Morning Musume Concert Tour 2005 Haru / Dai 6 Kan Hit Mankai : 4 of 5

Since I enjoyed my first Morning Musume concert DVD so much, I decided to get their Spring 2005 concert video, which includes Rika's graduation. There's a lot of great stuff to say about this show, but the only bad thing is that the sound quality isn't that great. None of the voices are nearly as clear as in the other DVD - they tend to echo too much, which is a shame. Putting that aside, the concert hall is interesting since the audience goes all the way around the stage, and the camera crew is all over. Some of the shots make you feel like you're on-stage with Morning Musume, so the close-ups are fantastic! I counted eight costume changes this time, and that's not including the costumes warn by Country Musume and Biyuden, both of which make guest appearances in the middle of the show. The performances are really fun, leading up to a mega-medley near the end of the concert - they really look exhausted when it finally ends! Since this is Rika's big day, there are plenty of moments for her. Young Koharu shows up wearing Rika's (or Reina's) original outfit from the Ai Araba It's Alright video at the beginning, and at the end Rika reads her long good-bye letter to the fans. After a super emotional version of I Wish, all of the members say their personal sotsugyou omedetou to Rika, and the tears definitely fall. Poor Reina cries her eyes out, so I did, too! Even though the sound bugged me, this is a wonderful concert with plenty of tender moments.