Karakuri Babble is a daily column by the editors of i360.com, usually on topics tangentially related to anime and cosplay.

In the past we have endorsed many things; in the future we shall support many others.

So I still haven't beaten Touhou 12, but my conscience was starting to get to me. It's been one of my basic tenets here to write, even if I what I feel like writing is uninteresting. So. Touhou.

One of the funny things about the Touhou series is that the actual portrayal of the characters, in-game, is kind of flat. (I'm sorry to say it, but it's what I think.) There's just not very much time in the games to do fully-realized characters. They've got motivations and mannerisms, but the subtleties are left unclear. To tell the truth, it makes me feel like I'm missing something crucial -- like I just don't have the ability to see the complete depth of the characters at first glance.

So, for me, Touhou really depends on the fan culture to flesh it out, to take the tiny gestures and throwaway lines from the game and turn them into full-bodied characters. At that point, aided by the fan work, I can begin to enjoy these characters. Like, for example, we know Chen is kind of klutzy from the official work, but nothing brought her character into focus quite like Yellow Zebra's M-1 video:



See, that's just cute.

So, even though I think the UFO characters are pretty interesting and have a lot of potential, they're kind of in limbo for me. I've got to wait while the fandom digests them and produces its vast body of supporting work, and maybe then I'll figure out what to think.

words from chris, 2009-08-24 02:55:06, los angeles