So, yesterday was the 15h Anniversary of AKB48 and while usually we would get a LIVE performance with all 301 girls, sadly we are living in a pandemic world (not a twilight world, sorry Nolan)
And as such the event, that was streamed everywhere ( I watched it from YouTube) was held over Zoom calls with only five girls actually in the AKB48 theatre, each one representing the five teams (A, K, B, 4 and Team 8).
I always look forward to this anniversary stage because we get some much needed member interactions that we rarely get. But alas, nothing can be done about the state of things but that did not mean that the event was one to be missed!
I don’t know why I did not think the next SP would be Jules! I wanted it! Oh how I wanted it to be Jules! But I held back because I am famous for my anti-luck and I thought me mentioning it would have cursed the chances!!
I think I beat the Universe Algorithm with this one, because Warner Media twitter account just frikkin made this official!
YES!
Still a bit farther than expected (Jan 24th) but I am not complaining! Seriously, I did not expect Jules to be it! I thought she would be counted in with the Rue SP and that the other broken characters would get the shine but then I remembered that Rules are the IT of the show!
I am so stupidly happy I don’t even…And there is a second season coming! We are not worthy! Then again, maybe this SP too will be solely about Jule’s side of the story! Because we all know the bullshit Rue was spewing in her SP about what happened on that train station and their relationship in general! I am so ready for that conversation!
So, the word MOE still exists, right? Because I need it to express exactly how the Shukipi MV from =LOVE made me feel for starters!
Like, have you ever gotten a Music Video that feels as if it was made specifically for you? That’s how I feel about SHUKIPI from =LOVE!
Like, how long have I cried out for some Maika love!! Nit only do I finally get it but is it is far better than I would have ever imagined!
Firs of all, this MV was directed by none other than our very own Miichan…That’s right, I am talking about Minegishi Minami! Sashiko (The Producer of =LOVE, in case you did not know) asked Miichan to help with the MV because she figured Miichan was the perfect choice for the concept she was looking for and my God, did Miichan deliver!!!
Sashiko said it best, this is like Mika Ninagawa levels of production right there and she was totally right! This MV is just on a whole different level! And the fact that it wasn’t the likes of cutesy members like the Saitous or Mirei but Maika, the girl I consider the coolest of the group no matter what everyone says, that subversion worked wonders for this MV! It worked so well that when all the members had twin-tails for hair-do it was frikkin perfect instead of being all around weird!
I had actually planned on making this MV post part of my Hitomaika series but since the internet let me down by not giving us the camping extras from the Type B accompanying DVD, I decided to post this now and buy the DVD myself but it won’t be here for a few days and I just can’t wait! I want to put this post out before the MV hits 1m views, which it is already close to for a video that has only been released just over a week!
And so you can surmise that me wanting to put it in that series means that there is some Hitomaika content and indeed there is some, indeed, there is much more than just Hitomaika as this MV went all in for the ships as well, even if it was missing AnRisa! But theirs is a weird ship, as in it is one where I feel the friendship more than anything else! It doesn’t have that vibe that Hitomaika or Iorino have, you know!
But in this one case, for some reason the yuri took a back seat because I have apparently underestimated my love for Maika! I love this MV so much first and foremost because Maika is the center and the amount of screentime…Jesus! There really is balance in this world!
And that balance also covers the newly released MV today which is about Hitomi and Nagisa, just the two of them! Yeah, I haven’t watched it yet and it will probably take me a while to because I just don’t get that pairing. Maybe because Nagisa is like the 2nd centre? The favourite girl while Hitomi is the Ace? I don’t know, I don’t get it!
But to tell the truth I felt a bit cheated seeing that because then I started to feel what others were saying about Shukipi being more of a Nagisa or Kiara single instead of Maika because then I think that if those two got Shukipi then chances are we could have gotten a Hitomaika solo MV instead of Hiinagi?
But again, Shukipi balanced everything out because of how so good it is and Maika being the centre of it! Was it a cheap cheat? I don’t care, I got a Maika centre, a kick ass Maika centre that is probably the best MV from the group (outside of Caution of course).
I frikkin love this MV!
Hitomaika having a second hand kiss with the milk tea! Iorino almost kissing! Some MaiKiara! Some Saitouchu! A good amount of Risa (She is still my second favourite after Maika and speaking of Risa, apparently Maika is having a Risa boom currently so I expect some content from then too in that Camping Vid)!
And them twin-tails Jesus Christ!!! This MV is just all around deadly! And to all normal girls out there, Iori is of course on fire with her coolaid but I was kind of disappoint with her scene with Sana in the shower! Come on Miichan, you can do better than that! They are in the shower for crying out loud!! Oh well, I guess Nonno wouldn’t have had none of it!
And don’t get me started of the visuals! You all know me and beauty! I will let the caps speak for them selves…
I had literally forgot how so good this show was for a minute or two there! My mind has been set straight again with this first Special of the two that will hold us up until Season 2 hits next year!
Yes, there is a second season!!!
But before we get to that, and before we even try to think of who the next Special will be centred around, let’s talk this academy awards winning special (It frikkin better be!!!) episode that all but took place in one setting and all but with two characters talking for almost an hour (Rue and Ali).
Jesus Christ!
I literally had to check every time keeper in my radius when the credits hit because I just couldn’t believe that it was over! I doubted it was the usual length given how fast the episode went by but no matter how hard I look it still said the episode was 57 minutes and all the clocks were telling the same time!
It is so good!
Now this is television! And of course HBO is the one to deliver such content! Unparalleled they are, those masters at the craft! Seriously, I can go on and on praising this episode and the amazing talent the actors brought but that’s not why we are here!
I’m going to start by saying that I came into this for the gay but I stayed for the plot and acting! In fact the episode started that way! It’s almost like it was perfectly executed with purpose that way!
The beginning is mere perfection! It’s the description of the Twilight Zone because as soon as you begin you are instantly questioning your sanity because what we see in not what anyone expected – Not anyone who watched the 1st season through anyway!
Our girls Rue and Jules so did not end on the side of the universe where the beginning of this special would be their current status in life!! And of course that was what it was – a fantasy so grand that only Enchantress has the power to conjure it (a la Harley and Joker having a family in Suicide Squad)! But apparently there is a power that is as powerful in our world!
Drugs are not to be trifled with people!
Because that’s what it all was – A fantasy only a high Rue could have conjured up! But goddamn if it wasn’t frikkin perfect!
Rue and Jules living the New York life! Rue waking a sleeping Jules up with a shower of kisses! The two showing so much love that were it a thing that required balance everyone else in the world would have been miserable because these two had all the love in the world to themselves!
Like, it has been a long time since I was jealous of a fictional love, I kid you not! These opening minutes were the description passionate love that I have ever encountered! Like, I don’t even know how many times they kissed! Definitely more times than they did in the whole 1st season!
Rue pulling the Jules from S1 with the kiss showers on her face, Jules doing it to Rue too after she is dressed, Rue kissing Jules so hard that her hair got glued to Rue’s lips, Rue sneak-attack back-hugging Jules in the bathroom, they two having a distant through the glass eye sex after Rue just lies there on the bed admiring her girl, the two just standing there worshipping each other as they stare lovingly in each other’s eyes, the loving goodbye kiss that was oh so possessive…
Jesus!
That opening was so perfect that no matter what happened afterwards it was bound to balance out the whole episode to Level Awesome no matter what! And to many of you it will make you forgive what follows if you have a problem with basically the rest of the episode being two characters just talking about their issues and life!
I of course loved that part but I have to confess, that opening sky-rocketed the episode to God-tier Levels of awesomeness! Literally those few minutes of Rules balanced out all the slowness that followed! Nay, I should say the slowness brought us back from the high that was the opening sequence!
Good! Fuckin! Television!
In case you missed it, here’s a vid of them from S1…
百合 Goggles 