#taigen is so funny man

[theweirdowithcoffee]

Continuing my weird out of practice Great Teacher Onizuka meets Blue Eye Samurai images- this time it's a bit of a shitposty (took me less time and effort, and I think I hate drawing more angular head shapes now)

Taigen's no good very bad episode one climatic scene.

(the original image which inspired it)

[fiovske]

the thing abt mizu is that she is extremely non-binary in such a genderqueer way that she has homoerotic energy w men and extremely sapphic energy w women.

[scalpelsister]

genuinely fear some of you may be stupid. god bless <3

[boogiewoogieweeb]

I'm not saying The Terror in general and Joplittle specifically have definitively given me permanent brain rot but I am finding it funny that I'm picking up parallels and similarities with both in a series as far removed from it as Netflix's Blue Eye Samurai

[hauntingblue]

Yes girl!!! Abandon your friends and go kill that man!!!

[bubblebbg]

can i ask for a jealous mizu from blue eye samurai feeling a little overprotective and jealous when taigen spars with reader bc they are a swordmaster as well? Mizu doesn’t like it how taigen always gets you to laugh or how he injures you when sparring

why yes, anon. you may. Only warning is violence, but like, not really? Not proofread. Also, Mizu's pronouns change per perspective. I may as well shamelessly plug my other Mizu fic right here ;))

❝𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝❞

Mizu has no one to blame but herself when she's forced to bite back her envy and watch you with Taigen. If you two spar one more time, she might throw up in her mouth. It's about time she takes matters into her own hands.

The clinking of metal on metal, the air sliced through with a swish; all sounds Mizu has become accustomed to. Nonetheless, her eyebrow twitches in irritation, eyes following the movements in front of her. She thinks to herself that she never wanted to be this accustomed to those sounds, especially not when accompanied with Taigen's stupid remarks.

She watches you double back after having knocked him down yet again in the midst of your spars. She hates the way the both of you giggle.

"Please," Mizu rolls her eyes, "It can't be that funny the eighth time."

Taigen collects his sword and stands, sheathing it before dusting himself off. "Like you could do any better. Sure, you're good, but you're no master." He looks to you as he says this, smiling as if the praise was at all inconspicuous. She scoffs a bit when you smile back, crossing her arms and looking to the side.

The irony of her jealousy is that it's of her own making. You've asked Mizu to train with you before, and every time it's been a no. Because she cares about you, she at least does you the decency of making up excuses. "I'm tired, maybe tomorrow" or "I'm busy" - poor excuses, she knows, but she's trying here - and you've learned to stop asking. The truth is, she doesn't trust herself to not give away what she tries to keep hidden. Her heart already beats hard enough around you. The consequence? Watching you spar with a man who's clearly inferior to you, all while he makes pathetic advances and jokes. She's not sure if she hates him or herself more right now.

"But that's right," Taigen remarks, a snarky look on his face, "You're too scared, aren't you?"

The look in your eyes is cautionary as you nudge him. "Stop it," you mutter. And Mizu knows she shouldn't be so childish as to take the bait, but this isn't about you; it's a direct challenge from Taigen on her (sort of) manlihood.

"I am not scared."

"Then prove it. Duel. Right now."

"That's enough, Taigen," you reply, always the mediator, "If Mizu doesn't want to spar, then he -"

"I'll do it," she stands, approaching you both and stopping in front of Taigen with a searing look, "And you'll see that you're not even half the swordsman I am."

𓆩… . … . … . … . … . … . … . … . … . … . … . … . …𓆪

Inhale. Exhale. You stand face to face, a few meters apart, each a hand on their sword. The cold bites, snow falling between the two of you. When you look into her eyes, you see blazing fire, a spirit like tempered steel. When she looks into yours, there's something more unnerving; calm, like the surface of water undisturbed. Her heart pounds.

Inhale, she wills herself. Exhale. She draws and lunges, and you're quick to block it. Another swing, and another, and another, all quick and strong. Sharp eyes, she thinks. Each attack of hers is stopped as soon as it begins. Your eyes, watching as if not only to prevent, but to predict.

Inhale. She steps back, assessing. You're like a fortress - impenetrable defense. Your lips curl in the slightest smile and there goes her damn heart's pounding again.

Exhale. She drops to a crouch and swipes snow at you in an attempt to blind you, to throw off your analysis. She lunges through the spray with a decisive blow, a duel-ending strike.

Nothing. Her blade hits nothing.

Instead there's a blade at her throat, with you behind her. "How the hell did you -"

She reddens at the feeling of your warm chuckle at her ear. "You're breathing gives you away," you whisper, "Every time, without fail." You sheath your blade and Mizu whips around to look at you. She can't help but share the smile you give her. "Dirty bastard," she replies, and your laughter fills the air, the only sound she'll never tire of.

"Hah! I knew it, you're no match either, Mizu!"

Mizu's about to reply when you beat her to it.

"Whatever Taigen, he lasted longer than you ever will."

And it's Mizu's turn to laugh.

[slater130]

My favorite thing about this scene, besides the objective fact its cool and sexy when rivals with a promise that only the other is allowed to kill them accidently turning each other on while wresting, is how Taigen specifically reacts.

(Note: To be clear Mizu is referred to as female by the co creators/writers a mixed raced couple who based Mizu on there daughter so She/her is how I will refer to her, no disrespect to others with there own AU/headcanons for her gender)

Anyway, reminder, as this point Taigen still things Mizu is a boy, and his reaction is to be bashfully embarrassed, but not to deny it or try to defend his straightness.

Which means 1 of 3 things.

1. Taigen is Bi and already knows it, so he's more embarrassed by the circumstances then the act.

2. Taigen just realized he is Bi in that moment and had the calmest reaction to that revelation ever.

3. Taigen is Straight, but so secure in his Heterosexuality, that rolling around with someone he thinks is a man and the friction causing a hard on is just a matter of fact thing that happened and he's man enough to just admit it no fuss no muss.

All 3 options are a mix of both funny and really sweet, we stan a self secure fated Rival/Love Interest

[hauntingofhouses]

Very interesting to me that a certain subset of the BES fandom's favourite iterations of Mizu and Akemi are seemingly rooted in the facades they have projected towards the world, and are not accurate representations of their true selves.

And I see this is especially the case with Mizu, where fanon likes to paint her as this dominant, hyper-masculine, smirking Cool GuyTM who's going to give you her strap. And this idea of Mizu is often based on the image of her wearing her glasses, and optionally, with her cloak and big, wide-brimmed kasa.

And what's interesting about this, to me, is that fanon is seemingly falling for her deliberate disguise. Because the glasses (with the optional combination of cloak and hat) represent Mizu's suppression of her true self. She is playing a role.

Take this scene of Mizu in the brothel in Episode 4 for example. Here, not only is Mizu wearing her glasses to symbolise the mask she is wearing, but she is purposely acting like some suave and cocky gentleman, intimidating, calm, in control. Her voice is even deeper than usual, like what we hear in her first scene while facing off with Hachiman the Flesh-Trader in Episode 1.

This act that Mizu puts on is an embodiment of masculine showboating, which is highly effective against weak and insecure men like Hachi, but also against women like those who tried to seduce her at the Shindo House.

And that brings me to how Mizu's mask is actually a direct parallel to Akemi's mask in this very same scene.

Here, Akemi is also putting up an act, playing up her naivety and demure girlishness, using her high-pitched lilted voice, complimenting Mizu and trying to make small talk, all so she can seduce and lure Mizu in to drink the drugged cup of sake.

So what I find so interesting and funny about this scene, characters within it, and the subsequent fandom interpretations of both, is that everyone seems to literally be falling for the mask that Mizu and Akemi are putting up to conceal their identities, guard themselves from the world, and get what they want.

It's also a little frustrating because the fanon seems to twist what actually makes Mizu and Akemi's dynamic so interesting by flattening it completely. Because both here and throughout the story, Mizu and Akemi's entire relationship and treatment of each other is solely built off of masks, assumptions, and misconceptions.

Akemi believes Mizu is a selfish, cocky male samurai who destroyed her ex-fiance's career and life, and who abandoned her to let her get dragged away by her father's guards and forcibly married off to a man she didn't know. on the other hand, Mizu believes Akemi is bratty, naive princess who constantly needs saving and who can't make her own decisions.

These misconceptions are even evident in the framing of their first impressions of each other, both of which unfold in these slow-motion POV shots.

Mizu's first impression of Akemi is that of a beautiful, untouchable princess in a cage. Swirling string music in the background.

Akemi's first impression of Mizu is of a mysterious, stoic "demon" samurai who stole her fiance's scarf. Tense music and the sound of ocean waves in the background.

And then, going back to that scene of them together in Episode 4, both Mizu and Akemi continue to fool each other and hold these assumptions of each other, and they both feed into it, as both are purposely acting within the suppressive roles society binds them to in order to achieve their goals within the means they are allowed (Akemi playing the part of a subservient woman; Mizu playing the part of a dominant man).

But then, for once in both their lives, neither of their usual tactics work.

Akemi is trying to use flattery and seduction on Mizu, but Mizu sees right through it, knowing that Akemi is just trying to manipulate and harm her. Rather than give in to Akemi's tactics, Mizu plays with Akemi's emotions by alluding to Taigen's death, before pinning her down, and then when she starts crying, Mizu just rolls her eyes and tells her to shut up.

On the opposite end, when Mizu tries to use brute force and intimidation, Akemi also sees right through it, not falling for it, and instead says this:

"Under your mask, you're not the killer you pretend to be."

Nonetheless, despite the fact that they see a little bit through each other's masks, they both still hold their presumptions of each other until the very end of the season, with Akemi seeing Mizu as an obnoxious samurai swooping in to save the day, and Mizu seeing Akemi as a damsel in distress.

And what I find a bit irksome is that the fandom also resorts to flattening them to these tropes as well.

Because Mizu is not some cool, smooth-talking samurai with a big dick sword as Akemi (and the fandom) might believe. All of that is the facade she puts up and nothing more. In reality, Mizu is an angry, confused and lonely child, and a masterful artist, who is struggling against her own self-hatred. Master Eiji, her father figure who knows her best, knows this.

And Akemi, on the other hand, is not some girly, sweet, vain and spoiled princess as Mizu might believe. Instead she has never cared for frivolous things like fashion, love or looks, instead favouring poetry and strategy games instead, and has always only cared about her own independence. Seki, her father figure who knows her best, knows this.

But neither is she some authoritative dominatrix, though this is part of her new persona that she is trying to project to get what she wants. Because while Akemi is willful, outspoken, intelligent and authoritative, she can still be naive! She is still often unsure and needs to have her hand held through things, as she is still learning and growing into her full potential. Her new parental/guardian figure, Madame Kaji, knows this as well.

So with all that being said, now that we know that Mizu and Akemi are essentially wearing masks and putting up fronts throughout the show, what would a representation of Mizu's and Akemi's true selves actually look like? Easy. It's in their hair.

This shot on the left is the only time we see Mizu with her hair completely down. In this scene, she's being berated by Mama, and her guard is completely down, she has no weapon, and is no longer wearing any mask, as this is after she showed Mikio "all of herself" and tried to take off the mask of a subservient housewife. Thus, here, she is sad, vulnerable, and feeling small (emphasised further by the framing of the scene). This is a perfect encapsulation of what Mizu is on the inside, underneath all the layers of revenge-obsession and the walls she's put around herself.

In contrast, the only time we Akemi with her hair fully down, she is completely alone in the bath, and this scene takes place after being scorned by her father and left weeping at his feet. But despite all that, Akemi is headstrong, determined, taking the reigns of her life as she makes the choice to run away, but even that choice is reflective of her youthful naivety. She even gets scolded by Seki shortly after this in the next scene, because though she wants to be independent, she still hasn't completely learned to be. Not yet. Regardless, her decisiveness and moment of self-empowerment is emphasised by the framing of the scene, where her face takes up the majority of the shot, and she stares seriously into the middle distance.

To conclude, I wish popular fanon would stop mischaracterising these two, and flattening them into tropes and stereotypes (ie. masculine badass swordsman Mizu and feminine alluring queen but also girly swooning damsel Akemi), all of which just seems... reductive. It also irks me when Akemi is merely upheld as a love interest and romantic device for Mizu and nothing more, when she is literally Mizu's narrative foil (takes far more narrative precedence over romantic interest) and the deuteragonist of this show. She is her own person. That is literally the theme of her entire character and arc.

[missviviii]

i’m absolutely obsessed with grumpy x sunshine ship dynamic so i would love to see if you could write about mizu having a partner who is super energetic and excited while she’s always annoyed.

maybe at first mizu didn’t care for the reader at first but ringo insists on having reader tag along (maybe they are a healer or archer? it doesn’t matter to me!) then mizu slowly starts liking the reader the more she gets to know her? but reader is oblivious and doesn’t pick up on the hints even though it’s obvious mizu like her

sorry it’s so long 😭 i’m so in love with mizu it’s not funny i’m in the trenches right now

a/n: oooh alright!! 🫶 i love this ideaa

.

“The Sunshine to the Darkness”

warning(s): swearing

summary: poor mizu has been dropping hints here and there but you, my dear reader, are oblivious to them.

——————————————————————————

You stumbled across Mizu that very day she was fighting the Four Fangs. You were an archer, a rather good one at that. But what were your arrows to their swords? So you stayed in the distance, raining down arrows upon them when they got too close to Mizu.

Mizu could not tell who was helping her, distracting the Four Fangs long enough for her to attack them off guard. Yet she was grateful for your help, you managed to save her from quite a few blows that would’ve put her in a much worse condition.

You were doing fine staying back from the fight, that was until you saw a man (Taigen) approaching Mizu just as she killed Bloodsoaked Chiaki and badly wounded. You thought he was going to kill her the moment she fell unconscious from her injuries and blood loss, so you jumped into action. You shot at him, sending an arrow his way, in which he managed to dodge at the last minute.

Ringo appeared just then, tackling Taigen to the ground and demanding to know what happened to Mizu. You hopped off the rocks you were standing on and jumped onto the ground, running over to Mizu and checking her injuries.

“Is my master okay?! Oh no, he needs medicine and help!” Ringo said as he lifted Mizu onto his back. He told you to come and follow him and keep Mizu sitting upright on the horse while they went to a nearby abandoned temple to tend to Mizu’s injuries. You sat on a horse, Mizu behind you with her arms around your waist.

Her eyes opened weakly, finding herself now on a horse and her head lying on someone’s shoulder. You. Mizu looked down, noticing the bow on your side. So you are that archer Mizu thought. And then her tired eyes closed once again.

Mizu woke up once again, this time on a bedroll with you hovering over her with a concerned look. You gasped, realizing she’s up. “You’re awake! Oh my goodness, I thought you were dead!” You loudly exclaimed, helping her sit up. Mizu groaned, both from the pain and your loud voice.

“Gah, shut up, will you? So loud..” Mizu grumbled as Ringo walked over to her and handed her a bowl of medicine to drink. You sheepishly smiled, whispering a soft ‘sorry’ before you stood up and walked over to her clothes. She looked at you. That smile, that little smile. Why did it make her stomach do jumps and flips?

“Here, I sewed up your clothes again. They were ripped and in bad condition so I thought I’d fix them for you.” You placed her clothes, neatly folded, beside her. Mizu looked at you, but didn’t say a word. You hummed, waving Ringo goodbye before you walked outside to see what was Taigen doing.

Ringo looked at Mizu, who was drinking her medicine with a disgusted look on her face. “Master, I think they should stick around with us! They would make a great addition to the team, and they can use the bow and arrow!” Ringo was excited, if you joined the team, you could travel with them and help Mizu! Mizu looked at him, a bit annoyed he’d suggest to drag another person when she could barely stand him.

But somehow, Ringo managed to convince Mizu. Eventually, she reluctantly agreed, allowing you to tag along. Ringo was ecstatic since he liked having you around. Mizu acted like she was annoyed and tried not to pay attention to your shenanigans, but the thing is, she did pay attention. To your smiles, to the jokes you told, to the way you would squeal when you find some cute little charm, and how you were so eager to move in the morning when everyone was still drowsy.

“Hey,” Mizu says while you were looking at jewelry a local stall owner had on display when you and the group were passing by a village. She held out a hairpin, a beautiful one with blue flowers and small diamonds on it. You looked up at her, a bit confused by the gesture. Or why she’s looking away with her hand hiding her flushed cheeks. “I got it for you. You were staring at it very intently..”

You squealed, taking the hairpin and holding it up with a big smile. “Mizu! You didn’t have to! Oh my lord, it’s so pretty!” You smiled, wrapping your arms around her tightly. Mizu’s eyes widened, caught off guard by the sudden hug. Sure you hugged her plenty of times, but this one just hit different. She put on hand on your back as she muttered ‘you’re welcome’. “You’re such a good friend!” Oh, you oblivious little— That hit her a little bit.

Taigen walked over just then, busy eating something until he noticed you hugging Mizu. You, the sunshine of the group and probably the loudest beside him, were allowed to hug Mizu? The closed off, cold-hearted Mizu? Oh there was something fishy.

“The fuck is happening over here? You two getting ready to go out and party or what?” Taigen walked over to the two of you with a suspicious look. You looked at Taigen, clearly beaming as you showed him the hairpin Mizu bought you. Taigen looks back at Mizu, who was pretending to be looking at something else. He connected the puzzle pieces together and— OH. Mizu liked you. He almost smirks, looking at Mizu who was clearly side-eying him with poison in her eyes.

You were so oblivious, so dense. Mizu would never let anyone touch her besides you, much less buy a gift with actual sincerity behind it for someone.

Poor Mizu has been attempting to drop hints for you, yet you never catch on. She lets you sleep on her bedroll, carries you on her back when you complain you’re tired, buys you things you like—hell she even lets you touch her and cling onto her. And you unfortunately did not catch on. How is someone so smart like you yet so oblivious?

“Are you this dense?” Mizu asks out of the blue one day while the two of you were sparring. You looked at her weirdly, confused by what she meant. How did that have anything to do with what you two were doing now?

“Is this your way of calling me dumb or..?” You’re re puzzled, confused by what she means by dense. She’s the one that’s dense, right? You keep trying to show that you like her by doing things like sewing her clothes, buying her charms to carry around on her sword, and taking care of her when she’s sick yet she doesn’t get the hint. You snapped back to reality, jumping off the ground as Mizu aims the wooden blade towards your legs.

Mizu groans, both from annoyance of not being able to hit you and you also being far too oblivious. “No, I’m saying your ass is oblivious-“ she says as she blocks your wooden sword from swinging at her face. You took a step back. Oblivious? About what?

“I dunno. Is there something you need to tell me?” You asked, to which she replied with a soft huff.

“God you’re dumb. You idiot, I like you!” Mizu yells as she stabs her wooden sword into the grass below her feet. She runs her hand over her face, flabbergasted at how oblivious you were. These past few weeks, she’s been passing numerous hints, giving you special privileges, even doing things with you that are a tad bit too friendly to be considered ‘just friends’. And you don’t fucking notice!

It took you a few moments to process that. That it hits you. Her being extremely nice to you were actually hints and little clues! “OH- I thought you were being a good fri—“

Before you could even finish that line, Mizu tackled you onto the ground and slammed her lips against yours. Your hands immediately went to her waist, while her hands ran all over your body. The kiss was rough, almost like she was starving.

Finally she pulled away, out of breath and her face red. “Don’t even think about saying that line ever again. I’ve heard enough of it.”

[parlerenfleurs]

In the notes of the previous post I've reblogged I saw a discussion about why Ringo isn't considered (by the fandom) as a romantic interest for Mizu despite treating her better than all the other men in her life, and how this is tied to fatphobia. Also the fact that the fat character is often the comic-relief and the fact that if he is indeed intended as platonic why make him the only fat (="unattractive") man among the three (others being Taigen and Mikio) that can or have been considered love interests for her?

And that's really interesting because indeed, I never considered Ringo a potential love-interest for Mizu... And so I have to wonder if it's because he's fat. But I also never saw him as a comic-relief character, and I want to expand on why first.

He is indeed funny, and brings levity. But it's not "comic-relief", it's "positivity-relief", in my eyes. I don't feel like we're supposed to take him unseriously at all. Characters take him unseriously, sure, because of his social class, his disability, his seemingly naïve and weak character (never his size, in any case).

But the story shows, and Mizu comes to know, that he's anything but weak and naïve. We know right from the start that he's endured a terrible childhood and life up until meeting Mizu. He doesn't have hands, his father is abusive both physically and psychologically. The way the flesh-trader mistreats him in the first episode isn't anything unusual to Ringo. Everyone despises him and feels free to exert force against him. Taigen in his arrogance, deigns offer him a menial job in his household with the condescension reserved for a nobody who is also a child, or mentally a child.

Ringo was forged at this cruel relentless fire and what came out is a formidable strength. It doesn't manifest itself as obviously as Mizu's but it's, in my opinion, superior, and also extremely great and loveable. Ringo is neither naïve nor stupid. He knows when he's being beaten and condescended to. He's like that because, in spite of everything, he wants to see beauty in everything, and enjoy the good things in life, and he chooses to be kind. He CHOOSES to be kind. With an unbreakable, fluid, infinitely bending strength.

I am not well-versed enough in Japanese culture to make a meaningful comment about this, probably, but my personal reading of Ringo is that he might be a Buddha figure. East of India, the Buddha is fat. The Buddha smiles serenely, even in adversity, because he's reached a state of zen. His ego isn't touched by insults and beatings. Of course Ringo prefers to be treated well, like anyone else! That's why he follows Mizu around! She's an outcast and "deformed" like him, but she's also able to hold her own against physical violence, against the tyrants of the world, and that obviously appeals to him.

He kills, he has sex, he likes good food, he's obviously not detached from the world at all. But still, like a Buddha, his sense of self cannot be shaken by outside mockery or hostility. He's incredibly persistent once he has a goal, but he doesn't bother affirming himself to others for the sake of ego. He's the polar opposite of Taigen in that respect. Taigen's background has made him desperate for outside sources of strength - admiration, prestige, money, social standing...

On the other hand Ringo is really similar to Mizu, a thing he sees immediately but she does not. Hers is an inner unbreakable strength, too. The same fluid, adaptable, water-like strength. Can't break water. It will shape itself around you and your obstacles without ever losing its nature.

But contrary to Ringo, Mizu feels all the pain, the slights, the shame, the self-hatred. Ringo is pure love, or water, not poisoned by betrayal. Perhaps, or even probably, he has been betrayed but he hasn't let it poison his love, his water nature.

Even when Mizu betrays his love (respect, admiration, regard), he's no pushover, he lets her know that he won't stand for it, but still he rescues her because... despite everything his love is still pure. His love is the agape kind. He loves life, he obviously loves himself. There is no shame or shrinking of the self in him. No shame of his body, among other things. He's the only one in the main cast who doesn't wear a mask. What you see is what you get, and it's only people's own preconceptions that blind them to his depth and merit.

On the subject of fatness, I'm not sure he's even really... considered fat, in-universe? Or not negatively so, in any case. When Akemi has to serve her first client, HE is called fat by the characters. Fat enough to crush someone, and to hinder his own libido - the fatness of being extremely rich and eating too much rich food while being extremely idle. This one has the prostitutes reluctant, and his fatness is viewed in a negative light. Ringo has a very pleasant and cordial interaction with the two prostitutes who service him, and sure we're not privy to their thoughts on the matter, but I bet they found him cute, polite, not troublesome at all to service, and I feel like his size wasn't even a question that was posed. We see him naked, running around, carrying things, and being extremely active. His is a common build, sturdy, not a hindrance to his libido, his health, his self-image, or anything. What I mean is, he's not presented to us in a negative way on account of his fatness, and isn't viewed negatively for it in-universe.

All of this to say, I might indeed be blind to his potential as a love interest to Mizu, but I'm not sure it just has to do with the fact he's fat? It might be! I don't know. The first thing I think about on why I don't ship them is they show no romantic or sexual interest in each other that I see. Except, perhaps, that it might be significant that she's the one to arrange his first sexual experience and that it's the framework he has when seeing her naked. But as his attitude remains strictly the same and he shows no change in the kind of interest he has for her, it didn't feel significant to me. I might be wrong, I don't know. But again, Taigen is the opposite: he might be bi, but let's say he isn't, or at least isn't aware of it (I would be sad if he's not but it would better serve the parallel if he's straight) - the guy shows unmistakable chemistry with, and attraction to Mizu without even knowing she's got peaches underneath it all. (I love that he feels attraction to her at the precise moment where she's her playful self again: wrestling, battling and winning, while laughing and having fun... everything that Mikio couldn't handle is the very thing Taigen feels attracted to, aaah so good.)

When I think about it, the loyal, protective role Ringo has, where he saves her physically and emotionally, cares for her, protects her secret, admires her for who she is as a whole, his place as the person who sees the most of her without rejecting a single part of it, should indeed make me feral....

But if he's the opposite to Taigen in so many ways, he might be in this too, in that he has no attraction to Mizu, and they've no such chemistry between them. It's also so lovely as a platonic relationship! For once it is! He's her apprentice, after all, and she takes on the Swordfather role for him as Swordfather did for her (she even used the same persistent-as-hell-I-will-stay-look-I'm-useful method as Ringo did on her - when I say they're so similar...). She used to make noise to signal things to Swordfather and she makes Ringo make noise so that she can keep track of him, too. It's very cute! He uses her kitchen knives and she makes him start to fight with that just like she started to forge by forging them. To me, they're firmly in this master-apprentice dynamic. And friends.

I've said repeatedly that he's not naïve but actually in some ways he is, and that's what Mizu needs more of. She needs to reconnect with that younger, less hurt version of herself. And Ringo helps her with it, because she does ask for his help, does recognise she needs it (healing!) when she asks him to write on her back. He literally has her back. He's his own character, his own person, but they mirror each other a lot, and in some ways he's her master too. A master in gentleness.

Oh. I've said that Ringo's love/water is pure, but that it HAS been touched by the poison that affects Mizu: he's a better sword, has a better strength because he let the impurity be a part of him, didn't push it away or let it consume and change him. No wonder she must learn from him/needs his help to forge her new sword.

IF the story started signaling attraction between them, I don't think it would occur to me that Ringo is fat or anything (or it wouldn't have before, now I'll pay attention to that). It didn't occur to me when he was with the prostitutes, I was only thinking about the fact he has no hands, but the prostitutes shrugged it off with grace, and it made me happy.

[hastyprovocateur]

I have seen many calling Akemi an annoying brat for running away from her father's guardianship. And I laud their critical thinking abilities on this because really, why would a girl whose father is forcing her to marry a stranger openly known for being a sadist and killing his first wife over an unhappy marriage want to do anything but jump gleefully into the union, right? Especially when all Akemi's father has to say for her life-or-death situation is "Hey learn these sex positions and keep him happy like your dead mother kept me happy lol."

Akemi loved Taigen for a set of reasons. First and foremost, he was the path she chose and finally got her father to agree with in part for his honorable stature, aware that Taigen, though imperfect, isn't as cruel or selfish as men in said period typically were. You have to understand that women were rarely afforded the choice to love without having underlying motivations. They have to choose the lesser of evils. Which in this case, is Taigen. Akemi has far greater chances of survival with him than any other man she knew. Marriage wasn't a tic-tac-toe game for her, she was ensuring her survival. To ensure she wouldn't get violated or killed or tortured or forcefully impregnated for not falling into the narrow set of rules aristocratic women especially had to follow.

Come to Taigen and Mizu's duel following which he loses his honour and possibly his engagement. Akemi stayed undeterred because regardless of what Taigen felt about his honour, Akemi didn't have a backup option that she knew would ensure her security as much as being with Taigen would. She tells him that his chonmage being cut is no obstacle as he can style it to suit other noble men, that she will convince her father to maintain their engagement and that his honour was intact as Mizu hadn't officially challenged him. Her sexual advances are a calculated move, she narrates to him a version of events where he defeats Mizu to massage his bruised ego. And while Taigen is her singular route out of her imminent marriage to a stranger, Taigen, ignorant of the same, claims he'd rather commit seppuku and sets out to trail Mizu.

With Taigen gone, she is in deep water, and naturally, her father quickly sets her up with a fresh suitor from a family he chose for the sake of furtherance of his political expansion over any concern for his daughter's life. When she tries to escape, Seki sees it as another funny haha situation, making it a teachable moment where he profoundly tells Akemi, already fearful of her bodily autonomy and life: that a woman has 2 paths "to be an improper whore or a proper wife." To which Akemi very wisely responds that they are one and the same thing, only one is shrouded with aristocratic niceties and huge houses that women are an extension of. Regardless of her (father's) wealth, status, and relative comfort in life, no woman deserves to be put in a position of ownership under a man, vulnerable to assault, coercion, intimidation just because "at least she'll be assaulted on a nice bed."

Akemi wasn't enjoying her round trip searching for Taigen, selling herself out to flesh traders and getting betrayed by Seki, her confidante, for funsies. Seki had seen her plight and only given her the singular choice to be a proper wife to a stranger after Taigen had already left her to her own fate. She was still determined to do right by him because she wanted to live. Her seeking out Mizu was key to saving her marriage. Thereby trying to drug and bring Mizu to Taigen so she could restore his honor and go back on their engagement and live somewhat peacefully. Which we now know wasn't going to ever be because Daichi Tokunobu had already schemed to compromise the Shogunate by wagering his daughter as an alliance.

I am convinced that most people can't understand complex female characters outside of "ruthless. fighter" or "perfect victim." Akemi's fault, it seems, that through her process of running from a dangerous marriage, a callous father, getting brokered by Goro, joining Kaji's brothel, seducing her first client, trying to subdue Mizu is that she didn't get brutally violated in any of scenarios. Because I'm sure if she had, not half of y'all would be crying about her being annoying and bratty or "having it too easy." As for her trying to attack Mizu, what else was she supposed to do? Be told that this stranger robbed her fiance's honor, ruined their engagement, and killed him, and what? Pat him on the back? Or was she supposed to have a prophetic vision that Mizu is going to save them from Hamata's men?

And no she did not resort to name calling, abusing, threatening after she was tied down, she was far more benign in assessing Mizu's disposition as opposed to Mikio or Taigen who straight up called Mizu monster, dog, beggar, scavenger and what not. Mikio sold Mizu's favourite horse to get back at her, abandoned her for the bounty hunters to get her, killed her mama. Taigen was a bully who accused her of digging through his trash and near damn killed her with a rock with his friends. Yeah, him being a kid makes no difference to the one who was traumatised because that'll last Mizu a lifetime. In both cases Mizu posed no threat to them as opposed to Akemi who truly believed that Mizu had killed her fiancé.

Taigen continued to be a bully in the present time (growth in latter eps aside), calling Mizu a dog, monster boy, whore mother, scavenger of Kohama's gutters, reminding her of her house burning down. He stalked her, threatened her to duel, gave her consistent trauma reminders. Oh btw- Akemi called Mizu "nothing special" and "angry" and yall decide she has mentally abused this woman after knowing her for a good 3 hours. Yall fr just hate women.

She didn't know about Kinuyo either, or anything about Mizu's past. Despite only knowing her in the worst way, she largely softens towards Mizu knowing she's helping save Kaji's workers. She could've easily stayed tight and comfy in the cellar. She doesn't know a thing about fighting yet stands by Ringo and later saves him. Not for her sake because she says "Now they have to get through the both of us." She didn't fear death either, only being helpless. "I'm not brave" she said "I've been a captive my whole life. If I die today, I die free."

She didn't stop there "Mizu can't possibly hold them all off" and then goes up to save Mizu when the assassins attested that "The samurai has been cornered." And yes Mizu was unconscious from being choked until Akemi intervened. She just had to stay low like the others and not give a FUCK, especially not Mizu, someone who shittalked her as far as she knew, but she did because she saw the honour in Mizu's actions.

Unfortunately, Akemi didn't magically mind read Mizu's ptsd and all the flashbacks she's been getting about her past betrayals, what happened with Kinuyo and made the mistake of trusting Mizu, WHO SHE THINKS IS A MAN, to fight for her when the guards come. All but 3 men. This isn't about numbers because Mizu totaled an army and has the plot armour of Jesus, it's not about being innocent, because Mizu killed that clawed dude she spared initially, not to mention Kinuyo who was just a means to get to Fowker. And some people talked about Mizu not wanting Daichi's men coming after her... um... are you sure you're watching the same show because as far as I know Mizu doesn't give a flying FUCK about being careful or who comes after her because she's recklessly creating collateral all down her path of revenge. That's the wholeass point.

Akemi wasn't ordering Mizu around, cuz she asked "I'm not going anywhere, right Mizu?" She wanted her approval, her support in that moment. To fight for her because she doesn't have the agency to fight for herself. What did Mizu do in this crucial moment? She doomed Akemi to an arranged marriage and made her choice FOR her. Especially being someone who's always been shown to do exactly what she wants and then fight whatever consequences come her way.

Mizu "thought" Akemi's better off with being married to a stranger because "atleast the abuser is rich, not everyone gets a rich abuser." And yes she assumed hella things because Akemi's reasons for chasing Taigen are literally so she can live by an iota of her choice and not because she's "begging to eat trash." And Mizu didn't consider the reputation of the Shogun's son, regardless of if he's a horrible person, how is being forced to marry a stranger justified?? Another day, another man Akemi trusted, dooming her to a path with no cognizance of how much apprehension of death or joyless life she actually faces in that position.

Mizu was no different from Daichi, Seki, Taigen in that moment. Akemi had no one. Despite doing all in her power to turn her fate, she was unsuccessful because she wasn't able to physically fight for herself and no one chose to step up for her. She was about to solve her own problems by throwing herself off the balcony, evident in how much she didn't desire the marriage. Takayoshi not being an outright brute chauvinistic killer is no justification for "hey didn't turn out to be so bad, huh." Would you rather she have gotten brutalised? Been treated like absolute shit? Would you then believe how scary the marriage could have been for her? Kaji herself told Mizu that "if you killed every man I've seen who couldn't come till someone bled... you'd wear your blade to a stump."

Ringo was justified in criticising Mizu. While Mizu doesn't care about anyone in her path of revenge, Eiji, her own father figure struggles to teach her that she NEEDS people to fight. To strengthen her blade and resolve. Mizu did return to save Akemi as her conscience would have it, Seki also came around and Taigen was finally ready to pursue a life with her over his honor and greatness but it was too late. I don't blame Akemi for asserting twice to Mizu that "We're not friends which Mizu showed too in her actions prior. I don't see it as Akemi being ungrateful but asserting the truth before Mizu slams it in her face. Mizu doesn't want friends so she doesn't get any.

I also don't blame her for rejecting Taigen, I too wouldn't ever wish to be blindsided like that again. It's better to choose your own reality than rely on love or friendship only to get betrayed. As for Akemi's new venture, I laud her for taking Kaji's word and to fight with the agencies she has even though I feel that Kaji shared Mizu's tone deafness in terms of seeing Akemi's (father's and now husband's) wealth as a neutralizer to the abuse she could face which could've been much worse than it was shown to be.

I do agree that having free choice, even after Seki tells her to pursue her own path, is a tad too idealistic for the place and time. She basically just complied to the choices Seki, Taigen, Mizu's made for her. So I loved seeing Akemi make the best of the cards she was dealt, choosing to use her body and mind to seduce, manipulate and progress. To make her choices whether she is loved in the process or not. . To exploit her meek husband's position, to subdue her scheming (now hopefully crispy) father and be great.

[conchaceptive]

on mizu's gender and her relationships

with mikio she felt like a woman. she loved as a woman and was happy then, but ultimately betrayed. it'd make sense for her to not wanna really live as a woman, at least in a wife sense.

all taigen knows is mizu the man who can fight, but i think the more he gets to know her, taigen does and can recognize that mizu's a person outside of that. when they spar for the second time mizu's happy the way she was happy with mikio, but taigen doesn't bash her for her for being yk skilled and actually so dope and cracked and awesome. he fights back. he likes it. he fights back because he likes it and he likes to And he likes Her.

but that's all while mizu is seen as a man, and taigen doesn't know about yk mizu's bits and parts yet😭 i think mizu can enjoy herself as a man with taigen, but i also think so as a woman. i think taigen loves and will love mizu no matter what the fuck she is, whether it be determined man or boyish woman or both or neither or everything and anything cos taigen is whiiiiiiped he would not gaf either way ( and it's funny cos mizu doesn't gaf or have the time or urgency to gaf about her gender anyway )

i use she because im a d word and need mizu like a tweaker needs their fix lol but mizu's a girl that's a boy that's a girlking tomboywife yass queen ok king girlking everything and neither at the same time waaiiiit wait now that i say that last part mizu bes and gren bebop parallels???? ok its just the nonbinary part cos their like lore is not the same but maybe i'll think on That more later

ok i think im actually enjoying blogging and shit liiiike i can be normal about my medias on here and a couple people will big agree with me how dope is that😋

[eerna]

IT IS SOOOO FUNNY like at that point Akemi is 2 steps away from complete man-less freedom. This random guy shows up once again and this time he is trying to convince her to go with the dishonored, disloyal Taigen. The only arguments he can think up are "He believes he loves you very much" and "He's not a good man, he could be a great one". No wonder Akemi is like ">:(>:(>:(>:("

I do love the callback to that scene later, when Akemi keeps insisting she and Taigen should stay in Edo, and he says "I don't need to be great, I just want to be happy" and she replies "I want to be great." Taigen thinks his own greatness would be the only reason to stay, so now that it's no longer on the table, they are free to leave. Mizu thinks a woman like Akemi would be happy as a wife to a great man. But Akemi is operating on a whole different system already <3<3 Queen

sure, Akemi holding a grudge against Mizu even after Mizu tries to bury the hatchet is harsh. but also from Akemi's POV here's a random young dude who seduced her fiancee, ruined any hope she had for a happy life, bullied her at a brothel, gave her a lecture on how to be a woman, kept her prisoner at the aforementioned brothel, and then refused to kill a couple of guys trying to kidnap her after he just mowed down a small army

[imaginary-wanderer]

I'm surprised, it still seems pretty confidential. I'd compare it to Arcane in term of overall quality (writing and animation mainly), but Arcane already had the advantage of having a huge fanbase.

The challenges with an original title are big. But Blue Eye Samurai has so much that should have made it more popular by now: ancient Japan, samurais, sword fights, a badass main character with a troubled past, and more. And it should have attracted the queers. The main character, Mizu, is navigating between genders, and people are confused by her as she passes for a man in social situations.

There's also a strong feminist message, through several female characters from various backgrounds and social status. It's not just Mizu the swordsman and a bunch of geisha. The writing highlights the condition of women back then, what they were expecting to be and do and how they were also dreaming of freedom. Male characters go from the simple and kind guy to the evil villain, but there's a lot of others in-between with a lot of nuances, and tropes that we love (some of them are so funny. Taigen is just a walking trope), and they all actually revolve around women. Because, yes: women are at the heart of the story. This is a story about revenge, but the root of it is about men hurting women and how women fight against oppression.

If you still haven't watched it, I highly recommend it!

Blue Eye Samurai is great

[parlerenfleurs]

Funny, I see what you mean but I don't find it off-putting at all personally! I think I've skipped that stage entirely to land in the "that's fun and hot" territory.

I wonder if people react viscerally to it because for once the toxic yaoi involves a woman. Like, it's fine if you see two men characters punch each other in the stitches "that's just what men are like", that's the way they work through their shit or something, right? It's literally part of the visual lexicon for homoeroticism and subtextual desire to have two men beat the shit out of each other (see Fight Club for instance).

But Mizu is a woman, and suddenly we're not used to seeing a woman getting punched in the stitches and her finding it sexy. Taigen got tortured way worse than a punch in the stitches for her, so as far as I'm concerned he has redeemed his latest bad behaviour with this one. That's just what devotion and obsession and unrealised desire looks like on men, right? I punch you and call you names but I'll die before I betray you, and I will die to save your life.

Also, yes, he IS and was a little asshole, and I spent most of my time calling him a dumb arrogant idiot the first time I watched. He has circumstances and not excuses, sure, but still, the circumstances are important to understand him. I feel like everyone is ignoring the flashback where it's revealed he was holding a stone but dropped it without throwing it.

To me, this means he knew it was wrong, yes, of course, but also being mean isn't in his nature. He didn't really want to hurt Mizu. He made his choices based on what he thought he needed to do to survive, and the only thing he knew was violence, and if he knew something intimately, it was that to be strong looked like bullying the weak. He was weak to his father but to feel strong he found out he could use his charisma to lead other kids, and be strong there. Can't be strong without an object to be stronger than, so the pariah kid it is. I don't even think he picked the target himself, the other kids were probably already wanting to bully her too because that's just what kids are like. They reflect human society, and most societies by nature reject difference to strengthen their sense of security in a community.

Absolutely he could have chosen to not do that but... he's a kid, surviving any way he can. Why is it that this is worse of him than Mizu killing a young terrified teenage boy in cold blood? She knew survivors bring problems because sparing the child who saw her that very morning brought an army on the brothel's doorstep. She did what she felt she had to do to survive. Taigen knew violence makes you the strong one. He did what he felt he had to do to survive. He didn't even want to be doing it, put the lad in life or death situations and he wants to die for you like a loyal puppy! Isn't he cute?

Mizu can hold her own against him, so I think their messy relationship is not unequal, and it's fine if they're bumbling around old hurts, new attraction, and confusing early friendship.

I can understand the brutal and messy aspect being off-putting to some people and if Mizu was my friend absolutely I would tell her she has terrible taste and should tell him to fuck off, probably. But as a viewer we are privy to more than surface-level information concerning them both. We know Taigen has the potential to be a very good and kind and protective man. We know Mizu isn't afraid of him at all anymore (that's the first thing that gets established when they meet again for their duel and she wipes the floor with his ass and it's so so sexy of her damn).

Also why are people ignoring the fact that Mizu may have internalised self-loathing, but she's still not letting people walk over her: when Taigen recognises her and calls her names again? She cuts off his hair, the very symbol of his pride and charisma. That alone would be a humiliation worthy of provoking someone to a duel, hair is a biiig deal for samurai. And for him especially. He does not get away with this shitty attitude and it served him right, and Mizu can take care of herself.

I sincerily think if people reframed the way they see the facts we have they'd see it's fine. Mizu is fine. She's not pissing herself in front of him because he does not trigger her trauma. She's handling him. They are forging a connection. She gives up on her revenge to save his life! She doesn't see him as her childhood bully first and foremost anymore.

Let Mizu have agency and decide for herself, she's a big girl and a fearsome warrior, and she has coping mechanisms way less healthy than being attracted to a stupid sexy 20 years old man.

yeah taimizu IS toxic and off putting actually ‼️‼️🗣️🗣️🗣️