This Is Arashi
In October 2019, Arashi opened a YouTube account. Earlier that year, the band announced their intentions to go on hiatus after December 31, 2020. Honestly, I didn't pay too much attention to the announcement. I'm only a casual Arashi fan because of MatsuJun being in 'Hana Yori Dango.' However, a Johnny's band opening a YouTube account was unprecedented. I HAD to pay attention and discovered some new songs in the process. The following month, they made another surprise move by creating several social media accounts, including Instagram where I followed them voraciously.
Next, came this documentary. When I watched the first episode, I thought it was going to be a one-off thing really. I'm surprised that I kept watching something I started on December 31, 2019! Throughout the series, I was most struck by Arashi's dedication to the fans and how they genuinely seem to care about them. These moments touched me so much that I cried. The episodes where Arashi is trying to break in to the US market are particularly poignant to me. It makes me wonder about so many things that would've gone different if coronavirus hadn't happen. I'm sure Arashi's planned concert here would've been amazing.
I recommend watching the first episode, and their respective "diary" episodes the most. I wasn't so interested in some of the behind the scenes stuff, though it's interesting to see just how much MatsuJun was involved with the concerts. Now after twenty-four episodes, I can say I'm a fan of Arashi and all five of its members. I never would've thought I'd connect with Ohno the most tbh. Now that they're on hiatus, I hope they enjoy themselves but I also hope that they remain close friends and will eventually come back to us as Arashi.
Next, came this documentary. When I watched the first episode, I thought it was going to be a one-off thing really. I'm surprised that I kept watching something I started on December 31, 2019! Throughout the series, I was most struck by Arashi's dedication to the fans and how they genuinely seem to care about them. These moments touched me so much that I cried. The episodes where Arashi is trying to break in to the US market are particularly poignant to me. It makes me wonder about so many things that would've gone different if coronavirus hadn't happen. I'm sure Arashi's planned concert here would've been amazing.
I recommend watching the first episode, and their respective "diary" episodes the most. I wasn't so interested in some of the behind the scenes stuff, though it's interesting to see just how much MatsuJun was involved with the concerts. Now after twenty-four episodes, I can say I'm a fan of Arashi and all five of its members. I never would've thought I'd connect with Ohno the most tbh. Now that they're on hiatus, I hope they enjoy themselves but I also hope that they remain close friends and will eventually come back to us as Arashi.
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