The Last Disk
Oct. 9th, 2008 10:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
liralen*sniffle* I knew the journey had to end... but... man, what an amazing ending....
Okay, not really a review so much as a whole lot of fangirl squeeing.
I love how they start with trying to talk about things they haven't told each other and what it is that Mugen gets out about killing an officer of the shogun. And wow Jin's story and even more wow was Fuu's.
It's interesting how some summaries of the series say that 'nothing comes up about Jin's past until the last arc'. When it seemed to pop out to me from even the very first episode. The simple fact that he classifies himself as a ronin when he has those *skills*, and a particular school is named so early...
The beauty of the last story was that it used nearly everything that had been shown up to that point, show just a little more, but it was all in-line with everything that had gone before.
And I was sure that the Sunflower Samurai couldn't live up to being the goal itself. Elven lawnmowers... the goal of the quest can never be as huge as the quest itself, can't be worth all the pain and effort.
But, oddly enough, it was. The whole scene with Fuu and her dad wasn't quite everything I might have wanted for the end of the quest, but with that and how Mugen's story resolved and how Jin's story resolved with the threads from what had happened previously, it was pretty satisfying. Plus, the caliber of the opposition (I can't quite bring myself to label them 'bad guys', though some of them were bad enough in deed) the heroes certainly proved themselves, their resolutions, toughness, and what kind of strengths they'd gathered along the journey.
I loved Mugen through the whole thing. His whole fight with the Hands of God was all his lovely, pure instinct, and the reactions!! I LOVE how they depicted all that. His fight with the brothers was brutal, and very, very much him. It really satisfied me that Fuu was the one that called him back.
Oddly enough I loved the fact that the only time Fuu actually touches Jin is that one time she leans against him by the river bank. And he's the one that says that phrase that Sakura says a thousands of times to Shaoran while she's trying to confess her feelings to him, and I was like OOOOOHHH!! Duh. He is always the one that goes looking for Fuu.
Japanese romance in full bloom.
And when he says he finally is using his sword work for someone other than him, I was like wow. And the opening he make and how he exploits it and the look on his face when he's hit... wow. ALL his fights in this arc were spectacular and really made me very, very, very happy, even the backflash one in the dark with his teacher. And he is beautiful... in that lovely fan service moment with his hair down, his glasses gone, his kimono half off, and the fight then is just. *happies*
There's something in me that is very, very happy about someone so beautiful also being so utterly deadly and honorable all in one, as well as being so completely contained. *grins*
Wow. It was a very satisfying ending, especially when the three of them part ways at the crossroads, in nearly exactly the same way they parted ways like four or five times during the series. Heh. There's a part of me that has to believe they have to collide again in the best of ways.
IT WAS TOO SHORT! But I might just watch it all again and then send it back. *laughs*
Okay, not really a review so much as a whole lot of fangirl squeeing.
I love how they start with trying to talk about things they haven't told each other and what it is that Mugen gets out about killing an officer of the shogun. And wow Jin's story and even more wow was Fuu's.
It's interesting how some summaries of the series say that 'nothing comes up about Jin's past until the last arc'. When it seemed to pop out to me from even the very first episode. The simple fact that he classifies himself as a ronin when he has those *skills*, and a particular school is named so early...
The beauty of the last story was that it used nearly everything that had been shown up to that point, show just a little more, but it was all in-line with everything that had gone before.
And I was sure that the Sunflower Samurai couldn't live up to being the goal itself. Elven lawnmowers... the goal of the quest can never be as huge as the quest itself, can't be worth all the pain and effort.
But, oddly enough, it was. The whole scene with Fuu and her dad wasn't quite everything I might have wanted for the end of the quest, but with that and how Mugen's story resolved and how Jin's story resolved with the threads from what had happened previously, it was pretty satisfying. Plus, the caliber of the opposition (I can't quite bring myself to label them 'bad guys', though some of them were bad enough in deed) the heroes certainly proved themselves, their resolutions, toughness, and what kind of strengths they'd gathered along the journey.
I loved Mugen through the whole thing. His whole fight with the Hands of God was all his lovely, pure instinct, and the reactions!! I LOVE how they depicted all that. His fight with the brothers was brutal, and very, very much him. It really satisfied me that Fuu was the one that called him back.
Oddly enough I loved the fact that the only time Fuu actually touches Jin is that one time she leans against him by the river bank. And he's the one that says that phrase that Sakura says a thousands of times to Shaoran while she's trying to confess her feelings to him, and I was like OOOOOHHH!! Duh. He is always the one that goes looking for Fuu.
Japanese romance in full bloom.
And when he says he finally is using his sword work for someone other than him, I was like wow. And the opening he make and how he exploits it and the look on his face when he's hit... wow. ALL his fights in this arc were spectacular and really made me very, very, very happy, even the backflash one in the dark with his teacher. And he is beautiful... in that lovely fan service moment with his hair down, his glasses gone, his kimono half off, and the fight then is just. *happies*
There's something in me that is very, very happy about someone so beautiful also being so utterly deadly and honorable all in one, as well as being so completely contained. *grins*
Wow. It was a very satisfying ending, especially when the three of them part ways at the crossroads, in nearly exactly the same way they parted ways like four or five times during the series. Heh. There's a part of me that has to believe they have to collide again in the best of ways.
IT WAS TOO SHORT! But I might just watch it all again and then send it back. *laughs*
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no subject
Date: 2008-10-10 05:06 am (UTC)*lick lips* *swallows hard*
Would love to see that image!
no subject
Date: 2008-10-10 11:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-10-10 09:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-10-10 11:21 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-10-10 12:11 pm (UTC)Yes, yes! It was all that, wasn't it! And what about the scene where the two of them face off against each other at last, because Mugen isn't about to let that go, is he? And Jin is all like, "Ok. let's do it (even though we're both half dead and run through/shot/blown up, drowned, whatever)"
That song at the end just makes me cry. I don't know why. Jin reminds me of that one samurai in The Seven Samurai who has almost no lines but is the most bad assed of them all. And Mugen is just so in the tao of himself, he's just sort of an element.
Yes, it was too short, and it wasn't popular enough to warrant a movie like Cowboy Beebop *le sigh*
And he's the one that says that phrase that Sakura says a thousands of times to Shaoran while she's trying to confess her feelings to him
Wait, wut? I don't know that reference! Is it something that sheds some light on that scene because the entire fandom is like, "what the hell was that?" No one can say for sure what exactly was happening there and most people take it to mean that Fuu was saying that she preferred Mugen, which is why Jin sent Him after her (which doesn't really make sense to me).
no subject
Date: 2008-10-10 09:10 pm (UTC)And I liked when they both fell on each other after Jin said the bit about them both being a mess. *laughs and laughs*
Yeah... Jin is a lot like that one who survives it all.
The phrase, in the Japanese, was something that sounded like "Atteshiwa" something like Jin trying to tell her that he cared about her, and then she goes, but if we did that stupid Mugan... and then she leans against him. But I clearly remember the Japanese phrase, (not that I know exactly what it was).
Which I guess could mean a lot of things. *smiles* Could be that Mugen would expect her to do something for him, could mean that she is in love with Mugen. It's kind of cool.
I kind of think Jin sent Mugen after her because Mugen wasn't really making headway with the samurai bad guy, and really, that guy was Jin's to take care of. Not Mugen's opponent, and it was just a quick and brutal assessment of the situation and capabilities of those involved. The way Jin agreed to be the one caught in Sara's trap, same logical think through the next four steps kind of thing. That Mugen would have gone after the guy until he was dead, whereas Jin could fake a way out and buy time for them all.
It would give Fuu more of a chance to get away. That's all, and if he was in love with her, he would take that responsibility to deal with what looked like the bigger threat.
But I don't know. *grins* It's lovely to be able to think of all kinds of reasons and things.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-11 12:39 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-10-11 01:12 am (UTC)Sakura is the girl protagonist and the boy Shaoran is her true love after many trials and she spends forever getting interrupted by everyone after saying that one phrase...
So that is fascinating! A lot of people think Mugen and Fuu are the big couple in Sam Cham (aside from Mugen/Jin) but the only woman I see for Mugen is Yatsuha. And Mugen is just way too het for me to see him with Jin accept in special circumstances. I've seen a couple of DAMN good fanfic about those circumstances btw, the best being by
Jin I think is totally canon bi, so Jin/Yuki is a no brainer in my book, but I totally think he would have taken it upon himself to take care of Fuu for the rest of her life if she had let him. After all, having a wife (and remember Fuu is samurai) and a brother in bushido is perfectly normal for a samurai.
So yeah, there's so much room for fic in this series. But ya know, I think the music and the art are what really inspire people to keep the torch burning for the story. There's also a bunch of great musical fanmixes.
Oh wait! Here!
no subject
Date: 2008-10-11 01:57 am (UTC)I also like the idea of Jin/Yuki totally. Brother... exactly.
I kind of like the unresolved triangle thing, as it's very, very Japanese to just leave it hanging like that, maybe with Fuu in love with Mugen, and Jin longing for Fuu, and Mugen and Jin simply being battle comrades which can be deeper in some ways than even sex, because it's shared death.
Heh. I'll check out your recs. I seem to be in input mode, exhausted otherwise... so I'll see. I'll return the dvds with a small token of my thanks for loaning them.
Thank you.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-11 03:19 am (UTC)It was my pleasure to loan them to you! I just knew you had the sensibilities to appreciate the story. :)
no subject
Date: 2008-10-11 10:25 pm (UTC)My plate is full and fun and interesting, but this is actually more along the lines of what I'd like to be writing.
I dunno. As a friend of mine put it while mangling some William Gibson:
"If they think you're mythic, go technical. If they think you're technical, go mythic. I'm a very technical girl. So I decided to get as mythic as possible. These days, though, you have to be pretty technical before you can even aspire to mythicness."
Heh...
It'll be interesting to hit mythical through technical. But this was pure mythic, on a gorgeously personal scale.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-14 05:44 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-10-14 12:28 pm (UTC)She wrote two more fics to finish the story.
I'm sure she appreciates your comments. She's never really gotten the popularity she deserves for her writing and I know it really means a lot to her when someone comments. She's teaching right now and working on her PH.D so sometimes it takes her a while to respond. ^^
no subject
Date: 2008-10-14 05:26 pm (UTC)Oddly enough, it's kind of bittersweet at the moment as I haven't really written anything solid for a while. I keep trying but I keep... failing. Some of it is that a lot of my energy got sucked into 13000 words of silver and black and with stark's schedule things have been... odd. But a lot of it is just me at the moment.
I loved her fic. They were really, really good.