Why Asuka Deserves Better. #JusticeForAsuka
Oh, Asuka. My poor, dear Asuka. You were meant for greatness. You were meant, for so much more. Your second name only ended up becoming the subject of ridicule to the developers, despite them having breathed life into, with very clear intentions on making you a hidden MVP of the story.
No matter what any of these cringe dudebros in the FGC, the demented twits on Twitter, or the braindead Redditors claim about you, you are a character, that deserved to be on the top half of the totem pole.
You deserved to fight alongside Jin, Hwoarang and Xiaoyu, the main Tekken trio. You deserved to kick, at least ONE, of Mishima's asses, entirely on your own. You deserved to meet Jun, and maybe even train under her guidance to become a full-blooded Kazama, completing your training…
…You could have, you could have, it's all I can say with her. And it genuinely pisses me off, how she never evolved beyond what Tekken 5 showed to us. And listen, I know that, to many of you, she doesn't even seem like much "to begin with", but that's only because, you're not as invested as I am, much less in the character, and what she was truly meant to be, which, I am pretty sure, most of you just view as "shallow, coomer bait", or "gooner material for virgins".
Well, if you truly think that way, jokes on you, you're the true loser of this tale, as it just proves my point that, you're just a typical FGC shill, who is merely here for the ride, but not for the long term. Much less for the overall integrity of the game's integral core qualities, that made everyone else fall in love with it, in the first place.
And listen, I am fine with it, whatever floats your boat. But then stop trying to copy some pro player's opinion, like a mindless lemming, and then act so surprised, when people rightfully make fun of you for it. Whenever I see these people talking shit, I keep referring back to this meme right here:
But in all seriousness, since this is Asuka's birthday, and I want to clean up the trash, left behind by online circle-jerking sessions on any platform, claiming that "Asuka is just irrelevant, move on, buddy", allow me to take charge, and show to you, WHY Asuka always deserved to be relevant, in spite of the glaring evidence speaking against the argument. Lemme start with this:
When Asuka first debuted in Tekken 5, it became quickly clear, that her fighting style was a derivative, more up-front and aggressive version of Jun Kazama's style of martial arts. And if you really want to go there, I mean…
…Just look at her, man. This doesn't take a genius to realize: Her appearance, her design, the vibes she exuded, all of it, contributes to her feeling like a near-perfect, honorable and tasteful homage to Jun Kazama, who, by the way, at this point in the series, was declared "missing". She wasn't considered dead, just missing.
Not helped by the fact, that…
…Come on, look at her facial features, how can you NOT see a bit of Jun Kazama in her? Especially, when you put this in-game face model of hers…
…right next to Jun's facial model from the character select screen in Tekken 2. Am I being crazy, or do these look actually related, for real now? These two feel eeriely similar. And just for that alone, you could tell, the devs, at one point or another, certainly had bigger ideas with her.
But this is not where it ends. If it was, I wouldn't even be writing this stupid long thread.
Despite Asuka's ending in Tekken 5 being comical in nature, there is STILL some serious value to be found, a trace, a hint, of her being of far bigger importance than even the devs themselves ever gave her credit for…
…And seriously, sorry for going off-track about this, but, I am sure I am speaking on behalf of every Asuka fan, anywhere: FUCK. OFF. With this bullshit mindset of:
"Asuka was never meant to be a serious character, stop trying to pretend, there was ever anything salvageable about her, when all she ever was, is just a cringe, cliché moe anime tsundere girl with huge honkers and a rotten, loud-mouthed attitude, that makes me want to rip my ears off, every time she opens her mouth. Stop the cap. You probably just goon for her, in that case, you're a horny pedo, get outta my face."
-- Every FGC shill on social media
And listen, I know, it probably was never exactly like this, but all the key- and buzzwords probably allign, because, I have been there, numerous times, especially in YouTube comment sections and Twitter. And it wasn't just limited to Asuka. This is a universal problem, that can be applied to all fighting game characters in general. We all know the drill by now, the moment you get confronted with the FGC, hoping to find at least one nerd, who is willing to partake in story discussions and theories like in the anime community, the majority of users will, 9 times out of 10, claim:
"I don't care about story in fighting games, no one should, it's a Nothing Burger. You cannot expect that quality from something, not meant to be played, all by yourself. Oh, by the way, I had sex with your grandma."
-- Some loser pro player on social media
How. Fucking. Often. Did I hear this justification. ANYWHERE? Try to guess. Believe me, the count is too high to count at this point. Why are people THIS freaking boring in the FGC? Is the part about, "being so accepting of crushing mediocrity, and never wanting to wish for better" the most common commodity these days? You just want to play the game? Good. Then do me, and everyone else, especially yourself, a favor, and…
SHUT THE FUCK UP! NO ONE ASKED FOR YOUR MENTALLY IMPAIRED TAKES, WHEN YOU NEVER CARED TO BEGIN WITH! SHUT! UP!
But, now that I got THAT out of my system, back to Asuka. As I said, her Tekken 5 ending, despite not being much to go off of, is probably, the one and ONLY time, where we see Asuka, being at her absolute best, despite not being much to go off of, is probably, the one and ONLY time, where we see Asuka, being at her absolute best, despite the comical outcome, which, I am obviously going to cut away, because I didn't come here to waste everyone's time. I am glad to give reminders, here you go:
…and what happens after this? Does it ever get expanded upon? Does Asuka become relevant in any sort of way? Does she maybe get the chance to fight at Jin's side--
Oh, right. No, this is not what happened. What actually happened, is this:
And just seeing her laugh this maniacally like a psychopath, it just reminds me of this laughter right here, when Mephiles killed Sonic in 06, except, Lili's creation itself killed, what little left there was of Asuka's potential as a character, so, same thing:
But just wait, this isn't the only thing we came here for, and that is me dunking on Lili, which, at this point in time, has become far too easy for me, so I will leave that for some other time. For now, just a reminder: It never improved from here. Instead, it just got sadder, the more time passed. And for some reason, everyone is so accepting of it, despite Asuka's and Lili's """""rivalry""""" (or lack thereof, as, by this point, it feels more like an ongoing trainwreck, circus performance, than an actual rivalry to take seriously) feeling like a shittier "carbon copy" of Sakura and Karin.
A can of worms I may need to tackle in the near future...
Since it's her birthday, let us all come together, as Asuka fans, and celebrate, what makes her so great in the first place. And one of those things being:
Ignoring her arcade ending for a moment, every other scene with her in Tekken 5, may it be either against Feng Wei or Jinpachi, was this: Peak. Not much else to add. And because I like being petty, I will gladly remind you all again, why I am saying this, no further comment needed.
THIS is why, many of us grew to love Asuka. Every situation she was put in, she just stood tall. She didn't feel even remotely intimidated by Feng's appearance, let alone Jinpachi, and he looks the most demonic. Any normal person would have just run away, but she never did. And considering she managed to "heal" Jin afterwards, her Kazama blood actually meant something here, which leads me to assume, her fight with Jinpachi must have been insanely one-sided. It's not much, but considering the implications of her ending, and Kazuya's ending in Tekken 4:
This was very likely, a setup for Asuka's character. Considering that, it never openly specified, how pure-blooded of a Kazama you need to be, to have this level of power potency, to match and reject the Devil Gene. Especially since, Jin had always been more Mishima, than Kazama, even by blood. And even if, Asuka just so happens to be from a Side Branch of the Kazama family, this doesn't really change anything, the consistency still alligns with what we have learned. And again, someone like Jin, who was more on the dominant Mishima spectrum, still managed to keep his own powers under control, thanks to his mother's Kazama DNA...
...for a while, at least.
Meaning, as things stand, Jun is not the only one, who was able to keep Kazuya's Devil Gene under locket, to give herself a fighting chance against him. And if Jun managed with him, then surely, Asuka must have done the same to Jinpachi.
And again, I am fully aware that, this is all purely speculation, but the points still stand, even if it doesn't get on-screen confirmation, the implications still hold weight, even now, despite all the retcons. A hidden W for us, Asuka fam. Yay!
(Megumin, because her English VA, Erica Mendez, is just pitch perfect for Asuka, should Bloodline ever get a season 2, don't @ me)
Also, another reason, why we love Asuka, even in some non-canon material, are scenes like this:
*cough* Ahem, considering the thumbnail, I am looking respectfully, please don't smack me, Asuka.
But leaving my bonobo monkey brain thoughts aside, this ending may not be canon, but let's be real: Does it even matter? THIS is the Asuka we are all looking for. She may be a tough cookie, but this ending shows another major strength of hers, that alligns with what we know from her in the canon games:
Sure, she throws punches, and yes, she is brash in her wording, but here, as you can see, she doesn't immediately throw herself into the frey, coming at them swinging. She remains patient, even with said patience gradually dwindling with them, because, we all know, mobsters suck. She has a perfectly good reason to get moody on them, but she chooses not to, at least, not the moment she arrives. That only proves one thing: She might be a vigilante, but getting violent on people is not something she likes doing regurlarly, unless, she isn't even the aggressor in the situation.
In fact, despite being given no incentive to do so, she still decides to show empathy to them, and promising to let them off the hook, if they start behaving from now on. Whether that's truly effective or not, considering that we are talking about Yankees here, that's a different question entirely. The point is: Asuka remains the bigger person, first and foremost, despite living in a hostile, unfriendly environment. If that doesn't make you sympathize with her, then, allow me to remind you, WHY she decided to join the 5th tournament in the first place:
That makes her stand out: While most competitors in the series join for monetary gains, in hopes of gaining control of the Mishima Zaibatsu, or just becoming famous...
...AND DESIRING VENGEANCE ON A FUCKING MISHIMA FOR THE UPTEENTH TIME...
...Once again, another sympathy point to garner from her: She is not fighting for any grand goals, she just wants to get penance on the person, who dared to lay a hand on her family. That simple action by itself, speaks volumes of Asuka's overall character. The fact, that she goes this far, in joining a tournament, which has become infamous for being more of a macabre bloodsport than an actual tournament, while she was barely around Xiaoyu's age, too...
This girl, will gladly lay her life down for you, if you're family to her.
Again. The Jun Kazama parallels just keeping coming with this attitude of hers. She knew her life was at risk, just by joining this damned tournament, and yet, she didn't give a damn. She joined regardless. That alone tells you EVERYTHING you need to know about her character basics.
And another point to be made about her:
She is genuinely hilarious. Check her out.
Screw this moronic slapstick humor, where everyone gets turned into a butt monkey for no reason...
I AM LOOKING RIGHT AT YOU, HARADA.
Another reason why I love Asuka: Every situation she gets put in, even when she is the one being made the "loser" of the situation, the way she reacts to all these ludicrous moments feels SO. FUCKING. RELATEABLE. Every time she is confronted with Lili, or she is faced with ridiculous circumstances, like pretty much all her interactions during the Scenario Campaign, she feels like my personal rage translator. The self-awareness she brings, is my jam. And the sarcasm she throws in Hwoarang's face is so freaking delightful, that moment still makes me laugh.
This is where you know: You know a character is good, when they become super relateable in instances like that. You don't need slapstick for this, just have them react in ways that any normal person would.
Another point for contention, and this is one where, if you think about it for a few moments, it just makes too much sense to happen, but you end up becoming sad, that it never got to that point. And that is this:
(Image done by JIN-XIA-HWO-ASK-STE)
These four look so good together as a team, anyone saying "No", you are just lying to yourselves. These four look like a dream team. And I am not just saying that from a design and aesthetic point of view, but also, well, Jin is the only Kazama in the team, that cannot keep his own powers in check, unless he went through very extreme measures to do so. This team needs one Kazama, that can keep his power in-line, preventing him from going haywire again, and risk the lives of Xiaoyu and Hwoarang. Asuka, is, if you will, the super glue, that keeps this trio together.
And though we never saw them interact as a unit, Asuka's prologue in Tekken 6, once again, shows that, despite having all the reasons to be spite- and resentful of her relative, for his actions having gotten negatively reflected back onto her, due to them sharing the same second name, by some freakish "misfortune", look at this:
...Do you see her having any killing intent? Like, does she truly want to exude true harm on her relative, despite everything he has done? Nope. And if it's presented in this sort of fashion, it becomes more than clear, she isn't taking herself TOO seriously. And I like that. She might be a good guy, but she isn't living any delusions, she is aware that her own behavior is not exactly acceptable, and as we established: Family first. Which is why, I am not sensing malice from her. She just wants to have an excuse to smack some sense into him, because, that is how she expresses: I care about you.
Oh, Asuka. We really don't deserve you.
But the biggest point of all...
...and I am sure, everyone is able to agree with me on this, on how to make Asuka the true complete package for an awesome character, forget Lili...
...we need a rivalry between her and Reina. I mean, do I even need to explain why? Just look at these two, and dare to tell me, this doesn't sound like peak story material.
Asuka - A heroic tomboy, fighting for others, never herself, and a Kazama, that purifies the supernatural evil
Reina - An evil tomboy, fighting for dominance, to assert herself above others, which is true to her Mishima nature, enforced by Heihachi, and bearing the Devil Gene (technically, she is a Hachijo, but that makes it more epic)
Both are foils to each other, and unlike Lili, Reina is an actual challenge for Asuka, not just in terms of combat, but also differing backgrounds, how they were raised, and the clans they both come from. It's just perfect, man. Come on, Bamco, don't be cowards for real, do this. You will have a cash cow waiting for you. Anything to get away from this airhead blond.
Oh, also, another excuse for me to show off this amazing artwork, to match Reina's Devil form:
(Big thanks to @Raydash30 on Twitter for this, you rock, dude)
In conclusion, Asuka Kazama is a queen among queens. In all of fighting games to me.
No matter anyone says, she is deserving of so much more, and I will never forgive Harada for just shoving her into the background, that would be bad enough, but never even TRYING to resolve this "conflict" between her and Lili. This has gone very stale after a while. Like, I don't mind comedy with Asuka, but what you do, my dude, is the equivalent by putting someone in a torture chamber, and putting a laugh track over it. It's not fun, it never was, and it never will be. Outside of it having overstayed its welcome.
Even the white bread basic bitches in the community, who cannot tell the runs from apple sauce would be able to tell you, how old this has grown with these two. Just go on Reddit. OF ALL PLACES. Or in YouTube comment sections, whenever Asuka was a topic in any way. EVERYONE says the same thing: She was meant for so much more. If that doesn't set the tone, then I don't know what will.
YOU HAD ONE FUCKING JOB. ONE. FUCKING. JOB.
AND YOU FAILED HER. EVERYONE LOSES.
If you're interested, check out my video here of why Asuka deserves better, it's her birthday, and I pray to, whatever god is out there, if there even is one at this fucking point, that it will go up from here for her. I am not living any delusions though:
Other than that though, one video summarized Asuka's best core design aspects better than I ever could. And here it is. Check it out, it's very interesting how much thought was actually put into her, overall.
And for more details, if you need a cohesive timeline for all this, check out my Twitter thread for this.
And to end it off in an epic way, here is, what I call, Asuka's theme song for when she fully embraces the main character energy. Enjoy. Now go and do AMVs with dat shizz.
Happy Birthday, Asuka. This one is for you.
(Image done by my bestie, Jared789 from DeviantArt)
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