User blog comment:Freelance Grammar Nazi/Kind of a Rant...?/@comment-2004850-20100703225327


 * back from vacation*

I have to agree with you. Most of the micronations I barely take seriously in real life and would not be able to survive as an independent nation. Seborga for instance--they are completely reliant on Italy and take part in Italian government and policies. I don't consider them "poor little countries who aren't receiving recognition", but chunks of land who declare themselves free "for fun" more often than because they truly want to be free or find an exact reasoning to. (One that makes sense; no "I don't like this one belief so I'm independent".) People make internet micronations as well, which takes away from the seriousness.

That said, I like the characters. But I rather have ones with a history. TRNC isn't a country but can lead to interactions with other nations. If Himaruya wants something that's not a nation, he could use that. TRNC, Turkey, and Cyprus could all be used in skits. I'm more concerned about using characters he's created but has pretty much abandoned, though. Taiwan, Thailand, and Hong Kong are periodically mentioned. Why not use them? How about expand on Moldova and Bulgaria? Reveal a design for Cyprus? At least if Himaruya would create nations with a real history, he could build their characters along with other under-developed ones.Wy, Seborga, and Sealand have a fairly limited use, only really having relations with nations they've descended from.

Most nations were involved in WWII, I believe, at least by the end. Even Switzerland, the neutral nation, donated troops for D-Day. Though the main Allies were, admittedly, responsible for most of the progression, the rest of the world jumped up to help defeat Germany. Only a few nations were on the Axis side, not counting those forcefully taken over.

Oh, and I consider it fair to criticize Himaruya for short-comings. It's his comic, but nothing should be immune from criticism. It's how an author, artist, director, and whatever else are able to hone their skill and create enjoyable works lacking the flaws the creators originally carried. Himaruya seems to enjoy making characters, but has difficult either using them or introducing them properly. Instead of adding two new characters, work on creating personalities for nations already drawn out. Now, he has done this to an extent with Belgium and Netherlands, though the latter is basically a new character, but he needs to expand the practice to others. Reveal Qatar after you've told us about Monaco and Cameroon and Tibet. Hopefully in published strips. I think it's safe to assume that the micronation strips and the ones involving Netherlands will be in volume 4, but expanding a character through strips unavailable in published editions almost goes to waste. A person who finds about the series a year down the road will miss all of it without digging pretty deep.

About Naruto - I believe the comment has to do with it being long-running or the thing with Itachi. (The latter sealed its fate with me, and I stopped following.) I doubt it was has anything to do with the fans, though. Either Kishimoto decided on that from the beginning, or it was the editor and publisher. When it rakes in the cash, it's encouraged to keep going. And, hey, manga creators don't make that much unless they're really high up. If he leaves Naruto before he's ready, it make spell disaster for him. Ain't the fans there.

EDIT: I think that Namibia could be female, if added.