Musings of an Analytic Fan

[ladybug_archive]

I'm just curious: for people who know about any of the characters whom I do essays on, do you think my essays come off logically and provide satisfying arguments, or do you think that I randomly decide things because I want them to be that way? XD It's true that I write essays expressing strong opinions that I dig up on the characters, but I hope that I back up my opinions with plenty of information from the book/movie/TV show/whatever it is.

I'm just musing over things because someone in The Bowery expressed the basic opinion that Duke chasing Sach with weapons is just slapstick comedy and that for whatever reason, they just didn't have him use the weapons, like the Three Stooges probably would have. XD I agree that it was played for comedy, but nobody does anything without a reason. Duke would have to have a reason for not using the weapons, and I believe that my view on why is consistant with information taken from the films. The idea that we don't need to think about the reason just because it's a comedy doesn't sit well with me. XD When I write about character relations, I have to have reasons for everything that they say and do.

After Elora showed me that excellent Princess Tutu AMV, I got intrigued and wanted to watch the show more than ever, so I got the first DVD from the library, watched it, and have digested about eight more episodes from YouTube the previous evening. XD Now I've seen all 13 episodes of the first season. 13 more to go.

I'm really surprised at how great it is. At first glance, it seems like a normal magical girl show. But it is quickly discovered that it is not. It's much better. The characters are extremely deep, and black and white blur into gray for both the good guys and the bad guys. The soundtrack is mostly classical music, and there's a lot of fairy tale and ballet influences. I bet Leonhard would love it. XD Fakir is definitely one of the best and most complex characters, but Rue is terribly intriguing too, and Mytho reminds me so much of Bakura. Drosselmeyer intrigues me in some way, too. And Ahiru is just cute.

I meant to watch some Tsubasa Chronicle episodes, but each episode of Princess Tutu seemed to relate to the main story (there weren't a lot of fillers at all) and each would end on a cliffhanger, so then I'd have to go on. XD;

I also finally watched The Phantom of the Opera. I saw it at Target on Saturday and bought it on a whim (along with an embroidered YGO baseball cap). It's an absolutely excellent film, and the acting and singing is wonderful. I do wish that they hadn't cut out the final verse of the title track, though, and of course I found the guy mooning Carlotta to be a stupid and unnecessary addition. I don't even think anyone could have gotten away with that during the time period in which the movie takes place.

Also ordered with the Princess Tutu DVD was the ninth volume of Twelve Kingdoms. It was excellent, as they've all been, and I really enjoyed the ideas expressed in episode #39. #40 was a filler sort of thing, but it was enjoyable and I'm looking forward to seeing the last DVD, even though it doesn't really have a connection with the main plot. I hope that it will continue the little story that was going on in #40.

On Monday I went to Wal-Mart to help with the groceries, and luckily, I didn't have to wander around for over an hour looking for Dad this time. (I swear, last week I was so frustrated that I was ready to write a Bowery Boys one-shot in which that happens to Sach and Duke and Duke is screaming at Sach after they finally find each other in the store, and Sach hadn't even heard the page because he'd been daydreaming. XD; But I calmed down and didn't write it.) Anyway, I bought this cool M*A*S*H shirt I'd seen there last week, green with the logo. It was available in black, too, but somehow I thought green looked more appropriate. I also got one of those newsboy type hats, which I got especially interested in because Whitey has one in the Bowery Boys films he's in. XD Then I found a big black floppy hat that reminds me of spies and such. If I had a trenchcoat to go with it, that would be perfect. And if they'd had one in red, I might still try to make a go of that Alucard costume.

After a hiatus from the doppelgangers while doing the mobster storyline in the RP with Aubrie, I'm finally developing a new angle for my doppelgangers. XD Now there's a Doppelganger Mafia. I don't quite know how that came to me, but it just seemed a natural direction for things to go in since their dimension is parallel to ours and has a lot of the same things. Aubrie's coming up with Yaminah's doppelganger, and it'll be so amusing when they meet. She's very dark, and smart, and among the high-ranking members. She also smokes cigars. LOL. Now I need to come up with a doppelganger mobster so that we can get things really rolling with this angle.

Comments

[nezure.livejournal.com]

Yay! Princess Tutu is now one of my all-time favourite animes, for the same reasons that you've stated here. ♥ I actually had a feeling that you'd like Fakir. He's so cold to people, to the point of being almost cruel, but then there's that scene where Ahiru is stuck in a locker and he takes her outside, not knowing that its actually her! Complex character indeed!

Ryou and Mytho are so, so similar. Its really quite freaky that they're so alike! I think you'll like the second series a lot as well. **is going to be watching more of that today/tonight**

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, and then there's the episode where Fakir has the pendant and he goes to that guy wanting the sword and gets chewed out, and he's frustrated and upset over everything and he wonders if what the guy says is right, and he's crying and Ahiru in duck form sees him and he picks her up and holds her for comfort. ^^ So cute.

Mytho even looks scarily like Bakura, with those brown eyes and fluffy, layered white hair!

I found the Princess Tutu page at Wikipedia and read up on some of what happens during season 2, and I definitely shall enjoy it! ^^ I shall begin it later today.

[ellivader.livejournal.com]

I am guilty of only watching about two minutes of the first episode. Though, I can't deny it certainly looks interesting. I'm going to watch it as soon as I have finished watching Chobits. **nod**

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

Chii from Chobits is in Tsubasa. ^^ Of course, she's not exactly the same character from that, but I imagine she's still similar.

[sksetokaiba.livejournal.com]

^^ I'm glad you're having fun with Princess Tutu. I know it was available on the Anime on Demand channel for a while...but Oro and I never got around to watching it for some reason.

LOL It is irritating when you can't find your family members when you're ready to leave the store. Glad you found some cool things, though. I still haven't seen Phantom of the Opera; I keep meaning to, though. x_x;

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Ooh, volume 9 of The Twelve Kingdoms is a good one. It probably has some of my favorite episodes and I love the conclusion to the third arc. ^_^ Volume 10 continues from Youko and Rakushun talking to King En on the mountain. He tells them a story about a rebellion during his early days as king.

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

I'm glad it continues that little plot. I enjoy hearing about En and Enki. ^^

I wonder if anyone's tried to write fanfiction for the show continuing after the last mini-arc.

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Oh, there were some novels and a short story collection in the series that were never animated. One of them continues the Taiki story although there's still no official version of what happened to King Tai. There's also one about how Queen Kyou became queen and there might be one or two I'm forgetting.

I have seen a few fanfics which continue after the novels but the writers have a tendency to put ruler/kirin pairs together as romantic couples which I don't really like. I mean, look what happened when the last Queen Kei fell in love with Keiki! o_o;

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I remember you telling me about those novels. ^^ I wish someone would translate them. I'd definitely be interested in the ones you mentioned.

Blurgh. I should've known that absurd pairings would even leak into the Twelve Kingdoms fandom. **hits head on desk.** And let me guess, they specialize in yaoi, too. XD

[yamsteapot.livejournal.com]

I think on some of your essays it comes somewhere inbetween, but you're right, they don't do it without a reason. Stuff and ponderings like that are why I've come to like the commentaries on News Radio that have the writers and producers and stuff. They end up going on somewhat off the wall conversations about where they come up with some of their stuff and the reasons behind. I find it terribly amusing how so many of their jokes came from when some of them worked on David Letterman.

The way you back up your ideas makes for a very feasible argument and I generally think you're pretty accurate. As for specifics with the Bowery Boys. **shrugs** Since I've seen none of it, I can't say. XD; Though I think people would really be amazed if they saw just how much (and sometimes how little) thought writers put into these things. My favorite example is Moby Dick -- he just wanted to write a fish story!

Unless I am making a mockumentary, no matter how deep it is, anything with the name Tutu in it makes my skin crawl. LOL And yes, you much watch Tsubasa~~~ **pokes with sublimital messaging** Maybe now that you've watched the first season of Princess Tutu, you can take a look into Tsubasa?

I actually have been paged in Wal-Mart and not heard it because I was zonked out. XD There wasn't any screaming, but a lot of aggravation. I think I just happened to wander my way to the front. And newsboy hats are fun. **has a black, cloth one and a tan suede one** The black one looks better on me admittingly, which is ironic consider it was far cheaper. XD;

I'm glad you seem to like Alch already. XD It occured to me when I was looking back and I started literally laughing out loud: she really treats Del Vinci like he's her bitch. XD I'm still not sure how Alch and Yaminah will react when they meet and I'm still pondering somewhat how Alch feels about her charge . . . **continues to muse** I must draw her, must, must, must.

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

LOL. Yeah, I remember reading that about Herman Melville and finding myself in a state of disbelief. XD

I have one of the tan suede ones. XD Wal-Mart did have some black ones, but they had sequins on them and I wasn't sure I liked that because sequins on hats have unfortunately become a very girly sort of thing. But eh, I might end up getting one of them someday on a whim, because it could look just plain cool if done right.

I shall be very interested to see what you come up with. X3 Meanwhile, I am struggling to piece together scraps of information about the blue-winged doppelganger.

*drumroll* It's Jess!

[lilith-queen.livejournal.com]

I should definitely get my hands on the Princess Tutu manga now, as I sense you'll be writing about it a lot *prefers reading to watching DVDs, since manga is cheaper*

About your essays: I think you have an eye for details, and you write very well, but you can be kind of long-winded. And your paragraphs tend to be really, really long.

POTO: My reaction to Gerard Butler can be summed up in two words: "Orlando who?" (I used to be a MAJOR Orlando Bloom fan--I still am.) My favorite scene has to be the one with the notes ("Far too many notes for my taste/And most of them about Christine...") I can't believe that wasn't in the soundtrack.

The Wal-Mart thing: I can't even tell you how many times that's happened to me. I swear I turn around for one second and my parents are gone. Poof. Just like that. And then they usually blame it on ME.

Re: *drumroll* It's Jess!

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

Don't bother with the manga. Everything that made the anime special and deep is absent from the manga, as I learned when I did some research on Wikipedia.

There's an extended version of the soundtrack that's supposed to include the Notes song. I love that sequence. XD Hilarious.

Gerard Butler is a good actor, and he did well, but I really think he was too young for the Phantom. Michael Crawford, who played him on stage, was more the age that I think was appropriate for the Phantom. As for myself, I am quite partial to Raoul as played by Patrick Wilson.

Re: *drumroll* It's Jess!

[lilith-queen.livejournal.com]

If you find that extended soundtrack, tell me where you got it! I didn't really care about Gerard Butler's age--I just thought he was cool. Patrick Wilson is fairly good-looking, I have to admit.

Re: *drumroll* It's Jess!

[insaneladybug.livejournal.com]

I think I've seen it sometimes at Wal-Mart or Borders.... Maybe B&N, too....

Re: *drumroll* It's Jess!

[lilith-queen.livejournal.com]

*makes a mental note to check for it* I looked up Princess Tutu on Wikipedia--you were totally right; the manga's not nearly as deep or interesting as the anime.