Idol Analysis 1

I spend a lot of time thinking about Idols. I spend my day dreaming time speculating about Idols and the Industry in General. So I will put down some thoughts here

This Week's theme: Good Looking Idols.

Not all Idols are good looking. The truth is, as long as you have the will to be an Idol, with much practice and luck, you can be an Idol. In Japan, there are TONS of good looking people. When I go to Japan, I often see VERY good looking people around me. Many of these people are much better looking than some "Famous" idol. So what does it take to become a "Famous" Idol?

First off, to give you a gauge of which Idols I find Good-Looking, I will give you some examples

	Incredibly Good Looking Idols	Good Looking Idols	Average Looking Idols
Hello!Project	Michishige Sayumi Mano Erina Abe Natsumi	Kudou Haruka Yajima Maimi Kumai Yurina Kikkawa Yuu	Sayashi Riho Sato Masaki Natsuyaki Miyabi Sekine Azusa
48 Group	Shiraishi Mai Miyawaki Sakura	Watanabe Miyuki Maeda Atsuko Tomonaga Mio	Watanabe Mayu Sashihara Rino Matsui Jurina
Stardust Groups	Akimoto Honoka	Sakura Nao Tamai Shiori	Takagi Reni Sakamoto Haruna
Idol Street	Nobody	Maeshima Ami Takeda Maaya	Katsuta Rino
Others	Hashimoto Kanna Arai Hitomi	Aizawa Risa Ogino Karin Tominaga Mimori My Wife (Rena from VB)	Naruse Emi

Highlight Names: My Oshi

Majoriy of the Idols I know fall into the Average to Good Looking Group. Only the Select Few mentioned above belong to the Incredibly Good Looking Idol Group

Incredibly Good Looking Idols: These people have perfect features and small faces.

Good Looking Idols: Theses people have small flaws in their features but otherwise good ratios Eg. slightly Strong Jaws, slightly Flat face, Pudgy cheeks, Slighty Big Faces, Oversize Nose 

Average Looking Idols: These people have major (I use this term loosely) flaws in their features. Eg. Single Eyelids, Flat Faces, Too Strong Jaws. BIG FACES (Just about everyone else)

The Purpose of this is not for me to diss your idol. It is to show you that my I don't necessarily find my oshi the best looking. There are definitely more good looking people than my Oshi(s).

I do not talk about Body Shapes because that is another control I have to deal with. I like to focus on face for now. Beside, there is no limit to the amount of Bra Padding or Photoshop on Cleavage idols can have, so it is not fair to compare this. For now I focus on Natural Facial Features

In case you are wondering, the Idol I find with the most perfect face is Shiraishi Mai.

I'm not being very fair to Idol Street Groups because I don't know them very well. Sorry, I just don't see anyone I particularly thought was incredibly good looking with my limited exposure

How I choose my Oshi

1. I must like the group sufficiently much to have an Oshi. If I am not too into a group, I will not choose an Oshi. I will have girls I like to look at more often during performances, but I do not call them my Oshi
2. Once condition 1 is cleared, I immediately eliminate some members of the group due to them being too "Average Looking"*
3.  I like "Hard-Workers" or at least the impression that they are 努力家. I have ZERO tolerance for idols who "can't be bothered"
4.  I like idols who look like they are genuinely having Fun while they perform. How I tell if they are genuine:
   a. They smile with their eyes
   b. Even when they think nobody is looking, they still look like they are having fun. (They don't give bitch face when they think nobody is looking)
   c. They are not too awkward when dancing or speaking. i.e. Decent Confidence level

* If I like the idol sufficiently much, I will over-look the fact that they are "Average-Looking" 

This is the reason why I took so long to find a Morning Musume Oshi after Eririn left. For more than a year, I didn't obtain a new MM Oshi because I just couldn't decide.

On the other hand, there are some traits so bad that make me "non-oshi" an otherwise perfect idol. Example being Suzuki Airi: She is Good Looking and her singing re-known to be one of the best in the industry. But she has a severe speech problem. I cannot stand listening to her speak more than a few sentences. No matter how much I like her, I cannot oshi her.

I can safely say that most of  the Incredibly Good Looking Idols are the “Popular Members” in each group. If they are not, they have traits/talents other than looks which help them to gain popularity. But after all this is Entertainment Business and looks do matter greatly. There are certain idols whom I have no idea where they get their popularity. I sometimes think that it depends on the Company they come from. 

For example, since I am a H!P wota, I generally "get" why the popular members are popular. Because most Hello Wota think alike. However, for a 48-Groups, I have not idea why "member A" is so popular because I do not think like a 48-Group wota. My priorities and focus is very different.

Having said that, different people are attracted to different "Types" of Idol depending on their priorities and preferences. But... that is another topic for another day