#kyouko machi | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fzzr · 1 year

Text

Interviews with Monster Girls and Approaching Disability

Content Advisory: I don't know what I'm doing here when it comes to talking about disability, so I'll probably say something stupid. Sorry in advance, all I can promise to do is my best. Likewise as a straight cis man I can't talk about the Gender Stuff from lived experience, so my views will necessarily be from outside. Be aware that there's gender stuff with an eye to how women are treated in general.

Demi-chan wa Kataritai (Interviews with Monster Girls, henceforth "Demi-chan") is a 2017 anime about a high school biology teacher teaching and learning from his half-human half-monster "ajin" or "demi" students about facing social and practical difficulties in life due to the realities of one's body. Or to put it more simply, it's about disability, through the lens of monster girls.

The Vampire - Medical Disability

Vampires need no introduction. Creature of the night, lives on blood, arguably the most iconic horror monster. In Demi-chan, vampirism is basically diabetes, anemia, albinism, and a collection of other quirks all rolled into one. Hikari Takanashi keeps her government-issued blood in a personal refrigerator. She needs to take extra precautions to protect her skin and eyes from the sun and is sensitive to hot weather.

Hikari is supported without question or resentment by her family. When the urge to bite people comes up, her sister allows Hikari to gnaw on her arm a bit. Hikari is brilliantly blonde, so her father bleaches his hair a bit to make her stand out less. Her mother supports the family, and the extra expense involved in raising a half-vampire isn't even a topic of discussion.

In another time Hikari would have been treated like, well... a vampire. Thanks to a more understanding public and advances in technology, she's just like any other girl.

The Dullahan - Physical Disability

A dullahan is a person with a detached but otherwise perfectly functional head (think "Headless Horseman"). In Demi-chan, they represent physical disability. Kyouko Machi's moment to moment life is defined by having to carry her head with her everywhere. She's essentially missing an arm any time she's walking around. It takes Hikari pointing it out for anyone else to realize making her carry the school-standard bag is dangerous, prompting the school to give her special permission to use a backpack. She has a custom harness to hold her head at chest level so she can use both hands while eating. She typically rests her head on a pillow when seated, and has to use her arms to physically point her head at people when listening or speaking.

Among the three demi students, Kyouko gets the most attention as more of a specimen than a person. Whether it's wanting to touch the flame where her neck would be or just asking sometimes intrusive questions, it's clear that people, even the most well-intentioned, are less respectful of her bodily autonomy than they could or should be. Other times people will deliberately avoid topics that would require them to acknowledge her physical limitations as though they don't exist.

Dullahans may be more accommodated than they were in the past, but the world is still structured on the assumption that they don't exist. Despite being an afterthought to the built environment, Kyouko is just like any other girl.

The Yuki-onna - Psychological Disability

A yuki-onna, or snow woman, is a person who emits physical cold when under emotional strain. Yuki Kusakabe is at a new school in a new town and her powers are doing new things. Her anxiety and fear of becoming too close to others leaves her socially isolated. Her resulting non-participation shows some of the complexity of psychological disability - it doesn't mean you physically can't do things, but the collective actions of those around you means you are excluded nonetheless.

Yuki is seemingly shy not because she doesn't like other people, but because she is afraid that if she gets upset around someone the cold she emanates will physically harm them. It's not a stretch to understand that as representing the fear one may have that opening up about your problems burdens others, so isolation is preferable. A bit of practical examination eventually shows that her cold doesn't hurt anyone - herself or others. This doesn't suddenly cure her anxiety, of course. She just becomes more willing to open up and hang out with people.

This one doesn't land as well as the others, because it seems to imply that you just need a good few friends to eventually have people get you and then you will be fine. Additionally, her nature as a yuki-onna means she is also easily overheated in hot weather, which is one thing that brings her together with the other demis. I don't think that necessarily is part of the allegory, but if it is it's saying it's not healthy for her to avoid uncomfortable feelings (cold) altogether.

Society expects us to keep unsightly emotions out of the view of the public. Yuki can't hide hers, but her peers come to realize that under the anxiety she's just like any other girl.

The Succubus - Being a Woman

Ok, this is the spicy one. The fourth demi in the show is teacher Sakie Satou, a succubus. In Demi-chan a succubus is a woman who has a supernaturally compelling erotic effect on anyone who could be attracted to her. (They give gay men as an explicit example of people immune to succubus charm.) In parallel with the three students, we have to look at her demi nature as a form of disability as well. The show is very clear that the only functional difference between Sakie and any other woman is the magnitude and range of her attractiveness.

Just as much as the other demis, her life is shaped by this fact about how she was born. She wears loose clothes that cover her whole body beyond hands and head at all times in public. She is hyperaware of her surroundings at school so that she doesn't bump into a male student and need to deal with the results. She takes the first train in the morning and last train in the evening for the same reason. She even has to live in a detached home (not an apartment) because when she's asleep she leaks erotic dreams. Her yearning for romance is stifled by the worry that she will never be able to tell if someone really likes her or just her succubus charm.

Society has not moved very far to make room for Sakie. The flashback scene from her school days where she makes use of martial arts and social intimidation to reverse a dangerous situation is played for comedy, but left implied is how differently it could have gone. Succubi are considered the most dangerous ajin by the government. Cops regularly check on them to make sure they're not deliberately causing issues by using their charm to provoke an assault. There is zero consideration that using your charm is not a crime, committing assault is. The agent in charge of Sakie treats her almost like a daughter. One imagines that if she wasn't one of the "well-behaved" ones, that parental relationship would be far more punitive.

Maybe someday the world will advance and Sakie won't have to tiptoe through each day for fear of one misstep ruining her life. For now, she's just like any other woman.

The Outsider

Tetsuo Takahashi is none of the things the various demis are. Indeed, at first he sees them primarily as a subject of biological and anthropological curiosity. Sometimes he's making genuine discoveries, but other times he's learning things about the demis that they have always known. In one telling moment, Tetsuo gives Hikari a long speech about the things he's "figured out" about what a vampire needs to do to protect themselves when outside during the summer. Hikari responds by asking him how many years he thinks she's been a vampire.

It's Tetsuo's relationship with Sakie that makes him stand out. Multiple times during the show he is exposed to her succubus charm, either due to physical contact or her dropping her overly modest style around him. The society around them would seem to accept that if that happens a man is allowed to turn into a lust goblin and it's not his fault if he does. Tetsuo does so such thing. This isn't because he's not effected by the charm, but because that's not how you act with other people, no matter how erotic you find them.

Conclusion

Interviews with Monster Girls says that disability isn't a trait of a person or a group of people. Disability is people - individually and collectively - choosing to act in a way that means some people are less worthy of participation in society than others because including them would be inconvenient. It also doesn't settle for "well I'm not getting in their way" as an excuse. Inclusion isn't just removing barriers, it's also reaching out and actively bringing everyone along, together.

Final Words

This one isn't really a review, so I'll skip the usual scores and comparisons. However, I do want to note that the show itself has some problems I didn't get in to, like how a significant portion of it is a grown man (a teacher, not a doctor) having teenage girls in his closed office doing sometimes physical examinations of them. Don't go in expecting something uncomplicatedly enlightened, there's still some Anime Bullshit to be found.

#demi chan wa kataritai #interviews with monster girls #anime #disability #disabilities #medical disability #physical disability #psychological disability #original post

34 notes · View notes

cinderella-ish · 6 months

Text

Most Popular Furuba Relationship Tags on AO3: Part Two

These are the most popular relationship tags on AO3 in the Fruits Basket fandom using & instead of / as of Saturday, November 18, 2023

Parent/Child and Grandparent/Child Relationships:

Sohma Kazuma & Sohma Kyou (55 works)

Sohma Hajime & Sohma Kyou (23 works)

Honda Kyouko & Honda Tohru (14 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Hajime (9 works)

Sohma Mutsuki & Sohma Yuki (8 works)

Sohma Kyou & Sohma Kyou's Mother (7 works)

Sohma Akito & Sohma Shiki (5 works)

Sohma Hajime & Sohma Kazuma (5 works)

Sohma Shigure & Sohma Shiki (4 works)

Kuragi Machi & Sohma Mutsuki (3 works)

Sohma Momiji & Sohma Momiji's Mother (3 works)

Sohma Kyou & Sohma Kyou's Father (3 works)

Sohma Momiji & Sohma Momiji's Father (2 works)

Sibling Relationships:

Sohma Ayame & Sohma Yuki (25 works)

Kuragi Machi & Manabe Kakeru (16 works)

Hanajima Megumi & Hanajima Saki (2 works)

Sohma Momiji & Sohma Momo (2 works)

In-Laws:

Manabe Kakeru & Sohma Yuki (38 works)

Honda Kyouko & Sohma Kyou (10 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Kazuma (3 works)

Mitoma Sawa & Sohma Akito (3 works)

Sohma Hajime & Sohma Yuki (2 works)

Canonical, Implied, & Fanonical Relationships

Honda Tohru & Sohma Kyou (119 works)

Sohma Akito & Sohma Shigure (64 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu & Sohma Yuki (14 works)

Sohma Hatori & Sohma Shigure (13 works)

Kuragi Machi & Sohma Yuki (12 works)

Sohma Ayame & Sohma Hatori (12 works)

Sohma Akito & Sohma Kureno (9 works)

Sohma Ayame & Sohma Shigure (9 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu & Sohma Rin (6 works)

Sohma Hajime & Sohma Mutsuki (5 works)

Sohma Kazuma & Tomoda Kunimitsu (5 works)

Sohma Hiro & Sohma Kisa (4 works)

Sohma Kureno & Uotani Arisa (2 works)

Platonic Pairings

Sohma Kyou & Sohma Yuki (80 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Yuki (72 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Akito (26 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Momiji (19 works)

Sohma Akito & Sohma Kyou (13 works)

Sohma Hatori & Sohma Rin (13 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu & Sohma Kyou (12 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Kisa (11 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Rin (11 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Shigure (11 works)

Sohma Akito & Sohma Yuki (9 works)

Sohma Shigure & Sohma Yuki (9 works)

Honda Tohru & Kuragi Machi (8 works)

Sohma Kyou & Sohma Momiji (8 works)

Hanajima Saki & Sohma Akito (7 works)

Hanajima Saki & Uotani Arisa (7 works)

Honda Tohru & Uotani Arisa (7 works)

Sohma Kyou & Sohma Rin (7 works)

Sohma Rin & Sohma Shigure (7 works)

Honda Tohru & Manabe Kakeru (6 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Kagura (6 works)

Manabe Kakeru & Todou Kimi (6 works)

Sohma Hatori & Sohma Momiji (6 works)

Hanajima Saki & Honda Tohru (5 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Hatori (5 works)

Kuragi Machi & Sohma Kyou (5 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu & Sohma Momiji (5 works)

Sohma Kyou & Uotani Arisa (5 works)

Hanajima Saki & Sohma Kyou (4 works)

Manabe Kakeru & Sohma Kyou (4 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu & Sohma Kisa (4 works)

Sohma Akito & Sohma Hatori (3 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu & Sohma Kazuma (3 works)

Sohma Hiro & Sohma Kyou (3 works)

Sohma Kazuma & Sohma Rin (3 works)

Sohma Kyou & Sohma Shigure (3 works)

Hanajima Megumi & Uotani Arisa (2 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Ritsu (2 works)

Kuragi Machi & Sohma Momiji (2 works)

Sohma Hatori & Sohma Yuki (2 works)

Sohma Kureno & Sohma Shigure (2 works)

Sohma Kisa & Sohma Kyou (1 work)

3 or more characters:

Hanajima Saki & Honda Tohru & Uotani Arisa (49 works)

Sohma Ayame & Sohma Hatori & Sohma Shigure (16 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Kyou & Sohma Yuki (15 works)

Kuragi Machi & Manabe Kakeru & Sakuragi Naohito & Sohma Yuki & Toudou Kimi (7 works)

Kuragi Machi & Manabe Kakeru & Sohma Yuki (5 works)

Hanajima Saki & Sohma Akito & Uotani Arisa (3 works)

Honda Tohru & Sohma Hajime & Sohma Kyou (2 works)

Disclaimers: I haven't checked if all the works are labeled properly (i.e. using / strictly for romantic relationships and & strictly for platonic relationships), and I excluded crossovers, OCs, unnamed non-speaking characters, and reader pairings

Part One

#ao3 #ao3 data #data #rare pairings #relationship #fruits basket #furuba #fruba #fanfic #list #information #fandom #by cinderella-ish #my meta

3 notes · View notes

rtilrtil · 4 years

Photo

✨ Kyouko Machi ✨

twitter | insta | patreon

#Demi-chan wa Kataritai #interviews with monster girls #demi-chan #kyouko machi #dullahan #monster girl #sketches

2K notes · View notes

anipast · 3 years

Photo

😴

#interviews with monster girls #demi chan wa kataritai #kyouko machi

305 notes · View notes

aproxm · 3 years

Photo

around 2009, a friend requested i draw a warhammer 40k character. i tried--i definitely, definitely tried--but that fell through pitifully. well, it only took eight years, but i tried again and nailed a decent rendition of mr. 40k, so take that you twelve year old.

anyway, it's around this time--maybe a bit before--that i start REALLY taking flash 8 seriously. like, smoothing out every line, prepping hours worth of sketches, etc. while the art here is muuuuch better than the beginning of the drawthread era... i was definitely having less fun. i don't regret pushing myself as much as i did, though, because current me is enjoying the fruits of that labor.

filename: bee girl date of origin: ‎‎‎Friday, ‎April ‎7, ‎2017, ‏‎1:52:29 AM

filename: pem art date of origin: ‎‎‎Friday, ‎April ‎7, ‎2017, ‏‎3:15:23 AM

filename: pink cute puff man date of origin: ‎‎‎Friday, ‎April ‎7, ‎2017, ‏‎3:27:35 AM

filename: banjo date of origin: ‎‎‎Sunday, ‎April ‎9, ‎2017, ‏‎2:35:14 AM

filename: raincoat killer date of origin: ‎‎‎Tuesday, ‎April ‎11, ‎2017, ‏‎2:11:07 AM

filename: misterskits date of origin: ‎‎‎Sunday, ‎April ‎16, ‎2017, ‏‎1:48:44 AM

filename: battleships date of origin: ‎‎‎Monday, ‎April ‎17, ‎2017, ‏‎8:31:50 PM

filename: robot dude date of origin: ‎‎‎Friday, ‎April ‎21, ‎2017, ‏‎7:51:26 PM

filename: 40k date of origin: ‎‎‎Friday, ‎April ‎21, ‎2017, ‏‎11:49:34 PM

#warhammer 40k #kirby #kyouko machi #deadly premonition #raincoat killer #banjo #banjo kazooie #2017

7 notes · View notes

fuckyeahanimebirthdays · 4 years

Photo

Kyouko Machi (Demi-chan wa Kataritai) » September 1

#Demi chan wa Kataritai #Demi chan #Interviews With Monster Girls #Kyouko Machi #September #September 1 #beloved celebrants

103 notes · View notes

theapathetickat · 4 years

Photo

tfw you finally decide to watch this anime and it's really cute and fun but you still have to wait a year for s2

tetsuo/student shippers dni. seriously, he's twice their age and literally states he'd never pursue a romantic relationship with one of the students because they're kids

Art by TheApatheticKat. Please do not repost or remove/edit caption

#demi-chan wa kataritai #interviews with monster girls #takahashi tetsuo #tetsuo takahashi #hikari takanashi #takanashi hikari #machi kyoko #machi kyouko #kyouko machi #kyoko machi #yuki kusakabe #kusakabe yuki #sakie satou #satou sakie #sakie sato #sato sakie #my art

86 notes · View notes

mina-ahavi · 4 years

Photo

#kyouko machi #takahashi tetsuo #anime #anime gif #gif #funny #interviews with monster girls #Demichan wa Kataritai

25 notes · View notes

cinderella-ish · 6 months

Text

Most Popular Furuba Relationship Tags On AO3: Part One

These are the most popular relationship tags on AO3 in the Fruits Basket fandom using / instead of & as of Saturday, November 18, 2023

Canonical Pairings:

Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou (1441 works)

Sohma Akito/Sohma Shigure (343 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu/Sohma Rin (261 works)

Kuragi Machi/Sohma Yuki (240 works)

Shiraki Mayuko/Sohma Hatori (124 works)

Kuramae Mine/Sohma Ayame (78 works)

Sohma Hiro/Sohma Kisa (65 works)

Sohma Kureno/Uotani Arisa (59 works)

Sohma Akito/Sohma Kureno (41 works)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Kana (37 works)

Mitsuru/Sohma Ritsu (24 works)

Honda Katsuya/Honda Kyouko (14 works)

Sohma Kagura/Sohma Kyou (14 works)

Manabe Kakeru/Nakao Komaki (12 works)

Sohma Ren/Sohma Shigure (12 works)

Sohma Akira/Sohma Ren (9 works)

Shiraki Mayuko/Sohma Shigure (6 works)

Possibly (?) Canonical Pairings:

Sohma Hatsuharu/Sohma Yuki (79 works)

Sohma Ayame/Sohma Hatori (46 works)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Shigure (33 works)

Sohma Ayame/Sohma Shigure (23 works)

Sohma Hajime/Sohma Mutsuki (34 works)

Mitoma Sawa/Sohma Shiki (13 works)

Sohma Kazuma/Tomoda Kunimitsu (10 works)

Non-Canon Pairings:

Manabe Kakeru/Sohma Yuki (193 works)

Sohma Kyou/Sohma Yuki (181 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Yuki (111 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Momiji (48 works)

Hanajima Saki/Uotani Arisa (35 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Akito (32 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Rin (27 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Hatori (19 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Shigure (18 works)

Hanajima Saki/Honda Tohru (15 works)

Sohma Akito/Sohma Yuki (14 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu/Sohma Kyou (14 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Hatsuharu (13 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu/Sohma Momiji (12 works)

Hanajima Saki/Sohma Kazuma (10 works)

Kuragi Machi/Toudou Kimi (10 works)

Sohma Akito/Sohma Hatori (10 works)

Sohma Kagura/Sohma Rin (9 works)

Sohma Kagura/Sohma Ritsu (9 works)

Sohma Kureno/Sohma Shigure (9 works)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Momiji (8 works)

Sohma Ayame/Sohma Yuki (7 works)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Yuki (6 works)

Sohma Kagura/Tomoda Kunimitsu (6 works)

Sohma Kureno/Sohma Ritsu (6 works)

Sohma Kyou/Sohma Shigure (6 works)

Sohma Kyou/Uotani Arisa (6 works)

Hanajima Saki/Sohma Yuki (5 works)

Manabe Kakeru/Sohma Kyou (5 works)

Sohma Rin/Sohma Shigure (5 works)

Sohma Shigure/Sohma Yuki (5 works)

Hanajima Saki/Sohma Akito (4 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Ayame (4 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Kagura (4 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Ritsu (4 works)

Manabe Kakeru/Toudou Kimi (4 works)

Sohma Akito/Sohma Kyou (4 works)

Hanajima Saki/Sohma Shigure (3 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Kisa (3 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Kureno (3 works)

Kuragi Machi/Sohma Kyou (3 works)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Rin (3 works)

Kuragi Machi/Sohma Rin (2 works)

Sohma Ayame/Sohma Ritsu (2 works)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Ritsu (2 works)

Sohma Momiji/Toudou Kimi (2 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu/Sohma Shigure (2 works)

Hanajima Megumi/Minagawa Motoko (1 work)

Hanajima Saki/Sohma Kyou (1 work)

Honda Tohru/Kuragi Machi (1 work)

Shiraki Mayuko/Sohma Kureno (1 work)

Sohma Hatori/Sohma Kyou (1 work)

Trios:

Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou/Sohma Yuki (48 works)

Sohma Ayame/Sohma Hatori/Sohma Shigure (21 works)

Hanajima Saki/Honda Tohru/Uotani Arisa (6 works)

Manabe Kakeru/Sohma Yuki/Toudou Kimi (5 works)

Sohma Hatsuharu/Sohma Kyou/Sohma Yuki (4 works)

Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou/Sohma Momiji (3 works)

Sohma Akito/Sohma Hatori/Sohma Shigure (2 works)

Also, if you like rare pairings, here's a plug for my current fic: Bloom Within Us, which includes three extremely rare pairings (not tagged on ao3 because they're spoilers). One has only one other work (and it's mistagged!), and the other two have no other works!

Bloom Within Us is a canon divergence where Tohru died after falling from the cliff, and everyone else has to figure out a way forward without her.

Part Two

#ao3 #ao3 data #data #rare pairings #relationship #fruits basket #furuba #fruba #fanfic #list #information #fandom #by cinderella-ish #my meta

2 notes · View notes