Hello!! I'm a huge fan of your older shenmue art! I'm here to ask...
What is your shenmue hot take??💕
Thank yooooou💖 I keep trying to make newer Shenmue art but I am the slowest artist in the world it seems... hopefully something soon, actually I was opening up my art file when I saw this ask LOL. BTW I love your art your style is so cool!! Thanks for sharing your fantastic art here.
Do I have a hot take? I wonder, well I have Opinions so I will ramble a bit about them here so I hope that's okay. These may not count as hot takes but they are what they are 😆
Ren - I do think he genuinely likes Ryo at this point, at first it was about the mutual benefit to working together for sure but now I think Ren just does like hanging around with him. I had been thinking that after the excitement of everything that went on with Ryo in Hong Kong and Kowloon, heading back home after Ryo left for Guilin left Ren feeling bored. So despite the dangers, I think Ren did have fun doing all that stuff with Ryo and that's why he headed off after him again. But saying it's for the treasure is a good cover for his tough guy image. I was also thinking how Ren's other relationships, with the exception of Joy, are all the other Heavens members who look up to him as their leader but it kind of puts him on a different level to them I think, like a degree of separation. Joy's the only exception to this (it'll be interesting if we ever learn how those two become friends), so I think Ryo is interesting to Ren in that way because this is someone else who isn't like subservient to him (for lack of a better word, just thinking about the gang hierarchy), and someone who Ren has to earn Ryo's attention in a way. Ryo treats him more on an equal footing (when they're getting along better anyway) and I think Ren doesn't get much of that usually, this is someone who can be his genuine friend without extra expectations.
On a separate note I'm looking forward to Ren and Shenhua getting to know each other... they're both so different I want to see how they'll get along. There needs to be party banter between those two and Ryo in the next game.
Also.... I still think Ziming is one of the 4 leaders of the Chi You Men, even though it's been said he's not? But like he's in that image?? 😆I don't know if this is a hot take or a delusion... 😆
I think we will learn Iwao was at least marginally involved in some shady shit.
Oh yeah, and I think Tadashi Hama and Yoshihide Hatanaka, two of the Mad Angels, are a couple. There's something in Tadashi's character profile about him being the only person who can handle Yoshihide's nature... I think I am the only person on the planet who has come to this conclusion.
These were probably luke-warm but it's some opinions anyway, thanks for giving me an excuse to ramble a bit about Shenmue! Please tell me some ramblings too if you (or anyone else) like!