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The original was posted on /r/hobbydrama by /u/Inquilinus on 2025-03-11 16:55:35+00:00.

There’s a good chance you’ve seen this clip floating around. I’ve seen it go viral several times, often with a title something like “the most intense game of rock-paper-scissors ever” or “Japanese professional rock-paper-scissors.” What this clip actually shows is the final match of AKB48’s Janken Tournament in 2016, won by long-time member Tanabe Miku. I want to explain the background of the event and why she had such a reaction to winning. First, I’ll give a primer.

AKB48: AKB48 is an idol group founded in 2005 by Akimoto Yasushi. The concept was “idols you can meet”, with a theater where they perform every day. AKB48 has a large number of members as each theater performance is conducted by a team of 16 members, and there are multiple teams alternating on different days. AKB48 also founded sister groups throughout Japan with their own members, teams, and setlists and who perform at their own theater. Akimoto Yasushi writes the lyrics for all of the songs for AKB48 and its sister groups. Members are added in numbered generations.

Theater: the AKB48 theater is a tiny venue on the 8th floor of Akihabara’s Don Quijote, a discount supermarket chain. It has 6 rows of benches and standing room in the back, with a total capacity of 250 people. There are also two massive pillars that block the stage for most of the audience. AKB48 has been performing there almost uninterrupted since December 2005. They’ve performed roughly 6600 shows there at time of writing. The members are divided into teams, with the classic teams being Team A, Team K, and Team B, and the teams perform their own setlists, known as stages.

Senbatsu: the members chosen to participate in a single. While the size of the senbatsu varies, it’s generally around 16 members. Considering AKB48 (and it’s sister groups) has hundreds of members, it’s often seen as the ultimate goal of many members to enter into the senbatsu. It features members who are the most popular, or are being pushed by management to become popular. Usually, AKB48 singles were a kind of “all star” lineup with the top members of each sister group being selected (the sister group’s singles would feature a lineup of just their own members) alongside the top AKB48 members. The frontwoman for the single is called the center.

Graduation: when a member leaves the group, it’s typically a graduation. They announce graduation publicly, then graduate a few months later. They have a graduation performance at the theater as their last activity. Sometimes members withdraw or are terminated, which is not considered a graduation. This has only happened a couple of times, typically for criminal behavior.

General Election: In 2009, AKB48 started the General Election, where fans could vote for the senbatsu of a single once a year. Due to the huge number of members, many fans would complain to the management that they were choosing the wrong members for the senbatsu. So, AKB48 created the General Election. The single preceding the Election would contain a voting ticket. For each CD you bought, you received a vote that you could put towards your favorite member. The members who received the most votes would be in the senbatsu, with the one who received the most being the center. Initially, it was the top 21 members, but was later reduced to the top 16.

The Janken Tournament

Let me set the stage. After failing to gain mainstream popularity from 2005 to 2009, AKB48 hit it big with the single “Heavy Rotation” in 2010. The followed it up with an even bigger hit in “Beginner”, which sold over 1 million copies, the first song to do so in Japan since 2006. AKB48 skyrocketed into popularity. Then, they announced something shocking: the senbatsu of the next single would be decided by a massive game of janken (rock-paper-scissors.) The top 16 members of the tournament would make up the senbatsu, and the winner would be the center.

AKB48 had established the General Election in 2009 due to fan complaints that the management was choosing the wrong members for the senbatsu. The Janken Tournament was created due to further fan complaints. To rank well in the Election, a member needed to have fans. And to get fans, they needed exposure. Very few members, the ones who were already popular or management was pushing to be popular, got exposure. There were hundreds more members who only appeared at the various theaters of AKB48 and its sister groups, or occasionally on their own variety shows. They had little chance to become known to anyone outside of hardcore fans. So Akimoto Yasushi came up with a solution: the next single’s senbatsu would be more-or-less randomly selected, with the members battling it out through janken.

The Janken Tournament would become a yearly staple. One thing was sure about it: it was a huge spectacle. It was held live in an arena packed with fans. The production value was insane, with opening VTRs that would convince you that the world was on the line with this tournament. There were celebrity guests, both in the production and commentating. The first tournament opened with Antonio Inoki, Japan’s most famous wrestler, being brought out on a palanquin. He proceeded to give SKE48 member Matsui Rena the highest honor a person can receive: a slap in the face from Antonio Inoki himself. It was refereed by famous comedians Okada Ijiri and Yamasato Ryota. The announcer was Lenne Hardt, who MMA fans might remember as “the screaming Pride lady.” Members could decide what they wore, and the tournament became famous for members doing elaborate cosplays. It was initially shown in movie theaters, but after the first two tournaments, it was broadcast on national TV. You would think a multiple-hour broadcast of people playing rock-paper-scissors wouldn’t be something people would tune in for, but the tournaments maintained an average viewership of around 8% of Japanese households.

However, the Tournament had mixed success when it came to creating stars. The first year was won by an unpopular member, who would continue to be unpopular for the rest of her career. The 2nd and 4th tournaments were won by already popular members, which led to accusations of rigging. Probably the only real success story of the Janken Tournament was the winner of the 3rd Tournament, Shimazaki Haruka. She was a young member of middling popularity who would go on to become a massive star, initially propelled by her janken win. In 2014, the format of the Janken Tournament changed, with it no longer deciding the senbatsu of a single, but instead a solo release. This was still a big deal, but not as much as being in an AKB48 single.

Tanabe Miku

Tanabe Miku, nicknamed Tanamin, joined AKB48’s 3rd Generation in December of 2006. The first three generations were key for AKB48’s identity. The 1st Generation formed Team A, the 2nd Generation Team K, and now the 3rd Generation Team B. The original members of the teams became legends, with later members added to the teams trying to fill their shoes. However, Tanamin struggled to set herself apart. As AKB48 grew popular, many members of the first three generations became stars, but Tanamin was left behind. She stuck with it, with her main activity being performing at the theater. She had no chance of being selected for the senbatsu or making a name for herself. She rarely appeared on AKB’s own variety shows or other engagements. The newer members quickly surpassed her. AKB’s popularity didn’t reach Tanamin, whose career had been stagnant from the start. She continued in this way for 10 years. By 2016, only a few members of the original three generations remained. They consisted of massive superstars who were some of the most famous people in Japan… and Tanamin.

The only place Tanamin was really featured in was the theater. But even there, she didn’t get her dues. In 2014, Team B revived their 3rd stage, originally performed in 2008. Despite being one of the original members of the 2008 main cast, a huge senpai to most of the members, and one of the members of the legendary 3rd generation, Tanamin was made an understudy. She would only perform if one of the main cast was unavailable. Despite this, due to a mixture of longevity and unpopularity to the point of always being available, she became the member (at the time) with the most theater performances, nearing 900 by the end of her career.

Through most of her career, Tanamin struggled to make a name for herself, but not for lack of trying. She was a noted otaku, especially of anime, tokusatsu, and trains. But so are a lot of members, so that didn’t really stick out. She tried DJing, which led to her briefly hosting a local radio show in her hometown in rural Shiga Prefecture. It was called “It’s Okay For You To Become My Fan.” However, this didn’t net her many fans. She did eventually find something. Tanamin discovered something about herself once she hit her 20s: that she really loves beer. She made drinking beer central to her character, and was dubbed “the world’s first alcohol-type idol.” As part of the General Election, members create a poster to advertise themselves. In 2014, Tanamin’s poster featured her as a drunk salaryman, beer-in-hand.

The 2014 Election also also, …

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