General Yuzuru Chat

[Sombreuil]

Well that was interesting.  I was about to go to sleep enlightened by the information that he was in great shape and had some new skate guards- took a last look and there it was.

I'm very glad that I don't have twitter etc. and even gladder that he is reputed not to look at social media because there is a lot of nonsense leaking through even to those of us that don't have it.  I can only assume that a lot of the hysteria is relatively new FS fans who don't realise that the Olympic season is more often than not one to play your strongest, most reliable cards not take chances with new stuff.  At Torino Arakawa switched back to Turandot late in the day for exactly that reason. So far the others haven't exactly been blazing any drastically new trails either.

[Étudeesque]

1 minute ago, Lunna said:

For me Seimei is still more powerful and interesting programme then H&L (sorry, can't resist intense!Yuzu) but H&L structer was really better, Seimei has this jump-after-jump moments.

 

I agree with this, though I slightly prefer H&L (that step sequence ). Seimei is great sure but H&L just felt like a development to me.

 

Tiny BV addition. Since Yuzuru wants to win I get the clean program approach. If he is going for clean programs consistently then I would actually prefer he kept the same layout like last season. This change does not feel like any real commitment to development and honestly the 4TLo3S combo (even here) to me looks heavy and awkward. I doubt it will get similar GOE as the 3ALo3S combo nor fit as well into the program as a whole (sorry if I'm being harsh). Also if he makes a mistake and falls on some of the earlier quads I think it just becomes riskier - better with two 3A combos late in the program in such a case. 

 

 

[MrPudding]

 

I'm not sure if this is new or old because he looks the same.. I'll just leave it here 

[Floria]

hace 22 minutos , Lunna said:

I prefer him to aim for a clean performance rather then bring very unstable 4Lz into a game (I feel like it's different from 4S-planned fall situation in Sochi cuz judges will not excuse his mistakes this time around). I'm just not very happy about replacing second 3A with 4T. Love his 3As too much

 

 

Last season we have seen that perfomances with lower BV could put you on the top if clean (Javi at Worlds 2017) or drown you if not clean (again Javi at Worlds 2017). Probably there is no safe choice.  

The risk of introduction of 4lo in both SP and FS was never rewarded properly. And clean perfomance at Worlds underscored. I guess it was difficult decision for Yuzu.

 

I'll miss second 3A combo 

[Lunna]

27 минут назад, Floria сказал:

Tbh I would be more excited with a new FS. But Seimei is my favourite anyway.

I guess many people feel slightly (or greatly) disappointed and it is ok. But it is Yuzu who will skate at the Olympics, so he has the right to choose the music he wants and feels comfortable with.

Now I only wish for at least one more season for him as competitive skater with no repeats.

I would be more excited with a new FS either but I'm not feeling disappointed like after Chopin 3.0 news at first (maybe cuz we were already prepared for it a little or it's just the lack of sleep )

But never wished him at least one more season as much as of right now (but of course it's his life and career so he must do what's best for him)

The most disappointing thing for me is that I will be not on the judges side at CoR even during practices... those damn VIP seats )

[kaeryth]

Thought bubble to hopefully ease some people's minds :

• Re: Judges penalising him for reusing programs - as many have said, judges prolly don't rewatch programs over and over again. Now, as Yuzu fans, how many times have you personally rewatched Chopin and Seimei? Have you gotten sick of it yet?
• Conservative layout - the goal is to win. His upping the layout may not be to everyone's liking but as we have seen, consistent clean programs seems to be the key to judges hearts right now.
• To 4Lz or Not - maybe yes, maybe no. Honestly, the fact that he even HAS a contingency plan means that he has thought things out. Whether or not he'll have a 4Lz will prolly depend on what his competitors do.
• Re-tirement - on the bright side, what he's doing right now makes me feel like he's not planning on re-tiring after the Olympics. He has PLENTY more to offer in the FS world.

[yuzuuu]

8 minutes ago, ralucutzagy said:

lol... what? who said that??

eh I can't rmb but it was a commentator during the medal ceremony 

[ralucutzagy]

3 minutes ago, MrPudding said:

 

I'm not sure if this is new or old because he looks the same.. I'll just leave it here 

It's from 2015-2015 season, he was arranging his music cuts but it's true he looks exactly the same ... 

[xeyra]

17 minutes ago, CupidsBow said:

if you look at his layouts next to each other (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JKEpZyL6gJen3eaO4OtJbr53f7VyTpAF0IvZkjszfhw/edit#gid=1927122440)

 

Just a slight correction. The FCCoSp4 spin is worth 3.5 BV, not 3.2, which would make the BV 105.41 and the total BV 156.42

[Princess Murasaki]

1 hour ago, kaeryth said:

Thought bubble to hopefully ease some people's minds :

• Re: Judges penalising him for reusing programs - as many have said, judges prolly don't rewatch programs over and over again. Now, as Yuzu fans, how many times have you personally rewatched Chopin and Seimei? Have you gotten sick of it yet?
• Conservative layout - the goal is to win. His upping the layout may not be to everyone's liking but as we have seen, consistent clean programs seems to be the key to judges hearts right now.
• To 4Lz or Not - maybe yes, maybe no. Honestly, the fact that he even HAS a contingency plan means that he has thought things out. Whether or the he'll have a 4Lz will prolly depend on what his competitors do.
• Re-tirement - on the bright side, what he's doing right now makes me feel like he's not planning on re-tiring after the Olympics. He has PLENTY more to offer in the FS world.

 

Agree on everything you said. 

[MrPudding]

1 minute ago, kaeryth said:

Thought bubble to hopefully ease some people's minds :

• Re: Judges penalising him for reusing programs - as many have said, judges prolly don't rewatch programs over and over again. Now, as Yuzu fans, how many times have you personally rewatched Chopin and Seimei? Have you gotten sick of it yet?
• Conservative layout - the goal is to win. His upping the layout may not be to everyone's liking but as we have seen, consistent clean programs seems to be the key to judges hearts right now.
• To 4Lz or Not - maybe yes, maybe no. Honestly, the fact that he even HAS a contingency plan means that he has thought things out. Whether or the he'll have a 4Lz will prolly depend on what his competitors do.
• Re-tirement - on the bright side, what he's doing right now makes me feel like he's not planning on re-tiring after the Olympics. He has PLENTY more to offer in the FS world.

 

This 

 

And yuzu did say that he wants to show a performance that won't make us think 'again'. He's really gunning for the gold but with his own method.  

[Xen]

18 minutes ago, Étudeesque said:

Not gonna lie, I'm a bit sad and very frustrated... 

 

Little bit cause he is repeating two programs, but mainly cause it all (reading his interviews and so) feels so reactionary. I don't like the 4TLo3S combo at all, it sticks out from his otherwise beautiful jumps and why??? To be able to have the 3A as a back-up? The BV change is so small and I honestly (sorry ) don't believe that the combo is ever going to get more than 2 GOE (probably just around 1). Sure some commentators will approve since everyone just seems to be counting quads these days () and ignore developments in construction of program and the skating quality in between jumps. Semei is a great program, better than anything the other guys have put out there but H&L was, at least to me, a great improvement in terms of Yuzuru's use of his skating skills. It was definitely more intricate (the step sequence, more steps overall and more steps later in the program), the construction/placement of elements was more difficult (and rewarding I think). 

 

This all seems like a step back, and sure it's the Olympic Season and I understand and support the decision to do something Yuzuru feels comfortable with so I can live with that. But I don't think we are going to see 4Lz (sorry again). He is not going to improvise and add a new jump unless he loses going almost clean before PC or for some other reason he feels he needs to change things (the reason is going to have to be pretty drastic - he is stubborn and adding a new jump is a huge step). He has never added a new jump on the fly has he? He is going to go for trying to go clean consistently and better his GOEs (didn't he imply as much at the beginning of the summer?). I don't think the 4TLo3S combo + having 3A as a backup is a good idea at all. If he makes a mistake and does the 3A, yes he can save points by doing it (BV) and doing it well (GOE) but any kind of mistake (pop/fall) is going to do real damage PCS wise. I'm sure he is not going to get more than 95 if he makes a mistake, so that's about 3-4 points lost as well. The combo is more risk prone. On a brighter side though, if he says he's comfortable with this layout he is probably already close to mastering it. So perhaps the plan is the best going forward. I can't help mourning the second 3A though and wish that he was doing something new (program/jump/music cut/*choreographic sequence/step sequence/anything). 

 

*I would actually love if he changed something in his choreographic sequence 

I really hope he reworks the step sequence so it more often gets a level 4. Honestly I'm a bit worried that Yuzuru is in such a mind space that he wants to have a 3A as a back up plan. I'm really starting to dislike the quad craze (not the quads themselves but the bonus that seems to go with) and Olympic Season. 

 

I want my pessimism to be wrong so feel free to disagree, sorry if I am being a bummer  I just really like Yuzuru's skating and I get frustrated by the huge and singular focus in the sport on Olympics 

 

Don't worry about Yuzu, he'll be fine.

Yuzu reminds me of this strange combination of my own thinking mindset, and this other guy I know at work. So if I had to dig through my coworker's mentality and my own mentality, this is what I would conclude, from a bit of a shared mentality point of view.

 

1) Seimei is not a surprise. The idea of the olympics should be a stage where MY IDEA of what figure skating is should be expressed- and that idea is one where athleticism blends seamlessly into art. Whichever choreography or music helps me achieve that ideal is the one that wins, even if others are against it.  And I do not want to copy the music of others, as an Asian and proud of it (if I were in his position), I'd want to use an asian musician or music piece to express my ideal. If there are Naysayers, I will let my work and results do the speaking, you don't need to get the rationale behind my choice, as only I understand it, and it's hard to explain.

 - Naturally, the goal of competing is to win, so whichever helps me win is also the best option.

2) Layout and jumps etc, there is a long term plan and schedule/strategy of how things play out, and what critical steps are needed in what time frame. However, the details and specifics are all changeable so the unexpected does not upset the applecart too much. Hence, I may have a plan (if I were Yuzu) to have a new jump mastered every season, but the specific sequence of jumps might not be determined yet. That is probably the bigger reason why Yuzu was not happy about his health in 15-16,  because they threw him off his grand master plan, not just because yeah it hurts physically. I honestly suspect the 4Lz was suppose to come out last season...

 

Lastly, Yuzu sounds reactive, because he's not the type to say anything until it's about 80-90% locked down, and executable. My guess is that he was willing to do something other than Seimei if an even better option came up. But possibly the alternative was similar to H&L, but seeing the not so great reception of H&L, he crossed off that option and stuck to Seimei.

 

[MrPudding]

2 minutes ago, ralucutzagy said:

It's from 2015-2015 season, he was arranging his music cuts but it's true he looks exactly the same ... 

 

And I think he also wear the blue UA  Bb never ages 

[Sombreuil]

I hate to state the obvious, but you can all speculate from now until ACI about layout etc - until then none of us know what the hell he will do,  so it's a bit early to be lashing ourselves into a state over what will and will not be included/left out/improved etc.  And you can ignore his interviews - he's demonstrated that he can keep his cards close to his chest and IMO he'll continue to do so - understandably given the way the media react.

[Étudeesque]

Fans are allowed to be critical and worried. It does not mean people are being entitled. It would be uncomfortable if people were just positive all the time. Blind love/hero-worship is really scary in fandom. I'm glad people here are allowed to love and worry and question, even Yuzuru's decisions. That does of course not mean people should be mean and pressure Yuzuru. 

 

I'm fine with him doing Seimei again (sure bit sad he is repeating two programs that he already to me has perfected), but a bit worried for his nerves with all the talk of 3A as a back-up and the 4TLo3S combo which seems more risk than it is worth. Then again, he and his team have surely thought this through and he is apparently in great shape and the layout is probably what he is most comfortable with.