#sakaki ness

[mizukamiyaseiryu]

niji stuff from twt

[sweatinf]

day 19 🐱🐶🐱

[celestiaras]

3skm new outfits!! they want me dead!!

[condofixed]

[beolzzip]

🎤🎶🎤🎶

[otaku-republic]

【New Nijisanji Members】 Debuting in March 2024! The New Members Are...... a Sorcerer, a Locksmith, and a Butler!? The Incredibly Unique Trio 3SKM Makes Their Appearance!

[beforedawnwitch]

3skmもれなく、ほんとに全員好きだ。

最近ではネスの少女レイで強烈にそう思った。

[kanekoii]

Okay but yandere 3skm 😍

mika's notes -> you got me there....y'all know yandere is my fav thing to write...i got so unhinged with this i'm not sorry... (anons who request yandere ily)

pairings -> yandere! 3skm x gn! reader (separate)

genre -> headcanons + scenario

song -> dramaturgy - eve

warnings -> yandere obv, strong violence in some parts so proceed with caution, stalking, sink the yacht!!

KITAMI YUSEI ->

ok hear me out. he's the type of yandere who would spread rumors and lies about you as a means to make all your friends and some family leave slowly but surely. he hates hurting you like this, he really does, but it's for the best. he had been your friend since you and him were children, and he was the only one who never left. the only one to stay by your side no matter what, even despite the rumors. when he's the only one left, that's when he'd make his move. he'd ask you out, but in such a tone that there was no room to deny him and say no. it shouldn't be a surprise that your new boyfriend just happened to show up in places you never told him you'd be. he's often so playful and kind that you didn't really think much of it, well until you saw his wallet and phone, both full of pictures of you doing random tasks that he shouldn't have been around to see. it was creepy, it was unhinged, and he would immediately ask you what you were doing with his phone and wallet, invading his privacy like that. say you love him and it makes him feel as if all his unhinged and frankly creepy actions were all worth it, because now he has you to hold and keep forever. don't even think about leaving, because he'll always find you and drag you back into this relationship and away from your friends and family.

KAISEI ->

new oshi unlocked. anyways. he's the type of yandere to lock you up in his house. seeing as he's a locksmith, there isn't much hope that you'll manage to break free of the chains on your wrists keeping you tethered to the foot of his bed. his smile and touch were so soft, making the times he freed you and allowed you to walk around his house freely even more heavenly. of course, it's not like those times are frequent. if you cry loud enough, maybe he'll let you sleep in his bed with him, his iron grip almost suffocating. he can't risk his darling running away, can he? it's all for the best, you'll understand soon, he'd always say as the tears leak from your eyes. at times like this, he'd unlock the chains on your wrists to reveal how bruised and raw they were with a small click of his tongue. only at times like this will he let you have a semblance of a normal life. he'd treat you as if he was a good boyfriend, not a monster who quite literally kept you locked away from the world that he deemed too cruel to witness your soft beauty. don't even think about going outside, he will never allow it. nobody deserves to lay their eyes on you for even a fraction of a second except him, and he wouldn't have it any other way. the few times when he shows you affection sometimes brings tears to your eyes. he's going to break you ever so slowly, making it so he's the only person you'll ever need in your life until the day you die.

SAKAKI NESS ->

this butler is a more traditional yandere. he won't let anyone touch you unless they want their hand cut off, or worse, to be disemboweled right in front of you. don't even bother getting close to anyone who isn't him, because they'll be dead by the next morning without fail. he'd kill every single person in the world if it meant you'd finally accept his deranged form of affection. each smear of blood on his body and face, the viscera of his previous kill on his clothes, it's all a confession of his undying love for you. don't you see? all he wants is for you to know he loves you, and this is how he shows it. someone's blood smeared into a heart on his cheek, his hands covered in bits of flesh and guts and blood, hearts in his eyes as he holds out a rose to you. one day, you'll understand that this is all his way of saying he loves you. maybe when you and him are the last people in the world entirely, you'll get it. so be it if that's what he has to do to make you love him. he would never hurt you directly, you're the only safe one. he's only protecting you, don't you get it?

[revclver-jesus]

I don't think a tramp stamp in itself is wild, what is wild that HE of all people has it. That he decided to follow an actual real western fashion trend and got a pentagram inked in a place at the time associated almost solely with 20 year old girls seeking to look sexy. Like it's so unserious. Silliest thing about his design, next to the ol' sailor ass heart on his right forearm, easily. Oh, and the way he literally emotes like ":333" too lmaoo

{{ NO I laterally couldn't agree more-- if it was just someone with the personality for it, especially when its more common with girls, like if you told me Tae Takemi had a tramp stamp I'd be like-- sure, sounds cute, that tracks fdhgkdsdf

But it's motherfuckinggggg Takaya Sakaki !!?? Anti-christ supreme, rival to the protag, tortured orphan of the most evil twist antagonist, first man to kill a major party member in the main franchise, Takaya?? THIS IS WHY I LOVE HIM-- Listen, all of them, Takaya, Jin, Chidori, every single one of them have this incredibly charming.... sincerity about them? Like-- Takaya was originally going to be this very boring evil businessman design. And that would have been just horrendous. nO, instead they deliberately chose to make all of them represent an alternative fashion style from the time period, with even Jin being a cyber goth. And I just really love that there's a realistic level of.... cringy-ness about them? fsdgkhdshg But its so earnestly.... teenager-like. Its not the effortless cool that the protag has, yknow, its a bunch of asshole kids you could meet at the mall-core. We all know at least one tatted chaotic white guy who never puts a shirt on, I know this, because he's all over the tags when you search "Grunge" SDHGKDFS

Don't even get me started on the :3 the way his lips naturally curl and cause him to make the >:3 face in every other icon i have i swear to chRIST-

But most of all I love how I have to sit here and try to put myself into the mental space of a man that has all these serious things going on in his life and his very severe and nihilistic ideology but at some point canonically sat down and someone asked him where he wanted it and he grabbed his belt and tugged down just a little to show the spOT---

I'm losing my mind. Takaya will make me lose my mind. }}

[kayokos-villain-imagines]

// Summary: Our two favorite psychopaths get locked in a room together and learn to work around their differences. Warning for major OOC-ness. //

“This is all your fault.”

“My fault? You were the one who went poking around rooms at my base, Shigaraki.”

“You shut the door.”

“I didn’t know it would lock! Besides,I didn’t expect you to go running off like a child playing hide-and-go-seek.”

Shigaraki huffed at the comparison. “Why do you need a quirk-proof room, anyways?” “I don’t. This was where Pops held most of his meetings. He didn’t like the idea of quirks getting involved in business discussions.”

“What was the old man’s quirk, anyways?”

Overhaul looked at him with narrow eyes. “None of your business.”

Shigaraki changed the subject. “When’s that cannon fodder of yours going to show up and let us out of this Hell?”

“If you mean Chronostasis, I suspect he’s already noticed my absence. He should find us shortly.”

“This place is big…” Shigaraki trailed off, and Overhaul bristled slightly at the implication that his second in command wouldn’t discover them soon.

“Compared to your base, a broom closet would be big.”

Shigaraki was silent for a moment. “Why do you think you’re better than me?”

“Simple. I have a plan for what I want to achieve, a system. I don’t just stumble around blindly and rely on my master to save me when I fail.”

“That’s it.” Shigaraki gritted his teeth and lunged forwards, catching Overhaul by the shoulder.

Overhaul swatted his hand away, fuming. “If we could use our quirks, we wouldn’t still be in here. Besides, if you did somehow kill me, I don’t think whoever finds us would see you kindly to the exit.”

Shigaraki made a noise that sounded vaguely like a growl, and stepped away from him.

Neither of them spoke for what felt like hours until Overhaul sighed and took a seat at the table. “We might as well discuss the alliance while we’re stuck here.” He gestured towards the seat across from him and continued talking when Shigaraki made no move to sit down. “I don’t want to spend more time with you than I have to, so let’s just get this over with now.” 

“Fine.” Shigraki begrudgingly took the seat across from Overhaul.

“As I mentioned last time we met, I’d like to keep a few of your… associates… with me.”

“So you can be in control.” Shigaraki added.

Overhaul frowned behind his mask. “You care about them too much. It’ll be your downfall if you’re not careful.”

“I prefer to surround myself with people I can trust to do more than blindly follow me around.” Not that Shigaraki would ever purposefully express his trust to them.

“I’d rather not get too attached to my precepts. They know that they’re expendable and can easily be replaced.” 

“Yeah, whatever.” Shigaraki sounded bored, and his eyes scanned the room for anything else to pay attention to.

“Oh, forget it.” Overhaul pulled a large flask from his jacket and began to unscrew the cap.

“What’s that?”

“I confiscated it from Sakaki this morning. Apparently, it’s supposed to be strong.” Overhaul didn’t look up, but began drinking the mystery alcohol.

The more he drank, the more annoyed Shigaraki got. He wasn’t that hard to get along with, right? It was Overhaul’s ridiculous demands hindering their negotiations, right? When he couldn’t stand it anymore, he snatched the drink from the brunette and chugged the rest, before tossing the bottle. Kurogiri never let him drink much, so he had to try not to gag at the strong taste for the sake of his pride. Overhaul just sighed and rested his head in his gloved hands.

⯋⯊⯋⯊⯋⯊⯋⯊⯋⯊⯋⯊

30 minutes later, both of them were beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol. Overhaul was spaced out staring at nothing, and Shigaraki was rifling through the draws of the desk, taking out whatever small items he could find and holding them so close to his face that Overhaul wouldn’t be surprised if there was saliva on them. The thought made him itch, and he forced his eyes to focus on Shigaraki as he tried to remember how to speak clearly. Something Shigarki pulled out made him stop though, and the still-sober part of him hoped that he wouldn’t comment on it. Luck wasn’t on his side however, and Shigaraki looked back at Overhaul before stumbling over to lean on the table, face far too close to Overhaul’s for the latter’s liking. 

His actions were halted once again as Shigaraki slurred out a question that Overhaul barely recognized as “This is your Pops?”

He glanced down at the photograph to avoid eye contact. The day it was taken was one of the better days of his childhood. It had been only a week or two after Pops adopted him. Wanting to bond with his new son, he took the day off work to take him out for ice cream. The photo in question was a hastily snapped selfie of the two of them at a park bench that Pops had apparently taken because it was the first time he’d seen Kai smile.The brunette dismissed his companion with a slight nod, wanting to drop the subject.

Shigaraki didn’t seem to get the hint in his inebriated state. “And you hurt him?”

Overhaul’s fists clenched slightly, but he found himself answering before he realized it. “It was an accident. We got into a fight, and… I got carried away. I just wanted him to see things from my point of view.” Even under the influence, Overhaul recognized that this wasn’t a smart thing to disclose to a potential enemy, but luckily, Shigaraki seemed too drunk to take advantage of him.

“I know how you feel.” He slurred. “I feel… responsible for my sensei’s capture. If I had been better about my escape, he wouldn’t be in Tartarus.” Overhaul stole a glance at the other to see his head turned away. “At least your pops is still here.”

The brunette didn’t know why, but he felt a strong urge to comfort Shigaraki. He expressed it by awkwardly placing a hand on the back of Shigaraki’s scarred neck. He jumped a little, but made no move to turn away. “Look, I-”

Overhaul was interrupted by the sound of the door creaking open. Chronostasis stepped into the room, seeming unsurprised upon discovering the two inside.

“Finally.” Shigaraki pulled away from Overhaul and stumbled towards the doorway. “I’m a little surprised you waited so long to begin searching for your dear leader.”

“I’ve been looking for around forty-five minutes. Unlike your base, this place has enough rooms to get lost in.” Chronostasis didn’t spare the LoV leader so much as a passing glance as he went to inspect Overhaul’s condition.

“We’ll pick up where we left off on Saturday. I’ve had enough of your presence to last me weeks.” Overhaul decided to leave out the fact that for a brief, glistening moment, he’d begun to care about Shigaraki’s feelings.

“Fine. Until then, I’d advise you to reconsider your demands.” Shigaraki glowered when his statement went unacknowledged.

“Chronostasis will see you out.” Overhaul stood up and steadied himself against the table before retreating into the depths of the Shie Hassaikai base.

And with that, all sympathy each had for the other was pushed into unconsciousness, Not gone exactly, but not present enough to affect any major decisions.

(^０^)ノ

[its-whitetomorrow]

Old interview but better translation from Dogasu now

The goofy Rocket trio that we all know and love become serious "villains" for a while there, didn't they?

Hayashibara:  That was like a boot camp for the three of us. We had to calmly think "So wait, we were actually evil this whole time?" It was really lonely. It would have been one thing if they were these cold-hearted roles from the very beginning but to change things mid-way like that was too much.

Inuyama:  It didn't feel right for Nyarth to deliver these ultra serious lines so a lot of the time he would just kind of shut his mouth and not say anything. It really was a test because up until then Nyarth had been brimming with human-ness.

Miki:  The Rocket trio is connected to each other thanks to their kindness. I'm glad that training we went through clarified that for us.

They are unique human beings connected to each other but they’re also proper criminals when the narrative calls for it. It wasn’t a “training,” it was PLOT and DIRECT ASSIGNMENT FROM THE BOSS the characters been pursuing for ages (apart from their unique Pikachu objective).

So yeah, you just don’t like serious roles and it isn’t fun when you’re told to play them after all these years... which is hubris... but seriously, YES, you were actually evil this whole time! They are villains who steal other people’s Pokemon et cetera, not even anti-heroes for the most part though sometimes they are and it’s truly amazing

Funny how it isn’t a problem when Nyarth delivers serious lines about capturing Pikachu or Pokemon of the day to please Sakaki... but it was in Best Wishes when they spoke about *different* kinds of schemes. Also, what’s the entire issue with BW!Meowth in particular anyway? I thought it was cool he had a bigger part in the motto and during monologues... but what do I know...

BONUS:

If they changed to the black uniforms then they could live more comfortably and wouldn't have to sleep outside, sure. But that's not what they're after. They just want to contribute to their Boss, no matter their current situation.

White uniforms mean individuality but the world doesn’t end if they play James Bond in black ones for a month. They are allowed to change clothes and their white colors don’t mean “clowns and good guys in disguise,” they can still live “comfortably” and rise in ranks in their white uniforms (if they’re achiving criminal results). But that’s not what they’re after? How so? Because contributing to their boss means results. LITERALLY, THAT’S WHAT THIS SENTENCE MEANS. Unless they’re supposed to be lazy wage thiefs who pretend they want results but then they’re just having fun... just fun... but that’s not Team Rocket of course, they’re supposed to be hard-working, not lazy. Just because things didn’t really work out for them in the past series doesn’t mean they can’t change their approach and learn from their failures.

Yeah, I can’t help but think the contradictory circumstances that plagued Team Rocket in XY and sometimes SM are completely in-line with VAs’ mindset here... perhaps even influenced by it... but what if contrbuting to their boss means a better standing with Sakaki and change of status quo? Huh, what about this? Wake up, it has already happened! This means they’ll no longer sleep outside as long as they’re in his good graces because they receive their paycheck, and the show doesn’t seem interested in degrading them back - because that would be boring, old and devoid of opportunities. Speaking of opportunities...

right after this interview --> BOOM, we get all of this

Yeah, must have been a shock to them, but I’m not sad :D

Memories from Best Wishes? Well, mine are just fine!

The universe really does seem to work in strange ways sometimes...

[sweatinf]

day 22

[paulisweeabootrash]

Retrospective Review: Rewatching Azumanga Daioh as an Adult

This may seem hard to believe if you are a younger reader or one who got into anime only recently, but there was once a time when recommendations spread by word of mouth, it was absolutely commonplace for anime seasons to last longer than 13 episodes, and the vocabulary of the anime fandom wasn’t nearly as full of internet-originated in-jokes.  A time when the internet-savvy congregated on forums dedicated to specific topics instead of social networking sites, and the imageboards that generate so much of the internet meme landscape were just starting to take off among lonely nerds as an obscure haven for perverts, racists, and assholes instead of the role they have today as… uh… well... a well-known haven for perverts, racists, and assholes.  A time when there was no such term as “weeaboo trash” because that Perry Bible Fellowship comic hadn’t been published yet, let alone used for that meaning.  It wasn’t some golden age, but it was different, and today I’m taking a self-indulgent trip back to the end of that period, when I was in high school in the mid-2000s.

Azumanga Daioh (2002).

1. Why is this show important to me?

My introduction to anime consisted mostly of Pokémon and Sailor Moon, and took off with scattered episodes of several other shows that aired on WB and Cartoon Network, which were generally driven by action and combat.  I can’t remember the circumstances or even who did it, but someone who owned, or perhaps pirated, a copy of Azumanga Daioh must have shown me a few episodes at some point.

Here was a show that had been on the leading edge of the moe trend a few years earlier, and although certainly available, such things were not yet common.  Moe has, of course, taken over a large chunk of anime since, to mixed reception since it can range from innocently delightful to extraordinarily creepy.  Azumanga is close to the innocent end of the spectrum, and absolutely delightful (as, BTW, is the author’s current ongoing manga series Yotsuba&!), with a softer, cuter art style than I was accustomed to and instantly-lovable characters.

It was clearly in a different genre and had a different sensibility about how to make a show, too.  It had few repeated or filler elements, unlike any of the shows following the “monster of the week” formula.  It was broken up into several vignettes per episode — a practice that I was familiar with from the format of many Nicktoons, but while American shows with that format told multiple self-contained stories, the short segments here were typically parts of larger episode-long stories, often focusing on different parts of the same event or different anecdotes about the same character.  It showed us, the foreign audience, something about life in Japan, and at least for me was the first time I’d heard of distinctly Japanese school practices like applications for public high schools, students cleaning classrooms, or the particular kinds of seasonal festivals they have.  It lacked story arcs driven by overcoming some enemy and instead was driven by character relationships themselves and the instantly-relatable experience of school.  It was an encounter with something utterly different — and it made an excellent first impression.

Eventually, I bought a copy of the complete series of the manga it’s based on.  Azumanga Daioh was originally, well, a manga, written by Azuma Kiyohiko and originally published in the form of a 4-panel comic strip that ran in the magazine Dengeki Daioh.  See, it’s Azuma’s manga in Dengeki Daioh.  Azuma manga, Dengeki Daioh.  Azumanga Daioh.  Ha.  Clever.  Anyway, in there, I encountered largely the same characters and interactions, a mix of believable school life and quick gags, just presented in a different format.  I eventually got the DVD box set of the show, too, and I’ve rewatched a few favorite episodes several times, but this review is the first time I’ve revisited the whole series in years.

2. Who are all these people?

Rather than focusing on a small core friend group like Three Leaves, Three Colors, another much more recent adorable high school slice-of-life I greatly enjoy (and should maybe review?), Azumanga has a pretty large ensemble.  Most of them are students and the “story arc” such as it is follows them through three years, from entering to graduating from high school, over a single 26-episode season.  So rather than cover a plot synopsis, I think it would make more sense to dive into specific characters and their relationships.  The show its at its funniest and sweetest with the dynamics of certain combinations of the main characters, and there are a lot of combinations available.  Covering all of the recurring named characters approximately in the order we meet them (except a few characters who show up only in an episode or two each and another classmate named Chihiro who shows up on the periphery as a friend of Kaorin), let’s look at the relationships that stand out:

Yukari and Nyamo: Yukari Tanizaki, the English teacher who is the homeroom teacher to most of the cast, is unprofessional and insensitive from the first moment we see her, traits which are elaborated in later episodes into a sort of impulsive over-the-top-ness that clashes with the fact that she actually is a pretty good teacher.  Emphasizing her less-serious attitude, students even refer to or address her by her given name (although the subtitles exaggerate this a bit by consistently calling her “Miss Yukari” when she’s usually just addressed as “teacher”).  Minamo Kurasawa, the gym teacher, is a long-time friend of Yukari.  She and Yukari (who calls her “Nyamo”) were even classmates at the same high school they currently teach at.  In addition to being central to the gym class/sports-related episodes, she’s also Yukari’s more caring, approachable, and professional foil, which sets up interactions where Nyamo tries to be helpful and manage situations in the face of Yukari being antagonistic (and, outside of school hours, drunk) towards her and the students.  Yukari in particular prods at Nyamo’s sore spots: being single and having done embarrassing things in high school.

Tomo and Yomi: Tomo Takino is 100% genki girl.  I mean, come on, she’s the illustration for the TV Tropes article by that name.  She’s not only enthusiastic, but loud, intrusive, and pointlessly competitive to the point of being just plain mean.  She’s the kind of person who might mature into a less competent Yukari if she burnt out a bit.  Koyomi Mizuhara, on the other hand, is much more serious and self-conscious, and although she still genuinely is Tomo’s friend and goes along with some of her silliness, she barely puts up with Tomo’s teasing and flurry of bad ideas.  She is the Nyamo to Tomo’s Yukari, complete with Tomo enforcing a nickname on her, so she’s almost always called “Yomi” throughout.  Yomi is much more considerate than Tomo, too.  This often comes out in Yomi scolding Tomo’s insensitivity, but it’s also seen less directly when they are giving Chiyo (more on her below) birthday presents — Tomo offers first a joke that doesn’t go over well, then a magic wand she apparently expects Chiyo to believe will make her grow taller, which Chiyo dismisses, while Yomi offers a book which Chiyo enthusiastically accepts and says she expects to enjoy.

Osaka, Tomo, and Kagura: Ayumu Kasuga is a distractible and soft-spoken transfer student from Osaka whom Yukari, Tomo, and Yomi pester with misinformed questions and assumptions about her home city.  Tomo, naturally, saddles her with the nickname “Osaka” as if that is her entire identity.  The nickname quickly catches on, with even Yukari calling her that instead of her actual name in class.  She is accepted as a friend by the other students who still consider her eccentric and baffling, but not annoying or embarrassing like you might expect.  (In fact, the other girls react more and more to Tomo as the annoying and embarrassing one.)  During the second year of school,  she bonds with Tomo and Kagura (introduced as a star athlete from Nyamo’s homeroom during the first year, she becomes a major character in the second year) over their similar incredible forgetfulness and poor academics.  Yomi calls them “bonkura”, translated as “knuckleheads”, and the three of them adopt the name for themselves as they study together — an idea which is doomed from the outset.  The three of them together, or any two of them, play off each other wonderfully.

Chiyo and Osaka: Chiyo Mihama, a child prodigy who is only 10 years old at the beginning of the series, is so academically gifted it can upset and embarrass her classmates, but on the other hand is naive, and not just because she’s a child.  She is in fact clueless about the outside world.  She fails in the first summer break trip (ep. 5) to understand that the other characters’ families are nowhere near as rich as hers, and in the second summer break (ep. 14), even after a year and a half of being around high schoolers, she entirely fails to understand Nyamo’s off-screen explanation of “adult relationships” (kids innocently being oblivious to what sex is seems to be a common basis for jokes in Japanese media).  Chiyo being five years younger than her classmates — and on the other side of puberty from them — also makes her lag far behind them in athletics.  On the one hand, this makes her very self-conscious and afraid of being a burden on her classmates in team activities, and on the other, it sets up a running gag of Chiyo and Osaka teaming up to be by far the worst pair of athletes across the board.  Oh, and Osaka’s dream about Chiyo’s pigtails in the New Year’s episode is one of the weirdest and most authentically dreamlike dream sequences I’ve ever seen.  Although maybe that just says more about my own dreams than about the show.

Sakaki and Nobody (or, Multiple Kinds of Unrequited Feelings): Sakaki is considered effortlessly cool and somewhat intimidating — Kagura calls her a “silent lone wolf” — but she’s not big on that reputation.  Students openly admire her, especially for her athletic talent, and treat her with distance and respect by almost universally calling her “Miss Sakaki” (since this is apparently her family name, not given name).  She does not enjoy this treatment, but is also too private (and perhaps too insecure) to complain about or discuss it.  She is indifferent to sports despite excelling at them, and doesn’t even recognize Kagura when she proclaims herself Sakaki’s rival, presumably because the first-year sports festival just didn’t stick out in her memory the way it did in Kagura’s.  Despite calling it rivalry, however, Kagura quickly inserts herself into Sakaki’s life in a friendship that Sakaki responds to more with quiet tolerance than reciprocation.

Kaorin, meanwhile, mistakes Kagura’s one-sided friendly rivalry for a very different kind of attention, and accordingly treats her one-sidedly as a romantic rival (although she does eventually calm down about it).  Kaori (family name not mentioned), usually addressed by the more affectionate “Kaorin”, is shown at first to ambiguously admire Sakaki, but it quickly becomes clear that she is infatuated with her.  And, despite the insistence of many fanfic writers since, Sakaki never catches on to this, even with Kaorin gazing dreamily at her while dancing with her, or clinging to her arm while posing for a picture together.  I'm sure, given how over-the-top she is, that Kaorin’s unrequited feelings are supposed to be funny, but I find it sweet and sad and end up rooting for her.

Sakaki and Cute Animals: Sakaki is not unfriendly, or even very socially inept, though.  She gets along well with the main cast, especially Chiyo.  But she is aloof, not just because of shyness but because she has a secret love of all things cute, especially cats and dogs, and gets caught up in her own thoughts about cute things.  Although she loves animals, they don’t necessarily love her back.  There is a series-spanning running gag with a cat in the neighborhood whom she repeatedly tries to pet, no matter how many times it bites her for doing so.  In fact, in that very same episode where Kagura declares her rivalry, the strongest emotional reactions we see from Sakaki are horror directed at Kagura for scaring that cat away and, later, being moved to tears by a story she’s constructing in her head about another cat while Kagura is trying to talk to her.  Sakaki’s thoughts on cute animals also yield a second running gag: "Chiyo's dad".  An orange cat-like doll (evidently some kind of character or mascot in-universe?) that appears numerous times in the background early in the show appears in Sakaki’s New Year’s dream and introduces himself to her as Chiyo’s father, so Sakaki refers to the doll as “Chiyo’s dad” for the rest of the series without explanation, much to the confusion of the other characters.  While he’s an inanimate object in the background before the dream, afterwards he appears as alive and magical, sometimes in Sakaki’s imagination and sometimes intruding into the real world as short transition clips between scenes.

Kimura vs. Everyone (mostly Kaorin): Last and certainly least, let’s consider Mr. Kimura, the literature teacher.  Within a minute of the first time we the audience see him, Tomo asks him why he became a teacher and he blurts out that it’s because he likes high school girls.  Which a group of creepy boys in the class call “brave”.  Ugh.  This presages chronic inappropriateness of varying levels from Kimura — from unsolicited suggestions for cheerleading uniforms to hanging out during gym class to watch the girls swim to heaping unwanted “favors” on Kaorin, to whom he is obviously attracted.  Beyond the increasing variety of his inappropriateness, he doesn’t really develop as a character.  He is, interestingly, shown as an otherwise decent person outside of school, but this is not portrayed as excusing him.  Rather, it’s made clear that his creepiness is contextual, and his role throughout the series is consistently as a grotesque comic relief, not a sympathetic character.  Kaorin even consciously tries to improve her opinion of Kimura because his wife is so nice, leading her to believe that this means Kimura himself must have good points to deserve someone like that, only to be immediately shown otherwise.  We the audience are laughing at him, not with him, and at some points are genuinely upset at him on the girls’ behalf.  Or at least, I hope that’s how the rest of the audience takes him.

3. Yeah, but there's some kind of progression, right, even if it's not really a story arc?

Again, it's not the kind of show that has an overarching goal or conflict.  The goal, such as it is, is the characters' graduation from high school.  The topic of what they'll each do after graduating comes up several times, as you might expect, but isn't that much of a plot point.  Not all of the main characters even have clear plans laid out that we know of, but the plans we do know about match their established personalities well.  Tomo changes her mind repeatedly between several half-baked ideas.  Osaka decides at the last minute to try to become a teacher based on Chiyo straining to think of something fitting Osaka's... unique way of looking at things.  Chiyo is perhaps overconfident, planning to study abroad in America despite being only 13 when she graduates.  Sakaki anonymously showed interest in veterinary school early on, but didn't discuss it with her friends until much later, after she started showing her weakness for cuteness in front of them.

The main progression that happens is some evolution in the characters' relationships and attitudes.  There is of course the progression from strangers to friends among the main cast, but also some character development growing out of things that started as gags.  Osaka, for example, begins as the butt monkey of the class, but by the end of the first year, she is very well accepted by her classmates, and she even gets along particularly well with Tomo, who was originally shown teasing and stereotyping her the most but has now toned it down a bit.  Nyamo’s miserable singlehood, previously a running joke, leads her to open up to the idea of trying matchmaking instead of dating.  Sakaki becomes more willing to express her love of cute animals in front of the other girls, starting with Chiyo, and her running gag experiences with the hostile cat play out to a resolution when she adopts, of all things, an endangered wildcat which is the only cat that doesn’t bite her, then has a final encounter with the hostile cat where she tries to make amends.  Chiyo's academic talents were met with light irritation and mockery at first, but by the end, her new friends are grateful for her help and rise in applause when she is recognized for her grades during the graduation ceremony.  Kagura relaxes her Tomo-like tendencies more and more, and shows a degree of gratitude and sentimentality towards her new friend group that would’ve been shocking when she was first introduced.  Even Tomo, usually the show's last bastion of immaturity, shows tiny bits of improvement: self-reflection and regret during a serious conversation with Yomi over what American audiences would call "finding your passion", and later leading the applause for Chiyo.  To compare Azumanga to Three Leaves, Three Colors again, it’s true that this show doesn't go into as much depth in character relationships as that one despite running for more than twice the number of episodes, but I don’t think that’s a flaw in Azumanga so much as a combination of Azumanga’s larger main cast, gag comedy focus, and choice of a different “zoom level” on the main cast’s lives.

The show itself evolves a little bit, too.  As it goes on, more episodes have segments that flow together and they contain more references to events in previous episodes.  By the last few episodes, with graduation looming, it almost feels like it has become a conventional plot-driven show.  The shift from shorter to longer segments, shorter to longer jokes, etc., is seamless — and pretty typical of comic strips where perhaps the author hasn’t “figured out” their own characters at the beginning.  Surreal elements also get more common, like the “Chiyo’s dad” running gag and increasingly-elaborate looks into what characters are imagining.  As I recall, these changes reflect the stylistic evolution of the original manga, but... uh... my copy of the manga is with my parents at the moment so I didn’t check myself on that.

4. How is it different in retrospect?

As I said, I first saw this in high school, so I was about the age of the main cast.  Perhaps this was one of the things that made it so enjoyable.  The characters seemed relatable, and I lacked the aversion to depictions of ordinary life that some people had because I didn’t have a particularly negative high school experience despite being decidedly uncool.  (I was, in fact, neither interested in being cool nor in being self-consciously uncool, and was content with the set of people I got along with.  I was never really an angsty teenager so much as a sad one.)  My experience of the show is, if anything, even greater appreciation now.  Some of that difference comes from knowledge and some from aging.

I’ve become a bit less of a poser and/or snob about some things since then.  I’d seen a lot of obviously-atrocious dubs growing up, and they really put me off the idea that anyone actually cared about dubbing into English well.  Since then, I’ve lightened up a bit, partly because it seems like nowadays distributors do a lot less 4Kids-style butchery of shows when they’re translated and partly because I’ve realized that there is plenty of bad Japanese voice acting, too, so sometimes the English version is just plain easier on the ears.  So I’ve watched this mostly in the English dub this time around (some episodes in both to check the different versions of specific jokes) and I really enjoy it.  The voices are character-appropriate and the English lines fit the lip movements better than the original Japanese voice track while only rarely resulting in rhythms and stresses that sound unnatural in English, which really impresses me.

Just from the sort of vocabulary one picks up by being weeaboo trash, I occasionally notice differences in meaning between the dialogue and subtitles when watching the sub version.  And I even picked up on an interesting translation choice for a joke I hadn’t noticed before.  When Yomi tells Osaka that Chiyo is a child prodigy in ep. 2, Osaka responds comparing Chiyo to a boy she knew growing up, resulting in her expressing a different misunderstanding in each version about how the boy was described by adults.  In the English dub, Osaka says something about him “smarting off”, the joke being she thinks that means he’s smart.  In the English subtitles, she says he was “precocious”, to which Yomi says she doesn’t think that meant he was smart by calling him that.  This time around, I finally caught that the Japanese dialogue there clearly uses the phrase “otoko no ko”, insinuating that the boy is a crossdresser and/or gay.  Even though I don’t understand the full Japanese joke, the implication is clearer than it was in English (because I, um, also didn’t think of the double entendre on the word “precocious” until now), as is the degree of the misunderstanding.

I appreciate now how many scenes are psychologically-savvy.  Just in the episode in which the main cast of students move up to their second year of high school, we see two scenes that just click with me as “yes, people do this, and I don’t know why we don’t seem to notice it!”.  I mentioned above Kagura wanting to compete more because of the sports festival while Sakaki thinks nothing of it at all, which hinges on the simple difference in the sports festival having been a memorable event in Kagura’s life but not Sakaki’s.  That episode also features a scene in which Tomo eggs on her classmates to eat their lunches early because it’s a thing that (according to her) second-years do, which sets up Mr. Kimura to arrive the room for literature class, see everyone eating, and therefore assume he must be the one who has the time wrong and go back to the faculty lounge for his own lunch.  This tendency to defer to others in decisions in our own lives, not through peer pressure per se but through assuming that something done commonly or confidently must be correct, is just something I don’t see portrayed or acknowledged much in Japanese or American media.  And I love it.  For those two scenes alone, this is one of my favorite episodes in the whole series.

As far as the characters, I still find the students charming and relatable, and I’m willing to bet that everyone knows someone like most of them in real life.  They fit Japanese character archetypes to a certain extent, but are also developed enough especially in their interactions with each other that they come off as realistic to me.  So they hold up well.  But mainly, I find I have much more appreciation for the teacher characters as an adult.  I can think of times when I’ve been the Yukari in a situation, whether that means being overbearing and inconsiderate when I think I’m being funny or whether it means or digging through a messy desk swearing that I know exactly where something is before creating a landslide.  And I can think of times when I’ve been the Nyamo accidentally antagonizing the Yukari by trying to be helpful.  I even appreciate Kimura, not because I think he’s relatable or a good guy, but because he’s distressingly realistic.  His creepiness comes at the same time as genuine competence and, as far as we are aware, a normal and functional home life.  It is widely-acknowledged yet never stopped by the administration, even though it ranges from unprofessional obnoxiousness to genuinely alarming sexual harassment.  Kimura is unfortunately plausible and all-around frustratingly topical.

Revisiting these characters, I’ve also realized something about myself.  When I first watched this show (and read the manga), I got a serious crush on Osaka.  She would go solidly in the “endearingly pathetic” column if I were to evaluate her that way, and she also reminded me at the time of a few different confidently strange and spacy people I went to high school with.  And then, getting older, I realized…  She’s endlessly distractible by trivial things.  She asks weird hypotheticals and follows odd tangents to other topics.  She often misunderstands people.  She’s hopelessly unathletic and clumsy.  Oh no.  I'm the Osaka of my circle of friends.  So, uh, that’s a thing that happened, and I have no idea what to make of it.

Azumanga is relaxed, wholesome, and hilarious, and its characters and major events are believable even when highly stylized for comedic effect.  When it's not in hyper-simple comedy mode, the art can be downright beautiful.  It’s clearly an artifact of its time given, for example, the lack of cell phones (even basic ones) and persistence of film cameras, but that kind of aging happens to any show.  The situations are still relatable despite not being topical, which makes me think — or at least hope — that this can last well into the future as something new audiences find worth watching.

—–

W/A/S Scores: 8 / 3? / 3

Weeb: There are lots of little things that will seem odd if you go in believing that Japanese school schedules and activities are the same as American ones, but anime is so saturated with high school comedies nowadays that it is much less weeb now than it was then to expect that background knowledge.  Many non-school things like flower-gazing or the fact that seasonal fairs in Japan have different activities and expected clothing than in American ones will seem distinctly foreign but understandable to a naive audience, while a few episodes might need some looking up to “get” because they expect audience familiarity with things still obscure to most Western audiences, like lucky dreams in the New Year’s episode or the yōkai in the second culture festival episode.  Mostly, familiarity with the conventions of other anime or of Japanese culture will enhance enjoyment but aren’t strictly required to enjoy it.  The art style sometimes shifts for specific gags to a particular style of minimal-movement chibi characters on very simple backgrounds which is more at home in the 4-panel comic world in which Azumanga originated (and in pre-moe-era comedy anime, or at least the few I've seen) than in other manga formats or newer anime, creating an additional small hurdle even for those with different Japanese media exposure.

The show runs into more of a barrier with hard-to-translate jokes than anything else, leaving the viewer the choice between replacement jokes with similar general ideas in the dub vs. the occasional feeling that there should be a joke but you’re not quite getting it in the sub.  One particular joke that they made no attempt to adapt ended up being utter nonsense in both the sub and dub unless you get that "Mr. Yukichi" refers to 19th Century Westernization advocate Fukuzawa Yukichi, who is on the ¥10,000 bill, and I gave the show an entire extra point on the Weeb scale just because I had to look that up.

Ass: Unless you’re Mr. Kimura, probably no “ass” score at all as far as sexualizing the characters, but there is the occasional sexual joke or implication.  Even the obligatory beach episodes aren’t fanservicey in the way or to the degree that a contemporary moe high school show often is.  Probably the single most sexual-looking thing is characters holding their skirts down in the intro, which is tame by comparison to anything released in the last decade.  Kimura, however, does make the show unsuitable for audiences… well… younger than the show’s main cast, probably.

Shit (writing): I have very little problem with the bulk of the content.  I think the show works and the characters are relatable and delightful.  But I do have some gripes about translation, mostly in the dub.  Although I still maintain the dub is unusually good in acting and synchronization, they do take more liberties than I’d like with changing jokes, and the dub and sub both lose some subtlety in how characters address each other, as mentioned before.

On top of that, there are some odd localization choices in the dub.  For example, the way Yukari, their English teacher in the original Japanese, is not portrayed as teaching a foreign language at all in the dub, while still making a big deal of her foreign language skills outside of class, or how characters repeatedly say “taiyaki pastry” in the dub instead of just establishing once for the English-speaking audience that taiyaki is the name of a specific style of pastry and using the name “taiyaki” from then on.  Also, I know this is very small and specific, but I noticed a place in ep. 17 where they inserted a strained pun in the dub where there was intentional awkward silence in the sub, so that’s just… weird.

Shit (other): The animation is often sparse, and although this is usually fine, it does sometimes come off as cheap.  The biggest problem visually is that the DVDs I’m watching have noticeable and pretty frequent combing, which I was able to reduce but not eliminate by fiddling with video player settings.  On the other hand, kudos to the director for hitting a sweet spot on shots that are lingered on or actions that are repeated for “too long” (e.g., Nyamo demonstrating chopstick use, or any of the scenes of Chiyo and Osaka failing at sports, or Osaka trying to wake up Yukari) because they end up hilarious when they could have been tedious.

Oh, and I love the soundtrack.  Some people may also find the frequent use of recorders annoying, but those people are (1) wrong and (2) not writing this blog.  The soundtrack is appropriately lighthearted and/or relaxing.  The opening theme “Soramimi Cake” is catchy and accompanied by an opening credits sequence that decently shows who the main characters are.  But “Raspberry Heaven”, the ending theme… ah… the sequence accompanying it is a beautiful dream and the music is movingly bittersweet for reasons I lack the music theory background to articulate.  Like, this is a really weird example, but it conveys my feelings: have you seen Soylent Green?  You know the scene where Sol is listening to a medley of classical music while he’s being euthanized?  If the last thing I ever heard were “Raspberry Heaven”, I would die totally content.

Content Warning: Kimura.

—–

Stray observations:

- I think Kaorin may have been the first unambiguously gay character I saw in any anime.  Sailor Moon or Cardcaptor Sakura would’ve beaten Azumanga to the punch with representation, but I grew up on the butchered-for-pearl-clutching-audiences versions of those shows.

- Kimura has, incidentally, produced one piece of lasting weeb culture.  While trying to save his illustration for a proposed magical girl cheerleading outfit, he drops a picture of a woman.  Tomo picks it up and wonders out loud who it is.  Kimura responds, in heavily-accented English, “my waifu”.  So… yup.  We have him to thank for the whole waifu/hasubando phenomenon.  Or, well, the terminology, since attraction to fictional characters is probably a phenomenon as old as fiction itself.

- More of a fun fact than a stray observation, Kuricorder Orchestra, who collaborated with Oranges & Lemons on the Azumanga soundtrack, recorded two Yotsuba-inspired concept albums, which are also adorable.  They’re hard to come by in official copies, but I can’t help but notice that nobody seems to be stopping anyone from uploading them to YouTube...

- The background music in the cheerleading scene in ep. 6 is the “Grandpa Polka”, a.k.a. “The Clarinet Polka”, which fans of various other weird geeky media may recognize as the melody for the Candy Mountain song in “Charlie the Unicorn” and/or as the song between “Love Shack” and “Pump Up the Jam” in Weird Al’s medley “Polka Your Eyes Out”.

- My junior high, oddly, did have sports festivals somewhat like those depicted in anime, but I don’t hear much about other American schools doing similar things.

[chromsai]

The Pendulum Guiding Towards Uniqueness

Oh man. I haven’t done this in a while but...

Let’s talk about something real quick:

Let’s talk about what an important and wholesome message this is.

I know the fandom loves to give Yusho a lot of crap, especially with how he acts during the last arc of the show, among a few other things, but let’s just appreciate that even if Yusho isn’t the best father in Yugioh history, he’s still a good dad overall.

Good especially for Yuya.

Let’s talk about the fact that Yusho isn’t entirely pushing an entertainment persona onto Yuya. I’m certain he’s beyond happy that his son looks up to him and is following in his footsteps, but he’s never wanted Yuya to be like him. He’s wanted Yuya to be like Yuya. 

I mean...

Children of celebrities and public figures like Yusho usually have their work cut out for them. If normal kids are already expected by their parents to be the absolute best at everything, I think celeb kids can have it especially hard because they’re dealing with living up to their parents’ expectations, their own expectations, and lastly...

Society’s expectations.

y’all know where i’m going with this, right? 

*coughszarccoughs*

Yusho supports Yuya no matter which direction he chooses to take for himself, so at the very least Yuya doesn’t have to worry too much about pressure from expectations from his parents.

That leaves just his own expectations and what society expects from him as the only pressures affecting him constantly.

Well the problem is, Yusho isn’t there for most of the story to reassure him of this. To reassure him that there is no pressure on his part at all, something that Yuya, due to Yusho’s prolonged absence, isn’t entirely aware of.... (if you don’t believe me, recall Yuya’s painful breakdown in ep. 135 as proof... the poor boy apologizes to Yusho, even when he’s not there, thinking that Yusho would be disappointed or ashamed in him, even though we, the audience, know that he has nothing to apologize for).

Hell, we saw in the second duel Yuya had against Jack Atlas that it apparently took Yuya years and an intervention from Jack Atlas himself for him to realize what Yusho meant about “preserving his Yuya-ness” and not using his “borrowed words”. He wanted Yuya to find his own words instead.

The pendulum itself is a great symbol for this since it can represent two things: swaying between one thing to another, a.k.a. indecision or uncertainty (specifically, uncertainty in yourself) BUT it can also symbolize a tool for discovery, as Yusho has pointed out before in a different flashback— if Yuya ever gets lost, the Pendulum is there to guide him.

But the Pendulum only swings between two (2) extremes; in this case, since Yusho is gone and with him his expectations of Yuya (if any) as well, what’s left is that, for Yuya, the Pendulum swings between: his own expectations vs. society’s expectations.

We see several times that Yuya is always troubled between either to entertain people and make them happy or to fight to save the world, and of course striking a balance between the two isn’t quite as simple as just stopping the Pendulum in the middle of its tracks, especially not when there are other factors that are in the mix. Thus, we get Arc-V’s story and the conflicts Yuya faces throughout it.

Going backwards a bit, though, I also want to point out the sad irony that is carried by Yuya repeating the words “preserve my uniqueness...”

This should be a bit more straightforward for a couple of reasons (such as the fact that he isn’t the only Pendulum user anymore, or later on, as stated before, the fact that his entertainment style is based on his father’s “borrowed words”, etc.), but mainly because as the story progresses, we find out that Yuya isn’t quite so unique:

There are 3 other boys who look just like him. Granted, these 3 other boys might look like him, but they act nothing alike (thankfully). But, okay, then it’s revealed that they were once actually all one person.

I’ll repeat that and add onto it:

Yuya and these three other boys who look just like him are actually the same person, and, to top it all off, this person that they once all were (Zarc) had no Pendulum at the time, meaning he had no guidance, and, as a consequence, found himself succumbing to society’s expectations.

So given his ultimate background, how does Yuya, aka a fragment of someone’s soul, as Zarc likes to call him, “preserve his uniqueness...”?

Well, think of it this way: if you break a glass, you end up with fragments of that glass. And although you can gather the pieces and put them all back together to make it into the original whole again, you still have just fragments merged into a whole again. Each fragment has its own unique edges that make up its own unique shape, and I guarantee that none of the other fragments are quite the same, even if they’re all equally important to the whole.

It’s this uniqueness about him that Yusho wants Yuya to preserve, but that Yuya can’t see for himself. It’s why Yuya’s Pendulum is so necessary to him: it’s why when he lost it as a child, he cried, or why when Zarc finally takes over him and Yuya is lost to his darkness, his Pendulum falls to the floor— unswaying and directionless. And it’s why Zarc doesn’t even bother with it either— why would he since he already chose a path— just like he did the first time before Ray split him into four fragments. He said so himself: he made a vow back then to meet the expectations that society thrust upon him for more violent entertainment, and that vow remained unwavering even after his revival...

I suppose it’s, once again, ironic that Yuya doesn’t regain control over Zarc & himself until Reiji points out to Zarc, who denies being Yuya, that he is Yuya... but that he’s also always been Zarc. Always been swaying back and forth between his two extremes: Yuya, the entertainer who ultimately always seems to choose to live up to his own standards of what he believes Entertainment should really be for (which is to bring and protect smiles), and Zarc, the entertainer who lived solely for the purpose of meeting society’s expectations. 

And thus, the Pendulum guides Yuya back to his own heart again...

But what about the other three fragments: Yuto, Yugo, and Yuri? Are they even unique? What can make them unique?

Well of course they’re unique! The nuance here is that they’re parts of Zarc, as Yuya is as well, that make up Zarc’s whole HUMAN entertainer personality. 

Yuto was the part of Zarc that didn’t actually want to hurt anyone but did so because it was expected of him. Yugo was the competitive and obsessive part of Zarc that kept him motivated to continue his violent duels since it was expected of him. And, of course, Yuri was the psychotic, lost part of Zarc that led him to his ultimate endgame: fusing with his dragons to become an ultimate force of destruction, as was expected of him. Leo himself expected Yuri to be reliably unstoppable and used him (since he was a mere child, in fact), much like the Original Dimension’s society did, to meet his expectations of completing Arc-V (the machine).

But then we’re back again to question which part of Zarc Yuya made up. Well, it’s very simple:

Yuya was the part of Zarc that originally just wanted to make the people of the Original Dimension, his monsters, and his opponents smile.

THIS is the uniqueness that Yusho desired for Yuya to preserve about himself.

Yusho, despite the adversity and the reality about Yuya that inevitably presents itself before him...

...has absolute faith in Yuya.

That Yuya, as Yoko would say...

... will surpass Yusho Sakaki in that ability. Thus why Yusho would be at ease if he passed on, knowing that Yuya is still alive and well and would take on his role.

But again, we’re back to an expectation of Yuya. Neither Yoko nor Yusho actually care how he does it, they just know that Yuya will bring smiles to the world. Because they have that much faith in his uniqueness.

But it’s not a far-fetched expectation— Jack Atlas himself knows this is true of him. He knows it’s Yuya’s role to play in his life. That why he pushes Yuya to recognize that his father’s borrowed words about entertainment and smiles aren’t his true dueling, his Pendulum summoning is.

This is why Yusho never led his son into the path that Dennis eventually took as his protege: he had faith that Yuya would eventually found something completely UNIQUE of his own, just as he did, and SURPASS HIM.

The courage to take YOUR OWN step forward.

By the end of Arc V, we see Yusho recognizes this in Yuya, otherwise he wouldn’t have bothered challenging him head on (as he claimed previously within the last few episodes that if Yuya wasn’t able to save Reira, and to an extent the world’s, smiles, then he wouldn’t be a true duelist after all, but Yuya of course did).

In the end, Yuya himself has outgrown his own ambition of becoming like his dad, Yusho. He’s learned that his uniqueness due to his Pendulum has given him the unbound potential to surpass Yusho.

And that truly is a Miracle Drawn by the Pendulum of Uniqueness.

[melodyrisen-a]

Headcanon game time! E, O, and R @ any of the girls, but Yuya especially wants Yuzu to answer Z

The Fluffiest headcanon game ever!

Ecstatic (name one thing that always gets them excited)

Any track designed for turbo dueling and racing. As much as she tries to hold it in, being near a track and D-Wheels never failed to make Rin break out into a broad smile at the very least, eagerly bounding from place to place to memorize everything. Who’s racing and dueling? What bikes are they riding, the parts, what’s the track like? What colors are their riding suits - Can she take notes and pictures?! The only thing that makes it better is if Yugo’s participating; it’s probably the only time he’ll be able to catch her practically beaming over him where he can see!

Omnomnom (snack headcanons)

As active as Ray tries to keep herself, she can’t help but fall victim to the munchies when she settles down in the evenings, and always turns to her favorite: Popcorn balls. It’s a treat she allows herself twice a week at best and makes on her own, popping a bowl full of it in the afternoons before heading out and setting it aside to make the sticky treat with after she gets back home. Chocolate, caramel, even butterscotch - If it’s sweet and holds the ball together for her to drizzle another topping over, she’s tried it!

Rain (anything to do with rainy days)

One of Ruri’s favorite things to do when it rains is to sit outside in a dry spot and listen and watch. Before Heartland’s fall, she was relatively known for vanishing on rainy days - Though it was never hard to find her, either, as she’d make her way to a large tree not far from the Kurosaki household and settle underneath it with a warm drink, relishing in the peace and quiet. Heartland always seemed so different whenever it rained or snowed, and even if the tree didn’t keep her completely dry, it was her favorite place to be, whether it was in a downpour or a light drizzle.

Zoo (Do they have a favorite animal? Do they have/ want a pet?)

Unfortunately, Yuzu doesn’t have a pet at the moment - If she gets the urge to play with a small, cute, fluffy animal, you can totally find her at the Sakaki household! Yet despite her content-ness in spending time with Yoko and Yuya’s houseful of cats and dogs, she’d give anything for a rabbit. Specifically, a long and floppy-eared, large, brown and white rabbit, an animal she has a name already picked out for and counts as her favorite. The problem? She can’t quite afford the care for one just yet, and her dad won’t let her until she can!

[tomasbarrosblog]

Enigma – O Terror das Escape Rooms

Algo muito sinistro ocorre no metrô de Londres. Um dos trens parou subitamente entre as estações Picadilly Circus e Green Park. Alguns vagões haviam sido completamente vandalizados na noite anterior, o que sinalizava que algo ruim estava por vir. Hoje, um grupo anarquista de hackers invadiu todos os sistemas da cidade e instaurou o caos! Todos os meios de comunicação estão interrompidos. As portas estão bloqueadas e tudo indica que os trens estão fora de controle. Mas a situação pode piorar! Um dos trens desgovernados está vindo na sua direção e vocês têm apenas 60 minutos para escapar antes da colisão fatal.

Essa é a descrição da atração Metrô em Londres, da empresa Escape60’ especializada em Escape Rooms (se quiserem mais informações sobre eles, só conferir AQUI).

Enigme de Kenji Sakaki

A autora Kenji Sakaki

O conceito de ficar trancado em um ambiente estranho e misterioso, sozinho ou com outras pessoas, resolvendo puzzles e mistérios, com diversas temáticas enquanto você tem uma corrida contra o tempo para chegar ao grande objetivo, que é escapar, se tornou muito popular como uma forma de entretenimento e hobby, serviu também como pano de fundo para diversos filmes, séries, livros etc. Claro que o universo dos mangás não iria ficar de fora e foi justamente essa temática que inspirou a autora Kenji Sakaki a criar Enigma!

1 – Sinopse

Enigma (ou Enigme, como a grafia do título sugere) foi originalmente publicado na Weekly Shonen Jump entre 2010 e 2011, porém os sete volumes que compõem a obra só chegaram ao Brasil em abril de 2015 graças a Editora JBC.

Aqui vocês vão encontrar a história de Sumio Haiba, um colegial comum… Isso se ignorarmos que ele guarda um grande segredo: ele possui o “Diário dos Sonhos”, uma habilidade capaz de prever o futuro! Certo dia, uma existência misteriosa que se autointitula “Enigma” reuniu à força sete pessoas com talentos únicos como o de Sumio! E agora começa a grande fuga deles, enfrentando o próprio destino! (Sinopse retirada do próprio Volume 1).

2 – Terror juvenil e superpoderes criativos

Enigma possui duas grandes forças que reforçam sua qualidade. A primeira grande força está na abordagem que a autora decidiu seguir, de uma pitada de terror paranormal/psicológico com a fórmula clássica que podemos ver em qualquer obra padrão de shounen. Para quem curte uma história com mistério e esses elementos, vai se sentir bem-vindo, e quem só quer ver um pouco de ação de jovens com superpoderes também se sentirá em casa, quem curte os dois então, terá uma ótima experiência.

Quando digo que há elementos de terror, não esperem algo muito “Junji Ito” ou “Jogos Mortais”, mas ainda é o suficiente para causar um desconforto. A ambientação no estilo “escape room”, perspicazmente escolhida, diga-se de passagem, tem o intuito de causar aquela sensação claustrofóbica. Há sim situações que deixariam até John “Jigsaw” Kramer orgulhoso, mas por mais sérios ou pesados que sejam os desafios, logo vem o alívio cômico que tira a tensão e põe a história de volta ao seu rumo, com a sensação de superação no peito.

A segunda grande força está em seu elenco de personagens, no caso, os sete escolhidos para participarem do E-Test orquestrado pelo vilão Enigma.  Para poder falar dos personagens vou precisar deixar aquele pequeno aviso de [SPOILER], mas não se preocupem que não é nada pesado, só que é bem complicado entrar nesse tópico sem citar algumas coisas sobre eles, que são reveladas no decorrer da história. Nem todos têm seus poderes revelados logo de cara e, sejamos honestos, é isso que os deixa interessantes, pois a autora usa aquela fórmula “o poder é a personalidade dele” em alguns casos.

Sumio Haiba

Como mencionado na sinopse, o protagonista da história é o Haiba e como talento único está a capacidade de prever o futuro. É bem inusitada a forma escolhida pro seu poder se manifestar. Ele simplesmente sente um sono incontrolável, dorme por uns instantes e sua mão sozinha escreve no diário, que ele chama de diário dos sonhos, o que está para acontecer. Esse poder é de uma extrema importância não só para os desafios que ele vai enfrentar, mas também para o desenvolvimento da história toda! Fora o seu poder, ele é um personagem bem divertido e encarna o papel de protagonista, como é esperado. Animado, motivador e valorizando a amizade e confiança do grupo acima de tudo, nunca desistindo não importa o perigo.

  Shigeru Kurumiya

Dividindo um pouco o spotlight como protagonista, no lado feminino, está a amiga de infância e colega de classe do Haiba, Shigeru Kurumiya. Inicialmente, é apresentada como uma personagem sem poderes, mas mais pra frente isso tem a sua devida importância, é a única que eu realmente preciso manter o suspense para não estragar a experiência de vocês. Ela tem uma personalidade muito gentil e está sempre cuidando do Haiba, dando broncas quando ele fica flertando aleatoriamente com meninas ou fazendo alguma coisa muito imbecil, pois é a adolescência, né…?

    Agora introduzindo aos personagens que conhecemos depois que o E-Test começa:

Aru Mizusawa

Aru Mizusawa: É literalmente o mascote do grupo. Quando foi capturado, estava trabalhando como mascote da polícia local chamado de Pit-Kun e esse também é o seu poder! Ele pode se transformar no fofíssimo Pit-Kun! Com isso ganha habilidades sobre-humanas como pulos poderosos, superforça e invulnerabilidade!

Moto Hasekura

Moto Hasekura: Tímido e medroso, Hasekura tem a habilidade de fazer coisas desaparecerem, mas não exatamente. Ele pode fazer o que desejar ficar invisível, seja uma parede, seja uma pessoa em uma foto ou até ele mesmo. Como disse antes, os poderes são muito reflexos das personalidades dos personagens, então ele externa essa coisa de “queria sumir”, de tão tímido que é.

Jiro Matsurigi

Jiro Matsurigi: Como em uma boa história em colégio tinha que ter, ele é o presidente do comitê disciplinar do colégio. Tem uma personalidade altiva, madura e é muito rígido com os colegas. Seu poder é a subtração cúbica. Explicando de forma fácil, ele tem o poder de fazer o que o Homem-Formiga faz nos filmes da Marvel, pode encolher e aumentar objetos, só não pode fazer isso com pessoas.

Hiina Kujoin

Hiina Kujoin: Também seguindo o bingo de estereótipos de personagens colegiais, temos a “oujou-sama” do grupo. Muito disciplinada e com o nariz em pé, é filha de uma família muito rica. Mas tem seu lado humilde e doce. Tem um dos poderes que, particularmente, considero um dos mais interessantes e originais! Ela tem uma mão fantasma! A única coisa que permite visualizá-la são marcas pretas que ela deixa onde toca.

Takemaru Sudo

Takemaru Sudo: Aquele aluno mal encarado e que está sempre escondido por baixo de seu casaco com capuz. Sempre nervoso e com mentalidade direta ao ponto. Tem a incrível habilidade de rebobinar as coisas, como por exemplo, pegar um objeto comum, como uma mesa, e rebobinar até antes de ela ter sido montada.

Finalmente temos o próprio Enigma, o grande vilão da história e que se apresenta apenas como uma caveira desfigurada em um telão. Fazendo questão de deixar claro que já conhece intimamente cada um dos participantes e que os desafios de E-Test são uma forma de seleção para encontrar pessoas fortes.

O misterioso Enigme

O que une a motivação dos personagens, além de sobreviver a um sequestro por um sociopata, é a promessa que o Enigma faz de que quem conseguir escapar terá um desejo realizado. Sendo que esse desejo, pelo que vemos com o que acontece com o Haiba, é algo que o próprio Enigma arquitetou. Nesse caso, o desejo dele é recuperar a mãe que foi aparentemente sequestrada pelo vilão. No decorrer da história, os outros personagens vão tendo seus desejos e motivações revelados e isso constrói ainda mais suas personas.

3 – Conclusão

Infelizmente, não posso me aprofundar mais na história ou em detalhes, pois pode estragar a experiência, e a minha intenção com esse texto é de fato tentar motivar vocês a procurarem por esse mangá. Garanto a vocês que será uma leitura divertida e empolgante, pois como todo bom mistério e terror, ele instiga a curiosidade e faz querer ir até o fim para entender tudo o que está acontecendo. A seleção de personagens é bem diversa e com certeza vocês irão se identificar com alguns. O altruísmo do Aru, a falta de paciência do Sudo que parece querer resolver tudo no soco ou o próprio Sumio Haiba sempre motivado, energético e puxando o melhor de cada envolvido nessa situação complicada.

Quanto ao traço e estilo de arte da Kenji Sakaki, acho muito bonito! É um traço limpo e que se mantém o mesmo do começo ao fim da história. Esse mangá não é o primeiro trabalho de Sakaki, então ela já tem seu estilo próprio bem estabelecido. As capas de cada volume são um show à parte! Um uso muito bom das cores e que dá muita vida. Ela consegue fazer com que a arte acompanhe a narrativa de uma forma que você sente a tensão, medo, insegurança e perigos de cada desafio imposto pelo Enigma! O design dos personagens alterna entre algo bem padrão, até bem excêntrico quando tem que ser. As escolhas estéticas são todas planejadas e tem suas funções narrativas.

Vale dar uma conferida, pois, em primeiro lugar, é bem raro termos algo além de “mangá de lutinha” e shoujo por aqui. Poder ler um mangá de gênero terror para variar é sempre uma ótima pedida pra sair da rotina. Além disso, ele está super acessível! Tem como encontrar a preços relativamente honestos o box com os sete volumes (e um marca página de brinde),que é o formato que tenho, podem ser comprados na loja oficial da JBC os volumes avulsos e também está disponível em versão digital!

Se vocês já leram esse mangá, deixem aí nos comentários suas críticas, e se ainda não tiveram a oportunidade, comentem também se ficaram curiosos! Além disso, quero saber também quem aí já teve a oportunidade de participar de um Escape Room de verdade! Ou se tem vontade de participar de um!

A minha edição do mangá de Enigma!

Revisão: Karin Cavalcante

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