#kenta has been fascinating to me the last few weeks

[sunshinechay]

Gif by @pharawee

Neither of them are sure of what they’re doing. All they know is that they are doing it, tentative and scared. Each knows they want to kiss the other, but neither are sure of the other’s feelings.

Still Kenta leans forward towards Pete, to be close to him. To feel at least a piece of the intimacy that he doesn’t have with anyone else. The feeling of friendship and the small kernel of love that is growing inside his heart. But it scares him more than anything because he knows that all of those things that Tony says about him are true. He knows in his bones that he is not worthy of Pete, that Pete is destined for better. A better life, a better future, a better lover. Still if he can steal just this moment of closeness before Pete pushes him away, he’ll be happier than he’s ever been, more than he is deserving of.

But Pete is the one who kisses Kenta. He leans forwards and oh so gently kisses the boy he might just love. The boy who’s always been with him. The one he wants to protect, but ultimately isn’t able to in his current position. He steals this one kiss and wants so badly to do it again. If only they had more time. If only Pete both weren’t terrified of what could happen if they take even just a tiny half step toward. Pete knows that his status as an enigma is going to get in the way, is going to be a roadblock. He knows he has to be careful in the future, but maybe this kiss means as much to Kenta as it does for him.

Kenta knows what Pete’s silence means. Rejection. Polite but still rejection. Pete is too scared to hurt him because for some reason he cares about Kenta’s feelings. Pete isn’t like Tony. He cares about him, doesn’t want to hurt him.

So Kenta runs away. Because he knows he knows he fucked up. Because he’s scared. Because he knows that Tony will not be pleased. Would Tony hurt Pete if he found out about how Kenta feels? Kenta can handle getting hurt, he’s used to it, deserves it even. But if anything happens to Pete because of him, he won’t forgive himself. He won’t let anything happen to Pete. He won’t let him get hurt.

Tony is the one who gives his life purpose, but Pete is the one who makes him feel alive. He needs to ensure that Pete will not get hurt by his actions.

[le-trash-prince]

Em, I came into the whole 'Benz-Garfield are desperate to get paired and/or make KimKenta happen' thing halfway through and I feel like I'm still desperately playing catch-up. Congratulations to them on making Part A happen and good luck with Part B, though! But in the interests of me continuing to play catch-up on this whole fascinating process, do you know if there's a timeline of events or a tiktok folder or *something* out there to help me piece together when all of this properly took off and when Benz in particular decided to go full unhinged with it?

Thanks for your help!

Anon if you weren't watching Pit Babe as it aired, I hope you are prepared for the emotional roller coaster that happens when you are waiting every week to see if Kim and Kenta even get screentime together. I felt like I was watching the last several episodes of Pit Babe on a fever high.

I am actually working on a timeline, but it’s not fully cohesive nor complete yet, since there’s simply so much to sift through on multiple social media platforms, and no platform has a perfect search function. It also doesn’t yet include social media posts where they were simply just… flirting with each other, but all the social media posts on the blog should at least be dated.

If you want to go through things more quickly, the archive page has a tag filter (one of my favorite tumblr features), and you can swap in any tag you like in the url, since the dropdown only lists featured tags.

It’s also hard to pinpoint a single moment when Benz decided to go unhinged with it, since he’s been pushing it from pretty early on. There also aren’t any dedicated translators in BenzGarfield fandom who are fluent in both Thai and English, so we either get machine translations or translations that are few and far between. There's also a lot of old posts that have been deleted, or accounts that have gone private, so even just the act of gathering everything is an effort, let alone organizing it into a big picture.

Here's what I can give as a highlight timeline though.

They met in late 2022 (Love Fest Thailand in November or December I think, I couldn't find pics, but I did just watch an old interview last night where they talk more in depth on their first impressions, which I plan on recording and uploading, but Garfield said something that can be paraphrased to the extent of "Do people this friendly and charming exist in real life?")

Benz was mingling with Change2561 actors, but they officially became coworkers in Feb 2023 when they were both cast in Pit Babe

Boys Journey started filming very shortly after—I don’t have a sharp timeline but the range is sometime from Feb to May. Benz was already going at it in Boys Journey (“BenzGarfield forever” - ep 10), when they ostensibly didn’t know their roles or if they’d be put in an actual ship (they were somewhat rotated around with ppl until later in Boys Journey, when I imagine the staff had chemistry based partnerships in mind)

In March, Garfield said he would choose Benz to flirt with out of all the cast.

By August, Benz was asking Garfield to take his last name ���‍♂️ (but Garfield keeps trying to take Benz's first name instead)

There was a lot going on while Pit Babe was filming (Sept-Nov). They were excited about filming the two whole scenes they had together, they tweeted about it the night before, they were improvising what communication between Kenta and Kim might be like, Benz was visiting set even when he didn't have any scenes (albeit likely for the free food, but keeping Garfield company while Charlie fakes his death is a nice bonus)

I haven’t been able to find it again (yet)(thank you YT’s horrible search function) but there was a livestream last year where Benz talked about Kenta calling Kim and inviting him to Thailand, which… never happened, so I can only assume they were at the point of making things up (which actors sometimes do when they need a better grip on a character), and probably explains the really loaded look they gave each other in the elevator, bc to them there had been more interactions between their characters.

The first event they did together (outside of full-cast stuff) was the RealMe sponsorship in September 2023, but it was presented as Garfield & Benz (didn’t stop Benz from once again asking Garfield to take his name). The first time (that I’m aware of) that they had an event with their ship name was the GarfieldBenz x Central Rayong event in December 2023. Filming was completed in November, so they obviously had known for a while that KimKenta weren’t a couple, but that wasn’t going to stop them from bickering over which of their characters would like the other first

In February, they were posting really shippy stuff right before the Pit Babe finale, which felt like queerbaiting at the time, but we didn’t know that Long Beans was being planned (they would begin the physio workshop a month later), so I think this was either a “we’re excited we get to play a ship but can’t say anything yet” or a “staff hasn’t made up their minds on casting us so let’s just show some potential.”

Also at the finale in February, Garfield said he wanted to be Kim's faen.

By the time Long Beans was announced in March and they were officially announced as BenzGarfield, there was no holding back, especially on the KimKenta front. Benz made a fuss during Long Beans presscon about them not getting any screentime together, and during the Changing event in April they talked about going to the writers and begging for KimKenta/KentaKim.

Anytime they're asked about S2, they're vague about it, and I imagine they will be until we see something onscreen (they have to keep me desperate and foaming at the mouth), but they have expressed that they want to continue working as screen partners for a long time. If KimKenta happens I don't think anyone will be happier than those two.

I hope this helps, anon! Trying to capture and organize all of their moments is a daily task, and it sometimes feels like I am Sisyphus.

[takatofan]

For the first time, I just got done watching Digimon Tamers, subbed, and I really wanted to talk about it. I know I don’t have many people following me but I wanted to talk about this anyway, just put my thoughts out there. (Don’t expect major dub bashing, because I’ll always love my dub, but I may point a couple things I don’t like.) Note: I will always use Dub names out of habit/it’s what I know best.

The dub has a special place in my heart. It was one of only two anime's that I ever got up on Saturday morning for as a kid. (I didn’t get the WB in my area, so I couldn’t watch Pokemon or Yu-Gi-Oh! as it aired.) I was an outcast in school, and Tamers made me so many friends online, a friend I even called once a week for a few years, and a few years later, a boyfriend, who I’m still with. (I didn’t get into Digimon until a month before Tamers came out, and I didn’t get connected with the fandom until then.)

But all these years, I wanted to eventually see the sub. I had been aware of some edits, but even besides those, I always wanted to see my favorite anime the way it was intended to be seen. But first they weren’t available, and by the time they were, I got to a point where it was harder for me to focus on subs. But I finally watched it.

I will always prefer my dub, but watching the original was just fascinating. First off it amazes me how quiet the sub is. The dub usually filled it with something - In earlier seasons a joke, but in Tamers while it could be a joke, it was also quite often exposition.

I knew the sub would have less random jokes, but I wasn’t prepared for just how reserved and polite the kids were. The thing that got me the most was, in ep 21, when Leomon first appears, when Juri tells Takato that Leomon is her partner, and Takato says congratulations, and Leomon in the dub says “Now hold on...” In the dub, Takato replied a - NOT sarcastic, but funny, serious/intimidated “Sir yes sir...” But in the sub, Leomon says “Wait a second” and what does sub Takato reply to hold on? .... “I will.” ..... That... is just a level of politeness I was not expecting. If someone asked me to wait a second, I would either not say anything and wait, or maaaybe say ‘okay’, or ‘what?’. But to SAY “I will (wait a second)?” I just XD. I’m all for polite but that's too much XD.

Since the dub leaves all the references to them being in Japan, I’m not entirely sure why they didn’t leave in Henry being half Chinese. They left in the Chinese Zodiac and something about Hong Kong later in the show, I wonder if the dub just thought that wasn’t important, or what? And I mean, it really doesn’t change anything to me, but it’s interesting. (If you’re curious the conversation was just changed to how good Guilmon and Terriermon were getting along, and the fight that just happened with Rika) The tone was more serious, which I expected to a point, but I wasn’t expecting this level. Terriermon was a perfect angel compared to the dub. Dub terriermon is a big selling point of my enjoyment, but even so, it was interesting to see how reserved he was.

I had known of changes and things for years, like the rooster was serious and in the dub it was THE DEVAH!!!!! but actually kinda creeped me out in the sub. I’m glad the dub made it more humorous.

Interesting thing I noticed even before watching the sub, was that they cut less stuff out than previous seasons. While Adventure and 02 cut out any references to guns and cigarettes, both made its way in Tamers. In ep 19 or 20, Impmon gets a gun pulled on him by a cop, and it wasn’t edited. I wouldn’t think adding the line “Should I tell him I don’t have any ammo?” would have made leaving it in okay compared to adventure and 02? So it’s interesting. In ep 8, a guy is trying to light a cigarette before Impmon appears to try and light it, and while trying to light it was cut, when we see impmon and the guy, you can still see the cigarette in his hand. Meanwhile twice in later eps we see Yamaki’s apartment and we see a huge ash tray filled with butts. Surprised that wasn’t edited.

My biggest surprise for something being edited came with episode 23. I had always heard that part of hypnos collapsing was edited, which makes sense, since this aired just a couple months after 9/11, but what I didn’t expect was the end to have a 20-30 second scene of just the tamers + Kazu and Kenta, on a blue background, running with determination. Wasn’t a big thing or a big deal, but it was interesting. Not sure it wasn’t shown.

One thing I think the Dub added to it that it got right, IMO (Though I don’t think it was planned ahead of time) : When Leomon died, and when Juri’s mom died, Fate was mentioned, but the dub, in both instances instead said: “A part of (them) will always be with you”, and to me that was more powerful, especially when Juri’s mom died, and she ran around the hospital in the memory saying “WHERE?! WHERE IS THE PART THAT’S WITH ME?!” Looking for it. And then, that was called back in the last couple eps, when Grani sacrificed himself to give Gallantmon wings, and Takato said “A part of you will always be with us.” - where as in the sub there wasn’t a reference to fate. It was just a really good recurring theme, to me.

There were a couple things that I was curious about watching the sub. Namely, if Calumon knew about his power all along and the dub messed it up, and how they were going to get back from the digital world.

With Calumon, the first time Takato asks him, in the dub, what Takato asks comes out wrong and Calumon gets offended. In the sub, it seems more like he knows what Takato’s talking about but doesn’t want to talk about, but as the show goes on, it seems more that he really didn’t know.

As for the digital world... in the dub, Ryo tells them he can take them home, but they have to go through another world first, then Shibumi tells them they have to go to the highest plane of the digital world, where the four sovereign are. But then neither of those things ever come into play, and they just have to wait for the arc. I was really curious if the dub screwed this up, or if the writers just didn’t know what they were doing. The verdict? ... I think the dub was confused - I don’t think they understood what was being said. I didn’t get it at first either. When Ryo said it, he, Kazu, Kenta, and Rika, were all in the giant clock. Kazu says “Do you know how to get out of here?” and he says “Yes, but we have to go through another area.” - I’m not even completely sure I have this straight as I type this (and I just rewatched the sub scene) but I think what it was, is sub Kazu was asking how to get out of the clock, but just “Out of here” and the dub took that as “Out of the digital world”, in which Ryo said, “Yes, but we have to go through another world first.”. With Shibumi in ep 32... that one I do blame the dub, going home was kind of inserted into the conversation about getting to the sovereign out of nowhere.

I’m sure there are other things I would have commented on. I wish I took notes while I was watching. (I watched it slowly with my bf over the last 2 months.) But over all, watching the sub was a very interesting experience, but I will always love my dub. Also even when it was new, I liked the darker aspects that the dub left in, but I’m not sure I would have liked a faithful translation at the age I watched it. I need my Mona Marshall Terriermon jokes, my Steve Blum innocent Guilmon, and most of the dumb jokes.

Ending this with random: A few of my fav dub jokes:

Random man: “It’s just a toupee...” Random Woman: “Yes but you wear it on your chest...” Guilmon: You’re ear is tickling my foot. Terriermon: You’re foot is tickling my ear. Calumon: ....I wanna tickle something!

Terriermon: If I was a big red Dinosaur looking for fun I’d go.... .... .... ... OH WHO KNOW’S WHERE HE’D GO, DINOSAURS ARE WEIRD!!!!!!

(Guardramon was GOLD in the dub.)

Kazu: Two sad girls.... I haven’t even started dating yet.... and I’ve got to deal with two sad girls.... Guardramon: Once you start dating I’m sure you’ll make MANY girls sad!!!!

Kazu: Where’d Suzie go?

Guardramon: She flew away! Kazu: SHE FLEW AWAY?! BUT HOW?! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE WATCHING HER!!!! Guardramon: I was! I watched the whole thing!

Many others, but I’ll stop there. :) Sorry for my rant, if you read, I hope you enjoyed. :)

[especia-va-bien]

Billboard JAPAN: Especia Disbandment Interview - Haruka Tominaga

Original article published on Billboard JAPAN (15 February 2017)

Interviewed by Tetsuo Hiraga Photography: Kenta Sotobayashi

Translated by @especia-va-bien​

Haruka Tominaga Interview: “I’ve continued our activities while holding onto the love they once gave me”

How did you feel on the day the disbandment announcement was made public?

Haruka: “‘So it finally was announced…’ was running through my mind. I heard the word ‘disband’ being mentioned for the first time around October last year, but it didn’t really feel like we were actually going to until the official announcement was made yesterday on the 17th of January. I felt an immense rush of shock and I wonder if everyone else who loves Especia felt the same as well.”

Did you look at the fans’ reactions over on Twitter?

Haruka: “I saw a lot of them! There was so much that I couldn’t read them all, but I looked us up and read as much as I could. A lot of people were saying how upset they were, and there were quite a lot of tweets saying that ‘Especia’s era with five members was the best’ or ‘Especia’s era with six members was the best’. I truly want them to come see us as the trio we currently are, even just once. When that era ended and people saw what Especia had become when we moved to Tokyo, I feel that a lot of fans looked at us as if we had failed. Personally, I don’t think that we’ve failed at all. We’ve become a lot more stylish, and I’ve learnt a lot of English and music theory since coming to Tokyo. I’ve truly begun to realised the true essence of music that it’s given me the foresight to see how amazing our music could evolve if we continued for 10 more years. But I’ve also realised the harsh reality of needing to be profitable, since our musical output is limited to consumer demand…”

How did you feel when you learnt about the group’s disbandment?

Haruka: “…I realised that we didn’t have any other option. I strongly wished that Especia could continue on… but in the end we couldn’t come together to make that happen. Perhaps we could have made it in the end, but I felt that all my efforts were in vain that I failed to lead everyone along.”

What was it like being the leader of Especia for the last five years?

Haruka: “It was my entire life. It’s as if all my memories before Especia don’t exist anymore (laughs). I’m 23 now, and even though Especia comprised of only five years of my life, I feel like Especia was my entire life. Especia is the only thing on my mind. The fact that it’s not going to exist anymore… is something I can’t begin to imagine.”

Even as a spectator, I could even feel that Especia meant everything to you.

Haruka: “I once said in one of our interviews together that it’s ‘Especia or Die’, didn’t I?”

That you’d die without Especia.

Haruka: “It’s terrifying. I probably won’t die (laughs).”

Please make sure that it’s not ‘probably’ and that you definitely choose to continue living a healthy life (laughs). Since the Especia you devoted your life to decided to disband in October, what sort of mood did you spend the last couple of months leading to the official announcement?

Haruka: “It was quite bad at the beginning. When I stood on stage and saw the faces of our audience at our first concert after we made the decision to disband, it was hard for me to look at them since they were having enjoying themselves so much while having no idea we were going to disband… so I cried right there, in front of them. I knew that I should never cry on stage, but I was just so upset. There were days where I was so depressed, but I knew I shouldn’t just cry. I realised that I shouldn’t trick myself and just enjoy the remaining time I had left without any regrets and put on the best performances I could. That’s how I was able to motivate myself the last few months.

So you wanted to be able to put on the best performances that you could. I could you were putting all your efforts to achieve that when I came to watch your concert at the end of last year.

Haruka: “Especia’s Second Chapter as a trio is the complete opposite of what Especia was before then. Even though we’re the same group, I feel that we’re a different entity. In the end, we were idols during The First Chapter. Even though our music was stylish, had a different charm compared to other idols and we actually labelled ourselves as a ‘girl group’ instead of ‘idols’, looking back while performing with our new formation this year has made me realise that in the end we really were just idols. I don’t mean that in a negative sense, but in comparison, we were just playing around.”

What has the hardest thing about being in Especia during the last five years?

Haruka: “I’m used to it now, but losing Twitter was the hardest for me (laughs). I knew that it wasn’t the best decision since I love my fans quite a lot. I still love them now. But from an outsider’s perspective, our fans probably thought that we were forsaking them by deleting our Twitter accounts. Things like thanking fans for coming to our performances today… well, that’s something that we can say during the MC sections of our concerts. But I felt that we were so connected to our fans when we had Twitter during our First Chapter. It was suffocating that we lost it and there are so many other things that we could only say through our Twitter accounts… I don’t mean just posting countless selfies like idols, but I just wished we had a platform to personally express ourselves.

That goes without saying that you must have felt quite lonely having to move from Osaka to Tokyo. Apart from that, how has life been like for you living in Tokyo?

Haruka: “At the beginning I had a lot of enthusiasm wanting to work hard at a new place. I put all my heart into studying English and music theory, and with my vocal coaching twice a week. But I gradually learnt that there were spaces where I had to repress my own opinions and feelings that it took a huge toll on my mental health. I learnt that I had no choice but to live embracing that. Of course I’ve also made a lot of wonderful memories here too!”

What were you the most happiest about for the last five years of your activities?

Haruka: “It would be our solo concerts at Shibuya O-EAST and STUDIO COAST. Performing at those large venues really demonstrated the extent of our efforts until that point! We even made large announcement there; with our major debut at O-EAST, and the graduation of three of our members at STUDIO COAST. Just performing our own solo concerts at those large venues brought me so much joy. The other day I actually watched footage of our O-EAST concert for the first time in a while. We looked like we were having so much fun. We were all beaming with smiles.”

It’s a fond memory?

Haruka: “Definitely a fond memory. But ever since we’ve moved to Tokyo, I don’t really care about the scale of our concerts anymore. I’m just happy that I’m able to stand atop those stages and that we have audiences who come to our performances no matter how small the venue. We performed quite a lot during The First Chapter and since it’s decreased significantly since we started The Second Chapter, I treasure each performance dearly in my heart.”

What exactly was Especia to you, Haruka Tominaga?

Haruka: “Just what exactly was it? …It’s something that’s going to disappear soon.”

You are disbanding after all.

Haruka: “I wonder what it was…? Where it all began? It’s where my dreams came true. I always dreamed of becoming a singer so I auditioned. The very first stage I stood as a singer was when I was with Especia. The very first song I received was when I was with Especia. It’s been where I had all my firsts; where all my dreams came true. Putting it this way right now knowing that I will lose it makes it all the more upsetting for me.”

Do you not fully comprehend what it means to lose Especia?

Haruka: “I actually don’t know (laughs). I know that it’s something I won’t tangibly lose! It’s not like losing a family member like your mother all of a sudden. It’s something a little bit like that. Especia’s just been like a part of my own body, so I don’t really know what I mean when I say that I’ll be losing.”

What sort of group did you feel Especia was?

Haruka: “Tsundere (laughs). Our songs were quite stylish but the girls who sang them were just regular girls. I think ‘tsundere’ summarises us the best since it’s just a fascinating point to have all these normal girls sing such refined and stylish songs. Our managements tells us that it’s AOR or Vaporwave, but I actually had no idea what they meant. Question marks would be popping up above my head even whenever we hear the term ‘City Pop’. I just used those terms in interviews without really understanding what they were. I’d be like, ‘We’re a girl group with an 80’s disco and AOR concept!’ (laughs). I came to Tokyo wanting to learn more about what those genres and terms really meant as we performed.”

You wanted to be genuine?

Haruka: “Just having the knowledge is enough. I know I can never be Beyoncé; she’s the real deal and I can never be her. I want to be genuine in my own way. I want Haruka Tominaga of Especia to be genuine in her own way. That was my biggest thought coming to Tokyo. People who have substance have an abundance of wealth and experience. I thought in the meantime, I should listen to a wide range of musical genres and broaden my horizons by appreciating a range of different films as well. I feel like I’m a more knowledgable person than I was when I was in Osaka, but I still have a lot to go.”

Did you have your own visions of what the New Especia should have done?

Haruka: “I’ve been thinking about this since the time we had five members. I wanted to showcase each of our strengths as each of us shine in our own different ways like doing things like switching around our roles singing lead vocals on different songs. It’s something we couldn’t do when we had five members… How do I put this though? Each of us love music in our way, and I want us to illuminate each of our sparks as we sung. I wish we could have been that sort of group.”

Is it frustrating that Especia is disbanding while still in the middle of their dream?

Haruka: “It’s frustrating. Excruciatingly frustrating. …There so many things I know that I could have done. I don’t regret that we completely changed our concept when we moved to Tokyo; I’m completely fine with it. But personally, I felt that there was a lot more that I could have exerted my efforts with…”

In what sort of way do you want to spend the remaining days before Especia disbands?

Haruka: “I absolutely do not want to leave any regrets…”

But before that, have you accepted that Especia are disbanding?

Haruka: “Honestly I wish this was just a lie. I wonder though, are we really going to disband?”

(Laughs).

Haruka: “In the end, will I end up being a vengeful spirit who hasn’t been laid to peace, forever in denial even when Especia ends? Like, ‘…No… Especia still exists…’ (laughs).”

Sounds like an old fairy tale.

Haruka: “But I am quite upset. …I want to enjoy myself with a lot of energy to the point that I forget that we’re even disbanding, even though it is upsetting.”

I personally do want more people who haven’t seen Especia as a trio yet, or who haven’t heard of Especia yet to come down and watch you in your final days.

Haruka: “I wish we can reach out to them. I truly wish we could. There are a lot people who think that we’ve already disbanded. When our five-membered era ended I know a lot of people felt that Especia’s existence just disappeared since we went into hiding for a while. And I know that there are a lot of people who just didn’t like us during our Second Chapter, but I really want them to come and see us one last time. We have a lot of confidence as Second Chapter Especia; I think we’ve become a lot more stylish. I absolutely don’t want them to reject us without coming to see us for themselves. I want people who think we’re a completely different group to still come down and see us. And I’m completely happy with people coming to see us for the very first time. I just want people to come down and see what Especia are truly like now.”

By the way, do you plan on continuing in the music or entertainment industry after Especia disbands?

Haruka: “Hmm… A part of me wants to continue since I’ve been doing this for this long already, but I’m not sure if that opportunity will arise again. I’ve been thinking of whether I should try singing again after this because I really do want to keep singing. Actually, I don’t have a solid idea about what I’ll be doing next after Especia.

A while back, you mentioned that you will continue to love Especia right until the very end. Do you still want to follow through with that claim?

Haruka: “I want to, until the very end. As for my feelings after it all ends… I probably would end up burning out right when Especia ends, but I can’t completely imagine how it’ll be like. I can’t even begin to imagine what sort of person I’ll be without Especia! I’m the person I am today because of Especia… it’s that important to me. I can’t begin to imagine that I’ll ‘just be Haruka Tominaga’ when I lose Especia, since I’ve only been able to sing precisely because of its existence.”

You’ve been living your life solely to fight for Especia’s sake.

Haruka: “But I feel like I wasn’t able to protect it. Since Mona (Monari Wakita) is now a solo singer, I feel like I’ve been entrusted with Especia by Chika (Chika Sannomiya) and Chii (Chihiro Mise). Chika actually contacted me when the disbandment announcement was made… I felt such a heavy burden for failing to protect it for their sake. There was so much more I could do.”

What did Chikabuu say when she contacted you?

Haruka: “She was like, ‘Especia’s trending on Twitter right now.’”

(Everyone laughs).

Of course you ended up trending because of your disbandment (laughs).

Haruka: “I sent her a reply that was like, ‘I wished we trended for something more positive.’ (laughs)”

How would you like the Especia that you love so dearly to end?

Haruka: “I want it to end on a good note, I guess. Deep down in my heart I don’t want Especia to disband… so the thought of it all terrifies me. But I want to be able to sing properly. But I’m truly afraid.”

That’s how you truly feel, right?

Haruka: “But actually… I’d like to have ten encores in our final performance (laughs). I don’t care if it’s done in a daggy or impressive way. I want to be able to dance on the main floor with the audience. I don’t really mind if we don’t present Especia in a polished way, I just want to be able to create an atmosphere where we’re united with the fans who have come to watch us. It’s my priority to make it an amazing performance; one overflowing with gratitude.”

Finally, could you give the Pecisto (Especia’s fans) one last message.

Haruka: “I know that a lot of fans believe we’ve betrayed them when we formed the New Especia, but no matter how much the environment around me changes, I’ve continued our activities while holding onto the love they once gave me. I will never forget that love, now and forever… even if I never end up on stage again. I will always keep in mind the love and support I received from all the fans who gave me a chance to shine... I want to finish our activities while feeling a strong sense of gratitude. Thank you.”

[cardboardhogs]

When i travel to a new destination I like to pick up a few packs or a blaster from the local Target or Wal-Mart.  It’s kind of a souvenir.  A souvenir that matters to me and hand a greater level of value than a cheesy shirt (although i love an odd shirt now and again…).  The cards serve as a little reminder of the town I was in, an artifact from a past vacation.  In the past, the trips have been via automobile and the cards were a little easier to handle since i could always see where they were and keep them safe and sound.  The last couple of trips though have been via airplane…the friendly skies!  When traveling, i’m always concerned about the safety and security of the cards and tend to open them up when i get home.  Not this time though, i wanted to join the mile high club!  Well, i wanted my cards to join the mile high club…of sorts.  So i did it on a plane earlier this week!

Since we card people don’t like damaged cards, getting these guys on the plane safely was a bit of an emotional journey for me.  Going through security and boarding a plane is difficult enough!  My first concern was the lovely TSA folks that can be a little handsy with people and peoples stuff.  The only thing worse than the disinterested cashier man-handling (woman-handling…? person-handling…?) the cards and dropping them 18″ to the bottom of a plastic bag is definitely getting them through TSA.  They pick up bags and boldly ask “THIS RED ONE YOURS SIR!”, why, yes.  The red bag that i was about to grab is mine…definitely my bag.  The surly looks that follow…them, not me…i’m nice.  Half the battle has been fought, but the war has not been won.  I still need to get these unprotected packs boarded and loaded on a flying tube with an ever increasing shortage of personal stowing space.  Done deal.  Packs located gently on my fold away tray until i am told to hide my fold away tray.  See the photo above (and now below) that was after we reached our cruising altitude…so no foul there although my phone was not in airplane mode.

Normally when i’m opening a pack of cards i like to have space to lay them out and sort them as i go through the cards.  Kinda particular about those sorts of things, you know.  It’s nice to have a little layout space and a clean surface to boot.  In hindsight this plan would have been better if i had a more sturdy box to put them in afterwards.  Enough with the long winded build up.  Here is what was pulled.

Tyler Glasnow – Pittsburgh Pirates | Alex Bergman – Houston Astros

Dee Gordon – Miami Marlins | Cole Hamels – Texas Rangers

Brian McCann – New York Yankees | Tyler White – Houston Astros

Kenta Maeda – Los Angeles Dodgers | Gleyber Torres – New York Yankees

Javier Guerra – San Diego Padres | Jorge Mateo – New York Yankees

Kolby Allard – Atlanta Braves | Lucius Fox – San Francisco Giants

Not a bad pack, no real jaw droppers.  I do like the three Yankee cards and the Alex Bergman is nice as well as the Maeda card.  They all have a nice little shine to them as well.  My wife, sitting in the miserable middle seat (love ya babe!) was particularly fascinated by the shiny-ness of these cards which the cabin lighting made a little extra sexy!  Here’s pack two!

JP Crawford – Philadelphia Phillies | Austin Meadows – Pittsburgh Pirates

Raul Mondesi Jr. – Kansas City Royals | Byron Buxton – Minnesota Twins

Eddie Rosario – Minnesota Twins | Joey Votto – Cincinnati Reds

Matt Carpenter – St. Louis Cardinals | Billy McKinney – Chicago Cubs

Tyler O’Neill – Seattle Mariners | Conner Greene – Toronto Blue Jays

Brady Aiken – Cleveland Indians | Francis Martes – Houston Astros

Each of the cards made it home safe and sound, no dings, no dents, no errors.  Twenty Four shiny cards to sit and wait on now…will they become stars or not…!

So there you go.  That was the very first time i’ve ever busted a pack on a plane, in the air above the United States of America.  Hope you enjoyed the show!

***BIG PIMPIN***

Now it’s time to do some contest pimpin’ for Collector’s Crack and his annual NFL playoff contest!

Almost the Easiest Super Bowl Contest on the Web

Since i don’t have to deal with the emotions of having my team in it this year, i’m free to pick a SB matchup that will hopefully be closer to reality…and so should you!  So, hit that link and sign up!  But first, in honor of CB’s contest i thought i’d post a couple of videos in line with all the pimpin’.  First is one of my favorite UGK songs and the other is an interesting documentary on Pimp C that i haven’t quite gotten through yet.  It’s by Mass Appeal, so you can’t really go wrong though.

Mile High Hogs When i travel to a new destination I like to pick up a few packs or a blaster from the local Target or Wal-Mart.