ArcCain wrote:Xanatos wrote:ArcCain wrote:I did not like her arc because it had what I would call filler in it. But it did have some really good high notes too so it is not all bad.
Every route had filler...
Not to that extreme, almost all I can remember is the unimportant stuff.
People keep saying stuff like this, and I'm just not seeing it.
"Filler" and "unimportant" imply that you're talking about scenes that don't really bring anything to the table. Looking at the scenes from Shizune's route, nearly every event either contributes to Shizune's characterization or it moves the plot forward (hence the generous application of time skips). Hell, even the scenes with Kenji tend to be relevant to the plot. An argument may be made that the route focuses a bit too much on characterization, dragging on the plot, but that's a far cry from being overloaded with filler.
Something important to note with Shizune's route is that so much of what goes on is (appropriately enough) left unsaid. A lot goes on just with the facial expressions and body language. Interestingly enough, a lot of people pick up on Shizune's body language and facial expressions before Hisao learns sign language, but forget about it once Hisao can understand what Shizune's saying. Shizune makes extensive use of her body language and facial expressions, even though some are rather subtle (two are nearly identical). It's her main form of communication with most of the world, so she says a lot with visual cues. This extends to Misha, too. Her poses are very expressive, but she only has a few, which are used for many different occasions, which actually makes them more ambiguous than they should be. Additionally, Misha has a habit of shifting her expression when no one's paying attention. When you catch them, those shifts can speak volumes.
And no, the facial expressions aren't a trivial matter. For each expression, an artist needed to draw it, an editor needed to give the okay, and the coder needed to script the expression changes. they weren't just casually thrown around willy-nilly. On top of that, anyone with even a basic understanding of sign language is well aware that body language and facial expression play a huge role in the meaning of words. The fact that the facial expressions and body language play such a huge role in the deaf girl's route can hardly be considered coincidence, given the circumstances.
I'll certainly allow that there may be issues with Shizune's route, but I just don't think there's any weight to the argument that it has "filler" or irrelevant scenes.
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Jigoro knows this shit.
