The New Touhou Character Alternate Interpretation Compendium!

Maybe it's easier to get in then it is to get out.

Song of the Sirens

Is it said anywhere what Aya's relative position in tengu society is? I know that Tenma only sent her to be a boss in MOF because ZUN hadn't designed another tengu at the time/she was on speaking terms with the protagonists and would hypothetically have a better chance at talking to them.

So, there's that.

She's above average for speed but not necessarily the Fastest!

Including the tengu maybe? Either way, she's not very liked.

Okay?

I think BAIJR shows that she's not always polite.

Even the tengu? Specify, Akyuu!

So, she's faster than average, more disliked than average, her paper is both more popular than average and more ridiculous than average, possibly stronger than average, more annoying than average, more independent than average and I'm going to make the assumption smarter than the av er age tengu. Also, apparently tengu have shitty brushmanship or something so she has cuter than average writing.

Aya: The Above Average Tengu. Her title "Traditional Reporter of Fantasy" could also be interpreted, if you squint, as her being more traditional than average.

I think it was PCB or something but there was an official thing that youkai form hunting parties, cross the border, and eat suicides and people that nobody will miss. It was from an earlier game before the "hunting" became officially a play thing.

edited 19th Sep '11 10:51:49 AM by Bocaj

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Oh yes, the teams of cooks. I think that mostly contradicts the fact that everyone in Gensokyo seems to be completely clueless about how the outside world works though. Even the youkai.

edited 19th Sep '11 10:55:10 AM by Clarste

Aya intentionally tries to be more faster/stronger/annoying/smarter/traditional/trashy reporting/cutesy writing/etc than normal because she secretly has self esteem issues and wants to "stand out", even if it is in a negative way. This may or may not be related to how she may or may not ignore that people dislike her.

Also, I still like her outfit, shoes aside.

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Her shoes are the best part!

Aya might be the politest, but she's often nicer then the people she's interviewing. Having said that, she has a nasty habit of talking down to the weaker youkai (especially Cirno), except Mystia who avoids this by being completely blase towards the reporter.

She might not be the fastest, though. One of Ran's 'offers' is to make Aya faster.

edited 19th Sep '11 10:58:43 AM by asterism

Song of the Sirens

I can understand why one would think that, but those heels just bug me. Sorry.

To be fair, what is "fastest"? Unless you are fast enough to tear up the universe somehow, you can always go faster. I personally see Aya as faster than a bird, but unable to, say, outrun a speeding bullet train.

edited 19th Sep '11 11:04:48 AM by Otherarrow

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They aren't heels, they're in the center. Nothing heelish about them.

OK, so I don't know my shoe terminology. They still bug me, OK? It seems really ridiculous looking to me, and a real pain to walk in (which, as pointed out before, is why tengu walk in them)

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Though being a bird youkai from Gensokyo, she might not do too much walking in the first place.

Kogasa and Aya need to be geta buddies.

This is apparently very in character for tengu. I don't remember any of Hatate's spellcard comments so she might be like that too.

If the people who keep trying to give her self-esteem problems*

are right, then Mystia just hit her where it hurts without even intending to which probably makes the hurt hurt worse.

Tangentially, that whole being blase thing is why Mystia is one of my favorite characters.

We get to see her walk in SWR. Its quite a treat. She has a sort of strut going on.

edited 19th Sep '11 11:08:11 AM by Bocaj

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I noted this quite a while ago, but a brief scan for a particular Japanese particle in all of BAIJR revealed that Aya talks more feminine the less feminine the person she's talking to is. So if her conversation partner is rude and rough, she talks like an elegant lady and if her opponent talks like a lady she becomes rough. Kind of weird.

Maybe that's what is meant when they say she changes the way she acts according to the person she's talking to.

Maybe she sees an arbitrary lady ratio that she must maintain. How rough does she get when she talks to Yuyuko? And what does she do for Rinnosuke?

edited 19th Sep '11 11:13:31 AM by Bocaj

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How exactly would someone walk in those shoes?

Doing nothing is a choice.

Well, I guess giving "self esteem issues" is the best way to make an otherwise "negative/unlikeable"*

character some sympathy.

And her strut in those shoes really is amazing. Tengus need to stop showing off how they can walk stylishly in such conditions.

Aya always has to act in a way that would make a good contrast to the person interviewed. If the interview is two polite people or two rude jerks, things aren't as interesting.

edited 19th Sep '11 11:15:42 AM by Otherarrow

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Tengu are noted for having super balance.

edited 19th Sep '11 11:14:57 AM by Metaflare

"Seriously, don't eat the mermaid. And not just because it's half cannibalism." ~Otherarrow

PULSE DON'T FEEL BAD

YOU'RE A VALUED MEMBER OF OUR HIGHLY NERDY SOCIETY AND I KNOW YOU ARE CAPABLE OF WRITING COOL AND CUTE STUFF

okay? Cool.

Hmmmmmm, maybe she adjusts her manner of speaking like that because she wants to create a distance to the interviewee. She's the reporter, and they're the subject. If she spoke similarly to them, she might run the risk of making her seem like a friend, but her role is that of a distant and critical observer.

Something like that.

Ah yeah, it might be that, too. A good dynamic between contrasting characters just makes for a more entertaining read, like a manzai routine.

I don't know where you were trying to go with it, but it turned up kinda solid. It went somewhere after all, showed Aya from a different side and with some development and added a new idea or two, so, good job.

Well, I might have something to say about that, but that's for Momiji's discussion~

"Geta buddy? But I... I thought you liked me..."

Unless you're someone who portrays youkai as thinking differently from humans, or you're someone who portrays Aya as just being insane, then self-esteem issues that she covers up with a cheerful facade would fit very well into her profile as a person. She does already show expertise at facades, too, doesn't she?

PS: Duraz, you know you have my undying love. You and your crazy, larger than life magical portrayals of all these fantasy aspects.

I think the word you're looking for is "unsympathetic" or maybe a variation on the Boisterous Bruiser characterization- Brash, arrogant, a bit annoying, but likeable under it all.

Thank you, I feel better.

I have a bad tendency to get all emo when stuff like that happens, but I'm trying to be better.

edited 19th Sep '11 11:50:07 AM by Pulse

I sure said that!

I can't remember Aya's strut...

The only walking I remember from SWR/Soku is Youmu, who I think sort of sidles, and Alice, who does a weird thing with her hands. And I think Yuyuko floats because walking is so last stolen spring, darling.

Oh, and Suwako, but definitely not going to forget that.

Song of the Sirens

I tried to find a video of the walks but then gave up.

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I mostly remember the fact that Aya's backwalk has her taking notes in the middle of a fight.

I sure said that!

It would probably take amnesia in order for someone to forget the hopping.

The forwards walk does that too. Still strutting though.

Doing nothing is a choice.

I kinda wish that some of Aya's attacks in the fighting games would be based around the photography games.

"Seriously, don't eat the mermaid. And not just because it's half cannibalism." ~Otherarrow

Kodak Sign: Disposable Camera Bomb

Pchooooooo

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