ZONE - treasure of the heart ~Kimi to Boku no Kiseki~ PV review (17JUN2012)

I ordered this single with Hey! Say! JUMP's album and I plan on waiting until I can get the RE version of that album before I do a review for it. This single though is nicely contained with everything on the RE on the LE plus having the PV for the title track, treasure of the heart ~Kimi to Boku no Kiseki~ (treasure of the heart ~Your and My Miracle~). I would have done this review sooner but there were a few things that I wanted to research about it to see if I was right about some of the things I initially guessed at.

This single is ZONE's comeback single after they disbanded back in 2005. In 2011 they made a sorta comeback with a tribute album and touring, mostly to raise funds for the Tohoku region after the March 11th disaster. But with this single they are down to two members, Miyu and Maiko, and has been heralded as an actual comeback for the girl band.

I love this song, not only because it sounds like it could so easily have been a single before the band disbanded in 2005 but because the lyrics are just beautiful to me. From what I understand of the lyrics the song is basically about keeping those you have lost in your heart because they will live with you that way, so when you want to see them again you can in a way and that of course is the miracle of the treasure of the heart.

What really drives the emotional impact of the song is the connections to the Tohoku region as in the thank you section of the booklet two schools are thanked and they are both from the region that the earthquake/tsunami hit in 2011. And me being the sentimental person I am find myself incredibly moved by this. So much so that I do confess to crying each time I have watched this PV.

Miyu

Maiko

I guess to get it out of the way, the girls have really grown since 2005. They are both beautiful young women and I am glad to see them continue on, especially since it seems mainly fueled for helping the Tohoku region.

The PV itself is simple but effective with getting the message of the song across. The basic scenes it toggles between are those of Miyu and Maiko and the students out in the field.

It goes between just focusing on the students as well as having them in the background behind the girls.

Another major part of the PV are scenes of the students in various locations acting out small scenes. Like in the first one you have the boy on the street listening to music.

He sees a girl from his school and he is shocked by it.

And of course the girl disappears in a blink of an eye as she is only supposed to be a memory.

These scenes work very well with the song with only of the themes in it is being able to want to see someone again as the word 出逢い (to meet) is used frequently in the lyrics.

Thankfully they have these scenes in the field to give you a break from the heartache. Though you cannot completely forget it with the students with desks and chairs there in the background.

Probably the scene that got me the most, so much so I had to pause for a moment because I was crying too much by then, is this one. Just seeing the two two figures across the horizon and then the lone figure looking back at the girl no longer there just hits me hard.

Like I mentioned earlier the booklet thanked two schools and I have the feeling that is because they used them for these school shots. And they are pretty eerie as so much of it is empty classrooms, but again it is another way the PV tugs at the heart strings.

I love this shot and the fact they held off on putting it in until the end. It is just one of those shots that you just expect to either be at the start of end of PV.

And to make a note of it, watching the making of that was on the DVD as well shows that it was raining, well mainly sprinkling and drizzling, throughout the entire shooting. Not to mention it also being windy as well, so the weather was not really with them when they were making this. And of course you can tell they played with the look of some of the shots and it mainly has to be because of the weather.

And when we get to the end and see the girl give a small smile of hope my heart breaks in all the right ways. I feel it is a symbol of hope for the region in general, that after all they have lost they will keep living, keeping what they treasured the most but lost in their hearts so they can continue to live in them. (And yes I had to pause at this point because of my tears again.)

And then we get the end shot, and I love how the weather decided to work in their favor at some time during the shot so you get the sun there in the background shining through the clouds. It really gives you the sense of hope, seeing that beyond the clouds that the sun is still there shining.


So yea, this PV makes me cry but in a good way as I feel that just means that it worked for the message the song is trying to send. Because even though there were tears I still felt hopeful by the end.

Looking at the booklet that came with the CD Miyu is listed as writing the lyrics for this song. The other two songs have their lyrics written by her and Maiko, which I am happy with as I love it when idols move past just having all their songs handed to them and begin to be a part of the writing process for them. But I think Miyu did a wonderful job with this song. I may not understand it all but from what I can I can easily follow what is being sung and the general meaning of the song and it is really touching to me. This is a song that really moves me and the PV for it only helps cement the feelings it brings up in me which to me is a sign of a good PV.

My favorite lyric being　ずっと宝物だから。。。僕は歩いてゆく , which I believe should translate to something like "Always because of this treasure... I keep walking." I think these two lines sum up the song so well in terms of its theme and message.

And I think it is pretty understandable why this group would attach themselves to the Tohoku region, as they are from Hokkaido which is not far from it and it was probably a region that the girls are familiar traveling through from going to Tokyo to home in the past. That and so much of their initial reunion was in the region that I am sure it has left a lasting impression on them.

Overall I am so glad that I bought this single and the LE version at that. I not only feel that ZONE is back but feel the maturity that the girls are bringing to the group now that they have grown older since their days with the group years ago.