Fuji TV “Mr. Sunday” analyzes SNSD’s popularity

Nikkei Entertainment’s editor, Sinada Hideo, recently credited SNSD’s popularity to three aspects on the television show, “Mr. Sunday“.

Hideo first credited the internet for the sensation SNSD is causing in Japan's entertainment scene. When one person compliments SNSD, the whole nation has access to the comment, invoking their curiosity. While the previous generation of idols had to spread their image through TV and magazines, the new innovations helped create a fan base in Japan even before their official debut.

Careful not to discredit the enormous amount of viewers that watch TV, Hideo also credited the popularization of HDTV, which allows the SNSD girls to exercise their appeal to the fullest. The previous screen ratio of 4:3 was barely enough for 4-5 member groups, but the new 16:9 ratio leaves plenty of room for the 9 muses.

Finally, Hideo credited the attractive figures and energetic performances of the group. Specifically, he credited the “Genie” performance, where they cross their arms and legs, emphasizing femininity. ”Genie” attracted a wide base of Japanese fans with the qualities that Japanese fans believe stars should have, namely sexiness.

Apparently, Japanese male fans find SNSD very attractive, but also find it difficult to openly adore them. On the other hand, the female fans are free to “idolize” the girls for their figure, singing, and dancing. Previous Japanese idols emphasized a “friend” type of appeal, but SNSD diverged from this norm by following up with their "ripen" image from Korea.

Hideo credited the fact that SNSD can be truly “idolized” as the de facto reason for their larger female fan base.