Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei LN - Archived Discussion

[anonfr]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

I'm not. So far (12 volumes in?), it reads like a kid's power fantasy. "See how my character is strong, how nothing phases him, how he's always right". At least there hasn't been a full blown "see how girls throw themselves at him", but that's all. Every obstacle he's faced has proven pretty trivial in the end. Except one instance when he was a kid.

Wow. This guy.
I feel like we just got done a very long conversation about you and your opinions. Thank you for popping up. Seriously.

[Anh_Minh]

Then I'm a much better writer than I thought possible if I can cram the equivalent of "a very long conversation" in two lines.

[kfcpanda]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

I'm not. So far (12 volumes in?), it reads like a kid's power fantasy. "See how my character is strong, how nothing phases him, how he's always right". At least there hasn't been a full blown "see how girls throw themselves at him", but that's all. Every obstacle he's faced has proven pretty trivial in the end. Except one instance when he was a kid.

Mm I think the biggest thing/reason why people like this story especially more or why I like it more at least is because the author doesn't give the pretense of a powerless mc.

We don't have the bullshit powerups that are so prevalent across most shounen stories (bleach, naruto, fairy tale in particular) where the mc suddenly gets powered up cos of friendship/love/friends/etc which really is kind of pathetic. It's not just that either, we also have the "gain hundreds year worth of training in an hour", the defy certain death due to loophole or deliberate antagonist ignorance (bleach, fairy tale come to mind especially), the "most powerful enemy until I get defeated and the real most powerful enemy comes along.

Instead, we are given a protagonist that needs no bullshit, we know how overpowered he is. Instead of reading what the author can pull out of his ass, we read about how the world around him reacts which is far more entertaining than reading about how the umpteenth "most powerful villain" almost kills Natsu/Ichigo but decides to spare him because he's "not worth it" and somehow the hero regains all their power and more in the next day and manages to defeat him only to find out there was a bigger baddy all along.

[fujin of shadows]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Then I'm a much better writer than I thought possible if I can cram the equivalent of "a very long conversation" in two lines.

Dude, your two lines barely cover that conversation

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by kfcpanda

Mm I think the biggest thing/reason why people like this story especially more or why I like it more at least is because the author doesn't give the pretense of a powerless mc.

We don't have the bullshit powerups that are so prevalent across most shounen stories (bleach, naruto, fairy tale in particular) where the mc suddenly gets powered up cos of friendship/love/friends/etc which really is kind of pathetic. It's not just that either, we also have the "gain hundreds year worth of training in an hour", the defy certain death due to loophole or deliberate antagonist ignorance (bleach, fairy tale come to mind especially), the "most powerful enemy until I get defeated and the real most powerful enemy comes along.

Instead, we are given a protagonist that needs no bullshit, we know how overpowered he is. Instead of reading what the author can pull out of his ass, we read about how the world around him reacts which is far more entertaining than reading about how the umpteenth "most powerful villain" almost kills Natsu/Ichigo but decides to spare him because he's "not worth it" and somehow the hero regains all their power and more in the next day and manages to defeat him only to find out there was a bigger baddy all along.

I'm not saying it's bad, and your points are good ones. I'm just saying: it isn't the kind of story where the hero faces overwhelming odds and eventually, after much struggle and suffering, triumphs through a combination of guts, cleverness, friendship, and incredible luck.

Instead, he faces enemies that are much weaker than he is. He uses his friends, but it often feels more like he gives them work to make them feel better than any real need for them. Rather than the kind of cleverness we could appreciate, he has out-of-this-world genius that mostly applies to a fictitious subject (magic).

We never wonder if he'll win (even as much as we ever wonder that... Of course the hero'll win, but you know what I mean?) At most, we wonder if he'll be able to win without using one of his hidden tricks (of which I'm sure he's still got a boatload).

Sometimes the narrator goes out of his way to tell us how easy something is for him, or that Tatsuya's right and anyone who has a different opinion from him is an idiot or a dreamer.

That's the kind of story it's been so far. I see no reason to think it'll change.

[fujin of shadows]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

I'm not saying it's bad, and your points are good ones. I'm just saying: it isn't the kind of story where the hero faces overwhelming odds and eventually, after much struggle and suffering, triumphs through a combination of guts, cleverness, friendship, and incredible luck.

Instead, he faces enemies that are much weaker than he is. He uses his friends, but it often feels more like he gives them work to make them feel better than any real need for them. Rather than the kind of cleverness we could appreciate, he has out-of-this-world genius that mostly applies to a fictitious subject (magic).

We never wonder if he'll win (even as much as we ever wonder that... Of course the hero'll win, but you know what I mean?) At most, we wonder if he'll be able to win without using one of his hidden tricks (of which I'm sure he's still got a boatload).

Sometimes the narrator goes out of his way to tell us how easy something is for him, or that Tatsuya's right and anyone who has a different opinion from him is an idiot or a dreamer.

That's the kind of story it's been so far. I see no reason to think it'll change.

The story of Mahouka is not about a weak character trying to be strong, it is a story of a strong character trying to live his life while caring for a single girl.

In reading Mahouka, focused on the world that the characters is living in, believe me, you'll appreciate Mahouka more.....

[anonfr]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Then I'm a much better writer than I thought possible if I can cram the equivalent of "a very long conversation" in two lines.

Did you really just claim to have summarized the topics?

No. Don't twist my words. I said the topic was about you, and you're opinion. Or people like you. You've essentially become a poster boy of the type of person this forum just got done talking about.

It's actually very amusing.

[Anh_Minh]

I don't need lessons to appreciate Mahouka, because:
- I read it, so it's not like I didn't like it on some level.
- it's up to me whether I like a story or not. I have absolutely no obligation to like it.

I was answering a single statement that I disagreed with. I don't trust we'll ever get an antagonist that'll be a credible threat to him.

Originally Posted by anonfr

Did you really just claim to have summarized the topics?

No. Don't twist my words. I said the topic was about you, and you're opinion. Or people like you. You've essentially become a poster boy of the type of person this forum just got done talking about.

It's actually very amusing.

I'm saying that kind of welcome - as if I'd written long, self-centered posts and cluttered the thread with them - after two on-topic lines was completely unwarranted. And if that's not what you meant, well, maybe you should express yourself better.

(About me? Or "people like me"? What does that even mean?)

[anonfr]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

I'm saying that kind of welcome - as if I'd written long, self-centered posts and cluttered the thread with them - after two on-topic lines was completely unwarranted. And if that's not what you meant, well, maybe you should express yourself better.

(About me? Or "people like me"? What does that even mean?)

Well if you go like 2 pages back we have a long discussion about people criticizing this series due to Mary Sue characters. Basically, people criticizing the series and the characters for the exact reasons you just said.

Like Literally almost exact words. It's just too good.

I've no interest in debating your opinion, that's your right. But I am highly amused at how perfect your timing was, to pop in and share that opinion So short after we just got done talking about people with your opinion. It's so perfect.

You have no idea how pleased I am you showed up with your perfect timing. ahhh.

[HypeDemolition]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

I was answering a single statement that I disagreed with. I don't trust we'll ever get an antagonist that'll be a credible threat to him.

I agree with this, I don't think there'll be any one person (unless they have him and Katsuto go at it maybe?) who will be a real challenge for him in combat. I do think there can be antagonists who will cause problems for him through politics and such like Koichi. Although, his enemies have been getting more and more "difficult" each arc, Lina could have been a real problem if she was more experienced and hardened I think.

[anonfr]

Originally Posted by HypeDemolition

I agree with this, I don't think there'll be any one person (unless they have him and Katsuto go at it maybe?) who will be a real challenge for him in combat. I do think there can be antagonists who will cause problems for him through politics and such like Koichi. Although, his enemies have been getting more and more "difficult" each arc, Lina could have been a real problem if she was more experienced and hardened I think.

Also, I kind of agree with this. While I hope stronger enemies do come out, this series is extremely political. It deals with Prejudice like elitism, social hierarchy, Social Status amongst noble families and positions. Social Status of Magicians versus regular humans.
Then it deals with espionage, domestic relations and foreign affairs, conspiracies, international terrorist organizations, a looming threat of war.
It's all extremely political. Political hardships do make a lot of sense for this series.

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by HypeDemolition

I agree with this, I don't think there'll be any one person (unless they have him and Katsuto go at it maybe?) who will be a real challenge for him in combat. I do think there can be antagonists who will cause problems for him through politics and such like Koichi. Although, his enemies have been getting more and more "difficult" each arc, Lina could have been a real problem if she was more experienced and hardened I think.

In combat, the bulk of the difficulty is about his need to maintain secrecy. It was the same for Lina. (That and his desire/need to not kill her.)

As for political difficulties... It's possible, I suppose. Or maybe he'll just dress as Batman again and threaten someone. It worked for him the last time.

[Ultragunner]

^ you sum it up pretty well .

It seems like people still b!tch about our MC is too OP. YES, he is, but it is the purpose of this LN where martial might and brute, destructive force isn't the problem. The problem here is how he will use it, how he will live in such society.

So far, most of his foes have been the underdogs, but you can't just say that Tatsuya has crushed everybody with ease, especially with the Vampire Arc where Lina could have killed him many times and it was Miyuki (with the assistance of Tatsuya) who destroyed the Parasites as Taysuya himself couldn't. Also, it's just the freakin' 1st year, more will come

IN SUMMARY, this series is NOT about our protagonists getting stronger (well, Tatsuya does gets a bit stronger) or overcoming the odds. It is, however, about power and how one will use it.

Well, I guess if someone after reading the LN and feel Mahouka is a "kid's power fantasy" then this LN is not really for them. The same goes for those that accuse Mahouka of being an "incest" story

[Echizen777]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

In combat, the bulk of the difficulty is about his need to maintain secrecy. It was the same for Lina. (That and his desire/need to not kill her.)

As for political difficulties... It's possible, I suppose. Or maybe he'll just dress as Batman again and threaten someone. It worked for him the last time.

The fact is that it's practically impossible to beat Tatsuya if you don't want to kill him, Regrowth will heal him. Even if both Tatsuya and Lina were bloodlusted, Lina could have won. Brionac is way better than Third Eye or Trident.

[pampz21]

bunch of text

Its all about Erika! :3

[Lazy cat]

talking about lina, i wanted see some political maquinations on the USNA side, and to know the powerfull magicians of other nations. like index that expanded to a global scale over the progress of the series.

[anonfr]

Originally Posted by Ultragunner

^ you sum it up pretty well .

Who is that addressed too?

Originally Posted by pampz21

Its all about Erika! :3

Always keeping priorities in Order Pampz. Never faltering. Good job.

[Chosen_Hero]

Originally Posted by pampz21

Its all about Erika! :3

That's how I remember it.

[hakazee]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Or maybe he'll just dress as Batman again and threaten someone. It worked for him the last time.

Yes if his enemy is very weak like Maki.
If the Politician is Prime Minister or Ten Master Clan leader ? I don't think so....

[Ultragunner]

Originally Posted by anonfr

Who is that addressed

I was quoting you but then I realize the next also holds so...