Johnny's Suspension and SMAP
Morimoto Ryutaro (Hey! SAY! JUMP)'s suspension is probably last week's biggest news/scandals in Johnny's fandom. I know more about his little brother (Shintaro) than Ryutaro because Shintaro appeared in several SxS episodes and is rumored to be under Iijima Michi's care. Still, I feel for the boy ever since I first saw his underage-smoking photo in 2ch because I believe that his career as a Johnny idol will probably be over. I don't smoke but I won't judge those who do, especially the teenagers who still don't know much and may think it's cool to smoke. Curiosity normally get the best of most teens, and even some matured adults.
However, what he did is still illegal according to Japanese law, and definitely against his company's rule. The indefinite suspension is an expected reaction from the Jimusho and I think deserved. But because of this "scandal", I've read several discussions in blogs (both English & Japanese) that mentioned SMAP and those comments make me think.
One topic was about his age. Ryutaro was 14-15 yrs old when the pictures were taken and many Japanese bloggers/2chers compared him with Shingo when SMAP debuted. They said the pressure of the entertainment world could be a cause that drove Ryutaro to smoke. Because Shingo was about the same age when SMAP debuted, some believed Shingo probably tried smoking/drinking too but didn't get caught. But many defended Shingo that it's very unlikely that he smoked back then because the situations are different. People may think Johnny is very strict now, but I believe the rules are much tougher back in the day. The rules were not only to be enforced by the staffs, but also by the seniors too. I actually am confident that Shingo was well-protected back in the day by other SMAP members, especially the 2TOP. It's the dynamic of SMAP that keeps everyone in line and be very careful of what they did/do. Johnny groups this day do not have a strict hierarchy like older groups such as SMAP. They are close friends and even if they have oldest members/leader, but the oldest members do not take as much responsibility like Nakai and Kimura do. I think this may be because SMAP was so unsuccessful when they started. They didn't have anyone else but each others and their survival in the entertainment world was in serious danger. Nakai and Kimura needed to step up to protect the other threes and made sure everyone was in line. So the relationship within SMAP is always more like a group with 2 parents and 3 young kids rather a group of 5 friends. The 2TOP has the responsibility to do right for the 3 younger members, and the 3 younger members also strive to please and make those 2 proud. That dynamic is part of the reasons why SMAP can survive all those scandals in the past 20 years.
Which leads to the second topic related to SMAP. I found it's interesting that this topic has mostly been raised by non-Japanese fans and is discussed in every single articles/posts about Ryutaro's suspension. Japanese fans rarely talk about this as if it's a done deal and a common fact that shouldn't have a need to discuss. The issue is whether Ryutaro will be allowed to come back to HSJ. Those who don't believe so used case of Uchi and Kusano of NEWS as the example, but those who is more optimistic about Ryutaro's chance used SMAP. As far as I know, SMAP is the only Johnny group in history that have member(s) come back to the group after a suspension. Some said it's because SMAP is on another different level than any other idol group in Japan and I agree. But I also think that the other SMAP members had a lot more to do too. When Goro was suspended, the other 4 didn't back down a bit and kept insisting that SMAP is 5. They only continued on as SMAP for SMAPxSMAP filming only but didn't have any other group related projects as 4-member group. They refused to go on the year-end music shows, including Kouhaku. The only show they went on was FNS, which is at their home base (Fuji TV), and they used that stage to confirm yet again that they will only be back as 5-member SMAP. I also suspected that the other 4 might have threatened to quit, or at least made it clear that they wouldn't let them kick Goro out or SMAP is over. Nakai said more than once in several interviews that he would quit the entertainment world altogether if SMAP ever to disband. So kicking Goro out probably meant kicking all SMAP out too. Same thing happened in Tsuyoshi's case. But I really think everyone KNEW that Tsuyoshi would definitely come back unlike when Goro was suspended when everything was unclear. SMAP's status in 2009 was much more prominent than in 2001. If Goro could come back after his debacle in 2001, surely Tsuyoshi would be allowed to come back too. To be honest, I don't see HSJ or any other Johnny groups have enough strong will and star power to pull off the same thing for their suspended member(s).
However, I do think SMAP once lost a member because of the Jimusho's order. Reading and watching old news/interviews, I strongly believe that Mori-kun was forced to quit rather than decided to do it himself. What struck me is the way Nakai was reported to keep saying "why didn't you come to us, you have us. we can help" I find it's odd that Mori-kun decided to resign without talking to the other 5 members before he went to the jimusho. He knew it's going to hurt the others especially Nakai, and Mori-kun that I know would never ever do that. Especially when SMAPxSMAP had just started for less than a month. It seemed too irresponsible of him to suddenly resign, that is very uncharacteristic. Nakai is also not the type to say such a thing to his friend who already made his own decision. What I think actually went down is Mori-kun went to get his racing license because the deadline is near (he's going to turn 23). He wanted to have the license just in case but didn't have the intention to leave SMAP at the time. The media found out and reported it in the news. The Jimusho was mad because Mori didn't ask for a permission. Mori was forced to resign without discussing with other members. Nakai was frustrated when he found out because he couldn't do anything now that Mori and the jimusho already went through the resignation process. That's why he said "why didn't you come to us, we can help". He probably believed that THEY could work something out together and Mori didn't have to resign.
This is just my speculation though but I really think it fits perfectly with what went on during and after Mori resigned. If the Jimusho wasn't mad at Mori, then why forbid all the members to talk about him with the media? Why the sudden announcement? Why Nakai made a big scene when he went to Mori's press conference against Jimusho's order? It's like he was protesting not just simply supporting his best friend. And the most convincing proof in my opinion is the fact that SMAP has started to break away from the Jimusho not too long after that. Before Marching J, Johnny's Sports Day in October 1996 (4mos later) was the last Johnny's event that SMAP participated, which I suspect they were obligated to join even before Mori resigned.
However, what he did is still illegal according to Japanese law, and definitely against his company's rule. The indefinite suspension is an expected reaction from the Jimusho and I think deserved. But because of this "scandal", I've read several discussions in blogs (both English & Japanese) that mentioned SMAP and those comments make me think.
One topic was about his age. Ryutaro was 14-15 yrs old when the pictures were taken and many Japanese bloggers/2chers compared him with Shingo when SMAP debuted. They said the pressure of the entertainment world could be a cause that drove Ryutaro to smoke. Because Shingo was about the same age when SMAP debuted, some believed Shingo probably tried smoking/drinking too but didn't get caught. But many defended Shingo that it's very unlikely that he smoked back then because the situations are different. People may think Johnny is very strict now, but I believe the rules are much tougher back in the day. The rules were not only to be enforced by the staffs, but also by the seniors too. I actually am confident that Shingo was well-protected back in the day by other SMAP members, especially the 2TOP. It's the dynamic of SMAP that keeps everyone in line and be very careful of what they did/do. Johnny groups this day do not have a strict hierarchy like older groups such as SMAP. They are close friends and even if they have oldest members/leader, but the oldest members do not take as much responsibility like Nakai and Kimura do. I think this may be because SMAP was so unsuccessful when they started. They didn't have anyone else but each others and their survival in the entertainment world was in serious danger. Nakai and Kimura needed to step up to protect the other threes and made sure everyone was in line. So the relationship within SMAP is always more like a group with 2 parents and 3 young kids rather a group of 5 friends. The 2TOP has the responsibility to do right for the 3 younger members, and the 3 younger members also strive to please and make those 2 proud. That dynamic is part of the reasons why SMAP can survive all those scandals in the past 20 years.
Which leads to the second topic related to SMAP. I found it's interesting that this topic has mostly been raised by non-Japanese fans and is discussed in every single articles/posts about Ryutaro's suspension. Japanese fans rarely talk about this as if it's a done deal and a common fact that shouldn't have a need to discuss. The issue is whether Ryutaro will be allowed to come back to HSJ. Those who don't believe so used case of Uchi and Kusano of NEWS as the example, but those who is more optimistic about Ryutaro's chance used SMAP. As far as I know, SMAP is the only Johnny group in history that have member(s) come back to the group after a suspension. Some said it's because SMAP is on another different level than any other idol group in Japan and I agree. But I also think that the other SMAP members had a lot more to do too. When Goro was suspended, the other 4 didn't back down a bit and kept insisting that SMAP is 5. They only continued on as SMAP for SMAPxSMAP filming only but didn't have any other group related projects as 4-member group. They refused to go on the year-end music shows, including Kouhaku. The only show they went on was FNS, which is at their home base (Fuji TV), and they used that stage to confirm yet again that they will only be back as 5-member SMAP. I also suspected that the other 4 might have threatened to quit, or at least made it clear that they wouldn't let them kick Goro out or SMAP is over. Nakai said more than once in several interviews that he would quit the entertainment world altogether if SMAP ever to disband. So kicking Goro out probably meant kicking all SMAP out too. Same thing happened in Tsuyoshi's case. But I really think everyone KNEW that Tsuyoshi would definitely come back unlike when Goro was suspended when everything was unclear. SMAP's status in 2009 was much more prominent than in 2001. If Goro could come back after his debacle in 2001, surely Tsuyoshi would be allowed to come back too. To be honest, I don't see HSJ or any other Johnny groups have enough strong will and star power to pull off the same thing for their suspended member(s).
However, I do think SMAP once lost a member because of the Jimusho's order. Reading and watching old news/interviews, I strongly believe that Mori-kun was forced to quit rather than decided to do it himself. What struck me is the way Nakai was reported to keep saying "why didn't you come to us, you have us. we can help" I find it's odd that Mori-kun decided to resign without talking to the other 5 members before he went to the jimusho. He knew it's going to hurt the others especially Nakai, and Mori-kun that I know would never ever do that. Especially when SMAPxSMAP had just started for less than a month. It seemed too irresponsible of him to suddenly resign, that is very uncharacteristic. Nakai is also not the type to say such a thing to his friend who already made his own decision. What I think actually went down is Mori-kun went to get his racing license because the deadline is near (he's going to turn 23). He wanted to have the license just in case but didn't have the intention to leave SMAP at the time. The media found out and reported it in the news. The Jimusho was mad because Mori didn't ask for a permission. Mori was forced to resign without discussing with other members. Nakai was frustrated when he found out because he couldn't do anything now that Mori and the jimusho already went through the resignation process. That's why he said "why didn't you come to us, we can help". He probably believed that THEY could work something out together and Mori didn't have to resign.
This is just my speculation though but I really think it fits perfectly with what went on during and after Mori resigned. If the Jimusho wasn't mad at Mori, then why forbid all the members to talk about him with the media? Why the sudden announcement? Why Nakai made a big scene when he went to Mori's press conference against Jimusho's order? It's like he was protesting not just simply supporting his best friend. And the most convincing proof in my opinion is the fact that SMAP has started to break away from the Jimusho not too long after that. Before Marching J, Johnny's Sports Day in October 1996 (4mos later) was the last Johnny's event that SMAP participated, which I suspect they were obligated to join even before Mori resigned.