Talk:Read or Die (OVA)

Wilcox?

Is it ever stated that the character in the ship is Stephen Wilcox? It would definitely fit the criteria (Stephen on the glider, I-jin fortress, etc.), but is opinion or fact? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 4.240.33.171 (talk) 20:09, 12 February 2008 (UTC)

Someone may still wish to double-check, but yes, I recall his name is mentioned in the show. DeathQuaker (talk) 14:32, 15 February 2008 (UTC)

"Immortal Beloved"

A little niggly thing, but before an edit war starts over this: I've seen a few people re-translating the name of Beethoven's book in various ways, such as "Immortal Love," etc. The OFFICIAL translation, in the OAV, is "Immortal Beloved"; even if that is not the most accurate translation/transliteration, I think that's what should be used since that's what's in the English script. This translation, while not literal, is consistent with other English-language references to Beethoven's works, his mysterious love, and the movie of the same name (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immortal_beloved). If you do feel a different translation should be provided, please provide why in this discussion page. Thanks. DeathQuaker (talk) 21:13, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Continuity Errors?

Shouldn't the OVA be before the manga? I don't want to spoil the ending of the manga to those that haven't read it, but I think that the OVA is before the manga. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.2.207.253 (talk) 07:05, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

Definitely, I think is most accurately marked by the fact that Joker's hands get cut off by the end of the manga and he completely alienates Yomiko. If the OVA had to take place in some sort of continuity (which I am not saying it has to) it would have to take place between the 1st and 2nd manga because Yomiko in the OVA has already met Nenene (seen by the notes Nenene has left Yomiko in Yomiko's first scene in the OVA), but is also still loyal to the British Library. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.226.121.69 (talk) 16:08, 27 January 2010 (UTC)

Okay, old but while not too many sources are clear on this, mainly English sources because the Japanese sources on the series are generally inaccessible (R.O.D the OVA and R.O.D the TV are often incorrectly cited as being direct adaptations of their manga counterparts or the light novels when outside of the core cast, they're clearly not - tonally, structurally, thematically, and story-wise), Hideyuki Kurata is known to retcon the heck out of his work and reset the canon each time. For instance, Book 1 of the R.O.D light novel and Volume 1 of the R.O.D manga represent a very similar (but not identical) introduction in Chapter 1 to Yomiko and Joker and their work for the British Library (they're on a dangerous mission - wearing sunglasses, indoors, at night, don't ask - to obtain a rare book and what do you know? Joker thinks he's James Bond and Yomiko has paper powers!), but after that, the plots of the novels and manga are completely different. The separation is further evidenced in Wendy's relationship with Nenene. She barely knows her in the manga (until the very end when she turns against Joker and becomes her secretary along with Drake, who is hired as Nenene's bodyguard), she's Nenene's roommate of sorts in the light novels (later, a friend) and in the anime, they never meet until Wendy takes Nenene as a hostage in the second half of the show.

Meaning, neither the light novels, manga nor anime are directly related to each other. They share the same universe and characters, but the canon is all kept separate. It's probably worse than the continuity errors in Fantastic Beasts, but unlike Rowling who can't keep her world building straight (so it seems; I'm not really sure if it's on purpose or not), based on several interviews with Kurata (print sources, mostly in Japanese), he retcons his work deliberately. He wants to try something different with the Read or Die universe each time. He has mentioned this numerous times in Animage and Anime Insider (and various other publications) when he was asked why the TV series follows Nenene and the Paper Sisters as the main characters instead of Yomiko. He is always up to try something different with his world, which is why the R.O.D canon is constantly rewritten. Even the Drama CDs have apparent continuity errors (the Drama CD for the OVA is like a prequel of sorts, following three chapters/episodes from Yomiko, Nenene and Wendy's POV while the TV series Drama CD is a direct continuation of the Epilogue in Episode 26; however, there's still continuity errors: Joker is back to being blonde - no more white hair, I mean, he could've dyed it, but...; Junior's hair is mentioned as being long again, even though Michelle cut it in the last episode; Okahara goes back to his old ways of crushing on Hisami, etc.).

Retconning the R.O.D canon is apparently more evident in Kurata's AU manga series, R.O.D Rehabilitation. It's set in an alternate dystopia where Yomiko is an evil Paper Master and Joker is a heroic bibliophile and the powers Paper Masters possess in this future are all inherently evil and... the world building is seriously confusing (they're basically different characters with no shared history prior to the plot).

So, going back to how this all started: Joker getting his hands amputated in the manga (by the Paper Master, Ridley, a character who only exists in the manga and not the anime) doesn't fall anywhere into the timeline of the anime. It's completely separate.

This is all original research based on translations of the Japanese sources (so, not notable for Wikipedia), but there you go. I'll leave this here for future reference. Cheerio! 2600:8801:2F83:7200:8CE2:5C19:3BCF:DEF0 (talk) 05:25, 28 May 2024 (UTC)

The only sources I can cite to back up these claims are the primary sources (mainly in Japanese), the first printing of the light novels, the publication of the manga, the magazine articles, the Japanese audio commentaries for the OVA and TV series DVDs (Kurata discusses it in Volume 1 with Koji Masunari and Masashi Ishihama), the Japanese DVD booklets, the translations of the U.S. DVD liners, the Blu-ray booklet that discusses the history of R.O.D, etc. The Read or Die light novels came first (the first book was published in 1999). Then, the manga, which Kurata wrote the manuscripts for simultaneously with the OVA teleplays (he mentions this in the staff interview at the end of the manga, that his editor proposed an OVA as the first light novel was published and before he even finished writing the manga). The manga was completed in four volumes (the Japanese printing), serialised first in Ultra Jump as the OVA was being promoted. The novels are thirteen volumes and the last one wasn't published until 2016. Like the anime, the manga is treated as its own thing from the novels and vice versa; it's closer to a spin-off and the story resets. If anyone has read the manga, the OVA being "based on the manga" is not necessarily untrue, it's still an adaptation, just an indirect adaptation. But to say the OVA follows the events after the manga is incorrect. Because as discussed, Joker's hands are amputated at the end of the manga (we see him with obvious prosthetics when he visits with Mr. Gentleman in the final chapter; he has no prosthetics in the anime because obviously). Yomiko defects from the British Library. So does Wendy and she lives with Nenene in Japan while Drake acts as Nenene's bodyguard (none of these events are referred to in the anime because they never take place). The anime is a totally separate storyline. So, while this article is of low importance and the world won't end, this should be corrected with the primary sources as citations. "It is a continuation of the manga storyline, taking place a few years after the events of the manga." It shares the same characters, but the OVA is not a continuation.

This talk page may be dead, but thoughts are appreciated. 2600:8801:2F83:7200:8CE2:5C19:3BCF:DEF0 (talk) 08:26, 28 May 2024 (UTC)

Director Koji/Kouji Masunari

On both this page and the main ROD page it says the director is Koji Masunari. I've got the Region 2 PAL Manga (company?) DVD. On the back cover for director is has Kouji Mansunari. I don't know weather Koji and Kouji are variations of the same name or what. Dannman (talk) 13:11, 22 November 2011 (UTC)

Different romanization system. —Preceding signed comment added by MythSearcher^talk 15:05, 22 November 2011 (UTC)

Which do you thing is best to use? I've done a search and I think there are a few Wiki articules that mention Koji Masunari. (I'll take the Anime ones as being the same person!) There was nothing for Kouji Masunari. I suppose we either change all of them, or not change it here (which would be easier)! Would a small not of the different spellings be suitable. If he had his own page I'd suggest putting it there. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Dannman (talk • contribs) 11:40, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

British Library

This is not really *that* important (it's not terribly relevant to the outcome of the plot or what have you), but just to leave this here on the talk page: The British Library in the R.O.D Universe is not the same British Library located on Euston Road. This only becomes more apparent when you dissect the original Japanese script for the OVA, the text of the manga, the light novels and the Japanese dialogue of the Drama CD. The British Library of R.O.D is a completely fictional (I know, duh?) spy organisation located underground of the British Museum, which geographically, is within walking distance of the actual British Library, but the two are not the same. This only became more obvious to me as I learned Japanese. In the original Japanese sources, the "British Library" is referred to as: 英 帝国 図書館

英 ei (Britain/British)

帝国 teikoku (imperial/empire)

図書館 toshokan (library)

Literally: British Imperial Library, or The Library of the British Empire (no such thing, as far as I'm aware, exists in London!).

Then, the Special Operations Division/Unit/Department of the British Library has undergone various different translations for similar reasons: 特殊 工作部内

特殊 tokushu (special/peculiar/unique)

工作部内 kosakubunai = 工作 kousaku (work/handicraft), 部 bu (department/division), 内 nai (inside/within)

Literally: a special work department, but "Special Operations Unit" (based in reality on military tactics) makes more sense.

For clarity and brevity, the English dub and VIZ translations have (understandably) simplified the name to "British Library," which in turn, makes it sound as if it's an AU version of the research library on Euston Road (and maybe, Kurata intended that, who knows?). R.O.D did "accidentally" predict Brexit in Episode 14 of the TV series. It's fiction, but there's always some alternate history happening somewhere in the series.