NASA
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Jules of Nature
Cosimo Galluzzi
Misplaced Lens Cap
dirt enthusiast
Stranger Things
noise dept.
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izzy's playlists!
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trying on a metaphor
oozey mess
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we're not kids anymore.
Today's Document
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@tinelifa
D.Gray-man Volume 29 Omake
Hiya, here's some omake from Volume 29! These are pages in between chapters, some special thanks and an author's note.
Usually Jeidafei would translate and edit these solo, but we've decided to scanlate it this time ^^ you can find past translations on @jeidafei's blog, she's translated other extras such as Komui's Lounges too!
(Credits: Jeidafei, Maoujestic, Palyeon)
Aaaand the last one. I promise
Guys. Guys.. It turns out that Lavi isn't Lavi anymore, he's just a Bookman 😭
It's a strange feeling, knowing that you've been thinking for a decade that a character is alive, only to realize in a single chapter that they haven't survived
Good bye, Panda😔 You raised a beautiful Rabbit
The Dark Boots' Evolution as a Metaphor for Menstruation, aka the End of Lenalee's Girlhood
I mean, the way the first panel's arrangement really says everything that needs to be said. Everyone's reactions to it - Lenalee's pain, Komui's panic over the uncontrollable blood flow, Hevlaska's worry and Lvellie's only concern being how this might affect the fight - are also very telling.
But let's look at everything leading up to this moment and the conflict among the main authorities of Order, aka Lenalee's home, caused by the Innocence evolving, shall we?
There's Lvellie, the highest authority figure of the Order we have seen thus far, and Lenalee's biggest nightmare. He literally shows up to tear Lenalee away from the Head Nurse's side, and the Head Nurse, despite wanting to protect Lenalee, literally lacks the authority to do so.
Lvellie is the epitome of patriarchy, the so-called "man of the house". His entire family built their influence through their girls, and only the girls, being sacrificed as saints.
Patriarchy sees the girls born into the family as burdens, as extra mouths to feed until they are given away, and the only value the girl has to the family is what the act of giving her away can bring into the family - aka the position of authority in Central that the Lvellies received in return for their sacrifices.
Menstruation is an inevitable part of growing up for most girls. Culturally speaking, it is seen as the first step of transition from girlhood to womanhood - in the 19th century time period dgm is set in, this notion would have only been more prevalent, and though it is unfair for them to mature so early on, girls were expected to leave their girlhood behind with their first period. Lvellie is literally pushing for Lenalee to grow up too fast to exploit her and further his own cause of winning the war.
Then there's Hevlaska. She is the Accommodator of the Cube, presumably the first saint that was sacrificed. She is the first victim of the Lvellie family, and over the years she has completely been absorbed into the Order as a tool for its corruption, a victim turned perpetrator. Under the family's orders, she has ultimately become complicit in a system inflicting the same fate onto other girls like herself, even if she is reluctant and opposed to it. She does warn Komui about what Lvellie is trying to do, but at the same time she ends up succumbing to Lvellie's demands even though it might prove fatal for Lenalee.
Finally, there's Komui, Lenalee's older brother. The second highest authority figure. The younger man with progressive values who seeks to protect his sister, and yet lacks the authority to overturn Lvellie's decisions. He is the only one opposing the forceful synchronisation until the very end.
Komui's reactions to Lenalee marrying are played as a gag, but there's a deeper reason for this - he wants to protect Lenalee, and that's why he doesn't want her to grow up. If she grows up, she will no longer be by his side where he can protect her. The last time she was taken from him, she ended up restrained to a bed with bloodied fingernails and a scratched face. So, his reluctance is understandable - but!
Lenalee is no longer the girl tied to her bed, she says so herself! Growing up is inevitable (the Innocence's evolution is inevitable now that the Akuma have evolved), regardless of whether people try to stop her or force her into it. The attempt of forcefully putting the Innocence into Lenalee's body fails spectacularly, but so does the attempt of keeping her away from the Innocence. Ultimately Lenalee is the one who gets to embrace the evolution on her own terms and without completely being severed from her only family's side, and most importantly:
She could not have done this without the support she received as a child. She could not have said farewell to the little girl she used to be without it.
Extremely valid way to interpret it, considering how coming of age unfortunately went hand in hand with marriage for girls, and how Lenalee literally promises herself to the Innocence, and how she wants Komui, her eldest and only living relative, to "see her off" while doing so. Also, everything about this scene:
What's really interesting to me is how Lenalee manages to negotiate a condition allowing her eventual return to her natal family, which would've been nigh impossible for most girls once they were married off, despite their best wishes. Now, whether her end of the bargain will hold up at the end of the story, I couldn't say. If it does - more power to you, girl! If it doesn't - subtle foreshadowing?
Also interesting is how marriage to god can be technically considered as sainthood... Exorcists are already considered priests and disciples of god, yes, but Lenalee's case in particular once again strongly reminds me of the girls of the Lvellie family.
Crow's invitation
To be a part of life.
COLORINGS FOR THE BIRTHDAY BUNNY BOI EVER!! YIPPIEEEE
Hello everyone!!! I have a post-Holy War Lavi theory in the works speaking on Lavi’s narrative, how his destiny within the Bookman clan will end up, dissecting Past!Lavi and his legacy, and finally how the ever-persistent “gray” morality theme fits into it all. I have not seen this take before, so I apologize if this had already been explored. This will be Part I. It will contain spoilers up to chapter 254 of D.Gray-Man.
The theory I have is as follows:
Current Lavi, as we know him now, will not be physically following in Past!Lavi’s steps— as in, he will not deviate from his Bookman lineage. But I believe Lavi will follow in the footsteps of his predecessor in spirit.
Well, why not? What does that mean ‘in spirit’? What I believe will unfold in the story will be exactly as we’re told: Lavi will become the next Bookman. My theory takes it a step further— not only will Lavi become the leader of the Bookman clan as he has been destined to, but taking his destiny (in combination with the series “gray” morality theme and Past!Lavi’s legacy) will build towards him reforming the Bookman tenets on neutrality all together.
Let me go piece by piece.
On the first note of “not deviating from his Bookman lineage”: Lavi has expressed he doesn’t see himself as anything other than a Bookman in two (2) separate Discussion Rooms. While of course this is not definitive proof, Hoshino has noted she uses these in-betweens for foreshadowing. What is interesting is that she keeps this framing of “wanting to stay a Bookman” consistent for Lavi between the first time its brought up (first image, volume 7) and the second time it’s brought up (second image, volume 26.). He even mentions how he likes his job too.
"LAVI: (when asked if they weren't exorcists what would they be?) I'd be a Bookman. I have no interest in being anything else." "LAVI: (When asked if they had jobs in the real world what would they be) Hmm... I don't feel like being anything but a Bookman."
That’s a 10 year difference between these two extras. A lot of things have changed, but certainly not this answer from Hoshino. If these examples are still too indirect, I then offer the most recent piece of evidence coming from chapter 253. Here, we see Past!Lavi's soul merging with Past!Allen, and he speaks on the birth of the next Bookman Jr. Past!Lavi's role in the story exists as the Mentor / Guide archetype. We see his words act as a source of reassurance and divine guidance. The narrative asks us to trust his words, his intentions, his knowledge. And we do. Given the panel below, I find no other stronger moment to imply Lavi's destiny.
To further discuss how Lavi will, in spirit, follow in his predecessor's footsteps, we must understand the choices Past!Lavi himself made and the legacy he leaves behind. We see in chapter 252 Past!Lavi explaining to Past!Allen about his crisis of philosophy. Past!Lavi asked himself these deep, introspective questions about his purpose.
"The duty of Bookman I must inherit— the wars that refuse to be gone from this world— what meaning is there, I wonder? In religiously remaining a bystander? Recording countless tragedies, on and on."
Past!Lavi abandoned the clan to follow Nea, who had a mission so strong it was enough to rival his indoctrination and destined rise to seniority. He admonished himself for doing nothing while knowing "the truth", and sought out to become Nea's host. Unfortunately, he did not make it to Nea in time before he died. He then swore to protect Past!Allen with his life— for which he fulfilled his promise. Arguably he also prevented Lavi from “crossing over” too early when he was shot as a child (Chapter 253.5) and saved him there too.
So, all in all, his actions show he had:
The will to change (questioning the Bookman mission)
A direction to heel-turn towards (Nea)
A mission greater than himself to fulfill (protecting Nea's host, Allen.)
What I also find equally important to note are the ways Past!Lavi didn't act that influences his legacy as well. We see just how his choices have profound impact on the story, but considering his background as a Bookman we learn there is narrative weight in the choice of inaction. (I will be discussing my thoughts on these two points in future posts as I have a lot more to say)
What Past!Lavi's inaction also says about his legacy:
While Past!Lavi questioned the Bookman clan and their mission, his crisis of philosophy centered around "what meaning is there in being a bystander?" and not "why do we continue to be bystanders?" While they may seem to be the same question, they are distinct. When he realized he was a cog, he left the machine— but didn't challenge the machine's mode of operation. He, in fact, believed in the operation enough he was confident the next Junior would succeed him and become the true heir.
There is one thread in Past!Lavi's story that's currently left unresolved: his relationship with his father, Bookman. We see Past!Allen plead with him as they're dying to live because there was someone he wants to have listen to him still. At this declaration Past!Lavi sheds tears at the memory of his father. A conversation left unfulfilled, a fractured relationship.
We now see the ripples from these two points slowly leak into the narrative the more we learn about the Bookman clan. I will say, the impact of the first point remains the most speculative. I would argue his choice to question the "what" instead of the "why" of his clan's mode of operation implies it's not something he wanted to challenge in the first place. I will later be comparing it against Lavi's own moment of crisis on the ark and his crisis centers on the "why" in my part II. As for the second point, We most recently see how this "attachment" has impacted Bookman himself. In chapter 254, Bookman knows his son's energy resides within the helix of life. In a rather undisciplined train of thought, he is reminded of his son in this moment snow falls. Their fractured relationship persists in Bookman's mind even after all these years. That does beg the question: how often is he afflicted with these thoughts? Does he, too, struggle with the very same tenets he preaches? To this, I will be speaking more to the point about the "gray" morality theme in my part III.
"No, this won't do... My thoughts keep straying to the helix first... Simply from thinking you're there, as part of it..." [He looks at the silvery snow... and instead sees his son.]
To conclude this first part, I've attempted to summarize the importance of Past!Lavi's legacy in hopes of laying the ground work and providing context to explain my theory: why I believe Lavi will transform the Bookman clan by the end of the series. In my next post I will be speaking on Lavi's position as the current heir and provide further reasoning as to why he won't be leaving the clan like his predecessor anytime soon.
If you read this far, thank you! Please let me know what you think and if I missed anything. If you have questions please bear with me as I'm still writing and editing the other parts, it was simply too long to include in a single post!
Baby Lavi my beloved
(lukas) having a normal one over here folks THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS ARE DRIVING ME INSANEEEEEEEEE
like the idea of allen remembering lavi even after apo messes with his memories......... the warmth of him in his arms......... the memory of love.......... and later allen holds lavi the same way to try and bring him back....... the way past!lavi is the light to allen who then becomes the light to lavi who falls for him just as hard as allen fell for the previous lavi makes me INSANEEEEEEEEEEEEE
Give me back my heart, you wingless thing
(lyrics from “The Horror and the Wild” by The Amazing Devil)
The burden of unforgivable sin
It's now mine forever
something something kurofai
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle; a summary
Man exiled for too much murder unwittingly adopts an amnesiac, a test tube baby, and a talking stress ball and raises them with his newly acquired magical male wife with Issues™.
