BOYS AND MEN -- Shinka Riron（進化理論）

One of my anime buddy's customs when he visits Japan annually is that he will try and catch any cinematic adaptation of his favourite TV anime. This time around, he was able to catch a movie for TBS' "Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion"（新幹線変形ロボ シンカリオン...Transforming Bullet Train Robot Shinkalion）, a popular show among the kids about kids piloting Bullet Trains that can transform into heroic robots. JR meets Transformers, you might say.

My friend gave me a copy of the very long run of the show (about 18 months!) which had concluded sometime near summer last year, and try as I might, I really couldn't get into "Shinkalion". I lasted all of the first seven episodes before I decided that it was time for me to move on. But for my benefactor, who is also a self-confessed train otaku, "Shinkalion" has been a godsend as it kills two birds with one stone when it comes to his interests.

GAN GAN ZU DAN DAN!

Of course, when you've got high-action hijinks for the children (and much older fans like my buddy), you gotta have a really catchy theme tune to invade their heads and get them up at 'em for the latest episode. The band BOYS AND MEN certainly didn't disappoint then. I may not have become a fan of "Shinkalion" but I can appreciate their "Shinka Riron" (Evolutionary Theory). From the melodic bangs and crashes to the opening onomatopoeia to the uptempo and fist-thumping arrangement, I can probably bet some yen that the kids were having the song speeding through their heads and then singing "Shinka Riron" whenever they found themselves on a Shinkansen platform.

I gotta admit, though, that whoever created the above music video (unfortunately it's been taken down) for the song should have had fans of "Shinkalion", trains, and BOYS AND MEN kneeling and yelling "We're not worthy!!". Folks probably headed for the nearest JR ticket window and demanded Green Car tickets. All joking aside, "Shinka Riron" hit No. 1 on Oricon after its release as the aidoru group's 20th single in May 2018. Shoko Fujibayashi（藤林聖子）was the lyricist with Coffee Creamers taking care of the music. It's not their first No. 1, though, as they also hit the top spot back in 2016 with their singles "Boymen Ninja" and "Wanna Be!".

As for BOYS AND MEN, the group first coalesced in 2010 in the Tokai region of the nation, and according to J-Wiki, it had initially been composed of several dozen members. But as of 2019, the number is set at 9 members as a combination of two units, YanKee5 and Makoto（誠）.