Nidoking <Matthew.P.Katinas@rose-hulman.edu> sanoi:
Comments on Comments $$
..on comments
On and on and on...
Yep. Feeling trapped, yet?
$$That was what I was trying to say. Thanks
for clearing it up. ^_^ HOWEVER, if the author
wants/needs this particular plot point, go
ahead, just add a bit here and there to make
it "feel" more likely.
Agree.
It's not like it's a MAJOR point... we're referring to Artemis' comment
that the Sailor Scouts' powers are designed to work against the
Negaverse, right? Well, considering that that's the only enemy the
Scouts have faced so far, it seems MORE logical to me to say that than
"your powers are designed to work against evil, particularly the
Negaverse." It's like breaking the fourth wall or projecting into a
future that the reader can see but the characters can't. Especially in
this story, that would be VERY bad.
Mm. I agree with this, too. I guess we're all a bunch of sharks,
a drop of blood in the water and off we go.
Summa summarum: As long as you have a decent reason for what
you do, it's okay.
I can't object _too_ much since I had
something similar in chapter 7
of Sukeban Senshi--Senshi v. Aragami.
The Senshi were having trouble fighting
Aragami, not so much because their
powers were ineffective, but because
1)The Aragami were _very_ tough
True. And the more powerful ones...
Kusanagi could probably go through
fifty youma before breaking a sweat.
IMO, it was still not a good idea on
your part to introduce Blue Seed stuff,
because the series is so apocalyptic...
Funny you should mention Kusanagi of Blue Seed...
Well, most Aragami don't have a name, and I can't
recall that fellas name, who had eight seeds...
But...
Y' hinting of a 'Seed crossing somewhere here?
My point is, rather than a mysterious
"our powers don't work", have a reason that
follows logically from the rest of the story.
So, the fact that their powers didn't work when they used them against
Ryoko isn't logical evidence that their powers won't work against their
new enemies?
point. Ehh ^^;;
EVEN IF the reader and the Senshi don't know
at that particular moment. Personally I think
it's better if the _reader_ knows just a little bit
more than the characters.
Nodnod.
True. But it had better not be the characters telling the reader the
privileged information.
Unless it's Pluto :p
Wait, that would be out of character, wouldn't it?
There are a LOT of reasons.
1)They EAT Crystal Energy
Who does?
Hey, it's possible. I think this is more of a general
speculation than specific to your fic.
2)They're slightly out of phase with time/space
so the Senshi Attacks pass through/bounce off
When mixin' and turnin' with the energy concepts,
all the three newbies have quite enough energy.
Ryoko against senshi at this point is overkill,
only chance they have against Lina, is by surprise,
and even the "weakest" Ranma can probably take
on any one of the inners and win, power-wise.
But there's also the thing...
3)They're FAST!
This one.
OR
4)They're just plain TOUGH!
that too.
Of course this isn't just a simple "my team's tougher than
your's so *bee-da*! situation.
Basically, it seems to boil down to a DBZ-style argument exactly like
the one you present above. The Scouts' powers will in fact affect their
So it would seem. But this isn't what your story's about, right?
against the Negaverse" or merely any evil entity, if you prefer, are
Sailor Moon's powers, and to a lesser extent, Sailor Venus'. Sailor
Makes sense. Sailor moon's powers seem to be suzaku-type, or yang,
(light, energy, 'good')
Moon's powers instantly banish creatures of pure evil (if they're
sufficiently weakened or incapacitated first), but will have no effect
(or very little effect) on other creatures. However, I've never seen the
Sailor Scouts defeat anyone without relying on Sailor Moon's finisher
move.
True, true.
Maybe we have a reversal situation, with Moon's current powers
being nearly useless...
That's the point: characters in these series are very difficult to
kill. They can survive just about anything, it seems, including being
badly burned (as if via Sailor Mars' powers). The only thing that will
truly destroy an opponent is a finisher move, which is what the Sailor
Scouts no longer have the benefit of.
Gotcha.
I didn't introduce these ideas yet because there's a lot more fighting
yet to come, and revelations of this sort are what will set these scenes
apart from just a bunch of random punching, kicking, and casting of
spells and special moves. However, the amount of criticism I'm receiving
over this issue seems to indicate that everyone wants all of the
information up front. Should I release some sort of "Mystery and
Suspense FAQ" to give the answers to all possible questions before
writing the story, so that there is absolutely no confusion? There's a
reason for the confusion, really.
Don't tell. Ignore the speculation, if you feel like it ^^
I don't think it's really criticism at this point, just people
excercising their mental muscles and giving out ideas.
Decide this before you introduce them. THEN, a little
at the time, let the reader and the Senshi, figure
this out.
Good ideas, all around.
Exactly what I plan to do. I'm just getting a little further into the
story, to a point where those revelations will make sense, before
letting everyone figure things out. Although now you've forced me to tip
my hand early and give away all of the surprise. Should I just tell you
who the girl in black is, or are you willing to wait for the right time?
(Can anyone tell I'm a little bitter at the moment?)
Oh? Really? ^^;;
And no, don't tell. Feel free not to reveal anything. Like I said,
lot of commentary at this point is hardly anymore specified directly
at your fic. We're just going through possibilities and pathways.
Take all this as a complement! Your fic is interesting!
Ooh.
off-topic, I always thought Ultimecia in FF8 was some
alt-uni future incarnation of Rinoa...
Nah... she's Selphie after a major hyperness-endectomy.
That... makes a scary sort of sense...
$$That's a point, certainly. However
the biggest problem, IMO, was a certain
lack of detail and some forced or
contrived plot continuity. This is
especially Ranma. I'd also like
a little more "friction", some
dynamic tension. Things seem
to be proceeding too smoothly.
There are some BIG problems, the
Senshi having trouble beating
the "monster-of-the-week" (AKA
Ranma, Lina, Ryoko) for
example. But I like
to see more _little_ details
that flesh things out.
I guess I have to agree.
Perhaps this is true. I thought the conversation between the Scouts in
chapter 2 covered their attitudes toward that aspect of the story,
though. Believe me, it's not as if this is the end of the story! There's
plenty more to go, and a lot of detail to cover everything. I don't want
to make the story front-heavy and then have it drag at the end. Ranma,
Ryoko, and Lina haven't been working together long enough to really
develop any tension. Once they've been through a few more fights,
they'll have tension to spare, both internally and externally. Can I
possibly beg enough to have patience when it comes to revealing too
much
information at once?
No need to rush it, Allyn just wants to get it all ^^
No, seriously, I think what Allyn's saying is that you don't
need to reveal anything regarding the plot or theories behind
any of the concepts you're using. More that he'd like to see
the mental workings behind people, how do they *feel*.
This kind of thing is rarely seen in anime, as huge load of
internal dialogue is contrived and boring, but in a written
medium it's quite effective.
Ranma of course, worrying about Akane
but also having come conflict about
killing an innocent to save her.
Some more detail on the thoughts
and fears and hopes of the other characters
would be good.
Don't be in such a rush to get
from Point-A to Point-B. ^_^
I'm not, I'm not! But what you've seen is from point A to point A and a
quarter. Ranma's conflict about killing an innocent is certainly going
to come to the surface when he has to actually do it... so far it was
just fighting Tuxedo Mask, who isn't on the death list, and if you'll
notice, Ranma specifically requested the task of holding off TM while
the others attacked the Sailor Scouts. The hopes and fears (of all the
years ^_^) are all going to come gushing forth when it's time. Unless,
of course, you'd rather I just E-mail them all to you and not bother
with the story any more.
Better to see it played out, IMO.
Didn't think about it, but now we have
Ranma together with two, count *two*
females with
a)explosive, hair trigger temperaments
b)enough personal destructive power to
take out 1)planets
2)solar systems
3)galaxies.
And strict instructions not to use it against Ranma. Believe me, when
Ranma, who has never been able to keep his insults to himself, mixes
with Lina, who seems to attract flat-chested comments, there's no end
of
trouble! If you'll allow me the time to write the appropriate scene...
Write a scene! or two or three! ^.^
Hmm..
.o|
question!
Does Ryoko have all three gems?
No. As far as I know, she never has all three gems in the OAV, which is
the Tenchi continuity that I'm pulling Ryoko from. At least, not in the
first thirteen episodes, unless you count during the Kagato incident,
and I know she DIDN'T have them all in episode 7 (she says as much).
When Ranma first sees her, he describes a single gem on her wrist.
Maybe
you guys who are so concerned about details missed a few as you read?
Long time no read! We modern people have 3 second attention spans, you
know.
I just figured, that if Beryl could get Ryoko, she could get rest of
the gems from the master key...
I've noticed that, with many stories, movies, series, etc. the stories
begin to fall apart near the end, as the action starts to wind down. I
always take pains to avoid that as much as possible by not stretching
out the beginning too much, and letting the details all come out as the
story progresses. The Sailor Scouts have at least four more battles
ahead - probably more. The contents of the crystals, the identity of the
girl in black, Beryl's future plans for Chronite, the Sailor Scouts'
contingency plan, Pluto's course of action... all will be revealed in
due time, really! And a large part of that will be revealed through the
characters' emotions and actions, which is what you've been haranguing
me about all along. Right now, they're all just interested in getting
the job done. Let them get a bit more exposure to the real-life effects
of that job and just see how they're feeling after that. K?
Cool.
Now stop answering our comments and get to writing the fic!
<SOUND OF WHIPPING>
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