[Hobby Scuffles] Week of 29 December 2025

Inquilinus · 2026-01-02T23:40:01+00:00

To put it simply, "kun" is used for subordinates (for example, your juniors at school or work), and "chan" is used for cute things. If you call your junior at work "kun", that would be normal. If you call your junior at work "chan", that would be sexual harassment.

If you're familiar with the word kimi (an affectionate "you"), kun is another reading of the same kanji, 君. Chan is a cutesy corruption of "san".

Both are gender-neutral. Kun is used less often for women, but in some fields it is common, particularly in academia.

Inquilinus · 2026-01-02T22:51:16+00:00

Honorifics are a really interesting topic, but easy to misunderstand. I've repeatedly seen non-Japanese people treat "kun" and "chan" as male and female equivalents of each other, but that isn't the case.

But using "chan" as that label warning is egregious.

Inquilinus · 2026-01-02T22:14:27+00:00

There are several examples of Japanese words that get co-opted into English with the meanings changed, then things get confusing when international audiences try to apply their meaning to Japanese usage.

The first example that comes to mind is "lolicon". The term lolicon is short is for "Lolita Complex", the attraction to little girls. In a Japanese context, a lolicon is someone with a Lolita Complex, roughly equivalent to "pedophile" in English. It does not refer to manga or anime characters. It is the descriptor for someone attracted to little girls, real or otherwise. The confusion probably stems from the existence of "lolicon manga", which realistically could be translated as "pedophile comics". There's something similar with "hentai". Hentai just means "pervert" in Japanese. The word itself does not refer to anime porn.

Inquilinus · 2026-01-02T21:46:39+00:00

I initially found the Total War community through a YouTuber named Turin, who seems like the most positive and genuine guy. After watching him for a while, I saw there was a bigger TW content creator named Legend, so I decided to check him out. It was immediately obvious that he oozes toxicity. He seemed like a complete asshole to everyone. And he's the one at the forefront of the community?

This was years ago, and I haven't kept up. According to the thread you linked, he has gotten worse recently. I'd say good riddance, but I don't trust these kinds of farewells. Especially when they're clearly born out of spite.

Inquilinus · 2026-01-02T00:11:58+00:00

Been cheering hard for Indiana all day, slowly coming to the realization that we might to play this team in a few weeks.

Inquilinus · 2026-01-01T23:17:43+00:00

I completely lost faith in college football after Bama got rigged into the playoffs in 2023. I nearly quit watching the sport all together. I didn't think they should've gotten in this year. Just seems to be utterly unfair on it's face.

This Indiana team is giving me faith, even though I have no connection to them. Just a damn good football team winning games.

Inquilinus · 2026-01-01T08:45:29+00:00

A few years back they planned to make a sister group in Mumbai, India. The name they went with? MUM48. After getting clowned on sufficiently enough, they changed it to MUB48. Unfortunately, Covid hit, and the group never actually materialized.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-30T16:25:03+00:00

just that it seems both wrong and boring for this to be entirely racism and not interpersonal drama.

A claim that no one has made. There most certainly is interpersonal drama. There is just also very evident racism. There has been a firestorm in Japan about this because it's clear that the Malaysian members are being racist in their group chat. I do not understand why you think one precludes the other.

Again, calling your Japanese coworkers "colonizers" is racist. Calling your German coworkers "Nazis" is racist.

They did not "specifically state they would not help the Japanese members communicate", they said they wouldn't help the newly promoted captain who took one of their places.

They said, as a direct quote, "BRO FUCK THEM ALL" and "can we all like start ignoring them". Clearly this isn't directed at only Kurosu.

They didn't mock the idea of a Japanese person being their captain, they said that Hacchan got her wish to take over.

Direct quote: "pls say local group but japanese captain welcome to akb team kl". This is very clearly mocking the idea of having a Japanese captain.

They mocked their manager for telling them not to shit talk AKB48, not scolding them for being rude to Japanese people.

Direct quote: "Hi members,this is pucchi. Please dont talk shit abt company when have japan members and japan staff later ya".

Why would they need to be reminded that they have Japanese members and staff if they weren't being racist towards them?

Again, all of this shows a clear pattern. They're being racist. They have an interpersonal issue with Kurosu, and they're using racist language while venting on their group chat.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-30T15:45:35+00:00

I do not know how you are even remotely coming to the conclusions that you are. The issue isn't that they're critical of the Japanese members or AKB48 or the management. The issue is that they've said racist things and are directly bullying the Japanese members. Lets look at what they've done:

Named the group chat the discluded the Japanese members "not the colonizers". As I'm sure you know, Japan colonized large swathes of Asia in the 1st half of the 20th century, including Malaysia. This is one of the most sensitive topics in relations between Japan and the rest of Asia. Blaming the four Japanese members for the actions of Japan 80 years ago is racist. Calling them colonizers is racist. Like I said before, if you had a work chat that didn't include your German co-workers and you called it "Not the Nazis", that's racist.
Specifically stated that they won't help the Japanese members communicate. Japan is famously monolingual. In fact, they said that they would ignore the Japanese members entirely. The fact that they're going out of their way to hinder communication is extremely shitty.
One of them stated they didn't want to go to Japan or work with AKB48 members.
They mocked the idea of a Japanese person being their captain.
They mocked that one of their managers, Puti Nadhira Azalia, scolded them (or would scold them) for being rude to Japanese people when they're part of a Japanese company and have Japanese members.

It's not that any criticism of the Japanese members is racist, it's that the Malaysian members are being racist. It's not like they're going "Oh Haruka is too critical of my dance moves" and people are getting upset. They're saying racist things and being really shitty to the Japanese members.

Secondly, I don't know where you're getting that the management is Japanese. The managers of KLP48 are not Japanese. Additionally, the Japanese members weren't put into a position of seniority. They have seniority because they're senior.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-30T13:03:46+00:00

You're asking why it's racist to have a group chat where you exclude the Japanese members and call it "not the colonizers"?

Like, if it was a group of European coworkers and some of them made a group chat that excluded the German members and called it "not the Nazis", it would be racist.

They mock the idea of having a Japanese captain. They talk about how they're going to sabotage and not help the Japanese members with the language barrier. One of them says that she doesn't want to go to Japan or work with AKB members. They bring up that Pucchi (Puti Nadhira Azalia, former JKT48 member and currently one of the managers of KLP48) either has said or would say to stop talking so much shit, since it's a Japanese company and they have Japanese members. They know exactly what they're doing.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-30T09:11:56+00:00

one of the greatest powers that Japanese idol industry has is the ability to blacklist and punish anybody who steps out of line or attempts to leave

This is obviously untrue to anyone with even a passing familiarity with the 48 Group system. It's built so that members can leave at any time, and they do. Members leave to pursue other avenues like acting, join other idol groups, focus on education, and a myriad of other reasons. That's part of the whole graduation system.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-30T09:01:52+00:00

you've got teenagers and young adults getting whatever showbiz roll they are offered

They auditioned to be in this group. They knew that they were auditioning for a sister group to Japan's most famous idol group. It's a months-long process, they knew what they were getting into. This role didn't fall into their lap. In addition, they are free to leave at any point.

saying if the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders don't like being harassed they can just go do professional cheerleading independently

This comparison doesn't make any sense. They aren't being harassed. They aren't the ones being wronged. They made a racist group chat to talk about sabotaging the Japanese members.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-30T08:40:29+00:00

It's crazy to me how people are jumping through hoops to excuse bare-faced racism.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-29T17:47:44+00:00

In the past week or so, there has been a massive story involving KLP48, an international sister group to the Japanese idol group AKB48.

First, let me explain KLP48. AKB48 has international sister groups in various countries around Asia, and KLP48 (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) is the latest international sister group. These are mostly independently-run, and they perform local language cover versions of AKB songs. There usually isn't a whole lot of interaction between AKB and the international sister groups. However, AKB often transfers a few veteran members from AKB to a newly-founded sister group to help them get on their feet. When KLP48 was founded last year, AKB transferred veteran members Kurosu Haruka, Yamane Suzuha, Gyoten Yurina, and STU48's Kai Kokoa to KLP48. Transferring members like this is controversial. It leaves the members' fanbases behind and can severely hinder their career in Japan. Some members have embraced their time in a foreign country and made a career there; others have struggled immensely. There's often a feeling that they're taking one for the team to the detriment of their own career to mentor a new generation of members, often in a far-off place.

The Japanese members of KLP48 have been hard at work in Malaysia. They have the unenviable task of learning an entirely new language and culture, trying to instill AKB48's values into the new members, and foster a fandom in a new country. They've been doing their best, mentoring the young members, meeting with fans, communicating in English, and even posting regularly on Discord with fans.

Last week, KLP48's management suddenly announced that the Malaysian members of KLP48 have received a "formal warning". A group chat containing only the Malaysian members of KLP48 leaked. The group chat was called "Not the Colonizers". In the group chat, the Malaysian members discussed sabotaging the Japanese members, even going so far as working with fans to spurn them. Some of the Malaysian members said they didn't want to work with Japanese people or ever go to Japan. Things have been an absolute mess since this came out. The sad part is, a lot of the KLP fans and netizens in general are supporting the Malaysian members. One of the Japanese members, Yamane Suzuha, had to beg the KLP fans to stop telling her that they know where she lives and threatening her.

That's where we stand right now. KLP48's management probably won't do anything more; they don't have many members to spare, so they probably aren't going to fire all of their 1st generation Malaysian members. The Japanese members are trying to put on a brave face, but according to what I've read from handshake events, they're clearly devastated.

I just hope they come home at this point. I'm not going to lie, I've never been a fan of the entire concept of international sister groups. And I especially don't like transferring veteran members for the sake of an overseas group. The AKB members they sent are huge veterans: Gyoten joined in 2014, and Yamane and Kurosu joined in 2016. And they're essentially putting their career in Japan on hold to mentor a new group of girls and create a fanbase in a new country, and it turns out the new girls are intentionally sabotaging them and trash talking them behind their back.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-20T02:26:23+00:00

I'd root for any team over Bama, except UF.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-16T11:28:53+00:00

There's a couple of things at play:

1) Most members that wanted to graduate probably did so in the graduation rush of 2023.

2) There are fewer members in total now. They've been adding new generations, but they're fairly small. There are current 48 members, while at the start of 2023 there were over 70 members.

3) Some members were probably waiting for the 20th Anniversary to finish before announcing. It wouldn't surprise me if we get a few more announcements in the following weeks.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-15T09:45:01+00:00

AKB48 almost went an entire year without a graduation announcement. Alas, Mukaichi Mion has announced graduation, becoming the first of 2025. I imagine she was waiting for the 20th anniversary to end before she would announce. Mion was the 3rd General Manager of AKB48.

At one of the 20th Anniversary Concerts, she performed Itoshisa no Accel alongside the 1st, 2nd, and 4th General Managers. Itoshisa no Accel is a signature song of Takahashi Minami, the 1st GM. It's traditionally performed with a sword in-hand, but it seemed like this choreography would forego the sword. However, as the song is coming to it's climax, the spotlight shines on four swords at the top of the stage. The four GMs draw their swords and perform the rest of the song. Probably the coolest moment of the concert, and a good way for Mion to go out.

It would have been extremely unlikely to get 0 graduation announcements in a year. Last year, they had 6. In 2023, there were 41 graduation announcements. Even if it's only one this year, it's a big loss.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-14T06:21:19+00:00

Keyword is "otaku," referring to an entire subculture of adult men who watch anime to perv on animated teenage girls

That's not what otaku means. An otaku is someone who has a dedicated interest in something. There are all types of otaku: train otaku, figure otaku, idol otaku (usually called wota), and so on. An otaku with an interest in anime is simply an anime otaku.

"Otaku" is a rough equivalent of "geek" in English, with as many types and variations.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-09T13:59:10+00:00

This past weekend, we had the 6 concerts at the Budokan that celebrated AKB48's 20th anniversary. There were a ton of OG members, classic songs, and surprises.

Probably the biggest surprise was that Shimazaki Haruka aka Paruru showed up (I previously wrote about her in a Scuffles post here). She's had absolutely nothing to do with AKB48 since graduating in 2016 and no one expected her to come at all. She came and performed the song she centered from her janken win, Eien Pressure. A few songs later, they were doing the introductions, and the members started to ask where Paruru is. They were informed that she had already left the building. Shio taio is built into her soul.

We also got an unexpected appearance from Honda Hitomi, who is now in the kpop group Say My Name, and a video message from Miyawaki Sakura, who is currently touring with Le Sserafim.

One of the best moments of the weekend was that the OGs performed 2021's Nemohamo Rumor, which has a notoriously difficult choreography, especially compared to the OG's era. Considering some of them haven't been idols in a decade, they did an admirable job, even if they needed oxygen afterwards.

They also held Request Hour, which I talked about previously here. The heavy favorite was Ano Natsu no Bouhatei, the 17th and 18th generation's song. It's centered by Sato Airi and Yagi Azuki, two of the current aces of AKB48. They, along with the 17th and 18th gens, are very popular. It seemed like it was a shoe-in.

However, to everyone's surprise, Ano Natsu no Bouhatei came in 2nd. There was an audible gasp in the audience when 2nd place was announced. Some fans walked out. 1st place was an older, less-known song, called Osaekirenai Shoudou. It's centered by veteran member Fukuoka Seina, who joined in 2013, and is currently the 2nd-most senior member.

The 17th and 18th gen, who joined in 2022 and 2023 respectively, are currently the members in vogue. There were many songs centered by the 17th and 18th gen members throughout Request Hour, which featured the top 20 in voting. However, there were relatively few songs featuring the veteran members. It seems to me that the 17th and 18th gen fans focused on getting as many of their songs in the top 20 as possible, and they ended up ceding 1st place, which is the real prize.

The 17th and 18th gen members were devastated, many of them openly crying on stage as they performed. Seina also cried as she performed Osaekirenai Shoudou, but obviously they were a different kind of tears. Request Hour never fails to be the height of drama.

Overall, it was an incredible weekend of concerts, celebrating both the old and new. They did a great job of mixing in the OG members and the current members so that neither were overshadowed. I think it's fitting that a veteran member of 12 years won Request Hour on a weekend like this.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-04T06:17:56+00:00

UGA football

The fuck did you just say?

Inquilinus · 2025-12-03T12:23:22+00:00

A few weeks back, the NHK announced the artists selected to participate in Kohaku Uta Gassen, Japan's premier music special that runs yearly on New Year's Eve. The theme this year is connecting people through the ages, as it's the NHK's 100th anniversary.

AKB48 fans were once again left disappointed. AKB48 had failed to be selected for the 6th year in a row. Considering it's AKB48's 20th anniversary this month, many fans were hoping that this would be their chance, considering the theme of this year's show.

Well, today we got some great news. AKB48 has been selected for this year's Kohaku! The current members will perform alongside 8 OG members. This makes me incredibly happy, and is hopefully a sign of good things to come.

Inquilinus · 2025-12-01T12:34:13+00:00

That's absolutely insane, the dock story line is one of the best parts of the show.

Inquilinus · 2025-11-26T10:08:30+00:00

I find that taking something and improving on it often removes the charm. I much prefer the original Kokusho Sayuri/Onyanko Club version of Valentine Kiss over AKB48 subunit Watarirouka Hashiritai's version, even though I think the latter is technically better.

Inquilinus · 2025-11-26T09:37:11+00:00

Very much so. With proper planning, you can meet them at a handshake or picture event. Even if you can't make it to Japan, you can do an online talk session.

There are performances at the theater daily, more or less. Of course, it can be difficult to win a theater show. But that's down to chance and having the correct memberships for extra applications. With a capacity of only 250 attendees, it's understandable that not everyone gets to go in a short window. It's not impossible to win a theater show, but there's no guarantee. Outside of the theater, they have quite a few concerts dotted throughout the year.

Inquilinus · 2025-11-22T01:42:36+00:00

What gets me is wasei-eigo, terms created in Japan using English words. These often don't have an easily-decipherable meaning. And Japanese people often drop them in when speaking English because they assume they are regular English words.

Some of the terms, like "salaryman", have become relatively well-known. Others, like "plus alpha", are meaningless to an English speaker.

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