Journey into Mystery

So, um, okay. In the Japanese version of Okami (and Okamiden, I guess? IDK) Amaterasu -and Shiranui for extension- didn't have an actual gender. We can agree on that. Then in the English game, there were hints for female (Waka using French female pronouns and adjectives, Yatsu seeing her as a maiden) so most people think of her as a gal in fanon. Me included, but that's not the point.

So now the English localizators of Okamiden have randomly decided that the Shiranui incarnation is male. "Always remember: it’s people that assign gender to the gods." And by people, we mean us.

No, your reason is utter bullshit. Shiranui might be another incarnation, but she was the original Amaterasu with full powers and memories. Shiranui is the name humans gave her because they didn't know who the fuck the white wolf was, and they used "it" pronouns. Waka thought of Shiranui as Amaterasu. Ishaku called her Ammy. The Brush Gods called Amaterasu their mother, but they were born from Shiranui. No one is seeing a huge distinction between Ammy and Shiranui in the original game. Actually, does she turn into a dude in the final battle to you guys?

Why don't you just say WE FELT LIKE CALLING HIM A GRANDPA or admitting you are afraid of girl fleas cooties instead of using the Japanese lack of gender as a loophole? Mind you, I'm not pissed that Shiranui gets her gender changed to male. It's the inconsistency. If they had changed BOTH Amaterasu and Shiranui as male, I wouldn't agree but I certainly wouldn't complain about it. Then it's just a translation choice. But by doing this picking, it feels just wrong and badly thought. IT'S THE SAME CHARACTER, YOU DUMBASSES.

Sigh. I'm done with my wank. Back to replaying Ghost Trick and uploading Okami fanart on Tumblr.

Happy birthday, Ilye-pon ♥~

Also, memo to animators everywhere:

Sure, obscuring a mysterious character's face -who happens to look like another character and with a reason- in a certain episode could be effective. The oxymoron kicks in, however, when:
a) the character's face appears IN THE SERIES' OPENING/ENDING, and next to the lookalike main character
b) ...you show his face by the end of said episode

ZOMGWTF!1!!1 ASCH LOOKS LIEK LUKE NO WAI! NO ONE COULD NEVER IMAGINE!