remilia scarlet, izayoi sakuya, and shameimaru aya (touhou) drawn by setz

Artist's commentary

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    Finnish Touhou 4koma

    Collection of Finnish Touhou 4koma. They are in finnish, but english translations and explanations for some jokes are available here: danbooru.donmai.us/pool/show/1754 There ARE japanese translations now available by Motomachitencho! pixiv #41164503 »

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    Zekana
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    I'm still amazed how much the artists artwork has improved over time. so much smoother and polished then how rough it used to be. though the characters do feel less structured then how they once appeared. could be my imagination though.

    as far as the comic goes, i too have wondered what ayas things taste like. now i know.

    and poor sakuya.

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    Kiltti lonkero
    [hidden]

    I, too, think that this one doesn't look quite as good as the two previous comics by the artist, even though it was posted on an imageboard only two days ago, so it's the most recent one. It's not like it'd really matter anyway, though.

    About the translation. "Your Ladyness", rather than "My Lady" or similar, is intentional, as the original "Haltiatar" is a rather strange, pun-ish address, too. I couldn't figure a proper English variant for Aya's "Ayaha" (pun of "aijaha"), so I just translated it "Oh". If anyone wants to edit those or otherwise revise the translation, go ahead.

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    Fred1515
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    Zekana said:
    I'm still amazed how much the artists artwork has improved over time. so much smoother and polished then how rough it used to be.

    You know, I liked it better back then. This guy's style is so unique and different that I don't think making it smoother and more polished actually improves it.

    1 Reply
    Moonspeaker
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    Kiltti_lonkero said:
    About the translation. "Your Ladyness", rather than "My Lady" or similar, is intentional, as the original "Haltiatar" is a rather strange, pun-ish address, too. I couldn't figure a proper English variant for Aya's "Ayaha" (pun of "aijaha"), so I just translated it "Oh". If anyone wants to edit those or otherwise revise the translation, go ahead.

    Could you possibly explain what the pun would be in the original? Coming up with an equivalent might be easier that way.

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    Kiltti lonkero
    [hidden]

    Moonspeaker said:
    Could you possibly explain what the pun would be in the original? Coming up with an equivalent might be easier that way.

    Tetsamaru said:
    I've always been in favor of <tn notes myselfs.

    Personally I can't stand translator notes most of the time, but here in the comment section they are perfectly fine. I suppose the appropriate comments that explain the language specific puns and oddities could be linked to in the translation notes, though. Brace for a long-winded explanation, as the interpretation of Sakuya's address of Remilia can be somewhat complex.

    Haltiatar is a feminine form of haltia (cf. actor → actress). Haltia is nowadays usually used to refer to Tolkienesque elves, though it is also an archaic form of haltija. Some researchers seem to think that the words are actually of different origin, but I'm not going to delve on that. Haltija means literally possessor, and depending on the context can be interpreted as owner, master/occupier (of a house), bearer, occuppant (of a position) etc.

    However, haltija and haltia can also refer to various legendary and mythological Finnish creatures. In this sense the word is similar to youkai in that it is a generic term to many a different creature of varying size and nature: a haltija can be a spirit of a fir, a beautiful, flirtatious forest fairy, a guardian spirit of a person or a place or a massive giant. Halitija can be evil, good or neutral, though it is usually a good idea not to bother them. Additionally, fairy godmother is translated as hyvä halti(j)atar in Finnish (literally good halti(j)atar).

    Thus, Sakuya is addressing Remilia as a mythological creature (well, which she actually is), or as a mistress/owner of the house or the possessor/owner of herself (i.e. Sakuya's owner), using the old fashioned form haltia. Calling someone a mistress would be appropriate in English (depending on the context, of course), but no one in Finland would ever address another person simply as a haltija, or a haltiatar, for that matter, even if they were their master or a superior. Thus, because of the intricate nature of the term, it is hard to translate it into English, and I merely used a completely different deviant English address, instead (“Your ladyness”, rather than “My lady”).

    The “Ayaha?” on the second panel of the first comic is a lot more simple. It's simply a deviant variant of Aijaha?/Ai, jaha?, which approximately means “Oh, I see.” or “Oh, really?”. Couldn't figure out an English pun that would had carried more or less the same meaning.

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    Moonspeaker
    [hidden]

    Well, not going to quote that for the sake of space, but it was very educational, thank you. Honestly, I think you could've gotten away with "Mistress", but maybe..."my vampire Mistress"? It's a bit long-winded, but that way, Sakuya includes Remi's mythological status using a form of address that she never normally would. Eh, maybe.

    For "Ayaha?", maybe "Oh, a-yeah?", since "a-yeah" sounds almost like "Aya"...

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