The Pink Curse

Well, it’s been a while hasn’t it? I know, I am horrible, but 1. Getting your Ed.D is HARD. And writing a dissertation sucks. Remind me to never do it again. No, I am not done yet, still got about another year I think. 2. Honestly, the last few chapters really haven’t stimulated me. I have very few thoughts on the matter because we weren’t really getting many hints and no questions were really getting answered. 

So here are some thoughts prior to chapter 300. DUDES I AM NOT SATISIFED THAT SARA = JULIE!!! I DON’T UNDERSTAND!!! Seriously, it makes 0 sense how she ended up with Kyoko. If it was deliberate, HOW did she know Kyoko would be there? We know Lory didn’t tell her, he was just as surprised as Ren was that his mom happened to be in town. The best guess I would have would be Maria. Last time we saw Maria was during the whole thing with Saena and she was looking pretty pensive, maybe she thought having Kyoko interact with a mom figure would help? It’s thin. I don’t particularly like that theory. Ultimately, I think it was part of Kyoko’s “Luck.” In the beginning of the manga they use  to say “Luck” was part of showbiz, this fateful encounter seems to be her Luck coming through again. Honestly, it is weird, but makes more sense then being planned. I am excited to see how Kyoko and her meet for real.

Moving on from Julie to Leonard. So I think the biggest clue we have with Leonard is 295 where it is insinuated that Leonard is not an actual person, but a collective of people who wear the name, and direct under the name. (I love Lory’s reaction to that news, he’s all like “I WANT ONE TOOO!”) It makes sense that the collective would hide their identities with costumes to achieve these goals. I can’t help it, but I think Cedric is one of the Leonard's. I kind of think he has to be the one that is in Japan. Why else would Julie have gone all the way to Japan? She thought Cedric was going to be meeting with Ren. Who knows, they might have met if Cecric isLeonard. 

Part of me thinks Cedric’s recent interest in Japan MIGHT be in part, indirectly because of Kyoko. Think about it, Duris, his grandpa, goes to Japan for the grateful party and comes back talking about Kyoko (maybe generalizing her to encompass all Japanese girls). Its possible. I think it would be an interesting connection to say the least. It would also make their meeting very interesting too. There are still too many holes right now, thought, to say what direction the manga will go with regard to the whole Cedric/Kuon/Corn/Kyoko dynamic. I am curious, sooooo curious, to know about the project Leonard has in mind for our girl though.

Alright, now lets talk about chapter 300. I am really really happy that we get to see Ren and Kyoko together (CAN IT BE DECEMBER YET???). I think there is a lot of ways chapter 301 can go, but I feel like this is the first time in a while we’ve had some good fanfiction fodder! Like, Kyoko is gonna be at Ren’s post confession! Will we get a repeat of our first introduction to the Emperor of the Night??? Will he be able to stop himself if he was in that position again? How would Kyoko react? How is she going to react to his flirting now that she knows his feelings? Honestly, I can’t see her acting much different, but... you know.. maybe she will give Ren more of the cute reactions he craves from her. 

Then there is the WHY does Ren need to learn to make Eggs Benedict (seriously...Eggs Benedict? There is a reason why Gordon Ramsey always makes them do this on Masterchef guys...) and WHO is he making them for? Is he making them for Kana to further their illusion that they are dating? You know, her coming out of his apartment in the morning after a “wild night”... wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Or is it because of some sort of breakfast meeting? If I am right that Cedric and Leonard are one and the same, maybe he suspects Ren of being Kuon. He might remember that his cousin is a horrible cook, and trying to test him, to confirm his suspicion of Ren’s identity. There is a spot where Leonard and Ren are fighting, where Leonard gets a look in his eye. I thought that it might indicate he kinda recognizes Kuon’s fighting movements and style. 

Lastly, there is the implication of Kyoko being there so late at night. What would happen if the paparazzi are there? Either stalking Ren to get more fodder on his relationship with Kana and end up snapping a pic of Kyoko with him instead? What if that picture of the kiss with Sho were to come out because of it? What would happen to Kyoko then?

I guess my last thing on this chapter was Kyoko’s weirdness. Like, why did she call LME to find out about Ren? Wouldn’t that be more suspicious since everyone knows she's sharing his manager? I think she was trying to keep Yashiro from being Yashiro but still... if I was the person who took the call I’d think it was really weird behavior. This part wouldn’t need to be incorporated into a fic unless you wanted there to be a spider in Lory’s house.

I also think there is a way to bring Kimiko back into the fold here as well. Does anyone really think her character would go silently into retirement? I don’t. I’d put money down that she blames Kyoko for everything that happened and would be looking for revenge... what better way then to spill all of Kyoko’s secrets? She’s got disposable income a plenty, and free time on her hands. Especially if she finds out that Kyoko might be working with her heart’s desire soon.... Just sayin... 

I know I haven't posted in about an eternity and a half. That is because my degree program is getting to the actual dissertation part of getting a doctorate. But I have to ask, cause I don't see it. Why, for the love of God, does everyone seem to think Sara (Sarah?) is Julie? The SB Facebook group I am in is positive 100%, without a shadow of a doubt that Sara = Julie. But what actual evidence is there? Not a whole hell of a lot. 

We have never seen Julie's face, so you can't say that they look the same. The only shot of Julie we've ever seen is the back of her head. And her hair is drawn pretty differently there. Her hair is drawn shiny, like Kuon's, when we see Julie and Kuu watching Kuon's video. Sara's hair is not drawn shiny. I would argue it is drawn more similar to how Maria's hair is drawn, suggesting it might be more light brown. 

I think it was Nakamura's focus on Sara's eyes that has led everyone to conclude she is Julie. However, the manga is drawn in black and white, and we cannot confirm that she has green eyes. So this emphasis cannot be considered hard evidence. 

Sara's appetite was an interesting clue to her identity. In my opinion, it seems to suggest more of a genetic relative to Kuu than it does Julie. We have never heard anything from Ren or anyone about Julie having a famous appetite. On the reverse side, we don't know how Julie and Kuu met. Maybe it was their insane appetite that bonded them? The only piece of HARD, FROM THE MANGA, evidence that might even HINT at Sara being Julie based on the appetite is Ren's comment, from a long time ago, that his intake was harshly monitored. Also, it was suggested that he was force-fed (don't ask me what chapter, I don't remember). This comment indicates that mom was trying to feed him more than necessary, I had assumed it was because Kuon was expected to have an appetite similar to Kuu's. However, it makes much more sense if both parents have crazy big stomachs.  

Age. Let's talk about Sara vs. Julie's age. Julie, in my opinion, and basic math, has to be AT LEAST 40. The original Dark Moon was filmed 20 years ago... they film the remake as Ren TURNS 20. I would HOPE Julie was AT Least 20 before she had her first kid. Still, at the youngest, I would say 36, which puts her at 16 when she had Kuon (which doesn't seem likely to me). Sara's looking damned good, almost teenish if she is actually 40ish-year-old woman... Just saying... it makes no sense. She is drawn more along the lines of someone around Ren's age. Even Kuu had some marks around his eyes, showing he is older.

Speaking of makes no sense... this WHOLE SCENARIO MAKES NO SENSE! IF this is Julie, there are two ways we can look at what's going on with her. Either her meeting Kyoko was intentional, or it was an accident. 

Let's think about it being an unintentional meeting. My first question is, not why would a 40ish-year-old woman be assuming a secret identity to visit a theme park (that makes sense since she is famous and married to Japan's darling), it is why she would need to be accompanied by Director Date? She can speak fluent Japanese, and while, yes, visiting a theme park is more fun with someone else, Date doesn't seem like the funnest of company. Now it makes sense that Julie would know Date from when Kuu was in Tsukigomori since Kuon would have had to be a new born right around then (I bet it was fun to film with Kuu while his wife was heavily pregnant...) However, this relationship doesn't explain why she would have asked him to go with her to the park. Also, the coincidence thing is just too big. Now the story has always said that luck is part of show business. This would be a lot of luck. To magically run into Julie. 

If we are thinking about Julie meeting Kyoko intentionally at the park, this gets even more screwed up. The biggest question is, how would she know Kyoko is going to be there? Why would she choose to approach Kyoko in this way? She doesn't know Kuon's exact feelings toward her, and she doesn't know Kyoko's actual feelings towards Kuon. If she just wanted to meet her "son," there are a 1000 ways LESS convoluted she could have chosen to go about meeting her. But instead, she picks a method that has a decent chance of failure. If Kyoko didn't notice Date (if she had been in La La Land), if she didn't approach him, then this whole scenario fails. Could a backup plan have been in place? Probably? But why would Date agree to it? How would either know what was going on with Kanae and her new role and to use learning English cheep would allow them to accept Sara into their outing? Now, if Julie could predict outcomes like Ren can, then there is something to be said for it. However, the difference here is that Ren was acting and could rationally predict responses within the confines of the scene, and he knew his fellow actor. Julie doesn't know Kyoko, and she doesn't know Kanae. Rationally she can't accurately predict their behavior. Kuu could give some insight into Kyoko, but I don't think it would be enough to make this all go off without a hitch. He certainly doesn't know Kanae. 

If someone set this up and just put Julie into position, I bet everyone would think Lory. I can't see us not knowing about that and not seeing Lory scheming something. Buuutttt..... what about someone related to him? What did little Maria look like the last time we saw her? What was going on in the story? It is plausible Maria was able to infer what was going on with Kyoko's mother, and it would make sense if she reached out to Ren's mother to maybe do something to help her friend. It's a long shot, but if this IS Julie and it was intentional, it doesn't have Lory's dramatic flair, you know?

Anyway, my point is there is no way we could say conclusively, based on the data at hand, that Sara and Julie are the same people. There is too much we don't know. It could be Tina, who is younger, and it would explain the melancholy when she was talking about love earlier, but that assumption has holes too. There are way too many unknowns about the American side of the Skip Beat story to say anything with 100% certainty until the author gives us definite proof. 

I know, I know, I have kinda disappeared but graduate school is getting serious ya’ll. I start dissertation hours soon. It is honestly terrifying to think about. 

Anyway, to answer your question, yes I have read chapter 282. Ok so let me start with the last few chapters, the whole confession scene. I am honestly surprised it has happened, and I am a bit disappointed in it. I think the pinky kiss and what he says at the end of chapter 282 were the sweetest part, but I wanted more fluff. I wanted more sweetness. Like Ren didn’t look happy at all, even finding out she has feelings for her back. Like seriously...that was disappointing. 

BUT I am GLAD they decided they aren’t getting together. Until she finds out, not just about Kuon but about Corn, I don’t want to see them dating. I think it would be horrible if they start a relationship with that lie between them. Because after Guam, it really is a lie. A sweet lie, but still a lie. 

Now the part EVERYONE is debating. The necklace. There appear to be two camps on the necklace. One camp that chapter 266.6 happens BEFORE chapter 282 (timeline-wise) and the other camp that chapter 266.5 happens AFTER chapter 282 (timeline-wise). 

I fall in the after group. The primary reason people tend to think that chapter 266.5 happens BEFORE 282 is because of the fan translation. However, after I pointed some stuff out on the Facebook group, someone did go back and look and confirmed that the statement on the start of page 266.5 is a bit misleading and can mean AFTER where we are in the story. (I can’t find my screenshot, sorry). To prove my point I even went a bit crazy and wrote a timeline starting at chapter 222, with confirmed dates in the story, to show there really was no time for Ren and Kanae to have their conversation. So for chapter 266.5 I Kyoko got the letter shortly after chapter 265 (because that is when Tashio starts remembering he forgot something) but I don’t think she opens it until AFTER what is happing presently in the story. So ultimately, I think Ren gets the necklace back. Personally, I really like the idea I saw in the FB group that Kyoko kisses the necklace (like Ren did the Corn stone) and gives it back to him. I like that because Ren really has nothing from Kyoko when Kyoko has all of her treasures from him. Keeping her kiss close to his heart... THAT would make me happy and feeling all fluffy inside. 

If you want to see my crazy timeline, you can check out my google doc below. I may or may not continue to update it as the story progresses, it depends on my classwork. Now I turn the question back to you, what do you think?

Ok, so it’s been more than a few months since I posted my thoughts. First, you all must know I was ecstatic when Ren and Bo ran into each other. I was wanting that for soooo long. I was so happy. The conversation didn’t go the way I had hoped it would, but it sounds like the next thing we should be experiencing is a confession... of some sort. 

Yeah I know what you all are going to say. “Kyoko’s so dense, she won’t get it.” “Ren will never get up the courage to actually confess.” Seriously, everyone is so negative about a confession happening. I feel like it’s a bunch of Kyoko’s rejecting the idea vehemently so that they don’t get their hopes crushed. 

However, we HAVE to get a confession at some point, and I have said for a while that I think we are coming up on the end game of this story. So before I posted this I have done a total re-read, to make sure all my thoughts are in order. 

When you re-read from Kyoko coming back from Guam everything happens pretty quickly, and the side story, chapter 266.5 pretty much assures us that something will happen, we just haven’t got there yet. 

The problem I think I have with a confession is that of Kyoko’s self-image. She still sees herself in such a horribly negative light that even though Ren mentioned, the girl running away, and her feelings toward breakfast, she doesn’t even think that “that sounds a bit like me.” So even though Ren might be confessing over the course of the next few chapters, it really depends on what all his confession entails that will determine if I think Kyoko accepts or rejects him.

Let's go back to Kyoko and Kuon in Guam. They were sooo cute together, right? Did any of you all notice that “Corn” who is a “Prince” gets called without any sort of honorific, by the most proper person in all of Japan? If anyone was going to call a prince property, it would be Kyoko, but she doesn’t at all. This could be due to them being friends as kids, but that logic doesn’t make sense either since she loved princes and princesses as a child as well. I bring this up because if Ren’s confession includes the story of his past and being Corn/Kuon, then I think he MIGHT stand a chance of being accepted because it humanizes him, and puts him on her level. 

However, I just don’t see that confession happening yet. Nakamura likes to torture us, so what is the best way for her to torture us? Have Ren and Kyoko get close, maybe not a relationship but close to one, and then at the worst possible moment have someone (probably that Cedric guy) drop the bomb of Ren being Kuon. 

Where I am feeling a bit lost is how Nakamura is gonna get Kyoko to America. It sounds like Sho might be going there on his tour, Kanae is going there for her new role, the call Lory had with Duris indicated that if Ren got an offer to perform in America he’d accept it. America seems to be the final stage of Skip Beat, but none of this is Kyoko in America unless she goes as a Love Me job. But, I doubt that with her Lotus in the Mire filming. I guess we will have to wait and see. 

I can’t help but try to think of a situation where Kyoko can see her value, what she means to everyone. Maria, Kanae, Lory, Yashiro, Sho, Kuu, Julie, Her mom,  Todoh, Ren, even the stupid Beagle. Like something where everyone comes together to support her. I dunno, I think I would love something like that would make for a super sweet ending, but other than something bad happening to Kyoko (the Shojo kidnapping trope maybe) I can’t see how this ending would work.

I am about 98% certain the only reason Koga has this pillow... 

is because Ren has this pillow...