This is the WORLD where I write my musing about manga/anime/video games and make comments on certain aspects. It's just a little something to stir up a conversation so please don't take me TOO seriously on the things I write here. I'd love to hear your opinion so feel free to comment.
- Created By red:leaf
Cloud
Hoo. It's been a long time since I've written a musing. I sort of lost my fire there for a while. And it's hard to devote time to sit down and think of these things. But I've got a small one today. I'm sorry it's not the best of quality. ...Ruffled Feathers
Even though I posted "Stereotypes of Tsubasa" nearly three months ago (which feels a lot longer than it actually has been) I still get some pretty pointed comments on it. I'm afraid that I offended people. It was never my intention to attack Tsubasa and thus offend people. Like I said in the musing: I love Tsubasa just as much as the next person. I wouldn't want to attack it even if I could. All I'm trying to do with this WORLD is to open a dialogue, get people's opinions and such, while voicing my own thoughts. The last thing I want is a heated argument. Although, they say that argument is a form of dialogue and I welcome a challenge in my opinion...but please try to keep it level and not infuse it with too much malice.
So I hope that I have not offended anyone with my writings but I am pleased that so many people have found interest in it. Thank you for reading!
The Details of Witch Hunter Robin
Fine Print: The Details of Witch Hunter Robin WARNING: The following content contains spoilers for the series "Witch Hunter Robin." Read at your own discretion. Witch Hunter Robin (which I will call WHR from now o...Stereotypical Characters in Tsubasa
I bought a Tsubasa art book at the last con I was at. I was staying at my aunt's house and my cousin and I were looking through it and talking about the art. Somehow or other we got to talking about Fai and Kuragane's personalities.
I said, "Fai's the always happy, optimistic type and he acts dopey but he's a actually a pretty somber character and is a strong fighter. Kuragane is the strong, don't-bother-me kind of guy. He's something of a softy though."
"It's always like that," my cousin said. "It's so predictable."
And then it hit me: what my cousin was saying was true. How many times had I run into a character that acted one way but was actually the complete opposite? The list could go on forever.
Now, I'm a huge fan of Tsubasa. I recommend it to just about anyone who shows any interest (even some that don't) and consider it to be one of CLAMP's best works. That said, I got to thinking about what my cousin had said.
Yes, the character types that Fai and Kuragane embody are used--A LOT. And because they're used so often it's probably safe to say that that type has become "predictable." However, those same types are not "flat" character types, where they are one-dimensional, easy to know everything about, consistent, however else you'd like to describe it. No, these are "round" characters, meant to surprise us with a new quirk.
So when did round become flat? It seems to me that these types have become almost as expected as the character types in video games (healer, warrior, mage etc). It certainly makes building a fresh character personality difficult, and that's putting it lightly.
Thinking it over, one might say that all the character types are somewhat "predictable." I've already discussed Fai and Kuragane. Syaoran is portrayed as a very normal kid (as "normal" as one can be in Tsubasa), fiercly in love with his best friend but unwilling to admit it except to himself. Sakura is the girl with the infectious bubbly personality that makes everyone care for her. On top of that she's got a big heart and a secret power to boot. I wouldn't necessarily call them original.
Despite all that, I find that Tsubasa is nothing short of a great story with great characters. The writing, in my opinion, is so fantastic that even the personality twists don't seem out of character. Even if they're completely gut-wrenching new levels of the character that we've never seen before, somehow it doesn't seem odd at all. And who's to say that it needs to be original? Hardly anything is "original" these days, just fresh.
Perhaps the originality and the mark of greatness comes from the ability to reinvent and keep it seamless. Tsubasa certainly reaches this level.
FF8 Musings
WARNING: The following content may contain spoilers for Final Fantasy VIII and brief scientific matters. Read at your own discretion.
It's been a while since I finished playing FF8. Still, there are some (you might say) plot points that I'm not completely clear about.
For one: Has it ever occurred to anyone else that Laguna is Squall's father and Raine was his mother? This idea seemed to be so obvious to me but when I mentioned it to a fellow gamer, I didn't get much reaction. The whole thing with Squall being in the orphanage (because Raine died and Laguna wasn't around/didn't know (?)), calling Ellone "Sis," the comment about how Squall looked just like his mother and thank goodness wasn't anything like his father, etc., seemed to fit together like puzzle pieces. It also makes a great set up, plot-wise, for Squall and Rinoa to get together, as the children of Laguna and the bar singer, who ended up marrying other people, even though they loved each other before the war. I mean, I could just be making things up in my head but that's what it looked like to me.
And for another: the time travel. The whole thing with Squall being stuck in time and then coming to the past with Ultimecia and seeing Edea and telling her about SeeDs and all that and then her taking upon the sorceress' powers....wouldn't that mean that time would be moving in a loop? Of course, time doesn't work that way. It branches with every possible action (if this doesn't make sense, don't worry. It's physics. You can go here (http://www.tenthdimension.com/medialinks.php) to get an idea of what I'm talking about (the explanation of the dimensions can be a bonus)). Still, if Edea took on Ultimecia's power (despite Squall's warning) and was informed of SeeD, wouldn't it all just happen again? No, because Squall, I think, was just momentarily in the past, like a blip. Time was compressed after all. So it would follow that Squall could theoretically pop into any moment in time. After his encounter with Edea, he goes back into his own time and everything is fine again. Apparently writing this has helped me organize my thoughts.
Going on like this, you might think that I really like FF8. Not really. Sorry, FF8 fans. It's actually my least favorite out of the ones that I've played. I wasn't a FF fan for a long time and actually avoided the games. But then I had a PS2 available to me and a friend insisted that I play FF9 (which I love) and I guess I've just gone with it.
Which leads me to another question. Is it worse to play/read/what have you something in which you love the characters and hate the plot, or hate the characters and love the plot? I suppose that's up to people's own personal preference. Whether plot line is more important than the relationships. Of course, a good balance is best. But which would you prefer, if stuck in this position? Plot or relations?
My next musing will be following along the same lines as this one, with a nagging unanswered question from another FF game. If you've played FF9, be sure to check in.
Comments and thoughts are, of course, welcome.
