Kiki's Nonexistent Space

Esmeralda is incredibly interesting and likable, even though she doesn't show up very often in the show. 

 

Esmeralda had a very hard life.  In the manga, she is a slave, sold to a farmer on Death Queen Island, where Ikki is training.  In the anime, she is the daughter of Ikki's deranged master.  I'm going to mostly go by the anime, as I have not read enough manga to use that version comfortably. 

 

Esmeralda obviously loves her father and Ikki both very much.  She tells Ikki that her father came back from Sanctuary changed, and she's not sure why.  Ikki knows that doing anything with her will cause both of them a ton of grief if/when the master (Guilty) finds out, and Esmeralda knows this too, but instead of arguing with Ikki, she simply keeps coming to take care of him.  She's smart enough to know that she's not going to win a logic argument with Ikki, and she might as well just go ahead and do what she wants to while Ikki can't stop her. 

 

Ikki has several flashbacks involving Esmeralda, especially when she took him to see flowers growing in a small field on the almost-desolate volcanic island.  Similarly, Esmeralda is a flowery field in Ikki's dead island. 

 

Ikki is a loner and likes to blame himself.  So when Esmeralda is killed by Guilty while Ikki is fighting him, Ikki blames himself.  To make up for his self-hatred, he first tries to turn his hatred on his master, but killing Guilty doesn't fix anything, so he turns his hatred on the world.  Eventually, he realizes what a beast he's being, and how he's completely betrayed Esmeralda and her gentle legacy, Ikki stops hating everyone.  Unfortunately, he goes back to hating himself.  Sometimes, when Ikki is floating on the edge of death, he hears Esmeralda talking to him, and telling him to get his butt in gear and go live and help his friends,  because death is the coward's way out.  And Ikki LISTENS.  Ikki may love his brother, but he doesn't listen to Shun most of the time.  Ikki LISTENS to Esmeralda.  This is not a small feat. 

 

Many people overlook Esmeralda.  I think one of the reasons I'm so not OK with Saint Seiya yaoi pairings is that the main four love interests are such likable and sweet characters.  Ikki obviously LOVES Esmeralda, and seems like the kind of person who would never ever ever look at any other girl ever again, just because he's still so stubbornly attached to her.  Everytime he's about to die, he thinks, awesome, I get to see Esmeralda again--that's how far he's gone. 

 

One of the things I really admire about Esmeralda is her ability to be so tough and sweet and uncomplaining even though her life really sucks more than anyone's.  Her father ignores her, she has to see the boy she loves get beat up every day, and she has no one else to talk to, besides Ikki.  She lives on a volcanic island, where the climate is so harsh that barely anything grows, and it's boiling hot every day and night.  But, somehow, Esmeralda doesn't despair.  She doesn't give up.  She keeps finding beauty and wonder in everything--it's Esmeralda who sees the goodness in Ikki, who finds the flowers, who is concerned for everyone.  And, she doesn't worry herself by thinking further than now, and those she loves.  Even when she dies, she doesn't cry about the unfairness to herself--she is STILL thinking of Ikki. 

 

I truly enjoy watching Esmeralda.  Ikki is mentally unhinged, lonely, and unable to communicate well with people.  Esmeralda, intuitive and strong and loving, fits him perfectly. 

This update is made possible by cerise888.  Thanks for the encouragement, darlin'.  ;)

 

So, Hyoga does not have a love interest, thus we move on to Shun's.  June is a really...sweet girl.  For someone who's lived on Andromeda most of her life, and who has spent a lot of time learning to fight with a whip so she can be a Saint, June is very normal.  I think what I like most about her, though, is that she and Shun are smart and healthy about the relationship between them.  No angst-angst-death like Ikki, no I'm-too-shy-to-say-anything like Shiryuu, and especially no do-I-like-her-or-not like Seiya. 

 

One of my favorite scenes from the anime is the one where June is trying to stop Shun from going to Sanctuary, and later the "pretty punk Saints" come along and fight with Shun.  At any rate, I really love when June's mask falls off, and Shun sees her face.  Now, this is after we find out from Shaina how the mask/love/death thing works.  So I totally expected both of them to have issues after her mask falls off.  But here's the amazing part.  Shun just smiles at her, and June says, "Shun..." and we the audience feel like they both understand how this works, but don't mind, and everything's ok. 

 

Shun is not at all dumb.  He can probably tell that June likes him more than a little.  But I think this fact doesn't bother Shun at all, because he's (out of all his friends) the most mature about handling affairs on his own.  He understands there is pain, there is suffering, but that doesn't mean the world is all bad.  He knows that love is a precious thing, and I think, he reciprocates the feelings June has, and thus knows that he is very lucky to have her.  He also is aware of a lot of other things, like his cosmo, and Hades inside him, which he doesn't show anyone until absolutely forced to.  So even if Shun doesn't make it super obvious that he is pining after June, he does make it obvious enough to her that he cares about her more than a little, and understands the consequences of seeing her face, and doesn't mind. 

 

June is pretty smart too.  I can see why Shun would get along with her.  Actually, I found out that June is a year older than Shun, which amuses me, because I think it's kind of cute when the girl is a little older...not that it's not cute otherwise, but still. 

 

Another thing I really like about the Shun and June dynamic is how June attempts to protect Shun while he's on Andromeda.  She sees this boy, who is younger than her, and a total sweetheart, who keeps getting beat up by the other trainees.  So she decides that she's going to protect him from getting hurt, by mediating the pretty punk saints in fights, by convincing Albior to go easy on Shun...and even though him winning the Andromeda cloth impressed her, I don't think she completely realized his power just yet.  From what she says, I think when she goes to stop him from leaving for Sanctuary...that's the moment when she sees that he really is very strong and self-sufficient, and when he ends up protecting her from the pretty punk saints, I think THEN June realizes that he never needed her protection all along. 

 

But Shun is the kind of person who will not make someone else feel bad.  So he conveys to her this idea of how much he appreciates everything she's done, and, really, nothing matters, not even the mask, so much as the fact that they've met in this chaotic world and have come this far alive and together. 

 

I am very sad that June never shows up again...

Now that Miho has been covered, we move on to Shiryuu's love interest, Shunrei.  To summarize briefly, Shunrei is a pretty Chinese girl who was adopted by Roshi in Rozan.  Shiryuu grew up with her, and the two have developed a very close relationship--almost that of brother and sister, except for the romantic tendencies.  For some reason, one of the American dubs decided that Shunrei and Shiryuu should be siblings for real...which just confounds me.  I mean, there are some pretty obvoius scenes in there.  Anyway, Shunrei takes care of both Roshi and Shiryuu, and is always waiting for Shiryuu's return. 

 

Everyone knows that Shunrei and Shiryuu are in love.  Seiya and the others can tell.  Athena can tell.  Ohko can tell.  Roshi consistently tries to push them together.  The problem lies in that they themselves are too shy to see if it will go anywhere. 

 

I like Shunrei a lot, personally.  A lot of people complain that she is too weak, and can never do anything, like Miho.  But I like Shunrei.  She is a girl who understands a lot of things other thirteen-year-old girls do not even have to consider. She has to watch the man she loves leave her to go get himself into near-death situations several times in the same month.  And yet, she does not despair.  When Shiryuu must leave, she lets him go.  She does not attempt to stop him, because she knows this is what he must do.  She is incredibly strong, and would do anything for Shiryuu. 

 

Something that really bothers me personally is when people pair Shiryuu with other characters randomly.  The show makes it pretty obvious that it's Shunrei he loves.  And I really appreciate the romance between them.  I don't necessarily find it romantic in the kissing-whispering-cheesy way.  It's a sweet, pure love, but it's also a very simple one.  Shunrei would give up everything for Shiryuu--in fact, what she has to do for him is far beyond anything most people have to face.  While she never dies for him, she has to do something far more painful.  She has to live for him.  Death is simple.  You can die for someone more easily than you can live for someone, because death just releases you from all the pain.  Life, however, means you have to face the pain every day.  When you rise, when you eat, when you rest.  Shunrei faces this and conquers it.  Romeo/Juliet couples kill themselves when things become difficult.  But Shunrei...even knowing he may not return, she prays for him, and waits for him, and stays alive for him.  That is a love worth imitating. 

Miho-chan is probably one of the most likable female-love-interest-of-main-character personages I have ever encountered.  Most female love interests are much more well-endowed, more annoying and airheaded, and definitely less spunky.  They are sometimes very self-consumed and often rather stupid.  Miho is quite the opposite. 

 

Miho grew up in the same orphanage as Seiya, in a small, church-run facility in Tokyo.  When Miho was about six or seven, she, of her own initiative, rode inside a trash can on a garbage truck into Kiddo manor to find Seiya before he left for Greece.  When she grew older, she decided to stay and teach at the orphanage, where she takes care of a large herd of small children.  Before you scoff at her plainness and simplicity, YOU try to take care of a large herd of small children on a daily basis.  Seriously.  It's not an easy thing.  Anyway, when Seiya returns, Miho watches him fight through a tournament, and then takes care of him when he gets hurt later on.  In fact, to prevent him from running off, she ties him up with rope. 

 

Miho's quiet strength is a source of both amazement and amusement for me.  Some of the actions given to her require so much strength of will and imagination.  Miho never complains, never whines.  She is very much in love with Seiya, but she never forces her feelings on him, and never tries to make people pity her.  She is incredibly mature for a girl of thirteen, and astonishingly optimistic for an orphan whose crush is in constant danger of death. 

 

Although I have heard complaints about Miho's voice, I think those comments were made in reference to the dubs.  Miho's Japanese voice is perfectly fine, and a typical girl's voice.  I have also heard people say that Miho is too weak and helpless.  On the one hand, she is not a Saint.  For an everyday girl, she has some awesome inner strength.  And even Shaina, being a Silver Saint, is rather weak physically compared to most of the Bronze Saints.  Miho is not completely helpless either...recall the tying of Seiya. 

 

I have heard some rather convincing arguments in favor of Shaina or Saori being Seiya's ultimate choice of love interest.  However, I am still cheering for Miho.  Because Miho is a girl like me or you, a girl who wants more than anything for the man she loves to be happy, regardless of what that may cost.  Because Miho is a sweet, optimistic girl, who would make a good friend for anyone, and who would try her best for Seiya.  Because Miho seems to understand Seiya better than any of the other two.  Shaina does have it for Seiya, but half the time she is trying to kill Seiya, and something about her carriage makes me think that she is not quite as compatible with Seiya as Miho is.  The main reason everyone pairs Saori and Seiya is due to the cliff scene, and the incessant mental concerns of Saori about Seiya.  The cliff scene, I will admit, is rather indicative that Saori seems to like Seiya a little too much.  But I get the impression that Saori is merely momentarily attracted.  That's only my opinion, however.  With the name-calling, however, I think Saori merely thinks of Seiya first every time because he's the main character, and sometimes he's the only one still alive.  In fact, there is a scene in which Saori tells Seiya to stay behind at the orphanage and eat dinner there.  It seems as if she is helping Hyoga push Seiya into spending some extra time with Miho. 

 

Beyond all of that, however, I mostly think that Miho fits Seiya better.  Miho is a girl with a lot of strength and patience, and Seiya sometimes needs a cool-headed person to smack him (or tie him up, as the case may be) when he's acting stupid.  He needs someone who can make him remember what is beautiful about the world, to make him remember what life is like beyond fighting. 

 

Miho is a girl-next-door who can love a Saint and not despair.  How can one not admire her?

Almost done with finals for winter quarter, yay.  I should actually be memorizing for Chem right now, but have decided that Ikki has my attention more than chemistry does. 

 

Ikki is Ikki is Ikki.  He's such a character.  Ikki is one of the things that makes Saint Seiya so awesome.  First of all, you should know that Ikki starts out as an enemy.  I mean, ok, they all start out as enemies, which is interesting enough.  But Ikki starts out evil.  He and his little followers basically crash the Galactic Tournament and steal the prize.  Yeah.  He starts out evil.  He even tries to kill Shun.

 

After much development, Ikki eventually makes it to be a part of the group.  But he still hangs out on his own, and only shows up when he's needed.  He chills when everyone else is freaking, and he can sometimes be such a jerk.  As Saori tells Seiya at one point, however, Ikki is merely bad at expressing himself, and he actually cares deeply about his friends.  He just doesn't know how to show his sympathy. 

 

Ikki is one of the most developed characters in the show.  Like Hyoga and Shun, he's been through a lot of troubling things.  His master, for one, fought life-and-death battles with him every day.  His master also wore an oni mask.  He fell in love with his master's daughter, who was then killed by his master while his master was actually trying to kill him.  And...he's just one twisted soul.  Even after he defaults to the "good" side, he's still rather sadistic at times.  He doesn't always tell the others what he's thinking, and sometimes he makes it seem like he's abandoning their cause. 

 

But inside, Ikki is one big softie.  You can tell by some of the sweet things that occasionally pop out of his mouth, by the way his smile softens when he looks at Shun, and by the way he completely melts when anything involving Esmeralda happens.  Actually, I think Ikki's deathwish comes almost completely from Esmeralda.  I mean, sure, he cares about Shun more than anything, almost, and he does care a lot about Athena.  But look at him in Poseidon. 

 

 

People tend to forget the huge influence that Esmeralda has on Ikki, probably in great part due to the fact that she's dead and rarely appears in the show.  But I really like Esmeralda's character.  For a dead girl, she's got spunk.  She can force Ikki to stop being dumb and go back to living.  And Ikki will listen.  Ikki, who never listens to anyone, will obey Esmeralda. 

 

Ikki has some interesting relationships with the other characters.  He and Seiya have interesting interactions, as they are friends deep down, but Ikki is infuriating and Seiya is impulsive, making the two of them occasionally volatile.  He and Shiryuu interact less, but Shiryuu, being wise, seems to understand Ikki's thoughts a little better.  He and Hyoga are a silent pair of damaged bishies, and I get the vague impression that they understand each other very well, even with minimal communication.  And with Shun, Ikki is seriously overprotective and sometimes you can see through his facade of emotionless stoicism.  Take Hades Inferno for example.  Ikki starts to cry when he realizes he hasn't been able to protect Shun from being possessed by Hades. 

 

Beneath that cool, smooth, sadistic, self-assured surface, beneath the arrogant, sarcastic smile and the renegade habits, Ikki is actually just a scared little boy.  He's 15, don't forget.  However much more mature any of them may sometimes seem, in reality, they are all but high school aged children, learning how to live.  Ikki has spent his entire life unable to completely protect those he loves, and that has made a huge impact on him.  He's also spent most of his life devoid of most social interaction, thus allowing him very little social skill. 

 

His speech and manner can be incredibly unkind and harsh, but sometimes his true personality is revealed, and we see his sweet, innocent side as well.  Ikki may seem anything but innocent, but anyone fighting for Athena has to maintain at least a little innocence--enough to keep believing that their battles will benefit the world, that there might be peace and happiness one day.  And perhaps Ikki's ability to be both a sarcastic jerk and a hopeful little boy--perhaps that is what intrigued Shaka about him.  Perhaps that is what intrigued all of us Ikki fans as well.