By the numbers

[petronia]

One: When you get down to it, I haven't set foot inside an anime rental shop for more than a year. (Personal network, and digisubs.) The other day I go into HMV and there's a huge rack of anime DVDs out front. Today I go into DVD World, same damned thing. I would list all the series I was into and had no idea were even licensed, but you'd just think I was a bloody eejit, and you'd be correct.

Two: And then I go into Indigo and find a table out in the middle of the suggested section, covered with a massive pile of Tokyopop books. Everyone but me knew Gravitation and Fake were out in English, right, I'm just being retarded here? ...What the hell is going on these days?

Three: Have you ever had anyone tell you that [insert fic author you've never heard of] has a writing style reminiscent of yours? Not in a tipping-you-off-to-blatant-plagiarism way, just in a Calvino-and-Borges-are-comparable sort of way. ...Were you able to see it?

Four: Working my way down the page here (right hemisphere staggers away from matter-of-fact authorial description of 'three novels, three novellas and twenty-six short stories'; left hemisphere takes refuge in numbers and produces a sum of 3.57mb worth of text, dear saints), am striken by an atavistic impulse to write one of those definition-of-yaoi essays again. Can't help it. The psychological profiles are too accidentally brilliant. The Japanese won't psychoanalyse their charas in that way, which is occasionally a pity, because it makes it so that people don't Get It here. Not... not exactly. The pretty-boi aspect, yes, but not the subtleties.

Five: You know what's really geeky and pathetic? Remember the story in Chobits about the nice pastry chef who marries a persocom, and then her hard drive gets corrupted? I tear up and sob every time I read it.

Comments

[nyahnyah.livejournal.com]

Everyone but me knew Gravitation and Fake were out in English

Since whe?! O_O;; *muters* Weird.

[petronia.livejournal.com]

And not just those, but a billion other series I'd never have thought to see, or at any rate not so quickly (am used to the glacial pace of the X and FSS translations). Those are just the BL titles.

[luxetumbra.livejournal.com]

Everyone but me knew Gravitation and Fake were out in English, right, I'm just being retarded here? ...What the hell is going on these days?

Teehee, exciting isn't it? Very end of worldish though. Isn't the translation of BL manga in English one of the End Signs?

Thanks for the link to the Administration fic. I was up till the wee hours this morning working my way through the stories, stunned by how good everything is. Reminds me vaguely of Susan Matthews' Judiciary books. Some incredible writing though - I hope one of these days the author finds a dead tree publisher. Now whenever I see Johnny Depp I'm going to think "Toreth!" ^_^;;

[petronia.livejournal.com]

People keep on mentioning Susan Matthews, and I have no idea who she is. Worth me tracking down and taking a gander? (What's the connection - the investigative bits? The setting vaguely reminiscent of Thatcherite London linearly extrapolated into the fascist regime of Labour hyperbole? ^^;;)

A treeware edition of this series wouldn't be remiss at all, no. In fact - setting aside all yaoi content with reluctance - it's the best mystery-thriller I've read in a good while. I don't get blindsided by plot twists very often these days.

Tania is excited. I've read Gravitation and don't particularly want to read Fake, so am merely baffled in a positive sort of way. If they ever start translating Motoni or Minekura into English, then I'll be excited. ^_^

[luxetumbra.livejournal.com]

People keep on mentioning Susan Matthews, and I have no idea who she is. Worth me tracking down and taking a gander? (What's the connection - the investigative bits? The setting vaguely reminiscent of Thatcherite London linearly extrapolated into the fascist regime of Labour hyperbole? ^^;;)

Susan Matthews' Judiciary books (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/ref=s_b_rs/103-8298661-1948659). The first two are out of print, unfortunately, but well worth tracking down. There are some pretty fascinating similarities between the Judiciary novels and the Administration stories: protagonists who are torturers; bureaucratic totalitarian dystopias; that same sense of pervasive corruption; the political intrigue and machinations that drive the plot; and most importantly, those core themes of obsession and control.

And here are some spoilers:

(It's been a few years since I've read the books, so my apologies: I may have some of the details wrong).

Andrej Koscuisko is the main character in the Judiciary books. He's a surgeon who's forced to join the Fleet military by his father (an important noble). As the chief medical officer for his ship, he's a key political power, as CMOs are the only investigative authorities and representatives of the Judiciary Bench empowered to torture. As in the Administration, torture is an accepted legal investigative device and the Inquisitors serve a key role in the Judiciary, helping to maintain control over the military and the various far flung worlds that make up the regime.

Like Toreth, Andrej Koscuisko is a very good torturer. Unlike Toreth, he hates what he does, finding it a direct affront to his medical ethics and personal moral code. But torture gets him off, so he also loves it and hates himself for loving it. Koscuisko also hates the regime and its many injustices, but he's adept at using its own bureaucratic rules and laws against it, something which helps him deal with the fact that he must torture prisoners to protect and further the interests of the Bench.

He's assisted in his work by several Bond-Involuntaries, people who've been convicted of crimes against the Bench and implanted with pain governors that make even the thought of disobeying the Inquisitor or Bench physically unbearable.

I've only read three of the series, but it's been an entertaining ride so far. As an Inquisitor, Andrej has several mysteries to solve, and has to deal with conflicting loyalties to his family, his job, and his Bonds in the process. But watching his struggle with what he has to do and fact that he both hates and loves it, is probably the best thing about the series.

I actually find myself liking the Administration stories better however: the writing is just marvelous and the plotting and characters are more interesting to me. But the Judiciary books will not be a waste of your time. I'm sort of amazed they got published at all though, as they're very dark and graphic.

A treeware edition of this series wouldn't be remiss at all, no. In fact - setting aside all yaoi content with reluctance - it's the best mystery-thriller I've read in a good while.

I was thinking this same thing: you could cut out all the sex (noooohh! ;)) and it would still be one of the more intriguing storylines I've read in a long time. And that whole exploration of loving someone yet hating what they do and having to deal with the disconnect - just great stuff. (One of my favorite lines (I'm paraphrasing since I can't actually check the site right now): "I'm thinking about having a button drawn up: 'I know what he does'", chuckle).

Tania is excited. I've read Gravitation and don't particularly want to read Fake, so am merely baffled in a positive sort of way.

I've seen the Gravi anime, but haven't read the manga. Eidolontree's various fics have me hooked on Gravitation now even though anime Shuichi is the silliest uke I've ever seen. And I'm buying Fake on the "if you buy it, they will publish more, maybe, hopefully" principle. ^_^;;

If they ever start translating Motoni or Minekura into English, then I'll be excited. ^_^

Yes, I'm afraid I'll blow an aneurysm when/if that happy day ever comes. ^_^;; (Wild Adapter, pleeease, Wild Adapter....)

[petronia.livejournal.com]

Susan Matthews: capital. I'll keep an eye out for it. (And it's not even that I like murky per se, but I've found that murkiness tends to indicate a more satisfactory level of complexity and realism. I'm paranoid by nature and not an optimist. *g*)

Gravitation: the manga is even *more* cheerfully improbable. It's a good read, mind you, and the art eventually becomes excellent, though Shuuichi never improves as a person and Yuki ends up falling apart in all sorts of entertainingly weird ways. I'm mostly in it for the side charas anyhow.

Dystopia: it's a relative thing - I realised just now that it reminds me a little of mainland China. ^_^;; That whole background buzz of watch-what-one-says-and-who-one-pisses-off - obvious if you do and ridiculously dim if you don't, like following traffic rules - which I thought the author captured well. (In fact writing this now is actually triggering mild this-entry-is-unlocked paranoia. Geezus. People who've never lived outside of North America don't know what they're missing. ^_^;;;;)

Obsession and control: ...Y'know, for fiction written by someone who obvious came up through Britslash and doesn't do the anime thing at all, it reads remarkably like Japanese BL to me. Probably because Toreth is so flawlessly and accidentally the type. (The one that slash-writers who don't like yaoi are freaked out by.) I should print out his psych profile to wave in front of the next person who asks why the classic yaoi seme is always utterly off his rocker, because no doujinshika is going to provide me with one.

The conclusion is that yaoi tropes in and of themselves are kink, taken in the grand scheme of m/m. Ah vell. For a country whose national fetishes are school uniforms and rope bondage I shouldn't be too surprised. XD

[luxetumbra.livejournal.com]

People who've never lived outside of North America don't know what they're missing.

::nods:: though I think we're well on our way there to the south of you :(

Probably because Toreth is so flawlessly and accidentally the type. (The one that slash-writers who don't like yaoi are freaked out by.) I should print out his psych profile to wave in front of the next person who asks why the classic yaoi seme is always utterly off his rocker, because no doujinshika is going to provide me with one.

I'd love to read that should you ever post it by the way. ^_^; Your essays on yaoi and fanfic up at the site are quite enjoyable.

It's just so strange. Objectively, Toreth is despicable. Particularly after one reads "Helen". But he's still such a great character and I find myself empathizing with him for all his childhood traumas. It's a little like feeling sorry for Winston's torturers in "1984" though. ^_^;; I almost find myself nodding my head when Toreth complains about the resister rabble. And I'm a die-hard "idealist". ^_^;;

[manna]

Glad to hear that you enjoyed the Administration stories.

It's a little like feeling sorry for Winston's torturers in "1984" though.

'I can't help liking him even though I know I shouldn't' is a pretty common reaction to Toreth, so rest assured that you're not alone. :-) But, yes, he is indeed utterly despicable.

Re:

[luxetumbra.livejournal.com]

LOL, "enjoyed" is not really the word for how much I love these stories. "Obsessed with" perhaps, or "crazy about" are probably more apt. ^_^;; Think I've read them all at least three times through by now and can hardly wait for the next installment, they're so very good. Passes the "does it work if you take all the sex out" test (nooooo! ^_^;) with flying colors. I only wish I was a publisher, so I could offer you a contract. But alas, all I can do is read and recommend.

Thanks again for writing and sharing your world with the rest of us.

Re:

[manna]

Think I've read them all at least three times through by now and can hardly wait for the next installment, they're so very good.

Wow. Cool.

{does the happyhappy writer dance}

Passes the "does it work if you take all the sex out" test (nooooo! ^_^;) with flying colors.

Before I decided that I really didn't want to try to get the Administration professionally published, I briefly considered the idea that they might be more saleable if Warrick was a woman. Also, I thought, a 'noooooooooo!' idea.

And I'm always grateful for recommendations :-)

Re: Susan Matthews. Someone lent me some of the Andrej book, but I haven't actually read them yet -- the descriptions that I've had from other people of the angsting they involve puts me off. However, I don't know if you know this, but Matthews was a Blakes 7 fan writer before she went professional, and wrote one of the old classics of the Blakes 7 fandom, 'Mind of a Man is a Double Edged Sword', which I think might still be in print somewhere of oyu like her writing (it's resolutely gen, though, because I understand she was quite anti-slash).

So there's obviously some connection between liking Blakes and writing torturer heroes. :-)

[manna]

In fact writing this now is actually triggering mild this-entry-is-unlocked paranoia. Geezus.

This is Manna, vanity surfing from my weblog, and hoping I'm not fuelling any paranoia by doing so...

Toreth is so flawlessly and accidentally the type. (The one that slash-writers who don't like yaoi are freaked out by.) I should print out his psych profile to wave in front of the next person who asks why the classic yaoi seme is always utterly off his rocker,

If you've got time to talk about it, I'd love to hear some more about the similaritires between the Administration characters and yaoi. As you correctly guessed, I know absolutely nothing at all about yaoi, but the Adminitstration stories seem to have hit a chord with a couple of anime/yaoi fen, and it's interesting to hear that there are some thematic similarities going on.

And it's great that you enjoyed the stories. Apologies for any damage caused to either hemisphere of your brain :-)

[petronia.livejournal.com]

Oh, hi!

(No paranoia. If I blog a link to a ficsite expressly for the purpose of avoiding the effort of typing the URL, I can hardly be astonished if the author eventually notices the click-through at the other end. ^^;)

There are thematic similarities. You asked, so I'm likely to take that as permission to dump an essay on you through email. :) ...As soon as I get enough sleep that I can string two coherent sentences together, that is.

[cindyg.livejournal.com]

Remember the story in Chobits about the nice pastry chef who marries a persocom, and then her hard drive gets corrupted? I tear up and sob every time I read it.

Gads, when I saw that in the anime, I felt sooo bad for the sweeties!!

Fear and loathing at the oral surgeon's office

[canis-m.livejournal.com]

Apropos of none of the above, but rather of your other blog: due to some sort of alarming cosmic synchonicity, I've just been told that I must kiss my wisdom teeth goodbye, too. It's not easy to kiss one's own teeth.

Fear and loathing at the oral surgeon's office

[petronia.livejournal.com]

Ah. Well, solidarity. >_< If it helps, my friend who's been through it says they fill you up with painkillers to the extent that you don't feel a thing really, but the annoying part is that you then have a hole in your mouth in which food gets stuck for the next six months, until the bone fills in.

...No, it didn't cheer me up much either. But I thought I'd pass it on. ^^;