The New New Touhou Character Alternate Interpretation Compendium

It occurs to me that Chiyuri and Yumemi aren't often used to facilitate crossovers, are they? They'd be good at it.

The thread will be ready when you are!

edited 30th May '15 8:52:03 AM by Durazno

edited 30th May '15 10:25:19 AM by Prime32

To be fair, PC 98 has been neglected by ZUN and they kind of were called crazy in their home dimension.

It is the best weapon in the game.

Where did it come from? When did she learn to ride it? Is she just a natural at mastering modern machines that happen to fall through the Border in time for the latest Incident? Or do they have motorcycles in Makai? If some, some "prison," sheesh.

Still waiting on fanart combining Byakuren's buff magic with her hog.

Well, not that surprising, since the karakasa obake myth was inspired by blacksmiths ruining an eye by peering into their forge... though I can't find a wiki article verifying that, hmm. I think the big surprise is that we sudden learned about her occupation when she was introduced as a freeroaming encounter. Which I suppose raises the question of whether Kogasa was "born" with that knowledge or in an amazing coincidence pursued it on her own.

Was one of Kogasa's kin responsible for Roukanken?

So here's a thought I had: Remilia isn't all that different from Byakuren, beyond being more successful.

I don't mean to suggest that Remilia became a vampire to become immortal, I'm talking about how she changes her subordinates. She alters their destiny, gives them a new name and a new existence. Whatever that Chinese youkai was doing before, now she's Hong Meiling, the gatekeeper. The girl with gray hair and cold eyes is now Sakuya Izayoi, knife-throwing maid. Patchouli... well, she's still Patchouli as far as we know. Sometimes she's even Patchy.

Byakuren's overall goal is more or less the same. Sometimes she's successful, like when she turned the incarnation of Japanese conceptions of tigers into a god's avatar. Sometimes she's not, like when she tried to turn a ship-sinking ghost into a respectable Buddhist and friend to humans. Ironically it's the vampire's minions that are better behaved, and I don't think it's necessarily due to Remilia's iron discipline.

It helps that Remi's a youkai, but I think the bigger deal is that she's a vampire. Unlike a werewolf, which is a normal human most of the time and occasionally a hairy killing machine, vamps are pallid bloodsuckers 24/7. But they also temper their nature with the trappings of aristocracy and good manners - they're quite civilized for monsters that feed on humans, they have to be.

And that's what Remilia offers her minions. They still get to be monsters, but monsters playing house. Sakuya remains a nascent serial killer, but she's too busy being a maid to indulge herself unless an intruder breaks in, and likewise Meiling's competitive spirit is put on a leash until the situation is appropriate. Byakuren would have them fighting those instincts instead of channeling them, reciting sutras and trying to change their metaphysical nature rather than restricting the conditions they get to act on it.

So while Byakuren's goal seems noble, the result still falls short of Remilia's less-ambitious project. Yet oddly enough, both ended up with cults of personality rather than a more traditional hierarchy, though this is probably due to how they recruited their subordinates rather than a product of their systems.

If this seems rambling it's because I'm very tired. Not entirely sure what the point is, other than to say hey, we've kinda come full circle.

One of the problems with charismatic authority is that it tends to completely dissolve when the central figure dies or leaves it or whatever.

So what would happen to the SDM if Remilia ascended to nirvana? What would happen to the temple if somebody drove a stake through Byakuren's heart? The latter, I think, would be kind of a disaster for the human village. As for the former... you know, they might hang together, still.

I lost the tab I was following this in...

Oh no, I missed Meiling.

Eh. Not a huge fan of her for some reason. Well, the reason is that I actually dislike her themes.

Real quick, I figure that as was suggested, she's an 'altered human' youkai; a master of taichi that transcended humanity, but... not the... right way. The idea of Meiling as an equivalent of a tsukumogami of skill is interesting.

She was fun to work with in A Satori's Tale. All about adapting to the situation when it changed around her. She remains the Gate Guard, even as that position shifts and slides, expands and contracts. Her chi manipulation expanded quite a bit in that story as well.

RE: Reimu: My opinion on her is pretty well known I think (I don't like her. In fact, I laugh in evil amusement at her not being #1 for the 9th year running.) I understand that coming from another angle (where she's keeping her stiff upper lip against a world that basically really is against her) she's not that bad. It's just not the light I see shining on her. My light casts her as a physical incarnation of sloth.

Yeah, this basically. Honestly, I project a lot, and I'm one of those people myself. So Reimu kind of reflects what I see as my negative side. The side that rather than pushing myself to improve to high standards, lowers those standards to meet them instead. So I partially hate her as a representative of parts of myself that I hate.

I may have stolen the argument from you?

I wrote a thing about that also.

Or from you.

The important thing here is that I'm a filthy plagiarist.

Or maybe I stole from you.

Dramatic gopher or inception bwong. I'm not sure which one fits.

An incestuous den of thievery, this is.

I am not a thief, I am a treasure hunter.

Well, doesn't seem to be much going on this review period, so I'll go ahead and roll up the next three characters to discuss. Looks like it'll be... Soga no Tojiko, the Watatskui Sisters, and Mystia Lorelei.

So if you have anything else to say about the 50 topics covered in the thread so far, now's a good time to do so. Otherwise we can expect a twin-tailed ghost to appear sometime tomorrow.

Moving right along, then. After this will be the Watatsuki Sisters, Mystia Lorelei, and Kagerou Imaizumi! But first, someone not to be confused with Tokiko, or Mima.

Soga no Tojiko

Stage: Blood of Those with Hidden Power ~ The Hall of Dreams' Great Mausoleum
A huge remnant was hidden behind the doors.
Are the divine spirits aware of what lies within?
BGM: "The Hall of Dreams' Great Mausoleum"

Spellcard Motif: Archery, Severe Weather
Spellcards: TD
Thunder Arrow "Gagouji's Cyclone," Thunder Arrow "Gagouji's Tornado," Apparition "Iruka's Thunder"''

Write-up:
A member of an Asuka Period cabal of ruling noblewomen who publically backed Buddhism to pacify the masses while secretly using Taoism to pursue immortality. This didn't quite work out for her.

Tojiko instead was killed when her co-conspirator Mononobe no Futo sabotaged her attempt to become a shikaisen, leaving her an incorporeal spirit without a body (or even feet). Despite this, Tojiko is said to enjoy her existence free of bodily concerns, so perhaps it all worked out for the best?

In contrast with Futo, Tojiko is rough and known for a quick temper, but said to be a good person deep down. It's uncertain whether her control over thunder and associated electrical phenomena is a Taoist trick Tojiko picked up or the result of becoming a vengeful spirit, but it's probably best to tread lightly around her. That said, Akyuu reports that Tojiko is mellowing out, so maybe she's just a regular old spirit now who happens to be capable of zapping things that anger her.

Relations

• Toyosatomimi no Miko (prince)
• Mononobe no Futo (killed her)
• Seiga Kaku (former teacher)
• Fujiwara no Mokou (families feuded)

See also the previous compendium.

Like any other mid-boss onlys, she desperately needs more screentime. Especially so since she actually has a connection to the major players in TD.

Why does everyone compare Tojiko to Mima?

Same shoe size?

Ghost girl with green hair and no feet. That's about it,

Tojiko of the Soga Clan:

A very loyal devotee of Miko. Very temperamental.

A devoted Taoist, Tojiko was gonna become an immortal. Thanks to Futo's meddling, she became immortal in a different sense. You'd think Tojiko would've been eternally mad at Futo for doing this to her. But after a while, she realized living as a ghost was so much fun, not to mention beneficial. Futo must've been pretty surprised at that. Kinda killed her little prank a bit, eh?

...Hm, really? I wonder if Tojiko's powerful enough to stave off exorcisms, then.

Tojiko has thunder powers which were born from her anger. The anger of being a failed shikaisen, I bet. She still casts thunder when calm, though. But I believe that the angrier she gets, her thunder powers are much stronger.

Fire Emblem skill that best represents Tojiko: Wrath.

edited 10th Jun '15 5:57:10 PM by Diamite

Damn straight! It's like making Meiling or Murasa midboss for Sakuya or Shou! Huh, coincidence? If it were me, I'd either have dropped Yuyuko's cameo to give Tojiko her own boss fight, or set up a tough dual boss scenario with her and Futo.

Hmm, good question. When I think "exorcism" I think of kicking a spirit out of a place it shouldn't be, but Tojiko isn't possessing anything or anyone. She's simultaneously too attached to this world (or a few particular people in it) to move on to the next one, yet enjoying her liberation from her body.

That's kind of Taoism in a nutshell, isn't it? Buddhism rejects the world, reaches enligthenment, and escapes the cycle of reincarnation. Taoism tries to find the right way to live in this world and, particularly in Touhou, the alchemical and mystical tricks to master it. Bet there are many more Taoist ghosts than Buddhist ghosts.

...Hey, Byakuren, something to keep in mind when you're lecturing the captain.

I was thinking what kind of Triple Techs the Taoist Trio could pull off, and hit a snag: we've got Futo for the fire, Tojiko for the Light(ning), but what about Miko? She's got no ice magic that we've seen, so Delta Force is out. And whether we decide her sword-lasers make her Light or her mastery of Taoist magic gives her all the elements (Shadow), there's no Triple Tech using Light-Fire-Light or Light-Fire-Shadow.

I don't think she's any more or less important than Tewi. Or Momiji.

Tewi already got her screentime in Po FV, and much more in Inaba and Inaba. She also turns out to be much more important to Eientei than just a Stage 5 midboss.

Momiji has no plot bearing in Mo F, and really just there because you're in tengu territory and she's defending it. She's also one of the characters that need more screentime, though.

Tojiko has a deep history with both Futo and Miko, both major players in recent games. I think there's so much more that can be explored from her. Like, how does they think about her now that she's a ghost instead of an immortal? How does she think about Futo now? Does she still practice Taoism regularly or did she just abandon it? I'd say she can get Tewi-level of relevance if ZUN is willing to give her more screentime.

So Tojiko's a ghost, yes? That means she's more than likely to not receive any visits from our 'friendly' neighbourhood debt collectors for overstaying her welcome in this life.

...Of course, this could mean she could become their target for a different reason, like, let's say, assisting and defending certain people who are overstaying their welcome in this life.