BATTLE ARENA

I'm not against Paruru's push, I think she's a great face in Senbatsu but I resent that she was pushed as the next ace, and no ones gonna tell me she wasn't. Not as much now, but for a while after Acchan's graduation she was definitely being pushed into ace position. That's the part she doesn't deserve, not because she doesn't work hard but because she's just not the next ace.

 

What would you have done, then? Picked [other X member you like] to be center? Tried to invent a system to somehow quantify the amount of work a member does and then make her center because she "deserves" it most? They were in a position to try things and see if those things worked for the fans or not. They still are in that position, because as far as center goes, it seems like there's not yet a consensus or overall mindset of "that girl is AKB's true center". (And honestly, there probably never will be again, but that's a whole other argument).

 

Do you guys think Naanya is being heavily pushed? I see her as the next Ace of Jpop.

 

I can see what you mean Cristafari, however it's not nessecarily always the case. Imo, I think every single member should be given a chance, or at least whoever gets in Senbatsu.
That way we can find out who deserves it and who doesn't and when I am talking about deserving it, I am talking about the member who will make the biggest impact on the audience without also being one of the most disliked members. Imagine if you can get a girl who loves the audience and the audience loves her without anyone of the girls being pushed.
Of course it will never happen, but if you restart AKB48 from the beginning and you don't have the pushes of the management, I wonder if a different group of girls would be in senbatsu, maybe the girls who work harder, have the talent, have the likable factor, have great stage presence, great dancers etc, wouldn't you then say those are the girls who 'deserve' to be there?

 

They'd be using that system if it worked, probably. But the name of the game is to get as many people interested in the group as possible and you just can't do that without "pushing" certain members into the public spotlight. This is what push is. It's not as much for the benefit of the fans, who are already able to choose who they like in the group by watching PVs, going to concerts, and buying material. It's mostly for the benefit of the casual viewer/listener, who pays attention to what's currently trending and thinks "oh, this Paruru girl in AKB is really cute, maybe I'll buy their next single if she's the center".

How do you create hype around a group like this in the public eye? How do you grab the attention of people who aren't already fans? New fans must be coming from somewhere, or there wouldn't be enough fans around to support the group anymore. Sure, events like sousenkyo are one way, but sousenkyo wouldn't exist at all if management didn't normally choose who to push into senbatsu for each single.

The answer is to push girls like Paru (as an example), to every once in a while put new girls in the public eye as much as possible by giving them commercials, magazine shoots, spots on TV shows, and prominent places in singles. To pull in people who might not have been interested before and create hype around the group.

The way you describe of letting girls organically become popular through their own talents and hard work is only feasible in an insular world where fans are always plentiful and money never runs out.

 

The really cool thing about Paru is that she is not "the next whoever", but she kinda created her own style. Not a style that you MUST like, but her own unique individual approach of being an idol.
The marketing behind that idol gimmick is a total different story (what i am always saying - make people believe they absolutely need a fridge in the ice desert), and for my taste, she is a rather unexciting performer, BUT anybody have to give her that she never tried to be the next acchan or whatever senbatsu member was missing.*
She is Paruru. Maybe not an ace, but a one of the top members of the 48 family for the years to come.

(*Well, - after falling out of the ranking, as she was a rather orthodox lolicon first, that is. Correct me if i am wrong.)

 

When I say Paruru isn't deserving of the ace spot, I say that because no one is. No one can fill that position now because of what Acchan did to it. No one can replace her.

 

I don't think someone deserves any position more than another, but the fact is, some people are more suited to something. In terms of actual performance, which, while yes you want girls with personality, people like Wasamin, Mocchi, Masuda Yuka, both of the Sayakas, etc are better suited to be the stars. They are better performers and yes they have good personalities. Unfortunately, management favors girls that tend to be less suited as performers. I mean, you could argue that people like Paruru have better personalities, but there are people who are better suited as idols. It's not all about talent but but the girls in the front should at least have some.

 

Can I ask, what did Acchan do to it?
The last time I checked, Acchan was pushed from the start of AKB's creation. Because of that, she was the face of the group since Aitakatta, which meant she got much more exposure than the rest, making her more popular. She obviously realized that instead of shying away from the camera (which wasn't going to work anyway considering she's the decided ace) she might as well make herself comfortable in the center position. She won a few elections, then Toyko dome came, then she left.
Now I loved Acchan (like, a lot! I made a shrine for her a few years ago, it was that bad lol) but to me, what mgmt are doing to Paruru or Jurina or any other "pushed" girl is the same thing as what they did to Acchan, and she wasn't perfect or "more deserving" than the rest of the 1st gen's. She had no skill at all, could barely keep in beat when dancing, and her personality was so... still compared to the other 1-3rd gens. But she's gone now, and they need a new cute girl with a cute face and a decent voice to be the new center of AKB. That's what Paruru is. Jurina is heavily pushed, and if she wasn't in SKE they would have declared her to be center the moment Acchan announced her graduation. Mgmt won't stop until they have got a new Center. Whoever the center is might not be as big as Acchan, but they will be the Center until whenever they decide to graduate (or when another girl who management deem "better" than her to take her place).

What irks me is that everyone complains, "When is that second chapter of AKB coming? It's been 2 years now!" but once they see any sign of someone stepping into that center position, we all complain again saying "Acchan is the eternal center, no one can replace her". Just pick a center (You literally have the choice of Mayu or Paru) and be happy with it lol

 

Enlighten me...What is the definition of "idol"? because honestly I really don't know..
And what does make someone "suit" as an idol..?

I thought an idol just need an x-factor that makes her idolized/adored/loved by fans...
It can be skills in singing, dancing, modelling...but it also can be just face and personality (good or bad)...
Paru has thousands of fans....So how can she be categorized as "not suited" or "failed"?
Many people idolize her just for her beauty you know...

And if we're talking about what is needed to be a AKB's center/face (not team-center), my answer is "Strong impression". It can be anything..
as long as you can make people remember you as a top AKB member, and remember you when they talk about AKB (vice versa) you are suit to be center/face...IMHO
So it can be Paru, Mayu, Kojiharu, Yukirin, Takamina, Sasshi, etc (but not jurina I think)
It depends on management...Even if Paru is not in Kami level but people definitely remember her as one of AKB's most popular member...


*and what am I doing here again? previously I said I will leave this thread..

 

whew.. it's so interesting reading this afterall..
one side attack the member, other side defended and going to do counter.. haha..

maybe because your oshi was attacked..

talking about center/ace position.. every member has a same chance to being a center/ace..
it's just about a passion, and how can you entertain the fans << this is important
Acchan, i just can talk that she's have her own position and this is a natural talent, that's why i think she's not try to be like the others. She's try to be herself, even ya maybe a bit fans dislike her as a center..
even she's not being pushed as a center/ace , she's will be glowing .. and maybe she's find another way to shining except being an ace.. just like jurina , paruru, mayuyu and the other candidates, they're glowing even there's yuko right?

 

i got the feeling that a lot of people are mixing ace and center as one....
for me at least, center does not equal ace....

 

what is center?
what is ace?
what is face?
please explain to me and give me two examples for each of that titles....

I dont feel any attack...
It is just interesting to tell people what I think about "suit to be idol" and "center/ace/whatever it is"

 

center: http://stage48.net/wiki/index.php/Center
ace: IMO ace means the most favored person/player in a team who is act as "spearhead" for the whole team. ie, in baseball we got the terms ace for a brilliant pitcher.
face: IMO, in this case, Atsuko was AKB face. the most recognized member by public because the idea of aki-p to make a "star" in AKB.

 

worth answer..
so i little bit mistaken .. sorry...

 

If anyone could fill the ace position, it would have been done by now. To me a good start for being the ace is NOT making a performance boring/plain bad (Mayu, Paruru). You could say Acchan wasn't talented, but at least she didn't make me wince. She wasn't great, but she wasn't just bad. Maybe these girls have good personalities, but having a good personality doesn't make a performance any better if you've already screwed it over with your bad singing/dancing.

I wonder, has everyone forgotten that aura Acchan had? We haven't seen in in so long, I guess everyone forgot...even if you think so and so is a good singer, dancer, hard worker, has a good personality, etc, no one else has that aura. I guess everyone just wants to pretend their Oshi has what Acchan had ^^'

 

@WingsofAngels48 The thing is, Acchan has years of experience and being on the limelight. The girl had plenty of time to smooth the way she performs and to appeal to fans, while it was only in 2012 that Paruru was shoved to the front (pretty sure she performed just like any other member before then). Acchan was this kid that did not stand out in 2006 - don't think her aura was shown back then - and she refined herself and the way she carried herself so that she became the Acchan we know today (or before 2012 lol) If you give a girl the same chance (pushed to the front everywhere) for the same amount of time, I'm sure wotas will describe that she has a great aura as well (first gens, everybody?)

And the whole "making you wince" thing is really subjective. I can't help but furrow my eyebrows a bit when Mayu performs, cause she has the same smile plastered on her face for the whole duration of the song (looks tiring to your facial muscle?), but her oshi find that endearing and cute, and I can't really argue with that.

 

People use to think Acchan was boring and plain as well. You will never satisfy everyone. If everyone thought she had an "aura" she wouldn't have to have her Senbatsu Sousenkyo speech about "you can hate me but don't hate AKB48."