saiyuki rant of doom

[little_blue_me]

BUAH! So I finished Saiyuki Reload's ninth volume last night and...
//Actually, it’s been few nights already since that… I’m just slow at writing my thoughts down.//
(...Haha... And please excuse me and my fangirl rant and analysis. I'm just too into Saiyuki. Can't really be helped. <3)

But here we go:

Comments

[little_blue_me]

Haha! Please do! :D

Ukoku seems to be pretty popular. Well, a lot of readers probably want him death as soon as possible, but I'm sure no one can deny his awesomness, a great, great villain indeed.
And I couldn't really figure him out either, but I think this volume cleared his character a little bit to me.

He doesn't really have a purpose, so he just goes from one "game" to the next.

Yes! Precisely! And maybe it's just me, but I think Ukoku resambles a lot of Kubota and how he was intoduced to us in the first Wild Adapter volume. I definitely see a lot of similarities between them, particularly in Ukoku's burial.

I never thought that Ukoku would have been the one to orchestrate Koumyou's death myself, although I have read people's opinions of it before. I thought that while the order to optain the sutras Koumyou had definitely came from the Houtou castle, Koumyou's death itself wasn't planned. Because if Ukoku really meant to kill Koumyou, then the only thing he did was senting few "no-name youkais" as he says, and he knows opponents like those would never have been enough to kill Koumyou, thus draving the conclusion of "Koumyou sacrifised himself for you (Kouryuu)". But of course we could also argue that Ukoku knew something like that would happen then, so I'm definitely not denying your opinion either. :)
Ah. I never really understood what that scene meant; Ukoku's possible crying, because it just doesn't fit into the image I have of him, no matter how I try. :/

I wonder how many children Ukoku went around corrupting in his spare time

Haha! I though about that, too! XD There are two at least, but it wouldn't suprise me if few others would pop up! XD
And while I see a whole lot of similarities between Saiyuki's (eight and)ninth and Reload's ninth volume (Gojyo's leaving ~ sanzo's same and their reasons for this are really similiar; separation; gathering together again; "teamwork"; others importance; muichimotsu -theme; kami-sama ~ Hazel and Ukoku...) it all could be in my head, though, and there really isn't any, at least intentional, meaning. X) But it's a lot of fun thinking about these things! <3

Oh, yes! Right you are! And I love how the whole ikkou thing, although the others had absorbed it long ago, finally hacked its way into sanzo's mind! <3

I definitely hope that she will stitch Saiyuki and Gaiden together! I think, based on the very earlier volumes, that she meant to, but now I'm not so sure. The lack of Kanzeon and Nataku kind of strengthens my fears, and there probably isn't any real necessity to really do so, the plot wise and all, but it definitely would make the story even more interesting and amazing and I really, really hope that we will get to see it happen. But yes, as you said, we can just wait and see...
Urg, and I definitely wonder why Gaiden hasn't been picked up yet, it's just plain crazy.

Thanks! And don't worry! Long comments are much loved! <3

[little_blue_me]

Woah. And talk about screwing up with the tags.

[duck113]

I figured Ukoku's possible crying was do to his having achieved his goal & now being without one. With sanzo being the highest he could go, he had reached a dead end - that game was now over, he no longer had any goal, nothing left to strive for
(until he made a new game).

[little_blue_me]

Oh! That does make sense. Thanks! I have been wondering about it since I read the scene and never really could figure it out. *I guess my imagination works only when it wants*