You bring a good point here, it does have a narrative reason... the little school festival arc is proof of that, the kids in the academy are so accustomed to rationing and just training to be soldiers, they had to search for how to do a school festival... and the student council kids acted more like military personnel already than kids.
Point for that.
Hmmm... I agree with this too... actually, let me elaborate on why I said what I said.
What you pointed out in this part i had in mind when i wrote my comment, and truth be told after the you reminding in the first part of your comment about how "not acting like a kid" isn't really a trait of only Gunzou, i think i will need to rethink my opinions... but... my opinion is was less about the narrative details and more about... feeling.
At some points, to me, Gunzou feels too inflexible as a main character, but this is purely an opinion of mine... a very small one, i might add, it detracts, if even, VERY little from the story for me, and i don't even think I am "right" in my assessment even before reading your comment.
I just needed to vent it out of my mind a little.
Your opinion is much appreciated, it made me remember certain details I did remember but didn't connect the dots, so now i have a much greater appreciation for the story, thank you.
Dont forget he's a submariner. Those are real stubborn fools lol.
On a more serious note, isn't what you're saying a bit of a contradiction, actually? You want him to show a bit more of the kid he is. But he is, to me. He has to get his way. He self-admittedly sulked when he didn't. Yet his dream still holds true, and he doesn't deviate from it. That's the part where he may seem inflexible.
Thats certainly a very shonen-ish character, but maybe I'm confused as to what you mean when you distinguish it from him not acting like a kid. I mean, shonen means boy after all, it embodies the dreams of young boys.
If it's about the perceived inflexibility that comes from being an adult, I wonder if I would agree with that. I think an "adult" like demeanor would actually be like that if a chameleon. Your worldview is mercenary, it will change to suit the time and circumstances. It is a harsh world out there, and principles or dreams are something a responsible adult can ill afford.
Maybe I latch onto that because we see with the older characters in the series, I believe they are deliberately portrayed as facing that reality, yet at times they have a moment when they want to believe, and they trust their "childlike" beliefs to gunzou and the people who follow him, whether they be human or Fog.
If I am off base with this, then I apologize. But otherwise I don't quite get what you're referring to.
As for the design language of human technology versus the fog, I certainly agree. Typical masterclass in design by Ark Performance. Not much to add there, except I wish more people appreciated it. Sometimes it feels like the 10 odd people in the world who would are the only ones.
Last thing I want to add is it still boggles my mind how much Vampire has evolved over the story. I still remember when she was "born". Is this the course of all small-size cores? Mental models playact at being humans to understand more about humans and themselves. Maybe with less bandwidth for such lofty ideas, Vampire can just...be.