Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Continues, A Case Study on Rurouni Kenshin as a Transmedia Narrative Through its Filipino Fans

Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Continues, A Case Study on Rurouni Kenshin as a Transmedia Narrative Through its Filipino Fans

Abstract

This thesis revolves around Rurouni Kenshin, a Japanese manga/anime/ live action trilogy, and the stories of its Filipino fans of its transmedia narrative as they discovered the story through its different media platforms. This study delves into the minds of the fans, and in the process, discovers the different ways in which the story of Rurouni Kenshin developed in their eyes.

Utilizing Henry Jenkins’ Transmedia Storytelling and Convergence Culture, this study aims to answer the question: What are the different transmedia stories of self-identified fans of Rurouni Kenshin based on their transmedia experience of its narrative?

Through purposive snowball sampling, focus interviews were conducted to identify the themes in which the fans discover the narrative. Using the core concepts of Transmedia Storytelling, as identified by Jenkins, the convergence that happens inside the minds of the fans is described and explained.

The different transmedia stories of the fans are presented, followed by three dominant themes that resurfaced, labelled according to the three Rurouni Kenshin live action movies’ theme songs: (1) The Beginning, the pull on nostalgia and reminiscence of when they first touched upon the narrative; (2) Mighty Long Fall, the time the fans have lived as fans. It has two sub-themes, one focusing on the fans’ self-expression and the other on real-life experiences; and (3) Heartache looks at the fan as a wanderer through media platforms, and how they faced and resolved certain differences among them. Keywords: Rurouni Kenshin, Transmedia Narrative, Convergence Culture, Fandom, Fan Culture

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