This is all really interesting data, speaking as somebody not in Japan who couldn't see any of the shows or how the system worked. Thanks for putting it together.

I do feel bad for the boys, in that JE guys all tend to be competitive so I'm sure many of them have hurt feelings about the situation. But overall I thought it was really cool that they all got to try new skills and challenge something hard, and I think everybody's performances came out nicely in the end, so I was proud of every single team. I think a lot of them grew so much this summer. I hope (and really I'm sure that this is true) that all the boys have staff or senpai they respect tell them how much they grew and how proud they should be of themselves, and that after a little bit of distance they'll believe that themselves.

I actually hope, although not exactly like this, that Gamushara keeps doing things like this. It's so nice to learn different guys and see them spotlighted and how they interact with each other. It's a lot like the old Ya-Ya-yah show, which I miss for that reason.