I've made a multi-page shrine to a series I encountered over ten years ago and have been wanting to make a fansite to for a long, long time (srsly look at this layout WIP from like 2004)! It isn't a complex series, but it did so much for my imagination as a kid: parallel worlds connected by dreams, each person having an alter ego in the other world, the mythological Japanese sun goddess' disappearance plunging both worlds into darkness, the quest for chosen ones to help you on your journey...! Not to mention the fascination with its environmental theme and Japanese mythology.
If any of that interests you, or if you enjoy similar fantasy adventures or other works by Megumi Tachikawa (Kaitou Saint Tail, Cyber Idol Mink), please tell me what you think? <(^_^<)
Both despair and ecstasy are part of the elements that compose a person.
Absolutely lovely design/color choices, and very in-depth sections! I had never heard of this series, but your shrine functions very well even for the non-initiated (LOL). (Also, is it just me, or does some of the character art kinda resemble Card Captor Sakura art, too?)
I like that your section pages are fully fleshed out as pages of their own before getting into sub-links; it helps you know what to click on next and gives an overview of the content you're about to dive into. (And the show/hide dynamic with link clicks = <3<3<3<3) The Parallels section is especially interesting because you mention several other series to help draw newbies in, and you also critique the series from a literary standpoint. :)
All in all, GREAT WORK!
(Also that WIP layout from '04 gave me so many nostalgic feels xD)
Thanks, you two! I'm glad that experimenting with how to set up those pages is well-received. :D Thanks especially for the feedback on the individual intros, I was worried whether they'd be considered redundant or tedious! <3
lmao it's not just you, Robin, others that I've showed the layout to have said the same - I'm pretty sure it's because of the protagonist's hair. XDD
Both despair and ecstasy are part of the elements that compose a person.
Hello! I am going to post things as I am reading your content so it may be a little scrambled but I really wanted to take the time to give you feedback :D
Introduction: I really like that you put a brief introduction section here! I think its important to explain the basics before anyone gets into the details, which a lot of my shrines actually lack (I always assume that people know the series, which I need to work on!)
Characters: I like how the pages for the characters are set up, and especially like how you have a big quote that stands out from each character! Reading this section really made me miss the series, and will definitely get me to re-read my manga books that I have! (Although they stopped selling them locally so I only have 3 out of 5, luckily they are online!)
Taka: I like how you point out what Binga says about all other creatures but humans are aware of the fact that they have a parallel being in the opposite worlds. I also forgot about the month names... I am not sure if they were discussed in the first three books though?? But I thought that was a cool addition as well!
Responsibility: Yes! This is why I was drawn to this series even as a little kid. In my real world, I am studying environmental studies because I am so passionate about the responsibility we as humans have to shape the world we live in. I think that you pointed out many details that I would totally agree with in this section! When I read this I was in like 6th grade, so I don't think I totally realized why I enjoyed it so much, but now that I'm 21 and reading your idea on this, it definitely makes a lot of sense, and once again makes me realize I need to re-read the series! (Appreciation, Coexistence, Blame, etc... all of these sections are definitely true!)
Revelations: I am glad you kind of worded out the prophecy in this section, because once again, I was a little confused reading it as a 6th grader, but it definitely makes more sense. I will need to re-read and have a better discussion with you!
Mythology: I saw your tweets about how you thought this section was going to be small, but DAMN!! You found a lot of information! Mythology is so fascinating, especially when you realize most of it isn't exactly what you had originally thought it was going to be. And I noticed that a lot of Japanese stories don't use Japanese mythology... But in my Science, Religion, and Nature class in college we discussed how Eastern religions are way more open to the ideologies of other cultures and religions in their own stories, versus the denial of Western religions. So, that being said, I definitely understand why these magical stories incorporate stories from other cultures (especially Buddhism)
Parallels: I didn't read this section because I haven't read the other stories you paralleled to in full or at all, so I didn't want to spoil those stories for myself in case I finally get the time to read them! But I am sure based on your other pages, this section is going to be full of accurate information and parallels!
Media: AHHH seeing all of these makes me get the urge to pull out my books!! You've gotten me re-addicted to the series... I had a crush on Takaomi as the bandit >;)
Overall, super impressed and super happy! I remember when Samantha asked me if I still had my Dream Saga books and I was like ya.... why?? And she told me you were making a site to the series! I was excited and my excitement was worthwhile. Awesome job!
Lastly, I am not sure if you'd like to affiliate with my Galaxy Angel tribute and kind of in progress Tokyo Mew Mew just because they are all girl series, but if not I understand! :)
please know that i am yours to keep, my beautiful girl.
Hey, Megan!! Thanks so much for reading my shrine and for the step-by-step commentary on it haha, these are always so fun to read! Really, making this shrine is so worth it knowing that there is ONE person out there who knows and still remembers and still loves Dream Saga!!! Samantha mentioned you knew Cyber Idol Mink, but I wasn't sure whether you knew Dream Saga too!! <3 <3 <3 <3 <3
I noticed the lack of introductions on shrines you've created that I have read, actually! While I do prefer there being introductions as we're a small community with diverse interests and I partly shrine to get people to check out the respective subject, I also think the lack of introduction makes it clear there are different approaches to shrining haha. You're basically shrining primarily for people who are already familiar with the series. For some subjects, I've been seriously tempted to do that, mostly because it takes time to get up an extensive introduction section (if the world and the character etc. need to be introduced too) and prevents me from skipping right to the in-depth essays I'd like to write. But yeah, I end up striking a balance and writing to both audiences in the end to get the most out of the shrine. @_@
Yessssssss reread the series!! Also omg I remember at least one other person who had a massive crush on Takamagahara's Takaomi back then lmao. I mean. I probably did too. How can you not.
I mention the month names in Tokyopop's translation briefly on the page where the volumes are... They basically didn't keep the month names for the first few volumes (they showed up once in the story and then the rest was in the profile sidebars), and instead just wrote January, February, etc. :((((( They later changed it. =/
I'm glad the Responsibility page appeals to you so much!! It's long, but I think it's important, and Dream Saga shows many different facettes to it. (Yay for environmental studies! I took environmental law last semester and it was fascinating haha, it's a field that really resonates with me.) And yeah, it's great you point out the age difference between now and when we first experience certain series. I never would have been able to map out that page when I was younger.
ngl I thought the entire shrine was going to be small even with all the different pages I mapped out, but then the mythology page exploded. /bangs head against wall. And yes to the things you said about Eastern religions AND Buddhism! I studied Buddhism for a while (as part of religion class) in one of my last years at school and its openness and it being treated more like a philosophy than a religion were striking.
Re: Parallels. Actually, it's great you're pointing out you skipped this section. I was wondering whether I should explicitly note that there are no spoilers - there aren't, they're introductions to the respective series as well as superficial parallels to Dream Saga. :> (For example, for Fushigi Yuugi, it's the girl of legend from the other world + Chinese mythology theme, for Time Stranger Kyoko, it's looking for comrades who resemble a mixed gender Magical Girl cast, etc.) There is another collapsible div within those series pages for BIG spoilers, so you needn't fear the rest containing spoilers haha. After all, the page's aim is also to introduce.
I was totally going to ask you to affiliate with your Tokyo Mew Mew site because it briefly brings up the environmental aspect too! :D :D I'm not familiar with Galaxy Angel, but I looked it up just now. I'd like there to be some thematic link for affiliates (for Dream Saga, that'd be fantasy adventures, parallel worlds, environmental theme, etc.), and I think that may not apply to Galaxy Angel? Correct me if I'm wrong though!! =x This is really just personal preference re: affiliates; I like your colourful series shrines!
Both despair and ecstasy are part of the elements that compose a person.
I'm not familiar with Dream Saga, unfortunately, but I read through this the other day and found it really interesting. You've tucked a lot of neat information into this site and made it very accessible for those who aren't at all familiar with the work. The layout design is really effective for the content and lets you make your way through the information quite easily, although at times I found the accent colors (mostly the brown/orange tone) a little too dark to read. (I do have lousy eyes though.)
One thing is that while the collapsible content sections were really neat and an effective choice to bundle your pages, I had some trouble reading through the pages that way. On long sections, when I clicked through the next page (for example, when reading through the end of Organisms and clicking to Inventions) I wasn't scrolled all the way back up to the top of the section. Not sure if that's a Chrome bug or something else, but wanted to let you know.
I really enjoyed the Parallels section; since I'm not familiar with Dream Saga it was actually easier to get to know the series through comparisons with franchises I'm more familiar with. (All of your comments on FY were on point, ha.) You also reminded me I really need to get around to reading Please Save My Earth....
Anyway, this is a really lovely site! Congrats on making one of those long-wanted sites, they're always the best.
Thanks for reading my shrine, Larissa! <3 <3 I'll check the blockquote colour again later and see whether I can find one that I like just as much!
Yeah, that's a good thing to point out, and it bothers me about the collapsible divs too. I wish there were a thing that makes them scroll up to the beginning of the div once you open a new one... Without having to change it to not grouping the divs (= open all of them after each other) - though maybe people don't mind opening them all one after another hm. The thing is meant to be read in that order after all. But then it won't look neat and the scrollbar will get long SOB.
I went with collapsible divs because pages were meant to go together along with the intros, and some pages are really short, but I didn't want to present them all together (everything about characters and the world specifically), so I didn't want to make one big page per section OR to make many different pages, each of them with individual linked pages - mostly because I don't enjoy clicking on and reading short pages lol. I wonder what other alternatives there are hm.
(lolol @ FY /cough) I'm glad you enjoyed the Parallels section!! <3
Again, thanks for reading and for the feedback, and yes, totally, NEED TO MAKE MORE LONG-WANTED SITES and make all my dreams come true.
Both despair and ecstasy are part of the elements that compose a person.
HOLD THE PHONE. I LOVEEEE MEGUMI TACHIKAWA. There is something about her stories and style that hold a special place in my heart, probably because Kaitou Saint Tail was my first true magical girl love~ So I have to say that I am so glad for this shrine because I never had gotten to read the series. ;-;
Things I find interesting are how the Tokyopop translations differ and change so much from the original Japanese. Your shrine also perfectly outlines all the information including all the uniqueness of the series from created months, materials, and I love how you have outlined all the key characters. You have so much great thought and information packed into this site. I particularly love the "Unexplored Potentials" section! Great job I am really loving this!
Thank you, Destiniiiiiiiiie. <3 <3 <3 We'll all sit here wait for the day you can make the Kaitou Saint Tail shrine because damn it, I could only manage to find two volumes SOB.
Yessssssss thank you, those are totally the things that were of interest to me (I was like "haha omg is this me being too much of a nerd, but... MATERIALS"), too, plus getting rid of all the FEELS in the Unexplored Potentials section - it's one of the pages I wanted to write the most going into this shrine. ;_;
<3333
Both despair and ecstasy are part of the elements that compose a person.
