Entry tags:
Surprise, Surprise
So, I'm currently down in south, visiting ![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
pzb (who had no idea I was coming) for her birthday.
It's great - it's actually summer down here, although I'm pissed because apparently back home there is fantastic rainstorms and thundershowers going on.
I hate how the weather gets interesting as soon as I leave.
I took the train down, which was nice - I didn't have to be awake, so it didn't matter that I had about three hours of sleep the night before, and I got to catch up on writing, reading, and watch some naruto episodes.
But before watching Naruto, I read volumes 5 and 6 of Runaways:
And then I moved on to Death Note, which... Well, you know how when you've been traveling for six hours already, it's kind of good that you're reading something you don't like, because that way you're not ruining anything you actually really like by reading it when you're hot and tired and hungry?
pzb (who had no idea I was coming) for her birthday.It's great - it's actually summer down here, although I'm pissed because apparently back home there is fantastic rainstorms and thundershowers going on.
I hate how the weather gets interesting as soon as I leave.
I took the train down, which was nice - I didn't have to be awake, so it didn't matter that I had about three hours of sleep the night before, and I got to catch up on writing, reading, and watch some naruto episodes.
You know, there is a reason that this arc is where I fell in love with Kakashi. I remember having thinky thoughts about this arc on the train. There was something about how this is such a fight between respected equals, and how many chances Kakashi gives Zabuza to not die, but all I can remember is how freaking much I love Kakashi's fighting style. On of my difficulties in writing Naruto is the fact that my mind wants to block out fights that end up looking like Avatar fights (because the Avatar fights are just so much cooler) but Kakashi actually has a nicely dynamic style with hand to hand + jutsus. I love his summon, and it was well worth it to see him taking out his opponent's ability to use his arms animated. The thing where the kunai are spinning around his fingers? redbrunja approved *nice guy pose*
Also, I am so, so convinced that Haru is a girl. I don't care what Kishimoto says, in my head, she just told everyone she was a boy because she's like Haruhi, and does't care as much about gender.
And I really like the fact that when Sakura thought Sasuke was dead, she wasn't going to abandon her post or even suggest that the guy go with her. Supports my belief that of all of them, Sakura's the one who went into ninja-ing to be a ninja.
redbrunja approved *nice guy pose*Also, I am so, so convinced that Haru is a girl. I don't care what Kishimoto says, in my head, she just told everyone she was a boy because she's like Haruhi, and does't care as much about gender.
And I really like the fact that when Sakura thought Sasuke was dead, she wasn't going to abandon her post or even suggest that the guy go with her. Supports my belief that of all of them, Sakura's the one who went into ninja-ing to be a ninja.
But before watching Naruto, I read volumes 5 and 6 of Runaways:
First off, whoever decided that they should switch artists should be shot. Multiple times. All the characters look so fake, and plastic-y, and I'm pretty sure that they stopped drawing Gert zaftig. And while I totally buy that in her late twenties after years of running around saving people she slimmed down, she did not go on a diet right before they hit NYC. (Also, living on cheap junk food, it's most likely everybody put on a few pounds since they ran away).
That said, Gert and Chase are the cutest teenage couple ever, and I love the family dynamic they have going on with Molly.
About Karolina - does anyone else get the feeling that the author really wanted her off the comic? Because hot damn she left fast. I have a couple problems with this:
First, having her leave solo is a bad idea. What is boyfriend is lying? Then she's all alone in space.
Secondly, I highly doubt that going off into space is going to fix her identity problems. After all, she was raised human - despite feeling like a freak on Earth, I bet she'd going to feel like an earth girl in space.
Now, I am enjoying the fact that it looks like Nico is going to have her Dark Willow arc. I was wondering about when all the references to her using black magic would start to show up.
And I like the fact that we're giving Chase more depth. That said, I really doubt the whole carjacking story, and don't know if I buy this sudden hint that he has darkness inside that Gert is helping him control (although that line was good). It's just... Chase is such a jock, that I find it hard to believe he did something actively evil - he's more the type to just not say something when someone else does something wrong, or bully someone, etc.
That said, Gert and Chase are the cutest teenage couple ever, and I love the family dynamic they have going on with Molly.
About Karolina - does anyone else get the feeling that the author really wanted her off the comic? Because hot damn she left fast. I have a couple problems with this:
First, having her leave solo is a bad idea. What is boyfriend is lying? Then she's all alone in space.
Secondly, I highly doubt that going off into space is going to fix her identity problems. After all, she was raised human - despite feeling like a freak on Earth, I bet she'd going to feel like an earth girl in space.
Now, I am enjoying the fact that it looks like Nico is going to have her Dark Willow arc. I was wondering about when all the references to her using black magic would start to show up.
And I like the fact that we're giving Chase more depth. That said, I really doubt the whole carjacking story, and don't know if I buy this sudden hint that he has darkness inside that Gert is helping him control (although that line was good). It's just... Chase is such a jock, that I find it hard to believe he did something actively evil - he's more the type to just not say something when someone else does something wrong, or bully someone, etc.
And then I moved on to Death Note, which... Well, you know how when you've been traveling for six hours already, it's kind of good that you're reading something you don't like, because that way you're not ruining anything you actually really like by reading it when you're hot and tired and hungry?
I read through the last three volumes as fast as I could so I could get to Light dying.
I'm not going to go into the endless I know you know I know conversations (which, did Near's conversation about how he finally beat Light NEED to go on for an entire chapter?) but I will say that after everybody who died, and how fucked up the world was, there was no possible way for that series to leave you feeling anything but horrible when you finish it.
And I'm glad that Near admitted, at least, that it wasn't about saving lives - it was about winning. I knew that was the case, but it was nice that they didn't have any delusions about why they were doing what they were doing.
I feel so sorry for Matsuda and the rest of the task force - they risk their lives and are horribly courageous just to be pawns. The fact that they know this and stick around anyway makes them the few actually heroic characters in DN.
I'm not going to go into the endless I know you know I know conversations (which, did Near's conversation about how he finally beat Light NEED to go on for an entire chapter?) but I will say that after everybody who died, and how fucked up the world was, there was no possible way for that series to leave you feeling anything but horrible when you finish it.
And I'm glad that Near admitted, at least, that it wasn't about saving lives - it was about winning. I knew that was the case, but it was nice that they didn't have any delusions about why they were doing what they were doing.
I feel so sorry for Matsuda and the rest of the task force - they risk their lives and are horribly courageous just to be pawns. The fact that they know this and stick around anyway makes them the few actually heroic characters in DN.
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Carolina: I think he realized he wanted to do something specific with her story(tied to the stuff you mentioned) but had to send her off first. I did have the same problems, though.
Death Note...in the end, I was mostly reading to see Light get offed, too, and in hopes that Misa would finally recognize him for what he was. Matsuda was probably my favorite character.
(I've been wondering where you were...)
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Do you mean, a guy? But yes. I totally think she's a chick, and part of my really resents that the author said she was male - I mean, come oh, why is it so hard to let a great character you obviously saw in your head as female just BE FEMALE? (Because I totally think that's it - that he saw her as female in his head but couldn't deal with the awesome.)
Death Note...in the end, I was mostly reading to see Light get offed, too, and in hopes that Misa would finally recognize him for what he was. Matsuda was probably my favorite character.
Think think that's why everyone finishes reading the series.
(I've been wondering where you were...)
I haven't been away from the computer for that long.
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You not posting at least once a day is fairly similar to me not posting at least once a day.
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That said Kakashi and Zabuza’s fight is pretty cool. It’s pretty much the first real one in the series, but still one of the best ones. And sadly one of the few actual fight scenes Kakashi gets, but it does show off his awesome fighting style, which is probably the most classically ninja-like of any of them in the series. Something I always liked to attribute to the fact that he was trained in a time of war instead of the more duel oriented style of the gennin generation. But that’s just my personal fanon.
Haru… heh, he could be a girl. As Naruto said he is better looking than Sakura. Though to go off topic for a minute, I never could figure out why when there’s, you know, an actually canonically slash pairing in the manga the fangirls decide to pretty much entirely ignore it and instead go for non canonical ones. *Shrug*. Mysterious creatures….
Death note: I never made it that far. I absolutely adored the series till about episode seventeen, then my interest just hit a brick wall and I stopped watching. It just got so… lame. The strategy back and forth had slowed to a trickle, the character interaction was nothing special and vaguely boring, and I accidently spoiled myself and heard that L died. From what I’ve heard it never gets as good again.
I to always felt bad for the task force members. They’re just normal people trying to do the right thing, and are caught between two megalomaniacs.
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(This is not entirely because I once wrote a backstory fic for them that actually won prizes, because convention judges are mostly biased towards gritty stuff that involves slash, and they're pretty much the only gritty slash pairing I fangirl...)
And, yeah, train rides are great for catching up on stuff like that. Never watch a finale on one, though. Unless you are a lot less apt to react visibly to your screen than I am, or you like terrifying the strangers sitting near you.
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And I was reading hilarious fanfic earlier, and I think the people I was staying with found my laughing amusing.
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And I really like the idea that Kakashi's fighting style is a result of when he learned - and I can't imagine that in a war there would be the long conversations about how is going to win and various psychological issues. ^_^
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Ah, by the way, have you seen Witch Hunter Robin? I ask this genuinely because I believe you would enjoy it, and not because it is, quite obviously, a show I love.
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And I haven't seen WHR, although it's on my to-watch list.
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Oh, by the way, other shows I would really recommend are Princess Tutu(Though that one's a magical girl show, and a weird one at that, and starts out not that great, but gets better and better until your skull can't take the awesome), Scrapped Princess, Last Exile, and Twelve Kingdoms. Unfortunately, I have yet to finish those last three, but I still love them.
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I think the only character I can really like and respect was Matsuda. The other cops were good guys, and doing the right thing, but he still took the time to think about "What if Kira is right..." and then decide for himself that Kira was doing evil, instead of blindly going along with a side (granted, he still got duped a lot, but so did all the others) And he jumped off a high building, trusting his colleagues to catch him! That took guts.
Plus, he shot Light. Matsuda gets a lot of props from me for shooting Light.
I did feel a vicious glee when Ryuk killed Light, because of the thing from the beginning "Don't ask me for help" since he was in it to be entertained. Ha.
I wanted to like Misa- I think I still do, at least her bubblyness. She was the only person (beside L when leered at) to figure out that Light was Kira, wasn't she? I just got very annoyed that she followed Light no matter what, and was so sickeningly stereotypical about it. Ick.
I think at first intro, I liked Near more. But as it went on, Mello got a cool scar (he survived an explosion! cool!) and a neat-looking sidekick, and Near got...creepy, ugly little toys. And dull monologues.
~~~
The trainride sounds lovely. How long was it?
Haru's the one with Zabuza, right?
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He was the only character who was likable and did things that made you respect him. And I almost cheered when he shot light.
Yeah, Near's monologues where particularly dull, weren't they?
And Haku ( I wrote it wrong) is the one with Zabuza.
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They just droned on and on and on...
Ah. Fun with spelling. As little as I know about Naruto, I like those two.
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Haku and Zabuza are, arguable, some of the best characters in the series. Frankly, I feel Kishimoto's best characters are created by accident. The aformentioned Haku and Zabuza, Temari, Gaara, Hinata and Sai are ones that stand out as characters who I don't think he realized how awesome they are. (Although I think it's more deliberate with Sai and Gaara.)
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...I need to go watch that arc again now, dammit!
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And when we go back with Sasuke and see that bridge and their graves again was awesome.
Also, I'm totally convinced Haku is a girl and they just say she's a boy for practicality's sake.
That arc is actually where I fell in love with Kakashi - because how often do you see characters who are that awesome fuck up that badly?
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And I think that there are hints...the whole 'rabbit catching' scene pops into mind immediately. Adorable little kid Haku wins at being adorable!
Yeah...and then Naruto falls off the bridge and ruins the moment, but it was good while it lasted. XD
Meh...I dunno, I'm a sucker for the bishies. Plus, I like the idea that there's a crossdressing character. I DO wish that that had been developed a bit more. I mean, I'm sure that Haku could've gone around dressed like some sort of village boy with (probably) less effort than it took to get into that pink kimono. There's some interesting psychology thingies going on back there. Maybe a mother complex, seeing as his mother was the one that gave him the genes that allowed him to become Zabuza's tool?
...basically, for a character who is barely in the show, there's a lot going on there.
Oh yes, him stabbing Haku was...gah. GAH. And more flail inducing. I wish I could respond more intelligently, but alas, it is late, and words fail me.
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While Naruto can often be annoying as hell, he has his moments (yelling at Neji, yelling at Zabuza) where he says exactly what the audience is yelling at the screen, and it's very satisfying.
And I'm be more excited about having a cross-dressing character if Kishimoto didn't suck so hard at his female characters in general. In a show like Avatar or FMA, where you have women all over the place in a multitude of roles, a cross-dressing male (or, you know, Envy) is fantastic. In Naruto, where Sakura gets sidelined constantly and Kishimoto seems to think that tits=medical nin ability, Haku comes across like the mangaka saw her character design in his head, and then went 'wait... this is too cool of an arc and character for a girl... ah, 'he' must be a guy wearing a chick's clothes! Whew, for a minute there the world was all askew!'