12ki member "Mirai Shoujo" Audition - FINISHED.

[Mixi]

We don't even know what a Reina-less MM really sounds like in 2013 and you already think the line distribution will suck.

There is only one Pyoko Pyoko Ultra and there has never been another Memory Seishun no Hikari since 1999. The current members will grow up in their own ways just like past members, give them some time. Don't tell me most of 5th gen and 6th gen were skilled, mature singers with strong characters in their second year of membership.

All this criticism against "immature elementary schoolers" sounds like a blast to the past. "Koharu can't sing and she's only 12! What if the future of MM is Namida ga tomaranai houkago and the entire group will be comprised of tone deaf toddlers who sound like Rika, Sayu and Konno?"

[AyuHikaru]

It's an argument that gets brought up a lot, especially when the people arguing are really, really attached to the previous Era.

Before platinum Era was "a thing" there was a lot of complaining about it. A LOT. With Yossi graduating, a lot of people complained she was the last Golden Age member, therefore the group was going to suck now. When Miki left, a lot of people complained that without Miki the vocals would sound horrible because the only person who could sing was Takahashi (Remember, at the time, Risa, Eri, Reina weren't front girls. Reina had lines, but she was more of a B-girl, what Eri and Risa turned into.) and this meant Koharu would get all the lines. No one was happy with Aika. Sayu wasn't even a blip on the radar. Neither was Eri. A lot of people were upset that management was leaving Morning Musume in the hands of girls who have yet to prove themselves vocally or personality wise. Sound familiar?
In 2007, the start of platinum Era, the ages were this: 14 (Aika), 15 (Koharu) 16 (Linlin) 18 (Sayumi), 18 (Reina), 19 (Risa), 19 (Eri), 19 (Junjun) 21 (Ai).
Quite a few people actually said, at the time, Platinum Era was a bit top heavy. BUT they really weren't that much older than the girls now. Haruka is 13, yeah she's pretty young but on her way to 14. Masaki, Sakura and Kanon are 14, same age as Aika was. Riho and Eripon are 15 (Koharu). Mizuki, Ayumi are 16 (Linlin). Haruna is 18 (Sayu/Reina), and Sayu is 24.

Average age of platinum Era in 2007: 15.6 17.6
Average age of Colorful Era now: 14.4515.9 (13.515.0 without Sayu, if you must know.)

Is that THAT much of a difference? No.

I think the biggest thing that people are doing is that we aren't quite used to 9th/10th/11th gen yet, as 9th Gen is just over 2 years old. All the girls from Platinum Era who weren't 8th gen had plenty of time for us to get used to, some of those girls had been there since 2001. We don't have that luxury with Colorful Era and some people just hate that.

BTW I'm a huge opponent of putting young girls in Momusu, as most of you know. I always root for the older girls. But when I crunched the numbers for myself, I realized that these new girls aren't that far away from Platinum Era as I thought and kinda shut up about the "Platinum Era was better because they were OLDER" thing

EDIT: THe vocal argument is laughable to me, I could get into it, but it would make this post longer. Let's just say there is a lot of bias there when people argue "Platinum Era sang better than Colorful Era"... A LOT of bias.

EDIT 2: MATH CHECK, thanks guys

[Celedam]

In 2007, the start of platinum Era, the ages were this: 14 (Aika), 15 (Koharu) 16 (Linlin) 18 (Sayumi), 18 (Reina), 19 (Risa), 19 (Eri), 19 (Junjun) 21 (Ai).
Quite a few people actually said, at the time, Platinum Era was a bit top heavy. BUT they really weren't that much older than the girls now. Haruka is 13, yeah she's pretty young but on her way to 14. Masaki, Sakura and Kanon are 14, same age as Aika was. Riho and Eripon are 15 (Koharu). Mizuki, Ayumi are 16 (Linlin). Haruna is 18 (Sayu/Reina), and Sayu is 24.

Average age of platinum Era in 2007: 15.6
Average age of Colorful Era now: 14.45 (13.5 without Sayu, if you must know.)

I don't disagree with your point, but check your math.

[resop2]

Average age of platinum Era in 2007: 15.6 17.6

The average age wound up being over 20 before the platinum era was over.

[AyuHikaru]

Hmm I checked it twice... I must have forgot to add one of the girls

[Celedam]

Average age of platinum Era in 2007: 15.6 17.6

And the average age of Colorful Era now: 14.45 15.9 (13.5 15.0 without Sayu)

[AyuHikaru]

Ill correct the original post. I don't now how I screwed that up

[fujii hina]

I honestly don't have high expectations about the 12th gen vocally.

I heard this from someone before in another forum, I think and I have to agree that if you look around mainstream J-pop in the 90's compared to today, there aren't that many singers you would wish these MM girls would emulate.

Ayu, Hikki, Amuro Namie used to top the charts all the time and all girls who wanted to sing wanted to be like them.
I don't think there are solo non-AKB female mainstream artists today that can be as big as those names in the past. And most girls just want to be in AKB48 or MomoClo or MM as they know them.

Also remember that the "mature" voices mostly came from the 1st gen, girls who were applying to join a rock/pop-rock band. I think even up to some of the people who joined from the 4th audition (not just 4th gen but Satoda Mai, and Fujimoto Miki, and Matsuura Aya) wanted to become singers and not necessarily idols.

I think that difference in mentality in both management, members and applicants make MM unbearable to "classisists"

[Starra]

Koda Kumi was also an MM。dropout. She was 3rd gen though, IIRC.

Ayu and Namie are still pretty big, aren't they? I only sort of half follow them, so I'm not entirely sure. Kyary Pamyu Pamyu is popular too, but she's not really an "artist", so to speak (autotune etc).

I do get what you're trying to say, but I dunno. There are still some popular solo female artists who aren't *48-related. Even then, not many AKB girls have actually debuted that are popular. Only Kasai, Tomochin, Acchan (who isn't AKB anymore but shhh), Mayu, Yukirin, Sasshi and Takamina have debuted solo out of senbatsu, as far as I know. I could be forgetting someone.

[Daisuki Daiiyo]

Just a note, it's common misconception that Ayaya came from 4th gen auditions, she didn't. There was a separate "little sister of Heike Michiyo and Mm audition" that she was picked from.