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[chip-off-le-ol-block]

You can read more about how fan-demand brought about not only more male nendoroids, but also a completely new brand named ORANGE ROUGE specifically to make male characters! This has happened on multiple occasions, every email counts. We've gotten almost 30 emails from around the world sent! Just about 20 more to make a HUGE statement to Good Smile Company! Let's keep going!!! Thank you so much for reading!

[apricotsushi]

I’m now on Patreon! Support my work at Chic Pixel for as little as $1/month and gain access to tons of behind-the-scenes updates about what I’m currently working on, and more! 

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Anne Lee (@apricotsushi) was kind enough to interview me & run a feature on Hotblood! over at her blog, Chic Pixel! I talk about centaurs and fandom inspiration––definitely give it a read!! 

[dropintomanga]

The Vampires of GANTZ - A Possible Look at "Emotional Vampires"?

Have you ever thought about what it's like to be a vampire? What if I told you that there are people that there are vampires out there and you could be one too? No, I'm not talking about those crazy people that try to be real-life vampires by drinking blood, but those who put a mental strain on others relationship-wise. The crazy world of Hiroya Oku's GANTZ has been known to freak readers out with its violence and monstrous aliens. Midway through the series, things took an interesting turn as Oku introduced the Vampires, a group of individuals whose existence is to make the Gantz players' lives a living hell. While not true "vampires", the Vampires in this series reflect the desires of those who want to drain your life emotionally. In essence, we can all be "vampires". 

So, are human beings "vampires"? When asked about the creation of the Vampires in an old interview, Hiroya Oku said he wanted human enemies and that the "vampire" character exists naturally. Does he see people as "vampires" that walk the earth? Maybe not physically, but perhaps emotionally. Emotional vampires are people that you could consider to be the "toxic friend", "Debbie Downer", etc. There's actually a book about them out.

When you look at the Vampires, they seem to be the type of people that want to control you. The main goal of the Vampires is to take revenge on the Gantz players for killing aliens. They believe that they are right and will resort to any means necessary to attack anyone related to Gantz at any time (regardless of whether or not the players enjoy killing the aliens). What's interesting is that later on, two of the Vampires become part of the Gantz game and go to Osaka for a mission. They tried to ally with the aliens they were facing, only to be double-crossed by them. After the end of the mission, the two Vampires developed second thoughts on killing our heroes.

Maybe that's the premise behind the Vampires. It's their emotions that make them "vampires". Perhaps they realize their actions are wrong. In reality, that's the key to not becoming an emotional vampire. How do we see that our negative actions are draining others? Do we need to step into their perspective and experience the same negativity they face? 

Sometimes, whether we like it or not, the dreaded (sun)light needs to shine right upon us. It will burn, but whatever doesn't kill us will make us stronger. 

This post is part of the Vampire Manga Movable Feast hosted by Chic Pixel.