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Your AKB48 Experiences

Discussion in 'General AKB48 Discussion' started by cRaZY MiKi, Jun 6, 2007.

  1. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    Iwasa Misaki Solo Dinner Show Live at Hotel Chinzanso, Tokyo (2017/10/27)

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    Wasamin has developed quite the repertoire of special events to keep her fans constantly engaged. Over and above all of the in-store mini-lives she does on a regular basis, her schedule is filled with fan club events, live concerts, and special excursions. Her dinner shows are quickly proving to be one of the most special events. Not only do the fans get to see an intimate live performance in a beautiful ballroom, the show also includes a very nice dinner, with dishes handpicked by Wasamin. Not to mention most of the fans get dressed up for the occasion.

    So when Wasamin announced that she would be doing her first "solo" dinner show in Tokyo, we weren't at all surprised. However, we were surprised at the choice of location, Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, which happens to be one of the nicest hotels in Tokyo. One would figure this would be a fairly high-ticket affair, but at 15,000 yen, it was surprisingly inexpensive. Anyway, it should be no surprise that I immediately reserved a ticket during Fan Club preorder. But it should also be noted that this event was open to the public, so you didn't need to have a fan-club membership to attend the event.

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    After a Japanese grammar exam in the morning, and watching NFL football while eating pizza for lunch at Rocco's in Oji, (awesome pizza btw, and they show NFL, MLB, and NBA games) I headed home to rest and get ready for the evening. I had originally misread the show info, and thought doors opened at 7pm, but luckily I realized it was slightly earlier, so I headed out early since the hotel isn't very close to public transportation, and I wanted to account for the possibility of getting lost. However, large hotels are normally not too hard to find, and after taking a nice walk in a beautiful neighborhood along the Kanda River, I found the back entrance to the hotel.

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    And what a gorgeous hotel it is! The rear entrance isn't even on a street, it is on a walking path in a park-like setting. Once stepping through the rustic gate, there is an amazing onsen, surrounded by traditional Japanese structures, pagodas, and beautiful little lakes and streams. Restaurants are tucked away into secluded and serene locations. I was there at night, but I could tell that it is probably even more gorgeous during the day. Eventually I wound my way through the paths, and up to the hotel's 1st floor, which was where the ballroom was located. However, most people were waiting on the main (3rd) floor of the hotel, so I hung out there while waiting for doors to open.

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    At 6:30 the doors opened, and we had 30 minutes of cocktails before dinner. It was an open bar of beer, wine, whiskey, and non-alcoholic drinks. Of course there was also a booth outside selling Wasamin's CDs and DVDs. It was then we found out that they would also be doing 2-shots if you bought a copy of her 3rd concert. Awesome! So many of us have been waiting for a chance to a do a 2-shot with her at one of these dinner shows. So I immediately picked up another Blu-Ray before heading inside to my table. In the meantime, the fan club had sent a Halloween themed flower stand for the event...

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    I was at table #9, which was pretty much dead center in the middle of the room. The fan club was spread out pretty much all around the room. Eventually dinner made its way into the room. It was four courses, in addition to unlimited bread. (They had onion bread!) Here is what we had to eat...

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    Japanese reading practice for me!

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    Salmon and Trout, medium rare w/ pureed potato and pickled vegetables

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    Panko-breaded Cutlassfish & Sauteed Shrimp over Risotto w/ Vegetables and Balsamic Glaze

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    Roasted Sirloin with 16-grain Rice and Vegetables

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    Caramel Mousse w/Vanilla Ice Cream and Fruit

    After dessert and coffee, the show was getting ready to start. Actually, the show was supposed to begin at 8pm, but the dinner ran very late. It was almost 8:45 when the show finally started. But first Wasamin did a kage-ana where she was asking us how dinner was. Also, it was announced the previous day that like at her concerts, there would be a camera-shooting portion of the show. Here is the setlist...

    Setlist
    1. Hatsuzake
    2. Tomonoura Bojou
    3. Mujineki
    MC: Wasamin talking about the official colors for her six singles. Camera-shooting time starts
    4. Toshishita no Otokonoko
    5. Momen no Handkerchief
    6. Koisuru Fortune Cookie (Enka ver.)
    MC: Camera shooting time ends. Wasamin talks about the planning that went into the show.
    7. Saba Kaido
    8. Nora
    MC: Wasamin leaves stage, recording plays of her asking us how we are enjoying the event. (Unfortunately, she didn't always leave enough time after her questions for our responses, LOL) Wasamin changes costume, her guitar is setup on stage.
    9. Misaki Meguri
    10. Ito
    MC: Final songs, "Ehhhhhhh????"
    11. Wakare no Yokan
    12. Gomen, ne Tokyo
    (Main show end)
    Encore: Another feature of the event, it was announced that there would be a drawing at the show where Wasamin would sign any memorabilia you wanted. Ultimately they drew three people, two at table#8 and one at table #2. One person got his Happi Coat signed, the second got his Wasamin phone case signed, and the last person had her sign his copy of Saba Kaido.
    13. Moshimo Watashi ga Sora ni Sundeitara

    Show End

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    Wasamin always gets a kick out her fans when they get a bit of booze in them, as she makes comments about how genki we are at night. She also thanked everyone for coming out on a Friday night after a long week of work, noting that this was "Premium Friday" which got a jeering laugh from the crowd. One interesting moment, Wasamin briefly lost her voice in the middle of Saba Kaido. She went to sing a line, and it came out all wrong. She had to quickly clear her throat, but she finished the song just fine. She quickly grabbed a couple sips of water before starting to sing Nora.

    The audience shooting was a lot of fun. There were 14 tables, so she had plenty of time to do complete circles around every single one, stopping for lots of closeups. I got a lot of nice shots, including some where she was literally inches away from me. At one point during Momen no Handkerchief she noticed that one of the fans had left his lens cap on his camera. She actually stopped, pulled it off, and started making fun of him in mid-song. It was too funny!

    Here is a collection of shots I took during the show...

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    We were all hoping we would win the lucky drawing to get stuff signed, so it was kind of a bummer she only chose three people. I keep hoping that one day I will get the opportunity to get my Happi Coat signed. Anyway, the show ended, and we all dispersed into the reception area to line up for 2-shots and handshakes. However, the event had run extremely late, and Wasamin needed to get to Osaka the next morning since she has events all weekend in Western Japan. So they asked us to present all of our tickets at once instead of looping the line. I actually waiting a little while before lining up, since the line was actually extremely big. My turn eventually came...

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    I basically told her that the show and dinner were wonderful, and I love when she performs Misaki Meguri, since it is such a beautiful song. In fact, I would go as far as saying that her version is even more beautiful than the original. By the way, they feature her performance of Misaki Meguri over the Documentary feature on her new concert DVD, so be sure and check it out!

    At around 10:15pm we had all exhausted our tickets, and Wasamin gave us all a farewell before she left. In the meantime Wasamin's management asked us to all take a group shot. Actually, we took around 8 group shots for various people's cameras. Oh, and before we left Ichikawa-san asked us to mention the hotel when we tweet pictures and reports from the event. And with that, the event was over. My friend Phil and I left through the rear entrance, which was actually closed. But one of the attendants in a Yukata actually let us out through an exit in the onsen, which was really nice since we didn't want to walk all the way back to the hotel. I was able to make the second to last train on the Toden Arakawa Line, which made my journey home a lot shorter than trying to take the Metro or JR.

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    I can't stress enough how wonderful this event was. Just everything about it was perfect. Wasamin looked beautiful, the venue and food were beautiful. It was a really special event. And the good news is that Wasamin's manager blogged later that the event was a big success, and they think the next time she does a dinner show they might choose this hotel again, since it was so amazing. Speaking of amazing, we have two special events coming up in the next six weeks. First, Wasamin's Love-Live acoustic show will be taking place in late-November. According to the website, both shows are already sold out. Then in early December there is a fan-club exclusive boat excursion which looks like a lot of fun! According to Wasamin, that event is almost sold out too. So lots of fun for Wasafans heading into the holiday season!
     
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  2. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    AKB48-Group 49th Single #Sukinanda Individual Handshake Event at Pacifico Yokohama. (2017/11/04)

    For me, this event was more of an hors d'oeuvre before tomorrow's (Sunday) event since I originally planned on only going on Sunday. However, during the application period, I saw Team 8 perform in the theater and briefly took a liking to Takahashi Ayane. Saturday was the only day she was appearing, so I was compelled to buy a few tickets for this day. Now the irony is that I actually did an oshimashi handshake with Amane a couple of month ago, and...well, I wasn't inspired to see her again. So ultimately I ended up doing an oshimashi with her ticket today. LOL

    But it was still a worthwhile day, even with the few tickets I had. I had all my tickets stacked into Slots 2-4, which worked out perfectly since I had another event I wanted to attend in Akihabara later on in the day.

    Of course this was another event where you could draw special prizes (2-shots, 1-shots, signed photos, etc.) Interestingly, of the six tickets I had, none of them offered any kind of recording or photo prize. They were all either for a signed photo, or a signed drawing the members all did.. Ultimately I won 2 of 6 (well, 2 of 5 since I blew off my Ayane ticket, and you can't draw for prizes on oshimashi) Anyway, I arrived at Pacifico Yokohama toward the end of Slot 2, which was enough time to get my Slot 2 tickets done. AKB must have had at least 4 halls rented out for this event, as there were over 100 lanes, a stage area, some drawing exhibit, and all the other booths they have (info, Aikabu, etc.) Despite that, 5 of my 6 tickets were all located in the same corner of the hall.

    Slot 2

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 73) Yuka-chan didn't have much of a queue, which is usual for her at the end of the slot. I checked in and immediately won the signed photo. After waiting for 2 fans in front of me. Yuka-chan reached out with both hands and exclaimed "Chris-san!!!" She had on the cutest sweater, kind of 2-tone flesh color and dark green, it almost looked like a low cut blouse, but it wasn't.

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    As she signed the card I told her how pretty her sweater was, and I asked if she had a fun birthday, and I saw some of the pictures online. She thanked me and asked if I had heard about their new album. I told her I want to get it, although it is quite expensive. She nodded in agreement, and then out of nowhere she said "Chris-kun, I love you so much!" Wow!! I remember when Wasamin said something like that to me a few years back, and I almost got weak in the knees. Same here, Akiyoshi just made my heart flutter.

    There was still 10 minutes left in the slot, and I wondered if there was someone available who I could use my "extra" ticket on. Originally I wanted to use it on Cuca, but her slot wasn't until later in the day, after I panned to leave. I didn't have a ticket for Zunchan today either, but these days her lanes don't have the oshimashi "star." As I walked through the HKT section I found Bibian, Rikopi, and Mio, all starred lanes, all short queues. Okay, this was it. Who would I pick???

    Sakaguchi Riko (Lane 57) So this is who I ultimately ended up using my Amane ticket for. I like Rikopi, she is usually a fun handshake, and I hadn't seen her in a while. I could tell Rikopi wanted to say my name, but just couldn't recall it in that moment. Instead she just started practicing her English with me. I did ask her about the upcoming HKT album, and told her I was excited about it.

    SLOT 3

    Tani Marika (Lane 54) Despite the fact that I promised Marika I would wear Tani-gear in the future, I failed to bring anything of her's to wear. And frankly, it has been slim pickings at the goods booth for this single. I actually do have some Tani stuff in my storage unit in the U.S., but that doesn't do me any good here. Anyway, I won the signed photo, so at least that would keep her occupied.

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    Oh, and she was wearing a "Chucky" (from Child's Play) t-shirt. So I immediately got her talking about that as I pointed and said "Chucky!" I then told her that I saw her Halloween cosplay tweets. She asked if I thought they were cute. I took a chance and said they were "scary and cute," and noted the white contacts she wore. At the end she again reminded me that I was supposed to be wearing Tani accoutrement. So I didn't get off scot-free after all.

    tani.jpg

    Fuchigami Mai (Lane 62) Maichan had the only really long line I went to all day. I don't seem to have good luck drawing Maichan's prizes, and alas, I didn't win. After around 20 minutes in the queue I finally got my turn. Now I know Maichan is a big Soft Bank Hawks fan. Actually, lately all of the HKT girls have been posting about the Hawks, but Maichan supports them all season. So I asked Mai if she was going to watch the game tonight. I didn't totally get her response, but I think she said something to the effect that she wouldn't have time. But she did say that she hoped that they win tonight. So I told her I would root for the Hawks too, and for that I got a High-Five. I told her I would see her tomorrow as the guard pushed me out.

    SLOT 4

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 73) When I entered the queue shortly before the start of the slot, there was still a bit of a queue for Jitoe Nene, and one guy in particular who had a ton of tickets, so they ended up moving the rest of her queue into another lane. In the meantime, while we waited for Yuka-chan to come out I was watching Matsuoka Hana playing with her fans in the next lane. Eventually Yuka-chan came out. It was my goal to get this ticket, and my final ticket in this slot done as quickly as possible because I needed to hustle to Akihabara by the late afternoon. BTW, here is Yuka-chan in her pretty sweater I talked about before...

    akiyoshi.jpg

    Surprisingly, I didn't win the prize. But that's okay since the cooler prize was the first one, which I did win. In any case, I decided to ask Yuka-chan if she is a Soft Bank Hawks fan too. She said yes, and then pointed out that I was wearing my HKT48-Hawks Baseball Jersey. (In fact, I got comments from a lot of people today around Tokyo assuming I was a Soft Bank Hawks fan, LOL) Like with Maichan, I told Yuka that I would root for the Hawks to win. After telling her I would be at the event tomorrow too, I hoofed it over to the far end of the hall for my last ticket...

    Ichikawa Miori (Lane 5) Miorin had a fairly short queue. Since I lost the prize when I visited her last time, I really wanted to win this time. The fan in front of me had three tickets, so he pressed the button three times, and he won ALL THREE. SHIT, I just knew the next one would be a loser, and almost pulled my ticket and ID back, but it was already too late, they had marked my ticket. And of course, I didn't win the prize, again. So I would have to come up with something to talk about with Miorin. Well, she was wearing this cute and fuzzy little hat. So after the usual pleasantries I commented that her hat was very cute. I also mentioned at first I thought the fuzzy stuff sticking out was her hair. She immediately, and almost defiantly said it wasn't her hair. As I laughed, the guard, rather forcefully, pushed me out.

    lemon.jpg

    I immediately bailed back to Tokyo, and to my little event in Akihabara. Tomorrow I have a few more tickets. I again have tickets for Yukachan, Maichan, and Tani, plus tickets for Zunchan, Kaotan, Bibian, and Cuca. Not to mention many of the prizes I am trying for are video and 2-shots, so hopefully my luck will be a little better than today.
     
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  3. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    Team 4 "Yume wo Shinaseru Wake ni Ikanai" Live at the Donki, Chiba Erii's Birthday Stage! (2017/11/06)

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    I originally planned on doing a writeup on Sunday's 48-Group handshake event. However, I kinda want to report on this one while it is fresh in my mind. Actually, it was while I was hanging out at Pacifico during the Sunday event that I got my cancel machi email. I was initially surprised because i thought I had already lost this particular stage application. But I checked the ticket center, and there it was. Cancel Machi for Monday's Team 4 Stage. The good news was that I had a fairly decent cancel machi number (#55) so I figured my chances were good...

    I checked my account throughout the day to find out how many cancellations the theater had, and it was stuck on 5 all morning. Around lunch it had risen to 15. Now all of a sudden I wondered how good my chances were. After all, it was a birthday stage, and most of Team4's big players were going to be there. Oh well, as I make it a rule to show up no matter how good or bad I think I chances might be, I headed out to Akihabara.

    Pre-show

    I got to the Donki around 10 minutes prior to cutoff. Surprisingly, the queue to purchase tickets wasn't very long. On the other hand, the cancel machi group was very big. However, that all changed, as five minutes before cutoff an onslaught of people came up the escalator. WTF??? Ya know, that never ceases to annoy me. Why so many people show up at the last possible second to purchase their ticket. The staff was temporarily overwhelmed, which actually caused them to extend the cutoff time for people to queue by five minutes. That actually became sorta significant to me...

    Cancel Machi

    They finally cut off the line, and got it relatively shorter, and started calling cancel machi numbers. At this point, I didn't have a great feeling about my chances, but they kept calling numbers. Into the 20's, the 30's, the 40's, the 50's. Could it be???

    Nope, they cut it off at #52. Now remember I mentioned they kept the line open around five minutes past cutoff, and they let around 8-9 people into the queue during that time. This meant that I would have won in the initial cancel machi had they not done that. But the good news was that I was pretty much assured a chance of getting in via the second lottery. Sure enough, I was second in line. Score-a-rooni! Ultimately it didn't really matter, as the last group of people who won the initial cancel machi got a bad draw-in during the seat lottery being called 3rd to last.

    Team 4, and Birthday Festivities

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    So this would be my 38th theater show. It would be my first time ever seeing Team 4. It would also by my first time seeing the Himawari-gumi 2nd stage, which happens to be in my Top 3 all-time favorite stages, live in person. I was excited! This show was also celebrating Chiba Erii's 14th birthday, so when I queued up for my ticket, I was handed a birthday "goodie bag" by one of her committee members. It was kind of anemic. There was a call chart, and a lightstick color chart. However, they did not provide lightsticks, it was B.Y.O."gs". Oh well. Oh, and it had a little rubber birthday bracelet! Anyway, I made it into the theater, and found a spot on the right side. It was a crappy view, with the pillar blocking the center stage, but I could see the far right side clearly, and the far left side, and could sorta see the center via the mirror on the pillar, LOL. The show started with a special "Erii" version of "Tiger, fiber..."

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    I must admit that I forgot to check who was performing in this stage. So I didn't know that there were A LOT of replacements from other teams on the roster. Among the members not performing were Saho, Juri, and Sato Kiara. In their place were Shimada Haruka (didn't she graduate already?), Shimoguchi Hinana, Yamabe Ayu, and Nishikawa Rei. But the biggest, and best surprise was that Mio was actually performing. That made it clear on who I would be rooting for.

    chiba1.jpg

    The Show

    The crowd seemed to be in a very rambunctious mood. The calls, especially for Erii, were loud and long. Since my best view was on the right side of the stage, I missed what was going on in the center most of the time. However, Komiharu, Kojimako, and Okada Nana spend A LOT of time on this side of the stage, so I saw a lot of them. Additionally, I saw a lot of Nozawa Rena, Hinana, and Yuiri. I was really impressed with how much Komiharu interacts with the audience. I remember seeing her debut in the theater over four years ago, and she has really matured as an AKB idol. In fact, at the end of the show she spotted me and started waving. Also, the more I watch Mio, the more I think she is absolutely adorable. And since she has been growing her hair out, whoah! I spent most of the show wishing Mio would come to the far right side of the stage. She did, occasionally. But she spent more of her time in the center or on the left.

    chiba2.jpg

    Confession, and Notable Performances

    When I saw this performance a month ago I noted how I thought it was the worst performance of 'Confession' I had ever seen in my life. I felt it lacked energy, and was poorly sung. I wanted to draw a comparison to this performance. However, my view wasn't very good, so I don't think I can make a fair comparison. As for who stood out to me (aside from Mio) I mentioned before that I was extremely impressed with Komi's stage presence. I also thought that Shimoguchi carried herself well on stage, although she isn't really my type of idol. Murayama seems to be quite energetic too. That said, my MVP goes to Komiharu.

    chiba3.jpg

    High-Wave

    After the show, the birthday celebration for Erii, and watching the new single MV, we got to do the farewell "High Wave." I got the best reactions from Komiharu, Mio (of course), and Nozawa. In fact, when Rena saw me her eyes widened, and as I turned back toward her a second later she was still staring at me, LOL. A couple of the members also started speaking English to me. Okada Nana was one of them, and I think the other one might have been Sayaya.

    chiba4.jpg

    Anyhow, a fun time. I hope I win at least one more show before I head out of town for the holidays.
     
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  4. gocchisama

    gocchisama Member Stage48 Donor

    Joined:
    Oct 12, 2012
    Location:
    Paris,France
    Oshimen:
    hirateyurina
    Twitter:
    Gocchisama
    great read!
     
  5. Matto

    Matto Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2016
    Location:
    Japan
    Oshimen:
    Hara Karen
    Nov. 5th, 2017 AKB48 Group #Sukinanda Handshake Event @ Yokohama Pacifico


    This is the third event I went to for this single, the other two were the 10/14-10/15 events, but for the reasons of: meeting too many members, reports being so long, and me being tired and lazy, I never posted them here. That wasn't the case for this event so I'm back from my brief hiatus.

    First of all, I already had some disappointment as Lala Goto posted on Twitter that she just found out that she had a school-related event that she had to attend on the 5th and so she would be absent that day. I had five tickets for her and was bummed out as Lala is probably my favorite member to do handshakes with. So I decided to use her tickets for oshimashi with other members.

    The special gimmick for this day's event was getting signed recipe cards of the different creations the members concocted themselves. These recipes were on display in an art gallery fashion on the far wall near the NMB members (where I was primarily located). Even though Lala wasn't there, her recipe was on display so at least I got to see that.

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    -Slot 1-

    Ishizuka Akari

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    I actually got screwed by the staff during the sign. I had 5 tickets for Anchu and I guess they're so used to kicking people out as soon as they get the signs that he pushed me out when I still had tons of time left because she didn't spend much time signing it. So as I leaving the timer staff was saying I still had time so I went back in, but I basically lost at least a ticket's worth of time during the confusion which pissed me off.

    Anyway, if you haven't checked out Anchu's YouTube channel, I highly recommend doing so. She's doing Let's Plays of Dragon Quest II and more recently Super Mario Odyssey. She's pretty bad at them which is funny or infuriating, depending on how you feel.

    -Slot 2-

    Shiroma Miru

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    It's super funny when Miru has to put her foot in her mouth with stuff. She acts like she knows everything but tries to play it off when busted.

    -Slot 3-

    Shiroma Miru

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    The very beginning of this video is the reference I was making

    -Slot 5-

    Ota Yuuri

    I used some of my oshimashi tickets on Yuuri to appease @zeroshiki but he set her up for failure by telling her that I came to see her because "she speaks English very well" and so she was very flustered and panicking, which was cute.

    [​IMG]

    -Slot 6-

    This was going to be my busiest slot as I had Sayanee plus two members at the same time. I was smart and joined the pre-queue fairly early and so I was able to get through her lane pretty quickly.

    Yamamoto Sayaka

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    Nozawa Rena

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    This was my first time to meet Rena and I was super impressed by her. She wouldn't stop talking/asking me stuff and we went well over my allotted ticket time. I had 3 tickets for her but it felt like I had 10 tickets worth of time with her because she didn't finish signing the cards until way later. Rena's been around for a while now but it wasn't until now that I decided to go see her but she made a fantastic first impression. I'm definitely adding her to my regular roster for future events, which is great because my English-speaking members list has been severely reduced over the past year (Hilary, Emichi, Riona).

    Yokoyama Yui

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    I have some things to say about Yuihan. Yuihan is my AKB oshi, especially now that so many of my favorite AKB members have graduated. I've gone to see her sporadically over the last couple of years but her interactions have always been very distant and "professional" (impersonal) and that's what discourages from coming back to them in the future. I took a break from her for a year or so and gave her another chance with this single. I met with her on the 14th and she was friendly but had a bit of a cough/cold. Her condition and interactions were much worse at this event, as implied from the short and seemingly uninteresting responses on her end. But I will give her credit for admitting to me that she wasn't feeling well and I appreciate that.
    In summary, I think I'll be bumping Yuihan off my roster indefinitely. I still like her but I don't like meeting her if that makes any sense.


    -Slot 7-

    Oguri Yui

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    Yuiyui's bits of English were cute. I got crazy lucky with her though because I won 2 of her signs with 3 tickets.

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    Kato Minami

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    It was super random that she brought up Trump, but it was funny.



    That concludes my write-up. My next events are Sayaka's solo live in NHK Hall Tokyo, and a handshake with her at the NMB album event on 11/25. After that, no events until February! Peace!
     
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  6. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    AKB48-Group 49th Single #Sukinanda Individual Handshake Event at Pacifico Yokohama. (2017/11/05)

    Back to Yokohama for the second half of the 48-groups big handshake weekend. This time I had a few more tickets than on Saturday, and I had a variety of different prizes I could potentially win. 1-shot videos, 2-shot selfies, autographed member recipe cards, and the autographed alternate CD jacket. The question was whether or not I would be lucky and win at least one of each prize. I also took pictures of a bunch of the member recipe cards. Let's get right into the action...

    SLOT 2

    Tani Marika (Lane 53) I only had the one Slot 2 ticket, so I didn't really need to get to the venue until after 11am. Tani didn't have too big of a queue. I checked in, drew on the lottery, and won. Good start! It was a choice of 1-shot video, or 2-shot selfie. Since I suck at taking selfies, and Tani, is so funny, I chose the video...


    if the video does not show watch the video here

    Looks like I got a girlfriend, eh??? Yatta! In that case, I better grab some Tani gear ASAP! I asked Tani if she was still a Soft Bank Hawks fan, and she replied affirmatively by exclaiming yes and pumping her fist. So I gave her a quick "omedetou" before getting pushed out. In the mean time, I ran into @Matto , as well as @naruse . I also ran into a Hong Kong fan who I believe I met once before, but I don't remember his name. Oh, and I signed a birthday card for Marika (as well as Bibian) and her fans gave me some Tani tissues!

    zz2.jpg

    SLOT 3

    Yamane Suzuha (Lane 55) I decided to queue up early of Zunchan's lane since it has a tendency to get very long. I lined up around 20 minutes early, just as Aramaki Misaki was finishing up with her last fan. I didn't win the selfie/video prize, which wasn't too big of a surprise since she is a bit harder to win for. Anyway, a short time later Zunchan entered her booth. What the hell, she is 20 minutes early? She wasn't there to start meeting the members, she was there to decorate her booth. Balloons, streamers, toys, stuffed animals. It is amazing watching her do all of this. And it takes her over 10-15 minutes to get it all done. In the meantime, everyone from the neighboring queues are also watching and laughing in amazement. Even Shoji Nagisa came in to see what she had done to her booth. And that isn't even all. She then has a bunch of handwritten signs that she asks the staff to strategically place all over the lane. It is absolutely amazing what she does, and you can see it all from halfway across the hall!

    zun.jpg

    Needless to say when it came to my turn I told her I watched her put her booth together, and that it was amazing and totally cute. I then said that her bedroom at home is probably the same. LOL. Later on I took my friend Nori over to see it, and he thought it was great. He said he had never seen anything like it before. I have seen members decorate their lanes before, but never to this level.

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 62) After Yuka-chan stole my heart on Saturday, I was really looking forward to seeing her again on Sunday. Luckily, I won the 2-shot selfie. But was this really good news. I suck at taking selfies. So while I was waiting in the queue (she did have a bit of a line) I practiced taking selfies so I wouldn't blow it. I got her in perfect position, I had a good grip on my phone, I extended my arm out as far as I could, cracked a half-smile, and...

    zz1.jpg

    Success! I finally took a proper selfie. In my quick visit I noted that the sweater she was wearing was just as cute as yesterday, and that she always wears very nice clothes. She quickly thanked me as I got pushed out. But I would be seeing her again to lead off the next slot...

    SLOT 4

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 62) This time, surprisingly, I did not win for the 1-shot video. I wasn't to disappointed though, since I already have three of those with her from recent events. I instead decided to congratulate her on the Hawks win. I noted that I was looking at her twiiter last night, and saw all of her Japan Series tweets, and that I saw she ate dinner with Meru. Anyhow, I hoped I would have better luck when I visited Yuka again in Slot 6.

    Fuchigami Mai (Lane 73) Keeping with the theme, I had already set up with Maichan that I would be rooting along with her for the Hawks on Saturday night. I didn't win the alternative jacket prize, meanwhile Maichan had a decent sized queue. However, I guess nomany people were winning since her line went very fast. In any case, when it was my turn she already knew what we were going to talk about, and started umping her fist and cheering before I even got into the booth. I congratulated her, and she gave me a big High-Five. Maichan is so much fun.

    maichan.jpg

    I had no Slot 5 tickets. So after visiting with my friend Nori for a little while, I bailed back to Queen's Square for a late lunch and a cocktail.

    SLOT 6

    Sakaki Miyu [Cuca] (Lane 32) I had three tickets for Slot 6, and decided to get Cuca done first since she never has a line. However, when I got there, she DID have a small queue. So I decided to wait for it to clear out, but it didn't. More people kept entering her lane. This is really good news. She is starting to cultivate more fans! Her lane was still "automatic win" for the prize, so I would be getting the autographed recipe.

    zz8.jpg zz6.jpg

    So I decided to ask her about the recipe. I neglected to tell her that I do not like dishes with cooked tuna in them like that. Instead I asked her if it was an Okinawan recipe since a friend of mine thought it might be. She insisted that it wasn't. She also sincerely thanked me for coming, and asked if I lived in Japan. Since this is like the 4th or 5th time I have met her, I think she is getting that I really do like her.

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 62) One final visit with Yukachan, and I won her recipe card too! It seemed like most people were winning, since in my immediate vicinity everyone had won, save for one unlucky guy.

    zz7.jpg zz4.jpg

    Her recipe was for a fried rice dish, so I asked her if it was Chinese inspired. She told me that it is actually her father's recipe, something he makes at home. The guards were calling time, but Yukachan spent extra time on the autograph, even drawing a mikan at the bottom, as well as a special message. So a total score. I look forward to seeing her again at the HKT event in late-November.

    Murakawa Bibian (Lane 58) Bibian had quite the queue, I was really surprised. It didn't really matter, since it would be a while until I could use my final ticket. I didn't win the 1-shot video, oh well. Bibian was completely decked out in Adidas gear, so I noted that when I entered the lane. And like with the other HKT members, I asked her if she was a Hawks fan. And then congratulated her on the Japan Series win. Short and sweet.

    vivian.jpg

    So we would have to wait until after the dinner break before Slot 7 started. This is why I usually try to be done after Slot 6. However, oftentimes some of my favorite members, like Tani, Kaotan, Bibian, and even Yukachan only have after dinner slots. In this case one member I like was only Slot 7-8, and since I didn't even see her at all on Saturday, I would brave the wait.

    SLOT 7

    Matsumura Kaori (Lane 41) I couldn't decide whether I wanted to enter Kaotan's lane early, or wait a while. But her queue kept getting bigger, so I decided to get in there before it got out of hand. In any case, she likes to take her time with the fans. I didn't win the "alternative CD jacket" prize, but you never know with Kaotan. In the meantime her lane was positioned right next to the Handicapped lane for SKE. So I had a really closeup view of all the members coming over to that lane. It is really interesting how that lane operates too. The first member who came over was Ego-chan, then Ryoha, Hidaka Yuzuki, Suuchan, Obamina, Kaotan, and finally Masanya when I was really close to the front. Masanya spotted me and waved hello too. It's funny, every time I think I am seeing Masanya for the last time, I end up running into her again. Is it fate? Anyway...

    I also noticed that Kaotan seemed to be signing jackets for everyone, regardless of whether or not they won. Cool! Except, when I was five away they switched guard staff, and the one new guard asked why she was signing jackets for people who lost. The exiting guard basically shrugged. So it would be interesting what would happen when it was my turn, since the three people in front of me all won. So it was finally my turn, as expected Kaotan reached for a jacket to sign, but the guard interjected and said "No, he didn't win!" She was like "Oh, he didn't? I'm sorry." I just played dumb the entire time, although I was slightly bummed that I got cock-blocked by the new guard. In any case, I told her I was just happy to see her. I then asked her about her Banana Juice recipe, and if it was better than the Butterbeer she had at USJ a few days ago. She then asked if I was coming back for Slot 8, and maybe I would win the recipe card. But I told her the next time I would see her was at the SKE event at the end of the month. After saying our goodbyes, I was done for the evening.

    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Prizes

    I ultimately went 4 for 9, which isn't a bad percentage. I would have liked to have won at least one of those alternate jackets, and I would LOVE to get a selfie or a video of Zunchan. But oh well, maybe next time.

    Recipe Bonus

    zz3.jpg


    Here are the recipe cards I took photos of on the wall at the far end of the hall. I mainly took pictures of members that I like, with a few others thrown in for friends. And of course, Tani's infamous recipe for Cup Ramen, with Matto also posted above. I will put them under a spoiler...

    zzz1.jpg zzz2.jpg zzz3.jpg zzz4.jpg zzz5.jpg zzz6.jpg zzz7.jpg zzz8.jpg zzz9.jpg zzz10.jpg zzz11.jpg zzz12.jpg zzz13.jpg zzz14.jpg zzz15.jpg zzz16.jpg

    So rounding out the year, I have the SKE and HKT handshake events on November 23rd, and that is basically it for me and the 48-groups until 2018 since I will be back in the U.S. for 2 1/2 weeks in December. That is unless I happen to win another show. And of course I also have a bunch of Wasamin stuff between now and mid-December. So it's all good.
     
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  7. hermionepj1

    hermionepj1 Member

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2016
    Oshimen:
    Yamashita Emiri
    ^ haha, that's a nice onigiri selfie!
     
  8. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    16th Gen 'Let's Go Kenkyuusei' 16th Gen Stage Live, 4pm Late Show (2017/11/19)

    IMG_6713.JPG

    This was supposed to be an "all-Wasamin" weekend...

    Actually this was supposed to be a light weekend. The type of weekend where I could catch up on personal stuff. But then at the last minute Wasamin announced that she would be doing a slew of mini-lives, most of which were taking place around the Northern part of Tokyo, very close to my apartment. So my plan was to go to most of those events, and spend the rest of my time on personal stuff. I was just getting on the train to go to Wasamin's first event when I got the email...

    Sunday Afternoon Show, 16th Gen Kenkyuusei. Cancel Machi #103.

    I am always happy to win a show, but this put me in a real quandary. When I was deciding which Wasamin events to attend, the one I was most excited about was the Sunday afternoon one since it was within walking distance to my house. I had also resolved to skip Wasamin's early Sunday event, since of the four, it was the furthest away from me. But I have a personal rule, which I have mentioned before in this thread. If I win a show, or get cancel machi, regardless of how high the number, I will go.

    But Cancel Machi #103, sheesh. There were no guarantees with this one. In fact, the odds were on me not getting in at all, which means I could be blowing off Wasamin, and not seeing AKB either. But, I decided to take the chance. And since Wasamin specifically asked me if she was seeing me on Sunday, I bit the bullet, and went to the early event in Koiwa...

    So after seeing Wasamin in the late morning, running errands across town, eating lunch in Shinjuku, I headed over to Akiba. Quite the zig-zag, as I was basically going back and forth on the Sobu Line, LOL. After vegging out in Excelssior Cafe for a while, I headed over to the Donki. The online pre-cancels for the show were already close to #40. Additionally, there wasn't a long line for tickets, and there weren't too many people waiting for cancel machi. I started feeling more confident about my chances. There was no real last-minute rush, so they started calling cancel machi numbers right at 3:30pm. From the 40's, into the 60's, he started slowing down. The call then resumed and went all the way up to #80 before it was cut off. Okay, I wasn't counting on making it into the seat lottery. I surveyed the room. There were exactly 16 cancel machi people left, and since they usually allow 10 more in via the second chance lottery, I felt I had a decent chance now. I got slightly worried when the first couple numbers were present, but eventually he crossed the 100 threshold, and called my number. I was ultimately the 2nd to last person called, as they cut it off after the guy behind me (#108)

    IMG_6714.JPG

    So great, I won the show! Who cares if I was going to ultimately be the 2nd to last person to enter the theater, right? This would be my 39th Theater Show, my fifth time seeing the 16th Gen Kenkyuusei, and my 4th time seeing the "Let's Go Kenkyuusei" Stage. Right now the 16th gen is by far my favorite AKB team, so I am more than fine winning all of these kenkyuusei shows. As expected, when I entered there was only standing room in the very back, but oddly most people were jammed into the left and right side, the center back was not nearly as packed as usual. So I ended up standing dead center. I had to look over people's shoulders, but I had a fairly good view of the center stage, although I couldn't see the sides at all.

    I'm ultimately going to do this review slightly different. I mean, you guys know how stage shows work, and I have already talked about this stage three times on this thread. I feel like I am getting to know these members. As such, while I was watching I started compiling a list of the members I like, and why. I will also tie this in with the "high-wave" at the end, since I put a lot of stock into how members react to me, and it affects who I ultimately like.

    Zunchan: is currently my favorite member in AKB. I love watching her perform. The way she moves, her expressions, they way she plays with the other members, and the fans. She has an adorable face. And I am not even getting into the experience of seeing her at handshakes. This girl is top notch, needs to be promoted, and when she is promoted, she needs to be prominent in the group. Period! She is always at the very end of the "High Wave" line, and since I see her at handshake events, I always get a good reaction.

    Zukkii: Is the other "All-Star" in the 16th gen. And since they put her in the U-17 Senbatsu, and she has a solo unit in this stage, I would say they have plans for her. It is also amazing the way she transforms when putting on the leather and garter for that unit too. Normally she looks very young, and she has has a body like a bean pole. Oh, and I love the "shocked" expression she gave me tonight in High Wave.

    Satomina: Right now I call her my #3. She is one of those that I like, but then I am afraid to like her too much since she is kinda 'babyish'. But it really seemed like she took it to the next level tonight. She was out front for many of the songs, and she was much more outgoing in the MCs. I love that expression on her face, where she always has her mouth open. It's cute. On the other hand, I got virtually no reaction from her at the High Wave, so I fear if I meet her, she might be a disappointment, personality-wise.

    Anyway, those are my top three. As for others who make an impression...

    Ayamin, Naamin: The two 'tall girls' aside from Zukkii. I must admit that I always notice them every time I see the 16th gen, but I kind of bypass them since I don't consider them my favorite. All that said, it is time to admit that they always catch my attention since they are always performing to a level to make me notice them. Ayamin also seems exceptionally confident on stage. She is also one of the members who tries to speak English with me during High Wave. I would put both of these members in the upper tier of 16th gen.

    Kana: I have gone back and forth in my mind over Kana. Sometimes I like her, and sometimes I think she looks 'goony'. However, she is the main reason I think the 'Cross' unit is so awesome. Her performance is especially fierce, and in my opinion, has the intensity that Team 4's 'Confession' unit is missing. Oh, and she is one of the others who tries to speak English with me, so fishing points for her.

    Orin: I originally didn't care for Orin, or perhaps I should say that I didn't want to like Orin. I didn't care for the way that everyone seemed to 'pile on' to being her fan since she is Tomu's sister. She was the one 16th gen (iirc) that made senbatsu, and to me she didn't necessarily deserve it. Her bloodline got those votes. I also think, like Kana, that she is kinda of goofy looking, LOL. On the other hand, for the last three shows she has tried very hard to make an impression on me, either during the show or in High-Wave. Now, I am usually a sucker for a good fisher, but it doesn't always work. I have had idols who I had no interest in whatsoever try to fish me, and I thought "yeah, who are you kidding?" Inagaki has done this with me on occasion, but not as consistently as Orin. Anyhow, Orin gets points for effort.

    As for the rest. Well, they just don't make an impression on me, for whatever reason. I will say that I noticed some of them really trying to appeal to the fans tonight. Tacchan in particular comes to mind. But my head is not on a swivel, and I try to pay as much attention to my 'Top 3" as possible.

    So anyway, I finished high touch, retrieved my bag, and decided to finally purchase one of those photosets they offer after the show. I had always blown them off, until I actually looked at the most expensive set.

    IMG_6710.JPG IMG_6711.JPG

    It is really nice! With the cute folder you can also put your ticket into. I may get these from now on, they are a nice keepsake. 1200 yen, it is probably a bit more expensive than it should be, but what the heck. What they should probably do is throw in a pic of one member too.
     
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  9. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    The SKE/NMB/HKT Makuhari Messe Extravaganza (2017/11/23)
    (SKE 21st Single Akushukai, NMB 3rd Album Shamekai, HKT 10th Single Akushukai)

    It was a 'perfect storm' of events at Makuhari Messe on Thursday, which happened to be Japan's Labor Thanksgiving Holiday. SKE, NMB, and HKT all had major events to support their latest releases. For HKT, it also served as sort of a kickoff for their 6th Anniversary Celebration. For the most daring of wota, this could be an exercise of how you can handle going to three group events at the same time. This was compounded by the fact that while SKE and NMB were in neighboring halls, HKT was in a different building entirely, on the other side of the property. As for me, I had meticulously planned my day far in advance, scheduling all of my HKT tickets for the morning and early afternoon, and all of my SKE tickets for the evening. (I didn't have any NMB tickets) So I didn't need to worry about going back and forth from event to event. I basically stayed at HKT all day, and moved over to the main halls after 4pm.

    The was the first Tokyo event celebrating HKT's 10th single, Kiss wo Matsushikanai no Deshouka?. The have a second Tokyo event in early January. I had 14 tickets for today, ranging from the first slot through slot five (including the lunch slot) However, it was announced a couple of days earlier that Rikopi would not be attending the January event, so her tickets could be used on this day instead. Since I had one January ticket for her, that made 15 tickets to use today. I know I have said this before, but I HATE going to Slot 1 at these events. It requires me to get on a very early train, something I don't love doing on a weekend or holiday. But when you favorite member is scheduled early, you tend to want to go early. In any case, I got there on time, and got my tickets stamped. (The girl initially questioned the absence of my middle name, but the supervisor said no problem) With nine minutes to go before the gate closed, I had two tickets for the same lane...

    Slot One

    'Group Lane' Akiyoshi Yuka/Sakaguchi Riko (Lane 23) With less than nine minutes, I wasn't sure if I would have time to loop this line, so I decided just to use both tickets at once. When I was five away from the front, both Rikopi and Yuka had already spotted me and started waving, since the guard was creating this weird delay between fan visits. When I finally got to the front, it was an English buffet from the girls. Of course the first thing I noticed was that Yuka-chan had cut her hair short, so I went on and on about how cute it was, at which point Rikopi began playing with her hair. Oh, and I might note that Rikopi was wearing a Jack Daniels T-shirt, which I found quite humorous. Since the guard was delaying the next fan after I was pushed out, they kept taking and flirting with me until I was a good 30 meters away. In the meantime, I met up with one of the heads of Yuka-chan's birthday committee (who is REALLY cute!) since she wanted to give me a copy of the birthday scrapbook. It is a really nice book, professionally done. Eight pages total, with photos, trivia, and an Akiyoshi quiz/crossword on the back.

    hkt11.jpg hkt12.jpg

    There were two long queues in the back of the venue, one for goods, the other for pics. I wanted to see what kind of goods they had, but couldn't get anywhere near the sign. I would check it out later. I also met up with my friend Yukikaze, who is a Rikopi fan, but also a member of the Wasamin fan club. I wanted to confirm with him what I had read on the message board about Rikopi's January tickets.

    Slot Two

    hkt9.jpg


    Yamamoto Mao (lane 2) I bought this ticket since I had such great time meeting Mao last Summer at the HKT National Event. But it had been quite a few months since I had that 'kami' experience. I wondered if the same 'electricity' would still exist. Her queue wasn't very big, so I lined up right at the beginning of the slot. While I waited, I noticed Ui Mashiro was staring at me from over in the first lane. She wasn't smiling, or waving, she was just staring at me. I got a weird vibe from her, so I avoided her gaze. In the meantime, the moment Mao saw me she began jumping up and down in excitement. Yes!!! This is precisely the attitude that inspired me to get a ticket for her in the first place. So I explained to her that she made such an impression on me last Summer, that I wanted to see her again. She was genki, and thankful, and at the end I was very happy I got that ticket. And yes, I do want to see her again.

    hkt7.jpg

    Murakawa Bibian (Lane 9) I always go into Bibian's lane not knowing what to say, and then coming up with something at the last second. Imamura was in the lane next to her, with nobody in her queue. Poor Maria, she was wrapped in a blanket looking cold and lonely. As I got closer to the front I noticed Bibian was fascinated the the cosplay (I guess you could call it cosplay) the guy in front of me was wearing. So I commented to Bibian that he was wearing very interesting clothes, and that he looked like Sherlock Holmes. Just then, Bibian lit up; Yes! Holmes-san!!! So I used my ten seconds to gossip about another fan. Sounds good.

    Slot Three

    hkt17.jpg


    Fuchigami Mai (Lane 8) I had two tickets for third slot, and they were in neighboring lanes. I have been kinda taxed to come up with things to talk with Maichan about as well, although last event I was saved by the Hawks winning the Japan Series. In any case, struggling with what to say, I just blurted out that her hat was cute. She was like "really, you like it?" "Maichan always wears cute clothes!" I had another ticket for Maichan next slot. Could I come up with more to say?

    By the way, while I was waiting in line for Mai, I had a good view of Sakura working with her fans. I admit that I am not the biggest Sakura fan by a longshot, but Sakura DOES try very hard to be genki and connect with her fans. I almost didn't recognize her, since I am not used to seeing her interact with fans. She is much different than how she comes across on stage on on television.

    hkt3.jpg


    Tomonaga Mio (Lane 7) I was really excited to see Mio since I saw her perform recently at the AKB theater. I wanted to tell her how much I liked her performance. I actually did. It was my first time seeing her perform in the theater live, and I thought she was adorable. When my turn came, Mio was smiling, hardly reacting. Hmm, I thought she would remember seeing me at the theater. "I saw you perform with Team 4!" Still not much of a reaction. "I wrote to the ticket center that you were the show MVP!" THAT got the reaction. "Yatta!" as she lifted her hand for a high-five. I broke through, so I was happy. I know Mio sorta has a rep for not being the most exciting handshake experience, but do really like her. So I will go the extra mile in order to make a connection.

    Slot Four

    hkt4.jpg


    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 19) <2 tickets> Including those morning group tickets, I would have seven meetings wi Yuka-chan today, so I better have a lot to talk about. Of course I could always help her with her English. So for the first ticket I told her that the group slot was a lot of fun, and that I do really like her hair. The short hair, coupled with the sexy outfit she had on, really made her look more mature. Of course, she still has that babyface of hers. I also mentioned that I really liked Rikopi's Jack Daniel's T-shirt, and explained that it is a famous American whiskey. I quickly looped around, since her line was pretty short. It was at this time I told her that I would be going to California for Winter vacation. She aid that she didn't know that was where I was from, which kind of surprised me, so she asked when I was coming back, and I told her before New Year's.

    Fuchigami Mai (Lane 8) For my second ticket, not sure what to talk about with Maichan, I decided to expand on the last conversation. I mentioned that I oftem look at her social media, since she is always wearing 'cute' outfits. This is actually true...well, partially true. The truth is that I often look at her social media since I think Mai is extremely sexy, and I think she picks out clothes that emphasize her body very well. But couldn't say it to her that way, could I? Could I? I got pushed out rather quickly this time, so it hardly mattered.

    It was around this time that I ran into my friend Panda, who had his usual stack of Mikurin tickets. He was also going back and forth from the HKT and SKE events. The queue for goods had gotten considerably smaller, so we decided to check out what they had for sale....

    hkt2.jpg hkt1.jpg

    At first glance, it a lot of senbatsu stuff, and a bunch of T-shirts, which I usually ignore since that rarely have my size. They did have new 6th Anniversary keychains for all of the members, so I decided I would get one for Yuka-chan. They also had gacha balls, where you could win a small member pin, and a guitar pick. But it was random, and I was only interested in getting Yuka-chan. As we exited the goods area, I noticed that the T-shirts all came in XL size. Wait a second! I took a better look at the 6th Anniversary T-shirts. Oh my god, they are all modeled after famous Hard Rock logos! One of them was even tie-dyed. This changes everything! The 'Nirvana' shirt was cool, but I have never really liked them. The main logo was an AC/DC version, but I didn't like that it prominently said "ROCK", and not HKT48. Since the last shirt was based on the logo of a band I used to really like a long time ago, the choice became clear.

    hkt13.jpg hkt14.jpg

    I got the 'Metallica' version. It is the least colorful, but it ticked every other box of what I like in a shirt. I really would have liked to have gotten them all, but I didn't want to overspend. Perhaps if I get another opportunity, I will pick up another one.

    Lunch Slot

    hkt16.jpg


    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 19) I wanted to show off my new Yuka-chan keychain. She was like "Oh, you got it!" Yuka grabbed on to it to get a better look. It is small, but she looks really cute on it. I also mentioned that I got the T-shirt.

    By the way, Toyonaga Aki was in the next lane over. Not only did she look really cute, she was really outgoing with her fans. I have met her before, but it was back when she was a relatively new kenkyuusei. My, how she has blossomed. Just a mental note; I may want to meet her again in the future

    hkt8.jpg
    'Rikopi Challenge' Posters were hung all around her lane


    Sakaguchi Riko (Lane 15) <2 tickets> I had decided that I would use that 'extra' ticket that I was suddenly tasked with using in this slot. However, I think a lot of people had the same idea, as it was pretty much the longest queue I had ever seen for Rikopi. My friend Yukikaze informed me that Rikopi would also be holding the "Rikopi Challenge" with the fans in her lane. What the hell is that? He tried to explain it to me, and I got the gist, but I couldn't understand just enough to make me apprehensive about it. I decided to start out by using only one ticket. Since the Lunch Slot is short, I ran the risk of not being able to use the other ticket, but oh well. When I got to the front, it was basically another handshake. Of course this was Rikopi, so there was lots of English, and goofing around. I told her that her T-shirt was awesome, and asked if she had ever tried Jack Daniels before. She said that one time she had a little bit. Hmmm, not sure I'm entirely believing her. I told her that I drink it all the time, LOL. The good news was that there was still time left in the slot, so i was able to requeue and use my January ticket. It was at this time that I asked her about the Rikopi Challenge. So she stretched her hand and said "Let's play Janken" After three ties, she won, which meant I had to play a batsu game. The punishment was basically her slapping my wrist with her fingers. If I had won, she would have given me a special message, or blow me a kiss.

    Slot Five

    This would be my final slot before switching over to SKE. While waiting I watched some of the special stages the members do at the event. People were queuing for these very early, and the viewing area was always packed. So while I walked by during a few of the events, i only watched one for an extended period since Bibian was on stage, along with Imamura Maria, Yamauchi Yuna, Ui Mashiro, and another member I couldn't recognize since I was pretty far back. They had a contest on who was most skilled at playing the recorder. Amazingly, Bibian was actually quite good at it.

    A short time later I had a random fan walk up to me and ask me if Akiyoshi was my oshimen. I said yes. He reached into his bag and pulled out an Akiyoshi gacha pin to give me. SCORE! And I didn't even have to try to win one. Unfortunately, he only gave me the pin, and not the guitar pick, but who am I to complain? I had three tickets for the last slot, two for Yuka-chan, and my fifth Rikopi ticket of the day. Sheesh! That was kind of an anomaly, I didn't plan to see her so much.

    hkt15.jpg

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 19) <2 tickets> My last two tickets for Yuka-chan, for the first one I showed her my gacha pin. She asked if I actually won it at the machine, but I explained to her that I got it as a gift. For my last ticket, I told her that I really liked her sweater, and that she is a very nice dresser. She thanked me, and asked when I would see her again. I told her I would see her at the January event.

    hkt5.jpg

    Sakaguchi Riko (Lane 15) Running out of stuff to say, I told Rikopi about my Winter Vacation plans. Her initial reaction was almost like a panic. She was like "You are coming back, right???" I said, don't worry, I am coming back to Japan. For some reason she laughed at the way I said it, but I'm not sure why.

    I was finally done with all of my HKT tickets, and I had 90 minutes until I needed to be at SKE, so I hing around in the HKT venue for a while, running into BigC and Panda. I also waited until the end of the slot so I could wave goodbye to Yuka-chan with the rest of her fans. After that I slowly made my way across the bridge to the main halls, grabbing a snack at the conbini along the way, and quickly meeting up with my friend Nori, who was exclusively at the NMB event.

    hkt10.jpg
    From the SKE48 costume display area

    This was the second Tokyo event promoting the Igai ni Mango single. The first event was all the way back in July. I got most of my tickets for the first event, and only got these tickets after I reserved my HKT stuff, so I knew there wouldn't be any overlap. I had four tickets total, but there was a dinner break between the slots. So it would basically be two tickets, then a long wait, then the last two tickets. Instead of by slot, I will report these by member.

    Oh, and it was around slot A4 and into the dinner break that Yuasa was announcing the next single senbatsu via twitter, so I hoped (in vain) that I would be congratulating the girls at some point. Oh, and one other interesting note. I forgot to get my tickets stamped, and had no problem whatsoever using them in the lanes. However, it should be noted that I do have a Japanese identification, and almost everything on it matches the info on my tickets.

    Slots A4-A5

    Tani Marika (Lane 17) When I got toward the front of the queue, I noticed there was a cameraman near her, occasionally filming. In any case, I decided to play with her a little bit. Marika immediately noted that she has seen a lot of me lately. So I told her that last week I tried her Cup Ramen recipe (from the AKB recipe event a couple of weeks ago) She asked how it came out. "Oishii!!" I got a big thumbs up. Nice.

    hkt6.jpg

    When I was waiting for her in the last slot, once again she was being followed around my a cameraman. So I asked her what the filming was about. She initially played dumb with me. I said that I saw the camera, and asked if they were making a movie about her. She still played dumb, so I basically said that I want to see a "Documentary of Tani" That she liked. LOL.

    In-between slots I did check out the goods line, although it was the exact same stuff I saw in July. 90% of it was sold out too. I could have picked up a Kaotan oshi towel if I wanted, but I have enough oshi towels in my life already, so bail.

    Matsumura Kaori (Lane 13) For the first ticket I asked her which song I should vote for at Request Hour. Personally, I would vote for Matsumurabu in a second if it was eligible, but it isn't. So she recommended Koko de Ippatsu. Interestingly, she didn't recommend Koi Yori mo Dream. I wonder why? Per usual, Kaotan immediately asked me how many tickets I have, and if I would be seeing her in both slots. This time, I could answer affirmatively. So she was happy. BTW, Kaotan's lane was right next to Oya Masana. This would be Masanya's final handshake event. I was bummed that I didn't get a ticket for her today, but I did see her couple of times recently. And she did spot me in Kaotan's queue. Anyway...

    After a long and tiring 10-hour day, I was finally on my last ticket. Since I am sure Detective Kaotan would want to know, I told her my Holiday plans. Interestingly, she immediately responded "You are spending Christmas with family?" Yep. "When are you coming back to Japan? January?" No, December, the 29th. I will see you in January. "Good, enjoy California!

    I contemplated sticking around for Masanya's farewell, but it meant sticking around for at least another 90 minutes. Normally I wouldn't really care, but I DO have a history with Masanya that goes back to the early days of SKE, and in that respect I really wanted to be there. However, I was exhausted, hungry, and I had Japanese studying that I needed to get done. So I decided not to wait around. I did see the ceremony on Kaotan's Periscope, so that was a nice consolation.

    So that's it for me and the 48-groups in 2017. It was been an extremely exciting year. And the next events kick off in the first week of January. In the meantime, I do have a few Wasamin events coming up before I head to Cali, including her 'Love Live' acoustic concert this weekend.
     
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  10. Riina

    Riina Future Girls

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2015
    Location:
    Japan
    Twitter:
    48Riina
    Today, I went to see a Let's Go Kenkyuusei stage at AKB48 theater, which also happened to be my first theater show and the 3rd time I was seeing AKB48 live. I had a ladies ticket, which means I was in the middle 5th row, with a good view of the stage.

    Now, before I begin with pointing out my favorite members, I'd like to say that I haven't been following KKS that much before, so I don't even know some of the girls' names, let alone characters. But the girls that caught my attention today were:
    Yamauchi Mizuki - she's super pretty and talented. If I was just judging by appearance, I'd say she's my favorite KKS. However, I felt like that when she wasn't in the first row (or doing a solo), she kind of faded in the background. She was also barely talking during MC part. I think if she learns to stand out more she can definitely become a prominent member in the future.
    Michieda Saki - see, she has what Zukkii is missing. Even if she was in the last row, she was standing out with her interesting facial expressions and energetic dance. She's still a kid, but I will be on the look out for her in the future.
    Yamane Suzuha - really cute girl and a great performer. She's also a really good fisher (see below).
    Inagaki Kaori - when looking at KKS' profiles before the show, look-wise, she didn't really catch my attention as she's not really my type. However, her performance was amazing, I'd say she's definitely one of the best performers in 16th gen.

    Some high wave highlights:
    Muto Orin asked me if I was haafu (half-Japanese). I told her no, I'm European. She and a few other girls around her went "ooh", haha. (On the side note, Orin is a lot prettier in person than in her profile picture. Still not my type look-wise, but she seems very energetic and friendly with her fans, so I understand her popularity, other than of course familial ties, haha).
    Taya Misaki said either "you were looking at me a lot" or "I was looking at you a lot" (those who know Japanese will know how vague it can be). Either way, it's probably true, haha.
    Several girls said "thank you" to me in English.
    And the real MVP in today's high wave... Zunchan called me a "bijin" (beauty). Yes, I am fished, haha.
     
    Last edited: Dec 1, 2017
    • Like Like x 2
  11. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    Iwasa Misaki Fan Club Holiday Lunch/River Cruise Event (2017/12/09)

    [​IMG]


    It's always exciting when I receive a mailer from Wasamin. I never know what surprises might be contained within. Will there be some new, exclusive fan club items? A special event? Perhaps another dinner show or concert? The last major mailer had a few interesting promotions. Wasamin's 4th solo concert, Nagara Pro's Enka Matsuri, and a fan club event, which was the biggest surprise of all...

    As a special treat, Wasamin announced that her end of the year fan club event would be taking place on a boat, complete with lunch, entertainment, games, and a cruise down the Sumida River past Sky Tree. Sounds like fun, eh?

    [​IMG]

    I quickly sent my application in well before the deadline, since I wanted to make sure I didn't get shut out of this event. Interestingly, I got a telephone call from Nagara Pro a couple of days later. When I sent in my payment I naturally added 600 yen to the price of the ticket, which has been standard procedure with every Wasamin event I have ever paid for. However, it turned out that they weren't charging the fee on this event. They didn't want to send the money back to me, so they extended my fan club annual membership an extra month. At the deadline, Wasamin's manager made the announcement that they had a big response to the event, and they would be renting a very large cruise boat so everyone could fit. Cool beans!

    [​IMG]
    Check-in Queue

    I made it out to the Etchujima docks in the late morning, and there were lots of fans milling around, waiting for check-in. I wanted to take a picture of the boat, but when I got there Wasamin was doing a photo-shoot on the top deck. When she finished, she waved to us and went below. At check in they gave us a NagaraPro guest pass, and told us where our seat assignment would be. I would be at table 3-B. I figured that would be somewhere in the middle, which was probably good since I sometimes, not often, but sometimes can get a little queasy on small boats. Although this was a river cruise, and the boat wasn't that small. It was funny though, since we are supposed to show our fan club ID at check-in, but since I am the only foreigner the girl immediately exclaimed "Christopher-san!" without me even showing my ID, LOL. I have seen my name on the manifest before, and it does sorta stick out since it's the only one not in kanji, AND it's in all-caps. One by one we boarded the boat, storing our shoes since it had a tatami floor. There were small placards with our names at our assigned seats, and our bento lunch was waiting for us. Once we were all boarded, the boat left the dock. Wasamin was immediately introduced, and we were asked to open our bento lunch boxes.

    [​IMG][​IMG]

    Quite a luxurious lunch, eh? It has just about everything on it. But that wasn't all. They would also be bringing out tempura, and soup. As for drinks, we had unlimited oolong tea.

    [​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG]

    So that is squid, fish, sweet potato, and of course, EBI! Now at one point one of the fans asked Wasamin if she was eating a bento box too, but she said she couldn't eat at the event. However, that ALL went out the window when the tempura came out. Wasamin took one look at the squid and was like "I wan't squid too!" She immediately sat at one of the tables and took a piece, LOL. Ichikawa-san came running over with an extra plate, a napkin, and a drink. The funny thing is, I think all of us were wishing she had stolen our tempura. (the fan got another piece) Not surprisingly, it happened again when the Ebi came out. Wasamin saw the giant shrimp and practically started drooling, so they brought out a piece for her too. LOL

    Wasamin also promised there would be fun and games. The first contest was a sort of "Name That Tune" type of game where they would play a one-second snippet of a Wasamin song, and you had to guess what it was. Only one person got them all correct. People that got four or five won prizes. I only got two correct. But it actually was quite difficult. Not very many people got 4 or better. BTW, the answers were 1. Saba Kaido, 2. Heavy Rotation (Enka ver.) 3. Nagori Yuki, 4. Kita no Hotaru, 5. Namida no Sanbashi.

    The rest of the contests were all Janken. I came close on the first contest, but ultimately didn't win. As for the prizes? It was mainly a bunch of leftover stuff from Wasamin's trip to France. T-shirts, Uchiwa. Oh, and everyone who didn't win got a random bromide, also from the France events.

    [​IMG]

    Wasamin reminisced about the past year, and all the different things she got to do, like travel and perform overseas. We were also counting how many solo concerts she did. Ultimately she did EIGHT major solo performances, and that isn't event counting the Enka ensemble concerts she regularly appears in. That's a lot of shows. It makes one wonder why they are still using the counter (2nd concert, 3rd concert etc.) At one point she started asking us how we liked her hair. She first asked if we like when she grows her hair long, and a lot of people raised their hand. Then she asked if we liked it the way she just got it cut. Oh crap! She trapped us. WASAMIN! So of course most everyone raised their hand. That was the answer she was fishing for, LOL. Finally, it wouldn't be a Wasamin event without a bit of singing. After all, they DID have a full karaoke setup on the boat too. The short, 2-song setlist...

    1. Watarasebashi
    2. Saba Kaido


    And keeping with tradition, we were allowed to shoot photos during this portion of the event. Here are some of my best shots....

    [​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG]

    And that ended the event. One by one we filed off the boat, where Wasamin was waiting for us for a short handshake and talk. I told her I was going out of town for Christmas and my birthday. At first she confirmed I was coming back, then wished me a happy birthday. Once everyone was off the boat, Wasamin gave us all one last farewell, and boat took off back to its main dock. Wasamin giving us one last wave from the window.

    And that will likely be my last Wasamin event for 2017, unless she has something pop up just before the new year. The next event I can attend will be her Yamano Music event on January 2nd, but I have to win the ticket first. But yeah, it has been an incredible year to be a Wasamin fan. So many concerts, dinner shows, fan club events, mini-lives. She totally spoils her fans, which is why I have heard many fans of other AKB members say they are jealous of all the access Wasafans get to their oshimen. I should go back and count how many Wasamin events I went to this year. Perhaps I'll have some time to do that over the holidays.
     
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  12. Riina

    Riina Future Girls

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2015
    Location:
    Japan
    Twitter:
    48Riina
    So today, I've been at my first Team 8 performance of their "Kimi mo 8 de nakoujanaika" stage. I'll admit, I didn't follow Team 8 much before. There were a few members that I liked (particularly Ikumin, who I've known from her performances with Team K), but as a team, I didn't know much about them since a team of 47 members was a bit overwhelming :^^;: Anyways, I'll write my opinion about the girls I saw today, starting with those that made a bigger impression on me.

    Nakano Ikumi - as mentioned, my favorite Team 8 member. She's super cute in person and a great dancer. Although I knew she was tall, I was kind of surprised how much taller than everyone else she was [hehe] At the end of the show, I told her she is cute (in Japanese) and she thanked my in English [hehe]

    Yamada Nanami - another member I knew from before. Her facial expressions really are something [hehe] Though in the first song or so, she didn't do them as much so I almost didn't recognize her. Anyways, I thought her MC was funny. And at the end of the show, she called me beautiful ("mecha kirei") :^O^: Everyone knows I love a good fisher [hehe] She was the only one who really tried to fish me this time, so bonus points for that!

    Yokomichi Yuri - this girl is so hyper and always with a huge smile on her face! Couldn't help but smile myself whenever I saw her :^^;: And she was also a really good dancer. I was surprised how tiny her waist is though :eek:

    Hitomi Kotone - her face wasn't really my type judging by the profile photos, but I liked her a lot more in person. Also, she is a great performer.

    Shitao Miu, Tanikawa Hijiri, Hattori Yuna, Utada Hatsuk, Yaguchi Moka - these girls seemed really different from their profile photos, but they were cute anyways and I enjoyed their performance.

    Yoshikawa Nanase, Hidaritomo Ayaka, Hashimoto Haruna, Karin Shimoaoki - also decent performers, and more easily recognizable then those I mentioned before [hehe] Out of these, the one I enjoyed the most was Hidaaya.

    Miyazato Rira - I feel bad writing this, but I'm not big on this girl's looks. That being said, she did try her best and her performance was very energetic, so kudos for that.

    Hirano Hikaru - she was ok, but her facial expression were kind of bland. I think she will be a lot better if she can improve on that. Though from what I understand she is one of the newer members of Team 8, so maybe she just needs a little more time.

    Yamada Kyoka - she seemed really popular in the theater wth lots of people calling her name, but her performance didn't really convince me. When she was doing "Namida ni shizumu taiyou" her dance moves were often badly timed or simply half-assed (I can't really speak so much for other songs since I wasn't paying too much attention to her in the team songs). Now, it could have been that she didn't know the choreo well yet, wasn't feeling too well or was just a bit tired (after all, this was their 2nd show of the day). I don't know her otherwise, so I can't say. But from today's performance, she was sadly the one that left the worst impression on me :(
     
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  13. SunnyHighland

    SunnyHighland Next Girls

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2014
    Location:
    From Scottish lowland to Kanto lowland
    Oshimen:
    okaberin
    First, kudos to you for getting the T8 theater ticket. I've applied 10 times and never won even once (as a tourist/temporary visitor it was never easy though).

    Wow...you were there seeing Kyouka's first performance in theater? :eek: Of course she got called a lot, it was her first time on T8 stage, even her photos are everywhere on twitter that day :^^;: But, yeah...she still have way more to improve in terms of performance. Her improvement seems a bit...slow compared to the other new members. Maybe because the other newbies are ex-idols or plain better performers since the beginning.

    Now, I'm curious to attend a theater stage. Until today I just managed to attend open stages, USJ stage, and national HS.
     
  14. Riina

    Riina Future Girls

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2015
    Location:
    Japan
    Twitter:
    48Riina
    Well, to be honest, I apply to pretty much all AKB performances (as long as my schedule permits it), regardless of the team/stage. So far, I have won a KKS and Team 8 stage ticket (and an SKE48 KKS stage ticket, which I cancelled due to another event). I don't know how difficult it is to win a Team 8 stage compared to other stages, but so far I win some stage about once a month since I started applying, both AKB tickets were ladies tickets (didn't win anything by general lottery or fanclub lottery) and the SKE one was for far-offs :) Honestly, I'd prefer to win some other stage where my fave members would be, but hey, I'm not complaining if I win anything at all [hehe] It does help me get into new members by seeing them live though!

    Oh, I didn't realize she's that new :^^;: I knew she was one of the newer members, but I thought she's had a few performances before. I went to the afternoon performance, so I assume the morning one was her first. But yeah, she definitely still needs some more practice... I understand it now that you said it was her first performance though, that's understandable she wasn't as good at the dance yet as the other members yet [hehe] It will be interesting to see if she's doing better in a few months...

    By the way, new Team 8 member Harumoto Yuki also performed as the zenza girl (is that term appropriate for Team 8 since she's not technically a KKS?) in the stage. I wonder if she ever performed like that before? She seemed really nervous, so it might have been the first time [hehe] Obviously, she just did 1 song but she did really well. I think dance-wise she was doing better than Kyoka to be honest :^^;: Oh well, I hope Kyoka catches up.
     
  15. SunnyHighland

    SunnyHighland Next Girls

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2014
    Location:
    From Scottish lowland to Kanto lowland
    Oshimen:
    okaberin
    I applied to every AKB (and NMB when in Osaka) stage on each day of my Japan trips for general people, not even once in the last 4 trips :fp: That's why I mostly end up with T8 open stage/free events on weekends/holidays. But, never give up though. Already plan to do it again for my next trip in February.

    We will see if the power of Ooita will work for her. She is quite smart in partnering with Yuiyui to win photoshot recently. Who knows if her next step if partnering with Sasshi as Ooita combi :lol: She seems to already have some fanbase though.

    I don't know about the zenza girl, but maybe yes. I think T8 also have a KKS-like system before new members can perform on stage. Okumoto Hinano (Hiroshima 2.0) also did it not long after she joined. Well, she is an ASH graduate and ex-idol. I think it was like walk in the park for her. Yuki is a 3rd grader in high school, so maybe she has some maturity compared to Kyoka. Oh, you are right. It is also the first T8 stage for Yuki.
     
  16. Riina

    Riina Future Girls

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2015
    Location:
    Japan
    Twitter:
    48Riina
    Well, Yuki did a really good job. You could tell she was nervous and there were parts when her lip-syncing wasn't perfect, but overall, her dance and performance was good. Then again, it could have something to do with song choice as well. Namida ni Shizumu Taiyou is not the easiest song in the first place, and Kyoka was in the unit with Shitao Miu, who is a really good dancer. So seeing them next to each other, the difference was really obvious. If she performed a solo song, maybe it would be less obvious :^^;:
     
  17. Sakuraism

    Sakuraism Member Stage48 Donor

    Joined:
    Apr 7, 2012
    Twitter:
    andilee1989
    12/24 , 2017 NMB48 Namba Ai Album Kobetsu Shamekai (2 Shot Event) @ ATC Hall

    This will be a very short post since I've only had 2 tickets and they were both for the last slot of the day. Events that falls on dates like this always sells very very well for obvious reasons lol. I've actually delayed my trip back to Canada just for these 2 tickets. ( I'm actually typing this at the airport as of now)

    Sayaka

    SY: Ah!! ANDIIIIIIIIIII !
    ME: Merry Christmas, Ho Ho Ho. (English)
    SY: Merry Christmas! *sits down* What pose should we do?
    ME: *freezes* Er.... *poses* (I tend to always get overly nervous whenever i do the FIRST meeting of every handshake events)
    SY: *copies my pose* lolll, What's this?
    ME: (finally stopped lagging) Let's do like a "Let's Party!!!!" Pose!
    SY: Ok! Let's Party!! (Eng)

    *Snaps*

    SY: We Wish You a Merry Xmas~ *sings*
    ME: We Wish You a Merry Xmas~ *sings*


    [​IMG]

    Since I only came for the last slot of the day I was like, Okay Imma try to be the last fan she sees this year. I usually don't care about Kagishime (someone who's the last person of the queue) despite how some fans REALLY care about it to the extent they would fight over it lol. Today I cared lol.
    Everything was fine and I was the last person. Right before it was almost me, the guy in front of me pulled a "something is wrong with my phone" so the staff told him to go behind to fix it and had me go before him...I thought it was a dick move, if he actually did it purposefully lol.

    SY: Ah! You're the last person of the year! *points to me*
    ME: Er..Yeah... (At least she thought I was all that mattered lol)
    ME: I wonder what's the last pose of the year!?
    SY: What is it!?
    ME: Eh lol. (I was hoping she would help me out)
    SY: You get to decide.
    ME: Er, Warota pose then? lol (It was super lame cuz warota pose was like a pose almost everyone did, but since I literally had no time to think lol)
    SY: Warota! *poses*
    ME: *poses and closes my eye*
    SY: *changes her warota pose* (I guess even giving a crappy pose she upped it for the last one of the year lol)

    *snaps*

    ME: Off to Canada!
    SY: Eh? You're going back?
    ME: mm lol.
    SY: Ehhh~~ Iiina~~~ :(
    ME: see you next year !
    SY: mm! see you next year!
    (The guy was still fixing his phone with the staffs)
    ME: *waves as I slowly walks out*
    SY: *stands there waving back*

    (Her send off fans started yelling goodbyes cuz they thought I was the last person too lol)

    SY: o_____o

    [​IMG]



    Anyway Happy Holidays to everyone. Also thanks for reading as usual for write ups I've posted this year lol.
     
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  18. Riina

    Riina Future Girls

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2015
    Location:
    Japan
    Twitter:
    48Riina
    AKB48 National Handshake Event at Makuhari Messe, 2018/01/6

    Today was my first ever AKB48 handshake event. I ended up having 12 tickets, 6 of my own and 6 that I got from a friend who decided she wasn't going. This was more than I expected, but of course, I'm not going to turn down free handshake tickets [hehe] I ended up going to same lanes I wouldn't go to if I just had 6 tickets, and it ended up being a great experience, being able to see so many members. The handshake reports below are in the order of lanes, not the order I actually went in (since I don't remember the exact order anymore, haha).

    STU48
    Not a handshake but STU48 members were handing out tissues before the event. Each of the senbatsu members had their own line and you could choose which member you'll go to and get tissues from. Later, I saw some people carrying several packets of tissues, so I guess it was possible to go out and get back in to get more tissues or something, which I didn't know before, so I just got tissues from 1 member. I don't have an oshimen in STU48, but I'm kinda interested in Isogai Kanon based on photos and videos, so I chose her. She was really cute. Also, I was nervous and didn't say anything, so I think she assumed I can't speak Japanese, and she told me "thank you" and "cute" in English[hehe] STU48 also performed their 3 original songs at the live before the handshake event.

    Lane 1 - Takahashi Juri, Muto Tomu, Yokoyama Yui
    I went to this lane since Yuihan is one of my AKB oshi. I also like Tomu, but I'll admit I'm not a huge fan of Juri (I don't dislike her, just don't care about her). The lane obviously had a huge waiting line, since the 3 members are some of the top AKB members. First one was Muto Tomu, she thanked me and complimented me and then I was pushed over by the guard to Takahashi Juri. She thanked me in both Japanese and English and did a handshake with me, but I didn't really have much to say to her and I guess she could also feel I wasn't that interested in her (I try to be nice to all members in the lanes I go to, but I guess it's still obvious who is the reason I came there :^^;:). Then it was time to shake hands with Yokoyama Yui. It was very brief, she barely touched my hands and she just thanked me for coming. Even when I told her she was my AKB oshi, she didn't seem super excited and just smiled and said "arigatou" again. Altogether, this was the most disappointing handshake of the day, especially since I had high hopes for Yuihan. I still like her as a performer, but in my opinion, the handshake just isn't worth it. I'm actually considering exchanging my ticket for a handshake with her in February for some other member, because to me, this experience was not worth 1000+ yen.

    Lane 6 - Tanikawa Hijiri, Oda Erina, Nagano Serika, Yamada Nanami
    This lane was actually supposed to have Kawahara Misaki instead of Tanikawa Hijiri according to the event website, but seems like it was changed at the last moment. I actually prefer Hijiri, so I can't complain [hehe] I actually had a specific reason I wanted to go to this lane - I went to a Team 8 show 3 weeks ago, and Yamada Nanami really appealed to me, so I wanted to see her again, and see if she remembers me at all... Turns out she didn't, since she started introducing herself to me (lol, as if I didn't even know the name of the members I'm going to shake hands with) but she seemed super excited to see me anyways, so it went well anyways :blush: The other members were also super nice, I'm not following them that much but their reactions were good, they asked me where I'm from and were really impressed by it [hehe] Overall, a good handshake.

    Lane 7 - Iwatate Saho, Omori Miyu, Kojima Mako, Takita Kayoko
    I had high hopes for this handshake since I expected the members to be good at it, and I wasn't wrong. Saho, Miyu and Mako were all very nice, and also look really cute up close. Saho was also asking me where I'm from and seemed to be really excited. But my favorite reaction was Takita Kayoko - she called me kawaii, so I was like "no, you're kawaii" and she said it back so then we just kind of got into a war of calling each other kawaii until the security guard pushed me away [hehe] It was really funny.

    Lane 9 - Asai Nanami, Suzuki Kurumi, Taguchi Manaka, Yamauchi Mizuki
    I like all these KKS, but the main reason I came to this lane was Zukkii. Anyways, these girls give really good treatment, they're doing great at fishing fans :blush: I received some compliments from Nanami, Kurumi and Manaka. And I told Mizuki she is beautiful, and she was really humble and shy about it :blush: Overall, a good experience.

    Lane 10 - Ichikawa Manami, Sasaki Yukari, Chiba Erii, Ma Chia Ling, Yamabe Ayu
    I wasn't originally planning to go to this lane, but decided to go check it out since I had so many tickets and it happened to have a short line at the moment. Although I like all these girls, I'm not a huge fan of any of them. Anyways, these girls were also really good at handshakes, like complimenting me and not letting go of my hand for as long as possible. Ayu and Erii are very cute, and Manami and Yukari are also very pretty. I also talked to Chia Ling in my bad Chinese [hehe] I told her I went to study Chinese in Taiwan, and she replied with "really?" in Chinese, but that was all we had time for.

    Lane 11 - Yumoto Ami, Tano Yuka, Kojima Natsuki, Fujita Nana, Mogi Shinobu
    My fave lane of all lanes today, and that's why I used 6 tickets on it. This lane got me addicted and kept me coming back [hehe] Naana and Mogi-chan are my my other 2 AKB oshi, and to be honest, after Yuihan's mediocre handshake, they've probably overtaken her from previously equal place :^^;: Anyways, Yumoto Ami was really cute in person. I wasn't a fan of her before, but she has a very cute, child-like face with big eyes. She was very sweet, she kept waving at me whenever she noticed me waiting and when I told her during my 6th visit that it was my last one for the day, she looked really sad. She gave me some compliments (in both Japanese and English[hehe]) and she also asked me where I was from, to which she and Tano Yuka went "oooh". By that time, I had move to Yuka, so I asked her if she knew my country (it's a small European country, not very famous) and she said she did. Yuka was also wearing a face mask and she was the only one sitting down, so I asked her if she wasn't feeling well, but she said she did (probably not true though, she didn't look like she's doing too well). Next one was Kojima Natsuki. This girl is such a fisher [hehe] I wasn't even her fan before, but I feel like I'm becoming one now. She just kept throwing compliments at me every time I came around, including trying to say some English one, like "cute", "beautiful hair" and "nice body" [hehe] She asked me for my name 2 times (since she forgot it during this time), and since I was nervous, I accidentally told me my actual name, which is very long and difficult to pronounce, not the nickname I use in Japan. But amazingly, she got the pronunciation right and even remembered it by my last visit :^O^: She also asked me for my age and after I told them I was 22, everyone was surprised how young I was :^^;: Fujita Nana also called me my name after hearing it from Natsuki [hehe] The first time, I complimented Nana how beautiful she is, a good dancer and how much I like her. There wasn't enough time for her to say much back but she kept saying nice stuff the next few times I came around. Unlike Natsuki, she wasn't throwing all the random compliments at me, so hers felt more sincere. I also told Mogi Shinobu she's kakkoii and that I like her danso, and she was very happy about it. When I told Naana and Mogi that I'll be seeing them again in February, they also seemed really pleased. I had such an amazing experience at this lane, so I was surprised that almost no people lined up for it - I could usually just come in without waiting at all, which is good for me, but I felt bad for the girls since most other lanes had bigger lines. Also, I managed to be their first handshake of the day (and of the year [hehe]) since I managed to line up fast.

    Lane 14 - Inagaki Kaori, Kurosu Haruka, Sato Minami, Shoji Nagisa, Taya Misaki
    The reason I went to this lane is Kaori. I already liked her when I saw her at the theater, but what really made me decide was seeing her just before the handshakes started, she was passing behind the lane 11 where I was waiting and waved at me. When I got to shake hands with her, she was so excited that I came and even remembered waving to me earlier - I didn't even have to mention it, she remember on her own. Note this was several hours later, and she still remembered me :^O^: Misaki seems to have cut her hair, so I asked her if she changed her hair and she said she's always changing it, haha [hehe] Haruka, Minami and Nagisa were also really good handshakes, they all called me beautiful, looked me right into my eyes and tried to not let go of my hand until the guard really pushed me away strongly. Hence, there was a big wait, but worth it :^^;:

    So yeah, this is my experience from today's handshake. It was definitely exciting but also changed my preferences among members a little (I'm starting to like some unexpected members like Takita Kayoko and Kojima Natsuki) [hehe] Luckily, I had this many tickets, so I was able to see all the members I was interested in meeting.
     
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  19. Cristafari

    Cristafari Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2008
    Location:
    Saitama, Japan
    Oshimen:
    Iwasa Misaki
    Twitter:
    Cristafari
    AKB48-Group 11-Gatsu no Anklet Individual Handshake Event at Makuhari Messe (2018/01/07)

    I wasn't sure which day to write up first. Saturday I managed to make it into not only HKT's individual event, but both of AKB and NGT's National Events since they were all at Makuhari Messe. But that's going to be quite the involved writeup. Oh, and then there's the Theater show I won on Friday where I saw 16th gen, and a few of the draftees...

    Frankly speaking, I was really tired after Saturday and not looking forward to my marathon schedule on Sunday that would have me at the event from Slot 2 through Slot 7. 9 hours, which was compounded by endless long queues which made taking a rest almost impossible. However, I did manage to grab a quick bite at the food carts in the early afternoon. Anyway, I got into the venue at the beginning of Slot 2. The ticket stamp line was kinda long, but they had a very nice system in place where the wait was not long at all. Took about 10-15 minutes to get my tickets stamped, and I was off to use my one Slot 2 ticket.

    Slot 2

    Yamane Suzuha (Lane 33) For this single, each handshake came with a certain benefit you are eligible to win. The exclusive special benefit of the day was a New Year's card, which is what most of my tickets were for. (6 of 11) You drew a sticker out of a box, and if your sticker was a winner you got a choice of three cards, a calendar card, a postcard, or some other New Year's card. Here are all of my stickers for the day (you got to keep them whether you won or lost)

    IMG_7155.JPG

    However, this made the lines take extra long. In fact, it took me 75 minutes to get through Zunchan's queue. Good thing I only had one ticket. While I waited I watched Shiichan and Sayaya in the neighboring lanes so I would know what to do when it was my turn. When it was finally my turn, I drew a losing sticker, but I still had time to talk about how cute her lane decorations were. Per usual, Zunchan decorated her lane with flowers, toys, signs, and whatnot. I had another ticket for Zunchan in Slot 3, and I dreaded another long wait in the queue...

    Slot 3

    Yamauchi Mizuki (Lane 7) Since it was already fifteen minutes into Slot 3, I ran over to Mizuki's lane to check the queue. Luckily, it wasn't too long, so I would have time to get this ticket done and then go back to Zunchan's queue, which was still serving Slot 2 tickets. The prize for this lane was the 1-shot Video/2-shot selfie, but I didn't win. I met Zukki a couple of times at the National Event the day before, and she always gives me a good reaction when I see her at the theater. Today was no different. So today I told her that I thought she was an excellent dancer. She kind of looked at me cross-eyed, until I mentioned Migiashi Evidence. It then clicked for her and she was like "Oh, thank you thank you!" I think I want to start visiting with Zukki more often.

    Yamane Suzuha (Lane 33) It was over 30 minutes into Slot 3, and they were still dealing with Slot 2. However, the good news was that there weren't too many people pre-queued for Slot 3, so my spot in line wasn't that bad. I also won the prize, which was the 1-shot video. It's the first time I have ever won the draw in Zunchan's lane!


    if the video does not show watch the video here

    When you win the video or selfie, they don't really give you much time to talk, but I did manage to tell Zunchan that I always cheer for her in the theater, which was kind of a re-reminder since I may have mentioned that to her on Saturday at the National Event. It was already Slot 4, so I hurried myself over to the lane I thought would be the shorter of my two tickets.

    Slot 4

    Murakawa Bibian (Lane 103) I had never seen Bibian's queue so long in my life. This was one ticket I considered skipping since I saw her on Saturday (and for some reason I thought this was a Miorin ticket until I looked at it in the morning) But Tani's lane hadn't even opened yet, so there was no reason to skip it. The queue took around 45 minutes, and had the New Year's card prize. I drew another losing sticker. The previous day I had commented on the outfit she was wearing, particularly her necklace. So I told her I was reading her twitter and liked all the cute photos she took at the event.

    Tani Marika (Lane 49) I knew this lane was going to be hell since Tani's birthday was on Friday. It was also a New Year's Card lane. As expected, the queue was huge, even extending out of the lane into the general area. There was a big chance this could screw up my Slot 5 tickets, but I was willing to give up one of them anyway. As long as I had time to do one Slot 5 ticket, I would be okay. It was 10 minutes into slot 5, almost an hour since I had queued up, and they announced they were switching Marika into another lane. So we moved from lane 49 to lane 46...

    I was 10th in line in the new lane, so it wouldn't be too long once Marika arrived, which was maybe 15 minutes later. I also got I nice wave hello from Dasu while I waited as an added bonus. When it was finally my turn she greeted me with a "Hey Kurisu!" which I think might be the first time she has remembered my name right off the bat, so cool! Anyway, I wished Marika a happy birthday and told her she looked especially cute. I also told her that my birthday was a few weeks ago, so she wished me a happy birthday too. I didn't win the card, so we had a little bit of extra time to talk.

    Slot 5

    Sakaki Miyuu [Cuca] (Lane 75) I went to Cuca's lane fully expecting it to be empty. It was already over 30 minutes into the slot, but the previous member ran overtime, so Cuca hadn't even started yet. Even more amazing, her line was like 15 people deep. So she really is starting to cultivate more fans. In fact, shortly after she started they immediately called her to the handicapped fan's lane since she had people wanting to meet her there as well. And by the way, when did Cuca transform into a real idol? To be honest, the first couple of times I have met her she just looked like a normal girl in an AKB booth. But on this day she looked transformed. Her hair was a lot more stylish, her makeup a lot more professional, and her clothes a lot cuter. Moreover, her cheeks looked much thinner. At first I thought I was in the wrong lane, but she looked really good! When it was my turn I got the usual familiar greeting, and I won the drawing. I chose the calendar card...

    IMG_7152.JPG

    I asked her if she had fun performing at the theater on Saturday, which of course she did. I said a few other things to her, but I think she was either half-listening, or my Japanese isn't as good as I think it is, since she just kept thanking me no matter what I said. In any case, I am glad I am getting a chance to root for her from the beginning. I was checking my old blog, and came across an article I wrote about her like 8-9 years ago. LOL. As I left I noticed her queue had swelled to at least 20-30 people, so good news for Cuca-chan.

    Fuchigami Mai (Lane 104) Miraculously, there were still five minutes before the gates closed on Slot 5, so I went over to Maichan's queue, and it was about as long as Zunchan's was in the morning. Oh no! This would mean that it could seriously eat into my Slot 6 tickets, which is the slot with my two favorite members. I just couldn't bare the thought of grinding through this line for an hour, and then rushing to hopefully get both Slot 6 tickets done. Not to mention, I saw Maichan twice on Saturday, and I have tickets for her on a lot of upcoming events. So I decided to use this half hour for a break. The bummer was that Maichan saw me a bunch of times while I was in Bibian's and Akiyoshi's queues, so she knew I was in the building.

    Slot 6/7

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 105) I came over to Yukachan's lane about 15 minutes before the slot was going to start, and Maichan's lane was STILL open! Also, Tanaka Yuka's lane was open, which is where Akiyoshi was supposed to be. A couple of the Akiyoshi fans started complaining to the guards that they were going to make Yukachan's lane start late. (Which it did) They finally let us into the lane, and eventually let us check in. I won the 2-shot/1-shot. Now, I have mentioned numerous times that I am horrible at taking selfies. Just horrible. But I already had one video today, and I don't have a pic with Akiyoshi and her short hair, so I decided to chance it and go for the 2-shot. I stood in the lane practicing taking selfies over and over, so I wouldn't screw it up. Okay, I think I have this wired...

    IMG_8150.jpg

    Uhhhhhh, I mentioned I am horrible as taking selfies, right? I actually used Photoshop to make it look this decent. It was even worse before. So I learned my lesson. Whenever given the choice, I should ALWAYS go for the video. I DID tell Yukachan that I chose the selfie because I wanted a 2-shot with her "new look." I would have more to say to her when I used my last ticket of the evening.

    Matsumura Kaori (Lane 47) <2 tickets> Kaotan's queue was surprisingly short, so I would have some more time to rest and visit with some friends during the dinner break. While I was waiting in line I started getting fished...by Yamauchi Suzuran! I had always heard what a flirt she is, and have never met her before. It made me think, perhaps I would use my oshimashi ticket on her? I would decide during Slot 7 when I had more time. The good news was that I won the 2-shot/1-shot prize. Having learned my lesson with Akiyoshi, I opted for the video. Kaotan gives good video anyway...


    if the video does not show watch the video here

    I decided to prequeue in Kaotan's lane for 7th Slot, which would give me more time for my other tickets. But for some reason they wouldn't let Kaotan or Suzuran's fans into the lane. This was after Slot 7 had started. In fact, Suzuran and Kaotan came out to start the slot, and were wondering why all their fans were being held out. From what I understand, the guards for the lane were also at dinner, and were late getting back. In the meantime, Kaotan and Suzuran just chatted while waiting for staff to let their fans in. Odd. As for the prize, I didn't win the card, so Kaotan and I instead talked about my trip to California. I have tons of signed stuff from Kaotan anyway. After telling her some of what I did she asked when I would make my next trip over. I also mentioned that I celebrated my birthday in California. She said she was happy I had fun. She is such a sweetheart! I told her I would see her again soon.

    Akiyoshi Yuka (Lane 105) <2 tickets> I had decided that if Yukachan's queue was short, I would go to meet Suzuran. But if the queue was long I would use my Maichan ticket on Yuka. The queue was medium sized. Hmmm, I decided not to chance it, and just use all my tickets on Yuka. Luckily, they allowed me to draw for the New Year's prize on both tickets, and I won on one of them. I picked the postcard since Yukachan had done a nice job preparing it.

    IMG_7153.JPG IMG_7154.JPG

    I had some extra time to talk, and Yukachan and I have an agreement that at least once a day we should do a handshake in English since she is studying English, and is fairly good at it. So I told her the story of how when I went to see 16th gen at the AKB National Event the previous day, I was still wearing my Akiyoshi ticket holder (with a bunch of Akiyoshi keychains hanging off of it) and quite a few of the 16th gen girls were pointing and exclaiming "Mikan Mikan!" So she is popular with the AKB kenkyuusei. I then asked her if she understood the story, and she repeated it back to me in Japanese, fairly accurately too. So it was a successful English handshake.

    When I finished there was still time, so I could have gone to see Suzuran after all. Of well, maybe next time. Although it would have been cool to do it on this day since she took the time to fish me. In any case, my feet were exhausted, I was hungry, and had a long ride home. I have tickets for one of the February dates of this single, but it conflicts with a Wasamin event I am attending. Not sure how that is going to work out. I may show up first thing in the morning, oshimashi my tickets on random members, then go to see Wasamin. I also have tickets for March, so no biggie.
     
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  20. hermionepj1

    hermionepj1 Member

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2016
    Oshimen:
    Yamashita Emiri
    awesome report as always! i also noticed the same thing about cuca on stu's stage btw.
    please keep the failed 2shots coming! [hehe]
     

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