Some Random Thoughts After Studying Yuzuru for 3 Months

[Martina]

I, too, was sad to see that some people who had written so much in the past, produced analyses, videos, and texts... at a certain point stopped doing so. There could be many reasons for this, but it's still a treasure we're losing, because none of us can know everything, and by talking to each other, we learn so much.
Years ago, I read some old forums, precisely to understand how people reacted in real time to episodes that, for me, were part of history. It helped me better understand the doubts and fears that so many had experienced.
These doubts and fears haven't disappeared just because Yuzu is now a professional. In a recent interview, David Wilson stated that he was supposed to fly to Japan in January to choreograph Yae no sakura for Notte stellata, but that they had to abandon the project, and work with Zoom on a later date, due to yet another sprained ankle.

[databeej2w]

1 hour ago, Martina said:

I, too, was sad to see that some people who had written so much in the past, produced analyses, videos, and texts... at a certain point stopped doing so. There could be many reasons for this, but it's still a treasure we're losing, because none of us can know everything, and by talking to each other, we learn so much.
Years ago, I read some old forums, precisely to understand how people reacted in real time to episodes that, for me, were part of history. It helped me better understand the doubts and fears that so many had experienced.
These doubts and fears haven't disappeared just because Yuzu is now a professional. In a recent interview, David Wilson stated that he was supposed to fly to Japan in January to choreograph Yae no sakura for Notte stellata, but that they had to abandon the project, and work with Zoom on a later date, due to yet another sprained ankle.

 

I was deeply involved in another fandom for a 90s TV drama about 20 years ago. It was incredibly vibrant—fans produced over 10,000 fanfictions just for the main character! I stepped away from that community about 15 years ago, but returned around three years ago. To my delight, the fandom hadn’t completely faded and was still attracting new fans. However, most of the old forums had vanished. So many sparkling discussions and creative works were lost, including several of my favorite fanfics. It’s heartbreaking to realize that these things don’t exist forever.

 

Now, whenever I come across something wonderful about Yuzu, I make sure to save it on my computer. I’ve learned from past experience that they might not exist forever.

 

If I had followed Yuzu’s journey in real time, it would probably have been even more intense—filled with thrilling and heart-attack moments (like his difficult decision to withdraw from NHK 2017 due to injury). Many incidents were bloodier than described in his biography. The amount and intensity of criticism he received is more than I could have imagined. Still, I’ve also found plenty of cute and heartwarming moments. For example, Kurt Browning’s comments about Yuzu’s smile after a mistake in the FS at NHK 2012, and his saying that “building (choreographing) a program for Yuzu is like playing a video game, because Yuzu is able to do pretty much anything a choreographer can dream up.” This comment and the video game analogy made me smile.

 

And finally, may I ask, who got a sprained ankle, David or Yuzu, in January? 

[Martina]

2 hours ago, databeej2w said:

Now, whenever I come across something wonderful about Yuzu, I make sure to save it on my computer. I’ve learned from past experience that they might not exist forever.

 Same. We can't know when something wonderful will disappear.

 

2 hours ago, databeej2w said:

If I had followed Yuzu’s journey in real time, it would probably have been even more intense—filled with thrilling and heart-attack moments (like his difficult decision to withdraw from NHK 2017 due to injury). Many incidents were bloodier than described in his biography.

 

The only thing we can do was to wonder. Would his ankle heal? And would heal in time for the most important competitions? I'm happy that I was not a fanyu at the time of the 2014 Cup of China. The other injuries were devastating enough, that one would have been a nightmare.
Anyone who doesn't follow Yuzu's career closely can't imagine how much criticism he's received, how many senseless accusations he's faced. But when we look at what not jealous people but others say, then he has received enormous praise, because everyone realizes what he does, how he does it, and who he is as a person.

 

It was Yuzu who sprained his ankle. I don't know wether you saw the video of Yuzu walking in the backstage, at Notte stellata, with the ice on his ankle. And in Notte stellata he avoided the 3A and did only two 1A delayed, a 2T and a 3Lo. When he skated Requiem for the anniversary of the earthquake, the 3A was not so good. In Realive, for Otonal, he did only 3Lo, 3A, 3F+2T. His layout in his first senior season was more difficult, because then the combination was composed by two triple.
We know that he wants to restore all his jumps, he was clear about it in Radio Members. But with his ankle is really difficult. We can only hope.

 

[databeej2w]

19 hours ago, Martina said:

It was Yuzu who sprained his ankle. I don't know wether you saw the video of Yuzu walking in the backstage, at Notte stellata, with the ice on his ankle. And in Notte stellata he avoided the 3A and did only two 1A delayed, a 2T and a 3Lo. When he skated Requiem for the anniversary of the earthquake, the 3A was not so good. In Realive, for Otonal, he did only 3Lo, 3A, 3F+2T. His layout in his first senior season was more difficult, because then the combination was composed by two triple.
We know that he wants to restore all his jumps, he was clear about it in Radio Members. But with his ankle is really difficult. We can only hope.

 

Oh~no. I wish I hadn't asked. He did three 2-hour shows with an injured ankle? How could he go on like that? 

Maybe he can change the format of the performance. Instead of doing live shows, he can film his performance or ice story as a movie, and then people can watch it in movie theaters. He can sell it overseas. I think the box office will be great.

This way, he doesn't have to perform 10+ programs in 2 hours and can rest several days between filming.

[Martina]

He relied on painkillers, as he did a lot of times during his competitive career. I'd prefer he didn't need them; I'm worried about the long-term effects of all these painkillers. If you're up for a long list, I can list quite a few physical issues Yuzu had to overcome over the years. Let me know if you want to read it.

Painkillers aside, how could Yuzu go on like that? He is stubborn. When he wants do do something, he really does his best. Probably he has an high pain threshold, but mostly is stubbornness.

No, he can't change the format of the performance. He loves to skate in an arena full of people who wants to see him. Take that away from him, and you take away what he loves most. A recorded show isn't the same. A video, as Ikue, is wonderful, but he wants to perform in front of the public.
I saw him live two times. At the 2019 Grand Prix Final: short program, one official practice (the one in which he tried the 4A) and free skate, not the gala: that day I was at work. There were a lot of strong skaters in all the competitions. No one was comparable to him. He was magnetic, he was able to catch my eye even when he was at the side of the rink, drinking water, and ad the same time one of the other skaters was doing a quad at the center of the rink. I learned in that competition how overwhelming his presence is.
In 2022 he went pro. I saw all his solo show from my computer. Prologue only some time after the show, but for Gift, Re_Pray, Echoes of Life and Realive I bought the ticket for the livestream every time, this means 9 tickets. For the other shows, two times (Echoes day 2 and Realive day 1) I was able to watch them on Asahi in real time, I watched all the others when they were aired some times later. So I know what he did. I saw everything.
I won the tickets for Echoes of Life in Chiba, both days (but I bought also my ticket for the international livestream, as a support for Yuzu). Chiba was the third city of the tour, so I already knew the story. This aided me a lot, because I was able to understand what was happening even whithout the English subtitles. And... it's totally different.
From a screen, the shows are wonderful. From a cinema (two days later I went to a cinema in Kyoto and I watched the delayed viewing) they are even more beautiful, because you feel the atmosphere with the other fans. Inside the arena... it's totally different. The light are brighter. The colours more intense. The music wraps the people. There is a sensation of the space that you can't feel from a screen. You see Yuzu's speed, the beautiful transitions from one move to another that sometimes get lost when in the video there is a camera change. You feel to be part of the shows, because the lights often go over the public. You feel the emotions of the people sitting near you. It's totally different.

Without the live performances, what Yuzu is doing would lose a big part of his meaning. The emotion would not be the same. Think to a detail: no one knows whether Yuzu will be able to skate a clean show or not. He too doesn't know it. And this feeling is an important part of the show. Really. When in Gift he started the six minutes of warm up, I was worried as I was worried the year before, when he was about to skate in Beijing. In a video... would he show a flawed performance, or would he skate again and again until he will do a perfect performance? There can't be the same tension in a recorded show.

Another thing: he loves challenge. He could do easier shows. But he doesn't do them. He needs to be challenged, otherwise he would lose interest. At the 2017 Autumn Classic International he obtained 112.72 points in the short program. The Total Element Score, with three jump elements (one combination), three spins and one step sequence, was 64.17 points. For the free skate he decided to avoid the 4Lo and the 4Lz because he felt some pain to one knee. And he lost his concentration. He did countless mistakes. The Total Element Score for eight jump elements (three combinationa), three spins, one step sequence and one choreo sequence was 67.02 points. Less than three points more compared to the short program, but with a lot more of elements. When he doesn't feel challenged, he is not able to skate at his best.

So we have to accept that sometimes he will be injured, and that, prayers aside, we can do nothing. To be his fans means, among all the beautiful things, also accepting this truth. From time to time, we will have a new trauma because we will discover something painful.

[databeej2w]

OMG, I feel awful just reading your words. I cannot imagine how his parents bear with his burning candle behavior. 

 

The emotional roller-coaster of watching live events would be too much for me. I cannot watch a live competition unless I don't care about it. I have no problems watching old programs since I know the results.

 

To be honest, I watch his programs for emotional serenity, soothing, healing, and inspiration. I do not have the mental strength to know more about him now. I have to distance myself a bit.