theCarlinist
Baka: First off, what can you tell me about yourself?
tC: Well,short of a life story,I'm a 22-year-old senior at Carnegie Mellon
University in Pittsburgh,PA where I am majoring in Information Systems and
minoring in Japanese. I'm a native of Austin,TX and would like to get a job
there upon graduation. I have a 1st degree black belt in Tae-Kwon-Do and am
about a year and a half away from getting a 1st degree black belt in Kuk Sool
Won (assuming I can finally settle down in a place that offers Kuk Sool...). I
am doomed by genetics to go bald,and have been known to yell at any modern
technology that breaks down on me or does something that I don't like (most
notably,my computer). Although I am an introvert,and therefore very selective
about my friends,I like making new friends and doing fun things with them. I
also have a pervert streak in me that tends to come out at odd times (as
evidenced by my first MST). Politically,I tend to be liberal,especially on
social issues,but I am wary of extremism on both ends of the political spectrum.
Baka: That's the stupidest thing you've ever done?
tC: I've probably done many stupid things in my life. However,if there is one
thing that I have truly regretted,it has to be the fact that I didn't take the
time to truly enjoy my time in Japan,because I was so focused on trying to find
the Saber Marionette Playstation game...
Baka: What would you say is your greatest personal triumph?
tC: Two things in particular stand out in my mind as my greatest achievements in
my life. One is obtaining my black belt in Tae-Kwon-Do. The other is being
accepted to a prestigious school such as Carnegie Mellon.
Baka: What are a few of your favorite things (food, movies, music, etc.) ?
tC: Food: Japanese (especially sushi), poultry, Tex-Mex, Thai
Movies(general): Monty Python, Jackie Chan, Mel Brooks, Kevin Smith, Star
Wars
Movies(specific): ID4, Armageddon, Mononoke Hime, Laputa, Lord of the Rings,
Feris Beuller's Day Off
Music(anime): Noir, InuYasha, Saber Marionette (all incarnations), Love Hina,
Kareshi Kanojo no Jijou, Hana Yori Dango, Megumi Hayashibara
Music(non-anime): Linkin Park, Staind, Nina Gordon, Chumbawumba
Comedians/Comedy Groups: George Carlin, Chris Rock, Denis Leary, Jay Leno,
Capitol Steps
TV: Babylon 5, Saturday Night Live, The Daily Show, Weakest Link
Anime: Saber Marionette (of course!), Noir, Trigun, InuYasha, Cowboy Bebop,
Irresponsible Captain Tylor, Bakuretsu Hunters, Revolutionary Girl Utena
Baka: Do you idolize anyone?
tC: There are two people in this world that I idolize: Megumi Hayashibara
(Megumi-chan!) and George Carlin.
Baka: What was your first encounter with SMJ like?
tC: I first saw SMJ in anime club during the fall semester of my freshman year at
CMU. At the time,I would not stay past the main series that we had voted to
watch (at the time,Bakuretsu Hunters and El Hazard). However, one week I noticed
that it was on the schedule immediately after El Hazard and decided to stay just
for the heck of it. At first I thought it was interesting,but didn't really pay
too much attention to it (something I usually did with any anime that I was
seeing for the first time for quite a while). It wasn't until I went back and
watched it for a second time (when I got the VHS box set as a Christmas gift)
that I truly fell in love with the series. With certain notable exceptions,I
haven't really looked back since.
Baka: Are there any characters you would say stand out in your opinion from the
rest? How so?
tC: Hanagata: Sure he's annoying,bitchy,and a flaming homo,but he is sincere and
loyal,always there when Otaru needs him most - a true friend,even if he not
respected or appreciated.
Tamasaburo/Baiko: As marionettes that lack Maiden Circuits,it is interesting
to see them display vague hints of emotion,something that only Maiden
Circuit-equipped marionettes are supposed to have.
The Saber Dolls: The foil to Otaru's marionettes,and in a way,the tragic
heroes of the series. It is arguable that they grow more than Otaru's
marionettes in the course of the series and are the most human like of any
marionette in existance. Unlike Otaru's marionettes and Marine,they commit some
of the worst atrocities imaginable,and yet they have the potential for great
good.
Baka: How many times have you seen the SM series'?
tC: SMJ: eight times
SMJ Again: eight times
SMJ to X: up to ep. 15 once
SMR: twice
Baka: Given the chance, what would you have made different in the original SMJ
story?
tC: Give Otaru's marionettes the capacity to grow beyond the pre-programmed
attributes of their Maiden Circuits (in particular,Lime becoming less and less
naiive as the series progresses). Sure they "grow" in the series,but I've always
felt that their growth was limited by the attributes of their respective Maiden
Circuits. The Saber Dolls didn't seem to have this limitation,which makes them
more believable and more "human," for lack of a better term. However,the trade
off is that it makes it harder to classify which marionette's Otome Kairo
represents which part of Lorelei's personality.
Baka: What sort of SMJ Merchandise do you own?
tC: In addition to the VHS box set of SMJ and the SMJ DVDs I also own Saber
Marionette Best,the CD collection of songs from all of the Saber Marionette
series (J,J Again,J to X and R).
Baka: What sort of things do you like to do to get in the mood for writing?
tC: I try to have in mind what I want the fanfic to be about. Sometimes,I will
plan out details in advance of writing the fic; other times it will flow out of a
"stream-of-consciousness" pacing session, and occasionally, I will get my ideas
from conversations with other fanfic writers (Lady Aoi). No matter how it
happens, though, I try to have a general idea of story flow in mind when I finally
sit down to write.
Baka: Do you read fanfic yourself? If so, are there any specific stories out
there you would highly recommend to others?
tC: I love reading fanfiction. I find it a great way to expand upon the creator's
original ideas - usually in ways that he/she never thought of before.
Fanfics I would like to recommend:
- Sumiki's "Forever Never Ever"; (a great alternative ending J to X fic)
- "The Real Ricdeau" (a post-gaame Xenogears fic)
- "Saber Marionette J vs. M" (yyou may think it's crap,Matt,but I've enjoyed
it so far!)
- "Green Eggs and Hana" - This is probably Lady Aoi's most notorious
fanfic, but it is a riotous romp through the roses of the most common SMJ fanfic
pairing (Otaru-Hanagata); laugh out loud hilarity ensues.
- And in a twisted sense, Tank Cop's &quoot;Sammy's Little Secret" series. Think
of it as a cautionary tale in how NOT to write a lemon. It is one of the most
MSTed pieces of fanfiction I've seen in existence,and with good reason. It is
full of mangled grammar and spelling,poor characterization,lacking decency in
any measurable sense,nonexistant/irrelevant plot and even the sex scenes are
poorly done at times.
Baka: Have you ever written a fic you thought little of, only to have readers
praise it?
tC: Yes, the very first fanfic I wrote (the SMJ MasterCard commercials).
Baka: Are there any plans for your future fanfiction writing?
tC: I plan to continue my SMJ MST series (if at some point I should run out of
strictly SMJ material, I may expand the fics being MSTed to include ones that
somehow involve members of the SMJ cast). I also hope at some point to start
writing serious SMJ fics (what kind of serious SMJ fics? SORE WA HIMITSU DESU!
^_~).
Baka: What would you say inspires your fanfic writing (other than the obvious
answer of the original works)?
tC: My MST series is heavily influenced by the MSTs written by Peter Suzuki and
Ksawarrior over on the Tenchi Muyo Fanfic Archive, both in style and in some of
the jokes used. I also get ideas from conversing with other fanfic authors
(usually Lady Aoi).
Baka: Are you more comfortable writing serious or humorous stories?
tC: In a way,it seems that I am more comfortable writing humorous stories. Thus
far,I have yet to write a serious fic (excluding, perhaps, the intro fic to my MST
series), and it generally seems that I can pump out comedy fics fairly quickly
(1-2 hours per fic, tops).
Baka: How long in estimate does/would it take you to write a full fanfic?
tC: For serious fics, it's hard to say, since few, if any have gotten past the
conceptual stage at this point. Most are just ideas that I'm kicking around.
For comedy fics,it takes around 1-2 hours at most to write.
Baka: What would you say are the most important traits a writer should have?
tC: A writer should be articulate, witty, and most importantly, have a love of
writing and love the subject matter.
Baka: What is your stance on Yaoi/Yuri (guy+guy and girl+girl relationship)
fics?
tC: As long as the characterization is accurate and the plot is believable,I
don't care what a person decides to write about. If it's not, or if it bashes a
character that I like, then I will most likely MST it - whether formally (i.e.,in
an MST fic) or informally (i.e.,as I read it).
Baka: Do you have any questions to ask me?
tC: Are you going to answer these questions and include your answers in the new
section?
Baka: Heh heh. The question that scares me the most! We'll have to wait and see. I suppose it would be rude to ask all of these and then run away after you answered them so marvelously, so, yeah. When I get a breather ;).