Yamaku Book Club (20220124 Dish Washing)

[dewelar]

That was...dense. I had a very difficult time reading that, given the lack of spacing and the fact that it was almost entirely Misha monologuing. I couldn't finish it in one go, which is unusual for such a short(ish) piece. It was basically sensory overload, which meant that I couldn't get into it, no matter how much I wanted to -- and I did want to, honestly. Given that, and also that it had to overcome a fair amount of OOC-ness, this was just an utter failure for me, but I recognize that that's totally a personal thing.

[Oddball]

I couldn't really get into it either. It was cute, but it felt too cute for the material it was trying to cover. The fact that it was all dialogue didn't help much either. Misha just needed somebody to play off of. Anybody. Even if it was just Hisao's thoughts.

Plus the whole thing just felt far longer than it needed to be.

[Blank Mage]

I actually rather liked it. It has a good balance of humor and emotion, and it made me consider how the students of Yamaku might react to something like this. I like to think there are unwritten rules, a general framework of support for new students still struggling to come to terms with their problems. I think the whole of Yamaku wants to see Hisao do well, simply because they understand better than anyone what it's like to hit rock bottom, and find a pickaxe. It's a nice thought, at least.

[Blasphemy]

The fact that it was all dialogue didn't help much either. Misha just needed somebody to play off of. Anybody. Even if it was just Hisao's thoughts.

See, I liked exactly that quite a bit. Relying only on Misha's dialogue to get a 'look' at Hisao was rather interesting to me.

There's a bunch of stuff that is arguably OOC but that didn't bother me much this time around. One of the sweetest and most endearing reads here actually. More so than brythain's works even! (Oh man, it can be really tough to get through your stuff as it's not only often somewhat depressing but also so much...yet also so good :> )

[imgurKnight]

I actually really like Constant Companion, but there's some issues with it. I'd say first and foremost is one that a lot of stuff does, which is assuming everyone is deeply in love with Hisao from the first week he shows up. I really find it hard to believe that, for example, Rin would be that upset about Hisao getting into an accident. She'd basically just met him. A lot of the other reactions seem ridiculously over the top in similar ways. Setting that aside though, I think it's a really cute little piece with a lot of adorable moments.

[Blasphemy]

^
Yeh true. Saying it's 'arguably' OOC was probably not my best choice of words as it pretty clearly is in certain cases. It's also rather far-fetched that Misha talk to the other important girls that much and has a little story to tell about each one of them, although I just accepted that as a means to telling a rather positive story.

That said, I'd actually be really interested in this kind of premise but it perhaps being primarily Misha (or any other of our girl cast) and not everything looking so rosy. However, that would be longer story then, not just some short.

[Oscar Wildecat]

I thought Constant Companion was rather nice little sugary piece. Judging from the post date, I'm assuming that it's base upon the Act 1 preview, which excuses (for me) much of the OOC behavior in the work (that and the fact that it's a fluff fic ). I also liked the monologue format for this. (That said, I don't think the monologue format would have worked if the story had been any longer than it was, or if had tried to cover more than that one scene...)

[brythain]

I think what I like about the earlier pieces is that they're -experimental-, they come from a time before canon was really established. They're like heretical little marginalia that cast distorted light into the shadows of prehistoric times. They're the little gods from older times who have faded away into the bogeymen of the busy present.

'Constant Companion' shows Misha as the tale-weaver, the one who is dominant over the one who cannot speak. It's an interesting reversal, since in canon we see her as a constant companion who is dominated by the one who cannot speak. Such seeds give me ideas more than most other fanfic does, simply because they have more raw vitality. It is messy to read and look at, but what I did was attempt to reconstruct each of Misha's little storylets and see how else KS might have been if that had been the plot framework. Was she telling the truth, embellishing, or just being Misha?

[Mirage_GSM]

That was...dense. I had a very difficult time reading that, given the lack of spacing and the fact that it was almost entirely Misha monologuing.

Usually I would agree with you, but I thought in this story it actually worked. The lack of spacing reinforces the feeling of Misha gushing like a waterfall from beginning to the end, which made the story very intense for me.

Constant Companion was one of the first stories I read when I joined the forums and it remains one of my favourites. Sure, on a literary level there is much that could be said about it, but as Blasphemy said it is one of the sweetest stories around.

And yes, this story was definitely written pre-release. In fact I think it was the first post-manly picnic story ever. The relationships between the girls were pretty much unknowns back then. Sure, some of the reactions are a bit over the top - especially Rin's - but I don't mind that at all. This story was not written for exact characterization and should not be judged as that.

[ProfAllister]

I'm with Mirage on this one - it's not remembered for the literary quality or for the spot-on characterisation - it's because it's just so darn sweet.

Also, I'm a little reluctant to come down on someone for characterisation, because it's usually more of a headcannon broadside than any actual focused and directed criticism. Not that there's no place for the "OOC" comment, but that it should be a subordinate issue - unless it's wildly OOC and undermines the entire narrative, that is. But you're treading on especially shaky ground when you're stretching the OOC judgment into what someone would or wouldn't do in the throes of grief

The narrative style is difficult for some, but the experimental narrative was kind of the whole point. I liked it, as did several other people, but there are others who didn't quite have the same level of appreciation. On the one hand, it is a relatively opaque way to carry the narrative, while on the other, it gives a unique opportunity to go into a very deep level of characterisation for the narrator. Tying into the above point, the characterisation of the other actors isn't all that important; this is about Misha.

And how well does he do Misha? Pretty well, I'd say, especially by Act 1 standards. Admittedly, that's a pretty generous standard - Misha is very much a cipher in the full game, to say nothing of the tiny taste you got in Act 1. But she has the key details - a cheerful, bubbly, vapid personality that belies her true self, loyalty, selflessness. I'd say her language is a bit coarser than what the VN would lead us to expect, but that applies to about 90% of fanfics.

And, I'll admit, I'm a bit of a sucker for stories where fates conspire to bring about an improbable conclusion by way of a reasonable and believable chain of events. We all have our weaknesses.

[brythain]

See, I liked exactly that quite a bit. Relying only on Misha's dialogue to get a 'look' at Hisao was rather interesting to me.

There's a bunch of stuff that is arguably OOC but that didn't bother me much this time around. One of the sweetest and most endearing reads here actually. More so than brythain's works even! (Oh man, it can be really tough to get through your stuff as it's not only often somewhat depressing but also so much...yet also so good :> )

Well, now you've gone and exposed one of my formative influences…

[dewelar]

And how well does he do Misha? Pretty well, I'd say, especially by Act 1 standards.

I think this is right, but it also reminds me of why I don't like reading, let alone judging, pre-full-release stories. I discovered KS well over a year after its full release, so I don't have a place in my mind for what Act 1 was as a stand-alone piece. Beyond that, I have no desire to parse the entirety of the work in that way. I understand that, to some degree, the YBC is meant as a literary exercise, but I think I've had my fill of that aspect of it. For future meetings, I believe I will abstain from any such discussions, because I no longer feel that I can actually enjoy them.

[Mahorfeus]

First thing first, it is an awful eyeful to read. Grammatical errors and inconsistent capitalization are abound, and the use of punctuation is far too generous. Getting past that, it is a sweet little piece.

It follows the "Hisao survives the manly picnic" line of thinking, which is one of my favorite premises for KS fanfiction. Of course, it tackles it from a different perspective, namely Misha's. I do not so much mind that the entirety of the story is dialogue, though I am skeptical about Misha being the "constant companion," even with the fact that this is Act 1 fiction. It almost seems like it's only her because she's not one of the other girls.

I don't think that the other girls' reactions are necessarily off the mark, or at any rate, nothing about them necessarily implies that they were already in love with Hisao. I do think Hisao's implied reactions to Misha's dialogue are a bit too much, though I suppose it's hard to speak for someone under as much stress as him.

[Sea]

Starbursts! Yay! Except for the yellow ones because those are terrible.

Starbursts (Mutou and Miyagi) – side story by spirizu (completed, 4706 words)
PoV: Miyagi, Mutou; Pairings: Mutou x Miyagi; Begins:
Remarks:

19th, go!

[Mirage_GSM]

though I am skeptical about Misha being the "constant companion," even with the fact that this is Act 1 fiction.

I'm not quite sure what you mean by that...