#genthru still cared for his friends

[ultraericthered]

Anime Update V2 45

Wolf’s Rain - It was the series faux-nale this week and while yes, I greatly enjoyed these as episodes, the story really didn’t come to anything even close to resembling a satisfying ending. A lot of plot points did have to come to their ending points, though, and that’s where you start to notice how much was getting rushed here. The whole thing with Hige apparently being some sort of villainous traitor to his own kind who just got amnesia had me confused. After all the tense build-up, Jagaura’s false Paradise fell apart ridiculously quickly and easily. And the show had to juggle Kiba saving Cheza, Hige reuniting with Toboe and Tsume, Blue reuniting with Quent and telling him the truth of what befell his home and family (surprisingly the one part that had me tearing up!), Cher reuniting with Hubb (which was the very last minute thing here), and not only Jaguara’s demise, but even the return of Lord Darcia and the reveal of Jaguara as the late Harmona’s envious, entitled incel of an older twin sister. It was all done well for the most part, but I was left feeling a bit underwhelmed. Fortunately, the story doesn’t end here. The true Paradise still awaits!

Hunter x Hunter - Not only did Genthru continue to showcase how scheming and scary he is, but we got hit with a lot of unexpected throwbacks and return appearances. Killua temporarily leaves Greed Island to go redeem his previous Hunter’s Exam failure by acing it at record speed, with familiar faces like Ponzu and Tonpa present when he does. Then we find out that the name of Chrollo Lucilfer has been entered into Greed Island as a player, leading to a call to Kurapika where we even see how Neon and her father are holding up (not very well in the latter’s case, as he fucking deserves!) And then the Spiders are met by the actual player using Chrollo’s name and info...HISOKA!? Methinks things are now getting way more interesting!

Fruits Basket - A far more engaging affair than last week since the focus was back on Yuki, and we got to know his Student Council buddies more as we watched him at work with them. Aside from the ones we met before, we’re also introduced to an Ami Kawashima-esque fake airhead voiced by Cherami Leigh and a less militant, more brunette Ayato Naoi voiced by Micah Solusod. And I gotta say, I really, really felt for poor Yuki here. The episode so nailed the feeling of what having to socialize with, collaborate with, and just put up with such irritating people like these is like, and then it took a sudden turn for serious drama in the final minutes as Yuki and Kakeru came to blows. It may bring him more agony, but at least Yuki’s learning and growing, and getting to better understand himself and others.

Date A Live S4 - And just like that, the Mukuro arc is over. I’d said before that I didn’t care much for Mukuro, but now after this I really, REALLY don’t care much for Mukuro. The backstory she got painted her in a light that makes her ridiculously unsympathetic compared to the backstories of other Spirits, and I might’ve at least gotten her better if the significance of her hair-styling by her sister and the following interaction with the sister’s friends had been adapted, but it wasn’t, so we instead just see Mukuro being uncomfortable, lonely and introverted among strangers before making the jump straight to clingy Spirit who wipes memories of friends and family. As such, the compassion and friendship she gets from Shido feels a bit unearned. You HAD a family, Mukuro, and YOU became the problem, not them.

Fate Zero - OK, I’d wanted to get this series finished at around this time, but then I reached Iskandr’s Last Ride. And I was gutted. How the fuck do I go on after seeing that? Waver and Rider were two of the best characters with one of the best relationships on the show, and this episode was EVERYTHING their story had been building to, embodying all that makes them so endearing and pure. Seeing the apotheosis of Waver and Rider’s friendship was enough on its own, but coupled with Waver’s talk with his not-grandpa and the sincerity of cordial respect and admiration between Rider and Gilgamesh of all people really fucking got to me too! Yes, Irisveil was essentially killed by Kirei, and Saber is engaged in battle with Kariya and Berserker (revealed to be none other than Sir Lancelot), and the Holy Grail is being forged, but for right now, none of that matters to me. The passing of the King of Conquerors requires silence and reflection.

Re:ZERO - So while continuing to work with Beatrice in trying to counter the mysterious evil shaman’s curse, Subaru works with extra effort to befried Ram & Rem and keep himself productive so that all of Roswaal’s Manor can think highly of him and he can distract himself from the anguish he’s been feeling. But the episode comes to its powerfully moving climax when Emilia is able to give comfort to Subaru and coax him into a sense of ease where he can at last get rest from all the overwork and mental derangement he’d been forcing himself through...leading to Subaru breaking down bawling and letting all of his emotions out, all of his fear and vulnerability over what he’s been through in several lives. It was a beautiful moment.

Symphogear G - Shit’s getting real now. Maria struggles with the truth that she’s not Fine’s reincarnation and might have to drop the facade soon, while Kirika questions the new power that’s awakened within her, and Hibiki just can’t bring herself to rest and retire from fighting evil now that she knows it could ultimately result in her end. Then during a meeting between Nastassja and Maria with some asshole American businessmen, Dr. Ver summons hordes upon hordes of Noise with his cane, and this goes down where Hibiki and Miku are as well. We get some heroics from Maria on her end while on Hibiki’s, she, like the fool she is, goes back into her Symphogear mode in mid-free fall...and then Miku gets blown up. What? MIKU!!!

MAR - First up for the current round was Snow VS some ugly bitch who I guess is supposed to represent Hansel and Gretel AND the witch from that fairy tale and who for some reason deems Snow to be ugly rather than herself. Yeah. Was not a fan of this whole affair, but I do appreciate Snow getting another win, and the way she did so.

Gintama - The one where the Odd Jobs Gin trio, Otae, and the Shinsengumi all work together to catch an old perverted panty thief.  A very trite and ridiculous set-up that this series made legit hilarious. The running gag with the land mines going off slayed me every time!

Code Geass R2 - At long last, I got to re-watching this premiere episode of this trainwreck. It was honestly as bad as I remember, if not worse. The opening minutes were painful - Lelouch is just suddenly back attending Asford Academy and is now the Student Council VP who acts very different from how he’d ever been before, Viletta is there for some reason, Rolo now replaces Nunnally as Lelouch’s younger sibling, and we’re hit over the head with this  “Things are all swell in these character’s world! Ain’t that Lelouch such a rascal? Oooh and giant mechs and soldiers and terrorists and explosions, so cool!” tone that just took me out of it. And following this lame set-up with Kallen as an undercover bunny girl at a casino where Lelouch plays chess with some Britannian asshole and there’s cringeworthy dialogue (”You filthy lying adult!”), even Lelouch getting his full memory restored ends up feeling anticlimactic and saddled with hamfisted dialogue, and the scene at the end re-introducing Suzaku as a villainous agent of the Emperor is as maddening as it is rushed. The only parts that worked were the re-introduction of C.C and the exact moment where the real Lelouch reawakens and proceeds to be his bastardly self. Everything else just gave me the overall impression that this is going to suck. Which...yeah, I know.

AND

The Tale of Princess Kaguya - Not many words can convey this film accurately. Only feelings and a mind haunted by the experience. And also some childhood trauma memories about a Sesame Street special that featured this same folktale this film’s based on. For reals.

[halt-kun]

Hunter x Hunter Chapter 169 - Declaration of War

I need to finish the Razor part for today

so it’ll be the last chapter

Biscuit is right

Killua, think about yourself a bit

TIME FOR OLD STORIES

I forgot Ging is the one who caught you

Are you sure you’v been redeemed, you clearly still kill peope even though you need a clear reason

But you could have killed those 6

overall it’s a game for hunters so it’s natural for them to be risking their life but still

WORST DAD EVER

OOOH you wanted Ging as your daddy ?

I’m already regretting writing this

But look at him holding his shoulders like he remembers the touch of Ging from 10 years ago

You’re clearly down bad Razor

Trust me you wouldn’t want Ging as a dad because he isn’t one but I get it’s better than an abusive one

Razor is sweeter than I remember

I knew he gave his all and hurt his hand too

but I forgot he praised their teamwork

he also trusted Gon

but still don’t trust kids to handle a fucking lethal ball

I enjoy this little lighthouse panels

lighthouses are cool just a bit lonely

I wonder if someone could find the 02 card by accident and just pshing this button

I’m pretty sure you need to get through Razor to access the tower or maybe not

Yep no TREASURE

but the sun is one treasure

SHUT UP KILLUA

I’m getting into the mood

AGREED

Hisoka is going back to bathing naked

Hisoka is a liar, it’s a given 

I think his reasons to lie when it doesn’t matter is to mix it in with actual lies

I forgot Tsez wanted to team up but it makes sense

Yep injuries and all can’t really help against someone who just wants to kill

he’s an outlier in term of nen

We’re lucky he didn’t attack now, Biscuit is the only one in tip top shape and she’d definitely be able to finish them three but she likes to be careful

Nen users can be tricky but Genthru’s team isn’t one with very tricky abilities

Yep they learnt where to get 02 and waited to see you come out before they checked if you actually got the card

What a bastard

2011 really said they could have left though

Genthru probably wouldn’t bluff about killing

URFGH Gon is angry

DUMBASS

you’re injured and tired and Killua is too, Can you think just a bit more before you talk Gon, I know Genthru isn’t the troupe and you already were a bit challenging and unwilling to comply

HERE you’re challenging him to a fight while everyone is injured

ABENGANE FOUND OUT

73 - Moving danger to someone else, aaaah it’s funny we got that recently in chapter 399

74 - Best card ever, you have smart friends and they’ll be in your life for the whole of it

75 - I already talked about it but I don’t trust it

76 - Become rich but you can’t be sedentary, okay, it’s good

77 - BECOME BEAUTY, Aphrodite will come kill you personally probably and Zeus might come but to fuck you

78 - Money but loneliness, who would want that

79 - manipulation is bad

80 - It’s the rock from Castle in the SKY NICE

81 - BLUE PLANET ! just a pretty rock

The end for today

[hysokaz]

gon has got too much compassion. specially for his enemies.

when he over and over tells the ant hes fighting that he doesnt have to die if gon wins, that he can surrounded, then hes just continuously putting it in his head that no matter what, life is always precious and should be sacred. i guess. and its not like its bad for him to think that way but the ant literally all it wants to do is eat him. and gon still offers an olive branch. when you hear "too kind for his own good" its litearlly this-- hes going to die trying to talk no jutsu someone

[prettycutebunny]

On the other side

Illumi x reader

It’s part of a collab with my discord lovelies hope you enjoy it.

The fire was burning your flesh as your throat scorched. Everything was wrong ! You did nothing wrong but everyone is wrong ! This is not how it was supposed to happen. You’re tired, so tired of crying,begging,and screaming. They were the accusers,judge,and the jury. Why did it end up like this?

You two were young and naive. He always had a mean streak. He loved toying with people and animals alike but he wasn’t mean to you. You both decided to marry once you’re adult. Your parents approved. Love comes with time doesn’t it ? Being “soulmates” is for romantic suckers you didn’t need it ! Just a home and protection. How’d you know he’s going to find his “soulmate”? You still can remember that day when he came to you looking so happy yet mad?

“Hey,can we talk?”

His face was grim,which is weird compared to his deranged smile he held most of the time. His gang was standing nearby like guards. What’s going on ?

“Sure, are you okay ?”

“I found my soulmate,I’m going to cancel the engagement”

He said it without any hint of a joke. You felt rage boiling inside you. How dare he?

“No. I don’t care about this soulmate bullshit. You said we are going to get married and everyone knows that. I won’t allow you to break your promise. I refuse to be humiliated”

Yelling at someone you knew was resentful and vengeful wasn’t one of your brightest ideas but you couldn’t help it. Him canceling this whole thing and going with someone else was out of question. He wasn’t angry however he laughed.

“I know you’d say something like that”

He exchanged looks with his friends and they all attacked you. Screaming and scratching did nothing. Three men who loved fights and crime against a woman,it’s a losing battle. They didn’t care about touching you as they carried off toward the village. Your screams attracted attention as everyone got out of their home to check all this racket. Genthru Dropped your legs as his friend held your arms behind your back. He stood in front of the villagers and yelled.

“I caught my dearly beloved doing black magic”

He announced causing a chaos among people. There’s been dead animals found around the village which many interrupted as a sign of a witch nearby.

He held his hand high showing a weird looking necklace.

“She gave me this. It has a love potion in it. When my dear friends pointed it out and I took it off I started seeing the truth. She tricked us all”

“Are you kidding me ?! I don’t know what you’re talking about you cheating .....”

You voice was muffled by one of his friends as he kept talking. He kept showing weird items you never saw around saying you gifted them to him hoping to keep him beside you.

Tying you to a pole the edges of the village wasn’t hard. You couldn’t fight three of them let alone a hoard. There’s been rumors about monsters living on the other side of the river. You as a horrible witch deserve to be offered to them. Your flesh shall appease them as you slowly burn to death in the middle of nowhere with no one by your side.

The fire was closing in as the nearby wood started catching it. Your skin slowly melting,that’s when you felt it. A present of some sort. Opening your eyes you noticed a little boy. He was pale with beautiful blue eyes and white hair. His clothes were so elegant. He slowly approached you passing by the fire without an issue. You felt your ties loosen as he pushed you off away from the heat. The feeling of cold ground and the breeze on your skin was heavenly. You were burnt badly and dehydrated near death. The blue eyes boy spoke up.

“If you are a witch, why didn’t you use magic to escape ?”

You tried to laugh but it came as a weird scratchy noise. Your throat still dry and you legs burnt badly you couldn’t talk or move.

“Killu,how many times do I have to tell you. Stay away from humans. They’re food nothing more”

The new voice made your heart stop. From the frying pan to the fire of course. Looking up to the new comer. He was pale like the white haired boy,black long hair,big black doll eyes, and tall lean body. He slowly approached assessing you.

“She’s badly hurt brother,she was screaming so loud it annoyed me”

He said looking at his brother pleadingly

“If you’re going to kill her , can you do it quickly ?”

He asked giving you a pitiful look. The little monster had more mercy than you entire village. At least you won’t suffer for hours and you can come back to haunt the hell out of you fiancé. Excuse me, ex fiancé.

“Fine,but I’m drinking her blood.its a waste letting it rot with her”

He said approaching you before lifting you by your shoulder.thats when you felt it. Your entire body was filled with weird scorching warmth as your vision became suddenly so lively. Your heart was jumping out of your skin as you stomach started flattering. By the way he dropped you like you were a hot potato, he felt it too. His black eyes looking and assessing you again but not as a threat this time. Your entire skin turned pink as his eyes examined you from your hair to your toes.

“Brother ?”

The little boy asked.his older brother put picked you up suddenly.

“She’s my soulmate killu, I’m taking her with us.”

You looked at him before pointing to the river nearby. You’d pay half of your life for a sip.

“Oh,hold on”

He stopped putting you down in the middle of it. The water felt so good as you drank and wetted you’re burnt skin.

“Better?”

“Yeah”

Your throat still hurt,but at least you can talk. As he picked you up again you looked him in the eyes and introduced yourself hoping he’d do the same. You even added human for good measure.

“Im illumi zoldyck. What you humans call a “vampire””

“And I’m killua ! His little brother”

You looked at the little boy smiling. He was so adorable

“Nice to meet you killua. Illumi can I ask you a favor ? As your soulmate and all”

His eyes looked down at you studying your facial expression.

“Soulmates increases the life span and gives us more the best kids. I’m not letting you go”

You shook your head.

“No, you turn me to one of you ? I want to go back and kill my asshole ex and his new wife”

You said praying he’d agree. That jerk was going to pay. While you’re out there you’d burn the village for good measures.

He looked amused as he nodded seemingly liking the idea of getting rid of any guy you were once close to. This is going to be fun.

[aspoonofsugar]

Hi! I don't know if you've been asked this question, but why Gon spares and finds excuses for murders of the bomber but isn't listen to Pitou?

Hello anon!

I think that it all comes back to this:

Here Gon is underlining the hypocrisy of the Spiders by saying that, while they show feelings of friendship and love for their comrades, they fail to do the same for other people. However, Gon doesn’t realize that he too, in a different way, is victim of a similar hypocrisy.

As a matter of fact, even before Pitou’s appearance, Gon has shown signs of it. For example, he forges a genuine friendship with Killua who is, in fact, an assassin who has killed several people and, as he himself admits, much more than the Bombers:

Let us also underline that the fact Killua is an assassin has never been a problem for Gon:

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean that Gon is a person who likes killing or that he is comparable to the Spiders when it comes to this. He has shown several times that he doesn’t like killing an enemy and he avoids it whenever he can.

To better explain what I mean, I think I can quote myself from here:

First of all, I think we need to clarify what we mean by the word “selfish”. If by this word we mean a person who doesn’t care about others and only thinks about themselves, then Gon is obviously not selfish. He has shown to care about his friends and others in general multiple times and their well-being is often at the root of Gon’s actions.

If by selfish you mean a person who is self-centred, then yes Gon is definately self-centred. Being self-centred doesn’t really mean that a person lacks good will or generosity, but simply that they assume a prospective whose centre lies in themselves. It is pretty common for children to have such a vision of the world and Gon is a child hence he has it.

Gon is an extremely kind and generous person, but he is self-centred and this is normal considering he is a child. Being self-centred also means that even if a person may make third-personal judgments of some sorts (for example the fact that criminals are still people and as much as possible they should not be killed) they might not be able to translate some judgments to a situation they are experiencing first-hand (for example, this murderer who killed a person I care about is still a person).

This is something normal, everyone is gonna suffer more for the death of a person they care about than for the death of an unknown person and so they might feel more strongly towards a criminal who directly hurt them rather than towards one who is equally guilty, but hurt a person they are not really close to. Here, I would say something similar happens. The Bombers killed several people and Gon despised them for this, but they did not end up hurting a specific person Gon was close with. So we are shown Gon being angry and willing to stop them, but once he did he did not feel like killing them. I would also like to underline that Gon was not going easy against Genthru and that he might have ended up killing him while fighting. I think Gon was prepared to that, but if the both of them managed to survive, then killing Genthru would have been unnecessary once he was defeated and incapacitated.

Who knows? Maybe if Pitou had been able to properly heal Kite Gon would have lost some of the animosity he felt towards the ant.

I would also like to underline how the CAA is an arc where Gon is directly told by a mentor figure that he should be ready to kill:

He is not ruthless and needed Kite to call him out on the fact that not being ready for the kill could have been dangerous. Gon enters the palace determined to kill and once he realizes Pitou is not the monster Gon wanted them to be, but a person as well he risks having a breakdown:

Basically he falls victim of his own deciveness and determination which are attributes he had always been praised for up until that point.

I hope I was of some help, thank you for the ask!

[shinigami-mafia-imagines]

Who are your fav and least fav hxh char?

This is actually really really hard cuz I don’t see any of the characters as Bad in the sense of being poorly written and that’s usually what I base my favorites off of. I’ll probably be giving more explanation through the lists.Favorites:5) Alluka Zoldyck - The reason she’s number 5 is because while I adore her and love her personality, I do agree with some sentiments that she was a shoe-horned character in the Election Arc. She’s obviously important to Killua and his character development, but since we haven’t seen much out of her not only in that arc but anywhere in the series, it’s hard to judge her and truly fall in love with her character.4) Kite - Another one that’s more or less iffy for me. I do enjoy his/their character a lot and how important he was to Gon and his development, but I’m of the mindset that if you want to kill off a character, one that’s very important and that you know will further(or destroy) another character’s development, they should stay dead. And you can argue that Queen Kite and Human Kite are different people altogether, but there’s still the fact that Kite somehow got reborn as an Ant even though, as far as we see, there’s no nibbles taken out of his corpse at all. I guess this could be written off as Togashi not explaining his Nen abilities too well or just yet, since apparently that mace he summoned is only ever used when he wants to win or at least get out of a fight alive. 3) Leorio Paradinight - I adore Leorio just like everyone else but my god I can’t help but feel like he’s more 2 dimensional than 3 dimensional. He’s an all around good guy, he does have his faults, but they’re so minor that they aren’t even brought up beyond the Hunter Exam Arc. He wants to give people a free alternative to medicine and getting medical help and that’s amazing. He goes to college, he studies a lot, great. I can understand the struggles of money, sure, but I’d like to see him actually struggle and show more 3 dimensional qualities other than ‘GOOD BOY’. And since we haven’t seen him at all very much this arc, I don’t think we’ll be really seeing him go through the struggles that we want him to go through. There was the election arc where he wanted to see Gon get healed up, we did see him cry when he saw he was okay. But I want to see him when he can’t save someone, where he feels utterly powerless about something, where even if he has his Nen and can detect tumours and what not, he still can’t do anything to help them. I want to see his morals be challenged, I want to see what he will do when faced with a severe choice, one that will leave someone dead or suffering or not in the right state of mind once it’s all said and done. I just want to see him actually face the struggles the other characters have faced so far and not just be this all around good guy.2) Kurapika - We’ve seen soooo much about Kurapika since the start of the series. We know about his past, we know about his morals(somewhat) and we know what lengths he would go to to reach his goals. This current arc does have me scared for Kurapika and what will happen to him. But this is also the second arc where we’re focusing more on him than the other characters which is totally fine, I get it. His whole character arc does need a resolution and a conclusion. And we’ve seen his character develop really well, where he used to prefer doing things on his own, pushing himself too far(and it can be argued that he’s STILL doing this with Emperor’s Time), even questioning himself during Yorknew(at least in the 1999 version). And now he’s more than happy to have help and partner up with a group or individuals in order to ensure the safety of everyone and figure out what the correct course of action is rather than just letting his rage cloud his better judgement. Of course, there’s still so much more to this Arc that we haven’t seen yet so for what could possibly happen, no one really knows. 1) KIllua Zoldyck - I can relate to Killua the most out of all of the cast and that’s why he’s number 1 on the favorites. Throughout the series, we see him grow and develop into a proper human being. He has his hiccups and he has his moments of thinking he can do things alone for his friends’ sake. But he tries his best and he does his best to be the person that Gon has taught him to be. He moved past his horrible upbringing, overcame a fear that he didn’t even know he had, he stood up to his abuser, he saved his little sister from said abuse and potential further abuse, he has made leaps and bounds to try to help Gon and save him from a certain death only for that special friendship to wind up broken to the point that it may not even be repaired. But he’s made so many more friends and a new family that he adores and can be himself around. No need to be afraid of his family, no need to be scared of his older brother coming to get him in the middle of the night, no being alone, no killing people just because his family said to. He is his own person with his own faults and, of course, his own ambitions now. For someone who’s been abused/currently in a bad situation, he’s an inspiration and very obviously goals.Least Favorites:5) Hisoka - Obvious reasons. He’s a well written, very creepy character that you can’t help but like BECAUSE he’s such a creepy, morally ambiguous character. I just wish, you know…He wasn’t the way he was.4) Illumi - Again, obvious. I do adore him, and I do adore writing him, but being abusive, manipulating his younger brother to the point that he actually is so afraid of him as well as just jamming a needle into his brain is just despicable. He’s just downright evil, though he doesn’t see anything wrong with what he’s doing. I guess you could call him Lawful Evil? Or at least True Evil. And you could argue that he was made that way by his parents, BUUUUT KIllua was raised almost the same way, so that doesn’t really apply to Illumi. I doubt we’ll see any development for him beyond wanting to control Killua and Alluka, though, which really sucks but HEY at least he’s really fun to write.3) Kastro - NOW PLEASE DO NOT BE ALARMED. I ADORE KASTRO WITH ALL MY HEART. What makes him a least favorite is the way Togashi wrote him. I hate characters dying for silly or no good reason. I still stand by the fact that the injuries he got would in no way cause him to die, but HEY. I AIN’T A MANGAKA WHAT DO I KNOW? I love Kastro and he deserved better. I wish we got a little bit of background on him, too. Like where he came from, why he was so interested in Martial Arts, What lead him to going to Heaven’s Arena, etc. I made my own little headcanons for him and where he came from, but those don’t even count. Togashi you let me down. Togashi you are my least favorite character(JK I love you and everything you do, please don’t stop writing and being an inspiration).2) Ging/Genthru - These two are together for different reasons, but I wanted to include them both on this list. Ging is a deadbeat dad who made his son feel like absolute shit because he abandoned him. Because of Ging, Gon has severe abandonment issues and we can see that throughout the series in the way he talks and refers to his dad becoming a hunter. I know what it’s like to have those horrible thoughts spin through my head BECAUSE I was made to think I was a burden and shouldn’t have been born by my own parent. It’s just horrible, especially when he doesn’t even show any concern for the boy during the Election Arc.Genthru is on this list more or less because his character as a whole sucks. Can you remember his motive for wanting to blow up the whole player base of Greed Island? I sure as fuck can’t. And if the reason is ‘Just because!’ well guess what, that’s the shittiest thing a character’s motive could be. If there was a a huge treasure at the end of it, or like just a chance to, I unno…maybe get a card made after you? Then I guess I could understand a motive? Greed is a very strong motive for a lot of Shounen Villains, so that’s not too far off. But otherwise, Genthru isn’t that great of a villain and honestly very forgettable.1) Chrollo Lucilfer - Again, I mostly dislike this character more for moral reasons. I do enjoy writing him and I do enjoy his character and what he brings to the dynamic of certain arcs. But as a person, he’s despicable, too. He’s a True Neutral character, only looking out for himself and getting whatever he wants. He only cares for his Troupe and that’s it. He doesn’t shed a tear for people he’s killed for petty reasons, yet he sheds a tear and becomes enraged when one of his own friends is killed either in battle or suddenly and horribly. He could care less about those around him, and purposefully riles others up just for entertainment(this is speculation). He’s the type of character you dread interacting with in a game/DnD because you know that he doesn’t care if you have to die nor does he care if you did die while going to fetch a treasure for him. YOU are the NPC, HE is the Player. Nothing more, nothing less.

[animebw]

Binge-Watching: Yu Yu Hakusho, Day 8, Episodes 54-60

The final round of the Dark Tournament begins, and we cross the halfway point of Yu Yu Hakusho! Let the blood flow like a river!

Karama vs Karisu 

Match one of the finals: Karama vs Genthru Karisu! And freaking heck, can Karama ever catch a break? It seems like all of his fights end up with him almost dead on the ground.

But yeah, Karisu’s powers greatly reminded me of Genthru the Bomber from HxH’s Greed Island arc. Only this was even worse, because Karisu didn’t even have to touch Karama. He just needed to send out little invisible monster drone bombs. Thank god Suzuki’s potion worked, and we got another chance to see Yoko Karama and his nightmare plants in action, if only for a brief moment (seriously, those things make me terrified to ever take a walk in the forest ever again). This battle was the most brutal of the bunch, with Karama barely seizing victory at the last second by almost sacrificing himself. It’s clear that he’s making a more concentrated effort to connect with his past self, and with each use of that potion, he gets a little closer to the demon he used to be. Whether that ends up backfiring on him in the end, we’ll see.

Also, fuck the tournament committee so hard. They’re doing everything in their power to rig the matches against Yusuke’s team, and they robbed Karama of his well-deserved win. Thank god Toguro tore them to pieces.

Hiei vs Bui

Holy shit. Just... wow. Yu Yu Hakusho’s fights have been steadily improving in quality since day 1, but Hiei’s epic battle against Vic Mignogna 2: Electric Boogaloo (seriously, he was so unrecognizable as Bui, my jaw dropped when I saw his name in the credits) just blew them all out of the water. The animation was fucking amazing. The angles, the colors, the flow, the intensity, the creativity... And Hiei’s unleashing of the Dragon of the Darkness Flame was the single most beautiful piece of animation this show has ever produced. It was like something out of the Doctor Strange movie, surreal and explosive and utterly overwhelming. I am in awe.

And hey, Hiei’s gotten a handle on this particular piece of overwhelming power! Good for him! If it means more majestic take-downs like this one, I have no complaints.

Kuwabara vs Toguro Senior

If Karama’s fight was the bloodiest and Hiei’s was the flashiest, then Kuwabara’s struggle against the sniveling elder Toguro was by far the most intensely personal. Elder Toguro is by far the most easily hateable character in the show. He just revels in tearing Kuwabara down, torturing him both physically and mentally. He’s an utterly irredeemable monster, and it’s no wonder that Kuwabara was so terrified of facing him. But with the help of Suzuki’s epic sword blade, he was able to beat the squiggly bastard out of commission. And seeing such a pest of a villain taken down by a Spirit Flyswatter was the best possible end the fight could have.

But not before the demon let slip what his friends had been hiding from him: Genkai was dead.

Everyone’s still dealing with the fallout of her passing. Yusuke’s bottled his feelings up and tried to shoulder the burden alone. Botan’s desperately trying to pretend that everything’s alright, despite being on the verge of breaking down (which makes Shizuru’s attempts to comfort her so fucking touching. Seriously, I know I’ve said this so many times, but I LOVE the female relationships on this show). It’s no wonder no one was comfortable telling Kuwabara.

But maybe they should have, because once he knows, Elder Toguro makes his fatal mistake: he pushes Kuwabara’s rage button by taunting him about the deceased mentor. We know Kuwabara will take all sorts of shit on himself and suffer through it if he needs to. We saw as much all the way back in episode 3. But you insult the people he cares about, and there is nowhere you can hide. Kuwabara’s smackdown was a rebuttal of all the demon’s ugly, misogynistic drivel, and it was so satisfying to watch.

Yusuke’s Growing Up

It’s become increasingly clear over these episodes just how much Yusuke’s grown up. When the crowd started jeering them after Karama’s loss, he didn’t mouth off at them like he would’ve done before, managing a level of self-control we haven’t seen from him before. When Kuwabara confronted him about hiding Genkai’s death, he was actually able to admit why he had done so. The trials he’s gone through have shaped him into a stronger, less insecure person. Now, he’s fighting with a purpose and the support of all the people he cares about. And as he stands up to finally take on Toguro, I know he’s going to give it his all. For Genkai, for Kuwabara, for Keiko, and for everyone else. Bring it on.

Toguro’s Honor

Speaking of Toguro... yeah, he is not fucking around anymore. He straight up killed his brother for shitting on Genkai. I’m slowly realizing that Toguro, for as cruel and murderous as he is, might just be one of the most honorable people in this damn show. He and his patron Sakyo have always been above the cheap meddling of the committee, finally putting an end to their corruption in the most brutal way possible, or the sadistic tendencies of the other fighters, and that’s never been more clear than when he dismissively kills his only family with a snarl that “blood only counts for so much”, because his brother was exactly the kind of ugly, foul, dishonorable creep he’s been slaughtering in the background for the entire series, from the committee to the mob boss Terukine. He may have killed Genkai, but he still has more respect for her than anyone outside of Yusuke’s team.

Toguro’s been chomping at the bit for so long to finally test his powers out against Yusuke, and it’s finally time for him to let loose. I imagine their fight is going to be one for the ages.

Best of Cat Lady

-”That’s what I call putting your mouth where your money is!”

-”In case anyone upstairs is curious, I do have the entire tournament rulebook memorized.” Of course you do.

-”Karisu’s running around like a cockroach in the middle of a tap-dancing convention!”

-”I never thought botany could be so deliciously gruesome!”

-’I can’t take it anymore! I need some blood!”

-”And the winner, by total gross-out” yeah, pretty much

-”No one can explain to me why the combatants keep attacking the audience! Thought it does keep the pain spread, and I do love that!”

-”He unloads like an angry toddler in a therapy session!”

-”Feel free to move around the parts of the stadium that still exist, and don’t forget the snack bar!”

-”Autograph or date?”

Odds and Ends

-Why you gotta scratch your balls, Kuwabara?

-”Do tell me, what’s it like living in a constant haze of stupidity?” Sick burn, Hiei.

-SHIZURU DID YOU JUST STEAL THOSE TICKETS ALSKHDASKASD I LOVE YOU

-”I just thought dry ice would be a nice touch.” Welcome to the party, Koenma.

-I FUCKING LOVE CAT LADY

-”Measure 4 feet without his hair” Callout post for Markiplier

-”Why use a bandage that doesn’t make your hurty spots better?” Truly, Kuwabara is the voice of a generation.

-Poor Juri, she doesn’t deserve this.

-”And if I did, I’d always drink responsibly.” Kuwabara, you dork.

-”In case I don’t make it, take care of my cat.” But I repeat myself.

-Holy fucking Christ, Toguro’s strong. He just carried the stage from the old arena over all by himself. Just in case Yusuke wasn’t scared enough already. 

-I know Sakyo’s trying to be all poetic about why he bet his life on the outcome of the match, but it becomes kinda funny when you realize he just has a really bad gambling addiction.

-NEW ED! Oh, I really like this one! Definitely my favorite song out of the show so far.

And with that, we’ve finally arrived. The epic fight over 30 episodes in the making. Yusuke vs. Toguro. See you next time for the big showdown. I can’t freaking wait.

[sideblogintervention]

gons arm

ok this is preparation for when u finish or not claire and i can finally release the full extent of my stupidity upon u. one of my favorite things about caa is how it recontextualizes the entire show up to that point. up until gons explosion in caa, most of hxh is played straight as a shounen and doesnt engage in a particularly pointed way with its genre. beyond maybe like. kurapikas revenge quest being much more focused on the tragedy and self destructiveness of his revenge quest than maybe would be expected of a shounen. but caa takes the typical shonen protag traits in gon that it previously praised him for and turns them into tragic flaws. and the build up is SO PLANNED!!! LIKE the very fact that gons signature recklessness, confidence, and desire to be responsible for the well being of those he cares about is tied in nearly every arc to the motif of losing his arm i think shows that this was the endgame for gon, that part of the story of hxh is that of caution and critique of the very shounen typical traits of “bravery” . ok so like

hunter exam: gon breaks his arm while fighting hanzo. he is rewarded for his disregard for his own personal safety, with other characters admiring him for it and it winning him the battle and his hunter licenseship. during the killua rescue, gon is again rewarded for his determination and feelings of responsibility for killuas safety, which wins him the respect of the zoldyck butlers and inspires killua to leave his family. 

heavens arena: i almost forgot heavens arena LMAO its such a minor arc but. gon does break his arm again while ~testing his limits~ and it is followed by the first hint of rebuke from the story via wing! but its quickly glossed over and used to further emphasize gon’s uniqueness. i see this as just more buildup until the fall in caa

yorknew: i dont remember if gon breaks his arm in this arc actually LOL but it solidifies gon and killuas dynamic of gon being reckless and vengeful on the behalf of his friends and killua bailing gon out from the consequences of his actions. theres a really revealing piece of dialogue also, when theyre captured by nobunaga and killua outlines a plan where he sacrifices himself for gon to survive, to which gon tells him that gon is the only one allowed to talk about sacrificing himself for his friends, not killua. (AND WHAT HAPPENS IN CAA. LOL) 

greed island: in the fight against genthru, gon’s recklessness starts to tip over into portrayed as a NEGATIVE trait. still not completely, as it does get spun as indicative of his determination to push himself and he suffers no lasting consequences for it, but the tone of the fight is markedly different from that in hunter exam. in the hunter exam, his defiance in a needlessly life threatening situation is almost unequivocally portrayed as positive, despite other characters noting that it is extreme and worrisome. the genthru fight is marked by darker music, imagery, and a more serious appraisal from genthru as dangerously reckless. gon suffers much more severely for his disregard for personal safety too, losing an entire hand and severe injuries to many of his other extremities, vs the more temporary loss of a broken arm. his reaction is severe, and he only recovers through the miraculous use of the game card. other ppl have said this, but greed island was boring as hell LMAO but did a good job setting the scene for caa. its the beginning of the slope downwards for gon, and killua’s penchant for putting gon on a pedestal and understanding self sacrifice (see: fucking up his hands in the volleyball game) as a way to measure his closeness to gon is elaborated on in greater detail. 

caa: it all comes to head ! god there’s a really good flowchart of key quotes from the manga and the anime that someone put together for gons thought process during caa, but it all boils down to: gon’s need to be responsible for his friends’ well being means he feels wholly responsible for kite’s death. gon has a penchant for self destruction in the pursuit of what he desires (self improvement, finding ging, protecting his friends). when discussing why meruem might have caused intense damage to himself (RIPPING OFF HIS ARM......I HAVE MORE THOUGHTS ON THE MERUEM GON PARALLELS BUT THATS FOR LATER), gon admits that he would inflict great amounts of damage to himself if he were unable to forgive himself for something. and thats the gon pitou fight. revenge, but also repentance. gons dialogue during the fight (apologizing to kite, telling kite that he finished the job like kite taught him to, telling kite theyre almost even now when gon loses his arm) makes it very clear that gon is lashing out in betrayal, yes, but also in an effort to redeem himself for being unable to save kite. gon loses his arm fully and nearly loses his life, if killua hadnt been there to save him. i have som thoughts on what caa says about maturity and how that fits in with empathy, connection to others, and power, but ill. ill post that separately lol. 

[icharchivist]

What are the major markers that you think advanced killugon development? Both from the perspective of Killua and Gon?

Oooh oh my, that could get long ahah. The full manga is full of those. And tbh they both developped slowly but surely, and honestly sometimes it’s just kinda smooth.

Bold are the most important ones I think.

huuuh.

-Them meeting, of course, for the both of them. It both made them curious about each other.

-Killua and Gon talking about Killua’s family in between exams, and Gon taking it rather lightly. It makes Killua trust him and be invested in him even more.

-Killua telling Illumi he wants Gon to be his friend. Kinda went on length on why there. 

-Gon being determined to save Killua, to the point of thinking about climbing the doors to get to him, and getting by all the trouble during the trials of the Zoldyck.

-Killua hearing Gon was at his doorstep was huge for him too.

-They reunited and from then they went on smoothly to the Heaven Arnea. To me they really developped slowly but surely in that arc, it’s hard to pinpoint any moment. Killua soften looking at Gon meditate, they look and cheer at each other a lot, being happy by each other’s success, they keep supporting each other.

-Killua being excited telling Gon he wants to meet Mito. For some reason this scene was remplaced in both anime:

It kinda puzzles me bc I think in the 1999 anime it’s Gon who begs Killua to come with him, and in the 2011 anime it’s Gon who bring up he wants to see Mito and Killua who just go “then i’ll tag along”, while in the manga it’s really just Killua who wants to get to know what Gon love even more. Look at him he even slightly blush.

-All of the Whale Island moments also move smoothly to show how much they love spending time with each other, to Gon being excited to show Killua around to Killua softening to everything Gon says (for exemple by showing him what Kon brought to Gon in the manga)

-Of course, the whole talking under the stars scene. It was the scene they both talked about their goals and what they wanted to do, and both opened up over how much they liked to be around each other. It’s especially Gon who goes out of his way to make sure Killua knows that Gon likes him a lot, and that Gon would love to have him around a lot.

-From that point everything about them doing the auctions go smoothly as well, same as i mentioned before, you see them get closer slowly but surely.

-When locked up by the Troupe and watched over by Nobunaga. Killua realizes Gon might be in danger and at this point, it’s established he cares for Gon a lot. Gon tries to lighten the mood and find a way out, but Killua freaks out and think about sacrificing himself. It’s when Gon gets angry at him because he doesn’t want Killua to think like that, because he cares too much about him. “I’m allowed to talk about dying but you, you are not!”. Both show how much they love and care about each other and their safety in this scene.

-Once they escaped and Gon smiles because Killua is telling him to not be reckless, and Killua is surprised. Gon saying he’s glad Killua is back to normal, that he was worried, and that Killua is usually the one who keep him in line. Killua blushes calling Gon selfish. (imo it’s more than Gon is trying to stop Killua to put his life recklessly on the line again, but ye it’s  abit hypocritical since Gon does that all the time).

-Killua insisting to help Kurapika to hunt the troupe in order to get the money for Greed island, and him wanting to stop as soon as he realizes they won’t get paid for it. It’s something that puzzled me when I read the manga but it’s a bit clearer, here:

While I do believe Killua cares about Kurapika and his cause, he…. Did push it, among other things, for the money for Greed Island. When he realizes the money had been lifted from the troupe, he tries to dissuade Gon to get into it, while Gon really only want to help Kurapika. 

I think Killua got himself invested afterward for Kurapika’s sake, and previously he was worried for Kurapika with the Pakunoda’s situation, so it isn’t completely selfish against Kurapika - but he was really trying to push it for Gon’s sake. 

Eventually he got wrapped up and he acted out of caring for Kurapika as well, especially when they both went against Pakunoda, but this scene especially is one of the moment Killua had been kinda shady because he pushed that for Gon’s sake. 

I’m not going to talk about what it means toward Kurapika, long story short I still believe Killua cares about Kurapika but things are complicated, but in that scene, it kinda shows how much Killua would be devoted to go far for Gon at this point already.

-The whole “Thank you - I am glad you came with me - no, i’m glad i met you” “no… you’re wrong, this is me who’s glad i met you” scene, of course.

a lot of things build up to it, especially the fact Killua stood up for Gon all the time. And especially… Killua stuck around. Gon didn’t have much people sticking around like that before, not aside from his mom and grandmother, and especially after they parted ways again with Leorio and Kurapika, to see Killua is always around is making Gon genuinely happy. He’s so happy he can share this journey with Gon.And ofc Killua is the happiest he could be after hearing all of it. Because not only does he enjoy spending time with Gon, but so does Gon, and they feel the same way about it. It makes them both happy.

-The whole Greed Island arc is a slow, smooth build up in their relationship imo. Some highlights includes, Bisky commenting on how Killua is smiling today thanks to Gon, Killua going to take the hunter exam and being told he smells like Gon and him mentioning (manga only) that “how can i smell like him i took a shower……”, him doing everything to come back quickly, Gon being concerned for him, Killua protecting Gon from talking to Genthru ect.

-The Dodgeball game. First, because people seems to forget that: Gon was invested in the game, but Razor crossed the line when he almost attacked Killua. Gon reacts really badly and gets this extreme because Razor would have targetted Killua, and it could have hurt him. That’s when Gon gets really dark and says he will not forgive him.

Which is why Gon gets so dedicated to win the game, to the point of hurting Killua - Killua who is consenting there. Because Gon is, among other things, fired up against Razor for attacking Killua.

Which leads of course to Killua sacrificing his hands for Gon, which shows how much he gives his whole for Gon. 

And how once confronted about it, Gon mentions it can only be Killua, he’s the only one who understands him enough to be able to handle it - and Killua smiling.

Gon trust Killua with all of his being. Even if there it results with pain, he knows Killua can handle it more than anyone, and he knows only  Killua can handle the strength of his blow. There is no one Gon trusts more than Killua.

and it makes Killua extremely happy because not only he’s helpful to Gon, but he is irreplaceable. He’s that important to Gon, and he realizes how much Gon trusts him. He likes to feel useful toward him.

-”What will you do first when you’ll meet Ging?” “I’ll have him met Killua of course!! my best friend in the world!” cue to Killua blushing. Like oh my god. Don’t tell me Gon doesn’t care about Killua. Not only Killua is his best, closest friend, but he’s so proud to have him as a friend??? he’s so happy? Like “look at the best thing that ever happened to me”. He wants to show Killua around, how important he became to him, what a huge part of him Killua became. He included Killua in his lifetime goal! and ofc, Killua got flustered. that’s self explainatory!

-”Hunters are granted with good friends” by Kite while Killua is looking lovingly at Gon, i mean com’on.

-Same again there most of it is smoothly and eventless, going slowly at their pace then.

-”Gon, you are light - sometimes you shine so bright I feel like I have to look away. Even though, is it okay if i stay by your side?”Something horrible just happened, and Killua felt the need to hit Gon in the head to save him. And he was scared Gon would be mad at him for leaving Kite to die.  Instead the first thing Gon does as he wakes up is asking after Killua, asking how he’s doing, and being concerned for him. Gon actually apologizes foor being so reckless it put Killua in a situation in which he had to hit him. Gon goes out of his way to make sure Killua understands it’s not his fault.

And then he drops the denial bomb that he thinks Kite is still alive. And Killua is so in love at this point, blinded by how bright Gon is, that he can’t help but agree. In a way i think there’s also this thing that, if Kite was dead, maybe Gon would blame him? But mostly, I think that, Gon was believing so hard in his words that Killua ended up believing it too. He held on to Gon at that moment, and just wanted to stay around even more. But i wonder if eventually, the fact he mentions leaving there is indeed because parts of him tells him Kite is dead and that Gon could blame him. (which Gon never did btw, even when the revelation came out Kite was dead. He blamed Pitou and himself, but never Killua.)

-The whole training, again, smooth.

-Bisky facing Killua about his trauma with Illumi and telling him Gon may die one day because of him. It scares Killua so much it results in even more panic when he fights Shoot, because he doesn’t want to leave Gon or hurt him, and he wants to do everything for him

-with the conclusion that then Killua plans to leave because he can’t be strong enough to protect Gon and is scared one day he’ll leave him to die. 

-Legit Killua’s reaction to the whole thing happening with Palm, especially when he asked Gon about his previous dates, and that when Gon asked back he went “I didn’t date anyone, i only stayed with you since i left the house” and then adding thinking “and frankly i don’t want it to change.”

-The removal of the needle was all of the strength Killua took in order to protect Gon. This scene is one of the big ones. His love and protection for Gon helps him to overcome mental manipulation, out of how much he loves him.

-Once they infiltrate the Republic of East Goruto, before parting, when Killua insist Gon stays safe and doesn’t run after him to protect him. While he clumsily convince him by telling him to focus on Pitou, this scene also shows that Gon wanted to stay with Killua and Killua was out to do dangerous things so he wanted Gon to stay safe. Killua went through and made sure Gon kept his distances at this point.

-Killua almost dying and thinking about how he wasn’t of any help for Gon in the end. His last thoughts were about Gon, and about how he wished he could have helped him more.

-Gon yelling out of relief on the phone when he realizes Killua is safe, and Killua’s soft smile at Gon being so worried about him. Gon had been so worried and concerned ;;

-A lot of time, the way Killua looks at Gon before the Castle attack. He knows things are going wrong with him but he doesn’t know how to voice it. 

-The unfamous “since it’s none of your business” scene where Gon pushed Killua away after Killua tried to help him. I have a lot of thoughs on this scene i talked a lot about, but really, it was all about Killua trying to help Gon see the biggest picture, but Gon being so lost in his anger he lashed at Killua by also pushing him away - for once, refusing completely Killua’s help. Which of course hurt Killua.

-”What will happen of Gon and you?” “In that state, Gon won’t budge. At worse, it will be a lover suicide.”. Kinda self explainatory, Killua is ready to die with Gon, and actually uses a term linked usually to lover dying together so they can remain together in the afterlife. Notice that when Palm, Knuckle and Killua talks about dying together, they use another term, and then Ikalgo says “we… no, Killua was ready to die with Gon” and in there he uses the same term Killua used for “Lover suicide”.

-Killua breaking down in front of Palm because he can’t help Gon, and begging Palm to be able to help him. Hearing from Palm he is the one Gon needs the most shook him up a lot.  But it shows also how much he was scared for Gon there.

-Killua running to find Gon and being frightened by how Gon pushed his limits. Gon crying and, while suffering, doing everything to reassure Killua that everything will be okay. Gon is killing himself, he’s aware of that, yet he spends his last moments reassuring Killua that everything will be fine. 

-Killua doing everything to save Gon in the Election arc. He realizes where everything went wrong and he wishes Gon will survive, he wants to make sure Gon will live, and that they’ll be together again. That Killua will clean up his mess, like Gon had him promise in York New, and that then Gon will have to apologize. Killua would devote himself to do that no matter what.

-Gon being extremely unease after he woke up and telling Leorio that he needs to find Killua asap to apologize because he told him horrible things. Gon’s guilt is more than obvious, and we know he apologized multiple times to Killua.

-Them parting. They’ve been a long way together and they are both hurt about it. (also since I saw it before mentioned: the fact Gon looks more “determined” than hurt in the ending of the anime is?? anime only? In the manga he looks just as hurt as Killua when they part. It hurts Gon just as much as it hurts Killua.)

it’s probably better for now with all they have too sort out, but ye, it’s painful. But hey, they’re keeping contact with each other! 

So ye dkjfhdjkf I feel like I just summarized the manga at this point. But here o/

have a good day!!

[ultraericthered]

Anime Update V2 48

Hunter x Hunter - Three whole episodes spent on the strangest and most intense game of doge ball, with Gon and the others playing against Razor and his pirate team, in the process learning that what they thought was the inside of a virtual Nen-created game is in fact a very real place. And Hisoka hogging the glory by hitting the ball back to Razor and using his Bungee Gum on it just so he could get the win was marvelous. The backstory between Razor and Ging was a bit of groaner in how specific what Ging laid out for Razor was, but it did provide good context into why Razor is like how he is today. But then, who should come calling but Genthru, just in case you’d forgotten!

Fruits Basket - Initial episode I watched focused on Tohru in a visit to the Sohma Estate where she tended to matters with Kureno and Momiji. The Momiji content was great, the Kureno content not so much, though we did get a tease at Akito’s mother, Ren Sohma. The next episode showed more promise, so I watched it and was not let down. Just a whole episode of our leading high schooler pals on a class trip in Kyoto is rewarding in a way you don’t even care that not much is advanced, you enjoy watching these characters that much. (Only odd thing is that the Prince Yuki Fanclub is set up stalking Yuki from a distance early in but it doesn’t go anywhere! If they were following the whole while, did they just end up laughing too hard at Yuki’s embarrassing routine with his Student Council buddies to actually do anything?) Next time, though, is going to hurt, I can tell.

Date A Live S4 - Kurumi finally showed Shido, and the audience, her backstory of how she met the Spirit of Origin and became a Spirit, fighting and killing the lesser evolved Spirits only to end up learning that all Spirits begin as human, even taking the life of her best friend due to Mio’s deception. While it was an interesting backstory, the very end sort of took away from it, as Mio exposits a lot of details that are so weirdly phrased and unclear that it came out unintelligable!

Re:ZERO - Not this time. Must ready myself for the turning point...

Fate Stay/Night: Unlimited Blade Works - Yes, I know this was the title of a movie I already watched, but now I’ve started the series version! I love already that I’m back to events that followed Fate Zero, but this time we’re looking at things primarily from Rin’s POV. Mela Lee in this role has only gotten better, loved hearing (though not seeing) Kirei again, and Cristina Vee and Kyle McCarley as Sakura and Shinji Matou respectively work as well, if not even better than their predecessors. Kaiji Tang’s Archer took some getting used to, but once he dropped the jerkass facade and being more cool and straightforward, it was really working for me. The only voice I do not care for is Bryce Papenbrook as Shirou. Just...no. He makes him sound like Nagito. Bring Sam Reigel back, plz? And I guess now I have two nickels ‘cause an hour long series premiere of a Fate franchise anime ending right as we first see Saber happened twice!

Symphogear G - Got to hand it to this show. Going into this climax, they could’ve played it safe and just given us the Good Guys VS the Bad Guys for one final time, but they make it more complicated by having one from each side swap teams at the 11th hour (Shirabe’s now with the Good Guys and Chris is with the Bad Guys), having the lead baddie dying and unable to stop what she helped to start, and having poor Maria stuck in a chamber with Dr. Ver, the true psycho bastard in all this. I’m super pumped to see how this all turns out!

MAR - The Ginta VS Ash battle finally came and while it was quite interesting on Ash’s end that he didn’t want to kill or seriously harm Ginta since he’s still a kid and Ash is friend to all children, but from Ginta we just got more of the same “I hate Phantom and what the Chess Pieces do!” righteous fury. But hey, Ash ends up foreiting the fight to Ginta AND we even briefly see Ashs’ face behind the skull mask! And he’s just...some good looking dude! Who’d have thunk it?

Gintama - It felt like such a long wait, but finally we have Sacchan! Though the premiere already showed us what she’s all about, her proper debut does well in showing her discovering that kinky, masochistic side of herself and starting to bring it out more in sneaky ways as she’s working her plan to lay low from the literal rat bastard she’d been out to assasinate. It meanders a bit in places, but that’s more than made up for when Gin and Sacchan raid the rat’s hideout, with so much of the situation and the dialogue from all the characters being hilarious. And so, when Sacchan left only to come back literally the very next day for more kinky stuff with Gin, it felt all too right.

AND

Yuki Yuna Is A Hero - Finally, I’ve seen the last three episodes that make up the climax and finale of the initial series, where Yuna, Fuu, Itsuki and Karin fight against a huge horde of Vertex unleashed by Togo and have to stop them from killing the Shinju Sama and with it, destroying the entire world. It’s definitely a case where I can say I really enjoyed it, BUT. And in this case the “BUT” would be that the lead-in to the finale, what literally makes it all happen, is straight up contrived nonsense. Pulling a “this is the dark, despair-inducing TRUTH of the world you live in and fight for” twist without having put in the worldbuilding effort to really earn it just kind of takes a dump on the integrity of the Heroes Club and their nice little slice-of-life regular setting, and it feels like it was just done to throw a Madoka takeoff on top of an already implemented Madoka takeoff, as well as serve as a cheap and convenient way to justify Togo taking a leap right into “kill everything and end it all!” nihilism. I also don’t think we needed to see Sonoko again, and what was done, or NOT done, with the Taisha was beyond disappointing given the earlier build-up, though I hear that it finally ended up happening in one of the later seasons. But I can’t say it took me out of it completely and that I wasn’t engaged in the action from start to finish, nor that the second half of the final episode didn’t get to me. Seiji Kishi really knows how to make good on the heartfelt moments and I just love the Hero Club girls so much that I wanted more than anything to see them all happy in the end. Thankfully they are, and as later seasons prove, they always will be.

[hysokaz]

i cant HATE hanzo because i dont think that he meant to do what he did but his whole fight with gon was just a HORRIBLE lesson to gon. he 1000% internalised everything that happened theres just no way that he didnt. being told over and over again that he cant win, that he needs to give up, and having countless adults just stand around and not say or do anything. like i know i know its part of the exam it HAS to test his mental skill but its fucking cruel the only person helping him or showing that they care is leorio, killua, and kurapika. everyone else is literally turning their heads from him. hes getting told that theres no way he could win as hes fucking bleeding and all of his senses are fucked up. he cant see, he cant hear out of one ear, he cant get up, he has a broken arm, his nose just got busted and he still tries to fight, he doesnt give up, and he tells leorio that hes fine. its nothing he cant handle.

hes screaming out in pain and no one is doing anything. they might stare in shock or they might show that they litearlly cant stand to watch gon but gon litearlly cant SEE. gon is stubborn to all hell and he wont give up.

the fight does a couple of things.

by eventually winning, it teaches him that he can keep going. he can have absolutely no strength in his body and he still will force himself to try and recover and try to fight. i could see gon exhausting himself to death because of this mindset. he will force himself over and over and he refuses to give up no matter what and he will only ever use his own strength and try to win. he goes through the thought that hanzo wouldnt cut off his legs because that would make him bleed out-- he doesnt think about how horrific it would be to have his legs cut off, its not like he doesnt take it seriously, but he doesnt take his own life seriously. he doesnt CARE. he would rather die than not be a hunter.

people praise him when he does well in the fight, and that teaches him that all he has to do is keep going. all he has to do is do good and he will be fine. all he has to do is keep getting back up and people will love him and he'll be admired. and all of this because of his dad, because he wants to find his dad, and i think the fight also teaches him that his father would eventually praise him for all of his efforts.

by hanzo still being nice, and not actually wanting to kill gon, pleading with him over and over again that hes not going to quit, that gon is going to die if he continues... and then hanzo pussing out and not doing it like that plants the idea in his head that the "bad guys" or the people that he has to fight ARENT that bad, i believe. this ones a hunch. i think that this will put it in gons head that eventually he will come out on top because his opponents cant be the worst people inside of their hearts, that they wouldnt kill him. you can bring up that gon refuses to take an easy win, that gon NEEDS to have a fair fight, but that doesnt really change anything. subconsciously, i think gon has a bit of an overconfidence that he cannot die. hisoka didnt kill him, hanzo didnt kill him, genthru didnt kill him, whatever and whoever didnt kill him. he wont die. i think that if gon ever accepted that he COULD die, like truly let it set in, then he would lose part of himself. i think gon refuses to truly have it in his head that he COULD die because i think that would admit defeat. i know that gon knows he can die, but his mortality and his own life is not serious to him because thats not a concern to him. his concern is his father and his friends.

by his friends being the only ones to outwardly show support, by being the ones who would scream out and tell him to quit, by him hearing them and knowing in his heart theyre barely holding themselves back to save him, their bond grows. i dont want to say thats unfortunate... but its kind of unfortunate. i dont want their bond and friendship to grow over feelings of pain and anguish, but thats what happens. he hears their cries and i know he internalises it as strength for him to keep going. the desperation that his friend show him only makes him be committed to them more. gon doesnt need verbal support, he barely needs people to tell him they like him. after all killua is his closest friend not because killua says nice things to gon and tells him sweet things or anything like that-- he and killua are best friends because of their actions. killua is committed to gon. gon knows that. he trusts killua because of that. gon sees the things his friends do for him, and it makes him want to match those exact things as well.

hanzos age is also a small thing, but a big thing at the same time. hanzo does mention his age to gon as a side note, but gon brings it up as a main point. he talks about how hanzo is only six years older than him. he doesnt keep going with that point, but i think his brain does do something with it. gon ends up putting that as motivation, i know he wants to match hanzos strength. he probably wants to be better than hanzo, stronger and more skilled. if gon got to hanzos age and was weaker than him i think he would hate himself for it. gon has unreasonably high expectations of himself, and age matters to him in the way that he needs to be stronger than everyone else. yes, to make his father proud and to thank him, but i know its also so he can protect his friends and family as well.

even what killua eventually eventually does, just that small thing of drawing hanzos face on the ground and saying that gon is nowhere near his strength... thats just basically forcing gon to compare himself to hanzo (something i know killua didnt mean as a bad thing). hanzo isnt the biggest threat that gon has ever had to deal with; i dont think that he has made THE absolute most impact, but i HAVE to think about it in this sense: gons spirit is...strong. but hisoka wounds it when he gives him an "easy win" and passes gon his badge. this makes gon deal with a bunch of self worth issues for a few days straight... and then hanzo goes and does all of that to him. had it been separate from everything that hisoka did i think that it mightve not hurt as much, but all of the stress i know went to his head. the end of the hunter exams were some of the most impactful yet painful events for gon, at least thats what seems to show once you looka t the behaviour that follows. i cant hate hanzo because i know he didnt mean to make gon develop the way he did. but i think hanzos fight did horrible damage to the way gon thinks.

[ouranimeyeah]

Togashi and Kishimoto interview

Kishimoto: It's been a while, Togashi-sensei.

Togashi: Indeed, we haven't talked to each other in a while.

Interviewer: Welcome to the interview, we have a lot of questions to ask, but first of, how did the two of you meet?

Kishimoto: Before I became a professional mangaka, I was already a big fan of Togashi-sensei, I was able to greet him at the Jump Festa but we have already met each other on several occasions because I knew well an assistant who worked in the same office as him, I received an invitation.

Togashi: Yeah, we went to eat Yakiniku, right? (Yakiniku is a Japanese steakhouse of Korean origin)

Kishimoto: Yes. Well, during that time period I was having difficulty creating my manga. I thought I'd ask you for some tips sensei, the first time we met I was a little nervous but luckily Sensei was very nice to me which helped me get over my nervousness and allowed me ask a lot of questions. After diner, he showed me his workshop, the cycle of creating a manga, how to have a good work atmosphere and many other things.

Interviewer: Togashi-sensei have you read Kishimoto-Sensei's manga before meeting him?

Togashi: Of course, I'm often asked my opinion about new upcoming manga, one of my assistants (the one who knows Kishimoto) brought me the first chapter of Naruto, given the fact that I didn't know he was friends with Kishimoto I gave him my honest thoughts, I recall saying that it was very interesting, the concept of the nine tails would be a great asset in the development of the story.

Kishimoto: I was really happy to receive a positive review from the author of Yu Yu Hakusho and other works that I like, but at the same time I knew that I had to be very careful not to overuse the Nine tails or it would end up being redundant to my readers.

Interviewer: Togashi-Sensei, is there anything else that caught your attention while reading Naruto?

Togashi: When I read the scene where Kakashi fights Team 7 while holding his book, I couldn't help but compliment Kishimoto-sensei, using that little detail to show the difference of experience between the characters made me realize that the author was really creative. Also Kishimoto has some really impressive drawing skills, I heard that in order to understand or evaluate the skills of an artist, you need to judge the way they draw hands, and the way his characters hold things in hand is impressive.

Kishimoto: I like concentrating on a single body part, Back when I was in Highschool, I had a notebook filled with drawings of hands and legs under different angles, I guess you could call it my fetish.

Togashi: I think it's beneficial for your work, there's a good balance between the use of basic Shonen tropes and your own original contributions.

Kishimoto: Lately I feel like I'm more restrained by the bases I've set at the beginning of the story, there are a lot of things I would like to change but it's really difficult.

Togashi: As long as you do not break the rules that you consider are key to the story, the changes you bring will go with no problems, try and experiment different ways and face multiple challenges. Interviewer: Alright, I would like to ask Kishimoto-sensei what are some of the things you like in Togashi-sensei's works?

Kishimoto: His works are amazing in multiple aspects, before I started working on my manga, I was one of the many fans of Yu Yu Hakusho and I also read HxH with great passion.

Interviewer: What do you find impressive about his works?

Kishimoto: His way of surprising the reader, First of the way he can create unexpected scenes that can show the threat that the enemies represent, the Kagebushin no Jutsu of Naruto is strongly inspired by Suzaku's technique in Yu Yu Hakusho. The idea of having after-images be real was very innovative, I was excited and thought "how will they beat this guy", Another thing that I liked were the characters expressions during the scenes where they witness their enemy reveal their true power, I've studied a lot about the delicate balance of expressions of characters when they're surprised or when they find themselves in a dangerous situation, Back when I've started the serialization of Naruto, my inspiration for these kind of facial expressions was Hunter x Hunter, even to this day it still has a special place for me and I often re-read it. next there's the character Hiei who's been developped in a fantastic way.

Kishimoto: I was already a big fan of Hiei back when I was only a reader, but I've also took him as a source of inspiration when I started creating my characters, At first I wasn't able to create a "cool" character, I didn't know where to begin so I studied one my favorite characters: Hiei, and I succeeded in creating Sasuke, the Sharingan as well as some of his other techniques were inspired by him.

Interviewer: Interesting ! Now that I think about it that has to be true.

Kishimoto: Another fantastic thing about Togashi's works is the amount of ideas and themes presented in his works, In every battle, the reason or the trick that led to the victory or defeat of a character is well explained, the chapters I liked the most were the ones covering the fight between Gon and Genthru (Bomber), in which the final outcome was already decided for a while, every time I read it I'm fascinated.

Interviewer: From what I've heard thus far, it seems there are some similarities between the two of you.

Togashi: Indeed, I'm not the kind of mangaka that is energetic and sacrifices his body and soul to draw manga but in return, I think I have the ability to analyze in a very detailed way movies, novels and other manga by expressing in my very own way the interesting parts that I come across, when I decided to make a living out of drawing manga, I promised myself to create something good regardless of my highs and lows, something that would be able to make someone cry with only my own abilities as a mangaka, there was a time where I studied thoroughly these techniques, I get along well with Kishimoto because I see in him the same commitments, I feel a great sympathy for Kishimoto-sensei.

Kishimoto: I also have my own methods of analyzing and my own techniques like for example Santakuho (3rd alternative, surprising the reader with a 3rd possible conclusion even though in the past there were only 2) each method is explained and commentated on in my ideas notebook and named appropriately.

Togashi: It's amusing, isn't it?

Kishimoto: I feel a strong aura between me and Togashi-sensei. But with only analyzing, we can't overcome the thrill, emotions and authority of a writer, for this reason while continuing to analyze, I try to infuse my own emotions as much as possible into my stories. I find these emotional and dramatic aspects in Sensei's works as well, which is impressive.

Togashi: Well, Kishimoto's works, even though are carefully made, they still manage to captivate the readers when need to be, I myself have worked hard on this aspect, so I easily see if the emotions of the author reach the reader's.

Kishimoto: Thanks! for me Togashi is a great Senpai, having more experience than me but also a rival in the Weekly Shonen Jump ring, we don't get many opportunities to meet each other, but when one reads Sensei's works, it's as if he's having a conversation with him.

Interviewer: Any final words?

Togashi: I think Kishimoto-sensei's works are interesting and entertaining, but I'm also curious what the future holds for them, I am confident in the future of Naruto and Kishimoto.

Kishimoto: I respect Togashi-sensei and I feel close to him since a little while now, even before we were under the same chief editor, it's been a while since I've met him in person, so I was very happy to meet him here today. Also, as a reader, I look forward to see how the Chimera ant arc will conclude, In the future, I will work hard to reach his level, please continue to be an excellent example for all of us.

Togashi: Now, drawing manga has become more interesting and fun, so let's continue to give it our all together on this path !

[sideblogintervention]

god digging up that bit from my 10 pg thesis comparing gon and killua to gai and kakashi from nart. oh and another bit abt gon

Denies killuas involvement, where he has never done so before (chimera ants “since it means nothing to you” vs greed islands “even if you don’t share my reason to be here” – the same statement with wildly different contexts. Greed islands foreshadowing of the miscommunication issues between gon and killua that leads to the disaster that is chimera ant: that gon does not understand that killua is here and following and assisting gon not because he just has nothing better to do or because he cares directly about gons goal the way gon does, but because he is following gon himself. Gon is his reason, and so even if killua does not have the same relationship to his goals, he cares by proxy etc etc “this person is important to someone important to me”. That killua believes gon finds his companionship worthless or not as important to him as killua finds it, when gon simply does not understand that killua still cares because of how much killua cares for him

[was talkin abt differences between responses to trauma in the chars] But gons response is in line with his character trait of disregard for his own life, devaluing of his own life, which we have seen as a constant throughout the story. When it first showed up, I think its easy to understand it as typical shounen protag recklessness and foolhardy bravery. But in gon it becomes increasingly clear over the course of the arcs that it is not just recklessness in gon, its an active understanding of his life as expendable where others’ arent. Like everyones seen it already but that part in yorknew where he explicitly tells killua that hes allowed to talk blithely about sacrificing himself but killua isn’t, when he answers that question about what would make meruem rip off his own arm and hes like “oh well I would do that if I did something I couldn’t forgive myself for” even back in the way beginning, our first introduction to gon, he nearly dies jumping off the ship trying to save a man going overboard, he nearly dies saving killua, he nearly dies fighting genthru for the sheer pride of it, loses an arm for pride. or to prove himself? i need to rewatch. Loses his life in chimera ant for grief and guilt. Takes a life for grief and guilt. Gons explosion is tragic for a lot of reasons, primarily because he yknow. Almost dies. But part of his tragedy that is different from gais is that gons self destruction is a desperate act of self punishment in response to not being able to forgive himself of the sin of being fourteen and unable to stop a friend/mentor/potential father figures death