Manga Lassie- A Chronological Chart on Delusional Behavior:
- Age 4: So enraptured watching Hong Kong Phooey that I never noticed that China, the cat, was the one really keeping it all together.
- Age 6: Ardently wanted to be Tarzan. Not date him. BE him. As in swinging around on vines all day with a sidekick chimpanzee. This ended very badly with a time out due to wrecked living room curtains and running around clad solely in underwear.
- Junior High: Somehow got it in my head that Bruce Lee is my shepherd and I shall not want... for fistfights. Made it my life mission during recess to attack all the boys in my class. It is a damn miracle none of the guys lost their temper and clocked me.
- College: My roommate dragged me to the opening of a popular martial arts flick with her Tae Kwon Do school. I was thinking of joining and was thus the lowest ranked one. My roommate, a yellow belt, was rubbing her hands gleefully, thinking she finally had a toadie to boss around, and was about to order me to sit in the back of the car. In the middle. However, the vehicle in question belonged to the school's head instructor, who had a little crush on me and explained that I got to ride shotgun next to him because I wasn't formally a student yet. Carte blanche for blatant disregard for rank!
- College: I briefly dated a black belt in karate. He was very good and competed internationally. I became Kato to his Clouseau and would orchestrate elaborate ambushes attempting to catch him off his guard. He patiently and resignedly deflected every single one of my attacks. It was never meant to be.
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I think everyone who reads manga has an archetype their sympathies gravitate to for various reasons. Mine is the tomboyish heroine who is a bit of a goofball, but can kick butt when necessary. I think that's why I like Kyoko Mogami in Skip Beat, Chiemi Yusa from Junai Tokkou Taichou! and Kurosaki Mafuyu from Oresama Teacher. Ok- Kyoko doesn't do the whole martial arts thing, but she raises hell in her own way and isn't scared of displaying her very...spirited temper. Chiemi finds her match when she clocks Akifumi "Deranged Devil" Hirata at school- he falls hard: on the floor...and for her (aaawww...I set that up so nicely).
Mafuyu, from Tsubaki Izumi's Oresama Teacher, however, has given me the biggest laughs.
In so many ways she reminds me of myself whenever I'd get worked up with my heroic delusions. Except that she can back up her bravado...
