Not all of MoMusu's music is cutesy, although you do kind of have to dig to find the more serious stuff. If you're at all interested to hear a song of theirs that isn't cutesy, I found a couple of their more serious PVs on YouTube. I mean, I'm not ordering you to watch these or anything, haha, but they're there if you're curious. And if you think there are some Johnny's PVs that I just HAVE to see, then please let me know which ones! I don't think I've actually even seen a PV by any of them ... well, unless you count Shingo Mama. XD Though I have heard some stuff by V6 and some stuff by SMAP, including their "Sekai ni Hitotsu Dake no Hana" over and over and over again ... (I have a friend who for a whole semester was OBSESSED with that song, hahaha.)
I once saw a peformance by SMAP and MoMusu together that was a medley of MoMusu songs. It was cute but nothing special. I actually don't think I really like listening to medleys ... hahaha!
Anyway, serious MoMusu PVs! 1998: Memory青春の光 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ-gZTTeVgE) (maybe this song doesn't count; it's from before they went all cutesy in the first place) 2002: Do it! Now (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLn7tjMp1WY) 2003: AS FOR ONE DAY (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44LmbSvOzjQ) 2004: 浪漫 ~My Dear Boy~ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMgDcb4U80g) 2005: 大阪 恋の歌 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yy7kyNX3jIw)
(Hahaha, I've sung two of those songs at karaoke ...)
Of course, even if you like those songs I don't think it'll turn you into a full-blown H!P fan or anything. You'd need to be able to stand a fair bit of cutsiness for that. ;)
It's true that various MoMusu members often act like real girly girls, or are terrible at trivia questions. There's a show, I think it's called Mecha-Mecha Iketeru!, and in early 2003 (I think) they did a MoMusu episode where they gave the girls exams that were of an early high school sort of level, and not a lot of them did that well. A couple of the graduated members did drop out of school entirely in order to become an idol. Once I saw an entire thread that was about all the dumb mistakes MoMusu have made about things they should know - Risa saying the capital of China is "Chan Pon Chan," Yuko drawing a map upsidedown, Kago and Tsuji unable to complete simple proverbs or write proper kanji. So yeah, I can't defend them and say they are the most brilliant students in the world. But at the same time, I dunno ... should it make me think less of them? Because it really doesn't. I think with American celebrities I'm much more bothered by ignorance of everyday matters (eg. Paris Hilton claiming not to know what a paycheque is or what she should do with it). Maybe the lack of knowledge displayed by some Japanese celebrities bothers me less because it's farther away, and so it seems less like reality? Or maybe it's like: an American celebrity unable to tell the difference between "your" and "you're," that bothers me because it's something I see every day and it's pathetic! But when someone fails to remember how to write the kanji for "tsubasa," man, I can relate!
It's interesting that you mention liking Ayaya a bit better after she let go (for the most part) of her cutesy image, because a thing there's a fair portion of H!P fans who liked her better before and miss her wacky antics now she's toned them down a bit. (I'm the same with Rika; once she graduated from MoMusu she started acting more normal and it bores me. :( ) Well, also the fact that she's been releasing ballads for the past two years, ugh, what happened to her fun songs? :P
Haha, I thought it was just H!P that was recruiting pre-teens! The last concert I watched, the youngest singing member was ten years old. It's kind of weird, but at the same time I think H!P realizes this and is trying to counteract it by giving the younger groups the best songs and the more expensive PVs ...
part 1
I once saw a peformance by SMAP and MoMusu together that was a medley of MoMusu songs. It was cute but nothing special. I actually don't think I really like listening to medleys ... hahaha!
Anyway, serious MoMusu PVs!
1998: Memory青春の光 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ-gZTTeVgE) (maybe this song doesn't count; it's from before they went all cutesy in the first place)
2002: Do it! Now (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLn7tjMp1WY)
2003: AS FOR ONE DAY (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44LmbSvOzjQ)
2004: 浪漫 ~My Dear Boy~ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMgDcb4U80g)
2005: 大阪 恋の歌 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yy7kyNX3jIw)
(Hahaha, I've sung two of those songs at karaoke ...)
Of course, even if you like those songs I don't think it'll turn you into a full-blown H!P fan or anything. You'd need to be able to stand a fair bit of cutsiness for that. ;)
It's true that various MoMusu members often act like real girly girls, or are terrible at trivia questions. There's a show, I think it's called Mecha-Mecha Iketeru!, and in early 2003 (I think) they did a MoMusu episode where they gave the girls exams that were of an early high school sort of level, and not a lot of them did that well. A couple of the graduated members did drop out of school entirely in order to become an idol. Once I saw an entire thread that was about all the dumb mistakes MoMusu have made about things they should know - Risa saying the capital of China is "Chan Pon Chan," Yuko drawing a map upsidedown, Kago and Tsuji unable to complete simple proverbs or write proper kanji. So yeah, I can't defend them and say they are the most brilliant students in the world. But at the same time, I dunno ... should it make me think less of them? Because it really doesn't. I think with American celebrities I'm much more bothered by ignorance of everyday matters (eg. Paris Hilton claiming not to know what a paycheque is or what she should do with it). Maybe the lack of knowledge displayed by some Japanese celebrities bothers me less because it's farther away, and so it seems less like reality? Or maybe it's like: an American celebrity unable to tell the difference between "your" and "you're," that bothers me because it's something I see every day and it's pathetic! But when someone fails to remember how to write the kanji for "tsubasa," man, I can relate!
It's interesting that you mention liking Ayaya a bit better after she let go (for the most part) of her cutesy image, because a thing there's a fair portion of H!P fans who liked her better before and miss her wacky antics now she's toned them down a bit. (I'm the same with Rika; once she graduated from MoMusu she started acting more normal and it bores me. :( ) Well, also the fact that she's been releasing ballads for the past two years, ugh, what happened to her fun songs? :P
Haha, I thought it was just H!P that was recruiting pre-teens! The last concert I watched, the youngest singing member was ten years old. It's kind of weird, but at the same time I think H!P realizes this and is trying to counteract it by giving the younger groups the best songs and the more expensive PVs ...