Ororo~
So over the past couple weeks, I've watched all of Rurouni Kenshin, including the movie and Seisouhen. (Not Tsuiokuhen yet.) I've also gone through my Ruroken manga collection - I have up to 8, then 10 and 12, and then the last seven are in Japanese. Sooo I have to fill in the blanks hahaha. There are compilation books available now; I really want them. Soo, I also decided to upload some Ruroken icons! It's time for a change anyway.
In really cool news, they are apparently making a live adaption of Ruroken! That's amazing - it's been over 10 years since the series ended but it's still popular enough for this. They've cast Satou Takeru as Kenshin. He's my age :P way too young, but Kenshin's supposed to look young. I read that they also considered Miura Haruma (that's what I think I read at least - the article was in French) and truth be told, I think he looks more like Kenshin (the Kenshin in my head anyway). But Satou is very pretty too, and based on these articles, Watsuki is happy with the casting choice. I really hope it's good. It's supposed to come out in 2012. Satou has already been practicing kenjutsu. Must be great to be an actor - you get to learn all kinds of awesome things as part of your job! Hard work, sure, but also awesome.
So I finished the anime the other day and today, I decided to watch Seisouhen. I kept telling myself not to do it, not to do it... and then I did it. :P Like many Ruroken fans, I have a love-hate relationship with Seisouhen. It's beautiful, heart-wrenching, and unforgettable. (Tho' I wish they had just gone ahead and made it a little longer so certain things weren't so rushed.) And yet, the idea that Kenshin and Kaoru both die so young is just hard to digest. The idea that Kenshin, who found his will to live in Kyoto and then made peace with what happened with Tomoe, instead of finally feeling free enough to settle down with Kaoru, still can't find real happiness is... so dark. If I remember right, Watsuki himself said he wanted Ruroken to have an "upbeat" ending and that he wasn't entirely satisfied with Seisouhen because of how sad it was. I like to think Kenshin, though not by any means free of his ghosts, found happiness and continued to help people till a ripe old age, when he finally loosened up and could recognize that he did a lot of good with his life. As for Kaoru, she is awesome in Seisouhen, but beautiful and romantic as their story is, I can't help wishing she'd lived for herself a little more. Instead of devoting herself entirely to Kenshin, she shouldn't have felt like she needed to be his lifeline. Being his anchor was enough, right? I wish instead of sharing his suffering (the illness), she at least had lived on after he died and found her own peace. Overall, though, I don't want to think of Kenshin as dead, period.
That being said... I love Seisouhen. Especially the last parts. They are so touching and heartfelt. The last scene, where Kenshin struggles to get home and falls into Kaoru's arms, saying "Tadaima, Kaoru," and she replies with "Okaeri, Shinta" ... that just kills me. I was feeling depressed after watching Seisouhen (this is why I told myself not to watch it in the first place), and I was just getting over it when I suddenly remembered that particular scene. Ugh. I cried and cried. There's a lump in my throat right now just remembering it.
I wish I could express what exactly gets me so deeply about Seisouhen. I can't really say. Except that I always really loved Kenshin.
So, I'm a little off-kilter right now - pathetic, I know, but that's who I am - and I'm just hoping I'll be over it by tomorrow, since I do have to go to work and it's gonna be a rough week. Very hot, some rain, 26 kids. I hope the week goes well, but I have a vacation coming up at the end of July, so I keep telling myself that even when I get to the end of my rope, I only have to make it through a few more days. In August, I'll work three full weeks (unless I take the last Friday off) and then it's back to campus. Honestly, I want to be back at school already. Feeling a little stifled at home. And bored. Work is fine, but not interesting. I miss my friends and classes. But going back means I have to work on my thesis, so... well, there's no such thing as a perfect situation :P
Ciao for now!
In really cool news, they are apparently making a live adaption of Ruroken! That's amazing - it's been over 10 years since the series ended but it's still popular enough for this. They've cast Satou Takeru as Kenshin. He's my age :P way too young, but Kenshin's supposed to look young. I read that they also considered Miura Haruma (that's what I think I read at least - the article was in French) and truth be told, I think he looks more like Kenshin (the Kenshin in my head anyway). But Satou is very pretty too, and based on these articles, Watsuki is happy with the casting choice. I really hope it's good. It's supposed to come out in 2012. Satou has already been practicing kenjutsu. Must be great to be an actor - you get to learn all kinds of awesome things as part of your job! Hard work, sure, but also awesome.
So I finished the anime the other day and today, I decided to watch Seisouhen. I kept telling myself not to do it, not to do it... and then I did it. :P Like many Ruroken fans, I have a love-hate relationship with Seisouhen. It's beautiful, heart-wrenching, and unforgettable. (Tho' I wish they had just gone ahead and made it a little longer so certain things weren't so rushed.) And yet, the idea that Kenshin and Kaoru both die so young is just hard to digest. The idea that Kenshin, who found his will to live in Kyoto and then made peace with what happened with Tomoe, instead of finally feeling free enough to settle down with Kaoru, still can't find real happiness is... so dark. If I remember right, Watsuki himself said he wanted Ruroken to have an "upbeat" ending and that he wasn't entirely satisfied with Seisouhen because of how sad it was. I like to think Kenshin, though not by any means free of his ghosts, found happiness and continued to help people till a ripe old age, when he finally loosened up and could recognize that he did a lot of good with his life. As for Kaoru, she is awesome in Seisouhen, but beautiful and romantic as their story is, I can't help wishing she'd lived for herself a little more. Instead of devoting herself entirely to Kenshin, she shouldn't have felt like she needed to be his lifeline. Being his anchor was enough, right? I wish instead of sharing his suffering (the illness), she at least had lived on after he died and found her own peace. Overall, though, I don't want to think of Kenshin as dead, period.
That being said... I love Seisouhen. Especially the last parts. They are so touching and heartfelt. The last scene, where Kenshin struggles to get home and falls into Kaoru's arms, saying "Tadaima, Kaoru," and she replies with "Okaeri, Shinta" ... that just kills me. I was feeling depressed after watching Seisouhen (this is why I told myself not to watch it in the first place), and I was just getting over it when I suddenly remembered that particular scene. Ugh. I cried and cried. There's a lump in my throat right now just remembering it.
I wish I could express what exactly gets me so deeply about Seisouhen. I can't really say. Except that I always really loved Kenshin.
So, I'm a little off-kilter right now - pathetic, I know, but that's who I am - and I'm just hoping I'll be over it by tomorrow, since I do have to go to work and it's gonna be a rough week. Very hot, some rain, 26 kids. I hope the week goes well, but I have a vacation coming up at the end of July, so I keep telling myself that even when I get to the end of my rope, I only have to make it through a few more days. In August, I'll work three full weeks (unless I take the last Friday off) and then it's back to campus. Honestly, I want to be back at school already. Feeling a little stifled at home. And bored. Work is fine, but not interesting. I miss my friends and classes. But going back means I have to work on my thesis, so... well, there's no such thing as a perfect situation :P
Ciao for now!