#this is clearly a purely romantic reading of the manga

[nexadarling]

Look. I know this is not news to anyone. I know we all know this. But if i don't say i will actually explode, so just let me and come scream with me about it!

It's just that Vash's "Don't say anything stupid" reads a lot like "Don't say 'I love you'" and i literally cannot hear it as anything else and i just.

Of course they would know and not be able to do anything about it, and just have to watch it slip through their fingers like that. They know each other too well to not be aware of what edge they're on and also know that in the situation they're in, there's nothing they can do about it. And then it's too goddamn late.

I fucking hate it here, what have these stupid men done to me

[evil-women-step-on-me]

How Hand Jumper Treats Gender

Most of the manga/manhwa I read default to the male gaze. I don't even mean that the female characters are needlessly sexualized, which they often are, but that they're only allowed to fill certain roles. Holy figures and healers are (young, impossibly beautiful) women, the tragic, innocent character who gets assaulted is a woman, the skimpily dressed ninja is a woman, the pure, younger sibling that needs protection is a woman, the seductive villain is a woman, the extremely powerful fighter that will nonetheless always be second in strength to the male lead is a woman. Upskirt shots and carefully framed ass/boobs panels abound. Their characterization can be shallow: especially in action and thriller series, the motivations of female characters are rarely given the same consideration that male characters receive.

Hand Jumper is different. First, female characters are taken just as seriously as male ones, in every way possible. Second, a character's gender does not influence their power level. While it's true that cis men are physically stronger than cis women in the real world, "men are always stronger than women" does not make sense in fantasy action contexts. Why are all the most powerful heroes in My Hero Academia men? Why must all the notable healers in Naruto be female ninja? In worlds where people possess honest to God magical superpowers, power is totally divorced from the density of your muscles. This is true of Hand Jumper's world as well, so it treats its characters appropriately: Male and female Aberrants fight on equal ground. As a result, some of the most prestigious Aberrant positions are held by women: Samin is the leader of the Crimson Society, Cell 4's instructor and mentor are both women, and Sayeon's mother Sara is so mysterious and so powerful that she seems close to godly. Sara's treatment is especially interesting, given that she's filling a role usually reserved for men: the mysterious, legendary parent of the protagonist who left their life when they were still a child. Think Gon's father in HxH, Baki's father in Grappler Baki, Naruto's father, the Joestars in JoJo, or Luffy's father in One Piece. In Hj, it's not the mother, but the father who is drowned out in the shadow cast by his spouse.

Personalities, fantasy power levels, and interests are not inherently gendered! So Hand Jumper doesn't treat them as gendered either. The bubbly, cheerful member of the main group is usually a girl, but this time it's Iseul Kim. The pretty, androgynous Min is both a deadly weapon and a baker of cute pastries- he picks up Sayeon in a bridal carry after a fight, and incredibly, it's not framed as a romantic gesture. Lastly, the aggressive, jaded rival to the protagonist is usually male, but this time it's Ryujin Kang. This position being filled by a female character is so unusual that I remember the comments section being filled with people mistaking Ryujin for a boy, even though she was clearly presented as a woman from the start. Part of this confusion is probably fueled by how Ryujin has a lot of… tension with Sayeon, tension usually found in heterosexual enemy-to-lover relationships. And Sayeon herself? She's on a crusade to avenge her childhood friend, a damsel in distress who died in Episode 2. Somehow, in Hand Jumper, the tragic dead lover that needs avenging is a man.

[marunalu]

Isn't all of the rabid BKDK shippers similar to that one pairing in Bleach where the loud shippers want one pairing and the Editors suggest that the Bleach's author should do it, but he explicitly stated that he wanted this pairing instead because its his story? At best, the official canon ship for Izuku would be Izuchaco or implied of it or no ships at all.

At least Hori agrees with us that the BKDK relationship is abusive and that the two would be treating each other as acquaintances who just happen to grow up together. And the thing is for that BKDK contest, he acknowledges the skills of the artists but the relationship is not romantic at all. So it's really just people being extremely obsessed with the idea that any and all relationships should be romantic instead of platonic. I wonder if he was expecting a badass action scenes between the two working together instead of causal romantic times?

Do you happen to have a citation for the contest so that we can point towards the fact that BKDK is just for fun, not canon?

I remember I saw horis reply somewhere on twitter between 2 or 3 years ago. But I dont have twitter, well X know, anymore. Honestly, I dont quite remember if it was a bkdk fanart contest or just an exhibition. And I think it was only japanese artists. But basically, while he praised all the fanarts and the talents of the artists, he made clear that the way bakugous and izukus relationship is portaied as in these fanworks is not what their relationship is really or ever was like. There were tons of romantic bkdk and fanart of them as children playing happily with each other. He basically confirmed as unbiased as possible that this kind of interpretation of their relationship is completly fanon. Maybe someone who reads this can give us a link though, I tried to find it with google, but google only showed me reddit and quora posts about "why bkdk is canon" and such stupid stuff. 🙄

And yes you are right, the bkdk shippers are VERY similar to the rapid ichiruki shippers back then. Mind you I WAS THERE when the shipping war between ichirukis and ichihimes was at its highest and believe me it was UGLY and for me who never shipped ichigo with either rukia or orihime it kinda destroyed the manga/anime for me back then and its one of the main reasons why I dont like shipping in generell anymore. But despite never shipping it myself I KNEW ichigo would end up with orihime, because kubo made it obvious. The anime cut a lot of canon ichihime moments and included tons of filler ichiruki moments, so its no wonder why so many people believed at first ichiruki was a thing. And to be fair to kubo, he made clear statements back then about ichigos and rukias relationship being pure platonic YEARS BEFORE the manga ended, but the shippers ignored that and played victim afterwards. Hori on the other hand would never make this kind of bold statement, because he is aware of the backlash that would happen. I like hori and I can understand why he wouldnt want to upset people because he was attacked and got death threads in the past already from stupid shippers, but I have to say tite kubo is clearly the braver one of these two. He simply gives a fuck what people think and just does his thing no matter if people like it or not.

The best part was how not that long ago he completly destroyed an hardcore ichiruki shipper on social media who attacked him and insultet ichihime and kubo was just like: "you know what? FUCK YOU! From now on I will make even more ichihime content just to piss you off even more asshole!" Kubo is amazing and a legend!

[nocandnc]

Hello!

I just wanted to say thank you so so so much for being in the WaruYama tag.

I've been with the manga for a long time, and have been shipping the General with Yamano since the first Volume.

I know Pink's probably more likely to be a romantic partner, but gosh darn it, Yamano knows him better than a lot of people do, and he respects her opinions, at least on foods and wants to save the place she works for last in the destruction of the world.

I literally thought I wouldn't find anything on them when I looked it up today- finally breaking to the pressure of loving the ship so much- and I found you!

Thank you so much for having anything on them at all!

I love them and your cute little post-it note drawings were cute too, thank you! ❤️💓💕💝💘💖

Hi there~

Thank you so much for your kind words!! I still think about these two a lot even though the anime’s ended, it’s great to see other fans of this ship are doing the same ^///^

(Although Pink clearly likes him, I really can’t see that going anywhere as it’s purely one-sided… just a bittersweet first love for the would-be magical girl. If anything I find her and Blue more likely? Wouldn’t be the first time someone says “they’re like a sister to me” only to realize it was romantic later on lol)

But let’s keep this about WaruYama!!

I really love how he and Yamano just vibe together so well!! From the start she was able to read him, knowing he was disappointed that his favourite snack was out of stock or feeling the same reluctance about eating the Panda buns… the contrast between his ‘tall dark and stoic’ appearance and her sweet sunshine personality is also just to die for >///<

I also really love that she works at HopeMart, like… that’s where hope for coexistence begins and ends!! It’s the place he’ll spare till the very end, and so of course, Yamano as well…! Feels poetic lol

Although it’s a bit cheesy, I’ve been quietly headcanoning Yamano’s given name to be Nozomi (wish, desire, hope etc.) since she hasn’t been given one far as I know ^^;;;

Yamano Nozomi~!! I think it has a nice ring to it.

If it turns out she does have a first name, then I’d make Nozomi their child’s name instead~ (Nozomu if it’s a boy!)

I’m glad you liked my silly sticky note doodles!! I should really draw proper fanart of them sometime, but until then, here’s another one—

I like the idea of Yamano being allergic to cats, making the General’s robo kitty the perfect playmate for her ^^

Thank you so much for the Ask, feel free to pop in again anytime!!

[ogata77]

¡The Power of a Name!

Never had a name had so much power literally and metaphorically speaking, not at least in saezuru. We only hear "Chikara" from Doumeki's own mouth while answering Yashiro's interrogation at the beginning of this story and from his mother while visiting him in the hospital when the first arc ends, so it only remains to think how close Doumeki and they can become that woman so she can call him the same. For this reason it is not uncommon for Yashiro to be so surprised and jealousy to break out within him.

The first theory of someone who does not know this story in depth would be to believe that both have maintained a loving relationship during these 4 years and that Doumeki has calmed his basic needs while waiting to meet Yashiro again, but someone who has really read what happens in saezuru can't believe in such a basic idea at least I don't. Doumeki told Yashiro "I want this body not to want anyone else", this phrase speaks of exclusivity and I can't imagine him asking for something that even he can't fulfill, on the contrary, I think he makes the request because it's his way of seeing love with Yashiro, he does not want him to be with anyone else and in his heart there is no room for another person so much so that he covers his hands with gloves at the precise moment that he begins his new life as a yakuza declaring: I am here but my feelings they will be preserved until the time when Yashiro returns to my life but let's leave the story of the gloves for another time.

An important detail that makes me curious is why in the scene where Doumeki enters the woman's apartment Yoneda leaves Inami's dialogue: "As always, you don't stop", is it perhaps a clue to tell us that in the same way as Yashiro he gets turned on by no one but Doumeki himself, he is still powerless and only Yashiro can turn him on. If the above is correct, the romance with the woman would be completely ruled out.

So if we eliminate the idea of ​​a romance between the two, I can only think about the importance of this woman as an informant. Mama-san owns a bar where yakuza people usually meet to have fun, close deals, etc. therefore it is not uncommon for you to have important first-hand information to use at your convenience. Now, but where this closeness between the two comes from, the only clue we could have is the concept that Yoneda delivers through the conversation that Kamiya has with Yashiro in the bathroom of the Sakuraika house where he clearly explains what the intentions of the "women of the night", the protection of a man. Doumeki has not forgotten what he learned at the police academy and knows that information and contacts are pure gold, especially in the world of the mafia, he is also the "problem solver" assigned to that bar, that means he protects those who work there then it is ultimately a win-win relationship: information for protection.

Don't think that I have these thoughts to defend Doumeki with a romantic ideal, of course not, because if Yashiro could continue looking for other men in these 4 years then why couldn't Doumeki take refuge in someone too. It's just that to me the character's devotion to staying in the yakuza for love and putting this whole plan together for all this time doesn't fit with there now being a third person in the story.

On the other hand, what happens to Yashiro when he hears the name of Doumeki from this woman is a ticking time bomb. Yashiro has a theme with women that Yoneda is always developing throughout the manga, from his earliest childhood the most important woman in his life abandoned him to his fate with his stepfather, then in adolescence he realized his masochism by to have sex with a girl and from that moment he began to frequent places where yakuzas met to obtain the violence that aroused him, but many times these same men reminded him that his destiny would have been different if he were a woman.

Ryuzaki mentions that if he had been a woman he would have been able to protect him, Misumi tells him that it reminds him of his wife, the man with whom he has a relationship in his early years in the yakuza and who is expelled because of him, constantly treats him like a girl and all this blows up Yashiro. But when Yashiro and Kamiya have a conversation in the bathroom of the Sakuraika's house, Yashiro realizes that in the world of the yakuza women still need a man to protect them and it seems to me that for a moment he thought that if he had been a woman as everyone told him, now he would be without so many problems with Doumeki.

Yashiro has all this going around in his head and when he sees the closeness that Doumeki and mama-san have, it's obvious that everything fits and his jealousy explodes. I can't leave out the scene from this last chapter when everyone is eating in the restaurant and Kamiya makes Doumeki see how gentle he is with women, to which Doumeki replies: "I can be gentle with Kamiya too." This for Yashiro is the straw that breaks the camel's back, the kindness to mama-san, the kindness to women, the kindness to Kamiya and the kindness that Yashiro craves so much, where is he?

Yashiro no longer imagines men raping him in a group, now he dreams of Doumeki chasing him, kissing him and letting him lie on his legs like in the past, that's what Yashiro wants at this point in his life, but he believes that everything that is held by other people close to Doumeki. The place that Yashiro occupied in Doumeki's life is no longer even as his boss, from the moment they met again after these 4 years Yashiro has realized how much he lost and how much he wants to get it back, that's why he goes out on he looks for Kido to self-sabotage again and run away from what is happening to him with Doumeki.

This chapter focused on jealousy and how much damage it can do to us, they say that a person can hide any feeling except when they are jealous and it became clear that neither Yashiro nor Doumeki can run away from this feeling anymore.

If there are errors in the text, it's Google's fault hahaha I'm sorry but I hope it's understood. Thanks for reading my ramblings.

[warm-starlight]

I hope I will not disturb you I wanted to talk about this and… I just came to share this with you The interesting thing is that when I talk about this relationship and its characteristics with others and say why I think there was something more than love between them… they usually pay more attention to three things: Hanji blushing in the forest Shinzo Wo Sasagyu's strange scene

and Levi's strong reaction to Hanji's death((they don't expect Hanji to be so important to Levi because they usually don't read manga and only watch anime and don't pay much attention to details) And most importantly, the plane but In fact, none of these three cases have the effect of the sea scene where Levi was staring at Hanji :) I mean, every time I say and explain, most of them accept what I say, butsome of them say, well, Hanji was in love with Levi, but Levi see's them as a friend. Then I show them chapter 90 and everyone is like: Wow, where was this? Why wasn't it in the anime? Why did they delete it? And then no one says anything anymore :) Because they haven't read the manga and are seeing it for the first time, there is such a thing But why? This is tied to the culture of my country I don't know much about other countries… But in my culture, from the time we were born, until now, in our poems and literature, we recognize true love by looking In fact, the sea scene and the situation of Levi and Hanji is one of the most famous romantic situations in our poetry and culture… Hanji is staring in front of them… they has disappeared into the sea and the wind is blowing in their hair And Levi is staring at Hanji behind Hanji in a position where no one except the manga reader can see Levi. he seems emotional I wish I could find a suitable translation of the poems of the ancient poets of my country or I could translate… or equate the beauty of the metaphors from this situation… but it is beyond my power. For example, I showed that scene to someone and said, "What do you think about this?" This is from chapter 90.. in this sequence we only have 4 frames.. this scene is not a screenshot from the anime In fact, the author puts the most important event of every moment in every frame and cannot put asides or a passing glance inside this scene. And you can see that Levi is completely turned towards Hanji Staring at Hanji And the rest (friends) are really doing what two friends do, for example Armin and Mikasa are worried about Eren. And Jean, Sasha and Kenny were playing together But our two adult characters are in this situation And in my answer he said: Hahaha, come on, Levi had a crush on Hanji (he was really shocked because for the first time he saw something romantic in their relationship). Well, I'm not Japanese...im iranian But I just want to say that such a scene of Levi and Hanji by the sea is one of the most beautiful romantic situations in my country...

In our poems, in our songs, in our paintings, in our textbooks, this scene and situation is constantly mentioned. As a pure scene of love, especially one-sided love or true love We call a lover whom we stare at (saname sangdel=An idol with a heart of stone) because they cruelly plays with our feelings and charms us with their beauty.

Hello. You aren't disturbing me at all.

Yeah, we see in ACWNR Hange looking at Levi clearly interested in him and curious about him and we see Levi stealing glances at Hange a few times. For me the most impactful look he gave was that after Hange said they should go explore Marley. It seems like he felt the old, curious and knowledge thirsty Hange was back and he missed them so much...The way Isayama tends to focus on his eyes when he looks at hange is definitely significant.

[thequeenofsarcaasm]

- Who are your top favorite romantic relationship's couples in books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series (can be canon or non-canon)?

[Feel free if you want to write the reasons or not of why you love those couples....]

- Is there a fictional couple who you dislike but you just know that they are right for each other?

- Which fandom that first introduce you to ffn or ao3?

Thanks if you want to answer, hope you have a wonderful day....

Thank you for asking ❤️

1-Let me just name 10 of them

Naru Sasu (IYKYK. I’ll leave it at that)

SatoSugu (I don’t need to explain)

MadoHomu ( I love dramatic sapphics and pure insanity. That’s what they represent to me)

Katniss and Peeta ( I love THG cause the “love triangle” is an allegory really. Katniss chose peace when she decided to be with Peeta. You can’t top that)

KilluGon (It’s the devotion for me. Also the parallels with Komugi and Meruem? The “lover’s suicide” line? The fact Killua’s birthday is on Tanabata??? I’m sold)

Okabe and Kurisu (I think they’re just made for each other. When things started going downhill, Okabe was so lost that the plot stopped progressing for an episode or two but the moment Kurisu asked him what had happened it felt like she was pulling on an entangled string. I love them so much)

Ed and Winry (She gave that boy a leg to keep moving forward. He saved her by reminding her who she was and what she stood for 🤷🏾‍♀️ )

SuzaLulu cause they’re toxic as fuck and I love toxic (not the real reason but it would be too long to explain. They’re just so GHHGFDD)

AshEiji (*sobs*)

BokuAka (“We’re the protagonists of the world” 🙄 I hate them anime queers)

2-I am sorry but I hated Helena and Damon. That’s your little bros gf!! Are you dumb? GET AWAY FROM HER!!!!!!

3- I started reading ff after Shugo Chara but it was Saint Seiya : The last canvas that introduced me to mlm ships (it’s also the first manga I ever read since we never got a second season ). In SS you have two guys who’ve been friends since forever cause one of them uses a technique that literally causes his heart to burn so he was appointed as partner the only guy who has a cooling technique. Do you see the potential???? Do you see the vision????

Also, the guy who’s possessed by Hades is the bff of the hero and he clearly loves him.

Honestly, all the ships are 12/10

I started STRONG cause the first SS fic I read was violent…( I won’t get into the details but I aspire to that level of toxicity)

🫶🏾🫶🏾🫶🏾

[piro-piroooooo]

90s Sailor Moon Re-watch Thoughts by Piro

I was around 13 or 14 when I first watched Sailor Moon. I stumbled upon the first episode on YouTube and ended up watching the whole series, ignorant of the massive impact this manga/anime had on fiction and popular culture.

Most episodes of the Latino American dub were available on YouTube. Sure, the quality was terrible, and the videos were surrounded by copyright frames (Is that the right term?) but my standards were low back then. I cried at the end of every season.

I decided to re-watch the whole thing last November and just finished. I now proceed to share some of my thoughts now that I'm a more grounded maho-shoujo enjoyer. This time I watched it in Japanese.

Thoughts about each season under the cut!

Sailor Moon Classic:

-Absolute masterpiece. Perfect. I loved the finale. As a child, I wasn't able to properly comprehend why Usagi longed so much to go back to her previous life. She had the power to revive all of her friends. She could have kept their memories. But she didn't because in her eyes the greatest gift she could give them was a normal life.

-Usagi is one of my favorite fictional heroes, maybe my favorite one, for a simple reason: She is weak and selfish. Sailor Moon always needs someone to strike the enemy before she uses her all-mighty magical spell to solve everything. But she isn't useless. She is the hope that keeps everyone else fighting.

-Sailor Moon doesn't actually care about ideals like justice (clearly stated in the manga finale). Her sole motivation is the love she has for her friends and the world, a selfish desire to enjoy a happy life with her loved ones. She's just a girl in the world, let her go home and have a yummy treat.

-The shitennou are a lot more interesting in the anime. In the manga, they serve as romantic interests for each senshi. That s a little bit too easy and heteronormative for me. Having two of them be gay for each other and giving Nephrite an actual character arc is a lot more fun to watch!

-I used to be very neutral about Mamoru. Now I enjoy him a lot. His character is really fun. As far as I understand, he gets into a cosmical fight to find some gem and try to have back his memories from before a car accident. He finds out that he is the reincarnation of ancient royalty and has an equally ancient demigod girlfriend. And he still doesn't recover the memories he was searching for in the first place. That's fun.

Sailor Moon R:

-The Tree arc is good. It also helps fill the season. The Dead Moon arc would have been too long without the tree arc.

-Chibiusa is fine. I disliked her as a child. Not anymore. I love how much we can see Usagi's growth in this season. Sure, she and Chibiusa are a little bit mean to each other sometimes and have petty fights, but you can see they care. Usagi goes as far as trying to trick Rubeus to protect Chibiusa. No one has to force Usagi to transform and fight.

-The Ayakashi sisters are really good. I think their struggles kind of represent being undervalued by an organization/company you have given your whole life.

-Not exactly about the season itself, but the Sailor Moon R movie is one of my favorite anime movies ever. Great animation, great design, great homoeroticism.

Sailor Moon S:

-I've read that having this season as your favorite is seen as pretentious to some people. But sorry, it's just an excellent season. That episode, where Haruka and Michiru are about to find they are the talisman holders. Woah. So aesthetically pleasing. Those shots, those angles, that timing, and edition. Great episode.

-This season delivers one of my favorite Minako episodes. The bad guys finally target her, and she runs off clutching her pure heart in her hands laughing like a maniac. I love her (She later does something similar on SuperS). It inspired me to donate blood, but I couldn't do it because the nurses said my veins were too thin.

-Again, great relationship between Usagi and Chibiusa. I love the friendship between Hotaru and Chibiusa too. I don't care about shipping, but in my heart, she has two hands. Third-season Chibisusa is my favorite Chibiusa.

Sailor Moon SuperS:

-The season I disliked the most as a child, the season I like the least now too. They made the girls so fucking dumb. Usagi's only character trait is being jealous of girls around Mamoru all the time. The inners' personalities are erased over wanting to have a boyfriend. Usagi and Chibiusa fight over the stupidest things.

-This is by far my favorite arc in the manga. I love the lore and how each character has a chance under the spotlight. Extremely sad they wrote out Mamoru's role.

-I'm very indifferent about Helios and his relationship with Chibiusa. I don't dislike them but every time I find myself liking them I realize it's because I'm seeing the Usagi and Mamoru on them.

-Why are the antagonists so creepy? like, they don't even NEED to seduce their targets to see their dreams, so the whole tactic comes off as creepy. Sadly, they had to include Fish Eye in this dynamic. I like her.

-One thing I do like about SuperS is the visuals. I love the opening and the little guys doing their silly performances at the circus. Very good.

Sailor Moon Stars:

-The opening song makes me so emotional. Every time I listen to it, I feel like I'm surrounded by my allies preparing for a deadly fight against a big enemy. The enemy is formidable, but the fire inside our hearts is stronger.

-Big fan of the second Nehelenia Arc. I love seeing the senshis all fighting together, using their unique skills and strengths instead of being defeated immediately and leaving Usagi to do the rest. I also like how they tie the return of Nehelenia with upcoming events.

-It will never be not funny to me that Kunihiko Ikuhara didn't get to direct the season where Mamoru does die.

-I do enjoy how Stars feels a little bit more serious and mature with the absence of Mamoru and the girls being in high school. The Three Lights' music is perfect to build that melancholic atmosphere that characterizes this season for me. But I believe it would have been nice to have Chibiusa a little bit more, it's not her character's fault that the previous season felt so childish.

-Something I did dislike was how the inner senshi were neglected a little bit because most screen time was dedicated to the Three Lights. I like them don't get me wrong. But the opening bit where you see the inner senshis holding hands, while throwing themselves into the void, makes me think I would have preferred to have them on the final fight. They barely did anything on the final fight.

-The Sailor Moon finale is very dear to me. I deeply appreciate the message of the manga of not waiting for a 'peaceful time' or a 'happy ending' to enjoy life with your loved ones. Conflict will always arise again, and life is a constant fight you can only win by accepting the eternal struggle of existing. I think the manga version conveys this message better, but the anime is a worthy adaptation with its own merits.

I will be rewatching Crystal soon after I get some rest from Sailor Moon and watch something else for a little while. I haven't watched the Cosmos movies. I'm looking forward to doing so. I will also be watching the live-action for the first time soon. I will post my thoughts about those too.

Thanks for reading if you made it this far! Remember english is not my native language and I might have made grammar and spelling mistakes on this post! I'm open to suggestions regarding that ^^

[saotome-michi]

Just finished rereading Yozora no Sumikko de AND Yoake ni Furu back to back and my god THE EMOTIONS ;o; I am not strong enough for this

I really have so much love for these series especially Yoake ni Furu which has cemented its spot as my Number 1 Favourite out of Hayakawa’s works and I think? that I’m in the minority with that opinion, but I just adore how multi-layered and subtle the storytelling is. I think that it’s definitely one that grows richer the more you reread it, because you don’t really get a clear picture of Shouta’s mental and emotional conflicts until the very end and not even then. In the beginning we’re made to believe that Shouta’s love for Hoshino is romantic in nature, at least partially, but gradually the inconsistencies appear and enough pieces come together for us to realize: Oh, it’s not romantic at all, but purely familial and protective; Hoshino is the third parent whom Shouta dearly loves but is uncomfortable “claiming” in that way, because that’s not normal and Shouta has always been aware how not normal his family situation is.

Add to that his pain over his mother dying and leaving him when he was so young, and his fear that he’s a burden to Akihiro (and also Akihiro and Hoshino still not getting their shit together even after 6 years) and well... that’s how you get a boy who can only express his love for his third parental figure by pretending he’s his long-distance girlfriend. It’s honestly so sad, and that’s also why he breaks down after seeing Hoshino cry and overhearing him say that he has a marriage interview, because he’s faced with the prospect of Hoshino leaving him as well and the confirmation that him growing up does not guarantee Hoshino’s presence in his life.

Another cute/heartbreaking sign of how Hoshino is really his second dad, is when Shouta invites Daiki over to his house for the weekend to see Hoshino, right after he stayed the night at Daiki’s house hanging out with Daiki’s mother and sister. It’s so clear that he loves Daiki’s family and really appreciates them caring for him and also appreciates Daiki for sharing them with him, which is why he wants to return the gesture by sharing his family aka Hoshino with Daiki (and he’s so disappointed when Daiki says he can’t come). What makes it extra special is that Daiki is one of the only people Shouta can share Hoshino with, and I think that’s also why Shouta is so upset after Daiki pushes him down and implies that Shouta’s feelings for Hoshino are sexual, because he trusted Daiki out of all people to understand him (but who can blame Daiki for not when Shouta never explained the whole situation to him, poor guy was under the misconception that Shouta has been dating his elementary school teacher this whole time).

The whole manga is really Shouta’s coming-of-age story as he struggles with accepting his unique family, not because he’s ashamed of them but because his fear of abandonment and his reluctance to depend on others even when he clearly wants to results in him feeling like he has no right to them (and that includes Daiki!!) Meanwhile, Daiki is just trying to figure Shouta’s shit out, and making some missteps along the way, but once he does, he tackles it head on, telling Shouta he loves him and that he wants Shouta to depend on him. And that reassurance, more than anything, is what allows Shouta to finally relax and be vulnerable with him.

I also really recommend reading this along with Yozora no Sumikko de, because there are some very cool parallels, contrasts, and callbacks between the two series. In Yozora, Hoshino thinks of Akihiro as a dazzling person, a star, far from his reach, until he gathers the courage to grasp him with his own hands, while in Yoake, Shouta thinks of Hoshino and his mother as stars, their familial love an ideal and something he must chase and prove himself worthy of, but Daiki? Daiki is much closer than that; he is the streetlamps, the houselights that make homes seem so warm and inviting at night, so much closer and yet easier to overlook because of their proximity. Honestly, it’s poetry.

[apparently-artless]

Oooh i love this type of games!! I would like like to give my view in this and for the animangask: what do you think about, Shanks AN EMPEROR going back to Foosha village? (without taking into consideration his possible romantic relationship with Makino) Why do you think an emperor would do that? Do you think he knows he can't beat Blackbeard and that's why he visited her as a "maybe this is the last time we see each other"?

For me, and so this may be an unpopular opinion, but I'm going to say Makino's baby is Shanks's till proven otherwise.

Though it may not be good to draw parallels, but I'm seeing one with Shanks/Makino and Roger/Rouge. Roger decided to have a kid after Laugh Tale, however, the marines had cottoned onto his actions, and targeted Rouge's village of any possible pregnant woman/ woman with a baby because they didn't want Roger to have any offspring. However, thanks to Rouge delaying the birth of her and Roger's baby, Ace was born and Garp took him to East Blue. The fundamental mistake Roger made was making it obvious by acting fatherly, which was how the marines found out that a baby was due.

After seeing Shanks enter Mary Geoise without any of the marines knowing, he is clearly better at stealth than his old captain.

Everything I say after this is purely hypothetical. After reading a few posts that suggest that Shanks may die by Blackbeard's hands in the future, leaving Luffy to face Blackbeard as a way to surpass Shanks. I'm seeing the parallel between Shanks and Roger here, if it is possibly foreshadowed that Shanks will die. What if Shanks travelled to Windmill Village without the marines knowing and spent some time there with Makino, and she got pregnant during the time skip. Oda stated in SBS 63, that Makino's baby is 'probably that person', which I will assume is Shanks. Shanks may not have planned to have a kid, if he knows, he may have planned to, this I don't know, but if he did plan to, similarly to Roger, he handled it better than Roger without anyone knowing. This means his kid will be safe from the marines, in a way Ace's birth village wasn't for a lot of women and children. If Oda is foreshadowing Shanks's death, in a way that Shanks knows he cannot beat Blackbeard (two devil fruits, Shanks's scar, Shanks going to the Mary Geoise to discuss a certain pirate (assuming this is Blackbeard) etc), he may have decided to have a kid. Makino and Shanks had a close relationship during Shanks stay when Luffy was a kid, maybe Oda planned this from the beginning with these two. Though, I do have to say the marines won't react the same way with Shanks's kid as they did with Roger's kid, but who knows.

On a more positive note, if Luffy returns to Windmill Village after becoming Pirate King and finds out about Shanks/Makino baby, maybe the straw hat will go to this kid in the future.

There are clearly a lot of what ifs with this theory, with very little to work on the moment, but what are your thoughts?

To be honest, I'm still not updated with the manga. The info about OP I know so far is only limited to anime. I also think that Shanks is the father of Makino's child. As you mentioned, Oda confirmed the father of Makino's child is "probably that person". Other than Shanks, there is no other character we could think of aside from him and vice versa. I'd also like to stick with this theory.

My response for the rest is purely out of emotions rather than looking at the story so far objectively. For me, Shanks doesn't necessarily have to die in order for Luffy to end up facing Blackbeard. Inevitably, Luffy has to face Blackbeard, but what I'm thinking is Shanks may play another important role that is yet to be revealed.

Shanks is already an emperor for many years and I think he is fully aware of his position that every small action he does will make an impact whether he likes it or not. Assuming Shanks is really the father of Makino's child, wouldn't it endanger the child's safety if he went back to Foosha Village? There must be another reason why he went back to the village, a very important one, that he's willing to risk his family's life. Judging by Shanks's personality, I don't think he'd be the type to act based on emotions. One example would be during the end of Marineford Arc. Shanks had not seen Luffy for a long time, but he still decided not to meet him. So if Shanks decided to come back to Foosha Village, it might not be to see Makino and their child again (assuming they're Shanks's). Like you said, Shanks managed to keep the child hidden from the Marines, if that was Shanks's true intention, he just wasted the opportunity that he created. I don't know what the reason may be, but it has to be something important that may contribute greatly to the current plot. And at least, that's what I hope. 

Lastly, I personally don't like the theory that Shanks will die at Blackbeard's hands, and Luffy will defeat him as a way to surpass Shanks. Doesn't that theory sound like what happened to Ace and Luffy? And if this ever happens, I'd be seriously pissed (not to the point that I will drop this series though XD). What I want to happen is when everything's been resolved, Shanks and Luffy will have a friendly match. And through that, Shanks will see for himself that Luffy had definitely surpassed him. A little cringe, I know. But this is what I want. XD

I apologize in advance if I wasn't able to address everything you've mentioned. (￣▽￣*)ゞ

[comicscourse]

Defining Yuri

Introduction 

While manga, whether we talk about shonen, shoujo or seinen, often displays elements that are distinct from Western literature, as a whole it is easily recognizable. You can use the same tools you analyze East of Eden with to look at Lone Wolf and Cub. If you can parse A Midsummer Night’s Dream then Urusei Yatsura should be just as comprehensible to you.  

Yuri however, becomes interesting and is distinct enough that I think it is worth talking about what is intrinsic to it. This is very much an evolving work in my mind and I welcome feedback as it evolves. For this point I’ve considered some of my recent reads in Yuri and re-read volume 1 of Eclair.  I intend to expand this over time so consider this a work in progress.  

For future reference this is dated March 11th, 2023.

Common Yuri Themes 

Affections

One theme drives everything else in Yuri - love.  This includes five types of love that serve as sub themes:

Sexual Love - While love and sex are often separated the emotions connected with physical attraction should not be understated and are important here.  A subcategory of this is aesthetic attraction, a concept based on attraction that has a physical component but may not elevate to full sexual attraction.  Skinships are a related concept.

Romantic Love - Most audiences are very familiar with this concept.

Devotion or Devoted Love - I avoid the term Platonic Love for several reasons,  One, it’s meaning going back to Platonic Forms implies it is the most pure and true form of love which I don’t agree with.  Also, it implies an exclusion of sexual and romantic love in how it is used while in Yuri devotion is often expressed in intense friendships and is an important part of connections between characters.

Familial love - While the first three are all common in Yuri, familiar love is the least common.

The fifth kind I don’t have a term for yet but it is based on common experience, sometimes trauma, sometimes not that binds people together in a sense of shared identity around these events.  

It is important to underscore that several of these afflictions are not sapphic or lesbian and while yuri comics are often sapphic the genre has enough diversity that it shouldn’t be defined as such.

Ambiguity 

Ambiguity is a common theme in the genre, with character feelings and even the exact form of conflict resolution often unclear to the reader and open to interpretation.  “The Hairdresser” is an example of this, where the characters have a relationship at the end but the nature of it is unclear.  It might be a mild form of devotion though one clearly has some level of aesthetic attraction.  

In “A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow” both characters are ingenues and everything is ambiguous throughout.  In “The Hairdresser” a girl attracted to another does her hair, they clearly develop a relationship at the end but what kind is left in doubt.  

Power Exchange 

Dominance and submissive themes exist and can be expressed in various kinds of existing affections.  In “Master 1/365” a sexual attraction is connected to the aggressor putting herself into a submissive role. 

In “Human Emotion” a co-worker is seen as a pet, fitting naturally into a dependent role with the protagonist.

Conflicts 

All Yuri has one central false conflict and one or more true conflicts.  The false conflict mirrors western romance literature and is the resolution of the status of a relationship between two women.  

The tone of resolutions is diverse ranging from happily ever after to tragedy and bittersweet endings far more common than in English western literature.  Additionally, even the tone can be ambiguous.

This is attributed to a critical difference between Yuri and Western romances.  While both revolve around a central relationship conflict the resolutions are very different.  Western romances may factor some self revelation in the build up to resolution but resolving the relationship itself resolves the conflict.  This is to say the conflict is external.

After the rain

In Yuri the true conflict is internal to one or more of the main characters.  The resolution of the relationship between them is a side effect of internal conflict being resolved but optional.  Nothing may change in that relationship or it may be ambiguous.  

Character Roles 

The Minx - Is interested in another girl sexually and/or romantically.  This does not preclude other types of relationships as they are often friends as well.  May have many self doubts and not be as sophisticated as they appear.  May be aggressive and a combination of their doubts and interests are usually a major driving force behind the plot in stories in which they appear.  Examples: Hotaru from NTR.  Both characters in “The Unemployed Woman and the High School Girl” are minxes, an unusual point of conflict. The aggressiveness of the minx can mix into themes in a variety of ways, for example in “Master for 1/365” the minx positions herself to be the slave of the enigma until out of frustration she makes a physical ploy.  

The Ingenue - This girl is naive and is likely interested in other girls but not even aware of it herself. Often paired with a Minx. Examples: Yuma-chan from NTR.

The Enigma - This is a character we don’t get to see the internal voice of and is often unexpressive.  They are an object of interest from other characters and we often don’t know their feelings until the end and even then may only be implied. Their job is to react. Kai-san from “Happiness in the Shape of a Scar” from vol 1 of Eclair is an example.  Note that being an enigma is not about being emotionally reserved but their viewpoint as to the relationship is unknown.  In “Human Emotion” from volume one of Eclair we see that the minx is very reserved and probably autistic while the enigma is very vocal and expressive.  

The Tourist - This character has just wandered into a Yuri story and really has no place in it.  Often used open endings and plot twists.

The two combinations of the Minx and the Ingenue and the Minx and the Enigma are the most common pairings because indeterminate relationship is one of the most common storylines in the genre.

[therainbowgorilla]

Way to say you don't know what queerplatonic means without saying you don't know what queerplatonic means

Haven't you ever heard of the split attraction model?

As for "Jupes", what? Dude have you like... Never heard of a nickname? I guess it's childish to call someone named Catherine "Cathy" or someone named Alexander "Alex" now huh? Do you realize how dumb you sound?

I'm not "defending men", I'm defining WOMEN, because trans women are women you insufferable prick.

I never once said "Aplatonic". How about you work on your bad reading comprehension before you try to accuse others of it. I said aromantic and asexual, with queerplatonic attraction to women (trans women included, because they are women).

You're the one reducing lesbianism to just sex. There's many different types of love, not just one. There's sexual, romantic, platonic, queerplatonic, and familial, to name all the ones I know of off the top 9f my head.

Someone can be a lesbian asexual person or a gay ace person or even a bi/pan ace person. They'd be considered homoromantic (or biromantic or panromantic) asexual.

Someone can be aromantic but lesbian/gay/bi/pan when it comes to sexual attraction. They'd be specifically aromantic homo/bi/pansexual, but it's easier to say like "aro gay", yknow?

Someone can be aromantic and asexual but experience platonic attraction. This essentially means friends. Vast majority of people feel this.

QUEERplatonic is different though. And trying to explain this to alloromantic allosexual people (people who feel romantic and sexual attraction) sometimes feels like trying to describe a new color to someone. It's like if you tried to explain to me what, like, romantic attraction feels like. I don't really experience it, so I have no idea how it feels. I can only understand it a bit, but it feels abstract or something. Likewise, you have never felt queerplatonic attraction, so you have no true understanding of what it means.

It's the same emotional depth as romantic or sexual attraction, but it doesn't necessarily have to have that many if at all romantic or sexual aspects to it. You don't have to have kisses or sex to love someone with all you have in you to give. You can want to be around someone, be with them, live with them, go out to eat or stay in and play video games or cook together, maybe get married, maybe have children (ace people can have sex for a variety of reasons other than attraction; and not all queerplatonic people are ace), spend your lives with each other, grow old together. Have a life together. Clearly, that's more than "just" friendship. Queerplatonic partnerships are purely defined by what each participant agrees on for the relationship.

Most queerplatonic people are aro ace, but it's possible to have a qpp where one or both partners aren't. For a good example of a relationship between an aro ace girl and an alloromantic asexual guy, as well as perhaps a better understanding of queerplatonic relationships (at least in the first volume; I'm not caught up), please check out the manga A Condition Called Love. I felt so seen by it.

[marshmallowgoop]

Things I love about Heiji and Shinichi (as someone who hasn't read much of the manga and is about halfway through the anime):

🔎 The way that Shinichi is instantly impressed by Heiji's deductive abilities. He respects Heiji's skill to such an extent that, solely out of concern for what will be discovered about him, he decides—unhesitatingly and while feeling deathly ill—to accompany the Detective of the West on a (seemingly non-murderous) case investigation that he pointedly had no interest in otherwise (Episode 48).

🔎 The way that Shinichi tells Heiji—the boy whose life has been so defined by comparisons to his father (and later to Shinichi himself), who is so insecure that he constructs unnecessary competitions in an effort to feel as though he's worth something—what essentially amounts to, "You don't have to prove yourself to me" (Episode 49). Despite the temporary antidote wearing off and making it a considerable effort to even remain standing, Shinichi is still sure to let Heiji know that there isn't any competition in detective work—that "[t]here's no winning, losing, above, or below when it comes to logic... After all, there's always only one truth."

🔎 The way that Heiji enters the series purely to find Shinichi, and the symbolic significance that can be read into how Heiji is, quite literally, the reason that Shinichi does in fact appear for the first time since being poisoned (Episodes 48-49). It's as if to say that Shinichi cannot keep hiding behind Conan when Heiji is present—that Shinichi cannot help but be himself, not the false persona he's created, when in the company of Heiji Hattori.

🔎 The way that Shinichi not only can be himself with Heiji but also feels safe being himself with Heiji, even early on, when he doesn't (consciously) want Heiji to know his true identity, so easily deducting with Heiji in their second meeting (Episodes 57-58) because he respects Heiji's abilities, trusts that Heiji can solve the case, and wants to do so beside him.

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 57. Conan and Heiji stand outside in the dark. Conan talks to Heiji, who looks at him, saying, “But all the suspects were in the lodge... Could someone have put a time-activated detonator in the garage?” End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Shinichi, regardless of his tsundere attitude, genuinely loves deducting with Heiji and makes this fact no mystery. He's full of smiles when they're working a case, absolutely ecstatic to share his findings with his partner, thrilled to bounce ideas off of someone he trusts to be on the same wavelength. From the way Conan looks adoringly up at Heiji in Episode 118 (and throws a literal tantrum and is sooooo grumpy when they're separated), to the way he eagerly calls out to Heiji that he's found what they're searching for in Episode 167, to the way he's so clearly looking forward to the prospect of comparing notes in Episode 174, to the way he smirks when they've both come to the same conclusion at once in Episode 263, to the way he grins and asks, "You got it too, right?" in Episode 382, there's the definite, undeniable understanding that Shinichi absolutely cherishes Heiji's company.

[Image descriptions: Six screenshots. In the first image, from Episode 118, Conan walks with Heiji and Sakata, looking up adoringly at Heiji while smiling broadly. In the second image, from Episode 167, Conan shines a light on a small hole in a wall, saying with a wide grin, "I found it! Hattori, it's here!" In the third and fourth images, from Episode 174, Heiji asks, "Then shall we compare notes?," to which Conan smiles in response. In the fifth image, from Episode 263, Heiji and Conan stand out in the rain. While smiling and looking at Conan, Heiji says, "Now we know why the killer wore a special outfit that has a zipper." Conan smiles back. In the sixth image, from Episode 382, Conan smiles and says, "You got it too, right?" End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Conan looks so content when revealing the full truth to Heiji (Episode 58). The way that letting Heiji in is such a comfort, a relief. The way that Shinichi is elated to have someone to confide in, to not have to hide from, who is his peer, not a mentor figure or a parent.

[Image description: Screenshot from Episode 58. Conan and Heiji sit on a bus; Conan has told Heiji everything about how he’s really Shinichi and searching for more information about the organization that poisoned him. Conan has his hands behind his head and smiles. Heiji leans against the window and rests his face in his hand as he looks at Conan. End image description.]

🔎 The way that Heiji is adamant that children not be exposed to murder (Episode 48) but also doesn't belittle children, either. When trapped with a killer (Episodes 57-58), Heiji doesn't brush off Conan's insights or tell him that he's not allowed to speak; in fact, Heiji encourages Conan to share his thoughts prior to realizing that Conan is actually Shinichi. And Shinichi, who has consistently been discounted and not taken seriously because of what he looks like, relishes Heiji's consideration, momentarily forgetting his circumstances as he deducts without his usual façade. Heiji always recognizes the value in Shinichi's words—he goes so far as to suspect that they're true Sleeping Kogoro!—regardless of how the person speaking them appears.

🔎 The way that Heiji is so set on seeing Shinichi again—after meeting him all of once!—that he enters a Sherlock Holmes fan tour (Episodes 57-58), which required exemplary knowledge of Holmes to be selected, despite openly not being a Sherlock Holmes fan and preferring Ellery Queen... all for the self-admitted chance that he might find Shinichi there. Not only that, Heiji effortlessly rattles off various facts about Shinichi, making it abundantly clear that he's read plenty of Shinichi-focused interviews and reports.

[Image description: Screenshot from Episode 57. Frowning and with his hand on his chin, Heiji thinks to himself, “Kudo ain’t here. I shouldn’t have come on this tour...” End image description.]

🔎 The way that Heiji notes in FUNimation's English dub, "When a guy's away from his girl, she's all he can think or talk about" (Episode 48), and the way that this sentiment near perfectly applies to his feelings about Shinichi, given that he gushes and talks about the Detective of the East so incessantly and with such reverence that Kazuha initially believes that Shinichi is a girl whom Heiji is in love with (Episode 118).

🔎 The way that Heiji's unabashed affection is so notable in this story, as characters here are typically embarrassed to admit their warm feelings for one another.

🔎 The way that their relationship is thus built on a kind of openness and honesty seldom seen in the franchise, something evident not only in Heiji's proud displays of emotion but also in Shinichi's vulnerability with Heiji. As soon as their third meeting (Episodes 77-78), Shinichi reveals to Heiji the tragic conclusion of one of his most emotionally devastating cases, “The Piano Sonata ‘Moonlight’ Murders" (Episode 11), wherein he couldn't stop the culprit from committing suicide. It's a trauma he explicitly feels unable to share with Ran, and it's likely that he hadn't spoken of it to anyone else aware of his identity at that point, either. But he feels safe letting Heiji in.

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 78. Conan kneels on a table and looks inside a container while Heiji looks at him. Conan says, a very serious look on his face, “Say, Hattori. Have you ever killed someone?” End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Heiji takes Shinichi's words then—"A detective who corners someone with logic, but lets them commit suicide, is no different from a murderer"—to heart, sustaining a bullet wound whilst successfully preventing a culprit from shooting themselves in the head (Episode 118). The way that Heiji so deeply values Shinichi and his insights. The way that Shinichi realizes the depth of Heiji's admiration and is profoundly affected.

🔎 The way that Shinichi so deeply values Heiji and his insights. The way that, in as soon as their second encounter (Episodes 57-58), Shinichi's nervous about Heiji uncovering his true identity, despite never feeling similarly about the actual police detectives with whom he'd worked dozens of cases at that point. 

[Image description: Screenshot from Episode 58. Conan looks up at Heiji, thinking to himself, “But it’s all over if he catches me during my explanation.” End image description.]

🔎 The way that Heiji's deduction suspecting Shinichi's favorite soccer player of murder enrages Conan (Episode 239), and the way he angrily declares that he'll prove Heiji wrong, signifying just how intensely Shinichi respects Heiji and his logic, because why else would Shinichi get so heated and determined to uncover the evidence that would render Heiji's deduction false?

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 239. Conan, furiously angry, tells Heiji, "That's ridiculous! It's absolutely impossible!" Then, Heiji, with a surprised expression on his face, is shown beside Conan, and Conan continues, "And I'll prove it, just you wait!" End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Shinichi thinks so highly of Heiji that, in his imagined future (OVA 9, "The Stranger From 10 Years Later"), Shinichi conceives of 26/27-year-old Heiji as a prominent, well-renowned detective with his own agency—who is so good at what he does and so attractive that he's nicknamed "The Lady-Killer of Naniwa."

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from the 9th Detective Conan OVA, "The Stranger From 10 Years Later.” Conan (now an 11th grader just like Shinichi was) watches a news broadcast on the streets of Tokyo. It's an interview with an older Heiji Hattori, who smiles politely. The interviewer says, "I've heard that the young ladies have a certain nickname for Hattori-san... "The Lady-Killer of Naniwa." End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that they both respect each other but never fall into unhealthy idolizing, with Heiji not hesitating to call Shinichi out for his bias in the aforementioned Episode 239, with both willing to disagree and not unthinkingly believe anything the other says (see also Episode 174).

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 174. In the first image, with his face shadowed by darkness, Heiji says, “This is very interesting.” In the second image, the full moon is shown, with clouds moving to let its light shine through. Heiji continues, “How unusual. Our deductions aren’t the same.” In the third image, Conan’s face is slightly lit by the moon. He says, with a smile, “Yes, this has only happened once when we first met.” End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that, with the help of their fathers, they both solve the same case while in middle school and are then too ashamed to meet because they feel the other is the better detective for seemingly solving the mystery on his own (Episode 490)... but they still smile fondly at the prospect of finding each other again one day.

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 490. In the first image, with a fond smile on his face, Heiji thinks, "Well, even if I don't see him, if he's a detective..." In the second image, with a similarly fond smile on his face, Shinichi thinks, "We'll get to see each other one day on some mysterious stage." They are both outside at night, with snow falling around them. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that the sponsor screen at the end of the episode (left sponsorless on streaming sites like Viu and Bilibili), which usually consists of a still or short looped animation, is instead a collection of clips from the case that looks like a Heishin fancam.

🔎 The way that the episode, focused on Heiji and Shinichi's relationship, is filled with traditionally romantic imagery, with cherry blossoms in the beginning and, of course, the snow.

🔎 The way that Heiji originally defines Shinichi as his rival but is repeatedly ecstatic to work with Shinichi, not against him. The way that Heiji loves to emphasize their similarities, bringing them closer together rather than farther apart (as pictured below in Episodes 117, 189, and 516), and the way that Shinichi, likewise, is delighted by the existence of a young detective just like him (Episode 490), even blushing when he first learns of Heiji in the manga's version of the story.

[Image descriptions: Three screenshots. In the first image, from Episode 117, Heiji smiles while talking to Conan on the phone, saying, "Yeah, I bet! You and me are a lot alike! We cross paths before we even know it!" In the second image, from Episode 189, Heiji sits with Conan on Conan's hospital bed, holding a bouquet of flowers. Heiji says, "I was shot in the stomach, too. We've got things in common." In the third image, from Episode 516, Heiji smiles broadly while picturing Shinichi, thinking, "It's just as I thought! We're two of a kind, birds of a feather!" End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Heiji gleefully describes himself as Shinichi's best friend rather than Shinichi's rival (Episodes 277, 521). The way that Heiji finds helping and being friendly with Shinichi so much more important than competing against him.

[Image descriptions: Three screenshots. In the first two images, from Episode 277, Heiji smiles and blushes as he says, "This old man [Dr. Agasa] called me, saying that if I, your best friend, came, I could help you." In the third image, from Episode 521, Heiji smiles and blushes in the car as he tells Kogoro, who is driving, "Of course because I'm Shinichi's best friend." End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Heiji engages in some of the silliest—and cutest—shenanigans so that Conan can participate in solving mysteries with him. Be it stuffing Conan in his jacket (Episode 118), lifting Conan up so that he can see evidence (Episodes 263, 278), or even sabotaging a good luck charm to make it so rain would cancel a field trip that'd keep Conan from a case (Episode 325, though, okay, maybe I don't like that example so much...), Heiji treasures working with Shinichi and is so eager to do whatever he can to ensure that his friend can freely do what he loves.

[Image descriptions: Four screenshots. The first image, from Episode 118, shows Heiji unzipping his jacket, where Conan had been hiding. Conan gasps for breath and blushes. The second image, from Episode 263, depicts a rainy scene. Heiji holds up Conan so that Conan can see a photograph held by Inspector Otaki. The third image, from Episode 278, shows Heiji holding up Conan so that Conan can see a photograph held by Inspector Megure. Jodie, behind them, looks at the photograph, too. The fourth image, from Episode 325, shows a sunny boy doll meant to keep the rain away. Heiji’s hand reaches for the doll. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Shinichi asks Heiji for help.

🔎 The way that Shinichi Kudo, the guy who hides his trauma, who'll skip meals out of anxiety without ever admitting what's really on his mind, who forces smiles so that others won't worry about him, whose refusal to ask for help and rely on others is what created Conan in the first place, confides in Heiji. The way that Dr. Agasa, who has been more of a constant in Shinichi's life than his own parents, calls for Heiji, all the way out in Osaka, to help Shinichi—and more than once (Episodes 189, 277)!

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 189. With a serious expression on his face, Heiji sits on Conan's hospital bed, holding a bouquet of flowers. He says, "Truth is, I got a call from an old guy named Agasa last night. He wanted to talk to me about you." Conan looks surprised at these words. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Agasa feels that Shinichi will not open up to anyone else. The way that, even if Shinichi (so far as I know) never explicitly refers to Heiji as his best friend as Heiji does for him, from how he must talk about Heiji, Agasa believes as much.

🔎 The way that Agasa is right. The way that Shinichi does open up to Heiji, especially in Episode 189, where he asks for advice—where he asks, regardless of his near-constant moralizing and strong sense of justice, what Heiji thinks is right. Where he asks what Heiji would do in his place. 

[Image descriptions: Two screenshots from Episode 189. In the first image, Conan, in his hospital bed with the bouquet of flowers that Heiji brought on the sheets, says, "Hattori, listen." In the second image, the camera pans out to show Heiji standing by his bed as Conan continues, "What would you do? What do you think is right?" End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that, though it looks amusing out of context because Conan's sitting on the toilet, Shinichi repeats the same question to Heiji hundreds of cases later (Episode 491)—"What would you do? If you were in my position?"—and how, in that case, he's looking for Heiji to supply the same answer that he's already decided for himself because he, too, finds comfort in their similarities. The way that Heiji's identical response then—that he'd "just go for it" regardless of the danger—assures Shinichi that he's making the correct choice even if you could argue that he really isn't.

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 491. Conan sits on the toilet, talking to Heiji on the phone. He says, "What would you do? If you were in my position?" Heiji then answers, “Well, if it were me, I’d just go for it.” But then, with troubled expression on his face, he stammers, “I mean, no, I would...” With a smile, Conan says, “I’d do exactly what you would. I’ll pry as deep as I can into it. Until the curiosity within me dries out.” End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Heiji is always so ready to help Shinichi, be it the little things like lifting him up or the bigger things like trying to give him peace of mind in regards to Ran (Episode 189). The way that Heiji directly says as much in Episode 278—"If any other suspicious persons show up, just call me! I'll run right over!" The way that, as the story progresses, Shinichi asks for Heiji's help without any prompting from anyone else (Episodes 345, 479). The way that Shinichi trusts that Heiji can help, not even bothering to think up a plan to get away and shrink back into Conan where he can't be seen in Episode 522 because he has complete faith in Heiji to handle it.

🔎 The way that Heiji's immediate response to Shinichi's request that he put his life on the line and disguise himself as Shinichi Kudo is to send an "OK" composed entirely out of heart emojis (Episode 345).

[Image descriptions: Two screenshots. In the first image, from Episode 278, Heiji runs and says, "If any other suspicious persons show up, just call me! I'll run right over!" In the second image, from Episode 345, Conan looks at his phone, which has a message up that's just an "OK" composed out of pink heart emojis, which had been sent to him by Heiji. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that the 33rd opening sequence, "Miss Mystery," so beautifully and perfectly encapsulates this aspect of Shinichi and Heiji's relationship. Conan readies himself to handle everything on his own, as he feels he must do, only for Heiji to rush in, without any hesitation, and break through the obstacles in Conan's path. And Conan accepts Heiji's help. More than that, he smiles at Heiji's help, because Heiji gives him strength.

[Image descriptions: GIFs from OP 33, set to the song "Miss Mystery" by BREAKERZ. Conan runs only to stop before long, finding a wall of English text blocking his path. The wall includes the words "DNA," "POISON," "LOCKED ROOM," "ALIBI," "BLOOD TYPE," "ANAGRAM," "FINGERPRINTS," and "DYING MESSAGE," among others. Conan takes a step back and prepares to knock away the text, but Heiji arrives running. Conan looks in surprise as Heiji leaps into the wall and clears the path for him, knocking text away with his feet before landing. Heiji then turns to look at Conan behind him, smiling. After a moment of surprise, Conan returns the smile with one of his own. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Shinichi is truly so grateful to have Heiji in his life. The way that he's immensely frustrated when Heiji declines working a case with him and hangs up the phone (Episode 117). The way that he can't stop thinking about Heiji when his partner suddenly disappears from an investigation (Episode 174). The way that he doesn't want to carry out a deduction show alone when Heiji should be there (Episode 224). The way that he so earnestly and genuinely thanks Heiji for his help in Movie 13, The Raven Chaser.

[Image descriptions: Six screenshots. In the first image, from Episode 117, Heiji, talking to Conan on the phone, hangs up, saying, "Lemme know if you figure anything out! Good luck!" In the second image, also from Episode 117, Conan angrily throws down his phone, swearing, "Damn!" In the third image, from Episode 174, Conan sweats and thinks to himself, with a worried expression on his face, "What's happened to you, Hattori?" In the fourth image, from Episode 224, Conan sits behind Kogoro, preparing for a deduction show, and looks at his watch. He thinks, "Hattori, where are you? Why aren't you here? What're you doing?" In the fifth and six images, from Movie 13, The Raven Chaser, Conan talks to Heiji on the phone. He smiles kindly as he says, "Thank you, Hattori. For real." End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that they both care so much for one another that they have nigh-supernatural instincts about when the other is in danger. The way that Heiji is so haunted by a bad dream of Shinichi's death—which very nearly comes true—that he lends Conan his good luck charm (which then saves Shinichi's life) (Episode 118). The way that Conan instantly knows something is amiss when Heiji is thrown overboard a cruise ship, despite no one else noticing anything and, considering how deep he was in the ship, how he shouldn't have noticed anything himself (Episode 174).

[Image descriptions: Four screenshots. In the first image, from Episode 118, Heiji says, "I had a bad dream..." In the second image, also from Episode 118, Conan has his hand on his face in thought, while in the background, Heiji imagines Shinichi in pain, clutching a bloody wound on his chest. In the third image, from Episode 174, Conan sweats with a horrified expression on his face. In the fourth image, also from Episode 174, Conan asks Kogoro, "Hey, didn't you hear a strange water noise?" End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Heiji always sees Shinichi as himself. The way that his aforementioned nightmare involves Shinichi, not Conan, even though it's Conan who's nearly killed (Episode 118). The way that Heiji describes Conan when asking about other investigators of a case (Episode 516) but pictures Shinichi in his mind (pictured way above). The way that he sees Shinichi in the place of Conan and has to rub his eyes to find reality again (OVA 2).

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from OVA 2, “16 Suspects?!” Both wearing coats and scarves, Heiji stands next to Kazuha outside. She smiles, but Heiji looks as though he can’t believe what he’s seeing. It turns out that he’s seeing Kudo, who crouches next to Ran with a serious expression on his face. Heiji thinks, “Kudou!” He then rubs his eyes and sees reality: Conan standing beside Ran with his hands in his jacket pockets. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Heiji is arguably the catalyst to a more permanent APTX 4869 antidote, and thus, symbolically, the key to Shinichi's true self. Because of him, Shinichi is able to instruct Ai to drink the baigar/paikal/baijiu to escape from Pisco (Episode 177), which not only saves her life but also allows her to procure the drug data necessary to concoct more antidotes.

🔎 The way that Heiji is right by Shinichi's side practically every time that he's able to be himself. The way that the only movie in which Shinichi makes a genuine, non-flashback, non-Kid-in-disguise appearance, Movie 7, Crossroad in the Ancient Capital, features Conan purposefully making himself sick and taking an antidote for Heiji and Kazuha's sake.

🔎 The way that Conan thinks, "Thank you, Harley!" while holding a bottle of alcohol in FUNimation's English dub (Episode 50).

🔎 The way that they both want the best for each other and support one another. The way that Heiji encourages Shinichi to do the right thing when it comes to Ran (Episodes 189, 524). The way that Heiji celebrates Shinichi's successes (Episode 491). The way that Heiji cheers Shinichi up when the conclusion to a case depresses him to such an extent that everyone worries about his wellbeing (Episode 239). The way that the tension leaves Heiji when he sees a smile on his friend's face again.

[Image descriptions: Six screenshots from Episode 239. In the first image, Conan looks sad, holding his face in his hand. Offscreen, Ran says, “Maybe Conan’s the same [as Shinichi] and he’ll start to hate soccer [because something disappointed him about it].” In the second image, Heiji tries to kick a soccer ball but drops it. In the third image, Conan says, “You’re lousy.” In the fourth image, Conan starts kicking the soccer ball himself, saying, “This is how you do it!” In the fifth image, Heiji smiles in relief. In the sixth image, Conan smiles as he kicks the soccer ball. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that Shinichi attempts the same lifting of spirits for Heiji when Heiji's found himself angry and irritated for reasons he doesn't understand (Episode 406). The way that Shinichi is sincerely flustered that his pick-me-up effort fails.

[Image descriptions: Two screenshots from Episode 406. In the first image, Conan holds on to Heiji with his hands over Heiji's eyes. Heiji, standing, grips Conan's arms, saying, "Hey! Stop it!" Conan, imitating Kazuha, says, "It's me!" In the second image, Conan sits on the ground and looks up, a surprised expression on his face. He blushes slightly as he thinks to himself, "Hey, Hattori." End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that, when Heiji admits his insecurities (Episode 479), Shinichi assures him that he's in the right without any teasing or sass. The way that, throughout that case, Shinichi is always by Heiji's side, even as Heiji gets insulted left and right. The way that Shinichi never follows Hakuba and openly defends his friend.

[Image descriptions: Screenshots from Episode 479. With a serious expression on his face, Heiji asks, “Hey, Kudo. Am I wrong?” Conan answers with a smile, saying, “No. Not at all.” End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that there's an official illustration that depicts "Conan's Dream Vacation"... which involves Shinichi as himself playing beach volleyball with Heiji, Ran, and Kazuha.

[Image description: An illustration that depicts Conan dreaming about playing beach volleyball with Heiji, Ran, and Kazuha as Shinichi. End image description.]

🔎 The way that the cover art for a movie guidebook promoting Movie 21, The Crimson Love Letter, shows Conan unabashedly enjoying a piggyback ride from Heiji.

[Image description: The cover of a book that depicts Conan on Heiji's back in a piggyback ride as he walks down the street. They both smile broadly and share street food. The text advertises the book's contents, and there are two images of Momiji on the bottom left. End image description.]

🔎 The way that they're so in sync that they come to the same conclusions at the same time even when they're not directly working with each other (Episodes 58, 490).

[Image descriptions: Five screenshots. In the first three images, from Episode 58, Conan and Heiji make a realization at the same time, which is visually represented with a flash of light and their eyes widening. Heiji then thinks, with a smile, "That's it!" Afterwards, Conan thinks, with a smile, "Now I see!" In the fourth image, from Episode 490, a detective, on the phone with Shinichi, says, "He [Shinichi] is telling the exact same deduction as that boy [Heiji] with the exact same timing." In the fifth image, also from Episode 490, Shinichi and Heiji, in different locations, are shown reacting in surprise to this revelation. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that they Vibe. The way that they finish each other's sentences and speak in unison (Episodes 142, 174). The way that they smile at each other when they've realized the same thing simultaneously or succeeded in their goal (Episodes 293, 327, 522). The way that it's repeatedly stated that they're such good friends (Episodes 191, 325) because they love being together and make that love no secret.

[Image descriptions: Five screenshots. In the first image, from Episode 142, Conan and Heiji sit in a tree and smile at each other, saying, in unison, "The case is hereby closed." In the second image, from Episode 174, it's nighttime, and Conan and Heiji smile broadly at each other as they bring their faces close together and say, in unison, "A fake!" In the third image, from Episode 293, Heiji crouches so that he is eye level with Conan and smiles at him. Conan eagerly smiles back. In the fourth image, from Episode 327, Conan looks up at Heiji and smiles, and Heiji smiles back. In the fifth image, from Episode 522, Shinichi and Heiji sit in a car and smile at one another. End image descriptions.]

🔎 The way that they're both so good for each other—"that Heiji is someone Shinichi can trust and rely on when he’s forced to keep so many secrets, and that Shinichi is someone who respects and values Heiji when he’s so plagued by self-doubt."

[captnjacksparrow]

Hi, recently I saw a post about that "sasu**** was planned before show even aired (excuse me, wtf) .The beginning of the chapters said that Sasuke has a sweet spot for Sakura. 'you read the manga ' , but you forget the first proof of him liking Sak***. Sasuke even blushed around her like 4 times and winked and smiled at her in the manga (ch 36).Sasuke is shy when around Sak*** and blushes when she does/says anything romantic towards him unlike other (🤣🤮) . He allowing Sak*** to hug him for a while before telling her to let go. Sasuke then throws himself in front of Sakura to protect her from harm,Kakashi swoops in makes Sasuke jealous, As if protecting Sak*** is his duty (duty my a**). Sasuke doesn't reacts to Naruto when he calls him a coward but he reacts when Sak** calls him a Coward (who calls who?) and has the will to fight again(😂) . Sasuke having nightmare when Sak** getting punched in the face, his conscience is telling him that he’ll just let Sak*** die too if he doesn’t wake up in time.He is also clearly jealous that Sak** is smiling, and acknowledging Naruto. Her attention now on Naruto instead of him(I can't 🤣🤣). Sasuke threw away love (Sak***) and friendship (Naruto) (ch 365?) . Sasuke was keeping tabs on Sak*** to be able to know sak*** was a medical ninja. When Sakura randomly charges at Madara Sasuke immediately runs towards Sak** when she gets impaled by Madara meanwhile Naruto is still in shock. Sasuke cared about Sak*** and Kakashi falling to their death inside of the lava when he glances up at them to see if they were okay, then tells Naruto how they were safe. Naruto sees sasu saved Sak** and Kakashi due to his body moving on its own when they were in danger of being infected by the infinite Tsukuyomi. Sasuke’s eyes are hidden upon putting Saku*** in a genjutsu, indicating that he is once again hiding his true feelings".

naru**** post - Kishimoto’s first concept of Hi*** has Naruto in the background with her wearing a necklace of Naruto’s trade mark spiral an artwork made in 1998 before the series published in 1999.Naruto and Hi*** being hinted at all through at the series even years before the manga ended let alone the signs from even pre series".

What's your opinion about this, sparrow?

My Reaction after reading this :

Sasuke always hides his true feelings, Right???... Even after he married with her for 12 years and for an unforeseeable future, Sasuke would forever hide his true feelings... Because there was never one!!!! 

Naruhina was hinted from 10,000BC, eh?? That epic romance!!!!

Then what was the need for a movie, I wonder?? Instead Kishimoto could've created that Timeless Romance in 700 chapters. If he could make a MinaKushi, why couldn’t he make NaruHina???

Leave that. 

If NH was planned from the beginning, why Naruto (atleast) attempted to kiss Sakura, planning to date Sakura but never heard Hinata’s confession????

The Author drew them for us to photo manipulate at zero cost of Time and Energy.

How Considerate!!!! 

Is there anything like this for SS or NH??? 

To my Eyes, Naruto and Sasuke were just exchanging their Deep Rooted Rivalry feelings through their Lips.

If you think they are kissing, Satan will come in your dreams and punish you.

Kishimoto is not a NaruSasu shipper at all. Especially he didn't cut Sakura out of this picture. And writing the initials of 2 people (N.S) is purely "Brotherly".🤡. 

Don’t you dare think this is a couple thingy!!!

After knowing that I have this picture in my phone, My male friend gave me a suspicious look that I was into Gay Porn with Vampires and Werewolves.

Can you even believe the embarrassment I felt at that time??? 

No, You won’t.

Oh!!! N and S are definitely not wanking next to each other. They are just in deep meditation while holding their breaths. 

It’s all just some Yoga.... guys!!!!

Clearly wearing a 'Friend's' face in your Necklace with Heart Shaped pendant is just Friendly. Only in Naruto and Sasuke's case, of course!!!.

But SS/NH photoshop those girls’ face into the pendants and then it becomes Romantic with full of love.

Naruto’s Necklace from first Hokage looks extremely WEIRD!!!!! 

Sasuke is not at all giving a Blow Job to Naruto. Especially Reddit dudebros commented under this pic as 'Retarded'.

You know what???

Even for a crack ship like SasuSai.... They have the ultra content from Canon.

Did I say that all these pictures were drawn by Kishimoto himself???

For a ship that was planned from the beginning, Why don’t they have anything like this???? It’s very easy to draw some suggestive pics for a Hetero Ship, Right????

I wonder why couldn't he draw something like this for SS or NH... Atleast once???

He won't. Because,

Kishi is the No.1 SNS shipper. And that's the fact.

[cocksuki2]

i feel like a lot of people water down satosugu and took that line “my six eyes tell me you’re geto suguru by my soul knows otherwise” and ran with it just to ship it and ignore how actually important they were to each other. esp THOSE certain women who you can tell fetishize mlm seeing that panel and they’re just like “omg they were in love” “gay!” like bro…

i literally seen someone get attacked a while back for saying they shipped satosugu platonically and not romantically. they talked about how geto was important to gojo’s character, they’re platonic soulmates, and how it affected gojo more than meets the eye. In the comments people were telling them “you clearly don’t understand the manga then” “they were gay get over it” like how do you water down a character’s importance to another’s THAT BAD? i try not to point fingers its mainly a certain demographic of people doing it too

i agree with most of this except for the concept of seeing them as romantic meaning that it’s watered down. i don’t think this is necessarily what you’re saying, but i don’t think romantically shipping them is watering-down their characters or their importance. i def see what you’re saying with like.. certain groups of people.. but i also think that reading them as romantic is a completely valid way of looking at satosugu. 

i think there’s this idea that romance and romantic attachment is inherently less important than platonic (which is seen as “serious”). i could get into how i think it’s because romance is commonly tied to femininity but that’s an entirely separate conversation and a super long one 😭😭😭 though i hear what you’re saying but i personally think looking at satosugu romantically can be just as powerful and impactful as looking at them platonically. 

that being said, it does feel like a lot of that is used purely for shipping purposes, but i don’t think that takes away it’s meaning. yes, it’s an important comment of gojo’s that indicates a deeper level of hurt, grief, and resentment within him, but it is also a REALLY strong indication of gojo and getou’s attachment to each other. i think even reading that as ship content is a really valid and interesting way of looking at it because it IS about his connection to getou. it IS about how much he cares for getou. 

though that’s kinda off topic from what you were saying 😭😭😭 i guess all im adding to this is that i think reading satosugu as romantic and reading that moment as indication of a romantic connection doesn’t necessarily water-down their importance... but it IS annoying when it’s done in a way that purely fetishizes queer men rather than acknowledge the importance to their character arcs. i feel u. 

[mysticdragon3md3]

🗞................................

When the 2024 Ranma 1/2 remake released, I learned there's a whole discourse in the Ranma 1/2 fandom, accusing Akane of being homophobic. From what I've seen, most of that discourse revolves around the claim that Akane is "disgusted" by Ranma's female form, as a testament to "her purely heterosexual orientation, being attracted to ONLY Ranma's male form". From what I can remember of the manga and retro anime, Akane is not disgusted by Ranma's female form. Seems to me that insisting on that claim is a lot of work to not want to see the deuteragonist/"love interest" be accepting of any form that Ranma takes. But Akane is accepting of any form Ranma takes. So it's a very strange claim. But I guess some people just need to see only the parts they want to see in media they like, to defend the feeling that the media they love only validates their perspectives, without additionally introducing them to any new ideas that they don't want to confront.

. Not that there weren't problematic things I remembered about Akane Tendo. When I remember the 1989 anime episodes with Tsubasa Kurenai, I remembered Akane calling Tsubasa a "pervert" for being a guy who dressed as a girl. And I had acknowledged that as a flaw in Akane's character, for all these years. I even recently watched a video essay denouncing the queerphobic nature of the Tsubasa 1989 anime episodes. They even compared anime-Akane's push for Tsubasa to date boys instead of girls "like herself", as reminiscent of "conversion therapy". Even though I love Akane and she means a lot to me and my personal journey with figuring out my own gender, there isn't much to absolve a character who keeps screaming "pervert" at someone's simple non-conforming gender expression and perceived homosexuality. Though I did try to just ignore it as the unfortunate marks of an obsolete era with its more bigoted ideas. That anime is from 1989, after all. 1989 Japan, in fact, which seems much more conservative, from my American perspective. And Rumiko Takahashi made the manga in 1987, and she grew up in 1950s and 1960s Japan. I would expect her to have older ideas, including some problematic prejudices, especially in comedy. I just coped, by taking the advice to enjoy art, but keep your brain turned on, so as to NOT be subtly brainwashed into accepting that obsolete problematic ideas are normalized and okay.

. But then, because of the 2024 remake making me more aware of the fandom's discourse, I recently read the parts of the Tsubasa Kurenai manga chapters that I remember being problematic in the anime,…and…IT TURNED OUT TO BE FINE. Akane in the manga, never called Tsubasa a "pervert" for giving the appearance of sapphic romantic orientation (romantically pursuing girls while being female-presenting), nor did Akane ever call Tsubasa a "pervert" for being a guy who dressed as a girl. Apparently, THAT WAS ALL ONLY IN THE 1989 ANIME. And honestly…that makes sense. Anime has a lot more pressure to cater to perceived common popular ideas. It has a broader platform. It's the same reason female sexual objectification is common fanservice in most anime: Catering to perceived popular ideas, is what anime producers hope will make a series sell well. Clearly, the 1989 anime producers thought it was very important to call Tsubasa a "pervert" for having non-conforming gender expressions and for most of the episode, giving the impression of being homosexual. Either that, or they just personally found it important to push heteronormativity (despite the entire series' gender-blurring premise). Meanwhile, manga-Akane never did that.

. In the manga, Akane's priority was to get Tsubasa to stop pursuing Ranma, specifically. Y'know, because Akane likes Ranma, is monogamous, and is very jealous. During the time when Akane thought that Tsubasa was a girl and Tsubasa said that he is only romantically interested in girls, Akane, kept pushing the conversation back towards how Tsubasa should stop being interested in Ranma, specifically. She didn't call Tsubasa a "pervert" for being perceived as sapphic. In that same scene, when Tsubasa said he would not date boys and he hates boys, Akane didn't denounce Tsubasa for being perceived as gay. Instead, Akane laughs that they have "hating boys" in common (…but also, kept pushing for Tsubasa to find someone else to date besides Ranma). In fact, in the previous manga chapter, both Ukyo and Akane stand on a wall and comment on how fervently Tsubasa pursues girls, and, instead of being disgusted at Tsubasa's perceived homosexuality, Akane notes Tsubasa's love of girls, as a flat observation. There isn't even a disgusted expression on her face. Akane is not homophobic. She just doesn't want someone else pursuing her Ranma.

. And when the Tsubasa story arc ended, and the big reveal was that Tsubasa was AMAB but simply enjoys female gender presentation, manga-Akane never called Tsubasa a pervert for bending gender presentation norms. Manga-Akane was more focused on how Ukyo never told them that Tsubasa was a boy this whole time, when that would have stopped all these misunderstandings. Only retro-anime-Akane got angry with Tsubasa's for being a boy who dresses like a girl. Manga-Akane never did that.

. In fact, the only character advocating for problematic heteronormativity and shaming queerness or gender exploration, was Ranma himself, a character who explicitly started from a flawed state of misogyny, and whose entire character arc is him learning to grow out of it. So of course, Ranma is going to say terrible things, like pushing for Tsubasa to pursue male romantic partners instead of girls, out of some fear of homosexuality. We all should know by that point in the narrative, to be suspicious of many of Ranma's ideas about gender/orientation (until later in the series when he gradually learns to accept femininity and less rigid ideas).

. So for all these years… I thought I just had to accept that a character I loved had some problematic aspects, characteristic of her time from the 1980s. But now I find that her original canon characterization from the manga, never had those problematic aspects in the first place! The more I hear from the Akane-defenders in the Ranma 1/2 fandom, talking about how the 1989 anime mischaracterized her away from the original canon, the more I understand how dire the mischaracterization was that they are fighting against. All this time, I thought the problem with the retro anime adaptation was over-exaggerating Akane's violent, unreasonable, tsundere portrayal (because that archetype, taken to extremes, was popular at the time). But now that I see the retro anime adaptation made her more queerphobic and problematic, I'm beginning to understand the intense irritation with that first anime adaptation's characterization of Akane Tendo.

. Here's to hoping the 2024 MAPPA remake anime will stick more closely to the manga. Not just for avoiding filler and finally animating some good, manga-only, story arcs. But also for avoiding mischaracterizing our beloved characters as queerphobes.

Another thing i was not prepared to see from the fandom, after being accustomed to enjoying the series solo:

Accusations of "Akane being homophobic"????

WHERE IS THIS EVEN COMING FROM??????? 😱