Usogui - Vol. 43 Ch. 471 - The Puppets

[saxifraga]

@Petrichormus @Ghetsis

Yeah, I get what you guys are saying. And to be fair, the general issue I take might just be a preference thing.

I suppose I'm just not the biggest fan of Arata coming off like this nebulous figure, above everyone else. I mean, I said that the narrative felt as if it was trying to equate Arata to the likes of Baku and such, but honestly speaking, it seems to be a much higher pedestal than that. I get that Protoporos is his domain, and him presiding over everyone falls in line with that "God" characterization, but at the end of the day he's still just some dude with lots of money and resources. Assuming his philosophy truly is that social darwinism thing, then it just seems hypocritical of him to sit back and not participate in what he's espousing. The story doesn't frame it negatively either; he simply accomplishes his goal. Again, that's one of the reasons I was satisfied with the fake, because he was essentially owning up. He was willing to sacrifice his safety to prove that point. And yeah, at the end of the day, Arata was never really "just an observer" too. He still had to be actively participating, even if it was through a surrogate (or by other means). So I don't necessarily think it would undermine his role if he was actually in said position of the fake.

Also, one of my biggest criticisms of this arc is that it emphasizes sacrifice. We're told achieving one's goals during this whole escapade requires it (or at least the willingness to), but by the end Baku loses very little, and Arata loses nothing at all. Meanwhile Lalo gives everything and has seemingly nothing to show for it. It's just an aside, but I'm a little confused as to what message is being conveyed here. Is someone like Arata not applicable to this? I could be interpreting everything wrong though.

 

[Lithe]

And here I thought Kakerou would be able to acquire Huger too, but I guess that's a story for another manga...

 

[troita]

Does this mean that Lalo is also just a puppet for someone?

His "Virtual Man" thing still hasn't been resolved yet so who knows.

This could be foreshadowing. It's hard to tell with this manga.

 

[Petrichormus]

@saxifraga

That's a real good read.

I don't think Arata emphasize too much on 'the strong survives'. It's more like he's interested in people who managed to 'finish the puzzle in the dark'-- a task detached from the concept of survival. He has a god complex first and foremost, and I think sending a surrogate, a prophet perhaps, is his way of ascending to godhood. He never once said wanting to be the strongest, or survive alongside the strong. Your point still stands I think, but we don't know whether he participated actively in the new country coup d etat, so his actual goal/ideal, being a god or being a believer of social darwinism, isn't too clear in the end.

Arata to begin with didn't think too much what is lost or not. Unlike Baku or Lalo who has longtime allies, Arata only cares about anyone who is alive. He didn't even said a goodjob or a simple thanks to his developers. Even if all developers are dead, I think he will still carry the plan. The theme of sacrifice still applies to him-- he's a man who's detached from the concept of sacrifice & benefits and ultimately is a victor against no one but himself, while Usogui and Lalo sacrifices ,regardless of amount, only matter if one side loses.

 

[Ghetsis]

@Doomroar
You made some good points! (Also when you say "entire narration" does that mean just the one for this chapter or the ones for chapters 330, 417 and 471 combined? Because most of the narration from 417 is abt the real one if "this man" is indeed referring to another person. And its that point when he first got the puppet idea.)

"Hell this Richard on the boat could be just another puppet, we don't see his face...."
Not seeing his face is just supposed to add more to the "mysterious vibe. And we don't see it but he showed it to the developers as a way of proving it was the real one (further implying that the one difference between the two Richards is the eyes). And the developers recognized him. So either he is the real one, or he started using avatars before he sold the company and disappeared (because Daiba, Kurashiki and Fujitsubo were part of the original game company so they most likely would of know what Richard looked like before the island).
And I am still keeping the theory that he "moved to the side of the one gazing" after he sold the game company/disappeared, though I could always be wrong. Also I'm biased because the general opinion among the Japanese fanbase is that the ponytail Richard is indeed the real one. It is also what the (Japanese) wikipedia page for Usogui says. ("真のアラタ") (but keep in mind wikipedia pages are also edited by fans).
The "mysterious power" is just a way of saying Richard/the developers/whoever was on that boat btw.
I'm pretty sure what happened is that the ppl on the boat either started the coup or initiated the citizens to start and then assisted in it. The country was already under a financial crisis (because of Richard...........) so I am pretty sure the citizens would be on board with the coup idea. And then after Richard and the others take power and set up Protoporos Nation.
Also Floyd is sleeping on this huge conspiracy....

@saxifraga
(Attempting to add on to stuff not mentioned already)

"...but honestly speaking, it seems to be a much higher pedestal than that."
That's an interesting point because I never saw it like that. I see him on Baku/Hal/Vincent levels of "unorthodox genius," but they have different talents. Like I can't imagine Richard beating Baku in a gamble (well partly because he would not be interested). Idk hopefully I understood what you meant.

"but at the end of the day he's still just some dude with lots of money and resources"
Couldn't you say a similar thing about Baku/Hal/Vincent? (Ok now that I think about it, it might be a reach to consider applying it to Baku since we saw him start from 0. The other two have plenty of money/resources but we have also seen them use their own power plenty times before. I guess if you can erase the context it can work....). Richard is a very talented man, he was able to create one of the most influential and best selling in-universe video game franchises. And he knows how to use his adoring fans to get what he wants. In some ways he might be the opposite of that whole "you must use your own power to reach your goals" theme. Though it might depend on what "own power" is defined as (since Marco is an example of Baku's power, etc).

About the social Darwinism thing. Is that just about him believing that strong (people who have survived tough situations) are needed to take over the country or is it also related to what he said here https://mangadex.org/chapter/722684/4 about how only a "few gifted people" are worthy of having their puzzles/paintings/delusions praised?

Also I did not really consider the "sacrifice" angle that much, though it is true! It is weird though how Vincent always talks about wins and losses yet Baku claims that he hasn't actually lost anything (like in one chapter, I think one where he is talking to the corpse, he mentions that the only way he would lose something is if he lost the match). I guess it might relate to how gamblers are lonely and "pathetic" beings that can only rely on themselves and the results of the game. Though a "loss" and a "sacrifice" might mean different things so maybe i'm getting off topic.

@Petrichormus
You also made alot of good points! Though I think his actual goals are clear. He wants to make his "delusion" (world created by him aka Protoporos) and also watch over it from an "observer" POV. Neither the game or the island was enough for him so his end goal is Protoporos Nation. Though I guess there are little details that can be expanded upon if that is what you mean.

With the coup, I think Richard at least told the other ppl from the island what to do (like how to start it or how to rally up the citizens).

"He didn't even said a goodjob or a simple thanks to his developers"
I guess showing his face/congratulating them for passing the test/taking them to Huger is his version of "thanks." ): It just really sucks how the developers worship him yet he doesn't seem to care that much about them in return. I guess my criticism is how the developers are just like "ok" and their relationship is back to normal (unless there is something happening behind the scenes). I just feel really bad for Daiba. Unlike Kaji who wants to be an equal to Baku, it feels like Daiba will always be a subordinate to Richard. Though he seems fine with that (unless I am wrong) so maybe it's not a big deal, idk. I just want him to get the respect he deserves....

 

[BossCrab]

@Ghetsis
Amazing post, thank you! There's a lot of information and subtlety in the Japanese language that we're not always privy to reading the translation. The efforts Team Duwang and you have gone to to point these out are extremely appreciated.

As for my own reactions

Best boy Oofuna getting to hang around is nice. It's quite sad that what I'm taking from Nowa is that Souichi was really never supposed to make genuine friends like Baku, Oofuna, and Nobuko. No wonder he felt insane pressure to always be perfect and considered throwing it all away to become Hal. Speaking of which, is Nobuko just gone permanently? I know she was supposed to be exiled so it'd make sense, but feels like kind of an abrupt ending for her after we saw her in the submarine while she was lamenting on having no home to go back to. I hope we get to see Robert K reuniting with Suteguma as well.

As far as Oofuna being dead, I think we're still waiting on the other shoe to drop on the person moving behind the scenes in the government, correct? The reason he had to fake his death in the first place. I'm led to believe they were allied with Ideal since Voja was on the boat, but I don't think we've seen that development fully yet. We also know Hachina was testing him for some reason, but I'm not sure if he was just testing to see if it'd be worth saving him from the boat (instead of just letting him die there) if there was more to it.

The Arata reveal is interesting. I'm glad the Developers are able to continue their dream, though I wonder what kind of Portoporos they will actually make; this one seemed plagued by some gruesome shit with selling organs and things like that. Daiba seemed pretty clueless to all that going on though. Maybe real!Arata has a plan, though I don't know if we'll ever see the Portoporos characters again. I'm sad to see Champ go, I was a big fan.

I agree that it kind of sucks that almost nothing Lalo did actually stuck considering how many people survived, but Fake!Arata getting gibbed rather quickly did seem odd. In retrospect makes sense that he would have a puppet as his "player character".

I guess we're getting StL right on the island, cool. No idea what kind of game they could play, though.

 

[silentshot]

This is absolutely mind blowing. I wonder what twist will Toshio Sensei bring next? Baku and Hal being cousins or something? Ha ha

 

[Kenju]

Looks like this Surprassing the Leader game is gonna get a little bit complicated... I mean, I guess that's par for the course.

 

[saxifraga]

@Ghetsis
"Couldn't you say a similar thing about Baku/Hal/Vincent?"

Yeah, sorry, that's what I was trying to get at. It leads back into me saying Arata seems portrayed as above them, despite him essentially being in the same standing money/resources wise. But after sleeping it over, I'm not really sure where I was going with that. I was probably just hung up on a perspective issue. I mean, seeing as how everyone else is participating on Arata's field (Protoporos), I guess it makes sense for him to seem all encompassing to a degree.

"or is it also related to what he said here... about how only a "few gifted people" are worthy of having their puzzles/paintings/delusions praised?"

I mean, they're both similar in message in my opinion, so I'd say both lines.

After some contemplation though, I guess I wish we simply got more context to Arata and his endeavors. This series is usually so good at explaining things, but Arata still leaves some questions. Like, the reveal itself and the conclusion to his goal were done in about a half of a chapter. The guy had become a cult of personality, but how? And I mean to the extent that someone would be willing to proudly die in his honor, you know? I get not wanting to reveal too much about him, but he made it seem so easy. But again, that's just me. I don't know.

@Petrichormus

"The theme of sacrifice still applies to him-- he's a man who's detached from the concept of sacrifice & benefits and ultimately is a victor against no one but himself, while Usogui and Lalo sacrifices ,regardless of amount, only matter if one side loses."

Fair point. And I guess in a way the focus was more directed at Baku and Lalo anyway.

 

[Lie_Eater]

@Ghetsis apologies, you are totally correct, Anoma it is.
This is a very weak theory on him and it relates back to the idea of Lalo being a 'virtual man' in the same sense as puppet Arata was.
Now forewarning, I don't believe this atal but maybe just maybe Anoma is the true head of Ideal, there really is no reason to accept 100% that Lalo is the true head and why would the real head of a criminal organisation put themselves at risk like that, there's always someone else to do the dirty work - what I'm suggesting is that perhaps Lalo is just a 2nd in command to Anoma (who doesn't give a damn about any of his people) and as someone lower in the ladder subordinates like Caracal and the others were naturally very close to him (a general is never close to his subordinates but a commander would be). Potentially Suteguma is another Lalo like figure, another pawn to Anoma.
Another part that ties into the theory was when Lalo killed puppet Arata he does say that 'yours is a fake one' which alludes to him having his own god and isn't referring to himself.
Finally I wonder if because of how Lalo refers to the diamonds as being sinful and it's implied that Anoma knows a process to turn people to diamonds, perhaps he's the progenitor of original sin or the diamonds are almost a step towards eternal life and maybe Anoma instead of being god is some sort of devil to Lalo

 

[troita]

@Lie_Eater
I agree with you, the "virtual man" and Lalo's tirade after killing puppet Arata seem like foreshadowing to me too.
Also, Anoma seems like such a cool character; looks timid, has a habit of interrupting people, reasonably strong, wears a cools suit, can read people well enough to know what they are going to say, etc.
He just has this mysterious vibe to him. Seems like a combination of brains and brawn like Voja and Hal.
Contrast this with Robert K (who is called Lalo's ace but made the least impact out of any of his allies and was only present to get his ass kicked in by Kyara and Douji) and Floyd Lee( who is also bottom of the interesting characters list and only had a single match in the manga which he lost due to dumb luck).
I just wish he was in Lalo's team instead of either of the above characters. I want to see more of him.

I also want to point out that Fukurou also seemed like a unique and scary character but we didn't see him much in action. So, he can form poker hands even under pressure. Good for him. But what happened to his owl thing where he can see through his opponent's hand and not be fooled by bluffs. He wanted a poker game and wasn't given one. Instead it was a mental fortitude battle and there was nothing about bluffing or poker( for Fukurou). He should have had a separate gamble with Hal imo.

Arata could also have been a bit more fleshed out through a gamble or something.

I'm sorry if I come across as a whiny bitch but it's such a great manga with so many interesting characters that it's very disappointing when such characters are not utilized to their full potential.

 

[7goat]

I'm going to miss Sting Arata

 

[Expiry]

(┛◉Д◉)┛彡┻━┻

 

[Lonbomb]

Just what did Gyro do after the Chimera Ant arc