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March 28th, 2011
![[info]](http://www.journalfen.net/img/userinfo.gif) aruru | 10:11 pm - Reply 4 Roo! Slayers and SenBasa, oh my! XD
Ahaha... oh wow, I've had this journal account since 2003 and never used it for anything but the communities. Not even a post about myself! Ah well, it's not like it matters, almost all my friends still use LJ to some degree, or Twitter, and the "real life" folk (plus one or two of the OL ones) know where to hit me up on Facebook, so I guess I felt that writing here would be a little redundant or something since only like one or two people would actually be reading. ^^;; Anyway, anyone needs to know anything about me, you can hit up all my (Old! I haven't made public LJ entries in years now!) LJ entries here. ^_^;
But anyway! ruaki, I said I owed you replies in your blog, and I intend to get to them, but for now, here's my mega-reply to your last comment in that wankitywank thread - it really got so long (Dude, JF tells me that - sans this intro - it's 17425 characters... and the limit in replies is 4300. O_o;;) that I thought it was more appropiate to take it elsewhere and not drive tetradecimal insane with like 300 more irrelevant notifications. XD
So, get yourself a sandwich or something, and click when you got some time! XD
LOL, and here I thought I was only verbose when I got really fangirly, like the above. But then I got to thinking about my behavior in my so-called "real" life and... yeah, if I feel I "click" with and can trust the person, or if I'm having a fabulously nerdgasmic moment, then yeah, I do get chatty. Oops. ^^;
I still consider myself a bit more of a listener than a talker, at least "IRL." ^^;
Aww, it's too bad about Revolution. While I entirely admit that something about it + Evolution-R may indeed feel a little "dated" to some when compared to the current trends in anime and manga, and that the final battles did feel a bit like a revisit of the first season (for very obvious reasons), I thought it was a fun romp, and ZOMG, all the Zelgadis stuff late in Evolution-R was just awesome and bittersweet and I sort of "felt" the real reasons for his angst were something like that all along (at least, in the anime-verse) so in a way it was predicatble for me but still amazing and... and... well, let's just say it was just awesome and totally reminded me why Zel was the first of my many Slayers boi-crushes. I wibbled. ;_; ♥
Well, the hilarious part is that - from the impression I've been getting from my light on-and-off browsing for the past... few years, maybe? ...I haven't perused the fandom itself too much anymore personally, especially fic-wise (especially as I've slowly gotten more serious about trying my hand at the Old Project idea) - is that people do not seem to complain anymore about Try's "darker" tone, especially as more information became widely available and it became obvious that the original novels had a more "sober" tone despite their comical moments anyway. Also, from the scarce times I've skimmed a fanfic or two (or at least, their summaries - haven't had as much free time or general urge to read fic like I used to), I've gotten the impression that the general tone of fics in the fandom has shifted from "cutesy/silly/fluffy" to "dark." (Yes, even the yaoi porn, so lately I haven't seen much attempts to fluffify a Xelloss x Zel relationship like in the old days where it was so prevalent, LMAO. <- *guilty of that one herself in her mind and in RP, though managed to never inflict badfic of it* XD) I may be wrong about that, though, as I haven't tried perusing from the Pit and have just barely glanced at LJ comms.
(I have to say, I'm halfway disappointed by that impression if it's true. I mean, more potential for easily findable quality fic = awesome, but less amount of hilarious new badfics to peruse when I want to laugh until I hyperventilate = sadface. Also, going off on a tangent/rant, but who told so many people in almost every fandom in general that "darker" necessarily = better? Because there's plenty of crappy darkfic, and I like lighthearted romps and think they can be just as excellent too! And lastly, what happened to stuff in the middle, like "bittersweet" stories? Can't we have more of that too? >( )
Complaints/arguments nowadays seem to be "Try vs. the Knight of Aqualord manga" - see, like Try, the KoA manga is also a complete deviation of the original novel series' plot after its 8th volume (where Phibrizo was destroyed, which as you know, coincides with the end of Next), and it seems there's a division in which some people think KoA "did it better than Try" and the "old guard" (if you could call it that) that still enjoys Try a lot (or ouright thinks that the "original deviation" did it better/was more interesting/whatever other reason they might have/etc.).
Me? Well, like I admitted earlier, I have yet to read the KoA manga, so I have no opinion (other than having been disappointed by a tiny thing in vol. 7 of the Shouko Yoshinaka-drawn manga series that came before it [IIRC, KoA's drawn by... Tommy Otsuka[sp?], the guy who drew the Premium manga and the Special manga series with Lina and Naga's antics], but I'm not even sure if that thing was something that may've been a translation issue or what, so I try not to be TOO harsh) on this at all, other than already having a "Well, Try gave me delicious yaoi porn opportunities with Gaav additional insight on/more depth for Gaav's personality/way of thinking via a VERY awesome/interesting character in his own right Valgaav, so even if the other winds up being technically superior, I'm probably still gonna like Try. Isn't having different continuities to choose from fun ANYWAY?" bias. XD
Valgaav still gets complaints from people as being "extremely angsty," though, that hasn't changed. To which my face goes >:| and I go "...seriously? The dude is a victim of genocide by those who're racially 'cousins' of a sort AND he just lost the one guy who - despite ironically being from 'the enemy,' regardless of his 'traitor' status - showed some kind of bizarre sympathy and cut him a break for what was probably the first time in the greater part of his ENTIRE LIFETIME... AND he's NOT even like, WHINY or EMO about it all, if you ask me, just very violently angry, bitter, cynical, and sad. I would think he's EARNED plenty of motive to angst, here."
...*mops up* Ahaha, sorry. I think I've been building that one up since the last time I saw some random complaint about that. XD
And yes, Next is indeed a favorite of most fans, and with good reason - the flow of the story between its comedy parts and its overarching (and by all means quite epic) plot is definitely much better excecuted. Add to that stuff like Gourry's characterization being handled generally better, the comedy feeling better integrated to the storyline itself (Try had a problem of having too many of its silly parts [most of the guilty ones being at the point the group was separated midway through the series] - despite still being hilarious in their own right - feel more "detached" from the main plot than the ones in Next, a couple almost feeling entirely "random."), Lina and Gourry finally getting Their Moment (which yes, made me squee too ^^), good moments for Zel and Amelia to shine as characters (I was touched by Amelia's reminiscing about her childhood moments with her dad when she thought he might be dead. ;_; And Zel was just hilarious with his single-mindedness with the Claire Bible. XD), etc., and you've got yourself something that is definitely technically superior.
So yeah, while I don't remember anything about the old Star Wars movies since last seeing them as a kid (Yes, I entirely lose my nerd cred here - I remember having fun with the movies, but I've never actually been much of an SW fan. Hell, the only prequel movie I saw was Phantom Menace, and I was like "Eh, tolerable, I guess," since I had no real memory of the original trilogy to compare it to.), that ESB/RotJ comment may well be a valid comparison, heh. XD
YES I AM SENBASA FAN PLZ TO B INFLICTING ME WIT FANGIRLING GOODNESS, O GURU OF WISDOM! ;D
Haha, yeah, the anime already strikes me as probably being little in comparison to the unbastardized game in the series we've gotten this time, but I'm willing to forgive this because, given the multiple ways you can play the different storylines and character POVs in the game, an anime version that was "complete" would be extremely difficult - if not downright impossible - to pull off competently. So I guess deciding to play it "safe" by limiting the amount of POVs and sticking to the top two "iconic" characters of the series (and those around them getting more screentime, like Kojuro in Masamune's case, and Sasuke and Shingen Takeda in Yukimura's) was probably wise, at least in terms of budget. (Though they totally did shaft poor Motochika and Motonari in the 1st season - can't say for the 2nd since I haven't finished it. The Mini SenBasa shorts of the 1st season do make up for it a fair bit, though - those were so cute and funny! ^.^)
So basically, I think what the anime was successful as was in providing Capcom (and me) with a "gateway drug" to the game series. It was so utterly ridiculous and fun that, when I finished the 1st season, I HAD to tear open the game package and play a bit, even though I was aware that the 1st season of the anime was basically a summarized POV of one way things may've happened in SenBasa1 (or the bastardized Devil Kings, as you mentioned), and the PS3 game was actually the 3rd. (Also, made me seek out the season 2 fansubs, so I could have a better idea of what SenBasa2 was about.)
And then the opening music played, and grown-up Ieyasu was flying around STANDING on his Sengoku-era Gundam Honda's back, and everyone looked so badass and sexy AND YOU COULD ALREADY GET SOME OF THE HOMOHOMO VIBES FROM IEYASU AND MITSUNARI JUST LOOKING AT EACH OTHER BEFORE ATTACKING, and... IT WAS EPIC. I nearly cried from sheer glee.
AND THAT WAS JUST THE OPENING SEQUENCE.
I am just sad that I haven't had the chance to really sink my teeth into it like I want to - with the characters I've used thus far (Ieyasu and Mitsunari), it's not a challenging game by any means (I mean, the difficulty level of the AI is basically "Hit, Hit Hard, Hit Harder," and that only MIGHT get complicated with some of the bosses.), but I was amazed by the amount of options on how the storyline can go depending on choice of characters, choice of battles to play out, etc. And from having played out JUST Ieyasu and Mitsunari's red paths, I am amazed at their Angsty Bromance/FoeYay all the potential for fan creativity already, nevermind I still have like, 96% of the game to uncover! :O
And LOL, so you have fallen into the world of import gaming! Awesome! Let me know whatever you can manage to figure/find out of SenBasa2's storylines that's interesting/fun, ok? XD
And who do I like? Haha, well, I'm still at the stage where I love almost everyone I have seen (that got a decent amount of screentime) in the anime/played as in game - they're all so wonderfully hilarious and unique (and hot, for the most part >D).
I mean, Masamune's got even Zoro beat on the swords department AND has one of the best ways of riding a horse EVER (and his Nendoroid is going to be the most epic thing of tiny badassedness EVER *has it on preorder* XD); Kojuro comes off (as far as I've seen in the anime) as so loyal and wise and understanding of Masamune's way of thinking and just generally such a kind man, I'm charmed; Yukimura's so cute and dumb puppy(or should it be tiger-cub? :D)-like and OYAKATA-SAMA; Shingen Takeda is PURE BADASS (and the top way of riding a horse [or two], period - sorry Masamune, even your amazing horseback-riding paled in comparison to THAT moment in the anime XD) and his way of "educating" Yukimura NEVER stops being funny; Sasuke's patient with Yukimura in trying to teach him the realities of warfare (when Takeda isn't doing that himself) and also seems to have a bit of a mischievious side (if his way of flirting with Kasuga and telling Yukimura she's his fiancee is any indication XD); Kenshin's wise, badass, pretty, AND such a motherfucking tease (Kasuga didn't stand a chance, LOL... XD); Keiji and his relatives are all such sweethearts (Also, having a little monkey pal just makes you cuter. ^^); Motochika just hits my "Oh yeah, BABY!" buttons with his looks and costume (Seriously, I always refer to the guy as "Sexy Pirate" to my BF when talking about him just to make sure he doesn't get the name confused with any of the other characters, since there's so many to talk about. >D) AND the fact that he's apparently so loved by his followers to the point they call him "aniki" and even tries to be nice to (most of) his enemies/rivals just makes me ♥ him; Motonari's just such a cold bastard (though admittedly, both he and Motochika are jackasses to each other in Mini SenBasa, and it is HILARIOUS XD) it makes me wonder just what the hell happened to him to make him like that AND has a stupid (but awesome) hat; Ieyasu as a teenager ALSO has a stupid hat but has cute pudgy cheeks and as a grownup has a (probably also) stupid hoodie and has become an absolute cutie and WANTS A LAND OF LOVE AND PEACE (he needs to hang out with Amelia and Vash) even though the historical figure was quite the dick, apparently and YOU DO NOT GET IN THE WAY OF THE LOVE BETWEEN A YOUNG BOY AND HIS GIANT ROBOT, OR HIS EPIC ANGSTY BROMANCE-GONE-SOUR WITH HIS OLD FRIEND; Mitsunari's all LORD HIDEYOSHIIIIIIII and IEYASUUUUUUU and MY REVENGE IS EVERYTHING I HAVE NO OTHER PURPOSE and just very very gay; and... well, that's most of what I've seen/played thus far.
Oh, wait, can't forget that HONDA IS A GUNDAM and Kotaro Fuuma is a silent badass who just really loves birdies (if Mini SenBasa is anything to go by... j/k XD). And Kanbi's (Whom the BF's been playing as - I gave him a copy of the game for his birthday. ^^) fighting with his own prison-ball AND having a Zangief-shoutout as one of his finishing moves is LOL. Oh, and Xavism for all! XD
...and, ok, I seem to have forgotten to talk about the girls - thus far, they are all looking either very cute, like Tsuruhime (A miko with magical-girl aspects? YES. And apparently she claimed Shishio Zolf the mummy-man Yoshitsugu had proposed to her in Mitsunari's red path? LOL. XD) or downright hot, like Magoichi (Her design in the intro pushes just the right buttons for me. I definitely want to play her storyline and see if she's as cool and badass as she came off in Ieyasu and Mitsunari's red paths. :D). Can't say much about the other gals - Kasuga's one-trick "AAAHN, KENSHIN-SAMA!!!" pony in the anime amused me to no end, and she's definitely attractive, but I do hope she has more substance than that in the game. Ditto with Oichi's WOEWOENAGAMASA-SAMAWOEBIGBROTHERWOEI'MSORRYWOE. (Well, ok, so going by what I saw of the second season, she's now pretty much a wandering lost soul and those tend to fixate on something, but...)
Anyway, yeah, I have thus far liked what I've seen.
As for pairings? I think thus far I don't stray from what is "common" in the fandom (at least, from looking at what the popular pairings in doujin are - which yes, I seem to have taken up the doujin collecting hobby again - this and figures will be the end of me ;_;). For yaoi, I've got: Yukimura x Masamune (Can't say no to their rivalry. >D), Masamune x Kojuro (Mmm, a lord and his faithful servant? YES PLZ. >D), Motonari x Motochika (Ok, so technically I have yet to see anything to go on because I haven't unlocked/played their storylines in the game, and Motonari's such a cold cold asshole in the bit I've seen of him in the anime, but GODDAMN if they don't look utterly tasty with each other - hey, purple and green go great together, you know! XD And they're so cute being jerks to each other in Mini SenBasa, aww... ♥), Mitsunari x Ieyasu, and... I think that's it thus far.
Oh, I suppose there's Yukimura x Sasuke too - which is visually hot, I'll admit (I've bought a few books I need to go through too, actually), but it just doesn't have the same punch for me that Yukimura and Masamune's hot-blooded-yet-surprisingly-almost-friendly rivalry has; and for some reason their master/servant relationship - as depicted by what I've seen of the anime version - hasn't pushed my buttons like Masamune and Kojuro's relationship does. I think I'll need to play more of the game to see if that opinion changes once I get around to playing on Yukimura's paths.
...oh, and I just noticed, but... I somehow (and hilariously) wound up listing (almost?) all those pairings in their LEAST COMMON seme x uke conventions. XD I'm getting too old to care about the whole seme/uke thing personally (from what little I could've cared at the start of my yaoi fangirl career to begin with) and think most people play around with their so-called "roles" anyhow depending on a countless number of factors, so I don't really mind seeing these pairings in any other order anyway, but... LOL, I think my brain wanted to be contrary to the usual way they're displayed? Hilarious. XD
On the het side, I really think Toshiie and Matsu are an adorable husband and wife from what I've seen of them in both game (Jesus, did they give me a freakin' runaround when I tried to fight them, LOL. Managed to win, but man, that fight was probably one of the longest I've had to do. XD) and anime, and I'm always amused by Sasuke's flirting with Kasuga in the anime version.
On the yuri side... haven't seen anything yet. Well, unless...
...on the "gender ambiguous" side (Due to some stuff another OL friend of mine - who's a bit of a historical Sengoku period fanatic, and I helped get hooked on the series - told me an interesting detail about the actual person the character was based on.), Kenshin x Kasuga would be pretty cool. XD
And lastly, Keiji? Probably gets around plenty. Keiji Does Japan? *SMACKED* XD I mean, wanderer with no particularly apparent allegiance save for wanting to protect his loved ones + decently clever + sweet + all that talk about being on the side of love (at least in the anime version) + being very hot = lots of opportunities for him to get laid by a fair amount of the cast. (How you go about it is entirely up to you.) That's all I'm saying. >D
And... oh my, I think that's more than a thoroughly complete reply to your reply. Hope you don't mind. ^_^;;
Ahaha, maybe I'll repost this on LJ later for my other pals to read (and to let them know I'm still more or less ok - I haven't updated even privately since... uh, almost a year ago? Ack. ^^;;)
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