[RFC] Being You is Deculture

[Black Aeronaut]

This is pretty much my not-so-mindless self indulgence story.

I won't even attempt to argue against the fact that my character has indeed slid into the main-character slot here, but I've been doing my part to make sure Hikaru, Roy, and everyone else aren't made to look like schmoes. Except Kakizaki, but that's kinda his lot in relation to everyone else, and one that he is actually happy with. (As I mentioned earlier, he probably wouldn't make for a great officer, he would be an outstanding senior noncom.)

But really, my biggest goal here, and one I believe that I've been succeeding in, is ensuring that everyone is in character, or that their character has been refined and developed in a manner that's a lot less SoD-breaking.

Minmei is a great example here. Teenage girl becomes an overnight celebrity success - a metaphorical Cinderella Story. Which *is* believable - there've been a lot of sudden absolute rocket-launch careers in the real world such as Carrie Underwood.

But what makes Minmei stand out is that it is heavily implied that she writes *all of her own music*. All of it. Every note, every word of it is all her. And that takes a lot more than just talent. That takes years of learning, even if it's not directly learned from an instructor. Which means Minmei wouldn't be the flat and all-but-lifeless character in the anime, but a person who stands out and distinguishes herself. She will be the type of girl that will flatly say, "Excuse me? Do I look like a Disney Princess here?"

And then there is Kamjin. He is indeed a glory hound. But to receive the distinction that he has, he needs to be a glory hound that isn't just blindly aiming for a cheap win. He challenges himself with clever opponents, sharpening his own skills in the process, and proclaiming his successes. And while he definitely hates to lose, he accepts that an opponent was better at the art of war than he, and then sets to learning how to beat this new opponent.

And that's what I try and do with everything I get into - I try to enrich the characters that get glossed over, and folks around here seem to really enjoy that.