#Touya Kagari

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

By Konomi Higuchi, From Es Works

Edited by me to separate him from the rest of the sketch page. The original can be found below!

[goofballproximitysurveyor]

Blazblue Week - 15th Anniversary!

[elq-uackity]

some xblaze doodles & more kiri x ripper (date: february - march 2021)

[annon-guy2]

[couldtransitionsaveher]

TOUYA KAGARI from XBLAZE

JUSTIFICATION:

"Has a kind of mini humanity crisis upon realizing he's not fully human, the person who designed him has done a little doodle of him and the other main protagonist genderbent before, notably another character who has a similar crisis of humanity and has to deal with people treating her as lesser or not a full being because of it in the wider Blazblue series is Mai Natsume, a character who gets transformed into a woman when she loses her full humanity but eventually ends up being ok with it like she really doesn't care after the first manga series she's in. So it would be a kind of funny narrative parallel right? A character who has to deal with a gender crisis and then later a humanity crisis and then in another spinoff a character who has to deal with a humanity crisis and then later a gender crisis? Also idk. look at her. she already looks at most a few months away from curiously looking at hrt results and wondering if she could look like that." - Anonymous

Reminder: Submissions are always open! Submit here!

Did you make your daily click today?

[littlemisslemonbits]

Merry Xmas, friend!

(They are on a trip together to deliver the gifts)

So cute! Thank you! Feliz Natal to you too!

They are so cute! But they better watch out because Terumi is trying to ruin Christmas again and ain't a baby ghost this time. (New Terumi Padorus!)

Thank you again for the Christmas gift!

[triedpklove]

happy (belated) birthday touya!!!

[smellpelt]

izayoi

[blazbluebrackets]

ROUND 3: Linhua vs. Touya Kagari

The medical assistant to Litchi Faye-Ling vs. the curry assistant to Ringo Akagi! Who will come out on top?

[cloudyspider]

Have a crack theory on the how Touya ended up as Hearn and it involves our dear old 'friend' Naoto and a belief related to them. That being them being parallel existences and how that could've screwed over Touya. If you're familiar to how that whole deal works then you know if the two same existences were to share a world for whatever reason the world may recognize one as "proper" and overwrite them from the world. If you're also familiar with early ADW then you might remember one of the early phantom field/world that took place is one of a hybrid of Xblaze and Bloodedge Experience with Naoto seemingly taking the place of Touya Kagari... and then remember later on in ADW Hearn mentions he's one who was rejected by the world. Not gonna say this is what happened but...

Yeah no I'm not gonna say this what happened. BB's a different breed and I ain't gonna make a bet on that.

[unusualindigo]

Things I’ll Never Say [Avril Lavigne]

AD 2075, XX/XX, Phantom Field

Siebzehn gasps for air as he finally manages to duck the Prime Field Device that calls himself Oliver. His barrier magic is faltering under the effects of prolonged exposure to damage, and he’s running low on both mana and physical stamina.

As he cautiously makes his way towards the point Oliver was initially guarding, he can hear a familiar voice.

The voice rasps, “Semia, go look for Oliver, I’ll get the rest of Babel on the ground so we can deal with this interloper.”

A young girl, Semia, answers affirmatively, “Yes, Lord Hearn.” She rushes off, and the hooded man turns just in time for Siebzehn to blast him with a fireball.

The man catches the ball with a barrier and a grunt, crushing it. However, the force of it blasts back his hood, and Siebzehn feels his heart freeze in his chest.

It’s Touya that’s staring back at him. His hair is longer, and half-white, and one of his eyes is red, but it’s definitely Touya Kagari staring back at him.

Siebzehn gasps, “Kagari Touya?”

Touya, no, Hearn’s eyes widen in surprise, then narrow in suspicion as he murmurs, “How do you know that name?” He stares harshly. “You’re not Sechs, and yet…”

Siebzehn shakes his head. “I’m his son, remember? It’s me, Siebzehn. Touya-san, what—?”

Hearn throws a ball of pure seithr at Siebzehn whose barrier finally burst under the force. He flies back with a cry, smashing into a pillar.

Hearn huffs, “I don’t know who you are, but you’ve interfered with Babel long enough. If what you say is true, you’re an anomaly I can’t risk.” Hearn draws his massive sword.

Siebzehn’s eyes widen. Touya… doesn’t know him? He dashes away, hoping to avoid further confrontation, when a giggle sounds from behind him.

Oliver raises his blades with a vicious smile. “Look Semia, there he is!”

Semia grunts, preparing her own attack. “I see him, Oliver. Let’s kill him.”

Siebzehn sees that with three pursuers, he stands no chance, and flings out his arms to rend open the Boundary, diving in.

As the opening in the Field closes, he can see Hearn charging, glowing with seithr. They lock eyes for a moment, and in those eyes, Siebzehn sees only callous determination. He feels tears slip past at the fierce look on the face of the man he still loves. He sighs, “Touya…”

---------

Touya Kagari, now known as Hearn, the leader of Babel, stares at the spot where Sechs’ supposed son leapt into the Boundary. Beside him, Semia and Oliver are growing ever more frustrated. He sighs, “Leave him. We have other matters to attend to.”

As he turns to leave, he can’t help but wonder, just how that boy could know the name that the world erased...

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

Annon-Guy: In terms of the options for the XBLAZE Remake/Remaster Poll, have any thoughts besides the Thrid Game (which you and I voted for)?

Let's see...

An English Dub of the XBlaze games would be great. As a native English speaker, I'm much better able to understand the tones of lines in English, and that can add another layer to character or scene analysis.

More animated scenes might be fun, but I always felt that the animated scenes in the BB franchise were a little weak or off-model. They just don't have a big enough budget to make those feel great, for me, so they instead feel sort of distracting. I guess it would depend on how they were done!

Similarly, I'm just not personally too interested in mini games or stuff like the BlazyBloo game. They just don't add anything to the experience for me! Changes to the Phantom Field of Lost Memories could be interesting, but I worry they wouldn't be super impactful. More obstacles could just be frustrating. I could see something fun with a little RPG mechanic of some kind, but that might be too much of a shift and also just feel out of place. I'm not sure- I just think it might be cute.

On the other hand I would absolutely LOVE an Expanded Story. I don't exactly think it's necessary for the XBlaze games, but it would be a WELCOME expansion. I'm constantly hungry for more of lore from the BB universe, so any additional look at the world would make me happy. I desperately want to see the rest of the Ten Sages, and learn more about how the XB world overlaps with or deviates from the BB world. But even outside of big plot stuff, just getting to learn more about the characters would be fun too.

It's hard for me to form an opinion on the idea of a simplified TOi system, as I can't conceptualize it. I kind of like the idea of dialogue options, and the intractability they bring, but I don't know if I'd want it at the expense of the TOi. I like the unique way it gave us some glimpses into the characters interests and online personas.

I think a lot of people would love a remixed soundtrack! It would probably be fun! But it wouldn't do much for me. I have a hard time processing multiple things at once, so I generally either play my games on mute so I can focus, or if I do listen to the soundtrack, I really don't digest it. To really appreciate the music, I have to sit down with it alone and consciously focus my attention on it, and I haven't done that with this series yet. I probably should!

I'm conflicted on an Elise route. On one hand I would love to see more about Ishana, and more of Elise in general, and it would be good for her to bond with people outside of Kuon. On the other hand, I worry a romance with Touya would feel forced (the Mei end felt sort of shoehorned for me in some ways already, though I've found an interpretation I like since) and even more than that, I worry it would do harm to her writing as a sapphic woman. She's already in dicey waters as a gag character who's status as the only openly queer member of the cast is kind of played as a punchline, so if she were to have a straight relationship that was written with a serious tone, while her wlw relationship with Kuon was still left as mostly a gag, it would leave a bad taste in my mouth. I don't think it would do her justice. On that subject though, although they would feel just as out of place in a lot of ways, this does have me wondering about an Acht route or a Yuki route...

And lastly, I would kill a man for a Bloodedge Experience adaptation of some kind. We desperately need a reliable way to experience SOME of that story in the English speaking fandom, or even just get a taste of the characters in their own environment (as opposed to their CF cameos.) It could even get more attention on the series, and perhaps prompt the release of the next god damn volume.

[goofballproximitysurveyor]

some xblaze text post for your viewing pleasure. one more under the cut because this joke sucks actually

[fuckthispost-andhappybirthday]

July 20: Happy Birthday Touya Kagari (BlazBlue)!!!!

[annon-guy2]

XBLAZE: Will and Resolution [Part 3 of 3]

From XBLAZE: Code Embryo and XBLAZE: Lost Memories.

Even though Touya never says "I love you." in the traditional sense, the fact he says Es is important to him speaks volumes. Even in the other routes of Code Embryo (Hinata, Mei and Kuon), he expresses his feelings in subtle ways without saying such. He never says Es is important to him in a Hinata route playthrough unless you watch the complete version in the Gallery where he does and yet Es still chooses to side and be with him in that version of the story, showing that even if he doesn't feel the same for her, she still wishes to support him.

Although Es would rather not fufill such a promise to take his life if came down to it, she comes to truly understand him and Touya in return has come to understand her, despite learning the truth about her being an artificial life form, hence why she keeps her promise in the Hinata route. A bond that transcends the ideals of what's considered "normal" speaks volumes. The fact that an artificial being shows more humanity and love than an insane monster like Unomaru is one that can touch one's core. Es is ultimately human in her heart and soul, thanks to Touya, his sisters and their friends showing her the power of emotions and family.

Note: When you play Code Embryo, this is the first time you ever see Es smile on screen outside of the Opening Movie. Truly something worth seeing... 🥲

Start at First Part.

Back to Second Part.

[gear-project]

Annon-Guy: I was wondering that if you played them, what are your thoughts on the XBLAZE Games?

Secondly, what do you think of it's five main protagonists? Touya Kagari, Es (Her XBLAZE self), Hinata Himezuru, Mei Amanohokosaka and Kuon Glared Stroheim?

I actually *own* both Code Embryo and Last Memories on my PS3 Digital Library, though I haven't played them in years.

Vaguely speaking, the Xblaze "games" were the first time I seriously dipped my toes in to the Visual Novel Genre (aside Guilty Gear's Story Modes which are a derivative of the concept, early on).

From a somewhat casual perspective, I understand what Xblaze was trying to achieve, though I'd argue that other VNs have had much better execution and story-telling on the whole.

Still, being "part" of the BlazBlue universe did strike me as interesting, though I never did revisit the games for that purpose.

If I had the opportunity to play a full version of Dark War, I might have taken Xblaze in to deeper consideration on the story-telling front.

For Touya (when I learned about Dark War, his character arc's importance increased immensely... for reasons I won't spoil here.)

At the same time Touya reminds me of Naoto and his "Bloodedge Experience", though in Touya's case, he's a bit more passive compared to either Ragna or Naoto, which makes him less appealing in my humble opinion.

Es has two incarnations... the Es we "see" from Touya's perspective, and the Es we "see" in Lost Memories after a certain event occurs... I think her character development is something to witness if you haven't already. I actually really enjoyed that aspect of her, including how she later interacts with the Central Fiction cast.

Hinata, while her role in the story is no less important, is something of an odd-fit for the pacing of the story. We learn her secret along the way, but the way she behaves for much of the story implies she's very passive, much like Touya.

While it's true that Peace is always better than Conflict, when it comes to telling a story with drama, you at least need a character with some form of drive... Hinata would easily be mistaken for a background character if not for one key detail I won't mention.

I'm not really sure what they were trying to do with Mei, but I get that her "role" in some parts of the story fits in a grander history, so I guess that's something... But it's very easy to compare her to Rachel Alucard in that regard, and you either like her or you hate her for that reason.

Lastly, Kuon... I feel like Kuon could've used more screen-time for her parts of the story. She was a cool character, and a cool voice actress all things considered... but she just didn't get to be part of the story as much as the other characters did (though I assume they didn't want Kuon to upstage Es, but I think Kuon would've made a great rival for Es if written differently).

All things considered, I actually spent more time in Lost Memories than I did the original Code Embryo, so I'm not all that familiar with all the hidden routes in the story... I might revisit it one day if I get the urge, we'll see.