Berryz Kobo x ℃-ute Cross Talk: Tokunaga Chinami x Sudo Maasa

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Hello! Project Kids in 2012, a book entitled Rival - 12 shoujo no 10-nen monogatari - (The 10-year legend of the 12 girls) was released. The book contains 2-page discussions between various pairings of the girls, covering all 66 possible combinations. In the process of reading this book, I'll be putting up some highlights as I read through the interviews.

Tokunaga Chinami X Sudo Maasa

Though they enjoy pranks, the 2 of them are polar opposites in both personality and actions.

What happens when that Tokunaga and Sudo each look back on 10 years of being together with one another?

When I was looking for common points between the two of you, I found out that the 2 of you enjoy pranks.

Tokunaga: I like fun things (laughs).

Sudo: Eh, I can understand that for Chinami, but me!? But it's probably because I do feel up people's butts on-stage (laughs)

Maasa-chan, molesting (laughs)? Given your personality, it's kind of unexpected. Well then, how did the 2 of you first meet?

Sudo: Actually, during the 4th stage of the 'Hello! Project Kids Auditions', we met at the washroom (laughs). Chinami-chan and Momochi talked to me about a lot of things, but since I was shy, I couldn't reply.

Berryz Kobo x ℃-ute Cross Talk: Natsuyaki Miyabi x Sugaya Risako

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Hello! Project Kids in 2012, a book entitled Rival - 12 shoujo no 10-nen monogatari - (The 10-year legend of the 12 girls) was released. The book contains 2-page discussions between various pairings of the girls, covering all 66 possible combinations. In the process of reading this book, I'll be putting up some highlights as I read through the interviews.

Natsuyaki Miyabi X Sugaya Risako

╫╫╫

Were you close since 10 years ago?

Natsuyaki: That's right. Even the fans said that 'Risako and Miya are always together', and if you were to look at photos from the past, there really are a lot that capture the 2 of us, we were together so much that we really were like sisters. I think it's amazing that we've continued that way since we were small.

Sugaya: In Berryz Kobo, I really get spoiled by Captain and Miya. Captain spoils me, but Miya would say 'Do it properly!, just like an oneechan.

Natsuyaki: When I'm mad, I'm mad. Like 'Risako, that's no good', in a serious tone.

Sugaya: You'd scold me, but you'd also listen to what I had to say and sympathise with me. I'm the oldest girl at home, so I think it would be really great to have an oneechan like this.

Country Girls and the New Members

Courtesy of Barks, we have coverage of what happened over at Country Girls' formation 1st anniversary event. I'll be focusing on the 2 new members in this translation.

If you're more of a video person, I've put up a subtitled version of the Jijipress coverage on the event. It includes a clip of the existing Country Girls members being informed of and welcoming the new additions, but not the closing comments from the members. I've been told that the video may not be available to US viewers though, so your mileage may vary.

This'll be out of chronological order, but I think it flows better given that we know the final outcome.
Quick note: from what I understand, the years are counted from when they start rather than when they end. So the day after your first anniversary, you enter your second year rather than starting on your first year. I guess the natural numbers start with 1 in Japan.

Letter from Country Girls Supervisor Satoda Mai

Everyone, a very good evening to you!
This is Country Girls Supervisor Satoda Mai.

Celebrating a whole year today, on the 5th of November,
Country Girls will be making a new start.

As the original goal was to be a group that's growing to face the world stage,
And thinking about how to power it up further,
I had exchanges with people from the office,
Including Playing Manager Momochi.
A proposal to add new members was made,
And I approved of that proposal.

Taking into account their habitual training, the outcome of their lessons, and their future prospects,
We chose 2 names for the new members, Yanagawa Nanami and Funaki Musubu, from the H!P Kenshuusei.

To the fans who have been cheering us on, we beg for your continued kind and warm cheers of support.

And to the 2 new members, please blow a new wind into Country Girls with your energy and freshness.

From now on, I'll be watching over the 7 of you!

November 2015, Satoda Mai

Momochi, welcome back! Also, let's get to know the new Country Girls!

On Thursday, Country Girls celebrated the anniversary of their formation, where we received some huge news concerning Country Girls:

Momochi has officially recovered!!!

That's right, she's been given the okay from the doctors to continue with her singing activities!

For those not in the know, everyone's idol was diagnosed with vocal cord polyps. She took a break for a while, but slowly recovered to the point where she could appear at events in as a MC. She even joined in a Halloween Parade. But as of Thursday, she's officially made her singing comeback.

Of course, I'm sure that all of us will gladly welcome back the presence of the Playing Manager, a paragon of stability in these turbulent times.

Also, another related and similarly momentous announcement was made on that day as well: Momochi would be growing the ranks of her loli minions Country Girls would be welcoming two new members from the H!P Kenshuusei - Yanagawa Nanami and Funaki Musubu. Just as a yardstick, both girls are slightly older than Momochi's idol career. While Funakki is a familiar face, Yanagawa Nanami's fairly new. In a bid to get to know them better, I'll be translating a little Q&A done by them, from the Kenshuusei portion of November 2015's Top Yell coverage of the September Nama Tamago Show!

H!P Maruwakari 2015 Summer DVD

Having finished the questions in the Winter 2015 Maruwakari Book, I'm currently in the process of working though the Summer 2015 Maruwakari questionnaires. With 10 questions for the 51 Hello! Project members, plus 9 questions for the 14 new faces among them. it adds up to 636 questions. To tide you over while I work on the translations, here's some clips from the DVD that came with the book.

Throughout the DVD, each of the members were asked what they'd like to do in the summer. Also linked are their answers to the same question for the PokeMo questionnaires, translations courtesy of Rokun. This'll also allow you to make a consistency check, whether or not it actually their answers are actually what they want, or are they just coming up with an answer on the spot, as it were.

What they'd like to do in summer
PokeMo answers

Maimi: Marine sports - banana boats, wakeboarding

Nacky: Camping - she's never gone camping before

Airi: Every year she says that she'd like to go to a summer festival, or play with fireworks, so this year she'd like to add BBQ-ing to that

Chisato: Take pictures of sea fish - she goes to the sea every year with her family, and since she sees lots of fish while swimming, she'd like to take pictures of them

Mai: Go to the sea and watch fireworks - she hasn't gone anywhere this year, so she'd like to go and watch fireworks in her private time

Berryz Kobo x ℃-ute Cross Talk: Sudo Maasa x Sugaya Risako

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Hello! Project Kids in 2012, a book entitled Rival - 12 shoujo no 10-nen monogatari - (The 10-year legend of the 12 girls) was released. The book contains 2-page discussions between pairs of girls, covering all 66 possible combinations of them. I'm currently in the middle of reading this book, and would like to share some highlights from some of the interviews.

Sudo Maasa X Sugaya Risako

While you're in the same group, I think that the two of you specialise in different fields. Firstly, from Maasa-chan's point of view, what do you think of Risako-chan's singing?

Sudo: I've always thought that Risako was amazing, even from when we were in primary school. Her singing is so intense that it makes you see visions, your eyes get drawn to her, like 'That's a great expression she has on her face.'  I particularly like her facial expression when she sings 'Makenaiwa' in 'Baka ni Shinaide'. It's great how she looks straight at the camera (laughs). It's like you're really acting out the world of the song, and your voice draws us into that world view.

Sugaya: I had no idea about that. There's so many other things I'm thinking about, like what's the next line, or how do I do this move, so I can't even think about the world of the song....... (laughs).

☻☻☻

Well then, from Risako-chan's point of view, what do you think of Maasa-chan's acting?

Sugaya: Maa gets lots of cool roles. You were really cool in the play 'Thank You Very Berry', where you came out wearing a sarashi wrap and a gakuran. It was a role that only Maa could do. You can't do cute roles, huh?

Sudo: Yup, I can't (laughs).

☻☻☻

Sugaya: I was together with Maa for 'Mini Moni The Movie Okashi na Daibouken!', and we became close. We were quiet at first and didn't talk at all, so I have no idea how we linked up (laughs). But she was the oldest among the members that were in the movie, so she was like our mother, bringing us together. We've always been together, and I think Maa's the only one I haven't quarrelled with. We've maintained our good relationship, and 10 years have passed in the blink of an eye. For me, Maa is Berryz Kobo's vice leader (laughs)*. [...] Miya was like an oneechan too, but there were times when we were forsaken by Miya (laughs). We often got told off. That made me happy though (laughs).

*Natsuyaki Miyabi was nominated sub-captain of Berryz Kobo in 2013, a year after this book was published

[...]

Sudo: For me, [Risako] is a really soothing presence. It was that way even during 'MiniMoni......', but everything you do is so cute, it's like I'd forgive whatever pranks you'd pull. It made me happy that you came to me with a 'Mama, mama', in order to be spoiled. Now you've grown-up, that little devilishness has increased (laughs).

Sugaya: Little devil? Not a devil (laughs)?

Sudo~:  A little devil (laughs)! Don't change that part of you that always soothes me, okay?

☻☻☻

More interview excerpts from this book.

Momochi no Kimochi: Vehicles (Essay #2/22)

I get motion sickness, so when I'm on a plane or the shinkansen, I want to stay by the window!

On trains, the seats at the end are good, but recently, I've found a place that's even better. That would be the seats 2 rows away from the end.
That's exactly where the corners of the glass windows are, so it's easy to put your head on the rim.
It acts as a nice bolster when I'm sleepy, and there's a greater likelihood that it's empty compared to the end seats, it's one of those hidden spots.

I often ride taxis for work, but on taxis in Yokohama, you can get oil-blotting paper!
That makes me really happy, and when 'Yokohama' is written in my schedule, I get excited thinking 'Ah, I guess it's going to be an oil-blotting paper day?'
But to that extent, when I don't get them, I feel a bit betrayed though.

More from this book

Tsugunaga Momoko Photo Essay "Momochi no Kimochi"

Momoko Tsugunaga