First Impressions
Recently I was asked by lawless523 to describe how and why I settled on Sanzo and Hakkai as my favorite Saiyuki pairing. This isn't a full-out rant on everything I love about the pairing, but it does explain why I like them and how I go into them in the first place. I thought it would be amusing to share my first impressions of the series with everyone.
When I first came in contact with Saiyuki, it was through the anime. It was awful, really. I was like, "Well... this anime sucks, and I hate all of the characters except for Hakkai, who I find mildly amusing." I didn't like Sanzo at all at first, because he seemed too bitchy and violent. Goku was just an annoying little kid, and I especially hated Gojyo, because he was a whore. This was all the way back in '04, mind you. I was a lot more prudish back then. Also, this opinion was based just on watching the first few episodes of the anime, which is notoriously terrible.
Then we watched the Chin Yisou arc. I saw the scene where Hakkai and Gojyo have that talk in the woods and I was like, "Oh, those two are obviously a couple. Everyone and their mother is going to slash them. How boring." (And how right did I turn out to be about everyone slashing them?) My opinion that the entire series was boring changed completely when we got to the scene where Hakkai and Sanzo talk together. Watching how Sanzo tries to convince Hakkai not to give up, I thought, "Huh? Sanzo... do you really like Hakkai that much?" and then when he stands up for Hakkai against Chin Yisou, even though Hakkai previously failed to stand up for himself, I was like, "Wow, I guess you do."
After the Rikudo arc, in which Sanzo just sort of stands back and watches everyone fight, I think most people were shocked when Sanzo confronted Chin Yisou. Sanzo doesn't side with anyone, right? But here he is, very clearly siding with Hakkai. While everyone else was going, "WTF?!" I was going, "Oh, yeeees~! There is something between these two... and it's intense-- yet subtle, and complicated, and I'm going to SLASH THE FUCK OUT OF IT!"
It seems obvious to me, so I don't get it when people think that Sanzo doesn't really care about Hakkai, or visa versa. A lot of people say that Hakkai feels obligated to Sanzo, and I'm sure that during the pre-journey years that was true. But I think that, after spending some time with Sanzo and knowing how uncomfortable he is with caring for anyone, Hakkai understood that Sanzo stood up to Chin Yisou for Hakkai and because he truly cares. And that underneath that cranky attitude, there really is a heart of gold.
Perhaps during the "Be There" arc, it wasn't as apparent. Many people seem to think that Sanzo saved Hakkai just because he was ordered to. Maybe Hakkai even thought the same thing, to some extent. But, I really don't think that's the case. A lot of people point to the part where the sanbutsushin warn Sanzo that "whatever value he places" on Hakkai, he is still a sinner. But they wouldn't have had to say that if Sanzo didn't value Hakkai at all.
The amazing thing is that Sanzo values Hakkai enough that he doesn't deny it, even though he does so with everyone else. If it's Goku, then he says he had no choice but to pick him up. If it's Gojyo, then he says he hates him. But if it's Hakkai, he suddenly has no excuses. Although it's true that Sanzo cares for each of the ikkou members in his own way, he won't admit it for any of them. But if it's Hakkai, then he won't deny it either. That's about as close as Sanzo ever gets to admitting that he cares for anyone.
Well, it's like they said in the Saiyubito somewhere. Sanzo values Hakkai's life. Whether you want to see it as a platonic thing or a romantic one, it's still definitely there.
So, yeah... basically it was 383 from the very beginning, for me. There were times when I considered switching to 585, it never really fell through. Everything I thought about the series changed again when I read the manga. I soaked in it's amazing storyline and detailed characterizations, became a lot more sympathetic to all of the main characters (and even some of the not-so-main ones), and a lot more tolerant of other pairings (to the point where I support them all these days, more or less). Well, my opinion of the series as a whole has changed a lot since then, but my favorite pairing? It probably never will.
When I first came in contact with Saiyuki, it was through the anime. It was awful, really. I was like, "Well... this anime sucks, and I hate all of the characters except for Hakkai, who I find mildly amusing." I didn't like Sanzo at all at first, because he seemed too bitchy and violent. Goku was just an annoying little kid, and I especially hated Gojyo, because he was a whore. This was all the way back in '04, mind you. I was a lot more prudish back then. Also, this opinion was based just on watching the first few episodes of the anime, which is notoriously terrible.
Then we watched the Chin Yisou arc. I saw the scene where Hakkai and Gojyo have that talk in the woods and I was like, "Oh, those two are obviously a couple. Everyone and their mother is going to slash them. How boring." (And how right did I turn out to be about everyone slashing them?) My opinion that the entire series was boring changed completely when we got to the scene where Hakkai and Sanzo talk together. Watching how Sanzo tries to convince Hakkai not to give up, I thought, "Huh? Sanzo... do you really like Hakkai that much?" and then when he stands up for Hakkai against Chin Yisou, even though Hakkai previously failed to stand up for himself, I was like, "Wow, I guess you do."
After the Rikudo arc, in which Sanzo just sort of stands back and watches everyone fight, I think most people were shocked when Sanzo confronted Chin Yisou. Sanzo doesn't side with anyone, right? But here he is, very clearly siding with Hakkai. While everyone else was going, "WTF?!" I was going, "Oh, yeeees~! There is something between these two... and it's intense-- yet subtle, and complicated, and I'm going to SLASH THE FUCK OUT OF IT!"
It seems obvious to me, so I don't get it when people think that Sanzo doesn't really care about Hakkai, or visa versa. A lot of people say that Hakkai feels obligated to Sanzo, and I'm sure that during the pre-journey years that was true. But I think that, after spending some time with Sanzo and knowing how uncomfortable he is with caring for anyone, Hakkai understood that Sanzo stood up to Chin Yisou for Hakkai and because he truly cares. And that underneath that cranky attitude, there really is a heart of gold.
Perhaps during the "Be There" arc, it wasn't as apparent. Many people seem to think that Sanzo saved Hakkai just because he was ordered to. Maybe Hakkai even thought the same thing, to some extent. But, I really don't think that's the case. A lot of people point to the part where the sanbutsushin warn Sanzo that "whatever value he places" on Hakkai, he is still a sinner. But they wouldn't have had to say that if Sanzo didn't value Hakkai at all.
The amazing thing is that Sanzo values Hakkai enough that he doesn't deny it, even though he does so with everyone else. If it's Goku, then he says he had no choice but to pick him up. If it's Gojyo, then he says he hates him. But if it's Hakkai, he suddenly has no excuses. Although it's true that Sanzo cares for each of the ikkou members in his own way, he won't admit it for any of them. But if it's Hakkai, then he won't deny it either. That's about as close as Sanzo ever gets to admitting that he cares for anyone.
Well, it's like they said in the Saiyubito somewhere. Sanzo values Hakkai's life. Whether you want to see it as a platonic thing or a romantic one, it's still definitely there.
So, yeah... basically it was 383 from the very beginning, for me. There were times when I considered switching to 585, it never really fell through. Everything I thought about the series changed again when I read the manga. I soaked in it's amazing storyline and detailed characterizations, became a lot more sympathetic to all of the main characters (and even some of the not-so-main ones), and a lot more tolerant of other pairings (to the point where I support them all these days, more or less). Well, my opinion of the series as a whole has changed a lot since then, but my favorite pairing? It probably never will.