The feature point of this “episode” in my Musume Overview series (which has the most uninspired title ever) is everyone’s favorite, the easily comparable yet still fairly loveable Niigaki Risa! To be honest, though, uh… There’s not a whole lot I can say about this girl. Then again, the same could be applied to Ai, and my writing tends to morph as I go along, so in the early stages (i.e., this opening paragraph) I might expect that this post will get to 700 words at best, and will turn into some sort of 2,000-word post. Either way, you can expect some babbling about her latest photobook entitled Isshun, and maybe one or two images from it!

… *lame*

Anyway, I’m surprised Isshun didn’t make more of a splash in the blogging community. We don’t usually have a huge reaction to photobook releases beyond “I love that bikini [Idol] wears! It’s red and white! It’s so cute!”, because…there’s honestly not a whole lot to PBs beyond that. It’s a little disappointing, in some way, that there’s not more photobooks from H!P that have a story or a theme, but at least the girls wear more of a variety of outfits than just swimsuits. This is precisely why I love Kago Ai’s old PB KAGO ai: Go on the Journey!. It had a central theme and the pictures and scenery suited it very, very well. But then Kago started smoking and seeing an old man she may possibly have a slightly disturbing daddy complex with, so maybe decent photobooks ruin a good idol.

…just kidding. But seriously.

Checking out Risa’s Isshun photobook, I was rather impressed. Risa has small features on her face, which give her a somewhat unique look compared to her fellow Musume, but also the illusion that she really is younger. I do view Risa as sort of being childlike, though. This is probably why I think she would do good associating with the younger members of Hello! Project after Morning Musume — she wouldn’t look out-of-place standing next to, say, Hagiwara Mai.

Each photobook has its share of cutesy shots and sexy shots. Amanatsu was much more mature than Risa’s first PB (which was self-titled), but Isshun drives the point straight home. It gives me a new perspective on Risa. She will likely have that babyface for the rest of her life, but it doesn’t stop people like me from taking her seriously.

A lot of the scenery in Isshun is very coastal, and her hair is mussed in a majority of the pictures that were used for the photobook, which gives some sort of sense of “continuity” and makes for a great PB, taken as a whole. I kind of have to admit, I love the whole thing, and it helped endear Risa to me greatly.

While Risa can be described as quite childish, there’s something about her that rings almost “Abe Natsumi”-like to me. Perhaps there is a little of the same childishness in Abe — or there’s a little of Abe’s persona in Risa. Either way you look at it, I find it sort of sweet, as Risa has named Abe as the Morning Musume member she most admires.

Risa isn’t too much of a shabby singer. She definitely doesn’t have much of a presence in group pictures or PVs, but the fact that she does sing in that lower pitch, amidst girls who have voices like Eri, Sayumi, and Aika, Reina’s voice which is rapidly becoming insufferable these days, Koharu’s voice which was already insufferable, etc, helps her stand out as an individual.

My main problem with her personality, however, has got to be that she’s far too similar to Eri and Aika, in my mind. Although she is childlike, she’s also cute, which is nothing special after you’ve followed Morning Musume for nearly a year. It takes more than cuteness to stand out decently these days. So as a result, Risa often meshes with Eri and Aika and it confuses and overwhelms me when I think about it too hard. As if they become some sort of monstrous entity, a big blob of genki-kawaii that’s set out to weigh Momusu down. I don’t like that. They’re the reason Momusu feels so “blah” for me. If there were more girls (bring on ninth generation plz), it wouldn’t matter, but since variety is the spice of life, it is also the spice of idol groups. People often say Momusu is at its best with, say, fourteen or sixteen girls, and I have to agree. There is strength in numbers.

So, while Risa is part of the “problem” concerning my fan interest in Momusu, I still like her. I’m not sure why. Taken on her own or in groups like Athena & Robbykerots, she’s got a little personality that goes a long way. Maybe I just tend to be a pretty nonchalant about these things…

Also, this is a bit odd, but…with the kind of appearance she has, I think she’d make a great actress in a post-apocalyptic movie. As for how good her acting skill is, I’ve got next to no idea. But just looking at that first picture of her I posted, with the “disciples wanted” graffiti and the whole angle and her expression, completely stunned me on some level. She’s not pretty in the conventional way that normal actors/actresses are, but that’s exactly what makes her stand out.

As for the haircut…like it. Though I’d be interested to see her with short hair. Quite the opposite of Ai, eh?