Embers of Love

(This post was sponsored by Koishi Komeiji, who is not here on Gensokyo Island. Not yet, anyway. Besides, you can't see her. Wooo...)

And we're back from our day off! Toritori here to kick off another awesome double-barrelled update!!

Huh? What? Gah, I haven't saved yet, oh whatever. It's Kiba. I'm kinda busy here so if you don't mind...

So yeah, we're back from our break from conducting that wonderful interview with our very own boss Aya Shameimaru the last time. She wasn't exactly pleased that we didn't accept her recommendations, but decided to give it a pass anyway "in the name of free speech and journalistic integrity, as expected of the pure and honest Shameimaru!" Oh, whatever. And she also said that as part of a deal for giving us a day off we have to say "Subscribe to Bunbunmaru News" or something like that.

Shh! Do you want Reimu Hakurei to throw that "No Newspaper Subscription Solicitations" sign at us aga... ARGH!!!

Oh... well, it seems Kiba is a little occupied for now trying to make sure he didn't lose his data on his SlayStation Portable after that giant sign landed on it. So on with the news! Today, we caught up with Gensokyo Island's newest resident, Mokou Fujiwara, plying her wares at the fountain. No, not like that, I meant...

It's totally canon for her to be selling food from a stall. And yes, she has a killer's eyes, it's intentional.

It looks like Mokou was selling her special delicacy guaranteed to inflict stomach-churningly agonisingly torturous cramps (an eternal lifetime of toilet turmoil, guaranteed), which was not for sale to anyone except Kaguya Houraisan, for whom it would be absolutely free. 

That's... favouritism right there. Even Okuu's Look-alike didn't get one of them. When pressed for a comment on the matter, Mokou very generously told us to go get "@#$%^&"ed which apparently was a secret code to get "Kaguya over here so I can get her satiat"ed. It's good to know that our newest islander is someone with such strong emotions about sharing with others.

Speaking of new islanders, more progress on the baby front as new proposals were made to augment the "infant"ry. Get it? Haha... well, actually I'm not kidding. According to very reliable sources (actually, Kiba's research) I've heard that the world's strongest soldier might be on the verge of joining this island's ranks.

And his parents are a dog and a fairy, go figure.

Um, Kiba, I think you've got your references wrong. It seems that Tia Arlert and Tadakichi Mihama decided to name their second child not after that fellow from Attack on Titan, but rather after another famous designer. I bet they think he has some great jeans... uh, I meant genes. But I do agree that it's really troublesome how so many people have the same name that they get confused for each other all the time. Maybe they should Levi a tax on reusing names.

Oh yeah, on that note about Attack on Titan, that cute clever clogs from that series, Armin Arlert, was also proudly showing off his wife Recette Lemongrass' newest child. It seems that Armin has taken all his training to heart, as he decided to name his fourth child and second daughter Skylar. He's confident that she can be the very best, or at least maybe be fit to run a gym sometime in the future.

I can't believe this is actually a random name in the database. In fact, I'm absolutely blown away.

Well, it's unfortunate that we have to bring young Skylar's dreams down to earth, especially since she will inevitably be catapulted off the island to find her own path as a traveller, since her big sister Tia has already taken the sole place reserved for the offspring of each coupling. Still, with all the Pokémon masters on this island, we're confident Skylar will find Gensokyo Island an excellent launchpad from which to take flight.

And that very conveniently brings us to the last note for today, as a couple of express mail delivery ships pulled up at the port to deliver us notifications of how Gensokyo Island's young travellers have been doing in the outside world. In fact, one of those letters was addressed to the maritime maniac and Pokémon pariah, Archibald Aqua, and his wife Margit Ravelli.

The pair was in for a pleasant surprise, as the letter was from their eldest child and first daughter Shelly, and this was the first time she had ever wrote back to her parents signalling that she was still alive. Naturally, they were absolutely thrilled since Shelly was the only one of their children who had the opportunity to leave Gensokyo Island, with the other two, Rafa and Matthias still languishing at the port and mooching off their parents.

 Arachnophobes look away now... oops, too late, hahaha. See, there's a multi-legged crawling creature under Rinko's deckchair!

Shelly, who was writing back from Hamu Rabu Island (Ham love? Hamster rubbing? Who knows?), was unfortunately not permitted to send back a photograph of the island's residents. No doubt they were probably engaged in some sort of secret, grotesque ritual involving ham rubbing or hamster loving which the island's owner didn't want leaked to the press. Censorship is a harsh mistress. But Shelly's still alive, and that's all the matters to her proud parents Archie and Margit.

In the meantime, Utsuho Reiuji and Rinnosuke Morichika received a cheeky letter from their third child and second daughter Rinko, who had dropped by for a visit a few days ago. It seems Rinko just wanted to let them know that she was trapped in the middle of nowhere, and that she wasn't dead, so please keep sending money, dear parents! The heck, my parents don't send me anything! And I wouldn't be surprised if Rinko's parents don't send her a thing either, heh.

So that's it for now! We've just received a notification from our boss Aya Shameimaru that while we were dawdling around here she went and updated the lists on the Miis and QR codes page, whatever that is, and now featuring her wonderful likeness as would only be natural for the best Touhou Project character ever. Uh... yeah, okay. 

And also, another message that she asked me to read out. It says... "Subscribe to Bunbunmaru News today!" Um, is it really a good idea to ...

"SPELL CARD! Talisman: Exorcism of the Newspaper Subscription Solicitors!"

... ouch... am I entitled to claim workman's compensation for these injuries?

... what about my SlayStation Portable! It had four million hours of save data! Oh wait, that's Overlord Mao's save file... well, that's gone too...

So... um ... how about it?

These Health and Safety regulations are going too far. You can't even consume a sports drink any more.

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 27th February 2015

Children

Levi was born to Tia Arlert and Tadakichi Mihama. It's their second child! He is an Easygoing Buddy.

Gensokyo Gourmands

Shou Toramaru tried a Sports Drink today. She thought it was the Worst Ever!

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 28th February 2015

Traveller Updates

Shelly, daughter of Margit Ravelli and Archibald Aqua, wrote back from Hamu Rabu Island! She has visited 1 island so far.

Rinko, daughter of Utsuho Reiuji and Rinnosuke Morichika, wrote back from Streetpass Relay Point Island! She has visited 2 islands so far.

Children

Skylar was born to Recette Lemongrass and Armin Arlert. It's their fourth child! She is an Easygoing Dreamer.

Desco Kazamatsuri announced that she was pregnant with her and Mitsukuni Haninozuka's first child!    

Shame, I Mar U

AYA SHAMEIMARU!!!

All information perfectly updated all the time with Bunbunmaru News

 Aya Shameimaru is the best Touhou character, so it's no surprise a monument was erected to praise her.

Name: Aya Shameimaru

Nickname: SHAMEIMARU!!!

Date of Birth: It's a secret!

Personality: The most reliable reporter.

Favourite Colour: White, the colour of purity, truth, and virtue.

Quotation: "It's me, the pure and honest Shameimaru!"

Aya Shameimaru is the best and most popular Touhou character, and is famous for being ZUN's one true waifu. She is a pure and honest reporter that writes only the truth in her excellent publication, Bunbunmaru News. She is the fastest runner and the fastest flyer in all of Gensokyo, and also one of the strongest, able to defeat any of the others in single combat (she's just holding back if she's ever seen to lose). She has also appeared as the main character in so many Touhou games until she retired to concentrate on propagating the truth in her newspaper, Bunbunmaru News, and to give the other, less popular characters like Reimu and Marisa a chance. It's no surprise that all the other Touhou characters are totally envious and in awe of her. So, subscribe to Bunbunmaru News today to receive only the truth about...

WAAAIIIT!!!

Okay, so it was a bad idea to ask my boss, Aya, to proofread the article she asked me to write about her. I'm gonna need some other opinions on this one. Ahem...

Sorry about all that. It's Toritori here, one of two beleaguered junior journalists slaving away under our psychotic boss for an extra helping of rations and the chance to nip into the apartment's restrooms. As you may have guessed, today's character profile is that of the one and only Aya Shameimaru, but... it will have to wait until the end of the daily news, just like everyone else's.

Today, Gensokyo Island's actual paragon of justice and virtue, Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, and her wife Chiyo Mihama enjoyed a double blessing. Their fifth child and third daughter, Michiko, came of age today and was sent off to seek her fortunes in the wider world. In that time, however, they received a pleasant surprise in the form of a letter from their third child and first daughter, Justine!

You'll never experience the joy of receiving a letter unless you send out a dozen of 'em.

Maten Island was the second island Justine visited, though she seemed rather homesick asking about how things were going here on Gensokyo Island. The island's owner must not have been very nice to her seeing as to how she wasn't allowed to send home a picture of one of their islanders! Still, it's glad to hear that she's now on her way to her next destination and I'm sure all of us look forward to hearing more from her in the future!

Speaking of travelling, Okuu's Look-alike was on an unusually generous streak today, giving out over five travel tickets to random islanders. Well.. it wasn't really random, considering that each of them had a tiff with their spouse and relations between each pair were sour at that point. Most certainly Okuu's Look-alike wasn't very pleased despite her uncharacteristically generous acts, bemoaning about how islanders should stop getting into idiotic arguments with their spouses and threatening divorce, and that everyone else should shoulder some of the burden and chip in to pay for these subsidised travel tickets instead of giving out prescription medicine. Well, an island's residents can't be expected to be generous if its owner herself isn't...

All the same, a few moments of joy did blossom when today Armin Arlert announced that his wife, Recette Lemongrass, was pregnant with their fourth child! It seems that Recette has been learning from her daughter Tia Arlert this time, who declared that she was trying for another child just yesterday.

 No, Armin, that pharaoh hat does not make a good substitute for your regular hair.

Lastly, in other completely unrelated news, the office of Okuu's Look-alike today reported the most unusual occasion of someone who demanded to be on to Gensokyo Island. Or, more accurately, barged right in, made a beeline for the eighth floor, headed for Kaguya Houraisan's room and was just about to detonate a pile of explosives when the mystery assailant was restrained by just about everyone who had seen this attempted terrorist act in progress. 

The person, a strange white-haired woman in red trousers, would only give her name as Mokou Fujiwara and refused any offer of food or other rations, claiming that she wouldn't die without them. That's weird... someone who wouldn't die from not eating? I mean, Miis have some pretty amazing endurance, but... anyway, Mokou was tossed into an empty apartment directly across the floor from Kaguya until a decision was reached on what to do with her. Hmm, if she really wouldn't die... well, best not let weirdos like Okuu's Look-alike or Overlord Mao find out about that one.

Now, as promised, we shall resume our character profile of... ahem... Gensokyo Island's one and only reporter, the wind god girl Aya Shameimaru. Now stop hitting me with that fan, boss, and no, I'm not reading your "special edits".

Aya Shameimaru

All information correct as of 26 February 2015

 No more advertisements for Bunbunmaru News will be featured on this page. We promise.

Name: Aya Shameimaru

Nickname: Aya (pronounced "Shameimaru")

Date of Birth: 11th August 1996

Personality: Outgoing Entertainer

Favourite Colour: White

Quotation: "Bunbunmaru News!" (sorry, we lied.)

Aya Shameimaru first appeared in the main series Touhou Project games as a mid-boss and playable character in Touhou 9: Phantasmagoria of Flower View by Team Shanghai Alice. She later appeared as a 4th Stage Boss character in Touhou 10: Mountain of Faith, aes a supporting character in Touhou 11: Subterranean Animism. She has her own spin-off game series in the form of the photography games Touhou 9.5: Shoot the Bullet and Touhou 12.5: Double Spoiler, and also stars as a playable character and a possible opponent in the fighting games. Not to mention she's also the main character of the official fanbook Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red. Yeah, she's been around a lot since her debut, almost as much as main character Reimu Hakurei and Marisa Kirisame.

Aya is a crow tengu youkai who serves as part of Youkai Mountain's intelligence gathering bureau, and runs her own newspaper, the Bunbunmaru News. She's constantly pestering people to subscribe to her newspaper, which is often thought of as a gossip rag, although she does demonstrate an insistence on reporting 'the truth'. She's also renowned for having the fastest feet, and wings, in Gensokyo, being able to outrun and outfly anybody, which helps when capturing compromising photographs for use in her newspaper. 

Lastly, yes, she is reputed to actually be very strong, being over 1000 years old, and like Alice Margatroid she never fights all-out and would rather hold back. This combination of her seemingly phenomenal attributes, crazy personality, and frequent appearances in the Touhou games have led some fans to dub her as ZUN's 'wife', or having offered him certain favours for more appearances. Wink wink nudge nudge. Or at other times she's just a pervert who takes naughty photographs of other characterst just because she can. Yeah, she's a bit divisive in the fandom.

But what would a gossipy newspaper be like without a zany reporter to back it up? Although she's dead serious about reporting, Aya is otherwise crazy and loopy just like anyone who dashes around at high speed just for the heck of it, and she's totally willing to 'spice things up' to tell an entertaining story. Jolly, carefree, confident in her talents and her own infallibility, and willing to get in anyone's face to dig out the latest scoop - that's Aya.

Aya with the two most important people in her life - Shou Toramaru and Aliasse Foerster.

Husband: Shou Toramaru

Best Friend: Aliasse Foerster

Children: Shouko, Ayako, Hoshi Toramaru, Fumiko

Aya and Shou Toramaru might be in personality groups opposite to each other, but in Gensokyo Island they were a match made in (fantasy) heaven. They hit it off pretty much immediately after moving in, and they were the first couple from the third batch of islanders to get married - ahead of the last of the second batch living on the floor below them. Unlike the crazy wife and sturdy husband mechanic I described regarding Marisa and Aliasse and their marriages, I'd like to think that it's more that Shou is a relatively tolerant sort of husband and puts up with all of Aya's zany antics, and maybe it even makes her smile and takes the weight off a dreary day.

Despite their long marriage, Aya and Shou have had relatively few kids when compared to other islanders who have been married just as long. Much of that is due to luck, of course, not just in bringing up the child request prompt but also in the random hits to their relationship which decrease the chance of wanting to have children. They even had a violent fight at one point, which is, well, really bad when it's between spouses. Damn you, RNG. But they've pulled through and I'm determined to do anything to help them remember the affection which brought them together.

While Aliasse considers Aya her BFF, sometimes Aya doesn't always feel the same way, as unlike Aliasse, Aya actually does have a slightly serious side to her when she's working on an investigative news story, and she isn't interested in the more childlike things in which Aliasse is absorbed most of the time. All the same, if it comes to running around at high speed and shouting crazy catchphrases, the two are a perfect match.

Recette Lemongrass, Shou's best friend, breaks up a potentially explosive fight between the couple. That was a close one!

Food Preferences:

All-Time Favourite: Hot Dog

Worst Ever: Peking Duck

Okuu's Look-alike Rating - Hot Dog: Like. Honestly, when we think of someone guzzling chilli dogs, dashing around everywhere at high speed, and shouting "Gotta go fast!" we automatically think of... someone who's enjoying themselves. But really, hot dogs are kinda dull except when they're drizzled with relish and toppings. And then they taste like relish and toppings. Good in a pinch, but not terribly exciting otherwise.

Also, it's interesting how Aya really really hates Peking Duck. In canon, Aya's absolutely furious at anyone who eats bird meat, due to being a crow tengu, although Utsuho Reiuji begs to differ since she's depicted enjoying yakitori and boiled eggs despite being a raven herself. It's like humans eating monkeys - you're either really freaked out or you're not especially fazed about it.

Song Participation:

(none)

 

It's kinda unusual that Aya doesn't have a song for herself since she'd probably use it to promote her Bunbunmaru News, although I guess that might be because she's better at talking to people directly, grilling them into revealing sensitive information about themselves, rather than singing on stage about it.

That feel when a Mii can actually do something in the game that would be totally in character for them.

Apartment: Apt. 306

Islander Rating: High Tier

I guess there's very little to report on how the third batch of islanders all have very similar levels despite some having preferences revealed that would give them an advantage. On Aya's part, her love for those delicious Tiger Hot Dogs (wink wink, nudge nudge) was only revealed recently, so it hasn't had much effect on her levels. At the same time, Aya probably stands in the middle when it comes to being demanding or mostly ambivalent towards Okuu's Look-alike's generosity. I sense that, powered by those wondrous Tiger Hot Dogs, she may surge ahead in the rankings in the future - but it would only be rather far in the future at that.

Aya Shameimaru is the consummate investigative reporter. She's cheeky, nosy, and will poke her camera into just about any nook and cranny in order to dig up the dirt about her fellow islanders, and with her speed, it's near impossible to avoid her. Inquisitive and chatty, she'll also needle you every now and then with her requests - which you'd best grant to avoid a bad rap in the next issue of her newspaper. 

In exchange for all that, though, Aya is the life of the party, bound to brighten up any situation in which she appears. And, given that she's honour-bound by her code of journalism to investigate every new happening around her, she will be there not just to record the news, but to make the news. Aya Shameimaru, pure and honest reporter, at your service. Subscribe to Bunbunmaru News tod-

*is slapped in the face with a heavy placard prohibiting the soliciting of newspaper subscriptions, courtesy of Reimu Hakurei*

I'd rather give her a Fez to resemble her tokin hat, but I don't have it yet! I'm sure this Beret is arty enough though!

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 26th February 2015

Island Updates (Population 60)

Please welcome Mokou Fujiwara, the newest resident of Gensokyo Island! She is a Confident Adventurer.

Traveller Updates

Justine, daughter of Chiyo Mihama and Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, wrote back from Maten Island! She has visited 2 islands so far.

Children

Michiko, daughter of Chiyo Mihama and Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, grew up. She was made to leave Gensokyo Island and become a traveller!

Armin Arlert announced that his wife Recette Lemongrass was pregnant with their fourth child!

AKA AKB48 with AK47s

So... we did it? Are we really in the future now? Miss Shameimaru, did I really run fast enough? 

Hmm, let's see... I'm now 48 hours in the future! And we started this time travel training... 48 hours ago. This is a pretty huge letdown. What do you mean we're recording now? But I'm tired...

Cough... ahem. Sorry about that. It's Toritori here, and I apologise for being out of the loop for quite some time thanks to a certain questionable training regimen that my boss Aya Shameimaru tried to put me though. All for catching the target of today's interview, she said, but it turned out to not be necessary after all. And if someone is travelling through time at one second per second, it's completely unitless, isn't it?

Miss Shameimaru, can you imagine what people must have been thinking seeing me dashing madcap around the island while you hitting me with that feather fan? You didn't make me run around just so you could have someone to hit, did you? What do you suppose those guys on the boat which pulled up at the port today from Sayasaya Island would have been thinking about that?

Sayasaya no schooner departs with Kenji, who should really have been called Kenichi but I had a brain lapse.

No, the appearance of a new passenger boat is not proof of having "successfully accomplished time travel", whatever your archives might say about what Okuu's Look-alike had once done. And pretty much nothing you can say can make me believe the rumours that she's about to pull it off again in response to the overcrowding at the docks.  It's not like the boat which took Kenji, son and only child of Youmu Konpaku and Drake Kitazawa, was some kind of futuristic autonomous device manned by robots or something. Oh, actually it was, but that still doesn't prove anything about time travel!

And now you're telling me that children having grown up on Gensokyo Island is proof of time travel? But children grow up all the time, don't they? And how is the fact that they grow up so fast some kind of proof that we're in the future? Next thing you're going to tell me that you're really over 1000 years old just like Miko Toyosatomimi. No, having a long nose and the ability to run really fast while wearing silly shoes doesn't prove that you're a 1000-year-old Japanese tree goblin or something.

Second-generation islanders get to work populating Gensokyo Island with more firecrackers, a literal population explosion by baby boomers.

Unyuho Morichika and Berthold Gregor packed their daughter Gloriana off to become a traveller today despite her being their first child. It's quite remarkable (by how galling it is) that Okuu's Look-alike decided to boot her look-alike's first grandchild off the island like this, but I feel that the islanders are already pretty acquainted to Okuu's Look-alike's heartless, callous ways. I most definitely felt those remarks about having a "funny shrunken face" and "the inevitable result of breeding realistic characters with cartoony ones" were rather uncalled for.

In the meantime, Tia Arlert and Tadakichi Mihama decided to give the child-rearing game another shot after the departure of their first child, their son Yves. However, I don't think they have much of a chance, as Okuu's Look-alike was heard snarking about how it's "probably gonna be another Designer" and whether they should call their kid "something like Louis or Salvatore... hmm... actually someone called Salvatore with an interesting personality might be a good idea...". Oh, so it seems hope isn't lost for the pair after all!

This entire island seems to treat kids like their chew toys, and I can't say I'm exactly thrilled with that, being a kid myself! I mean, making me run around the island like that, it isn't April Fools' Day yet, you know! Next thing she'll be asking me to catch the wild haggis or something. Everyone knows they only live in Scotland, not on some island out here!

Yes. And SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!!!

It's a good thing there's one kid out there on this island who won't put up with all this nonsense that adults throw down on them, and it just so happens that she's the subject of today's special report. Sure, she's usually playful and loopy most of the time, but behind that smile lies a dark past, and once she gets serious not even tanks or a whole platoon of robotic soldiers can stand in her way. Please meet Gensokyo Island's resident pure-blooded Valkyria, Aliasse Foerster!

Aliasse Foerster

All information correct as of 25 February 2015

Aliasse (all the way at the back, with the blue hair and silly hat) chilling with her Touhou Project chums from the third floor.

Name: Aliasse Foerster

Nickname: Aliasse (haha, such wit.)

Date of Birth: 31st August 2003

Personality: Outgoing Trendsetter

Favourite Colour: Light Blue

Quotation: "Here I come!!!"

Aliasse is a supporting character from the PSP game Valkyria Chronicles II by SEGA. She is a young girl who was discovered to have the eponymous superhuman Valkyria powers at a young age, and used as a test subject and living weapon by an unscrupulous researcher named Clementia Foerster, whom Aliasse regarded as a mother figure. Initially hostile and unsocialised, after meeting the main cast on the grounds of Lanseal Military Academy, Aliasse slowly learned the meaning of friendship and love (and how her 'mother' lacked any of these things) and eventually joined the team to fight against the villainy of bad guys like Baldren Gassenarl and his cronies.

Apart from her superhuman Valkyria powers, which grant her an extraordinary rate of healing and the ability to use ancient superweapons (in cutscenes only, haha), she's also a crack shot with a rifle despite her age, probably due to her powers and her training as a living weapon. However, outside the battlefield she's a lively, playful girl, albeit one with somewhat liberal attitudes towards the regulation school uniform, who's also an aspiring garderner and always looks out for and seeks to protect her friends. However, her overarching attribute is her cheerfulness, which she exhibits just about everywhere, in everyday life or on the battlefield. 

Yes, at times this makes her come off as a creepy, psychologically broken, wildly savage child soldier, and that was probably the intention. However, I personally believe she redeems herself by being genuinely good at heart (and that 'creepy child soldier' accusation could be levelled at plenty of the Valkyria series' cast, anyway). She's just so complex, and yet so loveable, and she's really vulnerable despite having a story-only superpowered side, that she's probably one of my top five favourite characters in the entire Valkyria Chronicles series as a whole. 

That's why she's here on Gensokyo Island, together with that nutter Baldren. I know she's also a non-canon playable character in Valkyria Chronicles III like Baldren, but unlike him, I felt that her appearance (both in the sense of showing up as a bonus character, and her looks) didn't contribute anything to her characterisation. It's telling that the Aliasse that we see here on Gensokyo Island is a genuinely friendly person though she's permanently hyper on Hot Chocolate, and bears only good intentions despite most likely being not entirely mentally stable.

Aliasse's smile is positively radiant - coupled with those psycho staring eyes, her looks could kill!

Husband: Minamitsu Murasa

Best Friend: Aya Shameimaru

Children: Drake, Mitsuko, Chester

You ain't seen nothin' till you've met a couple comprising a happy-go-lucky superhuman child soldier with blue hair and a vengeful ghost sea captain who sinks ships and preaches Buddhism. It's also interesting how Aliasse and Minamitsu Murasa have the exact opposite personality (Outgoing Trendsetter and Independent Thinker). So theoretically, according to Tomodachi Life's RNG which determines that people with opposite personalities have the lowest chance of getting together, and the highest chance of lowering their relationships... they are dead in the water.

Well, Aliasse and Murasa (and I!) would like to give you a big fat screw you. Sure, their relationship has had its rocky moments but it shall not founder on the stony reefs of fate as long as I'm keeping a lookout. And three happy, relatively normal children can attest to that. I feel that they have a similar dynamic to the pairing of Marisa Kirisame and Miko Toyosatomimi.- the wife is crazy, zany, probably unstable, but brings joy and life to the family, while the husband is a lighthouse of stability that keeps things level-headed while giving room for the significant other to express herself. And is also actually a girl.

As for Aliasse and Aya Shameimaru, well, it should be pretty obvious. They're both nutty, off their rocker, and enjoy zipping everywhere at high speed screaming their catchphrase wildly. You know that little airplane game Miis like to play in each others' apartments? Imagine that same thing, except ten times faster and ten times louder, too.

Aliasse listens, wild-eyed, at a traveller's strange and crazy stories. It's just her kind of thing, too!

Food Preferences:

All-Time Favourite: Hot Chocolate

Worst: Tap Water

Okuu's Look-alike Rating - Hot Chocolate: Love! Tell me, which nutcase would turn down a (preferably free) steaming cup of lovely cocoa? Well, someone on a diet, I guess, but you'd have to be nutty to be on a diet with so much lovely food in this world. And maybe someone with lactose intolerance. That can't be helped, I suppose. But it's like Chocolate! Except you drink it! Swoon!!!

Song Participation:

Gotta Slay 'em All, Rap, backup dancer for The Recon Corps

Just as Overlord Laharl and Overlord Mao are paired together in their dance, so too are Aliasse Foerster and Recette Lemongrass, two innocent but cheeky young girls with a permanently sunny disposition. I'd bet Aliasse would make a pretty good titan slayer too, given her training with weapons and natural dexterity, though no one in Attack on Titan ever kills a titan while wearing a smile on their face. Yeah, it's that kind of show.

 Aliasse lays the smackdown on Reimu Hakurei where it hurts - the belt line. But Reimu's riposte is up to scratch. What's ZUN doing on that side?

Apartment: Apt. 305

Islander Rating: High Tier

It probably doesn't merit repeating, but somehow all the islanders from the third batch (that is, the third floor) I've reviewed so far all have very similar levels despite having different factors which could positively or negatively influence their probable ranking. In Aliasse's case, she has similarities to Overlord Mao in that she has a known All-Time Favourite food, but she just doesn't demand very much at all, and so it balances out with the other islanders who don't yet have a known favourite food but are extremely demanding in exchange. 

I guess I'm happy that these islanders have very similar levels, since they've been on the island for the same amount of time, although higher levels are better, of course, and I don't hold any biases against those in the earlier batches who stand out above their peers. Tall poppy syndrome on Gensokyo Island is a big no-no... because inequality is the norm here as in life, right?

Aliasse demands relatively little among islanders, but that doesn't mean she's an invisible wallflower who blends into the background - not at all! In fact, she can be found wandering pretty much everywhere, as well as barrelling into other people's apartments and homes, or spending quality time with her honey Minamitsu Murasa. It's like she's rarely ever at home unless she has a whole posse of her friends with her. Y'know, that might be why the attention flag is rarely ever lit over her apartment - she's just too busy enjoying her freedom and the company of her friends.

Aliasse is a person who's wild at heart and erratic in her actions, while valuing making and nurturing friendships above all else. Even though she was trained as a child soldier and a remorseless killer, she's overcome her dark past and relishes her newfound freedom to discover herself and be what she really wants to be. And yet, the gunpowder of wilful childlike craziness remains within her, ready to be ignited by the prospect of fun... or Hot Chocolate. 

If your island needs someone who's a balance between being good-natured and exuberant, add Aliasse Foerster to your roster today. Just give her a good rifle, a command point, and her daily Hot Chocolate, and watch the fireworks show as she captures the flags of her fellow islanders.

Nothing in the shop really matches Aliasse's 'creative' school uniform from the game, so I made do with a comfy shirt. And just a shirt.

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 25th February 2015

Traveller Updates

A boat arrived from Sayasaya Island. Kenji departed.

Children

Gloriana, daughter of Unyuho Morichika and Berthold Gregor, grew up. She was made to leave Gensokyo Island and become a traveller!

Tia Arlert announced that she was pregnant with her and Tadakichi Mihama's second child!  

Weird Science!

Hey there, it's Kiba here. 

Y'know, it's really odd for me to say this but it's been slow going here at the newsdesk these past couple of days. We've seen Okuu's Look-alike popping in and out checking on the inmates... uh, residents of Gensokyo Island now and then but there hasn't been anything of particularly great importance flagged up recently.

Make a boring day more exciting - do squats when you talk to people! Oingo Boingo!

More curious still is the mysterious disappearance of my temporary boss Aya Shameimaru as well as Toritori, that girl also working at the newsdesk with me. Maybe they're working on some kind of big project, or maybe Aya's practicing running so fast that she can travel through time faster than one second per second. 

Hmm... I think it must be the project. Checking in today I found a couple of family photographs for today's extremely short update, and an interview all written up already. Toritori must have been burning the midnight oil on this one... or maybe that time travel thing actually worked. It's kind of weird, though, there are random splotches of ichor all over these interview notes. I'll get back to it once I've put these other pictures up.

 She looks so normal, it's almost a shame to send her off. You need kids like this, Reimu and ZUN.

Akiko, third daughter and sixth child of Utsuho Reiuji and Rinnosuke Morichika, was today officially kitted out as a traveller and sent on her merry way, though I doubt she'll be doing much travelling for quite some time considering the queue at the port. There wasn't a chance of her being invited to stay since her eldest sister Unyuho already took that spot, but other families could only watch enviously as what looked like a model child was sent off into the cruel wider world. 

When pressed for comment on this issue, Okuu's Look-alike could only ponder, "I guess there's a reason why real-life characters and fictional characters can't mix..." which was totally non-sequitur and irrelevant to the situation at hand. For that matter, Okuu's Look-alike is usually irrelevant to any situation at hand, it's just that she insists on butting into everything that goes on around here. Is she trying to say that cartoony, manga and anime-type characters don't really mix with characters of more realistic proportions and features? Clearly she hasn't been exposed to enough of the media that's going around right now.

 Now tell me whether I'm realistic-looking, or a cartoon. Not with those cat ears, no.

Apart from Akiko's departure, which concerned nearly no one apart from her parents, Gensokyo Island has been exceedingly quiet these couple of days, and that's good, because I'd much rather be whacking some pubbers over Defence of the League of Heroes III. In fact, it's been so boring, I hear islanders have been pulling funny faces at each other to lighten things up. 

If it's been scientifically demonstrated that it takes more muscles to frown than to smile, surely it should take even more to make a silly face, and doing so doesn't just feel good but also makes great exercise at the same time! I should've been a scientist, don't you think? But I'd never pull myself away from computer games... I'm... conducting research, that's right. Y'know, things like social psychology, horde mentality, zerg physiology ... ahem. 

Anyway, there's someone else on this island who shares my passion for gaming and comics, but also for knowing more about this world. The only reason why I haven't already become besties with him is that rumours that he's an incorrigible pervert... and he's also a demon. That person happens to be the subject of today's special report - It's Overlord Mao from Disgaea 3!

Overlord Mao

All information correct as of 24 February 2015

Mao tests the Face Ugliness Contortion Theory. It's a success!

Name: Overlord Mao

Nickname: Mao

Date of Birth: 31st January 2008

Personality: Outgoing Charmer

Favourite Colour: Black

Quotation: "Experiment!!!"
 

Overlord Mao is a young demon who's the main character of Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice by Nippon Ichi Software. He's on a quest to defeat his father the Overlord, who's also the Dean of Maritsu Evil Academy - the Netherworld being the Academy itself, both roles are essentially the same thing. As he works toward that end, he meets new friends vassals, opens his heart (literally...), and confronts the reason for his conflict with his dad. He's a mad scientist who's also obsessed with comic books and computer games, and his greatest claim to fame is being the academy's number one top honour student, which, in demon terms, means having absolutely zero attendance, never doing any homework, and indulging in all sorts of misdemeanours and other rotten pranks.

Mao is undeniably my favourite protagonist from the Disgaea series. Yes, this beats out the original main character Laharl, who would fall into third place behind Disgaea 4's Valvatorez (who won't appear on Gensokyo Island due to the difficulty of getting his Mii to love Sardines above all...). Anyway, Mao is hands down my favourite, most of it due to his totally crazy personality. He enjoys conducting "experiments" on anybody, even himself, and the crazed look he gets just thinking about all the lovely data, with glasses fogged over and drool trickling from his mouth - he's not known as a pervert for nothing! 
 

However, he's also a kid with some serious issues from his past, and while I won't spoil the plot a major point of character development is him finally overcoming these issues with the help of his friends.. While he doesn't become a nice guy (or even a nice guy in denial, like Laharl), he does learn to open up to his friends, though he maintains his crazy personality throughout. As such, on Gensokyo Island, although he's normally in his maniacal mad scientist self, he does have a surprisingly pensive side that can pop up from time to time.

Mao and Patchouli - partners in mad science. Also, those are two awesome photographs.
 

Wife: Patchouli Knowledge

Best Friend: Utsuho Reiuji, formerly Patchouli Knowledge, Archibald Aqua

Children: Carmilla
 

The story of Overlord Mao and Patchouli Knowledge's romance was already described under Patchouli's profile. Mao and Patchouli's only child, their daughter Carmilla, was actually the last child to leave the docks on a ship, and she has yet to reply, but for those wondering, she's named after a class of demon in the Disgaea series. With not all that much to say otherwise, in this space I'd like to keep to the spirit of mad science and put forward a crazy, totally untested hypothesis about the nature of 'best friends'.
 

I find it rather a coincidence that Mao's two best friends after Patchouli, Archibald Aqua and then Utsuho Reiuji, are both Outgoing Trendsetters. In contrast, Mao himself is an Outgoing Charmer. Interestingly, another person who has had both Okuu and Archie as best friends is Kyouko Kasodani, who is an Easygoing Softie. Does this mean that Outgoing Trendsetters are personalities that both Outgoing Charmers and Easygoing Softies can get along with? I know the sample size is small, but it's just curious as to how two characters effectively "swapped" best friends.
 

Also, one last titbit for the curious - no, Overlord Mao and Overlord Laharl do not like each other at all despite co-starring as dancers in two different songs. Two Overlords is one... actually, two overlords too many already. Let them slug it out and reduce each other to smoking craters!

Mao and Patchouli's daughter Carmilla... and yes, this is the first photo ever re-used on this blog.

Food Preferences:

All-Time Favourite: Red Chilli Pepper

Worst Ever: Spaghetti
 

Okuu's Look-alike Rating - Spaghetti: Really Like! I have a love-hate relationship with pasta as I sometimes think it's dull and dreary, and other times I have a craving for it. As for 'Spaghetti', surely the game should mean 'Spaghetti Bolognaise"? Because that's what the graphic looks like, anyway. I would most likely go for some spag bol anytime, even the cheap crappy supermarket versions, as long as I know what meat went into it and there are no mushrooms in there,

Song Participation:

Gotta Slay 'Em All, Rap, backup dancer for The Recon Corps

Too Much Water, Techno, backup dancer for Rogues' Gallery

Mao stars in the exact same two songs as Laharl and in the exact same roles, being just a dancer who dances... with his fellow overlord. Yes, it's called a theme. If there are going to be two characters dancing together it would probably make sense to have them related somehow. It's just too bad they hate each others' guts on the island.
 

Damn it, Mao, that's way too much information! Even if it's all a lie! Ew, yuck!!!
 

Apartment: Apt. 304

Islander Rating: High Tier 
 

Mao is another islander who's solidly well-placed for his tier - however, unlike Baldren, Yuuka, and Patchouli before him, Mao's ranking comes in spite of having a 1/4 fullness All-Time Favourite food. The thing is, Mao's probably so busy in his laboratory doing research on his mad science projects (and the usual online gaming and comic-reading) that he actually doesn't demand all that much and isn't terribly fussy in the slightest. Somehow, that seems awfully in-character for a pseudo-scientist like him to have extremely sloppy habits - he doesn't care on whom the experiments get done, as long as there are experiments at all.

That being said, it is an extremely nice surprise for him to be madly obsessed with the Red Chilli Pepper which is otherwise much dreaded by all Miis near and far. Again, it's also in-character for him as one scene in the game has him arguing with himself between hot sauce and shoyu/salt-and-pepper to go with his eggs, and it seems that he's made a choice. It's great having a convenient outlet for all those Red Chilli Peppers you get from the other islanders' dreams.

Mao is one of the weirdest 'villains' one could ever imagine in a game. Setting aside for now the sob story about his upbringing and his character development into a more mature person - all nasty video game characters have something like that now - he's just so crazy and nutty he's over the top. He's just as likely to blow something up as to whack it with a weapon, to force someone to be his vassal or conduct experiments on them, or to beat someone into submission or offer to replace their limbs with robotic enhancements. 
 

In terms of sheer craziness and randomness, he's the greatest character Nippon Ichi has ever created. Now, consider that the people most likely to enjoy Tomodachi Life are those who like craziness and randomness, and you have a perfect match on your hands. If you love Tomodachi Life, and you know anything about the Disgaea series, you need Overlord Mao and his madcap antics on your island right now! Don't even try to understand his intentions or he'll fix you up!

I'm still thinking of a better oufit for him, but this will do for now. Also, the extra goggles... they do nothing!

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 23rd February 2015
 

 I think I'll re-use this picture whenever there's really no special news at all for a certain day.

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 24th February 2015
 

Children

Akiko, daughter of Utsuho Reiuji and Rinnosuke Morichika, grew up. She was made to leave Gensokyo Island and become a traveller!
 

Gensokyo Gourmands

Baldren Gassenarl tried a Sports Drink today. It's his All-Time Favourite food! 

Meet the New Meat

Rather odd things have been happening around Gensokyo Island ever since the arrival of those two people who call themselves moon princess. And no, I swear, it doesn't just seem that way because I've suddenly sobered up after getting my account hacked. A true gamer has more than one, after all!. And I totally didn't give that old account to Toyohime Kirisame to get her to have a go at Kaguya Houraisan in real life. Nope, it wasn't me who did it. Cough.

It's actually totally in character for Kaguya and Toyohime. Coincidental that the RNG picked the two newest characters.

Gensokyo Island was abuzz with more news from the travelling frontier, as another one of its children returned to visit their parents. Whether it was an attempt to get together for the new year gone a little wrong I can't say, but all were glad to welcome Rinko, second daughter and third of Utsuho Reiuji and Rinnosuke Morichika's six children, who returned to the island for the first time in her travelling history.

No doubt she must be surprised to learn that things must have changed greatly since she left. I wonder what it's like to return home and having the first relative you meet being not your parents but your younger sibling, born after you were long gone and now waiting at the docks for someone to take them away on an adventure. It's almost like ... like that feeling when I look away from my game console and find that it's gone between day and night. It's something not unexpected, but jarring nonetheless. Or like the feeling their parents must experience when their child returns from a long journey more experienced than before. I think it's the latter.

In addition, that cheeky fellow Alexandre, son of Yuuka Kazami and Augustine Sycamore, wrote back again to let his folks know that he's left Yen's Island and gone back to Dubu Island again. Those two islands - it's what Toritori used to do before she decided to take a leap of faith and head here to Gensokyo Island, isn't it? They must have some regular ferry service going on there... Regardless, it seems he's doing well, and the islands' owners are taking care of him so good for him I guess. Unfortunately, it seems that the owner of Dubu Island isn't generous enough to grace him with the photograph of one of his islanders. At least he's still alive.

 Speaking of stinky fruit, what is that junk in the Exotic Cuisine supposed to be? It looks like it's given Alexandre some really nasty gas.

Also packed off today were two more of Gensokyo Island's children, Junpei, son and sixth child of Reimu Hakurei and Junya Ohta, as well as Phoebe, daughter and first child of Evil Spirit Mima and Gary Oak. We hit them up for an interview as part of our journalistic duties, and also to dig up more information about the impenetrable reasoning behind Okuu's Look-alike and her choice of children invited to stay on as residents.

It was sixth time, still unlucky for Reimu and ZUN, as they have yet to come up with the perfect child who would be able to match their less productive peers. It seems Okuu's Look-alike is hinting at preferring a daughter from the couple, maybe one that resembled her mother in appearance but perhaps a little sweeter. Or maybe a crazy drunkard with pink punk hair, it's hard to tell whether she was serious about that one. Regardless, it's back to the marital bed for the unhappy pair.

In contrast, Okuu's Look-alike had been inclining toward inviting Phoebe to stay on as a resident on Gensokyo Island but ultimately decided against it. When pressed for an explanation, she mumbled something about preferring a kid with darker, more ruffled hair. That's so minor... so nitpicky! Okuu's Look-alike reassured Mima and Gary that their daughter could be the very best like no one ever was ... albeit on another island somewhere else. Maybe she could go on and start a Pokémon Gym or beat the champion or something, who knows? I hope you're happy, Okuu's Look-alike, because your nitpicky nature has doomed another poor kid, cursed to become one with the deepest darkest ghosts of the abyss. Although that might not be all that bad...

 ZUN has distinctive features that really show in his kids' appearance. But I just didn't feel like adding someone like Phoebe right now...

While Toritori is off gathering materials for a, ahem, very important article, I shall be presenting the fruits of my own research at the next opportunity. So, stay tuned, and watch out for some of these living bombs... er, travellers from Gensokyo Island coming to a land near you!

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 21st February 2015

Traveller Updates

Alexandre, son of Yuuka Kazami and Augustine Sycamore, wrote back from Dubu Island! He has visited 3 islands so far.

Children
Michiko was born to Chiyo Mihama and Shikieiki Yamaxanadu. It's their fifth child! She is a Confident Designer.

BUNBUNMARU UPDATES, 22nd February 2015 

Traveller Updates

Rinko returned from Funabashi Island to visit her parents Utsuho Reiuji and Rinnosuke Morichika! She has visited 2 islands so far.

Children

Junpei, son of Reimu Hakurei and Junya Ohta, grew up. He was made to leave Gensokyo Island and become a traveller!

Phoebe, daughter of Evil Spirit Mima and Gary Oak, grew up. She was made to leave Gensokyo Island and become a traveller!