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The story
On 5ch’s Hello! Project board, a thread heated up over which Hello! Project group trainee Suzuki Kotomi should ultimately be placed in. While posters rated her looks highly, opinions on her singing and dancing skills were mixed, with some sarcastically suggesting she ‘just go to a group where you only have to move to the beat.’ Others pointed to precedents like ‘even Ishiyama turned out fine,’ citing members whose skills were once doubted but who later grew into their roles, suggesting she could still develop with the right training. As for specific placements, multiple group names came up — including Tsubaki Factory, Juice=Juice, and Rosy Chronicle — sparking discussion that weighed height and compatibility with existing members.
What people said
Ishiyama was actually really good at dancing right from the start, and while her singing wasn't great, she had a powerful voice
Kotomi-chan's actually got talent
The 'Black Panther' (nickname for another trainee) still needs a few more years though
Add one more member at the same time as Akiyama's replacement
There's already someone lined up to replace Akiyama, so just add Kotomi alongside a low-voice replacement for Ono
The 'Enoshima' type members are about due to age out anyway, so relaunch the group with her
That would make her stick out way too much, though
or how well she can dance — what's the real deal here?
Can she get by on looks alone like Kamirena?
So you'd just mindlessly trash her if she's in Morning Musume?
Even for a huge company that'd be way too much
Are you stupid or something
Too long to read all of it, just give me the top 5
And Kotomi's scores
Total score across 5 categories (singing, dancing, rhythm, voice, stage presence)
1st: Ishikawa — 42.0 pts (avg 8.4)
2nd: Kishida — 41.5 pts (avg 8.3)
3rd: Nemoto — 41.0 pts (avg 8.2)
4th: Miyazaki — 40.5 pts (avg 8.1)
5th: Sakamoto — 40.0 pts (avg 8.0)
Suzuki Kotomi scored 37.0 pts (avg 7.4), broken down as
Singing 7.0, Dancing 7.0, Rhythm 7.0, Voice 7.0, Stage presence 9.0.
Out of that top group, Miyazaki or Sakamoto seems best
What about Yamamoto Hana-chan? She seems to get good buzz in the 'Wolf' rankings (a fan poll/nickname), but I've never seen her perform live, so let me know if you have
She sings in an emotional style, kind of like Kawanishi
She didn't make it to the finals of the solo audition for nothing
She's the type who can actually sing
Tsubaki is actually the worst fit once you factor in Hinakin's height
She'd end up looking like a chaperone teacher
Unless they add four or more tall new members, that is
Background and Key Points of Discussion
In Hello! Project, new members go through a trainee period before being assigned to a group, so which ‘color’ a trainee fits tends to become a topic of discussion early on. It’s worth noting that the ‘5-category, 45-point max’ scoring shared in the thread appears to be an unofficial tally compiled independently by posters, not an official skill assessment. As the comparison with Ishiyama illustrates, several Hello! Project members who scored low in singing and dancing while still inexperienced went on to improve significantly, so the thread’s discussion also touched on how current scores alone can’t fully predict future potential. Regarding placement, many opinions emphasized height differences and compatibility with existing members, reflecting the recurring tension in Hello! Project’s group formation between prioritizing visuals versus prioritizing skill.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread ‘How to make good use of Suzuki Kotomi-chan in Hello! Project ← Isn’t this actually pretty tough?‘.
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