So, those mad geniuses really went and done it! They really waited for Maika to return before they did another documentary! This is something that they used to do monthly but since episode 8 ‘IDOL’, we haven’t had a documentary since then, despite there being a load of events that took place!
They decided to wait it out in what has to be the most commendable patience yet, for Maika to return before they did another! Yeah, sure I would have hoped for Maika to have made her comeback during the one year anniversary, which would have been even more epic, but she wasn’t ready then!
But really, I do not care about that at all! All I care about is her return and the other juicy little details! Details like the fact that episode 8 was a Hitomi focus episode and episode 9 now, is basically a Maika focus episode, well, her absence and her return.
It is only 19 minutes long but it took me two hours to finish watching it! Pause, capture, play, capture, repeat! And here I am wishing it would have been an hour episode like episode 6! Ha, it probably would have taken me a whole day to finish watching that!
Date 2.0 and ‘Shoot
As for the episode itself, as expected I cried like the bitch I am, when it comes to certain people! And Maika is definitely one of these certain people. If I wasn’t sure of it before, I am now for sure! And does she look super healthy!! I am still not sure the actual circumstances for her leave, all I know is that it was health-related but she really looks up to the T! Not that she did not before, she was already one of the fittest but for some reason she looked almost, radiant this time!
Was it all in my head? Probably!
Why tears? Obviously, the feels were out of this world. Starting with that letter that she wrote to the members and the fans during the 1st anniversary live! The members breaking down, even the toughest, and the way our lovely captain was reading it and what was the message itself that hit like a hail storm in the middle of winter!
What got me first though was seeing Nonno break down before the even because she was just too sad doing a one year anniversary without Maika and thus the full members. And Hitomi was there comforting her with the Boy watching on! They really are a family! Such is the best thing about these smaller groups! Other than there being a stronger connection between the fans and girls, the relationship between themselves too is stronger! Think AKB Gen bonds but multiplied due to less numbers! The other benefit is that it is easy to know all the girls and like, while I know all AKB first 14 gen girls, all SKE 1st 3 gen girls, All NGT girls and all NMB 1st 2 Gen girls, It is getting quite tedious learning off new girls!
Meanwhile =LOVE has only 12 girls! After a year, you know them like the back of your hand! And so when one leaves, you totally miss the gap! There is no filler, since all girls have their positions and so the best they can do is give away the lines to someone else but the gap is still there!
Now, add in that most important ingredient of the girl leaving being your Oshimen and you are really gonna feel that absence! Just like I! Seriously, you all already know how affected I was by Maika’s absence! Like, I literally couldn’t watch anything without her! I had to sit out the TIF and JAM festival performances because I couldn’t handle not seeing her! Now there is nothing stopping me so I have all the content to consume during these dead days of holiday!
Well then, Hitomaika…
I don’t think I’ve written about a ship as much as and as consistent as I am doing with these two! It hasn’t even been a week since I wrote about them and yet, here we are again! There is just too much content and I love it! In this post-apocalypse of MAYUKI being no more, I am so very grateful and happy that I have another mad love ship to fill the void! And what’s more, they have just gained major points to put them out there with the likes of MAYUKI and Sayacchu!
These are no WMatsui (Where the love was one-sided, mostly on Jurina’s side!) nor are they Sayamilky (where there is a lack of authenticity and comes off as more business-like). They do have something in common with them, which is that they are both A-listers, they have that perfect height difference, with the Top of the two being the shorter, funnily enough, but as of today, two things have happened that have lifted them above the curve!
1 – MUTUAL
Before, Hitomi came off as a type of Rena, not in the4 sense that she is much older than Hitomi like Rena was to Jurina but rather that she was not into feelings, very timid when it came to affections. Maika on the other hand is like J7urina, in that she is very affectionate with everyone! But while others tolerated her advances, Hitomi was a tough cookie to crack!
No more!
And you know when I believe this change happened? Not during or because of Maika’s absence but a bit earlier than that! Before today, I believed this started with THAT DREAM of Maika’s! That call she made to Hitomi must have affected her more than we thought, but no, it was even before that!
It was the Kiss!
This revelation only came to me two days ago, when I watched their new Showroom show for the first time! Ten episodes in (weekly) and I am now just starting to watch it. You know why, I also have to watch 9 because that was actually Maika’s first episode (with Nonno and Kirara). But 10 was the Ch5ristams Special and first episode with all 12 members!
Speaking of, isn’t it funny that their old showroom show ended after Maika left?
Anyway, during episode 10, the members were asked to talk about their news-worthy moment of 2018. While all other members (except Nonno, we shall get to her) were all talking about travelling overseas (Taiwan and France) or getting gigs outside the group, Hitomi came harder than anyone expected! She did not have to but she did anyway!
Her news –worthy moment of the year was the one and only 3rd Single! And just in case you did not get where she was going, she clarified – “Me and Maika doing *that*” and then she dropped the “many first-time experiences” and I am was like…WHOA!!! Did she just?!! Yep, she totally admitted o Maika bein her first kiss and I ain’t gonna lie, I screamed out loud!
She like, so did that! Maika was right there, sitting right behind her, every member present! And she just went and dropped that info like it was nobody’s business!!! I am still trying to wrap my hands around this you all!
Like, I was waiting for someone to mention Maika’s return (or absence) but everyone seemed to be ignoring it like the plague. And while I get it to be a kind of difficult taste, it had to be said and I am sure fans were expecting it! So actually then ignoring it was very obvious! And so I was very happy that other than Hitomi, someone else mentioned Maika’s return and she put it so well I wanted to hug her!
That was Nonno!
Speaking of Nonno, we know her as the resident Lesbian! Her boner for Iori is no secret! She has been outed more times than I can count. Everyone knows it, the members know it, fans know it, heck, now the Management also knows it! During the latest Documentary episode, aptly titles ‘12’, as in the 12 members of the group, now that Maika is back, she was crying her eyes out before the 1st year anniversary at Maika’s absence!
Heck, I dare say that her love for Maika might be even stronger than how she feels about Iori! I mean, hello, they were caught already before doing the lesbian thing (in one of the scoop episodes of their old showroom show). So, not only did she shed tears for Maika but here in episode 10 she was the only other person that mentioned Maika and she expressed how happy she was that the group was one again. That hearing Maika’s voice finally filled the void that was missing! God, she made me water at the eyes too!
But back to our girls, we are now seeing Hitomi slowly, but surely, coming to terms with her affections! Like, ever since Maika came back she has been on fire! We saw the pictures of the return when she was doing all to not break down on stage. Then right after that, not even giving Maika a day or week to connect with everyone, she goes on a date with her! But get this, that wasn’t even their only date! There is this new photo of them together on another date! Like, what the yuri heavens, like?!
2 – IT’S OFFICIAL
Ah but that is not all! Just days after Maika came back and it is not only Hitomi impatient with their love but it seems like the media is too! Because just hours ago, Maika and Hitomi both shared tweets of a photoshoot they did together!
Like, not even the outside is recognizing their love! I mean Jesus! It took MAYUKI years to get their duo shoot, WMatsui not until KataFina and Sayacchu are non-existent! And yet here we have these two, Maika just back from a long hiatus, and the two are already doing a ship-shoot!
Like, this is literally heaven! Maika’s return is like when Jesus returned with miracles of gifts and I am here for all of it! I am so glad to see that others are recognizing Hitomaika and who knows, maybe soon their ship name will be recognized as well, like how MAYUKI got to be recognized!
I don’t know what Magazine or publication the photoshoots are for but believe you me, they will be shared on the interwebs for sure and I will be there to collect and spread the love! And hopefully this is the start of some exposure. Soon big titles will be picking them up, like Flash or Weekly Playboy or Young Jump or YS Web, Oh god, please do it YS Web!
And the recognition does not end with the publications, I have seen fans now recognize Hitomaika after Maika’s return! Previously everyone seemed more taken with Maika x Iori and no one batted an eye when Maika and Hitomi would post tweets of them together! Now though, the comments speak volumes!
I guess it helps that Hitomi is ALL IN now as well! And the fact that there is that thing with Nonno and her public crush on Iori! Seriously, that relationship was getting out of control in conversations during their last showroom old showroom show! Even now it’s still going and members are still teasing poor Nonno about her love for Iori!
Anyway, we are almost at 2000 words. That’s too much reading for people these days I think. So how about we wrap this up with caps galore, some including Maika going on a TOUCHING rampage! Seriously, I have said it already how affectionate she is and this episode 10 shows it! There is this moment where I nearly had a heart attack because Maika and Risa’s fingers accidentally touched (and Risa noticed it, why? A jolt perhaps? Ahhhh the muse strikes!) and you all know the story –
Risa was my first Oshimen of =LOVE after I had the miracle of catching their Hand Shake event when I was in Tokyo and got to shake hands with her (along with Nagisa and Hana). But after I came back and got the chance to watch more of the girls, I fell in love with Maika more and like the norm with me, Maika took over! Right on time too because their following single was of course – Teokure CAUTION!
And so seeing these two, who are as incompatible as anything (do they know they are my favs and are fighting over that?) and they both know it, so this awkwardness between them is expected. They were sitting on either side of Anna (Leader) and they were both placing their hands behind Anna but we know Maika is alpha as all hell so she just had to extend her arm all the way until her fingers touched Risa’s!
I nearly died!
And then there is the Mother of the group – Shouko, who was sitting next to Maika. Yeah, she too did not escape untouched! Nay, that is an impossible feat! Maika was like touching her thigh and knees and shoulder of course! One time the camera had focused in on Nagisa (who was in front of Shouko) and Maika chose that moment to go touching her leg and I was like…hnnnnnggg! Meanwhile her other hand was…Yes you guessed it, on Anna’s leg (who was sitting on her left)!
Like girl, I know you’ve been away for a few months but that is too much gay thirst, even for you! We can all agree Hitomi is in for a challenge of her life trying to satiate that hunger, eh? Sigh, how I wish I had the time! I would so write that fic!
And I did say I should stop, right….
Ja
Maika’s Letter during the 1st year Anni Concert
I ship Anrisa but…
But…
Cute…
Jeez, let her say bye in peace girls…
Hitomi…come on
Shouko is fair game, right?
I love them
I said..I LOVE THEM!
Can’t wait for this…whatever it is..!
Anna has no idea what’s going on behind her back >.<
Watch Maika’s hands behind Nagisa there…
Right hand on Anna’s shoulder and playing with her hair
Left hand on Shouko’s thigh…Like…
Love, Love, Looooove! Love them so much!
百合 Goggles 