It has risen triumphantly from the ashes like a glorious phoenix reborn after its defeat!

And at the head of that phoenix is Minegishi Minami.

What? I'm in a good mood! Let me have my fun!

You know that wonderful, bubbly feeling you get inside your stomach when you're in a really good mood? Almost as if you feel like you could burst into a rainbow of sparkles and glitter you feel so gosh darn elated even though you can put your finger on just why. That's kind of how I feel right now! I mean more information about Level 3 is coming out soon, some really good singles are going to be released, and now, Team 4 has been revived! To be honest, I probably wouldn't be quite as excited for this news if it weren't for the fact that Minegishi Minami has been promoted to captain of Team 4. Because Miichan, my favorite member of AKB48 (now that Akimoto Sayaka's flown the coop), was not only promoted out of Kenkyuusei, she was assigned the role of captain to Team 4. Flipping captain! Leader of a team! Borne the responsibility of heading a newly revived team filled with the 13th and 14th generations of now-promoted Kenkyuusei. Despite the fact that I know absolutely none of the girls in KKS, I'm still happy for all of them, but most of all, I'm happy for Miichan. It's kind of funny now; she's been in Teams A, K, and B now, along with KKS. Quite the team hopper, huh? Seriously though, words can't proper convey how happy I am that Miichan was promoted. In February, I was absolutely livid at the "scandal" she'd been involved with and how it had taken a toll on her position in AKB48. Partially because of the sheer ridiculousness of the scandal and also because of how she'd reacted to it. The fact that she felt inclined to shave her head as penance for something that really shouldn't even have been a big deal really spun me up, and for the first time, I found myself taking issue with the "no dating" rule set by AKS and other idol groups outside of that company. But life goes on, and there was nothing I could do about Miichan's punishment beyond hoping that somehow she could bounce back. And very slowly, I think she has. She managed to keep a decent ranking in Senbatsu, and now she's been promoted back into the group. Maybe that's not Sashihara Rino levels of redemption, but I think Miichan's making a promising start to gaining the position she had in AKB48.

As for Team 4, I'm curious to see if they'll stick around this time. When Team 4 was first created, it didn't exactly get the same attention as Teams A, K, and B. If I recall, I don't even think it got its own stage. Not a lot of the girls in Team 4 received much promotion and it never really felt like it was part of AKB48. At least not in the same way the other teams did. So when the team shuffle was announced and Team 4 was disbanded, I wasn't exactly sad about it. In fact, I was just reeling over the shuffle anyways, so I didn't even have the attention span to get too melancholic about the end of Team 4. Does getting wistful for Team 4 when Hashire! Penguin was #1 at Request Hour count? With all these new members, I can't help but get intrigued as to see which ones will get pushed and which ones won't. They're all pretty much on the same playing ground being former KKS and all, except for Miichan. I do hope that Miichan gets included in Senbatsu, or at least Undergirls for future AKB48 singles, especially since she's captain now. Then again, she might end up in the same position as Umeda Ayaka and barely get into Senbatsu despite the title of captain. Really, I don't know, but at the moment, I'd like to think that there's hope for Miichan. I think if anyone deserves a second chance, she does, and that's not just because she's my favorite member of AKB48. Miichan's too wonderful and too bright to fade into obscurity, and I hope that she'll be able to step up into a good captain role as Team 4 develops. Who knows? Maybe in the next few years, Team 4 will become and established team for AKB48, alongside A, K, and B. Maybe a Team 8 will be created! Maybe Akimoto Sayaka will go on to become an extremely famous actress in Japan! Who knows!? The future seems bright right now, and I'd like to cherish that while this outlook still lasts. With three of AKB48's most popular members having graduated, I do wonder how that's going to shape AKB48's Senbatsu for the next single to come. Oh well, I'll just have to wait and see! I've got my fingers crossed that AKB48's fall single is a good one; UZA was underwhelming, and I'd like a redemption song from that.


So yeah. That's pretty awesome. Well... in other news, Perfume Locks! is coming on tomorrow! And you know what that means? I'll give you a hint: it's not about Level 1 or Level 2. That's right, Level 3 information is coming our way!! Well, in a way. A new song from the album is going to be aired on Perfume Locks! tomorrow along with the full version of Party Maker. We previously heard a brief, 15-second snippet of Party Maker aired for a commercial, but beyond that, nothing else. In fact, beyond Party Maker, I haven't heard too much about this album. No tracklist, covers, nada. I do know that apparently the limited edition has three differently colored slipcases that vary with whichever one you buy. But that still doesn't give me a lot to go on. Considering the album is being released in a little over a month, I'm certain that we'll be getting a lot more information soon! Who knows? Maybe even tomorrow we'll get a tracklist! Perfume Locks! airs at 11:05 pm JST which means it'll be airing at 10:05 am in the area I am. Which unfortunately means... I won't be able to catch it. I'm in school at that time. I swear, this happens every time something important is going to be aired on Perfume Locks! whether it be school, no Wifi, vacationing... agh, I'm never going to reach a point where I can listen to it live, am I? If you are of the lucky people that can catch the broadcast though, a stream of it can be found here. Just tune in during the right time, and soon you'll be jamming to Party Maker and the new album song! As for me, I can wait. I've done a lot more waiting than this, so waiting a few hours to hear the new songs isn't going to kill me! As we near September, I can feel my excitement building for Level 3. I just can't wait to see the covers, read the tracklist, hear the album... and most of all, I can't wait to review it! Oh yes, I think you all know that Level 3 is at the top of my review list. All I can do now is eagerly await its release!

Well. That was a hodgepodge of news. To sum this mishmash of a news post up... Team 4's back, Miichan's been given a second chance, and Perfume still rocks my socks! What a time to be alive!

Guys, did I properly emphasize how much I loved The Airline Trilogy?

I mean, I know I enthusiastically did a triple-PV review of the three A-side that made up the trio of singles that Passpo released in 2012, but did I really convey just how much I loved each A-side. Even Natsuzora Hanabi, the weakest of those three A-sides, was still awesome, and one of my favorite summer songs of 2012! I thought each song stood out on its own, but they all fit with the consistent theme Passpo was going for with The Airline Trilogy: that "around the world" theme. It worked so well. But maybe... too well. You know that thing that happens when you listen to some really good music by an artist, and it's so fantastic that you get psyched for whatever material that artist is putting out next? To the point where you feel like it has to at least live up to the music that got you into the group in the first place? And then their next single/album comes out, and you can't help but compare it to their previous content? Even when you try so hard not to keep measuring it up to that? For those reasons, I've realized that The Airline Trilogy set a bar that was too high for Passpo to reach with their next trilogy. My expectations were so increased for the trio of singles Passpo released this year thanks to The Airline Trilogy, and only now am I just realizing that. But I also feel like The Airline Trilogy had a formula that couldn't be duplicated either, a mix of musical styles that was near perfect. And I didn't want a rehash of The Airline Trilogy for this trilogy of Passpo singles. I did want a collection of singles though that had a cohesive style that stood out. And since this trilogy (which has no name that I have no knowledge) had a theme of evolution and showing how Passpo had evolved as a group, I was excited, albeit confused at just how the hell this could be shown through music. So the first single of The Evolution Trilogy (which is what I'm calling it from here on) was double A-side Step & Go/Candy Room. I found it to be all right; I even enjoyed Candy Room a lot. But it didn't grab me. Neither did Truly. In fact, that entire second single just bored me.

And so here we are at the third and final single of The Evolution Trilogy: Mousou no Hawaii. With the first two singles released, I still hadn't really figured out just what Passpo was aiming for with this trilogy, neither in sound nor aesthetic. Now that Mousou no Hawaii's been released... I still have no idea what this trilogy was supposed to do. Hence I have decided to put my thoughts about this trilogy to the side to ponder over them some other time and maybe in some other post. Now all I want to do is look at Mousou no Hawaii as a standalone summer song. Well... okay, I might make a few comparisons to Natsuzora Hanabi, but I'll try and keep those to a minimum. So how does Mousou no Hawaii sound? Well... Hawaiian. What I found out through my ever-studious research of looking it up on Tokyo Girls' Update is that Mousou no Hawaii was written and produced Yuta Yasuno, a member of three-piece rock band Hawaiian 6. And what would the song be about? Hawaii! Are you seeing a pattern yet? Now I have never heard of Hawaiian 6 nor have I listened to any of their music, but I do think it's nice that Passpo was able to get another backing band for one of their singles. I missed that with their past few singles! So Mousou no Hawaii does have a much more rock edge to it, which I like. There's also some ukulele in this song, which my mind immediately connects to Hawaiian music. Because that's what all Hawaiian music sounds like, right? Right!? Anyways, the tempo of the instrumental is very fast-paced and consistent, which gives Mousou no Hawaii a good amount of energy. But I wish the tempo of the vocals matched the pace of the instrumental, at least during a few parts. I feel that the chorus could have been faster. It really dragged at a few parts, especially since the buildup to the chorus was nicely done. For the most part, Mousou no Hawaii is a good head-bobbing song, especially if you're out and about doing... eh... stuff. Especially summery stuff!

I do think I should also elaborate on what Mousou no Hawaii is about. Mainly because it's not among the pool of silly love songs that you could fill the Pacific Ocean. The title of the song translates to "Hawaii Delusion." The song is about not ponytails and scrunchies or everyday headbands but... wanderlust. You heard me, wanderlust! In summary, Mousou no Hawaii is about a girl who longs to escape to the sunny beaches of Hawaii, free from the responsibilities of school and life in general. Well gee, who doesn't? I'd love to go to Hawaii! In fact, my brother of all people got to go to Hawaii this summer while I stayed at home doing non-Hawaiian stuff! But I digress. I'm bringing this up because actually knowing what Mousou no Hawaii's lyrics are about actually makes the song better. Crazy, right? The lyrics to a song that I can't even understand make it better! Before I found out what Mousou no Hawaii was about, I thought it was an okay summer song. Definitely not the worst I've ever heard but not the best either. Not as good as Natsuzora Hanabi at least. However, the lyrics from Mousou no Hawaii do give it a few brownie points. Why? Because they're relatable. Look, something that I've come to notice about many summer songs is that I can't relate to a lot of them. And that's because most of them are always about summer romance, finding love, all that mushy gushy stuff that I either don't care about or don't relate to. So I can poke fun at these silly songs about summer love, because they never strike a chord with me. But you know what does? The desire to travel and see new places. To escape reality, even if only for a moment. And that's what Mousou no Hawaii is about. It's just focused on Hawaii. For that reason, I do actually like Mousou no Hawaii, and it's probably my second favorite A-side of The Evolution Trilogy. And of the summer songs I've reviewed this year, it holds up pretty well. But then again, just about any song is better than Sayonara Crawl.

As you all know, a summer song is nothing without a summer PV that has the challenging of task of bringing a song to life and evoking feelings of summer with the viewer! And fanservice. Lots and lots of fanservice. Does Passpo engage in gratuitous fanservice for Mousou no Hawaii? Let's dive in and find out!


Oh hey, this is exactly what I look like when I'm blogging! Minus the cute outfit...


Nice to know that idols also spend their days Googling cool places they'll never be able to go to!


Oh right, except idols can go to those places because they're idols...


I'm not sure if they're trying to do the Macarena or the Fushizen na Girl walk.


I have to admit, this stage is really cute and nicely done considering it's just a set!


Uh... am I still in the right PV? This set just looks so... dark.


It reminds me of the set for the dance shot of Beginner (yeah, that happy-go-lucky PV)


It's time to put my plan to action of taking over the idol blogsphere in action!


MIO! Agh, I'm really starting to like Mio these days...


I think Passpo just found out about the bat-shit crazy portion of the H!P fandom.


Look at all these pretty colors... and everyone looks like they're having a lot of fun!


Especially that guy!


I half-expected them to start headbanging during this part of the dance.


Is the pencil-balancing move just a requirement for every idol PV with pens in it?


I get the feeling that if idol bloggers were turn into actual idols, this is what we would look like.


And that would be the face of an idol blogger who just realized she'd missed a deadline!


This silhouetted dance shot is actually kind of cool. I wish they'd used it more in this PV!


Of course, it wouldn't be an idol summer PV without gratuitous bikini shots!


Say... this is one shady photo shoot isn't it?


Clearly, they're bowing down to the lord of the idolsphere... NIIGAKI RISA!


You know what they say: if you got it, flaunt it!


But personally I like these shots over the gratuitous bikini shots.


Eh... what on earth is the girl in the bottom center screen doing?


You can see one girl's scarf standing out amongst all the other silhouettes!


Hrm... you know what this PV needs? A conga line!


But hey, a hula dance works too!


FOOD! YUM!


Forgot to mention the token background band is cool as always!


But alas, this is all but a delusion...


If I can't swim on the beach, I'll just surf... the Internet!


And so the PV ends in a shot that somewhat accurately sums up what I did this summer...

What's this? A PV that accurately depicts what the lyrics are trying to convey!? Have I gone mad!? Yeah, the PV for Mousou no Hawaii represents the song's meaning pretty well. You've got the girls of Passpo, sitting in the dark illuminated by their computer screens (just like I am at the moment!), and they're all Googling pictures of tropical locations in Hawaii. Then they all have a collective daydream of dancing and performing in Hawaii (or at least as much of Hawaii you can represent in an indoor) set. And... that's pretty much all of the PV. You have a few other random shots thrown in (like the bikini shots and that silhouetted dance shot) but the main focuses of the PV are the computer shots and the Hawaii shots. Even though the concept for Mousou no Hawaii is very simplified and carried out in a very simple way, I can actually dig it. This is because, again, it's relatable. I think every teenager sitting in their room with a laptop at their fingertips during the summer has longed to be somewhere tropical or exotic. Something I've always poked fun at in a lot of the summer PVs I've reviewed is how unrealistic they are. I know I don't spend my summer swimming with my friends in a giant pool of flowers or having a wild party at a hotel and landing the pool with a hot guy. No, I spend my summer either A) Doing summer activities that are usually theatre-related or B) Relaxing at my computer and enjoying the fact that there is no pressure to get in any assignments/papers/projects for school. Passpo does the latter in this PV, using their imaginations to take themselves to new locations that they can't access because plane travel is effing expensive. Or so I presume. I like that a lot of the members of the group do a decent job of looking genuinely frustrated and frazzled of being stuck at their computers. It gives the PV a little more character, and gets across those wanderlust feelings highlighted in the actual song. Annnnd it's helpful for an English-speaking person like me to figure out just what this PV was trying to get across.

The only gripe I have with this PV is- you probably know what it is actually. Is it:

A) The color scheme of the Hawaii set
B) The fact that Kaho hasn't magically reappeared into the group
C) The gratuitous bikini shots
D) Pineapples. Just pineapples.

If you picked anything besides C... are you new to the Wonderland? I've made it more than clear that I have a problem with gratuitous fanservice, especially when you can practically see how gratuitous it is. The scenes with the girls of Passpo in bikinis are completely shoehorned in; they didn't even give them a proper set for these shots! I wouldn't mind quite as much if it weren't so blatant but it is. If these shots weren't in the PV, nothing would have been lost. It's not like I'd be lying in bed all night thinking "Man, that Mousou no Hawaii was missing something... but what? Bikinis! Of course!" Fortunately, those scenes are short and few, only taking up a small fraction of this PV. The other sets in this PV, are pretty well-done. Passpo isn't exactly an idol group that can afford to splurge on big-budget, elaborate PVs, so for what they were given to work with, I think it was handled pretty well. I do wish the Hawaii scene had been shot in an outdoor location though; at times it felt a little closed in and isolated. I do like that they managed to get a lot of people for that shot though! Like the band, and the group of people that danced along with Passpo. I always like it when people besides the members of an idol group are put in a PV. It just adds something to it... Overall, I think Mousou no Hawaii is a decent summer PV. The pros are that it has a very familiar and relatable concept, along with a creative use of sets, and decent emoting from the girls. The cons are the few bikini shots I could have done without and the lack of variety in activities. The girls could have been given a little bit more to do, especially in those computer close-ups. Of all the summer PVs I've reviewed this year, I Mousou no Hawaii the best? No... I'd even wager to say that Candy Room was a better, more fun summer PV. I'm not so sure which I'd like better between Step & Go and Mousou no Hawaii though... probably the former because it did try to be creative despite all that poorly rendered CGI. Still, the PV for Mousou no Hawaii does at least try, and even though it could have been improved greatly, I think the PV's all right.


I guess Mousou no Hawaii gets a... mixed to positive response from me? I liked it better than Truly so I'll give it three and a half out of five apples! As the conclusion to The Evolution Trilogy, the song is okay; not my favorite Passpo song, but the relatable lyrics do redeem it a little bit. The PV for Mousou no Hawaii does attempt to be creative so I have to give it points for that, even if it isn't the most entertaining summer PV I've seen this year. I'll keep an eye out and see if Passpo delivers something more interesting for their next release... whatever that may be!

Is my timing good or what? Yesterday I was all "Boy golly gee, I really hope we get a bunch of information about Level3 soon! Preferably the tracklist and the album covers! That's be gosh diddly doodly amazing!" And today? A LEVEL 3 INFORMATION OVERLOAD!


I don't even mind if I had a violent stomach bug this morning, because oh my god, Level3. Now I'm excited. Well... I've been excited since the announcement of the album, but now have more information about said album to fuel my excitement! I mean, I don't even know where to start with all this news. Not only did we get to see the promotional image for Level3, we got the album covers, the tracklist, the DVD tracklist, and a full rip of 1mm, the leading track off the album. If I hadn't had the energy of a snail with the flu today, I'd probably be running around my room doing some spazztic equivalent of a happy dance. It's been nearly two years since JPN was released, and I think I'm more excited about Level3 than I was JPN. For starters, just look at the visual concept for Level 3. I really like the patterns on the outfits the girls are wearing for the promo. It fits with their image nicely, being very geometric and all. Someone pointed out that Perfume has this pattern with their album outfits of switching from black to white, which I didn't notice until now. Like Complete Best had white, Game had black, ⊿ had white, and JPN had black. So now I guess we're back to white! I have to say, of the two album covers for Level3, I think my favorite is Regular. I like the paneling used for it because it gives off a very futuristic vibe. That and the white outfits fit nicely with the light color scheme. Annnd part of the appeal I see in the Regular is the fact that for the first time in year's, Kashiyuka's full-on forehead has graced us with its presence! I kid, I kid, but I'm serious, it's so refreshing to see Kashiyuka push her bangs back. I don't even know how she constantly keeps them trimmed from falling over her eyes... The Limited Edition looks decent too but I think it's one of those covers that looks better in physical form than digital. The Limited also has a slipcase that's either clear, yellow, or pink. Huh. Reminds me of the Limited cover for JPN that also had a slipcase. Of course, the covers and outfits being released only brush the tip of my ecstatic ecstasy regarding Level3. Not only were the covers revealed for Level3, but so was the tracklist:

1. Enter the Sphere
2. Spring of Life (Album-mix)
3. Magic of Love (Album-mix)
4. Clockwork
5. 1mm
6. Mirai no Museum
7. Party Maker
8. Furikaeru to Iru Yo
9. Point
10. Daijobanai
11. Handy Man
12. Sleeping Beauty
13. Spending all my time (Album-mix)
14. Dream Land

DVD Tracklist:
1. 1mm -video clip-
2. "Zutto Suki Dattan Jakee~Sasurai no Menkata Perfume FES!!" Memorial ♡
3. "Perfume no Tadatada Radio ga Suki dakara Radio!"

I love the tracklist. I just had to put that out there before I start commenting on it. First great thing about the tracklist for Level3 is the number. We get fourteen songs! Fourteen! And what adds to that great tidbit is that of those fourteen tracks, seven of those tracks are new! So we get half old songs and half new songs, which I think is a perfect balance. I stated before in my album review of JPN (from many moons ago) that one of my main gripes with it was the lack of new tracks. Thankfully with Level3, I don't see this problem, which is wonderful! And you know what adds to that wonderfulness? The old tracks that did get included. I was really hoping that Spending all my time was getting an mix for the album after I heard the remix the girls used for their Cannes performance in France. And what do you know? It is getting an album mix! Personally, I'm hoping it's along the lines of the Cannes mix, because I really liked what that did with the song. It give Spending all my time, a song I detested when I first heard it, some life, along with a chance for me to finally get into this song. Among the other album mixes, both Spring of Life and Magic of Love are getting album mixes, back-to-back too! It makes me wonder if what they'll do is have one mix transition into the other, like Laser Beam's mix smoothly transitioning into Glitter's on the JPN album. I know there was a mix of Magic of Love used for Perfume's Ultra Korea performance so I'm wondering if it's going to be similar to the mix on the album? I guess I'll have to wait and see, but I look forward to hearing it! I'm a tad weary towards Spring of Life for getting an album mix because I enjoy the original, and I'm a little nervous about how the mix is going to turn out. Still, Nakata's one of those producers who seems to handle song mixing very skillfully, so hopefully I'm just worrying over nothing! Oh yeah, and Mirai no Museum's somewhere in this album, but I won't touch on that song too much. I mean, it kind of had to be included on the album, so I don't see much point in complaining talking about it.

Something else I'm jumping up and down for regarding Level3's tracklist are the B-sides included on the album. Point, Daijobanai, and Handy Man to be exact. I absolutely adored two of three of those B-sides when they were released, and I'm extremely happy that they're getting included on the album! The biggest surprise for me was Point making it to Level3. I'd pretty much excepted that Point was going to get the boot when it came to the album tracklist since Hurly Burly was so popular and widely performed and Point was... not. In fact, I don't even think the girls have performed it live, that's how unused it is! But when Spending all my time came out, Point was my favorite song off the single, and my favorite song from last year. To see it being included on the album fills me with so much joy! And then Handy Man made it to the album as well! I wasn't sure if that song was going to be included either so this is yet another pleasant surprise I woke up to this morning! Then there's Daijobanai. I have to say, I'm not exactly thrilled that Daijobanai is on the album, but I'm not that upset either. But if I'd had to pick between Hurly Burly and Daijobanai for Level3, I'd probably go with the former. On the subject of Hurly Burly, I wonder why that one didn't make it to the album. Is it because its sound just didn't match up with the rest of the album? Until Level3 is released, I can't really speculate as to why Hurly Burly wasn't included; I'd pretty much considered it a shoe-in for Level3 even before talks of the album itself were generating. Still, maybe the sounds of Point, Handy Man, and Daijobanai just fit better for Level3 for Hurly Burly. The other B-side that didn't make the cut was Communication but honestly... is anyone even sad about that? I know like one person who might be upset by the news, but I honestly am not upset at all that Communication wasn't included in Level3. Not that it's a terrible song by any means, but it can get irritatingly cute at times.


The only new tracks that we've heard of so far are Party Maker and 1mm. The former was aired in a CM for Chocola BB, and that was only a 15-second snippet. From the snippet, it sounded like a very upbeat, party-type song though. I can't really say much about Party Maker until I hear the full song, which probably won't happen until the release of Level3. As for 1mm, today on Perfume Locks! we found out that it was going to be the leading track for Level3. You know, kind of how I Still Love U was the leading track for ⊿ and Secret Secret was the leading track for Game? 1mm is also going to get a music video which will be included on the Limited Edition DVD of Level3. As you may have been suspecting already, I will be reviewing the PV for 1mm separately from Level3. And it's going to be awesome. But that's not the only juicy little tidbit regarding 1mm. On Perfume Locks! today, the entire song was aired. A full radio rip. And let me tell you, it was awesome. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but at the moment, I'm really digging 1mm. I'll elaborate my thoughts on 1mm when I actually review the song properly in a PV/album review but for the moment, it's gotten me excited for how the rest of Level3 will sound! And I think that's what a leading track should do. So good job, 1mm! The other five new songs on Level3 I know nothing about beyond the titles. And I try not to judge a song by its title because usually my assumptions are fantastically off. Still, they're interesting titles. Enter the Sphere sounds like it's going to be similar to The Opening from JPN and Take-off from ⊿. Sleeping Beauty and Dream Land sound like they're going to be very... dreamlike. Kind of like Point, actually! As for Clockwork, I really hope it doesn't sound like Toki no Hari or anything on the cuter side of Perfume's discography. Their cuter songs tend to wear on me pretty fast. As for Furikaeru to Iru Yo, I have no idea what to expect for that track... but I think that's part of the fun of waiting for a new album!

All in all, I'm really excited. I'm not sure what I'm more excited about; the fact that Level3 is coming out in a little over or a month or the fact that I get to review Level3 in a little over a month. The last (and only) Perfume album I've gotten to review is JPN, and that was my first album review back when I was just starting out as an idol blogger. Like I didn't even have the Apple Rating System back then. Now I feel like I've grown so much more as a writer, and for that reason, I've really wanted to properly review a Perfume album. With Level 3 coming out, I'm finally getting the chance! So yes, that's my top priority post for October. Who knows? If the album leaks in September, I might even review it then! For now though, I'll just have to wait patiently like all the other Perfume fans for Level3. I'm really hoping that this album is a step-up from JPN. So far, I'm liking what I see; now I need to cross my fingers and hope that the end results are just as promising! A storm is coming to the Wonderland, guys. A glorious, Perfume storm. So batten down the hatches, because I'm fairly certain I'm going to go progressively crazier up until Level3's release...

So... Scandal's releasing an album this year.

Pretty exciting, huh? I always look forward to releases from this idol band! Along with an album, Scandal's releasing another single produced by Nakata Yasutaka of all people! But I'll get to Over Drive some other time whether it be in a PV review, a single review or hell, an album review! I'm not sure if I'm going to review Scandal's fifth album, Standard, yet. It's released the same week as Level3 and considering how I'm going to be occupied with all the craziness surrounding that album... we'll have to just wait and see! But for now, I decided to take a look at Scandal's second single of the Standard era, Kagen no Tsuki aka The Waning Moon. Gee, if this single was being released in October, I'd probably think it revolved around werewolves... Anyways, you wouldn't believe how close I was to reviewing the PV for Kagen no Tsuki; it wasn't until I'd listened to a preview of the B-side that I decided to review the entire single instead! So yeah, I think you all know the drill by now. Nia reviews covers, Nia reviews songs, Nia gives apples to each song, and then Nia gives apples to the single as a whole. Pretty simple formula, right? Well then, with that out of the way, let's waste no more time and dive right into Kagen no Tsuki!

Covers/Outfits

I gotta say... I really don't have much to say about the covers and outfits for Kagen no Tsuki. I mean... they look nice? The clothes the girls of Scandal are wearing look fine, very modern. I suspect though if I look back at them in ten years, they'll look extremely outdated. I noticed that Mami's gone turquoise now, or half-turquoise. It's actually a pretty good look for her. I was a little 50/50 on her blonde hair, but she rocks it pretty well. Everyone else looks fine, very normal. I actually kind of miss the school uniforms they donned for their earlier singles. I guess they're too old for that now, but there was something strangely awesome about the plethora of cool uniforms they wore for each single. It doesn't really matter since clothing choices aren't really a huge deal for Scandal, especially as a band. So yeah, overall, the outfits look good. What about the covers? Eh... they look fine too? I don't know if it's because I'm typing this at midnight that I can't think of anything to say about them, but I don't think there's anything bad about the covers for Kagen no Tsuki. The covers for Limited A an B are practically the same. Both feature the members of Scandal lying on a lightly colored wooden floor, surrounding an orb/moon/sphere thing. Only different is in Limited A, they're all staring into the camera, whilst in the Limited B, they all look like they're sleeping. Maybe they're dreaming of the full moon? Then there's the Regular Edition which just features them all standing in a line facing left in front of a bright white backdrop. Not particularly interesting, but not horribly tacky unlike some of the other covers I've faced in my time as an idol blogger. Look, I really don't know what else to say about these covers. They're pretty neutral and straightforward, to the point where they're almost boring to look at. Luckily, the covers don't reflect my overall verdict of the single! So let's breeze on past the painfully dull covers for Kagen no Tsuki and get toe the real meet of this single: the songs.

Kagen no Tsuki

Even now, several weeks later, I can still remember my first impressions of Kagen no Tsuki. The opening riff started and I thought "Oh hey, this is a cool sounding song." The verses breezed in, sound very reminiscent of Shoujo S. At this point, I was pretty pumped about Kagen no Tsuki. And then... the chorus hit. Look, I don't know any other way to put this... the chorus to Kagen no Tsuki is really lame. Which is really weird for me to say because very rarely do I listen to a song where the verses stand out more than the chorus. But I'm sorry, compared to the really awesome verses that were building to this really cool, explosive buildup of rock, the payoff is really, really underwhelming. I mean, I'm talking like Taiyou Scandalous and Pin Heel Surfer levels of lame. I wouldn't be so vocal about it if not for the fact that everything else about Kagen no Tsuki sounds awesome. I really can't emphasize just how much I liked the verses; they were so catchy and gave off this very cool vibe, misleading me to believe that Kagen no Tsuki would be a cool song. But no, the chorus hits in and its all happy and flowy and breezy and ugh, it really drives me up the wall describing how much of a disappointment this chorus was. For me, I think the chorus should be the high point of the song, the second hook to grab you after a song's opening. It's what should get stuck in your head. Kagen no Tsuki's chorus does none of those things. Hell, I almost wonder if Scandal started recording one song then had to stop halfway through. Then realizing they had no chorus to mix in with the recording, they resorted to throwing together some lame, half-assed chorus that sounds about as boring and listless as Haruka. I mean, this is such a lopsided song. The sounds are all over the place, and not in a good way either. Don't get me wrong, when Kagen no Tsuki hits its good parts, they're really good. But then that goddamn chorus comes in to ruin everything and... God, I'll never forget the disappointment I felt when first listening to the song. Kagen no Tsuki isn't the worst Scandal song I've ever heard, but it could have been better. So much better.

In hindsight, I'm glad I didn't review the PV for Kagen no Tsuki, because honestly, it's kind of dull. It mainly just features the girls playing and... that's it. It's them playing. I mean, they go into separate rooms one at a time to play individually but they come back to the main stage anyways, so what's the point? Normally, I don't really mind Scandal's PVs where they just play, because they always managed to perform really wel as just a band. But not even that worked in Kagen no Tsuki. I think it's because their movements were restricted by having microphones. In PVs like Shoujo S and Shunkan Sentimental, the strength came from the girls being able to move around. I feel like in Kagen no Tsuki, they just look stuck. Combine that with the fact that there's nothing really creative in this PV, I was unimpressed. The one little entertaining bit in Kagen no Tsuki is when Tomomi goes to play her bass in her own separate room. She's sitting on the couch and for some reason, the directors decided "You know what Tomomi needs for her close-up? A white rabbit! Not for any particular reason; we'll just have it hop around the couch while she ignores it!" So you get these scenes with Tomomi and this random white rabbit burying its head under the pillows and just moving all over the couch. Why? Who knows! I don't! We never even see the rabbit again until the end of the PV! I just find it really amusing for reasons unknown even to myself. I mean, yes the girls all look really pretty and the sets used for the PV don't look terrible but man, I think I'd even take Pin Heel Surfer's PV over this. At least that PV had a bunch of stuff in it I could make fun of. Kagen no Tsuki's PV does nothing to enhance the song. It does nothing to ruin it either, but a song like Kagen no Tsuki really could have improved had it been give na strong PV. But alas, it did not and this is what we are left with.



Kagen no Tsuki only gets three apples from me, and even then, I think that's a generous rating. This is probably the most divided song I think I've reviewed this year. Parts of it I like (such as the verses and instrumentals surrounding them) but other parts of Kagen no Tsuki (-cough- the chorus) are where the song loses momentum for me.

Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki

And for the B-side we have Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki, which translates to Perfect Synchronization with You and the Future. Nice title, huh? But how does the song itself hold up? I actually think I like Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki better than Kagen no Tsuki. This B-side reminds me of something Scandal would release with a single from their earlier days, like Doll or even Shoujo S. I'm even reminded of Shoujo M a little bit during the chorus! I've noticed over the years that Scandal's music has evolved very slowly. They've always maintained a balance of pop and rock in their music, but that balance has more or less changed over the years. I feel like their earlier material from indies to around the end of the Temptation Box era was more dominantly rock with pop mixed in. Post-Temptation Box (around 2011) was when I feel Scandal's music started gradually including more pop elements than before. Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki sounds like a much more refreshing throwback to some of their pre-Temptation Box material to my ears. I actually first heard only two minutes of the song and thought that was the length of the entire song. Thank god the real song is longer, otherwise I'd be complaining! But honestly, I don't really have any complaints with Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki. I think it has a very consistent beat, and very consistent energy levels. It's a nice breather from the energetically lopsided Kagen no Tsuki. Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki doesn't really try for anything out of Scandal's comfort zone, but I still think it's a solid song. The chorus was catchy, and the vocals were decent as well. I actually think that this B-side might have been strong enough to use as the A-side for Kagen no Tsuki instead of the other way around... The only real con to Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki is that it's a pretty safe song for Scandal. Luckily for Scandal, their musical equivalent of "safe" is a little bit better in terms of quality than some of the other groups I review. So if you're looking for a good ol' fashioned idol rock song, I'd give Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki a listen!



As for now, I will give Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki four out of five apples! I really enjoy listening to this song, even if it's not my favorite Scandal song. Its sound takes me back to their earlier days, and in a weird way, that's quite the breath of fresh air.

The Verdict

Well, that was Kagen no Tsuki and what do I think of it? Eh... it's all right? Hrm, where do I want to start with Kagen no Tsuki... I don't think Kagen no Tsuki was as consistent as Awanai Tsumori no, Genki de ne. Both tracks on Awanai Tsumori no, Genki de ne had about the same levels of quality, whereas the first rack on Kagen no Tsuki was all over the place, and the second track was a notch better. The single just didn't feel very cohesive. The A-side was not my favorite from Scandal, and what really got me is that it had the potential to be a pretty kickass rock song. But the chorus fell flat, and from there, the song just didn't work. It was like at some moments I was listening to a rock song and at other moments I was listening to a pop-rock song. Kimi to Mirai to Kanzen Douki fared better, sounding very reminiscent of the group's earlier material, but it's not exactly the most standout song Scandal has created. Still, it's catchy, and much more consistent than Kagen no Tsuki. All in all, how much you like Kagen no Tsuki depends on what kind of sound you prefer from Scandal. If you like their smoother, less jagged type of sound that they've gravitated to in the past few years, I think you can get into Kagen no Tsuki. I will admit, I didn't hate listening to this entire single; there are just very apparent flaws with the songs that I have to pick out because that's just how I roll. So this is the second single of the Standard era, and I think it's a decent single. I am looking forward more to Over Drive though, especially because of the producer for that single. Until then, I guess Kagen no Tsuki doesn't fail completely as a single; I've just heard better from Scandal, and I'm expecting more from Over Drive than Kagen no Tsuki. Overall, I don't really know what to make of Kagen no Tsuki. I think I'm probably being a little too harsh on it, but the single isn't perfect either. But hey, that's the beauty of music, right? Not everyone has the same opinion of every song an artist releases. I guess I'd give my overall verdict as a rough around the edges but nonetheless an all right single entirely.


Hence I'll give Kagen no Tsuki 3.5 out of 5 apples. I was kind of teetering between 3.5 and 4, but in the end, I did decide to go a notch lower. While Kagen no Tsuki may not have jazzed me, I am excited to listen to Scandal's upcoming album. Will the album raise a higher opinion of me than this single? Only time will tell...

What else is new? Hey guys, I heard the sky is blue! Pretty mind-blowing stuff, huh? I've learned over the years that any prediction I make about anything, idol-related or not, has the accuracy of a Magic 8 Ball. Really if I'd thought something along the lines of "Morning Musume will never dress up as chickens for a single!" then it would probably... oh wait, that did happen. Speaking of things I never expected to happen, SKE48 did a sexy PV! But I will get to the PV for Utsukushii Inazuma in a few paragraphs. For the moment, let's talk about just the song. Of course, I think in order to properly review SKE48's summer song of 2013, we need to hop into a time-traveling fish and take a look back at their past summer singles. Those summer singles being Gomen ne, Summer, Pareo wa Emerald, and Aishiteraburu! Wow... it just dawned on me that SKE48's been around for long enough now that they have a decent number of summer singles under their belt. Damn. Anyways, how have their past summer singles held up? While those three summer songs aren't exactly alike, they do have one common element: the tone. All four of those songs are cheerful, energetic and so gosh-darn happy you'll want to bob your head like a dork to them. Of course, this is to be expected from a group like SKE48 of all the groups that make up the cash cow that is AKS, SKE48's is typically known as the "fun" group, the happy-go-lucky horde of smiling idols with A-sides that range from spastically energetic to teeth-rottingly sweet. Their B-sides don't always have to follow this mold of idol music; their Akagumi sub-unit proves that splendidly. But so far in SKE48's musical career, the group has never really strayed toward a more serious sounding song to lead a single. You could argue that Kataomoi Finally was a much more serious song than, say, Banzai Venus, but even then that song was still a tad bit on the upbeat side. Regarding just summer singles, I think anyone can agree that SKE48 always gets the light and cheerful summer song that sounds slightly less bland than AKB48's light and cheerful summer song.

Or... so I thought.

SKE48 really loves to play with my expectations, don't they? First Kataomoi Finally and now this... Utsukushii Inazuma, the fourth SKE48 summer single, is nothing like their past summer singles. And I'm not even talking about in terms of their PV. It's not peppy, lighthearted, childish, it sounds like something for NMB48. In fact, did SKE48 and NMB48's songs just get switched? Like maybe SKE48 was supposed to get the pleasant but bland-sounding Bokura no Eureka and add some energy to it and NMB48 was supposed to get the passionate and thrilling Utsukushii Inazuma. I mean, the song fits their image as a more mature group. But a song like this for SKE48? I think this has got to be the most serious-sounding A-side I've heard from them, even more than Tsuyoki Mono yo. I really wonder why Aki-P wanted to go this direction with SKE48. I mean, I'm not saying it's a poor decision, but it feels odd for such a normally cheerful-sounding group. Like did Aki-P just have an epiphany that SKE48's hit summer single had to be a serious song like Utsukushii Inazuma. I suppose I shall never know. But as long as I don't, the least I can do is give my own opinions of how well I think Utsukushii Inazuma worked for SKE48. And honestly, I do like the song. It's not my favorite A-side from SKE48, but the serious sound isn't a terribly jolting change for them, at least after you've heard the song a few times. The song has a nice amount of energy and the girls do sound much more serious than in other sons like Choco no Dorei and 1!2!3!4! Yoroshiku! I do feel like I should also bring up the lyrics for Utsukushii Inazuma, since I was curious to see what the song was about. And Utsukushii Inazuma is actually a pretty passionate song lyrically, with lyrics such as "You are beautiful lightning blazing across my chest" and "If the sun had never risen, our love wouldn't have been set aflame either." Don't get me wrong, Utsukushii Inazuma is also a very melodramatic song in terms of lyrics, but it's the thought that counts. And I think the sentiments in the lyrics of the song are actually reflected pretty well in the way the girls sing it; they sound invested. Or at least as invested as a bunch of idols singing group lines can sound.

So overall, Utsukushii Inazuma stands well as a song. However, here's where my problem with the song comes in. I first listened to Utsukushii Inazuma when it was played in the short version of the accompanying PV. Had I not listened to the song knowing that it was SKE48's summer single, I'm not sure I would have made the connection. Utsukushii Inazuma does not sound like your typical summer single from any of the AKS groups, including NMB48. Had I listened to the song alone and not watched the PV or had any knowledge that Utsukushii Inazuma was SKE48's summer single, I would have thought this was a fall single. I think it's partly to do with the very serious tone it conveys; it's a stark contrast from all the other summer songs I've heard from. And of course, the lyrics are very summery, with mentions of beaches and the sand and other imagery you'd associate with summer. Still, being the language-challenged listener I am, I wouldn't have exactly known that either until I looked up the translation for the lyrics. So yeah, Utsukushii is a different-sounding summer song from AKS; that doesn't necessarily mean that's bad. I'm all for trying a new sound for a summer single, or a new sound in general. For that, I have to give SKE48 props for at least going a musical direction that deviates from their past summer singles. It's a strange turn, but for the most part, it works. But as a summer song... I can't see myself listening to Utsukushii Inazuma very much in the future. Not during summer at least. You see, what I think makes for a great summer song (and what I've emphasizing throughout my summer PV reviews this year) is a song that has the ability to get me excited about summer. That's pretty the only reason why I listen to them. There's that feeling of exuberance and joy in a summer song that has the ability to get me pumped for a great summer lying ahead of me. Utsukushii Inazuma... doesn't really do that. It's fine as song, but as a summer song, it's not the most exciting for me. Still, the least I can do is commend SKE48 for going a much more mature route for one of their A-sides.

But enough about this song. I think we all know what I really want to dig into regarding Utsukushii Inazuma: the PV. The sexy PV for a group that isn't exactly known for being uber-sexy. Will they prevail in this PV for flop like fish? Only one way to find out!

Ah, that was fun. I should type more posts like that! Except I shouldn't because that'd get really annoying really fast.

Welcome back, boys and girls and wotas to the Idol Smackdown, where I pit groups and songs against one another and see who comes out on top! You might be thinking "Nia, what are you on? You've never done an Idol Smackdown before!" And you would be right; I haven't ever done a post like this before! Not officially anyways. But there's no tradition like a new tradition, right? You could argue my double PV review of Brainstorming and Kimi Sae Ireba Nani mo Iranai was an Idol Smackdown of sorts. Basically, the concept of an Idol Smackdown is to compare two similar releases to one other and see which one worked better than the other. For this reason, I'll probably never have an Idol Smackdown with say Perfume against Momoiro Clover Z. Different genres, different styles, different groups. But if three different groups under one unit release three different songs under one single... that's when I can consider doing an Idol Smackdown. For this reason, I've decided to have the lucky challengers of today's first official Idol Smackdown be the Satoumi groups! Not Satoyama (although that would have been a great Idol Smackdown), but the three groups that make up the Satoumi units, groups under Satoyama life that were created to spread awareness of preserving the ocean and all that nature-y jazz! Instead of doing a separate review for each group's song, I decided it would much more productive (and hopefully more entertaining) to review them all in one post! That and my backlog has been piling up, so... yay for efficiency! But enough of this introduction! We have a Smackdown to get to! And these Satoumi groups will be thrown into three rounds in which I will judge the styling, the song, and the PV for each Satoumi song. Who will come on top? We'll have to wait and see...

LET US COMMENCE THE IDOL SMACKDOWN!

Round 1 - The Styling:

That's just my abbreviated way of saying how did everyone look? Now styling just doesn't apply to the outfits used for each single. It also involves group dynamic; after all, these groups are practically shuffle units, with idols from separate H!P groups being mashed together for certain groups. I will admit, this is probably the least important of the three rounds, but I still feel it's worth talking about. Which grouping feels the most natural? Which group got the best of the styling? Let's find out!

Dia Lady


The first challenger to approach is Dia Lady, the duo of the Satoumi groups! I will admit, when I first heard about this duo, I was 50% excited and 50% apprehensive. Why? Because half of this duo consists of Suzuki Airi and the other half consists of Sugaya Risako. Airi's one of my favorite H!P members while Risako is... not. I've never been a huge fan of her as a front girl of Berryz Koubou; her voice is as unpredictable as an earthquake, along with her performance level. On the other hand, Airi is one of the most consistent performer in Hello! Project, and has a great voice and personality to boot. With two idols on opposite ends of my bias spectrum, I was nervously interested in seeing if they meshed well together. Especially since Risako's hair color has been changing like a kaleidoscope since 2012. Would her hair be dyed blue to support the ocean for Dia Lady? When the promotion pictures for the duo came out though, I was actually very pleased. I thought Airi and Risako looked good together, different but good. I actually kind of like that Risako has blonde hair for Dia Lady, because it makes her stand out apart from Airi. Besides, they're both wearing little black dresses. I will admit, that is a pretty safe choice when you're trying to find outfits for singles. You can rarely go wrong with a little black dress! I think Airi's dress looks very form fitting and flattering on her; same goes for Risako's! I like the bow in her hair too. I'm also glad that they weren't styled wearing the exact same clothes; that might have worked but I think the different outfits set Airi and Risako apart from each other without looking completely different either. So overall... I think Dia Lady looks pretty classy! Airi and Risako look very put together and mesh well surprisingly better than I thought they would! Does the duo work as well together as W or GAM? No, but Dia Lady could have gone a lot worse in terms of styling. For what we got, I think Dia Lady was styled very nicely!

Hi-Fin


All right, so rising up to the challenging of taking Dia Lady down is... HI-FIN!!! Formerly known as Plumeria!!! Seriously, why did they change the name of this group? The original name was so pretty... Well, Hi-Fin isn't a horrible group name either, and the name does have some kind of meaning. It takes the first letter of each member's surname which is kind of clever. Unlike Dia Lady, the duo, Hi-Fin is the largest of the three Satoumi groups in today's Idol Smackdown, and it consists of Hagiwara Mai and Nakajima Saki from C-ute, Ikuta Erina and Ishida Ayumi from Morning Musume, and Fukuda Kanon from S/mileage. I actually think this is a very well-done mix of different girls, but it would have been nice to see some members who haven't been included in the Satoyama units in a group like this. Three of the five members of Hi-Fin have already done Satoyama material... Still, that's only a minimal gripe, and I think Hi-Fin has a pretty diverse lineup of girls from different groups that all form a pretty cohesive lineup! I also like that there are five members; I think five is the perfect number of members to have in an idol group. I think because that number isn't too small but it's not too big either. With five, you can do a lot with the lineup, but it's not like anyone's really getting overshadowed by the sheer number of girls in the group over, say, 10 members of 100+ unlike some idol groups that end in 48. So yeah, the lineup is good, but is the styling of said lineup good? Eh., it's decent. None of the girls look terrible. But the outfits used for Hi-Fin's single aren't very standout either. They're not striking like the little black dresses Dia Lady wore or... whatever Mellowquad's were. These look like the kind of clothes that the girls themselves could have pulled from their own closets. In that respect, they all look very stylish, but for a single, I would have preferred something that stood out a little bit more. These outfits are just a little too plain.

Mellowquad


And the finally challenger for this round is Mellowquad! What the hell is a mellowquad anyways? It kind of sounds like a fruit but then it also kind of sounds like something you'd see on the menu for a Mellow Mushroom restaurant... It says on the Generasia wiki the group name came from "idea of a rich prosperous ocean and the attributes of fairy mermaids" but I think knowing that doesn't help much. Well anyways, this four member unit consists of two C-ute members and two Berryz Koubou members. Not too much of a mix, but I think it's nice to put members from two groups that have known each other for a long time together. Yajima Maimi and Okai Chisato from C-ute and Tokunaga Chinami and Natsuyaki Miyabi make up the entire unit. Notice how three out of four of these members were also in DIY. For the most part, I think this lineup is okay. It is kind of weird seeing three brunettes and black-haired Maimi lined up together. There's also the fact that Chinami, Miyabi, and Maimi are all very tall and leggy, while Chissa is... not. She's short enough as it is and lined up with those three doesn't help her height very much. I mean, it doesn't really matter that much, but this still is a rather funny-looking lineup. And I haven't even talked about the outfits. Yeah, the outfits Mellowquad got are... interesting. You can't deny that they stand out with all those bright colors and floral patterns... I mean, they look like modernized versions of the type of clothing you'd see a Japanese person wear in an older time period. Granted, I don't think they'd wear short shorts but you get what I'm trying to refer to. I don't know, I'm very unsure about what to make of these outfits. I do like that they have a very clear theme to them but PyokoPyoko Ultra's outfits also had a very clear them, and look how well they were received. I do like the floral bras worn under those robes, but that's just because they look stylish and I'd totally buy one if I could find one. I guess Mellowquad's outfits are all right, but they're probably my least favorite of the three Satoumi groups.


Round 2 - The Songs:

I personally think Round 2 is pretty self-explanatory. How did each song from each Satoumi group sound? Were they as bland as Green Hills' Girls Be Ambitious! and Peaberry's Cabbage Hakusho? Catchy as Fore Fore ~Forest for Rest~? Cutesy as Harvest's Forest Time? I personally find this round to be the most important of the three Idol Smackdown rounds, and where the true meat of each Satoumi lies. After all, you can give a group the best styling possible and the most high-budget, lavish PV ever, but that's worth nothing if the song is crap.

Dia Lady


First song up is winner of Round 1, Dia Lady's, titled Lady Mermaid. Not sure why there had to be a "lady" before "mermaid" in the title considering by default mermaids tend to be women but... Okay, okay, I'm getting nitpicky! Much like the unit itself, I was intrigued to see how Dia Lady's song turned out. Lady Mermaid was described a rockabilly type of song, which did leave me curious. A duo consisting of Suzuki Airi, one of the most consistent singers in Hello! Project, and Sugaya Risako, one of the most inconsistent singers in Hello! Project, singing a rockabilly song together? It was either going to be surprisingly good or hilariously disastrous. I think my biggest fear for Lady Mermaid was really the vocals. Airi, like I said, is a very strong and consistent performer with a very smooth, naturally talented voice. It's the right combination of power and control. On the other hand, Risako's voice is... all over the place. She constantly uses her vibrato and tries to belt, which sometimes works, but when it doesn't, it's... obvious. If Airi's voice is the equivalent of a ballerina delicately dancing out a highly specified routine, Risako's voice is the equivalent of a crazed lumberjack swinging his axe wildly at anything that looks like wood. Luckily, Lady Mermaid is, for the most, pretty safe in terms of vocals. Airi sounds great as usual, and Risako holds her own pretty well alongside Airi. I think it was a safe decision to have Airi sing the melody when the two were harmonizing; Risako's voice always works well when she just has to hit lower notes. And to my surprise, these two idols actually blend a lot better than I thought they would. One voice doesn't overpower the other, and neither voice contrasts much from the other. There are a few shaky notes in the song, but for the most part, Lady Mermaid works well vocally. The song itself is also pretty good too! I don't necessarily hear a lot of rockabilly in Lady Mermaid, but there's a lot of nice brass going on in the song! With a smooth beat and pretty good vocals, Lady Mermaid turned out to be a much better song than I was anticipating!

Hi-Fin - Kaigan Seisou Danshi


But hark! A challenger approaches in the form of five subpar vocalists! Seriously, the best singer in Hi-Fin is Kanon. None of the other girls in this Satoumi unit are exactly known for their vocal talent... Still, that doesn't mean that their song is automatically terrible. In fact, Kaigan Seisou Danshi, is a pretty nice song to listen to. Is it vocally challenging? Hell no (but you can say that for nearly any idol song). But there is a lot going on in this song with the vocals. There's a lot of layering in this song, where a few of the girls sing, then the rest of the girls sing over or behind them. It's a simple but very cool effect, and it adds to the laid-back nature of Kaigan Seisou Danshi. This is one of those songs that actually works because it's energy level isn't high. This song doesn't drag, but the song isn't hyperactive either. The energy still picks up in the chorus and whatnot. I actually think of the three Satoumi songs, this one sounds the most... summery. This does count as a summer single, right? I mean, the Satoumi groups were made with the purpose of reminding people to keep beaches and other bodies of water clean. This single was released in the summer so I just kind of assumed that all the songs were summer songs. But now that I'm looking at the three Satoumi songs collectively, I think Hi-Fin has the most summery sound. It's not an energetic summer song that gets you pumped for summer but more of a nostalgic summer song, the kind where you look back on summers past by. Think Secret Base ~Kimi ga Kureta Mono~ only not quite as tear-jerking. The song Kaigan Seisou Danshi reminds me most of Urahara by Buono! I think both songs have that same laid-back feel to them, and both songs flow very well. I almost want to say that Kaigan Seisou Danshi could pass for a theme to an anime ending too. It sounds like one of those you'd hear during the credits of something, whether it be a movie or a television show. I think overall, Kaigan Seisou Danshi is a very nice song to listen to, with a sound that breezes through and vocal structure that works well for the members of Hi-Fin.

Mellowquad


Will Mellowquad be able to pick themselves up in Round 2? Mellowquad got Eiya-sa! Brother, a song about brothers and how gosh-darn amazing they are. Eiya-sa! Brother was described as a reggae song, which left me... nervous. Don't get me wrong, I love a little Bob Marley every now and then, but reggae as a whole is not a genre of music that I gravitate to very well. And considering Hello! Project's last attempt at a reggae-themed song was atrociously awful, I think I had every right to be nervous for Mellowquad. Nonetheless, I like to keep an open mind, and I was going to keep an open mind for Eiya-sa! Brother until I'd actually heard the song. Now that I have heard the song... I think it's pretty good. Thank god it sounds nothing like reggae; it does have a very tropical sound to it, but not so much reggae. There's actually quite a lot of stuff going on in Eiya-sa! Brother, vocally at least. You've got the deep backing vocals, the repetitive bits in the instrumental, a third verse (which is always a landmark for any H!P song), and definitely the most differently structured of the three Satoumi songs. I also think Eiya-sa! Brother is the most fun H!P song. It's very catchy thanks to the use of repetition in the chorus and after the chorus. There are a lot of parts that stood out to me with this song, and the peppiness of Eiya-sa! Brother rubbed off on me very quickly. The one aspect of Eiya-sa! Brother that didn't work for me so well were the vocals. And they weren't even that bad; there were just certain parts of the song where I thought "Eh... that could have been sung better." I guess it's because I'm a singer that I notice stuff like that so quickly. The parts of Eiya-sa! Brother where the girls sang from their head voices were very poorly done. The main problem is that the girls' head voices are all too soft and contrast too much from their chest voices. The backing vocals also didn't help, along with how loud the instrumental was. Singing with your head and providing enough volume and power to not sound faded out is a skill that you can't master in a day. In that respect, Mellowquad could have done better with its vocals; beyond that though, I liked Eiya-sa! Brother as a song.


Round 3 - The PVs:

Of course, this Idol Smackdown isn't done yet! We still have one more round to go! With Dia Lady winning Round 1 and Hi-Fin winning Round 2, will Mellowquad come through with its PV? Now of course I have to lower my expectations a few notches when it comes to judging H!P PVs since their in their own league of unoriginality and cheapness. However, the Satoyama groups fared a little better when it came to their PVs; hopefully, the Satoumi groups will get that same treatment. Let's dive in and find out!

Dia Lady


I will go ahead and say that of the three Satoumi PVs, Lady Mermaid's bores me the most. It's about the closest H!P-looking PV we get. You have your close-ups, your dance shot, and one extra shot to make it look like some effort was put into the PV. Sound familiar?





See that? Those four scenes are pretty much the only shots we get throughout this entire PV. For the first minute or so, that's all right. I actually like the set for the diner, because it looks very retro, like something out of the fifties. Anything from the fifties always seems to appeal to me. Well... apart from the inherent sexism and racism of that decade but that is a topic not for a blog about Japanese pop music. Anyways, back to the PV. After the beginning of the PV though, Lady Mermaid starts to get boring. The problem is the only scene where Airi and Risako are doing anything is any scene that takes place in the diner. That's where they're dancing and singing. All they do in those other three scenes is stare off into the distance until finally realizing that they're lazy bums to get up and meet each other at some random bridge. No explanation as to why or how, just for kicks, I suppose. Still, because the plot of this PV is so very basic, I couldn't help but do what I do best and try and come up with a bigger plot to explain it. See, in my version of Lady Mermaid's PV, Airi and Risako are two friends both waiting for their lovers to elope with them. Little do they know that they're the same person and the guy, realizing he could keep up the ruse any longer, decided to skip down and leave both waiting for him. As they wait, they realize they've been duped, so they come to the bridge to console with each other. They talk a bit, find out they've both been with the same guy, realize that there's no point in trying to find guys, and finally realize that they're both in lesbians with each other so they ride off into the sunset. The end! Okay... my plot isn't as complex as Memento but at least I tried harder to think up something than whatever the person who directed this PV did! I don't care how pretty they look, watching people do nothing is a bore for me. Lady Mermaid is too formulaic, even for H!P, for me to really like it that much. Airi and Risako do a fine job dancing and performing in this PV, but as a whole, the PV for Lady Mermaid is lacking in... anything interesting. Well okay, that motorcycle was pretty cool. Next!

Hi-Fin


Well, Kaigan Seisou Danshi was a pretty great song; can the PV match its greatness? I'll go ahead and answer that: not really. The good news is that the PV for Kaigan Seisou Danshi isn't as boring as Lady Mermaid's. The bad news is that it still isn't exactly a thrill either...





What immediately caught my eye about Kaigan Seisou Danshi's PV was the editing. As I was first watching the PV, I thought "Wow, this is actually kind of neat." And the editing for Kaigan Seisou Danshi's PV is very neat; showing the girls through little squares and rectangles and the transitions into them is a very smooth effect to look at. But watching the PV another time and another time, I realize that the editing for Kaigan Seisou Danshi is pretty much the only aspect this PV has going for it. If you'd taken that out, this would have been a completely dull PV to look at. This comes back to again, the idea that hey, showing a group of girls just sitting around not doing anything is... BORING! I'm serious! Why one earth can they not have the girls do something in this PV beyond sitting around and looking at the camera. The only girls that are really given anything to do are Maimai and Nakky. At least Maimai gets to attempt to clean a surfboard and Nakky gets a magazine to leaf through. The other three girls just stare at the camera, sing a few lines, and finally walk out of the PV because they probably realized how dull it was too. I will admit, Kanon does a decent job at looking like she's interested and Ayumi puts forth an effort. But then Eripon just keeps giving the camera this dead-eyed stare that doesn't match with the happy tone of the song at all. Everyone else tries to smile and look happy; I don't think Eripon even smiles once in this PV. And each girl is confined to just one set, and not a very big one either. They're not even given the opportunity to do much. Oh sure, there's a beach in this PV, but those shots are completely separate and never feature any of the girls. Here's a thought: why not... show the girls walking on the beach!? I mean come on, can it be that hard to find a public beach that'd grant you access to shoot a music video? The song is about cleaning the beach so could we not have gotten the girls of Hi-Fin cleaning a beach instead of lingering around doing nothing. The visual presentation of Kaigan Seisou Danshi lured me in like a fish but in the end, there was nothing substantial for this PV.

Mellowquad


Ending Round 3 is Mellowquad's PV for Eiya-sa! Brother. I really didn't know what to expect for this PV (let alone the song), even after I saw the costumes for their song. After seeing the PV, I think I can firmly say that I am... pleasantly surprised that this turned out to be a pretty fun PV.





I mean, wow. A PV that actually has effort put into it? A PV that has the girls doing stuff? This is revolutionary! You'd think UFP would be doing more PVs like this! What I like about Eiya-sa! Brother's PV is that it probably had the same budget as Lady Mermaid and Kaigan Seisou Danshi, yet it did a better job. Hell, I don't even think the PV has more than one set but the set is utilized to its best potential. The dance shot was behind all the booths where the girls did little activities so... props to whoever designed the set for this PV! I like that the set has so many colors too; it's bright and cheerful, like a burst of sunshine! Even though the PV has nothing to do with the song, I think the PV for Eiya-sa! Brother is really cute and fun. What I really like are all the individual shots showing Chissa, Maimi, Chinami, and Miyabi doing different stuff around the set. Like Chinami's cooking food, Miyabi's catching goldfish, Maimi's eating shaved ice, and Chissa's playing a shooter-type carnival. This PV's kind of like a carnival if it were a lot more barren and had hardly anyone in it! What also adds to the PV is the inclusion of these two mascots, a fish and an octopus. It is an octopus, right? It was a little hard to tell from the shots in this PV. But yeah, I thought those two mascots were adorable, and they added a lot of charm to the PV. I like that the girls interacted with them too, and they weren't just standing around creepily in the background. Despite the fact that Eiya-sa! Brother is a PV that took place completely within a closed set, I actually think this is the Satoumi PV that reminded me the most of summer .And I think that's because there was a sense of lively happiness radiating from all the girls in this PV. Whether it was faked or not, they all looked like they were having fun, and the variety of shots kept this PV from getting too dull. Is it the next Ponytail to Shushu? Of course not, but for Hello! Project, this is actually a pretty decent PV. What it lacks in budget it makes up for in personality and entertainment.


My, my, isn't this quite the quandary? You all might have noticed something by now: there were three separate winners for each round. I guess I shouldn't have reviewed three separate groups, huh? Well, the only thing I can really do is just decide a winner. Normally, I'd pick whoever won the most rounds, but look how well that went for this Idol Smackdown. So after much debate within myself, I think I've decided who I wanted to win.

Now when I say "idol summer" I'm actually just referring the period of time each year in which many, many idol groups active in the J-pop industry release singles focusing on the themes and aesthetic of the summer season. A quintessential summer single is AKB48's Ponytail to Shushu, a song about ponytails accompanied by a PV filled with idols prancing around in bikinis... and wearing ponytails. As many a regular idol fans knows, the summer seasons provides an opportunity for an idol group to present a more fanservice-y single thanks to the fact that summer in the northern hemisphere is typically pretty hot and a lot of people spend some portion of summer on the beach and... well, you do the math. As I have stated in this past, very rarely is a summer single my favorite release from an idol group. Most of the time, the songs are generic and safe-sounding enough to sell; the real focus is on the visual, and by visual I mean the chance to milk a little more money with the oft-used technique of pandering to the lowest common denominator: fanservice. Don't get me wrong, there are some pretty creative summer PVs that I've had the pleasure of viewing in this lifetime, but a lot of them are just four to five minutes of happy, smiling girls frolicking around some summer-y location in bathing suits for the wotadom to ogle over. My favorite summer single (and just one of my favorite idol songs in general) is Go Go Summer! by Kara, released waaaaay back in... 2011. But hey, age doesn't always dictate quality! Before this K-pop-turned-J-pop group released Go Go Summer! I was vaguely into them. I liked Jet Coaster Love, and I did keep a tentative eye on them. The hallyu wave was booming back then, so I didn't really pay much mind to the waves and waves of K-pop idols flocking to the J-pop industry for some quick cash. But when the PV for Go Go Summer! came out, I surprisingly enjoyed it. And when summer of 2012 began for me, it was on my playlist. Go Go Summer! is such a bright and joyful song, and it's sort of become a summer anthem for me.

Hence I decided that it was only appropriate that I close my season of reviewing idol summer PVs with a PV review of Kara's latest summer song: Thank You Summer Love. Personally, I would have titled the song Thank You Summer Vacation but that's just my personal take. Anyways, how does Thank You Summer Love sound? Like... most of Kara's Japanese discography. Don't ask me about their Korean, because my knowledge of that is limited. A flaw that I don't think I've pointed out with Kara is that at times, their music can sound... really similar. Like this song sounds really similar to Bye Bye Happy Days! and I don't think that's only because these singles were released next to each other. The verses, the buildups, the choruses, the energy, even the openings to these songs sound similar. I even played both these songs at the same time just to make sure that my ears weren't failing me. The structuring and the instrumentals to Thank You Summer Love and Bye Bye Happy Days! are disappointingly similar. Don't get me wrong, I liked Bye Bye Happy Days! but I don't need two of that song. Thank You Summer Love is such a rehash of that song, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. Surprisingly, I'm not livid which really is a surprise because there's nothing that gets my blood boiling than a monotonous song style. See anything I've reviewed by AKB48 to get the gist of why I hate that so much. I guess it's because I'm not tired of this style of music yet? At least Kara's music is always very peppy and energetic. I always feel very refreshed whenever I listen to one of their songs, and Thank You Summer Love thankfully continues that trend. But I still can't overlook the fact that it's the summer version of Bye Bye Happy Days! no matter how nice it sounds. I feel like Kara's been really restricted to this one style of music with their J-pop discography, because it sells. Don't get me wrong, it doesn't sound bad, but it's started to wear on me. Especially when their Korean discography is more diverse. Like that new song they released in Korea, runaway? That's a cool song and different!

Gosh, I really have quite a mixed opinion of Thank You Summer Love. I guess I don't hate the song, but when I compare it to Go Go Summer! it's a pretty underwhelming song. What I liked about Go Go Summer! was that it had a hook. Thank You Summer Love doesn't really have a hook. It's one of those songs that plays through and just... ends on a pleasant-sounding note. In fact, I think I can describe Thank You Summer Love in that one word: pleasant. It's pleasing to my ears and that's it. It doesn't really stir up many emotions in me beyond that feeling of pleasantness. For a summer song that's... pretty mediocre. I've repeated myself a bajillion times now, but what I look for in a good summer song is a song that can get me excited for summer. The kind of song that gives me feelings of nostalgia, happiness, ecstasy, just some kind of strong emotion. Go Go Summer! gave me that feeling of excitement, which is why it's stuck with me since 2011. Thank You Summer Love is probably going to sink into that pile of summer songs that I just forget about when I'm done listening to and/or reviewing them. I guess I could say that it kind of gives me a... passing outlook towards summer. I mean, this single was released towards the end of summer. Still, I feel kind of bad that I'm ending my series of summer PVs reviews with such a fizzle of a summer song. Because overall, this has been a pretty decent year for idol summer. Sure, I've listened to duds like Sayonara Crawl and Koi no Love Sunshine, but I've also found gems like Candy Room and Kaigan Seisou Danshi. I think musically, this hasn't been the best year for summer songs. But for summer PVs, it's been pretty awesome. I'll get to that later. Back to Kara, I think Thank You Summer Love falls about in the middle on the spectrum of summer songs of 2013 ranging from good to bad. I've heard better from Kara, but by no means, is Thank You Summer Love an awful. It just didn't make much of an impression with me.

Thank You Summer Love makes me wonder what the rest of Kara's upcoming album is going to sound like... I'll have to keep an eye on its release. So just because Thank You Summer Love is a mediocre song, that doesn't necessarily mean the PV which match that level of mediocrity, right? Kara always seems to get nicely done PVs, so I've got my fingers crossed that this is a good summer PV!


I feel like every time I review a Kara PV, the members have changed their hair.


Cute outfits! Give them some pom poms and they can pass for cheerleaders!


Wow. I don't know whether to be enchanted or jealous of how picturesque this set is.


Seriously, I feel like I'm looking at cutouts from a PB Teen magazine!


So Seungyeon went blonde? Well, we blondes do have more fun...


Silly Kara! You can't play rock-paper-scissors with five people.


This dance is cute but it's not quite as entertaining as the Kara-para was.


I really have no idea how to cook this... I guess I'll just wait until smoke starts rising from the oven!


Dear diary, I'm so hungry. Seugyeon's cooking is terrible.


There goes Hara, snapping pics for Instagram.


Uh, Jiyoung? I think you'd fare better if you used a water can for that teeny-tiny pot.


But hey, now you get a free shower!


Heeheehee, we rigged the sprinkler to EXPLODE!


A mysterious letter, hrm? Wasn't there a plot thread like that in the last Kara video I reviewed?


Is The Robot just a really popular dance move in Kara's choreography?


Doused by a sprinkler, and Jiyoung's hair is barely wet. Gotta love the magic of editing!


Hara, you are now my table. The rest of you will be my chairs!


Is that a shower on top of that trailer? It's kind impractical but cute at the same time!


I think it's pretty groovy that the members of Kara jam with a record player!


It amazes me how in some PVs Nicole can look really sweet and adorable and in other PVs she looks fierce and intimidating!


Gathering around a campfire? You know what that means...


...telling ghost stories and sharing each other's deepest, darkest secrets!


Oh yeah, and roasting corn. Or marshmallows. Take your pick!


By the power of Kara, we shall RULE THE MUSIC INDUSTRY!


Okay, call me crazy but do these shots remind anyone else of Aruiteru?


I guess because the scenes as a whole are pretty similar.


Oh, they're watching their last summer PV, Go Go Summer! That's a nice little shout out!


Hey guys, remember when Seungyeon actually had brown hair?


Are you sure we should be reenacting a scene from Mythbusters?


There's nothing more fun than shooting fireworks! Especially if they're the illegal kind...


Of course, sparkler are always fun too!


Can Jiyoung even play the guitar?


And so the PV ends on a very starry title drop. How nice!

I think I've started to notice a pattern with Kara's PVs. They either get really cute, adorable PVs or really fierce and sexy PVs. There is no middle ground, it's one image or the other. I don't know, maybe their K-pop songs I haven't listened to deviate from this formula. Not that it's a bad formula! Something I like about Kara's PVs is that they're always pretty high-budget. That or I've been really desensitized to cheap PVs thanks to all the Hello! Project PVs I've reviewed. But yeah, I think Thank You Summer Love got a really good PV. It falls into the category for cute Kara PVs that I mentioned earlier, but then again, it fits with the cuteness of the song. I really like that they were able to do so much with the set for this PV. It's basically just one set other than the dance shot, and the dance shot doesn't have much to it. Well, it does have a lot of giant pinwheels, but I'm still trying to figure out why. Beyond that, the set for the dance shot is pretty basic, with a white background and... yeah, a white background. The real meat of the PV lies with the outdoor shots, and thankfully, those are focused on more than the indoor dance shot. There are so many angles that this outdoor area was filmed from such as the trailers, the top of the trailer, around the campfire, the sprinkler... I think they got just about every angle possible to make this PV. The strength of Thank You Summer Love is that its set is so elaborately done, that you want them to keep focusing on it. I don't know who does set design for Kara PVs, but whoever they are deserves a gold star for the sheer details in this set. I almost want to spend an afternoon walking around this little outdoor area and seeing what's in it. I also like that they show the set in both daytime and nighttime, and the mood is completely different for each time of day. During the day, the atmosphere in this PV is very energetic and happy, but at night, it's much more mellow and nostalgic. While the set obviously wouldn't work if the girls of Kara were really camping in the great outdoors, in the PV for Thank You Summer Love it's so scenic, I can't help but like it.

Something I also like about Kara is that they all seem to like each other. I guess that comes from being together for several years, but they always have really good onscreen chemistry. They interact with each other a lot in this PV, and it never looks forced. And even in individual shots, they all look very engaging. They have the kind of onscreen comfortableness that comes from experience. I think the girls themselves along with the really great set for Thank You Summer Love already make it a pretty good PV. Now how does Thank You Summer Love hold up as, you know, a summer PV? I actually like that it's one of those many summer PVs that takes place on the beach. That concept has been done to death in the idol industry, and I still think the PV for Thank You Summer Love gives off a very summer-y air without really showing anything directly related to summer. The girls camp out, talk around a campfire, shoot fireworks, it's a lot of stuff you see people do during the summer, only it doesn't look quite as glamorous as Thank You Summer Love makes it out to be. Even though from a practical standpoint, this PV is highly unrealistic (where are the bugs?), I think there's something appealing about it. It's an idealized version of a summer camping trip, with none of the hardships shown onscreen. Thank You Summer Love is such a scenic and sweet-looking PV and probably in my list of favorite summer PVs I've reviewed this year. But... how does it hold up against Go Go Summer? I think you can probably guess my answer: it's not quite as good. While Go Go Summer! didn't have such an amazing set, the visuals were still very striking, and there were a lot of elements of Go Go Summer! that I really liked. In the end, the two PVs approach summer very differently; I just happen to like the approach Go Go Summer! took slightly better than Thank You Summer Love's. Comparisons aside, I think Thank You Summer Love is a nice, high-budget summer PV, and I'm glad that I saved it for last. It's not Go Go Summer! but it was still a very enjoyable summer PV.


I think I'll give Thank You Summer Love four out of five apples. Overall, this summer single isn't as good as the last summer single Kara did. But it still holds up pretty well. The song isn't my favorite, but I like the PV a lot. I love how elaborate the set it is, and how much stuff the girls are doing in it. It's a very cute PV, and pretty typical from Kara but hey, if the formula works, why not use it? And with that, I end the season of idol summer. To celebrate (or lament depending on how old you are) the end of the summer season and idol summer, I decided to make a poll! What is your favorite summer PV? Now these only include the summer PVs I reviewed but there is an "Other" option (along with one more for kicks and giggles).

You know guys, I'm really happy August is over.

It's probably my second least favorite month of the year behind February. It's just so hot and muggy and school's started and ugh, August is such a depressing month. But that wretched month is behind us as we are now in the month of September and hopefully cooler days and cooler idol releases lay ahead of us! I mean it, there are some singles and albums coming out in the next month that look very promising. Of course, at the top of Nia's Exciting Releases is... Level3! Oh man, I am so excited now. The album comes out in nearly a month! A MONTH! I'll be jamming to Perfume's newest album in less than a month!! To commemorate the release of Level3, I have started a countdown until the released date, October 2nd. As you can see, we still have a ways to go until Level3 is released, but I'll try to keep my sanity in line as we near the release date. In other non-Perfume news for the Wonderland, I've gotten most of my backlog from July and August cleared! I only have about four or five posts I need to write, and then I can fully dive into the upcoming September and October releases! I should mention that in my life outside of idol blogging, I am auditioning for a play. If I get in, I'd probably only make it to ensemble though, so hopefully that wouldn't be a huge commitment. You know what is a huge commitment though? School! And college applications! I've started writing all my college applications and I'm hoping to have them all submitted by December. How much of my time these will take up is... unknown at the moment. I've just started and the whole process is a bit overwhelming. But I shall prevail through them! My post-high school career depends on it! Anyways, I don't know how this and the rest of my schoolwork will effect my blogging the Wonderland. As always, I hope I can balance both! For now, here is my always tentative list of posts I'm working on at the moment!

1mm PV Review
- Surprise, surprise, huh? I think it's a given that I'm going to review just about any Perfume-related material I can get my hands on, especially their PVs. I already love 1mm, and I'm really pumped to see what the PVs going to look like. A making-of teaser was posted on Perfume's official Youtube channel, and from those little clips, the PV for 1mm looks very promising. I really love that they used the color-changing panels you can see in the Regular Edition of Level3. It gets me excited to see what the rest of the PV will look like! Man, I just love that Level3 has 1mm as the leading track off the album...

Fly/Hi Single Review
- You know what sucks about being a fan of BiS? Their stuff never leaks on time. It's like, four months after the release that their singles/albums get leaked online, sometimes one month if we're lucky. You know their last single, DiE? It's been out for over two months now and that still hasn't leaked. All right, all right, enough bitching about problems being a leech. I just really, really want to review a bunch of BiS songs, but I can't do that unless I know what the songs sound like. I've heard Fly and I have the music video for it, so if the entire single doesn't leak in a timely manner, I'll probably just review the PV for Fly.

Get the Star/Last Forever Single Review
- Yay, I finally get to review something by Tokyo Girls' Style! I should probably clarify that I'm not sure if I'm going to review the PV for Get the Star or the entire single, including Last Forever. If Last Forever also gets a PV (which I never know with a group like TGS and an agency like Avex), I'll just review the two PVs separately. Thing is, I don't know; the full PV for Get the Star hasn't been released yet. Still, the 30-second of the PV looked good; I just don't know if I want to spend a whole review going into it. Either way, I'm really excited for this upcoming TGS single; I think it's one of my favorite singles from them! I'll get into why it's one of my favorite singles from them in an actual review though!

Kill Bill PV Review
- Okay, I swear this PV is at the top of my review list. I mean, it's literally at the top of my review list. The PV review for Kill Bill is unfortunately from my backlog that I've almost cleared. I would have reviewed it in August, but my priority was getting all the summer PVs out of the way before September. Now that I've accomplished that task, that finally leaves me to review Kill Bill! I've already started writing this review; I've reviewed the song. Now I just need to do the screencap and review the PV itself. And considering this PV is based off a movie I happen to love... I have a lot to say about it. A lot...

Koisuru Fortune Cookie PV Review
- I haven't gotten to this PV review for many of the same reasons I haven't gotten to my PV review for Kill Bill: summer PVs! Gosh darn those summer PVs getting in the way of all the other idol releases. I think I've decided to just review the PV for Koisuru Fortune Cookie. I've listened to the entire single, and I don't think I could thoroughly review the entire single without losing my sanity. That and it's too time-consuming for an idol single that's already been released. But I do want to at least review the PV for Koisuru Fortune Cookie, since it is the big Senbatsu PV, and there are many elements of the PV I need to talk about.

Level3 Album Review
- Oh yeah, like you guys couldn't figure out this is coming? I've already decked out the Wonderland with a Level3 theme in case you couldn't already tell how excited I am for this album. Now I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to review Level3 in September or October; it all depends on when the album leaks. The album is officially going to be released October 2nd (trust me, I'm counting!), but typically, most Perfume material tends to leak a few days before this date. If the album leaks over the weekend, I'll probably rush to review it before October, but if not, then guess what the first post for October is going to be?

Nia's Idol Blacklist
- Ohoho, what's this? An idol blacklist? What on earth could this possibly be and why do I have one? I don't want to say much about it since I'm writing an entire post about it, but it's basically a list of idol groups that I never intend to review. What I'm hoping this post will accomplish is elaborating on the reasons why I never review some certain idol groups. I have to admit, this is probably a more idol blogger-oriented post than an idol fan-oriented post, but I think it's important to lay down the law with topics like this, especially since I review a somewhat wide range of idol groups.

Professor Honda's Dying Message PV Review
- Any of you Wonderlings heard of Starmarie? All I know about them is that they're an idol group that likes to tell stories through their music, which is a pretty creative idea for an idol group. Leaves a lot of directions and styles for the group to go. Anyways, I thought about reviewing the first PV I saw by them, but I couldn't really find much to talk about it since I couldn't find a translation of the lyrics. Just recently did I stumble upon this other PV from Starmarie, and while it's been out for a good period of time now, I still would like to take a look at it. There's a lot to talk about with Professor Honda's Dying Message; the title alone is intriguing!

Romance no Tochuu Single Review
- Yay, an official tracklist came out for Juice=Juice's major debut single! Despite the fact that it's a triple A-side, I'm just calling this single Romance no Tochuu from now on; the full title takes up way too many lines of text than it should. I have to admit, in August, Romance no Tochuu wasn't really at the top of my list of things to review since the single isn't even going to be released until mid-September. And I wanted to wait until the full tracklist was out to know specifically what I was reviewing. I'm glad I waited too now that music videos for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne and Samidare ga Samidareru have been released!

Standard Album Review
- So I'm looking forward to Scandal's latest album being released. I really am. Even if I don't always like their music, their albums are at least worth a listen from me. But the thing is... Standard's getting released on the same day as Level3. And which of those two albums do you think I'm more excited about? If you guessed Standard then... what the hell are you on? Bottom line is I'm not sure when I'll review Standard, if at all. I think I'll review Over Drive once the PV is released, but I'll have to listen to the entire Standard album to determine if I'm going to put it on my list or not. I'm thinking this review will be an October review...

Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke/Ai no Gundan PV Review
- Eek, why do I keep torturing myself by doing these double PV reviews!? I mean, they're totally worth when I finish them but man alive, they're not easy to write! Then again, writing one is just so gratifying... And it's very efficient for when you're reviewing two PVs that make up a double A-side. Speaking of which, can Momusu's next single please have just one A-side? Just so I only have to review one PV instead of two? I've barely started my double PV review for Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke/Ai no Gundan, but I will try to work diligently to get it released, especially since it's from my backlog...

Hey, uh… do you guys like watching movies?

And I don’t mean like going to the movie theater every so often to watch a blockbuster, I mean watching movies. Like going through Netflix to find movies to watch for fun. Or browsing through your local DVD store (if those still even exist) for the sole purpose of buying movies. Do you get what I’m trying to say? Well, I don’t know about all of you, but I freaking love watching movies. I don’t even think I can properly list all the reasons I love watching movies. I love that a really good movie can transport you to this alternate universe, even if it’s only for a couple hours. I love that they can be analyzed and picked apart. I love the variety of genres, how the visuals can vary with style, the effects, the characters, I just really, really love watching movies. Even bad movies! Do you have any idea how entertaining it is to rag on a bad movie!? I've said before and I’ll say it again: had I never started the Wonderland, very likely I probably would have started a movie blog. Ever since middle school, when I started going to the movie theater more regularly and checking Rotten Tomatoes for upcoming movies, I’m always looking for movies I haven’t watched from classics, to B-movies, to anything else in-between. As a result, I have a somewhat wide knowledge of movies that I've watched or are on my watch list. One of my favorite directors (and believe me, I have a lot), is Quentin Tarantino. What I really enjoy about his work is that he has a very distinct visual style with each film he makes. From the colors to the editing, all his films manage to stand out in both plot and visuals. One of my favorite Tarantino films is his two-volume Kill Bill, a tale of revenge and how far one woman will go to obtain it. If you can handle blood and guts (because there are copious amounts in nearly any Tarantino film), I would highly recommend checking Kill Bill Vol. 1 and 2 out. Both films showcase a diverse set of characters who each stand out on their own, along with a variety of visual styles from exploited films to 1970s kung-fu films to even Westerns.

Now why is all this important? Well, because I'm reviewing Kill Bill!


Oh yeah, the Brown Eyed Girls song. Not the movie.


There, that's better!

You know, it really baffles me why I haven't just up and started following Brown Eyed Girls yet. I mean, Cleansing Cream is one of the few K-pop songs I can listen to on a regular basis. I liked Sixth Sense and Abracadabra all right, and their accompanying music videos were pretty cool too. And I loved Bloom, which was a solo single released by Ga In, one of the group's members. Hell, I even know all four of the members' names: Narsha, Jea, Ga In, and Miryo! That's a huge step for me! Sure, I still can't match names to faces... but it's a lot better recognition than many of the other K-pop groups I can't tell apart. So why? What's keeping me from actively blogging about and reviewing this group? Well, I think part of it has to do with inconsistency. I never know when BEG is releasing anything thanks to that "comeback" system popular in K-pop (which I still don't get by the way). So the time in-between their releases is so long that after awhile, I just kind of forget about them because I have a lot more important idol groups in the J-pop market to cover. And I have to admit, beyond the singles BEG has released, not much of their other material stands out to me. Hell, even some of the songs they've released as singles don't stand out to me. Like I listened to Black Box, their most recent album, in an attempt to really get into them. Unfortunately, beyond the song I'm reviewing, none of the other songs jumped out at me. I think it's probably because K-pop is a genre that just has a hard time appealing to me, but even then, I feel like it's beyond just the genre of music. It's a shame because I do have at little bit of admiration for the members of BEG as people. They seem like very mature, self-aware idols who aren't afraid to openly discuss some of the more polarizing aspects of the K-pop idol industry, i.e. plastic surgery. So even if I can't always get into this group's music, I do want to say that I tip my metaphorical bowler hat towards what BEG stands for as a group.

With that out of the way, let's talk about Kill Bill. I'll be honest, I probably wouldn't have taken the time to review this song and PV if it wasn't based around the Quentin Tarantino movie I said I was such a huge fan of. In fact, had I not stumbled across the PV for Kill Bill by sheer chance on Youtube, very likely I would have kept blogging on my merry way, oblivious to its existence. Luckily, that was not to happen. As much as I want to get straight to talking about the PV for Kill Bill, I do at least need to go over the song. Kill Bill is a K-pop song, and it sounds very much like a K-pop song. Okay, categorizing Kill Bill as just a "K-pop song" is a little vague; what I'm trying to say is the sound and styling incorporated into the song does not sound like your typical J-pop, especially not the idol music I review. I've stated before that I'm not a huge fan of a lot of K-pop songs for various reasons pertaining to the sounds reminiscent of a lot of Western music. But to be honest, I really like Kill Bill. Because while it does sound like a K-pop song, it doesn't sound like a generic K-pop song. I think listening to it a lot helped the song grow on me, but I still think this is a really good song. What drew me in to the song at first was the whistle that opened the song, and that tune lingered throughout the rest of the song. I'd like to think it was a callback to the Twisted Nerve theme from Kill Bill Vol. 1, but even if it's not, it's still a really good hook. And it's that swinging, catchy hook that keeps the song's momentum going; it's not overdone either! This is going to sound kind of weird, but if I stretch my imagination, I almost think Kill Bill the song matches the tone of the movie. It's fun, but also intense, it has a catchy hook involving whistling and... See? Perfect fit! Well, just like the movies, Kill Bill isn't a song for everyone, but if you're looking for an energetic song that makes you want to break into the House of Blue Leaves and fight all the Crazy 88, I'd give Kill Bill a listen! Personally, I'm glad that I did since I found what's shaping up to be my "token K-pop of the year that I really like."

But let's be honest, I just wanted to review Kill Bill so I could fangirl over the PV. I should probably clarify that this screencap is chock full of spoilers for both Volume 1 and 2 so if you have interest in seeing both movies and don't want to be spoiled... you should probably skip this screencap! For the rest of you that don't give a shit about spoilers, read on!


Like Volumes 1 and 2, this PV opens with a black-and-white scene!


But as you can see, the content of each scene is slightly different. I don't recall a tattooed woman painting on a guy's back in the movie...


Jea lurks just below the bed, holding a deadly tarantula in a jar!


You might be wondering why this scene is poorly shopped with a cartoon-y looking spider. Well, as someone with crippling arachnophobia, giant tarantulas tend to frighten me. So to prevent myself from freaking out while I was doing this screencap, I had Chiima shop a cartoon spider over the deadly tarantula.



The PV and Vol 1 each feature the same quote in their openings: "Revenge is a dish best served cold."


Oh, that's nice reversal to have Ga In (that is Ga In, right?) dressed as a blood splattered bride pulling the trigger!


In the original Volume 1, it was unfortunately The Bride doomed to be shot in the head by Bill, leader of that gang of assassins she used to be part of!


And in a cruel twist of fate, Jea is the first to go down with Ga In literally shooting her eye out!


Another nice little reference to the film. The titular Bill also had a handkerchief with his initials on it.


See?


I think the "Bill" is crossed out in the title because the members of BEG just spend the whole PV trying to kill each other instead.


Seriously, from here on, it's the members of BEG dropping like flies in the most awesomely dramatic ways possible!


You can't deny death by hairpin is a pretty wicked way to go.


Bang, bang, she shot... uh... the door down!


Along with Narsha!


Three girls down, one left standing. But has she truly bested our other three protagonists?


Not with that demon spider from hell still alive and crawling about...


And thus the violent confrontation ends with five girls dead. But does the story end here?


If you know the movie, things are only just beginning...


I'd know that snazzy trench coat anywhere!


That's supposed to be Elle Driver, the merciless and hot-tempered California Mountain Snake!


Or BEG's version of Elle Driver anyways.


I assume the comatose Ga In is representing The Bride at the beginning of Volume 1.


I have to say though, Ga In sure looks a whole lot healthier than The Bride did!


I smell a tumultuous past that will never be elaborated on!


I should probably point out now that a dance shot is present in this PV but it's not that interesting and I'm not going to focus on it much.


I have to say, I'm really impressed with the cinematography for this PV.


I mean, look at this shot from the film, and then look at the one from the PV below.


It doesn't directly mirror Tarantino's but it does pretty damn good job at capturing the feel he wanted to set for each of his scenes.


I think I understand why Jea calls herself the Bloody Blue Spider... eugh.


What a convenient time to awake from a coma!


Ga In gets a puntastic code name. I like it!


But the deadly syringe of deadliness is zooming towards her! Whatever shall she do!?


So either Jea has really shitty aim due to losing her eye or Ga In flipped the syringe on her...


I think Narsha is supposed to represent Budd but it's a little unclear...


Mainly because Budd was a washed-up bouncer in the films.


Either way, she's taking Miryo out in the most cruel and sadistic way: burying her alive!


How are you even supposed to say Narsha's code name out loud? Do you spell it or just say it all together?


In fact, how come none of these code names have cohesiveness?


The films had all the code names based around deadly snakes. Here it's... I don't know? Traits relating to each member of BEG???


Whatever, Ga In's got some people to murder and some legs to rejuvenate!



It's probably a good thing they didn't incorporate the Pussy Wagon into this PV... you never know what age demographic is watching this.


I sure hope Miryo trained with Pei Mei so she knows how to bust out of that coffin!


Oh hey, Jea's still alive! Girl doesn't go down easily, huh?


Wiggle your big toe, Ga In.


Alone Narsha waits, with her Hattori Hanzo sword, in her Budd-esque trailer.


The next scene is pretty much a shot-for-shot remake of the brutal but awesome fight between Beatrix Kiddo and Elle Driver.


But hey, if you're gonna do a shot-for-shot remake, this one is perfect for it!


The violence is downplayed though, I think because again, the demographic.


That and fight scenes are really hard to choreograph, especially close fight scenes like the one in Volume 2.


But I do recommend watching the original fight because it is really well-done.


Man, how long's Jea been straddling herself on that ceiling!? Girl's got endurance!


I wish they'd had enough time to show Miryo completely digging herself out and going to the cafe to ask for a glass of water like in Volume 2.


That was one of my favorite parts in Volume 2!


Narsha just seems to magically attract shotgun blasts, doesn't she?


I think I see why Miryo goes by Guns n' Roses...


But a shotgun's nothing against a vengeful woman that's fast with a knife!


And down Miryo goes with a knife not the head but to the stomach!


The last one alive ends up being the first one who went down before... Jea!!


Nevermind, Narsha shoots her down just before keeling over herself!


And so the moral of this story kids is don't go around killing people because you'll just end up dead!


The end!

Damn, I don't think I've had such a long screencap since Gingham Check... then again, none of my PV reviews have come near the amount of pictures for Gingham Check, including Kill Bill. But hey, do you know what those two PVs have in common? They're both homages! Gingham Check was a mishmash of homages to different film genres popular in Japan, whereas Kill Bill is an homage to a film series... which was also an homage to different film genres, Japanese film included. Along with Westerns, kung-fu movies, B-movies... a lot of quirky film genres popular in the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s. Just know that the end result is an awesome blend of different film styles that all vividly are brought to life with much affection onto the screen. Now I've watched Kill Bill Vol 1 and 2 several times, enough to know the plot and the many highlights of each movie. Not only that, I've stated previously that I'm a huge fan of the two films. But while I'd like to give an opinion as someone who's watched and enjoyed the films BEG's version of Kill Bill reenacts, I also have to step back and look at this PV as someone who has never seen either film. I pity the person who hasn't but hey, everyone has their own tastes regarding movies. The defining element of Kill Bill the PV is that it is an homage to one specific movie. Not a genre, one film. Just one. I raise this question: can the PV for Kill Bill still be enjoyable to someone who has not watched the films? The delicate line an homage has to balance is that it has to include just enough material from the original content to strike a chord with fans of said content, but it also can't get so lost in trying to callback the original material that the final product is lost in its own references and shout-outs. I have seen plenty an homage that I was completely lost in because I either did not know the source material as thoroughly as I needed to or I didn't know the source material at all. So the challenge that Kill Bill faced was not only making an entertaining and well-done homage, but an homage that was able to connect with audiences both familiar and unfamiliar with the films.

Let's be honest, cramming over three hours worth of material chock full of standout moments and breakout characters into a seven-minute PV is no easy feat. I admire BEG for even attempting to make an homage to a franchise such as Kill Bill, regardless of how well they pulled it off. As a fan of the original Kill Bill, I really loved this PV. Like... it's probably one of if not my favorite PV for 2013. Unless another idol group whips out something even more impressive in the upcoming four months. When I was first watching this PV, I kept mentally pointing out all the scenes and characters I recognized from the original movies and getting increasingly excited with each new reference made. And as I watched the PV over and over again, I just liked it more and more. I love homages when done well; I practically had a heart attack with the PV for Gingham Check. And the fact that Kill Bill is an homage to one of my favorite film series and well-done one at that? Let's just say it puts me in a very ecstatic state of mind. I actually think the PV does a pretty good job of including many of the pivotal scenes from both movies, even if there were a few scenes I wish they'd been able to wedge into the PV in some way, shape, or form. And of course, much of the plot and characterization from the movies also had to get cut. But hey, this was a PV not a rendition of the movies! In BEG's version of Kill Bill, revenge is still the overlying theme but the desired revenge is not towards Bill but the four members of BEG. All part of a gang of assassins called the Brown Eyed Girls Squad (original name, huh?) through circumstances unknown to the audience, these four women have all decided that they need to kill each other. Their first attempt at doing each other in leaves Jea with one eye and Ga In in a coma, Narsha and Miryo's fates unknown. Four years later, they all find out (again, through unseen circumstances) that they're all still alive, and set out to do what they were doing to each other before meeting their near-deaths: finally finishing the deed and trying to kill each other!

I think even if you haven't watched the movie, you can still gather that's the basic plot of this PV. And you can probably find entertainment in the over-the-top ways the women of BEG try and kill each other. However... I really think the best way to enjoy the PV for Kill Bill is to watch the movies. I mean, unless you're a die-hard fan of BEG and love anything and everything they touch. There are just so many great references to the films that you can only catch if you watch them. Like the way the PV is shot is so reminiscent of Tarantino's cinematography, especially when Ga In and Narsha fight in the trailer. A shout-out to the fight between Beatrix Kiddo and Elle Driver, this brutal, merciless fight is in my opinion, one of the best fight scenes in Vol. 2. The closeness of the area they're fighting in along with the sheer malice you can feel between the two women fighting is just so captivating. The reenactment stands well on its own; the cinematography is very similar to the original, and while this fight is much more toned down, it's still awesome seeing the fight reenacted. And the hospital scene was perfect; the editing was so reminiscent of Tarantino's it was almost eerie. I don't know what it is about homages in idol PVs, but it's like I got this little thrill of watching each scene I knew and loved from the original movies unfold in the PV for Kill Bill. And the fact that an idol group took on this kind of PV was such a surprise to me. Don't get me wrong, it was an extremely pleasant surprise, but nonetheless a surprise. I guess it always surprises me when I see idol groups paying homage to media that I'm familiar with, but in a really good way. That reason alone is what makes Kill Bill's PV stand out to me. The material it pays homage to is material that I'm extremely familiar with. I think this was a great take on Kill Bill, with just enough references to the original film that it kept me excited as each scene unfolded in the PV! If you like movies, especially Quentin Tarantino movies, I absolutely recommend checking this PV out.


As a fan of Kill Bill Vol 1 and 2, I'm a tad biased towards giving out apples for Brown Eyed Girls' take on the franchise. Still, this is my blog and I can be as biased as I want on it! So I'm giving Kill Bill five out of five apples. I loved the PV for Kill Bill to the its violent end. I loved pointing out all the references to the original films, and the sheer fact that Brown Eyed Girls made a PV about Kill Bill at all brings me much joy. Again, if you haven't seen the films, I highly recommend watching Kill Bill Vol. 1 and 2. While they're very gory, they're also exuberant and fun to watch. And then you can finally understand more of what's going on in this PV! But for now, I just have one question for you guys: do you like movies? Any favorites?

Well, after years and years of hard work behind the scenes as an independent idol group, I'm proud to say that Juice=Juice has finally worked their way to the big league of Hello! Project. It just warms my heart that such a persevering idol group has finally been able to achieve their dreams of majorly debuting after such a long time in indies- oh wait, am I getting Juice=Juice mixed up with S/mileage? Gosh darn it to heck! Yeah, talk about a short time as an indie group, huh? I count what, seven months? Look, I don't have much of an opinion on how much time Juice=Juice, Tsunku's shiny new toy, was around before their major debut. They've had their major debut now, and there's nothing I can do about it except give my two cents on how Juice=Juice's first single under a major label turned out. With Aina suddenly leaving the group, I was curious to see how her departure would effect the group's upcoming single, Romance no Tochuu. After all, the song had been recorded, the PV filmed, and promotional shots taken with Aina included. Having to redo the entire single without her was kind of a big deal for UFP. But the deed was done and Romance no Tochuu was transformed into a triple A-side, the two additional A-sides being "Memorial Edits" of Juice=Juice's first two indie singles. So does Juice=Juice still have what it take to be juicy? And more importantly... how many fruit puns can I make in this review? Only one way to know for sure... let's review!

Covers/Outfits

Lemme go ahead and warn you, all six of the cover's for Romance no Tochuu epitomize the well-enforced legend that Hello! Project churns out some of the tackiest, cheapest, most poorly shopped covers of any idol industry. I mean... it's almost hilarious at just how utterly Hello! Project these covers are. The bright colors, the obviously photoshopped backgrounds, the sloppy editing, the fonts... The sheer gaudiness of all these covers is making me giggle like a six-year old! But in all seriousness, these covers are god-awful in that special way that only Hello! Project can make god-awful single covers. I mean, just look at the Limited A edition at the top of this review. Overly-bright blue background surrounded by a highlighter-yellow frame with five idols poorly shopped into the mix? I can't help but laugh at the over-the-top gaudiness of that! But that's not even the best of the covers for this single. I think the winner of the "Most Hilariously Terrible Cover" is split between the Limited C and Limited D. Such different types of tackiness, which one to pick from!? It's too overwhelming. On one hand, Limited C has some weird "rainbow space" background awkwardly shopped behind the girls, but then Limited D looks like the opening of a shitty 90s television show for little kids. I think I will go with Limited D for the worst of these covers, mainly because of how overly simple it looks. The primary colors look childish, especially compared with the outfits the girls are wearing in the single, and the formatting looks hilariously dated. Of course, Limited B, Limited E, and Regular aren't exempt from this tacky cheapness! They have their fair shares of... odd stylistic choices. Like the groovy yellow background the girls were shopped in front of for Regular. And the basic primary-color backgrounds used for Limited E. Not to mention the blatant green-screen pastels for Limited B! Bottom line is, if you're looking for some good-old fashioned Hello! Project single covers to laugh at, the covers for Juice=Juice will provide much entertainment value.

Romance no Tochuu

And here we have the one new song on the single, Romance no Tochuu aka Romance Is on the Way! Even before Aina left, I was eagerly anticipating the sound of Juice=Juice's first A-side under a major label. Would it follow the same cool, hip style of the group's first two indie singles? Or would it follow in the unfortunate direction of the agonizingly bland Ten Made Nobore? I hoped not, and after Aina left, I wondered even more how this would affect Romance no Tochuu, if at all. So I've listened to the song several times now, and my overall impression that I've gotten from it is... it's funky. Not as funky as the majority of Tokyo Girls' Style's discography, but still pretty funk. One of the distinctive aspects of Romance no Tochuu that separates it from the two other A-sides from Juice=Juice's indie era is the sheer amount of funkiness radiating from the song. Because Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne and Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru were both songs that leaned toward a cooler tone than funky. Romance no Tochuu goes in the other direction. I will say one common factor all three of these A-sides share is that they're all heavy on the brass instrumentals. Tsunku must be on a brass high when he's composing all of Juice=Juice's songs. The song that Romance no Tochuu actually reminds me of the most is Daite Hold on Me, a Morning Musume song from way back when 90s fashion was finally coming to a much-needed decline. I know that's a bit of a distant comparison, but listen to Romance no Tochuu and Daite Hold on Me back-to-back. Come on, you gotta admit they sound at least a little bit similar. Maybe not exactly, but at least in general sound! No matter what song Romance no Tochuu reminds me of, I honestly think this was a pretty strong song to majorly debut with. For the most part, I thought Romance no Tochuu played to Juice=Juice's image as a "cool" idol group very well. The song has a distinctly funky sound, some very catchy hooks, and not to mention lovely vocals from the lovely Karin (although Sayuki and Tomoko match Karin just as well too).

So the covers for Romance to Tochuu fell into the pitfall that is Hello! Projects stylistic budget. Did the PV fall victim to the same thing? Nope! You can pop out the champagne and throw on a party hat, because this is a Hello! Project PV that actually had effort put into it! Somewhat. If you know how H!P rolls with their PVs by now, I think you can figure out what I mean when I say "effort." We all know Hello! Project has... trouble with presenting their idol groups in music videos that are visually appealing and don't look like they had a budget obtained from the profits a 6-year old would get running a lemonade stand. On the spectrum of Hello! Project PVs ranging from "Hey! They had enough money to make a nice-looking PV" to "Yikes, it was one of those budget-scraping weeks when this PV was filmed, wasn't it?" the PV for Romance no Tochuu fortunately leans much more towards the former side of the spectrum. Sure, the PV still consists of mainly just dance shots and close-ups, but the editing is nice and the PV has the girls in different outfits, which is always a big deal for Hello! Project PVs. Mainly because this means the directors took the time to film the girls in separate outfits and film separate dance shots and close-ups. There are three outfits the girls wear in this PV: the houndstooth print outfits featured in the covers, the simple, but pretty white outfits, and the... Saved by the Bell outfits? Yeah, I don't know what the costume designers were smoking when they decided the girls needed to look like extras for the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. But all the other outfits and shots in this PV are actually pretty elegant, and I like that the outfits give the separate shots more diversity. The set for the dance shot and close-ups reminds me of the gilded design used for The Great Gatsby movie, albeit more colorful. Which is my way of saying it looks fancy for a Hello! Project set. And notice that Juice=Juice must have swiped the chairs from C-ute's Kiss Me Aishiteru for their close-up scenes. In my opinion, Romance no Tochuu's PV fared well for H!P; it could have been so much worse but the PV we got actually looked very classy.



In the end, I decided to give Juice=Juice's first song as a major-label group four and half apples out of five. While maybe not as strong as the song they first debuted with, Romance no Tochuu is funky and fresh enough that I can get down to it in ways that only an awkward white girl can.

Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne (Memorial Edit)

Ah, Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne, the first taste of Juice=Juice we ever got. Now this is what you call a standout debut song. The bursting saxophone, the catchy chorus, the sheer amount of energy... I thought this was a great debut song, and even now, I still think it's one of the best songs we've seen from 2013 in idol music. So to find that it would be getting a remix (or "Memorial Edit") had me a little apprehensive. Best-case scenario was that this Memorial Edit would just feature re-recorded vocals to fill the solos left from Aina leaving Juice=Juice. Worst case scenario was... an actual remix. I'm not saying that Tsunku is bad at remixing songs but... look, you can't just add a few skips and sound manipulations and think that's going to make for a good remix. The process of editing a song is challenging, especially if the original song is already strong on its own. The remix has to compliment the original but also have enough twists and turns (and ones that work) to distinguish itself from the original. Producers like Yasutaka Nakata excel in making good remixes; Tsunku does not. Hell, I think heard fans who can remix songs better than he can. The Memorial Edit of Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne doesn't make so many changes you can't recognize the song, but there are enough changes that I was... disgruntled with. One of the biggest changes of the song that I had the biggest problem with was that ongoing saxophone solo during the instrumental bits. You know, that really catchy opening to the song, that set up such a great tone for the rest of Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne? Yeah, that got completely butchered in the Memorial Edit. Overall, the changes made to such a strong song felt unnecessary. Like the old saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it! Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne was such a great song, and in comparison, the Memorial Edit pales extremely in comparison. I thought this was a sloppy remix, and I'm just thankful that not so much of the original song got skewed to hell for the Memorial Edit.

Due to reasons of Aina jumping ship, an alternate PV for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne was shot with the five remaining members using the Memorial Edit. Now I think we all remember the original PV. It was a shot a cheaply minimalistic set and half the girls in Juice=Juice looked like deer in the headlights instead of comfortable performers. So does the alternate PV fix all the problems I noticed in the original PV? Well... I'll say yes and no. The new PV for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne is nearly as cheap as the original PV. The girls still dance in an extremely barren white set, and the only other shots in the PV are the close-ups. I do think they tried to at least spruce up the colors in this PV though. The original PV was very monochromatic, with the only splashes of color being the bright jewelry the girls were wearing. The new PV isn't quite so colorless; the new outfits are very floral and keep up with the stylishly modern theme the members of Juice=Juice seem to get with every new single. There's some nice shadowing in the dance shot, and the contrast between the white and colors aesthetically pleasing. The original close-ups were just pitch-black backdrops, but the ones used for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne (Memorial Edit) are different colors that match each girl's individual group color. Beyond those changes, there's not really much about this new PV that makes it stand out from the original. It all really just depends on your personal opinion, which style you prefer, and whether or not you like Juice=Juice with or without Aina. For me, I think this was an all right PV, but if it were never made, I wouldn't exactly be marching to UFP's headquarters and demanding a PV for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne (Memorial Edit). At this point, I have pretty low expectations for all Hello! Project PVs so by H!P standards, I guess you could argue this is a pretty good PV. In the end, my dislike for the Memorial Edit itself is probably not going to make me want to watch this new PV in the future.



This Memorial Edit only gets two and a half apples from me. I can't emphasize enough that the original Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishmenakya ne is so much better than this half-assed remix. I will admit this remix wasn't terrible... just very, very unnecessary.

Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru (Memorial Edit)

With Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne, I had a very strongly positive impression of it upon my first listen. When Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru came out shortly after, my response was... not quite as enthusiastic as it had been with Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne. Still, I didn't think Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru was a horrible song; by my standards, it can even be considered pretty good! But in comparison to Juice=Juice's first indies single, this second indies single just didn't pack quite as much of a punch. It was still a very catchy song and had a lot of that snazzy brass instrumentation! So after hearing the wreck of a Memorial Edit for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne, I feared immensely for how Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru was going to get butchered. A rip of the Memorial Edit for the song leaked online, and Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru pretty much got the same type of remix Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya did. Which really just means that the changes to the song were sloppily done by someone who is clearly not skilled in the field or song remixes. But Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru didn't get quite the large amount of changes that Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya did. In fact, I think the only really prominent change made to this song, was the the opening trumpets were distorted. Sure, that made for a not-so-fantastic way to open the song, but beyond that, I don't think much of this song was touched beyond redistributing Aina's solos. And a plus about the new line distribution is that Tomoko got a few of Aina's solos! She kind of got the vocal shaft for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne (Memorial Edit) and she's kinda-sorta turning out to be my bias in Juice=Juice so yeah... I'm happy about that! I will admit, since the original and Memorial Edit of Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru are so similar, I'd rather a new B-side just have been recorded for this single. I do like Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru but I don't exactly need two versions of it to get into this song.

I get the feeling that UFP really wanted to sweep Aina's sudden departure from Juice=Juice under the rug, because Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru (Memorial Edit) also got a PV. And much like the PV for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne (Memorial Edit), the PV for Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru (Memorial Edit) doesn't really add much. The original was slightly less cheap-looking than Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne, with an attempt at making an actual set. And some close-ups showing rain cause you know, the song mentions rain and all. The umbrellas the girls used in the original PV were nice too, very bright and summery. So what's different about this new PV other than the obvious lack of Aina? Well, there are these mysteriously silhouetted trumpet players jamming out to the song in a completely separate shot! It's not the coolest thing since the Perfume's Laser Beam PV, but it's always nice seeing an idol PV featuring people besides the idols themselves. The set used for the dance set in this PV looks much more like a stage than the original PV, especially with the spotlights in the background. I actually think I noticed the dance for Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru in this PV a lot more than I did in the original PV. Don't know why... maybe there was just more of an emphasis on the dance shot than the close-ups? One thing I forgot to mention while I was talking about the PV for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne is that the members of Juice=Juice look so much more comfortable in these new PVs. Like seriously, Karin and Sayuki finally figured out how to work their angles on the camera and stop looking like awkward monkeys! Beyond that, I have just about the same opinion of the PV for Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru (Memorial Edit) as I did for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne (Memorial Edit). I think the PV's all right, even if it's your standard H!P fare, but it's not exactly the kind of PV you need to watch to enjoy the song. I guess if you want to see what this song would have looked like without Aina, this gives a nice look.



Well, I can safely say that Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru (Memorial Edit) didn't get anywhere near as trashed as Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishmenakya ne (Memorial Edit), but I'm only giving this song three and half apples. It sounds so close to the original, I just don't see much of a point in remixing it and throwing it onto this single.

The Verdict

For a major debut single, I think Juice=Juice got a bit of a mixed bag. The "main" A-side, Romance no Tochuu, in my opinion, was the best of the three A-sides featured on this single. It was fun, funky, and had a distinctive feel to it. I think what surprised me most about this single was that there were no B-sides, and honestly, I would have liked to see at least one on there. I'd already heard Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne and Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru; would it have killed Tsunku to write just one more song to fill this single? I might not be complaining about that had the Memorial Edits for the other two A-sides on this single actually improved the songs they were remixing. As I elaborated on earlier, I found the Memorial Edit to be Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne to be particularly poorly done. Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru's Memorial Edit fared a bit better, but that's nothing spectacular. In my opinion, these two A-sides included on the single just weighed it down. To be fair, I don't think Aina's departure was the reason for the lack of B-sides and re-recorded A-sides. Apparently before she'd left, Tsunku had already planned to do Memorial Edits for Watashi ga Iu Mae ni Dakishimenakya ne and Samidare Bijo ga Samidareru. Either way, that doesn't mean I'm going to suppress my wishes for a more substantial single. In all honesty, I'm probably just going to listen to the original songs in lieu of these Memorial Edits. One, because they're just better and two, there aren't enough changes in the Memorial Edits that I feel as though I can equally enjoy the original and the remix. It's not like Perfume's edge and edge (⊿-mix) where both songs can stand alone as really good songs. Overall, I guess my verdict for Romance no Tochuu/WgIMnDn (Memorial Edit)/SBgS (Memorial Edit) is... mixed to positive? If you really want to hear Juice=Juice's old songs without Aina, you'll probably like this single more than I did. For me, Romance no Tochuu was good, and I'm hoping that their next single will offer more new material.


I think Juice=Juice, despite being such a young group, has gone off to a very promising debut. Now the trick is to see if Tsunku can keep up the momentum and not get bored with Juice=Juice several singles into their career. For now, I'll give their major debut single three and half out of five apples and eagerly keep an eye out for whatever release the group is taking on next!

Then again, I'm also waiting for Level3. Anxiously too. But I'd like to think I'm not the only Perfume fan slowly losing her grip on her sanity as the release date for Level3 gets closer and closer. I mean, the album is coming out in two weeks. Two weeks. At the moment, they seem like the longest two weeks in the world, but that might just be because of my abysmal school schedule. Still, I really don't think I've properly emphasized just how big of a deal it is that Perfume's releasing an album. I mean, yeah, of course it's a big deal for me because I'm a huge fan of Perfume but even then, it's still a huge deal. Why? Because Perfume isn't a group that releases albums on a regular basis like a lot of the other idol groups I review. So when they do get around to releasing an album, it feels like a sacred delicacy you have to savor because you're not going to get something else like it for another year at least. Their pattern of releases isn't so formulaic that I can pinpoint when Y single is released and when X album will come out. Frankly, I never know. I can estimate that they release an album about every two years, but the fact that their album releases are that spaced out is what makes Level3 such a highly-anticipated album from me. Hell, I even have a countdown on the side of my blog! Even if this album turns out to be Perfume's worst album (which I hope that won't happen), I still think the wait has to be worth it. And now I know that at least one of the new album tracks on Level3 isn't going to suck: 1mm. A rip of 1mm has been out for awhile, and just recently it was released as a "promotional" single on iTunes and other international sites for downloading music! Pretty cool, especially if you're like me and live in 'Murica. I think going ahead and releasing 1mm as downloadable content before the rest of Level3 is a smart marketing move. I mean, it is the lead track off the album, and a song that I think will get people interested in listening to this entire album. And with the international release of 1mm and Level3 being 2 weeks away from release, what a better time to review its PV than now?

Of course, I think I should most definitely talk about 1mm before delving into the PV! I mean, you guys know my schtick by now: I like to review the song first, do my little screencap, then review the PV, and give the final product some apples! I guess technically I've already given a few of my thoughts on 1mm; I talked a little bit about the song in my fangasm of a news post about Level3. I think one of the most important features about 1mm is that it is a promotional track. This is the song that was thought to be the most marketable along with being the best representation of Level3 as a whole. That's why I wish I had the entire album right now; I wish I could state whether I think 1mm works as a song that represents the full album. But that's not a judgement I can make until Level3 comes out. Oh, if only I were one of those journalists who received copies of albums in advance to review them! Then again, I'd probably have to be an adult with with that pesky little thing called a college degree and stuff but that's beside the point. I review stuff! That surely qualifies me for an album, right? Right!? Ah well, I'll live. So while I can't decide at the moment whether 1mm is a song that best represents Level3, I can compare it to Perfume's past promotional tracks: I Still Love U, Secret Secret, and Perfect Star Perfect Style. And then for some odd reason JPN didn't really have a promotional track... Anyways, one feature that all three of those promotional tracks have is that I freaking love them. Especially Secret Secret and Perfect Star Perfect Style. Hell, Secret Secret's my favorite track off Game period. I Still Love U is also a really good track, even if my love for it isn't quite as strong as Secret Secret and Perfect Star Perfect Style. What also makes these tracks such great Perfume songs is how well they represent their respective albums. Secret Secret was that perfect balance of soft and edgy prevalent in the entire Game album. I Still Love U had those sleek, heavily electronic sounds that were basically the foundation of the ⊿ album. And even though Perfect Star Perfect Style was from a compilation album, it still sounded like the send-off Perfume had for that era in their career.

So when you really think about it, 1mm kind of has a lot to live up to!

I'll touch more on that aspect of 1mm when Level3 is actually released though. For now, it's gotten me interested as to just what the general sound of the album is going to be. On its own, how does 1mm hold up? Like I said before, I really like this song. It kind of sounds like a mix of Macaroni, I Still Love U, and Fushizen na Girl. Then again, I think there are a lot of Perfume songs that borrow sounds from each other, sort of like one giant web of Perfume sounds. 1mm is one of the slower tempo songs of Perfume's discography, but nowhere near as slow as say 575 or Negai. I actually really like the pacing of this song; I wouldn't say it's upbeat per say, but the constant tempo it maintains isn't too fast or too slow. I almost want to say that 1mm is a more serious-sounding Perfume song but not as much as Game or edge. It definitely sounds harder than the JPN songs, but it's still on the pretty raw side of Perfume's music. I guess they've just been progressively using less and less vocal editing over the years so I think 1mm follows that trend of more clear-sounding vocals where you can actually tell which girl's singing which part. The sound of 1mm really makes me wonder what the rest of Level3 is going to sound like. The girls themselves said it's their most "dance-able" album, but 1mm doesn't sound like a very dance-able song. I mean, even if I had the ability to dance without looking like one of those trees from Evil Dead, I still don't think I'd really listen to 1mm and think "WOW! What a great song to dance to! I'm gonna make some choreography right now!" But it does make me think that Level3 will be a continuation of the smoother more natural sounds of JPN with a little more technopop thrown into the mix. Time will tell how Level3 turns out (2 weeks time to be exact!), but for now, I think 1mm will suffice as new content. I don't know about the rest of you guys, but I really like this song. I like the general sound, I think the flow is really nice, Nakata's production is sleek and efficient as always. It makes me wonder what the other tracks on the album will sound like...

Now what's more fun than screencapping a Perfume PV? You tell me; I've yet to find something! Well, seeing them in concert would be pretty fun... but until that's actually feasible, let's just look at the PV for 1mm!


The PV begins with the girls walking through what I assume is a transparent mirror maze!


Actually it's the set used in the Regular cover for Level3 but hey, either works for me!


Of course, Perfume does what any sane person would do surrounded by clear panels: dancing!


To be fair, the dance for 1mm is very well-done, as to be expected from Perfume.


I love the geometric patterns in the outfits for Level3 and I still love them in this PV!


But I have to admit, I like the white outfits just a teensy bit better...


I love how the lyrics to 1mm are edited into the PV, or I assume those are the lyrics. I doubt that's a translation of George Orwell's Animal Farm, right?


And you gotta love those color-changing panels!


They kind of remind of the rooms in One Room Disco... only pastel.


Is that... Kashiyuka's forehead? Has it resurfaced after all these years!?


Oh, the fringe is back. I keep wondering if Kashiyuka will ever let those bangs grow out.


I think I like Nocchi's outfit the best. It's the sleeves that give it flare!


Oh hey, look how each member is standing behind a color panel...


...that mirrors their group colors when they first started out! I'm not sure if that was intentional.


As nice as this set is, I kind of wish the girls could do something other than stand around.


In this shot, they're interacting with the set more and using it for the dance.


In fact, I really want to see this entire dance performed live; the bits shown in the PV look great!


Although I'm not sure how they'd incorporate the panels onto the stage...


The Forehead has returned! Bow to your knees in its glorious presence!


A-chan belts her solo while Nocchi plots how to take over the world...


Man, wouldn't it be cool if all the panels just like shattered? I mean... it's be dangerous but still cool!


Again, I feel like they need something to do.


Besides walking around.


I love when Perfume's choreography does that thing where one members starts moving then the other follows (although it's difficult to screencap).


It just occurred to me how hard it must be to dance in such a constrained area! I'd be worried I'd bump into one of those panels!


Finally! They're doing something in this shot!


Love this dance move. I don't know why. I guess it just looks very sharp!


Oooh, I like this lighting! I wish they'd used it more in the PV!


Would you look at that? The panels spell Level3! If you tilt your head at several angles...

Okay, you guys know that I'm a huge fan of Perfume, and that I always tend to enjoy their music videos, even the bad ones. They usually get some really creative PVs and amongst all the other idol groups I review like Hello! Project it's very refreshing. But on the Wonderland, I'm a reviewer before I am a fan, and I try to review content as objectively as possible. That means Perfume is not exempt from my criticism, as I've demonstrated in a few past reviews. So you're not gonna believe this but... I don' think 1mm is a great Perfume PV. I don't hate the PV, but I've seen much better from Perfume when it comes to their music videos. Don't get me wrong, it's a lot better than many other idol PVs I've reviewed, but for Perfume, it falls on that mediocre part of the scale. It's a notch above PVs like Glitter but nowhere near as interesting as love the world, Natural ni Koishite, Voice, Electro World, Spring of Life, Laser Beam, One Room Disco- okay, a lot of Perfume PVs, let's just leave it at that. Before I get into why I don't think this is an amazing PV, I do want to go over the aspects of the PV that I liked. 1mm's PV had good production values and while the set is simplistic, it looks very sleek and polished, almost futuristic. I like the inclusions of the panels too, and the fact that they changed color in one shot. Not to mention the fact that they spelled out Level3 if you were looking down from above! I thought that was a very clever visual trick, even if the letters were a little hard to spot at first. And one of my favorite elements of the PV was the dance! I feel like I always kind of expect a really top-notch dance from Perfume, and usually they always deliver! I really love the fast choreography of 1mm, and it matched in a very weird way with the tempo of the song. I also liked that it included more leg movements since Perfume's dances tend to lean towards more upper body-type dances. It was very interactive with the panels used in the PV, and every time the dance shots came up in the PV, I was always engaged!

All right, positive stuff out of the way, where does 1mm fall short? See what I did there? Since mm is a metric system unit and... and... Okay, okay, I'll talk about what I didn't like. What I think was the biggest downfall of the PV for 1mm was the lack of activity. Beyond the dance, the girls themselves don't do much in this PV beyond walking around and standing during parts of the song. And I can't believe I'm saying this, but I felt like there were even some parts of the PV where the girls actually looked kind of awkward. Like when they were standing still during one of the choruses, that just felt so awkward. I don't know why since the girls normally look very relaxed but confident in their PVs so... yeah, I don't know where that came from. Then again, I guess I'd start to feel a little awkward too if I had to spend four minutes trying to look engaged with what's essentially a bunch of windows. The color-changing panels, like I said before, are a very cool setup for the PV. I like use of kanji being edited into the PV as well. However, I feel like the producers relied on both those effects a little too much in the hopes that they'd make the PV really engaging. Unfortunately, they were really interesting at first, but after about the 2 minute mark, they started to get a little dull. Because while both made for great effects, they're not interesting enough to carry the PV. The PV for 1mm reminds me a lot of One Room Disco in terms of setup: basically one isolated set that the girls have to interact and dance in. But what made One Room Disco work that 1mm is lacking in is interesting ideas and actions that give character and life to the PV. The PV for 1mm is far too neutral and basic. It's a simple PV that isn't terrible, but by no means is it a great PV either. Then again, I kind of had the same reactions towards the PVs for Fake It and I Still Love U, both of which were promotional tracks for their respective albums. I don't know, but this PV is meant to market the album, and in that respect, it gets its job done. For me, I'll just wait until the next Perfume PV pops up for something with a little more spark.


So I really like the song for 1mm, and even though the PV isn't the most fantastic I've seen from Perfume, I'm still gonna give 1mm three and half apples! Maybe it's just pre-album jitters that have me in such a good mood, but 1mm is a very calming and nice song, and the PV matches it in tone. Although I wish there'd been a little more going on in the PV for 1mm, it's still worth a watch if you're an avid fan of Perfume! Now all we can do is sit patiently and wait for Level3! Which is easier said than done...

Just for clarification, Not yet is not on the Blacklist. I just thought their image looked appropriate for my little graphic. I don't know why, but "blacklist" is one of the words I've always just liked. I've just never had much of an opportunity to use it. But hey, now I get to! I think the definition a "blacklist" is pretty self explanatory: it's a group of people or things that are out of favor. Of course, my blacklist isn't just any old blacklist; it's an idol blacklist containing idol groups that I never want to review, let alone write about. So why did I feel the need to write about this? It's not like anyone really wants to know about groups I'm never going to review. The idea's actually been in my head for awhile now, and I've kept my actual blacklist saved as part of a Word document. I just wasn't sure if I wanted to make the Blacklist public. The reason I did go through with the idea of turning it into a post was for you guys! Kind of. I've been blogging for a relatively long time now (almost 2 years), and I think it's good for anyone who's just starting to read posts on my blogs to get an idea of what kind of idol groups I listen to and what kind of groups I won't touch with a 10-foot pole. I figured doing a Blacklist and publishing it will be able to showcase a better idea of what I look for in idol music, and what aspects of idol groups turn me off from reviewing them. I'd also say that it's because of all the requests I get, but luckily, I don't get requests very often! Now I do need to specify one thing about the Blacklist before we actually start going into it. You may find that some of the groups on the Blacklist are groups that you like. And that's perfectly normal. But for whatever reason, these are the groups that I just have no desire to review. So just to make things clear, I'm going to say this in all caps and bold:

JUST BECAUSE A GROUP IS ON HERE DOES NOT MAKE IT A BAD GROUP.

And honestly, some of the groups on my blacklist aren't even bad, I just don't want to take the time and effort to write about them. You may even like some of the groups on my Blacklist, and that's totally cool! Differing opinions are what keep the world from being a dull place! All right, are we good on that, guys? I'm assuming so because there's no turning back now! Read on if you wish to find out what groups make up... Nia's Idol Blacklist. I'd include a crash of thunder but this is just writing so... CRASH! See? An onomatopoeia!

Palet


To think I'd never have found out about this group if someone whose name starts with "Chii" and ends in "ma" hadn't showed them to me! But now I have, so I've put them on the Blacklist. I dislike Palet for many of the reasons that I dislike the next group on my Idol Blacklist. In a nutshell, they're bland. Like... really bland. That alone should explain to anyone who reads my blog why Palet is on the Blacklist. I kinda have a... passionate dislike for bland idol songs. You know what I'm talking about: the vaguely happy, annoyingly upbeat, devoid of any genuine enthusiasm or energy idol songs that you could have sworn you'd already heard before. In other words... about half of the music that idol groups churn out! Yeah, in hindsight, I might have picked the wrong genre of music to get into... It's when I listen to such bland idol music and find myself writing about it that I think, "Why do I listen to idol music anyways if so much of it doesn't appeal to me?" I think the more I've blogged about idols, the more I've started to realize what kind of idol music really grabs me, and it's not the conventional kind of music that Palet seems to only release. I like the idol groups and music that try to be different, that try to do something, be it in their image or their music, that makes them stand out. Palet, and a lot of other idol groups that I will probably never be introduced to, do not possess that feature. So why do this then? Why write about idols if so many of them release music that don't appeal to me? Because I follow idol groups for the music. Also for the PVs and concepts, but mainly the music. Ultimately, an idol group's music is what factors into my decision to actively follow that group. Of the Palet songs I've listened to, I can't remember a single one of them. I can't even hum out a few notes. So if I'm not capable of even remember an idol group's music, then I'm clearly not capable to review them. The only thing remotely interesting about Palet is that the members of it are all rejects from auditions for Passpo. And if that's the most interesting thing I can find about an idol group... that's pretty pathetic.

Dorothy Little Happy


Okay for the record, Get You does not count as a Dorothy Little Happy review. It was a BiS to Dorothy Little Happy review of a collaboration from two idol groups on different ends of the spectrum. Whereas BiS is strange and unconventional, Dorothy Little Happy is about as bland and predictable as idol groups get. Well, Palet is vying to steal that title but you get what I mean. Some of you might recognize Dorothy Little Happy as the group that Ishida Ayumi was a backup dancer for before she got into Morning Musume. Thank god she did get into Momusu; I couldn't fathom Ayumi being in such a lackluster group as this! I think listening to Dorothy Little Happy was the first time I was able to pinpoint just what kind of idol groups I didn't get into: the boring ones. The cookie-cutter groups that have literally no features that set themselves apart from the vast pool of other idol groups all vying for attention in the industry. I mean, if I had to describe Dorothy Little Happy in three sentences, I don't think I'd know what to say that could accurately sum up what they're like. With a group like BiS or Perfume, that's easy-peasy. This group though? What am I supposed to say? Dorothy Little Happy is a five member group and... what next? All their songs sound the same? The only original Dorothy Little Happy song I've remotely liked is Kowarechau Kuzarechau from their version of the Get You single, but again, that was the Bis to Dorothy Little Happy collaboration single. I've tried to watch several of their PVs, but I've ended up stopping them out of sheer boredom. The girls of the group sound nice and all but... that's it. This is just a vaguely-pleasant sounding idol group that cranks out nothing but vaguely-pleasant idol songs. Do you have any idea how hard it would be for me to review this group? I don't even know if I could write enough about them to even generate a review. To be fair, Dorothy Little Happy is by no means a terrible group, they're just not an interesting group. At least not in my eyes. And I see no point in reviewing a group I'm not interested in.

Fairies


They're all talent and no charm. The end.

Okay, okay, I have to explain my reasons for this one. Because in theory, this should be an idol group I like. Fairies is made up of highly trained girls from the Avex Lab Avex Trax, and all the girls in the group are proficient in singing and dancing. So much that their levels of skill and talent have even been compared to K-pop groups. In the idol industry, which thrives on unpolished talent and vocals that can crack your eardrums, Fairies place themselves up a notch in terms of talent. And I've talked in many, many reviews about talent, particularly vocal talent. I generally tend to gravitate to groups that can sing or at least have distinctive voices that I can recognize. Why else do you think Tokyo Girls' Style is one of my favorite idol groups? And Perfume, a group known for having some of the best choreography in J-pop, is one of my favorite artists in general. So what does Fairies lack? They're very talented, all the girls in the group. But that's it. That is the only thing that this group has going for themselves: their talent. And while I do consider that to be a very important aspect of deciding what kind of idol groups I'm going to review, it's not the deciding factor. If you go by my review index, you might notice that not all the groups I've reviewed are exactly talented. Take Momoiro Clover Z; they have some of the most off-key vocals in J-pop, but I still enjoy their music and their overall image. Because what they lack in talent they make up for in personality. What I look for in an idol group is that perfect balance of talent and personality, a yin-yang where one has to complete the other. Fairies, from what I've seen of them, are completely lacking in outwardly appealing personality. They seem sweet, but not very engaging, especially in their music videos. Their dancing is great, but there's just something so... robotic about them. And not the Spring of Life-kind of robotic. Their music isn't interesting enough for me to really get motivated to review this group, although Beat Generation was rather catchy. If I want a talented Avex group, I'll just keep listening to Tokyo Girls' Style.

Silent Siren


So Silent Siren is an idol band. I like idol bands. Where is the disconnect then? I have to admit of all my opinions regarding the groups I've put on the Blacklist, my opinions toward Silent Siren are probably the most lenient. I really don't think this is a terrible band. In fact, they actually make for pretty easy listening. But the reasons that Silent Siren is on the Blacklist have to do with time and another idol group that just so happens to be an idol band... First of all, I have eighteen groups that I try to actively review on the Wonderland. I know that seems like a small number, but believe me, it's more than enough for me to review. The way I decide to review new groups is like this: something has to come up from a group that grabs my attention enough for me to want to review and talk about it. When I publish that review, I then keep an eye out to see whatever the group is releasing next will also be looking into. I also take this time to look at the group's past material to see if their style and music are something that appeals to my musical tastes. Should whatever the group releases next interest me enough to write another review, that's when I consider them to be on my active list. Silent Siren has yet to release something that's really grabbed me; the songs I've heard by them are nice but not outstanding enough that I want to write about them. If I were to write a review of something by Silent Siren, I'm worried that it would become more of a thorn in my side than something genuinely enjoyable to write, and I write on the Wonderland for my own personal love of writing. Right now I just don't have the time or the motivation to review anything by Silent Siren. It doesn't help that I already listen to Scandal, an idol band that in my opinion has much more distinctive music. If I want to review an idol band, I usually just default to Scandal, because I think I can just generate more reviews about their material. I don't know, I don't want to put Silent Siren as a group I'll never review, but right now it's looking that way. As long as Scandal's still around at least.

Super Girls


Super Girls. I talk about you at last. In case you haven't noticed, I've cracked a joke or two (or ten) in a variety of my reviews about the unoriginality of Super Girls. Because my god, they are such an unoriginal group. What concepts they don't borrow from other groups (and execute poorly) are cliched and trite ideas that are common in many idol PVs and songs. I mean, it almost blows my mind at just how cliched this idol group is. I might not mind so much if they were marketed as being more tongue-in-cheek about it but nope. Basically, I dislike Super Girls for many of the same reasons I dislike Palet and Dorothy Little Happy: their music is really bland. And as I have stated on many, many occasions, I really don't like bland idol songs. I feel like everything about Super Girls is constructed around the stereotypes of idol groups, which could be a really cool concept if it was explored well, but here it's just used to sell singles and albums. But I feel like the producers for Super Girls just have a dictionary of overused idol ideas and concepts, and whenever they're deciding what to do for the group's next single, they just close their eyes and flip open to a random page. It's kind of weird how I have such a strong dislike of an idol group that's pretty much what your typical idol group is supposed to be. But for reasons that I can't even quite explain well, Super Girls is just one of those idol groups that's always going to be a thorn in my side. You know how the Grinch felt about Whoville? That's kind of how I feel about Super Girls. I think it comes down to the fact that everything I see from them just looks so familiar to other idol groups. I said earlier that what I look for in an idol group is their ability to set themselves apart from other idol groups and stand out. Super Girls doesn't even try to do that. And you know what? If you're the type of person who likes that cardboard cutout, generic idol groups, that's totally okay, and Super Girls is perfect for you if you do. For me, Super Girls is an will probably always be a group that I will stay far, far away from.

Ayaman Japan


Oh yeah, like any of you couldn't see this one coming. I think as a reviewer, I try to keep my reviews on the neutral-to-positive side. Sure, I can get a little rant-y when I'm going on tangent #50 about how AKB48's A-sides suck, but for the most part, I try to keep myself composed and civil in my reviews. And I do try to find at least one positive aspect of whatever PV, single, or album I'm reviewing, even if it's the smallest positive thing I could find. For Ayaman Japan, I couldn't do that. The only thing I have reviewed from this group is Poi Poi, and that was for Sexy PV Week. You can read the review here. To this day, Poi Poi is the only song that I have ever reviewed that I 100% hate. I hate that song so. Very. Much. Like if someone played it, I'd probably get up and leave the room and only come back in when the song ended. I would rather listen to So Long!, PyokoPyoko Ultra, and that Shiina Pikarin song on a loop than listen to Poi Poi. I think my hatred for Poi Poi is much more well-explained in the full review for the song and PV; just take my word for it that I really hate that song. And honestly, I'm not a huge fan of Ayaman Japan either ever since they were introduced to me. I will say I can give them a half-thumbs up for at least trying to be different from all the other groups on the market but... this is not the kind of different that I'm into. For those of you who don't know, Ayaman Japan is an idol group that portrays a much more crass and bawdy image than many other idol groups. Think BiS, only sexier. I can kind of see why people do like them (and hey, they have that party gimmick), but it boils down to my personal tastes. Personally, I find them to be annoying and too crude to be legitimately funny. Look, I'm not Ladybird Johnson, but I'm not exactly a huge fan of sex-related humor. Ayaman Japan is a group that revolves around sex-related humor, and not the clever kind either. The other songs they've released, while not as annoying, don't appeal much to me either. In the end, Ayaman Japan's sexual gimmick is too poorly executed for me to consider reviewing anything else by them.

Look guys! The Blacklist is over! See? I told you guys I didn't have a lot of groups on it! And hopefully it stays that way. So out of curiosity, I'd like to ask any other fellow idol bloggers: do you have your own Blacklist? And if so, what groups are on there?

Feel free to go nuts if you're on of those conspiracy enthusiasts, but all I'm going to do is stay bummed that Mitchel is leaving BiS. I mean, wow. First Wacky, then Yufu, and now Mitchel. All from the same audition too... very surreal. I admit, Mitchel isn't my favorite member of BiS (considering I don't exactly have a favorite member of BiS), but I still liked her and thought she brought a very strong presence to the group. As much as it sucks to see another member of BiS go, I think the group will still be able to stay on its feet without Mitchel. And hey, now they're back to a five-member group, one of my favorite numbers for how many members to have in an idol group! Before leaving for other opportunities, Mitchel's last single with the group is a double A-side called Fly/Hi. Pretty smooth names for your A-sides, especially when you put both words next to each other! Something of note is that this is the first double A-side single from BiS. Is it just me or have there been a lot of double A-sides this year? Maybe it's just all the groups I review. Anyways, as a fan of BiS for mainly their music, I think it's only appropriate that I give Mitchel a final sendoff in the only way I know how: a single review!

Covers/Outfits

Okay, first question I have: why is Mitchel not featured on any of the covers for this single? Is it to show that she's already flown from BiS? Was she just not around on the day of shooting? The decision not to include her on the covers legitimately confuses me. Maybe she gets her own individual picture in the booklet for the single. Well, other than the lack of Mitchel, there's not really too much that really stands out with these covers. That doesn't mean they're bad covers or anything (they look fine), but there's just nothing that really stands out as really cool or really bad. The covers pretty much all feature the girls of BiS posed around what looks like an abandoned warehouse snarling into the camera. Pretty typical for BiS. Then again, at least these aren't as creepy as the covers for DiE were. Eugh. Talk about nightmarish. Anyways, what I liked about the covers for Fly/Hi were the outfits. BiS has a tendency to get pretty weird outfits for their singles, at least weird for idols. They always seem to look like much grungier version of the typical "idol uniform" concept popularized by AKB48. The outfits for Fly/Hi follow in that same pattern, but what I liked about these outfits were the hats they wore. The girls are all wearing goggles on their head with what look like antennas protruding from the hats. I think it looks very cool, kind of steampunk-ish. I heard that the look for this single was inspired by cockroaches, which would explain the antenna hats. Then again, growing up in an area where cockroaches are a thing of nightmares (especially the ones that fly), knowledge of that concept is a little gross. But then again, BiS is an idol group that seems to revel in grossing its viewers out in any way possible. Besides, this isn't anywhere near the weirdest or nastiest image concept BiS has done! Overall, I think the covers and outfits for Fly/Hi are pretty cool; they match well with the image BiS is always trying to portray.

Fly

From the producer who brought you Primal and DiE is Fly! Gee, this guy sure likes one-word song titles, huh? I hope you liked Primal and DiE because Fly follows that same alternative rock sound of those other two songs. However, it's important for me to note the Fly doesn't sound like a rehash of either one of those songs. And as someone who really loves Primal and enjoyed DiE even if the latter did have a few faults, I really liked Fly. It's super fly! Just kidding, I really wanted to use that outdated slang in a review. I think Fly rocks but it also has that same raw, emotional feel that Primal and DiE executed so well. I also think vocally it rests at a better range for the members of BiS. Of the six members, only Pour Lui really has the strongest voice; the other girls sound all right but they're all kind of weak vocally. Luckily, BiS songs usually don't have to lean on really intricate vocals to stand as really good songs. Speaking of vocals, I think it was really nice that Mitchel got a little solo between the second and last chorus of the song. It kind of felt like a nice sendoff for Mitchel to fly away from BiS and re-enter the world outside of idol-dom. Something else I noticed about Fly is actually... okay, this is gonna sound crazy, but Fly sounds like a Paramore song to me. And not the current, new wave Paramore, the Paramore that existed around the Brand New Eyes era. Did any of you guys listen to Paramore? Well, back in middle school, this rock band was my jam, and my first gateway into non-pop music. Am I the only one getting that vibe from Fly? I hope I'm not. I don't really listen to much of Paramore's new music anymore, but Fly does kind of take me back to the days when I rocked out to them. I think Fly is probably my favorite A-side released from BiS this year. It's exploring the more alternative side of their music in lieu of screamo or punk pop or any other genre they've done, and I like that. If you found Primal or DiE or even PPCC to be right up your alley, I'd highly recommend listening to Fly. It doesn't exactly cover any new ground for BiS, but it's still a rocking song to listen to!

I thought about reviewing the PV for Fly, but I ended up just not having the time to really look into writing a full PV review for it. That being said, it is one of the group's more... unusual music videos. As I have said many times before, BiS often gets very hit-or-miss music videos. Some are really cool with a somewhat profound message for an idol group and other are too strange and grotesque to really be appealing. Fly actually falls in-between this spectrum. I don't think there's much of a message or any hidden symbolism or meanings but visually and artistically, it's still a very interesting PV. There's... kind of a plot. If you could count a little girl in a white dress getting chased around by a monster as a plot. Not to mention it doesn't really have a resolution. By the end of the PV, nothing has really changed. The girl's still being chased, and the members of BiS are still dancing in slow motion and generally doing their own thing. But this is just a music video. I'm not exactly expecting an award-winning art-house short film from the producers behind BiS. And I really did find this PV to be pretty cool to watch. It held my attention from start to finish, it wasn't boring, the visual choices made for the camera were executed well, and the overall result was very artsy. I think it might be because the PV's in black and white; somehow my mind always seems to connect black-and-white film with "artsy." Call it an instinct or whatever. You could show me a cat rubbing against a cactus in black-and-white, and my first reaction would still be seeing it as artsy. But I do think shooting this PV in mostly black-and-white does give off a creepy and gritty vibe. I like the shadowing a lot on the girls in the shots where they sing, from when they're together to the individual shots of them all crouched on the ground. The PV for Fly matched the dark and raw tone of the song too! In the end, I'm not sure exactly what kind of message Fly was trying to convey, if any message at all, but the PV for it was visually interesting with a lot of bizarrely fascinating creatures from cockroaches to giant monsters.



Overall, I'll give Fly 4.5 apples out of 5. BiS as usual continues to appeal to the darker and grungier side of my music tastes by fusing said music with an idol group. I thought it was a really good song, and I liked the it was more of an alternative rock song. If I were Mitchel, I'd be totally happy to leave BiS on such a high note of a song. The PV was cool, the song was cool, and I feel cool listening to Fly!

Hi

So next A-side and the only other different song on the single is Hi. You might also recognize it as a common word English-speaking humans use to greet other English-speaking humans. Who knows? Maybe the next song BiS will release will be called Hola! Or Bonjour! All right, enough joking, this is a serious review! So I need to seriously ask if Hi even needed to be an A-side. I mean... it wasn't really promoted the same way Fly was. And I personally found Fly to be a much stronger song than Hi was. Of course, Hi wasn't by any means a terrible song. In fact, compared to some of the drek I've listened to this year, Hi is a blissful thing to listen to. But I just can't really get into this song. I think partially because the song is really short. I don't know why, but I'm not exactly the most enthusiastic about really short songs. And when I say "short " I mean shorter than three minutes. Hi is just a little under three minutes. If I'm going to listen to a song, I want to get my worth out of it. For short songs, especially good short songs, they end way too quickly. Now Hi is a very energetic and fast-paced song, so I guess I can kind of see why it's so short. And it makes use of its short length; there's a very clear structure and the energy is great. But it's probably not gonna be one of those BiS I find myself listening to a lot. It's a fun song, but I can't really get into the melody and feel of the song. And in comparison to Fly, Hi doesn't exactly reach the level of quality Fly did for me. It's really not a bad song, and I do enjoy listening to it, but I'd rather BiS not return to the sound they used for Hi. There is a PV for Hi but it's more-or-less a performance PV. You know those PVs where they just film a few live performances of the song, splice them together, and edit the audio to the song over it? In a nutshell, that's what the PV for Hi consists of. If you dig performance PVs, then this one is okay I guess, but there's not really much to talk about it. It does consist of a lot of Mitchel, so if you want to see clips of her last days in BiS, then I'd watch this PV! So yeah, Hi's okay but BiS can aim for higher quality songs. Ah, puns.



As for me, I thought Hi was overall an okay accompanying A-side, but not quite as awesome as Fly was. So I'll give it 3.5 apples out of 5. It makes for a good head-bobbing, but Hi is too short and just a tad too grating at times for me to really jam to it.

The Verdict

I thought this was a good single. Maybe not quite as good overall as DiE was but still a nice BiS single. I have to admit though, I don't really think this single needed to be a double A-side. Fly was strong enough that it could have lead the single alone, and it kind of did anyways. Or at least I personally thought that of the two A-sides, Fly was more promoted. You know, it's always boggled me why a lot of idol agencies have the tendency to release these double A-side singles but only promote one of the two A-sides. Avex did it for Tokyo Girls' Style's latest single. Hello! Project did it for Morning Musume's One Two Three/The Matenrou Show. Anyways, I guess it doesn't matter. Fly and Hi are both listenable songs, especially if you're a fan of BiS. Personally, I just liked Fly better than Hi. I will say even if my opinions towards Fly and Hi were at different levels of positive reception, I do at least have to commend the fact that both songs sound different. I always think what makes a double A-side work is having two different-sounding songs that still manage to complete each other in some way. Fly is much darker and serious, with a pounding guitar and even some really nice piano thrown into the instrumentals. It definitely carries the emotions of escape and "flying high" as mentioned in the song, and I think it makes for a perfect sendoff for Mitchel. On the other hand, Hi is much peppier, or at least peppy by BiS standards. It's very fast-paced but also packs a punch, and the chorus is very catchy. Almost a little too catchy at times, but it's still a fun song to listen to. I think which A-side you prefer comes down to personal preference. If you like BiS taking on a more alternative rock style, you're probably gonna lean towards Fly. However, if you like seeing BiS do a more pop rock sound, then Hi fits the bill pretty nicely. Like with any song, your mileage will vary. For me, I found Fly/Hi to be a pretty solid single from BiS. It probably isn't my favorite single from the unconventional idol group, but it maintains many of the quirks that make BiS such an enjoyable idol group to follow.


So my final verdict is four out of five apples. I have to admit, I'm gonna miss Mitchel. She was pretty cool, and she definitely had one of the coolest bowl cuts I've ever seen... ever, actually. But I think the new members and the old members will be able to carry on without her. So all I can say is I hope Mitchel does fly high, high into whatever career or dream she hopes to reach. Eugh, that sounded corny. I'm gonna go listen Idol is Dead.

Welcome back to the idol smackdown, where I pit idol groups against each other and see which group comes out on top! Ladies and gentleman, I want you to put on your heart-shaped sunglasses, grab your record player, and step into a DeLorean because we're going back in time...

Well, kind of. I've yet to build a time-traveling DeLorean or acquire a blue police box to travel across dimensions. But that doesn't mean we can't look back on history and appreciate it. I enjoy learning about history very much, especially the cultural aspects of it. I just think it's amazing to see a nation's culture grow and evolve over the years. For that reason, I really like old things. Not like 2 month-old loaf of bread type of old but... antiques. Relics from the past! There's the expression I'm looking for! I love going through little antique stores full of all these objects and clothes and magazines made in a time period long past. It's like going in a museum and being able to touch everything! I think doing that has given me a certain fondness for "retro" things, particularly American media from the 1920s to the 1970s (even the 1980s but that's bordering on retro more than the other decades I listed). That and watching a lot of Mystery Science Theater 3000 but that's beside the point. I should clarify that just because I have an appreciation for the pop culture of the 1920s-1970s does not mean that I want to live during that time period. Believe me, I'm very happy that I'm alive now instead of during say, the fifties. There are still a lot of elements of this era in history that I don't like. I don't like the racial discrimination, the inherent sexism of the 1950s and 1960s, the threat of nuclear meltdown prevalent throughout the Cold War, the spike in drug use that occurred in the 1980s, and many more events that you can ask your local history teacher about. My point is you can't look at history through rose-tinted shades, okay? Just like now there are both good and bad elements of history and society that will always be prevalent as long as human nature exists. However, I can still appreciate the aesthetic of decades gone past, and that is where retro media has its appeal for me. Visually I find it to be a very interesting and different time period.

With that in mind, how in the hell does my little history spiel relate to idol groups? Well, I'm not the only person in the world who has an appreciation for retro things. Retro concepts have been thoroughly explored in music, in countries all around the world, including idol music. From groups like Morning Musume to groups like AKB48, taking styles and visuals from music of the past is a popular technique that I personally find very charming. Hence the two songs I'm comparing on today's Idol Smackdown both explore the theme of retro-ness. One in the song, the other moreso in the PV. So today on this Idol Smackdown, I'm pitting a song from the biggest idol group in Japan right now...


...against an idol group so lacking in information I'm not even sure it's considered an idol group.


Makes perfect sense, right?

But hey, I always seem to review groups that may-or-may-not be classified as "idol" groups depending on who you ask. The group you see above is Jusyo Futei Mushoku or Jusho Futei Mushoku depending on whom you ask for the correct spelling. And contrary to what you'd think going off only the cover to their latest album, this group actually consists of four members! It's just that they added another member just before the release of their next album, Gold Future Basic, so I guess they just wanted to give her a feature on the album. Her name is ℃-want you! and unfortunately, she's the only member whose name I can even find. Yeah, it's that obscure of a group. The information I have found on Jusyo Futei Mushoku is very scarce, but from the few music videos and shady discography websites that feature them, I can at least gather they're an idol band. Maybe. Look, they all play instruments, with one of the four members solely playing the instrumentals in their songs with the other three girls splitting the vocals. Or two when their were only three members in the group. I've also gathered that Jusyo Futei Mushoku is a group that leans toward the retro pop-rock music of the sixties; even one of their songs is called I Wanna Be Your Beatles! What caught my eye about Jusyo Futei Mushoku was their PV released for In Da Gold, the promoting track off Gold Future Basic. I immediately realized that I wanted to talk about the PV, but I didn't know if I wanted to take on another PV review or do something different. Then an idea came to me. Why not knock out the review of Koisuru Fortune Cookie lingering at the back of my review list and take a look at this group at the same time? And what a better way to do that than with an Idol Smackdown where two idol groups will fight it out to see which one succeeds in one aspect of a song or PV. So today's Idol Smackdown features one retro song from an immensely popular group and another retro song from a ridiculously obscure group. Which one will come out on top? Only one way to find out! Let the Smackdown commence!

Round 1 - The Styling

Warming up the Idol Smackdown is the styling! Were the outfits cute? Were the album covers decent? Did they match the tone set by the song? Did each group look like a cohesive idol group? All these questions and a little bit more are covered in Round 1! Although personally I find this to be the most trivial of the three rounds it nonetheless is vital in determining who will come out on top as winner of the Idol Smackdown!

AKB48



So the first challenger is AKB48 because I'm doing this in alphabetical order! I guess technically I have two sets of outfits to judge for Koisuru Fortune Cookie: the ones used on the covers and the ones used for most of the PV. I remember way back when shaky photos of the outfits used in the PV shooting were first leaked onto the web, before we'd even heard what Koisuru Fortune Cookie sounded like. My first impressions were... mixed to positive. I thought the red, white, yellow, and blue outfits were very bright and colorful, and none of the Senbatsu members looked bad in them. But they also looked kind of circus-y. Not to mention that they're styled the way many of AKB48's performance outfits are. They look like the "school uniform with a stylish twist" kind of outfits that have become a staple with AKB48. They're a lot like Iiwake Maybe's outfits only with less plaid. So yeah, they're cute, but I've seen this look before. In fact, I've seen this look a lot of times from AKB48, along with a lot of groups ripping off said look. And then there are the other outfits used on the covers for the single. Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of these outfits. I think they look really tacky, and don't really match with the song at all. If anything, they make the girls look like walking Christmas ornaments. I guess in comparison, these outfits aren't the worst I've ever seen, but they just don't work with a single like Koisuru Fortune Cookie. I might like them a little better if the other aspects of the covers worked but honestly, these covers are pretty bad. The Photoshop is painfully evident, and the color schemes used for each cover look kind of nasty. I don't know, something about the shading doesn't strike me as very appealing. Ugh, for such a loaded idol group, you'd think AKS would put some real time and money into making some nice-looking covers for their group's singles. I guess not! Overall, the styling for Koisuru Fortune Cookie is iffy at best; the only outfits I really like are the ones used in the PV, but even then those aren't that original. Everything else is pretty tacky, especially for AKB48.

Jusyo Futei Mushoku


So the styling for Koisuru Fortune Cookie was just about as retro as the "retro" section of the yearly Halloween costume catalog. Does Jusyo Futei Mushoku fare any better? Let's take a look. I have no idea what kind of budget Jusyo Futei Mushoku has, but I'm willing to bet that it's not a very large amount. Still, there are plenty of idol groups with small budgets that manage to make creative visuals and concepts with what they've got! And I think Jusyo Futei Mushoku does a pretty decent job of creating a retro look to promote their album. Three of the four members are all wearing pastel-colored dresses that you'd swear were stolen from the set of Mad Men. But I think they're really cute! Like I said, I enjoyed many aspects of the culture of the 1920s-1980s, especially fashion! I really like how simple but elegant the dresses look, even if they are on the rather simple side. Besides, the accessories help keep the outfits from being completely dull! Like the hats and the jewelry are absolutely adorable; they look like something I'd be able to find at an antique store! I particularly like how the lacy gloves they're wearing match with the dresses; it just adds to the classy rock vibe I'm getting with the visual style for In Da Gold. Of course, I'm not sure how you can play an instrument with gloves, but I'm just speaking as a piano-player. Speaking of instruments, I really like the ones featured in this promo shot. They all look very old-timey, and I like that they're different colors too! Actually, I really like the entire color scheme used for In Da Gold. The colors are all very bright and different and help each girl stand out, even if I don't know the names of any of these girls at the moment. There's not really a single cover for In Da Gold since it's just a promo track for the Gold Future Basic album, but I can at least take a look at the album cover! The cover for Gold Future Basic is pretty minimalistic; I guess you could look at it from one perspective and see it as pretty retro. It's a classy but stylish cover, matching well with the style that was used for the promo shot!

I think I can pretty easily go with Jusyo Futei Mushoku for the winner of Round 1. They really encompass a retro style with their outfits, and I really dig the accessories they used. They look very much like an all-girl rock band you'd see in the late 50s or 60s!

Round 2 - The Song

Of course, even the best dressed idol group is nothing without good songs. The most pivotal and important of the three rounds is how the song sounds. And whether Koisuru Fortune Cookie and In Da Gold hold up as good songs will determine just what kind of lasting values they'll have on my iPod.

AKB48



All right, as many of you already know, I've had a... somewhat critical opinion towards AKB48's musical output regarding their A-sides since last year. In fact, the Gingham Check, last year's Senbatsu single, was the first in a bland string of generic A-sides that continued throughout 2012 and into 2013! Bottom line is I've gone on and on about how AKB48's leading songs have basically sucked since Acchan's graduation. However, Sasshi winning the Senbatsu Election meant a change in center, and considering Aki-P purportedly writes his songs around their centers, I had a small glimmer of hope still overshadowed by my storm cloud of pessimism. And so Koisuru Fortune Cookie came out; or KFC is you want to snicker about that abbreviation. Amazingly enough, Koisuru Fortune Cookie is probably the first A-side from AKB48 that I've liked since Manatsu no Sounds good! I will admit, the song took some time to grow on me. I thought the first live performance of the song was rather lackluster, but the studio version turned out to be much more lively! It's still not straying towards anything terribly creative in terms of idol music, but at least Aki-P finally tried a different sound from that "cheerfully bland" song-type he's been defaulting to lately. KFC has that retro late 70s, early 80s feel that made me decide to pair it with In Da Gold in this Idol Smackdown. To be fair, this isn't the first time that AKB48's explored an older-sounding musical style; Virgin Love and Korekara Wonderland also had the same feel KFC has. Especially Korekara Wonderland and by the way, you guys should totally listen to Korekara Wonderland if you haven't already because it's an awesome song and kind of the only reason I really got into AKB48 and yeah I'm getting off topic. Personally, I think Korekara Wonderland explored that retro sound much better than KFC does, but KFC is still a pretty fun song to jam to. It's got a smooth beat and a simple but catchy chorus, and my own personal love for retro media probably contributes to my opinion towards this song.

Jousyo Futei Mushoku



Up to challenge Koisuru Fortune Cookie's retro-ness is In Da Gold! Which kind of sounds like "indigo" if you say it out loud. Just a fun fact. Like with any group I listen to for the first time, I was a little worried as to how In Da Gold would sound. Like what if it sucked? Well, my first impression of In Da Gold was what the hell does "Get up and tiny warping!" even mean? My second impression was... mixed to positive in a nutshell. When I was first listening to the song and the vocals came in after the drum beats, I noticed how... distinct the vocals were. Which is a nice way of saying they were a little off-key. Like very off-key. At least the opening vocals were that way; the vocals got better as I heard more. But as opening notes, the iffy vocals of Jusyo Futei Mushoku could turn you off from the song. I think it's kind of like jumping into a cold lake; once you get over the shock and get acclimated to the temperature, you find said lake is much better than you thought in the first place! That being said, the vocals are still overall the weakest part of In Da Gold. The rapping bits are probably my least favorite parts of the song, because the members of Jusyo Futei Mushoku aren't exactly the best at rapping. Then again, I've noticed that most idol groups suck at rapping. I really think if you're split on In Da Gold on your first listen, play the song a few more times. That's what I did and much like with Koisuru Fortune Cookie, I found myself liking In Da Gold the more I heard it. That or I could have just been brainwashing myself into liking the song. That's what I have to do when listen to Momoiro Clover Z and Dempagumi.inc! In Da Gold is a lot groovier than Koisuru Fortune Cookie, and definitely has a lot more hooks. It's just very rough around the edges; with the right polishing, In Da Gold could be a really awesome. Even in its current state though, I still find something very endearing about the song's flaws; I think the members sound like they're having a lot of fun, especially in the rapping bits. So while In Da Gold has its flaws, it still makes me want to get up and tiny warping! Whatever the hell that means...

I gotta go with Koisuru Fortune Cookie, and I think it has to do with production values. AKB48 is a highly manufactured idol group, but a highly manufactured group with a very smooth sound. In Da Gold is fun but just a little too unpolished for me to really get into it. KFC encompasses that fun, retro feel of the 70s and 80s while also being the first AKB48 A-side I've liked in over a year. 

Round 3 - The PVs

AKB48


Much like with AKB48's musical output this year, I've been a little underwhelmed by their PVs this year too. So Long! was pretty dismal and cheap, and Sayonara Crawl just didn't do it for me. Considering last year's Senbatsu PV was freaking awesome and I gushed about how awesome it was, Koisuru Fortune Cookie had quite the standard to achieve. In fact, all the Senbatsu PVs have had a track record of being really distinct, with visuals both entertaining and appealing. Hell, Heavy Rotation is AKB48's most (in)famous PV!

So did Koisuru Fortune Cookie's PV follow in this tradition? Nope. Not even close.


I can't believe I'm saying this about an AKB48 PV, but this PV bored me. Like really bored me. This wasn't a bad PV by any means; the camera work was nice and the settings were well-done. There's just nothing I can talk about with it. Even with the bad PVs by AKB48, they've always been entertainingly bad, in ways that I can mercilessly poke fun at them. But Koisuru Fortune Cookie wasn't even a PV that I could really talk about or make fun of. I wasn't sure if I could even make a PV review out of it. And technically I didn't because this is an Idol Smackdown instead of a normal PV review...


So where does the PV for Koisuru Fortune Cookie fall flat? The PV is pretty much a dance PV with a few close-ups thrown in of the girls. Does that sound familiar to another well-known idol agency that starts with Hello! and ends in Project to you guys? Same here. Where Koisuru Fortune Cookie deviates from the H!P formula is that there are shots showing the girls teaching the dance to civilians of all ages along with shots showing various people performing the dance.



And in my opinion, the dance is one of the main elements that makes this PV so dull. This is such a simple, slow dance that even I, someone who dances like a tree caught in a hurricane can learn it. Do you know what other dances share the distinction of being so simple a five-year old could learn them? The Electric Slide. The Cha Cha Slide. The Cupid Shuffle. Do you know what all those dances have in common? They're more fun to do than watch.


The dance for Koisuru Fortune Cookie shares that characteristic. I think this was more of a fun PV for the people who were in it than the people who watched it online after it was filmed and edited. Because everyone does look like they're having fun in the PV. But it's the bland, generic kind of dopey fun you have when you're dancing to a song so easy you could probably do it in your sleep (but I don't recommend trying that out). This might not be so terrible were it not for the fact that Koisuru Fortune Cookie's PV is pretty much based around the idea that this dance is going to be entertaining for five minutes.


There are a few ideas in this PV that could have worked well under the right circumstances. Take the idea of using a giant mob in the background for the main dance shot. That could have been really cool if the song matched the tone a giant mob could set. SKE48's Banzai Venus perfectly executes the mob-setting for their dance shot because Banzai Venus is a freaking energetic song that makes a crowd wanna jump up and down. Koisuru Fortune Cookie has a much more laid-back, swinging rhythm. Not exactly the kind of song that gets a crowd going.


I do need to at least touch on the subject of Sasshi as a center. Because the big deal about any Senbatsu PV is always the center. Hell, the "battle of the centers" theme has been prevalent for three of the Senbatsu PVs. But if you were to show this PV to me without me knowing it was a Senbatsu PV, I'd have no idea. It doesn't feel like Sasshi's being highlighted or emphasized as a center; she's just there. I don't think it's her fault since she's makes a fine center; there's just no focus on her, no emphasis saying "HEY! Look at this victorious idol who clawed her way to the top of Senbatsu!" that I found in previous Senbatsu PVs.



There were a few fun shots like Yukirin's weather forecast and a few civilian shots were a little entertaining, but for the most part, the PV for Koisuru Fortune Cookie left me extremely underwhelmed. Funny how the first kinda-not bland song AKB48 gets since last year is the first song to get a surprisingly bland PV... Look, I don't know what else to say about this PV. There's not much with lasting entertainment value, and in comparison to Senbatsu PVs of the past (and AKB48 PVs in general), Koisuru Fortune Cookie got saddled with one of the most boring PVs I've seen from AKB48 in a long time.


How this giant mob of people managed to look like they were having a boatload of fun is beyond me.

Jusyo Futei Mushoku

Come on guys, you know about Scandal! They're the group that specializes in electropop. I mean, this is such a technopop-oriented group, I'm surprised that they didn't collaborate Nakata sooner! You know with all that Autotune and electronic editing they use, I don't even think that Scandal uses real instruments in their songs! Wow, what a perfect collaboration: Nakata the electropop producer producing the most electropop girl group on the market right now. I get just a little choked up thinking about it. Actually, that's probably just me choking on the sarcasm coating those last few sentences. In all seriousness, what the hell led to this collaboration? You've got Nakata, the well-known producer that specializes in technopop and Scandal, the four-member girl band that specializes in pop rock. Where exactly do these two opposites meet, let alone decide to get together and collaborate? Tell me, is Akimoto Yasushi going to produce Morning Musume's next single? Perhaps the world has just finally turned upside down and a result of that is Nakata producing music for Scandal. Well, if we are living in an upside down world, I'm still gonna review this odd little collaboration! The first time I heard that Scandal's final single of their Standard era, Over Drive, was being produced by Nakata, I must have done the kind of double take that's only supposed to exist in cartoons. It's just so... surreal. I legitimately want to know how and why Scandal and Nakata got together and Nakata decided he just had to write a song for Scandal. What kind of conversation panned out between the two parties that led to Over Drive? And since when did Nakata even produce rock music? I guess it's plausible but it's like seeing a group of basketball stars try to act in a feature-length film. And we got Space Jam from that happening! Before I'd even heard Over Drive, I was joking how the song was going to be a Dubstep dance track with all the members singing being so vocoded we wouldn't be able to tell them apart. But I was curious to see how Over Drive would sound, especially as a fan of both Nakata and Scandal.

Would two good things combine to make a bad thing?

That was the question on my mind when I first listened to Over Drive. After all, I like a lot of Nakata's work, but Scandal seemed like such a different field for him, I wasn't sure if he'd stumble and trip his way through producing a song that matched the group's general sound. But much to my surprise, when I put my earbuds in and hit play on Over Drive... it was actually a pretty good song. Like I'm surprised at how much I like listening to this song. Because it's by no means a great Scandal song, nowhere near as awesome as Shoujo S or Doll or BeauTEEN!! or Shunkan Sentimental. But there was something about Over Drive that made me keep listening to it a lot more than I thought I would. Was it because of my knowledge that it was produced by someone whose work I was a fan of? I thought so at first. But then I realized that Over Drive sounds like nothing Nakata would produce. If you'd played this song before I knew Nakata produced it, I can 100% say I never, ever would have even connected it to him. I don't know whether to find it shocking or incredible that Nakata made a pop rock song so easily. Of course, there is some token Nakata-Engrish in the song. Just a word of advice from an English speaker: there's a better word out there than "clappy" to rhyme with happy. Hell, even "clapping" would have worked! Still, that doesn't by any means deter my enjoyment of the song. In fact, of the three A-sides Scandal released in the Standard-era, Over Drive is in my opinion the strongest. It's a lot better than Kagen no Tsuki at least! Sure, it may not be as awesome as some other Scandal singles of the past but Over Drive still holds its own pretty well. I guess what really appeals to me about Over Drive is that while it may not be the most creative song or the best Scandal song, there's something so gosh-darn happy about it. I mean, how could I hate such a happy song? I can bounce to Over Drive too, and nothing seems to get me in a better mood that a bounce-able song!  I guess overall, I give a pretty positive verdict on Over Drive.

Something I always have to ask myself whenever I'm reviewing a group I'm a particular fan of is whether I like a song because it's a legitimately good song or because I love the artist so much I'm very lenient toward their musical output. I have a tendency to do this with Perfume a lot. And while I'm not the biggest fan of Scandal, I am a huge fan of Nakata as a producer. So regarding Over Drive, is it a good song on its own or is my bias towards the guy who produced the song clouding my judgement? I will say, I can barely tell that Over Drive was produced by Nakata at all. The only hint that gives away any possibility is the brief harmonica solo during each instrumental between the vocals. It'd probably be a lot more obvious if it were bagpipes but still, I don't recall any member of Scandal being a harmonica player. Other than that, Over Drive is a song that stays true to Scandal's pop-rock roots, while still having a little bit of flair on Nakata's part. I can't help but wonder what a song from Scandal would sound like if Nakata went full-on EDM for it. I'll bet the fans would go apeshit if that ever happened! I think it's good if Nakata just sticks to Perfume for techno; I like Scandal as an idol band more than I every would as a technopop group! Anyways, while some fans may complain that Over Drive is a sign of Scandal furthering spiral into more pop-friendly music, I still think Over Drive is a highly enjoyable listen. I won't deny that it's radio-friendly, but hey, a lot of great songs happen to be radio-friendly! Over Drive is a cheerful, upbeat, and fun song and my favorite A-side of the three released during the Standard era. Speaking of which, with the three singles of the Standard era released now, I do wonder what the rest of the album will sound like. I wager it'll be geared toward a pop-rock sound; I just hope it's not as pop-oriented as Baby Action. Really, I have no idea what Standard will sound like; these three singles haven't given me much of an indication. Still, I'll listen out for it and who knows? I might even actually review it!

But for the moment, all I'm aiming to review if the PV for Over Drive! So how about I put my review goggles into over drive take a look at it? And maybe I can squeeze more bad puns out of the screencap!


Well, the PV starts with a pretty flashy opening title drop!


Oddly enough those red jumpsuits remind me of the one Joel wore on MST3K...


...maybe the members of Scandal will be forced to watch bad movies too!


Unlike many other Scandal PVs, there are a boatload of details in this set.


And honestly, they make for a very fun PV!


So Haruna can levitate bolts and screws because... coolness factor?


Ah well, this set's cool enough!


I can't tell if these are iPads or not...


Okay, the CG's a little iffy in this shot, but I still like the floating effect.


I do wonder if there's meant to be some explanation behind this though. Do the girls of Scandal have the same powers Perfume did in the Spending all my time PV?


It looks like this quirky device has turned into a deadly device!


And now the rest of this set has become electrifying!


I don't care how cool you try to make it look, "clappy" is still a ridiculous word.


Haruna's like really super pretty in this PV. I think it's the hair styling.


Yes, show more stuff around the set! I need quirky gadget porn!


I love how during the harmonica solo they all just kind of dance around not playing their instruments.


Who cares about telekinesis when you've got a slam-a-jamming book to read?


Gosh, Rina looks positively luminous with the light bulb illuminating her face.


What a lovely stalker-shot!


I think Mami's one of the few singers I've seen who looks really good with blonde hair.


Oh, this is cool, Tomomi's honing in on her telekinetic abilities a la Spending all my time!


Playing with electricity! Ha! What could possibly go wrong?


Well for starters, the light bulb could crash to the ground!


Along with all the bolts and screws!


And now the electricity's malfunctioning! Yeah, what could happen now-


OH GOD DID TOMOMI JUST GET ELECTROCUTED!?


Rina too!? NO!!!


So... did they... die?


This isn't gonna be Spring of Life all over again, is it!?


I mean, everything in the PV is shorting and malfunctioning so it's plausible!


Then again, they look perfectly fine in this last shot so... I'll assume the best!

Can someone please clarify whether or not Scandal died at the end of this PV? No one? Am I just gonna have to speculate this one all by myself? Fine then! That's exactly what I'll do! Hell, I can come up with a whole backstory about this PV by myself! In fact, I did do that! No seriously, I got inspired and came up with this entire plot surrounding the events of Over Drive. You guys wanna hear it? Well, I guess that's kind of a rhetorical question since your answer won't effect this post... Oh well, I'm gonna tell you guys anyways! So you know how in the band shot, all the members of Scandal are wearing jumpsuits? That's because they've been kidnapped by Dr. Forrester and forced onto the Satellite of Love, where they're being forced to watch bad movies. Now, being band members and not movie riffers, the girls of Scandal did what they do best to stay sane: play music! This is why they're playing their instruments in the PV. However, they had to make a bunch of makeshift amps and other musical instruments to have the proper equipment, which is why their playing room looks so messy. They only had the spare materials on the Satellite of Love to work with! Now what do the shots of them levitating nuts and bolts have to do with this story? Well, due to prolonged exposure to toxic fumes on the Satellite of Love, the girls all developed super powers. When not playing their instruments or watching bad movies, they work on honing in these super powers, hoping to develop them to get back at the evil Dr. Forrester and escape back to Earth! However, during the events of Over Drive, their poorly configured electrical wiring naturally malfunctions. This unfortunately leads to change in the magnetic fields on the Satellite of Love (because SCIENCE!) and all the members of Scandal get electrocuted! And then... well... eh... I haven't figured that part out yet because that's where the PV just ended! Look, I'm just working with the little bits of plot I got from a Japanese pop PV that probably wasn't supposed to be taken so seriously! Clearly I've been watching a little too much Mystery Science Theater 3000 lately...

In all seriousness though, this was actually a pretty good Scandal PV. You've got to understand that usually Scandal's PVs are... not that great. Don't get me wrong, they aren't terrible but most of them don't have much of a budget and just consist of the girls playing their instruments. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. After all, the PV for Pin Heel Surfer barely featured the girls playing their instruments, and that's one of the worst Scandal PVs I've seen. Then again, it's terrible in the most entertaining way possible but still. I'm just trying to say that as nice as it is seeing the girls so into playing their instruments, the formula can get a little monotonous after awhile. That's why a PV like Over Drive is great to shake things up! I remember reading that the members of Scandal remarked that the PV for Over Drive had a slightly higher budget than some of their past PVs, and honestly that shows. There's a lot going on in Over Drive, and it's all really fun to look at. My favorite part is that elaborate set where they play their instruments. It's packed top to bottom with a mishmash of gadgets all doing a bunch of random things. It gives off a very quirky science fiction vibe, and I loved seeing the camera zoom in on parts of this set. I really think the producers put in a lot of effort to make this a memorable set and it shows! The girls look great and they look like they're having a lot of fun playing their instruments in this set. And I love the lightning effects used in the set too! The telekinesis scenes give me strong vibes from Perfume's PV for Spending all my time, just different settings for each one. The gist is both girls in each PV are practicing their telekinetic powers. Of course, Perfume's practicing didn't end with their electrocution, just being locked in (or out...?) or a room. Overall, I actually really liked the PV for Over Drive, especially after screencapping it! There's a lot going on in the PV that works really well, even if the electrocution shots shock me every time I see them! They also send me into a tirade of bad puns! Anyways, the PV for Over Drive gets a thumbs up from me!


I don't know how the rest of Standard is going to sound, but Over Drive is promising! So I'll give the song and PV 4.5 apples out of 5. Again, the song's not the most creative Scandal song I've heard, but I did enjoy the happiness radiating from it. The PV is one of the better Scandal PVs and quite the visual spectacle! Then again, I'm a sucker for science fiction PVs... why else do you think I love the PV for Spring of Life so much?

Say, what's been going on with Tokyo Girls' Style lately? Have they been doing their lovely thing as usual, being all vocally talented and whatnot? I'd like to think so! The last time we saw our lovely Avex idols was in their sultry PV for Unmei, a hot, funky jam with an equally hot PV. But now we return to look at TGS with a new single, a double A-side to be exact. That double A-side consists of Get the Star and Last Forever. Of course, knowing how shit Avex is with promotion, only one of those A-sides is probably going to get any kind of promotion. I'd bet on Get the Star. Nonetheless, I'm always in the mood to review TGS, and what a better way to do that than a single review? That way I can review the entire single and not just the song that gets a PV! Of course, I do need to clarify that my single reviews don't look at remixes, so I won't be looking at the Orland Mix of Get the Star. I'm sure it's a fine remix and all; I just don't like reviewing remixes. With that aside, let's stop the stalling and take a look at this single!

Covers/Outfits

The covers for Get the Star/Last Forever are pretty minimalistic. Like... super minimalistic. Like I could probably duplicate these covers if I had enough people. All you need is either a roll of black, red, yellow, or blue tape, depending on which cover you want to imitate. Then you just need to find a corner of a room with white walls and gray flooring. From there, all you do is spread the tape around said corner in one of four shapes. Voila! The covers for Get the Star/Last Forever! So yeah, the covers are minimalistic in the cheapest way possible. But... I kind of like them. I mean, I've seen much more creative covers, but the concept is still nicely executed and a somewhat clever idea. I like that the girls are all placed inside the tape, with some parts of their bodies just barely sticking out. There isn't much variety with each cover, save for the colors and shapes of the tape along with the positions each member is put in. All in all, the covers are a really simplistic idea, but I don't think they look that bad. At least they didn't add like shitty puke yellow font to the covers either unlike some singles I've reviewed this year that start with "Sayonara" and end in "Crawl." Tokyo Girls' Style has gotten much tackier covers in the past, so I'm not complaining much about the ones for Get the Star/Last Forever. And then there are the outfits for the single, which really gave me my first indication of what the songs were going to sound like! The outfits for Get the Star/Last Forever are lot less polished and sleek than a lot of Tokyo Girls' Style's previous outfits. The girls are all dressed like members of an 80s rock band... if there was an 80s rock band consisting of Japanese girls. They're all wearing acid-wash jeans or fishnets gloves or combat boots, you know, grunge-y looking stuff! As someone who likes wearing grunge-y clothes (when I'm not in a girly mood), I think the outfits for this single are pretty cool. I like that the outfits all look different from each other and that they're not so uniform. It works when the songs you get are all pop-rock songs. Speaking of which...

Get the Star

What's this? A song by Tokyo Girls' Style that is... not funky and fresh!? Be still my beating heart, for I have looked into the abyss and it has stared back! In all seriousness though, Get the Star is a different A-side for TGS. Hell, it's a different sound in general for them. TGS has always been Avex's callback to the 90s, with groovy beats and rhythms you could have sworn you heard in a 1970s exploitation film. Unmei, their last A-side was just about as funky as TGS gets. Get the Star on the other hand is a pop-rock song of all things produced by the bassist from a band called Luna Sea. Being the diligent reviewer that I am, I did a little bit of research on Luna Sea and listened to a few of their songs, just to get a feel of their overall style. And they seem like a pretty cool rock band with some good songs. They reminded me a bit of The Cure, only a lot less New Wave and a lot more rock-oriented. From what I can tell, they're a pretty prestigious rock band so an idol group like TGS getting a member from the band to produce a song for them is a pretty big deal, for them at least. Now the song the bassist (whose stage name is just the letter J) produced for TGS is definitely much more pop than any of the stuff this guys does with Luna Sea. As I said before, Get the Star is not only a pop rock song, but a definite change in style from Tokyo Girls' Style's... eh... style. However, the real question is if this is a good change or not. Personally, I found Get the Star to be an incredibly refreshing song. Don't get me wrong, I love TGS and their own funky 90s Avex sound, but it's nice for a song to shake things up for them, and Get the Star is perfect for that. Even as a standalone song, Get the Star is still great. It's very refreshingly upbeat but not dissonantly upbeat; it still sounds like something TGS would do. It's a happy song, but also an encouraging song. There's just something so... joyful about the chorus of this song; I feel like the girls were really into singing Get the Star. If you're looking for the groovy TGS, Get the Star does not fit into that mold but is still a wonderful song that's a breath of fresh air for Tokyo Girls' Style!

As usual, I'd considered reviewing the PV for Get the Star, but in the end opted not to. It's more because I wanted to talk about Last Forever than because there isn't much to talk about in the PV though. Still, I don't know if I could have made a full PV review for Get the Star. I mean, the PV pretty much consists of the girls singing in a garage-type set. It's definitely a bit grittier than some of the other PVs they've been in. The girls are surrounded by amps and wires and spotlights and ladders, all the stuff you associate with cool rock PVs! Or at least what I associate with cool rock PVs... The girls spend most of the PV singing around in a circle, looking happy, chilling out together. And then there are a few miscellaneous shots thrown in of them dancing individually. Really there's not that much going on in the PV. It's almost like the girls just got together in some random abandoned warehouse to record a jam session with no instruments. In fact, I wonder what this PV would have looked like if the girls were playing instruments... It'd probably look more awkward than AKB48's Give Me Five! PV, but in my head, it'd look pretty cool. Man, can you imagine Scandal playing in a location like that? In fact, I think they've already done that... several time.s Okay, okay, I digress! So yeah, the PV for Get the Star isn't by any means the most interesting PV I've looked at this year, but it's not blatantly cheap or gaudy looking. The editing is nicely done, and the visuals match the tone of the PV well. The setting's dark but the girls' cheerfulness creates a nice contrast. There are a few layered effects spliced into the PV that look like illuminated dustballs, but those are pretty tastefully edited so they look like stars! Kind of. Use your imagination, okay? One thing I noticed about this PV was the attention focused on Yuri. She got both the opening and ending shots entirely to herself! It's probably nothing much to talk about, but I think it was kind of cool she "got the star" in the ending shot of the PV. So yeah, other than that the PV for Get the Star is cool, even there's not much variety in it.



I've got to give Get the Star five out of five apples. I like that it's a pop-rock song, a genre of music that TGS rarely approaches. But I also like that it's such an encouraging-sounding song, with a lot of energy and a very positive, if rather abstract message. Definitely one of my favorite TGS songs.

Last Forever

The other A-side on this single is Last Forever, despite the fact the Last Forever wasn't anywhere near as promoted as Get the Star. Unlike Get the Star, which is energetic and jubilant, Last Forever is much more toned down. Mainly because it's a ballad. That alone should give you a pretty clear idea of how Last Forever sounds. Now Tokyo Girls' Style has done several ballads before, the most recent being Tsuioku. Personally, I've found the few ballads TGS has done to be pretty underwhelming. Tsuioku was pretty but I've always found it to be a rather a dull song to my ears. In my opinion, it's way too slow. So I wasn't exactly jumping up and down to hear Last Forever. Luckily, all my preconceived hesitations were blown away when I finally listened to the song. Last Forever is a ballad, but it's the best kind of ballad: one that feels genuine. The members of TGS wrote the lyrics to Last Forever themselves, which I found to be very interesting. I don't think the girls of TGS have ever written a song, so I do like that they were able to contribute a little creative input for once, especially as an idol group. While I've yet to find a translation of Last Forever, the way the girls sing the song give it such... emotion. I've said before that my favorite ballads are the ones that sound emotional, and Last Forever excels in that. It's the first ballad I've heard from Tokyo Girls' Style that really works for them. Funny enough, like Get the Star, Last Forever is kind of a different song style of TGS. It's a ballad but it's more of a rock ballad, very loosely speaking. However, the stylistic change is done well creating what's probably one of my favorite J-pop ballads. Yes, one of my favorite J-pop ballads. I think my favorite part (of several favorite parts) of Last Forever has to be the outro with the amazing guitar riff. And the chorus itself is the vocal highlight of the song. What else is there to say about this song? Last Forever is not only a great ballad, but an absolutely wonderful song, the kind of song that I can see myself listening to a lot. I highly recommend listening to it.



And it looks like another 5 apples are going to the other A-side of this single! For a ballad, Last Forever is one of the strongest idol ballads I've listened to and not just because of the good vocals. It's a heartfelt, emotional song

The Verdict

Well, this just might be the best single I've reviewed all year. That or Magic of Love. Get the Star/Last Forever consisted of two songs that are both a little different from what Tokyo Girls' Style normally does but different in a good way. What I really like is that both the A-sides on this single compliment each other. Get the Star is a very upbeat pop-rock tune while Last Forever is a much slower rock ballad. What ties both these songs together and makes them mix so well is the fact that both songs have emotion. The emotional levels of Get the Star and Last Forever are high, and there's something very genuine I felt from each song in both the instrumentals and the vocals. Get the Star felt like a very encouraging song to listen to, and I liked the collaboration between TGS and the bassist from Luna Sea. I think every now and then TGS needs to be pulled out of their comfort zone of groovy 90s Avex. A pop-rock song that sounds like something you'd hear from BiS or Scandal is in my opinion the perfect genre for such a mature idol group to deviate to. Get the Star was a fun song while not sounding like something completely out-of-style for TGS. And I think the same can be said for Last Forever. This is probably the first ballad from TGS that I've really, really liked in part due to the genuine emotions from the song and the fact that it's a rock ballad. Overall, this single is absolutely amazing, and I try not to use that term lightly. Both songs represent a change in style from TGS that is a great change. I don't know if Tokyo Girls' Style's next single is going back to their traditional style of exploring this one more, but if it's the latter, I wouldn't mind in the least. I can't recommend listening to this single enough, even if you aren't a fan of Tokyo Girls' Style. When I say I'm a fan of TGS, songs like this are why I'm such a huge fan of them. The songs on this single are some of the best Tokyo Girls' Style songs I've heard, probably as good as Limited Addiction or Kodou no Himitsu. I don't know how TGS is going to top this, but Get the Star/Last Forever is probably one of my favorite singles they've released.


I said I thought this might be the best single I reviewed all year and I wasn't exaggerating. Get the Star/Last Forever gets a perfect five-out-of-five apples for me. And well-deserved apples are they too! Both songs on this single are top-notch, with each one distinct in sound yet complimenting the other nicely. It's singles like these that make me truly happy to be an idol blogger. So since the end of 2013 is coming soon, do you guys have any favorite singles that are so wonderful they make you cry sweet tears of joy? Obviously, I do...

Standard Album Review
- Okay, I'm not sure if I'm gonna review this album on Selective Hearing or on the Wonderland. At the moment, Scandal's newest album is more-or-less in the back of my mind thanks to the fact that its release date coincides with Level3... So yeah, Level3 kind of trumps Standard. But that doesn't mean I can't get around to reviewing it next week or even the week after! Really I'll have to see, and I'll have to listen to the entire album to see if I even want to review Standard. It's just I reviewed Scandal's last album, and I figured it's good in tradition to be consistent with my group reviews!

Buckle your seat belts guys, because we're descending past Level1, past Level2, and right into Level3. I of course am talking about Perfume's newest album, the first one they've released in two years.

9. Point

Ah, Point. I can't think of a better song to continue the laid back sound established in Furikaeru to Iru Yo than Point. It's funny to think that I was so certain that Point was going to be one of the B-sides that didn't make the cut to Level3. I guess I just thought Hurly Burly was so popular and Point was so underused (in fact, it's never even been performed live) that Hurly Burly would be the song to make it to the album. Imagine my surprise when the exact opposite happened! But it was a happy surprise, because I freaking love Point. It was even my favorite song from 2012! Point is such a dreamlike song, the kind of song that simply breezes a long, like a fluffy little cloud floating through the sky. And I think Point fits so well with the other calmer and softer songs on Level3, giving the album a nice balance between intensive dance songs and tranquil songs. And I think Point succeeds as an beautifully serene Perfume song!

My Rating:


10. Daijobanai

Am I okay that this B-side got included on the album and not Hurly Burly? No, I'm not okay! Or should I say.. daijobanai? Seriously though, I am sad that Hurly Burly didn't make the cut, but not as sad as I thought I would be. I guess Point being on Level3 makes up for the lack of Hurly Burly. But anyways, Daijobanai is actually not really one of my favorite B-sides of this era. It's not as poor as Communication, but in comparison to the other B-sides, I don't really think it's that great. I know a lot of people do, but personally, I think it's kind of an overhyped song. My main complaints with Daijobanai are that it's too fast and too repetitive. The song ends before you can even process what you just listened to, because the tempo is faster than the blood rate of someone on crack. I will admit, Daijobanai is a very catchy song and I admit to at least dancing to it every now and then, but it's still not a B-side I can really get into.

My Rating:


11. Handy Man

Good lord, I'm still happy that Handy Man made it to the album. I know everyone else is crying that Hurly Burly didn't but I'm just crying tears of joy that Handy Man made it. This and Point are probably my favorite B-sides of the era. What I really liked a bout Handy Man was that it was such a different sound for Perfume. Handy Man is a very Middle Eastern-sounding song, like something you'd hear in the middle of a Bollywood movie. And it's such a fun song too. Unlike Daijobanai, which was too fast to dance to, Handy Man has this swinging rhythm that makes me want to spin around and dance! I'd really like to see what Perfume's choreography for Handy Man looks like; I hope they perform it during their Dome Tour! That interlude using the instrumental during Perfume's 2nd World Tour was neat too. Overall, I'm just so gosh darn happy Handy Man is one this album; it's a great B-side and such a nice change for Perfume!

My Rating:


12. Sleeping Beauty

I half expected a lyrical rendition of the actual fairy tale with this song. Sadly, that did not happen. Instead, Sleeping Beauty turned out to be a song very void of Perfume vocals. In that respect, Sleeping Beauty really reminds me of Butterfly; both songs are heavily instrumental tracks with minimal and repetitive vocals. What I've learned about Butterfly is that it is like an acquired taste. You have to get through a certain amount of listens before you start to like Butterfly. Or at least that's what I had to do. All I know is that one day I all the sudden started getting into Butterfly, and the song magically became a Perfume song I listened to a lot more. And in the process, I've become much more open to instrumentally heavy songs. So I think that's why I enjoy listening to Sleeping Beauty so much. You can argue it's too repetitive and needs more Perfume vocals, but personally I liked this song. Definitely not a track for everyone though.

My Rating:


13. Spending all my time (Album-mix)

Hello, darkness, my old friend. Oh. I mean... hello, Spending all my time! Fancy seeing you on this album... Eh heh... yeah, you guys all know that I have been rather vocal in my disappointment of Spending all my time. What can I say? I thought it was a dull, repetitive track that had too little variety for it to really stand out to me. However... thesongreallygrewonme.What I liked was the mix used for Perfume's Cannes performance, and luckily, parts of that mix are used for the album mix of Spending all my time! Of course, the moody instrumental opening was cut from this version, but other than that, I have to say Spending all my time really has redeemed itself in my eyes, mainly thanks to this album mix. Spending all my time (Album-mix) adds much more variety in the instrumental and the vocal editing than the original. So it's not as grating to listen to but actually... a really good song. Shut up. Opinions change.

My Rating:


14. Dream Land

And closing Level3 is what has got to be one of my favorite new tracks on the album. And Dream Land is also in my opinion the perfect song to close the album. It's calm so listening to it, you feel like you're emerging out a long, convoluted dream or coming off of a 13 tracks-long roller coaster ride. You know how I've been talking about how this album seems to balance dance tracks with dreamier and calmer tracks? Enter the Sphere opened the album introducing the dance sound; Dream Land closes the album leaving you with the more soothing sound. So both are like book ends on two different extremes. Dream Land is an absolute delight to listen to; from the music box-type opening to the reflective sound effects sprinkled throughout the instrumental to the buildups of energy to even the vocals! What else can I say? Dream Land was an absolutely dream to end and an absolutely dreamy album.

My Rating:


The Verdict

I freaking love this album. I might as well get that out of the way because my god, I really love this album. It's a huge step-up from JPN. In fact, I even think I like Level3 better than ⊿. Sure, the album isn't as good as Game but that's because you can't win against Game. Anyways, Level3 has definitely got to be my favorite album I've reviewed this year. And not just because it's a Perfume album but because it's a legitimately good album that has a great mix of new and old tracks. I remember the girls mentioning that they found Level3 to be a very dance-able album. At the time, I wasn't really sure just how on point they were with that statement, but after having listened to the whole album, I do agree partly with them. Because Level3 has a lot of dance tracks. Enter the Sphere, Spring of Life (Album-mix), Magic of Love (Album-mix), Party Maker, Daijobanai, Handy Man, and Spending all my time (Album-mix) are all songs that anyone can get up and dance to. However, I also found that Clockwork, 1mm, Furikaeru to Iru Yo, Point, Sleeping Beauty, and Dream Land were tracks that had a much calmer and dreamlike sound. So you have basically two different sounds, and you may find the dissonance to be too jarring for you to think of Level3 as a cohesive album. But for me, I think these two sounds balanced each other in the same way yin and yang do. For every blood-pumping dance track is a soothing track that cools you down. I compared the energy of Level3 to a roller coast with its high and lows, finally coming to a complete stop with Dream Land. The album was sleek and polished, straying toward a much more techno sound than JPN did, which I like. Really the album only has a few pitfalls, particularly Mirai no Museum. But when your weakest song is Mirai no Museum, you're holding up pretty well. Overall though, this album is absolutely worth a listen, especially if you're more a fan of Perfume's dance tracks. I really think that anyone who listens to Perfume can find at least one track to like on Level3. I just happened to find a lot of tracks I liked...


Hence I see it only fit to give Level3 four and half out of five apples. Like I said, the album isn't completely perfect, and how much you like a few tracks will vary with how much you like certain musical styles from Perfume. But for me Level3 is a smooth blend of a variety of sounds from Perfume, creating a polished sound that I've been longing to hear from Perfume for a long time.

How the hell am I supposed to spell the name of NMB48's current single?

Kamonegikkusu? Kamonegics? Kamonegix? Come On Net Geeks? What does it matter? The only thing I care about is the fact that the PV for NMB48's latest single is not a continuation of Bokura no Eureka. All I can ask is why? The PV for Bokura no Eureka gift-wrapped a sequel PV and what does the PV for Kamonegix get? A dance shot filled with tin foil. Ugh. Let's just get on with the review.


Other than that, what's been happening with NMB48? Well, I think that's pretty obvious! They finally made it off that deserted island, found remnants of civilization, and restored the world back to its original state! Okay, in all seriousness, has NMB48 done anything of significance in the time between this review and my last review of Bokura no Eureka? Eh, not really. I mean, I guess technically that's not true; I'm sure the members are all working their butts off, especially Sayanee and Milky, but there haven't been any scandals, any blowups, any shocking graduation announcement. I'm not sure if the relative lack of drama in the AKS groups lately is a concern or relief. I guess after that wave of graduations and scandals from 2012 to mid-2013, I've been kind of stepping on eggshells with the ---48 groups, just waiting to see when they're going to give me a heart attack again. Well, what a better time to celebrate this time of tentative peace than with a lovely PV review of Kamonegix? And yeah, that's the romanization I'm going with; the "x" just adds such a 90s sense of coolness to the song's title. Even though the group's last single was pretty bland for them, I still think NMB48 is probably my favorite of the ---48 groups. They seem to do a pretty good job at balancing out a cool and cute image, and their singles never feel pigeonholed into just one type of song. They seem to have a lot more musical flexibility, and as a result, I never know just what NMB48's going to release next. I can even recognize more faces in NMB48! Obviously, I already knew Yamamoto Sayaka, Watanabe Miyuki, and Yamada Nana, but like the the other groups beyond AKB48, I barely knew anyone else outside of the three main girls. But lately, I've been able to distinguish Jonishi Kei, Yagura Fuuko, Yabushita Shu, and Ichikawa Miori! Well, that last member is technically a concurrent member with AKB48, but I still think that's a pretty good start! And what a better way to put my memory of names and faces to the test than by screencapping Kamonegix?

So yeah. How about that Kamonegix? Okay, is it just me or does that sound like some form of Pokemon? What the hell does that title even mean? According to Jpopsuki.tv, the title refers to the old Japanese proverb that if a stroke of luck occurs, things will grow increasingly convenient. But that doesn't matter, at least not for my review. The song could be about evolving Pokemons and I wouldn't clue in until I took the time to read the translation. How does Kamonegix sound? Well, after the wistful and borderline bland Bokura no Eureka, Kamonegix bursts onto the scene as a catchy dance tune that leans towards NMB48's more mature side of music. Kitagawa Kenji this song is not. Kamonegix is similar to Zetsumetsu Kurokami Shoujo and Junjou U-19 in that it's primarily a dance tune. However, it doesn't have quite as many quirks and Zetsumetsu, and the song is much less groovy and more... driven. There's a pounding beat and the vocals often sound like a hammer hitting the side of your head. And I mean that in the most painless way possible. What I'm trying to say is that Kamonegix is much more intense in sound and beat than any of NMB48's other past A-sides. Honestly, the song reminds me a lot of... 80s pop music. I mean, come on, just listen to the synthesizer in that song! This is the kind of song that I can picture playing at a roller-skating rink. In fact, do those still even exist? Because if they do, Kamonegix would totally be playing at one of them! Like I said, it's a dance song, but it's a very dated dance song that sounds like it belongs in another decade. And the decade that Kamonegix reminds me of just happens to be one of the cheesiest over-the-top decades of the 20th century. In that respect, Kamonegix does a stupendous job of sounding completely over-the-top. This has got to be one of the cheesiest A-sides that I've heard from any of the AKS groups this year; from the start of the song all the way to the last ending notes, Kamonegix is utterly ridiculous in just how much of a cheesefest it is.

And yet... I really love this song, guys.

I don't even know why I love this song. Because like I said, Kamonegix is a ham of a song. It sounds like something you'd hear out of Xanadu! And it doesn't help that all the covers for the single give off that airbrushed 80s movies vibe! Then again, as I've stated before there is something I find strangely appealing about retro things, and I am a fan of a lot of 80s music. But 80s pop music isn't really a genre I'm exactly into... I like more of the New Wave stuff! But that's not my point! Kamonegix encompasses the most ludicrously over-the-top of 80s dance tunes, and somehow I find that to be somewhat endearing. I might not have liked the song so much if it wasn't pulled off with such conviction. The song is dramatic, and requires dramatic vocals to match its dramatic-ness. And the NMB48 girls completely deliver in that aspect. Everyone sounds into the song, and I don't know if that's intentional or not, but NMB48's vocals match the tone of the song so well. I've got to give particular props to Sayanee's solo lines in the chorus; she may not have the strongest voice in the world, but she totally rocks those solos. I love the vocal arrangement of Kamonegix too; there's a lot of repetition, which naturally adds a lot of catchiness to the song. And you know something? I think that's something that I've really been missing from all the AKS groups: a truly catchy song. Oh sure, there have been some songs that dance around catchiness, but none that are such an ear worm like Kamonegix. This is a song that can and will get stuck in your head, whether you want it to or not. Maybe it's the sheer catchiness of Kamonegix that prevents me from disliking it. And it probably has to do with the energy buildup in the song too. The entire song feels like one roller-coaster buildup, an illuminated attraction with neon lights and spinning signs all leading up to a thrill ride of synthesizers and over-the-top vocals. Kamonegix may just be a catchy dance tune, but its sheer dedication at being the most gosh-darn catchy dance tune is something that I must commend it for.

Now all Kamonegix has to have is a PV that equally emphasizes just what an over-the-top and fun song it is to dance to! And after the great PV that was Bokura no Eureka, I can safely say that I have high expectation for this PV! Does NMB48 deliver? Only one way to find out!


Well, this set and the Star Wars-style text scroll are definitely giving me 80s vibes!


And I'm seriously wondering if these outfits are made of tin-foil.


So far the dance is pretty cool! Lots of sharp movement going on!


But the running around in a circle bit is a little awkward. It looks more like a children's game than a dance!


Before you ask, no I did not cut to a completely different NMB48 PV.


Okay, that's... Yagura Fuuko, right? Did I get her name right!?


These odd shots that look nothing like the dance shots are from the drama version of Kamonegix.


Apparently an 80s dance tune warrants a drama PV. Crazy, huh?


What I don't understand is why these drama shots are necessary when the dance shot is completely cool on its own.


NMB48 is under arrest! Why? Because... tin foil is a crime against fashion???


Dear Aki-P, please bless us with a better PV for out next single.


Love this dance move. And Sayanee's cool. As usual.


Eh... nothing like a ceremony to add spice to this 80s dance song!


I do like the rotating close-up technique used here.


It reminds me of High-King's Cinderella Complex.


Okay, this is really off-topic but that is a big umbrella they're carrying.


Aw, Fresh Lemon gets yellow accents on her outfit! Like a bright lemon... covered in tin foil.


They look awful excited to be jailbirds!


I could make so many twisted, depraved jokes in these parts. But I will NOT! Because I'm a moral and decent person and not some ogling pervert!


But seriously, what the hell is going on with Milky in this shot? Is she in solitary confinement?


These drama shots might actually look good in a completely different PV.


But come on, these shots are so much flashier and eye-catching! It's mood whiplash!


I left my enthusiasm for fireworks behind with summer vacation.


Oh yeah, I forgot to mention this darklight totally rules.


So we're back to Ring-Around-the-Front-Girls


Four minutes of watching this, and I still have no idea what the hell's going on in these shots.


I think this dance shot has more lens flares than the Star Trek reboot!


Oh well, it's still cooler than those boring drama shots.


Maybe these girls can share a cell with the girls from Morning Musume!


Seriously, all they need are some bright tacky outfits and they'll blend right in!


And so the PV comes to an end with one final pose...


...before everyone disappears and more Star Wars credits roll in!

So I really wanted to see the dance version for Kamonegix. Surprisingly enough, not because the dance really grabbed me and I was desperate to see the whole thing, but because I just wanted a PV featuring the set that looks like it's from Space Mutiny. Because as you may have noticed, the official PV for Kamonegix features mainly two different locations: the retro futuristic looking shots where the dance was filmed along with a lot of the close-ups and the generic town that appears in the longer drama version of the PV. Why did I choose to screencap this version over the dance version, you ask? Because I wanted to take this moment to explain my personal gripe with these "drama" PVs and also because maybe I haven't found the dance version online yet... But it's my blog and I can do whatever the hell I want! And I really do have a bone to pick with this PV, and the only reason I'm singling out Kamonegix is because I've seen this done with several other AKS PVs, and it's starting to get on my nerves. Now maybe talking about how it gets on my nerves won't stop it from happening, but it'll make me feel better. So Kamonegix has a drama version; the 80s dance tune has a drama version, just go with it. I'm completely fine with it; if fans want to watch a bunch of idols try to act their way through a 30+ minute drama, so be it. Where I take issue is when clips from said drama are spliced into the official PV. Very likely this is a marketing ploy to get fans to buy the drama version, but even with that knowledge, it still irritates me. Why? Because the drama clips completely clash with the rest of the PV. One minute I was watching Milky spinning around in handcuffs and the next minute I was watching a bunch of girls attend a ceremony. It was total mood whiplash! The drama clips are much calmer and neutral, with soft colors and a very slow-moving plotline. By contrast, the dance shots and close-ups are eye-catching and shiny, constantly switching to new shots at rapidfire pace. It's like watching a clip of a rocket ship blast off only for the clip to be switched to a man riding a golf cart.

I might not take a problem with such clearly dissonant shots if I knew just what the hell was even going on in the drama version. Now you can argue that this is just a cultural problem. As a foreigner, I'm less likely to pick up cues and languages in a PV by a Japanese pop group. Perhaps through a native's eyes, these drama clips are meant to entice the viewer into wanting to see the rest of this drama version. But in my opinion, when you show only clips of this version, I'm left more confused than intrigued. What was going on in the plotline for Kamonegix? From what I gathered, everyone started outside at different locations then somehow they all ended up together at some ceremony. I don't know what was going through any of the characters' minds, any goals, what conflicts were presented, an episode of Teletubbies had more plot than this PV did! Even if the plotline of Bokura no Eureka was never resolved, the plot was at least a universal theme that nearly everyone could connect to. This? It looks completely boring. Maybe it's because I'm not into dramas in general, especially poorly written ones. Virginity had the same problem, but it wasn't as glaring because at least the dance shot matched with the vibe and feel of the drama shots. Kamonegix unfortunately does not get that same luxury. As you can tell from the screencap, the dance shot for Kamonegix is... shiny. Really, really shiny. It looks like something from the 80s equivalent of what the future would look like. And by itself, that's actually a pretty cool concept. However, the drama shots are much more toned down, and completely clash with the dance shots, especially both shots are spliced together. The drama shots kill any kind of mood the dance shots are attempting to set, and in the end, the PV for Kamonegix ends up being a a jumbled mess that's all over-the-place with its visuals. It's a shame, really. The dance shot really is awesome, and the dance isn't so bad either. It just blends horribly with those drama shots. So overall, the PV for Kamonegix ends up not being terrible, just... unbalanced.


So I decided to give the song and PV a collective rating of 3.5 apples. Like I said, Kamonegix is a really cheesy but fun song, and probably one of my favorite A-sides from any AKS group this year. Unfortunately, the PV is a dissonant blend of a really cool dance shot and a lackluster drama shot that really should have just been separate PVs. Trying to fuse those two together is what ultimately led Kamonegix to being a much lackluster PV than it could have been.