#the way this was literally the MOST IMPORTANT SCENE TO BE MANGA ACCURATE. LIKE

[daughterboy]

what if we all killed ourselves

[bug-slappy]

sharing my opinion here about serizawas design inconsistencies over time (spoilers for mp100 ending) i feel like in each new rendition of serizawa weve seen in official art ever since the start of S3 something feels off in a different way with every new merch release

lets start here ⬇ serizawa looks like,, himself. accurate to how hes drawn since his first anime appearance

⬇⬇⬇ and then slowly,,, things start to look off. his jawline is slowly getting slimmer, his eyes look wider (same with mobs too)

AND DONT EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THESE. especially the one on the right my god. who is that

every new promo art that comes out just feels very careless. I think you could say so for all the characters (mobs giant eyes, reigens waist getting skinnier/pointier features. the PROMO art of dimple that was literally FULLY TRACED OFF OF A TEMU PIRATE HALLOWEEN COSTUME. they all look bad here)

it just feels a little depressing how little they seem to care anymore, like theyre just trying to pump out merch without bothering to use a character reference.

i notice the changes the most with serizawa. every promo art looks like theyre playing a game of telephone. each version of him is based on the last, instead of his initial design (shown below)

at the end of S2, when reigen cuts serizawas hair, he still looks like himself. they did a great job of showing "how serizawa would look underneath his moustache and big hair". In S3 it feels like they've lost that mentality completely. like he's no longer based off of his original design, but an entirely new reference of his salary man look. some comparisons between S3 vs S2 and OVA down below

I find that the line weight in S3 is much heavier and unfocused. but what bothers me most of all is that... Serizawa looks different in nearly every scene... as if they're undecided on what he should look like. the shape of his nose and jaw, his hair all change depending on the episode entirely.

The art style change for S3 was meant to be "more accurate to the manga", but I find that it had the opposite effect. especially how serizawas and ritsus eye shapes changed. ritsus large pupils and serizawas more almond shaped eyes were more reflective of their manga designs there are plenty of inconsistences in S1 and 2, but they're clearly done with purpose to reflect on ONEs art style (my beloved). I feel like the thinner lines allow more room for detail and extreme facial expressions that truly hold a candle to ONEs insane talent for capturing emotions.

these ^^^ compared to..

erm.. this.. ⬇

just felt very underwhelming... and serizawa certainly does mellow out once he starts working at S&S, but that doesn't mean that there's less opportunity for detailed expressions !!

the yokai fight scene was beautifully made i have no qualms.. but the amount of serizawa lore and dialogue in the manga that got cut from the anime just made him look like a cardboard cut out standing behind everyone. lots of funny and interesting moments cut to make room for the moefication of serizawa katsuya..

I feel like there's a lot of important moments that were cut, (reigen "i hope i can become a partner like that" arataka, serizawa "ive had a similar experience myself" katsuya )

or sad, intense scenes that were made lighthearted (the body improvement club trying to help mob, mob and ??? dialogue being cut, reigen removing his shoes in the final arc made to be meant for better grip rather than... his passively suicidal tendencies )

i think the people at bones are very talented dont get me wrong, i just felt like S3 could have been adapted better. this keeps me up at night its like 1am :) anywhosies thank you for listening to my ted talk i love you

[taki118]

Yakuza Fiance ep 3 Manga Comparison

Ep 3 of Raise wa Tanin ga Ii aka Yakuza Fiance, just aired, and you know the drill there are some important and/or fun things that slipped through the cracks of adaptation. Since I am SUPER normal about the manga I got everything here under the cut. Warning these are fan translations cause I'm lazy.

So for reference yes the manga chapter does start like that but there is a little back and forth in the scene overall including this

Kirishima actually has to beg more for Ayano (thats her name) we loose some good bits, such as Aya being a bikini model and having a boyfriend she complains to him about, and how Kirishima describes their situation like its your bog standard high school romance.

This scene was really cut down to be like a cold open there's more but there's this

We get more insight into Kirishima's situation with these women and confirmation there are more and that they are aware. Another thing is Ayano does help Kirishima work through some thoughts and cutting down their back and forth looses some of that. (maybe i'll do a whole thing on this later)

I actually really like how they did the first sleep scene in the anime except

Why did they leave out the line where Yoshino guesses it was Kirishima? Its so odd but again this scene of Yoshino in the kitchen is longer in the manga

Most importantly it makes clear a full day has passed and that she was trying to sus out info from him at school. Also she ponders if he poisoned her water filter before she has her freak out that he's so crazy it's becoming normal for her.

Overall the second sleep scene is done fairly well I like how it's animated the manga just gives you a feeling its going on longer as Kirishima makes a bunch of braids in her hair so her jumping makes more sense but also we loose this bit

I dunno I just think Kirishima worrying about the futon and her hair is funny.

Honestly I'm actually surprised how closely the convo they have after this is so close to manga. I'm glad cause it's important I could talk about it but thats not what this is for (getting so many ideas though)

So again there is more back and forth about Kirishima calling Gaku (where he says he thinks he shouldve gone in person to apologize) and more on Yoshino's dad, with her asking how much he's looked into her and Kirishima admitting it was a bit. Yoshino also states it was because her dad was normal she had some hopes of being with a normal guy, and that all the men in the house feel like fathers or brothers to her which I do honestly think is important for her so I'm sad thats out. Its not alot but it is some added context.

so ok this guy at the summit, (excuse my shitty picture)

Yeah he's not introduced in the manga at this point, every other character is there but for some reason the anime added this guy to the scene. Like he shows up WAY later and doesn't do much had it pointed out to me but its still weird. Anyway surprisingly the meet is very accurate to the manga thought for sure they cut something but no instead of ending with Akime giving an ominous stare we get this guy glaring at Renji, and like I think it really undercuts the scene cause it makes him seem more important than he probably is.

Anyway the scene with Hotei is again longer in the manga and like the scenes with Renji a lot of the warmth is lost again you don't really get a sense for their dynamic like technically there's nothing really missing but it doesn't quite have the right feel.

So I am very surprised with how much the cut from the SHouma shopping scene. Such as this

Like Yoshino is literally dragging him around cause he can't be bothered and Yoshino points out he went through the trouble of booking a room but not packing luggage, grade A Shouma logic, (also why that added bit in ep 2 makes zero sense) But we also loose some more explanation as to why he's here now.

Its not needed needed but it does provide extra context. What I am upset with is they didn't do the pay off for a set up in ep 1

Like the weirdly cut out the part of their conversation about the bullying Yoshino got in ep 1 explaining who she sent the picture to and why she did it. It's so weird honestly cause again this shows us how close they are and what their dynamic looks like. Also it just makes the conversation flow more naturally, in the anime is a little odd.

Well at least they kept Kirishima's weird ass basement.

Again though a LOT is cut from the dinner scene with Yoshino and Shouma the conversation is a lot longer.

She brings up Kirishima after rolling down his sleeves (which is funnier in the manga) and again the flow is better. Yoshino gives a much more in-depth explanation about why she can't really describe him to Hotei. But there is some character stuff here in her feeling comfortable enough to tell Shouma, also he makes some funny faces.

Anyway the explanation about the gang stuff is kinda the same overall but the manga feels less expositioney about it what with how its presented and how it feels more like a conversation

It just feels less like Shouma is talking at her but rather with her.

So again I don't get why the anime keeps removing the humor from the series like this

The idea that Yoshino is dying from over eating but Shouma wants to get some ramen and how he compares her to a sea lion, like its fun anime why do you seem to hate fun. But again a LOT of context is taken out of the scene from between Yoshino complaining about Kirishima to Shouma saying he'll kill him

Like the pieces are here but they arent quite fleshed out enough, the anime makes it seem like Shouma just offered to kill unprompted but Yoshino brings it up first in the manga and the way she talks there he does sound more dangerous.

The convo again is similar but lacking in depth, both because its shortened and because a lot of the build up is missing. Honestly theres just sooooo much in this ep I'm not surprised but I am surprised where its cut from. The ending is exactly the same with Kirishima and Shouma meeting (again why that bit last ep??) with the exception of missing out on this golden undercut

Like seriously why take out these jokes anime? this better be in ep 4

[bcbdrums]

I suffered through it so you don't have to

You can skip the Soul Eater NOT anime. Especially if you've read the Soul Eater manga. If you have read the manga, this anime will make you mad. ***Spoilers for Soul Eater NOT manga, anime, and Soul Eater manga in this post.*** I'm keeping this post vague though because frankly this anime isn't worth very many words. I may have had more positives until the last two episodes but well... No, not after those. If you want to experience NOT, then manga only. Really... I insist.

Things it did well: Overall, it followed its manga's story. Also they had the original Soul Eater voice actors for the canon characters except for Naigus.

Things that were neutral/acceptable: It re-ordered many, nay, most manga scenes, changed a few details, and added a little bit of extra stuff here and there that helped transitions and establishing settings the like, and moved the story forward faster. Nothing terribly wrong with that. None of it was necessary though, so trying to keep manga-canon and now anime-changes straight in one's head was confusing.

They briefly bring up "soul protect" which never came up in the manga, and is an important universe mechanic so it should have been mentioned.

They tried to add a few things to make some moments more emotional/relatable, and in most cases, up until the end it worked decently. But when they needed things to start to get serious and they began changing actual plot things...no, it did not help.

Things that start to go bad: Until about the last three episodes, almost every episode began with some sort of dream sequence (not in the manga; new stuff). This often involved under-aged nudity. None of these dream sequences were needed or valuable. Also, the show was full of under-aged nudity. To the point that the final episode had more under-aged nudity than it had battle against the villain.

Skipping manga scenes that were irrelevant was okay, but some scenes that would have added to the story were left out. And replaced with absolute trash. They had chances to fix some manga missteps, such as Naigus having no emotions over her partner's death, but they didn't.

Basically, almost anything that deviated from the manga in terms of actual plot was a bad decision. We did not need Meme randomly stabbing Sid with an arrow. All the creepy weird stuff with Meme and Shaula was grossly unnecessary. I could go on but... I don't want to remember all of it.

Things that are unforgiveable: The wings thing...from the Soul Eater manga. That is ALL I'm gonna say. That's too upsetting to even discuss. But if you really want me to? Ohhhh I will explain why that was the worst thing they could have possibly done. Ohkubo, if you wanted it in there so bad you should have made an accurate anime for Soul Eater. Not ruin something extremely important by throwing it in NOT in a way that literally cannot make sense with universe mechanics (so why is this even a discussion? it shouldn't be!) and completely undermines any value the thing has in Soul Eater

The final battle? Lasted all of a minute (after much unnecessary nude preamble), they moved it to the academy for no reason instead of having it at the dorm like in the manga, they eliminated Clay and Akane, and...they also eliminated a lot of the actual fighting scenes overall. And I do mean A LOT. They eliminated Lord Death's moment which was the only way to give any possible validity to the girls defeating Shaula, which even then is reaching.

Conclusion: Skip this anime. It took a cute and okay-ish manga and made it bad. It took a thin plot and made it thinner. None of the characters and their development in the first ten episodes mattered in the final two, those were so poorly done. They just used nudity to be edgy in the end and it did not work. The actually good plot points from the manga were undermined by changes and bad execution in the anime.

It's just... It's so bad. Those last two episodes. I can't fathom why they did what they did. EXCEPT... In terms of cutting out most of the battles, I think a lot of it was to avoid complicated animation scenes. Something I've noticed throughout is that, frankly, if it's not the hot girls...the animation is just bad. Stein for example, especially in episode 11, is dreadful. Anatomy went out the window there. And most weapon transformations throughout the show were done so that the weapon came from/vanished to somewhere off-screen and walked back in so they didn't have to animate the transformation actually happening.

And as for the plot changes in the last two episodes... There's no explanation. I think they had to change the plot since they chose to save money on animation. Without those animated battles, there wasn't anything else. So they had to add more stuff.

Oh yeah, and we didn't need the unnecessary boob-anchor weapon on Meme. Didn't see any of the other mind-controlled characters with a boob-anchor weapon...

And the show ends on two boob jokes. Literally, the last lines.

Skip this anime.

Time to purge it from memory with actual Soul Eater, which is brilliant (both canons).

[kikokus]

Trafalgar Law Character Study, Part 16/? (Dressrosa, Part 6)

So. It’s been…just over eight years. But I’ve had some requests to continue the analysis posts I’d been doing way back when and since I’m finally caught up with the manga again it seemed like as good a time as any to start doing that!

[Part One] // [Part Two] // [Part Three] // [Part Four] // [Part Five] // [Part Six] // [Part Seven] // [Part Eight] // [Part Nine] // [Part Ten] // [Part Eleven] // [Part Twelve] // [Part Thirteen] // [Part Fourteen] // [Part Fifteen]

The first thing I want to say is that I haven’t gone back and read all of the previous posts in this series so just a general warning that there might be questions/speculation within those that we actually have concrete answers to almost ten years later so if something doesn’t quite match up with canon that’s probably why! Most of the actual character-related things about Law should still be accurate, though…

Oh boy I picked a good group of chapters to come back to, huh? Let me just say that reading these in real time was…an experience…a very stressful experience…so back then the last thing I was worried about was character analysis but looking at it years later there’s actually a lot of important things that happen! 

The first of which is that obviously we know by now that this isn’t what Cora wanted at all, but Law’s spent so many years convincing himself that it is that this…specter of Doflamingo that’s been haunting him is almost more powerful than the real thing and that’s caused him to combine Cora’s wish for him to be free with Doflamingo being defeated to the point that he can’t separate the two any longer.

This whole section is to set up Law’s reveal that he also carries the Will of D but it’s still kind of amusing to have him asking these seemingly random questions about Luffy during the middle of a literal life-and-death battle. There’s also this running theme with Law where despite the fact that this is something both he and Luffy share, he always seems to place more importance on Luffy than himself. Obviously we know that he has no idea what the Will of D actually is so I think this is more just based on his own personality, but it’s interesting nonetheless. 

Somehow I still see people discussing whether Law’s any good with Armament Haki when he’s using it right here and certainly not at full strength but it’s very interesting that Doflamingo becomes one of the few characters in the entire series to know this about Law. Law’s never really flaunted the D initial like a lot of others that have it but that seems to mostly be due to his family wanting to keep it a secret and not based on his own feelings, though this scene in particular I think is meant to mirror the reveal of Doflamingo being a Celestial Dragon because that was something Law could never have accounted for but now he’s got an equally pertinent piece of information to catch Doflamingo off-guard.

And while it doesn’t exactly work as intended, Law was trying to distract him enough to get Doflamingo to make a mistake and that’s exactly what happened so if nothing else he gets a good hit in. Still, for all of Doflamingo’s denial that the whole ‘fated enemies’ idea isn’t true, he’s getting very defensive about it so it makes you wonder…

So Law’s not…wrong about this, since Cora overhearing his full name was what seemingly first got him interested in this whole quest to save Law so in that way it could certainly be looked at as a catalyst of sorts. And it’s also true that Cora probably wouldn’t have been able to kill Doflamingo despite going so far as to point a gun at him, but I do genuinely believe that—in a different series where the narrative would allow such a thing—Law would have killed Doflamingo here.

I really like this group of panels because Doflamingo is seeing Law as he was the first time they met: as someone so angry and disenchanted with the entire world and so resigned to their fate that the only thing that registers is this compulsive need to cause destruction. At the time Doflamingo had said he saw himself in Law because of that, but now that it’s being directed solely at him I’m sure the impact of that is quite different. It’s also a bit of a sign for us as readers to connect the two since Law’s grown and changed a lot from that time and he attributes it mostly to being ‘saved’ because of Cora but this shows that side of him that was created out of losing everything and everyone he loved all at once is still something he can bring out under the right circumstances.

Doflamingo actually says a lot of things in this part that are kind of an insight into what Law’s thinking, and this is one of them. Law’s usually a lot more calculated and careful with his plans, but because of Bellamy deciding to distract Luffy he’s completely alone and has pretty much no tricks left so the only thing he can do is throw whatever he’s got at Doflamingo and hope something works.

This, however, isn’t exactly accurate. I do believe that if all of Law’s initial plans had come to fruition that he would have been content with Kaido taking care of Doflamingo in his place (since, in the end, he’s at least accepting of the fact that Luffy’s the one to do it) but for a variety of reasons that…didn’t happen, and with him being by himself in this position and being so close I think he does let his emotions get the better of him in the end. 

Law’s still so calm and rational here and I think it’s because he’s resigned to whatever’s going to happen, but this is an interesting comment because Doflamingo loves trying to make people feel guilty for things that weren’t their fault and he’s attempting to blame everything that happened in Dressrosa completely on Law giving that letter to Vergo instead of any other Marine. But this is the first time that Doflamingo acknowledges that what he did to the Riku family and the country as a whole was a ‘tragedy’ and you can tell from his reaction that he didn’t even realize he’d done so until Law pointed it out.

Looking back at this now it holds a bit of a different connotation but in this moment Law was fully prepared to die and content with that in terms of him feeling as though he’d achieved Cora’s goal (even though he really hadn’t). However, it also still holds true in the present because while his own goals have changed drastically, everything is still being done with Cora in mind…though now it feels far more like a tribute as opposed to the pure revenge it became up until the end of Dressrosa.

Doflamingo’s fully capable of using his ability to kill but he prefers a gun instead and once again we get the mention of lead bullets so between those (twice in this arc now) and amber lead Law’s having a bad time with that particular element. I won’t get too much into how Doflamingo considers the executions he’s done as mercy killings and the only way for people to ‘atone’ for the sin of having the audacity to stand up to him, but I’m still amazed that Law was already almost running on empty and got his arm chopped off and he’s somehow conscious and coherent at this moment.

I have no idea how Law managed to get a tourniquet for his arm with everything going on but in this instance Doflamingo’s completely right: Law hasn’t been living for himself for a long time and everything he’s done has been with this singular goal in mind to the point where he really can’t pull himself away from it.

Considering the repetition that Law has some higher power looking out for him that happened throughout his flashback, I’m inclined to think this is actually foreshadowing that Law’s going to get out of this somehow even though reading it week by week it…didn’t exactly seem like it at the time… Doflamingo’s got some real guts still trying to get Law to make him immortal after everything, though.

Look, Law flips him off in the very next panel, but this is as blatant a ‘go fuck yourself’ as he could have ever given. Earlier in the arc he claimed to not care about the people of Dressrosa but now that Doflamingo’s been trying to guilt him into feeling responsible for their plight he’s using that as part of his way of firing back at Doflamingo for things that were done entirely by his own hand. At the very least, it’s good to know Law isn’t blaming himself for any of it.

Besides the callback to him doing this when we first met him, what’s really important here is that even facing certain death (and at this point I’m inclined to believe he did think it was certain, but I’ll get into that more in the future…) he’s trusting not only in Luffy but in all of the Strawhats to see the plan through and succeed. That’s a lot of faith to have in people he hasn’t known for very long and speaks to how he truly views them and what he thinks they’re capable of.

Doflamingo gets careless when he’s angry and I think this was Law’s final Hail Mary in the sense that if anything was going to save him it was Doflamingo’s rage making his aim unsteady. It’s also somewhat ironic that Doflamingo is listing all of these things that were born from Cora’s love for Law and Law’s desire to acknowledge and remember that as if they’re something he has ownership over and is solely responsible for when that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

This has nothing to do with Law himself but let me tell you that this image of Luffy only noticing the state Law’s in because there’s so much blood on the roof that he literally slips on it has stuck with me since the chapter came out and it’s so visceral and such a visual indication of how intense Doflamingo’s rage was in that moment.

‘He really seemed to trust you’ just hits me in the gut because once again Doflamingo’s up to his old ‘make someone else feel guilty’ tricks (and for Luffy it would hit especially hard given what happened with Ace and how he feels about not being able to save the people he cares about) but also it’s just…true. Law trusts Luffy so much and even at this point some of the fandom was convinced he was going to betray the Strawhats when that shouldn’t have even been a consideration any longer.

And again we get the idea of the Strawhats being able to work ‘miracles’, though in this case it’s simply Doflamingo mocking Law’s words and not putting any belief in it himself, but this was…probably one of the worst chapters to have to wait a week for the continuation. The one bit of hope we get is Law’s single speech bubble at the end telling Luffy to listen to him but that was…very little to go off of…

Well, that seems like a great and happy place to end this part! I hope you enjoyed (?) and please do feel free to like and reblog; especially after so long I’m not sure how many people are still around who want to read something like this so it helps inspire me to keep going!

[retracing-my-steps-again]

Spider-Man: Expiation Ch. 2 Notes

My author and story notes on Ch. 2 of my spidey-deku fic (fic linked below)

Spoilers for Ch. 2 below

Author Notes:

I swear this whole fic is not just explaining and backstory. It's just the set up/origin chapters that have so much of it. There's plenty of action and dialogue to come, my friends.

I have a whole additional thing I want to say about the quirkless allegory but might just make that a separate post? I'll still link it to the fic I just think I have too much to say about that to put it here.

I feel like every single time I've gone on social media for MHA I see takes I disagree with, usually involving Izuku and Katsuki. They're surprisingly massively misunderstood characters. At least, that seems to be the case to me. I don't spend a whole lot of time online anymore though, so maybe that's changed. I hope to do the canon characters justice in this, even though it's both canon divergent and a fanfic (obviously).

I hope people are able to trust this fic a bit on character development. Since this isn't the same as the canon, I can't develop anyone in the same way but I do my best to do it accurately and with respect to canon. I also add in lots of parallels which showed up surprisingly often as I was writing all this. Hopefully that will keep people on board if they feel I'm not doing a good job? They'll be like well this is nothing like Izuku... oh wait here's a parallel I guess he's sort of like Izuku. Idk haha

Also, I wrote out an additional scene for this chapter that was literally just the beginning of the manga from Izuku's POV. Specifically, the beginning parts where he's in class the day of the sludge villain attack. All his classmates want to be heroes, Katsuki wants to go to UA and is pissed Izuku wants to as well, and then the whole exploding Izuku's notebook and Katsuki being like perhaps a hard reset via a swan dive? I didn't include it because I was worried it would be too boring to simply repeat a whole scene from the canon. I don't really do that anywhere else in the fic, I just considered it here because it's one of the few scenes from the manga that occurs before the canon divergence of this fic. I feel like it's a good starting point for Izuku and Katsuki's characters as well, and it would help emphasize how bad their relationship was at the beginning.

I still might go back and add it in. Mainly because even though it's in the manga, it feels like people seem to misunderstand that whole scene more than most. People are welcome to their bad takes, but I just wanted to establish a baseline for this fic, which is best done with my own interpretation of Izuku's thoughts during that scene. Idk I can't decide what to do about it. I feel like not including it and including it could both cause problems in different ways so idk we'll see

Also, no hate to the nickname "Kacchan" but I have to write it so many goddamn times in this fic and it sort of drove me insane. Actually, for the entire first draft I wrote Katsuki instead of Kacchan (unless Izuku was speaking to him of course) because I didn't want to type "Kacchan" that many times. However, it is technically Izuku's pov so I knew I needed to toughen up and just write Kacchan. I love the nickname in the context of the story and I think it's important for the sake of showing how Izuku views/wants Katsuki as a close friend throughout the years despite their issues. That being said... idk man. I'm gonna get hate for this for sure. Kacchan is Izuku's name for him and no one else uses that name in canon so even though it's his pov I'm like bro why tf am I calling him Kacchan? I don't know him like that. Blech idk how to say it but anyways I fixed it by now I just had to rant about it somewhere

Story Notes:

Funnily enough, out of every chapter I've written for this fic, this is one of the ones that makes me the most nervous for how I've written Katsuki's and Izuku's characters.

The difficulty with this fic is they've had this massive traumatic event right at the start. In this, the Izuku who is injured is all but exactly the same as the Izuku at the very start of the manga. He's had none of the development he gets from meeting and training with All Might. He's gained none of the confidence that he gets from training with his idol and getting a quirk and getting into UA (which might not seem like much at first glance ? but it actually seems to do a lot for him). In canon, Katsuki's character development mainly begins when he gets to UA, which he also has not yet done in this fic by this point.

So while I don't think I've written them incorrectly necessarily, they did feel somewhat OOC sometimes when writing because there's not really a canon reference at this point in time in any capacity. It's completely unique in a lot of ways. I could probably write a whole essay on why, but I won't bore with the details. I don't think they're actually OOC to the best of my ability, but I worry they come across that way. Largely because they probably seem really different from canon. So I worry that I'm starting off the fic and them acting strange might put people off. Hopefully, people stick it out and can see where I'm coming from both during the chapter and as time goes on. Also I tried to drive home how extreme the situation is, so hopefully people can at least give any uncharacteristic actions the benefit of the doubt for now.

I did a lot of revisions for the "apology" at the end. Again, there's no close reference in canon for something like this so I got stressed about it lol. Katsuki's apology in canon comes after a lot of development and is driven by very different motivations and understandings than this Katsuki. My references are my understanding of his character and comparisons to irl life experiences both for myself and others I know so idk I tried my best.

I've been writing this fic for a really long time so sometimes I forget how dark and dismal the very beginning is. Izuku has a rough time, and there's the beginnings of his mental struggles in this. I'll talk about it some more when I post about the quirkless allegory.

Honestly, as much as these first two chapters are a lot of explaining, they are pretty important setup for everything else. Because this fic is already so goddamn long I try not to include anything unless it has a specific purpose for the story

I had more thoughts but my laptop is trying to end itself so perhaps I will add more later if I remember to :)

[stepswowdsen]

【Magi】 JuAli Omake Rambles 🖤❤️💛

Snippets from a REALLY long convo I had with my friend Cinna (@/cinnamononions) who was reacting to the YGO DM manga.

It was mainly us going over the Kaiba centric scenes in YGO DM: Death-T arc, and she noted differences in the Finnish TL vs. Viz's official EN TL. I haven't posted that yet. I'll put it in a future post

The convo’s really long so I’ll mainly just post the Magi: JuAli tangent part of our big convo for now.

There's some YGO DM: KaiYami and YGO: GX JohaJu rambles and misc rambles from other series sprinkled in though.

I wanted to compare this Magi: JuAli omake between the fan-TL and Viz's official EN TL.

(I still haven't checked out the JP version for this scene yet. When I do, I'll make a new post)

Fan-TL

(Magi: Kou Empire Arc - Vol. 28 - Ch. 278)

Translated by @/arashidono

Official TL by Viz

Summary:

Fan-TL:

(+) More literal, which is interesting

(+) Usually more accurate in meaning

(+) I personally prefer the prose and wording, especially for important scenes

(-) Readable, but the text and pages aren't as clean obviously cuz they were scanned directly from the magazines at the time of Magi's release, so you can't see art details very well

(-) Fan-TL team had to figure out how to translate the names and terms, etc. So the names change overtime, and the fan scan team eventually adjusts to the most commonly accepted spellings

Viz (Official TL)

(+) Has higher res HD scans and much cleaner pages to see all the details of Ohtaka's art

(+) Well professional and sounds more natural, which is also interesting

(+) Typesetting is much better since it's done by professional typesetters rather than a hobbyist team of fans

(+/-) Consistency with how terms are translated, but they also choose really weird spellings tbh

(+/-) Viz's TL is ok. The translation generally gets the point across.

(+/-) Generally translates terms (ie. attack names) to English More distanced from the OG text in terms of meaning

(+/-) Character's speech styles can get lost with how Viz translates things though

(+/-) Often cuts dialogue shorter so it can fit within the speech bubbles, so Viz's TL often loses the full context for these lines

...

Me: Also first off I'm gonna start with my rambles that I genuinely prefer the fan-TL for this JuAli omake.

Alibaba's tone in his dialogue generally being much more calmer and softer and empathetic towards Judar (and thus, capturing the original intended meaning and tone much more closely to the OG JP version) is something I 100000% prefer. It feels more fitting to his chara.

Like WOOOOW the way Alibaba's "You seem rather spoiled and pampered, Judar," turns into "What a spoiled brat!" In Viz's version, does change the tone and way it comes across.

It loses the air of humbleness and maturity that his character has, late-Kou Empire arc and beyond

...

Me: What I cannot stand about Viz's prose is that they make everyone sound the same too. Their way of translating dialogue is so samey sounding. And it's not really the first time that a Viz official TL feels harsher. Like, a lot of softer nuances in charas' speech pattern just gets flat out erased in Viz's official TLs and it annoys me sm.

C: Yeah this is such a Viz thing, god. YGO DM’s Finnish TL still has this issue but at least like. Yugi and Jonouchi use different first person pronouns, etc. Subtle differences.

Me: RIGHT like I've seen tons of series officially localized by Viz and it's so typical of Viz's official TLs /neg

Me: Magi's official TL by Viz is fine, thank god. YGO DM and DGM by Viz are decent at least. My childhood series, KHR and MMBN/EXE were absolutely butchered by Viz's awful official EN TLs by them, tho, holy shit...

Also out of big manga EN localizers, my preferences for TL quality goes like this: Yen Press >>>>>> Kodansha >> Viz

Me: (Magi: Kou Empire arc - Vol. 28 - Ch. 278)

The JuAli omake

Judar's gay tsundere ass LMFAO 😭

Gay and a menace to women!

In the original, Judar just calls him haniwa ("Clay doll") but in the Viz version it's Sausage. LMAO

Like, one example that comes to mind for me is how Viz translates the JuAli scenes in the Kou Empire arc. Like their meeting on the Dark Continent with Judar and haniwa (clay doll) Alibaba.

Summary: Due to plot/story reasons, Alibaba is currently a sausage shaped haniwa (clay doll) like OoO and travelling with Judar.

Like it makes Alibaba's tone come off WAY different... Like he obviously has this air of humbleness and maturity to him, late Kou Empire arc and beyond, and it’s especially apparent in his scenes with Judar. But it loses that nuance with Viz's version.

The Viz TL is much less softer compared to the OG which is much softer in tone.

Can't say I'm a fan of how Viz translated this compared to the fan-TL tbh but it's. Ok. You get the gist of it. At least now I have Ohtaka's omake extra comics in HD though. I do appreciate Viz’s TL for that. It’s interesting to see cuz officials TLs almost always have more natural sounding liberal English, while fan-Tls are typically more literal and more accurate in meaning.

Magi: Vol. 28 - Ch. 278 - JuAli Omake

Fan-TL

Translated by @/arashidono

Alibaba: Looks like you were raised spoiled and pampered. I didn't expect that from you, Judar.

Official TL (Viz)

Alibaba: What a spoiled brat!

C: Oh yeah! Very different wording

Me: Like Alibaba's tone is clearly softer in OG

C: And a lot less sympathy in Viz's TL, too, even though Alibaba is supposed to be empathetic as a character.

C: Aaa yes this one

Lmao the tone is completely different

Me: Also Viz go fuck yourself for trying to make it sound like he's into women 😭 🖕

C: LMAOO

Me: But at least he (Judar) clears it up that he's not interested. Whews!

C: At least!

Me: Cuz I KNOW for a fact that Viz ALWAYS has a tendency for adding straight ship tease even when it doesn't exist in the OG text (source material), but tones down or erases gay subtext...

C: HKAKHLDKGKDNFKKDK YEAH THIS HAS INDEED HAPPENED.

Me: I think I just realized an example of this.

Iirc, Viz added MLW ship subtext that doesn't exist in OG with PokeSpe (Pokemon Special AKA Pokemon Adventures manga), vs. them toning down gay subtext with Kanda/Alma in DGM.

C: They really toned down actual queer coding in DGM 😭

C: And yeha I think Viz' PokeSpe TL adds some random fanservice for MLW ships

Can't remember specific examples but 🙄

Me: (Put the rest of the misc rambles at the end of this post)

...

C: Omg the sausage Alibaba story

Ahhh I see. That makes sense.

C: Viz is Viz, never expect too much /neg 😩

So valid

C: “WHAT A RUDE SAUSAGE” AJGKNAGNNANANANANS

Viz reducing the clay doll into a hot dog

Me: JUDAR IN THE VIZ TL CALLING ALIBABA "SAUSAGE" IN THE JUALI CHAPTERS I'M DECEASEDDDDD /POS /ENDEARING

Judar: Are you ok, sausage boy!?

THAT'S SO FUCKING FUNNY LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I accept Haniwa (“Clay doll”) turning into Sausage cuz it’s really funny

...

C: HELPPP

Alibaba: You're not popular with girls? Just like me!

C: YEAH VALID

Sausage boy omg

Jar of Alibabas be like 🌭 jar

C: This is hilarious

Alibaba: You abuse your power, so you get to wear damp clothes.

C: The little high five when Judar manages to fly again by thinking of Aladdin omg

Cute

C: Tbh I like it but it's also distanced from OG text as per Viz 😩

...

Me: Yeah I love the haniwa Alibaba JuAli omake. It's so funny

My JuAli crumbs come from the JuAli chapters late Kou Empire arc and the omakes

Really good crumbs though

Me: “Viz is Viz never expect too much”

HHH YEAH

Like their TLs for Magi, AkaYona, and ROTRK are fine at least though

Me: “Viz reducing the clay doll into a hotdog”

VIZ MADE JUDAR'S LINE "WHAT A RUDE SAUSAGE!" RATHER THAN "YOU RUDE HANIWA!" IN THE FAN TL LMAO

Ok I get this one. This one’s fine with me. Maybe they thought clay doll was too clunky. It sounds fine to me though but alas. Plus Viz always translates terms into English. Like they do that with the attack names in Magi

We got Judar asking Alibaba "Are you ok sausage boy?" Out of it though. I'll live with that LMAOOO it's so funny

Me: “You’re not popular with girls? Just like me!”

YEAH HHHH

Alibaba telling Judar in the fan TL, "You mean you're unlucky with love? For the first time I feel close to you!" Lmaooo

Judar's gay ass: 🧍

S: HAH

Me: Judar asking Alibaba, "Are you ok, sausage boy?" In Viz's version LMAOOO

HELPPPP

Me: Alibaba telling Judar in the fan TL, "Power is wasted on you. Half dried clothes suit you best. You're such a pampered one." LOL

Me: YEA THIS IS FUNNY

Me: “The little high five is so cute”

Yeah JuAli doing the little high five is so cute

When Judar learns how to fly again in a space where his magical power is weak while thinking of how to beat Aladdin 😭😂

Alibaba knowing how to motivate Judar lmaooo

Me: “Tbh I like it but it’s distanced from the OG text, as per usual Viz”

Yeah this is how I feel about Viz's Magi. I surprisingly like most of it. Tho tbf Magi already has banger dialogue as a story/narrative, so it explains it. You can’t really ruin goated text unless you translate it really badly.

The way some lines are translated is just grrr though. It's fun to see Magi translated in more liberal English and I like it. It's generally fine. But yeah, as you said, Cinna, it's distanced from the OG text in terms of the meaning. I like how we have access to the high quality scans of Ohtaka's art for seeing details. The typesetting and fonts are better.

But I prefer the fan TL cuz it's closer to the OG text and more accurate in meaning. And I prefer the wording and prose tbh

Also the other thing is that EN official TLs usually have to shorten the length of the lines so it can fit within the speech bubbles (which is understandable). They get the point across fine, but lose the full context of dialogue lines. But I like reading good fan-TLs cuz they usually give me the full context that the original text intended.

...

Me: Now that I think about it, my KHR OC, Selena, is also a water themed gal :)

Selena (KHR AU), Tatsumiya (WATGBS AU), Kougyoku (Magi), my water themed wifey wife trio 🫶 🌊

C: “My JuAli crumbs come from late Kou Empire arc”

That's so valid

C: “Viz’s TLs for Magi, AkaYona, and ROTRK are fine tho”

YEAH... Their DGM translation isn't too bad either but it's still well. Viz.

C: “YOU RUDE SAUSAGE!”

FRIGGING SAUSAGE

Right and they can't have too many Japanese words included I bet

C: “Sausage boy is so funny tho. I’ll live with that”

TRUE JAHFJSJA

C: “You’re unlucky with love? For the first time, I feel close to you!”

Yea that is. Such a whole different sentence.

C: “Are you ok, sausage boy?”

Why is there no sausage emoji I can put here

🌭

C: LMAO

C: “JuAli doing the little high five is so cute”

That's. Definitely amusing lmao.

C: Yeah that makes sense

Yeee very valid Viz TLs often follow a very specific tone for all series (Which can definitely cause issues!

Me: Yeahhh exactly

As Lumen said, Viz's Magi official EN TL is still interesting to see cuz it's in more natural sounding English

But the fan-TL still sounds good and is more literal and I prefer the prose more. Also it's closer in meaning

Me: YEAH SAUSAGE IS SO FUNNY

Yeah Viz also translates all the Arabic inspired attack names to English so yeah

Me: Yeah ngl I'm not a fan of how Viz tried to imply this scene was about women

Fan-TL

Judar: The stupid king told me that I'd have more success in love wearing middle eastern clothes. Ha ha... He's so stupid...

Alibaba: You mean... You're unlucky with love!! For the first time, I feel close to you!

Viz

Judar: Besides, Sinbad said women love middle eastern clothes!! Ha ha! What an idiot!

Alibaba: Oh! You're not popular with girls?! Just like me!

Me: Like of course Judar's gay ass is just gonna be like 🧍 I don't like Viz trying to imply that. But thankfully the next page is still fine and clears it up. Cuz it still shows how disinterested he is in women

Me: “That’s definitely amusing lmao (irt JuAli’s little high five)”

Yeah it's like. In a way, they definitely know how to push each others' buttons, play with each others' curiosity and motivate each other!

Me: “Viz TLs often follow a very specific tone for their series”

Oh yeah that's also very true. And yeah it can definitely cause issues

Viz's official EN TL for AkaYona is generally pretty bland and it sounds so samey/affects how characters' speech styles are translated. It's ok for Magi tho.

C: Yea like especially characters' speech styles can really get lost with how Viz translates things

Also understandable

C: “Viz translates all the Arabic inspired attack names to English”

SAD AS HELL

C: “Official TL with more liberal English while fan TL is more accurate in meaning”

Oh yeah that makes sense

Pros and cons to both

C: HJFJFDKD REALLY SO DIFFERENT

C: YEAH VALID

Me:

Summary of my personal observations

Fan-TL

(+) More literal, which is interesting

(+) More accurate in meaning

(+) I personally prefer the prose and wording, especially for important scenes

(-) Readable, but the text and pages aren't as clean obviously cuz they were scanned directly from the magazines at the time of Magi's release, so you can't see art details very well

(-) Fan-TL team had to figure out how to translate the names and terms, etc. So the names change overtime, and the fan scan team eventually adjusts to the most commonly accepted spellings

Me:

Viz (Official TL)

(+) Has higher res HD scans and much cleaner pages to see all the details of Ohtaka's art

(+) Well professional and sounds more natural, which is also interesting

(+) Typesetting is much better since it's done by professional typesetters rather than a hobbyist team of fans

(+/-) Consistency with how terms are translated, but they also choose really weird spellings tbh

(+/-) Viz's TL is ok. The translation generally gets the point across.

(+/-) Generally translates terms (ie. attack names) to English More distanced from the OG text in terms of meaning

(+/-) Character's speech styles can get lost with how Viz translates things though

(+/-) Often cuts dialogue shorter so it can fit within the speech bubbles, so Viz's TL often loses the full context for these lines

Since I wanted to see how the text was originally intended to be read, so I read the Magi fan TL first. But reading in any order is fine

C: YEAH HAVFJSJDS

C: Yuuup

A lot of charas’ unique speech styles get slaughtered in translation especially if Viz is at it

C: That sounds about right

Yeah Viz often tries to water things down and make everything same-y which is....

C: Very valid

Me: “Charas’ unique speech styles get slaughtered in translation especially if Viz is in charge”

Yeahhh exactly. I agree… Yeah I also noticed a lot of times Viz cuts the dialogue for it to fit in the bubble and make it shorter. While the fan-TL generally gives more context to these lines

Me: Yeah it's why Viz’s official TLs are either decent, or sound generally bland.

Like AkaYona’s EN official TL by Viz has such bland prose, it’s so boring sounding to me.

ROTRK’s EN official TL by Viz is so good it’s hard to believe it’s a Viz localization LMFAO

C: Oh makes sense

Yuuup

...

DGM & YGO: Rambles

(MASSIVE DGM SPOILERS)

(Original)

Alma: I love you, Yu…

(Official TL by Viz)

Alma: You are dear to me, Yu…

Like??? Viz you ain't fucking worth shit

Also I'm assuming that Daisuki (大好き, "I love you") is used in this scene in DGM

...

Me: Ok I just realized an instance of "Viz adding ship tease to MLW ships when it isn't present in OG text"

Yeahhh like one example that came to mind was between Gold and Crys in PokeSpe, I think

They have an interesting dynamic in that they bring out the worst in each other, but it's just super unappealing as a ship imo

C: RIGHT LIKE

And yes it is with Daisuki

But Iirc I've understood Hoshino has on her Instagram talked of Kanda and Alma in ways that kind of imply the queer coding is very. very intentional

But I haven't seen a source augh

Me: Yeahhh, like, unlike most shounen, it actually feels very intentional here (irt the confession scene in DGM), so it is actually queer coding.

Which is different from unintentional/accidental shounen gay subtext (which is the majority of shounens)

C: Alma is literally a woman's soul put to a man's body. SOMETHING is queer there

Me: Even the Kaiba/Yami ship in YGO DM still counts as gay subtext cuz nothing is confirmed. The food is great tho but it's still accidental/unintentional shounen homoeroticism

C: Right like Kanda and Alma are really unlike anything It's obviously intentional which is really rare in mainstream shonen

C: Iirc yes

C: Yeah. 😭

Me: The only exceptions that I can think of is newer YGO series getting more progressive. Like the one I showed. Iirc, the recent YGO series spin-off, Go-Rush, actually has a love confession between the protag and his rival

Cuz even in previous YGO series, even when love is spelled out in a gay ship, they go the cheap route of keeping it as subtext and not confirming/going with any canon ships

C: Johto Trio in PokeSpe are great besties but I feel like Gold and Crystal being involved romantically would be miserable for them both, lol

C: Yeah!

But YGO is progressing in this regard

(MASSIVE YGO GX: SEASON 3 SPOILERS)

Me: Ok I'll try to sum up YGO GX: Season 3.

Judai is YGO GX's protag and Johan is his best friend who he immediately got along well with. They developed great synergy.

In YGO GX, when Yubel, the agender Duel Monster who wants to "take back Judai," possesses Johan, and duels Judai, they say, "You're actually aching with someone you love… How come you weren't this serious when I was the one involved?"

And in the series it explicitly spells out that Yubel acknowledges that the "love that Judai gave to her past self/reincarnation is now for Johan."

But YGO GX still goes the cheap route of not confirming any ships/not going with any canon ships, not with Johan, or Asuka who is the token femme love interest.

C: OH YEAH HSHFHSHDHSSH BATSHIT INSANE STUFF

Whatever they were trying to say with THIS

Me: YEAH THIS IS CRAZY FOR AN OLD 2000'S SHOUNEN SERIES

It's still gay subtext tho since they don't go with any canon ships or confirm anything.

Me: Kaiba/Yami's food is also batshit as well, but it's mainly gay subtext, similar to JohaJu.

It's also so so so funny cuz Yubel chooses to possess Johan specifically. Not Asuka. But Johan.

YGO DM: KaiYami

(YGO DM anime)

Kaiba: I tremble with desire...

(YGO: Duel Links - Mobile Game)

Kaiba: Even if all 8 billion people were here, it wouldn't be enough. Because the one person I want wouldn't be around. Reviving him is what this world needs! And what I need!

(YGO: DSOD - Movie)

The entirety of YGO: DSOD, that canonically takes place 6 months post-YGO DM manga canon. Kaiba is mourning in his own way for Yami Yuugi (Atem), wanting to revive the Pharaoh Atem and meet him again, remaking an entire holographic replica perfectly, for him to duel against but not being satisfied cuz it doesn't have Atem's soul, having an entire space station built so that he can try and reach Atem in the afterlife, being extremely overprotective of the Millenium Puzzle since he believes Atem's soul is trapped inside so it's surrounded by glass and lasers and shit, etc.

There's SO MUCH I'm not mentioning but yeah. Here's a snippet of KaiYami. A little sneak peek into Kaiba's obsession with Yami Yuugi (Atem)

[beevean]

Let's do this: top 10 most hated NFCV characters counting both shows

As a bonus, if you're willing to: top 10 worst episodes

I think I did a top 5 worst characters for both shows but I can do it again :P

11) Drolta. She doesn't do anything egregious, in fact she's kind of tolerable, but she stole Isaac's drip. And for that, I will forever be salty :) (also yeah I couldn't decide for #10 so I added one, whatcha gonna do about it)

10) Sumi and Taka. Ah yes, these two Japanese people who look identical are most assuredly not related, they are just Japanese! Aside from that, they are the emblem of S3's utter failure: they add nothing of importance except for a gratuituous (and OOC) rape scene that is supposed to send the message "humans suck, trusting is for fools"... that in on itself doesn't change a thing, because Alucard is fine afterwards. But hey, you got your bi rep! Aren't you happy with this show's representation? :)

9) Emmanuel. This guy is just stupid. Just because you lampshade how absurd it is to ally yourself with vampires because you think the Revolution is "godless", it doesn't make it any less absurd. We're still at this level of shallow, childish CHURCH BAD.

8) Sypha. You're not cute when you insult Trevor. Stop it. I remembered her being nicer than she actually was :( during the rewatch she was painful, constantly complaining, defending Alucard from Trevor rather than the other way around (but still ditching him when he needed company because yay adventures!!!), and acting bossily with her bf because that's the only kind of character they can write here. Also she's OP af and that's not fun.

7) Maria. Does she even have a personality beyond stereotypical Twitter communist teen? Good god girl shut up you are nothing more than useless backdrop!

6) Carmilla. In theory, she could be an interesting unapologetic female villain who reacted to her trauma with rage rather than sorrow, a female Dracula but even pettier. In practice, she is the parody of a radfem written by a man with zero respect for women, so you can imagine that she isn't exactly nuanced. I hate that Dracula and his boytoys were made to be absolute dumbasses for her to win, only for her to conclude effectively nothing. villain.exe

5) Alucard. You absolute cunt. Am I supposed to like, or worse being attracted to, this piece of shit who spends his time insulting Trevor and treating him like dog shit under his shoe? He has zero of the effortless charm of the real Alucard, but I'm supposed to root for him because he's hot when he cries all boobily. Fuck off with your disingenous fanservice. (also his design is atrocious and the artstyle doesn't flatter him at all)

4) Erzsébet. Literally an OC made by a 5 yo. Look at her! She's so cool and special! She's older than Dracula, stronger than Dracula, more evil than Dracula, more dangerous than Dracula, and she turns into an invincible Sun Thundercat! Yeah good job, but you forgot to give her a personality.

3) Annette. She is not a character. She is nothing more than accurately engineered discourse bait. I refuse to acknowledge this shallow attempt at "badass representation" that I am supposed to like on the sole basis of her race and gender. I am so tired of Stronk Women that are actually giant assholes, all flash and no substance.

2) Isaac. I will concede that he has the most coherent character arc of all characters, but aside from that, he pisses me off something fierce for how overrated he is. Forgettable design, pretentious as fuck, spouting faux-philosophical quotes to hide how petty he is, basically a jihadist in S3, wakes up one day in S4 and suddenly he's Muslim Jesus, disgustingly OP because the narrative finds every way to suck his shiny dick... and his amazing arc that everyone praises him for, the thing that makes him "better than that stupid gay joker from CoD"? It's just a worse version of Hector's from the mangas, which left him Hector here with no arc to speak of. Get him out of my sight.

1) Lenore. Her concept is great. She is an intriguing foil to both Carmilla and Hector, and incarnates an unique type of villainy: she is amoral, kind for her own selfish purposes, with understandable goals but willing to do anything to achieve them. I want to like her. Too bad she is a disgusting, repulsive, inconsistent, bratty rapist that I am supposed to feel sorry for because oh, she's not so bad after all :) she did everything for Hector's own good :) she's not actually evil :) she deserved to smooch the man she raped into slavery, don't you feel bad that she sunned herself like a selfish coward :) Lenore begs to be rewritten by someone who doesn't jerk off to abusive dommy mommies, but in her canon state, she makes me ill.

Now for the episodes :P

10) The Great Work (S4E7): I never watched it because it's boring as shit, which speaks of the terrible pacing of this show and especially S4. I know it has the infamous "vampires dislike crosses because their vision is fucked up" scene lmao

9) The River (S2E6): It's the episode where the zombie bishop resurrected by a dark necromancer who is now working for a vampire with plans of enslaving mankind is apparently favored by God to the point of being able to bless water. Do I need to say more? Well, it's also the episode where the heroes suddenly remember they are supposed to do shit and hack into Dracula's castle, and the episode that fully cements Dracula as an ineffectual pathetic antagonist easily manipulable by the real villain, no I don't care that he's kinda cool in For Love. (at least the scene with Carmilla avoiding the river and the castle is fun to watch)

8) Bless Your Dead Little Hearts (S3E1): The beginning of Alucard's and Trepha's plotlines, two utter mindnumbing wastes of time, and Hector's plotline, which is the show beating me over the head with a nail bat while screeching "LOOK HOW PATHETIC HECTOR IS! LOOK AT THIS PITIFUL WET CAT! LOOK AT HIM COWERING NAKED IN A CELL EATING MOLDY BREAD! FEEL SORRY FOR HIM!". Just unpleasant for all sorts of reasons.

7) It's Been A Strange Ride (S4E10): Trevor miraculously survives Death! Alucard is happy to live with his new bossy gf as if nothing ever happened! Lenore suns herself just for a final kick in the balls to Hector, whose character will forever be remembered as "useless simp"! And most importantly, Dracula and Lisa get to live again as if the dude didn't just try to exterminate mankind, and they will have endless kinky sex until she dies while Alucard will forever mourn his parents but no one gives a shit about that because we love to piss on the games! :D

6) Old Homes (S2E2): It has the double combo "Alucard being the biggest moistest cunt to Trevor while we're supposed to laugh at this hilarious banter" and "Carmilla girlbossily girlbosses all over Dracula who can't even punish this vampire who insults his wife in front of everyone, establishing herself as the cooler villain"! Joy!

5) The Good Dream (S3E6): "Walkies! :D"

4) Back In The World (S4E5): It's the one with the infamous "Oh, shush, you were having fun" :) and all the Lenore apologism that follows :)

3) You Don't Deserve My Blood (S4E6): I get it. Isaac is Jesus and I should drop to my knees to suck his entire dick. Good thing this is his last appearance. Other than that, this episode is the last nail in the coffin for what was left of Hector's character, who is revealed to have been working to resurrect Dracula (a complete spit in the face to everything he stood for in S2) and also chooses to stay with his rapist instead of seeking true freedom.

2/1) The Harvest (S3E9)/Abandon All Hope (S3E10): It's hard to separate the two, and I wouldn't know which one is worse. The Harvest is infamous for being half boring fight scenes, and half "hot" sex scenes that are actually rape by deception: the entire episode is simply uncomfortable to sit through, not helped by the shoddy editing. Abandon All Hope is the season finally dropping its final message: "the world sucks, and you will be betrayed". Everyone except babyboy Isaac is left traumatized and cynical because we are so fucking edgy, we are just like Berserk fr fr. And, of course, in retrospect, Alucard and Hector's endings piss me off even more as all of their pain was for fucking nothing :)

(Nocturne is completely forgettable and doesn't reach the peaks of NFCV so it deserves its own ranking)

[diezmil10000]

i really like this addition, and i've always seen the love live franchise through this lens. like, even if i hadn't known for years that the love live creator also made strawberry panic, it's extremely clear that there were queer people somewhere in the team behind the animes, especially if you see how far they’ve gone from µ's to aqours to nijigasaki (liella are gay too, but nijigasaki s1 flew too close to the lesbian sun and they really had to tone it down from there).

i wrote a college assignment about this topic, about the state of lesbianism in anime spaces, and love live was a very important reference for my points. it's the perfect mix of female highschoolers that appeal to straight men with money, and homoerotic subtext that appeals to young lesbians. highly problematic in terms of fetichization, but also highly representative of most of the teenage lesbian experiences i've known about. 

we have to keep in mind that love live and love live sunshine aired between 2013 and 2017. there’s a whole generation of sapphic girls who literally didn’t have anything better if they only were into anime. even in the west, the biggest thing we had was steven universe and it was still airing with the worst possible schedule. sure, there were a lot of yuri mangas (and i’m really grateful for all the hard work the authors put into them!!), but in my experience, romance-driven stories weren’t as relatable as this:

and i’m not the only one who felt like this. there’s something very impactful about watching an anime completely unrelated to romance and finding out that one of the main characters has been crushing on her best friend for her whole life and is struggling to confess her feelings (gif 1). that a girl is ashamed of others finding out about her yuri collection (gif 2). that one character literally says she loves all the flaws of another character to cheer her up (gif 3). that the protagonist of one story is in love with her childhood friend and gets jealous and insecure because she thinks said friend will abandon her for another girl (gif 4). they're just normal, human people who happen to be lesbians in a story that isn't about being a lesbian.

(i’m describing the context of these scenes with no exaggeration, and the translation is quite literal - it really is that gay, to the point where it’s offensive to think that only straight people have worked on these stories. there’s also the fact that Garasu no Hanazono exists. like. it’s an explicitly lesbian song written and produced by two women. and the fact that half of the staff of the concerts are women, as said by an aqours seiyuu if i believe correctly? but i don’t have a source for this. you can watch the behind the scenes footage and see it for yourself tho!)

so it’s not that i’m delusional because love live (sunshine) is my favorite anime, and this is in no way a defense of the franchise (i could complain forever about sexualisation, pedophilia, gambling, etc). but sometimes we set the bar at "can the average cishet person consider this queer?", when the reality is that a big part of the people who enjoy certain stories are queer and see themselves in the characters, whether it was intended or not. and, for that to happen to so many people, there have to be queer people working on them trying their best to deliver those stories to us. we shouldn’t assume the worst even for franchises that are peak capitalism.

so coming to the last addition, i think that the comparison to g-witch is very accurate. we’re in 2023 and the world is moving forward despite companies trying their best to make their products marketable to homophobes. we also have a lot to thank to all the queer workers who were very smart to avoid censorship and make their voices resonate with us. i’m not saying we should stay complacent, and criticism and complaints do have an impact (especially on other fans reading them), but i think it’s nice to appreciate how some works were made with genuine love.

well time to watch another episode of the show from 2006 from the lady who created Love Live

[justanothershippingcan]

My thoughts on the Ritsu&Shou related parts in the Fanbook

because I am kinda going insane.

The way ONE was able to melt all the gays down in one go should be studied, analysed and locked deep in the black void of Shou’s black shirt in the Cultural Festival scene in the manga, because there’s no way. 

As a warning, while I’ll be mostly talking about their relationship in terms of friendship anyway, I ship them, so this is kinda biased on this side of things. Enjoy what I have to say under the cut.

Okay, so, with the premise that the translations around on Twitter aren’t official so the info might not be 100% accurate, I am still more than willing to trust our beloved fantranslators and their hard work. Let’s actually begin this slide deep into the tunnel headed to Copium Land, shall we?

• To the question "Who are your friends, excluding your brother?" Ritsu just answers with Student Council Members and Classmates. And that we (readers) don't have to worry, since he has many people he can ask about the weather to. Now.

We... never see him hang out with his classmates, nor his Council members. Ever. Except for the whole S1 "Middle school criminals purge" fiasco and even then, it ended up with him breaking through the Student Council President Kamuro’s house. When I say Ritsu isn't normal, I mean it (go off, King). 

Ritsu is the same person who asked the other Psychic kids from the Awakening Lab their names only after they were all kidnapped. And solely for the sake of escaping. He... doesn't know how to socialize well or doesn't particularly care. 

To him, friends are ones he can ask the weather to. I honestly feel like, no matter how popular he is (mostly, due to his looks... let’s remember how he is the one among the kids in the cast who gets the most chocolate on Valentine’s Day, but he finds it a nuisance) he doesn’t really know how-to-friend and how-to-people. And partially, he isn’t too focused on that due to the many things he has going on. 

I truly appreciate the idea of autistic Ritsu, because it would explain many things tbh, and this difficulty of approaching others/making friends/even having a basic understanding of friendships and what they mean would be clearer. 

Now, onto Shou. We have two questions to take into account:

• To the "What do you like doing with your friends?" he answers mentioning only Ritsu. Not even the kids that call him leader in S2,nor any classmate. Just Ritsu. And he mentions how Ritsu doesn’t like crowded spaces and noise (I'll return to that later) and how they went fishing together and Ritsu didn't manage to catch anything. From this we have: 

THEY WENT FISHING TOGETHER. Even with the whole text thing later, Ritsu still cared enough to go out with him. Without Mob being involved at all. I think it's important. They canonically hang out together.

Shou cares so much that he wanted to go to a place where Ritsu would feel comfy. Fishing is probably not an activity Shou prefers among others. But Ritsu might appreciate it and that's enough. 

Ritsu is bad at fishing and this is honestly a fun detail lol. 

• Through the same question, we have the whole text bit with Shou saying he texts Ritsu from time to time, but Ritsu answers slowly/not frequently. So-

For one, Ritsu does answer. He is a busy person with Student Council matters and he is, yk. At the top 10 of the best students in the school, in his first year competing with third years. And yet, he still answers these messages. 

Shou goes to school THIS IS A WIN BTW I KNEW IT, Shou literally emits the energy of that one kid who is actually totally listening during class, remembers everything and gets damn good marks, called it. Anyway, Shou probably isn't a slow texter like Ritsu is and has another perception of time lol, not to mention how he probably isn’t as busy. Can relate to Ritsu here. 

They still text. That's pretty good in my book (copium). 

Again, noise. They should have 2012-13 flip phones and now, I have used them in the past, but forgive me, I forgot what I did yesterday, imagine remembering 2012 phones, but I believe they did have an option to turn off notifications. And with Ritsu disliking noise... it's no wonder he would. It also helps with studying. 

•  There was a question about the Cultural Festival bit. Shou says that Ritsu didn’t ask him to come personally, he just caught wind of it and thought “why not?”, which makes more sense now that we are 100% sure he goes to school. Honestly, it’s no wonder Ritsu didn't ask Shou to go and see him. He was uncomfy with that outfit and the whole Maid idea. But as soon as Shou caught on that, he just. Went. Without honestly any other reason if not to see him. Still fruity enough in my book. 

• Last but not least. Ritsu does call Shou a friend in the World Domination Arc. And, truly, I am not willing to believe they aren’t on friendly terms after them texting together, hanging out together (fishing) and Ritsu just... accepting Shou burnt down his house and going along with his plan without a second thought lol. Hence why:

Either Ritsu truly just doesn't know where to place Shou in his mind. Thinking back also on Shou's VA interview helps with this.

Or, since he was mentioned as a friend in Shou’s profile, ONE believed it would have been redundant to put him in Ritsu’s as well. Which I believe is actually a fair point, since Ritsu wouldn’t have added that much insight, knowing him lol.

Or, regarding them being established as friends in World Domination Arc... ONE forgor. And truly, it has been years since he finished that arc, and he has written so many drafts of manga (ONE PUNCH, the rest of Mob), the new upcoming one and all of the extras since then. Wouldn’t blame him.

There is also this little important DETAIL of ONE just casually mentioning he would like a spin-off with Ritsu AND Shou. Together. Can’t separate, idc.

And... gosh, I think this is all. Thanks to all the ones that translated the bits that came out with this book and Katya’s translations of all the other interviews! Between this, the whole deal with Teru (aka his freaking terrible fashion sense and especially his parents), Reigen’s family, Serizawa’s pay, a few peculiar ages being revealed... this fanbook has been a trip and a half. But just in case, thank you all for coming to my Pep Talk, feel free to add anything if you want.

UPDATE 18/11

NEW INFO IS OUT and I reblogged this post of mine with all of such info compiled and my thoughts on it! It kinda changes a few of my highlights here and for the better. I’d say... we ultimately truly won. 

[makeste]

im honestly scared for whats going to happen next. while i have no doubt that bakugou is the one who knows deku best, this is the first time hes reached out to him for dekus benefit. he understands him but most likely doesnt really know how to communicate with him. what they desperately need is an adult to help talk deku down instead of fighting him, but since most of the adults have proven themselves useless in this, I'm worried whats going to happen.

I meant to reply to this ask sooner, but it didn't really come together that way, so my apologies. the manga itself will probably provide a better answer than this within the next 24 hours, assuming the leaks come out as scheduled.

but in the meantime, I do want to say that I don't think there's any cause for worry here. the Kacchan of the past may have had difficulties communicating with Deku, because he never really understood the why of why Deku was doing things (so even though he's always been fairly good at predicting Deku's actions -- "don't come, Deku" -- he never really understood what was driving him to take those actions). but the Kacchan of the present definitely knows what he's doing imo.

there are two important things to keep in mind here. the first is that we know from past arcs that Katsuki is capable of remarkable insight when it comes to finding the right approach to reach out to someone.

what's notable about this scene from the Remedial arc is the way that he anticipates which approaches are not going to work. he's not the one to come up with the final plan, but he is the one to say to the others, "look, if we don't do this right, the kids are going to react like this, instead of like this." definitely something which I'd say is applicable to the current situation as well.

and the other thing to keep in mind is that if this chapter established anything, it's that Kacchan knows Deku better than anyone else.

he knew exactly how Deku was going to react. honestly we might as well have called this chapter "the nice and accurate prophecies of Kacchan." either that or, "I'm fine," after what is apparently Deku's favorite new mantra.

but anyway, so we've established that Kacchan canonically approaches situations like this with great care and anticipation for how the would-be-rescuee will react, and we've also established that Kacchan can predict Deku's reactions in particular with incredible accuracy. so given that, I think it's reasonable to assume that Kacchan has a plan here, and that there's a reason behind his specific choice of words.

"wow, real inspiring! all hail the mighty inheritor of One for All! but tell us this... are you smiling now?"

"do your worst, you All Might wannabe!!"

and this is the part where I was originally planning on writing out a much longer post, but for various reasons it never really came together. so I'll just try to summarize everything with bullet points instead.

the theme here is "OFA is a cursed power." this is something that has been steadily building up and intensifying for a while now. the past OFA users all died young. AFO drives them all into isolation and misery. the Vestiges think of OFA as a power that "is tasked with destroying AFO." Deku is now the last and only one left who can wield that power. it is a massive burden, and Deku believes that he has to carry that burden alone.

Katsuki knows exactly what is running through Deku's head right now, and has been anticipating this for a while. he read All Might's notebook. he knows what happened to all of the other OFA users. and he knows Deku well enough to understand that he fits right in with that legacy. back during the chapter 284 flashback he was clearly worrying about this exact type of scenario.

fast-forward to chapters 318 and 319. he finally tracks down Deku, and finds him looking like a trash bag that got forced through a paper shredder, surrounded by an angry mob of brainwashed civilians and NOT EVEN FIGHTING BACK AT ALL, go fucking figure. so he basically confirms with a single glance that his fears were well-founded, and that in his absence Deku has made significant progress down the path of being a complete dumbass.

Ochako then tries to reach out to Deku through words, just like Endeavor and All Might did before her, but he predictably responds with the exact same phrase Katsuki knew that he would use -- "I'm fine."

at this point Katsuki has heard all he needed to hear. he knows Deku is not going to listen. he knows that Deku believes that he can't listen, because in Deku's mind he has a responsibility to handle this all on his own, and he's afraid of putting anyone else in danger. Deku is fully embracing the "I must walk this path alone" legacy of OFA, just like All Might before him. and so Katsuki knows two things:

in order to have any hope of reaching Deku, he has to get him to understand that the legacy he's embracing is deeply flawed, and that the path he's on right now is one which ends in death and defeat, just like it did the first seven times.

and second, Deku is going to fight them, because Deku is stubborn like that. and Deku thinks that he's doing this for them. and so in order to reach him, they will have to fight back. that's a done deal.

hence the jeer about OFA, along with the pointed remark about him not smiling. and then two seconds later Deku does of course reveal his intentions to fight, just like Katsuki knew he would. and so Katsuki accepts the challenge, and also throws in a bonus jab about how Deku is perfectly emulating All Might now, just as he always wanted -- except that what he's actually emulating are all of All Might's worst aspects. his insistence on carrying his burdens alone; his reluctance to accept anyone else's help; and of course, his determination to carry on to the bitter end until his body literally breaks down.

and that is not the fate that Katsuki wants for Deku. he needs Deku to see that this is the wrong path. he needs to find a way to break past his stubbornness, just like Deku did for him, and for Todoroki, and for so many others. and so he goes on the attack. because, in the same way that Deku is willing to fight them in order to save them, Katsuki is willing to do and say and fight anything and anyone in order to save Deku -- and that includes Deku himself.

so yeah. he knows what he's doing. and I am absolutely positive that everything he's doing and saying here does serve a purpose. he will find a way to reach him. literally all of his character development has been building to this moment. Deku saved him all those times so that now, when it matters the most, he can save him in return, and he's not going to fail him now.

[itsmaferart]

Hi! I wanted to tell you how much I love your analysis on SxF, very on point and detailed! What a pleasure to read 😊 There's one thing I wanted to ask you about: translation and how it impacts the perception of a scene. I'm French-speaking native and I discovered the 'Honey trap' in French and then your analysis in English. Loid's reaction to Yor's punch is a bit more 'intense' in French. Not speaking Japanese, I don't know which one is closer to the original text. 'Off-balance' is replaced by 'faire perdre tous mes repères'. Which could mean Loid is 'becoming completely lost' in the French version. So at first I thought that Loid's feelings for Yor were more obvious to himself. Less 'covered' if it makes sense. My point is : do you think we could make wrong interpretation of a character due to a translation? How much differs our version of the dialogues to the original one? Looking forward for new analysis and care take 🌸

Ohh! Hello thank you very much! I appreciate the love that my analyzes have received!! They motivate me to continue!

The answer would be: Yes, the translation influences a lot in understanding the scene. This is a very frequent problem when trying to adapt a series/comic/book to another language. I understand that Japanese as a language is an ideographic language, so its writing represents ideas and thoughts, and is not a composition of precise words.

(I have to clarify that I do not understand Japanese at all. So like everyone I depend on translations, what little I know is from mere research. Any native or connoisseur of the language is free to correct me)

Said that. Sometimes it is very difficult to figure out exactly what is being said in a scene. Especially when they are abstract feelings, puns, expressions of the native language, etc. Since, while in one country something is a joke, in another place it is something that is taken literally xD ...In fact, recently I think there was a translation error in the manga. Where it was believed that Anya was going to get sweets from the Damiand but it turned out to be a specific cake (I didn't understand very well, I guess it's a play on words or something like that xD)... Even so, there is always a lot of support from the fandom to offer clarifications and interpretations. Especially for those who understand the native language

........

Regarding Twilight. I guess it's a complicated sentiment to translate, since Twilight himself has no idea what he was with himself. He felt lost and confused, perhaps the best way to understand it is "I'm not the same person as before".

He just didn't know what to do with Yor, with his feelings. But why would a genius at emotional readings fail so terribly? "The answer" is the simplest and the most difficult to recognize "He can't be cold and calculating in front of Yor and Anya, they cloud his judgment. They make him a common person, clumsy and even somewhat naive. They let out their most human side"

....

Regarding your original language. It may not be so far from what was intended to say: Perhaps they were more explicit. The sense that "Twilight is lost" seems pretty accurate to me. Although, as you say, it sounds like a deeper statement.

I guess someone who speaks Japanese would be the most accurate person to clarify how explicit Twilight was.

Still, I don't think these variations are that serious. Sometimes these changes favor the understanding of native people of another language, so these changes are made to better understand the expression.

Since if the translation were exact. The impact would not be the same. The important thing is to convey the meaning of the works. An example would be proverbs. Although the meaning is exactly the same, the words vary from language to language. This does not harm, on the contrary, it favors each reader because he feels the work "more endearing"

Perhaps in the case of your native language they used the most appropriate expression to imply that "Twilight is missing" for the love of his family, and this is confusing him

[skipps-writes-for-gojo-satoru]

Someone made an incredible animation of the scene in hidden inventory where Gojo gets screamed at by teen girls fawning over him, and it's beautiful ✨

https://youtu.be/5l9_O51-YYs

Also, it highlights my previous point that when Gojo's confronted by women flirting with him, he doesn't really do... Anything. He's just chill about it. And the little °^° face he makes and the little confused "hm?" from the manga panel in the beginning could indicate that Gojo might not be hit on by girls as often as we think- Jujutsu sorcerers are busy and have even their time off interrupted on the regular. Other than being mildly amused, we don't see Gojo actively bask or pursue attention from women (other than Utahime ofc, which could be because she's as straight-laced as Nanami).

The little content smile he gives at the end basically says it all: Gojo enjoys the attention, but most likely isn't interested in pursuing anything more than that, including sexual relations (with more reasons from my previous posts).

I could see Gojo being the type to allow himself to appreciate just a bit of affection from random women he encounters on missions and then casually walking off with a lazy wave of his hand- just like he did with Miwa.

The man's on a mission (literally) with the goal to change the world. Virgin Gojo is very possible seeing how unaffected he is by women throwing themselves at him- or at least, he allows himself a moment to enjoy the attention but is quick to dismiss the thought from his mind to focus on his duty.

Honestly, non virgin Gojo is still possible, but unless we see Gojo actually show interest or actively flirt with someone (which seems unlikely), we may never know. To me, analyzing Gojo with his interactions with other characters (not his antics) makes me think it's more likely Gojo is a virgin than not, simply bc the argument for Gojo being a non virgin is his looks and immaturity (or his act of immaturity, we know Gojo thinks in a much more complex way than he lets on) which I'd argue is not an accurate description of his character, because that's only a part of it, and is in fact only what Gojo shows on the surface. And there's plenty of reasons why his lifestyle would make such getaways difficult. Also, Gojo's lack of enthusiasm for it. Gojo allows girls to fawn over him, but he hardly stokes the fire more than just taking off his glasses when they asked him to.

If Gojo was more like Osamu Dazai from Bungou Stray Dogs who flirts with every women he sees, I would have an easier time believing he would not be a virgin, but his lifestyle, behavior, and even his Six Eyes and his goal makes me think he wouldn't choose to constantly go on small getaways like that. Personally, I'd say Gojo spends more of his time plotting and maximizing his efforts on recreating Jujutsu Society.

Really, when Gege said he couldn't see Gojo being faithful to a woman could be because he's already committed to his job. Not because he's out womanizing, but even because the type of woman he'd commit to is so rare. And even if he did find a woman he'd commit to, being the ENTP he is means he's incapable of immediately recognizing and acting on his emotions- not because he doesn't have them, but because they're not really his forté. He'd rather rationalize his behavior than attempt to understand his own feelings. It'll take time and patience, but Gojo committing is still a possibility.

Honestly, I'd like to hear why people would think Gojo's a cheater/womanizer to begin with? Besides him teasing Utahime, Gojo's been pretty respectful to Shoko and Mei Mei. He even complimented and recognized Mei Mei's strength as a sorcerer. He didn't flirt once with the hoard of girls fawning over him. In fact, he was quick to focus on his mission despite the attention. I don't think Gojo's ever even teased Shoko about anything (other than commenting on her terrible way of explaining things, which is more of a fact than teasing). Though, correct me if I'm wrong.

Also, I haven't mentioned Riko much in previous posts and idrk why lol. But while Gojo is dominated by logical thinking, he's emotionally inept enough to notice Riko's mood. He may seem cold in how he comforted her by saying he'd leave her behind, but it's more of his ENTP personality that has him expressing his emotions in a more objective manner- even if it hurts, it's the truth, and that's fine isn't it? (Typical ENTP way of thinking).

Also slight tangent I read that one long meta about Gojo's interaction with Riko someone linked, and I'm completely appalled that they would think Gojo is only "pretending" to have emotions, "mimicking" them even! That he's incapable of truly feeling when in fact it's inherently characteristic of any ENTP to express themselves in a way that, to others, would be considered "cold" and unempathetic. It just goes to show just how misunderstood ENTPs are. They only make up 3% of the world so are often confused for socios/narcs/psychos which is understandable-

But I wanna make one thing clear: all sociopaths could be considered ENTPs. But not all ENTPs are sociopaths. (Switch Socio with psycho/narc/etc and it still works). Why?

Purpose.

Arrogance, boastfulness, unrefined emotional sensitivity, recklessness, impulsiveness- all of those fall below the importance of Purpose. Regardless of how Gojo "acts," it's been expressed time and time again- Gojo acts for the sake of the next generation. Sociopaths/Antisocial Personality Disorder/Psychopaths have one most common defining starting point: "it all starts with cruelty to animals and lack of response to their own actions, or actions of other people."

Let's make it more simple: regardless of whatever end of the spectrum sociopathy can be- high functioning, low functioning- antisocial personality disorder, in it's most simple terms, along with psychopathy and narcissism, condensed into one common trait is very clear: Their actions, while easily blendible into society, are for the sole purpose of pleasuring themselves.

Why don't people notice those with these disorders? Because their *behavior* is so similar to not just the typical ENTP, but also the ISTP AND ESTP. They can easily be mistaken for common members of society, but again: their sole purpose is the pursuit of pleasure themselves, while acting with complete disregard for the consequences of not just their own actions but others'. Staying in one job for extended periods of time is especially rare for a sociopath in particular, and this is one very clear difference between Gojo and a sociopath.

Gojo is willing to spend the rest of his life as a Jujutsu Sorcerer for the sake of others. This sentence alone defies any inclination that he could be a sociopath regardless of any other symptoms commonly associated with sociopathy, such as emotional insensitivity, hostility, risk taking behavior, lack of restraint, and impulsivity- there's a reason such people blend in with society, and that's because such symptoms are common with *any* person, regardless of personality type. Other than with the higher ups, Gojo hardly shows the anger, irritability, or general discontent that a sociopath is most commonly is associated with as their established mood - and even if he did, would being easily irritatable while in the position of the Strongest, the one who carries the burden of establishing a new future of Jujutsu Society on his shoulders alone be so unrealistic? That is why Purpose is so important.

If Gojo truly was a Sociopath, he would have dipped long before Jujutsu Kaisen had even started.

And I apologize for yet another tangent! Someone said Gojo sees his students as weapons or tools to be used in furthering his agenda. While that is not necessarily untrue, the implication is hardly close to reality. Like someone else commented, Gojo goes far and beyond for his students. While he is undoubtedly lacking in his ability to show affection in the most traditional of ways, it's clear that Gojo cares for his students-and others- deeply, whether that be when he went to see Yuta on his business trip to ensure Yuji would be safely taken care of in his absence, when he goes out of his way to personally supervise his students, when he willingly spends a whole day with Nanami just to ask him to mentor Yuji for him (in the Light Novel) regardless of Nanami's disdain, when he turned his Infinity off to allow Yaga to punish him (Gege made it clear in the manga that Gojo had done so to be a good role model for his students and that he recognizes his behavior deserves punishment), and when Gojo commented that he didn't want to think any of his students would be the traitor. Gojo does not express himself as most people do- he's only one of the most misunderstood personality types (on record, along with a few other personalites if you've researched them) and to say people have misinterpreted his character is much more plausible when even in real life, people who behave like Gojo are statistically reported to be misapprehended more often than more populated personality types. When inspected closely, there are so many ways Gojo himself expresses his care for other people, only hidden thinly behind the surface of his lofty attitude and uncaring demeanor. It only takes a few looks at his behavior, not his mouth, to recognize how much he goes out of his way for his students, doing he things that don't necessarily help further his agenda simply because he wants to, not because he has to. Changing the world isn't even something the average person would strive to do, yet Gojo makes it his life goal to accomplish. How could a heartless, emotion mimicking person possibly endure the strife necessary to accomplish such a task? It's appalling.

Gojo is more charitable than most people on the earth, simply because of the perseverance and diligence he takes to withstand the stress and hardships of Jujutsu Society for others. Remember that he chose to become the Strongest, it didn't happen overnight, and in becoming the Strongest, he carries the heaviest burden.

That's without mentioning that even though Gojo is the Strongest, and while to most he seems to proudly state so, it's clear that despite Gojo's antics, he recognizes his weaknesses as a sorcerer and is able to rely on others to make up for them. He had asked Nanami to mentor Yuji because he acknowledged his own flaws as a teacher and that Nanami would have a better capacity than him in that area (in Light Novel). He travelled to see Yuta to ask him to care for Yuji in case something happened to him- and Gojo knows that it's possible that he could be defeated somehow, someway. He's not so deluded to think he's untouchable, even despite his playfulnesses. He is always thinking ahead, calculating his next move while understanding his own shortcomings, acting prudently to ensure a better future.

He is a much deeper and complex character if one only takes the time to look past his antics and analyze his behavior- Something many people in real life seem to miss, and that is the true reason why Gojo struggles to commit.

Sorry for the long tangent and repetitiveness in the beginning lol! Back to the main issue!

Tl;dr there's more evidence of Gojo being a virgin who's more focused on work than pleasure. There's plenty of handsome men who don't seek out sex for reprieve but seek mental stimulation instead for relief. It's totally normal. Gojo could even spend his free time playing video games. He did admit to spending long hours beating 99 years of Momotarou Dentetsu to Geto. He's a gamer, and we know how gamers are commonly known for being virgins lol. Gojo could even be asexual for all we know. He could even be demisexual- someone who doesn't pursue sexual pleasure unless he's made an emotional connection with then. He doesn't necessarily have to even be straight or bi. Therefore, Gojo is very likely to be 28 year old virgin, and there's nothing wrong or strange about that.

Sources: ENTP articles, statistics on mbti rarity, other mbti articles, some quick Google searches, articles on sociopathy, psychopathy, narcissism, and antisocial disorders, etc, the manga, light novels, other metas in threads I remember reading, the anime, graphic organizers

Thanks for reading! 🙏

- 🤔

AHHHH CAN I JUST SAY THE ANIMATION IS DAMN GOOD 🔥🔥🔥 this scene in the manga is absolutely iconic prepare yourselves for season 2 😤 I literally had to stop the video and stare at him...I think one of the reasons Gojo behaved that way is becuz during childhood he probably didn't go out and be around people hence his confused reaction with the screaming teens. I mean everyone enjoys being complimented and getting attention from time to time and gojo is not an exception to this. Yes I definitely agree that when Gege said that he probably meant he's too busy for a relationship. The way it was translated made alot of people confused hence the player/cheater gojo was born. But then also the remember the comment he made when Gojo won the popularity poll? "Pick Nanami instead" ahhh hilarious

MY GAWD 🤔 ANON CAN I JUST SAY THAT YOU'RE AMAZING?! You explained in a way that easy to understand and you made statements backing it up with evidence. I learned from your ask than I ever did in university 😂 wow its truly fascinating though I never knew much personality types especially ENTPs I DON'T BELIEVE FOR ONE SEC GOJO IS A SOCIOPATH OR PSYCHOPATH fight me if you do. Exactly exactly just as anon said "He is a much deeper and complex character if one only takes the time to look past his antics and analyze his behavior." I COULDN'T AGREE MORE 😤 thank you so much for once again educating the community I'm a fan of you 🤔 anon ❤

[eurydicees]

top 10 ouran manga-only arcs

this is going to be such a long post i apologize in advance. the ranking system has absolutely no criteria other than "does this pass my vibe check.” bonus points were awarded if i could think about tamakyo while reading it; points were also awarded every time tamaki did something cool. this was a delight to make. anyways, without further ado, here are my personal top ten favorites, and no i will not be taking criticism.

1. THE TAMAKI EXTRAVAGANZA

(vol 16 chp 73 - vol 18 chp 80)

PLOT:

So much happens here that I couldn’t think of an actual name, and uh does it count as a single arc? Probably not, but I’m counting it as one because it has a single thread: Tamaki. My beloved. So. First, Tamaki finally, finally, finally moves into Suoh mansion #1, but when he gets there, he gets told that he’s only allowed to study the Suoh business and go to school and nothing else— meaning he has to quit the host club. Shizue threatens to out Haruhi as a girl and ruin her reputation— possibly losing her the scholarship— if Tamaki doesn’t break off all ties with her.

The Host Club disbands. Kyoya begins an Investigation™ into Tamaki’s mother— she had been incredibly weak and unhealthy when Tamaki was a child, but when Kyoya met her, she was pretty healthy. After some sleuthing, the hosts minus Tamaki discover that she probably had Bisco Hatori’s fictional version of lupus, which was cured by a mysterious foundation— which they discover was run by the Grantaine family, funded by the Suoh corporation, and actually researched by the Ootori conglomerate. Literally everyone is in on it. It’s fucking wild. Like. Huge “holy fucking shit I need to stop and take a breath” moment.

This information is suddenly released to the public, and then the Suoh corporation all vote Shizue out of her position, saying that she’s no longer fit for the job. She locks herself in her room and refuses to speak to anyone, breaking Tamaki’s heart. But now that she’s no longer top dog, Anne-Sophie can come to Japan— Yuzuru is super hyped and expects Tamaki to be as well, not understanding that Tamaki’s family fantasy includes his grandmother. Tamaki stops going to school and plays piano every day in order to cheer up the house, eventually luring Shizue out to listen to him play their shared favorite songs from J-dramas.

They begin to bond and Shizue sees that he’s not a failure because of his parentage, but it’s too late because Anne-Sophie is about to fly back to France. All is hopeless.

EXCEPT THEN. All of the hosts and all of the clients realize what’s happening and rush to help him get to his mother. They all adore him so much, and give their all into getting Tamaki to the airport. Shizue finally encourages him to go, realizing— with the help of Haruhi— that she has been bitter and selfish and Tamaki deserves better. They rush to the airport, and through a series of shenanigans that are no match for the combined power of the hosts and every single girl at Ouran, Tamaki makes it to the airport. They make it there JUST in time, and Tamaki gets a five minute reunion with his mother. Haruhi finally confesses to Tamaki that she loves him.

WHY I LOVE IT:

oh my God oh my God oh my GOD. Like. This is just. So much. So Much. We all know that I’m like. The #1 Fan of Tamaki Suoh. Like. President, vice president, treasurer, and secretary of the fan club, all at once. I love him so much, and this just gives him so much development. There is so much opportunity for him to grow and you not only really see who he is as a character, but you also see how much he’s grown as a person from his first introduction. You also get more of a glimpse into the world of Rich People, and the way that all of their families interact with each other, and then also with the way that they interact within their families. It’s just such an intense arc and it’s so beautiful and I love it so much.

2. THE SPORTS COMPETITION

(vol 10 chp 46 - vol 11 chp 49)

PLOT:

This one is HARD to rank, because I love it, but it also Hurts. Like. I genuinely cried over this one, though that’s not actually saying much because I cry at everything. So. Here’s what’s up. Tamaki gets into this idea of a sports festival, and then Kuze wanders in to fight Kyoya again, so Tamaki suggests a competition between the two of them. This is a very Tamaki thing to do, but Kyoya gets fed up with it and refuses to participate— until Kuze accuses him of being “Suoh’s pet” and that he’ll always let Tamaki win, and then Kyoya gets fired the fuck up.

But he’s still bitter at Tamaki for starting this, so the two of them stop talking and my heart breaks. This does not stop Tamaki from having heart eyes for Kyoya 24/7. Hikaru and Kaoru are assigned to competing teams, and begin their Very Long Journey into not being so codependent— Hikaru is on the red team with Tamaki, Haruhi, and Kuze; Kaoru is on the white team with Kyoya and Honey.

Essentially, each team goes through rounds of races in different areas that are like. Complete bullshit games, but whatever. It’s Rich People World. The white team gets ahead; the red team performs a scene from a Shakespeare show to rally their losing team together and begins to win, until they’re on even footing. The final race is between Kyoya and Tamaki.

There’s a heartbreaking series of panels of Tamaki just… thinking about Kyoya. I cannot get enough of it. Then there’s an even more heartbreaking series of panels of Kyoya just… thinking about Tamaki. You realize, alongside the other hosts, that Tamaki pushed for this race not really for benefit or fun, but to give Kyoya a chance to compete in something for real, without having to set it up so that Tamaki wins (as we see in the race for the central salon). It’s a chance for him to win and not put his family first. Tamaki still tried his best, because Kyoya would hate him if he threw the race, but he lost because Kyoya fought with the intention of winning for HIMSELF, and not just playing support to Tamaki or impressing his father.

Finally, in the last panel, it’s revealed that the class trip will be to France.

WHY I LOVE IT:

God it burns so good. So Good. The Tamakyo, the Hikaru & Kaoru character growth, the Kyoya development, the Tamaki being so so so good, the Kyoya being so brilliant, everything oh my lord. This is really one of the biggest points of Kyoya’s character development, and it’s the first place I’m going to point to when thinking accurately about who he is as a person. It shows who he is, and who he believes he is, and who he wants to be, and who other people see him as. It’s also just a Tamakyo goldmine, even though they don’t ever actually talk. It’s so beautiful and it makes me cry.

3. THE ORIENTEERING RACE

(vol 14 chp 66 - vol 15 chp 68)

PLOT:

In an attempt to make Tamaki realize that the hosts all love him just as much as he loves them, the hosts sans Tamaki put together an orienteering race. There are six checkpoints, each one with a task to be completed in order to get an ingredient that will make the best meal at the end of the race.

Hikaru and Kaoru play the return of the “Which one is Hikaru?” game, knowing that Tamaki has been able to tell them apart for a while by now; Nekozawa’s checkpoint is a quiz on cursed items, knowing that Tamaki is familiar with Beelzenef; Honey’s checkpoint is a game of whack-a-mole with little mini Usa-chans, knowing that Tamaki isn’t afraid of making him upset over a game, though all the girls are; Mori’s is a sword slicing thing to show that Tamaki will never give up on something; Haruhi’s is a “tell the truth or never pass” kind of thing; and Kyoya’s is a crossword puzzle of all the answers made up of things from previous club themes.

Tamaki pairs up with Konoya— who is in love with him and is the “perfect Haruhi” trope— and realizes that she’s incredibly different from Haruhi, and that he loves Haruhi for who she is and not who he thought he wanted her to be. He also realizes that— because the hosts have gone through all of this for him— they do love him for who he is, no matter what, no matter the bad parts of his personality, and they’re never leaving him.

WHY I LOVE IT:

Look. We know that anything about Tamaki is gonna make me happy. I am a simple woman and so easy to please. This is literally just three chapters about how much all of the hosts love Tamaki and want him to be happy. I cannot express in words how rewarding it is to watch Tamaki realize how important he is and how much he’s loved— because he is loved, he’s so loved, he’s so so so loved. This is also the arc with the building block / building a home metaphor, and it destroyed me both physically and emotionally (vol 14 chp 66). This is where the found family is really solidified, and we all love a good dosage of found family.

4. RACE FOR THE CENTRAL SALON / THE SCHOOL FAIR

(vol 6 chp 22 - vol 6 chp 26)

PLOT:

This is where the anime diverges from the manga, and I have to say that this version of the school fair is just so much better than the anime version. Like. Just So Much Better. Basically, the club is setting up for the school fair, and the best spot to set up— essentially, the spot that will get the most foot traffic form the parents— is in the central salon. To figure out which club is going to get the spot, they all compete in a literal race, both mind games and physical games and it just slaps overall.

The b-plot is that the Host Club is getting threatening letters telling them to drop out of the race, alongside blank papers that are sent with the notes; the hosts have to figure out who is sending the notes and confront it. This is the arc that introduces both Kuze and Yuzuru Suoh for the first time. Kuze is captain of the football team and Kyoya’s rival and also definitely his secret ex-boyfriend. Chairman Suoh is… just. A lot. Just. That’s it. A Lot. He’s A Lot.

Anyways, part of the winning race is capturing this crown that’s hidden on campus, which turns out to be at a swimming pool. The football team gets there at the same time as Haruhi, and Kuze pushes her into the pool and goes for the crown. Kyoya and Tamaki reach her at the same time— Tamaki’s instinct is to go for Haruhi, but Kyoya tells him to get the crown and thus the glory of winning, while Kyoya rescues Haruhi.

Later, it turns out that Yuzuru was sending the blank papers with harmless messages written in invisible ink as a prank to emphasize the literal hate mail that the hosts were getting. The follow up to the race is the actual school fair, where we meet Yoshio and Shizue. Fuck Shizue, not even going to get into that right now because I WILL cry, but just know that it’s even worse than it is in the anime. Yoshio, though, is eons better in the manga than in the anime— he is genuinely proud of Kyoya and says that he actually wouldn’t mind appointing Kyoya as heir.

WHY I LOVE IT:

Volume 6 does SO MUCH for Kyoya and Tamaki and we all know that I’m ride or die for the two of them. Kyoya finally gets a chance to shine as team leader and it’s what he deserves! Tamaki takes a little more of a backseat, which I don’t even mind, because Kyoya does such a good job of pulling attention here. The scene at the swimming pool is just so good— it really shows the huge amount of trust between Tamaki and Kyoya, and does a good job of setting up the relationship they need to have as Rich People, outside of their friendship, which is something that we don’t see a lot of. Overall, it’s a very Kyoya-centric arc, and it does amazing things for the development of his character and personality. It’s one of the biggest insights into how he functions as a kind of mastermind for the club. We also finally get Tamaki’s full-ish backstory, which genuinely makes me cry every time.

5. THE HITACHIIN FAMILY

(vol 10 chp 45 / vol 11 chp 51 - vol 12 chp 53)

PLOT:

So this is technically two plot lines, but I’m going to count it as one because it’s all about the twins, my loves. In vol 10 chp 45, we get a little insight into the life of the Hitachiin family and why the twins are as fucked up as they are. Quick rundown— their parents can tell them apart but pretend not to for whatever godforsaken reason; Kaoru admits he’s in love with Haruhi for the first time and Hikaru remains oblivious; Kaoru begins to realize how unhealthy he and Hikaru’s relationship is and how, one day, they aren’t going to be able to have all of the same things; there’s a cookie metaphor; Tamaki gets lost in the Hitachiin manion; it’s all a good time.

In volumes 11 and 12, we begin the actual split between the twins, where they realize that they can’t stay the way that they are forever. They can’t be one person forever. They realize this in a fight over Haruhi, where Hikaru suggests they “share” her as a sister, and Kaoru rightfully thinks this is bullshit. They get in their first— and only— genuinely real argument. Hikaru breaks down in Mori’s house, Kaoru breaks down at Honey’s place, literally no one is happy and I am crying.

Kaoru asks Haruhi out on a date, and then ends the date by explaining that he could never date her knowing that it would be hurting Hikaru. Haruhi is, understandably, very confused by this whole thing, and no one is telling her anything.

Kaoru then makes up with Hikaru, saying that he’ll give up on trying to pursue Haruhi, but tells him that they actually do need to live separate lives at some point— and that point might as well be now. He wants to break apart entirely, but Hikaru explains that while they need to break apart in a lot of ways and find their own identities, they can never fully forget each other. They agree that they can influence and love each other without depending on each other for a personality.

They keep up the incest ACT at the club, though. Bisco Hatori couldn’t manage to write her way out of that one.

WHY I LOVE IT:

So this one just. Really hits home for me. It’s a genuinely heart wrenching arc, and the progression of the whole thing was just so slow and so steady and it was so well done. The twins are two of my favorite characters in the show/manga, and their relationship is something that I can analyze for days, and this arc is a huge part of why it’s so interesting. It does amazing things for both of them as developing characters, but it does even more amazing things for their character growth as people. It also provides a nice catalyst for the Hikaru/Tamaki/Haruhi love triangle. Anyways, it made me cry and apparently that’s my only criteria.

6. THE FRANCE ARC

(vol 10 chp 46 - vol 12 chp 56)

PLOT:

On the Ouran 2nd year school trip to France, Kyoya decides he’s going to spend the trip searching for Tamaki’s mother, rather than spending it with the other students. He works himself to death trying to find her— he ends up literally falling asleep on the ground because he’s so exhausted from searching and taking literally no breaks. Kyoya finds her eventually, and has a really nice conversation with her— she has a bunch of photos of Tamaki, and clearly is constantly thinking about him. When he gets back to Japan, he tells Tamaki about her— about how beautiful she is, about how she smiles, about how she thinks of her son every day.

We get more of Tamaki’s backstory, and his close relationship from his mother and how his mantra— living life in Japan to the fullest and being as happy as he can be every day— all comes from his mother. She told him that she’s happiest when he’s smiling, and so when he leaves her behind in France, he decides to be smiling every day and make everyone around him smile as well.

While Kyoya is in France, Tamaki stays behind in Japan— he gets closer to his father, who offers to begin to train him to take over the Suoh business. He visits Haruhi, and tells her a little bit about his life in France, and Haruhi’s love for Tamaki begins to make an appearance for the first time.

WHY I LOVE IT:

So I went into this list thinking that this would be my favorite plot, so it’s wild to me that it didn’t even make the top five. It’s kind of weird and I didn’t expect it, but I’m still satisfied with this list. Anyways, I really love this one, even if it’s not the top five. It’s like. The ultimate Tamakyo story, and there’s just. There’s just so much to unpack there. Like. We don’t have time for me to go through the whole thing and analyze every part of it because there’s just so much of it. It’s so good, and it makes my heart grow three sizes. It’s another brilliant development piece for Kyoya, and shows his softer side, as well as just how much he loves Tamaki.

7. MORI AND HONEY GRADUATE

(vol 15 chp 71 - vol 16 chp 72)

PLOT:

Honey and Mori announce that, after graduation, they’ll be splitting up and going to different universities. This proceeds to emotionally destroy literally everyone except for them. Mori is challenged to a series of duels at the Kendo club in which he has to fight every underclassman who wants the honor of fighting him before he graduates. He’s exhausted and worn down, and he loses to a second year, which is bad for like. Honor reasons. RIP. Anyways. He reveals that he’s just been really worried about something but before he can tell anyone, he has to duel Honey. It hurts.

They start preparing for the fight— which Kyoya is capitalizing off of via movie rights and betting rings— and scare everyone that they’re going to never speak again. When the fight comes, they fight on the Windswept Hill™ at Ouran (the same place that Chika and Honey fight on way back when). They go for it and pull no punches, until Honey tries to do a flying kick and Mori catches him and gently places him outside of the boundaries of the fighting ring, thus winning the duel.

Because he won, he pulls out a sheet of paper in which he’s written down all of the things that Honey needs to do in university because Mori isn’t going to be there to take care of him: brush his teeth, cut down the cake by 90%, and stop bringing Usa-chan to classes. Mori felt that he didn’t have the right to tell him these things until they were on equal level because he had won the duel.

They make up and everything is okay— they graduate, everyone cries, including me. Kasanoda gives Mori flowers, it’s all very cute. Haruhi makes cookies, and when Tamaki goes running down the hallway to find her, they bump into each other and drop all of the cookies. While they’re picking them up, they share the classic ~accidental kiss~.

WHY I LOVE IT:

This is one of the only Honey & Mori-centric plotlines that gets fully fleshed out and like. More than a chapter. It really does lovely things for their relationship, and it’s the end of an era. Even though it’s the end of an era, though, the resolution is incredibly satisfying— Honey and Mori’s stories are wrapping up, but it’s really well done. It’s sad, but it’s a really rewarding ending. They’re such sweet boys. Also, it’s not like they’re gone forever, so it’s all okay.

8. REIKO x HONEY

(vol 10 chp 41)

PLOT:

Reiko is part of the Black Magic Club, and falls in love with Honey when he gives her a hand in getting up after she trips over Usa-chan. However, she believes that falling in love with Honey is equivalent to him “stealing her soul,” and so she uses “curses” to steal his soul back. These curses are basically just love spells. 

In the end, Honey tells her to just, like, be herself. Talk about her interests. Get to know him. Be honest. Then she won’t need love spells to make him like her. Even if she messes up or is awkward or says something weird, he’ll still like her because she’s being true to herself. This is one of the only Honey-centric chapters, and Reiko is one of my favorite side characters.

WHY I LOVE IT:

They’re the OG goth x pastel couple. The blueprint for all other couples. Icons. I love them so much. This makes it on the list just because I love their relationships. I also love the whole Moral Of The Story, in that it’s important to be true to yourself. It’s so sweet it hurts.

9. HARUHI AND TAMAKI’S FIRST DATE

(vol 18 chp 81 - vol 18 chp 82)

PLOT:

So. Right after the two of them confess their love to each other, everyone expects them to get together and be a couple right away, but Haruhi is just kinda chilling. She’s not super stressed about dating, it’s just a relief to have said it out loud. Meanwhile, Tamaki is kind of a mess, stressing out over their first date and trying to make it as perfect as he possibly can. Seeing him so stressed, all of the hosts band together to help him out in planning a date. When Tamaki finally gets up the nerve to ask her out, he falls in the fountain and Haruhi has to fish him out. She’s then the one to ask him out to the amusement park.

In true Tamaki fashion, he gets incredibly stressed out again. He gets fashion advice from a series of unfashionable people. The hosts sneak around the amusement park and follow them around, finding out that it’s actually going really well, as long as they’re not interfering. After the Lobelia girls show up and try to sabotage the date, Tamaki and Haruhi run away— while Kyoya Handles™ the situation— and they go to her mother’s grave. There, it’s revealed that Haruhi will be going on an exchange program to America.

WHY I LOVE IT:

It’s just. So cute. Like. I’m Tamakyo for life, but I do adore them so much. It’s lower on the list because of the sheer amount of second hand embarrassment, but overall, I loved reading this one. Tamaki is just so genuine and earnest about everything he does, and I think these chapters do a lot to show why the two of them work as a couple. It also does lovely characterization points for Haruhi, and begins to wrap up the ending. Bonus points for a jealous and heartbroken Kyoya.

10. PRINCESS MICHELLE

(vol 9 chp 38 - vol 9 chp 39)

PLOT:

Princess Michelle comes to Ouran to do a week of school in Japan. After meeting her, Tamaki essentially puts him and the Host Club at her beck and call, doing anything that he can to make her happy, no matter how insanely extravagant her demands are. Everyone else finds this infuriating, until Kyoya points out that Michelle looks similar to Tamaki’s mother, saying that the last time Tamaki saw his mother, she was crying— and if he sees Michelle smile for real, it might help him picture his mother smiling again.

Overall, it’s just a very soft arc that begins to unfold Tamaki’s family-related trauma. It also kickstarts Tamaki’s realization that he’s in love with Haruhi and doesn’t actually have paternal feelings for her (that’s the whole next chapter, but make it funny rather than introspective); and it’s one of the moments that Haruhi realizes that Tamaki is genuinely just a good person.

WHY I LOVE IT:

I wasn’t sure that this one would make the list at all, but I do really love this story. It’s pretty short, just two chapters, but it’s overall really sweet. I like Michelle as a character a lot— she seems a bit like a bitch at the beginning, but she gets fleshed out and given an actual personality as the chapter goes on. It’s a really good example of Bisco Hatori’s writing.

HONORARY MENTIONS:

Mei (character): probably the most significant character in the manga that doesn’t appear at all in the anime, which is pretty tragic, but I think that the anime really wanted to emphasize that Haruhi doesn’t really have any female friends / friends outside of the hosts. But anyways, she’s Misuzu’s daughter and Haruhi’s friend; she’s lowkey transphobic but she’s getting better! Had a brief crush on Tamaki but she ends with being the #1 Tamaharu stan. Great friend to Haruhi.

The masquerade ball: Haruhi's going away party, and the reveal that she's a girl.

Haruhi gets kidnapped: Haruhi is kidnapped and held for ransom, the hosts find her and break down doors to get there.

[recentanimenews]

FEATURE: Japanese Myths And How They're Depicted In Horror Anime

  No matter the time or place, the folklore and myths of the past always persist. The same can also be said for anime, especially when it comes to horror. Certain franchises, such as Shigeru Mizuki’s classic GeGeGe no Kitaro, have solidified the omnipresent status of traditional Japanese folk monsters in popular culture. Other series, such as Osamu Tezuka’s Dororo interpret traditional folklore in relation to historical periods and changing attitudes toward religion. More recently, series from the 2010s and 2000s, such as Bakemonogatari and Ghost Stories, interpret the classics with modern sensibilities. When it comes to stories with a penchant for horror, it would be far more surprising if they didn’t allude to a shared supernatural mythology — the ubiquity is the point. 

  Neko-Musume on her smartphone

The best horror always tries to do something new. While creatures like yōkai (a wide umbrella of supernatural entities) are well-known among English-speaking fans today thanks to series like Yokai Watch, these re-imaginings always tend to play fast and loose with fidelity. Wouldn’t it be boring if every vampire movie started and ended with Dracula? In a 2016 interview with The Comics Journal, veteran manga translator Zack Davisson emphasizes this important tendency to re-contextualize old folklore:

  “It’s a tricky question, as it is impossible to say what is ‘actual folklore.’ Vampires bursting into flame is considered ‘authentic,’ but that actually comes from the films, not folkloric sources. Folklore evolves and [Shigeru] Mizuki is an important part of that evolution. If you trace them back, most yokai we know come from Toriyama Sekien, who also just made things up. In fact, I would say that making up yokai is part of the grand tradition of yokai! If you are a writer/artist working with yokai and not making up at least a few of your own, you are missing the point!”

  The original spirit gun

  So that’s all to say — there really is no such thing as a definitive, one-to-one story based on centuries of tradition. Yōkai, as endearing as they are, are also just one part of the equation. Long-running anime such as Folktales from Japan and fantasy series Inuyasha-continuation Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon either re-tell or draw inspiration from that folklore. But that’s beyond the scope of this piece. Whether it be adaptations of urban legends about school bathrooms or vengeful spirits, I hope this round-up helps any casual or long-time anime fan appreciate how these series reimagine supernatural traditions.

  Fantastic Folklore: GeGeGe no Kitaro & Mononoke

  The late Shigeru Mizuki’s most influential character, Kitaro, hardly needs any introduction. In his book Yokai Attack! The Japanese Monster Survival Guide, translator Matt Alt describes yōkai as “the attempts of the fertile human imagination to impose meaning and rationality on a chaotic, unpredictable, often difficult-to-explain world.” Many yōkai are quite strange and sometimes even comedic. Scholar-artists, such as the previously mentioned Toriyama Sekien, are largely credited with inspiring their uncanny visual representations, making them the perfect subject matter for an accessible series.

  The tanuki plot world domination

The titular Kitaro himself is a half-human, half-yōkai one-eyed boy who travels between the human and spirit world to resolve monster-of-the-day conflicts with his friends. Although Mizuki’s Kitaro as we know it began serialization in 1960, Mizuki originally received permission to re-imagine the character from Masami Itō, who first created Kitaro in the 1930s in pre-war Japan. The most recent 2018 anime series re-establishes Kitaro in a modern setting, yet still adapts many of the most iconic stories. Characters such as Neko-Musume, based on volatile cat spirits called bakeneko, are updated with new designs while Kitaro mostly remains the same. Mizuki’s older creations, such as the jubokko (vampire tree) yōkai, are still featured alongside a new re-imagining of the “wall monster” nurikabe — inspired by the discovery of an Edo manuscript in 2007. The appeal of Kitaro isn’t so much the meticulous adherence to yōkai mythos, but rather Mizuki’s continual improvisation of the folklore-informed monster-making tradition.

  The Medicine Seller

Beyond Kitaro, other series, such as 2006’s Mononoke, dedicate entire storylines to a wider category of ayakashi (sea-bound yōkai) and funayūrei (boat spirits) written by none other than Chiaki J. Konaka. Later episodes feature bakeneko and nue (chimera monsters), but with a twist. The term mononoke itself refers to a variety of yōkai specifically referring to vengeful spirits possessing people or things. When it comes to series taking a more “fantastical” approach to folklore, both Mononoke and Kitaro thankfully never dissolve into simple rogue galleries of monsters — their (mostly) human protagonists largely remain the heart of their chilling saga.

  Horror-Historical: Osamu Tezuka’s Dororo

  Lord Kagemitsu Daigo makes a pact with the demons  (Source: Amazon)

  In Anime and Its Roots in Early Japanese Monster Art scholar Zília Papp comments Mizuki’s “Kitaro characters became synonymous with yōkai in the postwar period, continuing to the present time” compared to his peers like Tezuka. But if Kitaro made yōkai big in comedic manga, then Tezuka’s short-lived Dororo manga drove this interest toward the historical context of the Sengoku Period, or the “warring states” era of feudal Japan. 

  Rather than depicting spirits as purely whimsical mischief-makers, Dororo’s inciting event is a feudal lord of the fictional Daigo clan forging a pact with 48 demons, who persist to hunt his son long after the pact is forged. In his feature The History Behind Osamu Tezuka’s Dororo, Marco Oliveros comments that by depicting yōkai during this period, Dororo draws inspiration from actual shifts in changing Buddhist attitudes toward these entities:

  “One of the foremost examples of this change to yokai is the tengu. Wrathful and demonic, the avian creature tricked and assaulted Buddhist clerics and civilians alike, becoming characterized as the sworn enemy of Buddhism. The apparent hostility of these yokai to Buddhism makes their dark deals with Dororo's Daigo an unsurprising turn of events for the Sengoku Jidai era.”

  The Amanojaku is captured and sealed inside a Buddhist temple (Source: Amazon)

  Matt Alt’s 2016 translation of Japandemonium Illustrated: The Yokai Encyclopedias of Toriyama Sekien describes the tengu (mask-wearing entities usually depicted as half-man half-bird) as “deeply associated with the religion of Shugendō,” which originated during the Heian period; however they were depicted very differently in major Buddhist sects of the same era. Unlike solely “fantastical” stories of the supernatural without much acknowledgment to historical context, Dororo is interested in this context regarding capricious attitudes of spirits of people alike. Impressive malevolent entities such as kyūbi (nine-tailed foxes) also fight against Dororo’s protagonist, Hyakkimaru, typical of supernatural jidaigeki (period drama) horror stories set in feudal Japan.

  However, Dororo also features lesser entities such as amanojaku (tiny, goblin-like demons). According to the influential illustrated encyclopedia Wakan Sansai Zue compiled by Sekien-predecessor Terajima Ryōan, amanojaku and tengu were described as paired descendants of the evil goddess Amanozako (literally "tengu god"). According to scholar Haruko Wakabayashi in The Seven Tengu Scrolls: Evil and the Rhetoric of Legitimacy in Medieval Japanese Buddhism, tengu were symbolically invoked in inter-personal and religious feuds amongst Buddhist sects during the Heian period. The amanojaku depicted in Dororo is minor. But with a (simplified) understanding of its affiliation with tengu’s pre-Heian origins and its subsequent disavowal by influential Buddhist sects, Dororo's amanojaku cameo is an undeniable nod toward its theme of “old ways” impacted by a "new" institutionalized status quo.

  Hyakkimaru battles the nine-tailed fox spirit in its spectral form (Source: Amazon)

  While the nine-tailed fox spirit is flashy, Dororo’s amanojaku ends up pathetically sealed inside a Buddhist temple. Ironically, the amanojaku trapping scene pans from the top of a Buddhist statue, ending with the cartoonish amanojaku crushed underneath to visually imply its irrelevancy. Dororo is a story about the cultural and religious tensions brewing during this violent episode in history — making Hyakkimaru’s journey one that doesn’t simply depict supernatural folkloric tradition in stasis, but as something always under complicated socio-political stakes.

  Modern Ghoul School: Ghost Stories & Bakemonogatari

  What do you do if you can’t solve your evil spirit problems with a sword? For the most part, classics like Kitaro and Dororo take place in the past, or at least worlds very unlike our own. A traveling demon slayer never has to deal with student council or smartphones. 

  In a previous article, From Bakeneko to Bakemonogatari, I discussed all the possible lineages of the catgirl character archetype. In that piece, I claimed one of the more accurate representations of the bakeneko today was Bakemonogatari’s Tsubasa Hanekawa’s cat spirit-possessed alter-ego. It’s not simply because she is a supernatural catgirl, but rather her portrayal was obviously informed by the wider context of pre-existing bakeneko mythos. Is it possible for a “modern-day” series to tackle yesterday’s folktales while still preserving the uncanniness of the past?

The spirits possessing Bakemonogatari’s cast, referred to as “oddities,” all nearly function like vengeful mononoke spirits. For example, Bakemonogatari’s first arc, Hitagi Crab, features a crab “oddity” haunting classmate Hitagi Senjougahara. The existence of heikekani (face-shaped crabs allegedly the spirits of drowned Heike warriors from the Sengoku Period), might be a parallel, considering the arc’s theme of unresolved conflict. Another arc, Suruga Monkey, features an “oddity” taking the form of a beastly paw growing on classmate Kanbaru Suruga’s arm. Senjougahara and Suruga's crab/monkey relationship can be read as alluding to the well-known Buddhist tale “The Monkey and the Crab.” According to The National Gallery of Art on its 2019 The Life of Animals in Japanese Art exhibit, the monkey and crab are usually depicted as friends, then compete until they either make amends or resolve their conflict. Often the subject of artistic interpretation, it’s no surprise this tale found its way into anime as a metaphor for teen drama.

  The kids scan a talisman and e-mail it to exorcise internet demons. Yes, this really happens.

  In comparison, the 2000 series Ghost Stories is best known to English-speaking audiences for being an edgy comedy. However, its original source material, a book series titled Gakkō no Kaidan (School Ghost Stories), is more akin to a heavily researched Goose Bumps. Written by folklore scholar Toru Tsunametsu, the series showcases various urban myths and monsters, most famously “Hanako” a ghost girl who haunts school bathrooms. A 2014 NPR piece describes the most popular version of Hanako being a schoolgirl in WWII “using the bathroom when a bomb fell on top of the building.” Although Hanako gained enough popularity from the books to warrant her own spin-off anime series in 1994, she only makes a handful of cameos in the 2000 series. Entities like the previously mentioned amanojaku also appear, alongside shinigami (death gods) depicted in many other anime.

  How to channel your ghost powers for success (Source: Funimation)

  Hanako, because of her relatively modern backstory, is just as ubiquitous. Versions of Hanako appear in an episode of the 2018 Kitaro and most recently in the 2020 series Toilet Bound Hanako-kun. Tsunametsu currently edits the Folklore Society of Japan’s official academic journal, no doubt a testament to his priceless contributions to folklore representation in anime.

  Who You Gonna Call?

  There’s no way to tell the same ghost story twice. With such a layered history, contemporary anime have a nearly endless well of folkloric material to pull from. Recent series like the hit Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Toilet Bound Hanako-kun prove that fans will never get enough of the supernatural, just as long as things stay fresh. 

  Hanako politely warns the ghost-hunting kids

  Long live artistic liberty and specters trying to watch you pee.

      Blake P. is a weekly columnist for Crunchyroll Features. His twitter is @_dispossessed. His bylines include Fanbyte, VRV, Unwinnable, and more. He'd like a tiny yōkai cat.

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: Blake Planty

[lunammoon]

The Problem With Hetalia (As told by someone who actually in the fandom until like, 2016)

I'm hoping this post will explain to people who are still into Hetalia why a lot of people have an issue with from the perspective of someone who knows a lot about the show. 

TL;DR: By making the WW2 axis powers come across as a lovable idiot, his serious friend, and the stoic voice of reason, it downplays the serious nature of what the Axis did and seeing as the real-life Axis harmed real-life people, many people have a justifiable huge issue with this. 

I will go more into depth about this under the cut.

A lot of people are talking about how Hetalia is coming back after 5 years and a lot of people are rightfully annoyed at the show. But what I'm seeing is that a lot of the people who are upset are people who clearly haven't watched the show and therefore are unable to explain to people who have watched it why it’s bad. The most that you hear is:

"it glorifies the Axis Powers" (which isn't 100% accurate although the assessment that they are portrayed in a way that makes them seem less bad is accurate) 

"Hetalia Cosplayers wore Nazi uniforms in front of a Holocaust memorial" (which I'd say is more of an issue with fans than the show). 

That is not to say that there isn't an issue with the show, because there really is. But these observations are unlikely to mean much to someone who watches Hetalia. So, in this thread, I'm going to explain why Hetalia is Problematic with the added context perspective of someone who was into the show during most of middle school and until Freshman year of high school. 

I knew the human names, used to jam to "Always With You" and "Pub and Go" and “It’ll Settle Itself Somehow” and “Light my Heart” and “Absolute British Gentleman” and “Mein Gott” and “World Rondo” and “Excuse Me, I’m Sorry” and so, so many more. 

I lost my shit with everyone else when the season 6 ep dropped and Italy danced like he was possessed by a demon. When I hear “ACE” family, I don’t think of Youtubers. I actually took a side on the FruUK vs UsUk debate and if you look in my archive, you can probably find some Hetalia posts that I’m too lazy to delete.

The point here being, I’ve actually seen the show so I know what I’m talking about. This isn’t an outsiders perspective is what I’m saying.

So, let’s get right into it. While technically only seasons 1-2 are officially actually called "Axis Powers" (Seasons 3-4 are called "World Series" Season 5 is "Beautiful World" and Season 6 is called "World Twinkle") WW2 and things relating to the Axis Powers are an important part of every season and appear prominently.

While Hetalia has covered many things from all different time periods, the two most common periods covered are the modern-day and of course, the second World War. The show is Japanese and (I assume) because Japan was on the Axis side, these portions focus more on the Axis Powers of Italy, Japan, and Germany. The Allies do come into play. And while the Allies aren't directly like, evil, which would've been FAR WORSE they've got a kind of Team Rocket-esque thing going on? They're not exactly mustache-twirling villains but they're clear antagonists. Make no mistakes.

I think the deserted Island arc is the best example of the problems many people have with the show.

Take for example, that beach fight. If you've watched Hetalia, you'll know the one I'm talking about. The one that they reused like, 50 times. The Allies are clearly shown as the antagonists/aggressors while the Axis are literally just vibing on a (kinda) deserted island and defending themselves. 

Now, if this was three dudes chilling on the beach and they suddenly got attacked by another five dudes also on the beach who they then fought off until the five attackers ran away that’s be one thing.

The issue is that this is supposed to be a representation of WW2. It's basically saying "oh, Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy were literally just vibing, not bothering anyone when suddenly, the Allies attacked for no reason. Luckily, they (the Allies) retreated because the Allies are Cowardly but they keep coming back and bothering them,". Do you see the issue there? Most of the beach arc seems to be the writer forgetting that these are supposed to be Nations, not a random Italian dude, a German dude, and a Japanese dude.

“Oh, but they don’t glorify Nazi Germany. They don’t really even talk about what Germany was doing! Look at this pic of Germany in a lab coat holding a dandelion :)“

That’s not the defense that you think it is and it’s actually a main part of the issue that I, and many other people have with Hetalia.

I think the scene where this issue is the most obvious is the one where they are gathering around a campfire and talking and one of them comes up with the name "the Axis". The whole scene has the same energy characters in a moe anime coming up with a band name.

They’re sitting on a beach at night. I think there might’ve been a campfire, the stars are out, and the three of them talk about their dream of making a world that revolved around them. One of them comes up with the name “the axis” and then they all talk about how you would translate "axis" in their language. It’s all very found family-esque. The way the scene is framed is to encourage you to route for them to reach their goal. It’s the same kind of tone you’d see in a shoujo with a girl telling her friends about how she wants to win the singing competition no matter what or in Sword Art Online when Kirito talks about saving Asuna.

The issue is that their goal isn’t to win some competition or to save someone they care about. It’s to spread facism, imperialism, and bring about genocide.

There of course don’t SAY that that’s their goal, and outside of a one off line in the English dub that’s been since censored, they don’t really bring up what Germany was up to during WW2 vis-a-vie the Holocaust and if they did bring it up, I either wasn’t paying attention, it was in the manga, or it was in one of Germany’s character songs.

The issue is that during WW2 the show seems to at best forget and at worst, gloss over it that the main trio that they're focusing on are the villains. And not like, fantasy villains. Actual real-life villains that hurt real people in the real world. Imagine if instead of Ludwig Beilschmidt and Feliciano Vargas, it was Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. 

Are you seeing the problem yet?

I get why people like to watch the show. Ignoring the WW2 bits, it’s actually pretty good. I, as an American, really like Alfred F. Jones and the way he’s portrayed.

If Hetalia had stuck to non-WW2 related things such as that episode where the nations all talk about how horror movies differ in their nations, or they talked about their Christmas traditions. Or the ones where America and Japan are roommates. Or when they showed that time when America airdropped XL condoms on Russia labeling them as "small" for intimidation reasons. Or that series of episodes where they talked about Micronations. Or that time they all had to come together to fight aliens. Or the bit where they talked about the WW1 Christmas Armistice. Then it would be fine.

The issue is that they didn’t.

If they kept WW2 stuff for SOME reason. They had two options. 

Make the axis as proper villains

 Be explicit in showing that the nations will doesn't reflect what their leader wants. 

The first option wouldn’t be ideal if they wanted to cover any time period other than World War 2. The axis would be too unlikable and I doubt that an anime where Japan is the villain would appeal much to Japanese audiences.

But what about the second option. Have a bit where Ludwig is passing out White Rose pamphlets or smuggling people to safety.

Have Kiku (Japan for people who don’t watch Hetalia) purposefully looking the other way as Sugihara writes visas to get people to safety and covering for him against his boss. SOMETHING!

But instead of doing either of those, they took the bad third option which was, their choice to instead make the axis seem like likable individuals who are a group of three good friends who work together will in contrast with the “bumbling Allies” who are barely cohesive and constantly fight and argue. At best, makes it seem like both sides had a point and at worst, makes it seem like the Axis was a better than the Allies.

All of this is to say that liking Hetalia does not make you inherently a bad person, but you need to be more critical of what you watch and understand that there is a reason that some people have a genuine issue with it and they have a very good reason for that. You can still watch it the show, but do keep this information in the back of your brain as you do