All thoughts and opinions written on this blog are my own and no one else's. You may disagree or agree with me, however do not hate me for what I say; I don't care if you think the way you think is 'right', and that I, as a person, should follow how you think - that's taking away my freedom to think how I want, so if you come to blogs like mine to basically bitch and whine about how my opinion is inferior, then get out. Other than that, enjoy~
*I would like to point out that, whilst a review, this is a post written with Tanaka Reina as the focus, so if I fail to talk about anything else other than Reina, just remember that my focus is, for now, Reina and Reina alone... however weird that may seem to you all o-O
*About this series: I have created this series with the intention of looking at groups or songs where Tanaka Reina is a focus, or where she has grown considerably, from way back then until now. Because of this, I may be looking at songs or PV's that I previously ignored or loved once upon a time. There will, hopefully, be a mix of things here. I hope you enjoy.
This post is a little late due to me not scheduling a new post or even writing it until the day it is meant to be posted. That's my own fault, plus random college stuff (well, not random, but you get what I mean) and sleeping. YAY, SLEEPING!!!
Anyways, guess where we will be travelling back in time to this Week with our dear old Wonky Winker? Yup, back to good ol' 2008! HIT IT!!!
Now, should I really call this post Tanaka Reina Complex, because let's be honest; the only thing I have a complex about Winky is that she is now an eye-sore in MoMusu because of how much she does not care, or how bored she looks in PV's... kind of like Yajima Maimi in this PV, actually, but I digress. I guess looking back at past PV's of Winky has given me a complex about how I wish I could have seen her 'past-self' rather than seeing this Winky, because I might have appreciated and liked her a whole damn lot more.
Ooh, I think I do have a complex with Winky! Or, at the very least, a real issue. Who knows?
Anyway, today I will be taking a look at a group I found way back in 2009, the year of the beginning of a fandom I never wanted to fangirl over... yeah. So, back in 2009, a year after this songs release and the groups debut, I listened to this song and, admittedly, this was mine and my sisters favourite jame. It was jazzy, cool, funky... well, simply put, it was amazing. And that's more to do with the song and the clothes and the PV, not the girls. In fact we pretty much ignored them; we just enjoyed the damn song and that was what mattered, though I remember liking Ai more (I think) because for a while I went into a trilby hat phase, so I blame her.
Of course I now know who everyone in this PV is, but that's besides the point; me and my sister were quite fond of High-King, even when we found out about their other musical numbers present on Petit Best albums, and we thought that they were quite cool.
But, looking at this PV now, I realise just how unappealing Reina is to me; after watching Shabondama, FIRST KISS and Inshouha Renoir no You ni, I have come to the PV, one of the first non-MoMusu related video's I had watched in 2009 I believe, that shows off Tanaka Reina in the light I see her in today; totally unappealing, though admittedly her performance skill in this is a lot higher than in current MoMusu PV's.
Okay, I'm blabbering. I will talk more about my thoughts on Winky here (and now, I guess?) later on, but first, we must dash darings, my Cinderella Complex is kicking in and I need to get to the pic spam, so pip pip off we pop!
Oh, joy unbounded, tacky sparkles and... well, it basically looks like Modern-Reina designed it, doesn't it?
Okay, Saki, what are you doing? You're meant to stand still, not look like an Extra from a Zombie flick.
Winky: "Bitches, I'm BAAAACK!"
Oh good Lord, it looks like the Yankee Army has been formed, with Reina at the centre of it all! What is this world coming to!?
... Oh, and she's loving it. Great.
On the other hand, Ai looks quite delightfully hot in this. Niiiiice.
Winky: "Ayyyye wha'chur lookin' at HEEER foooor... *hic*"
I think that Winky's been hitting the bottle again, Management. You really need to sort her out.
Okay, niiiiiiiice. I would tap dat... also, I do want that trilby. It's gorgeous.
... Winky, stop thrusting, you have no ass or sex-appeal to thrust with. Ai, on the other hand... hnng!!!
Ai-but: "... me?"
Okay, is it just me, or does she look extremely erotic in this? Yeah, I didn't think that it was just me.
Ai-spam!!!! Because she is FABULOUS!
... Especially in that hat. Yikes!!! I might be in love!
Yuukarin: "Give me your LOOOOOVE!!!"
I never knew who Yuuka was when I first watched this, but dang, she is cute as a button!
High-King: "STOP!!!! High-Five the High-Kings!!!!"
Hold on to your hats, Ai-butt and Saki, cos Winky is just gonna get worse in the next few years to come!!!
Winky: "Ayyye, how would you know, ya HICK?"
Because I am from the future!!!!
Winky: "Do I control MoMusu in this future?"
... Pretty much, sadly.
Winky: "Aweeeeeshooooooooome~"
... Yup. Totally erotic and hot and DANG YES!!!!!! Whoever marries her is one lucky dude.
FABULOUS, BITCH!!!!
Yes, please Reina, shoot me now, because your Yankee, Winking ways are a bit too much for me...
Saki: "Heeey, where have I been in this entire screen cap!?"
I really have no interest in Saki in this MV, however she is one dang good rapper and also looks quite swish in those clothes.
Winky: "Come to me, potential minion of mine..."
Winky, please don't lean down if you have no cleavage to show off. K, thanks, BYE!!!
Ai-butt: "Oh my GOD, this hat makes me look super HAWT!!!"
Ai-butt is so go-damn lovely in this, I can't even...
Hng... I will give you my Love, Ai-butt!
Oh, I was unaware of the fact that Saki's hat seems to have grown pigtails. Hm...
Winky: "Make way for *hic* REEEEEEINA BITCHES! QUEEN REINA, YEEEAH! *Hic splutter hic*"
Oh Lord, Winky's on the Sauce again, and she's heading my way!!!!
Winky: "Give me a *hic* huuuuuuuug!!!"
My lord, that is one scary and determined look!
... Why is this quite eerie looking, aye?
Well, at least this one is all hng and NNNG!!!!
Yuukarin is so adorable, and she seems so out of place in this but who cares? XD
Winky: "Why the eff are you payin' attenshun to tha' kid, aye?"
Winky is so unappealing in this, looks wise...
But Ai-butt, on the other hand... hng!
... Even when she looks crazy!
Winky: "Bitch, I'm fabulous and you know it!"
Oh wow, this actually looks half-decent for Reina in this MV.
... Put the peace sign DOWN, WINKY!!!!
Oh, hi Maimi in the background trying to get the camera to focus on her!
Winky: "RAWR!!! GRRRR"
... ARRRRGH! WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?
Oh, this revolving podium... thing reminds me of that new-ish song, Basu ni Naranai Tetsugaku and also One Two Three... except everyone is one it, and not one random person.
... Oh yeah, I forgot she existed. Better put her in here or people might suspect I don't really like her...
Is it even legal for her to be bending down like that?
Saki has some sass, you gotta admit... even with that hairstyle.
Ooooh, it's like I'm looking at Kono Chikyuu, but instead of just Ai reaching for a star, everyone is!
I call this the 'Put the powder on ma FAYSCHE' dance move.
Now class, this is an example of how to grow up the Wrong way as an Idol...
... And this is an example of how to grow up the Right way as an Idol. Understand, Yuukarin?
Yuukarin: "Yes, m'am..."
D'awww, she looks like a deer caught in the headlights! Or a Victim caught in the middle of a Yankee fight, whichever one works better here...
Winky: "Please... PLEASE start liking me... What have I ever done to you...?"
Erm, well you started to get all 'cutesy' in how you sang, for a start, and then became tacky. Once upon a time you were so cute and natural and awesome as a singer, and such an enthusiastic performer! Now though...? Yeah...
Maimi is, as always, looking like a derp (not a good one, either) whilst Ai is being her sexy, erotic self... and Saki is luuurving the performance!!!
ASSES, hell yeah! Well, except for Winky. She has no ass...
And c'est FINI!!!!
... The comments for screen caps took longer to do than I hoped, but I kept flitting between eating and being in my room, so oh well... but anyway, after finally getting to this part of the review, we can finally, er, REVIEW!!! So, let's hit (Yes, come again! UH!)
Okay, so where was I back when I was in ramble-nostalgia mode at the beginning of the blog? OH YEAH! I was blabbering on about how, for me, unappealing Tanaka Reina looks in this PV now that I know who is who, and after viewing Reina's performance in older PV's, back when she was actually extremely likeable and very very cute. Seriously... from Inshouha Renoir Reina to High-King Reina, what the heck happened? I would like to say puberty, but honestly, I just think that someone gave her a tub of glitter and it went from there.
Now that's not to say that there isn't anything to like about this Reina; in fact, I did quite like her in this video. She seems really enthusiastic and happy performing in the video, and her smile seems so genuine and sweet most of the time. It's just her hairstyle and how she sings that is very unappealing for me as a viewer, because she basically looks like the Winky we view in video's today; generic (in terms of looks and style) and far too over-used, as if she can't be bothered to change up her looks because it takes some sort of effort. But that's just style, really, and whilst her voice is that same annoying squeak I hear a lot in singles today... I think it works quite well for this song, even if it isn't a breath-taking tone of awesomeness that was once her amazing voice.
Also, I could swear that how she pulls faces gets worse the older she gets; she looks wonkier and drunker every time I see her. It also seems very try-hard, not effortless like Takahashi Ai, or old Winky - even in Aa!, where her performance skills were upped, she was very effortless and seemed to just do everything naturally. Here, everything just looks, well... forced. Except for her smile. Her smile and pure enjoyment for this group and song seems extremely genuine.
... And that is actually my analysis of Reina for this video, because really, what more can I say about her? She does not impress me like she did in the other video's, because it's the Winky I see today - someone who looks the same and just seems to try too hard in her expressions to make herself look appealing as a performer, and someone who sounds like a shrieking squirrel that can hold a tune... wait, can squirrels even hold a tune?
Long story short, looks wise she has basically become the Reina I know today, and the Reina that I don't like or acknowledge, however performance wise... well, it's like I am looking at that younger Tanaka Reina who is so enthusiastic about her work, and wants to try hard because she loves what she does. It's pretty damn clear that she loves this song and the girls she is working alongside, and is not doing it because she has to, but because she genuinely wants to and thinks that this is awesome. And it is... High-King is pretty damn awesome.
Which will bring me to the PV itself for C/C (Cinderella Complex)... it's pretty dang awesome, isn't it? Who can actually hate this song, really?
This is actually a nice change of pace in terms of sound for H!P - it's modern, edgy and very catchy. It actually doesn't sound like Idol-pop (WOW), and there is a bunch of talent behind the instrumental giving it the vocal work; by talent I do mean Reina, Ai-butt, Yuukarin and Saki, because I still can't stand Maimi's nasally voice even here, however all the girls bring forth nice dance-talent... or as much dancing talent as thrusting can give, but anyways! All the voices fit this song, and whilst the only childish voice present is in fact Yuukarin's, the group has an entirely mature and cool feel to it that makes it seem so grown-up, modern and amazing, and I think that was what appealed to me the most about the group other than this awesome song; they were modern, and also, there was a nice little variety of young women present in the group like the awkward child, the sexy one, the boyish one, the pretty girl-next door type and the generic squirrel; there was a girl there that quite a few people could to relate to, rather than having one 'type', and each girl has a different look... and I liked that about the group.
So back to the PV (I talked about the group by accident! ARGH!); I found this PV, even way back when, really cool to watch. It's a very cool looking set, and the varying scenes add a nice mood to the video. I love the dark-to-light contrasts and the use of red-toned rooms and a black room to add to that cool feeling. Actually, the video itself, whilst pretty simple, looks quite expensive in how the sets look and adds a touch of class to this modern and trendy video. I have no idea what my favourite scene is, though; quite possibly the dark-dance scene where the lights show their silhouettes? It looks really edgy and just brings a nice balance to the video in my opinion. It also gives the video that little extra bit of variety too, and makes it very very cool and awesome.
I say 'cool' too much, but whatever.
Now, in terms of the PV still, I found the performance of the girls quite varying; Maeda Yuuka, the cutest of the bunch by far, looks so sweet and awkward in this, as if she's been shoved into a group of scary adults not out of choice, but because she had too. She is pretty much a deer-caught-in-the-headlights here, and you can just see how out of place she is in a few scenes; when she's singing, performing seems quite natural, but most other times she just seems like she wants to be anywhere else but there, especially in the close-ups. It's very endearing, actually, but also quite worrying in a way... it's a good thing that Reina and Ai-butt kind of made up for Yuukarin's awkwardness with their enthusiasm for this PV, aye?
Speaking of which... Ai-butt is glorious in this, isn't she? She is so sexy and it kinda kills me with ecstasy (hahahahaha) when she just... well, looks at the camera. Basically, she is eye-fucking the viewers with every chance she gets, and she is god-damn irresistible as she does it! I swear, how can one person be so effortlessly gorgeous and sexy? She is also really charismatic, because I was put right under her charm when I re-watched this PV for this review! Out of everyone in this video, performance (and singing!) wise, Ai-butt totally steals the cake; she just knows how to work the camera and show off her good points. She isn't too enthusiastic, but you know that she loves it, and I think a part of her charm in this, other than being sexy, is that she doesn't seem to be trying to be sexy... she just is. It's flawless, perfect... amazing. Her performance is top-notch, and totally above everyone else.
Especially the Queen of Awkward and Snooze-ville, Yajima who, as you probably noticed, bored me to death in this video. In fact, I kept forgetting she existed in this group until she popped up randomly... however, she is very girl next door pretty in my opinion, but again... boring. Where Reina was overly-enthusiastic and practically jumping at the camera, Maimi was just... well, she was just there, being herself; boring. Even Saki, who I sometimes hardly notice, did more in this and appealed to me more than Maimi did. Oh well... can't like em all, can I?
And then there is Saki who, admittedly, is so unappealing to me, but also a beauty. Or at least, she's a beauty with long hair. With her short hair I tend to ignore her, but in this video she is extremely cool and just so... well, charismatic. She doesn't seem so girly in this like the others do, and I think she takes that into account and uses it to make herself stand out. Much like Reina, I do think that Saki has clear enthusiasm for this video, and whilst she isn't shown much, her scenes are pretty memorable; she seems quite forceful at times, as if she wants you to remember her, and she also seems a lot sharper than the other girls when it comes to performing, like how she presents herself. Her moves, the way she dances or does her hand movements, are more refined and a lot quicker than everyone else's, like she's really getting into the spirit of the song. It's extremely noticeable, and whilst I am not a fan of Saki or this hairstyle in High-King, I think that she stood out in her own way in this, to the point where she managed to embed herself in my mind.
In fact, if I had to say who were my Top Two memorable members in High-King, I would have to say Takahashi Ai and Shimizu Saki; they have a camera presence you can not ignore here, and they just seem like they really do work hard and enjoy it, and their moves, whether forceful or effortless, are noticeable.
... And I think that's it, pretty much. C/C (Cinderella Complex), a song that I found in 2009 and liked greatly, has been played once again, but this time from a new perspective, one where I can judge the members with the knowledge that I actually know, as a fan, who they are. It's strange looking back at High-King now and thinking 'Oh, I used to never know who was who, and I only like them for their music and look...' because really, I did not know anything about them and I just loved this song and the style of clothes they wore. They were cool back then, but they are cool now still... however, Reina is a lot more unappealing to me here now than she would have been back then, I think, but only because her current look (not performance, though) is very much like the Winky I watch on PV's today. Tis sad, but tis very true, my Chimian Chums.
Anyway, that's all for today... but who is your Member Complex?
Mine might just have to be Ai-butt... yum, Ai-butt~
Chiima~
PING!!! Idolminded Recommended Reading: May 17th, 2013
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