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Senior Member
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On Jun and hikkikomori.
~Topics~
" Who is Jun-kun? "
" Why doesn't Jun go to school? What's hikkikomori? "
" Why is Jun in such a sorry state? "
" How does Jun develop in the series? "
" After episode 12 of ~Traumend~, does Jun suck or not? "
" Is Jun financially better off after meeting Shinku and gang? "
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" Who is Jun-kun? "
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Jun (lastname: Sakurada) is the lead character in the Rozen Maiden anime and manga. In the course of the series, Jun's already messed up life is further turned upside down by the intrusion of the Rozen Maidens, starting with the fifth doll of the Rozen Maiden series: Shinku. He is cold and rude, and indeed, appears arrogant and indifferent to the feelings of others. Although he does not seem it; we soon find out that he is exceptionally skilled at sewing and cloth-crafts...
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" Why doesn't Jun go to school? "
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Jun is a typical hikkikomori. Hikkikomori literally means 'pulling away, or being confined.' The name is used to describe people, usually adolescents (tho not limited to a particular age group), who choose to withdraw themselves from all social interactions, including those with family members, and instead seek extreme isolation. Jun certainly fits such a description. The indifference expressed towards his sister Nori; his resentment towards his absent parents; the hermitage he keeps, locked up in his room; his addiction to the thrills of ordering junk over the Internet; and the way he reacts furiously whenever the word School is brought up, all point to the fact that he isn't your normal teenager.
As well as being a hikkikomori; Jun can be said to be suffering from tōkō kyohi (登校拒否), or school refusal; that is, simply a condition in which emotional distress (fear or anxiety) towards school prevents one from attending school. In Jun's case, his fear of attending school stems from the fear of meeting school-mates who might have previously known/heard of him. This also prevents him from leaving his home. Such provides a clue as to a cause for his self-isolation, which will be elucidated upon in the next heading.
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" Why is Jun in such a sorry state? "
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The following contain spoilers to the last part of Rozen Maiden Season 1. It's advised for those who have not watched beyond episode 11 of "S1" not to click on the spoiler tag. Remember, its always more enjoyable to find out for yourself! 
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" How does Jun develop in the series? "
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The following contain spoilers to much of Rozen Maiden Season 1 and ~Traumend~. It's advised for those who have not watched both seasons completely not to click on the spoiler tag. Remember, its always more enjoyable to find out for yourself!
Spoiler for spoilers Start here:
We find out early in the Anime and Manga that Jun is more kindly than he seems.
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At first, even though acting a tad cowardly at the death threat of Sugintou, he unexplainably uses his sewing kit to piece back the Clown who attacked him. Later, he finds himself curiously affected by HinaIchigo's pitiful crying for "the food she loves best." Knowing exactly what she wants makes him uncomfortable, and this makes him do the previously unthinkable: leave the house searching for an open Daifuku store. Yet still, he doesnt want to admit what he did; when back he tries to escape the fact that he did something selfless by displaying a furious veneer.
As season 1 progress, other more subtle developments occur. He becomes more appreciative of his sister Nori whom before then he treated like dirt. He starts to eat at the dining table. Slowly, slowly, he spends more time out of his room. In fact, the inward strength of Jun is hinted at by the almost limitless amount of power he supplies Shinku, such that she can outmatch Suigintou - admittedly one of the most powerful dolls.
Jun's conflict with school and his hikkikomori self reaches its climax in his dream world. Faced with desks and loads of papers that would drown him; he overcomes his nightmares to join Shinku and aid her fight. He goes as far to reassure Shinku when she loses her arm. And fittingly symbolic, he defeats the mire/sinking sand to retrieve Shinku's arm; at the end, his dream world starts to clear, with golden rays of sun reaching thru the clouds. The maturation of Jun in Season 1 culminates with him taking a leisurely walk down the street for the first time; and with some determination, not minding the curious stare of his school mates.
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In ~Traumend~ such development continues. Jun prepares for School entry exams, even studying in a public library. He is more willing to interact with humans, we find him walking back with Tomoe and holding conversation with Shirosaki and Enju.
Its obvious too that Jun loves the dolls now. In the earlier fights with Bara, Jun shields Shinku with his body. Jun provides emotional support to Shinku, helping to ease her load regarding the appearance of all 7 sisters. Although at first hurting her with his quick words, he later comforts her with the Musical box. He becomes Suiseiseki's medium, and notably, he goes out of his way to build to cheer Suiseiseki up after her sister's demise. Still, such things do not occur without some irate scolding/screaming at the dolls but at this time we all know he means no harm. Also too, no longer does Jun try to hide it when he does something thoughtful; for example, buying the musical boxes for the dolls.
He thoughtfully sends Hina back to Tomoe before she sleeps forever. He cries for Enju to stop the doll's fight, and realising the cruelty; berates Rozen for making daughters that love him suffer.
At the climax, his moral sense comes to the fore when Shinku prepares to strike Bara. Screaming out to stop Shinku from killing that would be regretted, whereas the Jun we knew at the start of Rozen Maiden didnt appear to have much morals.
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It can be said that one of the themes, if not the main, of Rozen Maiden is Jun's mental/social recovery as an outgoing social individual, a school-goer and a responsible younger brother through his interaction with the dolls.His adventures frequently require him to come face to face with his fears, and thru the dolls; whether acting directly or acting indirectly as a catalyst to his determination; the hurdles of his tōkō kyohi complex are slowly overcome.
Although his recovery is more apparent thru the big conflicts; we find that the most recovery comes from subtle, not so obvious areas. Simply interacting with dolls; talking with them, finding out their traits, their duty to Father, their fears, joining them in their tribulations; in other words, coming to love them and feeling the need to protect them, help to mature him to a responsible and caring individual. That Jun becomes matured in such a way becomes obvious in episode 12 of ~Traumend~ where Jun meaningfully stops Shinku from killing Barashishou in cold blood. Its the personal belief of this writer that such unnoticed interactions are really the main force behind his change.
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///It is also revealed (more so in S1 than ~Traumend~) that Jun not only is skilled in sewing-crafts but has special ability to bring back the souls of the lost ones; dolls with no more identity of their own. Shinku remarks on his fine seams; and later, gasps that only a Maestro, someone with Fathers ability, can do such a thing. Shinku even allows Jun to sew her dress later, in one of the more touching Jun x Shinku scenes. Most shockingly, at the end of Season 1, Jun returns Shinku's arm to her joint with a mysterious thread from his medium ring. Yes, for the first time, he heals a Rozen Maiden.
More information on Jun as a Maestro is provided in the following post.
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" After episode 12 of ~Traumend~, does Jun suck or not? "
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This was an interesting dicussion sparked between grey_moon and Spectrum in the early days of our 3xx thread; right after the happenings of episode 12 ~Traumend~. This writer hopes to present an unbiased neutral recounting of the Discussion. Any further discussion should be carried to the Rozen Maiden ~Traumend~ thread
The following contain spoilers to the ending of ~Traumend~. It's advised for those who have not watched till episode 12 of ~Traumend~ not to click on the spoiler tag. Remember, you can always join the discussion after watching it for yourself!
Spoiler for spoilers Start here:
This discussion focused essentially on whether Jun was to blame for Shinku's death.
As you should know (if you don't you shouldnt be reading this; TURN BACK NOW AND WATCH IT) Jun stopped Shinku from killing Bara, in the process, distracting Shinku and leaving Bara the opportunity to send a crystal spike through Shinku; which she took with a most pleasant smile.
There are two main opinions in this discussion. (1) Jun did the right thing by stopping Shinku, even if that meant her Death, and opposing that, (2) Jun did the wrong thing in stopping Shinku, because that would mean her death. At this point, the fact that Shinku got rebuilt is irrelevant because Jun would have no way of knowing that it would happen.
A first argument in favour of (1) is how Shinku would have felt like if she did kill Barasuishou out of anger. Definitely, she would feel scarred and ashamed. No matter whether she died or not, if Shinku killed Bara then we and they would only know that Shinku killed Bara for revenge, which would be so un-Shinku like. Indeed, it would be tantamount to Shinku betraying herself; which would just be making her entire effort of the whole season to have been a lie of a hypocrite. Jun did a right thing in stopping her from becoming like Bara.
Counter argument is given in the favour of (2), saying that Jun had a choice between Shinku winning, but feeling pretty terrible about everything; and Shinku going back to her pacifist self and getting stabbed in the gut by Barasuishou. The OP felt that if he were in that situation, he'd rather choose a live, emotionally scarred Shinku (who can recouperate someday) then a dead Shinku. Yes, a distraught, changed Shinku with whom Jun could rebuild the rest of their lives was preferred over a dead Shinku.
(1) was then supported by then saying that it was not entirely Jun's fault because he would not have anticipated that Barasuishou would do the point blank stab. This was sarcastically shot-down by the following post:
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Yeah, it's not like Jun could have known Barasuishou was a murderous rampaging doll who only wanted to become Alice by killing off Shinku. It's not as if he had a previous encounter with her while other important things were going on. It's not as if she, while having difficulty walking around, was only looking for Shinku and calling her name. It's not as if she snapped and attempted to skewer Jun with a crystal burst, even if seems to be poor form in the series to threaten someone else's medium.
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Basically, since Jun met Bara one on one and saw her actions throughout the series, especially the cold way in which she destroyed Suiseiseki and Kanaria, he should have known that Bara would probably take advantage of Shinku's pacifism.
However, in favour of (1), it was replied that tho likely; there was no sure way to know until after the event that Bara was going to impale Shinku.
It ends by shifting the blame to Bara. "If Bara decided to win at all costs then how is that Jun's fault?"
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" Is Jun financially better off after meeting Shinku and gang? "
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by grey_moon
Before Jun met Shinku he used to waste his money on trying to buy cursed dolls. He brought a stupid amount, but sent them back to get a refund. I would guess he kept a few and would have to pay for p&p.
After meeting Shinku we can see that the cost of food has increased dramatically, lucky he doesn't need to pay for broken windows etc. But in S2 if you look on "Shinku's shelf" you can see she has built up a fair collection of Kun Kun stuff, including what looks like a DVD collection and of course the Kun Kun detective kit.
Now since Shinku has already pointed out that her servant's possessions are hers and hers are her own I'm pretty sure that's Jun's cash that was used to pay for it.
So IMHO he is far worse off financially (but better of spiritually) now then before.
Conclusion, in the past he spent money trying to buy cursed dolls and now cursed dolls spend his money...
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Last Updated 10/10/2006
Last edited by Lost; 2006-10-09 at 12:21.
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