Also there is this:


http://www.amazon.com/World-Exists-Me-1/dp/1598160346

The drawings are by Saito but the story is by Be-Papas, which of course includes Ikuhara-sama.

It has similiar themes to Utena, more Princes and Devils and Witches and Princesses, but with time traveling! I have the first two volumes.

There's not much to comment on at the moment, except... For the love of Utena, Ikuhara better make it good!!

I sure wish there were more information.  10 years is too long...

Raven Nightshade wrote:

According to this, it's a manga and a novel.

Maybe, but PDM's link says it's TV.  Most likely it's all three; no popular manga goes unanimated for long, and it's safe to say that anything Ikuhara writes will be popular.

Though I wonder who this "Ikuhara Kunihito" character from PDM's link is

For the non-Japanese-literate among us, Nokemono to Hanayome means "Outcast and Bride," though the former is an inexact translation; I think nokemono has a connotation of having been pushed out of the way that "outcast" doesn't quite have in English.

Duelist Megu wrote:

Would "pariah" be closer, then?

Possibly?  Unfortunately, I'm not good enough at Japanese to know the exact nuance.  Pariah comes from I believe the Arabic for the scavenger dogs who lurk on the outskirts of cities, entering at night to eat the detritus.  They're filthy, both literally and Islamically, and hence untouchable.  I don't think that's what nokemono means... but I could be wrong.
Edit: Wikipedia says I'm totally wrong on both the language of origin and the original meaning, so you should probably just ignore me.  What the fuck was I thinking of?...

Last edited by satyreyes (11-17-2008 09:14:46 PM)

The caption made me laugh because it sounded like an omiai:

"I will become your bride. That's why we should arrange the marriage immediately."

From that, I like to assume that nokemono is indeed a derogatory address to any man or woman who wasn't chosen (despite the elite status and probably because of an attitude problem and/or unpleasant family background) by the one searching for a lifetime partner--thus the English translation "reject" at the bottom of the Japanese title.


Edited to correct a misspelled word.

Last edited by Seitokaichou (11-18-2008 12:26:05 AM)

The image in my link can be magnified, is anyone good enough in japanese to translate what is written on the picture? Just to see if there is any relevant info on it?

P.D.M. wrote:

The image in my link can be magnified, is anyone good enough in japanese to translate what is written on the picture? Just to see if there is any relevant info on it?

Sono shoujo wa, sekai de mottomo kiken na hanayome.
Sono shounen wa, dare kara mo aisarenai nokemono.
Futari wa unmei no kyouhansha.

Watashi wa anata no hanayome ni naru no.
Dakara watashitachi, ima sugu kekkonshiki wo agenaku'cha.

If I read the kanji perfectly (some of them were blurry) the rough translation would be:

That girl is the world's most dangerous bride.
That boy is unloved by all.
Together they are fated to be partners in crime.

I will become your bride. That's why we have to arrange the marriage immediately.

Like what I've previously posted, nokemono is a derogatory address to anyone who is considered unlucky in finding a lifetime partner.

Hope that helps!

Thank you so much Seitokaichou!

Last edited by P.D.M. (11-19-2008 11:44:18 AM)

That girl is the world's most dangerous bride.
That boy is unloved by all.
Together they are fated to be partners in crime.

I will become your bride. That's why we have to arrange the marriage immediately.

This sounds...familiar.

Not that I object. Honestly, S&M just didn't work for me. Ikuhara I love but Saito is just a bit too...normal.

Want SKU-style fun, read Shounen Ou. Or just look at the hideously suggestive artwork.

You're very welcome, P.D.M.!

Giovanna wrote:

This sounds...familiar.

I had that same reaction. Like what was stated on the teaser image, it was introduced in the market as a 'dangerous love visual story'. I could just assume that the rating R-17+ either comes from the Kunihiko Ikuhara Metaphors™ or for the yakuza-type of violence--with sex not being an exception. Huzzah?

rhyaniwyn wrote:

So, would that nokemono word have a similar connotation to "old maid" except gender-neutral, or just "reject"?

If it concerns omiai (formal marriage arrangement), the latter fits the term nokemono. In Japan, anyone can simply call someone (even as old as 26) an "old maid" or ojiichan/obaachan (grandfather/grandmother) like a poke at being loveless or without a boyfriend/girlfriend, but not necessarily because he/she has chosen to be single for life.

I'd love to see a translation, but there just aren't enough translators out there for that sort of thing--we still haven't seen the Utena novels.

S&M got the most press stateside because of Saito, but the big things Ikuhara did after SKU prior to this are Schell Bullet (novels with artwork by whathisballs that did Five Star Stories, which I've always wanted to get my hands on), and Shounen Ou, another novel thing with the artist responsible for the animation in SKU. (Does anyone have the URL of that site? It had I think a complete translation...fun stuff, and yes, Ikuhara's a good novelist.)

I had always hoped the release of the Vampire Hunter D novels would encourage that sort of thing, but it doesn't seem to have, and people are much less likely to translate novels than manga, so we don't see much of Ikuhara, who hasn't been terribly prolific anyway.