Oof ouch owie, my absolute heart. This really puts into perspective how complicated their relationship is. Having a crush + admiration for someone that bullies you can really fuck with your head. I'd really like to see Fujishiro reckon more with how she treated Kurokawa, and maybe think more about her feelings and mental than her own.

Come to think of it, Fujishiro has always bulldozed her way through, and never really made an effort to understand Kurokawa in any capacity. Idk if she's even aware that Kurokawa was a social outcast, and what that really means.

last edited at Apr 4, 2021 11:50PM

nothing new under the sun

Next month can't come fast enough. I'm begging for some catharsis over here.

What is this? Chapter 2?

I don't know if I'm feeling like this because I might not be remembering this story very well, but I don't recall Kurokawa ever giving signs of being this obsessed about Fujishiro. This chapter felt like a retcon to me, with a Kurokawa that was quite out-of-character.

I don't know if I'm feeling like this because I might not be remembering this story very well, but I don't recall Kurokawa ever giving signs of being this obsessed about Fujishiro. This chapter felt like a retcon to me, with a Kurokawa that was quite out-of-character.

Flashback Time!

https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/useless_princesses_ch02#15

SimObrigada posted:

I don't know if I'm feeling like this because I might not be remembering this story very well, but I don't recall Kurokawa ever giving signs of being this obsessed about Fujishiro. This chapter felt like a retcon to me, with a Kurokawa that was quite out-of-character.

It wasn't shown to be quite this extreme but from what I recall, this is still more or less how she was at the beginning of the series.

"Anyone would feel bad if the person they loved treated them like trash"

Das boot has dropped.

This series is really getting on my nerves, not useless lesbian-wise(thats something I've excused till now because of how it lives up to its title), but the story is getting messy for me. I want to drop this series so bad but I want that closure of them finally being together. This series is on very thin ice for me...

I don't know if I'm feeling like this because I might not be remembering this story very well, but I don't recall Kurokawa ever giving signs of being this obsessed about Fujishiro. This chapter felt like a retcon to me, with a Kurokawa that was quite out-of-character.

there been quite a few times, nothing too extreme, but latest time it was mentioned, was like chapter 25 or so, when the otaku friends are talking with iroha about how kurokawa sometimes seems too scary, but all that got kinda overshadowed for most people i guess because that is the chapter where the guy show up too lol (then there is another chapter later with kurokawa talking with the guy about how nanaki is too unreachable)

last edited at Apr 5, 2021 12:46AM

Question! Chapter 33 is Kurokawa's incorrect perception of Fujishiro, right? Wasn't the whole eyebrows thing a misunderstanding where Fujishiro saw the potential in Kurokawa and muttered the wrong thing at the wrong time? See eyebrow day: https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/useless_princesses_ch04#7

Is the point of the chapter that Fujishiro is totally overestimated?

last edited at Apr 5, 2021 1:22AM

Question! Chapter 33 is Kurokawa's incorrect perception of Fujishiro, right? Wasn't the whole eyebrows thing a misunderstanding where Fujishiro saw the potential in Kurokawa and muttered the wrong thing at the wrong time? See eyebrow day: https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/useless_princesses_ch04#7

Is the point of the chapter that Fujishiro is totally overestimated?

Nah she was just an arrogant jerk with no concern for the "unfabulous". She started to see her potential for makeover later on.

Secretly admiring her and probably showing off her being closet gay.
Interesting.

i know she's reformed by now but remembering that fujishiro was such a bitch really brought back the hate i had for her

Kurokawa had hoped to become like Fujishiro but her self confidence plummeted even further because of Maho T_T

I feel like this series still has a long long while to go, we still have the story threads with Izumi and the other friends to resolve, unless the author decides to just suddenly wrap everything up in the end

I'm gonna be pretentious here. So to sum up, while at the same time having a real relationship with the real Fujishiro, but in Kurokawa's head, she's forming this almost parasocial relationship with her "ideal Fujishiro". Now with a confession, Fujishiro is dragging her to the real side, and she freaked out.

Ok I don't know what I'm talking about any more. I guess the "drama" tag is well deserved.

This is the first time I've read the Japanese chapter before the English one and I have to say I'm not impressed with the translation. Even something as simple as "カバーはおかけしますか" was mistranslated. Anyone who's even once shopped at a bookstore in Japan will have heard this, and anyone who hasn't should still understand it. The errors wouldn't be so bad if they didn't misconvey Kuro's impression of Nanami on several occasions in a chapter dedicated to exploring just that. It would be pointless to point out the issues one by one, but in summary this chapter should be read more subtly than the translation implies — less explicitly gay for Nanami, more impressed by her confidence and beauty (and implicitly gay).

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

oh cmon make up your mind you like then you like her if its platonic then its platonic.

less explicitly gay for Nanami, more impressed by her confidence and beauty (and implicitly gay).

I don't think it reads as in any way romantic. The whole chapter comes off as Kurokawa basically worshipping Fujishiro's strength and beauty in the context of "I wish I could be so strong and beautiful, so I could do things I always wanted to do but was too weak and inadequate to pursuit". If you mean that those feelings should be portrayed as less borderline obsessive, then there might be a point, but I don't know how one could read those as romantic.

Even something as simple as "カバーはおかけしますか" was mistranslated.

I disagree. A translation is not about translating words. It's about translating the whole context. If you are not interested in Japan, you would be confused as to why the clerk would ask to put covers on magazines. Bagging it is a more natural situation for a western audience.

I don't mind the story tackling this aspect of the relationship, her obsession and all that (even if it's being rather too dramatic)... I just think it's a bit late to just be going into it all at once just only at the confession, especially as it seems like this manga is nearing it's end

would have been better for this to be handled throughout more chapters as the two became real friends and got closer.

@Zoetrophy huh, I see... interesting to read that seeing as it makes the chapter play differently o.O

last edited at Apr 5, 2021 5:05AM

Love and Admiration huh....
this is complicated....

less explicitly gay for Nanami, more impressed by her confidence and beauty (and implicitly gay).

I don't think it reads as in any way romantic. [...] If you mean that those feelings should be portrayed as less borderline obsessive, then there might be a point, but I don't know how one could read those as romantic.

This, I feel, is exactly the kind of nuance and room for interpretation that wasn't captured by the translation.

Even something as simple as "カバーはおかけしますか" was mistranslated.

I disagree. A translation is not about translating words. It's about translating the whole context. If you are not interested in Japan, you would be confused as to why the clerk would ask to put covers on magazines. Bagging it is a more natural situation for a western audience.

I disagree with your disagreement. Assuming that was an intention of the translator and not just an error... even if you don't have the context of knowing that bookstores offer covers, a translation like "Would you like slip covers for your books?" would do better because it implies that it's an understood option and invites further investigation for anyone curious about it. Changing the meaning to something that's assumed to be familiar doesn't improve anything about the translation. It would be like replacing onigiri with doughnuts in an anime localization just so some kids don't accidentally discover foreign foods.

last edited at Apr 5, 2021 5:30AM

glad1983 posted:

I disagree. A translation is not about translating words. It's about translating the whole context. If you are not interested in Japan, you would be confused as to why the clerk would ask to put covers on magazines. Bagging it is a more natural situation for a western audience.

I'd agree depending on context, but it's still not what was said. It doesn't matter if reader isn't interested in Japan (and if they're reading manga they should), what they read should be reflection of what's actually going on in the story. What if covering magazine was actually relevant later? I agree that translation is more art than science, but you have to be really careful when you change or localize thing. As a general rule of thumb, I'm against changing or removing cultural nuance for reader's convenience, unless it's absolutely necessary.

Ah yes, the classic "I don't know if I want to be with her or if I want to be her".

Reminds me of another manga...