JAV Hall of Fame - Ballot Preview - Class of 2017

Hey guys, Oppaira here, back with another Hall of Fame ballot preview. Before diving into it I've got just a couple of things.

Firstly, if you want to see what the Hall of Fame looks like, you can always check out this post. It serves as a good reminder to see what names are already there so you don't wonder where some of the biggest names are - they might already have been inducted!

Secondly, a quick reminder on what constitutes eligibility this year. Any actress who released a video in 2006 or later (a modern era release) and was active in 2007 or earlier (10 years prior to 2017) is eligible. In short, if you released a video in 2006 or 2007 you are eligible.

With that said let's go check out some names for this year.

First off we have Ai Sayama entering the 2017 ballot. Unlike others that were inducted into the Hall of Fame, Ai Sayama represents a different breed. She is an actress that not only has a prolific career having debuted 18 years ago but she's also active today. There are not a ton of actresses who check the trifecta of near 20 year career, entire career was fantastic, and still active today. It's that middle one that really gets me, because most actresses don't get to this length without having some blemish on their record. I can't think of a time where Ai wasn't one of the top actresses in town and that has to mean something coming to the voting. We'll see whether Ai has what it takes to get in there because the 2017 vote feels like her best chance. She's set to retire later this year so if not this year she might have some challenges in the future.

Kirara is a name that everyone knows as the first true S1 ace. We all know where it's gone since with Yua Mikami or Saika Kawakita, but back in the day we had Kirara. Many people might not think too much about her time as an exclusive at H.m.p or Prestige and more about the five years she spent as the ace of S1. Kirara has always been an actress touted "she could be a model" and true to that, she did exactly that after retiring. Either way, Kirara will set a good example for how future studio aces will do so I'll be curious to see what happens. If Kirara makes it in first ballot I suspect Yua Mikami will too, and if not... well let's just think about this ballot.

Minori is an actress I think most people remember as part of Idea Pocket's golden age. They're still a great studio now but there's just no competing with what their roster looked like back in the day. I know I've personally gone back and gotten acquainted with that era because it truly did blow some of the current stuff out of the water. Part of that is just the industry devolving over time but also Minori was fantastic back in the day. I say that last part because Minori, like Ai, is still active. However, unlike Ai, her current career is less than stellar. She's put on weight, is working for low tier studios, and is just a former shell of what she used to be. Like the others, I'm interested to see how Minori fares because it begs an interesting question about how much their current can taint their peak. I almost feel like peak Minori without the comeback might have had a better chance, but we'll have to see where the voting lands.

Speaking of former golden age actresses we have Kaho Kasumi. Kaho bubbled out of the Hall of Fame last time around being one vote shy of the 70% she needed to be inducted. It's a little sad to see but I can totally understand given the names that made it in last time. I mean, you're pitting one of the best of Idea Pocket's golden age against the best of literally all time. I know someone will come and complain that these are the same thing, maybe I just like stirring the pot. Anyway, seeing that she just barely missed out I wonder if she can get a little bit more support this year. Maybe some ballots have a little bit of extra room for her this year, or maybe some will be influenced by the results last year, and I'll be curious to see if that's enough to get her across the finish line.

Our second snub here is Rio Hamasaki. Who do you think of when you think of the bustiest legends? I know I think of Hitomi but what about before Hitomi's prominence? That's firmly where Rio lands for me, someone who was a legend back in the day. And true to that, half the voters were like-minded. Maybe some of them were biased because they don't like big tits? I'm going to assume that's not the case, partially because I refuse to believe anyone could dislike Rio's boobs. I do feel like the further out from when she was active the less likely she will be to get in, so let's see if 2017 can be her year.

The third snub I'll mention is Yumi Kazama. Let's face it, whether you are a Yumi fan or not, she is the face of the mature woman genre. There's no two ways about it, she's been in the industry over 25 years! Maybe in any given year she might be eclipsed by others outperforming her or doing 200 releases where she's doing just her dozen at Madonna, but that longevity is practically unheard of. The thing for me is that she's still in a strong position today. Where I mentioned that Minori has fallen off, Yumi is still doing as well as she could as a Madonna exclusive. I know her best days are behind her but if she doesn't get in again, maybe once she gets to 30 years in the industry people will have no choice but to vote her in.

I hope you've enjoyed reading another one of the ballot previews. Who do you think will make it in during the 2017 vote? Make sure to check back in April to see what happens! Until next time!