You always knew there was something wrong with the Tokyo Empire. The Church. Amaterasu. You didn't know you'd be part of the Fire Force company to destroy it all. How did it come to this, it started so peacefully... with a community garden at the bo...
Hi there! Soooo I'm actually staying in Asakusa right now 😁 and today I took a day trip to the Edo Wonderland living museum in Nikko that recreates an Edo period town (like Asakusa in FF). They have a whole exhibit on Edo period firefighters, and I wanted to share what I learned with you guys in case you were curious about some of the cultural choices the manga and anime made for the 7th. A lot of it was new to me!
First. Historically speaking, firefighters in the Edo period were the most simped for group of men. (Tracks). They often had sleeves of tattoos (hot), were much more fashionable and flashy than you would think (they had stylish bags, decorated tools, fun clothes, etc and I love it, but Beni and Konro definitely aren't written that way in the show). They lived by the following traits (iki) of an ideal Edo man:
1. Foresight 2. Empathetic 3. Confident in One's Ability 4. Honor Authority 5. Patient 6. Good Listener 7. Decisive 8. Able to Relinquish Authority 9. Attentive 10. Humble
... There was a sign next to this sign that expressed disappointment that more men aren't like this today. 😂😭
All this is to say, us simping for Beni (and Konro), from a historical perspective, totally makes sense. ✌🏻 I'm glad to know that people have been thirsting over firefighters for... Well... Ever.
Firefighters were usually construction workers by day, and that was part of why they made such good firefighters. Not only were they strong and nimble, they knew how the homes were built, and could easily and effectively destroy a home to prevent the fire from spreading. Beni destroying the neighboring homes makes sense historically. The whole block on the other hand... That's a bit much. (Which is why I made up additional context to explain why he takes it to such an extreme.)
Firefighters were also often the leaders and police of a town, without directly reporting to any governing body. (But they did get along with the governing authorities. Unlike our 7th. Which is why they come off as more Yakuza-y)
Other fun facts include:
Matoi- A matoi weighs 20-30 kgs (up to almost 70 lbs!!) And Beni swings it around like it's nothing. (And now Mara does too, damn girl.) That kind of display was normal though, to get the attention of the people, warn them that there was a fire and that they needed to get to safety/ not go in the direction of the fire.
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"Beni gave dreams to women" - this sign truly tickled me. Turns out, Beni is the name of the lip and cheek color used by Geisha/woman of the Edo period. The name comes from the flower used to create it (Benibana). And I can't argue with that headline 🙃 Did I buy some Beni? Of course I did.
Indigo - I was curious about the dark blue clothing, and learned that the Japanese had a different way to make this color without the indigo plant the west historically used. I like that the 7th makes their own blue uniforms.
Guard Tower - That guard tower does not have as much space up there as I thought it did. The anime definitely has a bigger one than the one I saw today. We're gonna stick with the anime sized tower because otherwise there is not enough room for... Activities.
Asakusa and the Yakuza- I make a comment in the fic the the 7th is kinda like a benevolent Yakuza... Largely because I saw one reddit thread one time that said the 7th was like the Yakuza and the Yakuza had a strong presence in Asakusa for a long time. Turns out, very true. I attended a festival today in Asakusa and it was very cool! There were food vendors all over all the neighboring streets and I asked my friend (who lives in Japan) what business had been like for these vendors during covid... To which he replied "Well many of them are in gangs, actually."
Me: "Wait, like the Yakuza??"
My friend: "Oh yeah. So they probably did other odd jobs in the meantime. They have a pretty strong presence here, like they do in other older and poorer neighborhoods of Tokyo. They ask for 'protection money' for the neighborhood... Shit like that.."
Me this whole time: "😳😳😳"
So uh. Yeah. Makes sense that people would see the 7th that way.
Woke Asakusa - My friend also told me that Asakusa is considered an old and kinda not as nice part of Tokyo. They have an older population as well, and are seen as more traditional in a lot of ways. HOWEVER! They were one of the first neighborhoods to support the LGBTQ+ unions in Japan / Tokyo! We love to see it! ❤️
Samurai - I also took a samurai class. I learned that the samurai believed that the soul resided in the low belly, from hip to hip... All the Asakusan men will be holding the low bellies of their partners a lot more. 😭
I have a ton of pictures of the explanations, so if y'all are curious and want more detail on anything, just lemme know! Thank you for reading!
