1) Kenshin was loosely based off of Hitokiri Kawakami Gensai who was said to be easily mistaken for a woman. While Watsuki was drawing Kenshin, he felt that he turned out too girly as well (thus Watsuki adding the scar in an attempt to correct this). There's a technical term for when a man, or more so Oriental men, have female characteristics, and that's bishonen. Kenshin is not bishonen.
Examples of popular bishonen anime characters are Haku (Naruto), Sheshomaru (Inu Yasha), Merrik (Yu-Gi-Oh), etc. Kenshin does not look like a woman. His frame is small and gentle, yes, but...
Anyways, this led me to think about how there are no bishonen men in Kenshin.
What do you think of this?
I think Kenshin's girly enough to be called a bishounen. Watsuki did say Kenshin is basically a woman with a scar on his face. (Sorry, Kenshin.).2) I know there is a thread about Kaoru not being weak, but my friend and I had an argument over it, but in a different nature. We discussed her spirit. (I make a point on this in the said thread, but I want to draw more attention to it.)
My friend argues that she is weak in spirit because she cried for three days after Kenshin said good-bye. My argument is that it's not her fault. Kenshin was all she had. Think about it: She had no family, only one or two old friends that we know of, no students, nothing. The people she knew later (Yahiko, Sano, etc) she knew only because of Kenshin. Heck, without him she'd be dead! Now he tells her he's never going to see her again. What would you do?
Girls are emotional, especially when in love. It's nature, it's human. People can only do their best, and one's best is human. I don't think strength has anything to do with denying that. We are human, no matter how hard we try not to be.
Do you think she's weak-spirited?
I'd say that overall Kaoru is strong. She had a weak moment when Kenshin left for Kyoto, but got much stronger after Megumi snapped her out of it. We mustn't forget that although Kaoru has assumed the responsibilities of an adult, she's still very young: 17 Eastern, 15-16 Western.
Also we must remember that Kaoru had just lost her father in the Seinan War. Perhaps her father said goodbye to her, walked off just like Kenshin did and then never came back. I think in Kaoru's mind, Kenshin is strongly connected to her father. I'm not saying she's oedipal or anything like that, just that it's human nature to seek a mate that reminds us of our parents.3)
http://iyouboushi.netfirms.com/rk/kenshinfaq.htmlA kick a** website right there.
Yeah, that site has much info about Kenshin.4) Samurai X: The Motion Picture
No one talks about it. Discuss it.
Personally I like the metaphor to the sky, and how it physically shows Kenshin's true feelings about his past.
It was OK, but nothing memorable.5) Yahiko
No one talks about Yahiko, either. So, discuss him.
If you can't think of something to opine on, I've an idea. It's about his past. His father was a samurai. From what I understand from Samurai X: The Motion Picture, he was on the side opposite of Kenshin. (Please! Correct me if I'm wrong.) So, when he found out about Kenshin's true identity, how do you think he felt?
Don't take the fact that samurai pride and honor are an important trait of samurai men, especially in young boys, lightly. Yes, we know Yahiko loves Kenshin, but there has to have been a moment when he felt a sliver of possible resentment. How do you think he felt?
Please don't limit Yahiko to this one idea. Comment on his hair or something. Anything, please. He's such an under appreciated character.
I don't remember which group Yahiko joined in Isshin Shishi no Requiem. It might have been the Shinsengumi side since his father was a shogunate supporter.
Yahiko already knew about Kenshin's role as Hitokiri Battousai.
Well, what to say. Yahiko grows up a lot through Kyoto and Jinchuu. He's willing to fight the berserker Whale Mouth even when it's apparent he's about to die.
The secret to Yahiko's spiky hair: Plenty of hair gel. (Yeah, right. They really had that in the 19th century xp ).
I'd really like to know about his and Tsubame's son, Shinya. Where the hell does he learn HMR from since Kenshin won't teach it? Could Hiko agree to take him on as a second apprentice?6) All the swordsmen but Kenshin wear leather gloves to protect themselves from the blades in battle. Of course Kenshin doesn't wear them because he doesn't plan on using his sword on a regular basis and doesn't know when he will, anyways. Sure his hands are used to by now the wear and tear when he does draw a blade, but do you think his hands hurt at least a little after a longer battle?
Yeah, his hands probably do hurt. The wrist guards also serve to strength a swordsman's wrists, like gauntlets, I'd imagine. 
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