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ROMANTICIZING Z/B TRANSLATIONS If you have read mine and Kamen's conversations on Z/B in the Discussion Forum* section, you'll know how many of our observations relied solely on speculations... that is, what we see on the manga without totally understanding the words being said by the characters. When I became a fan in 1999, Z/B was already a popular manga and was considered one of the classics in the yaoi/shounen ai genre. So just imagine my disappointment at the scarcity of translations available in the net. It was only almost a couple of years later, I believe, when fans had taken serious initiative in translating or writing comprehensive summaries on BRONZE. And I, for one, am very glad about it. It gives me warm feelings inside to know that the Cathedral has been up and running for more than three years** now, thanks to Kamen who has never given up on the site. ^_^ It's hard to remain a hardcore Z/B fan when the future of Bronze 12 is bleak and you don't know when any new material is coming up. I've gone on to other obsessions, others not even revolving around yaoi. But I must say I've always kept a little part of Kouji and Izumi in me, and from time to time, still check on whatever is happening to this fandom. It was late last year when I discovered this page. It houses quasi-summaries on Bronze 7 to 11. Needless to say, I was VERY happy when I saw this page. Skipping to my abandoned cabinet which houses my Z/B manga, I dug them all up and proceeded to read on with great interest, looking at my Bronze manga in fascination. I've discovered little treasures in the manga that I haven't picked up before. Some of my favorite parts: 1. In Bronze 7, after the soccer tournament and the heart-wrenching scene of Izumi glomping on Kouji after their victory, Kouji and co. brought Izumi to the hospital to fix Izumi's wound. Shibuya told Kouji that Izumi can't have intense movements for a week, much to Kouji's disappointment and Izumi's embarassment. Of course, Takasaka didn't know what was happening and was confused as hell. LOL!!! 2. Still in bronze 7... Izumi is ranting on how his life would be nothing without soccer (not the least bit surprising here). Kouji, meanwhile, is worried about this, since Izumi's statement obviously gave him the impression that soccer is the ONLY thing which is important to Izumi. Kouji lets out the waterworks and thinks, "Am I in there?" T_T My poor, dearest Kouji!!! *wails* 3. I still laugh over that extra scene at the end of Bronze 7 where Izumi went to Hirose to get the ring. What a cheeky guy he is! Hirose thinks that Izumi is a "great form of entertainment." @_@ 4. I absolutely love jealous Izumi in Bronze 8. ^_____^ Who would have known that Izumi can be possessive like that? 5. This is a great scene in Bronze 9. Izumi went to a training camp in Kumamoto, and strangely, Kouji didn't ask to join him. Izumi is in his room, thinking how he got to do everything he wants, i.e., soccer. But then he looks at the phone and thinks that he doesn't have enough after all. The phone rings all of a sudden (it's really amusing how fast Izumi went to the phone to answer it ^_^), and of course it's Kouji. If you've seen this part in the manga, there are several heated arguments in this particular scene... but it's really only Kouji asking Izumi for permission to go to Kumamoto and stay in the same hotel (but not in the same room) as Izumi. But then Kouji retracts this, saying that he would only be a bother to Izumi and his soccer, so Kouji told Izumi to forget it. Izumi gets mad at this and tells Kouji to let a man answer for himself. Izumi then tells Kouji that he wouldn't be a bother, so he can come. Kouji ends the conversation with an "I love you." Izumi is distracted after that, and even asks his coach how long it would take for a person to get there from Tokyo. ^___^ 6. In Bronze 9 volume 36, Kouji and Izumi are in the car. Izumi tells Kouji that he has decided to come home. Kouji is confused by this, and Izumi asked him if there was any difference between his home and Kouji's home. Kouji says there isn't, but you know he got a bit rattled by this because he didn't go to watch Izumi practice. Kouji then thinks that it is getting frightening for the two of them. This scene is startling for me. I know very well that Kouji loves Izumi (to the point of insanity), but I had no idea that he had fears like that. T_T I've always been a BIG fan of Kouji... and just when I thought I knew him very well, I read something like this and it makes me think that Ozaki is a real genius for creating such believable characters. 7. Finally, the mystery of the jewelry has been revealed to me. In a side story in Bronze 10, Kouji's assistants covered Izumi with several pieces of jewelry. It seems that this was done to cover up the rings that Izumi wears, since it's been getting lots of attention from the media and Izumi is getting harassed over it's connection with Kouji. In the end, Izumi says that the ring is heavy... I must say he is not exactly talking literally here. Isn't it wonderful, that after being a fan of this series for almost four years, it looks like I'm still learning it? Of course there's really nothing to blame here but my utter lack of knowledge of the Japanese language. ^_^;; But still, it's exciting how I'm still evolving from that little newbie who had to pester Kamen for Z/B info, to the girl who wrote that little article on why Izumi loves Kouji (something I won't ever read again), to the one who finally took the step and ordered the manga for herself, to me on this very day writing this article. I think I'll never cease to be a fan of this series. Truly, Z/B will always have a special place in my heart, the very first yaoi manga that I fell in love with. *The Discussion Forum was part of The Cathedral of Minami Ozaki, which has now been closed permanently. **The Cathedral of Minami Ozaki, after six years, has now been closed permanently with an agreement between myself and Kamen. |