Gintama fic: Pandemonium 9/?

[xparrot]

Will revel in the Gintama anime's return in another post (\o/!) - for now, more fic~!

Gintama: Pandemonium, 9/? {1,807 words}
gen; PG-13; Yorozuya, the Shinsengumi, plus Zura and most of the rest of the cast

Chapter 9: The smell of rain and the smell of blood are both difficult to forget.

Read it on AO3

Comments

[shayera.livejournal.com]

Eeep!!

There it goes, that's the evil xparrot I know... o_O But I also happen to know that you don't usually kill characters off For Real. So I am not heartbroken. I am, however, very very worried about Gintoki's mental state. .__.

I love your descriptions. Greeting cards for mental breakdowns, indeed. And comparing Katsura to Shinpachi, because Gintoki pulls reliable people to him. ♥ And then the blood and OWWW.

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

*evil grin* Yeeeeah, I rather thought you'd be one to recognize my particular brand of screwing with the chars. This was the scene that the fic was written for, the first one I came up with that everything else came from...poor Gin-san, though, yeah, even for one of my favorites he's not having an easy time of it...

[ah-chan.livejournal.com]

First: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE CLIFFHANGER YOU ARE A DASTARDLY EVIL WRITER ARGH I definitely picked the wrong chapter to catch up on.

The lead up! Gintoki figuring out what happened from the damage to their bodies and the room! Kagura and Shinpachi's different fighting styles, and the last thing Kagura seeing being Shinpachi and Gintoki apologizing and TTT___TT

I bet you enjoyed writing that "to be continued" too XD.

Joui-era Katsura does seem to be the reliable leader type, doesn't he?

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Heheheheh...yes, I will confess, this was the one place I knew I was going to put a chapter break. Though ahhh this scene was difficult to write in some ways, I was literally shaking when I first finished the draft ^^;

Well, one of the Joui-tachi had to be responsible, and Katsura's the best bet...I think Katsura's been getting steadily crazier, but if he's been on that curve for a while then ten years ago he was probably pretty sane! (though my personal theory is that Elizabeth, being an unholy abomination, is sapping his sanity points XP)

[ah-chan.livejournal.com]

I can imagine! It's a pretty darn intense scene.

I dunno, Takasugi seems to have been fairly responsible back then too, from the very little we've seen of him. I can kind of imagine him as being the idealistic type, and then when everything went down being totally disillusioned and turning into the "ORE TADA KOWASU DAKE DAAA" guy he is in the present. But even so, Katsura would of been kind of like....the team mom? I dunno, it's kind of curious that his character design and Shouyou-sensei's are so similar.

Poor Elizabeth, getting the bad rap for Katsura's craziness XDD. But he does seem to get kookier as the series goes on, you may be onto something!

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

I dunno, it's kind of curious that his character design and Shouyou-sensei's are so similar.

Hmm, that's an interesting point, I hadn't noticed that but it is true. I wonder if it's partly deliberate - because Katsura is the one of them most interested in being a True Samurai, and Shouyou-sensei is, one presumes, his ultimate model of a samurai, so that Zura emulates him in appearance makes sense?

Ahhh I wonder what Takasugi was like back then! The fake-out Shiroyasha preview indicates that Gintoki & Takasugi had some animosity even during the war, but that's not quite manga canon as far as I know...?

[ah-chan.livejournal.com]

Ooh, nice theory! Particularly since his kid and Joui-era outfits aren't in the same mold, so you know, after Shouyou-sensei dies...although the Shiroyasha preview seemed to indicate that happens pre-Joui era. Hm.

The fake-out Shiroyasha preview indicates that Gintoki & Takasugi had some animosity even during the war,

When Gintoki rejects his hand up, you mean? I thought that was standard sort of ribbing between the Joui foursome (I mean, Gintoki does jump in between Takasugi and the big Amanto guy later on when Takasugi is hurt (epic! So epic!)) since Takasugi is being pretty condescending in a here Gintoki, do you really need a hand? sort of way.

It's fun to think of what Takasugi would have been like, since it seems he's the one who's changed the most! I reckon Takasugi was probably still kind of a jerk even back then - there's a flashback somewhere of them all as kids walking with Shouyou-sensei (with Gintoki picking his nose nearest to the camera LOL), and Takasugi has Katsura yanked up on tiptoe by his robes in the background. But he would've been their jerk, if you know what I mean ^^;. (Have you read any of Sudako Land's doujinshi Tamasaka? I looove her portrayal of them as kids, it's painfully adorable.)

From what I've seen, the anime and manga canon generally seem quite congruent - I wonder if they consult with Sorachi?

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

(I mean, Gintoki does jump in between Takasugi and the big Amanto guy later on when Takasugi is hurt (epic! So epic!))

(so epic! That preview is so incredibly cruelly fan-baiting and I love it XDXDXDXD)

Yeah, my impression with that was that they didn't really like each other personally, but they were still brothers, and of course Gintoki protects his family always. It also seemed to me in the Benizakura arc that Gintoki was less disturbed than Katsura to be opposed to Takasugi, which might imply that Gintoki had always been suspicious of Takasugi and/or his methods and philosophies.

But then, it's Gintoki, whose true feelings are difficult to determine at the best of times, and really there's just not enough to go on! It makes Joui-era and before fun to speculate about but ahhh I crave details!

(Have you read any of Sudako Land's doujinshi Tamasaka? I looove her portrayal of them as kids, it's painfully adorable.)

I haven't seen that one, will have to look it up! Though ahh, it's so tragic...

From what I've seen, the anime and manga canon generally seem quite congruent - I wonder if they consult with Sorachi?


I've wondered this as well! The anime itself adapts the manga about as faithfully as any anime I've ever seen, so I wouldn't be surprised if they consult with Sorachi those times they stray beyond it?