#mfb character analysis

[mrcompass]

The Devil(s) of Metal Fight Beyblde.

Dr. Ziggurat, the main antagonist of Beyblade Metal Masters, shares many parallels and similarities with the Christian Devil.

He is a ruthless and manipulative executive of an enterprise called Hades Inc., who enjoys making "deals" with other people. Note that Hades and Hell were interchangeably used in Greek mythology to describe the afterlife. The deals he makes are almost like demonic contracts: Zeo had to become a lab rat to save Toby, losing his sanity in the process. Ziggurat takes advantage of desperate people like Zeo and even Julian.

Ziggurat transformed Toby into Faust, whose name comes from the main character of a German legend. Faust, inspired by Johann Georg Faust, made a contract with the devil: Mephistopheles would serve him, and after a certain number of years, the devil would take his soul. Faust sacrificed his soul either to gain knowledge or for material and personal gain, depending on the version. Toby accepted the arrangement against his will, and even if he was cured, he lost himself in the process. He can play Beyblade again, but as Faust, he is only a soulless tool.

The doctor himself seems to have "sold his soul," since he doesn't care about ethics or the fact that he is using children for his experiments. Hikaru explicitly said that some of the bladers incompatible with the arrangement system were so impacted by it that they had to end their careers.

Physically, Ziggurat appears taller than most of the cast, though this is because they are all children. He has spikes of hair at the back of his head, like Damian, that emulate horns. He also wears a dark gray suit, which contrasts sharply with all the colorful characters (even his collaborators, Daidoji and Pluto, seem more colorful than him). He is as gray and dark as the hellish world Damian creates with his Kerbecs.

His name comes from ancient structures called ziggurats, built by the Mesopotamians for cult practices. Daidoji's name means (literally) "great road/way to the temple". They were both part of the Hades cult, lead by Pluto who lived in a temple. However, Ziggurat can also be a reference to the German word "Ziege," which means goat. Ziggurat's design also emulates the animal, with his goatee and spiky hair. His Beyblade is Spiral Capricorn, and in the anime, its Bey beast is often depicted as a simple goat.

This animal is often tied to the Devil and is one of the forms it takes. The painter Goya depicted a gathering of witches with "Witches' Sabbath" (Goya, 1798), where the Devil takes the form of a goat and is offered children to eat. While the doctor doesn't (seem to) eat children, he effectively despises them and shows a lot of disdain towards them. He also steals their innocence in a way. Zeo and Toby do not take back their Aries Bey; they now use Beys with the Spiral fusion wheel, reminiscent of Spiral Capricorn. Aries is a sheep and is typically associated with innocence. They cannot go back to who they were; they are permanently scarred by what they have been through during their time in Haves Inc.

In the scene where Zeo is stopping Ziggurat, he is at the bottom of the stairs, symbolizing a shift in power dynamics between them. This positioning could also symbolize Zeo casting Ziggurat back to Hell, as Hell is below the Earth in popular culture.

"JoJo's Bizarre Adventure" has previously utilized its antagonists, DIO (assimilated to God) and Diavolo (a mafia boss, assimilated to the devil), in a similar manner. DIO is upstairs (heaven), while Diavolo is at the bottom of the stairs (hell). I would add that in the Metal Saga, it is common for villains to fall: Nemesis and Daidoji fell into a pit, and Hades City fell into the abyss of the sea.

These falls can be interpreted as both a physical defeat and a symbolic triumph over an evil that is cast back into hell.

Ziggurat is a more traditional version of the devil who makes deals with people and manipulates them, while Nemesis embodies the devil of the apocalypse, wishing for total chaos.

#mfb #metal fight beyblade #metal fury #zeo abyss #character analysis #julian konzern #toby beyblade #daidoji #doji beyblade #pluto beyblade #nemesis beyblade #jojo no kimyou na bouken #jjba diavolo #dio jjba #damian hart #dr ziggurat #ziggurat beyblade

[irisviel101]

Here's another question I have: there's been a debate with some friends of mine over how Ryuga was handled in Fury specifically that he regressed despite his character development in Masters. What do you think?

I don't think he regressed at all. For him to have regressed, he would have to return to his characterization in Metal Fusion, which is a far cry from Metal Fury.

Ryuuga, at the start of Metal Fury, is just chilling on a random island and indulging in his habit of training in a volcano, just like we see him before in the flashback between Fusion and Masters. So, no difference there. In Masters, he's mellowed down considerably from the person he was in Fusion and his demeanor is no different in Fury.

When Gingka and co. show up, he wants nothing to do with them and that's not really out of character since the only time Ryuuga ever goes near them is during a world ending crisis. He shows up because he needs to "repay a debt" to both Gingka and Tsubasa and then just wanders around until Ziggurat tries to recruit him.

It's only when he learns of the Star Fragment that he shows any interest in what they have to say, and that's only so that he can take their power for himself. Ryuuga has always wanted to be the strongest. That is what attracted him to the Dark Power in Metal Fusion, and Masters changes nothing about that even if it seems like it does. It's just that most of the time, Ryuuga is so overwhelmingly powerful that there's not much to desire there. By learning of the Star Fragment, Ryuuga learns that there is still a power out there that he hasn't mastered and Ryuuga has always coveted power. And we see that he is at least interested in fighting strong opponents, which is the whole reason he follows Jack to Hades Inc. in Metal Masters.

On the topic of allowing Kenta to follow him around, it likely came from the expectation that Kenta is a weakling who would quit soon enough, but he manages to hang in their. This piques Ryuuga's interest and he "allows" Kenta to follow him. Despite this, he does pretty much whatever he wants and Kenta is left to catch up with all his might. None of this is a stretch from his behavior in Masters; it's not even the first time Ryuuga has been interested in someone else (Jack being the most notable).

And the rest follows through gradually, but it's just more of the same.

So no, I don't think Ryuuga regressed at all. If anything, he's completely different from how he was at the beginning of the series.

#mfb #beyblade metal fight #metal fight beyblade #analysis #character analysis #ask #ryuuga

[sky-of-dusk]

The Dark Power : Those who lost and the one who won

The Dark Power wasn't supposed to infect Kyouya.

First, Kyouya has all this arc with the Wolf Canyon that differentiate him from Hikaru and Tsubasa. And the Dark Power doesn't overwhelm him as he does with Hikaru, Tsubasa and Ryuuga.

And those aren't the only differences. Let's take a look at two other points showing the difference in Hikaru's, Tsubasa's and Kyouya's reaction, and consequently on Dark Power's influence on them.

Psychological influence

The Dark Power, and Ryuuga, uses a psychological ascendancy to win. Their power impress, or even scare their opponents. If it's not enough, however, Ryuuga doesn't hesitate to use words to make their opponents doubt about themselves.

Hikaru looses even before the duel's beginning.

"Why did I- Why did I think I could ever win for a moment… against a guy like that ?"

-Hikaru, episode 41

Thought Tsubasa resists longer than Hikaru, using the strategy he planned to battle Ryuuga, he looses before the battle's end.

Ryuuga : What's wrong ? If you think you can dodge it, give it a try. If you think you can stop it then go ahead and stop it. Why don't you ?

Tsubasa : Don't quit Eagle.

Ryuuga : I congratulate you for being able to make me use some of my real strenght. As a reward, I'll take extra special care and stealing that power from you. (...) It's finished. You were reckless and foolish to even consider challenging me in a battle at all.

Ryuuga : So say hello to the pit of despair!

-episode 45

Tsubasa lets Ryuuga's words (and power) touch him without replying. At the end of their duel, he's entirely passive.

On the other hand, we have Kyouya. He is evenly matched with Ryuuga, driving him to give up the Dark Power for their duel and even snatching some kind of compliment from Ryuuga:

"You are no match for me. (…) However, I can't remember anyone taking so many of my direct hits without completely collapsing. I give you credit for that."

Kyouya fights Ryuuga as if he was any other blader (an interesting blader, not a horrible monster he has to defeat to protect the world). He returns every blow and taunt, without being impressed, and even less scared, by Ryuuga. When L-Drago's Dark Power intervenes, Kyouya isn't afraid…

Ryuuga : Ah what ?

While Ryuuga is shocked by the Dark Power's apparition. This is the first time he shows such an expression.

Kyouya is destabilized, somewhat worried for Ryuuga, but he isn't afraid.

Kyouya : Ryuuga ? What's wrong ? (…) Yeah. Just when I thought it was getting good. Now the circus' act is becoming a bit much, huh ? Hey Ryuuga ?

He tries reaching out to Ryuuga but the Dark Power entirely overwhelms him. It soliloquizes about its need and Kyouya's answer is just :

"Okay, that's really nice. Go ahead, and try. But I'll never let you steal from me my blader's spirit. (then, thinking) Ginga, take a good look. This is my blader's spirit."

Kyouya stays in fighting mode until the end of their battle. The last sentence he says is adressed to Leone "Shatter him ! Let's use everything that we've got left !"

If Kyouya looses the duel, he isn't the one who looses against the Dark Power. Ryuuga is. The Dark Power controls him as a puppet at the end of the battle.

A symbolic detail

Hikaru and Tsubasa fall. Kyouya doesn't. He's standing despite his defeat, which is shown from different angles. He never hits the ground.

#dark power #comparison of characters #kyouya character analysis #kyouya tategami #tsubasa ootori #hikaru hasama #ryuuga #beyblade metal fusion #metal fight beyblade #mfb episode 41 #mfb episode 45 #mfb episode 49

[mach-speed-spin]

Beyblade character design analysis: Bao

Last time I went over Dashan Wang. Now for the Crimson Flash, the first teased-to-be-a-legendary-blader-but-not-actually character of Metal Fury, Bao (requested by anon)

I couldn’t find any good full-body images of him so I’m splitting this up

Bao’s hair has the most inconsistent color in all of metal fight, behind King. Sometimes it’s brown. Sometimes it’s wine red. Sometimes it’s in between. And unlike King there doesn’t seem to be any specific trigger for this. Now, ignoring the color, the hair itself almost looks like a trail (specifically the parts on his shoulders). This is similar to his bey’s attacks, which leave a trail of red light when it moves

Bao has a fur collar. This combines with how ragged his clothes look, shows us that Bao’s life doesn’t have many luxuries. This is similar to Aguma, or Kyoya pre-Fury

This is the only good picture of Bao I could find that went below his belt. His clothes are in a similar style to Aguma’s, albeit in a different color. Aguma and Bao are brothers and both are part of the Beylin Fist, but they are still different from each other, With Bao, his plain looks for his clothes shows his desire to blend in. He wants to avoid being spotted, and plain, practical clothing helps with that

It’s hard to see, but Bao’s fingerless gloves are ripped. This goes back to his clothes looking very worn. Bao doesn’t have the luxury of wearing clothes that aren’t worn to the point that his are in this image. Still, he has fingerless gloves, and fingerless gloves are what truly unite bladers (besides the blader’s spirit)

He has a belt. Most bladers have a belt to keep their beys and launchers on. Again, like the gloves, he is a blader, but his gear isn’t very luxurious

Bao wears plain pants. Functional, but not flashy. Nothing I can really say that I haven’t already

Not pictured here are his shoes, which are equally plain. No luxuries + blending in easily

#beyblade #mfb #Character Design Analysis

[psychoberry10]

Kyohika. Or When an Emotionally Stunted Tsundere Loves A Workaholic Tomboy (a messy essay)

Disclaimer: Please, please, please, if you dislike this ship or if it makes you uncomfortable for whatever reason, then just ignore this post and continue scrolling. There's no point in reading something that you know will trigger you and then going out of your way to say you hate it. Of course, you're allowed to ship whatever you like, and all ships are valid, but others are allowed to ship something that you don't like, too.  Also, let's not forget that this is literally just fiction :)

I. A Lousy Introduction

    God, I've been meaning to do a sort of essay on the topic since this is one of my favourite OTPs of all time. I looooove Kyohika. Since the very first time I watched Metal Fight Beyblade, back when I was 12-13 (damn, that was so long ago), these two had been the ones that stuck with me the most throughout all these years. I generally have a thing for tomboys (as I used to be one myself) and tsunderes, so I loved Hikaru and Kyoya individually, even without shipping them. So don't get me wrong, this is by no means a ship manifesto in which I'd try to convert you to be a fan of the pairing as well (though it could certainly be read that way)…

Because, well, if we're being realistic here, there is no way in hell these two could actually get together in the series. Both of them are not the type to get into a relationship, add the fact that both have massive egos and would deny their feelings to the very end, true love be damned (that's exactly what makes me swoon over the idea of this angsty, tragic, pride-dictated relationship lmao). So yes, we're sure they'd never become canon in the series. Still, that doesn't mean that it's not possible. In fact, I think this is one of the few couples in the series that would make sense if it happened (the other two being Ginmado and Tsumado). I see a lot of potential and appeal in this couple, so I'm going to explain myself the best way I can. And once again, just because I ship a couple, doesn't mean that I think it'll happen in the book/series/movie (take Dramione for instance, fucking wonderful, but it ain’t canon). It also doesn't mean that I want it to happen in the original content. I simply run with what I perceive to be chemistry or prospective chemistry between the characters.

Lastly, I'm sorry if I end up rambling all over the place. Truth is this is a really casual essay with lots of character analysis 😬. It'll most likely be completely unorganized (despite my pathetic outline, dammit!). Please forgive me for my shortcomings! At the very least, I hope I'm still able to properly explain my opinion.

Alright, here we go!

II.a. Enter a Head-Strong Aloof Tomboy, Who Needs a Hug. No, Really.

    Every decade or so, I come across a female character that I actually love, can relate to, and who doesn't make me want to slam my head against the wall every two seconds. This decade’s little gem is apparently Hikaru Hasama. The stereotypical tomboy. The tough one. The Anti-girl. The loner. The Selfish One. Fucking awesome if you ask the little me. As I mentioned earlier, I used to be a tomboy myself, so I instantly fell in love with her character. I was like, finally, a girl who actually kicks ass and takes action.

In the first few episodes where Hikaru makes an appearance, they portrayed her as a cold, no-nonsense, determined, brave blader. She had a good agency and when we learnt her backstory, we understood why she was the way she was. From what we see in those flashbacks from her childhood, it’s clear that her cold-heartedness comes from all the bullying she had to endure after losing at tournaments. Stronger opponents would laugh and make fun of her for the loss, making her close off emotionally and never want to show vulnerability again. At some point, Hikaru’s mother had told her she should never give up on her goal and that perseverance is the key to success. She even specifically told her to battle strong rivals, and there’s a good reason for that. It’s similar to the quote “If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” She wouldn’t be able to grow if she isn’t challenged, that’s why she had to fight stronger opponents, and even after losing get back up and try again because that’s how you become more powerful.

At its core, it’s an honourable mindset to live by because it teaches you determination. Problem is, Hikaru’d probably taken it overboard and started viewing other bladers only in categories such as worthy and unworthy rivals, and nothing more beyond that. The way I see it, Hikaru never really let herself enjoy beyblade and bond with other bladers over it, since she treated it as a job. Her mother’s dream that Hikaru’d taken a vow to achieve had been only that - an objective to be accomplished. She’d set her eyes on it alone, and much like in a workplace, focused solely on her professional success, never bothering with socializing. It hadn’t been part of her goal, hence her travelling alone and calling Aquario her “most trusted friend”. Not to mention that all the harassing Hikaru was subjected to had definitely made her reluctant to befriend people. All this makes her the perfect candidate for a substitute of an antagonist, earlier in Metal Fusion when the main antagonist, Kyoya, hadn’t been present due to his recruiting in the Dark Nebula.

(Sidenote: I think the MFB writers made a great decision by showing her past, because it serves as an explanation that is an important piece of a puzzle in enriching a character and telling a satisfying story. It’s about both sympathy and context. It makes the audience sympathize with her and instead of getting a one-dimensional villain, we see a deeper layer to her below the tough blader façade, something I think they should’ve done for Ryuga, too, because..!!! The guy is the main antagonist in the first season and plays a big part until the very end.)

Fair enough, now we know how and why they made her the bad guy. I liked the way she opened up to friendship and really enjoy the sport, Gingka being the main reason for this. What’s interesting here is that unlike Gingka’s other battles with temporary antagonists/opponents, where he had to teach them about a blader’s spirit, he didn’t have to do that with Hikaru, because she already (unknowingly) had it, since according to Gingka’s philosophy: No matter what disadvantages you face, never back down from a challenge and fight till the end. A blader can only be the most powerful version of themselves through their connection with their beyblade. That's what makes a Blader's Spirit. And Hikaru possessed it already, this connection, calling Aquario her “most trusted friend”. So the only thing Gingka taught her was that you can have a good time when beyblading, even when you don’t win. He taught her the importance of putting aside your cut-throat instincts to form bonds.

So far, it seemed like Hikaru was having good character development. Except that as the story progressed, it became clear that the writers had no real intention of developing her further. They utilized her to make Kenta stronger, and every fight after that in Battle Bladers - to show other characters’ strength.

But I thought, surely, it wouldn’t last long, right? They can’t use her as a punching bag throughout the whole series. She’s gonna kick up a notch and come back even stronger.

*deep sigh*

BOY, WAS I WRONG.

II. b. The Downfall. Aka The Beginning of MFB Betraying Its Female Characters.

    I don’t know what’s up with shounen writers. I’m aware their target audience is mainly boys, but you can still craft a badass female character, who shows she’s not to be messed with. There’s nothing wrong with that. It doesn’t even have to be a tomboy. Being a girly girl and being strong aren’t two mutually exclusive things. I became more and more frustrated with the way the series continually let down its female characters by giving them the role of the caretaker, always being useful to others. Always for them to be the selfless ones and cheer the others on by the sidelines.

What they did with Hikaru’s character makes my blood pressure rise each time I think about it. Because not only did they betray her potential, they made her act so out of character. They literally played themselves.

These guys established her as a determined and selfish person, something that wasn’t changed even after she started interacting with Gingka’s gang. Hikaru’d been so set on fulfilling her mother’s last wish all these years (judging by the way they showed that flashback, it definitely seemed like her mother was terminally ill, an even bigger motivation for Hikaru to succeed as a blader). And her selfishness manifested itself in the way she wanted to battle only strong opponents, as she was only interested in her own advancement and refused to serve as a stepping stone for other people’s growth.

So for Hikaru to completely, not just careerwise, give up on beyblade is such a contradiction with her agency and out of line with her beliefs. What’s even worse - settling for a job in the WBBA just to help other bladers??? Putting up with a grown man’s bullshit on a day-to-day basis and having to coddle him through every unprofessional mistake??? Give me a fucking break. Hikaru being subdued and a victim of circumstance is plain boring and I see it as a poor excuse for the writers to put her aside, but still keep her around, just because they weren’t sure what to do with her!

Now, you might think I’m giving some very bold claims here. But hear this. In the original MFB manga, written by Takafumi Adachi, Hikaru never gave up on Beyblade because she never had a match with Ryuga in the first place! The anime writers intentionally set her up with the strongest blader in the tournament, had him blast her with such power he destroyed a freaking stadium wall, understandably leaving her with PTSD as a result, just to ship her off to some office job.

And the fact that the writers made a 13/14-year-old girl work as a secretary for an adult man makes me soooo uncomfortable. Only now that I’m older did I realize how utterly inappropriate this actually was. But if you think about it, they never said she’s his secretary, they only called her his assistant. The sole fact that they went out of their way to use this title, and not say it as it obviously was - a secretary, only made it clear that they knew how wrong it looked (since the position is often linked to the sexy secretary trope).

But let’s be honest here, despite MFB being a G-rated anime, its animators still manage to implement fanservice in a sneaky way. Ever heard of the She’s Got Legs trope? Basically, the camera repeatedly places emphasis on the sexiness of a female character's legs to entice the viewer. And Hikaru’s been shown not once, but twice in such shots (Fusion, ep 9, right before her battle with Gingka and after it). Sadly, the same applies to all other female characters in the MFB universe (Mei-Mei having ridiculously big boobs despite being a literal child, Selen’s unnecessarily revealing outfit etc) and I can go on about it all day, but that’s not the point of this essay. (If you want to dive deeper into the subject though, check out lady-lazagna’s amazing Wasted Potential essay, it hits the nail on the head fr)

II. c. Post-Metal-Fight Hikaru. Or, The Crumbs Of A Potential We’re Left With.

       So, now that I've spent so much time thinking about Hikaru, what's my fanon take on her?  Not gonna lie, it’s a strange blend of what we see in Zero-G, the manga and my own imagination that I’ve used to fill in the gaps.

Canon points we get from the anime is that Hikaru’s responsible, always seeing her act like Ryo’s voice of reason. Because Hikaru is so responsible, I believe she has a harder time dealing with failure. She has a calm and collected exterior, like she's ready and prepared for anything and everything. As a result, failing for her can be quite damaging from a psychological standpoint. This was proven all throughout Metal Fusion, where she’s bitterly aware and sensitive to her shortcomings in beybattles, and I believe she would exhibit similar tendencies later in life when it comes to her job.

I can also totally see Hikaru subconsciously trying to act like an adult all the time. Because she was barely 14 when she started working in an office with grown-ups only, Hikaru had to prove to her colleagues that she wasn’t just a kid who didn’t know any better and was trying to bite off more than she could chew. She’d constantly try to present herself as mature and level-headed, so she wouldn’t be labelled as an immature and moody teenager, thus repressing her emotions. We see her have a short temper in Metal Fusion, so it doesn’t take much for her to snap when the repressed anger has been building up in her forever.

For that reason, social interaction with others her age could become difficult and awkward. Sure, Hikaru can project a professional demeanour for the benefit of the company, but a setting where you're essentially putting on your "work" face isn't the same as a "relaxed" social atmosphere. Hikaru would always be "on" in public, to the point that she has a hard time turning off that responsible, serious side of herself even in front of very close friends. Add the fact that she’s not a yes-man and always outspoken whether it upsets others or not, and you have an outsider in the workplace.

Since I didn’t want her to get too OOC in RFL, I decided to roll with this newfound humanitarian side she adopts since Metal Masters. I imagine her working in a field where she could help other people and still be her own boss. There’s a specific moment in Metal Masters, ep 46, where Hikaru shows that she’s willing to speak her mind, even if it means opposing her superior (she also shows that she’s familiar with the law). “...So until they do anything against the law, well, our hands are tied. But the fact is that we are bladers. We cannot ignore when beys are being misused. It is our duty to act.” And I just can’t shake off the image of her in a courtroom, fighting (verbally) for what she believes in.

Pivoting on that scene in ep 46, I also can’t help but think Hikaru has a very strong moral compass and is probably an idealist too. An idealist, not in the sense that she thinks all humans are good at heart and believes that everyone is redeemable on unreasonable grounds, but as a visionary - a person with specific ideas and beliefs of what their future should be like, and doing everything in their ability to achieve it.

We might’ve been robbed from seeing Hikaru in the Zero-G anime, but thank God for Adachi, who’d uploaded some drabbles of the adult Hikaru a while ago. As an adult, she appears to be working in an office, and though I couldn’t translate what she says in the picture, the caption underneath stated that she’s a hard-working woman who dresses well.

So what do we have so far? She’s hard-working, idealistic, and honest in a daring way. A girl who is determined (and frequently obstinate) about achieving her aim of doing anything other than customary feminine housework. Her bravado and lack of timidity make her a subversion of the stereotype that women are delicate. Another thing that we all can agree on is that she’s a tomboy. From the stereotypical short haircut that most writers give to imply a more masculine personality in girls, the way she dressed (in the 1st season), to the way she speaks in the least feminine way possible, going as far as using the most insulting form of “you” (kisama) in the original Japanese audio when addressing her rivals. Hell, even the fact that they chose to give her a masculine name - Hikaru - when there was already a feminine version of it - Hikari, goes to show how far they went to disconnecting her from femininity.

Alright, that much is obvious. Hikaru is well aware that she's a tomboy... or is she? Is that anything she considers? How many of us tomboys, for that matter, set out to be tomboys? I mean, I'm sure some of us did, but the point is that we were probably on our way to being tomboys before we even realized we were tomboys. Hikaru, I believe, is the same way. At first glance, I don't think she's consciously attempting to be an anti-girl; rather, she adopts it because it comes to her naturally. Finding yourself is difficult and takes a lot of time, but finding yourself and accepting yourself as you are is even more challenging when you don't fit in the norm. Some tomboys are comfortable with or even thrive in their stereotypically masculine personalities. Others despise their tough image yet find it hard to change their ways. I reckon that Hikaru is the latter since tomboys are expected to “grow out of that phase” and told men won’t fancy them if they don’t.

By the way, if you're having trouble keeping up with my utterly jumbled essay, we've definitely entered the fanon interpretation territory. Why would Hikaru want a boyfriend and be ashamed of her tomboyish traits? Well, gender stereotypes are strictly enforced in Japanese culture, many girls feel ashamed of their masculinity and actively want to alter it. From what I’ve gathered from many articles online, the ideal girlfriend by Japanese standards is soft-spoken, submissive, cute, gentle and has a reserved personality. So, one way or another, Hikaru would feel overwhelmed by these criteria and won’t see herself as a desirable girl. On some subconscious level, she believes that because she lacks many feminine traits, she has in turn “ruined” her chances with the opposite sex. In order to fight these insecurities and “up” her chances, she would mould her personality to fit into this framework, attempting to appear more tender, sweet and innocent. But, as one would expect, this won’t last long. Time and time again, Hikaru would try to become a more conventional partner, only to end up hurt or rejected. Many of her relationships would fail because she can’t keep convincingly playing the part of the supportive, self-sacrificing girlfriend, which isn’t who she is.

Now, why would Hikaru be so hell-bent on finding a partner? Why would she want one in the first place? My head!version of Hikaru is very aware of death and what it brings. It’s obvious that she’d lost her mother sometime during her childhood, hence her resolve to fulfil her dream, so she’s no stranger to death. And the way her mother said “You’re my only hope”, it appears that Hikaru’s an only child. As a fellow only child (on one side), I reckon she’d definitely been pressured to succeed. It also provides an explanation for her selfishness and sense of responsibility. When you’re an only child, you get everything and never have to share it with a brother or sister, and most importantly, you have your parent’s attention one hundred percent at all times. This could lead to some selfish tendencies and an unwillingness to make compromises. It may sound ridiculous, but even in adulthood, many only children find it hard since it goes against their instincts and not having their way leaves a very bad taste in the mouth. But having no siblings also plays a big part in being a well-behaved kid since you can’t blame anyone else, you have to take full responsibility for everything you do.

Unfortunately, when you have no siblings, it’s your duty to carry the legacy and continue the bloodline, and thus will be blamed if failing to do so. Now, here comes another infuriating thing I’ve discovered while researching what dating in Japan is like. From what I’ve gathered, there’s a specific term for women who are 25 or older and are still single - Christmas cake. Why Christmas cake? Because no one wants to eat Christmas cake after December 25th and no Japanese guy would want to marry a woman when she reaches the age of 25. So, taking into consideration this derogatory term and general mindset, it’s totally expected for young women, in general, to feel pressured and try to find a boyfriend in their teens/early twenties.

Why would Hikaru want to change herself, though? Because every guy wants a cheerleader, but no guy wants a female who can fight back and oppose him. Most men prefer the domestic, utterly and eternally devoted to him kind of girlfriend, because their masculinity and ego are under perpetual attack by a grown-up woman who doesn’t take disrespect from anyone. So Hikaru hides her true nature in favour of crafting an image of herself as demure, desirable and virtuous and tries to be the “perfect woman”.

But, here’s the thing. If Hikaru’s the “perfect woman”, she’ll naturally try to find the “perfect man”. And since she’s an idealist, Mr Right must meet strict, superficial criteria. This is exactly what holds her back - her excessive focus on superficial, external qualities in her search for a potential boyfriend. She believes that the only acceptable partner for her has a prestigious job, is conventionally good-looking and well-mannered. Someone with an easy-going and sweet personality to act as a cushion for her neurotic and dominant one, so she could still be herself to a degree. And she believes in her heart of hearts that this person is the love of her life.

Pffff. Boy, do I have a surprise for her.

III. a. The Emotionally Stunted Tsundere With A Flair For Dramatics.

       Kyoya, wow. The jerk we all love. Seriously, I feel like 90% of this fandom likes him to some degree. And there’s a good reason, he’s one of the most refined characters after all. If a fan wants to write a fic about him, they’d have plenty of info to work with, unlike other characters from the series.

With his prickly, stand-offish demeanour and aura of mystery, the King of Beasts is the embodiment of a cat in a human body. Kyoya’s unhinged personality is hinted at by his hair, as it connects to the significance of the lion’s mane. It’s also hinted at by his bey spirit - a lion. Lions are powerful animals, not to be messed with. But they’re cats, too. And just like a cat, Kyoya’s an asshole to anything that breathes and moves. Exceptional intelligence is a well-known cat trait, and we see it many times throughout the series in his canny and detail-oriented skills. Cats are also merciless when they perceive they’re dealing with a weaker animal, and as we see in Metal Fusion, Kyoya enjoyed the power trip of leading the Face Hunters, using it to assert dominance over lesser beings.

Now, what do what’s the one word that pops in our head that we hear the name Kyoya Tategami? That’s right - confidence. I aspire to have even half the self-assurance that this guy possesses. But where does this confidence come from? Is it perhaps too much? I believe that his confidence is by no means unwarranted or baseless. Because of his calculating abilities and his drive to achieve whatever he sets his mind on, Kyoya’s probably been doing pretty well academically and in other competitive sports like beyblade (which kinda goes against the whole delinquent image he initially had like he wouldn’t bother with that type of stuff).

But hear this…drum roll He’s from a rich family (search it up, it’s canon)! Woah, who would’ve thought? It kinda explains the audacity and pride, though. Rich kids always seem to walk into every room like they own the place, and that’s all because their parents are “somebodies”. Important Somebodies. Same goes for Kyoya. He’s from an influential family, therefore he is a somebody. He’s someone special. Combine it with the fact that he’s a pretty capable fella, and you have yourself a teen with a superiority complex.

Kyoya’s superiority complex comes from his family’s power and all the recognition he received for his achievements during his childhood. That much is self-explanatory. Because of those praises, he has high expectations for himself. People with superiority complex are constantly trying to outdo others, too. Their relationships are centred on demonstrating their superiority to others. Kyoya takes a look around him, and he's got a lot of competition. Given his determination, it seems the next natural step would be to set about making a name for himself (that’s why I think he assembled the Face Hunters in the first place). Because it isn't enough that he knows he's superior—he's gotta make sure everyone out there knows it, too. Now, imagine how he would feel if he was surpassed or overshadowed by someone.

Kyoya’s loss against Gingka acts like a trigger for his superiority complex to the fullest extent. Just like Hikaru, Kyoya has a very hard time dealing with the f-word. The defeat makes Kyoya feel inferior and weak, which in return prompts his superiority complex further. A superiority complex often exists to make up for an inferiority one. In Kyoya’s case, his inferiority complex derives from Gingka making him feel weak and like he has lower self-worth. In order to banish these insecurities and feel better about himself, Kyoya becomes obsessed with settling the score between them and proving he’s stronger. He’s gotten into this mindset where he has to prove he can beat Gingka in order to make himself stronger. And due to his status, Kyoya has this mental picture of himself that if he doesn’t live up to, he starts feeling conflicted and upset with himself.

Similarly, any time anyone tries to help Kyoya or shows concern for him, it makes him feel weak. (e.g. ep. 124 “Be careful, he says. Who do you think you’re talking to?” to Nile).

Ok, we’ve established that Yoyo has a superiority complex. Now, imagine how a hot-headed teenager with such mentality like him would feel if a fucking star fragment fell from the sky and bestowed him specifically with incredible powers. Of all the people in the world, it chose him. That means something. It means that Kyoya is a Very Special Fucking Snowflake. He was gifted with special ability and strength, which only feeds his high sense of self-worth. The Legendary Bladers have far more destructive power than normal bladers, so Kyoya naturally wants to defeat them all to affirm himself as the best of the best.

And because he’s a special fucking snowflake and doesn’t give a flying fuck if people like him or not, he won’t feign politeness, friendliness or social niceties, or say what’s expected in a given social situation. While Hikaru might suffer from her isolation from other people, Kyoya revels in it. What business does he have relating to others? He doesn’t encourage them to see his point of view, he couldn’t care less about what people thought of him, as long as they regarded him with respect. His impropriety and occasional disrespect for hierarchy can get him into trouble. He refuses to take orders from anyone and lives by the code “My way or the highway”. This obviously wouldn’t sit well with certain authority figures in his life. Kyoya would be secretive and sneaky, and if he fails badly, he’d get even more pissed-off about failing and emerge from each fuck-up even more determined to show the world what he is capable of.

Kyoya’s narrow focus on his goal invites accusations of selfishness and insensitivity, and honestly, they’re not wrong (in Metal Fury ep. 104, when Yuki was being beaten by Johannes, Kyoya refused to help him; In Metal Fury ep. 106, he was rude to Madoka when her suitcase got stuck and scolded her for wasting time). Ever since Metal Fusion, Kyoya’s one and only aim was to defeat Gingka. The guy fucking moved to another continent and created a team for the World Championships just for this purpose alone. Time and time again, Kyoya shows that he will put his own immediate desires before every other consideration (e.g. ep. 124, Gingka tells Kyoya to stop, he doesn’t comply; in the same episode, Kyoya rose to Aguma’s bait and ended up leaving the group, despite knowing that the world’s future is in their hands). He also has a hard time accepting responsibility for his terrible behaviour, or outright declines to do so (e.g. ep.122, Kyoya launched Leone into the rocks despite being told not to, and when the damage is done, he claims it wasn’t his fault).

I know that I’ve been focusing on the negative aspects of his personality and that it kinda sounds like I’m making him out worse than he actually is. Kyoya does have a temper and generally bad manners, but that doesn’t make him a bad person, it just makes him difficult to work with. You can have a shitty attitude and still do the right thing (as we've seen numerous times when he arrived to aid Gingka's group). By the way, I absolutely love seeing him putting on this cold, serious, too-cool-to-care demeanour, have everyone convinced for a second that he’s indeed laid-back until he eventually shows his pettiness by arguing with a kid over the most ridiculous stuff.

Kyoya might have a cynical take on the world and be uncaring, but he also takes great honour in being a blader and genuinely enjoys the sport. It’s so cute and refreshing, seeing him get all hyped up when battling, almost in a childish way, and reminding us that even a grumpy character like him likes to have fun. Kyoya’s undeniably a thrill-seeker, always looking for experiences that get his blood all pumped up, that make him feel alive. In his search for adrenaline-inducing adventures, though, he sometimes forgets or blatantly dismisses his self-preservation instincts (that one episode in Metal Masters where he literally went to the Valley of Storms and intentionally got sucked in a tornado??? boy, how are you still alive). I believe that’s also the reason why he enjoys fighting strong opponents and Gingka especially. Partially because he wants to showcase his power, yes, but also because he’s being pushed to his limits, because he’s challenged and that makes him soar to even greater heights.

Kyoya might not be the most morally outstanding person, but he still has some principles that he lives by. He never underestimates his opponents and always gives it his all in battle. That’s his way of showing he’s taking the fight seriously, which to a certain extent is a nice thing for him to do. He’s also honest and although his bluntness could be a little too much sometimes, it can also be a magical power. And despite acting like a petty punk sometimes, his maturity and sense of responsibility are shown through him keeping his word, even to people like Doji.

III. b. Freedom Is Power. To Live A Life Untamed And Unafraid.

       Kyoya has named himself the King of Beasts, but I think he deserves another title - King of Defences. His self-protective nature has been hinted at from his last name, which could be translated as “Divine Shield”, and even his bey being a defence type. What’s more, lions are a symbol not only of courage and power but of protection, too. Kyoya goes out of his way to do everything in the name of self-protection, and it’s such a prominent part of his personality that it deserved a separate section on its own.

All his life, Kyoya’d been supported by his family and has had a safe network. Even if he got into trouble (which I’m sure, he’d been doing all the time) his family would be there to help him out. But that didn’t apply to the accident in the Wolf Canyon. Growing up as a sheltered child up until then, the whole ordeal undoubtedly shook him to the core. “It was terrible. Even now I can still hear it, the sound of the wind blowing up from the bottom of the valley, the growls and those worthless hungry wolves. You can't even imagine this. The most horrifying place on earth. But I saw it, I lived it! ” He knew that there would be no one to save his ass this time. Either he saves himself or dies.

Kyoya learnt two things from this hellish experience:

Firstly, never let your guard down. News flash, kids! Believing a shady-looking man’s promise of success on the condition you manage to fend for your own in the wilderness isn’t the best move! Kyoya’s definitely still beating himself up for that (even if he didn’t, I’m sure that his father had given him quite the tongue-lashing about it). He’d been so obsessed with finding a way to defeat Gingka that he’d let his guard down and made a careless mistake. A mistake that could’ve cost him his life. Ever since then, Kyoya’s become much more sceptical and questions everything and everyone around him;

Secondly,  the only person you can depend on is yourself. He says it clearly: “The only thing you can rely on in the end is your own strength.” And while we didn’t see him following this ideology much in Metal Fusion and Metal Masters, in Metal Fury that’s all he strives to maintain. Overcoming the hardships in Wolf Canyon made him think the only way that he could ever obtain his maximum potential was to count on his own strength alone. He believes that a blader shouldn’t have to rely on friends to be powerful, and that they need to be able to stand on their own (Metal Fusion, ep.19). If you always count on other people’s support, you won't be able to protect yourself when they're not around (exactly what happened to him). At the end of the day, Kyoya’s just a person who doesn’t want to get hurt. He wants to be strong enough to withstand anything, so a nightmare like the one at Wolf Canyon wouldn't happen again.

We see just how much he tries to sustain this lifestyle in ep. 121, when Kyoya states his main tenet, “A guy who can't do anything unless he's in a group? He shouldn't talk so tough.”, Aguma doesn’t buy it and calls him out on being a hypocrite. “It's funny because I always see you with Gingka and the rest of that little playgroup of yours(...). What part of being in a playgroup speaks about your determination? No matter how much you deny it you're just a sheep in a flock.” Kyoya, very understandably, snaps at that, even more so when Aguma claims he’s no wild lion, but a house cat, and urges him to admit no one can accomplish anything by themselves. By now, Kyoya’s superiority complex is as triggered as one can get.

While Kyoya doesn’t care whether others think of him in a negative or positive way, he does care about his image. He wants to be perceived as a loner who’s independent and strong and doesn’t need such thing as friends or their support, because in his eyes that’s who he is. During this altercation, he realized he was slipping up and actually leaning on the group to some degree. “It seems that without noticing I’ve sunk down to your level. But I am different from you. From now on, I will continue to sharpen my fangs on my own. I will hone my skills until I am able to defeat Gingka once and for all. With my power alone!” Aguma’s words riled him up because he knows that objectively speaking, that’s exactly how things are. He realized he’s lost his way and became exactly what he strived not to be. A sheep in a flock. He got this far by himself, by hard work and back-breaking effort. He doesn’t want to be underestimated by being in a squad. He wants his power to be undisputed.

Ironically enough though, Kyoya’s actually shown to have great leadership skills —he's certainly got ideas, if you can call them that, and he barked the orders in his gang (Face Hunters) and team (Wild Fang), and as shown in many episodes, he's also the one who manages to stay concentrated on the task at hand. He's got a take-charge, no-nonsense attitude, ability to focus, a penchant for planning things out in such a way where he believes success is the best possible outcome (with varying results)... but no upstanding morals or charity. At the end of the day, Kyoya’s always out for himself, and no one else.

As for his relationship with his friends/teammates... so far he probably doesn't sound like much of a leader if all he cares about is himself. But—from a logical standpoint—more manpower gives you that much more of an advantage over your competition. If your team is a well-oiled machine, that's all the better. Kyoya would push his friends around, not only to maintain his position as an Alpha, but because they are a reflection upon himself as a leader (superiority complex, remember?). Also, from a more sentimental standpoint, no matter what he may think or believe, Kyoya needs them. But it's something that's rammed so deep into his subconscious, not something he thinks or would even allow himself to recognize. It's almost like he's trying to say "I don't need anybody, you dumb shits are lucky I let you tag along,” Like he's got to prove it to himself. Which is, you know, pretty logical, considering his history. Caring about anyone or anything is a sign of weakness to Kyoya, and he won't let himself do it, won't even make exceptions for his buddies. “I do not team up with anyone ever. I am a lion that lives in the wild. I run freely over the earth by myself. I fight freely by myself.”

Okay, so we're starting to get into a bit of fanon interpretation now. I strongly believe that there’s another reason why Kyoya refuses to be in a group. In order to be the most powerful version of yourself, you’ve gotta have little to no weaknesses. You’ve gotta play your hand right and not put yourself in situations where you could get hurt. He’s aware he might bond with people over time if he’s in a gang, thus starting to care about them. Once again, caring only makes you weak. If people know you care about them, they’ll walk all over you. That's why he’s intentionally mean just to keep other people at bay.  “I don’t need others to protect me. In that terrible place, I learned how to live on my own. I don’t need things like friends.” In a way, he sees relationships (be it a friendship or romantic relationship) only as something that could end up doing damage to him. That’s why he’s putting up walls around himself, shutting others down, basically straining every nerve not to be (emotionally) vulnerable.

All the points that I’ve made so far lead me to believe that Kyoya has an avoidant attachment style. An attachment style is a pattern of actions a person shows in reaction to relationships and bonds. This type specifically is defined by having a strong sense of independence, having feelings of high self-esteem while having a negative view of others, being overly focused on their own needs and comforts, avoiding emotional closeness in relationships, withdrawing and coping with difficult situations alone, fearing rejection. Adults with an avoidant attachment may find it difficult to form strong connections since they are extremely self-reliant and unwilling to seek support or assistance from others.

III. c. The Future CEO. Aka It Sucks To Be An Adult

        For me, it's almost a given that Kyoya's father/family has placed an immense amount of pressure on him to professionally succeed. His father is the CEO of an industrial company, and in Japanese culture, the eldest son inherits the family business. Kyoya being the older of the two brothers is obviously next in line. But even before inheriting the company, I think he’d always felt some time of responsibility as the eldest one. How many of us, as the older siblings, feel the pressure to be the responsible ones, the ones who look out for our siblings, to set a good example for them to follow, and who are supposed to be more mature and sensible?

I believe Kyoya’s always felt that responsibility, ever since he was a child. One of the sketches Adachi had uploaded not so long ago revealed how Kyoya got the scars on his face. It looked like shattered glass or cut wire rope was falling from a building and Kyoya and Kakeru (his little brother) just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Kyoya acted like an older brother and protected him, and that’s how he got his scars. It shows just how far he was willing to go to make sure his brother was alright. And I believe that he still has it in him, below that ice-cold exterior. :)

But let’s get back to the pressuring part—from parents, teachers, himself, or anybody else—to excel not only in school but in a variety of other activities. Parents' desire for their children to succeed is normal and laudable. It's also logical that they'll utilize whatever resources and means they have to attempt to save their children from falling into poverty. But if the decline appears to be significant in economic terms, they are inclined to strive even harder. Because, the fight to reach the top among the country's wealthiest is very fierce and awfully hard, but it’s even harder to come down from there. To lose the status, power, money, all these advantages that you’re used to could be devastating. That’s why rich parents will do just about anything to ensure that their kids are able to keep that spot at the top. All of this stress, combined with the ensuing hyperactivity, appears to leave children exhausted, insecure, and alone.

In this particular fanon interpretation, Kyoya has a conflict-ridden oppositional relationship with his father, simultaneously pushing back against his father’s expectations while ultimately seeking his approval. While his family's wealth makes many things far easier for him, money and status-obsessed parents can hold their children to impossibly high expectations, prompting achievement-oriented cycles of abuse that make their children's lives feel pretty hard.

I also can’t help but think…what would’ve it be like if Kyoya wasn’t from a wealthy family? Or at least, him to be the younger of the two brothers. Would he settle with a mundane 9-to-5 office job? I don’t think so. As I already said, he’s a thrill-seeker and loves beyblade with his whole heart, so I can totally see him beyblading professionally. Surely,  at times when he’d felt overwhelmed with all these obligations and expectations, he’d wondered about that, what he would’ve become if he wasn’t responsible for continuing the family business. He’s aware that once he inherits it, he has to do his absolute best and that means that there won’t be much time left for beyblade anymore. He definitely despises the notion, since beyblade is the one hobby through which he has so much fun and doesn’t have to think about his responsibilities and duties, which doesn’t require him to be mature, and he can actually let go and allow himself to be free. It’s the one thing that brings him joy.

What’s more, Japan is a country whose social structure is heavily reliant on conformity. In oversimplified terms - not causing trouble for anyone or drawing negative attention to yourself, a social structure that encourages not sticking out for the quote-unquote “wrong reasons” and following a rigid copy and paste lifestyle from birth till death. Kyoya undoubtedly doesn’t mesh well with this since he’s always been a rebel when it comes to social norms and cultural conventions, and I doubt he’ll change his attitude even for the workplace. He’s shown numerous times that he doesn’t mind standing out from the crowd and doesn’t care about normal morals or values. And while being the head of an industrial company could be quite overwhelming and stressful, it’s still outweighed by the fact that you get to be your own boss, and I think that’s the only position that Kyoya would ever settle for.

Young adult!Kyoya’s got issues, yes, but the baggage he carries is minimal compared with other character’s and besides, he can't waste his time wallowing when he has to work hard on getting even with Gingka and inheriting his father’s company. Plus, he's such an emotionally stunted dickhead that I can't picture him managing even a fraction of the emotional attention you need for proper wallowing. I think the biggest emotional struggle he would ever encounter would be in making a choice, which again, is motivating him to action, rather than dwelling in angst and self-pity. I suppose one of the reasons I enjoy my head!version of Kyoya so much is that I have far too much fun seeing a guy like him fall flat on his face, and instead of becoming all emo about it, he simply becomes angrier.

IV. Two Punks In Love. Lion Boy (Punk1) And Aquagirl (Punk2)

       This is the longest essay that I’ve ever written in my life, and it’s not even an academic one lmao. Anyway, what draws Hikaru and Kyoya together?

Well, few things, actually. Let’s start off with the concept that similars attract. See, I used to be a die-hard fan of the “opposites attract” trope, but as I’ve grown and experienced things first hand, I’ve come to realize that realistically speaking, people who are complete opposites don’t last long in relationships. In actuality, a good deal of studies have demonstrated that people are drawn to others who are similar to them and couples don’t change over time. Change is hard and unlikely. It's much simpler to pick people who are compatible with your goals and needs. The data also reveals that our desire to associate with others who share our values is significantly stronger than previously thought. This might be due to the fact that personality differences have a tendency to stand out and get bigger over time.

Since I’ve spent a great deal of time comparing the two, I can say that they’re almost like two peas in a pod. Almost. Both are proud, determined, outspoken, introverted, competitive have a temper and a no-nonsense attitude. During their fights in Metal Fusion, it’s constantly shown that they think alike ("My thoughts exactly", "You read my mind"). I believe they recognize their similarities, or at least Kyoya does, since it seems like he respects Hikaru, given the compliment he gave her after their last battle. And I can’t think of another reason aside from this. As I said earlier, people fancy others like themselves.

Hikaru serves as Kyoya’s Anima - the unconscious feminine side of a man, and Kyoya as Hikaru’s Animus - the unconscious masculine side of a woman (u can read more here). But most importantly, they both represent what the other might’ve become had they chosen a different path in life. Think about it, what would’ve it been like if Hikaru hadn’t given up on beyblade and continued her journey to become one of the strongest bladers in the world? She would’ve been the female version of Kyoya, I’m telling you. Take his bad traits, tone them down a bit, and you have her. Or the reverse. I’m sure no matter how hard you try, you can’t imagine Kyoya giving up on beyblade. What you could picture though, is Kyoya not having the time, the opportunity to beyblade as much as he did before. That’s much more plausible, and it will unfortunately happen, because you can’t be a successful CEO and a blader full-time.

In case you’ve read RFL, you might’ve asked yourself: If they’re so similar, then why do they always fight like a cat and dog? Here’s the thing - they’re reacting subconsciously to the fact that they're fairly alike personality-wise, but their paths ultimately differed. It's the scenario in which each side portrays what may have been. Of course, those paths weren't taken precisely because Hikaru wants to assist others, and Kyoya is only out for himself. Kyoya and Hikaru each insult the choices that the other had made. When two distinct belief systems collide, we all know what’s gonna happen. Nonetheless, a part of me hopes (and actually believes, hehe!) that they will be able to get together. Briefly. With a great deal of suffering.

Kyoya judges Hikaru for willingly (in his eyes! dude doesn't initally acknowledge PTSD) giving up on a sport so wonderful like beyblade and settling for a mediocre office job, because he knows he'll be forced to do the same one day. Hikaru judges him for being so anti-social, uncooperative and insensitive towards others, because he reminds her of how she used to be. The only way that I can see these two working out, when they have strong negative opinions about each other, is to unintentionally get highly emotionally invested in each other, to the point where they might determine the other's behaviour. When they are reminded of their semblance (via hobbies like beyblade), yes, their ego rejects and denies and decries the image because they are both just that stubborn, but those are all still tiny little chips in the Animosity Mountain. It's a lengthy, slow, and hard process because they're not only fighting one other; they're also fighting their own selves. They will repeatedly try to reject each other because of their (for want of a better phrase) beliefs, even while their subconscious begins to notice something that does not make them hate each other as much, perhaps even something they want or, God forbid, like.

They do hit that point of acknowledgement or, at the very least, recognition of non-negative feelings for the other. Because all those little chips add up. And sometimes it isn't just little chips, but actual pieces of you that the other person is taking, whether they know it or not. And it happens because they allow the other person to get under their skin. Which is a significant thing for Kyoya, and I think this is how Hikaru functions as his Anima, albeit an unaware (or maybe even unwilling) one—all those little pieces of him she takes, that he unknowingly lets her take, make him care about someone other than himself. Sooner or later he'd figure this out. He wouldn't like it, because Kyoya is the King of Beasts who is grim and stoic and serious!face and revels in the fact that he doesn't care about other people. He would fight her all the way. He wouldn’t want her to take more. The wild Lion is off-limits to anyone that isn't the Lion himself. This creates a funny paradox, because in making a bigger effort to fight her, he acknowledges that she is affecting him, and that acknowledgement is like confirmation that something has begun to matter more to him than just pleasing himself.

In any case, Hikaru serves as Kyoya's Anima since she provides him someone to relate to, whether they're older or younger when they first get involved. Because she understands what it’s like to have a strong sense of self and refuse to bow to society’s expectations, the responsibility to act like an adult from an early age, and the ego. She understands all that. Her skin is also thick enough to overlook his rude, dismissive behaviour, and she isn’t hesitant to call him out on his bullshit and speak her mind. He’ll naturally get pissed off by her defiance, but over time will grow to enjoy that side of her, since he himself doesn't take disrespect from others. On top of that, she has a unique audacity that surprises and challenges and just burns like a brand that entices him. So, instead of being a pain in the ass to her all the time, Kyoya begins to calm down once he finds someone he can relate to. Kyoya had always actively sought a male equal who would challenge him, but instead gets emotional support (female) as well as an equal who confronts him in other ways, preventing him from becoming/continuing to be "too male."

Same goes for Kyoya serving as her Animus. Hikaru would have a harder time accepting the fact that she likes him of all people - a man who is the exact opposite of everything she thought she wanted. It shakes her entire belief system and challenges all the love myths that have long governed her dating life. After a while, she’ll start seeing his many virtues that she has previously overlooked. He possesses huge dollops of personal courage and confidence, never doubts himself or what he believes in. He always keeps his word and is reliable. On top of that, he’s pretty smart and observant and most of all mature, it's just that his morals just get thrown off-course by his emotions, or get lost under his mile-deep attitude problems, which isn’t that much of a problem for Hikaru since she has the emotional intelligence (with all these years working for the Immortal Phoenix, a manchild!) to drag Kyoya out of himself even when he's having a hissy fit. But ultimately the biggest point that makes him a perfect match for her is that he likes her for who she is. In all of Hikaru’s other relationships, things end badly for her whenever she tries to change herself to fit a traditional relationship model. But with Kyoya, she doesn’t need to do that, because he’s not intimidated by her dominant, all-bets-off feistiness, because this guy’s confidence is made of steel. He sees the sharp edges beneath her smooth lacquered exterior and instead of turning tail, smirks head-on and says “Bring it.”

So Kyoya fights his Anima because he doesn't want to care about someone other than himself, and Hikaru fights her Animus because she believes he’s not Mr. Right. It gets doubly complicated when, no matter how much they fight it, Hikaru is the person Kyoya starts to care about, and Kyoya becomes someone who Hikaru wants for herself. He can't have her because he's a fucking lone wolf, and she can't have him because he’s not the man she thinks she needs. Neither of them wants to want each other, and yet they do... see, it's this horribly dramatic, agonizing cycle of realizing what you want and refusing to acknowledge what you want and then wanting it anyway but then screaming No, no, I absolutely do not want this, and yet…

That’s why Kyohika is my favourite. It starts out with them fighting each other, and then becomes all about fighting themselves. It is so drama and tragedy and pretty fucking emo, actually, but in a way that makes me keen with wondrous fannish grief. They are so determined to fight each other off that they can't see the bigger damage they are doing to themselves in the process.

Now, some other questions that I wanted to cover regarding the couple before I end this essay (this is generally speaking, it won’t necessarily happen in RFL).

When would they confess to each other? They don't or are unable to do so. I believe that whatever relationship they end up having is the result of years of accumulation, from the time they met as pre-teens to whatever point they reached the pinnacle of sexual frustration combined with their general frustration with each other, and even then, what passes as a confession is actually just a cautious acceptance of the other's existence in their lives. Something huge would have to happen to one of them - a death, a significant loss - and only then would they be allowed to start a "genuine" relationship, in which one of them would be exposed and vulnerable, and only then would they be put to the ultimate test. Is the other willing to help? Or do they leave? And that's the only place it has a chance of even getting started.

What chance do these two have of becoming a couple? Ugh. Ngl, small. In RFL, I cheated by forcing them to work together and interact. Kyoya finds himself in a situation where he can't just abandon the mission since he's under a legal obligation to finish it (employment contract y’all), which puts a stop to his typical fuck-this-I'm-outta-here whims. Hikaru, on the other hand, is suffering from a lack of social interaction as a result of the obscene amount of work she needs to put in to do her job as a secretary and still do her studies, so even if Kyoya isn’t the nicest person to converse with, she has no better alternative lmao. Then they talk and bond, and voilà, they're pals.

Who always wins the argument at the end? Neither hahaha. Fighting is very verbal with this couple; Hikaru would stay true to her profession and wouldn’t back down until she has her way, but Kyoya, also used to calling the shots at work, won’t give up either. It goes back and forth forever, getting progressively more and more heated, until, well, they are absolutely at their limit with each other, and you know, beds and thrashing of a different variety get involved.

What do you like the most about this couple? What I like most is... and this isn't going to sound unique by any means... that they absolutely refuse to believe that they love each other. They understand each other's motivations and desires, the need for control, the refusal to be vulnerable, and yet they can't stop butting heads. Constantly fighting doesn't equal anyone's idea of "the right relationship," so Hikaru especially thinks they're only together because they're both very fucked up and don't deserve better, when the reality is they're together because they want to be. I suppose I find something charming about it all.

    I don't wish that Adachi or the anime writers would couple those two, nor do I think that the series would be SOOO much better if that happened. I just like what I ship. If Hikaru were to get together with sb else, then cool. It's canon. I might whine a little if for some reason it doesn’t jive with my view of who Hikaru should be in a relationship with, or how the dynamics of said relationship would work, but the fact remains that the fans must work with whatever they see on the screen. TT^TT

Oh, Christ, that's it, the hard part is over. My brain is like jelly right now, so I'm going to go be a lazy ass. Hope you enjoyed my rambling (that nobody asked for, yay!)

#MFB #beyblade #Metal Fight Beyblade #beyblade metal fight #beyblade metal saga #beyblade metal fusion #beyblade metal masters #beyblade metal fury #hikaru hasama #beyblade hikaru #kyoya tategami #kyouya tategami #beyblade kyoya #beyblade essay #kyohika #king of beasts #character analysis

[andro-dino]

I think this is a good one, if you like to rant a little, what are the (in your opinion) the 5 mfb characters that get misunderstood/mischaracterized the most, by the fandom?

oh my! surprise 5 things? in my inbox? more likely than you’d think

also this is such a good one I have so much to say on this

5. Kira’s frequent mistreatment makes me sad because he’s a very interesting and complex character with SO much to explore in regards to his upbringing and trauma and how that affects his character in the present and going forward, but a lot of people tend to portray him as a very one note crAaAaAzy villain and sexualize him to some of the worst degrees just because of his character design. It’s really unfortunate because there’s so much to love about him but it is a minefield trying to find anything for him

4. I’m not gonna blame people for misunderstanding and mistreating the garcias bc the show doesn’t even respect them but I’m still gonna be upset about it. I could go on and on about why the garcias were so poorly handled but like, when you think about their characters a little harder, you can really easily understand them from a more sympathetic view and how not only their environment but the way they were treated and used by the adults around them shaped how they behave throughout the series and like. Again, not blaming anyone for disliking them or seeing them solely as static villains bc they are not well written at all but I do wish people would give them a little more nuance, yk? I’ve taken the liberty of taking sole custody over them bc I could treat them so much better than the show, so I might be on of the only people who really sees this perspective just bc of how much I’ve diluted myself with my own noncanon analysis but yk.

3. I’m gonna go ahead and lump kyomado together because while I do think people don’t treat them with the nuance they deserve on their own, it is 10x worse when it comes to people shipping them specifically. And that makes me especially mad because kyomado was one of my first ships in any fandom and I still really like them together, but Jesus Christ people take them in the worst direction possible. It’s always so stereotypical with Kyoya being the cool hot closed off and aggressive one and Madoka being sweet and kind and submissive to him and it’s like. No!!! NO‼️‼️💥💥💥💥💥 They’re characters are so interesting together in my eyes because they’re relationship is built on mutual respect and ability to stand up to each other. Yes Madoka can be sweet and caring to him, but she is in no way submissive and is readily able to challenge him and call out his bullshit. Yes Kyoya can be cold and aggressive but he is not some abusive shitty YA male lead, he’s an angsty teen who genuinely recognizes Madoka’s abilities and respects her. I think you could make a similar argument for how people treat him with Hikaru as well but I personally find it far worse with Madoka, which makes me so sad bc I love this ship but hate a lot of the shippers and content for it :(

2. Gingka i dont think is as prevalent today, but I have seen the horrors and my god are they rough. The woobification of Gingka Hagane is an actual crime and should be treated as such. Im not even that big a Gingka stan or anything but I become fucking enraged whenever I see him portrayed as some soft and submissive uwu boy because there is so much more complexity and depth to his character and yaoifying him does that such a disservice. Idfk what show they were watching because in no universe is Gingka some sweet and innocent soft boy.

1. Damian. DAMIAN 100% IS THE WORST AND IT MAKES ME SO MAD. IDK WHAT IT IS ABOUT HIM THAT ATTRACTS FREAKS BUT 99% OF DAMIAN STANS ARE ABSOLUTELY VILEEEEE AND I HAVE NO RESERVATIONS IN SAYING THAT. It genuinely makes me so viscerally upset because I love Damian, he’s one of my favorite characters and I go absolutely rabid every time I think about him but OH MY GOD the way this fandom treats him is so awful. I mean it when I say it disgusts me how much people oversexualize him and mischaracterize him as some dominant and cool sex god or whatever because it is just so far from what he actually is and HES LIKE 13 ALSO????? LIKE YOU CANT EVEN KID YOURSELF INTO THINKING HE MIGHT BE ON THE OLDER END HE IS GENUINELY PINT SIZED AND ACTS LIKE A SPOILED CHILD THAT IS A FUCKING KID. Damian is an incredibly complex and interesting character with so much depth and lore. He is a deeply traumatized child with a godcomplex who screams when he gets dirty or his worldview is challenged, he is not some sexy flirtatious guy who’s got everything together. It’s one thing to focus solely on the power scaling side of him and disregard his character, but it’s a whole nother thing to sexualize him and remove him so far from the context of his story for the sake of whatever these freaks are on about.

#axel’s silly little thoughts #sorry I got heated with that last one but. it’s still a prevalent issue and continues to make me mad every day #also chalk idk if you realized I never reblogged the 5 things post but regardless I enjoyed this #I wanted to tbh but didn’t bc I have a hard time placing things on an ordered hierarchy #but I like ranting and talking about things and this was fun

[hoperays-song]

what are your top 5 favorite medias/fandoms that you're in atm?

Thanks so much for the ask!! My answers are probably not surprising lol. -<3 Gooseless

MFB!!!! Everyone is so so nice!! I grew up in this fandom and genuinely consider several people in it to be like family to me at this point. Seriously, some of the sweetest people on the planet and I absolutely love them. Also, I just genuinely love Beyblade so much. In particular, I really love making original beys!

Pokémon! I've always loved Pokémon, especially dark and ghost types. The bits of the fandom I've been in have been nice as well. I really enjoy making fan teams for non-pokémon characters too!

Sing!! Obviously, this is my Sing based blog so no one should be surprised by this addition. I've actually made several close friends through this fandom and I really enjoy being in it! I love being able to do scene analysis on the movies as well and creating backstories is tons of fun!

The Dragon Prince!!! Everyone I've talked to in this fandom has been so nice and welcoming. I love the differences in the different types of elves (looking forward to seeing Tidebound elves). I also love the world-building and it's really fun to build characters off of such a fleshed out world.

The Owl House!! Seriously super sweet people and super welcoming. I love the magic system and working with it a lot to apply it to non-owl house characters as well. It's super fun content and super interesting! It's super cool and easy to build character since there is so much information and world building, it's amazing!

#mfb raised me and I absolutely adore it. - the kid who calculated the location of a fictional country for fun #i do adore it tho #ive made so many friends there and in the sing fandom #im not really active in the other three fandoms but i check in from time to time #my blog names are actually a fanmade beyblade i made in grade school. hoperay pegasus #so yeah #random ask game time #it's learn about gooseless day everyone #by the way i utterly adore your fics #they are amazing!! #they're super fun and interesting and i always enjoy reading them

[a-bored-writer]

Question:

What the actual fuck is the timeline from Metal Fusion to Metal Masters to Metal Fury? It’s stated that Shogun Steel is set 7 years after the Nemesis Crisis, but the passage of time within the MFB series is still a little fuzzy.

Firstly, Fusion to Fury is at least a couple of years. This is obvious by a few things.

when Doji appears in Metal Fusion, he looks as if he’s in...his early thirties, let’s say, maybe a little older, but by the time we get to Metal Fury, his hair is grey and his very thin, almost sick-looking.

When Tsubasa visits the US to go see Masamune in Dungeon Gym, it’s made very clear that they haven’t talked/seen each other in A While, but it’s never stated how long that is. (I believe Masamune even says “I haven’t seen you in a while.” Or something along those lines.

This might just be me, but Kyoya definitely looks older in Fury. I know, ew, Fury Kyoya, but still, he’s taller and the way he dresses is just more mature-looking in my opinion

Kenta is obviously much older. I’m going to go ahead and assume he’s 8 in Fusion, and about 10-11 in Fury

That, particularly, is important here. The passage of time with the series’s youngest characters: Kenta and Yu. With Yu, we don’t see it physically, although I think the “older brother” role he takes on with Tithi was an emotional maturing/development of sorts. But with Kenta, he’s definitely gotten older: both physically and emotionally.

He’s distinctly made out to be a very small child in Fusion, hanging around his much-weaker friends and being altogether clueless (the first scene that comes to mind is the one where he begs Ginka to train him). Then we hop over to Masters, where some time has definitely passed, but this might just be a few months. He’s definitely gained a spine by that point, and he even had a few genuinely funny moments. He points out the facts, and stops sounding like a whiny child. As far as Fury is concerned, Kenta is definitely aged. It’s blatantly obvious on so many levels.

Fusion/Masters Kenta would’ve never even thought to follow Ryuga. Even if it did cross his mind, he never was a very brave character pre-Fury, he would’ve rejected the very thought of it. Along with that, he looks physically older and doesn’t dress as much like what the audience would consider a “little boy”.

But this isn’t a character analysis on Kenta’s wardrobe change, although I’d be happy to write that one. That change in Kenta makes it very obvious that the time passage goes:

End of Fusion -> Beginning of Masters: somewhere between 6 months and a year.

Not a major difference in the characters’ ages, although it was enough time for Hikaru to not only be hired by the WBBA, but get settled enough in the new position to be trusted dealing with the World Championships. And again, the differences in Kenta mentioned above.

End of Masters -> Begninning of Fury: Between two and three years.

It was enough time for Team Dungeon to be established and for the three of them to get into a fluid and constant routine of training. The second world championship announced at the end of Masters hasn’t happened yet, and those things definitely take a long time to plan, between scheduling, choosing teams, organizing venues for the matches, etc. etc. And again, it was stated to be a long time that Tsubasa and Masamune hasn’t seen each other, and for two people who used to be constantly together, they definitely would see this time period as a long time, even if they were in communication. This is assuming that the last time they spoke in person was at the end of Masters. And again, Kenta went from the ages of 7-8 to 10-11, which would make that time jump plausible.

#metal fight beyblade #mfb #an analysis #sorry i couldnt do a read more thingy im on mobile #no way in hell do i have the patience to tag all those characters #thought dumping

[ladyryukyo]

Always awesome to find another MFB blog!! Thanks for the follow btw 💙 Consider this ask an invitation to share any of your favorite MFB headcannons👀👀

omg hi! thank you for the follow, dude, your blog is awesome 💛,, hmm my favorite mfb headcanons...

I think I'll have to say the legendary bladers keeping in touch after defeating nemesis. I just don’t think it makes sense for them to split up without another word after saving the world from being destroyed by an angry, ancient god bey. I can’t imagine a more profound bonding activity lol.

it’s not initially the bladers’ idea to keep in contact but the WBBA’s. they wanted a way to contact the legendary bladers in case of emergency since they are the most powerful bladers in the world presumably.

(you never know when the world might be destroyed next. could be in the far future. could be next week. the WBBA just wants to be prepared.)

so they give every legendary blader a brand-new phone and hope no one accidentally destroys theirs in whatever crazy dangerous training plan they come up with.

gingka is the one who suggests creating a group chat with everyone which is of course a terrible idea which is why ryo absolutely loves it.

it goes well for about two hours and then yu finds out about the gc and wants to be in it. tsubasa joins to keep an eye on him and madoka joins to keep an eye on everyone. hikaru joins to supervise for the WBBA and after that no one can stop benkei from joining no matter how many burgers kyoya tries to bribe him with. then aguma argues that it would be unfair not to let bao in and suddenly there are way too many people and the gc is way too chaotic.

the first thing kyoya does is mute the chat, put his new phone on Do Not Disturb and proceed not to check his messages for the next two weeks. he only ever writes in the gc when he has another win against a legendary blader to report and to ask who wants to be his next opponent. other than that one message every few weeks, he doesn’t really exist in the gc.

benkei travels with kyoya from legendary blader to legendary blader but at least he lets everyone know that they’re both still alive. he sends a lot of photos in the chat, mostly sneaky, blurry pictures of kyoya, some selfies and pictures of the many different types of food they encounter. he makes everyone jealous with the last one and has to promise to cook some of them for everyone once he’s back.

tsubasa entertains the group chat w daily updates about everyone’s favorite pet eagle (whose name i don’t know but i’m pretty sure tsubasa just called it ‘eagle’ in the show?? it’s so no one figures out he actually calls it cutesy pet names in private. no one can know). eagle is a riot because she is well trained but also has a mind of her own. i just decided eagle is female. you can play catch with her as long as you’re respectful but in exchange she is allowed to land on your head and try and feed you the fish she just caught. yu likes to message tsubasa suggestions what he should make eagle do next. one time he asked tsubasa to put a wig on her and see what happens. she was very regal about the whole thing.

(i could write so much abt tsubasa and his pet eagle, this whole concept lends itself to so much ridiculousness. i’m going to write a separate post abt them another time.)

you know who the most hilarious texters of the group are? dynamis and aguma. everyone expects them to be as collected and serious as they usually are but. wrong. dynamis lives in a temple on top of a mountain that is protected by many deadly traps. he lives pretty far from human civilization and we can assume he never got many visitors so. i can’t imagine there’s good cell phone reception at mist mountain. has he ever used a phone before? does he even know what the internet is??

same with aguma: beylin fist is an exclusive organization forced into exile and obscurity for many years. their sole goal was to train until they could defeat beylin temple and prove themselves to the world. once again we can assume there was not much surfing the internet going on here.

expectation: dynamis and aguma text with proper punctuation and grammar, do not use emojis, do not understand memes, do not send gifs or anything that isn’t a fully formed sentence you could copy and paste for your essay in school that would make your english teacher weep with joy.

reality: dynamis: OMG!! 😱 The ✨ say you are super 🍀 this week, Aguma!! 🤩 You should 💪 a lot LOL!! 🔮 (trans: the stars say you are super lucky this week aguma. you should train/fight a lot) (also it’s a tragedy that there’s no spinning top emoji)

aguma: k iuss l2g l8er? (trans: okay, if you say so. would you like to go [fight] later?)

dynamis: YES!! (trans: yes)

aguma: gr8 cul (trans: great, see you later)

everyone is so confused. at least they can understand what dynamis is saying but what is with the exclamation marks?? the emojis replacing words? the abbreviations in all caps that make the texts look like a middle-aged wine mom on facebook wrote them? don’t get them started on aguma and the unintelligible mess he calls a text message. does he just take a bunch of random letters and numbers and throw them together however he sees fit? apparently not because dynamis understands everything he sends even if he is the only one in the gc that does.

dynamis and aguma bonded over their mutual ignorance of everything technology when the gc was first created. yu said lol once in the gc and that was the moment dynamis and aguma learned about chat speak which is why everyone blames yu for this disaster. dynamis thinks the emojis are very helpful and aguma straight up memorized a list of more than 1,500 internet abbreviations. no one has the courage to tell them that nobody actually speaks like that on the internet and that they took it a little too far than is normal.

you know these people that are super nice and soft-spoken in real life but swear like a sailor over text and reveal that they have like a really obscure humor? that’s yuki. although he usually doesn’t say much in a group and feels shy around other people, especially when they are as loud and extroverted as for example yu or king, over text when he’s not face-to-face with them he doesn’t feel like he has to watch himself as much. he is usually overly conscious of his actions and words but through the virtual barrier between him and everyone else it makes it much easier for him to just say what he thinks and what he thinks is actually really funny and weird.

yuki actually has a pretty large online following for his fandom blog about various books and tv shows where he very passionately argues over fandom meta and character analysis. because of his active interest in fandom his references can be... a bit obscure and specific. there is always one person in the gc that understands the references and finds them hilarious but everyone else is left thoroughly confused and questioning their sanity.

that is all i have for this for now but i’ll add more when i think of it. everyone is of course welcome to add their own ideas!

#this was so much fun tysm for the ask #i'm really sorry for how long this took me i just kept adding onto it and it never seemed to stop D: #mfb #mfb headcanons #metal fight beyblade #beyblade metal fury #i wrote this

[metalsaga]

Quick Question:

If I posted 30 second - 1 minute MFB character analysis videos on TikTok, would you guys support it?

I’m thinking about it, so no promises yet 🤔

#metalsaga #beyblade metal fury #beyblade metal saga #beyblade metal masters #beyblade metal fusion

[earthaquila]

a long elaboration about certain characters’ speech patterns

warning: long post, me being a total nerd who analyses the way the characters speak

so, watching mfb in japanese made me realise how much a speech pattern can say about the character! if you want to know what exactly the dubs are missing, sit down and let me guide you.

the most basic trait of the japanese dub is the form of politeness. in japanese, there’s plain form and polite form of any sentence you can imagine. the polite form is used towards anyone you’re not close with, the strangers and people of a higher status - it’s a basic form of showing respect. the plain form is used between friends, family and while talking to someone of lower status.

and that’s when it becomes interesting. in mfb, most characters speak using plain form, meaning that they are of equal level and don’t need to show respect to each other. there are some exceptions though: hyouma, teru, yuuki all use the polite form. in their case, it probably comes from their soft personalities. they are nice and kind, perhaps too shy to speak informally to the others; the polite speech is probably used to make them sound a bit mysterious and refined. in hyouma’s case, it might also be a sign of passive aggression lol.

then there’s daidouji. he also uses polite speech, but it’s totally different than the other three. his polite form is cold, distant, when he speaks you know he’s patronising you even if technically he’s being polite. he also adresses everyone with the “-kun” suffix, which creates a false impression of intimacy, the kind of intimacy you don’t want. daidouji also calls ryuuga “ryuuga-sama” which indicates deep respect, meaning that he puts ryuuga higher than himself.

ryuutarou is so far the most fascinating character in terms of speech pattern. even better - his mannerisms are totally different in the manga and the anime! in the manga he’s just a normal funny guy who speaks kansai-ben - the most well-known dialect in japan. this dialect is a bit laid-back and melodic compared to standard japanese, the characters that use it are often considered more straightforward & fun. in the anime however, ryuutarou is a mysterious fortune teller who speaks a very old-fashioned form of japanese, kinda similar to the language of samurais. his intonation is old-fashioned as well, making it a bit hard to understand what he’s saying. ryuutarou often uses archaic expressions and four character idioms (yojijukugo), which are very sophisticated words that indicate the speaker is well-educated.

these are the characters that stand out the most, but if you want me to make an analysis about someone’s speech pattern just let me know!! i’d be glad to provide some insight!

#mfb #metal fight beyblade #hyouma #teru saotome #yuuki mizusawa #daidouji #ryuutarou fukami #the post nobody asked for #translation

[vios-rockland-corner]

I’m still here chilling.  I just haven’t thought up anything to write or draw after holiday vacation.  Can’t go too much further even with my own OC before the first game comes out.

Some posts I got planned (short or long) before Misfits: First Blood gets completed:

- Misfits: First Blood made simple

  Yes, this will be a callback to the very first post I ever made on Tumblr, haha.

- MFB general overview 

  Kind of like a review/summary, not sure yet if I want to make one that’s spoiler-free or two where one of them has spoilers

- MFB Character thoughts 

  I will separate them by character.  At the least the main characters for each route.  That includes Quill, Avery and Chase so far.  If side characters that aren’t the main focus of the route pop up enough for me to get a better idea of them, then I’ll probably add a post for them to.

- Rockland Universe first look

  Not sure about the title, but I will be trying to piece together any solid status quos of the universe we get from this first game.  Don’t know yet if it’ll all be strictly the human side of the world, or if we’ll get some supernatural hints thrown in there.

- Most dangerous characters

  May be too early to write?  Some kind of comparison of sorts will be made.  For example, I could already say from the Misfits demo who’s (so far) the worst person to get tangled with.

- Characters easiest to befriend and how

Could be a long analysis, or I sometimes would do a post where I try to put in just a few words how I describe a character and their interactions.  Not sure yet.

- Pre-release guess comparison

  I’ll go back and see if I miraculously got anything right about the game and characters.  This’ll just be based on the specified lists I made.

That’ll keep me busy for awhile.  At least a little more variety than “Part ## for Zeitgeist pre-lease thoughts,” haha.  When I slow down is when I can then think up how to polish my OC and see about little journal entry posts to add some extra spice.

Sorry I can’t really think of anything new to post at the moment other than this.  I’m not counting dates, I just gotta be patient for things like the artwork to get finished up now.

[irisviel101]

Masamune is your favorite character? Why so?

Sorry for the late response. Life got really hectic this week.

Masamune... Well, I find his confidence endearing. It's arrogance, really, in the beginning but I like it once he's been humbled. It has a strange charm to it I guess. I suppose I wish I could have that kind of confidence in myself — not the arrogance, but the genuine, healthy confidence he gets in the second half of Metal Masters. That confidence, paired with how persistent and hardworking he is, is quite admirable.

I also really like how much heart he puts into everything. Whenever he tries something, he gives it his all, be it training or actual serious matches. You can tell that he's really into whatever activity he's participating in all the time, which is also an inspiring quality. I really admire people who can be fully content with themselves without forcing themselves to fit into any kind of mold.

But when it comes down to it, what I love the most about him is how much he cares about his friends. Sure he makes some bull-headed decisions that come to bite him back but I believe it's the intent that counts. This kid, who could hardly be older than 15 or 16, literally travels across the globe to find Gingka and defeat him, just so he can keep his promise to his dying friend. Is it the best decision he could make? No. But it's still something he does out of loyalty to his friends.

It's not just that one instance either. Most of the rash decisions he makes in the series is based on what he thinks will benefit his friends the most.

He challenges Gingka hundreds of times in the second episode of Metal Masters, because he thinks that's the only way he can keep his promise to Toby and Zeo.

He interrupts Gingka's battle with Dashan and accepts Gingka's ire in front of the enemy just to keep Gingka's skills a secret from Wang Hu Zhong.

He fights Klaus, a monster of an opponent, with no plan or prior discussion because he and Yuu are the only options they have.

He jumps into the fight with Enzo because he's pissed at everything Team Garcia has done to Yuu.

He even jumps into a battle with Ryuuga on the off chance that Ryuuga might be targeting Zeo for no reason, even if every evidence points to the contrary.

In Metal Fury, he rushes to the final battle at the Beyster Island tournament to fight Chris simply because Chris attacked his friends.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Masamune cannot be thoughtless and selfish. He has a lot of those moments as well, but when it comes down to it, he cares a lot.

Also, Masamune's character arc is really enjoyable to watch. The Masamune we're introduced to in S2E1 hardly feels like the same person as the Masamune we end up with by the end of Metal Fury, even if they still share some core character traits.

#mfb #metal fight beyblade #beyblade metal fight #masamune kadoya #analysis #character analysis #ask

[sky-of-dusk]

Ushiwamaru and Benkei is a popular japanese tale. It's a legendary take on the meeting of two historical characters. Benkei is described as a giant in comparison to other people. He's ambushing people on a bridge, attacking them, beating them and then stoling their weapons. Then, one day, Ushiwamaru decides to cross this bridge. Benkei attacks him but Ushiwamaru wins easily. It's the first time someone beat him. Benkei tries several times but Ushiwamaru always wins. He gets upset but Ushiwamaru asks him to accompany him in his travels, because he needs his strenght to accomplish his quest. Benkei accepts and gives Ushiwamaru his absolute loyalty. (In fact, his loyalty and his abnegation are his main characteristics.)

In Beyblade Metal Fusion, there are several similarities with Kyouya and Benkei meeting.

-First, despite being the same age the other members of the gang, Benkei is much taller and bigger than them. They all look like frail besides him.

-Benkei ambushes Kyouya under a bridge but there's a bridge nevertheless.

-Kyouya wins easily against him. Countless times.

-Kyouya notices his uncommon strenght.

-After their encounter, Benkei is mainly characterized by his loyalty toward Kyouya.

The main difference is that Kyouya doesn't ask Benkei to accompany him, but Benkei chooses to. But, knowing Kyouya, his "do as you want" after Benkei tells him he'll follow him is a welcoming with arms open xD

Another scene often depicted in anime as a reference to Ushiwamaru and Benkei is Benkei's death scene. He dies standing, to protect Ushiwamaru, weapons piercing his body but not making him fall. In Beyblade, Benkei isn't the one with this scene but…

#i spend my time reading and i have no regret #mfb and japan #kyouya tategami #benkei hanawa #benkei character analysis #metal fight beyblade #beyblade metal fusion

[mach-speed-spin]

Beyblade character design analysis: Chris

Last time I went over the red-herring that was Bao. Now for the red but not a herring, Chris

Starting from the top, Chris has blond hair. Now, this doesn’t really mean anything on its own. However, and this may just be me reading too much between the lines (but that’s what this entire blog is about), blond hair is bad for stealth. Generally speaking, darker colors are better for stealth (unless you’re like in a desert during the day and want to look like sand). What is the defining characteristic of Chris’s life up until Fury? It was hard. The odds were always against him, and he overcame them with sheer skill. Even his own hair was against him

Moving down to the neck, those look like dog tags. The implication on a Beyblade military is only marginally less ridiculous than Beyblade Moses. I don’t really know what to make of this since I’m pretty sure Chris is in his teens(?) and government-employed child soldiers with real military training is not something I think was intentional. Still, it shows that Chris has some sort of training or experience

Chris has a blue t-shirt. It’s simple and practical. Similarly to Kyoya (Pre-Fury) or Bao, it doesn’t seem luxurious, but it is useful. Chris’s line of work means he often gets dirty (physically), and that he probably ended up with a lot of shredded clothes, so it doesn’t make sense to spend too much on it

The jacket serves 3 purposes. The first is to provide more pockets, which are always beneficial to someone that needs to carry a lot of stuff (which Chris probably does). Second, Chris has battles under all kinds of weather, and having something to protect you from the cold is generally a good idea for that. Third, he conceals his bey under his jacket, rather than having it on his belt like most bladers. Chris probably has to worry about people stealing Orion, so he keeps it in a place where they can’t take it without him noticing

Chris has fingerless gloves because fingerless gloves are peak Beyblade character design. I don’t even know why, but it’s just so common. On a more specific note, Chris’s gloves match Orion’s color scheme

Chris has a belt, but doesn’t keep his bey on it. Possibly a red herring to any potential thieves. Possibly to hold his pants

Chris wears cargo pants. They’re extremely practical in almost any situation. Not much else can be said other than Chris needs them

That red thing on his ankle is something. I’m not entirely sure what it is though. I guess if he gets injured he can improvise something with that (like getting cut and wrapping it around your injury). Chris probably has to travel light, so he can’t exactly bring a first aid kit with him

Chris’s shoes aren’t anything special. Like most shoes in Beyblade, they’re sorta just there

#beyblade #mfb #Character Design Analysis

[sky-of-dusk]

Something else differentiated Kyouya to Hikaru and Tsubasa.

Kyouya is the only one talking about the blader's spirit. Hikaru and Tsubasa say they are going to battle Ryuuga, but they never talk about it. We don't even know if they believe in it. More importantly… Let's look closer at his quotes about the blader's spirit, in episode 49:

Kyouya : But I have the blader's spirit. This is how Leone and I fight and win.

Ryuuga : How nice for you two. Now I'm just gonna crush that spirit like a bug.

Kyouya : This is far from over. Go ahead and try but you'll never touch my blader's spirit.

And later

Dark Power : The only way to heal our wounds… The only way… to heal our wounds… We need blader's power to.

Kyouya : Okay, that's really nice. Go ahead, and try. But I'll never let you steal from me my blader's spirit. thinking Ginga, take a good look. This is my blader's spirit.

Kyouya doesn't only talk about his blader's spirit as something that'll help him win, he also says openly he'll prevent Ryuuga, L-Drago and the Dark Power to influence his blader's spirit.

I notice it because I search it to make this post… But Kyouya's spirit is the first one to help Ginga in episode 51. First as the shield preventing Ginga to fall

then as an added power

His spirit, even trapped by L-Drago's Dark Power, can make his own decisions and acts as he decides.

#dark power #comparison of characters #kyouya character analysis #kyouya tategami #hikaru hasama #tsubasa ootori #beyblade metal fusion #metal fight beyblade #mfb episode 51 #mfb episode 49