A gleeful discovery....

[freeradical9]

So, in my quest to track down a copy of the English version of Saiyuki Reload 8, I went to not one, not two, but *three* bookstores before I found it in stock (Borders rules, Barnes & Noble drools).

Barnes & Noble did redeem itself a bit in my eyes, as they had volume 2 of Petshop of Horrors: Tokyo. I like the series anyway, but was absolutely delighted to find some Saiyuki-esque tidbits in one of the chapters.



So Count D has apparently never seen a kappa. His life's work in the exotic and mythical animals trade has never brought him in contact with them, and in fact he has never even heard of them before.

Two children come into his shop looking to buy a kappa. They even show D a reference book "How to Raise a Kappa". (Hakkai: I have that book.) D becomes obsessed, and goes on a mad quest (sushi restaurants, a country estate--I think, and even a construction site) in order to find a kappa.

My favorite part is when the two main characters get told about the kappa's less-than-savory habits.

Elderly gentleman: If you're not careful, they'll steal your shirikodama.

D or Wu-Fei (probably Wu-Fei): Shiriko-what?

Elderly gentleman: It means they stick their hands up the butts of the people who died from drowning in the river and pull out their innards and eat them.

D and Wu-Fei: *SHOCK*

Wu-Fei: Oookay...well, that's that, then. D, you're not going to give an animal like that to kids, are you?

D: It will be all right. As long as you train it correctly....

(Hakkai: Yes, of course. Gojyo hardly ever uses beer cans for ashtrays anymore.)


IMHO, this cries out for a crossover. It would be such fun.

Gojyo: Uh, hello? I gotta buy some dragon chow....

D: *huge sparkly eyes* Won't you stay for tea?

(Hakkai: Excuse me?)


Also, this volume caused lots of squee stemming from the chapter with Daddy D in the genetics lab, naming all the fruit flies. Too funny.

I'm really enjoying the plots in Petshop: Tokyo. Wu-Fei is a poor substitute for Leon Orcot, in my opinion, but I find the series delightfully darker and even more intriguing than the original. Highly recommended. ^_^

Now I'm gonna go skip off and read Saiyuki 8. ^_^

Comments

[freeradical9.livejournal.com]

LOL! Umm, Gojyo? Do you really want to see a hot babe with a bald head, a beak and a shell?

But oh my gosh the cuteness!!!! I want one! (The lack of facial features on the humans is definitely odd, but the little kappa collectables in the closing credits look like something one could buy and take home.)

Thank you so much for the links--the amusement value was priceless. ^_____^

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Can't you just picture Hakkai watching that (or perhaps even worse, carting around the PSP version) and giggling quietly to himself, while Gojyo can't shake the feeling he's being affectionately made fun of? Especially the bits with Kaatan diving down the lady's cleavage, or big scary badass "Hercules" turning out to really be total big-brotherly softy Chii-chan...or all the bits about difficulty in housebreaking! XD

And hee, yes, the faceless humans kept leaving me with the unsettling feeling that this was an alternate universe entirely inhabited by noppera-bō, but the cuteness of the wee kappas and the comical pet-owner situations was more than enough to balance out the twitchiness. I actually ran into that by way of a convoluted trail started by a long-running search for (non-Saiyuki) kappa plushes; I have a feeling I may eventually get sucked into Y!Japan to broaden the search, because clearly the Kaatan merchandise WAS out there, but hasn't made it to eBay.

[freeradical9.livejournal.com]

Can't you just picture Hakkai watching that

Ahahah! Maybe that's what he's dreaming about while he's freaking Sanzo out with his wide-open eyes late at night....

started by a long-running search for (non-Saiyuki) kappa plushes

Goodness! That sounds like a hero's quest, if ever I've heard of one. Good luck--and if I ever stumble across any of said plushies, I'll be sure to let you know! ^^

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Maybe that's what he's dreaming about while he's freaking Sanzo out with his wide-open eyes late at night....

"Now, now, Gojyo, cigarettes are very bad for your health. I'll take the kappa clip off when you learn to stop lighting up in bed. It's for your own good, you know! Would you prefer a toothpick in the nose? I don't think so..."

(I really need to go flip through PSOH:Tokyo the next time I'm near a book store. It looks like the Kappa no Kaikata franchise predates that particular volume, which makes me wonder if the "How to Raise Kappas" book the kids are carting around might be a sly reference to the one Kaatan's owner is always poring over.)

That sounds like a hero's quest, if ever I've heard of one.

Ah, it's not like I can't make my own...but I rather enjoy the thrill of the hunt, you know? It's rather more of a challenge to search for something that I know is lurking behind the language barrier than just to do some basic alterations on a plushie pattern.

_{Although the Hello Kitty in kappa cosplay regional plush, while not what I originally had in mind, is tempting me something fierce. It would tie in to my scary Sanrio collection...perhaps I could even make Kitty-chan a little red wig and brown leather jacket just to further cross the nerdy streams!}