2011-08-30, 08:17 | Link #3121 | |
Hu Tao
Join Date: Oct 2006
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2011-08-30, 13:07 | Link #3125 | |
Licensed Hunter-a-holic
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: United Kingdom
Age: 35
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He's basically saying ''every coin has two sides'' and that ''nothing is truly good or evil'' but the examples he uses don't really relate much to the actual show. Whether the US had used, throughout it's history, it's power to ''force it's negatives on Third World countries'' (I don't think this is entirely true, at least not to the extent he presented it) or that terrorists are trying to get the world ''on the right path'' (which isn't entirely true, if he had taken the time to learn about how the group was formed in the first place) or the feeling of panic in the late 20th century about the end of days ... none of these apply to the plot or core themes in Madoka Magika outside of really shallow comparisons. Spoiler for Ep 12:
I don't know, but something about this seems more like an attention grab. Urobuchi certainly didn't seem to think any of his examples through. That or he's mixing up his political views with the show a la Miyazaki.
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2011-08-30, 13:30 | Link #3126 | |
Yuri µ'serator
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: FL, USA
Age: 36
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Since powers are seemingly based on a person's nature skill, karmic burden, emotions, grief seeds, and learned skills with magic; I'd it would likely highly vary person to person who was stronger rather than in general .
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2011-08-30, 13:57 | Link #3127 | |
The Spear of Destiny
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: A place where the stars cross.
Age: 31
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2011-08-30, 14:12 | Link #3128 | |
The True Culprit
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@Interview: Just validating my viewpoint that Gen really, REALLY doesn't know as much about the real world as he seems to think.
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2011-08-30, 15:48 | Link #3129 |
The GAP Man
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Maybe the terrorist analogy was inaccurate but if I had said something similar to, "the road to hell is paved with good intentions." or "you can messenger of life to one person but a bringer of death to another" or something along those lines.
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2011-08-30, 16:48 | Link #3132 | |||
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2007
Age: 35
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The examples/metaphors Gen brought up were certainly expressed rather poorly. I think, not so much because Gen's views on them don't have validity, but because each of them are such charged topics with controversial views in themselves that it comes across as somewhat flippant or arrogant of Gen to speak primarily of only his own interpretations of them.
On Gen himself, I think the reason the interview came out that way would have been because he tried/wanted to say too much, and brought too much into the conversation, rather than staying focused on the topic at hand and having a conversation suitable for the length of the article. An ironic example, perhaps, of Gen holding "excessive hope" himself :P (see below). Quote:
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(On the metaphor in the article itself: the point was that even though the world survived the Y2K scare, that was nowhere near the end of its troubles. Just like Homura, we are still entrapped by our excessive hopes.) Quote:
So, the United States was for a time (and is still trying to be) extremely prosperous. The people of America thought that was good, but the truth is that that prosperity came with a world of hidden costs which we are only starting to see right now. So too, the people of Al Queda must've been happy as heck when they managed to take down the Twin Towers. Unfortunately for them, as time passes forward the costs of that moment of happiness will be made more and more apparent to them. In the first example, the hidden costs might have been somewhat abstract things like global resources or economies; in the second, the hidden costs might have been directly applied to the families of the victims. However, in either case, by extracting a single moment of "progress" or happiness, the party which benefited unknowingly set in motion negative costs which would assault them in the future. For every moment you are happy, some hidden cost emerges somewhere in the world. As time passes onwards, the accumulation of those hidden negatives will slowly make their way around to you. That was the message Gen is trying to express by those examples, with only a very brief overture towards the idea that humans must therefore restrain their desires and hope only for happiness which is "within the bounds of logic" aka in line with reality (which is, incidentally, more or less the core of Buddhism). Last edited by Sol Falling; 2011-08-30 at 17:02. |
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2011-08-30, 18:08 | Link #3133 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
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Good interpretation of the interview btw.
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2011-08-30, 20:28 | Link #3135 | ||
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2007
Age: 35
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Perhaps, we shouldn't say here that Madoka "accepted the negative consequences" so much as she gave up entirely on making herself happy. Because she knew that it was impossible for her own personal happiness to last, she instead decided to devote herself to and find joy in being of help to others. This is quite an extreme example of "restraining your desires". On the other hand, it is still true that Madoka carefully made a wish which was not-excessive enough to be in line with reality, thanks to things such as the warning which Mami gave her and the example of Sayaka. So indeed that part still holds true. Actually, thinking of it in those terms, Mami: taught Madoka the gravity of real life/being a Puella Magi; Sayaka: showed Madoka the dangers of reckless altruism; Kyouko: reaffirmed Madoka's belief in hope and caring for others; and Homura: let Madoka understand the Puella Magis' pain, struggle, and suffering. These were the foundations of Madoka's wish. She did not recklessly hope for too much. She realized that for someone to be happy, someone else needed to suffer. She realized that her own happiness would never last. She realized how much Puella Magi around the world had suffered. So she made a self-sacrifice which resulted in a miracle. (Humans like ourselves could not hope for anything of such scale. But our self-sacrifices can still create miracles. If there is anything we can take from Madoka's example, it is to have the heart and self-awareness to know when you can create a miracle for someone else. Don't jump out and do it recklessly or self-righteously. But it is never wrong if you still try.) (On a grander level, if you are prepared to sacrifice and are willing to keep your desires within the bounds of reality, then it isn't wrong to hope. This is for normal humans.) |
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2011-08-31, 01:10 | Link #3136 | |
Meister
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Lets see...Both the anime and real world happenings have something in common...from good to bad...Sayaka is one good example. And the history of him in real life also do well for the people in his country. Yet was rejected by the government, which cause him angry and started doing terrorist attacks, which is bad to others. Great i really need some good source so i can use the skills easily... Sorry if i make bad comparisons...dont kill me. ...i need my textbook. |
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2011-08-31, 04:36 | Link #3137 | |
(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻
Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2006
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Anyway, the second system is far more humane and almost as good as the original. In fact it benefits from something the original system does not - longevity. We saw in the first system that it would get worse and worse until the world was destroyed. That is impossible in this new system unless Magical Girls stop being created for some reason, and even then, humans are capable of adapting to handle it. The second system, while not as efficient in the short term, provides greater returns in the long term. Kyubey benefits better from this system and "happiness" is spread around better. That's the funny thing about happiness. Individually, we all have moments of positive and negative. Collectively, we have the responsibility to consider how we let these moments affect others. We also largely have the ability to address them, because they are largely problems created by us to begin with. I think Gen's point was that the difference between the happiness Madoka chose to pursue and the happiness many in the world pursue is that her wish is more on par with a Ghandi, Mother Teresa, or Dr. King. Those people worked to address issues that immediately affected people while also building a bridge toward a better future for everyone. Dr. King for example wasn't just fighting for black rights, but the rights of all humans. His actions immediately helped the civil rights cause, but they also helped pave the way for equal rights for all people. Such people are inspirational because of that. However preserving happiness for some at the expense of others has shown to be short sighted and foolish. Many governments, America included, have done shameful things in the name of their own prosperity that harmed the prosperity of others. Rather than being an example that could pave the way for a better tomorrow, they instead chose the short sighted benefits over the long term. They didn't use their considerable power and influence to bring prosperity and happiness to all, and they paid the price for it. Kyubey, Sayaka, and Homura all lost their way in their intentions. Kyubey for his greed, Sayaka for her motivations, and Homura for her desires. Kyouko tried to force happiness, and learned a painful lesson about why forcing people to be happy is actually worse than letting people find it for themselves. Mami unfortunately never had a choice, but did make the best of it for the most part. Madoka made the wise decision, not of self sacrifice, but in observing the reasons why people were struggling for happiness and addressing the root of the problem as best as she could. Her results were progress, not a solution, and the "next Madoka" will eventually arise and further progress things. She didn't chose to sacrifice herself, she chose to devote herself. She's less of a martyr and more of a continual force that pushes the world toward the procession of happiness and hope for everyone. Did she sacrifice her own happiness? I don't think so - she seemed perfectly happy with her decision and even continues to hope for a miracle after that. I could further delve and speculate on the ending, but I'll just end here for the moment. ^^
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2011-09-02, 00:27 | Link #3140 | |
Stupidity is Bliss.
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: In Hancock's Heart
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despair, hope, madoka magica, magical girl, urobuchi gen |
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