[SnB reread] Night 1: Badr of Parthevia
I did ramble that I might get into the SnB reread sooner than I planned. I'm kinda in the mood, so. Behold.
Sir, that's an entryway to alcoholism.
Genuinely messed up, how much they cheer for war. And kind of fascinating. War is good as long as it serves you, as long as it isn't your family that's in danger. And, well, why would they be when they live in some random little village in the suburbs of Parthevia, far from the frontlines. As far as they're concerned, war only brings positives. Such ignorance, but at the same time, you can't entirely fault them. Again, it's some random village, they have no access to education, and unless somebody actually experienced the war, they only hear what the government officials want them to hear about it. And even if they experienced it, they wouldn't dare speak against it in fear of retribution. After all, the masses earn so much from the conquest, so somebody saying it's a bad thing is immediately the Other, and, well, you can't trust the Others.
One, we see who Sinbad inherited the playboyism, lmao. And two, again, the fucking dissonance between all the cheer and "the only man who survived the expedition". The whole belief in the righteous war at display: it's an honor to die at war, for your country.
For me, personally, it's, hm, hard to untangle how I feel. I do not believe in righteous war, I'd rather people got along, thank you very much, but I do recognize honor in death depending on the circumstances. What are the circumstances? Well, it varies. I do not see honor in deaths for the sake of conquest, though.
Ok, so, I understand it's a statement without saying anything, I get that he does not want blood money, I do understand.
But Jesus fucking Christ, Badr, you absolute moron. You have a wife and a little child. I do understand the principle, but it puts your family in an uncertain financial situation.
Seriously, what happens if somebody in the family gets sick? If Badr gets sick? Or, you know, dies? His family is left with nothing. No man to provide, Esra who eventually gets sick. I get idealism, I do, I'm an idealist myself can't lie, but idealism doesn't put food on the table, you know? I don't want him to compromise his values, but at the same time, what use are these values if he's dead, if he's family is dead? To be honest, if he had no family, then by all means, do with your life what you want, but with a wife and a little child? They'll be affected by proxy, and that's just irresponsibility.
It kinda makes me think that if there's something Sinbad still resembles his father in, it's exactly that. This irresponsibility for the sake of his ideal/goal/ambition.
Aaand it's not the first time, apparently. Badr.
Mhmm. Do you mean rejecting money your family needs or being delusional about war, because my answer will vary. (Also, no, he's not crying, he was just drinking water.)
Semi-jokes aside, I'm thinking about SnB as a whole in hindsight, you know, having read it in the past, and also after skimming it recently. I think SnB in general is significantly better planned than Magi. It makes sense, since it's a prequel to give context for one of Magi's most important characters, so it can't just do whatever it wants willy-nilly. With Magi, it's very much felt that a lot of things Ohtaka was figuring out on the go, and don't get me wrong, I love Magi and I vastly prefer it over SnB due to personal reasons, but as a writer I do think SnB is simply more cohesive as a story.
At it's core, SnB is a tragedy with the clear purpose of explaining what made Sinbad capable of such atrocities as the ones he commits in Magi, and so with a specified goal in mind it builds the story so that it leads to the fall of First Sindria. Which is also why afterwards we only get a 5 chapters long Epilogue Arc that doesn't really dwell too much into the remaining four Djinn or the logistics of establishing the Second Sindria etc etc. Because the goal has been achieved, we saw what led Sinbad to that mentality, and after the nightmare that was the Sindrian War Arc having Sinbad go on silly little adventures would distract from the main point of the entire story (and would have made for a very, very weird tonal shift ngl). So, behold, the one time I don't complain about Ohtaka skipping stuff. Not too much, at least.
Anyway, I'm bringing this all up both because I was simply thinking about it recently, and because it kinda hit me that this chapter already sets up the final nail in the coffin for Sinbad: the war against Parthevia. An event that essenially redefines him as a person, what creates the best villain of Magi.
And so, Sinbad no Bouken starts with a war and ends with a war.
Well, that's fair, you're just one person. And your country is pretty delusional about the whole war thing, so it'd be like with a hoe on the Sun. But, again, you should have taken the bloody money for, you know, the sake of your wife and your new family member.
Alright, alright, I'll stop pointing it out.
Also, I love the first panel (from the left), I'm pretty sure Sinbad does the same gesture at some point, either in SnB or in Magi, so that's just really cute.
Also, aww, Badr thinking about his son's smile, about to be very surprised!
I love this entire page. Future Conqueror of the Seven Seas, currently a cute, silly 3yo.
BADR'S FACE AT THE BOTTOM
Man, I just see so much Sinbad in him. Kudos to the person drawing it (I don't think it was Ohtaka this time, not much at least), because they really did manage to make Badr look like Sinbad's father - his own person but with just so many familiar elements.
Honestly, why do I always freak out about putting the entire pages here so much. This reread series is for me first and foremost, why am I like this.
Anyway, ugh, Sinbad is so cute in all of these, the middle panel is my fav. Baby. Also.
Also Also, I love how excited he is about the sea. Baby sailor in the making.
Also, he was already trying to point Badr to safety. Destiny's favorite child, indeed.
You know, Sinbad is arrogant af and it's certainly part of his undoing, but he's also as special as one can get, so you do get where it's from. Which is one of the many things that make him such a fascinating character. Is his arrogance wrong when he really is the First-Class Singularity?
I really like Snb/Magi's way of handling this topic. Sinbad is indeed special, but he's still just a man. He's a shounen protagonist in a world that is far more "realistic" than a typical shounen settings, with heavy, believable consequences for the wrong choices unless you're Hakuryuu. His arrogance is earned, but it's also his blindspot and he pays greatly for that.
Honestly, there's just something funny about his thoughts here. I'm having a hard time deciding what exactly is it. The wording here. It's a bit telly?
It is a pretty fun contrast,. Sinbad's unflinching confidence in the previous pages, how, frankly, weird his behavior seemed, only to now return to acting like the kid he is. For a moment, he looked like a different person.
...but if you close you're eyesssssss
Honestly, do you think Sinbad's birth caused this or something? With how #special he is and all that, two Magi of the current era, one of AT and Matal Mogamett all sensing that somebody incredible was born (at least in the anime?), I frankly wouldn't be surprised if it was happening bc he was born. Also kinda lmao that baby Sinbad calmed down and
I'm sorry, this is so fucking ridiculous. Bro was around for like 7 minutes. And also his parents listened for some reason. I mean, saved their lives probably, but still, the entire concept is just so fucking funny, I'm sorry. Jesus-wannabe.
That's what I'm asking! But, hey, it worked!
Nooo, no, Badr, no, don't say that! These words will have consequences! So many consequences!
Like, it's sweet in it's own way, how Badr believes in him, and he's also right in his assumptions, Sinbad is the chosen one, this world's Singularity, and he will change the world, but he'll eventually walk on corpses to reach what he considers to be the right Fate.
Also, is it wonder how arrogant Sinbad becomes when he hears this since being baby? It's kind of earned, but still.
