LostWinds is a game adapted for Apple touch devices and was featured a while ago. I decided to give it a try since the icon is very cute and the description does sound appealing. The story is centered around our main character, Toku, after meeting a trapped wind spirit and his journey to restore peace. LostWinds is not an RPG, but it is a rather cute and engaging adventure story.
I really enjoyed the plot of LostWinds, the different flying mechanims, as well as the background sceneries and music. What I enjoyed most was having Toku fly on the water and make the water trickle over his head, glistening in the bright sunshine. Movements of the water, grass, trees, flowers, rocks, fire, and so on using the wind by simply swiping my finger made me feel like I was in control of something wordly. Althought it was somewhat frustrating to figure out where I was supposed to go next and to master the control functions, it was a lot of fun exploring the different hills and caves along with their mysteries. My attention was completely captured from beginning to end. But the story was too short and so, I don’t think this is a game I would play again and again.
朝花夕拾 《我的如意狼君》
傷透的芯花睜不開 灰的天等你回來
一天一天應不應該 思憶中聽你示愛
彷似朝花一息間開 凋萎一刻照夕來
漆黑的天一絲星光 悲傷中感到被愛
回頭期望見你在步近 如途人
我數百次轉身站在問
為何還望再見 為何還要等
回頭能望見你在步近 如行人
你我隔世可相聚沒恨
離離合合錯過 仍還要等
其後若相見 可認出聲線
情若是不變 愛沒完沒了
Jealousy, the Tyrant of the Mind
What state of life can be so blest,
As love that warms the gentle brest;
Two souls in one: the same desire
To grant the bliss, and to require?
If in this heaven a hell we find,
Tis all from thee
O Jealousie!
Thou tyrant, tyrant of the mind.
All other ills, though sharp they prove,
Serve to refine and perfect love:
In absence, or unkind disdaine,
Sweet hope relieves the lovers paine:
But, oh, no cure but death we find
To sett us free
From jealousie,
Thou tyrant, tyrant of the mind.
False in thy glass all objects are,
Some sett too near, and some too far;
Thou art the fire of endless night,
The fire that burns, and gives no light.
All torments of the damn’d we find
In only thee,
O Jealousie!
Thou tyrant, tyrant of the mind.
Dryden
(Source: books.google.com)
Remembering “JIN 2” (Episode 7)
Jin: What can be called happiness in a life is when at long last, you grasp your dream. I wonder if even I won’t be granted that dream?
Saki: Nokaze-san’s dream has come true, has it not? It may be while Sensei is trying to change history for people of the future, history may be adding your life to those changes. However, if it could be said that your wish for a different future is for Nokaze-san and the people of this era to have strong wills, then this is no longer a history that needs to be changed. But just an ordinary history, is it not?
Jin: What do you mean?
Saki: Nokaze-san most likely knows… That Sensei comes from the future; that the person you desired may be one of her own descendants. That is why even at the risk of her life, she wants to give birth. Of course, you could also say she wishes for the child of her adored Lelong-san. However, it is not only for that. In the next world, does this not mean Nokaze-san will try and encounter Sensei once again? To go to the extent of crushing her wished-for dream, I would like to believe that Heaven is not so cruel.
Nokaze: Saki-sama!
Jin: There is a legend that says the person who catches the bride’s bouquet will be the next one to find happiness…
Remembering “JIN 2” (Episode 6)
After meeting up with Ryoma-san again and learning about his smuggling of weapons, Jin felt that something had changed; that Ryoma-san was no longer the lighthearted and carefree man Jin once knew. Ryoma-san’s words had a darkness to them that disturbed and disappointed Jin. In his confrontation with Ryoma-san, Jin reminded Ryoma-san that his ideal could be achieved in many other ways than war; that whichever side soldiers were on, they were still all people of this country; that “violence will only beget violence”. These words rang a bell in Ryoma-san’s heart, yet he left begrudgingly due to his prideful self.
Back at the Western medical school in Nagasaki, Tanaka-san (famous engineer and inventor) approached Jin to thank him for his time lecturing at the school. And the conversation brought hope and a hint of enlightenment to Jin.
Jin: You can make anything, can’t you?
Tanaka: Whatever I create, the reaction is the same.
Jin: The same?
Tanaka: When people see my mechanical doll, they burst into laughter. When my inexhaustible light shines, they burst into delight. Seeing those faces is all that’s taken to get me this far.
Jin: You’ve had a wonderful life, haven’t you? I’m envious.
Tanaka: My son and grandson were both killed…
Jin: Ki-killed?
Tanaka: My son was an engineer, who together with a Soga soldier went to Nagasaki to buy a warship. That soldier slashed both him and my grandson.
Jin: Why would he do that?
Tanaka: I don’t know. That soldier too, had studied abroad and was with the enlightenment faction, so their wills should have been the same. But one day, suddenly, it became like that.
Jin: How could such… Such a heartbreaking thing have happened?
Tanaka: In the whirlpool of this era, I think he became consumed by it.
Jin: The whirlpool of this era?
Tanaka: Today’s ally may be tomorrow’s enemy. And then it reverses. Inside it, as it spins around and around, you can become confused about the place you’re standing at. You can lose track of what it was you were aiming for.
Jin: My friend right now… Is caught up in that whirlpool. I wasn’t able to pull him out of it.
Tanaka: Both of you being swallowed up by the whirlpool would be senseless. Shouldn’t your friend become a signpost for what you shouldn’t become, Sensei? From within even the darkness of the whirlpool, you can become a blinding light so that they don’t lose sight of their destination. Sensei, you can be just like that inexhaustible light.
Lotus Moon
Poetry of Otagaki Rengetsu
Lotus Flower
If I, too, could somehow
Open the lotus blossom
Within my own heart
And color it pure white
How happy I would be…
Heart
Coming and going
Without beginning or end
Like ever changing
White clouds
The heart of things.
Incense Burner
A single line of
Fragrant smoke
From the incense stick
Trails off without a trace
One’s heart, as well?
Death Verse
How I hope to pass away
While gazing at a full moon
In a cloudless sky
That shines over lotus flowers
In full bloom.
(Source: books.google.com)
Remembering “JIN 2” (Episode 5)
Jin: Brandishing around my own feelings, I couldn’t properly diagnose the patient. I was caught up in trying to give them longer lives.
Saki: Is the purpose why Sensei was sent here not to just save the lives of individuals?
Jin: What do you mean?
Saki: Could it be you have a much bigger purpose that goes beyond the world of each individual’s life? Though I cannot say what it may be.
Jin: Beyond the world of life…
In their attempt to save Kichijuurou-san and resolve his relationship with Yokichi-chan, Jin found something more to life.
Jin: A momentarily longer life, yet it may even be he couldn’t have had a longer life. There is even the possibility his life was shortened by doing this. However, at this moment, there is meaning to life which can’t be told by its length. It could be said that allowing an individual to leave behind a shining moment is what makes medical care meaningful. Like a performance passed down through generations, that is what lies beyond the world of life. The power to make corrections to history, I too want to pass that down.
A Touch of Aesthetics
I like ancient costume dramas, particularly those of the wuxia and fantasy genres. No doubt I watch more of them than modern dramas. Personally, I find that they occasionally offer more than just narrative entertainment and thematic or moral value. An effort is put forth to add a touch of artistic, beautiful presentation to them that rarely exists in TVB modern dramas. This care for visual aesthetics is especially evident in Ghost Writer as far as setting and emphazising the mystical atmosphere or current events. It is the main element that kept me reeling with the show, and the image above is specifically what inspired me to think twice about the presentation of Ghost and ask what the crew and camera were perhaps seeking to do.
As with many TVB dramas, I can count the major locations with one hand and Ghost is no different. Leaving out the various mountains, rivers, and forests, notable places in Ghost are the Po’s home, the factory/shop, Ko’s home/restaurant, Ling Wu’s abode, and liaozhai. For the purpose of this post, I want to focus on the Ling Wu’s “Peach Blossom Grove” because it stands out the most to me.
I don’t know about you, but the first time Siu Tsui (Fala Chen) took Pu Song Ling (Steven Ma) to her home in episode 13, I was insanely mesmerized. Not that I haven’t seen a gorgeous setup before, but it’s because this place ignited a feeling of nostalgia. It reminded me of past TVB productions where the same little edifice can be an entirely different world. Now, I’m not sure if the crew went out of their way to build this new location. But they had apparently put a lot of energy into its design, decoration, and lighting.
The Ling Wu’s home lies inside a forest protected by magic, allowing for the innocent grandfather and child fox to exclude themselves from the fearful human world outside and beyond. In the beginning, “Peach Blossom Grove” was a place of calmness, meditation, and healing. It was a divine paradise. However, once the jealousy, greed, despairs, sorrows and many more emotions of mankind entered and filled this quiet paradise, “Peach Blossom Grove” became a sad, sad place where loved ones were separated, innocent beings were injured, and lives were lost. Through these occurrences ands the growth of our characters, “Peach Blossom Grove” witnessed everything, changing its ethereal cloudiness and shadows to match that which we (the audience) may be feeling.
When done well, the background aesthetics of a scene can enhance the mood, solidify the scene, and bring you into the imagined world. And sometimes, there is a lot more to what we see. Little things like flowers, food, candles, jewelries can have hidden messages or emphasize possible implications the producer desires be made.
I’m not saying that I’m okay with a plotless yet gorgeous show. If a show can use its “eye candies” to support the plot, then more power to it. As in the image above, it alone is not enough to explain what Pu Song Ling may be feeling or thinking. Without the context of the story, we wouldn’t know that Pu Song Ling is in a serene piece of mind because he had been through rougher times and thus, cherishes what he has now. It would also be difficult to understand that Pu Song Ling chose this way of life, this dark world along with the spirits and away from the humans, because he had been utterly wounded and despaired. It’s not that Pu Song Ling has given up on humanity, but he chose not to be a part of it. For him, peace and happiness reside in the dark and mythical rather than the colorful and chaotic world. Along this line, his emotions are supported by the scenery. The cloudiness and the moon contrasts with the darkness of his residence, perhaps indicating that Pu Song Ling is a man who deserted the world of man for his own paradise. Is Pu Song Ling living a reality? Or a dream?
Remembering “JIN 2” (Episode 3)
Jin asked Saki for a moment to speak with her. The two settled on the hilltop watching over the city of Edo, under the sky of an illuminating sunset.
Saki: You had an opportunity to return to the future?
Jin: When I was nearly killed… Well, it might have been just an illusion though. But, at the time, I… I thought that I didn’t want to go back. About not being able to see Miki anymore and not being able to see Saki-san anymore, I thought long and hard about that. Ah… Even if I feel I don’t want to return, it may be I could be returned someday. So I don’t know if I’m the sort of man who can ask you this, Saki-san, though could you and I be together?
Upon hearing such words, words that she had probably longed for since meeting him, Saki was confused.
Saki: It is a beautiful sunset, is it not? Such beauty, what makes it so?
While looking far into the distance, Saki remembered words that Nokaze-san had said to her earlier that day, “Sensei and thee… be happy. Please promise me.” The event and conversation with Nokaze-san had trembled Saki’s heart, and it trembled more so now that she was suddenly approached with what she had been longing for yet was unsure of, because she never thought it would be possible. A moment of silence passed between the two while Saki gathered her emotions. Slowly, Saki answered.
Saki: I decline. My happiness is not by being together with Sensei. My happiness is to bequeath Jinyu-do to the future ages. When I consider that Sensei would one day return to his world, it makes me feel miserable. When I ask my heart for the reason why, it is because when Sensei does return to the future, I would not be there… In that case, I feel it would be best if things were left as is. I… We… Every day we live here with Sensei may be be fleeting.
Jin: I don’t know if I may go back.
Saki: No. You will surely return. The truth is, that is not the most important thing to me. Not knowing when you may disappear someday, I guess I do not have the courage to live a life like that. Having been only filial, I believe the least I can do is make my mother and brother happy by obediently finding a partner in marriage. Even so, I will be, as before… Sensei’s student and will do as much as I possibly can for you. From here on as well, please work with me! Well then, as I must prepare for dinner, I will go first…
Saki quickly rushed off, leaving Jin nothing more than her shadow, the setting sun, and time to reflect.
Jin: Saki-san is an adult, far more than I’ve always thought. But even if I was rejected, all of them were thinking for my happiness. Those feelings are not lies. In that case, the one thing I can do is live each moment with all of my might, and with my own will, I will change this era’s tomorrow.
