Yeah I agree. If the role popularity is ignored, Seiko can fight for the the closing position as well LOL. But anywayz so far it seems like B'z or Mr. Children don't really care about the closing position. SMAP has closing positions on other things (e.g., kouhaku and FNS?). I dunno about Namie. At this moment she's not like "I'm here so get outta my way." (I'm not saying ayu has that attitude btw
). Also, it really depends on her popularity in next year. That is, whether or not she can bring over the BEST FICTION hotness to the next year
. I dunno about Arashi tho. They are popular rite now (just like EXILE. I still have no idea why the heck the girls love the new guy so much...), but they are not that legendary. To me, B'z, Mr. Children, and SMAP (to a certain extend) are those legendary male artists, while ayu and hikki belongs to the female category. However, I do feel that Arashi is getting close to there. I would not predict they would be here a few years ago.
and tbh.. I really wish for a backlash for EXILE next year. I'm just sick of them.