Ranty Zone

So at the single announcement event for Sexy Zone's upcoming single it has been announced that it will only have three of the five members participating, Sato Shori, Kikuchi Fuma and Nakajima Kento. Yo Marius and Matsushima So will be sitting this out for reasons that seem completely superficial about members "getting stronger/better" by trying different things.

I may not consider myself a SZ fan but this still manages to piss me off. Maybe because I am a fan of some of the members of the group, with So being my favorite yet he gets shafted so often. At this point I would rather have him and Marius debut with another group where they will not be treated like redheaded step-children.

And it may seem weird since I am a Kis-My-Ft2 fan and they have a strong divide, but the back four are getting chances to do things on a consistent basis. No matter what one thinks of Busaiku it has given the four a way to get themselves out into the eyes of the public. And it has helped them as they are getting noticed by the general public instead of being stuck as the back dancers to the front three. So and Marius have not really had that chance, especially in a way that lets the general public get to see them and get to know them. Not to mention Kisumai had been around as Juniors for so long they all had fanbases that would follow them, while So and Marius were practically unknowns when they debuted and have had to try to build their fanbase as they went post-debut. Something that is hard to do when they are seen so little of.

Probably what frustrates me the most is that I could so easily be a SZ fan except for all these little things that ultimately turn me away. Especially with So being my favorite member of the group.

Morning Musume is scheduled to release a single the same day as this upcoming one, and I honestly hope they get the number 1 spot. As it is a send off for one of their members who decided to graduate to move on to the next stage of her career, which is much better than having members thrown under the bus in favor of others.

And I cannot help but wonder if maybe one of the other members of SMAP has enough free time to produce a side unit for one of his kouhai groups. I think there could be a lot of fun for Katori Shingo to team up with the younger two...