ZuCritter

You'll be in my heart and prayers. Looking forward to many more of your insightful posts.

Your point is extremely well taken. I must confess, though, that it left me with an image of Yuzu as an actual old man, yelling at a wall -- and it was oddly satisfying ... This bodes extremely ill for my sanity during the extended drought to come.

I find Otonal absolutely stunning every time I watch it, especially the CoR version. The emotional arc is so profound and rendered in such detail, it gives me chills. Ballade has the same intensity and jaw-dropping fidelity to the music, but for me it isn't quite as emotionally nuanced. LGC is brilliant, but I don't think it reflects Yuzu's essence the way Otonal does. I'm not as taken with Origin, and I don't think that's only because injuries have prevented Yuzu from perfecting it. My favorite performance is actually CoR, because of the intensity he brought to it. Worlds was an excellent skate, but I felt he was very calculating and conserving his energy, presumably because his physical conditioning wasn't where it needed to be. CoR had a YOLO quality that elevated it despite the injury-related missteps. But to get back to the program itself, I don't think Origin has the emotional range and dynamism of Seimei, which is my favorite by a pretty wide margin. Of course, those additional 30 seconds in Seimei gave Shae-Lynn and Yuzu more time to build character and modulate emotions. But I suspect that even a 4-minute Seimei would still strike me as the quintessential Yuzuru Hanyu program. As for HYK, I don't find it as profound or moving as Swanyu. Gorgeous, yes, and the super-low hydroblade is to-die-for. But Notte Stellata touches me to my core, and HYK doesn't. Bottom line: I'm not a DW fan, at least when it comes to choreographing for Yuzu -- with the huge exception of Swanyu.

We need both Yagudin and Pluchenko as flower boys. Then they could compete for Yuzu's attention. There would be blood all over the ice, and the coach of whoever skated next could really bitch about psychological warfare!!!! .

As someone who plans to go to both Torino and Montreal, I'd be relieved if he took the year off. Sad not to see him, but thrilled not to have to worry about him. Such is the life of a fanyu.

With regard to endless 4Lo pop concerts and cryptic comments about "secret weapons," I offer the following job posting: WANTED: FANYUS If you love sparkles and ruffles on men, think dorks can be sexy, see nothing abnormal about owning 50 pairs of earphones, have a penchant for obsessing over FS protocols, reserve your deepest disdain for ISU judges, and will argue to the death over whether other skaters' jumps are under-rotated, this is the job for you. Basic requirements: Must be willing to sacrifice sleep, sanity, financial security and the society of normal humans. Top-notch skills in fingernail-chewing and lip-biting a must. Desired language skills: Japanese is plus, but you may substitute a willingness to watch endless hours of video in that language without the tiniest shred of comprehension. Must exhibit familiarity with specialized trade terms, including Dory, Sparkle Salad, Swanyu, UA, Antenna, YOLO, Space Kitty, LGC Hair, etc. Hours: 24/7 Compensation: Indescribable bouts of joy, delivered at random. PS -- Only masochists need apply.

I'd love to see Yuzu's face if he learned about this particular (mis)translation!!!!! Would he be: or: or:

No, we're not desperate, not a bit.

I'm going to start a betting pool on which will occur first: 1) Yuzu wins his 3rd OGM, or 2) someone manages to find a suit that actually fits him. (Those shirt cuffs!)

I want the pattern for the model.

That's the magic: He's exquisitely sensitive, refined and etherial -- and an apex predator. + =

If she has, there will be hell to pay with Hermione -- who, I'm sure, is a total fanyu!

And then there's that delicious state we've all fallen headlong into: infanyuation.

A terrific analysis, beautifully stated. I think a lot about what sets him apart, beyond his obvious technical prowess or even his "artistic" mastery. It comes down to something almost existential -- the way he owns every instant and every detail of his programs. I think that's a phenomenon that unites him and Pluchenko and even Johnny Weir, although their styles and personae are so different in other ways. During competitions, I often find myself thinking about how other skaters' programs would look if Yuzu skated them. (Usually, better, IMHO.) But it's ludicrous to think of anyone else skating one of Yuzu's programs, even if they had the technical ability to do it. Imagine anyone else trying the scream in RJ1or the death stare at the end of Ballade, the ice kiss in Haru Yo Koi or the head jerk in Origin. Almost every program is full of iconic moments that only he can pull off because they are HIM, he believes them. The man cries at the end of Swanyu -- during practice. Of course, I would love for him to skate competitively forever. But I'm also excited to see what he will bring to the FS world -- and the world at large -- once he's free of the restraints of competition. As more than one commentator has said recently, he's truly transcended the sport.

That was soooooooo much fun. Thank you, Sally, and everyone. Somehow it means more today than it did at the time -- I guess because we know so much more about what he had to overcome to win. I know it's too much to ask, but I can't help hoping against all logic and caution that we'll see him in Beijing ...

Am I bad to already be fantasizing about a jump battle between Rika and Yuzu at the WC gala?

I'm for just about any practice video, partly because of the UA (UnderArmor) effect. No matter how beautiful his costumes are, nothing shows off his figure/skating to better effect than clingy, solid black. Among the practice vids I particularly adore Swanyu (Notte Stellata) GPF 2016. Two items of note: 1) Zhenya (Evgenia Medvedeva) standing stock still at the end of the rink, simply watching him; 2) the gesture he makes during his bow. Sorry to be cryptic on that last bit, but I don't want to insert a spoiler.

I'm fine with that. Thanks.

TBH, I rather dread coming to the Planet when I know I'm going to have to wade through a lot of back-and-forth about something someone said or did that is perceived as an affront to Yuzu. I'm just not that interested in it, and it sometimes makes it hard to find the posts I do enjoy. Perhaps we should have a "Drama and Debate" thread or a "Can you believe this s***?" thread to let people air their grievances (within the rules of the Planet, of course), and let the rest of us not engage with that aspect of the conversation. I'm kidding, but only halfway.

Posting this here rather than in European Championships thread because it's really about Yuzu and his future. I would love to see Kolyada emerge as his chief rival rather than either Nathan or Shoma. For my taste, Kolyada comes closest (now that Javi is retiring) to capturing the insane combination of finesse and explosiveness that makes Yuzu so special. I just feel like, when he's "on," Misha has the most potential to push Yuzu to even greater heights. (Like the High Priest of Kuyashii needs any pushing, right?)

I'm struck by him saying "I'll respect you forever," rather than "I'll love you forever." I feel pretty confident that both are true, but I suspect that, for Yuzu, respect (at least unqualified respect) is a rarer feeling than love and therefore the bigger accolade. Actually, what he said is probably less telling than the fact that the cave boy showed himself voluntarily. That's R-E-S-P-E-C-T!!!!!

Well, there are only 31 minutes of Christmas left here, so, to prolong the celebrations, I give you:

Love bb JUNLIET clinging onto our overlord (who, of course, has grabbed the top spot)!