The only object inspiration to have officially been revealed by Toboso was Rudgerās/Rudgarās/Ihavenoideasorry Death Scythe, in her Tuna.be blog (post here)
She posted this photo:
So Rudgarās Death Scythe is modelled after Boschās Keo tool, with the exception that Toboso says she made Rudgarās bigger in the manga.
In the post, she also mentioned that she had decided on Saschaās Death Scythe, but time limitations kept her from including his in the manga, and that she hopes she can add it in later (well I sure hope as well; Saschaās my favorite character!)
2. Ronaldās Hat:
In the beginning of the Campania Arc/BotA arc, Ronald has this hat he wears when boarding the ship, and Toboso shows it in the next chapterās front page:
Turns out my dad bought a Taschen fashion advertisements calendar that showed ads for clothing/shoes/hats from the 20th Centuryā¦ and I found these two ads that seemed oddly peculiar:
I donāt know if this company had anything to do with Tobosoās decision to give Ronald the last name of Knox, but it sure looks suspicious (but then maybe she found out after, and decided to use the hat out of funā¦)
I tweeted my discovery to Toboso, but she must be too busy/must receive too many tweets to have seen itā¦
3. Saschaās camera:
I wonāt hide that Iām proud of my discovery of this one:
I also sent a tweet to Toboso about this discovery as well, but she didnāt answer probably for the same reasons as before.
I originally wanted to look at the camera for a cosplay, and having found Ronaldās hat a while back, I decided to look for the camera as well:
After searching for folding cameras of Saschaās style, I came across a company that had very similar styles to the camera: Zeiss Ikon, a German camera company.
Two of the cameras looked almost exactly the same, but thanks to the difference in the top right square lens, I found the right model:
And judging from the look of the real thing, I think Iām going to be spending quite some fun time in flea markets, yard sales and antique stores this summer:
ITāS. SO. PRETTY.
(I just found out @abybweisse almost found this as well, but fell on the one that got me in a scramble (the one they found doesnāt have the right position for the top right square lens), oh and also an awesome fabric with the Super Ikont B printed on it (I WANT IT TOOOOO TTATT))
Things other people have found as well:
@abybweisse found several objects as well (respect, because damn, I know thatās not easy):
-Rudgarās shoes (I cannot find the original post, I found this on a copy website with no links to the original posts):
Grellās deathlist book (a Chanel, damn, thatās cool! expensive af, but cool)
Rudgarās watch (super expensive wtf)
Ronaldās watch (a Cartier?! super expensive too, WTF)
(Putting the links for more info if you like this kind of post:
Ahhh, please please please search my blog for āzeissā. I figured out Saschaās camera over a year ago. š But thereās way more to it. Zeiss is predominately a manufacturer of glass lensesā¦ for cameras, eyeglasses, rifle scopes, binoculars, etc. They even advertise about eye exams:
Look familiar? It should! āThe Story of Will the Reaperā ova shows the reapers using an eye exam chart that is basically a combination of the left and middle charts above:
Haha!
I even found fabric with that camera in the pattern and had a dress made. Hereās some extra fabric I want to use for pillow covers or something:
But, yeahā¦ Zeiss. Itās such a hugely important tech company in Germany.
On another note, though. I cannot take credit for figuring out Grelleās Chanel planner/agenda, Ronaldās planner/agenda, or Ronaldās travel trunk. Also, Yana-san shows us in the design drawings that Ronald has a menās Pasha de Cartier watch.
Um, what else did I figure out? Ludgarās watch appears to actually be a combination of two A. Lange & Sƶhne models ā The Minute Repeater:
And the Striking Time:
I also suggest searching my blog for ādeath scytheā and āhistorical referenceā. For example, Grelleās choice of death scythe modification (chainsaw) evolved from tools initially meant to aid in difficult childbearing cases; they just ended up leading to things that are better at sawing wood than bone or cartilageā¦.
Another example is that Ronald Knox is named after a real person. Check out my post āThe Historical Ronald Knox & The Ten Commandments of Detective Fictionāā¦.
I actually have an entire side blog devoted to general references used for the manga/anime @abybweissekurorefs and another for reaper references @abybweissekuroshinigami
Though I have to give you props for the hat ad discovery!!
About Sascha, yes I think we will see them again for two reasons:
the camera: I donāt know if itās a death scythe or not, but itās so out of place compared to what the Shinigamis usually bring around when they work that it automatically makes them stand out.
theĀ āShinigami vocationā: there again, between UT who deserted and others like Will or Rudgar who just donāt like their jobs (for obvious reasons, since itās more of a punishment than anything else), Sascha stands out byĀ āhaving much more fun than when I was alive and a humanā.
They look and sound younger than any other Shinigamis to me since weāre on the subject, so I wouldnāt be surprised if they became a ShinigamiĀ ārecentlyā (knowing the recently could mean a century for what we know lol).
I have no real idea whether theyāre a She or a He to be honest, could be either, even though we know that the majority of Shinigamis introduced so far (so the ones sent to collect the souls) are male (I know Grell sees themselves as a woman of course, but Iām thinking they might be considered as male by the Shinigami hierarchy when it comes to this job).Ā
Anyway, I believe Sascha standing out the moment they were introduced means that Yana has something precise in mind when it comes to their role in the plot, but what exactly, I think it might be too soon to tell.Ā
The only thoughts Iām having on the subject would be that Sascha could prove to be intrinsically linked to the sub-plot of the early WWI seemingly starting, since they apparently found that idea so very interesting in ch105:
So donāt worry about Saschaās character, they will definitely come back (when is the question now). š
Hope it answers your question, and enjoy the rest of your sunday!Ā
I honestly think Shinigami try to appear as ānormalā as possible and live their new lives to the fullest. Nothing in their behavior hints that they were suicide victims. A little fucked up in the mind, maybe.
True. tbh I really want Toboso to bring us more information about this. Because overall I feel this was indeed not an idea that was there since the beggining. But well, we just need more information.
Everything about them seems to stem from their suicides. Even the selection of their death scythes can at leastĀ sometimesĀ tie back to WHY they killed themselves. I havenāt analysed them all, so maybe they all tie back to how or why. They were meant to be suicides from the very beginning. I have zero doubt about this.
Iāve already posted in-depth analyses of the following reapers and their death scythes (can easily be found on my reaper blog, abybweissekuroshinigami):
Undertakerand his old fashioned scythe ā I think I might have only discussed this in reblogs?? Mostly, this places him as dying long, long agoā¦ probably around 1200. If heās really Cedric K. Rosā, then heās partially based on Cedric Rotherwood from Ivanoe, set in 1194. The exact opposite of Ronald Knox, he would be traditional and opposed to change. He wouldnāt be fond of monetary systems or the ruling monarchyā¦. Just like the story of Ivanhoe, there is something romantic (and timeless) about Undertaker. Other clues suggest Undertaker was betrayed and abandoned. (Bonus: I think he might have set himself on fire.)
Grell Sutcliff and the chainsaw ā chainsaws used in the lumber industry started out as small chains used to help women with childbirth complications. Couldnāt bear children, led to depression, committed suicide. (Bonus: I think Grell drowned, just like Ophelia in Hamlet.)
William T. Spears and the telescopic pruner ā it allows him to keep his distance from others. Not just demons he might fight but also the people from whom heās collecting souls. I donāt think he could get close to anyone (emotionally) in life, either. (Bonus: I think Will jumped from the top of a building.)
Ronald Knox and the cylinder lawnmower ā though Iāve analysed the death scythe, I havenāt quite determined the reason, except that heās a modern and sporty guyā¦ and the lawnmower replaced the scythe to cut lawns, changing and modernizing the rules of numerous sports. Perhaps he thought he was just way ahead of his time, and no one understood him? (Bonus: I think he slit his wrists.)
Sascha andā¦ is the camera really his death scythe? ā Since we havenāt seen him actively reaping (unless using the cameraĀ āsteals the soulā like some people used to believe) I analysed the camera. Until we get confirmation on his death scythe, I canāt say what it has to do with his suicide. However, his suicide method is hanging by noose; thatās canon, as he is shown in silhouette putting a noose around his neck in one panelā¦ while heās narrating that reapers are all suicides. Itās clearly him with the noose.
Othello and a modernized sickle ā I have discussed this in reblogs only, so far. It seems to tie back to Shakespeareās Othello, who kills himself after killing his wife and finding out the accusations against her were based on false evidence. Heās more of a modern thinker than Undertaker, so even though he uses a sickle, itās modern in appearance. Itās also a bit reminiscent of a Moorās (or Arabās) scimitar, which was a commonly used curved sword. His namesake was fooled with fake evidence, so perhaps thatās why our Othello is now in the reaper forensics department. (Bonus: since Othello in the play stabs himself with a dagger, I imagine our Othello doing the same.)
I think those are the only ones Iāve got to, so far, but the rest are works-in-progress.
In the Kuroverse there are a plethora of Grim Reaper characters, with at least 9 distinct Grim Reaper personalities all meddling with the human world. But why would Yana Toboso bother to include so many Grim Reapers? Surely one or two could get the single job they all do (reaping souls so you can see backstory) done? (like Scotland Yard with its 2 members)
A characteristic the Grim Reapers share is boredom (like the Undertaker, William, Ludger) or a longing for innovation in their monotonous jobs, and lives (Grell, Ronald, Sasha, Othello).
Sashaās reaction goes to show how boring and unchanging the Grim Reaper world is. The Grim Reaper institution as complained about by many, is a strict and rigid society.
And when you want to start a revolution, you need multiple people to make an impact. So the Undertaker could be helping them in a revolution to change the way their society is run, bringing attention to his work to give them a shock or bribe with the reanimated corpses that seem to be causing trouble for them, so that the world of the Grim Reapers is ultimately reformed, allowing more innovation and individuality, and better working conditions, and help for those who are sick
(A reference to the Musical āthe most beautiful death in the worldā, in which Alan and Eric leave the Grim Reaper department because Alanās rare illnesses requires a sacrifice of one thousand souls to be cured).
Why does William hate overtime so much anyways. What are the hobbies he does outside of work? Not organising a revolution group I hopeā¦
(In the official translation, the words to piss him off are āIāveĀ always been part of the anti- overtime school to begin withā) I see him as the mostly likely candidate for the leader because why act like such a goody-two-shoes, punishing everyone for breaking rules he knows off by heart, when he clearly hates his job, and doesnāt want to be there doing it for a second longer than he has too?
Basically every character introduced by Yana Toboso plays a further role somewhere down the track (and if they donāt, they die), so Iām pondering the role of the abundance of Grim Reaper characters.
We know basically NOTHING about the supernatural elements of the Kuroverse, especially the home worlds and societies of demons and Grim Reapers, so I donāt really have any hard evidence for or against this Shinigami uprising theory, itās just food for thought.
š„ There is beauty in destructionš„ 