Forum - View topicNEWS: AKB48's General Election to Be Streamed in English
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dragon695
 Posts: 1377 Location: Clemson, SC |
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Sancom reports that some Japanese otaku has cast 1770 votes, which is crazy!
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Anymouse
 Posts: 685 |
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Oh what the heck. And also, not much of a surprise. I knew they would soon need to seek out new markets.
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Megiddo
 Posts: 8360 Location: IL |
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Who is being elected? Do the otaku vote on new candidates to join the empty spots on the AKB48 roster? Some sort of info about the election and what its outcome determines would be appreciated.
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Blood-
 Bargain Hunter Posts: 24153 |
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I hope the candidates are fully versed in the art of fighting entertainment-quashing mechas.
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HeeroTX
Posts: 2046 Location: Austin, TX |
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The Senbatsu election determines "placement" within the group. They release a single and you buy for the girl you like. Then the girls are ranked according to vote totals. The top.. I dunno 16, 20? or something are the "main" girls and get preferred placement and more "face" time. The #1 girl is the "center" and gets heavily promoted (in theory). It was notable two(?) years ago when Atsuko Maeda (the traditional center) LOST the vote and came in 2nd place. Last vote she won again, but now she's "graduating" and moving on to other things, so should be interesting. It'll be interesting to see (if she's involved, not sure how her graduation affects it) if she goes out on top or falls down right before leaving and is replaced with the new "top". Mayu Watanabe (on of her main competitors) is currently playing one of the leads in the AKB0048 anime, and has done some cosplaying recently, that might help her otaku candidacy. The girl that won in the past has some really hardcore followers, I forget her name but she also might make waves again this time. I say the #1 gets top billing "in theory", because even when Maeda lost, she still got lots of promotion, IIRC she basically just lost the center spot for one song release. The brutal spots are at the very top and in the middle. The "bottom" are often in the "happy to be nominated" category and the upper spots know they're popular but not "top" level popular. The middle involves lots of crying for either making the upper tier or for NOT making the upper tier. And the top spot is obviously the top spot and either has crying for being #1 or crying for NOT being #1. (based on past versions, I assume some people really wanna watch idols squirm/cry) Here's an example of what it'll be like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFM0UlvfuvQ |
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Megiddo
Posts: 8360 Location: IL |
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Thank you for that Heero. Wow, so it's just a popularity contest to determine which girls get the most spotlight?
Personally, I don't see that as a very good business strategy. I mean, there are 48 girls, right? So the guys who like the other 47 (or 30 or however many are on the 'bottom') are going to be pissed when their favorite gets no attention. They're basically alienating a large portion of their fanbase by doing this, but I guess that's bound to happen with such a large number of idols in the group. |
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ScruffyKiwi
 Posts: 709 Location: New Zealand |
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It's alot more than that. Depending on how they are ranked they are placed into different teams with different opportunities. There are 4 main teams plus the trainee teams. It's like American Idol but every day. Brutal really and you can understand why most aren't in it for that long. They preform EVERY DAY in their own theatre in Akihabara. A friend of mine is a fan of them and recently visited Japan but he said it's basically impossible for a foreigner to get a ticket as they are so popular now tickets are assigned by lottery and you need a Japanese address to enter. |
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AJ (LordNikon)
 Posts: 516 Location: Kyoto |
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That's not quite accurate. The AKB48 website has instructions for foreign tourists/visitors to get in to shows. http://www.akb48.co.jp/english/overseas/index.html
I believe currently there re a total of 64 members. Plus there are eight other sister groups, and one rival as well. It's ridiculous. |
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maxxjulie
Posts: 192 |
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wasn't the girl who beat atsuko maeda the lead chick in the subgroup Not Yet? i think it's yuko something maybe. she's the one with a really great big smile and is always super cheerful. i know some of their names but there are too many to waste brain power on. my fav is yuki.
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