Love Interest: Ikezawa Hanako, the Otaku Exotic
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Mattie Brice picks a date from a visual novel and breaks down how they represent culture’s expression of sexuality. Today she talks about her time with Ikezawa Hanako from Four Leaf Studio’s Katawa Shoujo. Spoilers ahoy!
(Warning: There are NSFW images in this article.)
You’re a male student who has the pick of five high school girls with disabilities to date and sleep with. Yes, Katawa Shoujo has a sensationalist premise promising for something to go horribly wrong. The main character, Nakai Hisao, transfers to a private school that accommodates students with disabilities and health issues that require the need of an around the clock medical staff. As he wrestles with his disability and how that involves his identity, attractive girls with their own problems whom he can romance complicate things further. One of the story paths Hisao can take is to involve himself with Ikezawa Hanako, a burn victim with scars covering half her body, and crippling social anxiety as a result. There is a case for Hanako being the standard romance, or the one made in mind of the audience that would play this game, despite having the most unconventional look of all the romances.
There’s an ironic note of realism to Hisao’s reaction to others’ disabilities, which is to stare or fumble over talking about it. Hisao himself has little physical alteration in connection with his disability; unlike the girls he can date, he can pass as someone without any disabilities, reflecting his need to be “normal.” This also puts the player in a higher position over the romances, as they all have something obvious that sets them apart from other characters. There is a demarcation between the physical and mental aspects of having a disability in Katawa Shoujo, and with Hanako, her scarring under the male gaze becomes exotic, something you know you shouldn’t be looking at. Implicitly, the goal to see Hanako’s scarring slips into Hisao’s interactions with her, which, of course, would involve her removing her clothes. Her scarring replaces the sexual allure that people find in breasts, where looking at them directly without the person’s permission is rude, but the enticement of revealing them makes that person more attractive. When Hisao finally does see all of her scars, it’s just before they have sex and in an aesthetically attractive way instead of serious or macabre like the tone and effect of the memory has on Hanako. With its sexual connotation, the scars exotify Hanako. Without them, she would be a very typical Japanese schoolgirl who is extremely shy, tries to cook, hides in the library… Would anything be interesting about Hanako if it wasn’t for her accident? The mental side of her disability is actually emphasized traits of what we think of woman nerds: dislikes social interaction except with those who earn her affection, hypersensitive to her preferences of where they can go, and enjoying anything that makes them a relative shut-in. All wrapped in traditional Japanese beauty and given scarring to make her unique. Many of the other girls have personality quirks that involve their disability but don’t rely on it to make them unique. Hanako, on the other hand, enables the typical men’s fantasy traits; by rousing Hisao’s white knight tendencies and being an extreme stereotype of a geek or nerd, she is the most palatable choice for the typical consumer visual novels and dating sims. Having this social anxiety forces the player to invest their own protective tendencies, but in a way that won’t backlash at them. In a way, the player won’t feel their own social ineptitude or inability to read people to be a hindrance because Hanako is such an extreme case. The conclusion of her storyline is pretty telling; you can only get the perfect run through if you respect her independence and allow her to start doing things on her own without Hisao hovering over her. Because this is a fantasy, her new stake in autonomy happens right at the end of the game, so the player doesn’t have to experience a complicated relationship. Instead, Hanako provided the chase and the emotions of caretaking and resolved her character arc without disrupting these feelings. So when players look back at their time with Hanako, they will remember holding a glass figurine rather than the first step to being a woman she makes at the end of the game. It is a strange convention of these high school dating sims to end the game when the relationship officially starts, which is typically after a sex scene. Because players will remember the dutiful, quiet Hanako that provided sex because she wanted to be close, and not the potentially threatening social and secure Hanako that happens after the story’s end.
Know a visual novel with awesome love interests? Does your visual novel have awesome love interests? Leave a comment or contact me to suggest one! In the mean time, go date Hanako at Katawa Shoujo. |
As much as I enjoyed Hanako’s route, I wish that it was paced a lot quicker. Emi’s route managed to deal with the struggle of actually being in their relationship and Lilly’s went over a scope of time twice that of Hanako’s; after playing the rest of the game it felt so unbelievably short.
Reading the writer’s scrapped epilogue is sort of interesting, though:
http://cplcrud.wordpress.com/4ls-era-fanworks-and-scraps/a-runners-afternoon/
http://cplcrud.wordpress.com/4ls-era-fanworks-and-scraps/a-runners-afternoon-part-2/
This is a gross generalisation. Many people were curious how she’ll change when she opens and becomes more independent. Even more saw her through her interests and subtle personality hints (see the scene at the jazz club, for example) and not the borderline shyness and implied vulnerability.
And I seriously don’t know how little empathy you need to have NOT to see the obvious signs telegraphed throughout the entire route. I really liked this route, but seriously these generalisations just hurt.
That has got to be the most biased review I’ve ever seen in my life. It’s like you’ve ignored pretty much everyone person’s opinion of her, and made your own stereotype.
Do you see the review tag anywhere? Review in the title? It’s not a review. It’s a critical analysis of one character’s love arc in the game, and there’s nothing in the text to make it seem otherwise. Sounds like reading failure on your part.
It’s a bad and biased critical analysis then. It’s hinted throughout Hanako’s storyline that Hisao’s overprotective white-knight tendencies are a bad thing. That Hanako was convinced that she had to use sex to enable Hisao to see her as a woman instead of something that needs to be protected only supports this.
In addition, I doubt anyone would remember Hanako as a glass doll. Those who treated her as such got a heaping helping of the bad ending and were shown why treating a woman as such is a bad idea. Anyone who got the good ending learned how strong of a human being Hanako was and remembered her for that strength.
You have put forth no evidence that it is biased. At best you’re saying you disagree or that she’s wrong, which is not the same thing, if not debatable.
It is biased in that the author implies that the audience of this work (particularly men) are wholly incapable of empathy. Which is odd, because from any other serious discussion I have read, KS’s storylines make a very powerful point of proving that this is not the case (even, or perhaps especially, with men who would have agreed with the author beforehand).
I find this analysis little more than superficial criticism that disregards overwhelming evidence to the contrary (search for other reviews) and attempts to pigeonhole the target audience to fit a personal agenda.
But he just DID prove the bias.
He proved the author wrote this while disregarding what actually happened in the story.
If you want a further confirmation of bis, just look at the first paragraph.
>There is a case for Hanako being the standard romance, or the one made in mind of the audience that would play this game
assumes facts not in evidence!
“Because players will remember the dutiful, quiet Hanako that provided sex because she wanted to be close, and not the potentially threatening social and secure Hanako that happens after the story’s end.”
I disagree with this, and so will the hundreds of men who have also played this game. In fact, I would take great offence to the fact you think it’s a fantasy that I’m sexually attracted to burn scars, and I’d prefer my women submissive, and not “independent” (geez, I thought we were at a point in society where we’re starting to stamp our sexism). There was two points to this story, one was to make Hisao realise his disability is not something that can keep him down, and that the woman in front of him is a human being with her own imperfections like anyone else; a disability not being one of them. Seeing Hanako happy was a perfect ending. It’s what we all wanted; not some social recluse, but seeing a girl being able to spread her own wings, after the torment she suffered as a child. Instead of making brash judgements, try and speak to the people who have played this game. Over 90% will tell you the sex scenes did NOTHING for them. All they cared about was the story, and the character development. Many people I’ve talked to have cried from the endings, and some have even went as far as to say it was life changing (I obviously wouldn’t go that far, but whatever works for them).
What you’ve failed to see is the ‘romance’ and ‘sex’ aspect of this visual novel was simply a cover for a deep and thought-provoking story. This visual novel was meant to tell you that deep down, every human being is normal, no matter what is ‘wrong’ with them from society’s point of view. But what you’d rather tell us is that we’re sad freaks who have a fetish for burn victims, and this game is part of a larger conspiracy to put down feminism (a movement I’m a strong supporter of). You can delete this from your comments box if you so wish to, but I’m just putting my feelings on the plate here.
Well said James. It’s what I love about Hanako’s story in how it deconstructs the white knight trope and shows that patronizing and treating her as a broken bird is NOT what to do.
100% agree with James. I found her sex scene disquieting because I felt that even though she had said she was okay with it, that maybe the whole encounter was forced. It was when she explained that it was the only thing she could think to do to get Hisao to see her as someone to love and who loved him for a long time, that I bawled my eyes out. I actually thought her scars weren’t attractive, but at the end I realized that I didn’t care about them, but I cared about Hanako.
Actually, I found the ending to be the best part of the story. Don’t forget the protagonist had problems of his own to work out along the way as well. That they could both realize the mistakes they made with each other and yet, press on with a new understanding of one another was very touching.
Perhaps you would do well to realize that even men are capable of empathy. Or maybe I should start drawing my curtains to thwart the snipers…
lol at all the four chan basement dwellers white knighting their delicate under aged wiafu uguuu~ :333
That out of the way, I really enjoy these articles. Keep up the good work, Mattie.
Wow, you really are the worst kind of person, aren’t you? I suppose I should just troll you now, but I just pity you.
Have you played the game, Summers, or are you just eager to hassle the fans?
I have _not_ played the game, but reviews from people who have repeatedly point out again and again that ‘white knighting’ Hanako is exactly what the game is telling the player not to do. In fact, they use that very phrase!
Now, it’s possible that this approach backfires by trying to have its cake and eat it too. In fact, I have also read reviews of different visual novels featuring similarly shy hiding-one-eye girls that complained about how, at the end of the path, these girls always regain their confidence and change their hairstyle, thereby ceasing to be the shy fragile thing that attracted the fetishist player in the first place. Obviously, some people really DO want their broken birds to stay broken.
The real problem with this ‘analysis’ is that it is too cursory – it makes quick assumptions and doesn’t attempt to engage with the work or the larger standards of visual novels. It’s entirely unclear whether the author has ever spoken to a fan of these games.
The reviews available so far have been largely limited to free works written by a tiny subset of English fans. Sure, these are the easiest ones to get hold of for a newbie reviewer, but they’re also a bit like judging the current standard of film-making by watching original productions on Youtube. (Which is not to say that they’re not worthy of study! Of course they are. But over-generalising from extremely limited exposure is going to create confusion.)
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Yeah I wish Hanako’s story didn’t end so suddenly there as does. It would’ve been nice to see more of the relationship between her and Hisao after that.
You touch on some meritful points. The fact that Hanako’s ‘scars’ are easy to look past in a anime-style art portrayal is one of a substantial number of items (some which have been brought up in the official KS forums and elsewhere), in which have been subverted, to simplify and to make the events more conclusive to storytelling.
The game ending at that point …After that, one can conjecturize that ‘real life’ happened after that. Unglorified (not saying that the game itself was in anyway this; it was merely a single piece) real life. It surely could have been put in the game. It would been exceedingly difficulty to write (being so complex), as would any other notable reflection of reality. The ending certainty wouldn’t been so picturesque (although the writers could certainly try), and the story wouldn’t seem as encapsulating. I think it was just the producers’ decision. From the perspective of all the other routes, it wouldn’t have fit to put another section in. Beyond issues like that, a continuation could be convincingly written in the form of a fanfiction.
“So when players look back at their time with Hanako, they will remember holding a glass figurine rather than the first step to being a woman she makes at the end of the game.”
Iuuno. It’s dubious to state that you remember the latter, but it is equally so to assert with such finality that the former is true.
“Many of the other girls have personality quirks that involve their disability but don’t rely on it to make them unique.”
That is interesting. But…. I don’t know. All the characters have a relatively short span of gameplay time to develop and what be considered day to day events (not EVERYTHING can and should be pushing the plot), and it seems odd to single out Hanako just because of the lack of events and traits which break her out of a perceived archetype. I mean, might even be probable that that is the case, but then, so what? Its hard to imagine ALL the other girls’ skew of events each gave them what Hanako’s did not.
This has been brought up before, but please realize your very concrete stereotype of the typical visual novel player and other things. Just look at every usage of ‘typical’. How many of those are based in consensual fact.
“In a way, the player won’t feel their own social ineptitude or inability to read people to be a hindrance because Hanako is such an extreme case.” A player can have those social ineptitude and recognize that fact, and also recognize that the game portrayal may ‘hand wave’ things like that.
Fuck this post is the most awful babbling directionless response ever written. Since not many people will read it anyways and because of my overwhelming inability to be coherent I’ll just post this. Make of it what you will.
I can understand many of the things said for Hanako’s route, though I wouldn’t say at least for myself that I regard it as a “protecting crystal figurine” thing.
It all depends on your perspective. I wasn’t allured at all by Hanako. I don’t find ubernerdy/shy types attractive at all and IRL I like strong women -i.e. the most attractive to me was Shizune-. In fact, the only part of the story when I could feel some sort of connection with Hanako’s character was when I started to realize how pissed off she was about being considered a helpless broken girl.
Since Katawa Shoujo doesn’t reward being a white knight (and unleashing Hanako’s rage), I wouldn’t say the analysis from this article is accurate in its final part. I doubt anyone watching Hanako go mad at you in the bad ending will forget and think of her as some broken toy.
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I played Katawa Shôjo. And I’ll admit Hanako picked my interest partly because of protective instincts. Somehow, I’d always felt I would love to have a girlfriend who wanted to share her inner an secret world with me more than with anyone else. The two of us being in a separate and warm world, trusting and caring for the other as if that was the only existing thing. I would embrace her and make sure she’s happy, and that would be enough for me to be happy. If it happents that the girl is so similar to me as Hanako is, then it’s only logical I “fell in love” with her.
But the story changed some important things to me. I understand why you say the players will remember the crystal Hanako instead of the stronger one, because Hanako only made a step at the very end. But I think the fact that Hanako wanted more independence, and to prove herself a worthy human being, was something present in all the arc. She never really opened to Hisao nor Lilly in all of it. Hisao says so at the end of the arc. Hanako won’t open to anyone who only sees her as a broken doll to take care of. Hanako hated the only reason people would approach her was to care for her weakness. She wanted someone to love her not because she needed help, but because of her particular virtues as a person. She wanted the other to believe in her strength, to treat her as an equal.
That’s why I particularly love the end of the arc more tha all the arc itself. I learned a very important lesson: the best way to help someone with self esteem problems is not to overly care for him/her, but to prove them they can stand in their own, and that you recognize his/her virtues. You said Hanako is not interesting if you don’t take her scarrings and her parts in consideration, but I don’t agree. Hanako is not similar to me only because she’s not the super social type herself (I’m not either, but I’m able to socialice well enough, I’m not the “typical geek who understands nothing about people minds”), but because she was, right from the start, a girl who prefers calm and familiar meetings, who enjoys life just playing chess and talking with her beloved ones without any need of innecesary complications. She says so in the game, something like how before the fire incident she had little friends, but treasured them a lot. Also, I like her, because she is a modest and nice girl, with absolutely no malice, no superficially traits… a girl who really values little things, the details which make life nice. That is shown with how she values the shared chess games, shared book reading, shared little walks to the town. She’s not materialist, like a lot of girls. She doesn’t overestimats things like social status, like a lot of girls also do. If you’re a nice person, that can be enough for her to like you as her friend, or as her boyfriend. She doesn’t need anymore.
If I meet a real Hanako someday in my leaf…. I will be warned beforehand. I won’t overprotect her, and I’ll try to know her more to see if she’s a girl I would fall in love with, because of her particular virtues, not for her need for help. Also, I would love to see that Hanako-like girl to become a more independent and confident woman. That would be like see a flower bloom. Just like Hanako does, because “hana” means flower in Japanase, and I think she’s the most beautiful of flowers, and that her beauty will exponentially increase when she learns to love herself. People say so, isn’t it? The first step to become truy loveable is to love yourself.
Well… Sorry if I kept so much of your time. Also, I’ve to say English is not my maternal language, so excuse me if I made some expression, vocabulary or syntactic mistakes.
Victor, what you have said is beautiful.
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