Melancholy World

Well that was the shitiest chapter ever. "Settle for second best kids, no one ever leaves second best."

I was wondering if In this world, if you are narcissist, do you forget about yourself?

Well, we both know you would forget about me.

   (Gosh that is kind of embarrassing to write, but the opportunity was just too good to pass up.)

Wow, just got sucked into the "what is sci-fi?" argument.

Ok, I think the problem is thinking of science as technology. As in, if you throw computers, cell phones, or modern things into a story (tech) you have a sci-fi. As a westerner, this disturbs me. "We'll call it sci-fi but ignore the laws of physics" really throws me out of a story and it irks me no end. There are quite a few stories that are science vs magic, so there's a mind-set out there that tech and magic canNOT co-exist; ever. If there's tech it just has to be sci-fi cause it can't be fantasy or magic. If it's really sci-fi though, you should observe the laws of nature and physics. PLG (and others) have an issue with it being sci-fi and the cause seeming to have a mind of it's own. It is actually a wedding of tech and magic/mysticism etc.

What is this? My hearts being ripped out of my chest, then mending back in. Over and over. Now, I'm just numb. 

Wow this is horribly depressing.  A wonderful read as well though.  It's going to be one of those types.

Jeez, what an aptly named manga.

urg. So beautiful but so sad--well, melancholic. 

I'll hope for a happy ending, but somehow I don't think it's coming

....................."Thanks for reading"?! 

....Wtf?! Is that the end?! That better not be the end!

Hm, Knights of Sidonia and Battle Angel Alita seem to fall within the Hard SF sub-genre, IMO. I mean, I can understand your point about the whole "magic realism" thing being a turn-off for you (it's actually what I enjoy, but that's besides the point), since not enough is really explained or given more detail, but I think that there have been a fair number of Japanese SF authors/artists who have managed to get into the Hard SF vein. (Then again, my memory may have been tainted by the fact that I have also read a bunch of Japanese SF novels and stuff, so I may be remembering things wrongly....)

I've heard the name Knights of Sidonia but don't know it.  Battle Angel Alita . . . well, I understand there are different versions and things.  But the old anime, while I actually really liked it, was certainly not what I'd consider hard SF, rather it was a beautifully done example of precisely the kind of thing I'm talking about.  

A lot of Japanese SF (well, I don't know about written novels, but manga and anime) is like this. Whether it's trashy stuff or highbrow stuff, the science fictional trappings are not there as plausible developments or intended-to-be-believable setting; worldbuilding in the sense of a universe that hangs together and makes sense is not the point. Instead, most technologies and elements of the setting are tailored to the themes of the work, whether it's giant mecha because they give war the excitement of giant explosions combined with a personal touch, or flying cities (which have all kinds of thematic work to do), or things like this disease which is there precisely because the mangaka wants melancholy tragic elements. As a result most of the most iconic SF anime have been gorgeous and haunting and made not a speck of sense.

Spoiler

Some of it is really beautiful, but as a reader of quality Western SF novels it's my opinion that if you're really good you can do both--have a setting that works and technologies that make some kind of sense or are at least handwaved with some care, and still have them work with and give power to the themes you want to be fiddling with. So I don't really respect Japanese SF very much. But that's my taste; I'm just saying this particular example is typical of the Japanese sort of almost "magic realism" approach to science fiction, so there isn't much point singling it out. Of course I just did the exact same thing with the flying city itself, but I was joking around, it's not like any other SF mangaka out there is going to do any different. Maybe if the person who does Spice and Wolf wrote some SF and it became a manga . . .

Hm, Knights of Sidonia and Battle Angel Alita seem to fall within the Hard SF sub-genre, IMO. I mean, I can understand your point about the whole "magic realism" thing being a turn-off for you (it's actually what I enjoy, but that's besides the point), since not enough is really explained or given more detail, but I think that there have been a fair number of Japanese SF authors/artists who have managed to get into the Hard SF vein. (Then again, my memory may have been tainted by the fact that I have also read a bunch of Japanese SF novels and stuff, so I may be remembering things wrongly....)

okay there better be more because if i was a smarter person that would seem like a finale to me  with the first chapter being both the end and the beginning.

Okay following it for now if it's get so dramatic i think i'm gonna drop it

PLG, check out "Banner of the Stars" anime, its got a good scifi thing going. All the advanced technology has some or more element of believability and self consistency.  It also tells a good love and personal adventure story in the middle of a convincing futuristic war. It's not the only one like that, but I must admit there are lots of japanese sci-fi that are really just fi, heaping doses of what can only be described as strange magic.

But there is also Q element sci-fi, strange technology so advanced that only Q of startrek would understand it, but that doesn't preclude it being logical and self consistent in its own way, for example, World Trigger. Some strange substance created by a organ in our bodies that allows it to craft temporary substitute bodies, guns, swords, walls. But it stays logical and consistent within that strange Q concept.

And even sometimes they will out and say X is magic. Yet they can and have stayed logical and consistent within that structure.

For some other titles, PM me and I will try to recall, if you are interested.

Man chapter 5 was beautiful, raises a good point too. If you had to lose the one you loved to save lives would you let them go? Though, forehead kisses? Ya'll have broken the seal, how about some real kisses? 

Oh lord, I have a strong feeling this series is gonna tear my heart out

http://vatoto.com/comic/_/comics/spice-and-wolf-r1168What a weirdly selective disease, like it was intelligent and vindictive. If it causes amnesia, it should cause you to forget all sorts of stuff, not anything about one selective person only, like the disease figured out who your most important person is and surgically removed the memories.

A lot of Japanese SF (well, I don't know about written novels, but manga and anime) is like this. Whether it's trashy stuff or highbrow stuff, the science fictional trappings are not there as plausible developments or intended-to-be-believable setting; worldbuilding in the sense of a universe that hangs together and makes sense is not the point. Instead, most technologies and elements of the setting are tailored to the themes of the work, whether it's giant mecha because they give war the excitement of giant explosions combined with a personal touch, or flying cities (which have all kinds of thematic work to do), or things like this disease which is there precisely because the mangaka wants melancholy tragic elements. As a result most of the most iconic SF anime have been gorgeous and haunting and made not a speck of sense.

What a weirdly selective disease, like it was intelligent and vindictive. If it causes amnesia, it should cause you to forget all sorts of stuff, not anything about one selective person only, like the disease figured out who your most important person is and surgically removed the memories.

Shamune wasn't expecting a sad story, from a comic called melancholy world.... seriously?

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/melancholy?s=t

Anyway, read a chapter and a half, eh, sorry, can't bring myself to read more to give it a serious try out. I don't feel like its going to get better.

This is gorgeous and melancholy and the whole schtick is like symbolic of all kinds of stuff about society and stuff,

but the back of my mind still insists on thinking

Spoiler

Why does the city have to fly above the ocean?  Couldn't they just, I dunno, float it with pontoons or something instead of doing all this evil stuff?

Yea while the art is very nice and the forgetting your memories part makes for a good sad story, I feel like the whole floating city thing and goddesses was added in to introduce some "conflict" other than the disease. 

This is gorgeous and melancholy and the whole schtick is like symbolic of all kinds of stuff about society and stuff,

but the back of my mind still insists on thinking

it's the clean style to the artwork and the use of blank space that just gets me feeling sad. There are hardly any shadows which if anyone would understand kinda reminds me of the soundtrack to lost in translation.

makes me want to print out a few of my favorite pages to color them