I felt sooo guilty when I logged in today and saw the date of my last post was January 18th. =_= LeBacque (hey! ^^/), an old friend from the JDorama forums, sent me a message a few days ago asking "Is it time for a final requiem? No updates in months now." Yeah, I know, and I want to apologize for that. m(_ _)m
So please excuse the long absence. I have a life, of course, and being busy is the main reason why I haven't updated in 2 months. I just finished my internship at the publishing company, and now I have more free time, so I intend to show up here more often. =)
Anyway. Let's recap because there are several important events I missed - which doesn't mean I forgot about them, but I didn't have the time to post about them, so... ^^
Yabu turned 19 on January 31st, and I did make a header for that day, but I didn't have the time to type a birthday post. Then Taiyô and Hikaru graduated from high school last month. Belated congratulations to you two!!! =D We were actually lucky enough to get two clips of Hikaru speaking to the press on that day. I wonder what's JE's policy on this. Perhaps they leave it up to the boys? I mean that there was no interview to Shoon when he graduated, and the same happened with Yabu. ?_? The two clips below were subbed by NEWSHFAN. =) Hikaru was really great: confident, calm, and charming. <3
Sadly Taiyô is not an idol anymore, so even though I hadnot so very secret hopes that we'd get to see at least a picture of him with Hikaru in some mag or maybe even see them together in one of these TV clips, it didn't happen. ._. Hikaru at the moment doesn't have plans to go to university, but I imagine Taiyô does, because from the accounts we've heard he's a good student. I wonder what degree course he'll choose. The best of luck, Sun, whatever path you take! I suppose it's unlikely we'll hear from you again now you're out of Horikoshi, but we'll always have a warm memory of you. =)
What else happened? The Romeo & Juliet stage play, in which Shoon plays the part of Mercutio, started... and here I am, stuck in Madrid. =_= Well, actually I couldn't have afforded the flight fares and accommodation expenses anyway because right now my economy is not at its best. However, I've comforted myself with the hope of a DVD of the play and also with the fact that I don't feel ready just yet. I want to improve my Japanese in case I ever get to talk to Shoon. I wouldn't want to make a fool of myself. Ganbarimasu! ^.^o
Also... It's not so bad that I stayed, because after I finished my internship I got a job offer from the publishing company! =D Yes! I'll be doing 2 free-lance jobs for them: translate a novel and proofread a translation of a book. ^_____^ Yay!! Hopefully this will lead to more free-lance jobs with them. I'm really excited. =)
Back to Romeo and Juliet, the media coverage of the play has been rather disappointing. I mean that I expected Shoon and Hasejun to promote the play together with Ueda and Kobayashi Ryoko (who plays Juliet) on 2 or 3 TV shows, but in the end Ueda's done it all on his own. =( Oh, well, at least we got to see glimpses of Shoon at the press conference, the rehearsals (like in the clip below, taking fencing lessons with Ueda) and also in small bits of the play shown in the news entertainment shows.
From the accounts of fan friends who have seen the play it seems Shoon's doing really well. =) JE just announced that Ueda will soon be starring in his first TV drama; I hope they have something good in store for Shoon too. ^^
He hasn't been in Shokura for 2 months now, and I want to believe it's just because he's busy with the play, but Ueda was there as a guest, and he has been in many other shows, so that excuse seems too feeble. ;___; Toma, Kazama, and Hasejun disappeared from Shokura one year after 4TOPS was disbanded (and NEWS was formed), so Shoon's been really lucky to have stayed in the show longer than that.
And at least his still a regular in Hyakushiki, which airs every week. With my poor Japanese I don't understand everything, but it's fun to watch, and every week the cast surprises us with some crazy thing, like this: (this episode was about Yokohama and the Hyakushiki boys performed a medley of songs by a popular Japanese group from the 70s called Yokohama Ginbae. =))
For all things Shoon, please join us at the Shoon LiveJournal community... which has reached 1000 members this month!!! =D
And, to finish this entry, a little reflection. A friend wondered in an LJ post, a few weeks ago, if "the few old bitter Ya-Ya-yah fans that are left will have turned into HSJ fans in a year or so". She was -and is- a big Ya-Ya-yah fan and I know she just means to tease =p , but I'd like to share with you all my thoughts and feelings on this matter.
Speaking for myself, I don't think I'll turn into a HSJ fan no matter how many years pass. Actually, it's been more than a year already, and instead of getting used to it all I seem to be going backwards. At first I wanted to overcome my feelings of rejection towards HSJ for Yabu and Hikaru, but just seeing them perform together or seeing pictures of them in the mags brings back all the hurt and anger inside of me. I know I'm not being fair, I know what happened was not their fault, but nobody will ever convince me that it didn't most likely make Taiyô and Shoon feel bitterly disappointed and hurt. For that I'll never forgive JE. I'm also sure that many of the current HSJ members had mixed feelings when their debut was announced. I don't like the way it works, and knowing it's "just business" doesn't help any. Sometimes reality is a hard pill to swallow.
I'll never get used to HSJ singing Ya-Ya-yah songs either, but Stevenica left a comment on one of the previous entries that made me reconcile with the idea in a way: (Thank you so much for this, Stevenica! <3)
About (...) Yabu and Hikaru (...) performing Itoshi no Play Girl (with the rest of HSJ in the HSJ Winter concert), I would like to clarify this because I feel it's something we should appreciate instead of complain about. (...) This winter concert was organized by Yabu & Hikaru. They discussed & prepared about the song list, rundown etc etc. Therefore, to perform Itoshi no Play Girl, and putting Yuuki 100% in the concert song list, was an act for Yabu and Hikaru to show they haven't forgotten their former group, Ya-Ya-yah, and will not forget it. (...) Actually, in the Winter Concert pamphlet, on Yabu’s page, when talking about how he and Hikaru planned and organized the concert, he says: The two of us had discussed performing songs from the past this time. There were many really good songs we had performed before we joined JUMP. Moreover, for both of us, those actually represent many of our memories. (scan of this)"
That's truly thoughtful and sweet of Yabu and Hikaru, isn't it? Yes, I do appreciate it. *hugs the two of them* I feel much better now knowing it was your idea =) ...even if I'll never ever get used to seeing you performing those songs with the rest of HSJ or at the HHS show, without Taiyô and Shoon. m(_ _)m
So no, I'm afraid I won't be turning into a HSJ fan any time soon. XD Maybe I'll tolerate their existence when things start to really look up for Shoon. =p Like... when he gets the same chances as Toma ^^v or at least as the other juniors, instead of being (literally) pushed into a corner in the profile page of the junior calendar with a picture smaller than Shintarô's, getting just 1 page and one pic (on a page with the rest of the Hyakushiki cast), and being left out of all the inter-group pictures, as if he had the plague. ¬¬ *fumes* see offending profile page)
PS: Oh, and... we're not sulking quietly now; just in a cozy, private place. =p Thanks, 'Dee-chan for giving us a home. <3
So please excuse the long absence. I have a life, of course, and being busy is the main reason why I haven't updated in 2 months. I just finished my internship at the publishing company, and now I have more free time, so I intend to show up here more often. =)
Anyway. Let's recap because there are several important events I missed - which doesn't mean I forgot about them, but I didn't have the time to post about them, so... ^^
Yabu turned 19 on January 31st, and I did make a header for that day, but I didn't have the time to type a birthday post. Then Taiyô and Hikaru graduated from high school last month. Belated congratulations to you two!!! =D We were actually lucky enough to get two clips of Hikaru speaking to the press on that day. I wonder what's JE's policy on this. Perhaps they leave it up to the boys? I mean that there was no interview to Shoon when he graduated, and the same happened with Yabu. ?_? The two clips below were subbed by NEWSHFAN. =) Hikaru was really great: confident, calm, and charming. <3
Sadly Taiyô is not an idol anymore, so even though I had
What else happened? The Romeo & Juliet stage play, in which Shoon plays the part of Mercutio, started... and here I am, stuck in Madrid. =_= Well, actually I couldn't have afforded the flight fares and accommodation expenses anyway because right now my economy is not at its best. However, I've comforted myself with the hope of a DVD of the play and also with the fact that I don't feel ready just yet. I want to improve my Japanese in case I ever get to talk to Shoon. I wouldn't want to make a fool of myself. Ganbarimasu! ^.^o
Also... It's not so bad that I stayed, because after I finished my internship I got a job offer from the publishing company! =D Yes! I'll be doing 2 free-lance jobs for them: translate a novel and proofread a translation of a book. ^_____^ Yay!! Hopefully this will lead to more free-lance jobs with them. I'm really excited. =)
Back to Romeo and Juliet, the media coverage of the play has been rather disappointing. I mean that I expected Shoon and Hasejun to promote the play together with Ueda and Kobayashi Ryoko (who plays Juliet) on 2 or 3 TV shows, but in the end Ueda's done it all on his own. =( Oh, well, at least we got to see glimpses of Shoon at the press conference, the rehearsals (like in the clip below, taking fencing lessons with Ueda) and also in small bits of the play shown in the news entertainment shows.
From the accounts of fan friends who have seen the play it seems Shoon's doing really well. =) JE just announced that Ueda will soon be starring in his first TV drama; I hope they have something good in store for Shoon too. ^^
He hasn't been in Shokura for 2 months now, and I want to believe it's just because he's busy with the play, but Ueda was there as a guest, and he has been in many other shows, so that excuse seems too feeble. ;___; Toma, Kazama, and Hasejun disappeared from Shokura one year after 4TOPS was disbanded (and NEWS was formed), so Shoon's been really lucky to have stayed in the show longer than that.
And at least his still a regular in Hyakushiki, which airs every week. With my poor Japanese I don't understand everything, but it's fun to watch, and every week the cast surprises us with some crazy thing, like this: (this episode was about Yokohama and the Hyakushiki boys performed a medley of songs by a popular Japanese group from the 70s called Yokohama Ginbae. =))
For all things Shoon, please join us at the Shoon LiveJournal community... which has reached 1000 members this month!!! =D
And, to finish this entry, a little reflection. A friend wondered in an LJ post, a few weeks ago, if "the few old bitter Ya-Ya-yah fans that are left will have turned into HSJ fans in a year or so". She was -and is- a big Ya-Ya-yah fan and I know she just means to tease =p , but I'd like to share with you all my thoughts and feelings on this matter.
Speaking for myself, I don't think I'll turn into a HSJ fan no matter how many years pass. Actually, it's been more than a year already, and instead of getting used to it all I seem to be going backwards. At first I wanted to overcome my feelings of rejection towards HSJ for Yabu and Hikaru, but just seeing them perform together or seeing pictures of them in the mags brings back all the hurt and anger inside of me. I know I'm not being fair, I know what happened was not their fault, but nobody will ever convince me that it didn't most likely make Taiyô and Shoon feel bitterly disappointed and hurt. For that I'll never forgive JE. I'm also sure that many of the current HSJ members had mixed feelings when their debut was announced. I don't like the way it works, and knowing it's "just business" doesn't help any. Sometimes reality is a hard pill to swallow.
I'll never get used to HSJ singing Ya-Ya-yah songs either, but Stevenica left a comment on one of the previous entries that made me reconcile with the idea in a way: (Thank you so much for this, Stevenica! <3)
About (...) Yabu and Hikaru (...) performing Itoshi no Play Girl (with the rest of HSJ in the HSJ Winter concert), I would like to clarify this because I feel it's something we should appreciate instead of complain about. (...) This winter concert was organized by Yabu & Hikaru. They discussed & prepared about the song list, rundown etc etc. Therefore, to perform Itoshi no Play Girl, and putting Yuuki 100% in the concert song list, was an act for Yabu and Hikaru to show they haven't forgotten their former group, Ya-Ya-yah, and will not forget it. (...) Actually, in the Winter Concert pamphlet, on Yabu’s page, when talking about how he and Hikaru planned and organized the concert, he says: The two of us had discussed performing songs from the past this time. There were many really good songs we had performed before we joined JUMP. Moreover, for both of us, those actually represent many of our memories. (scan of this)"
That's truly thoughtful and sweet of Yabu and Hikaru, isn't it? Yes, I do appreciate it. *hugs the two of them* I feel much better now knowing it was your idea =) ...even if I'll never ever get used to seeing you performing those songs with the rest of HSJ or at the HHS show, without Taiyô and Shoon. m(_ _)m
So no, I'm afraid I won't be turning into a HSJ fan any time soon. XD Maybe I'll tolerate their existence when things start to really look up for Shoon. =p Like... when he gets the same chances as Toma ^^v or at least as the other juniors, instead of being (literally) pushed into a corner in the profile page of the junior calendar with a picture smaller than Shintarô's, getting just 1 page and one pic (on a page with the rest of the Hyakushiki cast), and being left out of all the inter-group pictures, as if he had the plague. ¬¬ *fumes* see offending profile page)
PS: Oh, and... we're not sulking quietly now; just in a cozy, private place. =p Thanks, 'Dee-chan for giving us a home. <3