#i think about baccano

[r3d-d34th]

Thinking about Van Zieks and his Racism-Via-Backstory because at first I thought it was a cop out like just make him racist as a product of society you don't need a specific reason but then I remembered that a fairly liberal person I know backtracked HARD into transphobia and self- righteousness due to a traumatic experience with a transperson trying to get her fired from work for mostly just being an imperfect cis white woman. Just.. GOD. It makes Van Zieks so messy and human. It just says.. "see? I went against society, I gave you a chance, and look where it got me. look how i was repaid."

just....

UGGGGGGHHHHHHH

[houjicha]

So I was rereading the 1927 manga for the millionth time and noticed a translation error:

Specifically, Claire's line "He's a popular guy."

I'm pretty sure this was just a misreading of 持てる (moteru)--just one letter off, which does mean that he's a popular guy.

Buuuut the actual Japanese is 持ってる(motteru), which makes this line hit very differently in context:

This means more like "Firo's a guy who has..." something! "It" as @toushindai put it when we talked about it recently (thank you!). When this verb doesn't have a clear object, it has certain connotations.

There's a term 持ってる人 (motteru hito), which literally translates to "a person who has"...it. According to one Japanese article, it's like someone who is able to pull through when it really matters, as opposed to people who crack under pressure, and is generally capable and dependable. "They've got it" is a pretty good translation, although if I can be super nitpicky, 持ってる人 is a general type of person, so "it" would be more like "the set of qualities needed to succeed" rather than "this particular situation." Jisho.com calls it "that special something."

The main focus of Firo's arc in 1927 is his insecurities and feeling unsure of who he's going to be. He's constantly comparing himself to Claire and the Gandors and the Martillo family executives, and wondering how he can stand out and find his place.

There's a similar sort of phrasing here in the Japanese, too:

It's not the same phrase, but the literal translation is "What do I have?" (Official EN is "Where does that leave me?") Like "What do I have going for me? What's my 'thing'?" He's not sure if he has "it," but he wants to.

After Firo chased the priest off the roof, Claire saw a bit of that insecurity--but he certainly sees Firo as capable, even if Firo himself doesn't.

So...Claire's line is actually a response to that arc. Claire returns to the Gandors and lets them know about how Firo helped Keith. The Gandors' first response is to be like "Is he okay?" which is totally understandable, but Firo would probably take it the wrong way. (That's a guess, of course, but this feels related to the reasons Firo didn't join the Gandors and the vibe between them in their earlier scene.) But Claire pushes back by saying "He's fine. He's got what it takes." This discussion isn't about whether the Martillos will take Firo back; it's about Firo himself, and it's like a little cap on his arc.

(ちゃんと (chanto) is the other word in this sentence, by the way, which means like "properly" but is more a way of saying that something is as it should be, or properly qualifies. He's calling Firo a bonafide 持ってる人)

Anyway as someone who really loves the little scraps of Firo and Claire's relationship that we get I needed you to know about this one thank you for your time

[cerealforkart]

There are a lot of stupid couples in anime, but these two have got to be in the running for the stupidest (oh to be so busy laughing and enjoying life with your partner that you don’t notice you’re immortal for 70 years)

[brbarou]

girl summer (spending six months in sad pregnant self-induced imprisonment)

[agallimaufryofoddments]

have you heard baccano! is going to be getting official audiobooks through yen press?

(Nov 2023—question asked).

I've bought both the audiobooks of Volumes 1 and 2. The first, out of obligation. The second, also out of obligation. Honestly, I'm wondering whether I'll keep it up. Each audiobook is about $26 in American dollars. I have sunk a lot of money into Baccano! already, oop, we can admit that most of that money hasn't ever reached the chaps in Dengeki Bunko, or those FUNimation fellows, and I suppose one question is whether I'm willing to continue doinotg so.

"Put the money where it counts," eh?

(I've already paid for both the physical and electronic versions of these books. Now, audiobooks... Four audiobooks are one hundred a pop...? Argh.)

Monetary support is what demonstrates there's fan interest in the series surviving. Wah-hoh. You ask me about the audiobbooks? I was shocked by their happening.

I don't know anything about Yen Press' financial strategies concerning which series warrant audiobooks and which don't. Perhaps I know little about the correlation between audiobook greenlighting and sales in general. I mean, Yen Press refuses to reprint early Baccano! volumes, and now they're releasing audiobooks.

I'll tell you this: Murray giving Isaac and Miria posh accents is a little bit hysterical, by which I mean that it amuses me greatly. Sure, perhaps Isaac is implied to have Rich origins, but m'golly, the poshness of Isaac and Miria in the audiobook certainly offers a different veneer of perspective.

[ibrokeeverything]

I want an Isaac and Miria buddy comedy spin-off full of zany misadventures so bad

[gunmeister]

there's something kind of melancholic about creating art for things that are way past their prime

[abyssalplein]

Baccano! Week 2023 - Day 6: Love and Sacrifice

Just some Gandor Brothers as young kids. I have a headcanon that while all three of them were always aware of what type of family they were a part of, I believe that Keith took on more responsibilities sooner and tried to preserve a semblance of a normal childhood for his brothers.

[bluemoonsamurai]

Naritaverse Thoughts

My favorite characters from Baccano!, Durarara!!, and Dead Mount Death Play would have fun having a philosophical discussion. I need to see Graham, Izaya, and Solitaire chatting. Izaya would lead the conversation, pointing out Graham's contradictions with interest.

Also, 2/3 of these characters have a spin-off novel. Where's my Graham Specter spin-off? (Volume 16 doesn't count.)

[strawberrisoulmate]

psst. you should share the wedding reception dance scenario :3c

wahhhhhh, you're really gonna make me type all that out, huh >///< (this ended up being super long, so i'll put it under a cut)

so basically... i had been thinking a bit about how both luck and hanna would be at yours and claire's wedding. obviously.

claire grew up with the gandors and is considered their adopted brother, so of course they'd be there to support him on his wedding day. hell, i could maybe even see the gandor brothers (+ firo) being his groomsmen with luck potentially even being his best man. regardless, they'd definitely be there. and, since the two of our inserts are such good friends, she would absolutely be there as a guest to the bride (you! uwu)

with all of that said, i can imagine a scenario where our inserts are chatting together and enjoying the wedding reception. there's music pouring out from the stage where the band that claire absolutely hired with his assassin money is and everyone is having a great time drinking and dancing and laughing together.

across the room, luck is observing the party from a distance, sipping his glass of champagne as he watches his brothers dance with their wives from the sidelines. isaac and miria are drinking and laughing loudly with a few of the other guests while firo practically trips over his own feet trying to ask ennis to dance. it's all good fun. he's never been one for dancing himself, but he's perfectly happy to enjoy the atmosphere where everyone else is having a great time around him. it isn't until a flash of red hair and a bright, coy smile comes into view that luck's attention is pulled from the center of the room, followed quickly by an arm being thrown over his shoulder before he has a chance to dodge it.

"luck! whatcha doin' all the way over here? there's a party going on, ya know, and you're over here brooding and drinking all by yourself?"

"i'm not brooding. just enjoying the music from a distance, is all."

"oh, come on! let loose once in a while, will ya? keith and berga both brought their wives along and you didn't even bother to bring a plus one? it's my wedding, remember? you should get out there and dance with someone at least!"

"you know i don't dance. and i don't need a plus one. i'm perfectly content to be here on my own. shouldn't you be with your wife right now?"

"yeah, i'm about to go find her. but still, just do me this one favor. grab yourself a doll to dance just one song with and i'll die a happy man. well, i won't die, but you get the picture. look, there's a cute one right over there. bet she wouldn't turn ya down if you asked her."

"i told you, i don't need to—"

"whoops, gotta go. i think i hear my wife callin' me~"

and with that, he spins on his heel and rushes off back into the crowd.

cut back to our inserts talking before we are promptly interrupted by claire. "pardon the interruption, miss, but i'm gonna be stealin' her away for a little while," he says before taking your hand and practically sweeping you off your feet with a twirl. as he's whisking you away, he sends a glance over his shoulder and is like “oh, and i’ve already taken care of payin’ you back for the advice ya gave me a while back. you can thank me later 👋” and then pulls you along to dance.

for a moment, hanna is confused and just standing there with a blank expression. paying her back? what did he mean by that? she wonders to herself before her thoughts are sharply cut off by the silhouette of a figure coming into view. she looks up at the person with curiosity before her eyes meet those of luck gandor. a man she'd met on occasion and had spoken to once or twice, but they hadn't had many opportunities to converse all that deeply. before she can ask him if he needs anything from her, he speaks up and asks her if she would like to dance.

huh? a dance? with me?

immediately, her cheeks begin to heat up and she pauses, stunned silent for a couple of seconds before she fumbles out a modest — and slightly awkward — "s-sure. i'd be honored" before reaching out and taking his hand.

as they make their way towards the dance floor, hanna looks around the room, catching your eye as you dance with your new husband and gives you a confused look, only to be met with a surprised grin back. luck's feet stop, making hanna stumble a bit behind him, before he turns back to her. the hand that had been in hers moved to her waist, resting against her lower back and the girl could feel her face heating up even warmer than before. for a moment, she hesitates, but ultimately follows his lead and steps closer, moving one hand to land daintily on his shoulder while the other gently rests in his free hand.

as they begin to move, stepping and swaying to the music, hanna's eyes fall to the floor, watching her feet in an attempt to both make sure she doesn't accidentally step on his as well as to avoid the piercing gaze that she could feel staring holes into her. she'd never danced with anyone, and much less been this close to any man before, so she was sure that her nerves were very clearly shining through.

"you know, i think you're supposed to look at the person you're dancing with."

"a-ah… i'm sorry."

"you seem nervous."

"well, i've never… i mean, nobody has ever asked me to dance before."

he chuckles softly.

"well, i've never asked anyone to dance before, so i suppose there's a first for everything."

the girl quietly squeaks with embarrassment, but something about hearing that makes her incredibly happy. she forces her eyes to look up at him and he's gazing back down at her with a charming smile that made her heart harshly skip a beat.

"i suppose i'll follow your lead then, mr. luck."

a nervous giggle escapes her as she quickly corrects herself.

"excuse me— i mean mr. gandor."

"hm, luck is fine. you can drop the "mister", too. makes me feel old."

"a-alright…"

and that's pretty much it.

they continue to dance until the song ends and then part ways, but oh man, does hanna now have some feelings to sort through ahah.

she spends the entire rest of the evening in a daze as she replays it over and over in her head and continues to find herself daydreaming about his pretty eyes and his charming smile and the way he held her as they danced and the tingling feeling left on her fingers from how they felt against his hand.

she was already a hopeless romantic before, but now she's absolutely down bad 😂

[claire-stanfields]

"He was the best guy around." "What about the people he murdered?" "What murder??"

[puppysdog]

Have you watched Baccano? You seem like you'd be really normal about Ladd, Graham, and the Rail Tracer.

yeah!! its one of my favorite animes + i own the dvd! and im very normal about claire i promise :)

[luckstreetboy]

i love how narita will introduce blorbo skrunklo in volume 4 and expect you to remember him for vol 26 because he's important in that one you know!

[empiriical]

i know i don’t write firo yet but there’s just something about a heavily trans-coded character finding a place && a group of people that see him for who he is && what he brings to the table && even though he has reservations about belonging among them, they make him feel welcome && validated that he deserves to be there because that’s who he is, && he’s proud of that. also he’s like. mean. && I think we deserve that rep

[brbarou]

i was working on this mask maker trio fic over a year ago and i never got to edit/post it even though it's practically done. it's just nonsense about them sneaking in to steal a book from the third library but it's sweet and i remember being proud of it................... :( maybe i should just throw all of my abandoned baccano fic wips onto ao3

[agallimaufryofoddments]

BACCANO! 1935(-B) ARC SPOILER!

Hm.... Did I ever think to include the Carlotta groupies' "Kill Melvi, Frame Him as a Gandor Spy, Pin Murder on Claire" plan on my 1935 plot points compilation list? I'd better do that if I didn't.