Question of the Day.

[lbd_nytetrayn]

Asked by yours truly at Dreamwave to Kuren, the colorist for the MegaMan comic book and perhaps the most communicative to the fans on the forums.

A curious thought just came to mind regarding the comic book: where does it take place? MegaMan has a long history of never quite knowing just where to stay... it's been said that he lives in (Neo) Tokyo, a fictitious place called Monsteropolis(from the first MM game, not mentioned again so far as I know), New York City(the Ruby-Spears MegaMan cartoon), Tokio(an actual city, I believe, that's in the midwestern US, and is approximately where Dr. Light's lab is shown to be in the map in MM8), and even another fictitious place known as "Megaland"(Captain N).

So is there any word as to just where MegaMan lives in the comic? I'm a bit curious, and hoping that MM1 will remain the last mention we see of "Monsteropolis", a name that makes many fans shudder. I mean, who in their right mind names a city that in the first place, and in the second, who would want to live there? It just kind of screams "trouble", usually with a capital, stylized "W".

I'll keep you all abreast of what happens here as soon as I hear more.

LBD "Nytetrayn"

Comments

[lbd-nytetrayn.livejournal.com]

Kuren: Not sure, do you think we should establish a location though? Or avoid it to not mess with continuity?

LBD "Nytetrayn"

[lbd-nytetrayn.livejournal.com]

Me again: Dunno. Guess it depends on how close to continuity you're going to be... and which one. ;P Let's analyze each one to see what would be best, if one of the above needs to be picked:

(Neo)Tokyo: A good choice, but with the direction of the comic, and the audience that I'm guessing you guys are going for, it might not be the best of choices. There's the matter of culture-shock(which many companies tend to try and avoid when bringing Japanese properties to the US, hence Brock's riceball "donuts" in Pokemon, among other things. God forbid we learn anything about other parts of the world, even subtly). Or it could be in name only, which would mean that the depiction could possibly end up inaccurate.

Monsteropolis: I don't think ANYone likes that, and it just sounds silly. Not funny-silly, like Rock and Roll's names. More like "what were they thinking?" and "are they serious?" silly.

New York City: One of the better possible choices from the above. It's a large city, a figurehead of American cities in a way. Despite originally being used in the old American toon, I don't know if too many people would have a problem with it. The downside: after September 11th, it'd be hard to say how people would feel about a comic book where robots are making attacks on the city. And lord only knows what reaction that holofoil cover for issue 1 would receive if you said he was blowing up ships over New York. Might not be worth the risk. Then again, Spider-man still has a career...

Megaland: ...no. Just no. It sounds like an amusement park, and works in the context of a story like Captain N, but nowhere else. In a similar vein, if MegaMan is indeed already the hero that the promotional blurb says he is, maybe after a dozen of the battles with Wily in the games, they might rename a lesser-known city "Megacity" or something. Sort of cheesey, but still sort of feasible, too. I only mention it after seeing something that read "Megacity" earlier, and thinking about how "Satan City" came to be in Dragon Ball Z.

Finally, we have Tokio. Not sure exactly where that is, except it's in the western United States according to the map in MegaMan 8. Things get a little complicated here, though. One I know of close to that is in Texas, and it's a ghost town. Population(est): 60. See for yourself . Would make sense for Light's lab, as it'd be a quiet place to test and research, and his lab is shown as being outside of the nearest city.

Of course, the other Tokio isn't all that different, it seems. But the first one seems closer to what is on MM8's map.

LBD "Nytetrayn"

[lbd-nytetrayn.livejournal.com]

(continued)

In either case, seems like it might conflict a bit there with what is going on in the comic already, unless it was worked into the story somehow. Though another option is to create a fictitious city of Tokio somewhere out there, which would pretty much grant you the freedom to do whatever you wish.

Anyway, I think a location should probably be established. The question is, what should the location be?

Maybe it's just me, but I don't like not knowing where something is taking place. Just makes the whole thing seem... detached... somehow. Even something as simple as a name for a place makes it a bit easier to relate to, rather than "the city is in danger!"

Different companies have shown different ways to handle their settings, though. DC tends to base their cities on others(I believe Metropolis was based on Toronto, with the Daily Planet based on the Star(or was it the Sun?), and I think Gotham was based on New York. This, despite these two names already being taken by actual cities elsewhere. The real Metropolis even has a Superman statue within.

Marvel, they take just the opposite route. People have often praised their characters as being down to Earth, easy to relate to, and I've seen part of that attributed to the fact that they live in real places, such as Spider-man and Daredevil in New York. The Ninja Turtles call the Big Apple home, as well, and the Marvel run of TransFormers used several real locations as well, including Portland, Oregon and Manhattan.

When all said and done, I think it's a bit of a decision to be made, and not one to be made lightly, as having a definitive setting can help the feel of the comic in some ways. But I'd rather see something decided upon, as opposed to having a nameless city.

LBD "Nytetrayn"

[lbd-nytetrayn.livejournal.com]

Edit: Allow me to mention something. I've heard from various sources that Tokio is the place referred to in one of the manga; the city is not named in the games, so it's more speculation that it's Tokio at all. Not heard anything from Capcom one way or the other, though, except for that map. I'll try and find out more, but the only definitive I know is that in MM8, the lab is in a city in the western US. I'll try and get an image...

LBD "Nytetrayn"