Hiwatari Saki - Please Save My Earth, vol. 05-21
Sat, Dec. 8th, 2007 08:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
oyceterSo, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
coffeeandink pointed me to her first entry on PSME: "I think there was a day today but I was reading through twenty volumes of Saki Hiwatari's Please Save My Earth as quickly as humanly possible and I missed it."
That basically sums up my weekend so far, with "a lot of random manga in addition to PSME" standing in for "PSME."
I also discovered that the first four vols. I read were not in fact the first four of the translated edition, but of some bulk compiled edition. Oh well. Am not bothering to change the first entry, as it is spoiler free.
I think I would have been much more emotionally affected by this if I hadn't completely screwed up my sleep cycle and therefore felt as though I was drifting through clouds for the past two days.
That said, I cannot believe Hiwatari made me like RIN! RIN! I am still boggled by his engagement to Alice, but it is more on the age line and less along the "OMG CREEPY EW!" line. Like, I am also not sure if I forgive him for everything, or if I buy his sudden change of heart, but having your eight-year-old personality overrun by an insane reincarnated moon scientist intent on revenge and did I mention the insane? really explains a lot.
I also still do not buy that Alice is in love with him, largely because... EIGHT!
I sort of wish we had gotten more of Enju and Shusran, because I liked them, and I will pretend that Issei/Sakura is femslash. Sort of.
But I really like how the ending of the series focuses not on the past, but on letting go of the past, and that destroying the moon base in the end is the right choice. And I like that people do get to break out of their destinies a little, and that Alice and Rin are together because they are Alice and Rin, not Mokuren and Shion (no matter how implausible I still find Alice/Rin).
I also very much liked how, in contrast to the usual "girl's story getting overtaken by boy's story," Shion's tragic backstory comes first, and THEN we get Mokuren's. And I love how knowing Mokuren's story completely changes some of the nuances of what we know; it made the rape scene much less squicky for me (I do still find it squicky, but I also find it a lot more plausible). And yes, it is such a stupid romance misunderstanding! But it still ended up working because of Mokuren's background!
I cannot believe I ended up really liking Mokuren despite her being the perfect woman whom all other women despise because she is just that perfect.
And, um, amazingly, I do not hate Shion, despite almost invariably hating all alpha bastard heroes who excuse their behavior because of their tragic childhoods. I think what may have made the difference for me was the emphasis on Shion's absolute resentment, which I found completely understandable and plausible, even if it's not necessarily logical. Just... the way he resents those more privileged than him (Mokuren, Gyokuran) reminds me a lot of some class conflicts I've seen.
I am not actually sure if I can say anything about the nuances of characterization, not because it's not there, but because my brain is completely fried and I have been having a really hard time following things from panel to panel, much less from volume to volume. But! I would love examples in the comments! Because I suspect I do not remember a ton.
Also, PSME has a scene that has surpassed "Please eat a hunk of my flesh" as the expression of ultimate devotion: "Sister! Here, throw up in my hands so you won't get your futon dirty!" (definitely not as romantic, but that is devotion for you!)
coffeeandink pointed me to her first entry on PSME: "I think there was a day today but I was reading through twenty volumes of Saki Hiwatari's Please Save My Earth as quickly as humanly possible and I missed it."That basically sums up my weekend so far, with "a lot of random manga in addition to PSME" standing in for "PSME."
I also discovered that the first four vols. I read were not in fact the first four of the translated edition, but of some bulk compiled edition. Oh well. Am not bothering to change the first entry, as it is spoiler free.
I think I would have been much more emotionally affected by this if I hadn't completely screwed up my sleep cycle and therefore felt as though I was drifting through clouds for the past two days.
That said, I cannot believe Hiwatari made me like RIN! RIN! I am still boggled by his engagement to Alice, but it is more on the age line and less along the "OMG CREEPY EW!" line. Like, I am also not sure if I forgive him for everything, or if I buy his sudden change of heart, but having your eight-year-old personality overrun by an insane reincarnated moon scientist intent on revenge and did I mention the insane? really explains a lot.
I also still do not buy that Alice is in love with him, largely because... EIGHT!
I sort of wish we had gotten more of Enju and Shusran, because I liked them, and I will pretend that Issei/Sakura is femslash. Sort of.
But I really like how the ending of the series focuses not on the past, but on letting go of the past, and that destroying the moon base in the end is the right choice. And I like that people do get to break out of their destinies a little, and that Alice and Rin are together because they are Alice and Rin, not Mokuren and Shion (no matter how implausible I still find Alice/Rin).
I also very much liked how, in contrast to the usual "girl's story getting overtaken by boy's story," Shion's tragic backstory comes first, and THEN we get Mokuren's. And I love how knowing Mokuren's story completely changes some of the nuances of what we know; it made the rape scene much less squicky for me (I do still find it squicky, but I also find it a lot more plausible). And yes, it is such a stupid romance misunderstanding! But it still ended up working because of Mokuren's background!
I cannot believe I ended up really liking Mokuren despite her being the perfect woman whom all other women despise because she is just that perfect.
And, um, amazingly, I do not hate Shion, despite almost invariably hating all alpha bastard heroes who excuse their behavior because of their tragic childhoods. I think what may have made the difference for me was the emphasis on Shion's absolute resentment, which I found completely understandable and plausible, even if it's not necessarily logical. Just... the way he resents those more privileged than him (Mokuren, Gyokuran) reminds me a lot of some class conflicts I've seen.
I am not actually sure if I can say anything about the nuances of characterization, not because it's not there, but because my brain is completely fried and I have been having a really hard time following things from panel to panel, much less from volume to volume. But! I would love examples in the comments! Because I suspect I do not remember a ton.
Also, PSME has a scene that has surpassed "Please eat a hunk of my flesh" as the expression of ultimate devotion: "Sister! Here, throw up in my hands so you won't get your futon dirty!" (definitely not as romantic, but that is devotion for you!)
(no subject)
Tue, Dec. 11th, 2007 02:34 am (UTC)(no subject)
Tue, Dec. 11th, 2007 05:01 pm (UTC)