Hey so I have a discussion topic for you. Tried to send you a message with the little "+ in a speech bubble" doohickey but it didn't get through (or something). Anyway:
I'm not sure when I realized it, but I'm pretty sure the narrative foundation of Kanata Kara is the Tarot story-- you know, the themes, sequences and archetypes represented in Tarot cards.
Noriko= the Fool. I was always intrigued by those color illustrations that emphasized the cliffy aspect in the Sea of Trees over all else. Noriko's mild problem with heights takes on symbolism as the story unfolds.
Izark= the Magician. Check out his initial design and poses, demeanor and attributes in the first few chapters. Sword, magic(wand), torch, headband, material practicality(pentacle), damn near immortality(infinity sign)... the only thing that's really hard to spot is the cup--maybe the interactions with the clothing merchant? Cups has a lot of floral (herbs) and water symbolism. Yes I realize it's a stretch.
Gaya= the Justice. Prove me wrong.
The Source of Evil= the Devil. How often does he make an appearance without looming a couple of his minions?
Banadam= Knight of Wands? Probably the Man (Adam) in the Lovers triad, with Noriko as the Woman (Eve) and Izark as the Angel (Archangel Raphael). This is also near the point in the story where Noriko learns the Forbidden Knowledge about her 'role' as a catalyst for destruction.
Agol and Gina= the Chariot and the Star?
Izark definitely takes his turn as the Hanged Man.
Rachef is probably a kind of dark Emperor, with the reverse meaning included. I think the 5 of Pentacles (and the Pentacles suit in general) is tied to his backstory. He's very obviously a dark mirror to Izark.
I get the feeling the suit of Cups gets a lot of airtime in the Flower Festival chapters.
....Aaaand I really need to go to bed. Now.
AAAh I love this. This is such a fun way to think about Kanata Kara, especially given the whole hero's journey aspect of it, which really does map nicely onto the Major Arcana. I love Noriko as the Fool and Izark as the Magician. Irk has got to be the Star.
It's fun to try to figure out what everything else is! I'm going to be thinking about this the next time I re-read. :)
