[musouka]

Originally Posted by Sol Falling

Haha, well, I can't disagree, though the thing about Masa longing for people is part of what I'd characterize as his 'weakness'...Indeed, the conflict with his pride and morality is somewhat interesting, but like Yaichi pointed out, the trajectory of where Masa's leanings are taking him is already clear. Given that, I'm not really so sure the conflict remains especially notable...at the very least, I'm not in any suspense over his future actions (for now).

This relies almost entirely on assumptions. For one, the assumption that once Akitsu falls in with the group, there is nothing more to be said about him. This would only make sense if the central conceit is the struggle between Akitsu's stomach and his mind. From what I've seen, the central conceit is really more about the struggle between Akitsu's stomach, mind, and heart, which adds an entirely new dimension to his trajectory.

In other words, whether Akitsu joins the group isn't all that important. What really matters is what happens with both him and the members when he does.

Akitsu gives off a sense of paradoxical fragility. It makes perfect sense to me why Yaichi would be interested in what happens when that's threatened. Will he break under the strain of being in a kidnapping group, or will we see steel underneath the veneer--like we did when he fulfilled his duty as bodyguard in the first episode?

Originally Posted by Sol Falling

I'm actually not clear on this yet...and I suppose an explicit betrayal like that might make the discussion about Masa's characterization above more imminent. What I understood, though, was that Masa seemed to have mistaken Ume's elderly acquaintance as one of the House of Five Leave's members...unless it was Okinu instead? Yaichi, Ume, Otake, and Matsu only make four, so if that indeed was the mistake, Masa really would make five. Then again, I was somewhat curious as to Okinu's ambiguity over Matsu's motivation for visiting...I suppose some deception might well be going on anyway.

There's deception in the fact that he doesn't really know the true formation of this group and their goals--and no one is exactly jumping up to tell him either. He's entranced by their warm, welcoming exterior, but who knows what's underneath?

Originally Posted by Sol Falling

:P I'll admit I was a little glib. I don't think it necessarily disrespects any of the nuance of this series though. I know for a fact that yaoi and yuri works can have incredible emotional subtlety and depth. I also know (or at least I think I know) that this work doesn't intend to approach the line of explicit romantic interest. Nonetheless, what we have here are two guys fascinated with each other. From my experience, this is more female fantasy than reality, just like yuri is for me--and to be clear, I'm not saying that homosexuals don't exist, just that portrayals of them in media arts like anime and manga often reflect the interests of a largely heterosexual audience moreso than actual GLBT experience.

This is based off a manga series aimed at adult men. Ono has a large crossover audience, it's true, but it is somewhat off the mark to imply that this "fascination" is there mainly for fanservice. And let's be honest, this fascination could be played up a lot more than it has been if they really wanted to go this route. The idea that men can't be interested in the interactions and reactions of other men without it being homoerotic fanservice is more than just a little absurd, and I say that as someone with a forum avatar of Touma no Shinzou.

Originally Posted by Sol Falling

That kind of exercise is to a degree what watching this anime feels like to me, however, so my 'yuri' comment was basically to say I'm not at all confident I will appreciate this series on that enjoyment level.

And my comment was pointing out that there's no point in judging it on this male/male basis simply because you find an element of it doesn't fit into your own personal perception of how same-gender relationships are supposed to work.