関ジャニ∞ PUZZLE 2009: 福井
関ジャニ∞ PUZZLE 2009: 福井
DATE: 7/04 @ 14:00 & 7/05 @ 13:00
Notes... not really a report. Sappy Okura fangirling ahead...
~*vVv*~
[Gorilla Theatre]
Noticed that Ryo’s face comes off his uchiwa during all of this. He looked so sad and amused as he tried to put it back. For the endings, 7/04 was Shota and 7/05 was Maru!.
[Musekinin Hero]
The first thing the arena saw was the tops of their heads because the boys rise up from the centersage. Pyrotechnics start off the song. When I first saw the pink outfits, I didn’t think much of them. I’ve changed my mind. I especially like Okura’s variation because it has this shiny gold scarf thingie that flails around as he dances. Plus, the color compliments his hair quite nicely.
7/04 -- First glimpse of Okura was fabulous. Swear there’s really an aura of glitter that shimmers around him. He’s sunshine and sparkles and puppy dogs and, yeah... (*^_^*) His hair was a light brown and his face looked a bit puffy, like he’d just woken up or something. He was a bit sluggish too. Yoko was scowling about something. Maru! was really getting into the dance. Shota’s hair was a bright blond and needed different layering.
7/05 -- Okura and Maru! were the only two really dancing and they were super energetic about it. Lots of Okura and Shota interaction too. Loved watching the penlights move as everyone danced along.
[It’s My Soul]
7/04 -- Maru! was bouncing around and goofing off with Okura. Yoko’s rather handsome but has gotten really thin... Never thought I would say this about anyone but he’s almost too skinny...
7/05 -- Subaru. Okura!
[KanFu Fighting]
They went around the hanamichi to stand on a row of platforms in the middle of the arena. Material hung from it to make it look like a dragon.
7/04 -- ITO was dancing directly in front of us. He grins like such a dork when he dances. [squishes]
7/05 -- Yoko had the first platform where the dragon’s head was. He stood to make it look like he was sitting on the dragon like the kid on The Neverending Story DVD cover.
[Ichibyou Kiss]
They headed to the mainstage and the lights darkened. Lots of smoke and wind. I like the part where they line up, shoulder shimmy and then split into a different formation again.
7/04 -- (*^_^*)
7/05 -- Someone said “Ahh...” instead of the usual “Oh...” They kept cracking up and couldn’t really do the dance properly. It looked like they were trying desperately to get back into formation. Okura was smirking at one point. It was cute.
[Glorious]
The red confetti fluttering down on us was a neat feeling. It was fun watching it flutter down into the arena too. The spotlights silhouetting the boys while they sang were a nice touch.
[kicyu]
They changed it from Hiroshima and got rid of the trolley carts near the end. The pattern on the outfits was actually those mini mutant lips from the PV. (O.o) Like it when they run their thumb across their lips in the choreography.
7/05 -- Shota changed the line to “Yoko-cho mo” and Yoko couldn’t sing his part. They also kept their palms together longer than usual. At the end of the song, Yoko opened up his shirt and slid it off so that it hung in the crooks of his arms. Cut lights. (O_@)
[You Can See]
Maru! is rather handsome, too. ITO wore a green tie.
[Puzzle]
This is a favorite from the album. I think I just like how it feels a bit nostalgic as the singer looks through a photo album and wonders about the “missing piece” of the puzzle. They ended the song on the centerstage with Okura sitting down.
7/04 -- Yoko’s legs are really skinny... and his slacks looked penny-rolled? Okura looked so sad and his hair kept brushing his face...
7/05 -- Okura sang his first line in front of us.
[Kawaita Hana]
They migrated to the mainstage where a bunch of mic stands were lined up with different flowers. Love the way Subaru sang the last words. It’s sort of breathy but the note was so clear.
7/04 -- Okura quit doing the choreography near the end. Not sure whether he forgot or whether he was supposed to do that. Did I mention how lovely his hair was yet? Wanna dye my hair that color now... Heh.
~*vVv*~
[Eight Rangers]
7/05 -- Before the theme song, there was a VTR about where all of the Rangers were now that there was peace around Eito City.
Green -- ate and slept. Adorable smile in the snapshot.
Orange -- became a body builder. Muscle flexing in the snapshot.
Blue -- putting on make up at a vanity mirror. Making a kissy face in the snapshot.
Nasu -- became rich. Laughing in the snapshot.
Red -- became a sumo wrestler. Going for an “attack” in the snapshot.
Yellow -- wanted to fly. Bungee jumping in the snapshot.
Black -- Smirk.
The VTR showed their transformation sequence. Okura’s ending pose was his right thumb and forefinger in an “L” shape placed beneath his lips.
They all jumped up from the stage and hopped onto their bikes. Yellow had some problems and Nasu nearly ran into him halfway around the hanamichi. Near the end, the same thing happened. Nasu didn’t have enough momentum to go up the ramp and caused a traffic jam. Blue tried to push Nasu up the ramp with his bike and nearly fell over. Yellow broke his bike. Haha.
New Red pushed Red out of the way even earlier than usual. This time, he patted Blue’s helmet like Red usually does. 7/04 -- New Red’s pose after pushing Red out of the way had him making bouncing boob motions with his hands in front of his chest.
He announced that they were in Fukui! Yea! Orange started to shout random things. He did Edo Harumi’s “Hwoo!” face. New Red tried to calm him down but just when it looked like Orange was done, he would have another fit. Too funny. 7/04 -- New Red paused for quite a bit before announcing, “We’ve arrived in... umm... Fukui!” Orange chanted about writing the wrong kanji for Fukuoka instead of Fukui in a journal on J-web?
Green was cracking up on his knees. The VTR gave a nice closeup of him giving one of his true, pure, unchecked laughs; mouth corners stretched back in a grin, gorgeous nose crinkled and eyes squinting into rainbow arcs. Or was that during the MC? Nice image either way! (♥_♥) Here are some examples:
OK, now back to 8 Ranger Episode: What Color Does the Grass on the Other Side Appear to Be? Apologies for easily getting distracted and sidetracked. (*^_^*)
Red shouted about how something wasn’t right. Why were there *two* Reds? Blue’s look of shock was perfect. 7/04 -- Yellow asked in English, “What’s wrong?”
After some bantering, New Red called out Orange . Orange ominously tore open the top of his rangersuit in a Superman fashion to reveal that he would be New Yellow. Yellow had the saddest look of betrayal on his face... Aww...
Green was then called out for wanting to be New Blue. New Blue muttered that even though he wanted to be blond, he couldn’t because Blue was there! (O.o) LoL. 7/04 -- His reason was that it sucked being big and he wanted to be petite.
He managed to get out of his Green costume without any problems this time. He appeared quite proud of himself. 7/04 -- Green had trouble getting out of his Green ranger suit to become New Blue. It got caught on the Eito-kun belt and he had to get some help pulling it off. Then, it got caught on his leg as he tried to kick it off.
After some exchanged words, Red shouted that they were through and scurried down the stairs. Yellow and Blue followed. New Blue called over New Red. New Red gave a look of pure joy at being called, “Red” and, after a little giggle, joined him. New Yellow soon followed. The three of them went to put their fists together, only to have New Blue trip a bit. Eep! Don’t fall off the stage again... 7/04 -- Red called them all underwear thieves. New Yellow and New Red stumbled over their dialogue.
Red, Yellow and Blue appeared on the substage. After some chatting, a jr. shot an arrow at them. Blue couldn’t get the letter open and handed it to Red who handed it to Yellow. They finally managed to get it open and read it.
The words of the letter were scrolled on the screen in front of funny pictures of their faces. New Red started off reading but said he couldn’t and handed it off to New Yellow. New Yellow kept misreading “本当” as “mototo” or “motoatari” so he passed it on to New Blue. New Blue sounded all authoritative until the last word of one of the sentences. He pulled it together and all three of them finished it off. They signed the letter as New Red, Yellow, Blue. New Blue used a duck voice or something. Always makes me laugh.
Anyway, they’d found their “true colors” and were ready for a rumble, thus the “West Side Story” showdown began. New Blue, New Red and New Yellow were in one corner of the hanamichi with ITO, etc. Blue, Red and Yellow were in the other with TG-kun, etc.
After a song, they met up on the centerstage and danced/fought. The random clapping midway through always makes me giggle. It makes me giggle more than the random dancing. New Blue held Blue’s head as Blue tried to hit him with punches. 7/04 -- They tried to battle with their arms behind their backs. New Blue’s pantleg came un-Velcro’d and showed that he had the Green rangersuit on underneath. Spoiler! J/K
They split up. Red ran away from New Red down the hanamichi. Yellow and New Yellow twirled batons. While waiting, New Blue and Blue did jumping jacks. 7/04 -- New Blue and Blue did random exercises and movements.
They fought in slow motion, Blue shouting out the “punch” only to have New Blue perform Genta’s death move with the puppet snake. He was supposed to look all suave at the end but had to suppress a laugh instead. He smirked and shook his head, saying he couldn’t. The VTR showed his face with a voiceover in the background.
Everyone was on the centerstage. New Red shot a gun he had into the air. The single bullet bounced around and hit New Blue in the leg. Twice. Haha. New Blue impassively looked down and said, “Ouch...” The others said that sucked and to say it like he meant it. New Blue acted more macho and growled his annoyance in a very Domyoji way.
More fighting ensued. Sort of. The BGM was light and airy with lots of flutes. It had a 70’s disco feel. It started with one group marching towards the other and saying rather strong words in sing-songy voices. The exchange went something like, “Give up! // C’mon. // How annoying. // Why? // You know why. // We wanna change. // We got that. // We can’t? // You know it!”
Ooo, snap... It was so on! They fought and Yellow pulled out a knife from some magical dimension. They rumbled a bit more and gathered into the middle stage in a very dramatic moment. The Veterans flapped their arms like flying monkeys and exited the stage.
When the others pulled away from the center, it was revealed that Nasu had been stabbed! But he was still moving. He gasped his few last breaths while the others lamented over how it was their fault. 7/04 -- Everyone was cracking up as they continued with the script. New Blue was seated.
They suddenly found some puzzle pieces and ran to the mainstage to fit the pieces together. Yellow’s face was missing. At that moment, Nasu stood up and pulled another piece from his rangersuit. The others all acted scared of zombie!Nasu. 7/04 -- Everyone told him to stay where he was because he reeked. They shouted out, “Thriller!” New Yellow then did a Michael Jackson Thriller dance and posed, calling it a special MJ edition.
Nasu joined them on the stage to put the last piece down. He pulled out some magical scepter from somewhere and transformed New Blue, New Red and New Yellow back into their original colors. New Blue sat seiza on the edge of the stage and prepared to peel off the Blue rangersuit layer.
“Donna ni Hanaretetatte Soba ni iru kara” began. Green sat on the edge of one of the platforms, pretending to drum along with the song. Yellow and Orange hugged. Not to be outdone, when Blue held his hand out for a handshake, Green yanked his arm and leaned back causing Blue to end up lying on top of him. (O_@) 7/04 -- Green just pretended to play the drums.
Everyone made their way to the substage. Green and Blue kept teasing each other. While they sang, they kept looking at each other and messing around. It was cute! Then, everyone except for Black, draped their arms across each other’s shoulders and swayed back and forth in time to the music.
Everything was peachy amongst the 8 Rangers in KanJania once more. Yea!
Blue went to look at the VTR, which showed the completed puzzle, but Green smacked the back of his helmet. It fell forward and covered Blue’s eyes. Haha.
[Kigamajime waga Faito]
7/04 -- Okura was doing his general wave and didn’t seem to be aiming for anyone in particular.
7/05 -- Ryo immediately stripped off the top part of his rangersuit. Okura kicked his autographed ball one stand over. Yoko threw all of his autographed balls into the same section behind the mainstage.
[MC]
7/04 -- Okura was being his usual quiet self. Yoko was unusually quiet. Someone called out for Hina and he turned and asked, “What?” They talked about what Fukui was known for and commented on how Maru! stumbled over some lines in the skit. They said that Japanese was “difficult.”
Then, Hina started to point out people from Australia, the US and England. He mentioned Australia first and showed the girl on the VTR. The giddy look on her face was infectious. He asked whether she was with her friend.
Then! He turned to my friend and asked her about England. He asked her where she lived and seemed more impressed by the fact that she came from Shizuoka to the venue than by her being from England. LoL.
My other friends sitting across the aisle shouted something that made him turn and say, “Yeah, you’re from America. Wait, what? You *live* in America? You’re a Maru fan?”
Subaru blurting out, “From America!” in the midst of that was absolutely classic.
7/05 -- Yoko was his usual chatty self. Okura was unusually chatty. They were talking about food. (*^_^*) They went out for yakiniku the night before and Yoko complained about how Shota wouldn’t eat anything. Shota replied that it was too heavy. Something about the oil. He couldn’t eat it. Okura jumped in and chided him for it. “You so *can* too!” He continued that sitting at the table with someone that doesn’t eat caused him to eat more and get fat. LoL. It seemed that, as usual, all he had the night before was hormone (intestine). Okura called him an “ossan.” Shota also didn’t have anything else all day. They were kind of worried. Shota said that was because eating made him sluggish at concerts. Okura chided him some more about not eating.
Yoko was on a banana diet or something. He also went out for yakiniku with Subaru. They all didn’t go out together? [confused] Anyway... Someone was calling him “Yokoyama” instead of Yoko.
Then, they started to talk about everyone’s bad habits. Subaru’s was letting out huge sighs during the ride home after eating. This switched to Yoko pointing out that Hina would do the same thing after drinking. Hina protested so Yoko made him give a demonstration. Hina retaliated with stories about Yoko being noisy while drinking bottled water and how the sound of the bottle popping was annoying.
Shota’s bad habit was rapidly talking before the words could fully form in his mind when he gets emotional. Okura jumped in and agreed. Yoko said it was like Shota was a genius or something but Shota was deep in thought and didn’t react. After a moment he finally said, “Hai?” Yoko gave him a hard time for that. Maru!’s was the way he ate ramen? Don’t recall... Don’t think they mentioned Ryo’s.
Yoko said that he could always hear Okura’s sandals scuffling along the floor. Okura had an annoying way of eating rice. It had something to do with how he scraped the bowl with his chopsticks, as though he was drinking soup as opposed to rice.
They also said he would take sips of miso soup or a mouthful of rice and then *always* letting out a huge, “Ahh... umai!” to which Okura’s face lit up and he said, “It’s miso soup and rice!” They continued to pick on him and Okura bashfully pouted, “I love miso soup...” (*^_^*) Adorable!
Next, Yoko imitated how Okura shook his upper body after he finished eating. It was hilarious. Okura looked surprised. Then an “Oh yeah, I do” look come across his face and he shimmied his shoulders. Cute. Yoko laughed, did it again, and said, “He’s making room for more food; seeing whether he can eat more.” Haha!
[Veterans -- Explosion / Blowout]
Okura forgot his water bottle one of the days and Kunta picked it up to hand it to him. They announced their new drama -- ninjas! -- and the summer show at the Shochikuza. Don’t remember “Blowout” being sung in Hiroshima but it was a nice surprise. It’s a good song to get the audience on their feet and bouncing around.
7/04 -- Actually took my ITO uchiwa but he still ignored the blinding flash of his name. (>_<)
7/05 -- Yoko asked whether it would be alright for him to stay onstage with them. Kunta wasn’t paying attention when Hina cued him to announce the drama. He really doesn’t pay attention during MCs. Haha. Whenever the Veterans went around throughout the entire show, we would wave like mad at ITO but he would *not* wave back! LoL. (.^_^;)
~*vVv*~
[Akai Shinkirou]
Umm... I don’t remember! (>_<) Oh wait, three of the guys start it off and then the other three appear on the opposite end of the arena. They then all gather onto the centerstage.
7/05 -- Maru! had some fabulous dancing going on. Okura was on the opposite side.
[Brulée]
The outfits they wear for this song and the last song are much nicer than they first appear. They resembled the terrible bellhop costumes but closer inspection revealed an intricate design on the black fabric. They’re trimmed in purple. When Okura did some of the dance moves, the jacket would flap up and revealed quick flashes of gold from the vest underneath! [dazzled]
The choreography for this song is all kinds of fabulous and has Yara written all over it, very much so. Again, it doesn’t sound at all like a dance song on the CD.
7/04 -- Fire! So much fire! (O_O) Okura’s hair was flying all over. I’m surprised he didn’t pull it back and glad he didn’t. Hee~! (♥_♥) He was looking kinda sexy... [blushes][pats sides of face with hands]
7/05 -- Never noticed what the ending pose was before but it’s him on his knees with his back arched and head tilted back. Yoko was doing some fine dancing and blocking my view of Okura... (*^_^*)
[My Last Train]
What happened here? Hmm... Oh! It all sort of blurred together after the awesomeness that was “Brulée.”
7/04 -- Hina and Maru! had a brief moment about who went which way on the trolley carts. Maru! went on the one that went in the opposite direction. Yoko was on the trolley cart one section over. Lost track of Okura near the end...
7/05 -- Okura flubbed his line and he looked a little upset about it at the end? Or was that during a song earlier in the show?
[Osaka Rainy Blues]
Raised platforms?
7/04 -- ITO was twirling a green umbrella in front of us.
7/05 -- Penlights were gorgeous! Almost everyone was doing the participation dance. The venue felt even tinier at that moment.
[Zuccoke Otoko Michi]
It started on the centerstage and then they split up go around the hanamichis.
7/04 -- Yoko came by and did the “Ooooh! Sorya~ sorya~” chant on the sidestage.
7/05 -- When Okura went around on the hanamichi in the middle of the song, he kept doing a bunch of jumps in the air. On the last one, he looked like he nearly lost his balance.
[Do You Agree? / GORI GORI / Jonetsu Party]
Ryo was a special guest guitarist for both days. He was grinning like such a bashful dork. What was up with Shota’s pants?! (O.o) Were those sushi? He also changed his line during “Do You Agree?” for both days. The cymbal on Okura’s drumset was blocking his face. Heh. Love it when he raises his drumstick over his head and really gets into the drumming. (♥_♥) Spent most of the time jumping up and down.
7/04 -- Yoko spent a lot of time on the mainstage. He stood on the speaker/monitor thing and sorta scanned the arena. Okura did a cool little drumstick twirl with his fingers and went immediately into the next drum stroke during one of the songs. It was very cool. Maru! came by and was really getting into the songs.
7/05 -- The red/white lighting pattern was really spectacular during the KanJimi3 + Ryo segment. Wonder what’s going through Okura’s head when he’s drumming. Doesn’t he get a headache from tossing it around so much while drumming? Sorry, random thought there. (.^_^)
[Rolling Coaster]
The song ended with three blasts of silver confetti. It’s so shiny. It’s like being rained on by twinkling light. Still doesn’t feel like an ending song though.
7/05 -- Okura wrapped his hair in a towel.
[Encore -- Mugendai, Saiteiki yo]
7/04 -- I can’t remember who but one of the guys looked into our section and looked like he was going to toss his signboard in. However, the girl a couple of rows in front of us did something and he gave a look of mock shock, clutched his signboard closer and swaggered away. Subaru’s signboard looked like it was going in the direction of my friend but there wasn’t much power behind it so it sorta just fell and flopped to the ground... Yoko was on the mainstage but didn’t have any more signboards or something. ITO opted to ignore his uchiwa *again*. (;_;) Mr. Sassy went by on the trolley and was surprised by the guy in the audience. At the very end, he tore something black and flicked it into the arena a few seats over and one row back.
7/05 -- Okura was wearing green sandals. He threw his signboard one section over. Then, he chucked his last one into the section behind the mainstage. It appeared that he was aiming for someone because he then put his hands together in apology. I should make and uchiwa that says, “OKURA 色紙ちょだ～い PLEASE” LoL. Shota darted into the audience to get to the trolley cart but then the cart started going the wrong way! Haha. Maru! came by. He was doing his wave and pa~n but stopped to return my friend’s “I love you” hand gesture when he saw her. Mr. Sassy looked above us at the last second. ITO... [shakes head] Some of the guys were throwing towels into the audience. For the final bow, Yoko yelled at some people from not standing up and holding hands. Haha. (.^_^)
~*vVv*~
Like I said before, compared to previous tours, I’m still not too impressed. It’s a good show but average good; not absolutely stunning. These two shows were definitely better than the first one I saw. The costumes are nicer than I’d originally thought, too.
Also, seeing concerts with friends is so much more fun. I’m so happy they invited me to go with them! (*^_^*) Totally made my weekend hanging out with friends I hadn’t seen in awhile. Can’t wait for Ishikawa and Osaka.
BTW, saw Akanishi on 5/16 and saw Okura on 7/4. That worked out rather well. (.^_^)v
DATE: 7/04 @ 14:00 & 7/05 @ 13:00
Notes... not really a report. Sappy Okura fangirling ahead...
~*vVv*~
[Gorilla Theatre]
Noticed that Ryo’s face comes off his uchiwa during all of this. He looked so sad and amused as he tried to put it back. For the endings, 7/04 was Shota and 7/05 was Maru!.
[Musekinin Hero]
The first thing the arena saw was the tops of their heads because the boys rise up from the centersage. Pyrotechnics start off the song. When I first saw the pink outfits, I didn’t think much of them. I’ve changed my mind. I especially like Okura’s variation because it has this shiny gold scarf thingie that flails around as he dances. Plus, the color compliments his hair quite nicely.
7/04 -- First glimpse of Okura was fabulous. Swear there’s really an aura of glitter that shimmers around him. He’s sunshine and sparkles and puppy dogs and, yeah... (*^_^*) His hair was a light brown and his face looked a bit puffy, like he’d just woken up or something. He was a bit sluggish too. Yoko was scowling about something. Maru! was really getting into the dance. Shota’s hair was a bright blond and needed different layering.
7/05 -- Okura and Maru! were the only two really dancing and they were super energetic about it. Lots of Okura and Shota interaction too. Loved watching the penlights move as everyone danced along.
[It’s My Soul]
7/04 -- Maru! was bouncing around and goofing off with Okura. Yoko’s rather handsome but has gotten really thin... Never thought I would say this about anyone but he’s almost too skinny...
7/05 -- Subaru. Okura!
[KanFu Fighting]
They went around the hanamichi to stand on a row of platforms in the middle of the arena. Material hung from it to make it look like a dragon.
7/04 -- ITO was dancing directly in front of us. He grins like such a dork when he dances. [squishes]
7/05 -- Yoko had the first platform where the dragon’s head was. He stood to make it look like he was sitting on the dragon like the kid on The Neverending Story DVD cover.
[Ichibyou Kiss]
They headed to the mainstage and the lights darkened. Lots of smoke and wind. I like the part where they line up, shoulder shimmy and then split into a different formation again.
7/04 -- (*^_^*)
7/05 -- Someone said “Ahh...” instead of the usual “Oh...” They kept cracking up and couldn’t really do the dance properly. It looked like they were trying desperately to get back into formation. Okura was smirking at one point. It was cute.
[Glorious]
The red confetti fluttering down on us was a neat feeling. It was fun watching it flutter down into the arena too. The spotlights silhouetting the boys while they sang were a nice touch.
[kicyu]
They changed it from Hiroshima and got rid of the trolley carts near the end. The pattern on the outfits was actually those mini mutant lips from the PV. (O.o) Like it when they run their thumb across their lips in the choreography.
7/05 -- Shota changed the line to “Yoko-cho mo” and Yoko couldn’t sing his part. They also kept their palms together longer than usual. At the end of the song, Yoko opened up his shirt and slid it off so that it hung in the crooks of his arms. Cut lights. (O_@)
[You Can See]
Maru! is rather handsome, too. ITO wore a green tie.
[Puzzle]
This is a favorite from the album. I think I just like how it feels a bit nostalgic as the singer looks through a photo album and wonders about the “missing piece” of the puzzle. They ended the song on the centerstage with Okura sitting down.
7/04 -- Yoko’s legs are really skinny... and his slacks looked penny-rolled? Okura looked so sad and his hair kept brushing his face...
7/05 -- Okura sang his first line in front of us.
[Kawaita Hana]
They migrated to the mainstage where a bunch of mic stands were lined up with different flowers. Love the way Subaru sang the last words. It’s sort of breathy but the note was so clear.
7/04 -- Okura quit doing the choreography near the end. Not sure whether he forgot or whether he was supposed to do that. Did I mention how lovely his hair was yet? Wanna dye my hair that color now... Heh.
~*vVv*~
[Eight Rangers]
7/05 -- Before the theme song, there was a VTR about where all of the Rangers were now that there was peace around Eito City.
Green -- ate and slept. Adorable smile in the snapshot.
Orange -- became a body builder. Muscle flexing in the snapshot.
Blue -- putting on make up at a vanity mirror. Making a kissy face in the snapshot.
Nasu -- became rich. Laughing in the snapshot.
Red -- became a sumo wrestler. Going for an “attack” in the snapshot.
Yellow -- wanted to fly. Bungee jumping in the snapshot.
Black -- Smirk.
The VTR showed their transformation sequence. Okura’s ending pose was his right thumb and forefinger in an “L” shape placed beneath his lips.
They all jumped up from the stage and hopped onto their bikes. Yellow had some problems and Nasu nearly ran into him halfway around the hanamichi. Near the end, the same thing happened. Nasu didn’t have enough momentum to go up the ramp and caused a traffic jam. Blue tried to push Nasu up the ramp with his bike and nearly fell over. Yellow broke his bike. Haha.
New Red pushed Red out of the way even earlier than usual. This time, he patted Blue’s helmet like Red usually does. 7/04 -- New Red’s pose after pushing Red out of the way had him making bouncing boob motions with his hands in front of his chest.
He announced that they were in Fukui! Yea! Orange started to shout random things. He did Edo Harumi’s “Hwoo!” face. New Red tried to calm him down but just when it looked like Orange was done, he would have another fit. Too funny. 7/04 -- New Red paused for quite a bit before announcing, “We’ve arrived in... umm... Fukui!” Orange chanted about writing the wrong kanji for Fukuoka instead of Fukui in a journal on J-web?
Green was cracking up on his knees. The VTR gave a nice closeup of him giving one of his true, pure, unchecked laughs; mouth corners stretched back in a grin, gorgeous nose crinkled and eyes squinting into rainbow arcs. Or was that during the MC? Nice image either way! (♥_♥) Here are some examples:
OK, now back to 8 Ranger Episode: What Color Does the Grass on the Other Side Appear to Be? Apologies for easily getting distracted and sidetracked. (*^_^*)
Red shouted about how something wasn’t right. Why were there *two* Reds? Blue’s look of shock was perfect. 7/04 -- Yellow asked in English, “What’s wrong?”
After some bantering, New Red called out Orange . Orange ominously tore open the top of his rangersuit in a Superman fashion to reveal that he would be New Yellow. Yellow had the saddest look of betrayal on his face... Aww...
Green was then called out for wanting to be New Blue. New Blue muttered that even though he wanted to be blond, he couldn’t because Blue was there! (O.o) LoL. 7/04 -- His reason was that it sucked being big and he wanted to be petite.
He managed to get out of his Green costume without any problems this time. He appeared quite proud of himself. 7/04 -- Green had trouble getting out of his Green ranger suit to become New Blue. It got caught on the Eito-kun belt and he had to get some help pulling it off. Then, it got caught on his leg as he tried to kick it off.
After some exchanged words, Red shouted that they were through and scurried down the stairs. Yellow and Blue followed. New Blue called over New Red. New Red gave a look of pure joy at being called, “Red” and, after a little giggle, joined him. New Yellow soon followed. The three of them went to put their fists together, only to have New Blue trip a bit. Eep! Don’t fall off the stage again... 7/04 -- Red called them all underwear thieves. New Yellow and New Red stumbled over their dialogue.
Red, Yellow and Blue appeared on the substage. After some chatting, a jr. shot an arrow at them. Blue couldn’t get the letter open and handed it to Red who handed it to Yellow. They finally managed to get it open and read it.
The words of the letter were scrolled on the screen in front of funny pictures of their faces. New Red started off reading but said he couldn’t and handed it off to New Yellow. New Yellow kept misreading “本当” as “mototo” or “motoatari” so he passed it on to New Blue. New Blue sounded all authoritative until the last word of one of the sentences. He pulled it together and all three of them finished it off. They signed the letter as New Red, Yellow, Blue. New Blue used a duck voice or something. Always makes me laugh.
Anyway, they’d found their “true colors” and were ready for a rumble, thus the “West Side Story” showdown began. New Blue, New Red and New Yellow were in one corner of the hanamichi with ITO, etc. Blue, Red and Yellow were in the other with TG-kun, etc.
After a song, they met up on the centerstage and danced/fought. The random clapping midway through always makes me giggle. It makes me giggle more than the random dancing. New Blue held Blue’s head as Blue tried to hit him with punches. 7/04 -- They tried to battle with their arms behind their backs. New Blue’s pantleg came un-Velcro’d and showed that he had the Green rangersuit on underneath. Spoiler! J/K
They split up. Red ran away from New Red down the hanamichi. Yellow and New Yellow twirled batons. While waiting, New Blue and Blue did jumping jacks. 7/04 -- New Blue and Blue did random exercises and movements.
They fought in slow motion, Blue shouting out the “punch” only to have New Blue perform Genta’s death move with the puppet snake. He was supposed to look all suave at the end but had to suppress a laugh instead. He smirked and shook his head, saying he couldn’t. The VTR showed his face with a voiceover in the background.
Everyone was on the centerstage. New Red shot a gun he had into the air. The single bullet bounced around and hit New Blue in the leg. Twice. Haha. New Blue impassively looked down and said, “Ouch...” The others said that sucked and to say it like he meant it. New Blue acted more macho and growled his annoyance in a very Domyoji way.
More fighting ensued. Sort of. The BGM was light and airy with lots of flutes. It had a 70’s disco feel. It started with one group marching towards the other and saying rather strong words in sing-songy voices. The exchange went something like, “Give up! // C’mon. // How annoying. // Why? // You know why. // We wanna change. // We got that. // We can’t? // You know it!”
Ooo, snap... It was so on! They fought and Yellow pulled out a knife from some magical dimension. They rumbled a bit more and gathered into the middle stage in a very dramatic moment. The Veterans flapped their arms like flying monkeys and exited the stage.
When the others pulled away from the center, it was revealed that Nasu had been stabbed! But he was still moving. He gasped his few last breaths while the others lamented over how it was their fault. 7/04 -- Everyone was cracking up as they continued with the script. New Blue was seated.
They suddenly found some puzzle pieces and ran to the mainstage to fit the pieces together. Yellow’s face was missing. At that moment, Nasu stood up and pulled another piece from his rangersuit. The others all acted scared of zombie!Nasu. 7/04 -- Everyone told him to stay where he was because he reeked. They shouted out, “Thriller!” New Yellow then did a Michael Jackson Thriller dance and posed, calling it a special MJ edition.
Nasu joined them on the stage to put the last piece down. He pulled out some magical scepter from somewhere and transformed New Blue, New Red and New Yellow back into their original colors. New Blue sat seiza on the edge of the stage and prepared to peel off the Blue rangersuit layer.
“Donna ni Hanaretetatte Soba ni iru kara” began. Green sat on the edge of one of the platforms, pretending to drum along with the song. Yellow and Orange hugged. Not to be outdone, when Blue held his hand out for a handshake, Green yanked his arm and leaned back causing Blue to end up lying on top of him. (O_@) 7/04 -- Green just pretended to play the drums.
Everyone made their way to the substage. Green and Blue kept teasing each other. While they sang, they kept looking at each other and messing around. It was cute! Then, everyone except for Black, draped their arms across each other’s shoulders and swayed back and forth in time to the music.
Everything was peachy amongst the 8 Rangers in KanJania once more. Yea!
Blue went to look at the VTR, which showed the completed puzzle, but Green smacked the back of his helmet. It fell forward and covered Blue’s eyes. Haha.
[Kigamajime waga Faito]
7/04 -- Okura was doing his general wave and didn’t seem to be aiming for anyone in particular.
7/05 -- Ryo immediately stripped off the top part of his rangersuit. Okura kicked his autographed ball one stand over. Yoko threw all of his autographed balls into the same section behind the mainstage.
[MC]
7/04 -- Okura was being his usual quiet self. Yoko was unusually quiet. Someone called out for Hina and he turned and asked, “What?” They talked about what Fukui was known for and commented on how Maru! stumbled over some lines in the skit. They said that Japanese was “difficult.”
Then, Hina started to point out people from Australia, the US and England. He mentioned Australia first and showed the girl on the VTR. The giddy look on her face was infectious. He asked whether she was with her friend.
Then! He turned to my friend and asked her about England. He asked her where she lived and seemed more impressed by the fact that she came from Shizuoka to the venue than by her being from England. LoL.
My other friends sitting across the aisle shouted something that made him turn and say, “Yeah, you’re from America. Wait, what? You *live* in America? You’re a Maru fan?”
Subaru blurting out, “From America!” in the midst of that was absolutely classic.
7/05 -- Yoko was his usual chatty self. Okura was unusually chatty. They were talking about food. (*^_^*) They went out for yakiniku the night before and Yoko complained about how Shota wouldn’t eat anything. Shota replied that it was too heavy. Something about the oil. He couldn’t eat it. Okura jumped in and chided him for it. “You so *can* too!” He continued that sitting at the table with someone that doesn’t eat caused him to eat more and get fat. LoL. It seemed that, as usual, all he had the night before was hormone (intestine). Okura called him an “ossan.” Shota also didn’t have anything else all day. They were kind of worried. Shota said that was because eating made him sluggish at concerts. Okura chided him some more about not eating.
Yoko was on a banana diet or something. He also went out for yakiniku with Subaru. They all didn’t go out together? [confused] Anyway... Someone was calling him “Yokoyama” instead of Yoko.
Then, they started to talk about everyone’s bad habits. Subaru’s was letting out huge sighs during the ride home after eating. This switched to Yoko pointing out that Hina would do the same thing after drinking. Hina protested so Yoko made him give a demonstration. Hina retaliated with stories about Yoko being noisy while drinking bottled water and how the sound of the bottle popping was annoying.
Shota’s bad habit was rapidly talking before the words could fully form in his mind when he gets emotional. Okura jumped in and agreed. Yoko said it was like Shota was a genius or something but Shota was deep in thought and didn’t react. After a moment he finally said, “Hai?” Yoko gave him a hard time for that. Maru!’s was the way he ate ramen? Don’t recall... Don’t think they mentioned Ryo’s.
Yoko said that he could always hear Okura’s sandals scuffling along the floor. Okura had an annoying way of eating rice. It had something to do with how he scraped the bowl with his chopsticks, as though he was drinking soup as opposed to rice.
They also said he would take sips of miso soup or a mouthful of rice and then *always* letting out a huge, “Ahh... umai!” to which Okura’s face lit up and he said, “It’s miso soup and rice!” They continued to pick on him and Okura bashfully pouted, “I love miso soup...” (*^_^*) Adorable!
Next, Yoko imitated how Okura shook his upper body after he finished eating. It was hilarious. Okura looked surprised. Then an “Oh yeah, I do” look come across his face and he shimmied his shoulders. Cute. Yoko laughed, did it again, and said, “He’s making room for more food; seeing whether he can eat more.” Haha!
[Veterans -- Explosion / Blowout]
Okura forgot his water bottle one of the days and Kunta picked it up to hand it to him. They announced their new drama -- ninjas! -- and the summer show at the Shochikuza. Don’t remember “Blowout” being sung in Hiroshima but it was a nice surprise. It’s a good song to get the audience on their feet and bouncing around.
7/04 -- Actually took my ITO uchiwa but he still ignored the blinding flash of his name. (>_<)
7/05 -- Yoko asked whether it would be alright for him to stay onstage with them. Kunta wasn’t paying attention when Hina cued him to announce the drama. He really doesn’t pay attention during MCs. Haha. Whenever the Veterans went around throughout the entire show, we would wave like mad at ITO but he would *not* wave back! LoL. (.^_^;)
~*vVv*~
[Akai Shinkirou]
Umm... I don’t remember! (>_<) Oh wait, three of the guys start it off and then the other three appear on the opposite end of the arena. They then all gather onto the centerstage.
7/05 -- Maru! had some fabulous dancing going on. Okura was on the opposite side.
[Brulée]
The outfits they wear for this song and the last song are much nicer than they first appear. They resembled the terrible bellhop costumes but closer inspection revealed an intricate design on the black fabric. They’re trimmed in purple. When Okura did some of the dance moves, the jacket would flap up and revealed quick flashes of gold from the vest underneath! [dazzled]
The choreography for this song is all kinds of fabulous and has Yara written all over it, very much so. Again, it doesn’t sound at all like a dance song on the CD.
7/04 -- Fire! So much fire! (O_O) Okura’s hair was flying all over. I’m surprised he didn’t pull it back and glad he didn’t. Hee~! (♥_♥) He was looking kinda sexy... [blushes][pats sides of face with hands]
7/05 -- Never noticed what the ending pose was before but it’s him on his knees with his back arched and head tilted back. Yoko was doing some fine dancing and blocking my view of Okura... (*^_^*)
[My Last Train]
What happened here? Hmm... Oh! It all sort of blurred together after the awesomeness that was “Brulée.”
7/04 -- Hina and Maru! had a brief moment about who went which way on the trolley carts. Maru! went on the one that went in the opposite direction. Yoko was on the trolley cart one section over. Lost track of Okura near the end...
7/05 -- Okura flubbed his line and he looked a little upset about it at the end? Or was that during a song earlier in the show?
[Osaka Rainy Blues]
Raised platforms?
7/04 -- ITO was twirling a green umbrella in front of us.
7/05 -- Penlights were gorgeous! Almost everyone was doing the participation dance. The venue felt even tinier at that moment.
[Zuccoke Otoko Michi]
It started on the centerstage and then they split up go around the hanamichis.
7/04 -- Yoko came by and did the “Ooooh! Sorya~ sorya~” chant on the sidestage.
7/05 -- When Okura went around on the hanamichi in the middle of the song, he kept doing a bunch of jumps in the air. On the last one, he looked like he nearly lost his balance.
[Do You Agree? / GORI GORI / Jonetsu Party]
Ryo was a special guest guitarist for both days. He was grinning like such a bashful dork. What was up with Shota’s pants?! (O.o) Were those sushi? He also changed his line during “Do You Agree?” for both days. The cymbal on Okura’s drumset was blocking his face. Heh. Love it when he raises his drumstick over his head and really gets into the drumming. (♥_♥) Spent most of the time jumping up and down.
7/04 -- Yoko spent a lot of time on the mainstage. He stood on the speaker/monitor thing and sorta scanned the arena. Okura did a cool little drumstick twirl with his fingers and went immediately into the next drum stroke during one of the songs. It was very cool. Maru! came by and was really getting into the songs.
7/05 -- The red/white lighting pattern was really spectacular during the KanJimi3 + Ryo segment. Wonder what’s going through Okura’s head when he’s drumming. Doesn’t he get a headache from tossing it around so much while drumming? Sorry, random thought there. (.^_^)
[Rolling Coaster]
The song ended with three blasts of silver confetti. It’s so shiny. It’s like being rained on by twinkling light. Still doesn’t feel like an ending song though.
7/05 -- Okura wrapped his hair in a towel.
[Encore -- Mugendai, Saiteiki yo]
7/04 -- I can’t remember who but one of the guys looked into our section and looked like he was going to toss his signboard in. However, the girl a couple of rows in front of us did something and he gave a look of mock shock, clutched his signboard closer and swaggered away. Subaru’s signboard looked like it was going in the direction of my friend but there wasn’t much power behind it so it sorta just fell and flopped to the ground... Yoko was on the mainstage but didn’t have any more signboards or something. ITO opted to ignore his uchiwa *again*. (;_;) Mr. Sassy went by on the trolley and was surprised by the guy in the audience. At the very end, he tore something black and flicked it into the arena a few seats over and one row back.
7/05 -- Okura was wearing green sandals. He threw his signboard one section over. Then, he chucked his last one into the section behind the mainstage. It appeared that he was aiming for someone because he then put his hands together in apology. I should make and uchiwa that says, “OKURA 色紙ちょだ～い PLEASE” LoL. Shota darted into the audience to get to the trolley cart but then the cart started going the wrong way! Haha. Maru! came by. He was doing his wave and pa~n but stopped to return my friend’s “I love you” hand gesture when he saw her. Mr. Sassy looked above us at the last second. ITO... [shakes head] Some of the guys were throwing towels into the audience. For the final bow, Yoko yelled at some people from not standing up and holding hands. Haha. (.^_^)
~*vVv*~
Like I said before, compared to previous tours, I’m still not too impressed. It’s a good show but average good; not absolutely stunning. These two shows were definitely better than the first one I saw. The costumes are nicer than I’d originally thought, too.
Also, seeing concerts with friends is so much more fun. I’m so happy they invited me to go with them! (*^_^*) Totally made my weekend hanging out with friends I hadn’t seen in awhile. Can’t wait for Ishikawa and Osaka.
BTW, saw Akanishi on 5/16 and saw Okura on 7/4. That worked out rather well. (.^_^)v