Movie Clip Released For Yajima’s Movie “Fuyu no Kaidan”

A movie clip has been released, and in it we can see Yajima Maimi defend Fukuda Kanon from some zombies, and talking with people. Also there is a press event after the movie clip, so if you want to see it go ahead, if not then I suggest you just see the movie clip at the beginning (the clip appears again near the end of the video).

From what I’ve seen the movie looks really good, although in some parts Yajima seemed to be somewhat emotionless (especially during the kick, she just kicked and stared). Fukuda does act well, but she seems to only have the “innocent girl” role, so I don’t expect to see her in action a lot of the time. Here is the clip:

H!P Releases April 29

• Yajima Maimi – 17’s (DVD)
• Buono! – My Boy (Single)
• Buono! – My Boy (Single+DVD) (Limited Edition)

Three releases today, first a solo DVD by Yajima Maimi, and the other two are Buono’s newest single, let’s start:

17’s is the first solo DVD of Yajima Maimi (C-ute leader), and it features scenes from her new PB titled “17″. I haven’t seen the DVD so I can’t really give a thorough opinion, but from experience I know that they basically follow her around, show PB shoots, then follow her again and that cycle repeats itself some 5 or 6 times (this comes from other solo DVDs, might change a bit in this release).

From the shots on the DVD cover we notice she is outside a lot of the time (the hawaiin-style picture on the top left, the “I saw a UFO there” picture in the bottom left, and the casual but elegant picture in the bottom right), so Yajima fans will be happy about that. I would recommend it for Yajima fans and C-ute fans, mainly because C-ute fans are already used to seeing Yajima in the front during choreagraphy’s.

Buono! – My Boy, this is their 7th single and it seems that they are still going to go for more. This release is the first one to get a PV with a story (a first for H!P, although they are technically still under another label), in it they are trying to infiltrate a base that has cake in it, yeah…but at least the cake has strawberrys which is always a plus. The choreography is somewhat slow, compared to the song which has heavy guitars and beats, that really surprised me, I was expecting something more lively.

The song itself is amazing, the main feature being the heavy beats and guitars (one of the reasons why I decided to buy it, I’ll review it more in depth when I get my copy soon). The covers are a welcome addition, mainly because of the dull covers that we have seen lately (Yajima Maimi’s PB 17 for example), although it looks like they took the cover shots when they were using the Naichau Kamo set. I would recommend this single for all H!P fans who like fast songs, and to all Buono fans of course, this is among the best releases yet, hopefully they can continue this trend with the following single.

Overall there were great releases, next release date includes the long awaited Shouganai Yume Oibito by Morning Musume, and the Single-V for “MY BOY” from Buono.

H!P Releases April 24

• Yajima Maimi – 17 (Photobook)

Like the other day there is only one release, this time it’s Yajima Maimi’s new PB, “17″:

This release was kind of strange, not because of the PB, but because of the release date. Amazon had the release date on 4/18, but YesAsia had it on 4/24, so I decided to go with the 4/24 (mainly because I forgot that it was released earlier by Amazon).

The PB features Yajima Maimi, who not suprisingly just turned 17 (hence the creative title). I can’t really say I am a Yajima fan, but the pictures from the PB look great. From the scans I have seen they really tried their hardest to make her look mature, which really works out well, hopefully they can continue this with Suzuki’s PB.

The title, as I had referenced before, is slightly uncreative and kind of generic, like the cover which is simple but elegant, but kind of boring. Nonetheless the release is great, there is a lot of Yajima Maimi for fans, so if you are one of them please buy it. The DVD for this release will be available on 4/29, which is creatively titled “17s”.

Sorry for the short review, there is nothing more I can write about it, but please buy the PB if you are a Yajima fan, links are in the Upcoming Releases page, and down below is a statement by Yajima about her PB (with some previews) via Dohhh-Up, enjoy!

LINK

Yajima Maimi – “17″ PB Cover Released

The cover has been out for a while now, and it screams one word – simplicity. It seems that the covers for recent releases from Hello! Project have been extremely simple (Shouganai Yume Oibito for example), I wouldn’t be surprised if the cover of Seishun Bus Guide has the girls aligned in a yearbook style photo. This cover is good, simple but good, although I would have liked some more complexity in the background instead of a blackout scene. Yajima looks great as always, the serious face she has could mean that now that she is 17 she will try and be more mature, although it could also mean that she is bored over the idea of the cover.

The PB comes out on April 29 with the DVD (the one with the yearbook cover), so if you’re a Maimi fan be sure to have it reserved. She is one of the popular members of  Hello! Project, which means that she will sell really well during her first week. Let’s hope that the PB is more interesting than the cover (which will most likely be true), good luck on your first week sales Yajima.

Yajima Maimi – “17’s” DVD Cover

No, it’s not Hello! Project’s yearbook, it’s Yajima Maimi’s new DVD Cover. Yajima Maimi, as we all know, is one of the most popular members in H!P, so it was almost bound to happen that she would get another PB and DVD, I can’t really say I follow her that much (Suzuki Airi and Umeda Erika fan), but I am interested to see it.

The cover is extremely simple, I guess the guy who did it had four photos, Photoshop, and 15 min to finish it before the meeting… Yajima is cute, but like some of the fans out there I really think that she has gotten a lot of limelight compared to the other girls, I would like to see Suzuki or someone else get a turn to shine.

The photos on the cover are cute, but not really interesting, when I first saw it I thought it was a UFO movie because of the college yearbook letters and because she seems to be pointing to one on the bottom left picture. The PB and the DVD come bundled together, which is somewhat of a relief because of the lack of effort in the DVD cover, but it’s also good because the fans won’t have to pay more to see her on DVD.

The preview will probably pop up any day now on Dohhh-Up so I’ll be sure to post about it when it is released, but for now if you want to reserve your copy check out the links in the upcoming releases to reserve your copy of the PB and the DVD (they both come together).

Yajima Maimi Going Into Acting Too

Following in Takahashi Ai’s acting footsteps, Yajima Maimi is set to star in a lead role in some ghost movie called “Fuyu no Kaidan” (Winter Ghost Story). From the two sites I saw the story on I assume that she is going to be exorcising and battling demons, which sounds really cool. I also found out that Fukuda Kanon is going to be in it too, which is a great way of putting her on par with one of the most popular Eggs, Maeda Yuuki.

The first link is the link to the producers blog with pictures of Yajima Maimi and the production of the movie, there is also some other guys blog that is somehow related to the movie because he put a picture with the cast on it, where Kanon appears, I’ll put it just in case he updates with another picture. Although I’m not 100% sure it’s her because I don’t follow the Hello! Pro Eggs, I think it’s safe to say that she will have at least a minor role in the movie.

LINK Producer’s Blog

LINK The other guy’s blog (I’ll update with a name once I find it)

Korean Auditions Start Today UPDATED

Well actually by this time they started some time ago, but it still is March 9 where I am posting from so I will rely on that. I wasn’t going to post, but because I partly forgot that they were going to start today I decided to post it as a reminder, here is a quote that is flying around the various H!P fansites:

“H!P (Hello! Project) will be hosting a Korean Audition Show to be aired on Mnet, looking for new members this Spring (some of which can possibly end up in Morning Musume, who is also performing at the AX convention in LA in July!

Morning Musume also had a concert on June 1 in Korea at the Olympic Hall in Seoul too (Jessica, Tiffany, Taeyeon, and Sooyoung of Girls’ Generation / SNSD attended the concert). Sooyoung was actually a part of H!P’s parent company when she lived in Japan.

H!P originally planned to launch this audition for last year after they held their concert but negotiations with Mnet fell through.
They did go through with a Taiwanese audition TV show from which a new all-Taiwanese group, Ice cream Musume, was formed and is promoting both in Taiwan and in Japan.

Berryz Koubou (a group in H!P) performed at the 2008 ASF and won an award for Asia Newcomer along with SHINee.

The leader of Berryz Koubou (Saki Shimizu) and the leader of C-ute (another H!P group, named Maimi Yajima) are heading to Korea on March 9 to start the auditions.

They’re an open audition which means ANYONE can apply”

Source: AsianFanatics (thats what they are credited for on some sites)

As I mentioned some time ago, H!P already had a Korean member, but she left and went back to Korea, and from what I read in the translation she is probably SooYoung (not sure on this). I’m not sure what “ANYONE” means, but it probably means girls only, I don’t think Tsunku is that desperate (at least for now). So expect to see video of the auditions sometime on the Hello!Online trackers and some fansub groups might translate (not likely though). Tsunku’s Asian domination continues…

LINK (The page of the TV station that’s broadcasting the auditions, apparently they are called “Asia Super Girls” for some reason)

UPDATE: Here are some pictures from when Tsunku, Shimizu Saki, and Yajima Maimi arrived in Korea. Shimizu looks extremely good, completely different from her Dakishimete Dakishimete “tough-guy” look; Yajima looks kinda short for some reason, but she still looks cute. Tsunku……looks scary as always, anyways here are three pictures, not much of an update to deserve its own post. And the official name of the audition is “Meet Tokyo Girl”, which sounds kind of wierd, considering that the girl that’s going to get picked is from Korea.

PIC SOURCE: Stardust

Shimizu And Yajima Going To South Korea To Announce Auditions

Long title huh? I have a girl in a class that looks like Shimizu….

Anyway according to JPHIP:

“Shimuzu Saki and Yajima Maimi will visit South Korea on March 9 to officially announce the “Hello! Project South Korea Audition”.
The audition is organized by Korean music entertainment enterprise Mnet Media and Up Front Works.
The South Korean member(s) selected in this audition will have thorough Japanese style training as a member of Hello! Project, and will be given the chance to debut in Japan.”

Source : tiny @ JPHIP

So Shimizu Saki and Yajima Maimi will go to South Korea and just announce the auditions which were silently revealed through various forums, and on here. This isn’t that big of a news, the only thing that will get on Hello! Online’s new’s page is when the winner(s) are announced, so don’t expect to see it on H!O that soon. But it is good that they will actually go to Korea for members, because H!P has only had one member, who left H!P to “continue her studies” (got tired of not getting picked on any popular groups and wanted to return home, not true but that is the fan interpretation).

This is a great thing and a bad thing, great because H!P will expand slightly more (Tsunku’s Asian Domination) and bad because most H!P fans will start crying over her being Korean and H!P being Japanese, remember the “discussion” JunJun and LinLin created? Some H!P fans are not that considerate of people being put into H!P from other places, so I hope this helps them keep quiet and understand that H!P is expanding and they are not going to stay the same forever.

Anyway’s enough ranting, by the way expect the Alo-Hello! 3 review sometime on saturday and sunday, it is going to be in majority pictures so basically I’ll make it so that non-H!P people can understand it, I will probably have to put another section for reviews. Shimizu and Yajima good luck in South Korea!

Yajima Maimi 3rd PB To Be Released In April UPDATE

Yajima Maimi (C-ute) is set to release her 3rd PB sometime in April, no official date has been announced. She is definitely one of the talented one’s in C-ute, and I can see why they focus on her more, but I would like to see an Umeda Erika PB or maybe a Suzuki Airi PB (not sure if she has released one, probably). I didn’t like her voice when she started singing in C-ute for the first few months or years, her voice kind of reminded me of an asthmatic trying to sing a long note, good to see that she has improved incredibly well, now she is one of the best voices among the Hello! Pro Kids (not really kids anymore, maybe Hagiwara Mai).

I’ll update with a cover and release date as they are released but meanwhile enjoy the one lonesome pic of her, she looks incredibly good by the way. Oh yeah, if you look at the right and wonder why I don’t put the other members of Morning Musume, C-ute, Berryz Koubou, etc, under the categories, its because I’m waiting for solo news of them to post a story and put them in the category, so don’t think I’m lazy (somewhat) I’ll put them when they get a solo news story, or if I get time later.

UPDATE (3/23): The release date of the PB has been advanced to 4/20 according to the Wani Books site. People who order through the Wani shop get a limited book cover and a bonus photo with the PB. The title is “17″ following in the long line of number-titled releases, which for some reason is an easy and predictable way of finding out what a PB will be called. Link to the page (In Japanese) to buy the PB is down below, I’ll update with english sites to buy from when they become available.

LINK