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The story
A thread on 5ch’s Hello! Project board debated who counts as the “most popular” member in each Hello! Project group. Posters noted that Morning Musume.’s Ruru Danbara draws support through her polished, high-level performances, while Tsubaki Factory’s Marin Fukuda earns praise for her well-balanced looks — even as some scratched their heads over members like Sakura Oda and Suzuran Ise, asking “why are they even popular?” Others pointed out that fans of veteran, performance-focused groups and fans of newer groups may simply be judging by different standards, making for a thread that revealed just how varied the yardstick for “popularity” can be among Hello! Project fans.
What people said
It's not hurting anyone either way
MM: Oda
Ange: Ise
Beyoo: Hirai
Ocha: Yonemura
Ro: Uemura
Ise or Hirayama
Danbara
Fukuda
Hirai or Nishida
Yonemura or Kitahara
Uemura
The lineup from that recent 'Kakumeiteki Dochu' stage was stacked
Three most-popular picks in one group — Ise, Fukuda, and Kitahara
lol but Hirayama's 20th-birthday bar event only sold out in the second round of tickets, for both sessions
but what's the appeal with Marin?
Her performance's fine, but it's not like she's on a "could make a living off skill alone" level, right?
Starting from the premise that Marin is simply beautiful —
she's got monolid eyes, a small face, and gorgeous bone structure.
Every bit of that is something you could never fake with effort or surgery after the fact, and it's all perfectly balanced.
Sure, she has off days, but that's just part of her charm.
So basically, otaku who care about skill end up rooting for the veteran groups
No young women
A few older ladies, though
Guess female otaku just have slightly different taste than the guys
Cute-faced but short-and-stocky (chinchikurin) girls don't seem to break out in popularity like they used to
Older members are getting more popular these days too
Back in the day, 'Lesser' Ishii (fan nickname comparing her to a red panda) probably would've been way more popular
Same goes for Doi
So cuuute~
It's only #4 and below that fluctuates
Re: #79
Thanks
So basically it comes down to the 'rittokyame' type being strong (fan shorthand for a certain look)
So cuuute~
Rei and Ruru are locked in as well, aren't they
As for Oda, there's definitely a solid chunk of people who go for that kind of face
She fills big venues even at bar events, so she's genuinely popular
She blew past Yokaze in an instant
That's just Nemoto's popularity talking
Background and key points of this discussion
It’s worth noting that the “most popular” rankings discussed in the thread aren’t based on any official popularity poll — they reflect how much buzz a member generates on social media, how many fans she draws at live shows and events, and simply the personal impressions of whoever’s posting. Hello! Project spans veteran groups like Morning Musume. and Angerme alongside comparatively newer groups like Tsubaki Factory, and each group’s fanbase reportedly skews toward different age ranges and priorities. Within the thread, opinion split between longtime fans who prioritize performance skill and those who value looks or overall vibe, with some posters noting that buzz on TikTok doesn’t always match turnout at live events. Since there’s no numerical backing behind any individual member’s popularity here, this should be read as nothing more than a collection of fans’ subjective takes.
※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Ruru Danbara and Marin Fukuda become their groups’ most popular members — Hello! Project”.
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