Hana o Pūn / Futari wa NS

"Hana o Pūn / Futari wa NS"
Regular edition cover
Single by Kira Pika
from the album Kirarin Land
Released
Recorded2007
GenreJ-pop
Length18:04
LabelZetima
Composer(s)MenMen
Lyricist(s)YumYum
Kirarin Revolution singles chronology
"Happy"
(2007) 		"Hana o Pūn / Futari wa NS"
(2007) 		"Chance!"
(2007)
Music video
"Hana o Pūn" / "Futari wa NS"
(15-second ad) on YouTube

"Hana o Pūn" / "Futari wa NS" (はなをぷーん/ふたりはNS, lit. "Thumb Your Nose" / "We are North and South") is a double A-side single featuring the opening and ending theme songs from the Japanese anime series Kirarin Revolution. The single was released on August 1, 2007 and is performed by Kira Pika (きら☆ぴか), consisting of Koharu Kusumi from Morning Musume and Mai Hagiwara from Cute acting as their characters, Kirari Tsukishima and Hikaru Mizuki.

Background and release

Morning Musume member Koharu Kusumi starred in Kirarin Revolution as the main character, Kirari Tsukishima.[1] Cute member Mai Hagiwara had a guest role on the show from June 2007 to September 2007 as Hikaru Mizuki, an original character made for the show.[2] In the story, Kirari becomes Hikaru's mentor by being in an idol subgroup together as Kira Pika (きら☆ぴか).[3][4][5]

In addition to "Hana o Pūn" and "Futari wa NS" being released as the characters' duets in the show,[6] "Hana o Pūn" is the fourth opening and sixth ending theme song to Kirarin Revolution.[7] "Futari wa NS", the seventh ending theme song to Kirarin Revolution, was included as the second A-side and is also performed by Kira Pika.[4] The song is a ballad.[6] To promote the single, Oha Suta aired live-action episodic segments titled "Kira Pika Story" from July 4, 2007 to July 18, 2007, with the actresses reprising their roles from the show.[8]

The single was released on August 1, 2007 under the Zetima label.[9] A video single, referred as a "Single V", was released on August 8, 2007.[10]

Music video

Music videos for both songs were released with the video single.[10] The music video for "Hana o Pūn" shows Kusumi and Hagiwara dressed up as their characters, Kirari Tsukishima and Hikaru Mizuki.[11] The back-up dancers wore pig noses to emphasize the "nose" theme.[11] The dance's choreography focuses on thumbing the nose in triumph during the chorus.[12]

Performances

A promotional concert event titled "Kira Pika: Hana o Pūn Summer Live" was held on July 26, 2007.[5] Both songs were performed during Kirarin Revolution's final concert event on May 4, 2009, where Hagiwara appeared as a special guest.[13]

After Kirarin Revolution ended, Kusumi and Hagiwara briefly reunited on Momoiro Clover Z's variety show Kōnosuke Sakazaki's Pink Folk Village Next (坂崎幸之助のももいろフォーク村NEXT, Sakazaki Kōnosuke no Momoiro Fōku Mura Nekusuto) on November 19, 2015, and performed "Futari wa NS."[14]

Reception

The CD single debuted at #9 in the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart.[4] The video single charted at #27 on the Oricon Weekly DVD Charts.[10]

Editors at Barks praised "Hana o Pūn" for its catchy melody and called it a "stand-out" of the summer 2007 season, attributing part of its quirkiness to the music video.[6] The song's catchiness was compared to "Odoru Pompokolin" from Chibi Maruko-chan.[6] Barks also reviewed "Futari wa NS" favorably and mentioned that it showed a different side to Kusumi and Hagiwara.[6]

Track listing

Single

No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Hana o Pūn" (はなをぷーん lit. Thumb Your Nose)YumYum (Yumiko Tsuji)MenMen
  • Jirō Miyanaga
  • MenMen
4:27
2."Futari wa NS" (ふたりはNS lit. We are North and South)Yum Yum (Yumiko Tsuji)MenMenJirō Miyanaga4:39
3."Hana o Pūn" (Instrumental)—MenMen
  • Jirō Miyanaga
  • MenMen
4:27
4."Futari wa NS" (Instrumental)—MenMenJirō Miyanaga4:32
Total length:18:05

DVD single

No.TitleLength
1."Hana o Pūn" 
2."Futari wa NS" 
3."Making Of" (メイキング映像) 

Charts

References

  1. ^ "あにてれ：きらりん☆レボリューション" (in Japanese). TV Tokyo. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  2. ^ "°C-uteメンバープロフィール > 萩原舞" (in Japanese). Up Front Works. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  3. ^ "A Bundle of Nerves! Kirari and the Shining First Live!! (どキンチョー! キラリと光る初ステージ!!)". Kirarin Revolution. June 22, 2007. TV Tokyo.
  4. ^ a b c d "はなをぷーん/ふたりはNS". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved December 31, 2018.
  5. ^ a b "小学生女子人気No.1のユニット・きら☆ぴかが夏イベント開催!" (in Japanese). Oricon. July 26, 2007. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  6. ^ a b c d e "えっ、この曲を知らないの？ そんなあんたの「はなをぷーん」！". Barks (in Japanese). July 31, 2007. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
  7. ^ Pirosue (July 26, 2016). "Buono!、きら☆レボから、こぶしファクトリーまで ハロプロ×アニソンを俯瞰する". Real Sound (in Japanese). Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  8. ^ "きら☆ぴかのTV出演情報". Oricon (in Japanese). September 2007. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  9. ^ "はなをぷーん/ふたりはNS" (in Japanese). Up Front Works. Archived from the original on February 26, 2008. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  10. ^ a b c d "シングルV「はなをぷーん/ふたりはNS」". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved December 31, 2018.
  11. ^ a b 月島きらり久住小春ハッピーメモリアル☆フォトブック (in Japanese). Japan: Shogakukan. December 1, 2008. p. 68. ISBN 9784091322906.
  12. ^ 月島きらり久住小春ハッピーメモリアル☆フォトブック (in Japanese). Japan: Shogakukan. December 1, 2008. p. 69. ISBN 9784091322906.
  13. ^ "きらりん☆レボリューション ファイナルステージ レポート!!" (in Japanese). Kirarin Project. Archived from the original on December 12, 2009. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  14. ^ Hagiwara, Mai (November 19, 2015). "坂崎幸之助のももいろフォーク村NEXT" (in Japanese). Ameba Blogs. Retrieved June 20, 2017.