Your AKB48 Experiences

ecwx, thank you so much for the review!!!

i could only imagine how much fun it would be if i was there with you guys.

and this required print-out of the emails is really starting to bug me. hmm.. oh well. hehe.

 

@youko: yeah, that bugged me too.... in the era where even the cheapest phone can access e-mail..
btw, I wrote this review especially for you, youko I promised to treat you the 1st show of JKT48, remember? This is the least I can do since I could not fulfill my promise

@christafari:
oh, yes, I forgot to mention, there's high touch session after the show

 

Thank you for the review, ecwx. It's good to see some love for the JKT on the forum.

Showing staff the confirmation email on your phone will be perfectly fine. If, just in case, you should want to have it on paper I'm sure finding an internet cafe, public library or something along those lines won't be much of a problem. They also got a printing service at 7-Eleven.

 

Thanks for posting ecwx - It sounds like you had a blast [clap]

Hopefully they're will be some video posted later from either their variety show or the news.

 

awesome banner you got there Tenkun!

well just got done watching the 1800 KKS RESET theater show today and it made me realize that I shouldn't sleep on these girls. The four songs of the set list are so fast paced, that these girls are jobbing like crazy (working their hinds off for those who doesn't understand that lingo)

At first I was set on just cheering for Hillary(she was the only member I know when I saw the list of performers), but as the first couple of minutes went on, my oshi's position was being performed with almost the same intensity as she usually does on those LODs I've seen, and I was like, "WOAH! this girl is fierce!" and when the first MC started, she introduced herself as Moechan (Moe Aigasa). I'm guessing the person standing to my right on the standing area is a huge fan of hers, literally my right ear almost went deaf when he screamed her name. After the MC, came Seifuku Resistance, my all time favorite stage song (like both the song and plus my oshi leads that unit) and guess who comes out...




MOECHAN!!!!


seriously this girl plays my oshi's role pretty well, plus I like how she gave all the song she performed in with 150%!

so the "last" song ends and the lights dim down, the to my right which I can also assume is one known guy in the theater fan inner circle, took out his inhaler, took a doseful, and started the encore chant,,, and my goodness this guy didn't falter nor his voice gave out... I commend that guy.

as for the last encore song they performed Manatsu no Sounds Good! and it was great!

High Touch went by pretty fast but it's great that they still had a big smile on their face as you high five them.

really these girls showed me that I've been missing out on some awesome performances... these girls are really working hard to become regular members!

as a side note, I live a decent way away from Akihabara, so it's nice to hear an AKB48 conversation going on next to me in the train lol

 

and + 2-shot using your mobile phone with your chosen member


a little bit off-topic btw, is there any S48ers who will go to the July 7th NMB shamekai and July 8th AKB daiakushukai? because i'll be attending both

 

Team B - Theater no Megami - 06/04/2012

Off to Tokyo again this year for the election, with only a 2 day window to see actual theater shows. It was between Team B and Team K, and I ended up scoring Mobile FC for Team B. (ie: Will I ever see my oshimen perform in the theater).

Headed off to the theater at my usual time - I always like getting checked in early and people watching. As it was still pre-election, all the election posters were still hanging up throughout the theater. Pretty much in any spot they can find now.

Spoiler

Milky and Jurina have photos on the wall, and they've mounted the Wall Street Journal story on the exterior of the old Cafe/Shop booth - appears that this is now a very big deal.



They also did replace the monitor loops with the new member videos from the Managuu DVDs. Also noticed that they are no longer using the plastic bags when the lockers fill up. Everything is being placed in cardboard boxes. Probably easier to stack and keep track of.

My number was 89, first time I haven't been either right at the door or stuck down the hall in front of the ticket counter.



The special seats started going in first and once again, no Super Enpou for this show. Then the rows started being called. They got about 7-8 in and I was getting nervous that I was going to be stuck behind a pillar - but then they called our row. The standing section in the center was already a row deep, but the back row on the left was completely empty. Faced with a choice of being close to the wings vs having a decent view of most of the stage, I sat right on the aisle. Pillar was dead in front of me, but only blocked one position on the stage.

'Romance' was sung by Kitazawa Saki - first time seeing a 13th gen KKS. Nice voice and I was impressed with her performance. Then it was the overture and Team B!

Like the performance I saw in September, this was just on the verge of being a 2000 yen performance. Team B members present were Harukyan, Kana, Amina, Nacchi, Shihorin, Mariyannu, Chikarina, and Yuka. Tano-chan from Team 4 was subbing for Erechan, and the rest were 10th - 12th gen KKS (including Miyupon!) 

Not going to go into a break-down of the individual songs or units, I've covered those before and this stage is 2 years old now ( we need new stages! ). Even though everyone has been doing this stage for at least a year now, they continue to give it their all as usual. What I really love about these non-senbatsu stages is that the atmosphere is really relaxed. I noticed it last year, and this evening it was even more apparent. Everyone was having a blast, especially Harukyan.

Something must have happened offstage before the show because she was grinning like a maniac through the first numbers and MC. Then when she came back on for Locker Room Boy, she was grinning even more. By the time they got into the last set she had such a bad case of the giggle, she literally had to keep turning away from the audience and covering her mouth. Then for the encore, it seemed to have spread to everyone. Team B Oshi was complete chaos, especially the last verse with Yuka nearly falling on the stage and then Amina nearly getting pushed into the audience during the wing portion. Watching their antics made this show.

The audience itself seemed more subdued than I've seen in the past. Very few light sticks, chants and shouts were mild (at least from the back). It even seemed to take forever to get the encore kicked off. I think someone on the right was supposed to start it, but the guy directly behind me ended up doing it. Which then caused a battle of the shouts - and I got lots of encore spittle on the back of my head   

Aside from that, I found the only problem with my seat is that I didn't know where to look half the time. I kept trying to keep an eye on center stage, but then you feel like you are cheating on the girls in front of you.

I swear Shihorin kept making eye contact with me nearly every time she was stage right. Even though I was all the way in the back, we are both tall and kind of stand out. It also happened when she was in the wing and really close to me - so who knows. (it did garner her an election vote at any rate - I bought 3 more CDs on my way back to the hotel).

Miyupon was adorable as always - I think I've seen her perform more than any other member at this point. Of course Amina is another member I like to keep an eye on during performances - so happy she has her long hair back now   (the other two votes I had went to each of them. Apologies to Harukyan, the shop was sold out of Type A so I couldn't get a 4th CD that night).

As expected we got a bonus performance of Managuu - then had to sit through the "How to vote" video before they let us out for the high touch. I really tried to position myself behind one of the girls this time (as they are less likely to get shoved), but then she literally hopped out of the high touch line.   Quickest high touch I've ever had, and the first time I didn't get a big "oh - it's a foreigner" reaction.

Once again, another fantastic performance in the theater. I'm always grateful for every win I get, and hopefully my luck will continue for the decade or so it's going to take to catch up with some of the others.

 

4th Senbatsu Sousenkyo - Nippon Budokan 6/6/2012

After attending the Election last year, I was kind of up in the air about whether or not to attend this years. While it is a great event to see, with Acchan bowing out there really wasn't any doubt about who would win. Also, unlike last years, I couldn't combine that trip with a Minogashita concert. Since these trips aren't cheap (in terms of both money and vacation-time), I had to figure out what the best option would be. In the end, I decided to go for the Election.

Spoiler

I applied via the Mobile FC and won in the first lottery. After over a year, Mobile FC finally paid off. Since they were being very open about the 'no resale' and 'ID check' policies, I think nearly everyone who applied for tickets won. Two other Stage48 members (Petelchem and Memorybreak) also won in the first round,  and for once I actually had an extra ticket. Which worked out because I have a friend in Tokyo who is starting to get into AKB48, so I could bring her too.

When I arrived in Tokyo one of the first things I did was head to the conbini to pick up tickets. Since it's random seating, you never know where you will be until they get printed out. Imagine my surprise to find that not only had I scored Arena seats, but in the same block I was in last year for Super Enpou.

This year I had to get to the Budokan a little earlier than I planned, as I had been asked by production company to do some filming for the event. They had seen my video from last year on YouTube, and wanted to get similar footage for a show they were working on. I arrived right at 2:00, and as usual, ticket resellers were everywhere. From the girls in the station to the tougher guys heading up to the Budokan gate. There were several TV crews already filming outside, and there was even an amateur idol group performing for the crowd.

I met up with my contact, but still needed to wait for the camera to arrive. I took a couple of pictures of the sign and poster billboard. Even though it was early, you could tell the crowd was up from last year. I ended up hanging by the clock tower, waiting for Petelchem and Memorybreak to arrive.



Just before 3:00 Petelchem arrived, but it was still going to be a while before Memorybreak got there. We decided to hit the goods line, which was immense at this stage. We ended up going up to the main level of the Budokan, wrapping around above the main entrance/sign, and then back down to the goods booth. As usual the actual booth was way smaller than it should have been, and it took nearly 90 minutes to get from the end of the line to the booth.



Once there, they had a ton of things for sale. I grabbed a Team K light stick to replace the one I broke at Request Hour, 2 of the Election T-Shirts, another Election Guide book, and a couple other things. The only thing I regret not buying was these awesome iPhone skins. They are clear with the trim and ornaments from various PV costumes. When you put them on the back of your iPhone, it looks like it's in costume   

Right as we got out of the line my friend arrived. Unfortunately neither Petelchem or I could spot Memorybreak, and I needed to get that filming done. Since the production team weren't credentialed as press, I needed to film myself. Which was pretty tricky with a camera that wouldn't zoom out as far as I needed. I felt a bit silly, but managed to take several shots of what they wanted. Which was when the OJS48 showed up and told me to stop. Turns out that even though I was filming myself, it would still require press credentials. 

Then something completely unexpected happened.

I had noticed two girls watching me film, and after we got scolded by OJS48 they came up to me and asked if they heard correctly that Yui was my oshimen. When I said yes, they got really excited:

"You're the guy from Stage48... can I shake your hand?"   

Then her friend suggested we take a picture. I was completely floored - as was the production crew. I could see them desperately trying to get the camera out again to get it on film. Unfortunately they couldn't film it in time. (btw: If either of you are reading this post, please PM me the picture if you can.)

After all the excitement outside, it was time to head in for the actual event. Oddly enough, even though everyone in the stands was getting ID checked, I didn't get asked while going into the arena. It may have been because I already had my passport out and open. Once in the arena, I discovered that my seats were exactly 5 rows directly behind where I was seated last year, right on the aisle next to the camera banks again. Here are a couple shots from the live feed showing my location (2nd one you can see my Team K lightstick and my friend with my Team A lightstick).



The place itself was jammed. Last year they didn't have anyone directly to the side of the stage or behind. This year they offered tickets everywhere, including behind the stage and standing room only on the 2nd balcony. People who ended up behind the stage had little to no view - only what appeared to be 40" - 50" monitors with the video feed. There were some lucky fans directly above the podium - whenever an envelope was cut open, they could lean over and see who was being called a good 10-15 seconds beforehand.

With arena seats, you get a pretty decent view of the stage, but you don't really see the area where the members sit (other than the back of their heads). I think for these events being up in the stands is a little better, as with the exception of the mini-live, most everybody sits the entire time. There were some exceptions...

Directly ahead of me were several fans who had large sketchpads that they were using as signboards. They would flip them over for nearly every person. To the right, there was one person who was doing an elaborate lightstick routine for nearly everyone. Was a big Team 4 fan and would go nuts whenever a member was called. The guys behind me were SKE48 fans, who did a running commentary through most of the event, which my friend found fascinating.

Then the lights dimmed, the overture started, and the place went nuts.The mini-live was first and featured:

- Aishiteraburu! (SKE48 Senbatsu)
- Banzai Venus (SKE48)
- Nagiichi (NMB48)
- Chime wa Love Song (HKT48)
- Everyday, Kachuusha (AKB48)
- Manatsu no Sounds good! (Single Senbatsu)

After the mini-live there was the host introduction. Then the groups were announced by team and took their seats, after which a brief VTR played highlighting the road from last year's election to this year's. Lastly the results arrived on stage.

Then it was time to find out the results. Like last year, I'm not going to go over every position and focus on the highlights that I remember.


Future Girls

Nakanishi Yuka (63): When Nakanishi was called, the crowd erupted. I don't think anyone there wasn't thrilled - and it kind of set the stage that there would be many surprises this evening. Especially the number of SKE48 members that made it in.

Oota Aika (52): This shocked everyone a bit - I know she was low in the prelims, but I think everyone was expecting to land higher. I have to give her credit, while she ranked down, she was nowhere near as gloomy as she was last year. My friend liked her comment to those who bought a lot of CDs just for her.

Kikuchi Ayaka (51): Another member that everyone was geniunely happy to see rank. She really stood out when I saw her in AKBtoXX this year, and it was good to see some redemption for her past struggles. (same with Minarun managing to still rank after her difficulties).

Muto Tomu (49): The big surprise of the early part of the show. I'm going to look forward to how she grows in the upcoming year. While I was hoping for either Hirari or Miyupon, I was happy to see a 12th gen KKS make the ranking.
 
Unlike last year, this year the girls would go off stage for pictures and then come back. Confused me a little at first. 


Next Girls

I should mention at this stage the reaction shots of the ranked members was getting interesting. There were several who would give very obvious 'WTF' looks when another team member or kenkyuusei would outrank them. 

The biggest surprise of this stage was the number of Team A members who were ranking. 

Miyawaki Sakura (47): She had the cutest - "is really happening" look on her face the entire time. Even during her speech you could tell that she was a bit overwhelmed. Which only made her cuter.

Tano Yuka (45): Like Sakura, she was pretty floored by the result.

Kobayashi Kana (41): Really happy to see her rank, and the flying hug with Sayaka was awesome.
Matsumura Kaori (39): The place loved it when she was called and her speech was very good. 

Iwasa Misaki (33): The first member that I voted for to rank. I was not only thrilled that Wasamin ranked, but nabbed the center position too. I hope she gets a ton of coverage in the PV and can rank even higher next year.


Undergirls

There is really only one thing to talk about here, and it was the large number of SKE48 members that ranked. Every time another SKE48 member was called, the audience got more and more excited. There was a point where we wondered if any other groups would be called at all. Ended up being nearly 8 in a row with the exception of Yuka. 

Hata Sawako (25): I didn't vote for Shawako this year but I'm happy that she ranked up. My friend laughed quite a bit at her speech - "it's a little odd for an idol". I need to explain Shawako to her.

Sato Amina (21): Another member I voted for this year. I was hoping she would make it into Senbatsu, but I think the competition was way tougher this year. I really liked her speech - as you can tell she's glad to be part of the entire AKB48 experience.

Watanabe Miyuki (19): The audience was a bit confused by this at first, thought there was a tie with an NMB48 and AKB48 member, but then once the name was called it made sense.

Takajo Aki (17): This was the hardest speech to watch all night. You could tell she was disappointed when called. Even harder than the speech was watching her the rest of the night. When she came back from the photos you could tell that she had been crying a lot. After a while she just seemed to tune out, much like Love-tan, Jurina, and the Tomomi's did last year.

Near the end of the Undergirls I started getting really nervous. I knew that Yui was high in the early voting, but some of the drastic changes I had seen were concerning me. I breathed a big sigh of relief when Undergirls finished. Yui had definitely made Senbatsu, the question was where...

Senbatsu

In the end I didn't have to wait very long.

Yokoyama Yui (15): When they announced her name I jumped up and started cheering (there needed to be more who did that in the arena > <). Then as she climbed up to the mic - my first thought was "oh no - not again". Sure enough, Yuihan tears started falling and she started leaning on the mic for support again. I loved it when the members started shouting out 'Ganbatte' and cheering her on. Even funnier was the host starting to inch her way to provide support, and she got strong for a moment to tell him "I don't need your help this year". Then she went back to being overwhelmed.  

This is why I love my oshimen. She never takes anything for granted and no matter where she ranks, she's overjoyed with the result.  

Kasai Tomomi (12): Was very happy to see her rank high. She seemed so down last year, and then had a difficult summer and fall. But the fans came back strong and moved her up quite a bit.

Matsui Rena (10) and Matsui Jurina (9): Everyone seemed a bit surprised that Rena ranked behind Jurina - I think the expectation was that it would be the same as the previous year. Nevertheless, both girls are amazing and I feel are worthy to be in the top 10. 

Shinoda Mariko (5): Of course there was a lot of drama in Mariko's speech, and the audience was definitely eating it up. Even my friend was like "Wow, that was amazing". In the heat of the moment I think it was the perfect speech, but in hindsight I wonder. 

Oshima Yuko (1): In the end, it was a given that Yuko would win. The big surprise was Acchan appearing with a huge bouquet of flowers. I was one of the first to notice her coming on-stage, she was there for at least 5-10 seconds before everyone really caught on what was happening. It really was a touching moment and you could definitely feel the torch was being passed. Yuko was gracious as always, and her speech was incredible.

The event ended with the call of all 64 positions, and then a VTR showing the events of the entire evening.

Afterwards I had to do some more filming. Since the event was over, nobody seemed to care. Then it was time to head out. I stopped by some of the 'unofficial goods' stalls on the way, grabbing some xxx48 decals and bumper stickers. Plan to rock the "I love Yui Yokoyama" with my Yuihan plates when they arrive.

 

Then I got grabbed by another TV crew for an interview. I was going to beg off, when everyone started to freak out. This wasn't any TV crew - this was NHK Morning News! I ended up spending about 5 minutes talking with them. Then while we were walking towards the station the announcer came up to me. He wanted to let me know that Yui has his oshimen too, and he was really happy to meet me. 

 

Then at the station another news crew approached us. Filmed quite a bit, even had to hug the new announcer (who was a guy - not fun). Ended up that none of this would make it on the air, which is probably for the best.

Next morning I was getting ready to check out when my phone started lighting up. I had made it onto the NHK Morning News. I didn't have a lot of details and it wasn't until I got home and watched it on my DVR (Hooray for TV Japan). Not only did I get on the air, but they used me as bumpers for Yui's speech. So there it was - shout out #2 for my oshimen on National TV (my segment is around the 2:30 mark).  [party] 

[youku]http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDA5NjA2ODcy.html[/youku]

Overall it was another great trip and event. The election atmosphere is so different from other events. Probably because it focuses on the individual rather than the group, and every announcement for the most part is a surprise. More than likely I'll be attending again next year.

 

Little bit of a different one for the thread... today, I met my Oshimen in the supermarket.

Today I went to Namba to meet some friends who i haven't seen in 6 months. I had a few hours to kill so I decided that even though I went on Friday, I'd go along to the AKB store/cafe for another look.
When I got there, there was a tv crew and the cafe area was blocked off with people.
Inside NMB48's Maachun and Mirurun were sitting at one of the tables doing the whole "oishii" for the camera thing. For the prices the AKB cafe charge, I should hope it is.

Moving on..

They left, and most of the people (me inc) followed along. They went to the new Yoshimoto supermarket thing in front of the NMB theatre. The theme of the supermarket is that it contains food from all 47 prefectures, and there's yoshimoto stuff kind of all over. So the camera's followed them and so did we, they did more "Oishii'ing" for the camera.
They sat down to eat and film another segment, assuming nothing more interesting would happen, I took my leave and wandered off to find a toilet.
About 15-20 minutes later I walked passed again, and this time Riichan and Kanchiru were standing out front posing for photos.. official photos. I tried to take one and the security guard was all over me. So I apologised, stepped back a few rows and took a few with my phone as it was more inconspicuous.

They went inside and did a bit of posing for photos. No camera crew, just a few staff with camera's. Security still diving onto people with cameras.
I bought myself a bottle of water as I felt guilty just loitering in the store. Kanchiru walked straight passed me and stared at me but didn't say anything as they went to the next food area. I wandered off toward the exit where no one was standing.
As they left, they had to walk passed me. Riichan walked out in front of everyone and walked straight toward me. Obviously I was staring directly at her, so when she stared straight back it was kind of an... "oh shit now what" moment. So I politely nodded at her, which she returned and then said probably the only English word she knows "yes" to me, which caused Kanchiru to laugh..(would have been ok had I asked a question..) and they exited the building and headed back to their office area behind the NMB store.

I may not get to visit the theater properly this time in Japan, but I've got something to remember at least.

 

NMB48 3rd Generation Show
Aitakatta Stage
July 21, 2012 18:00

Spoiler

pre-concert adventures

this was a definitely much needed theater show for me.  these past few weeks have been nothing but stress due to the happenings in my current workplace, and add to that the last cancel macchi i had...

yes, i actually won a cancel macchi last june 16, still for a 3rd gen nmb show.  the number was really high that i really did not expect to be able to get in, but.. to make the long story short... they stopped letting people in the theater 4 guys before me.  although i have had worse when it comes to things like these (years ago there was a time when calling of cancel macchi’s stopped when it was my turn!), the fact that i was so hungry for a show and my hopes were already way up when i saw them letting in around 40 waitlisted guys... 

so anyways, since i now know that fans in osaka don’t really warm-up easily to other fans, i took my time instead and did not really stay right in front of the entrance to the nmb theater... something that i would really regret afterwards.  i showed up at around 4:45pm and went straight to buy my ticket after the staff members guarding the stairs verified the name in my ID against the name on the winning email that i printed-out.  this time there were no problems  at the counter.  the staff members there were easily able to search for my name even though it was in romaji.  i guess they were a bit more prepared for gaijin names this time.  everything went smoothly during the purchasing of the ticket, but omfg WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE PINK?!    the wristband i mean  so lol at pink wristband for today XD. hehe. 

pre-theater entrance sauna bath

and it’s summer already, and somehow i really think it will still get hotter the next few months. the temperature that day was already around 34 ‘C i think.  so when people started to line-up in the fire escape of the nearby building, the heat was effing unbearable!!  staff were kind enough to place electric fans at every floor (meaning every 4 flights of stairs), but that really did not help much.  people were sweating, and sweating, and omg sweating like pigs in there.  one of the wotas started talking to me, and i was able to hold a conversation until he went all out osaka-ben which  left me like “oh sh*t.  halp! :wah: ”  and i guess it was also during that time that he realized that i was a gaijin.  haha.  so yeah, the wait lasted FOREVER, and when an eternity was finally over at around 5:45pm, they started to move people out of the fire escape.  wotas were screaming as we went out of the building “it felt like we just crawled out of hell!!”  and as i saw a lot of people having sweaty shirts and things that would make you want to tell the theater manager of nmb to please find a better solution.  
a few minutes before the show

as we entered the theater, it felt like heaven as the air conditioners were at full blast, and well, we were in the theater!!  i was able to find a seat at the fourth row, left aisle seat.. a perfect spot for dancing imo.  and this was when something crazy happened.

out of nowhere, this guy who was sitting at the opposite side of the aisle suddenly started talking to me.  he asked me really politely, and even apologized first as he might be wrong, that he thinks we have already met before.  i politely told him that i guess it was a mistake since i really don’t know any wotas in osaka, but the next thing he told me blew my mind:

“you’re tatami’s friend, right?” 

      

OMFG!! my eyes grew big and i was in panic and was apologizing like crazy, and he continued mentioning names of the akb theater wotas and i was like OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG!!  it was then that i somehow remembered talking to him before, and i started telling him how i got here, that this was just my 2nd show, and how he said he applies for ALL 48 groups and just goes by train to wherever he wins a show!  awesome tactic but really expensive!

as the show was about to start, i told myself that i am seeing an nmb show with an akb theater regular who has been to around 400+ shows?  OMG IT IS ON!!!  [cool] 

review

overture started, and it was just as i had remembered.  the fans were shouting the mixes, but their facial expressions were more like zombies, just waving their glowsticks back and forth.  so ignoring everything that was going on, i just started going crazy at the overture!  shouting “N!M!B!48!” in the most foreign accent.  this got me a couple of stares. hehe.   

so for this show, ALL of the girls that got my attention the last time were not performing.  seriously, what luck, right?  3 girls got my attention the last time, and all three were not in the show today.  oh well, i told myself that this means i can focus on other members and i just might find new ones that i will start to like.  i wasn’t disappointed at all.

nageki no figure started, and the first thing that i noticed was how “old” the costumes looked already.  just 2 months ago those were sparkling new, and now it seems that they have been overused and not really cared for.  the song started, and during the individual spotlight portion, not a single member name was called.  i guess this somehow half confirms my fears that there are no theater regulars in nmb given their schedule and popularity, or at least there are none during week-ends.  

namida no shounan started, and this was when i started dancing like crazy.  i really just wish that i could see this song being performed by a member who has a powerful voice.  the expressions which i really feel are needed for the song were not there, but hell i was enjoying myself as i was doing the hand movements with the girls.  i got a weird stare from the wota beside me as i think he was wondering why i was doing the hand movements, if not on how i memorized them.

it was also during this song that i realized one thing.. only two guys were clapping to the beat of the song, me and the other akb wota.   at least now i was not alone, and we were somehow in perfect unison for the claps and cheers XD.  i did see B2nd for about 20-30 times i think, but i don’t think that compares to how many times the other guy was able to watch not only B2nd but A2nd as well XD.  

and i really hate how the 3rd gen members don’t talk about a certain topic during their introduction MC.  they just introduce themselves, then that’s it.  is this really how they do it these days?

as for the whole show, there were hardly any mixes, and i lost my voice in skirt hirari and even had to lead the friggin mix cause i felt like nobody wanted to do it.  there was also a really awkward encore call as the guy who started it just shouted encore out of nowhere.  he got a few laughs from the other fans, but people politely joined afterwards.

and as far as finding new members to like, my eyes were definitely stuck on murokana (kanako muro). and before you check her profile pic in the nmb website, i have to say that the picture doesn’t do her justice at all.  its way better to search for her senbatsu campaign video in youtube to have an idea on how she looks.  i was sold on her during aitakatta, and seeing her in glass no i.l.y. made me wonder where was she the whole show last time.  she definitely moved way up in my rankings, but still below honorin (azakawa hono).   

then there’s kushiro rina who, even though how hard i tried not to look at her that way, really resembles one of the previous idols that i had followed before akb even existed (that girl is in jav now btw).  i must say the girl is really cute, and she deserves the yellow position in nagisa no cherry.  i just hope its one of those pyon-kyan stuff where may look-alike at first but will eventually not resemble each other as they grow older.  

and last but not the least is ha-ko (hazuki kurokawa) who somehow has a good amount of theater fans already, and easily stands out among the other members.  her pic in the official website also does her no justice at all. 

and as usual, they performed a medley of recent singles at the end, to which the fans kind of exploded.  they did nagiichi, flying get, seishun no laptime, heavy rotation, and.. i missed one. lol.  i totally forgot what the other song was.

after the show, we were treated with nmb’s virginity on the wide screen (ugh that sounds so wrong!), just as we were treated with the full version of (juu)mousou girlfriend that if i remember correctly was probably an extended version.  not really sure though.  but we were viewing those videos while waiting for the girls to line-up for the high five.

and it was during this time that i clearly heard the staff member actually telling people that we will get a “pat on the back” from the members after we do a high five.  i guess when i heard it last time, i thought the pat would come from the staff members when you were staying too long.  lol.

we proceeded to the high five area, and i still had no idea who was the member that did a little massage on me, but she was small *shrug*, and they positioned murokana at the very end of the line which means i had almost little to no time to even say hi to her.  

conclusion

maybe i could say that the level of the performance was probably a bit higher as compared to the last one i saw in the nmb theater, but i’m not really sure since i have this really bad habit of comparing them to team B.  the MC’s were definitely more fun, and i still go crazy whenever a member goes all out osaka-ben to the point that feel like i’m already listening to an entirely different language.  luckily though, i can still understand what they were saying, but schoolgirls with high pitched voices speaking at an insane rate and using deeeeeeeeeeeeeep osaka-ben is definitely more than enough to make me go “hell yeah this is definitely NMB!!”.

 

Thank you for your post, Youko. Always great to have some more reports in here. Looks like you had a great time.

Was he pretty well-built and bearded wearing glasses? He didn't tell you he'd seen "400+ shows" on his own accord, right?

That's pretty much common practice. Being right in the middle between Tokyo and Nagoya (with Osaka not as far away), I do it like that all the time - but I won't go to see HKT unless I got some other business in Fukuoka. That's just a little bit too much of a trip.

Great report. Keep it coming.

I probably won't get to posting any recent theater show or handshake reports... There's really not much to say about it. I've had the unfinished Word documents on my desktop for weeks now.

 

Thanks for posting the awesome reports - I love to see this thread getting updated all the time

Things like this make me want to quit my job and go live in Japan for a year.

Things like this make me want to ensure that Osaka is my home base if I do.

 

probably yes, probably no. he's not really one of those wotas that mingle with the crowd.

he's not a well-built, glasses wearing wota. and regarding the 400+ shows, i could be totally wrong about this one, but i do remember that one of wotas that i actually talked to a lot back then was part of their "group", and that friend of mine was actually the last one in their group to reach 300 shows back in 2009. i just pieced together the info i had and somehow concluded that he could probably have around 400 shows if not more. too bad he was in a hurry to go home after the show (to catch the train maybe), so i wasn't really able to ask him stuff. oh and he applies for hkt too XD. i should have asked him about jkt since he said "all" 48 groups .

and hrp, thanks for the info that its already common practice these days to apply for all shows. i'm actually also planning on doing that, but for me the price of a shinkansen ticket or the midnight bus is just too high for a single show. i guess i just need the right push to also start sending enpou reservations left and right.

 

I only discovered AKB about 6 months ago.I was in Japan many years ago doing martial arts,I loved the country and the people. I was suprised when I heard AKB,s music ,I love all there songs and performances and after a time you begin to feel like you know the girls, they can make you get up and dance or make you shed a tear.
Western music has nothing to compare with the AKB experience, and that is our loss.Most of the songs are better than what is on the Australian and American charts at the moment. And there songs get better and better.
It is sad to hear about SDN48 I have seen some of there Utube videos ,there energy and talent will be missed.
I look forward to the Tokyo Dome concert and I hope this will be the start of a new era for Akb48 and its sister groups

Long live AKB48

 

Hey, I'm Key from Samarinda, Indonesia
I live far away from Jakarta, capital of Indonesia..

Days ago, I went to Jakarta cause i wanted to see Churi so bad.
It's not an easy trip, I had to went through around 3 hours and half just for went to airport in my city.
And then I had to fly for around 2 hours just to got to Jakarta. It takes me approximately 6 hours in total.

Yup, i was really happy to saw Churi in Jakarta 26/7 ago.. I was able to shouted at Churi. 'Churi!!' when she came. She turned around and then waved and smiled at me..

It's not long enough for me, but it makes me really happy.
I feels like, "ah, finally I'm able to meet her".
Going to Japan for me is out of option now, I'm still saving on it.
And I want to meet Miichan in Japan later..

but, that happiness not come very long..
Just now, I found a pic, a private meeting of Churi and SOME fans in Jakarta.
That someone, write a tweet in his timeline, that he's going to meet Churi with his 3 others friend.
I know he is a fan even before AKB becomes a mainstream, but yeah, this 3 peoples actually..

i want your response for this guys, i can't help it anymore.. all of my hard works destroyed in a second..
When I trying so hard to meet my oshi, they got to met her like it was nothing.. dammit

 

Report on HKT48's first overseas handshake event held in Hong Kong:



Scheduled start time of the handshake event was 10:15am.
It's good to hold it early because it could reduce the disturbance to other people doing businesses in the shopping centre, and also, fewer people.   
Anyway, members came around 10:40am as they met the media before first.

Video when the members came (just uploaded, maybe still processing):

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdiU1Ueo0ag[/yt]

Attending members were Sasshii, Haruppi and Sakura.
As expected, Sasshii has most fans, followed by Sakura and lastly Haruppi.
As mentioned by someone else in the AKB48 Hong Kong shop thread, a substantial number of fans were male.
It is quite surprising to be that the male portion seems even more this time than the time Yukirin came.

This is I couldn't take many photos, as there were more securities .....
Probably because there were 3 members doing the handshake.

Let me talk about the members one by one.   

Spoiler

The first handshake was with Sakura.
I waved at her first and said, "Hello Sakura"
Then we started to shake hands, and I said the sentence I prepared beforehand.
HKTの中、さくらが推しメンです  (In HKT, Sakura is my oshi)
She looks pretty happy when I said oshimen !!
And she is really cute!! Just like what I saw on her Google+.
Her reaction was very good. Lots of facial expressions.   



Then Haruppi.
Same as Sakura, I said, "Hi Haruppi!"
And then she responded by saying Haruppi as well.
Then I started to say my words.
What I wanted to say was 私はAKBのはるかとSKEのはるかが好きだ、いま、私もHKTのはるかが好きだよ 
(I like AKB's Haruka and SKE's Haruka, now, I like HKT's Haruka as well)
But when I only said 私はAKBのはるか ... I was already pulled away.  :angry: 
Haruppi looked pretty sad and I knew that she really wanted to know what I wanted to say to her.
(Probably not many people talks too much to her, compared to Sasshii in particular)
As I was pushed already, I only managed to say HKTのはるかが好き at the end.
I couldn't even be sure whether she heard that ...   



And lastly, Sasshii.
First, I said, "Sasshii" and she said, "ありがとう" .
Then I said 頑張ってください (Ganbatte kudasai!) (And I bowed at the same time   )
And she used Cantonese to say Thank You to me.
There were little reaction from Sasshii.
Not sure whether she was too tired ... or because I spent too much time and efforts on the two other members ........  [think] 

So after the handshake, my feeling towards the members changed a bit.
For Sakura, stayed stable (or slightly up). She is just as cute as I expect.
For Haruppi, like her more now. Maybe because of her "sympathy?" when I was pulled away?   
For Sasshii, my once #2 oshi .... I found that she was actually not the type of girl I really like ......
So ......... yea ....... that's something I learnt from a face-to-face short communication.

So that's it for my short report.
For more photos, please go to my album.

http://s1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb3 ... Handshake/
(Password: sikanakb)

And if you can read Chinese, feel free to go to my blog for my HKT48 handshake report with a bit more details in Chinese.

http://blog.yahoo.com/sikanakb/articles/679945/index

 

are you less than happy meeting churi because some other fans also met her in another more private event?

there are people here, in stage48 that have had more close encounters than most of us could ever have, but they serve as inspiration for us. we root and cheer for them. And when I finally was able to meet the members, knowing some people got more luck than I do didn't make me any less happy meeting them

you have met churi, you have gotten good interactions with her, don't let others ruin it for you cherish it

Spoiler

 

Let's put it like this. Sure, there is a community which somehow got special privileges to meet earlier an SKE member. Those "people" must've been invited by someone from the official due to their strong connection with each others. And then they did karaoke and had fun together. Fin. Alright, there's nothing to be blame here since your "invitation" came from official.

But I am just wondering and let me ask everybody a question. What would you do after you've known someone got special privileges to meet an idol that you've worked so hard to meet and then those people are bragging it on internet and start MOCKING those who didn't receive the same treatment?

This is really natural for them to start bashing "you" due to that reason. Your fault isn't because the "special service" done by official, but only for statements that look degrading non AKB Indonesia Forum's members (what is the name once again, AIF isn't it?). I personally will suggest you and "your friends" to make a clarification once again to each Indonesian forum you mocked on twitter. You surely do know how many casual fans out there are raging on you guys, don't you? (and it doesn't like this is the first time your friends made a problem that caused fans war)

I won't try to be a villain nor a hero here. I am in favour with none.

You guys invited to "special service". Yes.

Had a karaoke with Churi. Yes.

Bragging and mocking fans who didn't receive the same with your twitter status. No.

Oh, and again I'm not implying this to you only but for those who did the insult on their twitter. Try to consult it together with everybody from every AKB communities you know. Intead of insulting each others, try to end the problem once and for all.