#for some reason i think Takao would be an eagle

[zuzu-draws]

I don't know if you're still doing those requests but....

may i suggest......

catboy kise and wolfboy daiki 🥺👉👈

Well since i would be doing them animal themed, might as well try being more accurate to their canon animal counterparts, no? ;D So Black Panther! Daiki and Fox! Kise it is!

...sometimes Kise forgets he's not in Animal Form

[xianglingslesbian]

oh I'll give u a character alright: Izuki, Kiyoshi, Riko and Aomine <333 technically that's four, but what goes around comes around (I'll keep this circle of love goin forever buddy)

VICCCC ily my man <33 thank u!!! aight putting this under a cut bc it got long

Izuki

Why I like them: izuki’s just overall so amazing! he inspires me to give my best in the stuff i do, and although it sounds a bit silly i try to be a person that he’d be proud of. his puns are hilarious and well-thought-out (as a person who loves words and word jokes, i’m naturally drawn to him lol). they’re also a way to take the heat off the team, he’s so hardworking and never views obstacles as obstacles, rather as hills he must climb to find newer skies. he’s also rather clever and employs his brains to great effect when his body fails him! izuki embodies the meaning of ‘eagle’ in the truest sense - waiting to strike when the time is right and not failing when it is.

Why I don’t: *sweats* can’t really think of a reason i don’t like izuki, at all??? i guess he can overwork himself a lot and tends to keep his true emotions hidden which could lead to misunderstandings between friends (although this is totally headcanon territory lol)... i also didn’t like the ableist comment he passed on hayama (“i’m just glad you weren’t smarter than me”). but i think he can (and will!) grow from that kind of stuff, he is that kind of person so yeah no particular reason for me to dislike him at all

Favorite episode (scene if movie): how dare you make me pick s3 e8 izuki vs kasamatsu, hands down. i know its like cliche or whatever but that moment just told me so much about izuki as a character? he’s willing to do what it takes to win, he’s adaptable and dependable and he doesn’t let shit get him down ever. it’s gorgeous

Favorite season/movie: s3, he got some fantastic moments in there!! although i will say i loved the spotlighting he got in s1 in the seihō match

Favorite line: “Fear isn't a bad thing. There are some things that can only be done by cowards.” this is first of all such a nice thing to say. ‘fear is not bad’ is just... so fucking wise? keep in mind that this boy is 17, i’ve met 30 year olds who are less mature. secondly it feels like izu’s speaking from experience?? like he has a lot to be scared of, i’m sure. particularly of falling behind and being a burden to his teammates. but it’s that ‘cowardice’ that drives him to practice so so hard. that visceral terror of weighing on seirin is what pushes izuki beyond his limits - which is why here he can empathise with furi’s fear, and knows how best to employ it.

Favorite outfit: look i hate last game w/ a passion but that lil tie/shirt/hoodie thing he had going? that was literally so cute. izuki in general has a p great fashion sense but his last game outfit takes the cake <3

OTP: hyuuizu oh my god i could talk for years about them but since this post is gonna be very long i’ll refrain. just. they are perfect they are fucking perfect

Brotp: kiyoizu!! kiyoshi is izuki’s biggest enabler and i love that for him <3

Head Canon: izuki can be very very passive aggressive when he’s angry at someone/sad and gets cold and withdrawn. it’s not fun to experience but tbh if you upset him you probably deserve it

Unpopular opinion: izuki should’ve been naturally better in canon. it’s not fair to shaft him and give the ‘trier’ thing off to himuro. that being said i am p happy with who he is as a person

A wish: i want to know how izuki felt after middle school! izuki’s and riko’s backstory focuses so much on hyuuga its dumb >:( he also would’ve been demoralised but he didn’t quit bball and i would like to know his thought process!

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: i. uh. i guess izu quitting basketball. because i genuinely cannot see that happening. it brings him so much joy, he should never stop cold turkey. i can imagine old man izuki hobbling about a court giving little kids pointers and making them laugh T-T

5 words to best describe them: “big brain caffeine-powered clown baby” 

My nickname for them: babyzuki/izu/shunshun

Kiyoshi

Why I like them: lots of reasons! kiyoshi is an admirable person. he’s strong, yet friendly and gentle, and he loves his team above all else, which i just find beautiful. i find his manipulative side also pretty cool, bc it shows off how multifaceted he is.

Why I don’t: this is more of a fandom reason but i really dislike how kiyoshi is always said to have had the greatest impact in hyuuga’s story. he badgered and manipulated hyuuga, and while some may argue hyuuga needed that push, it only worked bc hyuuga had had time to think about shit. he’d also been given space by riko and izuki (two integral parts of his life whom the fandom looooves to sideline for uwu kiyo//hyuu). 

Favorite episode (scene if movie): yousen match (can’t pick the episodes)! i loved the backstory we got for kiyo vs mura and i loved how kiyoshi was willing to smile and play but also refused to lose. he truly stole the show despite kagami being the one to finally take down murasakibara, it was gorgeous <3

Favorite season/movie: s2 for sure. kiyoshi wasn’t allowed to shine much after yousen imo - all the focus was on hyuuga kagami and kuroko, and to a lesser extent izuki. not complaining, but yeah

Favorite line: “Let’s go have some fun.” i know it’s kinda cliche but i do love how kiyoshi’s always thinking about playing a good game and enjoying basketball. he wants to play because he loves it and as someone who loves a sport as much as kiyoshi loves b-ball, that love is so poignant and tender

Favorite outfit: practice clothes! kiyoshi looks great in pink <3

OTP: kiyohana. hateshipping amirite ;)

Brotp: kiyohyuu! i love them as friends so so much <3

Head Canon: kiyoshi is half-iranian on his mother’s side and is muslim. i won’t say too much because i am not muslim myself, i need to do more research into this but i’ve had this headcanon for quite a while now!

Unpopular opinion: he should be bullied more for the fact that his canon power is having yaoi hands

A wish: kiyo finds something he loves as much as b-ball. he can’t canonically play at this level again, so if he found another sport/competition/anything, it’d be amazing

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: he should never become demoralised. kiyoshi at heart is a dreamer, so let him dream, let him look towards tomorrow with a smile always

5 words to best describe them: “useless dreamy dumbass cheerleader clown”

My nickname for them: kiyoyo, bc my feelings about him have yo-yoed a lot lmao

Riko

Why I like them: im a lesbian, next. /j i love her because she’s so tenacious and driven. yet she’s also kind and gentle, and never loses her humanity. she cares, and she cares hard. she’s so fucking smart too like... coaching a hs basketball team at 17 against players of NBA calibre and making them win? i could never. seirin without riko is nothing.

Why I don’t: i dont like the constant slapstick of her beating up her boys. also, i dislike how the narrative forces her to act ‘feminine’ and then has the boys think of it as nothing. like first of all if someone like her offered me a kiss i would so take 100, and secondly... why is a girl’s worth so tied to her femininity? it’s awful

Favorite episode (scene if movie): her sending in furi vs kaijō, early in s3. it was an exceedingly smart move that could have only come from her knowing her players’ strengths and weaknesses intimately, and being a brilliant coach. just amazing <3

Favorite season/movie: all of them! riko has some amazing moments each season, so i can’t really pick

Favorite line: “Humans grow. Don't act like you understand when you don't even realize that!” here, riko knows and knows well that she is in her element. momoi might have the data, but riko understands adaptability and knows how to predict stuff. in that way, one can draw parallels between takao vs izuki and momoi vs riko: takao and momoi are recon experts, whereas riko and izuki are strategists. momoi uses raw data; riko manipulates the data to her advantage

Favorite outfit: idk if this is exactly an outfit but her glasses are so cute oh my gosh. (i’d kill to see her in a leather jacket tho)

OTP: rikomomo!!! i’m 100% sure that momoi’s fixation w/riko’s boobs is just... repressed lesbian sentiments. also sports girlfriends gimme

Brotp: hyuuizuriko. i hc that hyuuizu were tgt since elementary school and riko joined them in middle school so... childhood friends feels!

Head Canon: riko knows how to shoot a gun. her father owns one so it makes sense

Unpopular opinion: riko does not need to have bigger boobs in fanart. please stop sexualising a 17 year old girl

A wish: white suit riko please

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: her ever leaving behind sports in any way shape or form. it’s her thing. in the same vein, she should never have to change herself or become more traditionally feminine to be ‘appealing’

5 words to best describe them: perfect perfect perfect perfect perfect

My nickname for them: ai/riri

Aomine

Why I like them: aomine is just a pure, hurting young man that deserves help. he’s passionate, and his fire died down out of no fault of his own. that fire’s reignition through kagami is one of my favorite scenes <3

Why I don’t: he’s perverted as hell and i dislike that. it plays into the ‘brutish dark-skinned pervert’ stereotype which is yikes. also i thought we were done with pervs in anime

Favorite episode (scene if movie): s2 seirin v touou when kagami enters the zone!! aomine’s finally happy and it’s so amazing to watch <3

Favorite season/movie: s2, he finally got happiness and peace of mind

Favorite line: “You’re the best!” there’s just so much of pure joy in this line. he’s so so beside himself that he finally has someone he won’t destroy. kagami sees aomine the person, and that person is so happy, it’s beautiful

Favorite outfit: the leather jacket from the finale lmaooo he looked so cute

OTP: AOKAGA BABY i could write an essay tbh

Brotp: aomomo!! theyre such good friends and bi/lesbian solidarity too!

Head Canon: aomine cannot dance. he has stepped on kagami’s feet multiple times. he has also attempted to twerk when drunk. kuroko recorded the whole thing and uses it as blackmail in case the puppy eyes and “but aomine-kun you didn’t fist bump me back” don’t work

Unpopular opinion: more a fandom thing, but you all need to stop making aomine the aggressive/possessive top/‘seme’. it’s racist as fuck

A wish: aomine goes pro. it’ll be amazing for him, a huge challenge and kagami will be there too so its a win-win ;)

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: he quits again/b-ball loses its allure. aomine at heart is someone who needs passion to drive him so i just want that passion to always burn bright within him

5 words to best describe them: “bastard baby needs a hug”

My nickname for them: dai-chan, momoi rubbed off on me

[misdre]

Aoki Takao website translations post #2

the second part, aoki’s notes about characters from the first season. he really doesn’t say all that much though. i skipped all the beasts that only had pictures of them (which was almost all of them), that’s why there are a few random beasts between the human characters in the text.

Anime 2001 [season 1]: Page 1

In summer 2000, there was a meeting for discussing a TV anime (starting from January 2001). The CoroCoro serialization was in the middle of the Japanese tournament. All four holy beasts had made an appearance at that point, but the planned world tournament arc was made into the main storyline of the anime.

Originally I planned that nobody but the main four had holy beasts, but because of the anime and the variety of real Beyblade toys increasing, it became so that rival bladers also had holy beasts.

I had very little time to create all the characters for the anime that would run for a year and had never done that before, so it was a real struggle. But looking back now, it was really stimulating and I consider it a valuable personal experience that I’m thankful for.

 “The Russian team”

In the original manga, and of course in the anime as well, the greatest rival needed to be very charismatic and therefore Yuriy was created.

“Yuriy Ivanov”

He’s the leader of “Borg”. The team has an army-like composition. His holy beast is a wolf.

For the CoroCoro serialization I drew him to display his strength as a cruel and cold character, but for RISING I also portrayed him with more human-like weaknesses and kindness that I didn’t get to draw earlier. By the way, for some reason his surname is spelled as “ivaanofu” everywhere except the original manga and I have no idea why it was changed. [he spells it “ivanoofu” himself in katakana. it really is pronounced ivaanofu in the anime too] The anime’s production method is very different from the manga, so perhaps it’s fine having several names.

December 22 2018 postscript: I later noticed that RISING volume 1 also misspells it as “ivaanofu”. The correct spelling is “ivanoofu”. [damn he’s really committed to how it should be spelled]

“Wolborg”

I pictured a land of extreme cold and gave it wings and ornaments of ice.

“Boris”

The subleader. He admires Yuriy. His holy beast is a falcon. I was thinking of the feathers of a bird while designing his hair and the collar of his clothes.

“Ivan”

A sarcastic sniper. He’s often picking fights, but he’s loyal to Yuriy. His holy beast is a snake.

“Sergei”

A soldier-like character with great respect for rules. He’s a muscular guy with a soft heart. His holy beast is a whale.

“Volkov”

He’s the founder of Borg, the private military school. He uses his connections from military times to send out illegal soldiers. Beyblade is part of his program of training young boys into soldiers.

When I look back now, it’s like the team composition of Borg (the way the characters are isolated) became the model for the rest of the teams as well.

 “The Chinese team”

The team of the Chinese fang clan (named Byakko clan in the anime) from Rei’s home town. The holy beasts and characters both were modeled after wild animals. In the village of the fang clan, sage Tao teaches scholarship, martial arts and bey battling to children from the near-by cities and communities who have been separated from their parents.

“Rai”

Rei’s childhood friend and eternal rival. The team leader. He’s like a reliable older brother. His holy beast is a black lion, so I also designed him with the image of a lion in mind. His name is the “rai” of “raion” [lion in katakana in Japanese].

“Mao”

Rai’s younger sister. A tomboy. Her name comes from the Chinese word for cat. Her holy beast is a lynx.

“Kiki”

A cheerful rascal. His holy beast is a monkey. His name comes from the sound that monkeys make.

“Galman”

I referenced a Chinese opera version of Sun Wukong for the ornaments.

“Gaou”

A gentle muscleman. His name comes from a bear’s roar. His holy beast is a bear.

  Anime 2001 [season 1]: Page 2

”The American Team”

The theme of the team is sports. I chose animals that live in North America as their holy beasts.

“Michael”

The team leader. He’s a baseball player. He’s a sportsman-like nice guy. I had several ideas for very elaborate gimmicks that he could shoot his beyblade with. The above sketch is an old one, so I ended up using a different one in the manga. His holy beast is the national bird of the US, the bald eagle.

“Eddy”

A basketball player. His holy beast is a scorpion.

“Steve”

An American football player. His holy beast is a bull.

“Bison”

Instead of an American bison, I used a bullfighting bull as the model.

“Emily”

Her position in the American team is similar to that of Kyouju’s. Her sport is tennis. Her holy beast is an alligator.

“Judy”

She’s American. She married the Japanese Mizuhara Tarou and had her eldest son Max with him. [that sounds like max has brothers but it prob just means ‘first child’ here] She was invited to a project team in NASA after the evaluation of a thesis she wrote while enrolled in MIT. [massachusetts institute of technology…. damn] She left her husband and Max in Japan and took up the new post away from home. She was inaugurated as the coach of a blader team formatted on a science camp organized by NASA. The rest is the same as the setting back then. She’s now living in Japan with her family after the birth of her eldest daughter Charlotte. [IS THERE GOING TO BE MORE???]

 “The European team”

A selection team representing several European countries. They were named after F1 racing drivers who were active at the time. (Germany) Ralf Schumacher, (UK) Johnny Herbert, (France) Olivier Panis, (Italy) Giancarlo Fisichella. *Their outwards appearances, personalities etc. are not based on them, only their names. Their surnames were influenced by well-known movie actors and directors from each country. I wanted each character to represent the special characteristics of his country. Their holy beasts are creatures from European folklore.

“Ralf Jürgens”

A German. He’s a stubborn person who honors tradition. I designed his outfit after bike wear. His holy beast is a griffon.

“Johnny McGregor”

An Englishman. He’s very strong-willed and has confidence in himself. I had rock style fashion in mind when making him. His holy beast is a salamander.

“Olivier Pohringer” [spelling of his surname is not up for debate FYI]

A Frenchman. He loves trendy things. I gave him a unique fashion sense. His holy beast is a unicorn.

“Giancarlo Tornatore”

A cheerful Italian. His holy beast is an amphisbaena.