The Missing Link !!!

GigaSheep · 21-03-2002, 08:59 PM

After some extensive research, I figured out who Panuru is.

Panuru is an obscure figure in Japanese Shinto Mythology. Most importantly, Panuru is a fox spirit.

As you will recall, Toka was possessed by a fox spirit.

Now does it all make sense? Think of all the implications! Notice that Panuru's philosophy and Boogiepop's go hand in hand (Boogiepop, unlike the Organization, is all about moving on. Just like Panuru's World Love...)

Traditionally, possession by fox spirits was associated with madness and depression, and was believed to confer abilities of transformation. The folk myth still continues today.

In the show, Boogiepop was born when Panuru was exposed traumatically to death, as seen in ep12. She becomes an avenger that acts out Panuru's words in a violent way.

As for Boogiepop's costume, it seems to resemble a shinto "shishigami": angel/god of death. So Panuru dons this mantle and becomes a death god of sorts: Boogiepop.

Kuroda previously used the costume and the dartwhip. If you look closely in ep12, you can see the hat on the ground near his fallen body. Why did Kuroda dress as a shinto grim reaper?

That's supposedly in the novels, where he is the composite human "scarecrow".

PEACE

heart havok · 22-03-2002, 04:09 AM

yeah, i noticed the hat last time i watched thru.

AWSOME research you have there.. any links to any of the info? i'd like to read up on this myself as well. meanwhile, all in good time... hopefully this weekend, i'll find the space to rewatch the series with all these wonderful theories and observations of your's in mind. then i'll come back commenting up a storm

GigaSheep · 28-03-2002, 05:33 PM

A little more on Panuru:

It's possibly Panuru that forms the 'universe' effect on the inside of Boogiepop's cloak. She's the only truly supernatural thing in the show (if she even is... perhaps she's also a personification) and since she's closely linked to Boogiepop, she might be that part of the cloak...that spirit within.

Also... in vol3 Rie (Misuzu's friend) says "I learned all this from... her" presumably referring to Panuru. At the end of vol12, Nagi has one last thing to tell Toka:"say hello to 'her' for me". This is most probably Panuru too! Toka knows about Panuru, but almost certainly does not know about Boogiepop... her split personality.

Nairohe · 30-03-2002, 06:33 PM

If boogiepop and Toka have always been one and the same all along, why would boogiepop say that she was born on the day that the news reporter guy died?

Quote:

Originally posted by Nairohe
the question is, was touka boogiepop BEFORE she was admitted to the perfectual hospital? She mentioned that she was admitted due tot he fox spirit around DVD 2, though though boogiepop was actually born the night she put the cloak on from the dying Kuroda.

Quote:

Originally posted by heart havok
yes yes! i think only... more accuratly:
Touka possessed by fox spirit.

Touka admitted to Perfectual hospital.

Touka runs into Kuroda and gets a hold of the cloak and the hat. [still at question. seems there's much more.]

Boogiepop was born.

Boogiepop is hunting down Echoes.

light incident happens. [due to Echoes' death, i believe.]

Boogiepop hunts down the manticore (the Echoes copy.) [and eventually Echoes as well.]

GigaSheep · 30-03-2002, 09:21 PM

Simple. That was the day Toka's split personality, Boogiepop, emerged... people are not born with a split personality; they don't suffer from them all along. Toka's close exposure to death 'flipped a switch' in her unstable mind, causing 'boogiepop' to emerge. Split personalities are often created by trauma in the real world. Plus, we know that Toka was already on the hospital because she was depressed/traumatized since she had been possessed by the fox spirit Panuru (See earlier posts)

heart havok · 31-03-2002, 02:40 PM

this still doesn't explain Boogiepop's "powers."

a 'simple' split personality does not have the power of the Shinigami. certainly, this could be explained by Toka's "evolving" but becoming Death doesn't settle well inside me as the simple "evolving," as are the other children.

this is the main thing that throws me apart from your theories on split personality... in my mind, Death isn't a simple split personality but rather, a super natural being.

GigaSheep · 31-03-2002, 09:56 PM

erm.... boogiepop *has* no powers!!!

boogiepop PHANTOM has powers... she puts the evolving kids in stasis (presumably with the threads from Jonouichi's spiders[ep2]), casts threads of light from her fingertips, teleports, etc...

but BOOGIEPOP just uses a harpoon thing mounted on her wrist, and does nothing impossible. what powers does she have? she never teleports or does anything out of the ordinary. panuru, who possibly inhabits the cloak (see earlier posts) is most likely supernatural...but that's it. boogiepop, being subconscious, fears nothing and therefore can fight the evils quite well. We know from various eps that the man-eaters rely on fear and hopelessness.

but what powers do you think boogiepop has? she is not supernatural. What in the show suggests to you that she is? She wears the death garb perhaps, and phantom says 'I believe you refer to me as death', but this does not mean she is an actual Shinigami; that's just what people think she is...

Plus, Toka is *NOT* evolved!!! that is why she cannot see the balloon in ep9 when on the way to Paisley Park with Akane...

I always thought that one of the main points of the show is that boogiepop is *not* supernatural/evolved/mutated etc. she is essentially the spark of unquestioning, subconscious existential optimism that exists (supressed or embraced) within all of us. In Toka, through trauma, this spark surfaces as a new personality, 'boogiepop', which rises to protect the world from stagnation and heartache...

heart havok · 05-04-2002, 02:31 AM

hmm... i still don't see why Toka's other personallity couldn't be a possession by Death.... but honestly, that's probably moreso me being attatched to believe the fantasy side of things moreso than the boring realistic. also, i never saw anything pointing towards that only evolved people saw the balloons. in fact, i don't recall any of those balloon swing kids being evolved, or anything pointing towards anything other than them simply being lost in sense of 'self'... i know Toka isn't evolved, that's why i quoted it. because i was comparing her possession of the Fox Spirit to the other childrens' evolving. Boogiepop, i believe to be supernatural {other than my wanting to believe Boogiepop to be death} because she knows things that i don't see reason to believe any human would know. perhaps i should just continue saving this until i rewatch the series again... or atLEAST until i'm more motivated to actually give a ---- to analyze what i'm saying. sorry, i'm no fun right now for analytical discussion. -_-

GigaSheep · 05-04-2002, 09:46 AM

It is very specifically mentioned that only the special kids can get the balloons. It is mentioned in both ep9 +10. As for the things Toka knows, these are the things she got from Panuru.

heart havok · 06-04-2002, 04:15 PM

yes, certainly special children. but no where to they say Evolved children.

GigaSheep · 06-04-2002, 08:23 PM

We know that the special children ARE the evolved children. The terms are interchangeable, I've seen some fansubs that even translate both the same way.

heart havok · 08-04-2002, 01:54 AM

that's not nearly convincing though.. fansubs aren't legit. simple termanology doesn't cancel out possibility of a seperate type of "special children" other than the evolved.

GigaSheep · 10-04-2002, 03:39 AM

perhaps, but i still think the evolved kids and the special kids are the same. the kids with poom-poom have powers- remember the freaking fireballs in ep10?

random1377 · 10-04-2002, 08:50 PM

Ok, here's a question then... the original Panaru (let's call her Panaru 2, shall we?) says SHE'S not the original Panaru. When the NEW Panaru (Panaru 3... confused yet?) askes who the original Panaru is, Panaru 2 smiles and says, "That's a secret..."

So... who is Panaru 1?

If you're saying it's Boogiepop, that's not possible, since you said Toka was 'inhabited' when Panaru 2 died.

On a side note, it's questionable to say that Toka is not evolved. If she's simply possessed by Boogiepop, then you can't say she has multiple personalities.... and if she has multiple personalities, then she MUST be evolved -- because she can sense Manticore when he's nearby.

Boogiepop's got at least that power

GigaSheep · 10-04-2002, 09:14 PM

Read this thread from the beginning.

Panuru is not a person. Panuru is a fox-spirit from shinto mythology, whose significance i have already mentioned. This spirit possessed Toka, and is probably also the swirling aura we see in Boogiepop's cloak. I would venture to say that the 'sixth sense' is not Toka's: it is Panuru's. Notice that Toka only has this 'sense' when she is carrying around the cloak in her Spalding bag.

I'm not saying that Panuru IS Boogiepop. Read my other posts scattered on this board and it should clear things up. Do come back with questions.

N.B. Panuru and Boogiepop ARE related, and Boogiepop would not have arisen in Toka if she hadn't been possessed by Panuru. Note that Toka knows about Panuru, but not about Boogiepop.