What can I say about Sashihara? Mmm... Only the truth, really. I'm not a one-idol kind of guy. There's a lot to like in AKB48 and the sister groups. However, I can definitely say that Sashihara Rino is my favorite idol. There's no one in AKB48, SKE48, SDN48, NMB48, HKT48, or JKT48 that I like on the same level as her. Period.
I remember my personal rise of Sashihara. It was back in the B3 era. Sashihara was promoted to Team B to replace the ousted Kikuchi Ayaka. She soon started appearing on AKB48+10. When I saw her on this show, the decision of favorite in Team B was decided for me. I simply loved how she interacted with the other members. She was also fairly memorable in the B3 LoD's and became a pretty good performer really fast. As time went on, she went up and up in my ranking. During the time of her rise with me, I really didn't have much of a defined favorite. I suppose it was Oshima Mai at the time but the title was definitely up for grabs. And grab it, she did. When she started appearing on AKBINGO and the other new shows popping up left and right, that was it. Sasshi was my AKB48 favorite by far.
The rest is pretty much history.
Sasshi has only improved over the years. She definitely turned her hetare mindset into a pretty good shtick that she uses as a charm point. She has learned how to handle the variety circuit quite well. I think the fact that she is a regular on Waratte Iitomo and constantly on various other shows speaks for itself. I'd also say her vocals have improved a lot, too. She may not be the best singer, but I very much enjoy her singing voice. Her talking voice has always been a favorite of mine, too. I like how it's delightfully normal and not quite that typical idol high pitch. I also like the fact that she's a genuine wota, even talking about how she used to go online to BBS's and share information about idols and such like she talked about in that interview yic17 posted. Her AKB 600 seconds video also lets us know just how wotatastic she is.
On top of all of this, Sasshi also managed to surprised me. In my early days of being a fan of hers, her looks weren't a major factor. I thought she was cute enough but she never really stood out too much. However, we all know what happened as time went on.
If you told me way back when that Sasshi was going to turn into a total babe, I don't think I would have believed it. In the last two years, the transformation has been nothing short of miraculous. She's gotten unbelievable hot, and only getting better. It's downright amazing to me. I love it.
I think Sasshi will have an ongoing successful career with AKB48, and plenty of success in the years beyond. She's developed a good niche for herself and people seem to be responding to it. I know I certainly have. Keep it up, Sasshi.