KatjaThera

Exactly. I'm not that familiar with what Raf has said, but my impression ever since Worlds is that Nathan is very close to maxing out. They've pumped up his PCS to the point that even if he works on artistry, there's not much more he can win there. And he's almost maxed out technically, too. Which, IMO is very stupid, considering how early in career he is. The only things he can do to improve on this is quad-quad combinations or quints, really... Meanwhile, Yuzu can, potentially, get a big BV boost. Of course, it won't be easy to go clean with all the stuff he wants to do, but if anyone can do it, it's him and if he manages it all, it will be beyond glorious.

I'm actually not that pessimistic. I believe that if Yuzu manages to gain all the technical advantages he aims for and polish everything to his standards, I still don't think anyone can touch him. And that's not just blind belief. Yes, Nathan did not bring his full arsenal to Saitama and he gets candy and even higher GOE than Yuzu these days. But what Nathan did not have in Saitama was 4S and 4Lo, IIRC. Both of those aren't really worth that many points. Yuzu didn't have 4Lz and 4F, even leaving aside 4A. And his 4Lo wasn't great and the 4S badly betrayed him both times. And the difference between them was still just 20 points. And we know most of those would have been made up by a clean Otonal. So, a clean possibly underscored Yuzu with a clean and overscored Nathan are about the same level. And that's a Nathan with 4Lz, 4T and 4F and a Yuzu with 4Lo, 4S and 4T. If Yuzu adds 4F and 4Lz and Nathan brings back 4Lo and 4S, assuming they still hold back Yuzu's GOE, they'd probably still be similar-ish. Truth is, they can't lowball Yuzu TOO much, especially if he's clean. So a clean Yuzu should still get at least +3 GOE on any jump. But Yuzu also plans to bring 4A and even if it's not as big BV wise as it used to be, it's still an extra quad. On top of that, Yuzu has clean 3As and he will work on everything else, too. And I also think that, like with the Olympics, if he starts his program with clean jumps, the judges will be more willing to run with him. Politics is all good, but judges are still human and I think they'd enjoy being part of a 'historical' performance. A clean 4A for Yuzu would be a great opening to incredible scores. I think they would give it to him. It's 4A after all. The bigger question, IMO, is how long his body will hold up and whether he'll manage to achieve these ideal levels of technicality and performance before his body gives up. I think Yuzu will only call it quits when he will know that he cannot physically keep up anymore. Until then, he'll keep trying, despite any hardships. I guess it is also possible he might at some point conclude that it's not worth it anymore. But that seems out of character for me, IMO. I think it's far more likely he'll continue until he concludes he physically no longer has the ability to win anymore.

Because I just had my Ice Jewels handy (had it with me at work on Friday, hoping I'd finally have time to read, but nope), I think I might have found the part that hints at recycling, so I typed it up: Unless my Japanese has gotten worse, they ask him about parts he likes, so he says every movement feels necessary for that sound and for the program as a whole. Then he says that for both of them he still wants (present, not past) to change stuff, add/remove movements, choreo, that he wants to perform it like he does when not doing any jumps, but he's far from achieving that. Which does seem to hint at unfinished business. Then again, LGC was unfinished business, too... I think maybe only Chopin and Seimei and maybe Parisan feel totally finished lol Maybe H&L, too. So, I don't know. But it's the "I want"vs. "I wanted" in his words here that makes it seem likely. Hey, this is the same guy jumping a 4T-3A that doesn't get properly rewarded BV-wise just because

So... while regular people train 4A in harness, Yuzu has already upgraded to 5s... I guess when the ISU proved to him he needed more jumps to beat the 'quad king' he concluded 4Lz, 4F and 4A weren't enough, so he's moving on to the next level... (and no, I'm not taking it too seriously, but hey, quints are just a half a rotation more than 4A and he has said the other quads are easier to rotate than A, hence 4A is difficult, but maybe then 5T would be about as difficult a step from 4T as 4A is from 3A...) Everything else they say makes sense, I guess. Repeating both programs makes sense. He is very comfortable with Otonal, and maybe he could do 4Lo instead of 4S in it, for an upgrade. And Origin was meant for 4A. And deciding after this season if he goes for Beijing or not also makes sense. He'll have a better understanding of where he stands, both compared to the competition and health wise, as well as motivation wise. Personally I expect him to continue another season, because even if he manages to add all quads, I'm not sure he'd also manage to polish them as desired this season. But then it'll be Olympic Season after that. In the same time, I can't see him deciding to go to Beijing without properly preparing for it for at least two seasons. So it makes sense. But we'll see. TSL is TSL after all...

There was an earthquake in Tohoku tonight, 6.2 Richter and fairly surface, so it seems the shaking was pretty bad, but seems there have been no injuries or worse reported. Hopefully it'll stay so and everyone in the area is safe. There's no tsunami warning. There will be a press conference with more info at 9pm JPT. I was just thinking about the earthquake I experienced in Japan, the other day... And there have been so many earthquakes lately... scary >_< (Selfishly, I'm happy Yuzu is in Toronto... I feel vaguely traumatized from my very mild experience, I cannot even begin to imagine how he feels... if he could live a long happy life and never experience an earthquake again, I'd be happy...)

I don't think the Moulin Rouge version was meant to be sung beautifully. It's supposed to be dark and gritty and uncomfortable, IMO. I know it's largely disliked by FS fans due to overuse, but I thought it worked quite well in the movie. No idea if the one who sung it does have a musical career or if he usually sounds like that, though lol But having a good voice isn't always a necessity to being a successful and popular singer nowadays, anyway lol For Yuzu, I sometimes think I can hear him sing in the Kouhaku Hana ha saku as well, but that could be just my imagination. However, he is holding the microphone to his own mouth only (others are holding theirs so more people can sing), so it could be one of the voices that are louder is his...

He looks so happy and calm and comfortable that I can't find it in me to worry about programs - recycled or not - layouts - 4Lz, 4F or 4A - and so on. He knows what he's doing and he's looking like that... I'm just excited now! (Also, TCC team is so beautiful, always, in any configuration... they really feel like a family I kind of wish Matteo would move there, too, I'm sure Javi would put in a good word for him... If he hasn't already, even just for this stint ^_^)

First of all, I never mentioned the letter and was not talking about the letter, but rather the incident with the picture Johnny was asked to remove and the ensuing drama, as well as the mess following Johnny's US Nats comments. Second of all, I also did not mean to talk about who should feel awkward/bad or whose fault it is. As I said, that's not my point and it's an entirely different debate. My point is that Yuzu is an extremely polite person, as well as diplomatic. If his fans attack a fellow skater, and even more so if they attack a sempai skater, regardless of whether they have a point or not, and especially keeping in mind that he said last year that Johnny had spoken to him about how he gets attacked on SNS and Yuzu quite clearly showed he is against bullying, IMO, there is no way he would not feel awkward facing Johnny. Additionally, I have serious doubts any Japanese person who was involved in an issue like the picture incident, would then go to Johnny and say: sorry, but it's your own fault, deal with it. Given that Johnny obviously felt offended, regardless of whether he had the right to or not, I'm quite sure either Yuzu or someone from his team then went to him and explained things properly and they settled everything - given that they did hug on the last time. But I find it hard to believe Yuzu would not feel bad or at least awkward both about the misunderstanding, again, regardless of whose fault it was, and the attacks to Johnny yet again following that. Yuzu just doesn't strike me like the kind of person who would say: you did this to yourself, I don't care. He'll feel awkward, or bad, he might apologize - whether he thinks/feels he did something wrong or not - he might try to explain, but overall, it just puts him in a bad place. The picture incident would have been awkward either way, but fans going after Johnny again was pointless. If everyone had ignored it, it would have died out much more quickly. Again, I'm not saying Yuzu should react like this, or that it's right for him to react like this, but for me, for what I know about him and Japanese culture, I believe this is how he would react and this is what I think about before posting stuff online: how would Yuzu react to this, or what the consequences of this be for him? I know Johnny is a lot. I'm not a huge fan of his personality, though I do think he gets crucified a bit too much. But we have to remember Yuzu has been his fan for years and has known him personally for years. I'm sure he knows Johnny better than any of us. He is still one of his sempai and they seem to at least be civil about it. I don't disagree Johnny didn't act appropriately, but to be honest, that's kind of to be expected by now. But I also think Yuzu's team probably could have done a better job to prevent the misunderstanding. Also, AFAIK, Johnny never did accuse them of being homophobic. Also, Johnny has ALWAYS accepted flower crowns, in every single FaOI edition I can remember. It was hardly an exception, and I'm guessing he never knew there was a rule (if there really is one). And days later, Yuzu came out and said the Pooh he always carries around is a fan gift, which to me was a very moment, because fans had just settled on the explanation being that Yuzu does not accept fan gifts. (Admittedly, it could be he no longer does, but then, to be fair, he'd have to ditch the Pooh cover, too, no?) So, basically, we have no idea what happened, but they settled it between themselves. Fans never should have gotten involved. Now, for the fandom... I believe justifying overreactions by saying that we get blamed for everything under the sun does lead to a vicious circle. When attacked, the normal reaction, IMO, is to distance yourself from the bad behavior and offer calm arguments in defense of yourself and everyone else who does not act like this. Arguments of: "Yuzu fans hate Evgenia and write letters like that!!!1111" "Yuzu fans would never!!!!1111" do not lead to anything, IMO, because no side will believe the other. I'm pretty sure I actually commented somewhere and said something along the lines of "As a Yuzu fan, I do not approve of such behavior and I'm sure Yuzu does not either. If the person who wrote this calls themselves a Yuzu fan, I wish they would stop" followed by a positive comment on how Evgenia was treated by the audience at FaOI. I can't speak for all Yuzu fans. I can't even really speak for Yuzu. I myself don't feel attacked, because I know I wouldn't do the things I'm attacked of. People who argue with "But Johnny is bad", "But Evgenia is bad", "But when Yuzu gets attacked nobody defends him!" are only making things worse, IMO. I think 100+ comments like mine weigh more than people getting outraged at Yuzu fans getting blamed and getting into arguments. To me, that's a more adult behavior, while the other is more knee-jerk. Just because the antis are jerks doesn't mean we have to react to them. Not like a lot of fans do. But again, that's just IMO. People are free to believe or say or do whatever they want. (I will also, however continue to speak up when I disagree with their behavior )

This is great for getting an idea for the judges' reaction to the programs. Regarding difficulty, I think it'd also help seeing the BV of the programs at the times, and, just for kicks, the number and types of quads (as it seems for other skaters, at least, PCS seems to depend on that). IMO, technically, Origin is more difficult than H&L and Seimei, because it's also a pretty different type of choreography and it feels busier (except for the opening and we know he was planning a 4A there, so that's probably why it was fairly empty; not even Yuzu can probably do 4A from the beginning for a million transitions). @micaelis I agree with most everything you've said, except one thing: I don't believe Yuzu owes his fans anything. He's an athlete, not a pop star and he is where he is because of his own hard work, as well as the way he was raised by his parents and trained by his coaches. I'm sure he wants to give back to his fans as gratitude for their support, but that's because he's a great guy. Objectively, he doesn't owe his fans anything and I hope all his fans understand this. I'm thinking you probably meant to say 'he feels he owes' in which case, I agree, but I wanted to be clear

I sometimes wonder how embarrassed Yuzu might feel to face these people who get attacked by his fans online... I'd be surprised if there was no awkwardness facing Johnny this Summer. Or how it must have been to see Lilian after this mess. Or any of the other people who get attacked. I imagine how he probably has to apologize to some of these people and that alone would be enough to make me shut up. It's irrelevant if the people that were attacked were really in the wrong or not. Yuzu and his team can handle it when people are in the wrong (see Johnny at FaOI, although that was apparently poorly handled, IMO). He still has to meet most of them and be civil and I know I'd feel like crap. Especially when the fans aren't very often calmly pointing out things or explaining. Many times they're vicious and that's unacceptable, regardless of anything. And Yuzu is the one who has to apologize for it or at the very least face these people and act like nothing's wrong. Yuzu is against bullying of any kind. I don't understand why his fans just cannot comprehend that. Also, this kind of knee-jerk, vicious reaction also contributes to the bad reputation of Yuzu fans. And gives arguments to those claiming we're all just mindless fangirls who will crucify anyone who isn't pro-Yuzu. All fans are so mad about that reputation, but then some of them go and act in ways that only seem to confirm it... I don't get people, sometimes, I really don't...

Yuzu did try some -4S combinations in that crazy practice session at GPF 16, I think, but didn't make any work. I think there were some -3Lo combinations, too... Also, at SC'16. Video of 4S-4S: (not embedable) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ1RwDp26kQ If he did 3A-Lo-4S, then he could upgrade to 4T-lo-4S by Worlds (no, not really lol)

Maybe Origin will be his new Ex... Honestly, I'm sure I'll love anything he does. I'd also feel a bit weird about the tributes continuing another year, and even more so if only one of them does. But that's mostly because he very publicly stated they're tributes. By now the programs are his own, so the programs themselves don't bother me at all. I adore Otonal and it actually makes me sad people dislike it because of the Johnny issues. And Origin will never not be mindblowing (in ways Plush never blew my mind, tbh). Regarding layout, I think his main goal might still be that one we saw, with 4A as opening jump. I think he wants 4Lz in as well, for sure, and I'm sure he'll want 4F as well. I also doubt he'll give up 4Lo, it's his jump, he landed it first and is still one of few who jumps it. While it's true ice condition affects his ability to jump and land properly, I think he'll just see it as another challenge to master. That said, 4Lo was very moody after he first got 4Lz, so I worry, too, but even if he might take his time adding everything, waiting to stabilize the jumps one by one, I definitely expect him to do them all, eventually. He clearly wants to. (I think it also hurts his pride that people think he's falling behind, because others are doing more quads, so he wants to show he's not slacking off on the technical either...) Anyway, all in all, he knows better. He'll blow our minds either way.

Maybe he'll make Origin his SP and get a different FS (just kidding) I agree, though, the Origin gong was for 4A and we know what was his ideal layout for this program, so I guess he might go for that. I do hope they'll make any necessary adjustments to enable him to maximize his points. That said, I don't think he'll give up 4T-3A. It's going to be a signature jump for him. There are some things Yuzu won't sacrifice for the sake of getting points and wins. The same way he won't simplify his programs to make it easier to land jumps cleanly.

I'm a bit torn... on one side I seem to now cry automatically at Origin, after the mad encore in Toyama, so obviously, no complaints from that pov. But it is such a difficult program and he has such crazy ambitions this season (with the adding of the quads)... and the overall choreography wasn't optimized for points... and I'm worried they'll use any excuse they can get not to give him points, and a more unusual choreography might give them lots of excuses. I also worry a bit because in Saitama he was pretty slow (and careful, as he himself said) and Brian said his stamina wasn't up to its usual levels and if he adds more, new quads, that's going to affect this again, too... I guess they could re-arrange both the music and choreography to better fit his new ambitions, though... I'm at work, so I can't listen to the video, but maybe it'll be a different music cut or so? And as someone very well put it, how can he improve the Origin costume to something even better?? (Even while recycling, his costumes always get upgraded...)

Hmm that could be... Yuzu was back in Toronto and skating on the 29th, so that would sort of work... assuming he doesn't care about jetlag and goes to the rink immediately after returning to Toronto lol Which would not be surprising at all... I was wondering a bit about ice rinks in Hokkaido... you'd expect there to be quite a few, but I actually have no idea. Yuzu's comment kind of sounds like the people from Atsuma 'came' somewhere, so I was wondering if maybe the show wasn't filmed in Hokkaido but elsewhere (Sendai again?). Although it could just mean they came to the rink, too (and possibly people from other towns as well, not just Atsuma). I guess we'll know in August lol

I think it was Nodari again lol I think he's a fan favorite by now lol And I'm so happy we're getting HYK with vocals! I've loved the vocal version of the song from the beginning, so now I'm being super happy lol

Maybe they were talking about Notte Stellata? Although it would be interesting if she gave him music again...

Oh, I didn't know Tarasova gave him music again... I'd expect it to be an ex as well... but who knows? Maybe she hit a nail and he'll like it enough to do it as something else. I'm also having doubts about KuriMemo for the same reason. Plus the song works best as a collaboration with Toshi, with the matching poses and all. It wouldn't be as great to a recording, IMO. And thank you for that! I think I saw Joseph is also an alternative for that? And since, IIRC, Joseph has confirmed he's staying a junior one more year, there will be at least his competitions, too. I was thinking more juniors might have left with Lee, as he seemed to be quite involved with juniors more than seniors (was his only full time senior Gabby?), but honestly that's just based on minor observations and speculation, so could be very wrong. That's what he should do, IMO. Let everyone keep guessing. Or even assume he recycles, only to announce something new at the end. And well, he is continuing, so that's the most important thing. One day, the waiting will end and whatever happens, we'll love it lol He'll make sure of it. The of his personality

Of course not, that'd be OOC for the tease that he is lol Honestly, part of me wants new programs and new costumes partly just because being there last year to hear the full program cuts for the first time and see the costume reveals in front of my eyes was so much fun! lol I'm traveling halfway around the world again for him, the least he can do is give me that experience again lol Oh and that reminds me that there was some talk of costumes the other day here, I think? I can say this, all Yuzu costumes I saw him wearing in real life, no pictures or videos could really do them justice. They were SO much more stunning in real life. The only costumes that didn't impress me as much were the ones I saw at that Takashimaya exhibition, on mannequeins. I guess they were missing the Yuzu factor lol They were impressive in terms of how they were put together, but there was no Woah moment. (And White Legend was my surprising favorite, although usually I adore H&L the most of those on display then.)

Well, last year even Shoma had a media day, as reigning Olympic vice-champion. But I think this year they'll all agree it's best to just work and leave the marketing stuff for other times. But I also think it's a timing issue. Although JGP assignments haven't been announced yet, mostly, they start in a month and that'd be pretty much around ACI time. I'm not sure how many juniors TCC has now, but usually there were quite a few. And the Russian test skates last year were early in September (couldn't find when they are this year), so overall it's quite hard to plan anything from 20th August on. And before that would likely be too early for whatever Yuzu is working on...

I don't think they'd say no media day so early on if it was because of injury. They'd cancel it a bit closer to the date, depending on how he healed. There's still almost a month to go.

I'd love it all, but maybe not the Mohican... And now I kind of wish he'd meshed well with Yoshiki, then he could get a Yoshikitty to keep Pooh company... or Hello Kitty could start making Yoshikitty tissue box covers >_> Toshi has a MyMelo made in his image, IIRC, but it's not quite as symbolic as Yoshikitty lol

Who else is planning to check his ISU bio every day, just in case they might update his music choices for next year? ^_^

Was it? I thought they clarified that doing ACI wasn't yet confirmed, so they clarified that mistake (because it was initially reported as him doing it for sure), but the no media day seems to have been stated clearly in that article? (Though there being only one source does make me a tad skeptical...)

I think I remember that, too. I'm a bit surprised, because there are summer athletes who even outrank him in popularity sometimes who could do it. But if the focus is on the 3.11 memorial, then he does make the most sense. At the end of the day, Yuzu is more than an athlete, he's a national hero in some ways. But unless there is some way in which he cannot refuse without seeming unspeakably rude, I think he will refuse. I think there must be summer athletes from the affected areas, too, and he would feel it's more important they do it rather than him, if not the kids. Then again, I think usually it's athletes who don't participate in the Olympics who carry and light the torch, right? So it should retired athletes - who maybe wouldn't have been affected by the disaster - or maybe athletes from other Olympics... Not sure if there are rules about this...