Kakizaki Memi blog: Saitou Kyouko!

Kyouko time

Kakizaki Memi
2017.09.17


Good evening,
It's Kakizaki Memi.

[Memi, Saitou Kyouko]

Kyon-chan (*´ ˘ `*)♥

I always thought that Kyonko was a cool airhead.

But recently I've noticed how she acts cold while doing extremely kind things.


She's basically cold toward me, but if someone were bothering me, she would definitely help.
Sometimes her kindnesses make my heart throb (lol)

Maybe Kyon-chan is one of those tsundere types.

I love Kyon-chan --♥

Every day is fun ～✧*。

Bye-bye

Kakizaki Memi

__________________________________________________

170917  13:21h

I don't think Kyonko is enjoying these photos as much as Memi is. She looks progressively more nervous and awkward, to me. But I know a bit of history that helps make me think that way, rightly or wrongly.

Memi invaded Kyonko's Showroom broadcast on July 20th and Kyonko was quite angry about it, and criticized Memi to her fans. 

Kyonko said she told members not to come in, since the half-hour broadcast was so brief, but Memi came in anyway. Memi should not have done that, but in her defense I'd say that I can imagine her actually not having heard Kyonko make that statement; and Memi herself had just finished a broadcast in which she really wanted people to join her, so she may have felt she was doing something nice. She left quite quickly after being told to.

Kyonko is a self-professed scaredy-cat and also seems not to like to be confused, touched or tickled -- all of which Memi happily did in her brief invasion. Kyonko told viewers that she can't take tickling, and other members, knowing that, will stop when she tells them to. But not Memi, who is determined to tickle her at all costs. Memi ended her brief invasion quickly, but not before launching a quick tickle as she went.

Memi has already told us she is not really an angel. She may have enjoyed getting a reaction from the cool Kyonko. Memi seems to communicate physically, and loves to push in and hug people, with her surprising strength. I think Memi may be as much imp as angel. Or perhaps she's the zashiki-warashi in the House of Keyakizaka.

A viewer commented to Kyonko during that broadcast that she was aggressive toward Memi, and Kyonko replied that she was that way only to Memi, but that Memi is naturally aggressive (the Japanese "do S" refers to being sadistic, but I think that's usually too strong a way of putting it in English). She says that Memi is generally less pushy with her than with others, because Memi knows she doesn't like it.

Someone also asked what MeiMei was like, and Kyonko said she gabbled all the time.

I respect Kyouko's natural feelings of annoyance, but to criticize a member of your own team to outsiders seems wrong to me. And I think Kyonko may have ended up feeling she had gone too far. We have seen her with Memi a couple of times recently, maybe trying to smooth things over, and now here's this post. And Kyonko herself invaded Sasaki Mirei's Showroom (on invitation) and climbed all over her.

On the other hand, maybe it's the culture of the Hiraganas to be very up-front with each other, particularly with criticism. This honesty may actually be a way of keeping the air clear among the members.

These may be the only photos in which I think Memi's feelings are not as natural as another member's. Memi has those smiles planned. Kyonko's uncomfortable expression looks to me as if it comes upon her naturally, as Memi's expressions normally seem to.

Is Memi trying to heal whatever wounds there were from previous encounters? Is she punishing Kyonko for her previous reactions? Maybe a bit of both, but I think Memi is probably blind enough to think she is really making things better with Kyonko. Looking at Kyonko's face, I doubt that's happening.

And to call Kyonko tsundere seems to me to underestimate the strength of Kyonko's negative feelings, which basically seemed to overwhelm her in her earlier Showroom, which I post below. The relevant sections are 8:48 - 9:46 (when Memi comes in), and 13:04 - 15:14 (when Kyouko talks about her).

You can also hear Kyonko singing K46 songs a capella here and there. There is in fact a seven-minute YouTube of Kyonko singing on various of her Showrooms. I've put that in a separate post.

I expect many people will find Memi's characterization of Kyonko as "cold" quite strange. I don't. Kyonko is a determined pro. She's an adult striving in her chosen profession. Ever since the auditions, I have seen most of what she does, including her cuteness, as carefully planned. She is always thinking of how to please the fans and gain prominence. She's not a very relaxed person, it seems to me. But I love her as a performer. She tries to please the fans, and she pleases me among them.

Many adults find the antics of an irrepressible child quite annoying. I think Kyonko's vision of Keyakizaka may be as a collection of serious adult performers. Memi is serious and determined, too, in her way. But her Keyakizaka may be more like a tumble of puppies at play. The group benefits from having both aspects, it seems to me.

Note: I'm not sure of the translation of the post's title. The original is きょうこのごろ. Memi's original post is here.

When Memi says Kyonko is cold toward her, the Japanese word she uses is "salty." In Japanese, "salty" can mean cold or unfriendly.