We've seen Gaimou's weight directly compared to both Renpa and Gyou'un, so my question is why is it so huge? Whilst Gaimou has definitely 'built' himself up through the battlefield, he doesn't have any dreams or goals, he just wants to slaughter the weak and prove he's stronger than anyone else.
Is the fact that he genuinely rose through winning on the battlefield enough to get that substance?
I could be wrong but I remember Gaimou said that the battlefield is like survival of the fittest. The strong wins and the weak dies. That's all there is to it according to him. That struck me in the same sentiment as Duke Hyou whose only purpose is to be on the battlefield. Literally born on the field according to him Lmao. And Duke Hyou's blows are up there among Great Generals. Of course this is just from my shady memory of Kingdom so if I'm wrong then feel free to correct me.
The way I see it is because Houken has no actual attachment towards those who he believes it his duty to assist (i.e. humanity).
To Houken, his belief in his cause is one of duty towards that which he holds no personal attachment to. He strives to become an example of the pinnacle that humanity can achieve and overcome but in doing so believes all those he comes across are naturally inferior to him. To put it simply, Houken is committed to humanity but is apathetic towards actual people. His drive and source of power comes solely from himself. He does not believe in the concept of inheritance of wills which is a big theme within Kingdom.
To Ouki, his belief in his cause is one of dreams and desire. Ouki strived to achieve that which as far as history was concerned at the time, was unachievable. In seeking out to achieve the impossible he came across like minded individuals who he formed personal attachments with (e.g. King Sho and the Qin Six), lead those who came to follow his beliefs (e.g. Tou and the Ouki Army Commanders) and inspire the next generation (e.g. Shin). Ouki cares for the people that he knows, whether they be individuals or the citizens of the nation he serves, rather than the broad concept of humanity in general. His drive and source of power comes from both his own desire to achieve the goal of uniting China as well as the accumulation of all those he personally knew who have fallen while contributing to that goal.
Much like Houken, Kanmei is detached from others and while he does not deliberately seek to suppress his emotions like Houken does, he is still rather apathetic and found little joy on the battlefield. He somehow still managed to accumulate weight regardless despite detachment being conflicting with the whole attachment/inherited will deal that goes with Shin's/Ouki's perception of weight.
I think we are going to find in the future that there is not any particular right way to achieve weight since the whole concept is perceived differently by numerous characters and some characters seemingly peddle a different concept to weight.
Characters like Gaimou have weight despite not believing in anything that Shin/Ouki/Renpa champion while other characters like Kanki and Man'U seem to have their own deal going on with Rejection and Nothingness respectively.
HE has his monstrous strength to fill in the gaps for the weight of GG (like Kanmei/ Houken). Also he isn't really Renpa-like cause Shin later said it felt bit different or something like that..
I think Gai Mou will find his weight in similar fashion to Murasakibara Atsushi entering the zone in Kuroke no Basuke (I'm not high on the series but the anology seems apt).
Gai Mou loves warfare. He has formed a bond with those he fought alongside and against. He carries their memories and feelings in his heart, even if he is presently unable to tap into them.
I think Gai Mou most certainly will in his rematch with Shin, or against whoever ends up putting him down.
HE has his monstrous strength to fill in the gaps for the weight of GG (like Kanmei/ Houken). Also he isn't really Renpa-like cause Shin later said it felt bit different or something like that..
HE has his monstrous strength to fill in the gaps for the weight of GG (like Kanmei/ Houken). Also he isn't really Renpa-like cause Shin later said it felt bit different or something like that..
that's an interesting way of looking at things. could you elaborate a bit?
I always thought that Gaimou's views of warfare were just a harsher version of the Duke's. Duke Hyou acknowledged the path of the Qin 6, while Gaimou looks at their path with scorn.
that's an interesting way of looking at things. could you elaborate a bit?
I always thought that Gaimou's views of warfare were just a harsher version of the Duke's. Duke Hyou acknowledged the path of the Qin 6, while Gaimou looks at their path with scorn.
Gai Mou and Man'U carry the same crucible, just in slightly different fashions.
While Man'U rejects the "burden" of vulnerability to betrayal that comes with putting yourself out there for others, and Gai Mou rejects the "sophistry" of warfare - fundamentally, what they are rejecting is connection. Sentiment. Legacy. Weight.
While there may be some overlap with Gai Mou's views, Duke Hyou did not reject connection. He wasn't a 6GG because what moved him to warfare was different than what aligned the 6GGs and King Sho. Duke Hyou is actually most similar to Ren Pa. Two men completely in love and fulfilled by warfare. One just happened to end up a 6GG equivalent, but of course Zhao's circumstances were completely different.
Now, a big difference between Man'U and Gai Mou is that we know why Man'U is where he is in life.
What happened to Gai Mou to form his views remains a mystery, but I suspect trauma related to loss. If I had to guess, Gai Mou is a very sad individual that has lost a lot of people in his time - perhaps a lot by his fault, perhaps the losses are why he has to rationalises his views on warfare simply being a slaughter of the weak by the strong. Whatever it is, I believe Gai Mou has shut himself off as a defense mechanism. His blows still betray what's in his heart - the weight of a true Great General of the Heavens - but he will not be able to tap into his full strength until it's drawn out by Shin.
Gai Mou and Man'U carry the same crucible, just in slightly different fashions.
While Man'U rejects the "burden" of vulnerability to betrayal that comes with putting yourself out there for others, and Gai Mou rejects the "sophistry" of warfare - fundamentally, what they are rejecting is connection. Sentiment. Legacy. Weight.
While there may be some overlap with Gai Mou's views, Duke Hyou did not reject connection. He wasn't a 6GG because what moved him to warfare was different than what aligned the 6GGs and King Sho. Duke Hyou is actually most similar to Ren Pa. Two men completely in love and fulfilled by warfare. One just happened to end up a 6GG equivalent, but of course Zhao's circumstances were completely different.
Now, a big difference between Man'U and Gai Mou is that we know why Man'U is where he is in life.
What happened to Gai Mou to form his views remains a mystery, but I suspect trauma related to loss. If I had to guess, Gai Mou is a very sad individual that has lost a lot of people in his time - perhaps a lot by his fault, perhaps the losses are why he has to rationalises his views on warfare simply being a slaughter of the weak by the strong. Whatever it is, I believe Gai Mou has shut himself off as a defense mechanism. His blows still betray what's in his heart - the weight of a true Great General of the Heavens - but he will not be able to tap into his full strength until it's drawn out by Shin.
interesting, and good analysis on his character. We know for a fact that Gaimou cares enough about his strategist to offer a 1000 gold. Is it solely because of how valuable his strategist Junsou is to the Gaimou army? I doubt that. Maybe he lost a female companion on the battlefield?
I recently reread the Fire Dragon arc and I enjoyed Gaimou's character in it. He has interesting views, is hilarious and was a menace on the battlefiled.
interesting, and good analysis on his character. We know for a fact that Gaimou cares enough about his strategist to offer a 1000 gold. Is it solely because of how valuable his strategist Junsou is to the Gaimou army? I doubt that. Maybe he lost a female companion on the battlefield?
I think Gai Mou lost a lost of friends he cared about.
And he may have survivor's guilt that has warped his views on war serving no purpose beyond slaughter.
"It's not my fault they all died. There is nothing I could have done. The weak die and the strong live, they were weak and I am strong. This is the way of things and anyone trying to find meaning in slaughter is a fool."
Something along those lines. Denial and rejection to avoid confronting the pain of connection.
I recently reread the Fire Dragon arc and I enjoyed Gaimou's character in it. He has interesting views, is hilarious and was a menace on the battlefiled.
Gai Mou is much sharper than he lets on. Even if all he amounted to was having fun, there was a change in him by the end, when Shin rejected his views.
Strong as he was, I'm hoping Hara was accounting for rust. I think Gai Mou will be the strongest enemy Shin kills in a clean duel (he was nerfed and starving against a mentally fragile Hou Ken nerfed by Kyou Kai).
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