Rewrite - And what if it was an otome-game

Key Fanworks
#22

The time is upon us :smiley:
While @EisenKoubu is reviewing for the 1st day of the story

We should choose some more names :wink:

Poll for male ver. of Ootori Chihaya (鳳 ちはや)

  • éłłè’ć€Ș Ootori Arata (raging + great)
  • éłłè’æšč Ootori Araki (raging + tree)
  • éłłæ–°äșș Ootori Arato (new + human)
  • 鳳逾 Ootori Hayaru (impulsive)

0 voters

Poll for male ver. of Senri Akane (ćƒé‡Œæœ±éŸł)

  • ćƒé‡Œæœ±äž– Senri Akase (red + world)
  • ćƒé‡Œæœ±äč‹ Senri Akeshi (red + name-suffix)
  • æœ±ćŸŽćƒæœ— Akagi Senrou (red castle / thousand + pure (sound))
  • æœ±ćŸŽćƒçŽ˜ Akagi Chihiro (red castle / thousand + direction)

0 voters

More polls to come later :smiley:

PS Moved the whole thread to the “Key Fanworks”. It suits there better.
PPS 24-48 hours to vote~

1 Like
#23

I thought I would try something new with this project. Instead of FanFiction.net, which I used for my previous fanfics, I’ve placed the Prologue and first chapter (hereafter known as October 3rd) on my new account on Wattpad!

EDIT: (link removed)

Future chapters will all be found in the link below. Special thanks to @Khsellhu for his extensive help getting these first couple parts as polished as possible. The next chapter, October 4th, will be coming in the near future, so don’t forget to vote for what you think male Chihaya should be called! Enjoy~! :smiley:

EDIT: WattPad sucks. Here’s the FF.net link: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12256915/1/The-Rewrite-Genderbender-Project

Just so you know, I omitted the Prologue in this version because it’s a little too similar to the original’s prologue, and FF.net’s a little strict about that stuff. Anyway, enjoy October 3rd!

4 Likes
#24

@EisenKoubu Nice! I’d love to read this soon. :slight_smile:

Random thought: Kokoro confessed to Yatori
 in Winter, during Valentines’ Day. It feels appropriate considering Valentines’ Day seems to be an opportunity for girls to express their feelings through chocolates – whether outwardly or covertly. :))

Somehow, it feels like some of the routes in a genderbent Rewrite could be interpreted in a feminist lens. Especially Shizuya’s route. The original had a lot of gender role reversals in its first half, as Kotarou try to be useful in some ways and is discouraged by others and even failed at it, until it culminates in a moment where Kotarou was finally able to truly help Shizuru.

A genderbent version of this would be a Shizuya being badass while Kokoro does all the household chores – gender roles played straight. But at the same time, Kokoro tries to escape this shell and be the badass for once. It fails in the first time (she gets screwed over while looking for Kotori), but towards the end, where she finally convinced Shizuya to save himself from Salvation, she gains hold of their destiny. While Kotarou is this dude trying to be heroic, Kokoro is this girl trying to be a “strong, independent woman.”

The Guardian people discouraging Kokoro from doing the action also takes a new meaning: Though it’s still mostly because she’s inexperienced, her being a young woman gives these discouraging a connotation that she can’t be involved also because, well, she’s a woman.

An exception though, is that Kokoro’s character development clings a bit too much to her feelings towards Shizuya to be truly emancipatory, like a feminist work would be. It can be argued, however, that this is about Kokoro in the end being finally able to make influence in their relationship, for once.

Interestingly, it would also be able to explore a woman’s sexuality, considering the underwear-smelling gag in Shizuru’s route.

Now I wonder if the other routes can also be seen in a feminist lens. XD

3 Likes
#25

Well, why not? It would actually fit for “the family” image, that Shizuru had
 Also, she can also be something like a big sister for Shizuya at first. The same way as Kotarou looked similar to a big brother. She looks after him, she helps him
 Then thing happen and they are somewhat together. She supports him, she believes that he is some sort of a hero fighting for the good of this world, she enourages him
 Yet it doesn’t go well from the very begining. I mean, why not? A normal (am I being sexist here?) love story in our age of hyper-active girls, and extremely passive boys. With both sides actually sharing things with each other
 And I will maybe pray for a different resolve to their story.

Also, I’ve changed a bit layout of the starting post to make navigation through this thread easier.

Well, the voting is now closed.
Our winners are: “Ootori Arato” & “Senri Akase” \o/

2 Likes
#26

In hindsight, the scene was actually supposed to portray the sheer ridiculousness of Chihaya’s strength and also her clumsiness. So that means Arato still has to be in that tree. :yahaha:

It’s hard to translate that in the genderbent version, considering how it’s traditionally believed that men are stronger than women, but I have an idea: what if the reason why Kokoro insists on helping Arato is because she thought he was too clumsy to deal with it? She has all the reason to believe in her strength: surely she had done a rewrite on her strength before this, so she’d still be in disbelief that she couldn’t even lift the box an inch higher while Arato could carry it
 with one arm, for the sake of exaggerating it further.

A funnier idea: what if the source of Arato getting pissed is the fact that his pants got ripped by a branch due to the fall? He was incidentally wearing cherry-patterned boxers, and didn’t want Kokoro to see, but she can’t help it. XD

I finally got around to do genderbent designs of the characters, drawn in the format of the anime poster! I’m very sure that there are other designs around the Internet as well, but here’s what I’m happy with. What do you think? :slight_smile:

Rule 63 RW.JPG807×1195 458 KB

I did say I was going to upload a compilation of sketches, but that’s for later~

11 Likes
#27

I really like your Kokoro’s design, Hayate.
I think I’ve already said it before, but she looks really refreshing. Maybe a bit too bishoujo for a gender-bent Kotarou :smiley:
Yatori is also right on the spot in the terms of how I’ve imagined himself myself.
I think that Akase looks a bit too feminine
 Not a typical pose for a male, I believe. And I’m not sure about that hairpin. It may be better to make him to look more
 I dunno, punk? Or more official.
Lucius does look good, but kinda old xD Well, I like him that way.
Can’t say anything about Arato. He definetely shouldn’t be bulky, but as of now he looks a bit too plain I think. Might as well make his hairs longer?
Shizuya looks like she just ran away from some elementary school :smiley: your typical shota-lil’ brother chara. I think, it does suit him xD
And the Key looks kinda Kotarouish :smiley:

3 Likes
#28

I was hoping to see this, actually
 but it’s kinda difficult to make with Rewrite’s character list and backstory.

#29

Really interesting idea. Rewrite is, at its heart, a datesim, and dependent on the appeal of the female main characters. And because it is targeted at a male demographic, the question of whether or not it works if everyone’s genders are swapped will depend on how different you think a male’s romantic desires are from a female’s. If we consider it funny when a guy falls clumsily on a girl and unwittingly finds his hand on her boobs, do we respond in the same way if it’s a girl who’s fallen on a guy with her hand in his crotch? Same thing with underwear-smelling. I’m sure there are girls for whom that would be a massive turn-on! Hey, who said females weren’t allowed to be creatures with sexual desire as well??

[quote=“BlackHayate02, post:24, topic:3467”]Somehow, it feels like some of the routes in a genderbent Rewrite could be interpreted in a feminist lens.[/quote] Interesting you say that. The general impression I get of otome-game protagonists are girls that while are somewhat competent and able to express themselves, require some level of outside support - with the romance developing along the lines of how their bonds deepen enough that she gets that support from a guy, aka a male protag. Contrast this to Rewrite. Kotarou is actually one of the more competent galge protagonist - he doesn’t need _saving. In fact, he is the one who ends up saving most of the girls. Would it work if the gender tables are reversed, and the girl is the one who ends up saving all the guys? Would girls find that kind of work appealing in the same way that guys like galgames? The answer will of course depend on individual preference, my gut feeling is that the answers will mostly be no - I don’t think the broader society has progressed that far for that idea to have taken root - but I prepare to stand corrected. Challenging the norm with discussions like these is exactly what starts the first wave of change, after all~

4 Likes
#30

Well, lets ressurect this topic while @EisenKoubu is working on a continuation of a story

Check this amazing Rewrite’ gender-bent art by Shirane Hito:
https://twitter.com/ShiraneHito/status/814869427002875904

6 Likes
#31

Thanks for the encouragement and thread bump, @Khsellhu. Also, that pic practically embodies the whole reason this idea exists, so I’m fired up! :smiley:

And a little extra good news: I just finished the first draft of October 4th! I’ll be running it through the editing process, and with luck we may see it published before the first week of the year ends! :slight_smile:

3 Likes
#32

Hello and welcome to yet another Rewrite -GenderBent Project- character’ names poll!
Soon would be released 2nd day of the fanfiction, so now we should decide on the male name for Nakatsu Shizuru and female name for Ootori Sakuya.

Nakatsu Shizuru ă€Œäž­æŽ„é™æ”ă€

  • Nakatsu Seijirou ă€Œé™è”Šă€ (“quiet” + “to forgive”)
  • Nakatsu Seiichi 「静侀」 (“quiet” + “one”)
  • Nakatsu Shizuya ă€Œé™ćŒ„ă€ (“quiet” + “more and more”)
  • Nakatsu Shizuto 「静äșș」 (“quiet” + “human”)

0 voters

Ootori Sakuya 「鳳ć’Čć€œă€

  • Ootori Saya 「ć’Čć€œă€ (“bloom” + “night”)
  • Ootori Sayaka 「ć’Čć€œèŠ±ă€ (“bloom” + “night” + “flower”)
  • Ootori Sakuno 「ć’Čäčƒă€ (“bloom” + “from”)
  • Ootori Sakura 「ć’ČçŽ…æ„œă€ (“bloom” + “crimson” + “music/ease”)

0 voters

Polls would be up for the next 24-48 hours and then closed~
And don’t forget, your voice does matter! :kyouevil:

And so, Nakatsu Shizuya & Ootori Sayaka are our winners for this 2 polls!
Thanks to everyone for participating! :wink:

4 Likes
#33

Wanted to make a bit of an update regarding the status of the story.

While the next chapter is technically finished editing and ready to be posted, I feel some personal concerns that future chapters may deviate too far off the course I’ve set for this story due to some contradictory piece of dialogue I wrote in this chapter. Forgive my paranoia, but I’m delaying the release of the next chapter until I’ve finished writing and editing the chapter afterwards. Please look forward to any future updates I make as I keep making good progress! I’ve got a lot in store for this story, and there is a chance I may involve you guys in the writing process as well! :slight_smile:

EDIT: October 4th is published! You can view it here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12256915/2/The-Rewrite-Genderbender-Project

Also, another update. October 5th is pretty much finished with drafting and editing (miraculously), so I’ll publish that when I finish drafting and editing October 6th. Hope you all look forward to it! :smiley:

4 Likes
#34

Just wanted to announce that October 5th has been posted! You can view it here, assuming you’ve read the previous chapters: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12256915/3/The-Rewrite-Genderbender-Project

I’m still working through editing October 6th, and I have an idea of where to take the story beyond that, so I hope you look forward to updates and such! :slight_smile:

4 Likes
#35

Well, it’s been over two months without anything substantial, but I have a small surprise for everyone.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12256915/4/The-Rewrite-Genderbender-Project

It’s not the newest chapter of the story that you always wanted, I know, but I wrote a smaller side story featuring my in-universe OTP, Kokoro and Yatori. It’s mostly fluff, although if it gets decent reception, I could write some more stories like it featuring the other characters. And hey, if it gets REALLY good reception, then maybe I’ll do Yatori’s arc first. I doubt it’ll happen, though. :yahaha:

1 Like