2010-01-21, 09:50 | Link #2441 |
Seishu's Ace
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Kobe, Japan
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The one similarity with True Tears, I think, is that we're also talking about a complex relationship that dates back to elementary school and is laden with unspoken feeling. Very simialr in some ways, in fact - but with Shin and Hiromi you have not only a superficial politeness, but an erotic tension that neither can ignore.
Theowne, I would describe my description of "charmingly old-fashioned" as a compliment rather than a "complaint". It's interesting to see a smart, layered relationship drama about teens that doesn't focus on the hormonal. I wouldn't say this or the True Tears model is better, as I adore both shows - just very different. And if TT was 50+ episodes or CG 13, I think both those shows would necessarily have adopted different tones regarding their core relationships.
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2010-01-21, 17:14 | Link #2442 |
耳をすませば
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Toronto, Canada
Age: 34
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I meant "complaint" referring to your earlier comment about what was lacking in CG, not the "old-fashioned" comment. Most of my favourite anime are older series, anyways. Maybe one could call CG's approach unusual...then again, the circumstances of the main character's lives and relationships are also unusual. Maybe that's why it doesn't bother me. Then again, I don't particularly hold TT in as high regard either, so I will just chalk it up to personal preference.
Anyways, one thing that's still in my mind is the question of what Mizuki's point in the story is/was . Everyone else in the story seems to have some role to play, while his addition seemed pretty pointless. He didn't really trigger any kind of romantic development. Unless Adachi just wanted additional comic relief beyond Senda. His role seems a little aimless in what is otherwise fairly tight storytelling.
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2010-01-21, 17:27 | Link #2443 |
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Join Date: Apr 2008
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Maybe more of a "very very very rarely (and in _just_ the right circumstances)" calls him "Kou"? Two days ago, I started rewatching Cross Game, and in episode 27 (which I just watched), Aoba does call out "Kou" as part of her cheering during the Seishuu/Ryuuou game. Using "Kitamura-sempai" in that instance would be a bit harder on the throat, though, and anything else would perhaps leave others confused, but I suppose that she could have left the name off altogether... ^_^;
Ep. 29... Ah, Wakaba^H^H^H^H^H^HAkane. |
2010-01-21, 17:36 | Link #2444 |
Seishu's Ace
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Kobe, Japan
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If Mizuki ever had a real point in the series beyond making Kou look good by comparison, I've yet to discover it. I agree he's one of the weaker elements of an otherwise rock-solid construction.
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2010-01-21, 20:20 | Link #2445 |
Osana-Najimi Shipper
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Mt. Ordeals
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Now I know why I love ED4 so much... it's practically the thoughts of an osananajimi. Well, that's not necessarily true, since the 'singer' of the song could simply be a 'best friend' character, but c'mon now, this is Japan; the 'best friend of the opposite sex' character is almost always the osananajimi lol.
In any case, I really like the lyrics regardless. Kinda ironic its a bit sad considering the very upbeat tempo of the song. XD Thanks to Sub Smith for the entire translation of the song. The translation (and soft sub for the matter) is here, and I'm sure if you can get fansub anime, it should be trivial getting the original PV itself.
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2010-01-22, 01:17 | Link #2446 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Age: 35
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mizuki is complex, even though he lacks screen time, he's the guy that if aoba ever had a spot open in her heart he would be the one that she could go look to. You can see through his spartan room, with the few pictures he has taken. There of the moutains he loves, the only one that doesn't fit is one of Aoba, no matter how high he climbs he will never be able to climb into her heart. Even though he is somewhat pitiful, it's more the sad fate that he recieves due to the fact that aoba's heart belongs to baseball, wakaba, and kou. He never had a chance, even if he was her destined one, put his fate is a more obvioius one when compared to azuma. Actually when Azuma asks if siblings tied by marriage can get married and mizuki is standing there with the dust blowing at his feet saying that cousins too was quite a redeeming quality.
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2010-01-22, 02:49 | Link #2447 | ||
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Join Date: Feb 2008
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I never saw that as a problem with Cross Game either. I think, because they have known each other for so long, I would find it strange if they were awkward around each other. Kou did notice Aoba being attractive though. That scene when he looks through the window and watches her cleaning and someone's words...can't remember who...run through his mind while he is running away, - 'Aoba is really pretty and popular' (or something to that effect). What episode was it? True Tears...I didn't get why the main character liked her. It just was. It... I don't know...looked more like he was infatuated with her. I felt it didn't have any depth. He kind of liked her from far. He didn't know her. I like it when they show you exactly what makes them great together. But I didn't really like True Tears so my memory of it might be fuzzy On the other hand, like that Aoba and Kou know each other so well and are so alike. I usually dislike relationships where two people are similar, but every time someone says Aoba is like Kou it makes me very happy Aoba and Kou are really close to each other, for being able to know each other so well. So intimacy need not be physical. Aoba x Kou are already in my favourite pairings whether the get together or not. Quote:
Especially since Wakaba told her to not take Kou away from her. But really, who knows. First she needs to admit it to herself. Only then can we expect more. I think she is ignoring having feelings for Kou because she thinks he belongs to Wakaba. Akane might make her realise she likes him. Somewhere she is aware that she likes Kou, she is just not fully conscious of it yet. Once that happens we might see some development. Last edited by Asleep; 2010-01-22 at 03:07. |
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2010-01-22, 03:48 | Link #2448 | ||
♪~ Daydreaming ~♪
Graphic Designer
Administrator Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Italy
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I was saying she still doesn't call him Kou in normal life, she's still stuck with aitsu which perhaps is the only shade left of the "old" Aoba, and also perhaps the reason Adachi hasn't changed it so far, a sort of reminder of how things were once upon a time. Quote:
That's a very important point, but if I remember correctly it hasn't been brought up in quite a while. Can't remember precisely, but it might have stopped after the match with Ryuou when Aoba asked Ichiyo how Wakaba would look if she were alive.
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2010-01-22, 07:02 | Link #2449 | |
Hurray for Takako Shimura
Join Date: Sep 2009
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Sometimes, it looks like Adachi introduces a seemingly important character only to drop it like an old sock a few chapters/volumes later because he wasn't convinced by the character after all. I think this is what happened with Mizuki.
It was the good timing to introduce a rival for Kō in order to trigger the beginning of a romantic tension: Kō realizing he is jealous when a serious contender comes near Aoba and Aoba realizing she is a cute teenager and not just a tomboy anymore. Remember, she starts paying attention to her body and how she dresses inside the house when Mizuki moves in. However, in the end Adachi correctly presumed that it was much more interesting to use Azuma as a potential threat so once Mizuki completed his mission (sparking the "question"), he was cast aside from the main plot. I think nobody would have complained if Mizuki had been "put on a bus" after it was made evident that he would not be a real threat, because he did not contribute to the story anymore despite the character's untapped potential. Besides the romantic triangle, there was room for him as either the "I hate baseball" foil or the "awkward teenager surrounded by girls in a house" character. Yet none of that happened, with the exception of a few throwaway joke panels to remind us he exists. Since Mizuki has been around Kō and Aoba for a while, Adachi could have made him an interesting achor to the past constantly reminding them of their childhood antics when they "despised" each other; he could have also tried to maintain that explosive relationship between them via absurd schemes. Much more could have been done with Mizuki. It's too bad because Adachi is pretty good at creating complex secondary/supporting characters which almost appear to be the heroes of their own show in the background of the main story. I am thinking of Hanzō in Togarashi or Shin in Hiatari Ryōkō (one of the best supporting characters ever created by Adachi). Mizuki had the potential to join that group. Quote:
Yet, Aoba (thinks she) can get away with it because of her very peculiar relationship with Kō: they have known each other forever, he was the boyfriend of her sister and pretty much the only young guy in her daily life. Therefore, it can appear natural and unsuspiscious of her to use aitsu. However, given the reactions and comments from Akane, Ichiyo or even Azuma, she not fooling anyone but her and Kō. |
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2010-01-22, 10:57 | Link #2450 | |
Seishu's Ace
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Location: Kobe, Japan
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2010-01-22, 13:04 | Link #2451 | |
Alto x Ranka :)
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: New York City
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I do remember someone mentioning that there was extra details about Kou and Wakaba's childhood (and/or relationship) in the manga, so that probably shot down my idea all together
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2010-01-22, 14:37 | Link #2453 | |
Seishu's Ace
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2010-01-22, 17:00 | Link #2454 |
Hurray for Takako Shimura
Join Date: Sep 2009
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It's an interesting question, Guardian Enzo. My view on this might be altered by the knowledge of future events in the manga, although I think my answer was the same at this point in the story. Just in case, I answered in the manga's thread (page 56).
Regarding the topic of sexual tension between Kō and Aoba. First of all, the anime adaptation is tamer than the manga, which features some fan service (as always with Adachi) and "naughtier" dialogues. You might remember the scene when Aoba dozes off in the bath at her grandparents' home, gets a flashback dream about Wakaba and her, then remembers that Kō tried to join them. She wakes up as she screams something like "don't come in, you idiot". I think this scene is precisely the moment when Aoba becomes aware of her sexuality. In the flashback, she was yelling at Kō because he was ruining her private moment with Wakaba. In her teenage form, she is yelling at (imaginary) Kō because she is naked and vulnerable in the bath. At that point in the story, she has already started seriously reconsidering Kō. Furthermore, it happens just before Mizuki's arrival at the Tsukishima household, during which we see Aoba being careful about how she dresses up for the very first time. Long story short, I think the importance of that bath scene is underestimated. |
2010-01-23, 10:57 | Link #2455 | |
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2010-01-24, 14:15 | Link #2460 | |
耳をすませば
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Toronto, Canada
Age: 34
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baseball, drama, romance, school life, shounen, sports |
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