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Post by wildfire2099 on Dec 31, 2015 16:27:20 GMT -5
Noodles is a great one... Kitsune really shines in that one. She's not just a thief to be a foil, but a 3-dimensional character, which is rare for supporting characters in comics, I've never liked Kitsune, and that story really sealed the deal for me. I felt she had a responsibility towards Noodles and should have blamed herself more than she did. She did blame herself... quite a bit. Usagi had to stop her from turning herself in(he presumed she'd just be killed as well). And, she made him a nice memorial... what more did you want? As far as her lifestyle goes, I always thought the point of her character was there wasn't alot of other options for a female in that society. She's not a fighter, so what else is she supposed to do? Be a farmer's wife? You don't have to like her, certainly, but she's not evil! |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Dec 31, 2015 17:15:31 GMT -5
I've never liked Kitsune, and that story really sealed the deal for me. I felt she had a responsibility towards Noodles and should have blamed herself more than she did. She did blame herself... quite a bit. Usagi had to stop her from turning herself in(he presumed she'd just be killed as well). And, she made him a nice memorial... what more did you want? As far as her lifestyle goes, I always thought the point of her character was there wasn't alot of other options for a female in that society. She's not a fighter, so what else is she supposed to do? Be a farmer's wife? You don't have to like her, certainly, but she's not evil! She had a moment of deep remorse and then was over it pretty quickly. In my mind, an experience like this should change a person or at least leave a lasting impact that survives longer than a few pages. I never said she was evil; she's amoral. It works for a cosmic entity like Galactus, but doesn't fit so well on a character with whom you are expected to sympathize. We meet plenty of women in Usagi who struggle with their station. They can't all be Tomoe, but Kitsune is far too comfortable with her choices. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jan 1, 2016 9:47:35 GMT -5
Well, she does essentially adopt and raise a child not to long after this..one could say that's a lasting impact. I'm not sure she ever connects it, though. Tomoe is an awfully high standard... I can see the problem  |
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Post by shaxper on Jan 1, 2016 12:09:14 GMT -5
Well, she does essentially adopt and raise a child not to long after this..one could say that's a lasting impact. I'm not sure she ever connects it, though. Maybe it was Stan beginning to realize that he needed to make her more sympathetic. It would have been very cool to connect that change to Noodles, but it would also be out of character for Kitsune to demonstrate that level of self awareness or to openly share her feelings with Usagi. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jan 1, 2016 13:07:32 GMT -5
Exactly! The fact she cried and had a moment of weakness after Noodles' death WAS a big reaction. She's the type that doesn't reveal she has problems to anyone else.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 1, 2016 13:54:30 GMT -5
Exactly! The fact she cried and had a moment of weakness after Noodles' death WAS a big reaction. She's the type that doesn't reveal she has problems to anyone else. Explaining a life decision and revealing a private emotional reaction in a single moment are two different things, though. I can't see Sakai having Kitsune explain her decision to raise a child as being a reaction to the loss of Noodles, but I think he could have done more to cast a pall over her at the end of the Noodles storyline. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jan 1, 2016 14:37:07 GMT -5
I suppose so... I think I kinda fill in the blanks in my own head. More of it could have been spelled out somehow... I'm just not sure how that would have worked within an actually story. Still, it's a tribute to the writing that we've had this much of a conversation about his character  |
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Post by coke & comics on Jan 1, 2016 14:39:59 GMT -5
On his Facebook page, Stan posted a picture of himself making soba for New Years.
Seemed timely.
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Post by coke & comics on Jan 1, 2016 16:45:03 GMT -5
Exactly! The fact she cried and had a moment of weakness after Noodles' death WAS a big reaction. She's the type that doesn't reveal she has problems to anyone else. Explaining a life decision and revealing a private emotional reaction in a single moment are two different things, though. I can't see Sakai having Kitsune explain her decision to raise a child as being a reaction to the loss of Noodles, but I think he could have done more to cast a pall over her at the end of the Noodles storyline. Keep in mind she's very poor and struggles just to eat day to day. But she spends all her money on a tombstone and prayers for Noodles. She does what she knows how to do, gives all she has to give, and then moves on. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 1, 2016 17:18:44 GMT -5
Explaining a life decision and revealing a private emotional reaction in a single moment are two different things, though. I can't see Sakai having Kitsune explain her decision to raise a child as being a reaction to the loss of Noodles, but I think he could have done more to cast a pall over her at the end of the Noodles storyline. Keep in mind she's very poor and struggles just to eat day to day. But she spends all her money on a tombstone and prayers for Noodles. She does what she knows how to do, gives all she has to give, and then moves on. I can get behind this intetpretation, but it doesn't feel like the message Sakai tries to drive home. I feel like he wants Kitsune to be Usagi's Catwoman, the bad girl with the inexplicable allure. And, in situations like this one, he feels it's more important to make that inexplicably alluring bad girl spirit indominatable than to emphasize a sense of vulnerability and self doubt. Thing is, I never saw the allure of Catwoman. |
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Post by coke & comics on Jan 1, 2016 17:40:04 GMT -5
Keep in mind she's very poor and struggles just to eat day to day. But she spends all her money on a tombstone and prayers for Noodles. She does what she knows how to do, gives all she has to give, and then moves on. I can get behind this intetpretation, but it doesn't feel like the message Sakai tries to drive home. I feel like he wants Kitsune to be Usagi's Catwoman, the bad girl with the inexplicable allure. And, in situations like this one, he feels it's more important to make that inexplicably alluring bad girl spirit indominatable than to emphasize a sense of vulnerability and self doubt. Thing is, I never saw the allure of Catwoman. I don't believe she's self-doubting at all. And she was only vulnerable through her love of Noodles. Only his impending death would let her guard down and bring out her self-sacrificing side. And only his death would let her show vulnerability. But then she toughened back up and moved forward. Honored him as she could, but resumed her cool exterior. |
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Post by coke & comics on Jan 3, 2016 0:19:26 GMT -5
“The Wrath of the Tangled Skein” from Usagi Yojimbo #3 (June, 1996) Reprinted in Usagi Yojimbo vol. 10: The Brink of Life and Death  Summary: Miyamoto Usagi stops at an inn. Akiko, the daughter of the merchant Komachi, is ill and perhaps possessed because she and Yamada passed through the haunted forest known as the Tangled Skein. A bonze has been summoned to help her. They traveled with an entourage of unruly hired ronin. Outside, Usagi encounters and kills a demonic nue. The cowardly ronin are no help. When a second bonze arrives, Usagi realizes they had been tricked and the first bonze was a tanuki demon in disguise.  Thoughts: On the whole, an unexciting new story. We’ve seen all the elements before, from the demons to dealings with lesser ronin to the demon’s trick, and for the most part we have seen them done better. This story is notable mainly for the unnamed bonze who arrives at the end. He is the newest addition to the recurring cast of characters and we will get to know him better in the issue’s back-up story. Notes: Usagi himself once had an adventure in the Tangled Skein, as related in Critters #38. The cover suggests this will be the final issue of the Dark Horse series. This is not the case. |
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Post by coke & comics on Jan 3, 2016 0:33:50 GMT -5
"The Bonze's Story" from Usagi Yojimbo #3 (June, 1996) Reprinted in Usagi Yojimbo vol. 10: The Brink of Life and Death Summary: Priest Sanshobo relates to Miyamoto Usagi that tragic circumstances under which he left the service of Lord Ikeda and went from samurai to priest. It involves the accidental death of Mitsutoshi, son of Lord Shigeki and the sacrifice of Sanshobo's son Hirokazu. Thoughts: This is the single Usagi story I find most uncomfortable to read and discuss. It just disturbs me, down to my stomach. Mainly because I believe the story told is rooted in historical reality. More than anything else, this story makes the samurai code of honor seem entirely alien and incomprehensible. Even where it differs from our modern ideas, such as in the class hierarchy and honor in seppuku, the system is understandable. My understanding falls apart here. That honor could demand a samurai take his life, I could understand. That honor could demand a samurai's son take his own life, I cannot. And that it's not a conclusion they come to, but rather the obvious one. It doesn't need to be explained to any present. The father knows instinctively what has to happen as does the son. There are no good-byes, no hesitations, no hugs, no last messages. His son just jumps off a cliff. "There is only one way we can purge this disgrace upon our family name." "I understand, Father." That's it. And Usagi is not shocked by the story. His response: "Such is karma."  |
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Post by coke & comics on Jan 11, 2016 3:19:28 GMT -5
"Bats, the cat, and the rabbit" Usagi Yojimbo #4 (July, 1996) Reprinted in Usagi Yojimbo Book 10: The Brink of Life and Death  Summary: Miyamoto Usagi encounters Chizu of the Neko Ninja. She is being chased by the Komori Ninja, who want a scroll she carries. They get it, but not a safeguard built in to the instructions. In the end, the scroll is destroyed along with those who possessed it. Thoughts: The first 4 panels tell a pretty sad story in and of themselves. It is the story of a spider. It doesn't end happy. In my head, Usagi lives on a pretty big island and gets everywhere by walking. So I wouldn't really expect him to keep walking into the same people. But he does. And we are better for it. As the relationships he forms are one of the best part of the series. His relationship with Chizu being no exception. That underlies what is otherwise a pure action issue. Everybody after a scroll. But it's a good action issue. Because ninja are cool. And Sakai made cool ninja clans out of animals. And we get to see two ninja clans fight. And one of those clans consists of bats. Awesome. But there's just a little more. At the end. When Chizu repeats the phrase we've heard often, "A ninja's duty in life is death." "You can't really believe that!" says Usagi. "Don't you see? I have to-- or I'll go mad with grief!" An unexpected bit of humanity.  |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jan 11, 2016 15:21:07 GMT -5
If I can borrow my teenager's lingo, I always 'shipped Usagi with Chizu more than Tamoe... she's my favorite female character in the series. The development of the ninjas and their roles is pretty interesting.
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