Takaya Natsuki - Phantom Dream, vol. 03-05 (Eng. trans.)
Mon, Nov. 22nd, 2010 01:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
oyceterOh manga, how I have missed reading you!
I read vols. 1 and 2 of this over a year ago, so I was worried I would not be able to follow the plot at all. However, looking at how confused I was even back then, I suspect having read 1 and 2 more recently wouldn't have helped that much anyway!
Surprisingly, the quick summaries provided at the beginning of each volume proved sufficient in terms of plot memory, and I suspect Takaya's pacing improved as well, as the jumble of characters and terminology and whatnot that I remember from the first two volumes was nowhere present in these three volumes. Instead, the secondary characters I vaguely remember from the first two volumes get much more depth, and Eiji ended up being my favorite of the bunch.
I also found it useful to think of the series as "Takaya Natsuki does X," although the resolution of the series very much foreshadows the work and themes of Fruits Basket.
(Hopefully this spoiler cut text is not spoilery, considering the comparison to X. Also, small spoilers for X.)
Eiji! I barely remember him from the first two volumes, save that his arm gets cut off and then regenerated, which was extremely confusing when one has not gotten the character designs straight and is looking for a missing arm to identify a character with.
I now also totally ship Eiji/Tamaki and Eiji/Kageha. They probably talked about the sex change in the first two volumes, but I don't remember. I really do wish that there had been a bit more with Eiji post-sex-change, as I wanted much more of an exploration of it. Too bad I read this too late for Yuletide, or I might have requested something with Eiji as a transgendered character. Takaya portrays her as having not much issue with the sex change, and everything seems to imply that Eiji now thinks of herself as a woman, but I want this explored more!
I also love how Asahi is Takaya's version of both Fuuma and Kotori from X, sacrifice and enemy both, and that she gets waaay more agency than poor Kotori ever did. Though the "I switched sides to protect you and didn't tell you to keep you safe!" thing rarely works logically in fiction—unless, of course, one is doing so to join up with a stalker-like mind-reading group of spies and assassins—I loved that Asahi did so in anticipation of the power she would have and that her actions are far-reaching and protect Tamaki throughout the final volumes. Ditto with the endnote that Asahi's mother never does come around.
Actually, it's interesting how little of Tamaki is in these volumes; he's the protagonist, but his main role seems to be feeling sympathy for Hira and pining for Asahi.
I did end up feeling sympathy for Hira as a result of the Hira-heavy final few volumes, although I very much feel for his "locked up in a small room and called a demon and found love only to have her killed and beheaded (no necrocuddling! amazing, that)" thing, my sympathies end a bit when he goes straight from "You evil people who killed her!" to "Now I will change all of humanity into monsters!" Also, Eiji... how on earth did you manage to convince yourself that turning all of humanity into beings of jaki was beneficial? Yes, childhood indoctrination, but... really?
I of course loved the Mutsu and Roka side story and wish there were more of them.
Unfortunately, in her desire to make Hira a hero, Takaya does a surprise twist with Saga as the actual villain, which... is completely unforeshadowed and feels extremely random. Ah well. And having Tamaki and Asahi's grandchild going in to free Hira could have been over the top, but I loved it.
Overall, this series ends much, much better than it begins, and it's especially interesting to chart how Takaya starts by taking cues from the epic fantasy shoujo of the mid-1990s, then suddenly deciding halfway through that while the epic-fantasy-ness is great for creating angst and conflict, she could really just take the elements of abusive parents and pariah children and not have to worry that much about the worldbuilding.
I read vols. 1 and 2 of this over a year ago, so I was worried I would not be able to follow the plot at all. However, looking at how confused I was even back then, I suspect having read 1 and 2 more recently wouldn't have helped that much anyway!
Surprisingly, the quick summaries provided at the beginning of each volume proved sufficient in terms of plot memory, and I suspect Takaya's pacing improved as well, as the jumble of characters and terminology and whatnot that I remember from the first two volumes was nowhere present in these three volumes. Instead, the secondary characters I vaguely remember from the first two volumes get much more depth, and Eiji ended up being my favorite of the bunch.
I also found it useful to think of the series as "Takaya Natsuki does X," although the resolution of the series very much foreshadows the work and themes of Fruits Basket.
(Hopefully this spoiler cut text is not spoilery, considering the comparison to X. Also, small spoilers for X.)
Eiji! I barely remember him from the first two volumes, save that his arm gets cut off and then regenerated, which was extremely confusing when one has not gotten the character designs straight and is looking for a missing arm to identify a character with.
I now also totally ship Eiji/Tamaki and Eiji/Kageha. They probably talked about the sex change in the first two volumes, but I don't remember. I really do wish that there had been a bit more with Eiji post-sex-change, as I wanted much more of an exploration of it. Too bad I read this too late for Yuletide, or I might have requested something with Eiji as a transgendered character. Takaya portrays her as having not much issue with the sex change, and everything seems to imply that Eiji now thinks of herself as a woman, but I want this explored more!
I also love how Asahi is Takaya's version of both Fuuma and Kotori from X, sacrifice and enemy both, and that she gets waaay more agency than poor Kotori ever did. Though the "I switched sides to protect you and didn't tell you to keep you safe!" thing rarely works logically in fiction—unless, of course, one is doing so to join up with a stalker-like mind-reading group of spies and assassins—I loved that Asahi did so in anticipation of the power she would have and that her actions are far-reaching and protect Tamaki throughout the final volumes. Ditto with the endnote that Asahi's mother never does come around.
Actually, it's interesting how little of Tamaki is in these volumes; he's the protagonist, but his main role seems to be feeling sympathy for Hira and pining for Asahi.
I did end up feeling sympathy for Hira as a result of the Hira-heavy final few volumes, although I very much feel for his "locked up in a small room and called a demon and found love only to have her killed and beheaded (no necrocuddling! amazing, that)" thing, my sympathies end a bit when he goes straight from "You evil people who killed her!" to "Now I will change all of humanity into monsters!" Also, Eiji... how on earth did you manage to convince yourself that turning all of humanity into beings of jaki was beneficial? Yes, childhood indoctrination, but... really?
I of course loved the Mutsu and Roka side story and wish there were more of them.
Unfortunately, in her desire to make Hira a hero, Takaya does a surprise twist with Saga as the actual villain, which... is completely unforeshadowed and feels extremely random. Ah well. And having Tamaki and Asahi's grandchild going in to free Hira could have been over the top, but I loved it.
Overall, this series ends much, much better than it begins, and it's especially interesting to chart how Takaya starts by taking cues from the epic fantasy shoujo of the mid-1990s, then suddenly deciding halfway through that while the epic-fantasy-ness is great for creating angst and conflict, she could really just take the elements of abusive parents and pariah children and not have to worry that much about the worldbuilding.
(no subject)
Thu, Nov. 25th, 2010 01:20 am (UTC)It definitely does get better, and even if you can't follow what in the world is going on in the first two vols (I couldn't), the ending still makes sense.