Everyone who knows me or follows me probably knows how much I love Sasha. Other than my friend recommending this series to me, I have to say Sasha was one the main reason I decided to give this series a go. She will always be my favourite character.
With the spoilers coming through and knowing that Sasha is most likely dead (there is like a slight and when I say slight, I mean /slight/ chance she lives. I really fucking hope she does live, doubt it though) I think it’s time we appreciate the light she shone on this series.
Love her or hate her, you cannot say she didn’t have some badass moments. Saving a child’s life by attacking a titan head on with non of the correct gear and just a bow and arrow/axe, like YES! You go girl! Get that development. Also remember when she saved Connie’s life sniping a military member that was about to shoot him. Even in the recent chapter, she managed to make a perfect shot that looked pretty difficult to do. She even spared her killer Gabi when she could’ve easily of took her out.
She had a lot of comical moments too. A character that could make us laugh a little despite how dark and sinister this series is.
I think it is safe to say that we all sort of saw this coming. Most of our red flags came up during the panel when Sasha and Gabi had that staring contest.
R.I.P Sasha Braus <3.
Also I get why people are pissed at Gabi for killing Sasha, me too, to be honest. However she doesn’t deserve the hate she is getting. (I may get into this later on, but this is a post appreciating the deceased)
Was Rin’s journey to the past foreshadowed from the beginning? Will Rin interact with someone in the past/affect some happenings?
BE is currently on hiatus and so, even if it’s gonna be a bit frustrating, we’ll have to wait till May to find out what’s gonna happen in chapter 100. Even so, based on what we learned from chapter 99 (through Mephisto’s words), I think we can already start making some predictions. And I got a few.
This theory is about what I think we can expect to see/learn from Rin’s journey to the past. And also about the possibility that Rin’s journey was foreshadowed to us since the very beginning.
I have read quite a few posts lately about Eren–about how he’s not stupid, how he’s a good person and what his strengths and weaknesses are. And it’s been really interesting! All the more so because I’ve been looking at him from a completely different perspective. This may be an unpopular opinion, but what I find most fascinating about Eren is that he is, in many ways, a shonen protagonist deconstructed, a hero living in a narrative that is not built to support him. He’s trying to live a story that’s just not happening for him, and he wouldn’t be himself if he didn’t try to live it anyway, but the story keeps beating him down again and again.
Here are some reasons that come to mind why OC might not be so happy about RC’s return:
OC knows his brother is dead because he witnessed how he got stabbed in the chest
OC knows that RC isn’t just “dead” but literally “doesn’t exist” anymore because his soul got eaten by a demon
OC thinks it was his fault that his brother’s soul got eaten and therefore has strong guilt feelings towards his brother
OC knows that his brother is 100000% dead
hence, OC knows that his brother who returned isn’t “alive” but must have been turned into some kind of zombie
OC knows his brother shot Soma and
brutally
killed Agni
OC read that creepy message on the wall and knows that his brother knows that OC retrieved the ring from RC’s stomach after his death (+ RC’s message didn’t sound like he was pleased by what OC did to him)
OC knows his brother isn’t the same person he used to be
OC took on his brother’s identity and deceived everyone, so now that his brother returned, there’s the possibility that all his lies will be exposed, and not only that, he’ll return to his old weak, worthless self again
OC knows that his brother isn’t “alive” but a zombie, which means that he has to kill him (just like he had Sebastian kill all the zombies in Campania & Weston arc) which means that he’s bound to witness his brother’s death a second time
etc.
Tl;dr: The point is that OC knows that RC is 10000000% dead and that the person who is standing in front of him and looks exactly like RC isn’t the same RC he used to love and admire so much. Also, OC is not as naive as to believe that a
miracle™ might have brought his brother back to life, so he knows that RC must be some kind of zombie.
That’s why he isn’t happy
Bonus:
I mean, OC never really was enthusiastic about the idea of bringing dead people back, so…
I don’t necessarily think so. Hsiao just seems like a sexual person, which is fine. Like, in the omakes, she discusses Saiko in very much sexual terms, discussing her physical attributes and ‘peach fuzz.’
I actually admire how Ishida isn’t afraid to show female sexuality. Akira kissing Amon first (twice), Touka bluntly saying she wants to have sex with Kaneki and initiating it, Mutsuki expressing sexual desires and fears, Kimi has sex with Nishiki, Hsiao owning her sexuality, even Saiko talking about the Power of Boobs. Eto comes across as very sexual and enjoys being nude, but she’s not just a sexy monster, and we never see her having a relationship with anyone–i.e. it doesn’t define her. Women are often portrayed as either sexual monsters or virginal angels, but with Ishida that dichotomy isn’t there. They can be good and bad and sexual and loving at the same time.
Like, if he was drawing every single woman in his manga that way, I would start to arch my eyebrows. But he isn’t. Hinami, for example, is not sexualized in any way ever, and neither is Karren, even though her arc centers around Tsukiyama and her desire for his love. Hairu has some sexy bonus illustrations but they’re also generally goofy too, but within the actual manga she’s not really sexualized.
In fact, it’s interesting to me that men who try to control women’s sexuality are condemned. See: Torso, Tsuneyoshi, and notably Furuta, who expresses fear that Rize will have sex with men other than him, saying the idea of her getting pregnant would “keep him up at night.” And so he pushes steel beams on her, imprisons her and subjects her to torture create the Oggai. Rize comes the closest to being that nefarious seductress archetype, but Ishida kind of subverts that by condemning the men in the Garden and Furuta who try to inhibit her. He also clearly doesn’t think well of her lack of care for others, but that allows for grayness–Rize’s selfishness is awful, but it’s never an excuse for what’s been done to her, and the narrative never implies that Rize had it coming.
Actually, now that I think about it, Mayu/Nutcracker is another character that could fall into that archetype, and yet the trope is subverted again: she isn’t having sex with them and then killing them, she’s just taking revenge on men, and when she dies, she expresses that she just wanted to be beautiful.
I also think Ishida gives his… share of sexy fanservice with his male characters too. Ayato, Ui, Urie, and Kaneki have all been drawn in very sexy images, especially when fighting. If it were just the women, again I would be arching my eyebrows, but he does draw the men looking similarly sweat-inducing.
So yeah. I don’t have a problem with characters, female or male, being sexual. Some characters, just like people, are just naturally more comfortable expressing their sexuality. My complaints are actually more with the fandom reducing the female characters down to just their sexual abilities.
As
someone who loves Eren immensely, and who basically remembers every line
Eren has said in the manga, and every facial expression he made, I couldn’t
accept what he did in chapter 100 as “character development”. Was
I seriously misjudging his character so much, did Isayama decided to
change his character using the time-skip as an “excuse” so
that he can bring forward some of the themes he wants to push, or was there something else, something that I’ve missed?
So,
after banging my head against the wall for a few days, I finally had an epiphany, and this is the explanation that I came up with for what
happened to Eren, during the time-skip.
I think we’ll be finding out for sure any chapter now but I’m still inclined to believe Hide is human, as I think it’s important thematically for Hide to represent Kaneki’s human connection just as Touka was his guide into the ghoul world (ok I really just like that idea so Ishida can pry it out my cold dead hands).
The Witch’s Servant theory has been around in fandom far before then, but 2 years ago I talked about it in this post [x] and my ideas for his character haven’t changed at all. Since then canon has only strengthened that idea with the reveal that Eto and Arima were in cahoots.
Basically, if you haven’t heard the theory before it’s based on the play that Kaneki and Hide were in as children:
Kaneki plays the lead role as the Prince wearing a cloak with the symbol of Aogiri on it. This has come to be true foreshadowing as the title of King was later passed onto the Prince (Kaneki) by the previous founder/King of Aogiri Tree (Eto and Arima)
Hide was the Witch’s servant in the play
Even though we can’t be sure if they were from Ishida directly or Studio Pierrot, there were some unused anime drafts where Hide and Kaneki recite lines from the play [x]. Overall the additional info mentions:
The Witch’s servant (Hide) was a friend to the Prince (Kaneki)
Hide was tricked by the Witch to betray Kaneki
Hide asks for Kaneki’s forgiveness
Kaneki makes Hide promise to never betray him again, to leave the Witch’s side and become his ally/fight by his side
So based on that here’s my take on things.
Eto obviously takes the place of the Witch, as shown in the calendar
Eto had been searching for someone to take on the role of One Eyed King from Arima. Kaneki piqued her interest when she met him again at the book signing and he was able to understand her line of thinking through her novels
When Hide showed up at the book signing just after and asked for the same name to be signed in the book, it signaled to Eto that they were connected
she mentioned ‘Osamu Dazai’ who was quoted earlier by Kaneki with a highly relevant line for what’s been happening in recent events
Eto recruited Hide to her side by promising him she had a way to save Kaneki. Hide was in on the plan with Eto, and sent Kaneki to V14 where Arima awaited as a test to see if he was a valid candidate for OEK.
That would count as the Witch tricking the servant into betraying the Prince, as Kaneki wasn’t merely saved as Hide wished, but molded and manipulated for years.
After that it’s a bit harder to theory craft. I personally believe that Hide has only ever had Kaneki’s best interests at heart and genuinely wants to save him. But I also wouldn’t be surprised if Hide knew about Eto and Arima’s wishes for Kaneki to become the next OEK. I find it real suspicious that Hide has been in hiding as Scarecrow this whole time but let Kaneki believe for months that he murdered his best friend. So I can’t help but wonder if there’s more to it since there was nothing personal to gain from that. Hide was on the run from the Washuu, and Kaneki was also being hunted by V, so that’s no reason to stay away.
I can’t wait to see Hide’s backstory and reunion with Kaneki to find out >:)
honestly my favourite bit in KS discourse will always be antis completely seriously arguing that portraying rape, murder and abuse im a way that shows it is fuckin bad is “glorifying”
Worse is when any abuse that is shown with snippets of happy moments or bonding between a victim and abuser is labeled ‘romanticizing’.
Many depictions of abuse in mainstream media are black-and-white; they make the abusevery obviousto the audience and victim. Take Beverly from the recent IT movie. This is not to say that there is anything I find fundamentally wrong with this abuse portrayal given that the movie was not focusing on Beverly’s abuse, the only thing the movie was trying to achieve was making it noticeable which succeeded, but that’s rarely how real abuse is. Abuse is hidden under ‘love’ and sweet nothings that keep you just on the hook. The abuser will give you enough happy moments to make you think that no, you’re not being abused! Remember how sweetly they comfort you when you wake up from nightmares. Sure, they slap you around a bit, but real abuse victims are beaten 24/7! Real abusers don’t show care towards their victims one bit! You’re not an abuse victim.
This is a scary thing to be teaching people.
Absolutely, good point. One of the reasons I love KS so much is because of how accurately it portrays abuse. Most other media honestly leaves me feeling like I’m lying, because my abuser could be so nice to me and I cared so much about him. I think a lot of people forget that it’s necessary for an abuser to be nice to maintain control of their victim.
^ THIS ^
Antis have a hard time understanding that there’s a difference between portraying an abusive relationship in a realistic way (which must include nice and sweet moments between victim and abuser, because that’s how the abuser keeps the victim around, no human being would be so stupid to not realize the abuse if they were beaten up constantly! That’s what makes it hard for a victim abuse to realize they’re actually being abused) and ‘romanticizing’ it.
Killing Stalking doesn’t even try in the least to sugar coat Bum’s situation, so how can it be called ‘romanticization’ of abuse?
Color me optimistic but there’s really no reason to kill off the baby unless Ishida wants to cement in the idea that Touka is A) a monster incapable of saving even her own child or B) that she’ll always live while losing people, which are two of her unhealthiest mentalities.
I don’t think the pregnancy is gonna go 100% swimmingly and there will be complications eventually, but that kid is gonna live.
I mean, that was my point exactly. The uneasy peace they came to, came about when any of the ghouls who would have complicated the situation were not even present for it.
Including Seidou Takizawa who really should have been an easy pick for Amon, if Amon really meant what he said where he thought Takizawa’s strength was being a ghoul investigator and that therefore he can live and work alongside him to be redeemed. This is literally Amon walking back into the CCG and being allowed to fight as a ghoul investigator once more as if nothing happened.
Conspicuously absent also is Hinami. Not only are the most violent ghouls excluded, but also the most victimized.
Juuzou didn’t just “do his job” with Hinami, he hacked her apart while taunting her. All the while he probably heard what Hinami said to Touka, that she was fighting like this to protect children. Hinami is literally the first victim of the CCG that cloud’s the CCG’s righteousness were introduced through, throughout the rabbit arc.
Yet we see Juuzou is just as merciless to her as he is everybody else, and even starts pulling faces like this.
Am I saying all of this to bash Juuzou though? No, it’s just an explanation for why Hinami is not there. She probably can’t face Juuzou the same way Touka can, because Hinami bore the brunt of Juuzou’s violence in that scene. When asked about it, she breaks down crying entirely, and her leg hasn’t even fully healed yet.
In other words Hinami is legitimately traumatized by the whole thing, and those aren’t feelings that she can sweep under the rug. Consider too, that Hinami’s instigating point of her taruma, is that she made Kaneki watch when her mother died. That she needed to rely on him and be saved by him in that moment. In her fight with Juuzou, Hinami had to experience that trauma fresh over again.
She had to watch Kaneki come save her again, and then because he saved her he transformed right in front of her eyes into something unrecognizable. Hinami whose primary character issue is that she feels weak, and that she hurts the people in her life because they constantly have to step in to protect her, gets to re-experience that feeling all over again.
So yeah, all of the characters who cannot really simply let bygones be bygones are not there. I think that’s on purpose, and not ‘because Ishida can’t write Hinami’s arc” or whatever as I’ve heard some people saying.
Furuta’s plan is idyllic, it runs on fairy tale logic, it’s literally based off of fairy tales he heard from somewhere.
It should fall apart at some point. Thematically, because while revenge is pointless, the complete opposite side simply trying to forget everything and move on is just as pointless too. There’s a value to remembering even a painful and tragic history, and that’s because in facing the past head on and understanding it we learn from it. However, when we forget, we miss out on our opportunity to learn.
I think this arc is if anything, meant to set up that both of the extremes are wrong. That both sides continually fighting one another in an endless cycle of revenge is wrong, but also that forgetting what each side has lost and trying to sweep it all under the rug or white wash it for the sake of the future is also wrong. Which is why this arc has literally been full of nothing but shallow alliances, and people trying to unite over rhetoric and figurehead rather than debating and working through ideas. Which is what a discussion really is. And what the ultimate end goal of Tokyo Ghoul seems to be, and have been for a long time.
midnight-in-town 