#but kubo and his star crossed love communications

[el-yon]

speaking is not communication -- but sometimes it helps.

[el-yon]

oooh thanks for this tag! sorry to pipe in OP, but... *whispers* i have some thoughts...

there’s this interview on JET (translation credits to missstormcaller) where Kubo talks about how he isn’t actually a fan of the tales themselves, but he likes the dialogues and contrasts in the poetic writing, and that’s a pretty neat way to see the influence in Bleach. The one line he mentions, from the Merchant of Venice about the eyes struck me like lightening because it is such a Bleach thing; all the eye-contact, the expressions, hidden or displayed... and it personally hit me on an Ichihime level, because of all of their eye-communication and the theme of seeing each other. 

disclaimer: I have absolutely no specialized lit. knowledge, only a middle-school trauma from having to read a few works for the school plays while reading Bleach after, and keeping both reading materials in adult life. 

here are some of the other references that pop up to me:

Richard III: Aizen’s political treason against Soul Society, his thing for the theatrics and announcing to the world just how villanous and treachery-intensifies he is... (yet Aizen out-villains Richard in so many levels, especially because Aizen cares not about the ghosts in his past). There is also a favorite one of mine that when the Vizards arrive at FKarakura, Shinji says “wait/not so fast”, and that reads to me just like the Duchess saying “are thou so hasty” to Richard and spitting just how much pain he caused her - Shinji and Aizen’s tension is by no means a mother-son one, but Shinji was Aizen’s Captain, and this is the kind of piece of dialogue that I think shows some very interesting “shout outs”. 

Hamlet: this is a big motif one. I think Renji, Toshiro, and Gin have a lot of Hamlet’s motifs in them, as they are the younger man troubled by actions perpetrated by older man, swear revenge on them, and the women they love get caught in the cross-fire. Renji has a major defeat-thy-noble-brother with Byakuya, and then we have Gin vs. Aizen, and Toshiro vs. Gin and Aizen, which is so good. And Rukia, Rangiku, and Momo are the ones who suffer the consequences of the decisions men make in their life, and Momo feels especially Ophelia-coded in the sense of being a sweetheart driven insane by male-action.... but thankfully Kubo gave her a different outcome! I think Ichigo and Orihime somewhat share in this motif too, as Orihime is also severely hit by male-action and directly affected by Ichigo’s pursuit of his powers. In a sense, the way Kubo tells stories through the women in Bleach has some insights, too, as they get clobbered again and again, and they are denied agency in many fronts -- but again, thankfully, they do find their agencies in their own ways, so even though Kubo has a lot of gendered problems, at least this is something to be said. There is also the “doubt tho that the stars are fire” verses that are very Bleach-y romance, too (I have a edit draft on that). 

Romeo and Juliet: the family war feels like a big theme on the Shinigami and Quincy struggle, and there are a lot of dialogues, like Isshin calling Masaki the Sun (Romeo’s Sun reference on Juliet), Rangiku pondering Gin’s actions (Juliet’s “oh serpent heart" monologue), Ichigo and Orihime as the ‘young love’ that should not be rushed (the violent’s delights line from the Friar) -- and this feels like a shout out to the other couples, too, mainly Toshiro and Momo. There are many lines about love in the play, too, that use the contrast of positive/negative things that can be seen in most of the relationships..my favorite is the “Fume of Sighs” one. 

Much Ado About Nothing and Winter’s Tale: big RenRuki energy, the first is the bantering-friends-to-lovers-with-implied-past, with everyone around like “oh, they are in love”. Second is the woman being punished by a crime she did not commit and the man being torn by remorse... also the lost daughter thing with Perdita. 

I am positive there are so many more of them, but those are the ones I have mostly stored in my lil head and ready to go. 

so, how many references to shakespeare are there in bleach? and i mean specifically in regards to themes or motifs found in his books, not trivial things like ichigo liking shakespeare.

[mechanicalinertia]

What’s next for Divine Patronage?

So my Ranma / Ah My Goddess! / other miscellaneous anime that take place in 1990′s Tokyo fanfic has become more popular than anything else I’ve ever written. I may have classes but this is my designated ‘leisure activity’ now for sure.

Anyway, I have a rough idea for this initial ‘arc’, and how it’ll end. Fine. Whatever. More importantly, though, I have continuing ideas about how to cross over more and more mid-90′s anime and other things into this mishmash where Urd and Ranma have to ‘problem-solve’ things. Christ I wrote like 9 possible arc setups last night; it’ll take me years to make good on them if I do at all.

That’s why I’m a-posting brief summaries of them here, so if I give up on these people can just steal em’.

1. CRIMES OF THE MISHIMA GROUP AGAINST GOOD TASTE

Sayoko Mishima and her zaibatsu god-nap Keiichi and in doing so royally piss off Belldandy. Urd has to snatch the poor kid, who is now a minor god, out from Sayoko’s clutches before Belldandy just loses it and nukes earth in silent rage. Ranma can’t beat the compound alone, though, so Urd turns to Akiko Natsume - the actual head of Mishima - and her all purpose combat android for some help. Unfortunately, the android has a cat brain. Cue Ranma struggling to confront his fears to save the world.

Crossover with: All Purpose Cultural Catgirl Nuku Nuku, a medium-obscure OVA from the 90′s starring Megumi Hayashibara as the wacky cat-bot-girl with Saeko Shimazu (Kodachi’s voice among others) as Akiko. Good fun.

2. FATE / STRANGE; DAYS

Remember Lind, the Valkyrie from the Angel Eater Arc of AMG? Well, she back. She intervened in Fate / Zero’s Holy Grail War (assumed to take place around 1994) and contracted w/ Kiritsugu the way Urd did with Ranma. Now Kiri may have lost all his lady companions, but he gets Illya back from Germany and is raising her alongside Shirou with the help of Illya’s wacky maids. Maybe lil’ Rin and Sakura are involved, too, I dunno.

Anyway, Lind considers the Sailor Senshi a threat to the divine order (they do appear to predate human civilization) - especially since Saturn’s Glaive of Silence is believed to be the Norse Gungnir, Spear of Destiny, Odin’s superweapon that could (even in the OG myths) rewrite reality itself to render enemies nonexistent.

So Lind gets Kiritsugu, Arturia Saber, and Prisma Illya to go to Tokyo and track down Sailor Saturn with Ranma’s help. Then they end up teleporting to the distant past of the Silver Milennium, back when the Senshi’s magic rendered the other planets of the Solar System inhabitable. Cue a string of John Carter references.

Crossover with: Fate / Zero, Fate Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya. Might even separate the Fate story from the whole Saturn / Gungnir subplot - they’re just hunting Kirei and Gil, then. Sure. Fine.

3. THE FUTURE IS HERE AND IT SUCKS

Skuld time travels into the future, only to find that almost every single timeline ends with humanity being wiped out before the 22nd century - perhaps by SM’s Great Freeze, perhaps by other factors. Unfortunately, she forgot to close her possible-future-timeline portals properly, which leads to various cyberpunk futures bouncing off one another for supremacy in 1996.

(Look I wanted to just fuckin do BGC or GITS crossover. Couldn’t decide. Why not both?)

Crossover with: BGC 2032 (Or my 2069 rebot), Ghost in the Shell, Silent Mobius (maybe)

4. GAMES OF THE GODS

The obligatory ‘gang plays an RPG’ sitcom episode, only a) it’s Cyberpunk 2020 because I’ve read that system’s books, and b) the goddesses all bring their boytoys along to be sucked into the game world as their player characters. (Urd gets Ranma, Bell gets Keiichi, Skuld is the GM, Peorth gets Ryoga, Lind gets Kiritsugu) (I guess I better do an arc where Peorth patronizes Ryoga to screw with Urd...)

5. GUNS, BOMBS, ROCK N’ ROLL

Ranma gets dragged along by Urd for a vacation, theoretically to LA. But then after getting bored of the Obligatory Beach Episode, Urd rediscovers that she has a daughter in Chicago - Rally Vincent. She and Ranma rush off to screw up the events of the manga and protect her daughter from the brainwashing of a lesbian rapist crime lord. (I wish I was making that last bit up). Maybe Priss of BGC tags along to really hammer in the WACKY KENICHI SONODA CROSSOVER thing?

Crossover with: Gunsmith Cats, Riding Bean, maybe BGC

6. HEISEI BLOSSOMS BLOOMING

The Japanese government decides to reactivate the Teikoku Kagekidan project, this time using idoru as the mecha pilots instead of the Takarazura Revue thing they had going on in the 20′s. The K-on girls audition, the Love Live girls audition, someone in the Ranma cast or something tries out as well. Mecha are now nuclear-powered instead of steam-powered (whatever that means)

Crossover with: Original Sakura Wars franchise, Tite Kubo iteration non-involved. maybe K-on and Love Live

7. RANMA’S LUDICROUS EXCURSION: STAR-DIAMOND DUST IS UNCRUSADERABLE

Ranma gets a stand. Urd thinks it’s like her angel. Yare yare daze.

Crossover with: What do you think, genius?

8. ETERNAL SUMMER

Ranma gets trapped in a temporal anomaly centered around Tomobiki Town. Now it’s August 1982, Ataru and Lum are about to get married, and unless he can stop the total breakdown of the pocket reality within the seven days before the time loop resets he’ll become part of it forever. Trippy New Wave Existentialist Bullshit - Screwball Comedy meets Body Horror. Also see: Higurashi.

Crossover with: Urusei Yatsura

9. TRICOWBOYOUTLAW BEBOPGUNSTAR: EFF YOU, SPACE COWBOY

A valiant attempt to crossover all three of the late 90′s ‘Cowboy shonen’ anime of the time in one universe. A shared universe? Nah. We’re probably just gonna transplant all the characters into 90′s Tokyo again and watch the body count pile up.

Crossover with: Cowboy Bebop, Outlaw Star, Trigun. Oh, and maybe one of those ‘robo-maid’ shows from the aughties (Hand Maid May, Mahoromatic, Steel Angel Kurimi), just to fuck with everyone.

10. COPS AND ROBOTS

Ranma gets in trouble with the police for sneaking onto the Babylon Project, forced into community service, and then ends up blackmailed into the long-running grudgematch between the SV2 Labor Squad and the Tokyo Highway Patrol.

Crossover with: You’re Under Arrest, Patlabor (original OVA mostly)

11. SUPERIOR AUTOMATRONIC DISPUTE RESOLUTION: GO NAGAI EAT YOUR HEART OUT

Skuld gets in a fight with some deities from some rival pantheons, and as a proper grudgematch resolution they all resolve to build Giant Robots and then Battle Royale them. Ranma has to pilot one.

Crossover with: NOTHING.

12. THE HOUND OF ULSTER BARKS AT MIDNIGHT

Cu Chullain, husbando of Ex-Valkyrie and turncoat Irish goddess Scathach, teams up with Ranma in Dublin to stop IRA extremists from resurrecting the Tuatha De Dannan, specifically the Morrigan. A teenage Bazett (from Fate) shows up and gets all fangirly.

13. TALES FROM THE OOPS

An abandoned particle accelerator built in the 80′s near Stockholm may or may not cause Ragnarok. Ranma and some edgy Swedish Teenagers have to deal with 90′s recession bullshit and clean the place out

Crossover with: Tales from the Loop, Things From the Flood

That’s about it, honestly. I have other things I’d like to crossover with, tbh, mostly mecha stuff. Among them:

- Cannon God Exaxxion

- Eva

- Gundam UC

- Muv-Luv

-Negmia / another Ken Akumatsu trashpile (and I mean that in the best possible way)

Shit this is fun. Imma make another one of these posts with even more ludicrious crossovers later. Peace out.

[thistime-iwillbelistening]

Despair of Philippine Cinema

          The film industry is considered as an effective tool of propagating a nation’s culture, language, philosophy and beliefs. Inversely, the dominant ideologies that describes a nation can be determined on what type of film the public gives most consideration to. This paper serves as a critique of the current condition of the Philippine cinema as it highlights a few films that not only aims to entertain but intends to interrogate the audience as well.

          As of June 2016, the ten highest grossing films in the Philippines are (in ascending order): The Unkabogable: Praybeyt Benjamin (2011), My Bebe Love: #KiligPaMore (2015), Sisterakas (2012), My Little Bossings (2013), It Takes a Man and a Woman (2013), Starting Over Again (2014), Girl, Boy, Bakla, Tomboy (2013), The Amazing Praybeyt Benjamin (2014), Beauty and the Bestie (2015), and A Second Chance (2015). All of which are classified as comedy with three as rom-coms and the rest as parody-spoof like. Although this exhibits the cheerful personality which the Filipinos are known for, this also shows how film are viewed largely for entertainment but the viewers are not the only one to be blamed for. Film production companies such as Star Cinema and GMA Films nowadays prioritizes profit over content producing highly-commercialized films with clichéd plotlines. Aside from the age-old star system that uses celebrity power to attract more viewers, mainstream films also practice product placement of their sponsors throughout the movie. One such example is the Marlon Rivera’s My Little Bossings (2013) that was flooded with advertisement and ended up appearing like a 100-minute commercial. These films didn’t seem to care about their content as long as they achieve blockbuster success especially during the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) season. Thousands, even millions of Filipinos line up during the holidays to watch these brainless entertainment that will disturbingly last weeks in cinemas. With a few attempts of movies such as Enzo Williams’ Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo (2014), Erik Matti’s Honor Thy Father (2015), and Brillante Mendoza’s Thy Womb (2012), substantial films still failed to infiltrate the the audience’s attention.

Historical Films in the Academe and Public Viewing

          First, the uncertain position of historical films in the industry makes them remote from the blockbuster scene. For the public, the notion of historical films being academic makes it harder to appeal to a larger audience. The idea of these films being just a narrative of historical events that are already written in books instigates such. But what the public failed to grasp is that these films weren’t necessarily directed from historical text but are mainly stories based upon historical events and famous people. These works not only intend to narrate but also create a discourse that interrogates the conventional realities that the majority believes in. One such example is Eddie Romero’s Ganito Kami Noon, Paano Kayo Ngayon? which won Best Picture in MMFF 1976. This film being set on the downfall of Japanese occupation in the Philippines centers on the journey of Kulas on his search for his personal and the nation’s identity. This portrayed historical events from the occupation but is a clear fiction that attempts to rationalize the nature of the Filipino identity. Ganito Kami Noon’s comedic tone made it more appealing to the public. Chito Roño’s 2002 drama Dekada ’70 gives off the same appeal as it focuses on the struggle of a family during the Marcos regime. It depicts the historical events of Martial Law but focuses on the torment of the family. It doesn’t necessarily narrate the events during the time but exhibits the occurrences that is not written in history books.

          On the other hand, when information in the film directly contradicted the historical text, people often falsely recalled the misinformation portrayed in the film or condemns the film for its inaccuracy (Everding 2009). Popular film’s potentially inaccurate nature often hinders its way to the academe. Although Jerrold Tarog’s Heneral Luna (2015) made its way to the mainstream, its take revolving Emilio Aguinaldo’s involvement on the death of both Andres Bonifacio and Antonio Luna is still questioned on its historical basis. Despite such, using a historical film in teaching history can be used to pave the way towards new and transformative discourses that push the boundaries of both history and film as sites of contradiction (Flores 1998 cited in Campomanes 2015). This gives room for discourse on interpreting historical narrative rather than crediting it without inquiry and could be a way of interrogating the audience about the current condition of the nation in comparison to historical events.

Film Industry’s Depiction of Beauty

          As a tool of propagating ideologies, the film industry’s depiction of beauty disfavors its own nation’s features for women in particular. Film became an institution that creates a standard of Western and European White beauty by informally privileging lighter skinned women (Renault n.d.). In 1924, Vicente Salumbides employed Hollywood film-making techniques and images on the Filipino production Miracles of Love. In the film, the American beauty was launched in Philippine cinema in the person of Elizabeth “Dimples” Cooper (Pilar 1978 as cited in McFerson 2002). Up until today, the most popular actresses such as Anne Curtis (2008 Baler), Toni Gonzaga (2014 Starting Over Again), Jennylyn Mercado (2014 English Only, Please), Bea Alonzo (2015 A Second Chance), and even the most respected actresses such as Vilma Santos (1984 Sister Stella L.), Sharon Cuneta (1996 Madrasta), Maricel Soriano (2007 Inang Yaya) are lighter skinned than most Filipinas. Curtis, Alonzo and even other actresses such as Marian Rivera (2007 Bahay Kubo), Rhian Ramos (2011 The Road), Kim Chiu (2012 The Healing) are celebrities with foreign blood. This implies that Japanese, Korean, and Chinese women who are lighter skinned than Filipinas are considered the ideal Asian beauty, while also continuing to adhere to Western standards of White beauty (Glenn 2008 cited in Renault n.d.). All of this while the natural brown complexion remained in supporting and minor roles. Natural Filipina skin doesn’t have enough and better representation not only in films but in media and fashion industry as well, that it has its own connotation of “dark beauty”. As a result, stereotypes and negative images of women with darker skin are contributing to the desire for them to resort to facial procedures to reconfigure their race, such as skin-lightening and cosmetic surgery. But this is not always the case in the Philippines.

          During the height of Nora Aunor’s career on the 70’s and 80’s, she defied racial and class ideals of Hollywood-patterned film industry (Tadiar 2004). As a poor, small, dark-skinned and uneducated actress, she dominated the cinemas with his role in films such as Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos (1976), Ina Ka ng Anak Mo (1979), Himala (1982), Bulaklak sa City Jail (1984), Andrea, Paano Ba ang Maging Isang Ina? (1990), The Flor Contemplacion Story (1995) and 179 more films as of the present. Numerous Filipinas idolized and even devoted Aunor as they identify themselves with her than any other actresses that established her a huge fanbase. Nora not only made Filipinas became confident about their skin but also empowered them into realizing their own capacity and that they can be something beyond familial responsibilities and domestic labor.

LGBTQI+ Representation in Films

         Not only the women has a troublesome representation in films but also the LGBTQI+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex) community. As the Philippines’ dominant heteronormative standpoints, the LGBTQI+ community is not given authentic representation as it reinforces stereotypes. The most common portrayal of queer people is the stereotype of parloristang bakla (beauty parlor gay) for the effeminate. Usually given as supporting or minor roles, typically the protagonist’s sidekick or best friend, these are gays who are loud and funny that sometimes cross dresses and are always portrayed to have sexual desires for straight men. These roles are usually placed in films to add to its comedic features and more often than not, became unidimensional as it only highlights the role’s queerness. Even films with gay lead roles reinforces such stereotypes such as Markova: Comfort Gay (2000), Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros (2015), Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington (2011), all of Vice Ganda’s movies such as the Praybeyt Benjamin duology and even Lino Brocka’s Ang Tatay Kong Nanay (1978). Masculine gays, on the other hand, are always depicted as “still in the closet” gays. Suddenly shrieking, wearing pink tops, and lifting of pinky finger as he drinks are just few of the gay signals that implies that all gays eventually will dress and act like women (Tagudina 2012). It is just recently where masculine gays are represented accurately such in the films Olivia Lamasan’s In My Life (2009) and Jason Paul Laxamana’s The Third Party (2016). Both films did not sensationalized the sexuality of the men but rather sheds light on their relationship with one another and with the people around them.

         Films together with television and other visual mediums that uses the queer or has homosexual characters in its cast could create false assumptions in terms of activity and personality of the LGBT community (Tagudina 2012). The lack of films with accurate queer representation implies that the Philippines still has a long journey into accepting the community and not just tolerating them. This is substantiated by the absence of lesbian, bisexual and transgender portrayal in mainstream films as the public only tolerates gay-themed movies as long as they are portrayed with comedic value for the audience’s entertainment. Despite a few attempts of some filmmakers, heteronormative and homophobic views in films will continue to flourish as long as the majority reinforces stereotypes and as long as the audience doesn’t support films that defies such norms and interrogates the current dominant stand towards the LGBTQI+ community.

Clichéd Plot lines and Hollywood Rip-offs

         Such setbacks mentioned above are intensified as filmmakers only recreates recurring plot lines making films that are considered as sellable to the public. Hundreds of drama and romantic-comedy films about a boy/girl torn between two lovers proves such as they share common stories with Carlos Vander Tolosa’s Giliw Ko (1939). Films will change the location, timeframe, the character’s social status, and many others but the plot will still end with two lovers being happily together as the other sacrificed and leave. One such variety of this plot are star-crossed lovers, most commonly with different social status, will defy all odds and still ends up together. Filipino films became unoriginal and formulaic that most of the movies will click to the scheme characters’ introduction – handful of ecstatic events – climactic challenge – against all odds resolution – happy ever after. Some films not only reimagines storylines but even replicate Hollywood films’ plots. Some examples are Wanted Perfect Father (1994) and Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Unofficially Yours (2012) and Friends With Benefits (2011), That Thing Called Tadhana (2015) and Before Sunrise (1995), The Break-Up Playlist (2015) and Begin Again (2013).

         Philippine cinema are capable of producing substantial and original films such as Orapronobis (1989), Magnifico (2003), Muro Ami (1999), Aishite Imasu 1941: Mahal Kita (2004) and Bata, Bata… Pa'no Ka Ginawa? (1998) but most of the mainstream films are still those with clichéd storylines. The potential of the cinema as circulating national discourse and interrogating socioeconomic condition of the country is overlooked because of the commodification of the industry. Filmmakers failed to produce more insightful, progressive, relevant and fresh stories as the public pays attention to films with more entertainment value (Matti 2016). Mainstream films especially the comedy movies only reaffirms the current ideologies in the country and doesn’t even attempt to challenge the audience’s minds. If only filmmakers realize the power of the cinema to create national discourse and actually instigate social change, the quality and substance of films today will heighten. At the same time, if only the audience views films not only for entertainment but also for education and enlightenment, more valuable and significant films will be produced. In this two-way improvement, a better and notable Philippine film industry could be achieved.

 References

2014. 5 Reasons Why Philippine Mainstream Cinema  is Going Downhill. May.

Campomanes, Alvin. 2015. A Study Guide for  Heneral Luna.  http://henerallunathemovie.com/files/Heneral-Luna-Study-Guide.pdf.

Everding, Gerry. 2009. "Historical movies help  students learn, but seperating fact from fiction can be challenging." Phys  Org.

Flores, Patrick. 1998. "Ang Pinilakang  Himagsikan. ." In Wika, Panitikan, Sining, Himagsikan., by  Raymund Arthur Atoy Navarro, 183-187. Quezon City.

Masigan, Leonardo Garcia Jr. and Carmelita. 2001.  "An In-depth Study on the Film Industry In the."

Matti, Erik. 2016. The Future of Philippine  Cinema is not Bright. January.  http://www.philstar.com/supreme/2016/01/09/1540571/future-philippine-cinema-not-bright.

McFerson, Hazel. 2002. Mixed Blessing: The Impact  of the American Colonial Experience on Politics and Society in the  Philippines. London: Greenwood Press.

Payuyo, Louise Abigail. 2012. "The Portrayal of  Gays in Popular Filipino Films, 2000 to 2010." In Philippine  Sociological Review, 291-322.

Renault, Kristin Baybayan. n.d. Filipino Women  and the Idealization of White Beauty in Films, Magazines and Online.  University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Tadiar, Neferti. 2004. "The Noranian  Imaginary." In Fantasy Production: Sexual Economies and Other  Philippine Consequences for the New World Order, 230-264. Hong Kong  University Press.

Tagudina, Iman. 2012. ""The Coast is  Queer": Media Representation of the LGBT Community and Stereotype's  Homophobic Reinforcement." Ateneo de Manila University.

2016. Top 10 Highest-Grossing Filipino Movies Of  All Time. June.  http://www.juan-republic.com/top-10-highest-grossing-filipino-movies-time/.

[gelatomesomeironqrow]

Another less obvious example is:

Yumikkaku/Ikkayumi

They are always together from the very beginning of the manga/anime. Heck, even their backstory is them together in the Rukongai. They barely need to communicate to work together. But. They grow as a team and as partners throughout the anime so at the end of the series, they understand each other so well, and are just so much closer. Most of their development as a relationship happens off screen as it were. But I believe it was Iba who told Ikkaku that he needed to talk to Yumichika. Although he tends to talk to Ikkaku in a roundabout way so he can reach his own conclusions. But I can't seem to find the exact manga chapter.

speaking is not communication -- but sometimes it helps.