FMP: Continuing On My Own Discussion *Spoilers*

[Gunner]

Whoohoo. Another awesome chapter!
Things are really heating up. I have to say that Continuing on My Own is thus far my favorite novel with the exciting barrage of action-packed chases and Sousuke vs. enemy gun-slinging. It's interesting to see how Sousuke, and particularily Kaname, deal with the events unfolding before them. This chapter ends with a huge cliff-hanger; effectively making me want more and more.
Can't wait for the next!

[Circle]

Yea, they might wait until this current mega story arc is over before deciding to animate it. They can determine the number of episodes and format easier that way.

[AEmer]

I like the fact that Sousuke finally seems human in this one- it's pretty impossible to do all the things he does without getting injured.

Indeed. While it was the technically correct thing to do, I very much hated how 'ODBD' made Sousuke's winning streak so...obvious, and happen without damage...and I think it became even worse with the whole rescuing tessa thing during DVMC...which was again the right thing to do, for the series as a whole, it just...sacrificed the moment, I felt. I got alieanated, atleast.

But this is basically a phyrric crusade - and a perfect way to move us towards burning one man force.

Also, I don't mind the cliffhangers so much...as long as it keeps progressing onwards (just like your translations, which are super cool and I love!), I don't mind it if it takes a while till the next bit arrives...

I does pressent several problems with the storytelling, tho... anything new will not be very accessible for newcomers in the middle, because the characters vary, and the continuity is hard to keep track of unless most of it occours during one season. Next time, a 13 episode season simply won't cut it - it'll need twice the length. That, or we could be looking at OVA releases.

[Weltall Elite]

Oh, I don't know. I thought that the clear-cut victories for Sousuke in those stories were the perfect way to play them out give the scenario. And having him beat up in this one is a good way to play out the story given the plot. I don't see how that can distance you from the story. You have to realize that up until now the story has been going up. The last two novels ended with Sousuke coming to some clear realization about himself and coming to terms with something in his life, and that gave him the inspiration and confidence to win. The fact that he pulled them off with a perfectly level head and flawless execution drives that point home. To have had him beaten down and frustrated AFTER these supposed revolations about himself would have really downplayed the accomplishment and made the internal victory seem shallow and less profound. The conflict in those stories were never really external ones, but rather the internal conflicts within Sousuke and Kaname.

Then we get to COMO. Things are different now. Sousuke's conquering his demons and he's on the verge of really having something with Kaname and building a peaceful life in Japan. He's stood up to his superiors an has started to live for himself rather than doing what people tell him too. There's no longer a need for an internal conflict. Everything's going great. So in an act of great storytelling, we throw in an external conflict. Leonard shows up and starts ruining everyone's lives. Now everything he's worked so hard to build in his life comes falling apart. Having him get beat up and pushed to the limit at this point is a perfect move. It's a challenge that's just too much for him to overcome even though he's come so far. I think that's an ideal way of building a tragic character.

When you read these books, you can't look at them book by book. You have to see the flow of the story. In ODBD, we didn't even know who the villain was until the last few pages. What would have been the point in having a big dramatic showdown between them? If he has a long drawn out battle with every enemy he faces, it makes the ones that really matter seem less significant. So Gatoh saves all that drama for the enemies that really matter. He's been building up Leonard for three books now. There's TONS of tension between him and the heroes. And there's about to be tons more. THAT'S the enemy to focus on. I couldn't have cared less if Gates had been a more challenging enemy. In fact, it would have weakened the novel given the exchange between him and Kaname just before it.

[AEmer]

Oh, it's not that it distances me from the story - I even said that I felt it was the right thing to do for the story as a whole. You've given some reasons as to why - and I generally agree with your points.

The problem is that in ODBD and DVMC, certain situations felt like they were played out with Sousuke in god-mode. And as we all know, god-mode kills the gameplay. It doesn't ruin the story or the eyecandy, but you're not engaged in it, and it basically fails to thrill you.

Since that is a common goal with action scenes, it is natural to feel that those scenes were lacking in their execution. That these scenes beat him up is a clear improvement, in that regard.

That is all I really said.

Now, as for looking at things as a whole, and whether you must do that with something like fmp...

I strongly disagree. You are completely entitled to evaluate the sensation your experience at any one point while you read a book. If the flow of one section is so bad that you've no engagement to it, then it is completely fair to say you think said section sucks - if the rest of the book is very good, then it especially sucks by comparison. That a certain section sucks doesn't mean it isn't right, or that they are somehow expendable - it just means it is a compromise.

That's the way I see things.

[Weltall Elite]

Well, yeah. You're entitled to do anything you want. You can not read the story at all and say it sucked based on some vibe you got from the paper if you wanted. But that's not to say that you couldn't very well be entirely missing the point. And if an author does a good job of conveying a point and one or a few readers out of many misses that point, the author isn't necessarily to blame for his execution. Though those readers are still entitled to their opinions. But that doesn't mean they're right.

So, no, you don't HAVE to look at it the right way. I just think that if someone doesn't, they're robbing themselves of the experience. It's kind of like me saying,"You have to breathe." I suppose you don't HAVE to. You're entitled not to. I can't FORCE you to breathe. I just happen to think it'd be to your benefit. You can't take all my wording EXACTLY literally.

PS: And that's not saying that you CAN'T. Because you're entitled to take if literally if you're so inclined. But again, you'd be missing the point if you did, and it'd probably cause you an ulcer over time.

[AEmer]

I'm not taking your comments litterally, I'm not a pinhead...after all, my head is not shaped like a pin...

...ahem...

Let's try this.

You're entitled to think that a story is perfect. You're entitled to think that every stoy you've ever heard is perfect. You're entitled to believe that, not only was the authors execution flawless, it was so good craftsmanship that he did not have to sacrifice the flair of the moment at any one point in order to protect the continuity of the story as a whole.

You're also entitled to believe that I'm distancing myself from a story by being critical towards what I think are it's bad points. You're even entitled to do so in a nice passive-agressive fashion, if that's what you want.

Either way, it's not really about that. I observe what I feel as I read, and I try to understand why I feel as I do, because I enjoy the architechture of litterature at least as much as the litterature itself (because I'm a geek like that).
I use the litterary theory I've been learned as a guide, but it really comes down to the way I feel, and the memory of how I felt that I'm left with afterwards.

No book I've read has not had me lose touch with it at some point or another...Some of the best experiences I've had with litterature have come equiped with scenes that bored me to tears at points....

When it comes to something I like, I'm usually particularly critical towards it because I will study and understand the flaws of it better... all the same, that does not mean that it is not excellent, overall.

edit: I might've come off a bit harsh on this issue, so sorry about that...I honestly don't mean to, but weltalls sarcasm/irony sorta got to me, I hope that didn't offend anybody

[sj4iy]

I think I agree a bit with Aemer on this one- personally, I like the stories of ODBD and COMO better than DVMC- why? Well, DVMC was funny and light-hearted, which is what Gatou was going for, but it's not as gripping as the more realistic action of the other stories. Who would want to see the hero win all the time? You hope he wins the war in the end, but losing some battles along the way makes for better character development, I think. I love stories where the hero has to struggle to overcome insurmountable odds, and sometimes they even don't. When, in a story like DVMC, the character just can't seem to be beaten, it kind of takes away from the thrill of climax. Oh, well...my two cents on the subject.

Not that I'm saying I didn't like it- but then again, he had written it with an entirely different purpose than he wrote the others, so maybe it's not fair to compare them on the action scale.

[KashimArbalestAS]

From Sousuke's thoughts and experience, him getting hurt did not signal a more human Sousuke, but the way he has always been, fighting and surviving to fight other battles in the future. He's obviously been hurt many times before because of his own desire to keep running and ignore his pain while protecting Chidori and urging her to keep going and ignore her wounds. Just like he knows practically every weapon and AS under the sun, he knows his wounds. It obviously means that he has seen his fair share of wounds and pain to be able to gauge someone's or his own wounds on how serious it is. If you're going to play with fire, you'll get burned and Sousuke has been burned all his life.

Let's just remember that Sousuke is one of the top soldiers/warrior in the world. From life as a mercenary his whole life, nobody learns faster than someone being shot at. So in DVMC when he obliterated people in his path, it was because he knew more than they did on how thin of an edge he was balancing on between life and death. Fights for survival, one or the other is going to have to win and Sousuke happened to have won those firefights. He did get shot though.

[AEmer]

it's nice that you're engrossed in the story and all...but you can't look at it from the characters perspective if you want to evaluate the execution or the experience...you have to look at it from either the readers perspective, or the writers perspective...

And that you as a reader was not alieanted means that you enjoyed all of it a lot.

The same thing does not go for me. There were certain parts that I did not enjoy.

That does not mean that I believe it could have been executed far better, as a whole, tho.

[Weltall Elite]

Alright, alright. It really wasn't that you disagreed that bothered me. Just twisting what I say that gets under my skin. So sorry if I got confrontational. Believe me, there were parts of all the stories I would have polished, so I certainly wouldn't say it's flawless. So I know it comes down to preference and what aspects you like to look for in a story. I was just saying that I could see why he chose to play it out a certain way. But I gather you know where I'm coming from by now. :p

[darkheart510]

Aemer said:

you can't look at it from the characters perspective if you want to evaluate the execution or the experience...you have to look at it from either the readers perspective, or the writers perspective

but i feel that you have to be able to see outside and inside the narrating character's viewpoint in order to fully understand the reading experience that you are getting. Looking at things from the character's perspective is important in analysis of the experience because most of what we are feeling comes from the character. reading and experiencing the character's growth at the same time contributes to a positive experience because the reader feels that she is also growing up and realizing things. that's why when we read things we can sympathize and get excited and cry. personally, if i can't see where the character is coming from, i can't enjoy the book the same way i would if i understood him.

i just disagreed with that bit there, i'm sorry if i misinterpreted...soapbox moment over...now

what a exciting chapter! and that last bit was just horrible!!! and i still luuuuv Al and the fact that he's sousuke's alter ego...hehheh can you imagine sousuke like that? Also, do u feel that there are two reasons why chidori is so scared of sousuke? one-because he's a practical, ruthless mercenary and two- because her feelings for him are so huge and overwhelming that she feels like she is losing control.

[KashimArbalestAS]

That's what I would have said, darkheart510. When I experience a series or something, I usually look for the positives and see how good it is in making me enjoy it. To some people some of the novels were the pits. Some did not. What fun is there to look at the FMP! world for material that could be "done better" than actually being immersed in the world as some invisible character that follows that adventure everywhere? Everybody has heard that a good book and author takes you into the story and makes you feel a part of it. The reader's point of view is practically looking through the eyes of the character's in the story.

To evaluate how the novel was done and its mechanics, I guess you can look at it from a writer's point of view. For the experience it is normally as a reader, and imagining yourself in the character's position could reveal more hindsight.

[sj4iy]

Heh, this conversation has totally lost me now.

[Weltall Elite]

It's a comparison between internal and external conflict in determining what draws an individual into the story.