Before I start anything, I want to make it clear that this post maybe viewed as an extremely biased and subjective post. Because it is.
So, fair warning, if you're not Ve-oshi (especially Nabilah-oshi or Melody-oshi), get the hell out of here! You may not like what you read.
Jessica Veranda |
Basically I wrote this as a special type of review of Team J Second Stage: Dareka no Tame ni (Demi Seseorang). I watched the Night show (April 17th, 2014; 19:00) because I was curious of how team J would perform without Jessica Veranda. And what I found was really a shock.
For one thing, I expected the problem would be on Shinkirou and Koike. That wasn't the case though. The problem was on other songs, especially Warning, Seifuku ga Jama wo Suru, Natsu ga Ichatta.
For Shinkirou, Ghaida and Sendy performed beautifully that it didn't really matter. Sendy did the part Ve always does and did it to perfection. I don't know. Everything went great on this song
For Koike, Sendy did the monologue in her own way, (a very Tsundere way. Influence from RKJ, Sendy?) She made it HER song. So the absence of Ve does not really affect this song.
Problem started when the song are not really Ve-center. For example: Warning. A very upbeat song. From my past experience watching this song, I always get excited. However, that is not the case on this particular show.
Something was missing. Yes, the Irreplaceable Storm that creates the excitement. I don't know what it is about her, she just elevates Team J to a whole different level. I'm not saying team J is bad when she doesn't perform. They just don't have that spark to burn the audience. For this show other members tried their best to fill in the hole left by Ve's absence to no avail. Call me subjective (I did warn you), but I just don't feel the excitement when Ve does not perform.
If we want some analogy, Let's do basketball. Think of team J as The Los Angeles Clippers (Lob City). They are known for some ferocious dunks and alley ups thanks to Blake Griffin. Without Griffin, they can still perform good and win games, but the fans may not get highlight plays and be as excited as when Griffin is on the floor doing posters and finishing lobs.
Team J is exactly like that. Without Ve, they can still excite fans and do good, but not to the level when Ve performs. Maybe just her mere presence is a catalyst to the fans. I remember on my birthday Ve did not perform on Warning and people was not as excited as they usually are.
Maybe it's the way she always gives everything when performing and has good times. Her pure happiness when performing may infect some audience. Ve performs with incredible passion and unbridled joy. Don't get me wrong. The rest of Team J also perform with joy, but sometimes I caught them worrying about blocking and everything else that sometimes I feel that they do it because they have to. Ve on the other hand, perform very loosely and that becomes a plus because she goes with the flow. I remember one time she nearly collided with another member on stage and she made it as if she wanted to collide.
Maybe it's the "kibas rambut" she learned from Naomi. I mean, without it, she is already very "badai". With that deadly technique.... ugh. *thrown back to Pajama Drive Revival Show when I first get to watch her live*
There are thousands of possibilities on why Ve is such an influence to the success Team J is having with the set-list. For me, she is the true center of Dareka no Tame ni. She may not like it that I keep saying that she should be center, but after what her non performing did to me and several other audiences, she is undoubtedly the soul of team J because no one can replace her.
There are a few candidates, but most of them are not team J. Naomi and Viny comes to mind. but I doubt JOT will allow them to perform as Ve's Under. Possible candidate for her replacement is Saktia. Too bad JOT does not trust her with Ve's part.
If you think I'm saying that because she's my Oshi, maybe. But I get excited when watching team KIII. No Ve in that team haha.
Just to be clear, this is what I feel. You may feel differently, but to me, I feel that Ve is the reason for team J's success