One problem is Guilty Crown is that Inori Yuzuriha is presented as someone the perspective character (Shu Ouma) is very interested in, yet beyond being pretty (supposedly), she is really not that interesting of a character.
Appreciating her really depends on you having a similar mindset as Shu, in other words having the hots for Inori. The series itself doesn't do enough to make her interesting. So, to put it uncharitably, she's basically first an object of sexual desire.
Inori's lack of interesting characterization can be compared to Rei Ayanami's lack of personality. Unlike Rei, though, Inori isn't just used a plot device; her love for Shu is supposed to be central to Guilty Crown's story.
Ironically, despite being less central to the story, Ayase is a more interesting character in that regard. She's got a personality, she's got desires, she's got aspirations and fears.
^^^^^ Rei doesn't want for personality at all. She just has a very flat, chilly affect. Rather than boring, she's uncomfortable, because she just does things with absolutely no external emotional distinction between them—not unlike how certain mental illnesses present themselves, incidentally—and the few times her affect breaks, one is led to wonder how she ticks. A lot of people have tried to replicate this formula, but few have succeeded, perhaps because they think like you seem to: That not being expressive or emotional means not having a strong character.
See also: Anthy Himemiya. Although she is a slightly different beast.
Anyway, I will definitely be watching the new Imaishi.
Anyway, I will definitely be watching the new Imaishi.
It's a bit of a shame that it's only seven-minute episodes, but he's no stranger to unusual lengths anyway thanks to Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt.
I'm interested in the sequel show for a few different reasons, but the original Haruhi holds fairly little appeal to me. Sure, it sounds clever and potentially funny, but I just... it's so very much not my scene. Apparently the original light novels are great in Japanese, and those hold some appeal, but all sources of repute inform me that the official translations are lazy and awkward in the extreme, which sucks.
I enjoyed The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, the dub. I think the excellent performance of Kyon's voice actor was key to making it work. It seems to be quite well-regarded.
As for Yuki Nagato, she's sorta...meant to be The Emotionless Character, as the show intentionally plays off of that trope to some extent.
As for Rei, I wouldn't consider Rei to be successful. She's still very boring as a character. But her main role in the story is not being a character but is rather being a plot device.
I think the misconception comes when trying to use this concept to make a character -- one who is meant to be interesting as a character, at least.
But I guess if you look at her from a certain perspective, there is sort of a mystery to her nature, that her behavior suggests in the viewers. Arguably it's this sort of mystery that is key to "re-creating Rei", if one really wants to go for this character type (not one that I tend to like anyway, but still).
And I'd say that Kirika Yuumura in Noir succeeds at this.
I'm interested in the sequel show for a few different reasons, but the original Haruhi holds fairly little appeal to me. Sure, it sounds clever and potentially funny, but I just... it's so very much not my scene. Apparently the original light novels are great in Japanese, and those hold some appeal, but all sources of repute inform me that the official translations are lazy and awkward in the extreme, which sucks.
I consider Haruhi something of a formative experience, so you will have to pardon me if I disagree.
You are correct about the light novels though, unfortunately.
As for Rei, I wouldn't consider Rei to be successful. She's still very boring as a character. But her main role in the story is not being a character but is rather being a plot device.
I think the misconception comes when trying to use this concept to make a character -- one who is meant to be interesting as a character, at least.
But I guess if you look at her from a certain perspective, there is sort of a mystery to her nature, that her behavior suggests in the viewers. Arguably it's this sort of mystery that is key to "re-creating Rei", if one really wants to go for this character type (not one that I tend to like anyway, but still).
I... disagree. Quite a bit.
The key to any character is writing them in a way that feels real and makes sense in context. You break the suspension of disbelief with a character's behaviour, and you've failed. A character can be inconsistent, but the inconsistency must feel like how real people can be inconsistent rather than a matter of writing convenience or laziness; a character's personality may be defined by one major trait, but there should be a full range of responses stemming from that root, and a set of human thought processes tied to it. Even alien, cryptic personalities must have something of this world, if only in terms of an absence.
I'm not that far into the show, but Rei feels believable to me. She is not a happy, friendly, expressive, forthright or even likeable person. She is distant from most of her emotions, and distant from other people. She does not emote well, and while she is almost frighteningly submissive and indifferent to trespasses on her person and bodily harm, mechanically obeying other people less out of deference than indifference to her autonomy, there *is* something in there, in the dark, something strange and volatile. It's a beast hiding in a doll. I find that extremely intriguing.
You don't have to like such a character, of course. Passive characters don't do much, by definition, and if you're very action-oriented in a writing sense then that can be boring. But that by no means makes a character that does not express much inherently devoid of character. Such an assertion strikes me as very shallow, and again, feeds into the kind of dubious mindset that feeds into writing passive characters so badly.
I'm interested in the sequel show for a few different reasons, but the original Haruhi holds fairly little appeal to me. Sure, it sounds clever and potentially funny, but I just... it's so very much not my scene. Apparently the original light novels are great in Japanese, and those hold some appeal, but all sources of repute inform me that the official translations are lazy and awkward in the extreme, which sucks.
I consider Haruhi something of a formative experience, so you will have to pardon me if I disagree.
You are correct about the light novels though, unfortunately.
I mean, I'm not even saying it sounds bad. I'm sure it does what it does very, very well. I just don't know if I would enjoy it.
I'm interested in the sequel show for a few different reasons, but the original Haruhi holds fairly little appeal to me. Sure, it sounds clever and potentially funny, but I just... it's so very much not my scene. Apparently the original light novels are great in Japanese, and those hold some appeal, but all sources of repute inform me that the official translations are lazy and awkward in the extreme, which sucks.
I consider Haruhi something of a formative experience, so you will have to pardon me if I disagree.
You are correct about the light novels though, unfortunately.
I mean, I'm not even saying it sounds bad. I'm sure it does what it does very, very well. I just don't know if I would enjoy it.
^^ That's fair enough, but the problem is that not enough of these people know what's really going on underneath that surface layer of indifference, or just wrap it around a boring dramatic cliché. Actually knowing why real people behave in that manner helps, much in the way that knowing why people behave violently do so is helpful in writing violent people, or how reading about mental illness or talking to mentally ill people can help you write a more sensitive portrayal of dealing with a mental illness. Real people aren't just aloof, spooky doormats for no reason.
^^ That's fair enough, but the problem is that not enough of these people know what's really going on underneath that surface layer of indifference, or just wrap it around a boring dramatic cliché. Actually knowing why real people behave in that manner helps, much in the way that knowing why people behave violently do so is helpful in writing violent people, or how reading about mental illness or talking to mentally ill people can help you write a more sensitive portrayal of dealing with a mental illness. Real people aren't just aloof, spooky doormats for no reason.
Oh, this, definitely.
I think I was thinking about how to make the audience find the character interesting enough to think more about them and "approach" them, while you were thinking about how to make the result of that "approach" feel plausible and meaningful.
I mean, the whole fourth episode was just a non-stop cavalcade of, "Yup, that certainly is a thing I do. Oh, and look, an emotional situation I have undergone on a number of occasions. I certainly am a human being with issues."
whether it's just the director referencing his prior work or an affirmation that the works exist in the same universe is left as an exercise to the reader
I don't get why so many people like Asuka despite her being overtly verbally abusive to Shinji on very many occasions. I mean yeah, she has a tragic backstory, but so does everyone in Eva.
i sympathize heavily with asuka because i feel she represents a sort of justified rage against the (characters/entities that can be said to represent the) heavens, and also one whose quest for settling the score was tragically and unfairly cut short
Asuka behaves poorly due to an inflated ego drawn from inflated expectations of her performance as an Eva pilot. She's proudly playing along with the hand she was dealt, but feels the need to denigrate the other pilots when her self-expectation is given a reality shock.
It's not that she's good or bad, or nice not not nice, but that she's a relatable human being. Of all the cast, she's also the most overtly expressive and sincerely emotive, which is a welcome change from Shinji and Rei. Which reminds me that Asuka and Misato didn't spend enough time interacting, because they almost seem designed to bounce off one-another.
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Well, a little Imiaishi is better than no Imiaishi and I can always just wait for the season to conclude then watch all the episodes at once.
Appreciating her really depends on you having a similar mindset as Shu, in other words having the hots for Inori. The series itself doesn't do enough to make her interesting. So, to put it uncharitably, she's basically first an object of sexual desire.
Inori's lack of interesting characterization can be compared to Rei Ayanami's lack of personality. Unlike Rei, though, Inori isn't just used a plot device; her love for Shu is supposed to be central to Guilty Crown's story.
Ironically, despite being less central to the story, Ayase is a more interesting character in that regard. She's got a personality, she's got desires, she's got aspirations and fears.
As for Yuki Nagato, she's sorta...meant to be The Emotionless Character, as the show intentionally plays off of that trope to some extent.
As for Rei, I wouldn't consider Rei to be successful. She's still very boring as a character. But her main role in the story is not being a character but is rather being a plot device.
I think the misconception comes when trying to use this concept to make a character -- one who is meant to be interesting as a character, at least.
But I guess if you look at her from a certain perspective, there is sort of a mystery to her nature, that her behavior suggests in the viewers. Arguably it's this sort of mystery that is key to "re-creating Rei", if one really wants to go for this character type (not one that I tend to like anyway, but still).
And I'd say that Kirika Yuumura in Noir succeeds at this.
I think I was thinking about how to make the audience find the character interesting enough to think more about them and "approach" them, while you were thinking about how to make the result of that "approach" feel plausible and meaningful.