This is the single that NMB challenged SKE's Coquettish Juutaichuu with. Unfortunately for NMB, they did lose, but that was expected to be honest. I had a feeling that SKE's fans were going to go all out (and the whole music card thing helped too xD). This single is the final one for Nana Yamada, who also got to center the single.
The lead track for the single is Don't Look Back!. When I first heard the song, I thought of it as a poor man's Kamonegix. However, after I received the CD, the song really clicked. It's kind of cheesy, but this semester of college for me hasn't been the greatest, so I've been blasting it all finals week as a "goodbye" to the awful semester. I still don't think it's as great as Kamonegix, but it has such an anthemic quality that makes it one of NMB's best title tracks. It's such a perfect sendoff for Nana too. The music video is also really great. The more "cool/dark" style works perfectly for NMB and I wish they'd use it more often. To me, they seem like the best dancers of 48G. I don't think the dance for this song is as great as I've seen it praised, but they seem to all be in sync for the most part so it looks good. 5/5.
The first B-side is Nietzsche Senpai found on all of the limited editions and the theater edition. I'm not sure what to make of the title. It's actually a little bothersome to me that they're using historical thinkers in titles...I think they also have Kafka in the upcoming AKB single right? I just don't know what to think about it...since I don't understand Japanese I don't know what the lyrics are saying, but even so I'm not interested in a side of philosophy with my mindless J-pop. Maybe I'm just over thinking it because I'm not a fan of Nietzsche. Whatever. I also can't find the full track anywhere to listen to so I won't rate it or link anything. From the clip that I have heard of the song, it sounds like a pretty typical 48G track. Nothing interesting.
The next B-side is Renai Petenshi by Team N, found on both of the type A versions. I really like this song. It blows Team N's song from their last single out of the water. It's kind of jazzy and reminds me of James Bond in the beginning (no clue why to be honest...I've never seen any of those movies). I think the girls all look gorgeous in the video (especially the red dresses), but it's really hard for me to watch because of the side scrolling. It hurts my eyes. 5/5.
The next B-side is Sotsugyou Ryokou which is found of all of the regular editions and the theater version. If you're already picturing your typical 48G graduation song, it's only half like that. Which is surprising. The verses have a slight country pop feel to them and I think that's pretty unique. It's still not a song I'd listen to on a regular basis, but it stands out. 3.5/5.
The next B-side is Heart, Sakebu by Team M which is found on the Type B versions of the single. This is a pretty cutesy idol track. Not really my thing. I do like the "echoey" effect in the chorus though. The music video is much like the song. Been done many times before. 3/5.
The next B-side is Minna, Daisuki by Nana Yamada found on the Type B editions of the single. I guess this is her full graduation song. Thinking back to Tomodachi on on the Rashikunai single, these are very much in the same vein. Ballads, boring. I'm sure for her fans this is very emotional, but I can't feel that through the song. Not to mention that her vocals are really annoying. Trying to get through a full song of her solo voice is hard. 2.5/5.
The final B-side is Romantic Snow by Team BII found on the Type C versions of the single. In Rashikunai, Team BII had the best of the team B-sides. On this single, they have my least favorite. It's probably the most generic idol pop song on the single. There's nothing in it that makes it distinguishable from the dozens of other 48G tracks just like it. The music video's cute though. I'm glad they actually have it set in the snow. I don't quite understand why they're at a ski resort and then the dance shot shows them in front of a carousel though. 3/5.
As a whole, I think this single is better than Rashikunai and SKE's Coquettish Juutaichuu. It's unfortunate to me that they lost the whole "challenge" thing to SKE, especially because this single is such a step up from Rashikunai. 3.5/5.
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