I always try to avoid playing favorites when it comes to high-potential likable characters…all of this for the simple reason evading clouded perception. In this case, K-ON presents us with four girls, each possessing signature traits which in turn seem to appeal a unique fraction of the masses. With characters like these, it’s so easy to get an affinity to either one of them, not to mention their enormous moe factor. Mio seems to be the most prominent of all; and while other people will try to disagree with what I just said, the point of it all remains that affinity/attraction to any one of them will most likely lead to single-minded perception, biased views of all other characters and just as warriorhope mentioned, character bashing.
So here’s my question…is it actually possible to exercise indifference while retaining some sense of preference? Actually, let me rephrase that in a particular example: “Is it possible the uphold Mio (or Yui, or Ritsu, or Tsumugi for that matter) without (un)intentionally slighting the others? Hold your horses!!! Before you start spamming random ‘WTF?! Of course it’s possible!” thoughts and/or remarks, I suggest you take a moment to rethink things for a bit (I will go about this later). Up until recently (or the first two episodes to be in particular), I can say with much guarantee that I was able to successfully fend off Mio’s charms. In essence, I was able to say ‘NO!’ to Mio, ‘NO!’ to Yui, ‘NO!’ to Tsumugi, and ‘NO!’ to Ritsu but ‘YES!’ to all of them as an entire group. Along came Episode 3 with much concentration on Yui and the delicate balance of neutrality of which I worked so hard to maintain just got flushed down the toilet. Godammit…
No, no…it’s not because Yui’s moeness got the best of me, though I’m pretty sure some fanboys will or rather, the ones who haven’t yet fallen for Mio, Ritsu, or even Tsumugi; it’s actually quite the opposite. Long story short, you could say my reaction to Yui for that one episode only is akin to those who expressed a ‘Fail’ attitude towards her. But wait..how on earth does that impede my neutrality/indifference stance? Isn’t that favoritism’s job? Well..yes and no; yes because it does its fair share of impediment and no because showing even the slightest hints of atrocity will disrupt the ‘balance.’ Observe the charts following charts..
What I was Prior to Episode 3
What I’m trying to avoid
What actually happend at Episode 3
The goal…
I’m quite aware that indifference and preference are two oxymoronic ideas…even then, is it possible to find a middle ground between the two?
{ 7 comments }
Wierd. It was the exact opposite for me after Episode 3. Puni! Puni!
I keep ^_____________^ at your chart that show what happen after Episode 3. That happened to a lot of people actually (my anti-Yui post somehow infected some of my teammates as well) and it can’t be helped. I bet you anything KyoAni wants you to pick one of the girls to prefer over the rest, but it also hopes there are enough people to like each type of girl. Is it possible to like all the female characters equally? Yes. Is it possible for this type of show? Slim because KyoAni makes it so. That’s just my opinion though.
Besides, playing favoritism is so much fun…
Minnie’s last blog post..Hatsukoi Limited Episode 2: “She Doesn’t Treat Me Like A Man…” That’s Because Misaki’s Too Sexy For a Man~
There’s a reason there are four girls and not just one or two. It’s to cover all the bases. You like the ojou-sama types? You’ve got your Mugi-chan. You like the spacey/silly types? You can fanboy over Yui. You like the ‘straight man’/tsundere/cooldere/secretly shy girl? Get thee to a Mio. And if you just like the bouncing off the walls type, you’ll love Ritsu. They all get a fair amount of attention in the series and this is intentional. They’re trying to give something for everyone.
It’s pretty much impossible not to have a preference for one of the girls. Whether that preference makes you like another girl less or if it’s due to the fact that said other girl does something that you dislike/annoys you, that’s up to you to decide~
Nazarielle’s last blog post..Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai
There’s no point in trying to stay fair and balances when it comes to moe. One girl will always get more of a smile or “aww”ness from you.
I think balance is possible sometimes though. In Shugo Chara I love three girls almost equally~ But they all share similar traits (stubborn~) so it’s kind of different. The K-On! girls are all just too different. You may love one and hate another. Even you (you rule-breaking exception!) were bound to lose your fairness.
But why does everyone hate Yui so much or have zero interest in her? …Okay so I totally understand why, but I still don’t think she’s that bad. As for me I like Mio then Yui then the other two. Because almost every joke and scene with Ritsu and Tsumugi is like something I’ve seen before. They’re so boring~
So what I’m saying is, it’s moe. They’re is no balance. Someone will get annoying an someone will be more lovable than the rest. This is the LAW.
FuyuMaiden’s last blog post..Weekly Extra – In Total Non-Anime Mode
Hm.
Well, this is why I am dropping K-On from my blogging. It’s also why I am already kind of sick of K-On’s fandom. Too much love for Mio, not enough for the other girls. {Particularly my oujo-sama.}
And that is, and is the only reason, why I’ve decided to not like Mio. Because when everyone obsesses over a character, say Mio for example, it drives me away from that character.
So I latch onto lesser loved characters. That’s why I favor Tsumugi. Ritsu is almost close to getting to that level. Yui… not far behind.
But Mio… well… not gonna cut it for me.
Favoritisms and biases just destroy fandoms completely and leave them in ruins. And if you need an example, I’d say just go on and visit the Macross Frontier fans. That’ll do it for you.
Thing is… I don’t understand what is so great about Mio and her ending theme song. Personally, I think either Ritsu or Yui were the prettiest in that video.
So I am staying away from the fandom before things get bad. Because they always do.
But ah~ Congratulations to you. You’ve managed to not go crazy for Mio like {most} everyone else has. -nodnod-
Lea’s last blog post..K-On – Mio Fans VS. Me?
Right before this episode, I was at something like this.
After watching it… I became more like this.
fangzhao’s last blog post..Fullmetal Alchemist 03: Epic fail
I should make charts like that too. XD
Kairu Ishimaru’s last blog post..K-ON! Episode 4: “Jello is nice”
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