Wednesday, June 16, 2004
Othello coming from Del Ray...
Well, two new titles coming from Del Ray, both shoujo. While Wallflower sounds like it could be ok, I'm not really much for makover type stores. What interests me a lot more is Othello.
The story of a shy picked-on 16-year-old girl who finally snaps and gains an assertive split personality (whose actions she can't remember) is quite an interesting concept. It actually seems a bit of a subversion of the cliches of the "magical girl" genre. Instead of a little girl being able to be older and a singing sensation due to a magical mirror or something, we get a story with a lot more of an edge. There is still escapism involved (what person in that position wouldn't want to suddenly become their opposite?), but also potential for a lot of darker themes..
The involvement of a Visual Kei band (and her dressing up as one of the members) also will probably up the gothic factor quite a bit. For those that don't know, Kei bands are kind of like extreme versions of 80s hair bands in that the visual is very important, but the styles vary from gohic to others, frequently with major androgny going on, and music ranging from rock to punk to classical. A quick primer with some pics here.
Anyway, a review of Othello is here, and a page devoted to it here. I think this is one that I'll have to pick up for sure...
The story of a shy picked-on 16-year-old girl who finally snaps and gains an assertive split personality (whose actions she can't remember) is quite an interesting concept. It actually seems a bit of a subversion of the cliches of the "magical girl" genre. Instead of a little girl being able to be older and a singing sensation due to a magical mirror or something, we get a story with a lot more of an edge. There is still escapism involved (what person in that position wouldn't want to suddenly become their opposite?), but also potential for a lot of darker themes..
The involvement of a Visual Kei band (and her dressing up as one of the members) also will probably up the gothic factor quite a bit. For those that don't know, Kei bands are kind of like extreme versions of 80s hair bands in that the visual is very important, but the styles vary from gohic to others, frequently with major androgny going on, and music ranging from rock to punk to classical. A quick primer with some pics here.
Anyway, a review of Othello is here, and a page devoted to it here. I think this is one that I'll have to pick up for sure...
