Can't go with anything but my number 1 in this case: Momo!
Let's see, the ordering for Berryz:
Momo>Captain>Miya & Risako>Maasa>Yurina & Chinami
Yup, that's seven.
Berryz as a group:
Berryz has always struck me as the fun group in H!P. While MoMusu can shift from emo to genki to sexy and C-ute are the professional dance troupe with boring songs, Berryz always seems to be having the most fun. Beatboxing, singing about monkey dances, dressing up as fish - all playful acts that I can't really imagine the other groups doing. Well, possiblt S/mileage.
Where C-ute developed as a dance group, Berryz aimed to experiment with their vocal abilities, doing a capella and beatbox versions of their songs.These experiments bring out the fun image of Berryz.
I always think Berryz was currently aiming to a younger, anime-centric audience thanks to their Inazuma Eleven connection, while C-ute was targeted more as the mature dance group for wotas.
Getting back to my rankings:
Yurina and Chinami are at the bottom end since someone had to be at the bottom. Seriously though, I like most of Berryz Kobo as idols. They're at the bottom since I find their vocal ability lacking. I've touched on Yurina, but I remember being unimpressed with Chinami's recent solo.
Unlike Momo, I feel that Chinami doesn't go out of her way to impress as an idol. Case in point, in the Kids' 1st Solo lives, both Chinami and Maimi performed Momoiro Kataomoi. It's not the most difficult performance vocally, tbh. And Chinami and Maimi weren't singing it too badly. The main difference was that Maimi took the opportunity to at least do the moves, interact with the audience a bit. Chinami was basically a singing plank.
Maasa I like because you can see how her confidence developed as an idol. When you compare her now to when she was flailing around in the back of Special Generation, she's developed a lot.
She isn't your traditional idol, which makes her more interesting when you compare her to the rest of Berryz. I think that's the cause why it's so rare that the wardrobe team dresses her so horribly most of the time (relative to the horribleness that is H!P costumes) - they haven't figured out how to dress her. They managed once in the Medachitai concert though - a lovely, unadorned red dress. Sadly, it looks like they've forgotten that magic.
Moving up, Miya and Risako. A few years ago, Miya would be second and Risako would be last. Nowadays, they're roughly on the same position, which is still pretty high.
I'll start with Miya. She was number two for quite some time early in my fandom, though she was eventually taken over by Chinami, and now, Captain. It's obvious to see why she was just after the impassable barrier where Momo stands - she's one of the mains, she can sing pretty decently, she can dancewell, and finally, she's real pretty.
Only problem: she's pretty boring as well. Her saving grace is that whenever I start thinking of her as boring, I will eventually stumble upon a concert performance of her and think "Damn she's fine!". Not a fan of the fact that she's taken to caking tons (relatively) of makeup on her face recently.
While Socko - she's the complete opposite: couldn't sing, couldn't dance, and yet was the frontliner. Why was she ahead of my Momoko? Yet, like Maasa, you could slowly notice improvements. Her singing voice slowly went from terrible to merely bad. At some point, she stopped caring about the weaknesses in her vocal ability and just concentrated on her strengths. And how that helped. She changed from a shouty voice to a strong soulful one. Her recent rendition of Hajimete Kuchibiru no Kasaneta Yoru? Top notch.
I'm more a fan of old school Risako than the current Risako. It's not that she's fat, it just that she looks - so dolled up. It almost feels fake. And one thing I like about Risako is how sincere she is. Face and personality don't match.
Captain's gone up in my rankings these past few years. I started getting interested in her from Berryz' 12th DVD magazine, where Berryz visits an aquarium. Momo, Chii, and Captain were waiting their turn, and they try to get Chii to sing in harmony. By now, Berryz have shown that they're capable of doing that shit. Yet, circa Munasawagi Scarlet, Berryz got pwned for not knowing how to harmonise on a TV show. So this was impressive to me.
Unlike Socko, who maximised her vocal strengths, Captain refined hers. I'm impressed with her vocal range, though I still think she lacks vocal strength.
Helps that she's also been starting to look more attractive starting from Seishun Bus Guide.
Momo is my number one. Is there anything about her I haven't said yet?
She seems comfortable in the burikko/ijirare character she has. I've mentioned that her "I'm cute" act has been a bit overboard, and the other members don't seem that enthusiastic about that act.
But still love her anyways.
I think Momo's the H!P idol I've mentioned the most so far, so I'll leave you with a pic of my number 1 and 2, the Oneesans.
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| Where are they going next? Momo looks excited, while Captain just wants to get to the next place |
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