Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Hello! Project DVD Magazine Vol. 16 - 2009 Wonderful Hearts Subtitle Release

By: The Incredible He-Hulk



This is a fansub that’s been in the works for nearly as long as Vol. 16 has existed itself. Before there was such a thing as ICU there were ICU members working on this project. In fact, the release was effectively finished in early February before a member quitting and a subsequent hard drive failure caused both existing copies of the script to forever wander the land of Nod… With no script, the project would have to start over from square one. Well, no one wanted to do that, so the project was shelved.

Eventually, the project was restarted. And, for the last several months it has served as something to do when there’s nothing to do; something for a handful of us to work on during a free moment, off and on, as time would allow. Now, six months later, you are just a few clicks away from idol bliss. Truthfully, this release is leaps and bounds better than it would have been had it been released way back then. The script is better, the layout is smarter, and the editor’s notes are even more note-ier. In short, a fine wine simply gets better with age…

H!P’s DVD Magazine Vol. 16 is a question and answer show featuring every single member of Wonderful Hearts. It’s a rare and beautiful thing when the members of Morning Musume, Berryz Koubou, and C-ute all come together to do a DVD. There’s someone for everyone in this release, and they even threw Mano Erina in for good measure.
There are no right or wrong answers to the questions asked, but that doesn’t stop a few of our more “creative” idols from arriving at their answers in the wrong-est of ways. You’ll be amazed by the logic on display, but you’ll also be reassured that at least Japan has a place to put these types of people where they can’t endanger us all. They make these girls idols.

Another thing this DVD does is act as a personality rater for our idols. Left to answer each question and then expound as much as they choose to, we quickly see which girls are uncomfortable doing much talking, which girl’s are perfectly comfortable talking, and which girl’s are perfectly comfortable hearing themselves talk ad nauseam. You’ll also see which girls can’t help but be interesting, which girls know how to make themselves interesting, and which girls simply don’t know how to be interesting. I won’t name any names; you’ll see who is who shortly.

Finally, this DVD contains possibly the longest period of time that Arihara Kanna was ever allowed to be on camera by herself. You’ll hear her say more here than she said in nearly her entire career. So, enjoy. Please enjoy.

Click here to grab it.

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Monday, July 20, 2009

Ichigo ichie 7/16 pt 2 - Michishige guest appearance

By: Zabel

Takahashi Ai and Michishige Sayumi continue their discussion about traveling to L.A. to perform at Anime Expo.


Ichigo ichie 7/16 continued


Ai asks Sayumi how she would rate their first performance in America. Sayu gives it a 90, and she explains the reason for deducting 10 points. During rehearsal she was told that her English was weak, so she spent time practicing with Eri to the point where her pronunciation was so good that she wondered if maybe she had been raised overseas. But when the time came to deliver her MC lines at the concert, her English came out weak after all.

Aichan rates it 100 points! She usually rates concerts 70, but everyone gave it their best for their first performance in America. Sayu remarks on how well Aichan spoke English. Aichan says she was memorizing the script every day in the bath. Since the topic she had to speak on (warming) was so important she wanted to be sure she spoke precisely.

The two of them note how the atmosphere is different from when they perform in Japan. For instance, the 'oooh's and 'aaah's they hear from the audience when a song is starting. They thought the city of Los Angeles was pretty and cool in a retro kind of way.

Sayu talks about an incident on the plane ride over when she spilled the entire contents of maple syrup onto her T-shirt, the blanket, and into her bag. She's glad she was sitting next to Mitsui who helped her with the mess while Kamei, one seat over, was like "Whatcha up to?" as she went on eating her in-flight meal.

Another Kamei story. Sayu is accustomed to seeing Eri's messy rooms...or so she thought. When they go to Hawaii she usually shares a room with Eri, and cleans up after her. On this trip they each had their own room. One time when Eri called Sayu over, Sayu received a big shock upon entered Eri's room. The place was in such a state of disorder that it was like someone had lived there for 10 years. Sayu tried opening the bathroom door but shut it immediately. Aichan doesn't have trouble picturing the scene Sayu describes, and tells Sayu to give Eri a spanking. But it's all good if that's what's comfortable for Eri...as long as Sayu isn't sharing a room with her.

Asked where she would like to go to perform a concert if she had the chance, Sayu answers that she'd like to go to France. The fact is, Sayu used to believe she was half-French. Why? Because her mom told her so. In elementary school the conversation came up with older kids, and when Sayu asked her mom again, her mom told her again that she (her mom) was French XD So Sayu believed that she was half-French. It was through a classmate of her older brother that she learned the truth.

In place of the Tettekete corner, they talk about Sayu's past week when she turned 20. Besides rehearsing for the Hello! Project concert, Sayu has been recording for a TV entertainment show where guests say bad things about each other. She was too tired that day to think about her birthday, so it wasn't until the next day when the musume members gave her gifts that she thought about having turned 20. She's gonna try to stop biting her nails by buying a nail clipper when her nails get long, reasoning that it is when you have just bought a new nail clipper that you're most inclined to use it.

The English phrase today "What's a mess!" (should be "What a mess!") makes them think of Eri.

Aichan asks Sayu to give advice to people who are bad at math (multiplication specifically). She says do your drills. Sayu has been enjoying learning simultaneous equations.

In closing, Aichan says that she was more nervous having Sayu as a guest that any of the guests she has had so far because Sayu is such a good talker.

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