Your AKB48 Experiences

61st Single Offline Talk Event - Pacifico Yokohama 5/6 (part 2 - slots 5-8)

After a quick late lunch I continued with the meetings:

Hidaritomo Ayaka
I'd barely introduced myself and told her I loved her big smile when I was unceremonioulsy pushed out quickly by the staff member even though there was no-one behind me. At meeting events I always seem to suffer one aggressive staff pusher who tries to assert himself and unfortunately that happened today when I met Hidaaya. Anyway she was very lovely and we spent a couple of seconds exchanging 'hearto' signs while I was just outside her booth.

Mizushima Miyuu
Mizumin was also wearing a seifuku but a different style to the one which Kokko had. She gave me a very nice reaction when realised she remembered me from the KKS Theater show audience a few days earlier! Of all the 17ki members she seemed to be the most enthusiastic about meeting fans and she showed an interest towards everyone ahead of me in her lane.

Yamauchi Mizuki
Zukkii looked very pretty in a white outfit. I’ve had online meetings with her of variable quality but this offline one went rather better and she was in a very happy mood.

Komiyama Haruka
As I've already mentioned in her thread my kami-oshi remembered me from online talks and she was very, very lovely, friendly and beautiful. She complimented me on my speaking Japanese and she said she hoped to see me again online. It's obviously more difficult for us overseas followers to establish a good fan relationship with our oshimen but I feel I have the best possible one with Komi.

Omori Maho
Mahopyon looked very pretty and very cute, and she was chatting happily with her fans in front of me. However for some reason my meeting didn't go so well, maybe she didn't understand my Japanese or it could be that I didn't recognise the plush animal she had with in her booth (it might be the one which appears in her Twitter header picture?). Anyway it was still great to meet her.

Gyoten Yurina
I was then due to meet ex-Eito member Ayane but following a late message on the official blog that she'd be absent (sadly she's tested positive for Covid) I quickly transferred her tickets to Yurina. I've long considered her to be beautiful but she looked absolutely stunning close up and it was great to meet her and to compliment her on her beauty.

The next member I was due to meet, Yuzu, was also absent (however she's recovering well from a longer-term illness) and I decided to split her 3 tickets across two other members:

Chiba Erii
I’d spotted her looking at me while I was in Maho’s lane adjacent to hers so I decided to meet her and use 2 tickets. I said I subscribed to her YouTube channel and I thanked her for including English subs on her videos. She was yet another member who looked very pretty close up.

Muto Orin
I used the remaining single ticket just to say 'hi' to her and I thought it would be a simple short meeting but it was quickly obvious that she was very interested in me! As I left her booth she shouted after me in English "What’s your name?" I replied with "David - Debido-san". However she still wanted to talk but this was delaying her next fan who was already in her booth and the staff member sternly said "Time’s up!". I'm now kicking myself that I didn't get more tickets for her!

Okabe Rin
For me, Rinrin is the second most beautiful member in the group after Komi and indeed she looked absolutely gorgeous wearing white. I told her that she had been my favourite member in Team 8, that I’d enjoyed the concerts and I wished her well for the future. She has a lovely gentle personality and a very beautiful smile.

Sakaguchi Nagisa
Sadly it was time for my final meeting. In online talks I've found that Nagi is very charismatic and and she's also very expressive with her hands making love signs with her fingers which she did again today. She’s a very sweet and lively person and she made a great end to the day.

And indeed it made a great end to my vacation. I was very lucky with the event’s scheduling, it was announced after I’d booked flights and hotels, and it just worked out that it was in easy reach of the hotel I’d booked near Haneda Airport. Ideally I’d liked to have spread the talks over the second day, doing it all in one day was a bit crammed but it all worked out well. Even though the members were behind screens I felt I’d definitely met them in person and it’s so much different and better than online talks. I can't wait to return to Japan and maybe next time fans won't have to wear face masks - for me it's not so bad without handshaking but I do love to be able to exchange smiles with my oshis!

 

Glad that you enjoyed your short session with Orin. I have been going to Orin's lane since 2017 and I should admit that she's a very smart kid who would initiate conversations with the fans. There were times when I completely forgot what I wanted to say or had no plan to say anything, then she would throw me a lot of questions about myself. In her SHOWROOM, she once said that she is also interested in learning about the background of her fans, such as what are your hobbies or what kind of jobs are you doing. This could be some ideas of topics for hanashikai with her.

When I met Orin last weekend, the moment I walked to her she already called my name. She was very excited as usual. I asked her about gradschool and she told me that she is excited to learn so many new things in gradschool. Then, I figured out I could also share my experience in getting a master degree. She listened very attentively and responded with some comments. When I told her good luck with gradschool, she told me that she would learn a lot from me (re: I'm currently in Japan for doctoral degree). When the time was up, she kept talking to me even though I already walked away but was still looking at her. She told me that she wanted to learn English.

I always recommend everyone to meet Orin because she is a fun member and you will never run out of topics. She is also keen to learn about your countries and maybe some easy words from your country.

 

61st Single "Doushitemo Kimi ga Suki da" online hanashikai - 27th and 28th of May 2023

Yamauchi Mizuki
I won a 1-shot so I asked her to do a finger heart and the Team K pose! I then told her I will be coming to Japan in October and that I want to see the theatre, watch AKB live and meet Zukky. She was super cute and replied "I want to see you too!" and then asked me about my plans for Japan, what cities I'm going to, etc. I said I'm nervous since my Japanese is quite poor but she said "no it's really good!"


Yamazaki Sora
I told Sorara about our annual Stage48 ranking and that she placed 22nd out of all active 48G & Sakamichi members, and also 1st among KKS. She was very happy and thanked me for telling her!

Kobayashi Ran (27th)
Of course, first things first, I congratulated her on her graduation. I told her I'm sad about it but that I'll continue supporting her, and that I'd see her the day after as well as both online hanashikai in July. She thanked me and seemed very happy about it! This slot was quite a bit after my Zukky slot, so I'd posted my 1-shot photo on Discord already and found out that the Team K pose emoji is called "love you gesture," which made me realise that the Team K pose is nearly the same as "ILY" in American Sign Language (except in ASL the palm faces away from the speaker), so I ended up telling her about this coincidence. She was super shocked, but then quickly got excited, showing the gesture and saying "I love you, I love you~"

The photos below aren't mind, they're from twitter, but just wanted to show off her cute outfit!



Kobayashi Ran (28th)
I started off by telling her how cute she looks again and then said her graduation dress was super cute too. I asked her what her favourite song was during her graduation stage and she said the "Wagamama na Nagareboshi" unit because it's really cute. I said I like it too and my favourite that time was "Yaban na Kyuuai," which got her really excited. Time was running out quickly so I said good bye and Ran ended it with "see you soon"

Will add some photos of how she looked once I find some online!

EDIT: From Suzuki Kurumi's twitter:

 

(The idols all spoke Japanese so I'll relay the messages here in English)

Doushitemo Kimi ga Suki da - Online Talk 05/26/23

Hirata Yuki
Super sweet and curious about foreigners. I botched so many lines because I had just found out my account on twt was accidentally suspended because of a stupid bug lmao

Chiba Erii
Really unique and she remembers me which is awesome. Showed her the autograph I have of her and she said she's really appreciative and said I love you before it cut out lol

Omori Maho
Girl is ALWAYS loud that's why I like going to her so much lmao I told her if she ever watched my favorite anime, Lucky Star, and she was like noooo! I recommended it to her so hopefully she watches it!

Sato Minami
Really mature vibes. She came across a total pro and talked like a friend instead of a celebrity. I told her I loved watching her on SayoMouri and she was really appreciative. Also said sorry for my broken Japanese but she was like 'its no problem! You're fine!' She's definitely someone I'd like to meet again.

Honda Hitomi
A baby egg. Immediately said hello in English and asked what time it was when I said good evening. I told her congratulations on the center and that the song is really good too and she said thank you! Pretty sure she said goodbye in English too and waved like ...she is so damn precious.

Kashiwagi Yuki
She remembers me which made me super happy. I told her I hope she's doing well and if she had a recommended hanami spot for my trip to Japan next year. She said Ueno and Meguro River are great spots!

Overall, I had a lot of fun but I definitely botched some lines with the first three girls. Next AKB slots are on 7/7 for me with Orin, Sorara, and Mion, so I'm really looking forward to meeting them!

 

Today was my first time doing an online talk. I’ve been once to a physical handshake event but that was well before covid. I only had two tickets so it was a quick but enjoyable session. I decided to give it a go since Shimizu Maria was graduating and I wanted to meet her before she did. My Japanese is ok, but it sometimes takes me a while to comprehend what people are saying, so I decided on what I was going to say beforehand.

With Maria, I introduced myself first as a fan from England, which she said was sugoi. I told her I enjoyed watching Batchikoi and her drama Kaeranai Ojisan. She replied that she was very happy about that. I was caught off guard by the time so was cut off without saying bye.

For the second ticket I considered going to see Berin, but she was already sold out by that point, and Takahashi Ayane’s, and Yoshikawa Nanase’s slots were a bit too early for me. So, I decided to use the other ticket on Omori Maho. I have a signed limista from Maho-pyon so I showed her that, and she managed to get my name, which she struggled with in the signing livestream. I told her I became a fan of hers after watching Sayonara Mouri-san. I was going to talk about the Sports Test program she was part of, as she did well but was covered in bandages and tape, but I ran out of time again. This time I managed to say bye before I was cut off.

After doing this I’m definitely going to try and do more online talks. I think one ticket is too rushed so next time I’ll try at least two for each member I want to see. I’m saving my money because I want to go to an irl handshake this year at some point (to try and meet Berin before she graduates), but I might try some of the online talks beforehand.

Thanks to everyone for their help in navigating the system. The strangest aspect for me is having to sit waiting in silence before the talk, then suddenly being thrust into it. Even though I only had a short time with both it was still worth it.

 

Here's a report of my online talks today:

Komiyama Haruka
Yet another very good talk with my kami-oshi. I told her that I enjoyed meeting her at the offline event in Yokohama and she was very happy when I showed her I bought a copy of 'Gravure Press' with her and Ayanan on the cover, likewise she was very pleased when I told her I'd joined her Fan Club. I said I hoped I could attend a fan meeting one day.

Kohama Kokone
My only bonus win of the day was a signing from Kokko so I had longer to talk with her. I said that I enjoyed meeting her in Yokohama but she didn't remember me lol, however she was pleased to know that I enjoyed her performance with 17ki at the Fang Music Fest. At the end I said she was very 'kawaii' and I got a very sweet smile from her but otherwise she was rather quiet as I expected.

Hotei Moka
By contrast Hotechan was very lively! I told her that I enjoyed her performances at the AKB Theater and the Fang Music Fes. She was very sweet and good fun to talk to which made up for not being able to meet her in Yokohama as she was quarantining for Covid.

Taniguchi Megu
As I've said elsewhere I'm recently having better talks with my ni-oshi and this one was good too. I said it was nice to meet her in Japan and she said that she remembered me from the CD handover event at the Theater. I got a very happy reaction from her when I said I hoped she could be in the senbatsu for the 62nd single - might that be a hint of some good news to come?

Hirata Yuki
I also told Yukinee that I enjoyed meeting her in Yokohama and seeing her perform with the 17ki at the Theater and at the Fang Music Fest. I don't think she remembered me but no matter, she was rather livelier than in previous offline and online talks and she seems to be overcoming any shyness she had.

Arai Sae
I bought 5 tickets for Saechan in the hope of having a good English conversation with her and indeed it went very well! This is how it went aas I can remember:

Me: Hello, konbanwa, I'm David from England. I visited Japan in April and May and I met you and the other 18th Gen members at Pacifico Yokohama.
Sae: Yes I remember you!
Me: Your English speaking is very good.
Sae: I'm not sure about that...
Me: It really is good. I hope you can visit England one day.
Sae: I've been to London!
Me: Really? Did you visit with your family?
Sae: Yes, we saw the musical 'Les Miserables'.
Me: Wow that's very good! Maybe one day you can come here with AKB48 for a concert.
Sae: I hope so too!
(end timer countdown now appeared)
Me: Thank You for the talk! Arigato gozaimasu!
Sae: Thank You too!

We then exchanged 'hearto' signs and that was the end. Quite apart from her good English she was a very lovely and happy person to meet.

Sako Yumemi
I just had 2 tickets for Yumemin. She was relatively quiet but still very nice to talk to. I just said that I'd met her at the offline talk, I'm not sure she remembered me but I wished her 'Ganbatte' for the future.

Narita Kohina
I also just had 2 tickets for Kohi but she was rather livelier and she wanted to show me she could speak some English by saying basic stuff like "Pleased to meet you" and "Have a nice day". Definitely a fun person to meet!

I enjoyed today's online talks rather more than others I've had in the past year and perhaps it could be because it was mainly KKS members? Anyhow I hope that online talks will be available for the next single and maybe I might try talking to other 18ki members to discover more about them.

 

7/25 第5回 AKB48グループ歌唱力No.1決定戦 ファイナリストLIVE

And here we are again, this time in Tachikawa which is waaay out of my usual grounds but it was very refreshing change from the usual. However, I had messed up my planning, as it turned out that the planned end for the concert was after I needed to leave to make it to last shinkansen, I could not make it all the way.

Also being a concert and me having a seat on the 20th row, and far from edge of the row, I had zero interaction chances. Oh well, at least I could enjoy the concert! Of course the dude seated in front of me was just tall enough to cover whetever member was in the middle of the stage, but that was less of an issue once things got moving.

In all honesty, not many of the members taking part are on my list with one exception, but maybe today makes a difference.

Note: I will skip some details because I’m not in the habit of spoilers.

For me, even if she did not win the singing contest the greatest showwoman was Akiyoshi Yuka. Everyone there was great at singing, but she gave (in my mind) the most energetic and excited performance. Also very pleasant new face was Okamura Rio, and while I did not check yet, I hope she is on the roster for the STU concerts coming soon. Other highlights: Lee Siyeon had chosen a nice song and her delivery was excellent - for a moment I thought the original singer was there - and a certain member brought a self-written song. Also, Taguchi Manaka was, IMHO, way cuter live than in TV.

The flow of the concert was very predictable - first individual songs, then unit songs, then 48G medley where people were encouraged to do MIX etc, but because of the way sound were set up, I could only hear faintly if people were doing any. After the 48G medley there was the usual EEEEEEE~ moment which was my cue to make my way to the exit and towards Tokyo station and I was able to make it into last shinkansen to Nagoya.

Tomorrow more shenanigans - ramen time coming up in Hakata!

 

07月29日　パシフィコ横浜 AKB48 61stシングル「どうしても君が好きだ」Ohanashikai

It was some long years with that cursed plague but finally I was able to get back to having my fix of cute girls to talk to. Now, I have done exactly zero online talks due to Reasons(tm) but the biggest being that I didn’t feel like online would have the magic of actually being a <1m apart and chatting with almost-angels which is something that my Real Life lacks completely. However, because of the mentioned Real Life I had actually trouble choosing which members to meet, but I did find a few:

Slot 2 Hotei Moka: I sure started with a bang. Right off the bat her cuteness turned me into a pink blob of happiness. She is so tiny and adorable and lovely that it is hard to describe without resorting to superlative superlatives. She’s not the brightest though, as I noticed later. I started with telling her I’m from Finland (this is relevant for later) and told him that since I don’t know the new members I’m starting from the cutest one. I also discussed the upcoming 17th gen concert and she told me to go buy a ticket which influenced my decision to do so, for lack of a better word, HEAVILY.

Slot 2 Nakanishi Chiyori: I had wanted to meet Chori for a while now, as I’ve noted her all the way from her HKT days and she’s always balanced her lulzy ways nicely. Also she has been very attractive IMHO for a while now, and I definitely wanted to meet her while having the chance. And it was as expected, she was very easy to talk with helped me with keeping the conversation rolling. She did feed me some obvious bullshit of wanting to visit Finland and asked me to guide but I didn’t care as she made me happy. She also liked to hear I go to HKT theater. We also discussed her graduation stage date but unfortunately my summer vacation is over by then.

Slot 3 Yamazaki Sora: Not really knowing her either, I went with similar lines and she too is extremely cute and fun to talk to, but I do admit being so overpowered by Moka that Sorara didn’t get the chance to shine. However, she too will be on my list if/when my calendar and AKB hanashikais match.

Slot 4 Otake Hitomi: I’ve liked Chake for a while now, and having seen her at theater few years ago I was happy to finally get to meet her. Also being senior member, she was the first one to catch my clue of my oshimen having graduated and I am on the market for a new one. She was very nice to talk to and I might consider spending my money on more tickets for her. However, this day is starting to look like Moka takes the cake.

What else went down: It is rather obvious that the sales for 17th gen concert is in the shits, as they were selling tickets on site, having 2-3 members constantly there trying to draw sales (which slowly happened) and they only cared if you had a ticket center account number and means of payment. The lady at the counter told me I can write the required address from ticket center with Kanji or English or an address in Finland, and I interpreted that they don’t care. The kicker in buying a ticket at the site was that one got a looong talk with the members present, so the previously expensive ticket price just became a lot better value. When I got there the members were Hotei Moka, Hirata Yuki and Ota Yuki. Once I got to speak with them, and started with telling Moka ”I bought it”, she introduces me to the others as ”This guy is from Malaysia”. Now I have maximum respect for Malaysians, but I am not one of them so i corrected her that I’m Finnish, and Hirata Yuki reminded her that ”Malaysians are Asians you know.” We kept on going for a while until it was time to go and then the fans who had gathered around gave a weak applause (they did to those who bought tickets) and I went on my merry ways.

Slot 5 Ma Chia-Ling: I actually had 5 tickets for her but oshimashi’d two to meet Chiba Erii. I have wanted to meet Macharin for a few years now but never gotten around to it, and it was fun as apparently she doesn’t meet a lot of Finns, so it was quite entertaining. That being said she did get overshadowed by what went down before and after. Would buy again and I recommend everyone else to do at least once and see for yourself.

Slot 6 Chiba Erii: I oshimashi’d to her just to see for myself what she was all about. For the lulz I went in with ”English OK?” and the answer was a quick ”NO” which was OK since I could get my point across in Japanese. No low points but she’s not for me. Might be for you, so see for yourself.

Slot 6 Yamauchi Mizuki: I had heard before that her handshakes weren’t the best but for the record: I DISAGREE COMPLETELY. She was, for lack of a better word, wonderful. She was easy to talk to and once it was time for me to go, she moved sideways in the booth so we could maintain eye contact as long as possible. Of today’s members, she was tied for the best effort in making my knees wobble with Moka. I will for sure drop my hard earned money on her in the future. If my shortlist for oshi-potential wasn’t so skewed for SKE, Zukki could easily have a spot.

Slot 6 Komiyama Haruka: Komi was the only one I didn’t remember to mention being Finnish, as I started with telling that we’ve met in a zenaku in 2017 and she’s grown more beautiful ever since. Talking with her was easy and she was also quick to catch on to the cue of me searching for a new oshi. She made the conversation easy even with my limited ability, and was very much fun to interact with. Also when it was time to go, she told me that my (blue) eyes were, switching to English, ”Beautiful”, which was an excellent way to end the day. (Note: she is the second member to tell me that, first being Queen of the World Furuhata Nao.)

Along other stuff I had the chance to meet foreign fans, some familiar from past and some I haven’t before which was very nice. Also I saw people showing up in the queues with foreign passports so there was plenty of foreigners around.

All in all a great day, my only complaint was that I didn’t buy more tickets or tickets for tomorrow’s event.

Tomorrow: Boatless boat girls!

 

Well well, was a few days since the last AKB event but back on track!

8/6 AKB48 17研究所！ Presents 17期研究生 単独LIVE〜嬉しすぎて歯が抜けそうです！〜

So as mentioned above I was fished into buying a ticket for this event by Hotechan. I wasn’t actually planning on it since 1) I had a 3-day ticket for TIF (and in the end skipped all days) and 2) I didn’t want to deal with the hassle of AKB Ticket Center smartphone ticket app activation. If I had, I’d then bought the tickets for more AKB team concerts and also bought the more expensive guaranteed front area tickets. However, as I was buying from the ohanashikai site, there was just one class of ticket available.

I got to the site just at the time when the exchange started (note I got from HS event for the actual concert ticket) and while there was a big crowd of people, it wasn’t sold out as there was same-day tickets available. I got my ticket and waited around with a bunch of other foreign fans, got into the venue, exchanged my mandatory drink token for some refreshing Aquarius, skipped goods sales for toilet as it was about 5 minutes before go time, and then it was on!

I’ll not spoil the contents of the concert in case someone hasn’t seen it yet and wants to maintain surprise, but I was very pleased with the concert content. It was a massive amount of fun from the 17th gen! Everyone looked cute (Hotechan of course most of all), Kokko was slightly weird, otherwise things were normal.

The view I got wasn’t complete shit but it was what to be expected. I could see most of the stage, and girls from about waist up unless they did dance moves where they went low, or some cunt moved their head in front of me. Also, I had my now trusted binoculars with me, and I admit every now and then I stopped waving lightsticks so I could focus on eyeballing Hotechan or Sorara.

Some notes of the concert: They actually had a budget? Unlike others I’ve been to recently they had lazers etc and even soap bubbles and hovering styrofoam hearts (one of which is now a memento for me), some of which had messages. I do recommend watching this concert and even though I’d happily have spent the extra cash to get the better seats, I don’t mind spending for these either.

Then came omiokuri (hell yeah) where they did manage to lump all people to a single line going past the members, and I might have screwed over a couple of the people behind me by taking over Sorara’s attention for such a long time that a couple of people after me were past her when our eye contact moved elsewhere. Then I was at Hotechan and got even bigger happiness boost. After which it was out to door, got given a handwritten message card and also free Cup Ramen (Which I gave away).

Then it was off to shinkansen and try to figure out how to manage one 48-less day for this trip. Next up: More tebasaki!

 

So, it was supposedly a 48-less day for me today but I wasn’t ready to accept it so:

AKB48 大衣装展～オサレカンパニーの世界～

This was more convenient than I thought as I was anyway near Tokyo station and walk to the site took only a few minutes. They had a pop-up store in the ground floor so most of the stuff was already sold out, so I headed to the 11th floor to see the actual exhibition. I had seen the tickets being sold earlier on eplus but didn’t as I wasn’t sure of my schedule and there was supposedly day tickets available. Heading upstairs, I noticed quite soon where the exhbition was. The downside was that the info screen showed a 90-minute wait, so I got my Airwait ticket for queueing for the actual queue and decided to go buy some tea from a certain brand downstairs whose teas I am fond of. That 90-minute wait wasn’t accurate as after about 30 minutes I got e-mail that I should get back to the queue which I did.

The actual exhibition was slightly underwhelming but actually more crowded than I expected as basically people could walk in a queue around the exhibit and take photos once in front of an uniform… and there was a lot of them. For most uniforms they had Center’s version but not all. For a couple entire senbatsu’s was there. There wasn’t that much ”special” features which you might see at exhibitions, but they had one projector playing music viceos and some background music. One special feature was a separate room for graduation dresses which was nice, one could examine from all directions.

One thing where this exhibition was different from anything 48 ever was the ratio of young women vs. old guys. Completely different than usual. Also, I did enjoy being able to look at details up close, what I didn’t really like was dumbasses crowding certain locations so much that they were actually in contact with the uniforms. All in all it wasn’t a stage but worthwhile way to spend time!

 

61st Single Offline Talk Event - Pacifico Yokohama 7/29 (Slot 5)

This was my first AKB48 event that I have attended in real life, and is the sole reason I came to Japan this time.

10 tickets, slot 5 with Macharin. 1 full minute.

I said "hajimemashite" but she corrected me because this was not our first meeting. We had met during the online talks many times before, so it should've been "hisashiburi". I also told her that I am glad that we finally met in person.

I also congratulated her on becoming a F i.n.t model, getting a new agency, and doing many stage plays.

I didn't have much to say because my Japanese is non-existent and I have trouble memorizing things, but she made use of the remaining time and mentioned she noticed me translating all her tweets and is incredibly grateful for me doing that, even if it is just me using Google Translate.

I was very happy when she said that. There were times when I thought "what is the point of doing all this?", but she appreciates it, and that's all that matters. In the end, I was extremely happy with the talk, and I am very glad to be one of her Azuki.

Someone mentioned that I should've oshimashi'd a ticket and talked to Mizumin or another member, but I'm glad I did NOT do that.

Once my slot was over, I could not re-enter the venue. So I just wandered aimlessly until about 7pm. Met a few wota from this server/Eitocord/Twitter, watched some graduation ceremonies (member takes a photo with a large group of fans, it's their last talk ever)

61st Single Offline Talk Event - Pacifico Yokohama 7/29 (Kenkyuusei Concert Ticket Sales)

Kokko is tall.

 

AKB48 17研究所！ Presents 17期研究生 単独LIVE 〜嬉しすぎて歯が抜けそうです！〜 - KT Zepp Yokohama 8/6

First AKB48 concert!

I had a lot of problems getting this ticket. First went to the theater, but they said I had to apply online for the right to buy tickets at the theater. No idea what the staff were smoking, but they were completely wrong. That was the whole point of selling them at the theater.

Could've bought it at the talk event, but I was pissed off at staff for wasting my time at the theater. Eventually I convinced myself to pay the 8800 yen to see the kenkyuusei and bought a ticket at the venue. (I'm stubborn, irrational, and indecisive)

I don't really remember much, I still need to rewatch the archive. I also don't know most of the songs, so I can't provide any deep commentary about the song and member choices.

Spoiler: Mizumin thoughts

Mizumin was fire in Kuroi Tenshi. Reminded me a lot of her Junai no Crescendo performance, which I absolutely love. She is very expressive and immersed with her dance.

There was one song that Sorara had which I got Naachan vibes from her. From what I read on Twitter, other people felt the same.

Spoiler: surprised they performed one particular song

I was surprised they performed Beginner. When they came on the stage with the headphones I had a strong feeling it was Beginner. If it wasn't I would've been so disappointed. It's one of those memorable songs for me as it's the second AKB48 song I've ever listened to, and the last one until I went into the deep end in 2019.

Mayuu is a bad choice for "in your position, set". That's like making Mion do "AKB!..." at the start of River

The miokuri came up at the end, unprepared, I had no idea this was a thing, but I decided to impress Mizumin with some Hokkaido-ben. I said "shittake jaa~ ne~" which surprised her and she was happy to hear it. What I said was completely wrong, it should've been "shitakke", and the "jaa~ ne~" is unnecessary because they mean the exact same thing, but she understood what I meant. If I win a theater show where she performs, I will throw some more Hokkaido-ben at her at the miokuri.

All in all, I was really happy to have gone to the concert. I had no expectations, and I had a lot of fun. I only wish I could've gone to the Team A concert, but DH doesn't want my money.

Other minor comments:

I was standing at the very back, had a difficult time seeing the members, but I did my best to find Mizumin.

I would've preferred to be in the seated area. My legs aren't what they used to be. I don't have a Japanese phone number DH. Enough with the damn eTicket system.

They held a raffle for attendees. Someone with ticket 1501 won. My ticket was 1502.

It's pathetic how we all had to pay 600? yen to enter the venue. It was disguised as a mandatory drink fee. I barely made it into the concert hall on time.

 

7/30 Offline Talk at Pacifico Yokohama (so FARRR )

I'm not going to lie. 99% of my reasons for going to Japan for the first time was to meet Yui. I booked my plane ticket the moment they announced the in person events which fell on the weekend I wanted to go. The week after coincided with the AKB concerts and TIF that I also wanted to attend so it all worked out!
I arrived in Japan on 7/29 tired, confused, and hungry. Took me hours to get to my hotel. I was worried about jet lag, how to get to the venue... and it was all tomorrow! Luckily, I managed to get a good night's sleep.
I took the long train down to Yokohama for my first ever in-person AKB event. It was a little surreal walking into the event hall. This is the kind of thing you always read about but never think you would attend.
Since this was my first ever time attending an HS event, I thought I should get as many tickets to meet as many members as I could... It was a very long, grueling day....

I started my day with Yukitan. Her line was a little short compared to the other 17ki around her so I zoomed straight to the front. I gave me usual introductions, complimented her cute yukata. She was very happy when I said I was going to the 17ki concert (they were selling tickets up into the start of the concert) She is a very thoughtful girl who paid very close attention to my slow, broken jp.

I slid over to Eriko line next, which was quite full. I admit, I froze up a bit. She was so cute! I didn't even introduce myself, but she said nice to meet you. I did manage to tell her congratulations on senbatsu and she instantly lit up & gave a small bow. I see now how she got to where she is now.

Next was our child of god, Remitan. She really is cute incarnate. We ended our talk with
Remi: I really hope you come back to see me soon!
Me: Um... I...

To keep things rolling, I went to a very empty line of Kokone. It was so empty that she was waving down the line at me while I was doing my ID check with staff. I gave a small wave back. Up to this point, she was the best conversation of the day. Very animated reactions and discussions about where I was from and stuff. I ended the slot with
Me: I really like Kokone's smile...
She gave me the biggest one she could muster. I will defend her with my life now.

With 2 slots completed, I was exhausted. My Japanese ability is of a 1 year old toddler so I tend to struggle heavily with these conversations. The combination of body fatigue from the travel from the prior day and the mental fatigue of the talks was weighing down on me...

I powered on to slot 3 for my first talk with Sora. First thing I noticed throughout the day was her line was LONG and filled with girls. Anyway, I finally made it to her.
Me: Hi.
Sora: GASP? eh! (she points at me while covering her mouth)
Me: Long time no see. (I give a small wave)
Sora: [name]-SAN!
Me: I made it~
Sora: You always come online but now... (she giddily chimes)
Well that was very impactful. Even when the staff is pushing me away she is giving me love, squeezing out every second of our talk that we could. It's been a little over a year since I first met her during online talks and it finally culminated here. Suddenly, my fatigue was GONE.

With renewed vigor, I powered on because I still had 2 more girls to talk to during this slot, both 18ki!

First up was Hina. Holy crap is she pretty! Like it's not even fair to compare to what I see on the screen because she just... !!!! I told her I am supporting her a tons!

Second was Yumemi. What an angel...
Me: "Yumemi is... very pretty."
Yume: Eh........ (she gets all giddy and squirms around)
She is a little too good of an idol

Next was my final slot with Sora. I knew I had to get my goodbyes in... Who knows when I'll get to meet her in person again?
It was mix of happy we finally got to meet, I'll always remember, happy i'm going to 17ki concert. Until next time!

It was finally time. My first slot with Yui! I admit, I was pacing around in front of her line for a bit. I freeze with her sometimes online, how would I react when I finally meeting her face to face? I nervously went through ID check. Her line moves pretty quickly as she sells out so fast, most people only have 1 or 2 tickets.
Me: Hi... (I give a small wave)
Yui: AH?!
Me: "..."
Yui: You always come online, but you are finally here!
Me: Yeah well its my first time in Japan!
Yui: Hehe... welcome to Japan, [name]~
Me: Thanks... sorry... I'm too nervous...
Yui: It's okay. You're doing fine! Do you have more tickets for today?
Me: Of course! alllllllllll day!!! (I'm getting pushed out by staff)
Yui: Okay, bye! Your t-shirt is cute! (my shirt has a little alligator in the corner)
Me: haha, thanks~ (we are waving till the end as I'm getting dragged out)
first fun meeting with her. she really is just so much more ethereal and breathtaking in person. I almost passed out

I met Hiyuka next. Fast and fun. She was wearing a very mature outfit. Very shocked I came all the way from America to talk to her. She has a lot of trouble saying my name in english and tries to give me a "hello" too. I said it's okay its okay but of course... I love her smile the most. She finished with her trademarked grin.

Next was our future center, Aichan. Her line was massively long all day. I had to wait a bit to get to her.
"You're a real angel..."
She grinned and did an angel pose. She really is insanely pretty. She really is our savior.

Some notes I wrote down while waiting for Aichan.. saw a mom take her kid to see Megu. Staff gave the kid a stool to talk to her lol. Uh Ayamin line is making me SAD.

I met Haatam next. Her line was mega long and everyone had so many tickets that I waited forever! I guess this is the result of her only having one slot the whole day she is...

I returned to Yui for my second slot with her. I decided to loop with her since her line was a little shorter at this point and I had a ton of tickets.
Yui: Welcome back [name]~
Me: I'm back... um... hontoni daisuki
Yui: I LOVE YOU! (she says in english with a finger heart)
Me: (I froze)
Yui: (she laughs and wave bye)
We had a couple of these today... during my second loop, right before my turn she had to run away for hidaaya graduation pic. She gave me a quick sorry and scurried away as I stood in front of her line. This made me even MORE nervous!
After the little ceremony, I spotted Yui running back towards her booth. She spotted me and was smiling & waving while running back. It was some fun extra interactions with her.
Yui: Sorry, I'm back!! (she was a little out of breath)
Me: It's okay~ but um Yui. Congratulations on center!!!!!
Yui: AHHHH thanks. It's all because of your support~
Me: Eh... but I really want a CUTE IDOL song!
Yui: (she laughs here) I want that too...
Me: ah, see you~ (staff tugging me out)
Yui: [name]~ (she gives me a hand heart this time)

While I was in line, out of the corner of my eye I was wondering who was this beautiful member a couple slots over. Turns out it was Yuiri. I have no further commento

I met everyone's favorite Zukky next. Um... she's really pretty.

Next I scurried over to Komi's lane. I kinda wanted to meet her for a long time! Introduced myself and the usual, she responded with some simple english. I froze a bit, apologizing for my nervousness... she gives me a grin
"[name]... ikemen da..."
"Eh... Komi is beautiful..."
"Heheheh thanks~"
she stared at me for a very long time as I was getting dragged out. That was quite an experience.

I was back with Yui again. She came back to her booth with Oda who very manly had her arm around her lol.
Yui: Welcome back [name]~
Me: Yui... I love you the most
Yui: ICHIBAN?
Me: Of course... ICHIBAN!
Yui: I already know!
(Well i'm not subtle about it! )
Me: Next single... your center single... I will be online only...
Yui: Ah... Japan is very far away...
Me: I don't know when I can come back to Japan.. (she is very sad here. someone also in line actually asked me later what did I do to make her so sad. maybe this was a bad idea!)
Yui: It's okay! I will be looking forward to when I can see you online again.
Me: Of course! bye!
Yui: Always I will see you again~ (finger hearts)

It's time for Maho. She was... too genki

I went to Erii who was right next to her. I gave my classic usual introductions. She was the first one to say
"YOKOSOOO!" she backed up and spread her arms
was pretty fun. I told her she was a little too pretty!

I arrived on the 8th and final slot of the day.

First meeting ever with Miyuu.
Me: I'll be going to the 17ki concert! It's my first AKB concert!!!
Miyu: WOW! You really like the 17ki?
Me: YUP!!!!
she really cares about the 17ki the most!

Arrived at my last slot of the day, 5 tickets with Yui for our goodbye. At this point of the day, I honestly wanted to go back to my hotel and sleep but I powered on!
Me: This is my last tickets for today...
Yui: At least we finally met!
Me: I'm a little sad
Yui: Don't be! I will see you again online? OKAY?
Me: Um...
Yui: btw [name], how old are you? 19?
Me: Um... no... I'm...
Yui: Oh! haha You look young though! "your face is young!" (she motions with English)
Me: Um.. I'm a little embarrassed.
Yui: I like your face though!
Me: well, I will always love you~
Yui: Un [name]! always! daisuki!!!!!!

that brings my long day to an end

 

2023.08.14 "Boku No Taiyou" Theater Performance 18:00

I won my first theater show!

I spent about 2 weeks trying to figure out what was wrong with my AKB48 Group ID. I wasn't able to apply for any events. It turns out that if you have the address set to overseas, you can't apply for majority of theater events. I set it to my Tenso address, but I think any legit address in Japan should work (unless they try and ship things to you using that address).

Went to the ticket counter, picked up my ticket, had number 004 printed on it. I thought that meant I was going to be the 4th person to enter, but no.

You line up according to ticket number, 001-005, 006-010, 011-015, etc, then the lane is randomly selected. I think we were the 5th lane selected, and I still got a good view of the stage.

I ended up sitting in the middle section, 3rd row, next to the pillar. I had a clear line of site and Macharin was positioned right in front of me during some songs. She recognized me and mentioned it in SHOWROOM.

I'd like to think she was surprised to see me. The night before, she sent a mobame asking all Azuki who are coming to the performance to bring a fan/uchiwa and Pamii. I responded with a picture of 3 uchiwa, Pamii, and 2 lightsticks, and the message "want to use, but low chance of winning".

It's definitely a low chance of winning, and I won, but I didn't mention it. I ended up bringing 1 uchiwa and Pamii.

My first impression of the Theater is that it is TINY. The videos really make the venue seem larger than it actually is. I've seen some old 1ji59fun/0ji59fun clips of the theater and the amount of people they had made it look huge.

I didn't have time to appreciate finally entering a place with so much history. I was rushing to find a decent seat, and once the show started, I was immersed.

I don't normally watch BokuTai stages. I tend to fall asleep when watching Team K and BokuTai stages, but I'm starting to like BokuTai now.

In terms of the setlist, nothing really stood out, but when I saw the performing members, I was secretly hoping Macharin, Kyonchan, and Okarina would get to have a unit song together. They ended up performing "Itoshisa no Defense".

"Viva! Hurricane" I remember from the Team 8 stage, I like it. "BINGO!" and "Boku no Taiyou" are expected, but most of the songs don't really stand out.

All in all, I was very happy to finally see a theater performance in-person. This Saturday evening, I will be at the theater again to see the 17ki perform at the Ii na Kenkyuujou exclusive member performance.

I hope my luck doesn't run out. I want to see Macharin perform with Team A, and want to see a Team 4 performance with Kyonchan. There's a regular Team 4 performance on the 30th so when that opens up I will apply for it.

 

2023.08.26 KKS "Tadaima Renaichuu" Theater Performance 18:00

First time seeing the KKS perform a theater show. This performance was exclusive to people who paid for "Ii Na Kenkyuujou".

Unfortunately, this theater experience was horrendous. I sat in the last seated row in the left section where my line of sight was blocked by the pillar.

The section behind me was the standing section, and the person behind me would always yell for Hotechan and Yukitan. He was screaming in my ear, and each time he opened his mouth, his saliva would end up in my hair. Absolutely disgusting.

That's pretty much it. There was nothing good I could remember because it was overshadowed by the animal screaming behind me.

From now on I'll bring earplugs to performances.

2023.08.30 Team 4 "Thumbnail" Theater Performance 18:30

First Team 4 performance. Won through Eizo application.

I was very eager to see Team 4 Thumbnail because it is my absolute favourite of the current stages.

My luck ran out and was one of the last groups to enter. Ended up in the last row in the standing section.

I could not see much, but I still enjoyed the performance.
It's also the last time I got to see Kyon and Rina perform together.

For my lightsticks I used Kyon colours as she is the closest to a Team 4 oshi. She noticed and gave extra attention to me during miokuri.

2023.09.04 Team A "Juuryoku Sympathy" Theater Performance 18:30

First Team A performance. Won through Eizo application.

This was the performance I really wanted to see because Macharin. I applied to about 2 or 3 Team A stages and failed before winning this.

Bad luck again. Ended up in the exact same spot as the Team 4 stage, last row, standing section, bad visibility.

The highlight of this performance was Serika's performance of "Oteage Lullaby", as well as seeing "1994-nen no Raimei".

Macharin had a Pamii hairstyle, not really sure what exactly she meant by that, her hair looked how she normally does it in performances.

She mentions Pamii a lot during MC segments. This time she didn't bring one, but I waved from the back of the theater and she pointed to it as well as the other Pamii penlights in the audience.

In SHOWROOM she mentioned that she was really surprised to see me. I never told her I would be at the performance.

2023.09.09 KKS "Tadaima Renaichuu" Theater Performance 13:00

Second KKS performance. Won through Eizo application.

After my bad experience with the first KKS stage, this one was MUCH better. My group got selected early on, so I was seated in the 4th row in the center section, next to the left pillar. I also didn't have anyone screaming into my ear.

Mizumin is my ni-oshi, so I am always stunned by her "Junai no Crescendo" performance. Both this, and seeing her with glasses in Darui Kanji are the only reasons I apply for the KKS stage. There have been quite a few KKS stages lately, but I've only applied to the ones with Mizumin performing.

Some other things of mention:

I noticed in "Kikyou", you have the 3-MIN's performing. MizuMIN, KasuMIN, and YumeMIN

Forgot which member it was exactly (Hinano? Yumemin?), was ponkotsu. After one particular song, the members were supposed to do an MC segment, but she tried to walk off the stage back to standby. When saying goodbye to VR Square members, she touched/adjusted the lens causing Airi to panic.

Kasumin has a very big smile.

 

Damn son that's a nice streak!

It clearly seems I shouldn't always forget to apply with Eizo.

 

A few more since then lol:

Thumbnail last Sunday, A this Sunday. Didn't win any B stages, probably since they are all seitansai's.

 

Hi,
sorry if it's not the right place, but I'm desperate lol
Ok so I will be in Tokyo in december and I'm researching about how to apply for akb theater tickets. I have an hashiranokai account linked to my AKB group ID, I wanted to know if it was better to put a Japanese address or just keep my overseas address and how long before an actual performance we can apply ?
Also what is the eizo thing ?
Sorry for bothering T_T

 

Eizo is a video warehouse. You can watch things like HADO. I haven't used it, so I'm not too familiar with it.

You will need a Japanese address. If you have an overseas address set, you won't get any AKB events displayed in the Ticket Center. You can only change the address once every 6 months.

Also make sure the registered name matches your passport. If your name doesn't match, you will need to create a new Group ID, and reconnect Eizo, Hashira no Kai.

I couldn't reconnect Hashira no Kai, so I had to cancel, then sign up again with the new ID.

You can apply for a show about one week before the performance date. Applications frame times are listed in the Schedule.

1. Go to https://www.akb48.co.jp/about/schedule

2. In this example, go down and select 9/26, click on "18:30 - 18:30 「僕の太陽」公演"

3. Go to this section "【お申し込みについて】"

It lists all the application frames:
(1)100発100中権利
(2)100発98中権利
(3)柱の会会員枠
(4)AKB48グループ映像倉庫会員枠
(5)一般枠
(6)ファミリーカップル枠
(7)女性小中学生枠

(3) is Hashira no Kai
(4) is Eizo
(5) is general admission
(6) is Families/Couples
(7) is Women only

The section below it "【申し込み期間】" lists the times the frames will accept applications

【申し込み期間】
＜(1)～(4)の枠＞2023年9月20日(水)16:00～2023年9月21日(木)16:00
＜(5)～(7)の枠＞2023年9月20日(水)16:00～2023年9月23日(土)16:00

Frames (1) to (4) and (5) to (7) will accept applications from 9/20 16:00 to 9/21 at 16:00

The section below it will list the times you will be notified if you win:

【当選発表】
＜(1)～(4)の枠＞2023年9月22日(金)23:00まで
＜(5)～(7)の枠＞2023年9月24日(日)23:00まで

Winners for those who applied using Frames (1) to (4) will be notified until 9/22 at 23:00

Winners for those who applied using Frames (5) to (7) will be notified until 9/24 23:00

This is the process to apply for a theater show:

1. Log in at https://ticket.akb48-group.com/home/login.php

2. Click on the header image "AKB48 Group Ticket Center"

3. Click on the AKB48 tab.

4. It will display all eligible shows you can watch that are currently accepting applications


Each point is an application frame:
- Hashira no Kai
- Eizo
- Families/Couples
- Women only
- General admission

If the frame is in red, you can apply for that specific frame
If the frame is in grey, you can NOT apply for it

5. Click on the show you want to apply for. In this example I will apply for "Boku no Taiyou" on 9/26 at 18:30, the last one listed



6. Scroll down until you see some blue buttons, these are your application frames:



7. Click on the frame you want to apply for. In this example I clicked the first one "柱の会会員枠" which is "Hashira no Kai"



It will ask me if I will be attending the show with a companion.

Since I am not, I will just click the blue button "次へ" to go to the next page.

8. The next page will ask you if you want to be put on a waiting list if there is a cancellation and if you want to pay by credit card.



If you want to be put in a waiting list, under "キャンセル待ち希望", check "希望する"

If you want to pay by credit card, under "クレジットカード決済希望", check "希望する"

Click the blue button "確認する" to continue

9. Confirmation screen



Click on the blue button "申し込む" to go to the next page

10. Confirmed



You will also get an email

11. Applying for other frames

If you are eligible for other frames, you can go back to increase your chances of winning.



I already applied using "Hashira no Kai", so it is greyed out. I can also apply using "Eizo", just click on the blue button "映像倉庫会員枠" and it is the same process as above.

12. Winning a ticket

If you win, you will get an email that looks like this:



If you lose, you get nothing.

You will need to go to the Ticketing Center to pay using credit card. I don't have any screenshots of that because I already paid for my ticket.

13. Getting the physical ticket

The email states that you need to go to theater around 1h30 minutes before the show.

Go to the front booth, tell them your winning lottery number. In my screenshot above it is 480.

Give them your passport, they will hand it back to you and your winning ticket.

14. Valuables

Bags aren't allowed, so you will need to keep it in your locker.

You will get a plastic tray and you put your phone, passport, ticket, penlights, fans, drink. The rest goes into a locker.

15. Lining up.

Each ticket is given a number. You will line up in groups of 10 according to that number.

Tickets 001 to 009 are in one lane
Tickets 010 to 019 are in one lane
Tickets 020 to 029 are in one lane
...
Tickets 240 to 249 are in one lane

16. Lane selection

The lanes will be randomly selected. You will then proceed in order, you set your plastic tray on the table, a staff member will run you through a metal detector.

Once everything is all good, you enter the theater and find a seat.

---

It's incredibly confusing at first, but you just really need to take note of when the shows are announced.

I usually just check Twitter at 4pm JST and they announce the show and performing members, then I just apply.

---

I've only won 1 show with Hashira no Kai, and about 5 or 6 using Eizo, so it might be worth it to sign up for Eizo

 

Thank you soooo much omg you are a life saver .