I almost forgot about this girl, but this was my second pokemon trainer oc way back when I was like 14. Her name is Hanashi (or hana for short) and I remember almost nothing about her aside from that she was a spoiled brat that was created specifically for roleplaying on dragonair’s den, and that her original outfit was a lot more puffy and unfortunately sheer. This art is from 2014. Why do I have so much art from 2014 I never posted???
OH GOD I FOUND AN ANCIENT SPRITE OF HER OLD OUTFIT
some observations from going down a rabbit hole of japanese language xigbar yesterday
(apologies for the youtube watermarks. i got this clip from this video.)
[Video ID: a fifteen-second clip from a cutscene from kingdom hearts 3D: dream drop distance, with japanese audio and english-language visuals. it's the scene where xigbar tells sora that he's not going to wake up. end ID.]
keep in mind that this clip is just the japanese audio being played over the visuals from the english language release. the subtitles aren't a direct or literal translation of the words being spoken; they correspond to the localized dialogue that the english voice actors wouldve been given
hōchū ōtsuka (xigbar's japanese va) and james patrick stewart (his english va) give, to my ears, pretty similar vocal performances. this is the case for pretty much all of the characters ive seen so far in my xigbar-centric explorations (roxas's vas sound nearly IDENTICAL). the notable exception being xemnas, whose japanese va straight up sounds like he's trying to talk without moving his mouth
in the english dub cutscenes, the character animations often feel...floaty? disconnected? like, because they're not synced up to what the characters are saying and how, their gestures frequently seem random and unmotivated. in retrospect it's obvious that this issue wouldnt be present in the original language because that's the dialogue they would've been animated around in the first place!
now that im actually watching the character animation with the dialogue it was actually done for, i appreciate it a lot more. its so expressive. smiles.
at the end of xigbar's speech here you may notice him saying the phrase "tte hanashi." this is his japanese catchphrase! it means something along the lines of "so they say", "or so I've heard", et cetera. i love "as if" im a big fan of "as if" but i also love the idea of xigbar consistently undermining the information he gives and emphasizing how often he eavesdrops and spies on people.
he says "tte hanashi" very very often. multiple times in most of his scenes that ive seen so far. way more often than the english dub says "as if"
he doesn't say it normal like im pretty sure that's not how you say it in normal speech. like sometimes he does say it normal, but he always draws it out at least a little and often really draws it out, emphasizing it with some kind of gesture, like he does in the clip
seriously if there's a moment in the games where xigbar says something while doing a cunty little gesture he is probably saying "tte hanashi" in the japanese version
Currently, I've indulged myself in Korean manhwa/webtoon, so I decided to go back and read some Japanese manga for a change. And I highly recommend checking them out since these are some of my favorites. Most of them are pretty new, and it wasn't that long before they started serializing in various shoujo/josei magazines.
(Some of them are ongoing, and some have come to completion)
Veil
Museru Kurai no Ai o Ageru (Choking on Love)
Firefly Wedding (Hotaru no Yomeiri)
Kimi no Yokogao wo Miteita (Looking at Your Profile)
Nijuu to Seijuu (20 and The Beast)
Fundari, Kettari, Aishitari
Damenzukon Kono Kekkonha Out Desuka (Getting Married To a Good-For-Nothing -Would This Marriage Work?)
Hananoi-kun to Koi no Yamai (A Condition Called Love)
Unmei no Hito ni Deau Hanashi (How I Met My Soulmate)
Shujinkou Nikki (Heroine's Love Diary)
Tonari no Stella (Stella Next To Me)
Hikaeme ni Itte mo, Kore wa Ai (Love, That's an Understatement)
Kawaii Nante Kiitenai!! (You're My Cutie)
Futarijime Romantic
Kimi to Barairo no Hibi
Uruwashi no Yoi no Tsuki (In the Clear Moonlit Dusk)
Higashi Sengoku-san no Make-up Doll (Make Up For You)
Isso Anata ga Todome wo Sashite
Gomen ne, Hatsukoi (I'm sorry, First Love)
Kekkon Yoteibi (Date of Marriage)
Chorokute Kawaii Kimi ga Suki (I love you, my naive sweetheart!)
Narita-kun wo Semetai!!
Dose Koi Shite Shimaunda (Anyway, I'm Falling in Love With You)
Studio Cabana
A Sign of Affection (Yubisaki to Renren)
Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii (I'd Prefer It If We're Strangers in Our Next Life)
Anata ga shitekurenakute mo (Even if you don't do it)
It Takes More than a Pretty Face to Fall in Love (Kao Dake ja Suki ni Narimasen)
Moekare wa Orenji-iro (My Boyfriend in Orange)
Na no ni, Chigira-kun ga Amasugiru (And Yet, You Are So Sweet)
Hayaku Shitai Futari (Let's do it already)
Daifuku-chan to Ouji-sama (Daifuku-chan and the Prince)
Koiseyo Mayakashi Tenshi-domo (Fall in Love False Angels)
Killing Line
Rinko-chan to Himosugara
Koi Wazurai no Ellie (Lovesick Ellie)
Pink to Habanero (Pink and Habanero)
Honey Lemon Soda
Loving Yamada at Lv999 (Yamada-kun to Lv999 no Koi wo Suru)
The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague
Kusuriya no Hitorigoto (The Apothecary Diaries)
Skip and Loafer