Stage 0 ga kita!

[verity_isle]

Stage 0 is....なんというか...interesting? Weird? There are passages narrated by C.C. And Ashford Gakuen is....CRACK. I mean, 'Landmine Lovers' Club'? What the hell school is this? It's not as gay as I was led to believe, and young!Lelouch was an interesting kid. In general, overly simplified writing aside, it's a decent book

Comments

[meitsu]

Hello =O thanks for adding me. (but I don't remember when I added you, sorry, i'm very absent minded, I know you from CG LJ, but I just don't remember when I added you, sorry >_<)

oooh, this sounds interesting...too bad I can't read Japanese proficiently...OTL

wait, Drama CD as in the sound episode? I don't remember Genbu in vol.1...>_>'

[verity_isle]

Genbu wasn't in the episode. XD; It's just Suzaku's reaction to him when Toudou talked about poison, going all indignant (I can actually picture him with a snobbish noseraise) and saying dad would NEVER do something like that. His voice suggests someone who's proud. And while he may be still proud here, we wouldn't know, since Suzaku's reaction to such a line would probably be quiet. XD

I think I'll translate some parts of Stage 0. It depends on what kind of time I have. :D (And don't worry about the adding; I don't know when myself. XD; I just friend people back when I notice them)

[meitsu]

Ooh, I remember that line, but I thought it was only Suzaku getting stuck up for his father. =p I still don't get how someone that proud could have changed into the crybaby later on. =o

oooooh =D please do translate some (if it's convenient! :D)!

[verity_isle]

Well, if the timeline is correct and the anime's patricide reason IS indeed different from the novel's ....then he killed Dad to end a war, and then afterwards, a bomb landed on his home. That's got to be traumatic...although with the added novel reason, that could be why he isn't so proud anymore.

[meitsu]

waaait, which one is which? =o What's different betweeen the two? (I thought Nanali was a reason in both versions)

[verity_isle]

Not really? All we know about the anime reason is what Mao said : he did it to end a war. (Although you could say it's his later rationalization, I suppose) The novel didn't mention the war much at all, and he did it because Genbu plans to kill both Nanaly and Lelouch, though Nanaly goes first because she's worth less on the bargaining table.

What's more confusing is that in the Suzaku of the Counterattack manga, he did it because Genbu was selling Japan out. PICK ONE AND STICK WITH IT, SUNRISE. Though maybe the Counterattack manga doesn't count, since...well, it has a Lancelot Battle Suit and all.

[meitsu]

Hm...then can fans not assume that in the anime it was also because Genbu wanted to kill the two? Not saying it out doesn't mean it didn't happen. =O Maybe they wanted to keep this plot device until 24 and 25? You have to understand that Mao is good at making people feel weak by pummeling them with emotional guilt, saying out loud Suzaku had to do it to save Lulu and Nanali wouldn't exactly 'help' himself.

And well, I don't really think of any of the CG manga as canon...more like alternate universes for fanservice, or something =p.

[verity_isle]

I DO understand. ^^; I did mention that they're not mutually exclusive. That's why I said "could be his later rationalization". He was pretty angsty about using power for himself---if he rationalized it later that it's not just for Lulu and Nanaly but for Japan, too, it works pretty well. But if Mao says "to save Lulu and Nanaly" and chooses his words well, he can probably mindfuck Lulu as well as Suzaku. So I think it's just his Geass aspect working. You can't read EVERYTHING, just what the other side's thinking at the moment, and Suzaku didn't think about all of it.

I don't take any happenings in them as canon, either, but you know...the background information should at least be CONSISTENT. XD Background is how the characters get where they are! Couldn't Sunrise have told the mangaka how it happened?

[meitsu]

(sorry, I tend to sound a bit egotistic...OTL didn't mean "You have to understand" er...asahtnevermind! >_<)

True, though I thought Mao can read into memories? Or am I overstating his abilities?

Bleh, I think they did it on purpose. The Accursed! XD well, if it was consistent, the jungle-gym fight between Lulu and Suzaku wouldn't have occured, that was cute XD or naked Nanali for the lolicons There are some interesting fanservice that couldn't occur if it followed the canon plot, though

[verity_isle]

(It's okay, I wasn't so offended. ^^)

I originally thought so, but if he did, he would've already known the extent of Lulu and C.C.'s relationship, which would render Lulu's plan in 15 nigh unusable. And nobody can convince me that's not the first thing he'd read once Lulu gets in mindreading range. Lulu is just too...single-minded. XD

Jungle-gym fight? Do you mean the date in the rebellion manga? But that counts among the 'happenings during manga timeline'...I just wish they have the same pre-timeline occurrences so we won't have to deal with FOUR CANONS AT ONCE at the very least. I know! XD Nightmare's whole premise is AU, and I think it's interesting. I mean Nanaly possibly fighting against amnesiac!Zero! CLAMP can't make better angst. And Lancelot + Fat Zero cosplay lol.

[meitsu]

(thank you >_<)

Aaaah, true, I'm imagining things.

But aaaw, that date fight was cute =p. I think some fans won't mind the hindrance XD
O_o what Fat Zero? I haven't read the manga in a while OTL *fail* and CLAMP works on Nightmare? *fails again for not checking when reading*

[verity_isle]

There was a Zero impostor in the Counterattack IIRC, and compared to the ridiculously skinny Lelouch, he was fat. XD I like the date, too, and I really appreciate the changes---no fun if the same 23 episodes is repeated, isn't it? Just the background!

CLAMP didn't work on Nightmare. XD It's just that they couldn't have made an angstier angst. (This is only figuratively speaking; I am actually pretty sure that if they set their minds to it, anything would be dripping with angst)

[meitsu]

Haha XD great, now I have to restart reading Counterattack. I think I heard something about Suzaku wearing a Lancelot armor when fighting or something XD
Well, the date would have cut into Suzaku meeting Euphie, so I guess it couldn't have had the same background, and since sound episodes and drama CDs already cover the bits and pieces left out in the anime...

Hahaha, I just had the image of someone dipping a steak in sauce....CLAMP dips manga in angst...*smacks head* XD I thought xxxHolic wasn't that angst, well, until all the crazy stuff start popping.

what I don't get is, how can they have three drawing styles at the same time? There's Tsubasa, xxxHolic, and another one about a girl and a talking dog-plushie, and they all look fairly distinct! LIKE...WTH? O_o

[verity_isle]

No, no, what I meant by background IS what happens before the day Lelouch meets C.C. Stuff like "Suzaku has ALWAYS studied at Ashford" for Rebellion, "Selling away Japan" for Counterattack and probably Nightmare's entire background. What happens after the story begins is the plot, and I don't mind if they diverge at all. In fact, the reason I'm unhappy at the Rebellion manga is that it doesn't diverge ENOUGH.

xxxHolic is my favourite. And yes, it isn't angsty. I think it's the sole reason my faith in CLAMP was somewhat redeemed after the X/1999 thing. XD Watanuki still loses his eyeball

Changing your art style isn't that hard if you've got a good artist. And you might notice they didn't actually change their 'drawing' style. What they changed is their inking style, not the shapes they draw but how they draw those faces. With a sufficiently skilled artist, it's not hard.

[meitsu]

Oooh...I'm slightly confused here. XD oh wells

Eyeballs: Teh cliche XD I only read the X/1999 released back then (because my father brought them) so I don't know what happened now. =x

Oooh, I see, that's true. I really need to learn more about drawing. OTL But their art style for shounen/fighting series do seem different from the cute ones =o. long limbs remained, though