I just watched the debut! Must be the generation with the oldest members, I worry about a lot of girls longevity… but maybe management have gravure on their minds haha. But many great personalities and faces though many girls seemed nervous and shy so maybe hard to scope their personalities yet. They were all around good singers! I was really drawn to Sora and Moka! Moka gives me early Acchan vibes. Sora seems cute and confident.
This gen is a colossal disappointment. Too many old girls. Only a few are cute. Let's hope they are really talented or else this gen is a lost cause. I cant really see any idol aura during their performance and the interview. Gen 18 was okay-ish but they are infinitely more interesting than this gen.
It’s gonna be hard to see idol aura when we keep comparing to the glory days. There’s some good talent here, plus it’s hard to judge with just one song and one short panel interview. Remember AKB are now a hugely established popular group, not like when they first started, there’s more pressure and more to be compared to for new members as time goes on. These girls are justifiably nervous, shy and green. Give them a chance and watch them grow. MOD NOTE: Cool it with the insults
Some of the biggest members of recent years have joined when they were on the “older” side, Unjo Hirona, Nakamura Mai, etc. So maybe they are trying to recreate that magic. And going back, Souda Sarina was seen as “too old” when she was drafted and yet became one of the most popular draft members ever.
I hope so with this generation too. But I think I already saw at least 2 members having a high chance of early graduation for solo career. Anyway, only time can tell.
WWS versions if the video does not show watch the video here if the video does not show watch the video here
Some short parts of the intro show have been subbed by mae! You can watch them: Announcement of 17th gen appearing on "TGC teen 2022 Fukuoka" + Hotechan, aka "the one who cried" 7 out of 11 among 17th gen get nervous easily, and Kokko reveals that she's bad at smiling Erichan can talk for an hour if it's about idols and she loves doing song setlists by herself. in fact, she's already planning a setlist for a 17th gen concert someday
You have to be the nicest person on the planet. And yet, Kawahara Misaki, Hattori Yuna, Yamada Kyoka, Nagatomo Ayami and others have done gravure. The problem with Zukky is that she's flatter than Earth. She's so flat that Japan plans on using her in the Maglev surface. There's absolutely nothing there that can be pushed up. I could provide better gravure than her. Hii is completely different and I don't wish to discuss that any further. I was about to ask "Did someone just call another user a and got away with it? " Minagawa cough cough The biggest danger is when you're about to graduate from high school. If you keep being an idol after that you're probably going to stay a few years. Unless you acomplish what you were looking for, like releasing a photobook, working on a local TV station, dating a Johnny's, sign with an agency, JAV... Being close to the final product is good for those fans that don't want to bet on someone, that just want to follow the popular kids. But you lose that magic.
I actually think older members are great because they've probably already thought more about their future and are making steps to actively further their career as an entertainer, so they're more likely to stick around (especially the girls who used to be influencers, streamers, or appeared in the media already). The younger girls are more likely to leave when they hit graduation/coming of age because their initial motivations when joining the group to "be a cute idol" kinda dies once they're here lol. It's rare we get girls who are so young and stick around for so long. I think this gen is pretty special, the number isn't too big or too small, so each girl will have decent exposure. They're being pushed already, and they're all super cute and pretty! They seem confident and ready to go, and with their ages, I can easily see them being shoehorned into senbatsu fairly quickly. I suspect some airdrops into senbatsu soon! It's all very exciting, but like Mana I will hold off on picking a girl to follow since they're all so cute and I want to see more of their personality
I feel the same as @Mana and @minaeshi! This generation looks great, I love that they’re a bit older and established. Members who have acting and Showroom experience are great to see too, since they already have some familiarity with the industry. They’re all so cute and charming too. I really liked the way Mizushima Miyuu and Yamazaki Sora turned to each other in excitement when the Fukuoka event was announced. It’s nice to see they’re already friends! Sato Airi was fantastic as Oogoe Diamond center, and I can see her being pushed soon. I’m really excited for all the members honestly!
That makes so much more sense Not sure how I mistook の for お. I did think it was weird she chose to have the same nickname as Mion I wouldn't quite say that yet, some of the late teens end up being much more suited for idol life! Look at STU48's 1st Generation, for example. Takino Yumiko was 19 when she debuted with STU48 and 20 when they released Kurayama with Yumirin as the center. She has centered 7 out of 8 singles for STU48 and is undoubtedly a popular member. Hasegawa Niina is the oldest member of the 17th generation and she'll turn 21 in August, but she has been a SHOWROOM streamer for 2 years and so I think she'd be pretty good with fan service and dealing with being in the spotlight. So I don't think she'd graduate soon. Also, when looking at previous generations, younger girls actually graduated sooner than older girls. For example, in 16th Gen, 8 members have already graduated. They were 12, 13, 14, 14, 15, 16 and 18 (average ~14.5yrs) respectively when they joined AKB48. Inagaki Kaori, who was 2nd oldest by 15 days (also 18 when she joined) is still going strong. In 3rd Draft, there were also six 18-year olds, and only one of them has graduated (Honda Sora), whereas the only 12-year old graduated after 2 years. Also, the amount of time that members stay in AKB48 has become longer on average. In most generations, members have stayed 5~6 years (except for 8th Gen), but we still have more than half of all members from the 15th Gen (joined 9 years ago) and a large majority of 16th Gen (joined 5.5 years ago). So although it is impossible to say how long 17th Gen will stay, but if the most recent other gens are any indicator, then they should stay a while
I went to look at their profiles on the website and Google auto translated their names and some of them were hilariously butchered, which actually makes me even more interested in them. Hotei Moka especially, Google thinks her name is Cloth Bag 100. But it is nice to have a new group to watch grow. I'm happy to see some subs already!!
I think it’s good that some of these girls already have a following. That might help garner some attention for the group. I won’t make any judgements yet since it’s impossible to know the girls based on pictures and one performance, but I’m looking forward to how they do going forward.
lol 14-20 yos are called old, and you guys are wondering why people think lowly of japanese idol fans 14yo isn't adolescent? why do you want a 10-12yo in this business anyway, so she can be groomed to become your 'ideal idol'?
The 17th gen unveiling show was a lot of fun, I'm glad all the new members got a good amount of screen time. Yamazaki Sora and Hatakeyama Nozomi seem like they'll be really good at variety shows. Hirate Yuki seems like she could do a lot of modelling/gravure work. Hashimoto Eriko is awkward in such an adorable way. I really like Kohama Kokome but when the camera was on her she seemed incredibly nervous and when it wasn't, she seemed bored so I hope she'll be able to adapt okay to the group... Speak for yourself, I've already found my new 48G oshimen. Although with all of my favourite members it's been love at first sight, I've never needed to see tons of pictures and performances to become a fan. Sometimes a member will grow on me over time, or improves so much during their time in 48group that my opinion of them changes (Miyawaki Sakura is a good example of that) but generally I'll see a photo or notice a member in one performance and become hooked. That's definitely the case with Mizushima Miyuu, I knew as soon as I saw the preview pic she was my favourite of the 17th gen and after watching the introduction show she's become my favourite (active) 48Group member altogether. I'm so excited to see what she brings to AKB48. Overall, I think 17th gen is the breath of fresh air that AKB48 has been needing. I'm glad that they seem to be hitting the ground running with two performances already lined up. I'm really hoping they get an original song on the next single (or album, if that comes first) and I would love to see "team kenkyuusei" stage performances from 17th gen. Especially if rather than covering an existing stage, they let Hashimoto Eriko plan the setlist!
if the video does not show watch the video here First showroom feat Sorara, Mayuu, and Aichan. Personally these three left me impression of having nice smiles during the introduction event ( + Hotechan) Also the interesting fact that management didn't realize Sato Airi is Sato Kiara's sister until the contract signing period. Means during the audition they didn't really check the background of the applicants? Only based on whatever documents were sent and individual performance during the audition rounds.
Yes! At the debut stage yesterday Airi said she wanted to be accepted into AKB on her own merit, so she purposely didn’t mention that she was related to Kiara. I was really impressed by this! I’m also surprised that management didn’t catch it sooner though. It makes you wonder how thorough this background check process is... lol
I've really latched onto Kokko and Hotechan right away and I feel like this generation has a lot of potential! Kokko really didn't crack a SINGLE smile all throughout, she wasn't lying when she said she is bad with smiles lmao Hotechan is just adorable, cute, sweet and beautiful so what is there not to love! other than that the youngest one and Sorara really stood out to me. Sorara I don't think talked that much but was positively vibrating with energy and the youngest was generally really chatty which I was really happy to see!
