2012-06-08, 08:28 | Link #301 | |
Detective, Witch, Pirate.
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Ruins of the Golden Land
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2012-06-08, 09:45 | Link #302 | |
天界の異端審問官
Join Date: Apr 2011
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It's a supernatural story, it should just be taken as simple as that imo. |
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2012-06-08, 10:24 | Link #303 |
Junior Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Yeah. If it was Higurashi or Umineko, I could understand trying to disprove all the youkai, but this story isn't about proving and disproving whether or not the youkai exists. I mean, it's a neat perspective and I HAVE actually tried to go through the stories I've read with that perspective, but in the end I think it's meant to be enjoyed under the belief that the youkai exist.
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2012-06-08, 11:50 | Link #304 |
Blick Winkel
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Gobbled up by Promathia
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The fact that it makes sense without the youkai also has to do with it.
Youkai lure their prey with some sort of temptation, and those who fall victim lose their souls. In other words, the weak-willed's souls are irreversibly corrupted. I definitely agree that the ending was a downer , but if you think Of it this way it's a bit better. |
2012-06-08, 12:19 | Link #305 |
Spider Lily Translations
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: England
Age: 30
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By the way, people mentioning the ending… Higanbana was designed to be released in two parts, so The First Night isn't really supposed to conclude anything. Although I haven't read The Second Night, I hear it has a proper ending…?
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2012-06-08, 16:47 | Link #306 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: With the runaways
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Spoiler for Chp 7 ending:
Only by the end of the game I got this feeling: pity. For all the humans falling for the youkai, even Hikaru or Sumire's bullies, because although I am aware youkai are not all powerful and humans have the final say of "listening" to them, I am also aware what suffering and feeling worthless can do to people. The only negative about the final chapter to me was the slow pacing, it felt prolonged simply to increase length as the final story, but once "Reiko" got introduced, it got interesting. Many times I thought "Please don't let x happen..." and, indeed, it avoided many traps and was sufficiently satisfying. Yup, higanbana reminded me that ryu is pretty good when it comes to plot twists. The setting of the human/non-human world, its implications and the way their inhabitants affect each other was very effective in treating many issues like suicide, bullying, addiction, power abuse and social conformity in imaginative and interesting ways. No flowers bloom in death. Beautiful. For a third time, thanks for the translation and I look forward to the second night!
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2012-06-09, 16:43 | Link #307 |
Detective, Witch, Pirate.
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Ruins of the Golden Land
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I'm currently reading Utopia, and something with this chapter just doesn't sit right with me. Children are being portrayed as irrationally cruel in this chapter, and even for the teacher to join into the bullying.....
I mean, I haven't actually experienced anything like this in my school life, so it seems a bit unnatural to me, but is bullying such a big problem in Japan or anything, or is Ryukishi just pulling all of that out of his head?
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2012-06-09, 17:02 | Link #308 |
Spider Lily Translations
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: England
Age: 30
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I can imagine bullying is a big issue in all countries. However, the bullying in Higanbana is most probably hugely exaggerated. While horrible incidents are known to happen, I'd hope the majority of people would only experience minimal amounts of bullying, if at all.
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2012-06-09, 17:50 | Link #309 | |
Junior Member
Join Date: Jun 2012
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Spoiler for chapter 7 ending:
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2012-06-09, 21:24 | Link #310 |
Junior Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
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My main PC blew up, so I haven't been able to read Higanbana, so I don't have any comments on anything past 4, but I can confirm that Ryukishi isn't really exaggerating about the bullying. I was bullied to extent in school, and looking on it had I not had the internet (which was honestly my saving grace), I don't know where I would be now. I don't think I would've chosen an answer like murder or suicide, but these are answers that many bullied kids come to. And yes, teachers join in on the bullying, or outright ignore it often. I've seen it in my own schools. Most bullying is the kind in Hameln's Castanets
Spoiler for Chapter 5, early on:
I know it's hard to fathom if you haven't been bullied yourself, but yeah, this happens, and far too often. Again, like I said, Japan in particular has an extremely high teenage suicide rate, so it's probably something Ryukishi sees in the news often. I don't think we see it as often in America, though it's not uncommon to hear of teens committing suicide because they were bullied for being gay. Try not to think of them as exaggerated, because they honestly aren't. Just search google for news articles on the issue, you'll find more than you think. |
2012-06-09, 23:23 | Link #311 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
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Much of the bullying in Hameln's Castanets was kinda instigated by himself.
I'm surprised no one thinks that Spoiler for Ep 7 moment:
The rest of the bullying in this story, I can completely understand, but that spoiler is the one thing I simply cannot fathom seeing in any real school, and even if it did happen, it would not happen without consequence. I'm not sure how the media works in Japan, probably wouldn't make such a big deal about it, but if that happened over here, parents would be calling for those kids heads on a platter. I mean, I'm sure many of the readers were very happy to see them die horrible deaths by falling off a bridge on a bus. EDIT: Spoiler for Further argument.:
Last edited by cronnoponno; 2012-06-10 at 00:31. |
2012-06-10, 03:53 | Link #312 |
Detective, Witch, Pirate.
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Ruins of the Golden Land
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Just got to that part.
Spoiler for Chapter 7:
Having finished this chapter, I must say it was my least favorite from the First Night. Maybe that's mostly because I couldn't completely sympathize with the situations it presented, since the worst I've ever experienced in my school life was having nasty rumors spread about me, but those can't get to you if you don't give a shit, plus I never witnessed anything of the sort happen in my class so all of it seemed a bit unrealistic. Well, as many above posts say, it really isn't that exaggerated, and I'm not as naive to the point that I can't understand people can make such asses of themselves, but another part I really don't get, is why would get that agitated just by an occassional abssence of their victim. I mean, shouldn't bullies normally think of their victim as worthless and look down on them rather than completely depend on them as an outlet for their rage? Bottom line is, I didn't think this was a bad chapter, especially since Spoiler for Chapter 7:
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2012-06-10, 04:03 | Link #313 | |
Junior Member
Join Date: Jun 2012
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2012-06-10, 04:30 | Link #315 |
Spider Lily Translations
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: England
Age: 30
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Well, chapters 1-6 I can understand, but I think chapter 7 is extremely exaggerated. And I think it's exaggerated that all these incidents are occurring in the same school. That's what I was getting at.
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2012-06-11, 02:35 | Link #316 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
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I started reading this game recently and it's pretty good. I finished reading chapter 1 and now half way through chapter 2. This isn't a thinking game i know but there's something that doesn't quite right, even if this is a supernatural story.
Spoiler for Chapter 1:
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2012-06-12, 04:41 | Link #319 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
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Spoiler for Chapter 1:
Quote:
Spoiler for :
Last edited by unsuspectingvisitor; 2012-06-12 at 04:55. |
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