#I'm sorry but like. I wholly lack the confidence for saying that my interpretation of someone's words is the correct one.

[lyricalive]

Why do you identify as Maribel so much? like, why you like the Sealing Club? (Renko included) I'm sorry if this is a weird question, it's just that they don't seem to be very popular in the fandom :''(

The first thing that drew me to Maribel was my huge,self-defining interest in the philosophy of subjectivity:  things that can’t be definitively categorized, distinctions that are very fragile, the ability to perceive similarthings as different or different things as similar.  The way that everything boils down toperspective and perception.  The way thattotal opposites, like fantasy and reality, can blend into each other.

I admire Yukari as the most powerful presence in Touhou,something that really defines the meaningfulness as Touhou as a series for me,because I believe very strongly in “boundaries” as an extremelyimportant concept that affects anything and everything.  I can’t just directly relate to such a badass,though.  The more reserved Maribelrepresents the external study of the same ideas – while still fascinatingly playingwith the border of actually embodying it herself – so she became someone I feltcomfortable attaching to.

She is a human who is more personable than a youkai; furthermore, being a college student on the border of childhood and adulthood makes her feellike a more timeless attachment than a particularly very young or old character… especially for me, a very childish adult.  Her role as someone who is very immersed in dreams/daydreams, who lets fantasy takea large role in her life over more practical things, is easy to identifywith.  Her personality is mostly positive,but she has well-established fears, and she relies on Renko to keep her focused forward.

When Lori first told me she felt “like the Renko to myMaribel,” she meant it as a compliment to my creativity, as if my lyricismrepresented a frame of mind that was like a new world to her.  I was absolutely touched by this, especiallybecause I could say similar sentiments in return about her own talents.  With the detail she puts in her art and designs, forexample, it’s clear that she also has special eyes.  Having complementary but different strengthsis something I love about the Sealing Club’s dynamic, and about relating tothem.

Independently, I like Renko as a character even more than Maribel.  From the most superficial points – althoughpurple is my favorite color, Renko’s modern black and white is much more of my preferredfashion style.  She’s more targeted inher aesthetic.  She’s smart, geeky, fun.  She has the vibe of a protagonist, someone worthputting in charge of a club.  I interprether as being very dense in her perception of others’ feelings but very honestand straightforward in expressing her own, which is a really charmingpersonality to me.  She’s full of obscureknowledge, and full of confidence.  Asthe objectivist, she sees “what is”… but it doesn’t limit her from “whatcould be,” rather making her ready to accept anything and fit it into thepuzzle of reality.  She’s so cute and likable and cool.

No matter what, they are much better as a pair.  In generalabout the club…  I just really, reallylove everything about the aesthetics they represent and the ideas theyinspire.  I’m fascinated by mythology, dazzledby stars, and god do I adore trains.  I love playing with theconcept of time and the meaning of dreams.  I want to see what they see, know what they know.  I love their wittiness, their quirkiness, theirdelightful fluffy banter.  I love the cozinessof their context.  I love how theyprovide a new subtle perspective on the motifs of Gensokyo, constantly teasing atit – requiring knowledge of Touhou to appreciate their stories more, so it constantlyjust reinforces my love of the whole.  Ilove the closeness of their friendship and the limitless possibilities of theirteamwork, the way they make each other more interesting as they interact.  I love them being more “normal” humans, as I said, but not a “normie” sort of normal, being more in the fringes of their society.  Their occult pursuits give them the appeal ofchuunibyou, people who reject thecommon reality to earnestly embrace something greater… and they have the skills and mindsets to actually achieveit.  I love how they give hope of outsidepeople being able to reach amazing places, too.

By the way… do you think they’re unpopular with the fandom?  I think they’re rather popular, although ofcourse they always deserve to be more so.  Lori actually tells me she feels a little hipster-ish about the increasing attention they get,because she’s been interested in them even longer than me.  I can relate; when I get really attached tosomething, I kind of wish to monopolize it more.  (So it does make me happy if you perceive meas “one of the few” who appreciates them well.)

At the same time, I obviously don’t want them to beignored.  Overall, I think they’re in agood place.  They are the Secret Sealing Club after all, so theycan’t be wholly mainstream; their underground nature is part of their appeal.  But they do get a fairly satisfying flow ofart compared to some other characters.  Theyget a good deal of respect from talented Tumblr artists, they get this awesomelydedicated blog that wonderfully captures their everyday life, and they even gotthat lovely fan anime!  Because they haveso much music associated with them on their CDs, they also get a lot ofarranges.  …Also, being so loosely connected yet so technically isolated from the rest of the series, there are noshipping debates about them at all.  Ifyou ship them with anyone, you ship them with each other, making them one ofthe most popular ships due to lack of conflict.   As it should be.