Filler 5/18 - 5/24, 2008.

[BloodHenge]

If I recall correctly, Poe said that Sara and Jon were once basically the same character.

Yup, in the wiki, at the bottom:
http://www.errantstory.com/wiki/index.php/Jon_Amraphel

So that might account for any girly characteristics. Well, that and the manga stereotypes again.

I remember that wiki article as well. It makes me wonder how different the dynamics of Jon's (Joan's?) and Sarine's relationship would have been if that character had been female.

Exactly the same, I hope.

[Michael Poe]

If I recall correctly, Poe said that Sara and Jon were once basically the same character.

On second thought, I'm not sure saying they were same character is exactly right... besides genders they also had different ages, and personalities,(also I recall, Proto-Sara had some sort of handler type guy that was a cross between Paul and Warrel in her version) the only thing they actually shared was the dead family background and being part of the Japanese proto-gewehr wraiths.

Japanese Proto-Jon really was just a ES Jon that looked asian instead of hispanic, and Japanese Proto-Sara was just ES Sara as a Gewehr Wraith. I didn't change them much at all beyond that.

[Joe Milino]

Well, part of the difference in personality could be due to the emotional suppression training Ensigerum members must undergo.
If it weren't for that, I wonder how similar Jon and Sara would be? Eh, she'd still probably be a little bundle of sullen anger. . .

[Michael Poe]

Well, part of the difference in personality could be due to the emotional suppression training Ensigerum members must undergo.
If it weren't for that, I wonder how similar Jon and Sara would be? Eh, she'd still probably be a little bundle of sullen anger. . .

Oddly enough, with Japanese Proto Sara all the emotional suppression was suppose to just be how she was wired... or I might have been considering that she had be abused before joining the Japanese Proto Wraiths, I can't recall honestly.

The stuff about it being the result of all the hellish training didn't come about till much later when I started creating the Ensigerum. I suppose we'll just have to wait till the sequel to see what Sara's like once she gets over all the programing.

[Boss Out of Town]

If I recall correctly, Poe said that Sara and Jon were once basically the same character.

Japanese Proto-Jon really was just a ES Jon that looked asian instead of hispanic, and Japanese Proto-Sara was just ES Sara as a Gewehr Wraith. I didn't change them much at all beyond that.

Jon looks Hispanic? Sort of a craggy Antonio Banderas? Makes all the women (and 5% of the men) swoon whenever he unbuttons his shirt? Well, if it worked on Sarine, it probably also worked on a lot of mortal females.

[Boss Out of Town]

I'd go so far as to say he looks a reasonable bit like Skuld in some places there. I much prefer the current version, naturally.

Skuld? Ohmigod, that's why that lower drawing looked so familiar. What next, a cage match between Belldandy and the Pedagousi?

My money would be on Belldandy, actually. Although it would be nice to see her get mussed, for once during a fight.

[Joe Milino]

Well, it's not necessarily bad if he's not oozing pure masculinity.
Really, quite a few involving male characters in any story have at least some feminine characteristics; it incredibly hard to pull off a convincing character that doesn't show ANY "female-like" emotion. A storyteller would have to work the entire plot or a back story around something like that. It works alright for male iconic figures (i.e. Dirty Harry), but to weave an involving story around these lines. . . Dirty Harry doesn't quite work as a central character. To stoic for most people to get involved with.

Keep in mind, I'm not saying he needs to turn into. . . oh jeez, what's the name of that annoying jackass, the one on YouTube, "LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!" Hopefully you don't know who I'm talking about.

YOU CAN OPEN UP, JON! DON'T BE AFRAID OF YOUR FEEEEELINGS!!!

[BloodHenge]

If I recall correctly, Poe said that Sara and Jon were once basically the same character.

Japanese Proto-Jon really was just a ES Jon that looked asian instead of hispanic, and Japanese Proto-Sara was just ES Sara as a Gewehr Wraith. I didn't change them much at all beyond that.

Jon looks Hispanic? Sort of a craggy Antonio Banderas? Makes all the women (and 5% of the men) swoon whenever he unbuttons his shirt? Well, if it worked on Sarine, it probably also worked on a lot of mortal females.

Although apparently not all mortal females.

[Boss Out of Town]

Well, it's not necessarily bad if he's not oozing pure masculinity.
Really, quite a few involving male characters in any story have at least some feminine characteristics; it incredibly hard to pull off a convincing character that doesn't show ANY "female-like" emotion. A storyteller would have to work the entire plot or a back story around something like that. It works alright for male iconic figures (i.e. Dirty Harry), but to weave an involving story around these lines. . . Dirty Harry doesn't quite work as a central character. To stoic for most people to get involved with.

Wow, you remind me how virulent gender stereotyping is these days. We just accept that all emotion is exclusively female, right, save for anger and vengeance? Anyhow, Dirty Harry isn't stoic, he's extremely emotional. He's a controlled sadist and arrogant narcissist whose stories are carefully constructed to show all those negative characteristics in a positive light. That's a common thing in fiction--James Bond and "John Wayne" are protected by their story-tellers in a similar fashion. Interesting, also how it makes it difficult to write about more traditional heroic types, like Sarine and Ian.

[Graybeard]

Well, part of the difference in personality could be due to the emotional suppression training Ensigerum members must undergo.
If it weren't for that, I wonder how similar Jon and Sara would be? Eh, she'd still probably be a little bundle of sullen anger. . .

Oddly enough, with Japanese Proto Sara all the emotional suppression was suppose to just be how she was wired... or I might have been considering that she had be abused before joining the Japanese Proto Wraiths, I can't recall honestly.

The stuff about it being the result of all the hellish training didn't come about till much later when I started creating the Ensigerum. I suppose we'll just have to wait till the sequel to see what Sara's like once she gets over all the programing.

Oh man, don't do things like that. For the rest of the day I'm going to be worrying about who won't make it to the sequel.

The tacit approval of the description of Ensigerum training as "hellish" is interesting. Nothing in Sara's flashback, nor in what we've seen in the Ensigerum village, strikes me as being more "hellish" than what is routinely done in military boot camps around the world. Yes, it is physically taxing, and from the sound of it there is a non-trivial chance of something fatal happening to the trainee. But it isn't simply degrading, or at least what we've seen of it isn't. Even Warrel's slap across the face at the windmill, which is probably the most "hellish" thing we have seen Sara undergo, is hardly extreme by the standards of such things.

Really "hellish" environments don't inflict hell on the body; they inflict it on the mind. Maybe Sara hasn't figured that out yet.