I really REALLY liked this performance alot. I think PCDL set the stage (so to speak) for ayu to tone down the stage gimmicks and focus more on the actual performance. The screen, the dancers, and the lighting all felt like enhancements rather than the main attraction, as ayu has a tendency to do - stuff stayed in the background that was supposed to, which is something Ayu seems to have forgotten how to do in recent years. She keeps making the show so huge, that she becomes tiny and barely noticeable within it. Sure, the big MW ship was cool, but Ayu herself was just sort of lost in the whole spectacle. ANYONE can stick a huge prop on stage and make a cool show out of it, really - I don't watch Ayu concerts to see stuff that anyone could do, I watch them to see AYU. To see her enjoying herself, communicating her pains and fears, laughing, crying, and being herself. I like to see the pride in her work, the love for her fans, and above all, her personality when she's on stage. I don't want to see Ayu herself take a backseat to all the embellishments. As props go, a tiny teddy bear is, to me, WAY more important than a giant pirate ship.
Like many of you, I loved the use of Maro, however, the Ayu/Shu-ya relantionshippers screaming in the audience? HILARIOUS!!! XD I have to admit, those moments, hearing the audience freak out, actually made me enjoy watching the show all the more. XD
I loved some of the slight arrangement changes in "GREEN" and "Sunrise," which were subtle but interesting. "GREEN" was gorgeous with the more raw instrumentation, especially.
The photos shown in Bridge to the Sky were FANTASTIC to see!!! I hope we get special screen videos on the DVD so we can get good screencaps of some of those baby photos.
It was a really touching display too, and a great prelude to "NEXT LEVEL."
Peco still sounds awful.
Shuya still kinda randomly flails.
Ayu's fake-crying has gotten MUCH better, and I do get the feeling she was channeling some real sadness for some of it this time. Her fake crying is usually unbearably bad to watch because it's so phony, but I found myself actually kinda worried about her at times during this show! o_O!!
Overall, this felt like one of Ayu's more raw, natural, and real performances in a long time. It was great. This year, I REALLY feel like I'm getting the ayu I fell in love with back. I hope this keeps up.