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axvwriter · 1 year ago

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Short Spelldrive disccussion

plus Twst Bobo book 2 draft/idea

Since the Spelldrive cards are coming out for the Japanese server, I’ve heard chatter about the discs. I did think they were bulkier than frisbees considering one knocks out the MC. I saw one blog say the discs are made of gold? People been saying it’s lucky all it did was knock out MC.

Though from what I recall, Grim accidentally threw the disc at MC while being real close to them. So to me my thinking is that he released too early so it didn’t have the full power and momentum of a proper throw? I don’t know physics so I’m uncertain.

I’ve been hit with a soccer ball to the stomach while within close range before. It hurt bad, but it didn’t leave a bruise. So with that little information and imagining a metal object being sent to the head, I could totally see it knocking someone out. Probably even doing more damage than that.

Though I do wonder why have the disc be gold and/or heavy at all? If Spelldrive is based off of american football, then the dangerous aspects should come more from the players ramming into each other along with the spells they throw. The disc itself shouldn’t also be a hazard?

If Spelldrive is a bit inspired by Quidditch from the Harry Potter series, then I understand the disc being a danger as well. Quidditch has literal balls that are meant to harm players. Messed up but I guess who cares about damage when there’s potions to regrow bones. Have a Bludger bash out your brains or be tackled so hard your body breaks… I find myself questioning american football considering we don’t have bone regrowing potions as far as I am aware.

So despite the dangers of Spelldrive, I assume the medical staff at NRC is able to handle anything. Though gosh I would hate being the MC forced to play Spelldrive. Like what can MC even do? Maybe throw the disc once if it’s not too heavy… it’s such a magic-heavy sport that all MC can surely do is just run beside the others? Call out warnings and openings, but still, I would like to participate more than feeling like a on field coach.

I also find it a bit disappointing that MC never bothers to ask to see the recordings of the other matches. I know it’s to keep MC from realizing who Hornton is, but we could have had some of the boys decide MC only gets to see certain matches? Like finding any match against Diasomnia to be embarrassing so no watching those?

Ehh, I’m not going to spend too much brain power to figure that out. I just know that such a spell-heavy sport must be so interesting to watch. Though maybe MC is a bit traumatized to the point they don’t want to think about the sport anytime soon. Or has been hit hard enough to forget the tournament was being recorded.

But this does give me an idea for Bobo. I’ve read the translations for the first two manga books and in those both Yuus were suggested to have basically died? Like one almost hit by a vehicle but ends up taken by the carriage to NRC.

So I have the idea that for Bobo splitting off of her canon timeline and into fan twst is where one battle her armor doesn’t activate. She suffers a head injury and blacks out. So upon waking in Twisted Wonderland, she’s quite confused. Was she really hit in the head? What’s going on?

Thus I think being hit in the head by the disc could be a bit of a repeat of her “death”. Heck I need to make some banners to help divide up my posts as I’m about to write a rough draft of what that scene could be like.

~~~

You slowly feel yourself becoming aware of the… nothingness. You must have been sleeping quite deeply. When was the last time you’ve had such a deep, vulnerable sleep? That was something you’d grant yourself within the safety of your home, when naps would no longer suffice. But this time you hadn’t granted such a privilege to yourself.

Aching. Your head is aching. Right, the last time such a deep sleep was forced upon you was when you were… when you were killed, right? But that doesn’t make sense. Those that die don’t wake up. Were you attacked? That lizard… it shouldn’t have been able to land such a painful, ringing blow.

Is your head ringing right now? No… focus… it’s… voices? Voices, which means you aren’t alone awaiting for that lizard to rightfully consume its prey. There’s no sound of fighting, so that must mean… you’re safe.

How did it hit you? Right, your armor never turned on. An impossible feature. It was impossible that defective armor pins were handed to you. Impossible that they weren’t charged. To let such a mistake happen would be a death sentence. Mistakes like that never happened.

Something must be terribly wrong. You have to wake up now! You need to know what went wrong! How could your armor fail?! How could you die?!

Something is touching you now. Something that isn’t human? It feels like fur. Are you not safe?! No no no no no no no No! Calm down, it must just be a bat. If it wasn’t, you’d be hurt by now. The voices wouldn’t be so low.

Where are you? You want to wake up, demand answers, you need to know it was only your armor that didn’t work. That only you died. Died… why do you keep thinking of that word? You’re clearly alive… Something is terribly wrong and you wont get answers sleeping like this!

#axv #axv writing #twst related #twst bobo #spelldrive discussion #then excerpt about twst oc #1st pov for excerpt #twst spelldrive #axv fanfiction #axv fanfiction writing #bobo rarely ever dreams #wanted to write this out and share #too impatient to wait to polish it out more

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sage-nebula · 8 years ago

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@brooklynhype --- So, as per the conversation we’re having in the chat right now---yeah, Whispers in the Dark ends very close to the start of Death-T. A long while ago I wrote up a timeline for the YGO manga1 (up to a certain point) so that I could personally have a better grasp on when things happen, and using that I also created a timeline for Whispers so that . . . well, again, so that I could have a better grasp of when things happen, particularly when writing. (Especially since I tend to mention specific dates in Whispers, and I used those specific dates to do things like currency conversion back in 1996 and whatnot, to make things as realistic as possible.)

So on that note, I can go ahead and share that! First I’ll share the manga timeline (or at least the relevant parts), and then I’ll share the Whispers timeline so you can see how things line up (and thus can see what did and didn’t happen in Jounouchi’s absence due to the divergence of Whispers). And, obviously, the year for all of these dates is 1996.

Manga Timeline:

Chapter 11 - Monday, June 24th

Chapter 12 - Monday, June 24th

Chapter 13 - Saturday, September 7th / Sunday, September 8th

Chapter 14 - Sunday, September 8th

Chapter 15 - Monday, September 9th

Chapter 16 - Monday, September 9th

Chapter 17 - Monday, September 9th

Chapter 18 - Monday, September 9th

Chapter 19 - Monday, September 9th

Chapter 20 - Monday, September 9th

Chapter 21 - Friday, September 20th / Saturday, September 21st

Chapter 22 - Monday, September 30th / Tuesday, October 1st

Chapter 23 - Tuesday, October 1st

Chapter 24 - Sunday, October 13th

Chapter 25 - Saturday, October 19th

Chapter 26 - Saturday, October 19th

Chapter 27 - Sunday, October 20th

As a quick refresher: Chapters 11 & 12 are the first Hirutani chapters (and chapter 11 is the one Whispers diverges on). Chapters 13 - 20 are the Shadi / museum chapters. Chapter 21 is the digital pets chapter. Chapters 22 & 23 are the Hanasaki / Zombire chapters. Chapter 24 is the Mokuba / CapMon chapter. Chapter 25 is the chapter where Jounouchi fights the guy with the knife in his mouth at the arcade, chapter 26 is the Russian roulette dinner with Mokuba, and chapter 27 is the official start of Death-T.

(Originally I wanted to have Death-T on Kaiba’s actual birthday, but that doesn’t exactly work since Kaiba’s birthday would have been on a Friday that year and it’s never mentioned that the kids are missing school during Death-T, so that tells me that Death-T had to happen on a Sunday, where school wouldn’t be an issue. Thus, maybe it was more like an early birthday present for himself. =P)

Whispers Timeline:

Chapter 1 - Monday, June 24th

Chapter 2 - Wednesday, September 11th

Chapter 3 - Wednesday, September 11th

Chapter 4 - Thursday, September 12th

Chapter 5 - Thursday, September 12th

Chapter 6 - Thursday, September 12th

Chapter 7 - Friday, September 13th

Chapter 8 - Friday, September 13th

Chapter 9 - Friday, September 13th

Chapter 10 - Sunday, September 22nd

Chapter 11 - Sunday, September 29th

Chapter 12 - Saturday, October 5th

Chapter 13 - Saturday, October 5th / Sunday, October 6th

Chapter 14 - Sunday, October 6th

So as you can see, Whispers ends one week before Mokuba accosts Yuugi for the CapMon battle, and two weeks before Yuugi and Jounouchi are picked up for Death-T. And Jounouchi misses the museum incident, the digital pet fad, and Hanasaki’s friendship / Zombire introduction altogether. (Though, considering the fact that Yuugi had already run into Jounouchi in the park by the time the digital pets chapter happened, there’s a very, very high probability that he also skipped out on that fad, and likewise was too preoccupied to talk to Hanasaki, so. Those things probably just didn’t happen at all.)

That’s how I had it sketched out, anyway. So yeah, Death-T does still happen, and everything that happened in Whispers absolutely does affect how that all plays out (especially, as discussed, Jounouchi and Kaiba’s relationship given what happens in chapter 11 of Whispers, and what Kaiba knows about Jounouchi therefore). Perhaps, if I ever manage to get around to writing the epilogue, I can also write a little Death-T follow-up. ;)

(1 This timeline is based on my own headcanon / analysis and is not Takahashi canon confirmed in any way.)

#brooklynhype #fic: a candle in the dark #Jounouchi gets 2 weeks of rest and then All Hell Breaks Loose™#poor boy gets only the tiniest of reprieves #also i just realized that i hecked up with the manga timeline a bit #Death-T should have been in development for 6mos #and if Kaiba started it right after he lost to Yuugi then this timeline gives him only 4/5 months of development instead of 6 #WHOOPS #oh well #maybe i could push the Kaiba chapters back to May?#mmhhh doesn't matter too much i suppose #i mean i could also push everything forward to November but I don't wanna #the idea of Kaiba using Death-T as a birthday present to himself is too delicious to pass up #i refuse to let go of that do you hear me #REFUSE

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stillness-in-green · 3 years ago

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No, Re-Destro Is Not Destro’s Literal Son

and

Yes, I Will Die On This Hill

I have a number of small, persistent quibbles with some of the widespread misapprehensions I see included in BNHA fanfic, quoted as fact in meta posts, even cited on the wiki. Quirk cancellation restraints, what the 20% quirklessness data point means in practice, when Kurogiri comes into existence relative to the time of the Shimura Family Massacre, things like that. My biggest one, though, is as the title suggests: the idea that Yotsubashi Rikiya is Yotsubashi Chikara’s son.

I don’t entirely know where this confusion comes from. As far as I can tell, the early scanlations didn’t get it wrong—one rendered the line in Chapter 218 about Destro having a child he didn’t know about as being children, plural, but otherwise, they were all accurate enough. It seems people just assumed that the child mentioned in 218 must be Re-Destro, who was, after all, right there on the panel. Even though the scanlations never said it, even though the official translation never said it, even though ample evidence in the manga disproves it, the idea still got around that Rikiya is Chikara’s son.

I have and will maintain that this is obviously wrong if you stop to think about it for even a moment, but unfortunately, most people don’t. The error can be found on less well-tended parts of the fandom wiki[1]; it’s in tumblr meta posts about the villains; it’s in fanfic.

And now, god help me, it is on the official anime website, too.

“Stillness-in-green, maybe you should consider that you might just be wro—”

I will face BONES and walk backwards into hell.

But if you want, you can come with me, and I’ll explain on the way. Hit the jump.

Dialogue + Narration

There are two places where the relationship between Chikara and Rikiya is explicitly addressed—the lead-in to the dinner scene in Chapter 218 and the fight between Clone!Shigaraki and RD in Chapter 232. If you include the Ultra Analysis databook, the number goes up to four: once each in Re-Destro and Destro Classic’s character blurbs.

Let’s take a look at each of those places, shall we?

The relevant Japanese text here is in the first narration box: 子ども, kodomo.

Kodomo is not gendered. It literally just means child. The key kanji is 子, ko. Like most kanji, it has a lot of potential readings, and you can add other kanji to it to modify it. Add 息 and you get musuko, son. Pronounce 子 as shi instead of ko, and you get a term that is frequently, though not exclusively, used to refer to boys. Add 女 to that reading and you get joshi, woman/girl. 子 is in a lot of words, many of them gendered! Used for kodomo as Hori does here, though, it does nothing to indicate a gender one way or the other.

Also too, it does nothing to indicate that Rikiya is the child in question; it simply states that there was such a child, somewhere in the world. Now, the natural assumption for anyone who knows how the graphic novel medium works and who understands basic literary analysis would be that the significant character we just met is, in fact, the child in question—except that everything else we learn about Destro and the original Meta Liberation Army here makes it entirely impossible.

I’ll do a full breakdown on why that is in the next section. In the meantime, here’s the next reference:

Here, we’re looking at the phrase the Viz translation renders as, “His blood runs through these veins.” The literal Japanese there is, Desutoro no matsuei chi o tsugu mono! In a literal translation, chi o tsugu mono means, “one who inherits the blood,” or, more loosely, “blood successor.” It’s matsuei—末裔—that’s the key word here.

Japanese has several words to express the concept of “descendant.” Matsuei is one word; the data book uses shison. So what’s the difference? Well, I’ll talk about shison in a moment, but I had an inkling of it just from looking at the kanji in matsuei—“end” and “descendant” respectively, leaving me with an impression of something like a final descendant or the terminus of the bloodline. Further research confirmed it: shison can refer to any lineal blood tie, but matsuei refers to a bloodline’s final inheritor, the person at the end of a long line of many, or even countless, generations. It’s the difference between being able to point to a grandparent and the kind of painstaking genealogical research that lets you[2] point to a famous royal from eight hundred years ago—matsuei is a word that very much assumes the existence of those countless generations.

So not only does Rikiya’s line there not imply that he’s Chikara’s son, but his specific word choice also tells us that he cannot be Chikara’s son. That’s, uh. Pretty conclusive, I would say.

Lastly, though, there’s also the data book. This is, perhaps, the actual closest you’re going to get to a manga equivalent of those character blurbs on the anime website, at least until such time as Hori deigns to give the MLA types character profile pages. (I live ever in hope.)

There are two relevant bits of text, one in Re-Destro’s entry, and the other in Destro Classic’s. The first describes how Re-Destro organizes the MLA as Desutoro no chi o tsugu mono: the same phrase he uses for himself in the manga, minus the matsuei. @codenamesazanka (the one who told me about the databook references among other citations, bless) rendered it as “Destro’s blood successor”; I have also seen it given as “the successor of Destro’s bloodline.” Note again, the lack of reference to a father/son bond.

Chikara’s entry uses that other descendant word I mentioned before, 子孫, shison. Notice that the term uses that ko kanji from kodomo before? As it does in joshi, 子 here reads shi. The other kanji, 孫, means grandchild. Thus, literally, grandchild-child—or, in the vernacular, simply descendant.

And then we have the anime website.

So, for comparison’s sake, the anime website uses 息子—the same combination of kanji that I said earlier gives you musuko, son. Heck, it even uses 父, chichi, for Destro—father. It’s as explicit as it’s possible to be, and I just don’t know why or how the anime website could fuck that up so bad when absolutely nothing in the manga describes the two Yotsubashis that way, and, indeed, one specific word choice actually rules out the possibility.

So, that’s all the manga says directly. It’s not the only evidence there is, though. In fact, the next piece makes it even more clear how colossally and impossibly wrong a father/son connection for Destro and his modern successor is.

Timeline

The long and short of this section is, “Since Harima Oji was Sako Atsuhiro’s great-great-grandfather, there is no possible way that Destro—who pre-dated Harima—can be Re-Destro’s father.” If you read that sentence and nodded your complete understanding and agreement, feel free to skip ahead to the last section. If you’d like the full explanation it takes to reach that sentence’s conclusion, though, read on.

So, aside from the word matsuei, the timeline is the most telling piece of evidence to my eye. I address it secondly rather than firstly because it’s less direct than the explicit narration; it relies on drawing conclusions based on things we’ve been told elsewhere rather than on the immediately relevant text. Oh, Mr. Compress’s relationship to Harima is explicit enough, but on what am I basing my claim that Destro predates him?

Regarding that, there’s no explicit year relative to My Hero Academia’s current events given for when Destro and the original Meta Liberation Army were active; the same is true for Harima Oji’s escapades. However, we are given some broad-strokes information, relative not to current events, but rather to the history of heroism as a legal institution in Japan.

We know that there was a widespread, lengthy period of chaos following the rise of quirks—called meta-abilities in those early years. At some point, however, people began to search for a way for meta-humans to live in peace with non-metas. The compromise that was reached was the foundation of professional heroism in Japan—while the use of meta-abilities would be legal in private settings, it was only by becoming licensed by the state as “heroes” that people could use their quirks in public.[3]

The legislation curtailing the use of meta-abilities—and the appropriation of a dead woman’s language to popularize a law establishing exactly the opposite of what she used that language to call for—is what catalyzed the rise of the original MLA. Thus, we can position Destro as being alive and active around the same time that heroism as a legal institution was being formed. Since we further know that he committed suicide in prison, we can assume that his child was conceived at some point prior to his capture. Ergo, Destro’s child, were they alive today, would be as old as Japanese professional heroism itself.

Next, consider Harima Oji, the Peerless Thief, a criminal who targeted the riches of “sham heroes.” We’re specifically told that he was active in the days in which the current system was settling into place—e.g. he only became active once the Hero System was established enough to have produced corrupt heroes. We’re told he preached reformation—he wasn’t just some pre-existing criminal who saw a shiny new target in heroes; he had specific grievances which he wanted addressed by the system, and which the system was not addressing.

The earliest Harima could possibly be active, then, is concurrent with Destro—Harima fighting against the corrupt people who had found their way into the new heroic institution, and Destro fighting against using the institution of heroism to oppress non-heroes. What I think is more likely, though, is that Harima came after Destro—Harima needed to have had time to realize what kinds of fakes had been drawn to this shiny new career path, maybe even to spend some time trying to change things the legal way.

I don’t suspect they were separated by very long—I would imagine Destro was easily within Harima’s living memory, and might well have influenced why he chose the path of protest that he did—but I do think they were separate.

Moving forward, then, Mr. Compress is four generations distant from his famous ancestor. Thus, even if you assume that Harima is of the same generation as Chikara, that’s what you’re looking at for Chikara’s child: someone who, were they alive today, would be old enough to be the great-grandparent of a thirty-two-year-old man.

Re-Destro’s probably a few years older than Mr. C, sure,[4] but that man doesn’t have Ujiko’s slow-aging quirk. Unless you want to start pulling theories about cryogenic stasis the story for some reason never saw fit to mention out of thin air, Re-Destro is in no way old enough to fit the bill.

This is backed up by one other piece of the timeline as well, and one more place we can look at language:

The small child at the center of the image is Rikiya, so young that he’s in schoolboy shorts for a meeting otherwise so formal that he’s been made to wear a tie. He’s, what, six to nine here, tops? And the adults speaking to him say that they’ve been in hiding for generations—代々, daidai, the kanji for generation followed by a kanji that just means, “See that kanji written right before me? Yeah, just read that one again.”

The original MLA was active for only a handful of years, and, per Chapter 218, they didn’t dissolve until Destro was captured. Thus, we can assume they have been in hiding since then, but not before then. With that in mind, this is another line that renders a father/son relationship impossible.

Remember, Chikara already had a child in the world circa his capture. If Rikiya were Chikara’s son, then Destro’s capture and his army’s subsequent dissolution could not have happened any farther back than nine months plus however old Rikiya was in this exact moment of his youth. Rikiya, who we see here as a child of less than ten.

Ten years in hiding doesn’t make one generation; it damn sure doesn’t make multiple ones.

Now, you could make theories about cryogenic statis that would explain this ludicrous discrepancy, sure. You could also theorize about e.g. artificial insemination,[5] or time stop quirks, or any number of other possibilities in the vast panoply the HeroAca world offers. The point is, though, that you don’t need to. There was, in the manga, no discrepancy that needed to be explained. It is only fanon misinterpretation and a glaring disinterest in the series’ villains from official sources that have presented this issue.

I’m praying that it’s all just a misunderstanding on the part of whoever maintains the website, and that the anime itself will render the relevant bits of dialogue correctly. Given the extreme cuts and alterations that My Villain Academia has been subjected to thus far, though, I’m sure you can appreciate my being concerned.

…So that’s the meat of it. The idea that Rikiya is Chikara’s son is wrong simply on the basis of what’s said in the text, and it’s doubly wrong on the basis of the timeline. There is, though, one other thing I think points towards Re-Destro being exactly the descendant he says he is, not a son playing down the connection out of humility or something. This one is a lot more headcanon-y, though, so I saved it for last.

MLA Social Dynamics

It’s quite simple. We have, in the MLA, a group of people that venerates Destro’s bloodline to an obviously unhealthy degree, putting up portraits of him wherever they can get away with it, tagging his successor with a “Re-” as if to invoke reincarnation or miraculous return, entirely willing to throw their lives away for what they think was his cause, and others’ lives if those others say anything too scathing about the words Destro wrote, quite as if they treat Destro’s memoir as some sort of holy writ.

They venerate Destro that much, and you’re trying to tell me that they wouldn’t just call a spade a spade and acknowledge RD as the son of their great leader? Come on.

Since long before I turned up the matsuei factoid in researching this piece, since long before Mr. Compress gave us such a helpful generational comparison, I’ve held the opinion that, given a group that holds their leaders in such high esteem, with such particular regard for bloodline, the only reason Rikiya does just call himself a descendant, rather than citing the specific term for what he is, is that the specific term is distant enough that it actually does sound more impressive to just say “descendant,” rather than something like, “great-great-great-grandson.” That kind of thing just begs the question, “What took you guys so long?” or, “You and how many other people, buddy?”

Mr. Compress may have the panache to carry off a line like that, but Rikiya’s a different story. If he had something so amazing up his sleeve as, “I am the son of the great Destro,” I have to think he’d just say it proudly, not fall back on the impressionistic vaguery of something like chi o tsugu mono. Even if I had no other evidence to work with, I’d think the same—all the evidence you need is right there in the character writing of who Rikiya and the MLA are and how they talk about the man whose dreams Re-Destro was raised to carry.

A closing note: I will allow that Rikiya is being overdramatic when he uses matsuei and its connotation of countless generations. There are a few other things we can use to trace the history of heroism—Ujiko’s age, and the 18-years-or-less periods that One For All was held by its pre-All Might bearers—and running those numbers leads me to believe that it is, in fact, entirely possible to count the number of generations between Rikiya and Chikara, and the number, while higher than one, is probably not all that high. Certainly matsuei is being more dramatic about it than is entirely warranted, hence the poetic flourish of the official translation’s, “His blood runs through these veins!” The theatricality only makes me fonder of him, however.

------------------------

FOOTNOTES

[1] It was changed and reverted on Re-Destro’s page at least twice before it finally stuck in January of this year. Chikara’s page took until July to be corrected, and it’s still wrong on various other subpages.

[2] Or your kids, if you have those. Only the last generation in the bloodline is the matsuei, but that’s a moving goalpost as long as the bloodline is still propagating.

[3] This summary of events combines what we know from both My Hero Academia proper and the Vigilantes spin-off, which I recommend to anyone who’s at all interested in finer-grained worldbuilding on Hero Society Japan than the main series makes time for.

[4] I personally headcanon him as 42.

[5] To which point I would refer back to the word kodomo, and note that that word choice indicates that Destro had a child in the world. Not a sperm sample kept in a freezer somewhere, waiting for the right would-be mother: an actual child. Some quick research on my part says that the farthest that term stretches is in using it to refer to yet-unborn children, fetuses still in the womb. Seeing as Japan doesn’t even allow inmates conjugal visits in real life, much less in a setting where villains are so dehumanized that Tartarus is an acceptable punishment for them, the line about Destro “having a child out in the world” takes us right back to a date of conception no later than Destro’s final night of freedom.

#boku no hero academia #my hero academia #bnha #bnha meta #yotsubashi rikiya #yotsubashi chikara #re-destro #destro bnha #meta liberation army #my writing #i have thoughts on the anime's nonsense too but #hahawow #that's gonna take a little longer to get coherent #preview: it's not about capitalism #it's about fear

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abybweisse · 5 years ago

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How do you think the manga will end?

Please do a search on my blog for “end of the series” (“series end” will bring up even more posts, but some of them aren’t quite as pertinent). Other tags to check out would be “series ending”, “end of the manga”, “predictions” and “mother3 predictions”. You can simply click those tags at the end of this reply to see what comes up.

A (not very) short recap of my series end predictions:

A lot more people die. Well, I think most of us knew that already. Here are two versions of me trying to figure out who’s in that pile underneath our earl. Yana-san could change her mind and save one or more of these people. She could also kill all of the people shown... as well as kill off others never included in this panel. In fact, she’s definitely going to kill off people not included in panel, since this pile seems to only represent our earl’s supporters, allies, friends, etc.

Madam Red is already gone. Others here that are easily identified are: Finny, Tanaka, Lizzie, Bard, Mey-Rin, Chlaus, and Lau. There is a dark-haired person that could be Soma or Sieglinde (or someone else, for that matter). The one I initially identified as Snake could possibly be Edward, but I think it’s meant to be Snake. There is also a person at the back, with their head behind the throne, someone in a pale suit and a hand up but hanging limp. I suspect that is a character that hadn’t been introduced at the time of that chapter release. Given the clothes, it could be numerous people, including Othello... though I’m not sure this pile of bodies should include anyone who is no longer human, like a reaper. 🤔 It also shouldn’t include anyone who was never an ally, so it shouldn’t be the Viscount of Druitt. Perhaps... we have Snake and Edward shown here. Keep in mind this is quite a pile, and the people we can see are not the ones at the absolute bottom... or on the other side of it. Expect quite a death toll by the time this series is over.

Our earl and Sebastian will have to defeat the queen and her servants... or at least the queen and John Brown. I say that because I still think they are behind the attack at Phantomhive Manor. If that’s not true, then it’s been set up that way for us to believe it, not just in the anime but in the manga, as well. Victoria and John Brown are pretty shady (with their matching shades, no less). I think they have a contract like the one between our earl and Sebastian, but I have a feeling the contract terms are not nearly as well-defined. That puppet of Albert — that is not simply a hand puppet; it’s a control device.

They will have to defeat Undertaker and the Lords of the Stars; that, of course, includes the bizarre doll of real Ciel. Real Ciel will have to be destroyed, most likely. In fact, at some point real Ciel might come to realize how messed up things have become, and he might ask to be destroyed. The other “lords of the stars” will have to be destroyed. Undertaker? Three possibilities I see: 1) destroyed by Sebastian and/or the reaper organization, 2) captured by the reaper organization and returned to their realm, or 3) sees the outcome (good or bad) of his actions and willingly leaves the human realm.

Once the contract has been fulfilled, Sebastian will devour the soul of our earl, his Young Master. This might happen in conjunction with the battles against Undertaker, the Lords of the Stars, and whoever else joins the fray, like some reapers. Because I have a feeling that Undertaker, at least, will not make it easy for Sebastian to get his meal/payment. It could include Undertaker trying to manipulate any loopholes he thinks he can find in the contract. It could include Undertaker trying to collect/steal our earl’s soul and placing it into the body of real Ciel (Undertaker is experimenting with Baron Heathfield’s wife’s body and souls of a matching shape for a reason, you know). There is also the slight chance that Sebastian gets to take his time, after all the battles, and truly savor his meal, but I do have the feeling he will have to fight for it, and that might force him to rush his meal. Even our earl might have to demand it be done quickly. I do not expect to get a scene in the manga that looks like the ending scene of s1 of the anime. None of this morbidly romantic nonsense about making it hurt, making his agony add extra flavor to every bite. Because that anime scene was Sebaciel with vore kink. **Shudder** I do expect, however, that fans that enjoy that sort of thing will still get something to cling to... just because; Yana-san does like to do fan service, and she knows those fans are out there. I’m just — hoping, really — that she chooses to portray the manga canon death/soul devouring scene in a way that isn’t so... shippy.

Eating our earl’s soul should change something in Sebastian. Eventually, I do think our earl and Sebastian will succeed in completing the contract, including the matter of payment. Like Hannah devouring Luka’s soul in s2 of the anime, I do expect Sebastian to be forever changed by devouring our earl’s soul. Sebastian is the main (even the title) character, after all... and he has seriously lacked any lasting character development, so far. There has been much foreshadowing about this, like telling Beast he understands not one “jot” of the feelings of love or loss “yet”. How he cries from the mustard gas and is shocked by it, saying to himself he lacks the emotions to do so. Heck, even Mother3 has a character who never cries until the very end, and it’s a shock to everyone, including that character. (Yes, Gregory Violet is the main parallel to that character, Kumatora... aka “Violet”, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get another shocking crying scene. Besides, in Mother3, the crying scene with Kumatora/Violet is described as “beautiful” or “cute”... and our Violet has a really “ugly cry” in Bath.) Sebastian could finally cry from all the emotions that wash over him, and it might be just... beautiful.

The earl’s death should happen December 13, 1889, the day before his 14th birthday... and a Friday the 13th. It could happen just as midnight approaches, heading towards the 14th. That’s not much timeline left in the series, only about two weeks, but the way it’s being dragged out chapter by chapter (flashbacks, overlapping “Meanwhile...” action, etc.) we will see monthly chapter publications for... probably at least a few more years. The series could end just like that, with our earl’s death, but I suspect not; Sebastian is the main character in this, so the story doesn’t completely end with our earl’s death. We should get to see how Sebastian has been affected by our earl’s death (an ultimately willing sacrifice, I should think). How will this change the demon’s behavior toward humans? I expect he won’t consider them mere insects anymore. If ordered to do so before our earl dies, he would stay afterwards and help “tidy up the mess” in the wake of all these battles. But, it’s also possible that our earl never orders him to do anything like that... and Sebastian does it anyway. Then, perhaps Sebastian leaves, having learned a valuable lesson? Having grown up a bit? This is his Bildungsroman, right? I hope so.

I don’t think Undertaker will be able to get rid of Death, the way the reapers seem to fear he might. Some reapers might die before all is said and done, including possibly Undertaker, but I think most of them will have to deal with the soul collections and all the paperwork this generates for them. Talk about massive overtime.

I guess that’s about it, without me getting way deeper into details.

And this could easily lead to a setup for a sequel to or spin-off from the manga.

Sequel idea: What Sebastian does later. Does he make other contracts, or does he decide to help humans without claiming their souls...?

Spin-off idea: What Undertaker does if he returns to the reaper realm. Does he get severely punished... then make new plans for escape and basically try to destroy the organization again...?

Spin-off idea: Stories about the other reapers. Before, during, and/or after the events of the first series.

Thanks for the ask! 🖤

Please make sure to look at this post’s tags for more about this, though this post includes some ideas that have changed a little over the past four years or so.

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natsubeatsrock · 6 years ago

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The Rewrite of Fairy Tail: Bonus (What If #2)

What if I had to make Nalu canon?

HAH! You thought I was just hating on Juvia for no reason with my last one. (It wasn’t even that bad.) Nope! This is a series of things I want to do. I hope you-

Wait a minute.

Why does this feel familiar?

Anyways, of the many things that I'm thankful for, I always have to remember that I have long since stopped worrying about Nalu as an issue. It's not canon, by my estimate, nor does it seem to have been an option for Mashima. Since coming to my revelation on Nalu's credibility last January and dissolving the Strongest Team in my rewrite, I don't have to think about the possibility of writing Nalu to be romantic seriously in the rewrite. Even if Nalu were somehow to happen in the sequel, it's already too late for me to care.

Though, I don't think it would be that big a deal to consider a possible universe where I have to change the series to write a romantic version of my least favorite ship. I mean, I have an alternative universe where I killed off Juvia not long after she appears and that's one of the most difficult issues I have. How bad could this be?

What? You thought I was joking?

Look, I know I have a sketchy past with this ship. There's a reason I word this as "have to make Nalu canon", as opposed to, "wanted to make Nalu canon", or, "made Nalu canon". But, I figured I should try to think of a way to make this better than what we got (even as some people already see it as canon). I say this and I already know someone's already mad at me because of this post's mere existence.

I genuinely want to take a serious guess at how Nalu could happen in a positive way. Unlike the Juvia post, I want to talk more in broad strokes across the series. I almost have to, when you consider the difference in hypotheticals.

One of the simple changes I would make is keeping the natural progression of the Strongest Team into a formal group. That messes up some of the changes that I made because there was no team, but this is an easy way to give them time to grow closer together. I would want them to have a good friendship for them to build their relationship off.

I would also downplay the search for Igneel. I cited this as a big reason to keep them separate, so it only makes sense to not focus on it as much if I'm keeping them together. Natsu's motivation for caring less isn't terribly important to this discussion (read: don't make me do this to myself). All that matters is Natsu's will treat the search for Igneel as more of a background issue than I'd personally like it to be. (I don't mean to be like this.)

Up to about Edolas, there aren't too many changes I want to talk about. Consider that, about three paragraphs into this hypothetical, I'm going back on one of the biggest changes to the series as a whole and one of the biggest changes to approaching Natsu. But other than having Team Natsu and Natsu and Lucy growing closer together, there's not a whole lot that needs to happen romantically.

But by the time Edolas comes along, there should be a bit of a shift. There was a moment in the Nirvana arc when Virgo comments on how they're kind of like a couple. I'd like that thought to eat at Lucy a bit more in Edolas, especially in light of not having a version of Special Request (as opposed to how it operates in my rewrite). Is the idea of Natsu and her as a couple as much of a weird idea?

On Natsu's part, this shift towards considering their relationship happens a bit later on Tenrou Island. I've said this a few times, but I've never explained why I think the fight with Kain could have served as the moment that changes the trajectory of Nalu. When Lucy says it's better when we're together, it's possible to interpret that in a number of ways. The way I feel it was intended to mean was her bond with Natsu as a partner and a friend. If I were worded a bit differently, it could be made to have Lucy enjoying Natsu's company as he's the person she's grown the closest with as a member of the guild. This eats at Natsu and is what gets him to start thinking of Lucy as someone he wants to grow closer to.

The change in emphasis also recontextualizes later events in the series, regarding their relationship. For example, Natsu wanting to save Lucy in the Grand Magic Games has a different weight to it than if he wanted to save any other member of the guild. As I've said in the past, Natsu should be reasonably concerned about any guild member. This would still be true of him at this point of the series, given my more dynamic approach to Natsu. But Lucy should mean more to him that other members of the guild do.

Speaking of Natsu, one thing that may happen is that he stays during the time skip. This time serves as a great period for Natsu and Lucy to grow closer together. Stuff that wouldn't work in the original rewrite like "Invisible Lucy" and "Rainbow Cherry Blossoms" help push the relationship forward. (Sorry in advance to fans who'd want me to incorporate those specific stories.)

From that point on to Tartaros, things are fairly similar to what happened in the original. There are probably changes from the main rewrite that would matter in this timeline, but most of it doesn't involve this relationship. By the start of the Sun Village arc, it should be pretty obvious that they like each other, but neither is making the first move. Frankly, it's mostly a matter of other things mattering more. (Gee, I really like Natsu, but all magic in the country is in danger, so...) All things considered, Lucy's feelings would get more time and attention than Natus's considering we get more time in her head than his.

And then the arc ends. If I've said it once, I've said it many times. The original ending of Tartarus soured the ship for me. Yes, the rest of the guild leaves Lucy but the way Natsu does it is seen as hypocritical and unnecessarily hurtful even within the canon of the series. Of course, fixing this moment to help Nalu overall is more tricky than how I plan to deal with it in my "official rewrite".

Ultimately, Natsu has to leave to train, and the guild members need to go their separate ways for the events of the series to stay relatively similar to canon. But Natsu leaving Lucy shouldn't be an easy thing for him to do. When he tells Lucy (as he should tell Lucy), he's leaving because he needs to, not because he wants to. Of course, there should also be some reassurance that this isn't forever and they will be reunited.

You can pretty much imagine the rest. Natsu comes back. My set of changes take place during the Avatar and Alvarez Empire arcs. Natsu and Lucy become a couple in the last chapter. Something, something, Nashi. The end.

Some of you might be wondering how I deal with Nali. After all that I've said over the years, I need to talk address the elephant in the room. I feel like I could go for a soft option of them slowly realizing they don't have as serious a relationship as fans like me think they do. But, since it's up to me, I want to keep some of the importance to that relationship. So I've come up with something arguably more painful.

The Lisanna that Natsu and crew meet in Edolas is their Lisanna. In other words, Earthland Lisanna is actually dead. Arguments for how clean of a change this is or isn't aside (read: if you want to know how I feel about this idea, see my last main post in the main series where I argue for her staying in canon), this change gives Nalu two things.

The first is a starting point. I think that a good ship which takes time to develop should have a moment when it starts moving towards a definite romantic route. Having to deal with the absence of Lisanna in between the moments I mentioned earlier, gives some reason for the changes to happen.

This leads to the second thing this gives the ship and the series in general; darker tones. I'm not so naive as to say that Fairy Tail was never dark. But with all the complaints people have over people not staying dead, it's not like having arguably the most controversial instance of this be corrected to an actual death lightens up the series. Heck, in the manga, Tenrou starts with the celebrations over Lisanna's return so this would cause a heck of a tone shift. Not to mention, this gives Nalu the kind of angst they want without having to rely on END and Zeref doing things to Lucy.

You know, it's funny.

I feel like the vast majority of changes I would make to the series to make Nalu sensible and canon are things that fans of the ship either want or assumed to have been true of the series. Of course, the reason I think to make these changes, despite being vehemently against the ship, is because the Nalu fandom is near unavoidable. Be it Tumblr, Reddit, Twitter, Youtube or other sites, people who interpret Nalu as a good ship are everywhere. Not to mention, I've spent close to four years talking about just about every aspect related to the ship conceivable.

Do I think this is the only way Nalu could make sense?

Certainly not. I'd hope that actual Nalu fans could come up with a way to rewrite the series to make their favorite ship palatable to others outside the fandom. There have been some fan interpretations of (other) ships I don't like that I have found to be nice. I've also heard some ways Nalu probably would be made by others who don't like the ship. Frankly, as long as we don't get exactly what we got in the original, there's a good chance you're stepping in the right direction. For me, though, I feel like making Nalu canon in my rewrite is a step farther than I'm willing to go.

Based on Part 2

What If? #1

#fairy tail #the rewrite of fairy tail #what if 2 #nalu #ish? i guess?#also nalu for once #dear nalu fans #i'm only kind of sorry #this makes more sense here #than in the anti tag #i wonder how this will be received

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toomanypizzaboxes · 8 years ago

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Story Process, Start to Finish

Or, how to write multi-chap stories and balance thematic content.

So I recently received a PM on FFnet with these questions:

And basically, I was just wondering if you had any tips on how you do it? How do you get inside each character’s head? How do you manage to write a story that is both serious and light hearted at the same time?

And I was going to reply right away, except when I actually sat down and thought about it, I realized I’ve never put much thought into the hows of a project, just mainly focused on getting it done. I also realized that these questions have much longer answers than I was prepared for, as I’m terrible at summarizing. It’s one of my big weaknesses. So I thought, since I was going to be answering this anyway, why not make a post of it? Because of course what I need is more attention right? (lol, don’t answer that.) Okay, so let’s get started!

1) Start with a very vivid image of a complete scene.

This is the way I’ve started every single one of my fics. I usually get a lightning strike image in my head of a “fully-rendered” scene. This includes the the setting (colors, time of day, place, sounds, era), the characters involved, and even an aesthetic to an extent (cinematic, old-fashioned book, play). For example, Eyes Wide Open started with the final chapter, where Hinata and Sasuke confront each other while Hinata is wearing Itachi’s clothes. I pictured the tension that would exist between them, with Hinata being very passive usually and Sasuke being overwhelmed by how upset he was by his own petty jealousy. That scene was the springboard for everything else.

You may be thinking, “but that’s ridiculous and very lame advice, not everyone can do that/seems unhelpful!” but it’s not true. Everyone can; it’s just a matter of patience. If you wait long enough and daydream about subject matter that you want to write about, eventually your subconscious mind will do all the heavy lifting for you and puke out an owl pellet of fine content. That may be a little gross of a metaphor, but it’s all I got. Just keep mulling over the same variables you want to include and I promise the scene will come to you.

2) Think about what needs to happen for that scene to be accomplished.

So, now that you have the crux of your story, your visualized scene that will become the seed to the rest of the tale, it’s time to figure out what that seed needs in order to grow.

A lot of people who write romance fics start with the same motivation I do: you have your main ship and you want them to kiss/enter into a relationship. However, a lot of younger/less experienced writers stop there. A kiss is easy, right? All they have to do is be in the same room and make eye-contact, duh! What I’m getting at is that a lot of younger writers do just that. They place each party in a setting where they’re together and of course, since we love them and want them to love each other, they immediately fall in love inexplicably and kiss that very same night, story done!

There’s nothing wrong with that. If you want your ship to just kiss and be done with it, you can write that. However, not everyone wants to accept that it’s that easy, especially if one ships a crackship like sasuhina. It can be really difficult to keep people in-character and have them fall for each other instantly, and most people who’ve been reading/writing for the ship for a long time might not be interested in or satisfied with the usually-shallow setting that these love-at-first-sight romances offer. It’s just not fun. I, for one, want to suffer with my OTP as they grow and change in order for their love to take place!

So that’s what you have to focus on. Keeping with the Eyes Wide Open example…. There’s no logical reason for Sasuke and Hinata to be around each other. Sure, they were contemporaries in canon, but Sasuke barely paid attention to his own teammates, let alone people who held no bearing on his life in the slightest. So I changed the setting and the age group. Of course people in the same town who come from similar family backgrounds have a likelihood of sharing classes, so it’s not that difficult to imagine them meeting on the off-chance. Most of the big developments in Eyes Wide Open happened because of Sasuke’s and Hinata’s outside influences, who all knew each other and thus pushed them together.

What does your ship require? What needs to change for them to be open to love/a relationship? I like writing slow burns because most realistic romances are slow burns. The involved parties rarely realize the road they’re on until it’s too late and then messy feelings get involved and all the delicious events start occurring.

3) Saturate yourself with the canon materials, then study up on fandom materials.

“How do you get inside each character’s head?” It’s a really good question and I’m not too sure myself, but I’ll do my best to explain my method.

Most of my stories begin on a whim because I’ve been binge watching/reading/playing something non-stop. If it’s gone on long enough, I’ve usually picked my favorite characters and naturally started shipping them. (Ah, the life of a crack-shipper!)

When you want to write for a fandom, it’s wise to know the canon material as inside-out as possible. If it’s a movie, make sure you’ve watched it recently. If it’s a TV series, make sure you’ve seen all the episodes with important details. (I’ve skipped a lot of Naruto filler, for instance.) Surround yourself by canon knowledge and study it until you’ve got a grasp of the canon universe. Abilities, physics, politics, hierarchies, interaction, setting, etc. This is your foundation to branch out from. I once opened a Naruto fic where the author repeatedly referred to chakra as Charka, capitalized and all. It generally bodes poorly for the future content of the fic because if they didn’t even pay close attention to the canon really, how much effort are they going to put into writing for it? This is an important process for making your written piece feel close to the same level of charm/draw that the canon has.

Narrowing that down, if you want to write a character-driven piece, you need to know the characters. Treat them like they are real people that you want to be close friends with, then pay attention to everything about them. Fall in love with them. Study their motivations and personalities. What causes them to react in varying situations? What draws out certain emotions? It’s okay to use references. Make use of the well-curated wiki pages that many fandoms have. Get to know ages, heights, tastes in food. Manga are usually really rich in these smaller details, as it’s common for them to be sidebar filler.

Once I’m sure I’ve gotten a strong handle on the canon character, it’s time to dive into fanon. If I’m writing a fic, you can bet it’s because I’ve read up and down every website category for this pairing and haven’t found what I wanted. But the key is I’ve read so much fanon. Study how other authors write the characters. What aspects do they focus on? Do you like the way they portray x/y/z? A lot of people made Sasuke an overly-romantic, can-do-everything-perfectly type who referred to Hinata as “love” or “darling”. That didn’t really feel like Sasuke to me. In canon he’s a bitter snot who has a bit of an inferiority complex and he acts out by not using honorifics and being sort of casually disrespectful. He can also be incredibly lazy in his human interactions, so he wouldn’t be confrontational or talkative unless it got him something or he was provoked. A lot of people also made Hinata an overly-stuttering mess who’s just there to be pretty. Listen, it’s a real turn-off to be constantly bombarded by what Hinata is wearing to show off her “feminine curves” in “all the right places” and how slender or petite she is, how her long, milky legs are so enticing. You want your characters to be human and relatable. When Hinata is a runway model who can pull off some cool jutsu, I get bored. I’m not pretty and jutsu doesn’t exist in reality, so what else is there to connect with? What goes on in your character’s head? Their feelings, their dreams. What do their mannerisms do to illustrate those thoughts? Don’t focus on appearance unless necessary. It takes away from the emotional impact of your story.

How does fandom portray your chosen characters and what do you want to do differently? That’s your goal for characterization.

4) Summarize each event needed to reach the conclusion.

This one’s pretty self-explanatory. It’s a method I got from an old “how to write shoujo manga” book. Separate the various plot points into their own, standalone-events, then write them on their own note cards. Write scenes you want to include for the heck of it, too, go crazy! This is your story, have fun! When you’re done, arrange them into a timeline with a build up to a climax and then a wrap-up. Boom, your story is half-written already. This really helps avoid (most) writer’s block, as well.

5) Start writing.

Go forth and write! Trust your instincts. You’ve gotten the hard parts out of the way and your foundation is strong at this point. Take your time and if you get self-conscious or confused, go ahead and reach out! Get a beta-reader, or maybe a friend to bounce ideas off of. Make sure it’s someone you trust. If you like, you can write the whole thing in a first draft before posting so you have time to go over it for plot holes/errors/etc, or if you’re impatient like me and don’t care as long as your ship reaches a romantic conclusion in a satisfying way, go ahead and post as you write.

6) “How do you manage to write a story that is both serious and light hearted at the same time?”

My number one piece of advice for this question is this:

Ingest the kind of media you want to produce.

I’m a huge fan of romantic comedies, but specifically the older ones from the late eighties and the nineties. Even more specifically, Nora Ephron. Nora Ephron is fantastic at creating a story that is just as implausible/fantastical as every other romance, but her characters are well fleshed-out, relatable, and funny. Her settings are a wonderful balance between the tantalizing energy of fictionalized big cities and the quiet, intimate moments you get between friends and families within those cities. The structure she utilizes has a draw to it. It pulls you in and makes you feel like you’re experiencing it along with the characters. While many of her stories are really, truly comedies, there’s usually a sense of drama woven in with a skill I can only hope to achieve someday. I think the key for keeping a story light-hearted even while it deals with heavy subject matter is to keep the dramatic aspects lingering along the outskirts.

For example, in When Harry Met Sally, you follow along with Harry and Sally as they age over twelve years. Natural comedy is easy to write, because everyone has their own sense of humor that shines in the right circumstances. Harry and Sally clash over their opinions but in a way that makes it easy for them to get along, as well as providing witty, engaging dialogue throughout the film. Most of the content of the story evolves through their shared awkward encounters involving friends, romance, bad decisions, and other things that real people experience every day. However, the whole time there is an underlying message that is being slowly brought to the front: the stress over finding someone to love and belong with before one gets “too old” or time runs out. Small moments are placed amidst the various sequences, off-hand comments about aging, competing with more attractive people, disgust with the opposite sex but the desire to still find someone to love.

In reality, we deal with drama every day. A person living in poverty might be one paycheck away from homelessness, and while that detail weighs heavy on their mind, they won’t think about it constantly because that would be exhausting. Most of our time is spent living in the moment, thinking about the past and the present until we are forced to deal with drama. Utilize that in your writing.

In Eyes Wide Open, the bulk of the story is spent in everyday life of going to college classes, eating out at a cafe, spending time with friends or spending time at home. That’s the light-hearted part of the story. The rest is comprised of the small details hinting at drama like Itachi’s cough building into his collapse and consequential surgery, Sasuke’s space-outs as he struggles with his anxiety and PTSD, Hinata’s background growth as she develops into her own person separate from what her family wants or what she thinks Naruto wants.

Compartmentalize the different subjects you want to tackle in your piece, then organize them in ways that make sense story-wise and feel satisfying emotionally. It takes practice and I’m not saying I’m the best by any means. You can write one-shots to practice until you feel good enough to try a multi-chap fic.

I hope that I answered the questions sufficiently, and that this is helpful to anyone who reads. This is by no means a one-answer-fits-all process; it’s just things I’ve learned from my own experiences. If you have anymore questions or want to discuss something more in-depth, feel free to inbox me any time! I’m always available! Thanks for reading!

#whyte says stuff #writing tips #writing #writing help #fanfiction #fiction

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comicteaparty · 6 years ago

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October 11th, 2018 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on October 11th, 2018, from 5PM - 7PM PDT. The chat focused on Four Corners by Boniae.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- THURSDAY BOOK CLUB START!

Good evening, everyone~! This week’s Thursday Book Club is officially beginning! Today we are discussing Four Corners by Boniae~! (http://fourcorners.smackjeeves.com/)

Remember that Thursday discussions are completely freeform! However, every 30 minutes I will drop in OPTIONAL discussion questions in case you’d like a bit of a prompt. If you miss out on one of these prompts, you can find them pinned for the chat’s duration. Additionally, remember that while constructive criticism is allowed, our focus is fun and respectfully appreciating the comic. All that said, let’s begin!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

RebelVampire

one of my favorite scenes is actually when hideki and kazuhiro have their little confessions. i really loved the silence, pacing, and paneling in that moment. the time it took to depict it and the fact that the images were allowed to speak for themselves made it a really great moment with fantastic atmosphere.

another scene that i quite enjoyed was when we first see ranmaru. i felt like itd been quite a while since there was a good fight, so it was good to see. but i also like the story effects the scene had. since this was really the moment hideki stopped toeing the line and was ready to admit he was in it for something more. and i think this sort of fighting parallel worked well with having such a pivotal character development

less of a scene, but in general i liked that whole chapter where hideki and kazuhiro spend time together. it was nice to see them bond over not work and learn a ton more about hideki. i think as a whole it was a needed chapter because it helped bring the characters closer together to create a stronger dynamic for what i imagine will be many troubles ahead

mathtans

I made it! ^.^ I only got partly into Chapter 5, busy week... for everyone, apparently.

I'm guessing the bonding was mostly in Chapter 5, that seemed to be where it was heading.

Superjustinbros

Hello!

RebelVampire

yes it was chapter 5

cause i had to look just now XD

mathtans

Was Ranmaru the guy who drugged people?

(I'm bad with names, for the record. Every week.)

Superjustinbros

Can I just say that I'm in love with the art style?

mathtans

I liked seeing how the art evolved over time myself.

Superjustinbros

It's very manga-like and I like how the faces don't go overblown with details

RebelVampire

yes ranmaru was the guy who drugged me.

yeah i also like the art style in regards to the setting. its got a kind of older manga nostalgia feel to it

but the art evolution is also fun. i forgot how diff that first chapter was (cause this is my 2nd time reading the entire comic for the record)

mathtans

Okay, then yeah, I also liked the scene with Ranmaru and the two of them fighting (I'm assuming you meant that, since I think the first time we see Ranmaru he's with the fortune teller).... though part of the reason I liked it was because the guy had call waiting for another fight or something.

Superjustinbros

I actually never thought that it looks like the "vintage manga" style until you mentioned it

mathtans

I noticed a mention that the comic had been reviewed in StArt Faire.

Superjustinbros

That's cool

mathtans

Yeah, and it went from shading to colour - I think the artist said it was to deal better with shading? I might be misremembering. Interesting.

RebelVampire

yeah i meant the fighting scene. sorry. im like on 3 hours of sleep atm and havent quite woken up to full function yet.

but yeah i liked how the fight was ultimately ended by a phone call

like that takes a lot of gall, but i like how it shows off ranmaru's character of not really giving a damn about their little fight that much

mathtans

Not a problem, I understood, and the wee one kept me up last night here too.

Yeah, that's true, it went to characterization.

Then there was the little bonus comic (non-canon) where he was called away to talk about types of shirts. I gravitate towards the humourous bits.

Superjustinbros

That sounds cute, lol

mathtans

It's cool that in a comic like this which has fighting and relationship issues, that there's still fun to be had.

Superjustinbros

Indeed

I mean if it was nothing but those two it'd get boring/repetitive.

mathtans

I dunno, they have pretty good chemistry. But yeah, not totally feasible for world building.

I want to see Hideki at an all you can eat buffet.

RebelVampire

yeah. i really like that the gang focused on also is a gang who is just going around protecting ppl and stuff. i think that gives them a needed high ground for what the comic is doing.

hideki at an all you can eat buffet sounds spooky XD

Superjustinbros

Well it's almost Halloween so X3

mathtans

Yeah, that was an interesting take on gangs! Doesn't seem to net them any additional popularity in the school though (or with the ladies).

I wonder if "four corners" is from, like, if you're doing evil anywhere in the four corners of the room we'll spot you.

Superjustinbros

Well it's always good to see characters doing things outside what the audience expects them to always do

Helps flesh 'em out, if you know what I'm saying

RebelVampire

ya know ive never actually thought about what the name might stand for and now im curious

mathtans

Indeed.

Their founder really liked squares?

RebelVampire

i was just gonna make a square joke XD

Superjustinbros

Quick, what's the square root of 24

RebelVampire

QUESTION 2. Though some things have been revealed over the course of the comic, Hideki still remains quite the mystery. In what way do you think Hideki was involved with Four Corners in the past? Was he some sort of consultant, a member by association, or something else? Do you think Hideki really left gang life just to avoid violence, or do you think there is something more to it? What do you think he did that gave birth to the dark rumors surrounding him? Further, what is Hideki’s relationship with the man he keeps hallucinating on seeing? What exactly happened that seemed to cause Hideki such worry and trauma? Does it have something to do with why Hideki is so knowledgeable about gang activity? Lastly, do you think his current involvement will have negative consequences for his future, especially in regards to taking over for his father?

mathtans

A bit under 5, SJ.

Superjustinbros

Nice

mathtans

Well, Hideki's family is into big business and all, maybe he was just looking for something to analyze in that sense, like as you say a consultant or something... makes sense that he would attempt the same thing later with ... ... damn it, I forget name of protagonist. x.x

RebelVampire

kazuhiro

mathtans

Starts with Y.

Superjustinbros

Thanks Rebel

mathtans

Oh, right.

That's not even a Y. (Is there a character page? I always need one to keep everybody straight, it's the visuals I remember more than the names.)

RebelVampire

http://fourcorners.smackjeeves.com/characters/

mathtans

Sweeeeeet. I didn't remember seeing a link.

Superjustinbros

Nice hairstyles on these characters

mathtans

Anyway, back to what I was saying, maybe Hideki was just looking to apply his skills, and was turned off by the violence; maybe I just don't look that deep.

Superjustinbros

Keiichi especially

But I digress(edited)

RebelVampire

maybe although idk. itd be weird if hideki was involved cause of the business. but then again maybe his father has secret gang connections we dont know about? tbh tho i think he was just assumed to be part of the gang cause he followed keiichi around. that and was into his own sort of trouble.

keiichi does have great hair

Superjustinbros

http://i.imgur.com/qvXivUg.png Dare I say he looks like a total daddy

RebelVampire

so i assume the man hideki was seeing is arakawa (fortune teller guy), though i didnt want to be presumptious in the question. so im wondering how the heck do they know each other. cause im worried hideki tried to join the yakuza or something but then chickened out. and thus sought refuge with the four corners when the yakuza were mad

mathtans

Oh, that'd be interesting, Dad with secret connections. Or maybe the mastermind behind everything is a half brother Hideki doesn't know about. And he keeps getting pulled in by those forces.

Arakawa is half brother. Calling it now.

Superjustinbros

That would be an interestign twist

RebelVampire

i did consider that. or if the mystery man and arakawa are two diff ppl, the mystery man is hideki's secret brother.

mathtans

Hideki maybe got in over his head and figured he might need the gang, perhaps? But then realized he could just run away and that worked better, so gave it up.

I'm impressed, I just came up with random crazy plot off the top of my head.

RebelVampire

that could be maybe. although idk where hideki's quitting resides with keiichi's death

mathtans

Or maybe part of Hideki was thinking he was gay, and gangs are largely guys, and so he figured he'd try it out as a way to meet more guys, but then was turned off by the actual fighting and stuff. Because he hadn't met best fighter Kazuhiro yet.

RebelVampire

it could be keiichi died before hideki quit

and hideki was like peace out

mathtans

Hmm. Maybe but I didn't get the vibe from the timelines.

RebelVampire

i didnt get it either but hard to say for sure.

i do think hideki had a run in with the yakuza in some way. cause itd make sense then why hed know how to watch gangs or something. and itd explain why hideki's cousin was super extra worried at the path hideki was starting down again

or maybe...keiichi was the one in the yakuza all along O_O and hideki found out and was like "how dare"

mathtans

Oooh, there's a twist.

Superjustinbros

That'd be... kinda scary

mathtans

I've been continuing my reading in the background and just got to this page: http://fourcorners.smackjeeves.com/comics/2456598/ch5p18/. Maybe Hideki is rebelling a bit about the fact that his future is laid out for him? Could explain some of the worry about him, as well as his investigative skills.

"I don't want to be a businessman. I want to be a private detective."

RebelVampire

yeah on a more mundane but equally believable level, it couldve just been youthful rebellion. albeit id more believe that keiichi helped hideki with some bullies or something and hideki was like "wow if i learn to fight i can control more own life." and he just happened to be super good at it

i wonder if well get to see hideki's dad ever cause that could be an illuminating conversation

Superjustinbros

I wonder which of those two occupations would be more troublesome to work in

RebelVampire

which two occupations?

mathtans

Could be. (I think we saw his dad in a flashback panel or something, but he doesn't seem to be around. Maybe Hideki was also hoping to get Dad's attention?)

Superjustinbros

The ones Match mentioned

mathtans

Businessman or private detective, I wager.

Hideki just needs to make friends with a gourmet chef. Oh wait, he has Kazuhiro there.

RebelVampire

i dont think hideki's relationship with his dad is bad. but maybe his dad has all the answers. is like "hideki i know you miss your secret brother"

and businessman is probably harder

given the setting

mathtans

Oh whoa, comic has multiple languages. (I guess when we see English they're actually speaking Japanese, and so this is... chinese?)

Yeah, his family relations don't seem bad, just distant.

Superjustinbros

I heard Japanese

mathtans

I'm still reading Chapter 5, they just met Hideki's cousin.

Oh, Taiwanese. Helps to keep reading.

RebelVampire

yeah youre gonna see some info about hideki there

which shows his dad is actually not that bad a dude just busy and socially awkward

mathtans

Maybe Hideki's mixed heritage is also how he ended up so aloof.

Superjustinbros

Perhaps

RebelVampire

yeah. hideki has a lot of demons there i think. or had cause i feel he seems probably more adjusted than he used to be? not that hes fully healed but he seems less troubled than in that one flashback

mathtans

Seeing the banter reminds me of another scene I liked, after Hideki had turned down the girl or whatever, and Kazuhiro is hiding and then he goes... wait, why am I hiding?

RebelVampire

yes i enjoyed that moment too. especially cause i was already laughing wondering why he was hiding.

in terms of comedy i like hideki with his "friends"

and his magical excuses to leave

QUESTION 3. Besides Hideki and Kazuhiro, we also see several scenes with the villainous Arakawa who seems to be immensely involved with what’s happening to the gangs. What do you think Arakawa’s aim is? Is it a solo goal, or does it have something to do with the yakuza? For what reason do you think Arakawa hides under an assumed identity? Is it related to his goals, or is there a different reason for it? Do you think Arakawa is still even part of the yakuza in full? For what reason do you think Arakawa tolerates Ranmaru, and how might Arakawa’s plans change to deal with him? Finally, Arakawa mentions fortune-telling and how knowing what’s going to happen beforehand is a viable strategy. What do you think this might mean for what’s going on in the story, and do you think Hideki and Kazuhiro will be able to handle it?

Superjustinbros

Money, dear boy

RebelVampire

i mean its possible. although if arakawa wanted money i dont think hed be worked a service industry manager cover story.

mathtans

Right. Also interesting how at the festival when he left his friends and encountered Kazuhiro that he played it off as the guy's just another friend from a year down.

The Arakawa fortune telling thing is an interesting angle. I wonder if he can do readings on people without their knowledge. I also wonder if he just tries to make things come true that he sees, like a self-fulfiling prophecy.

Superjustinbros

That would be interesting

mathtans

As far as tolerating Ranmaru goes, sometimes it's fun to have someone around to tease? ^.^

Superjustinbros

yus

RebelVampire

oh thats a good line of thought. id never consider that arakawa meant he didnt actually tell the future. he meant that he just makes the future happen to suit his vision

maybe hideki was arakawa's apprentice and arakawa was trying to teach hideki all about fortune reading but hideki was like "fortune telling isnt profitable" and bailed

im gonna go the simple route with theories and say arakawa's goal is simply to eliminate competition. cause he wants to push the drugs but cant do so easily when gangs are around protecting territories. so hes just making it easy for himself

mathtans

Hideki preferred using a crystal ball, but only amateurs use crystal balls, so they had a falling out.

That makes some sense, except why knock the gangs out rather than simply cutting a deal with them or something?

Pride? Desire for a monopoly?

RebelVampire

desire for a monopoly. and like really why cut them in if theyre so simple to move out of the way. arakawa seems very much a play the long con game sort of guy. so if he has to put more in the overhead to get tons more profit later, hed probably do it

mathtans

(Oh, hey, a trans character, that's neat.)

I suppose, just seems like that would call more attention to you, putting down all the gangs, which is something Arakawa wants to avoid. Maybe that's also why he has Ranmaru, to act as a lightning rod?

Superjustinbros

(Good to have them trans characters, always)

mathtans

(Wow, Hideki's pretty sharp, picking up on things.)

Superjustinbros

So sharp he can easily pierce through steel

RebelVampire

but is anyone gonna care about gangs besides gangs? cause nobody of the general public seems irritated that the gangs are being taken out XD

but yeah i do think this is why ranmaru is around

Superjustinbros

RebelVampire

he can deal with the gangs and is crazy enough to follow arakawa

mathtans

I suppose there's that. I wonder why the Four Corners is being targeted now? Is it just they were next in the region, or if there's some method behind it? Like, maybe Arakawa's behind Keiichi too.

RebelVampire

are they being specific target tho? cause i took the 'they're next' thing as more metaphorical. in the sense that theyre on the chopping block in general and could be next or they could be taken out at any time

mathtans

Not sure, just wondering if there's more to it somehow.

RebelVampire

there could be

QUESTION 4. Compared to the present, Kazuhiro’s time before the Four Corners seems drastically different. Do you think their walk-out father is the only reason Kazuhiro and Keiichi had a strained relationship? Or was there something else going on between them? Why do you think Keiichi started the Four Corners, and why do you think Keiichi kept up with it in the face of his family’s disapproval? Why do you think Kazuhiro was so compelled to take over the Four Corners, especially considering the drastic change in personality and style he underwent? Do you think Kazuhiro will be able to uphold Keiichi’s ideals and save the Four Corners at the end of the day? Also, do you think he’ll repair some of his relationship with his sisters, or will his pursuits continue to cause a rift? Lastly, do you think Keiichi died of natural causes, or was his death caused by sinister means?

RebelVampire

the keiichi segue

mathtans

Well played.

RebelVampire

i dont think keiichi died of natural causes. if nothing more than the fact that nobody has yet said how he died in the comic and that is hella suspicious

Superjustinbros

yes

mathtans

Interesting point about Kazuhiro taking over Four Corners, given how they didn't get along too well, that didn't even fully register with me. Maybe he realized his brother had been trying to do good? Maybe he was even a member before Keiichi passed away? (I mean, you don't get promoted from outside, do you?)

Keiichi, suspiciously walked in front of a bus.

RebelVampire

idk id believe he got promoted from outside. if only because none of the other members ive seen strike me as leader types.

mathtans

There is that. He knows the gang members pretty well though.

RebelVampire

i do think theres some message of respect hidden behind why he took over. and he just didnt realize how much he respected his bro till it was too late

mathtans

Yeah, I can see that. Nice thought there.

(Made it through Chapter 5, OMG, the anniversary/april video at the end... that's amazing. And Arakawa has a magic 8 ball, hilarious!)

Superjustinbros

lol

I used to love those

mathtans

As to why Keiichi started it up, maybe a bunch of them wanted to clean up the four corners of the neighbourhood, and decided a gang would be the best way.

RebelVampire

maybe keiichi just thought if he tidied the neighborhood their dad would come home

although maybe keiichi felt he didnt belong to his own family. so he started the four corners to create that sense of family and fill the gap

mathtans

The sister relationship angle is also interesting, I liked that it was brought up back in chapter 2, to help put the family in perspective. Might be interesting if that one unapproving sister met Lei... um, the cousin character, not on the character page... they have some things in common.

Maybe. Lots of Dad issues on the part of both main characters, for different reasons.

boniae

(whispers) HI everyone!! btw im here just listening into the conversation and screaming on the inside dont mind me

Superjustinbros

Hello!!

I see you're the maker of this lovely little comic~

mathtans

Oh, hi creator! Hope you're screaming for good reasons.

boniae

Hi everyone!!! HAHA yes for good reasons!! Im so blown away by this conversation and just thank you all for reading it this week!!! ahhhh

mathtans

So yeah, as to whether Kazuhiro will save the Four Corners, I think obviously he'll die a tragic death saving Hideki, who goes off to become a monk. It paves the way for the sequel involving sister Kiyomi taking over the Four Corners next.

Superjustinbros

Heehee, glad you're enjoying the show.

RebelVampire

glad you could make it, @boniae ~!

Superjustinbros

Well there's only about 15 minutes left so...

I'm sure you got my comments on the art style when I popped in earlier

also lol Math

RebelVampire

haha i did kind of route for kiyomi taking over. just an endless cycle of respect, the four corners will never die. its why the mom had kids.

Superjustinbros

oh yes

mathtans

Actually, Mom had four kids... and they're the four corners gang... coincidence?

It was the Boxing club in the video parody.

boniae

@Superjustinbros YES AH thank you im so glad you like my art?! @RebelVampire LMFAOO

Superjustinbros

Aay, you're welcome! It some really good art you got going on~

boniae

@mathtans somebody's onto me...... you know too much....

Superjustinbros

lol, that's math for ya

mathtans

Or possibly too little. But maybe Keiichi had wanted a boxing club and was rejected and figured, I'll start a gang instead then.

Then someone dropped a piano on him. Tragic.

Superjustinbros

Math running a gang

I can sense all the incoming math puns

RebelVampire

couldnt get enough members to make a boxing club, but everyone was totally up for a gang

Superjustinbros

and characters with outrageous hair

mathtans

Oh, speaking of gang members, just wanted to add that Azumi's an interesting member. Not just for the female perspective, but how she seemed to know how to push Hideki's buttons.

RebelVampire

yeah i also liked that azumi had been around when keiichi was. cause i think that adds an interesting dimension to the whole kazuhiro takes over thing. since he really did kind of overtake more likely ppl to take over

mathtans

Yes, that too. You can see how the continuity goes through the two leaders, and there's still respect there.

Superjustinbros

Yuh

RebelVampire

i wanna see more of the gang in general tho. especially makoto since hes supposedly a great but unreliable fighter

Superjustinbros

mathtans

Started a bit into Chapter 6. Interesting fleshing out of the 'villain' characters. There's a lot of interesting characters overall.

Superjustinbros

I second Rebel's comment

mathtans

Could work as a flashback. "Remember the time Makoto slept in for the big fight?"

Actually, some of the flashback stuff has been interesting in it's own right. And I felt like it was well placed. Like, relevant.

RebelVampire

since makoto liked manga apparently, i hope the context of them seeing him fight was that someone told him his waifu was trash

yeah i really loved getting to actually see past hideki in the house and kazuhiro being grump master of glares

mathtans

Heh. Gotta pick your battles.

Superjustinbros

And pick them well

mathtans

Ranmaru prefers to just let things happen. He's gonna annoy the wrong person the wrong way some time... needs to adopt Hideki's "run away" strategy more often.

RebelVampire

are there any final comments anyone wants to share?

mathtans

One last thought, I wonder if the setting of 1995 is relevant? Or is that just to avoid cell phones?

Superjustinbros

Nothing much, other than that I'd like to quickly wish Boniae success on the comic, it's coming along great so far and I'm sure it'll grow to be even bigger!

mathtans

(My history is pretty bad.)

Or maybe it's to have Makoto be a fan of the anime back then.

boniae

Aww thank you so much!!! I appreciate this so much you guys!!! and LMFAO i legit dont even remember why I picked 1995, I think it was on a whim and then realized i had/have to do so much research to see if things existed and what was happening in 1995

mathtans

I guess we'll see then! Thanks!

Superjustinbros

You're welcome, @boniae!

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- THURSDAY BOOK CLUB END!

Sadly, this wraps up this week’s Thursday Book Club chat for now. Thank you so much to everyone for reading and joining us! We want to give a special thank you to Boniae, as well, for making Four Corners. If you liked the comic, make sure to support Boniae’s efforts however you’re able to~!

Read and Comment: http://fourcorners.smackjeeves.com/

Boniae’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/boniae

Boniae’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/cooljalebis

Comic Tea Party- Thursday Book Club

Next week’s Thursday Book Club will be about The Origin Story by Carolin Reich. For participants, you have the next week to read as much of the comic as you would like~! We hope to see you on Thursday, October 18th, from 5PM to 7PM PDT for the chat in #thursday_bookclub!

Comic’s Main Site: https://tapas.io/series/The-Origin-Story

#ctparchive #comics #webcomics #indie comics #comic tea party #ctp #comic chat #comic discussion #book club #bookclub #webcomic bookclub #webcomic book club #four corners #boniae

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