We need to talk about Misao

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We need to talk about Misao

Post by takenoko »

So I've been thinking about this. Why can't I get into Misao's character? What is he doing that is so unforgivable?

I like some weak spirited characters. Like Ryoutarou from Den-O. Some people found him annoying, I thought he was interesting and different and not annoying. I do find Misao annoying.

But not all weak spirited characters. I found Wataru from Kiva extremely annoying.

Let's analyze this a bit.

Let's first ask if Misao is being written properly. Is he supposed to be annoying to his fellow characters? Definitely, so that part is intentional. Is he supposed to be annoying to the audience? Maybe, but I get the impression that he's supposed to be adorably pathetic in a way that the audience will forgive his flaws. So partial credits on that front, since I don't find him breaking down in battle to be amusing. It interrupts the drama and defuses any tenseness that was in the scene.

So is Misao supposed to be a dramatic character? Are we supposed to see his plight and see his struggles as he tries to overcome his character flaws? I get the impression that's how we're supposed to find Wataru from Kiva, but I'm not sensing that here. I think Misao might overcome his problems in the end, but up until that point, he's a joke character. And his joke is stale. I think he's supposed to be funny, but he's just not. I've definitely seen self-depreciating humor done well, but not from Komura Junko's writing. I think Shinji from Evangelion might be a good example of such a character, but I haven't seen the show since I was a teenager, so maybe I have a bias there.

The other thing that bothers me is that he's not a cohesive character. I think someone called him JyuohBipolar? Like in reality, we're multiple people in multiple instances and we're not just one thing. But Misao is too different when he's feeding on his own ego trip, at least to me.

It's also a bit of a hypocritical relationship. Amu straight up says "Hey, I know how to manipulate this guy." Which is fine since she's stone cold. Pretending to like him just because he has something you want is pretty bad. What about Yamato? Does he actually like the guy? He certainly feels pity for him. So it's a pity friendship? At least Leo will just straight up tell Misao when he's being annoying. I think that honesty probably makes him the closest guy to Misao. They don't exactly like each other, but at least their relationship is based on honesty and something real.

I'm not sure how I'd fix his character. Like give the guy a character building episode where he learns to deal with his crippling lack of confidence. (Maybe they should have got that out of the way when they had all the different characters work with him on that). Then have Misao fall into relapses, just not devastating curling into a ball situations in inappropriate times? Or maybe treat the issue with some reverence and make it a character/plot moment for him.

I guess at the end of the day, it's just frustrating because the whole thing comes off as a bad joke. They keep throwing it in my face expecting me to laugh at it, and I just don't. I mean, maybe kids find Misao amusing. I dunno.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by SengalBoy »

Funny, some people see him as a fan favorite. Certainly not me.

Here's the problem, they forced the comedy aspect to us. That, and coupled by the fact that Misao's actor is not a really good actor makes it unbearable.

A lot of people compared him to be similar to Akira/ToQ 6. The problem is, Akira has charisma and charm, that's why we love seeing him. But Misao is meant to be pathetic, but the actor can't really put it well, and thus the result is that he becomes very annoying.

It's sad, I want to like TheWorld (because he's the first Black 6th Ranger since KingRanger and because of obvious JoJo reference), but his character, while it has potential, ultimately comes of as annoying.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by takenoko »

KingRanger was a black ranger? Huh, who knew?

Wasn't he the Gold Ranger in the Power Rangers remake?
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Kuchiri »

Yeah they called him gold in MMPR because well calling him the Black Ranger would've been boring and bland. They also 'hinted' of a future Gold Ranger in the MMPR movie. Which I believe came out the same time the toy catalog showing KingRanger did so they decided to stick with it.

Some of the Misao jokes are good. Some of them are clearly forced. The less they force the joke that he is very sensitive and the more they use the jokes where he thinks he blew up Yamato or when Marvelous transforms for the fourth time. I think he'll start growing on people. He has a really badass side.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by takenoko »

I feel the badass side is really forced too. Like someone pretending to be badass. But I'll give that it was pretty cool when he came up with the new block combination.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Kogashi »

*is only at episode 23 so, bare with me* Misao is a mistake I feel comes up with too many writers. People like to point out that humor comes from suffering. That's a whole complex talk for another day but I feel like too many people seem to think 'ah if we just make them suffer endlessly no matter who the character is, it'll be funny'. But here's the thing, it's less funny, when the suffering doesn't even out with how much we want to see the character suffer. The best humor, comes when suffering it applied to those who aren't, good people. Like, we laugh when the bulb headed team leader used cube head as a shield from Misao's attack, because it's funny that they go through that because we don't mind seeing Cube head explode, or Bulb head being knocked away, or threatened when Cube head comes back together. Misao though... He's a nice enough guy that I don't want to see him always full of self doubt, depressed, down in the dumbs, and beating himself out. As if he'd say there's no air in space because he didn't try hard enough and so doesn't deserve air in space... Also same gag over and over again gets tiring.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by takenoko »

I get what you're saying. People like believing (for some strange reason) that there's a fairness to the world and that people get what they deserve. Misao's only crime is that he has low self esteem and has some bad habits that annoy the other characters (and audience).

Maybe that's why he's such a problematic character. What do you do with a guy like that? Put him on drugs? Lie to him to boost his ego? Yell at him till he stops turtle shelling?
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Catastrophe »

So the thing is, whenever there has been an annoying extra ranger, they'e had some kind of quality that ultimately makes them endearing.

I've often had people say to me 'How can you like Genta or Gai if you don't like Misao?'. Genta was hyperactive as fuck but was entertaining because he was confident and had the skills to pull shit off. He was also a genius and made mecha and combinations that ultimately allowed the Shinkengers to kill, not seal their enemies. Gai was annoying, but because he had a wealth of Sentai knowledge, he helped the other Gokaigers alot.

The thing with Misao is he just seems to be there. Like he doesn't contribute anything to the team other than being the extra ranger and having some more mecha to combine with. That's the thing that really annoys me. I could put up with him being a little bitch most of the time but if he was super strong like when he was when mind controlled and could 1 vs 1 a commander when the others couldn't he would have some extra worth to the team, but he doesn't really seem to provide any advantage other than being there.

I think the thing to do would have him start off being a crybaby and then have him develop into the confidant persona he had when originally controlled. Having him constantly get depressed about everything is lame and I don't see how anyone could find it funny.

This really annoys me because I was really enjoying this series and the characters and interactions up until now. Everytime Misao comes on it just kind of kills it for me.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by takenoko »

>I've often had people say to me 'How can you like Genta or Gai if you don't like Misao?'. Genta was hyperactive as fuck but was entertaining because he was confident and had the skills to pull shit off. He was also a genius and made mecha and combinations that ultimately allowed the Shinkengers to kill, not seal their enemies. Gai was annoying, but because he had a wealth of Sentai knowledge, he helped the other Gokaigers alot.

Genta was also like the only real normal friend that Takeru had. Like someone who wasn't always calling him "lord" and treating him like he's the chosen one. Gai was hyperactive, but that was a part of his passion. He was also the fan surrogate.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by midorininger »

i personally just wrote him off as emotionally/mentally unstable because of what happened to him. he did horrible things but now is a good guy. id imagine that would be hard to cope with at first ...

BUT! he also talked about being weak as a kid and thought if he became stronger people would like him, and i get the feeling he failed a lot and took it too much to heart. as a result, its 1 extreme or the other whether he is up or down. there doesnt seem to be a neutral.
if funny that shinengold is being talked about as i have his theme playing in loop before coming on the boards
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Catastrophe »

takenoko wrote:Genta was also like the only real normal friend that Takeru had. Like someone who wasn't always calling him "lord" and treating him like he's the chosen one. Gai was hyperactive, but that was a part of his passion. He was also the fan surrogate.
Exactly. Thats the point. Both could be real people with those personalities because they are realistic.

How many real people do you know get depressed and curl up into a ball when something minor is said? Exactly.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Jehal »

Catastrophe wrote:This really annoys me because I was really enjoying this series and the characters and interactions up until now. Everytime Misao comes on it just kind of kills it for me.
The same thing happened to me when I watched Dairanger and they introduced Kou.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by takenoko »

I didn't mind Kou, since he had a backstory and stuff going on with him. Misao just pops in like an annoying neighbor who's stalking you. Which is sad since as a human, you'd expect him to have some story beats besides being a cartoon character. It's just annoying since the only character that ever seems to get any story moments is Yamato.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Kogashi »

Also not helping that is that Yamato and Misao, so far, seem to be the only ones to have multiple forms on hand which, is really disappointing but a different topic all together.
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Re: We need to talk about Misao

Post by Phoenix512 »

It would be weird if the four Jyumans were able to get other animal forms. They are their own animal species and having the ability to be another animal would go against their own nature. That's probably why Yamato and Misao will be the only ones who are able to have other animal forms.

As for Misao, I said this previously in another thread about him but having him either super down on himself and then being super sure of himself makes it easy for young kids to understand. I imagine there's probably a way to make him to be this without the extremes but subtle isn't something they can do in a kids show.
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