Balloonie

2005-09-01T04:40:55Z

66.67.177.114:

'''Balloonies''' are a particularly fanciful style of Furry character which have become a small but noted sub-genre over time. The basic concept of the Balloonie is a living, animate version of a 'real' style character made of rubber, latex, or similar materials. Many Balloonies are styled after stretchy latex balloons - hence the moniker - and are created with an emphasis on being like three-dimensional cartoon characters who can bend, stretch, and expand to great extents like a hand-drawn cartoon but in (fictionalized) reality. A famous example of a Balloonie character who has often had expanding properties is Karl Jorgensen's [[Xydexx|Xydexx Squeakypony]], a purple, anthropomorphic unicorn. Some of those who play balloonies are [[inflatophilia|inflatophiles]] - others are not.

Other Balloonie characters are patterned more after toys that might be inflatable, such as (but not limited to) pool toys, and are frequently conceptualized as being crafted out of PVC or vinyl plastic. Not all Balloonie fans enjoy the theme of cartoonish expansion or latex balloon properties and are more drawn to the colorful materials and shapes which they find appealing. With the nature of such characters, it is inevitable they are popular with those who also enjoy materials such as rubber in general, and in some circles these Furry fans and rubber/latex/vinyl themed characters they create are called Rubberfurs. Not all Balloonie and inflatable character fans are overly fascinated with the materials by themselves however. A number primarily enjoy the idea of characters that just happen to share some of the properties imparted by such things.

As it is impossible for everyone to like all things, some people find Balloonie characters silly or annoying, particularly since some Balloonie fans play their characters as overly cartoony and excitable in venues such as [[MUCK]]s. At times, Balloonie characters have recieved minor harassment in the form of non-consensual role-play antics where another character may act out 'popping' the Balloonie with a sharp object. Most Balloonie players roll their eyes and ignore acts such as these, though some consider it especially mean-spirited behavior, as in principle it could be seen as a translation of inflicting serious harm on a flesh-and-blood character.

On [[Yiffstar]], two stories by DSvid13 involve balloons heavily, [http://www.yiffstar.com/index.php?pid=4952 The Balloon Fraternity] and [http://www.yiffstar.com/index.php?pid=955 Uninvited Guests]. However, these stories can seem scary, and even appaling to non-balloonies, as it combines story features of a horror movie, such as forceful, although sometimes pleasureful, transformation and the unwilling spread of an unfavorable condition. Also, it ends with nothing being solved. In fact, by the end of the story, things look more bleak than ever for humanity in the story. In The Balloon Fraternity, students try to free their fellow students with a knife, to no effect. In Uninvited Guests, it ends with even more people falling victim to a controling, magical, even perhaps evil vixen.
[[Category:Balloonies]]

Kappa

2005-08-30T23:34:21Z

66.67.177.114:

'''Kappa''' (河童) are mythical creatures, water imps found in Japanese folklore.

==Appearance==

Most depictions show kappa as child-sized humanoids, though their bodies are often more like those of [[monkey]]'s or [[frog]]'s than [[human]] being's. Some descriptions say their faces are [[ape|apelike]] while others show them with beaked visages more like those of [[tortoise]]s. Pictures usually show kappa with thick [[turtle]] shells and [[scaly]] skin that ranges in color from green to yellow or blue.

Kappa inhabit the ponds and rivers of Japan and have various features to aid them in this environment, such as webbed hands and feet. They are sometimes even said to smell like [[fish]], and they can certainly swim like them. The expression ''kappa no kawa nagare'' ("a drowning kappa") means that even the experts make mistakes.

The kappa's most notable feature, however, is the water-filled depressions atop their heads. These cavities are surrounded by scraggly hair, and this type of bobbed hair style is named ''okappa atama'' for the creatures. The kappa derives their incredible strength from these liquid-filled holes, and anyone confronted with one may exploit this weakness by simply getting the kappa to spill the water from its head. One trusted method to do this is to appeal to the kappa's deep sense of etiquette, for a kappa cannot help but return a deep bow, even if it means losing its head-water in the process. Once depleted, the kappa is seriously weakened and may even die. Other tales say that this water allows kappa to move about on land, and once emptied, the creatures are immobilized. Stubborn children are encouraged to follow the custom of bowing on the grounds that it is a defense against kappa.

==Behavior==

Kappa are mischievous troublemakers. Their pranks range from the relatively innocent, such as loudly passing gas or looking up women's kimonos, to the more troublesome, such as stealing crops, kidnapping children, or rapin women. In fact, small children comprise one of the gluttonous kappa's favorite meals, though they will eat adults as well. They feed on these hapless victims by sucking out the entrails (or blood, liver, or "life force", depending on the legend) through the [[tailhole|anus]]. Even today, signs warning about kappa appear by bodies of water in some Japanese towns and villages. Kappa are also said to be afraid of fire, and some villages hold fireworks festivals each year to scare the sprites away.

Kappa are not entirely antagonistic to mankind, however. They are curious of human civilization, and they can understand and speak Japanese. They thus sometimes challenge those they encounter to various tests of skill, such as ''shogi'' (a chess-like game popular in Japan) or sumo wrestling. They may even befriend human beings in exchange for gifts and offerings, especially cucumbers, the only food kappa are known to enjoy more than human children. Japanese parents sometimes write the names of their children (or themselves) on cucumbers and toss them into kappa-infested waters in order to mollify the creatures and allow the family to bathe. There is even a kind of cucumber-filled sushi roll named for the kappa, the ''kappamaki''.

Once befriended, kappa have been known to perform any number of tasks for human beings, such as helping farmers irrigate their land. They are also highly knowledgeable of medicine, and legend states that they taught the art of bone setting to mankind. Due to these benevolent aspects, some shrines are dedicated to the worship of particularly helpful kappa. Kappa may also be tricked into helping people. Their deep sense of decorum will not allow them to break an oath, for example, so if a human being can dupe a kappa into promising to help him, the kappa has no choice but to follow through.

==Origins==

There are several theories for the origins of the kappa in Japanese myth. One possibility is that they developed from an ancient Japanese practice of floating stillborn fetuses down rivers and streams. Another theory is that the kappa were invented to explain the swollen anus common in drowning victims. The name "kappa" may be derived from the term for "robe" used by the Portuguese monks who arrived in Japan in the 16th century; they called this garment a ''capa'', and the monks' appearance is not unlike that of the similarly named Japanese sprites, from the loose, shell-like cloaks to the tonsure|tonsured hair. Some modern commentators even suggest that the kappa may be space aliens, and many of their pranks are similar to those often attributed to UFOs.

==Kappa in fiction==

Embedded in popular folklore as they are, Kappa are popular figures in modern times on Japanese animation, children's toys, and literature. Modern depictions make them much less monstrous, showing them instead as cute, cartoonish figures.

A notable literary appearance is the short story "Kappa" by Akutagawa Ryunosuke. They also appeared in a more sinister form as the organization of INKlings in Haruki Murakami's ''Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World''. The kappa were also the inspiration for the creature in the film ''Ringu''; Kappas have recently been introduced in Western literature, in ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' and ''Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them''. The creatures have been featured in the sixth installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series of roleplaying games (though renamed "imps" in the English translation), and were the inspiration for the "Koopas" in the ''Super Mario Bros.'' series of video games. In the [[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]] series, the Ninja Turtles tend to be confused with Kappa during their time travels to Japan's feudal era.

{{Wikipedia|Kappa (mythical creature)}}

[[Category:Species]]

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Balloonie

Kappa