TRU DAT. THAT'S the word: righteousness. So loyal she is, Rika is really a traditionalist. If you read in the tidbits tama posted earlier in this thread (and in Tsunku x MM Essay Book) Rika's mom told her to take care of the young ones (Nono and Aibon)
I always feel she was always that middle ground - never to be in a clique. Always got along with everyone. Not only gaining the respect of the elders, but actually being very close friends. Like Kei and Yaguchi, always be hanging out. Yossi and her are practically sisters. So noble and deep rooted in tradition can be attributed to her upbringing. You see her bow like beyond 90 degrees at futsal matches. Rika really gives back to her fans, and you can see it in the performances. How playful she gets.
Thanks for the tidbits, Dai. Rika really is a loyal, dignified and cultured young lady. When you mentioned how she was told to take care of the younger ones, and even the degree of her bow... it really struck me - you're right! I rewatched some of the videos I'd seen earlier and noted a lot of this. For example....
The Rika bow:

She's the one with the orange cap. This screencap was taken at the end of their bow, so as you can see the others' bows weren't nearly as reverent.
---
On another note, this Rika reaction (after the bow, when the horse behind her starts to neigh) just cracks me up every time. AND, you can see that Nonno definitely finds comfort in Rika as she comes running to hide behind her mother figure...
