Omg Yes..

Screenshotsofdespair: Assorted Kamen Rider Edition

Happy 15th anniversary kingdom hearts!

Kingdom Hearts was released on the Playstation 2 in Japan 15 years ago today (3/28/2002)

Mundane Design Detail of Digital Devil Saga: Tag Rings

(Spoilers for both DDS + DDS2.)

I have a tendency to look way too deep into little details of character designs in media, and when it comes to DDS where uniform designs are common, it gets even more fun for me. One of the things that first stood out was tag rings; the Junkyard invention that is introduced briefly and very early in the game as identifiable objects used simultaneously as trackers for downloadable mantras and can also act as digital wallets. I always wondered though, how much more they can represent for a character's actual design rather than just being a game tool for logging progress.

Rings on different fingers (and hands) represent different ideas on how we wish to present ourselves; these ideas can change from culture to culture, and in observing these differences, I looked both at general Western culture and of course, Hinduism. I was able to find more information in Western cultures with more commonalities. However, in Hinduism, by looking into mudras, you'll find rings on each finger can still hold different meanings. The middle finger is "ego", the pinky is "illusion", the ring finger is "karma". The index finger is Jiva-Atman - the individual soul or self. The thumb is Paramatman - the universal, eternal soul.

And if you've noticed, most individuals of the Junkyard wear their tag rings on their middle finger (on their left hand). In Western culture, the middle finger, similar to "ego" in Hinduism, represents "individuality". And hey, what do you know? That's a pretty important theme brought up later on.

The Samsara Tunnels scene with Lupa is actually what drove me to research further into this. Lupa removes his tag ring before performing an inevitable act of self-sacrifice, and at first, I thought it meant he was giving up his individuality. Until I noticed that no, Lupa wears his ring on his index finger on his right hand, rather than his middle finger on his left hand like almost everyone else. In Western culture, the index finger on the right hand instead represents the "potential for leadership". Fitting, for the Leader of the Wolves, who has offered his own head to the dominating tribe of the Embryon.

And then he hands it to Gale - who slips it onto his left hand next to his other ring, and he puts it on his index. And what does that represent? Comradery. Ohhhhhhhhh man. Let's go, gay subtext!!!

Irrelevant comment: (The funny thing is Lupa's ring literally does not pop up on his hand until the camera focuses on his hand and then it disappears. For the rest of the scene and the rest of the game and DDS2 it is gone. I don't know if that was an intentional choice - I doubt it - perhaps the animators didn't want to make a whole other Gale model with the two rings. I like to think he kept the ring...)

Moving onto DDS2, and Serph sells his tag ring at the Mad Mart to make some cash. Nobody else sells their rings. With the hacking disk, they are no longer needed, so it seems everyone just keeps it for sentiments. Serph himself also wears his ring on his middle finger, so was it a story choice for him to give it away - to represent him giving up his individuality? Of course, maybe not immediately, but eventually, Serph's individuality blends with another soul - being Sera's - in order to become Seraph. And no, they do not wear any rings, because neither Sera nor Serph did at the point of fusing.

Yeah.

Some additional points:

Cielo doesn't wear his tag ring as a ring, he wears it as a necklace. Similar to Lupa and his layers of necklaces with several tag rings. I'm not sure what that means - usually, necklaces with rings represent vows, most commonly found for promise rings. They can also represent deceased loved ones. Which is quite heartbreaking when you think about Lupa's necklaces...

Generally, the right hand for rings is the "action" hand while the left is the "thinking" hand.

If I ever find more information and more opportunities to extend this drabble, I will. I'm not sure how interesting this essay is for others, but some friends were interested in hearing it. I really do wonder how much thought was put into this design aspect, and if anyone has their own knowledge to bring to the table, I'd love to hear it.

END OF YEAR 8 IS COMING

get ready, for BR8K!!!!!!!!

honestly a Warhammer collab could be kinda neat (though im mostly familiar with 40k) i like the concept of a space marine screaming "HERESY!!" when he see japanese teenagers summoning demons

Putting aside outliers like Sonic, what series would you think would be a good fit for a Dx2 collab?

Something that immediately comes to mind is Court of the Dead.It's basically a collection of lore to sell expensive statues and other merch of its collection of characters, but I like some of its designs:

I can't say I'm really in to the property, whose best days seem behind it, but it's more or less the American equivalent in quality/tone to the less-than-stellar JP series you'd see Dx2 collab with, like Seven Deadly Sins.

Ah, Dx2, you're the perennial "break glass in case of SMT main series doldrums," such as what we're in now.

People always asks "what's your favorite demon design", but rarely character designs. In a series known for its "unique" character design (mostly Kaneko's). What's your top 10 SMT character designs, regardless of story? (doesn't have to be the protagonist)

I answered Aleph a number of weeks ago but to be honest? I might have to add that my favorites overall might be this ensemble.

Add Roland, Jimenez, and Zelenin, too.

in 12 years went from being forced to pose for a family photoshoot to just being happy to be there together

demi-fiend drawings

have you seen the 'Outsider' Kirby music video by Rinyo?

tried to find what you meant and only this came up (i am very unfluent in japanese so)

is this what you were talking about? if so, then yes, i've seen this before and I LOVE THIS VIDEO SO MUCH LIKE GOOD GOD

anyone who's a kirby fan must see it at least once.