[GENERAL] The Sakurazaka46 / Keyakizaka46 Thread

Spoiler

I could feel she was nervous as well, but she managed to hide it in the most part. I believe we all get a bit nervous when we are in a new environment.

 

Absolutely.
Between who was pushing Sakura Gakuen infos, and who was already done with Neo because of that, I was expecting her to be more sure of herself, more "used" to the stage, to fans and so on...
seeing her be nervous, not at all the idol I was expecting, made me like her even more lol


Just read that the 4kis Blogs will start on Monday, 16th. I presume they'll share it like 3kis did


Edit:
I went back to sketch and I'm starting from 4kis... did someone wrote down their pen colors somewhere? Thanks

 

Where did these goddesses come from? They seem to have "sprung fully-formed from the head of Zeus," like Athena.

Yes, I was "overwhelmed" by how far they had come in the month since the training camp. And many of them were overwhelmed by the reception they got, and by just being able to stand there as members of Sakurazaka46. They showed unity in their excellent synchronized movements in some songs. And they certainly keep on blooming. As Takahiro wrote after the show, the buds have become flowers.

From the start, I was struck by Asai Konomi, both her deep feeling welling up in tears, and her reliable intelligence and strong voice singing or making announcements. And by Matsumoto Wako's open and expressive face, her love of Sakurazaka shining through. By Yamakawa Ui skipping lightly across the stage in her cheer dance, her extremely high kicks like doing vertical splits.

And of course by Meguro Hiiro's amazing dancing. We suddenly see the truth of her ability. I sometimes during the training camp was annoyed by her extra little movements; it seemed that she went on the principle of "why do only one movement when you can do three". But now I understand. Only she (or she and Shii-chan) can give us those strings of pearls, those blindingly fast series of rhythmic and coordinated movements of various parts of her body.

The "clumsiness" that Katsumata Haru wrote of as one of her faults; it is a strength, too, somehow intimate. Nakagawa Chihiro's stunned look, as she gradually gets used to the situation. I expect she will become more expressive as she calms down; on the other hand she has the virtue of not faking things, of not being able to fake things. This is something I especially like. She did the dancing quite well, though not expertly, but her eyes shone more than anyone's. Inaguma Hina remains the most nervous and insecure, but it did not necessarily show in her dancing. One can't help but sympathize, and the Buddies did.

Satou Neo remains the most solid and dependable, but the nervousness people speak of in previous posts humanized her for me. And Yamada Momomi, a surprise to me as centre on the new song, certainly did well in dancing and singing it. She said she was "competitive and shy" (awkward with strangers), but was getting used to people looking at her. And for me she is the most beautiful of the nine. The light-stick wave running around the arena was wonderful, and her delighted reaction made it more wonderful. I admit I have trouble warming to her, for some reason, but it's coming.

I couldn't help thinking back to the glorious Keyakizaka Christmas concert in that arena in December 2016. Hirate in a shiny red suit singing PARCO from the midst of the audience. The Yui-chans with their guitars, and a sea of penlights behind them. Hirate, Neru and the Yui-chans singing Yuuhi 1/3 (for me a forgotten classic). Keyakizaka already had three hits by that time, but the feeling of triumph and joy was similar to this show.

A miracle. I thought the 3ki boosted the group. The 4ki somehow seem able to raise it another notch. From only two or three members with real experience to a competent and attractive idol group fully formed...in two months.

 

The fact that this the only thing we know for sure is sad lol.

 

I knew you would fell for miss little Karin... I knew it from the start, it was just a matter of time, hehe...

 

Has anyone mentioned the final announcement on the Showcase broadcast? That the 4ki will perform in the Tokyo Dome and the Kyocera Dome (Osaka)? I can't find any details -- whether it's just them or the whole group plus them -- but probably not too far in the future.

 

Finally found the penlights color for 4kis, thanks to Sakurazaka Central
https://x.com/sakuzakacentral/status/1930934596658737296

Btw, is someone going to L.A. to see the group in July?

 

My thoughts on the "First Showcase"...

A thrilling omotenashikai. I was hoping and expecting for such, they just couldn't show us unpolished girls. But what a polishing they did!!! Nine girls sparkling and shining like no other!

The negatives: Just one, the place... Although Ariake arena may have brought memories of Keyakizaka's first days, now it looked so dark, gloomy and somewhat... empty. I don't know if anyone else shares this feeling but the whole atmoshpere was dark and rather... cold! I just hope for the big flashy lights these girls do deserve, they get at Tokyo Dome "second showcase".

The positives: All the rest. The girls were not simply ready, but ready with guns-loaded and eagerly waiting for big fights!!! I just wonder if the management can tackle the internal competition: Have you ever considered just how you want to watch and listen to "Seijaku no Boryoku" at the next Anniversary Live? The old version, the traditional, the one we all love and cherish? Or the new one, the dynamic, passionate, different "Seijaku" powered by Neo, Haru and her gang? How will management "serve us" this song? As a collab? Two-versions? One on the main stage and the other on the second stage? What a (nice) headache.

I don't know about you but I am prepared for some intense internal competition. The new girls have shown that they are here to make their presence etched in our memories and even more desirable, while the 3rd gens have already realized that they must fight back. It will not be a civil war but a melting pot of new dynamics, combinations, ideas, creation!

I've put all my thoughts for each specific girl in a

Spoiler: long story

Asai Konomi: At last a wind instrument player! Her “On my way” was so groovy with amazing jazzy melodic ornaments! With her alto saxophone which was more than half of the height of her tiny body, but with an exquisitely female silhouette, she was the jewel of the show. A strong MC and definitely made of “pure captain steel”, she is a real beauty… Her tiny curved nose, expressive eyes, elvish eyebrows and cute odeko, create a real beauty, an exquisite aroma in a small bottle. OMG, I want to oshi her so much!!!

Inaguma Hina: Give the girl a naginata to weave and she becomes a true fighter. The nakimushi of the group, boosted by some very interesting and imposing musical carpet, showed us her martial skills (at the moment she turned her head to the right and left to check for “enemies”, I literally melted). I was relieved she adapted to the demanding dances and showed us a strong Hina at the end!

Katsumata Haru: The oneesan with the guitar! Just imagine having her on a warm night on the beach, singing with her guitar by the bonfire!!! I’m sure that this girl has the strongest vibes of the warm and comforting girlfriend every man would dream of having by his side, a strong supporter to share a living with… I would wish I was in the position to say: Haru-san marry me please! She is and looks the most adult of all 4th gen and she looks determined to enjoy every moment of hers as an idol…

Sato Neo: All the buzz seemed to have had its toll on the girl which appeared super-nervous at the beginning (intro) and during her tokugi presentation. Although her “Sakurazuki” was very good, I noticed her left hand slightly trembling at shoudo. However, when she was focusing on her hand-writing, her facial characteristics showed just how amazingly pretty this girl is. Her manners are full of grace and decency but her dancing fire and her overall interpretation of “Bouryoku” was out-of-this-world… Literally screaming and crying around the end of the song, hair dripping sweat in front of a teary, flaming face, stretched with passion and agony, she was a real GODDESS! Needless to say, that I like her “Boryoku” more than the original! One more thing: this girl is a born actress… Give her the chance please!

Nakagawa Chihiro: She looks and behaves like the true youngest of her gen and indeed she is just an angel! This little fragile bird with her rare talent made me laugh and go kyun-kyun like no other… Her bewildered reaction when she realized she cannot really make the mental arithmetic was both infinitely cute and so funny at the same time! And the twist with her fourth trial was simply a burst of laughter… Her “Torikichi-kun” voice is just unbelievably cute… Another girl I really want to oshi!

Matsumoto Wako: And here comes her Wakesty! My Wakoness, my Wak spot, my new oshi! I go wacko for her, my mind is completely achi-kotchi when I see her, I’ll paint the walls of my room white and emerald green!!! So relaxed when playing the violin, at comfort, with fluid movements, she offered us a “Blue Moon” to remember! I was also relieved to see how “devious” and “foxy” she is at fishing and how nicely she takes advantage of any time she is being given to show us how cute she is. She is also very good at dancing and I do hope (and pray) that she’ll get the chance to show us more of her dancing power in the future. A power driven not by skill but by pure, undiluted, inner passion! This girl hides a volcano of passion under a mild, fragile, girly exterior. And a note for Rika-chan: I-SHI-MO-RI, take this girl in the basket club, she can do lay-ups, but teach her how to shoot two-pointers please, LOL.

Meguro Hiiro: A photographer? Why not? This girl has the most relaxing voice of all, her voice is a true lullaby! Her laughter while mixing the paint and her “ichi-mai, ni-mai, san-mai…” was like liquid velvet for my ears… She was also the top elegantly dressed on the runway (her figure is simply awesome). Oh! I forgot that she is now the TOP dancer in Sakurazaka46… No other comment… Any objections?

Yamakawa Ui: Or, as I call her “the mountain-river User-Interface”, is another girl I want so much to oshi! Her temperament reminded me of our soul of the group, RunRun! She is expressive, small, explosive, powerful, with a great style, great smile and some HUGE potential… She showed some completely unexpected arrogance (in the positive sense), just like Run when she was carrying the group. This girl will climb to the top very soon, take my word for that!

Yamada Momomi: Another future leader! The way she “herded” the audience reminded me of the first appearance of the 13-year-old Ten-chan during her first Keyakitte-Kakenai, when she literally “demanded” all Keyakizaka members to stand and dance with her and around her… She was the center of course! Momomi is athletic, cool (cold-blooded I can say), obviously ambitious and apparently capable. Another top member on-the-making! Oh, I forgot: and a 100% Keyakid that happened to join Keyakizaka 7 years too late!

One last thing:

The whole experience with the 4th gen so far is indicative of the fine art of "social engineering" exhibited by the management team. How they started the whole thing, how they took advantage of the fans' reaction, the doubts, caution, even negativity, towards the girls, buzz about Neo, expectations, initial reactions from the introductory small documentaries and how they build on all of these. How they let a story "unfold" during the documentary, the protagonists they focused on, the weaknesses they exaggerated, the culmination, the Takahiro moment of relief. And then the training in Tokyo, the random(?) drawing, the creation of the leading personas... All while getting feedback, measuring reactions, judging, calculating... I'm not implying anything negative: I just believe that these "masters in human evaluation" knew every detail regarding the nine treasures they selected. It all came up to the narrative and the plot...

But the result is amazing... And still we have seen nothing yet...

 

A few more Japanese comments, about Wako, Ui, Chihiro and Keyaki:

• Wako-chan is like an 1ki beauty, for instance Mii-chan [Koike].
• The 4kis as a whole are just like the Keyaki 1kis.
• Ui-chan and Chihiro-chan both have a Keyaki feeling.
• Ui-chan → Muu-chan [Uemura, I believe they mean]
• Chihiro-chan → Neru or Yukkaa.
• The 4kis seem so polished. All the presence of a 3rd MV.
• Yamada = Hirate; Nakagawa = Neru [I don't see that yet, except for coming from Nagasaki].
• The MV is very Keyaki-like. I suspect this was done intentionally.

 

Interesting that both overseas and japanese buddies are making parallels between 4ki and Keyaki 1ki. I can understand the Momomi-Techi parallels but rest...not so much.

 

@ukifune's post made me try to find parallels...

First of all, it's more than evident, at least to my eyes, that the 4th gen girls have the dark, rebellious and unpolished/crude aura of the 1st gen, the original Keyakids...

This gen bears an atavistic relationship with their dai-senpais... According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
ATAVISM (noun)
a: recurrence in an organism of a trait or character typical of an ancestral form and usually due to genetic recombination
b: recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity
I know that usually atavism is exhibited in not immediate generations but more rather in generations well apart. In our case and although 2nd gen have met almost all 1st gen girls and lived and worked with them for quite some years, suffered with them and had undergone a rebranding (actual death and reincarnation) with them, they are quite different... It's the 1st gen girls on one hand and the 2nd gen on the other, different, unique, discrete...

But the 4th? The resemblance in style, disposition, aura, capabilities (or lack of) and crude/archetypical power makes the comparison eerily strange: these groups actually ARE alike each other... Aparently we are not the only ones to see that, management and Aki-P should agree with that...

If I had to make pairs, without giving much thought (I do believe in spontaneity), then my top-of-mind pairings are:

Konomi - Yuuka
Hina - Nanami, Rina
Haru - Akane, Fuyuka
Neo - Miyu
Chihiro - Aoi
Wako - Risa, Shiori
Hiiro - Pon, Mizuho
Ui - Zumiko, Minami, Ozeki
Momomi - Tecchi, Manaka

Some pairings are super wild... Of course I may be wrong, or change my mind after thorough thinking... Maybe my current state is affected by the glass of Jack Daniels that keeps me company for the night...

Or maybe it is just a strange feeling of nostalgia for the glorious 21 girls that are no more...

 

I agree with @watash.Iwa and my conclusion is that people see what they want to see.

The only one who gave me Keyaki feelings back in documentary was Momomi, and not resembling Techi, but Miho... the others had to wait a very-Keyaki MV to bring up the comparisions.
A MV that recall other Keyaki MVs at that... maybe it was unavoidable and even wanted by mngmnt this parallelism...

 

Yes I agree. I was also wondering if management wanted the comparison or if it was accidental.

 

I always have a thing with OSAKA and FUKUOKA... nishino nanase, yui yoshioka... damn. How can that possible? My bias always comes from this two.

[Mod note: Large pictures need to be thumbnailed, read the forum rules.]

 

I wonder if they have a copy of the map with all past and present Keyaki/Sakura members.

 

Mio, Hono and Ten in a talk video from MSte:


if the video does not show watch the video here

 

Episode 8 is coming!!
Tomorrow at 19:00 JPN Time

https://x.com/sakurazaka46/status/1937088250067263827

 

Epilogue is out!

A lot of positives for this ep. They showed us the behind the scenes for the MV as well as the First Showcase.
I love how even though she got injured and is seated at the back/side, Ui followed the movements while they were practising the songs.

 

Here the link


if the video does not show watch the video here

Words are not enough this time, just watch it
I loved it from start to end and want more and more and more

 

Absolutely fantastic. The members get closer together, and we get closer to them. Watching them coming to each stage of the process was amazing. Still hard to believe how much they have grown in the time they have been together.

Loved the (now traditional) scene in which they watched their MV for the first time. Great to see Takahiro pushing the details...and seeming very satisfied as he watched the Showcase later. And noting how strongly they sang. "Let our voices get through to you." Quite wonderful to see tears in the eyes of the lead teacher as she watched the Showcase. Interesting that they needed three teachers for the real performances, whereas they only had two for the training camp.

I got the sense that the members, so nervous at first that they thought they might die, came to enjoy and be strengthened by being in front of the appreciative audience. Learning an idol's satisfaction. I enjoyed Ten-san's enthusiasm at meeting them to show them how to walk the runway. And I loved Hiiro's delighted little jump when she realized who had come.

Good to see the two youngest members laughing together, Momo and Chii-tan