in the name of christ, mcfuck off

Geisha became what they are known as today in the mid-1700s. the first actual geisha were men and they entertained shogun and samurai (and other wealthy men) with dance, music and the art of tea ceremony and theater. when courtesans were losing money to these male geisha, a few of them broke away from being in the sex business and became female geisha. therefore, geisha as an occupation never was a thing of the sex trade/prostitution and absolutely NOT stripping. 

let me dispel some common misconceptions:

so, geisha were never prostitutes, never perform sex acts or even accept relationships/marriage proposals until after they retire from being a geisha (usually in their 30s, tho some women stay geisha until death by choice).

while geisha in the past (we are talking almost 100 years ago by now) have been given to Okiya (geisha houses) by their families, it was usually due to the families inability to afford their child and rather than let the child be homeless and starve, they gave them to an Okiya where they would live a much better life (Okiya housed other geisha within that Okiya’s special “familiy”; the Okasan–”Mother”–of the house protected them, gave them a comfortable living, fed them, sent them to all their classes, spent money on their personal kimono and make-up, and who arrange their finances and plan their parties and events). Nowadays, and pretty much since the 1940s, Geisha become Geisha by choice and enter into the profession after they graduate middle school (it is even required in most cases that they complete at least that level of schooling before becoming a Geisha) willingly.

GEISHA wear their Obi belts tied tightly in the back to hold together their Kimono; these belts are so long and heavy that the Okiya hires a male dresser to assist in tying these Obi every night before a party or event. a geisha could not strip or easily take off her many layers of Kimono/undergarments and so the assumption that they are strippers just doesn’t make any sense. a traditional courtesan or TAYUU/OIRAN wore her Obi belt loosely tied in the front so that she could easily untie it for a customer.

There is no empirical evidence of there being any such thing as “mizuage” (as referred to by Arthur Golden in ‘Memoirs of a Geisha’) in the geisha world. there is however evidence of the ritual of mizuage in the Tayuu (or Oiran depending on the region, i think) courtesan tradition. a courtesan who was being initiated would have a ceremony where wealthy men bid for her virginity, with the highest bid being the winner. These Tayuu (or Oiran) are absolutely NOT in any form in relation to a Geisha. i will also mention that prostitution in Japan has been illegal since 1959, officially.

“Comfort Women” from the WWII era were prostitutes that told American GIs that they were “geisha” in order to make more money and to play on the exoticism that was so popular in the US at the time. this is where a big portion of the “Geisha are prostitutes” misconception came from. 

“Hot Springs Geisha” and Bar Hostesses in Tokyo are trained in a similar way to traditional Geisha in that they have skills in the art of conversation and even some musical skill, however these women are NOT Geisha. “Hot Springs Geisha” are also known to engage in sex acts with hot springs patrons (though it is frowned upon) and so bring another incorrect image of sex-acts to the name of Geisha.

While there have I’m sure been cases of abuse from an Okasan to her Geisha throughout the history of the profession, this is usually not the case, and to say that “many or all Okasan are abusive and manipulative to their Geisha” is ignorant and offensive.

DO NOT READ “MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA”!! If you already have, I would strongly suggest you read other books on the subject of Geisha. Arthur Golden (a white man)  wrote this book to make money off of the many misconceptions about Geisha, Geiko and Maiko. Everything he says about the Geisha tradition is incorrect, from the part where he explains why “some Geisha” wear lipstick only on the bottom lip (this actually signifies that a Maiko has only been in training for under a year) to his horrible, offensive and incorrect description of a Geisha going through mizuage. He interviewed a very well-known geisha named Mineko Iwasaki for his book, which he then exploited and changed around for his benefit. She even tried to sue him for libel for taking stories from her personal life, twisting it and turning it into a book that lies about the fundamentals of being a Geisha.  I would recommend reading, “Geisha, A Life” by Mineko Iwasaki. she has written about what it really means to be a Geisha.

Here are is a picture of a Geiko (a fully-fledged Geisha who has completed most of her training and has become a professional):

Here is a picture of a Maiko (a Geisha-in-training who is still an apprentice and usually works alongside her “Older Sister” or her assigned Geiko partner; her Older Sister is in charge of most of a Maiko’s social training):

Here is the difference in dress between a Geiko and a Maiko:

Here is a Tayuu courtesan (high end prostitute); this profession no longer exists, any modern photographs of one is of an actress for historical theater purposes. Notice the Obi belt tied in front and the overall difference in dress. This was what courtesans looked like:

This is a photo of “Hot Springs Geisha” in the 60s. Notice the women serving drinks and entertaining men at the tables:

Here is a picture of an Ozashiki (party, event or gathering where Geisha are hired to entertain with music, dance, conversation and drink serving) today. It is much, much, much different (and more expensive) than an average hostess bar, and takes place within an Ochaya (traditional teahouse). As you can see, men are not the only ones who have booked an Ozashiki with Geisha:

Please do not spread misconceptions about these hard-working women artists. They deserve respect and have persevered for centuries with women at the forefront of these professions. Not only are these women trained to entertain party patrons, but they are also highly skilled in theater and the performing arts. Surrounding the Geisha are women wigmakers, female Shamisen, drum, flute ensembles, hairdressers, kimono artisans, well-respected dance/music/tea ceremony teachers, jewelry and hair accessory makers, Okobo and Zori footwear artisans, teahouse staff and Ozashiki planners, instrument craftsmen, and many, many more. If you would like to know more about Geisha, there are many books written by former Geisha out there.

Here is a short video of a Geisha performance, it is the annual Miyako Odori (”Cherry Blossom” Dance):

External image

“I guess it’ll take more than a kiss to heal damage from the Diamonds…”

Guess what just got confirmed beyond any doubt: Gem corruption was caused by the Diamonds nuking the Earth - the same blast we saw during Lapis’ story in Same Old World.

An interesting bit in Centipeetle’s story to me: she got orders to retreat (and never quite made it), and it’s explicitly stated she didn’t know what everyone was running from, so no reason for the retreat was given - but she knows beyond a doubt the blast came from the Diamonds, once it happens (I mean, it’s fairly obvious, yes, but I’m as always interested in how general knowledge, information, and awareness is being handled by the Diamonds and Homeworld as a whole). Also, the three diamonds she draws look like the oldest four-diamond insignia we’ve seen (the Sky Arena, for example, and Centipeetle’s ship), just minus Pink, as opposed to the modernised three-diamond triangle version. Implying that the removal of Pink Diamond was then a fairly recent thing.

Steven recognises her describing the blast as a song as well as a light - and again, as we see the explosion, a snippet of the very recognisable Diamond leitmotif plays, as previously heard here and here. The tying of music into the actual universe of the show and the importance of it to Gems (everything from all the singing, to Gems synchronising their forms using music and dance to fuse, to the destabilisers that look like tuning forks) is something I adore, and it makes another appearance here. Also, a detail brought up in a conversation with @zombee - what jogs Centipeetle’s memory is Steven singing the Chaaaaps jingle, suggesting, perhaps, that music, along with Steven’s much-built-up dream powers, might be a way of battling the corruption (after having caused it, in a sense - and hey, it was undeniably a part of Peridot’s arc, and parallels are always interesting).

Another thing about sound - and Rose’s shield, which played an important part here, too: remember the scene of Steven ending the fight against Lapis’ water clones in Ocean Gem, when the water blob hitting his shield causes sound waves that disrupt all the water constructs. A hint, perhaps, pertaining to how Rose saved Garnet, Pearl, and herself from the very sound-based corruption bomb, a game of frequencies? and also how she killed Pink Diamond maaaaybe

Homeworld seems to have been in a rush to be done with the Earth and get out of here - they didn’t wait for the retreat to be completed, as evidenced in the story of Centipeetle and her crew. This might also suggest the scarcity of resources Peridot recently mentioned hadn’t set in by that point, or wasn’t as bad - nowadays a single Peridot gets a ship sent to pick her up, and a Jasper is definitely deemed worthy of retrieval.

We’re left with Garnet, Pearl and Rose weathering the blast thanks to Rose’s shield (“In the end, your mother could only save a handful of her closest friends. If it weren’t for her shield, man, I don’t know…”), Amethyst safe and still incubating in the ground, and Lapis avoiding it thanks to being in the mirror (opening up the possibility of other Gems trapped in objects having survived unaffected, perhaps). There’s also Bismuth, mysteriously bubbled in Lion’s mane.

Other tidbits:

For all that she seems to have been on Homeworld’s side during the war and even still does the diamond salute, Centipeetle doesn’t seem to have any love left for the Diamonds (understandably) and her loyalty is first and foremost to her crew (and now Steven as well).

Garnet’s “This is the best we’ve ever seen it work.” reminds us Rose tried her healing powers on the corrupted Gems, too, as previously mentioned in Monster Buddies, but with little success. Pearl: “Who knows? Maybe when you have better control of your powers, you might help them in ways even your mother couldn’t.” It’s definitely about more than just healing spit or tears.

Corruption is a bit like a cracked Gem in that the Rose Quartz healing powers seem to help somewhat (at least temporarily), but in the end, as Garnet explains, the damage is mental rather than physical and cannot be healed the same way. Centipeetle seems to draw on her bond with Steven to recover (same as in the original Monster Buddies) - but she also starts reverting to her corrupted form after reliving her traumatic memories from the war.

The contrast between how Amethyst reacts to the corrupted Gems and how Garnet and Pearl do really drives home the difference in their experiences. Here we have Pearl’s frequent reminders to “be sensitive” and “not make fun”, combined with the exchange from way back when in Ocean Gem, with Amethyst’s very gleeful “All those monsters we fight used to be just like us! Right, Pearl?” - Amethyst never knew them as anything but monsters of the week, but for Garnet and Pearl many (most?) of these Gems were comrades, allies, and maybe even friends.

Centipeetle is a spaceship captain, and has a whole bug crew still on Earth thanks to them not wanting to leave without her! Appropriately, she has a spacesuit that matches Pearl’s. My attention is drawn to the scrap of cloth that conspicuously covers her chest - where her diamond allegiance insignia would be.

Steven makes out her name as “gurgle click click” and I’m still holding out for her gem to be maw sit sit (image source):

Crystal Gems vs the Diamonds final showdown could be… a battle of the bands? I am OK with this. And very recently at SDCC we had a Yellow Diamond song teased, so…

Yes, Pearl, please teach all of us Gem writing.

I am very emotional right now.

Be wary of the symbols as these are commonly used by pedophiles- even to this day, you can see some examples right here. they are slightly modified but it’s all logo for a legitimate pedophile:

-don’t draw incest

-don’t draw pedophilia

-don’t draw rape