Talk:Please Save My Earth

Kanji for the scientists?

In addition to the Kanji for the character's names, I also came across some Kanji for the moon scientist's names. I didn't include them because the scientists, not being Japanese, wouldn't have Kanji for their names. (In the English translation there was some big deal about the scientists pronouncing their multi-part names as a single word {Moku Ren as Mokuren, for instance} was this really their names appearing in Kanji instead of in Katakana?) Any thought on what we should do with this? The kanji are available on the Japanese verison of the page... (DrZarkov 18:24, 11 December 2005 (UTC))

As the scientists are known by most fans as well as mostly throughout the book using these Kanji names (names of flowers), it is best to simply include them in there. While their names were broken into "foreign" names, or using Katakana's, it was the author's intention to name them after plants to begin with... Not to mention later in the story, as well as in the sequel, they are always refered to by their Kanji names. (68.117.245.217 14:11, 6 March 2006 (UTC))

Given both spellings are used at different times, we should include both katakana and kanji versions, with the flower name translation. —Quasirandom 21:54, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

I added the kanji/kana in a table in the section for "Symbolism", since that's really all the plant names are used for in the manga. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 13:17, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

Other Characters?

While the story is revolving around the eight teens, it's important to note the roles of various supporting characters, such as Mikuro, are essential parts of the story. We should include them as well. (68.117.245.217 14:19, 6 March 2006 (UTC))

I've started a stub subsection for Tamura, Mikuro, and Hajime, but I suspect we shouldn't include others -- those are really the majors. And Hajime can be argued out, if you squint hard enough. In general, we should keep the character section from growing out of proportion to the rest of the article. —Quasirandom 21:56, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

I have added about as many characters who have contributed in any significant way to the story/plot as I can think of upon having finished reading the manga. All edits I have made on June 25th 2008 and the surrounding dates are based upon and taken directly from the manga. Those who wish to edit for content, I ask that you only do so if you have the manga at hand; those who want to edit the aesthetics/spelling/grammar/etc of what I've added be my guest. In particular, Mokuren's father's name, Roja/Rojion, was taken from the Japanese version of the manga because the English version was not clear enough about which his name was, as Mokuren's mother has called him both. Also, while there may be some characters I have missed, there can't be many. I am removing the tag to expand the "Other" characters section because I do not think there are many more characters that need to be added to support the story. If anyone thinks of someone I left out, add them of course. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 01:51, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

Also, Ayako Okamura's name is misspelled several times in the English translation by Viz, as "Okayama". In order to be as accurate as possible, I have verified against the Japanese version of the manga, and in every occurrence of Ayako's family name during this scene, it is given in the Japanese version as "Okamura". Therefore, "Okayama" is a typo by Viz. Any changes to Ayako's sub-section that attempt change her last name to Okayama are incorrect. This is in volume 12, pgs 56-67. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 03:25, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

Cleanup

Why the call for clean-up? I don't see anything particularly wrong with the article. (DrZarkov 21:43, 11 April 2006 (UTC))

I agree, no need for the cleanup tag, and I have removed it. Cleanup isn't really what the article needs; what the article needs is expansion and citations. —Lowellian (reply) 12:22, 15 February 2007 (UTC)

Actually, on second thought, the article needed a lot of wikification, but I've done that now. —Lowellian (reply) 16:46, 15 February 2007 (UTC)

PSME as influence

Over the years, I've seen multiple mangaka mention PSME and Hiwatari as a strong influence, sometimes their strongest. It would be good to collect a list of these, for adding to the Reception section; I'm starting doing so on the side, but if other people were to do so as well, and note them here, I'd appreciate it. —Quasirandom 20:29, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

• Sakura Tsubasa (citation?)
• Naoko Takeuchi (supposedly Sailor Moon was influenced by)

What about noting the manga and authors that influenced Hiwatari? PSME is riddled with shout outs/homages to Saint Seiya, various Tezuka works and other influential works. These are often pointed out in the translation notes section at the end of each book of the English/R1 release. After adding all this other stuff... I think I'll leave this daunting task to someone else. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 04:02, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

That, too. The way articles like this are structured, there's usually a section on Development (influences on) and Reception (which includes not just reviews but influences upon). Hiwatari made several statements about the former, as you note -- I was looking to get more of the latter, which I know I'd seen before I started reading the series, but haven't been stumbling upon. (BTW, good job on all the work you've been doing, as it is. When you get stuff to a semi-stable state, I'd be happy to start an editing pass.) —Quasirandom (talk) 04:14, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

I'll move the Homeages section up a level and rename it then. As far as Influences go, I actually don't usually read author blurbs in the chapter side panels of manga so that is one section that I know I can't help with. Sorry! And lastly -- It would be great if you could help me out with editing! After having read the manga in one binge reading this past weekend and loving it to pieces, I came here with the goal of bumping this article up a few rankings if possible (GA? *crosses fingers*), but I know that my writing gets kind of rambly at times and definitely will need some editing. I am also not sure how much information to provide in the article in order to kick it up a few notches. Do the main characters need their own separate wiki pages? Can you think of anything else I should add content-wise in order to achieve this goal? TachibanaChiharu (talk) 11:47, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

The main thing would be to beef up especially the Reception section -- you can reach GA with little-to-no Development. Some of the other sections probably need some trimming down, actually, or hella referencing -- basically, all the material that involves reader interpretation, other than barebones plot, will be described as original research unless you can find reliable sources that show that it's other people who say this, and it's not an original-to-you statement. IOW, it's not more information that's needed so much as increasing the quality of what's there. I'm in the middle of another editing project right now, but in a couple days, I should be able to roll up my sleeves and dig in. —Quasirandom (talk) 15:13, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

Oh, and whether chararacers have separate pages is irrelevant to the rating of this page. Given guidelines, I don't think any of them could sustain a page on their own -- in-universe/story notability doesn't count for that and instead you have to demonstrate that the character is notable and influential outside of the series. Now, we may after edits decide to split off all the characters into a list-of article, but I'd wait till we finish expansions before deciding on that. —Quasirandom (talk) 15:26, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

I think I'm done with everything but the Development as far as new content goes. If you see anything from the Characters sections that you think needs cited, let me know and I'll whip out some manga citations. I'll probably be working on the Development section throughout the coming week since it will take a while (Viz doesn't list any page numbers in their Editor's Comments so I have to go searching all over the volume for what's being referenced). I also haven't looked at the character descriptions for the seven scientists and seven reincarnations; they're bound to need a round of editing so I'll find time for that too. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 19:36, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

Coo. I'll start a buff-and-polish pass the next week, asssuming the creek don't rise any further. —Quasirandom (talk) 20:21, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

Interview with director

An interview with the director of the OVA, from which useful information about the process of the adaptation can be culled and cited by someone ambitious: http://www.ex.org/2.6/07-exclusive_yamazaki.html —Quasirandom 00:16, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

Citations

This is the first article I've ever done any citations for (as well as the third article I've ever edited), so bear with me here for a minute. I realize that citations for the information provided in the article are necessary, but how much is too much? Should I add citations in the "Characters" section? To what depth? Does everything mentioned about everyone need a cite? Unfortunately in the R1/NA releases of the manga, there are no obvious chapter breaks/headings, so I am having to instead fill out page numbers in the citations. I am trying to make each citation's page-span broad enough that the cites can be reused in several places, but this will not always be the case. Because there is so much plot/worldbuilding information contained in PSME, if literally every sentence of the article gets a cite, this will add up to a number of entries in the References section that might approach overtaking the rest of the article in length. Would sticking just to whole manga volumes as cites be sufficient? That would at least ensure there would be no more than 21 manga citation entries listed in the References section. But I don't know if that strategy would follow proper citation policy for wikipedia (I did look at the page on it, but my eyes glazed over, sorry). Any advice would be appreciated. Or, if someone wants to clean up the cites after I'm done butchering them all, that would work too. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 11:47, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

I can help with the cites, having recently done something similar with List of Fruits Basket characters. Not that I'm suggesting that that be a model -- I deliberately overcited things because, as a hugely popular series, it's a magnet for pet fan interpretations. The basic rule of thumb is, anything that reads like an intepretation about the characters, rather than a bare statement of a plot event, needs to be somehow be supported with a reference. To make up an example, "Fred is angry at Jane" would not, but "Fred easily gets angry" -- and the latter could be cited from a reviewer or from a comment from another character commenting about how his touchy temper. Does that make sense?

As for page references, that'd be the way to go here, what with the lack of chapters. Formatwise, for the manga citations, you're looking good. —Quasirandom (talk) 15:19, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

Images?

I can provide, say, lo-res scans of each character from the manga (JPN or ENG version, if it makes a difference) for the "Characters" section if this is allowed to be done? Also, there is an illustration/diagram in vol 8 of the Aliens' home solar system which makes the "History" section make much more sense than just a big, wordy explanation. I can provide a lo-res scan of this too, if I am allowed to? Advice? TachibanaChiharu (talk) 11:47, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

Pictures for each character is, to put it mildly, iffy given Wikipedia's guidelines on non-free media. Group shots are the way to go here -- and as I recall, there's several pictures of all seven alien scientists to chose from. If you can then find one of the seven reincarnations (especially in a similar pose? maybe?), that'd also work. The home solar system diagram would definitely be in line, given the complicated explanation it evades. —Quasirandom (talk) 15:23, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

I uploaded two images so far, one the diagram of the planets and the other a relationship chart (which includes images of all seven scientists and seven reincarnations). I am thinking of taking two or three screen caps from the OVA, movie or image videos in order to allow the anime depiction of the characters to be represented visually in the article. About how many total images do you think would be appropriate for an article of this length? TachibanaChiharu (talk) 23:55, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

To be honest, I don't have a good sense of how many. This is a topic of, shall we say, continual debate and I don't think a fully accepted consensus has formed. My suggestion would be one more from the manga, to show the art style, and one from the anime, to show how the adaption is different. Preferably both in some way illustrating somehting being discussed by the article or a reviewer. —Quasirandom (talk) 01:01, 28 June 2008 (UTC)

I added several screen captures all over the article in order to illustrate various things about the series. Essentially I uploaded one for each section that didn't already have an image in it (although the image of the other six leading Rin toward the bright doorway is linked twice). There are 12 unique images including the manga vol 1 cover which was originally there. I also have other screen captures that I decided not to upload: 1 of Lazlo and Kyaa, 2 of Rin and Alice happy together from the end of the OVA, 1 of when Boone finds Rin unconscious, and 1 of Boone and Dr Mori from the front view. However what's linked in the article seems like a good sampling given the breadth/depth/length the article is now, so I'll leave the rest of these out. If you think it's excessive feel free to delete any of them. Also the scan of the solar system might be too large as uploaded and need to be sampled down a bit (I don't have a real good feel for what is considered "lo res yet legible"). TachibanaChiharu (talk) 19:30, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

Cultural References

Is it worth listing the various cultural references as noted in the "Editors Comments" of each volume? There are usually at least 2-5 per volume not including the flower imagery. This might tread into TMI territory even if it might be interesting and useful to some people. Thoughts? If deemed useful, should it go into the Development section or is there a different top-level section that needs to be added for this? TachibanaChiharu (talk) 01:44, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

Splitting the manga list

Yeah, that would be a candidate for splitting out. I was waiting until we got around to writing volume summaries before starting on somthing like that. One thing about the split-off article: the title would have to not be "chapters," because the tankobons do not have chapter divisions. —Quasirandom (talk) 22:35, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

I'm cool with splitting it to a list of volumes with summaries. I could help write the volume summaries since I have become rather intimately familiar with the manga since expanding this article and having to track down citations in it for hours on end. If someone wants to create the page and at least put up a template for volume one, I could fill that in and re-use the template for the other volumes. I'll be back on the clock for doing work on the article tonite (Wed July 2nd) and probably the rest of the weekend. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 12:02, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

The standard list template is already being used in the article -- to expand it to incude volume summaries just add a Summary= parameter to each volume, like I just did to volume 1. One guildeline to be aware of is to try to limit each volume summary to 300 words. —Quasirandom (talk) 14:37, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

I was only tagging it for future splitting, not saying it should be done ASAP. ;) In any case, not having read the series (though I've been meaning to see if any libraries in my area have it), I didn't know about it not having chapter divisions. Even so, though, I think it would be wise to have a rediect from List of Please Save My Earth chapters, since that's project consensus for the name of chapter lists. BTW, what about cover characters? Are they the same between all volumes? And are any of the volumes named? In either of these cases, you'll have to use the VolumeExtras parameter to note these... —Dinoguy1000 16:29, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

Regarding cover characters: all 21 volumes contain depictions of one or two of: Alice and/or Rin, Mokuren and/or Shion. It is not always the same person each volume but it is always one or two of those four people. Also, none of the volumes are named, they are just "Please Save My Earth Vol.21", etc. For the record, the Japanese tankobon do not have chapters either, the TOC just lists where the particular volume's PSME story starts and then, when present, where the bonus stuff at the end starts (e.g., PSME Club). Anyway, since I've been busily editing the heck out of this article for the past week and change now, I figure I might as well throw in some summaries while it's still fresh on my mind, since they were suggested. Any other suggestions are of course more than welcome! TachibanaChiharu (talk) 21:24, 2 July 2008 (UTC)

As TachibanaChiharu says: there's a limited set of cover characters, enough so it doesn't seem worth mentioning those. And good point about a redirect from the alternate title. —Quasirandom (talk) 14:34, 3 July 2008 (UTC)

All right... the cover characters thing is similar to Case Closed/Detective Conan, where every volume features Jimmy Kudo in his Conan Edogawa form (and only Jimmy Kudo) on the cover. The special features at the end of each volume should also be listed if they're in the TOC (and maybe even if they're not... I've not yet really gotten a feel for what features are noteworthy and what aren't, though at one point Collectonian just told me to list everything...), and for this, you should use the ChapterList parameter. —Dinoguy1000 16:37, 3 July 2008 (UTC)

Viz seems to have left out what table of contents (1-2 entries as most) there was from their release of the English version so I guess I'm not going to add the ChapterList parameter unless there is some compelling reason I should. TachibanaChiharu (talk) 14:18, 6 July 2008 (UTC)

Meme

I noticed a small-scale internet meme recently: "the past is just practice". Jinpachi says this as part of a long monologue in one of the later volume, is this where it originated? (24.209.129.93 (talk) 12:55, 12 January 2009 (UTC))

It doesn't matter, internet memes aren't usually notable - particularly "small-scale" ones. 「ダイノガイ千？！」^{(Dinoguy1000)} 21:58, 13 January 2009 (UTC)