[Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo! and its characters are the property of AIC and Pioneer LDC, Inc. and was created by Masaki Kajishima. This story comes entirely from my imagination, and is strictly intended to be apocryphal--so please don't sue me.] ABSTRACT: A seven-year span of one silly story after another about that pesky ancient fortress in Tenchi's back yard. I've only completed 3 of the 26 episodes I had planned for this series, so it would really make my day if someone wanted to write some of these. All I ask is that you more or less keep to the premise, and make the script about the same run-length as the others. If you'd like to discuss it with me, I can be reached at mpfenton@hotmail.com GUIDELINES: I would like to offer some recommendations on how to handle a prospective script for this series. 1) No preachy, half-baked, Star Trek-style dialog. Try to keep dialog simple and on-point. 2) No lemon. All my material is strictly PG/PG-13. Okay, fine--you can do lemon, but just keep it in a separate version. 3) Strictly screenplay format. I prefer scripts rather than stories because they let you be more inventive with how you present the story. 4) No Washu or Washu stuff. This means no Washu inventions or sub-space laboratory in the broom closet. 5) No TV-style farce. If you do a slap-stick bit, make it creative. Try to avoid excessive clownish, verbal gags and simplistic wackiness. I like to focus on silly coincidences. 6) No warm-and-fuzzy romance. This series should strictly focus on tragic/ironic romance. 7) See the notes below for more on writing the characters. A DISCOURSE ON DIALOG: I'm going to hammer away on this point, so please just humor me. Nothing kills a good story like a bad line. If you take the time to write a script, please don't flub up on the dialog. Here are some suggestions, if you don't already know what I'm talking about: 1) Never set out to educate. This is the absolute worst thing you can do. Fiction is not didactic. 2) Don't worry about what a reader might think of your lines. Their job is to be very open-minded and accept what you think--not to judge. 3) Never forget the details of your characters--their intrinsic qualities and their motives. What would they say? 4) Draw from your own imagination and emotions. Try to appreciate what you are writing, then write it. Visualize, then dramatize. There are many other suggestions I could offer, but these are the most important. Don't let yourself suffer from writer's hypnosis--stay alert and creative. That's the easiest way to make sure you're having fun. SCRIPT MECHANICS: In case you weren't already aware, there is a simple art to composing scenes. CU (close-up) is for intimate details, and other shots emphasize action or interaction. EXT (exterior) usually establishes where a shot occurs, and INT (interior) establishes the shot itself. You can usually get by on just that, but there are other mechanisms you might keep in mind for special situations. Pan and tilt is for turning the camera side-to-side or up-down. These emphasize a sense of transition or movement. Another technique is called trucking--moving the camera physically forward or backward. Zoom in and out emphasize a slight shift in the level of intimacy, and focus-in and out emphasize a slight shift in the attention between foreground and background. A shoulder-shot is sometimes good for interactions while characters are walking. VO (voice-over) is for an aside, and OC (off-camera) is for dialog or action you want to avoid viewing. To emphasize an intense moment, you might do a quick mechanic effect or an ECU. Another effect is split-screen--an intense moment before a big battle. This is usually something you want for intense irony. Another way to use this is for a long-distance dialog. There are other effects--like wild distortions, pop-up bubbles, goofy signs--but these can typically only distract from the humor of situation comedy. I usually reserve these for silly linguistic gags. A SHORT GLOSSARY OF TERMINOLOGY: abstract: no particular place (subject over blank) backlight: light from behind a subject BCU: big closeup (subject's face fills the screen) BG: background (not in the visual shot) blackout: abrupt fade to black camera angle: shoot from angle (narrow/wide, low/high) close medium shot: subject viewed from head to knees CU: closeup (full shot of subject, focus on head) cut: immediate change from one shot to the next dissolve: fade one shot gradually into the next ECU/XCU: extreme closeup (shot usually only showing eyes) EXT: exterior shot (outside) fade in/out: gradual change from black to scene/scene to black fast motion: speeded-up action shot focus in/out: change field of vision from back to front/front to back freeze frame: stop motion/single image held for a time full frame: subject viewed in full within the frame FX: special effects (usually redundant in anime) head shot: closeup, focused on the head of subject hold: sustained shot of a subject INT: interior shot (inside) iris in/out: gradual expanding/closing circle from/to black long shot: shot from a distance, usually wide angle medium close shot: subject viewed from head to chest OC/OS: off-camera, off-screen (not in visual shot) pan: turn the camera horizontally (side-to-side) POV: point-of-view (view from the perspective of subject) shoulder shot: camera at shoulder height (usually with tracking shot) slo-mo: slow motion (slowed-down action shot) smash cut: rough change from one shot to the next split-screen: showing two scenes at once tilt: turning the camera vertically (up/down) titles: text on screen tracking shot: camera moves with action two-shot: shot of two subjects wipe: one scene or image is pushed in or out of shot zoom in/out: change focal length of lens to enlarge/reduce a particular area of a subject EPISODE GUIDE: (Year One) 1) "Dream Silliness" (Pilot) Everyone has a right to dream, right? Well, maybe not. (I'm writing this one.) 2) "Patriotic Silliness" The discovery of a flag from planet Beta puts diplomatic channels into a turmoil--considering that the only planet left out of the treaty was Beta. 3) "Academic Silliness" Okay, the Academy finally gets word of this find, and boy are they ticked. Just to prove it, they send an entire research vessel/battleship. (Year Two) 4) "Fatal Silliness" Guardians in various parts of the fortress decide enough's enough. No more visitors allowed, and boy do they mean it. 5) "Treaty Silliness" The Galaxy Union has their hands full trying to revise the treaty and keep everyone updated on its current provisions. A few bogus versions of the treaty start to circulate, providing even more amusement. 6) "Corporate Silliness" Several corporations vie for exclusive rights to research and development. Naturally, they're willing to go to just about any extreme to eliminate the competition. 7) "Senseless Silliness" The older guardians of the fortress begin to toy with their visitors--literally and figuratively. (Year Three) 8) "Social Silliness" Social-class factions within the fortress erupt, just as word starts to get around the working classes of Jurai--who also get upset. 9) "Experimental Silliness" The technology exchange has activated some scientists who had been kept frozen in the fortress. They decide to begin their own experiments. 10) "Loyalty Silliness" The emperor of Jurai returns to formally claim all development rights and research records accumulated at the site. Naturally, all kinds of silliness ensues. 11) "Fortune-Hunter Silliness" Pirates from all over the galaxy keep making clever forays into the projects. (Year Four) 12) "Disaster Silliness" Explosions occur on a fairly regular basis, now that a rogue Earth geologist has become interested in all the unexplained tremors. The Masaki house goes boom at the end of this one. 13) "Paradox Silliness" Rumors going around on Earthly news reports force a series of silly explanations. The Masaki house goes through some interesting mutations, as they go through several different renovations. 14) "Silly Knights" A small division of Jurai knights (a mere two hundred) are awakened, and go to perform their duty--whatever that is. 15) "Silly Lessons" Learning made fun. (I'm writing this one.) (Year Five) 16) "Silly Milestones" Tenchi takes a holiday and reflects, while lying around on the beach. Tenchi relates an old school story. Ayeka talks about a mock battle she once saw performed, while Ryoko provides some interesting commentary. Mihoshi talks about some of her experiences in the GP Academy. Sasami tells about a pet she once had, and Yosho somehow ties it all together with one of his woodsy-stories. 17) "Silly Preparations" Everyone seems to be getting prepared for something--but for what? Who knows? It sure looks pretty big, though! 18) "Silly Secret Societies" Conspiracies clash when secret societies arrive from every major faction in the universe--including one from the fortress itself. 19) "Silly Silence" There is an eery silence in this whole episode--until the last few revealing scenes. Hint: No more ancient fortress--it went bye-bye. (Year Six) 20) "Silly Appointments" Pandemonium ensues when the Juraians go looking for the ancient fortress, while the Galaxy Police and the Galaxy Union try to figure out what happened to make it vanish in the first place. 21) "Silly Trials" Several key figures take the fall while the Galaxy Police try to decide who to arrest next to satisfy the mobs of rampaging diplomats. Naturally, they arrest everyone. 22) "Silly Duties" Tenchi and Ryoko--the only two figures who escaped conviction--have their hands full trying to convince everyone else of their innocence. Actually, Tenchi has his hands full just trying to control Ryoko. 23) "Silly Extortions" The emperor of Jurai tries to extort cooperation for a full pardon, while Tenchi and Ryoko arrange a few interesting extortions of their own. (Year Seven) 24) "Silly Nuisances" Life has returned to a relatively normal pattern, except for silly little things that keep going wrong. 25) "Silly Riddles" Not your average riddle story. (I'm writing this one.) 26) "Silly Rewards" (Finale) The ancient fortress is discovered under the Royal Palace at Jurai, and the emperor is forced to make some silly ceremonies, to placate certain people he offended in episode 23. NOTES: The first 13 episodes seem to me to present some interesting dilemmas and conflicts that the characters end up getting involved with (and maybe even helping to resolve). How they get involved and why is something I'd like to be very creative about, and it's frankly a bit of a headache at the moment trying to visualize all that. It should prove to be fun, though. The other 13 episodes present the characters with more direct and personal challenges, and these episodes could really highlight the ironic aspects of the relationships between the characters. The Year Four episodes look to be the most fun and the most memorable, but Year Five presents some interesting challenges. If you work on 16-19, I'd really like to see a high level of quality there. If you work on the ancient fortress back-story, keep in mind that it's pretty big. So, it's really like a hundred fortresses all in one. On the technical side, a new development occurs in space-travel. In Year Three (8-11), a consortium of Elite Academics and Jurai Supreme Council members begin construction of hyperspace 'gates.' Each gate opens into hyperspace--a stable wormhole that connects to another gate. In order to travel in hyperspace, though, you have to follow a 'homing beacon.' Many different problems have to be worked out, of course. By episode 20, most of the problems have been sorted out, but there are still many little quirks that come up now and then. When we left the fortress, the main hallway and the treasure chamber had been totally trashed. All that remains is debris, so there's nothing from the first trilogy left except for the small jug of sake and the security control chalice (the large cup from the second episode). Ryoko can use the chalice to open a telepathic link to anyone in the fortress, but she has to be seriously drunk to control it. The main parts of the fortress are in sub-space. They are accessible through the doors leading from the treasure chamber. Ryoko can teleport to any part of the fortress that she has been to before, unless blocked by some outside force. Ayeka and Sasami can enter the main hallway through a secret passageway that only they know about. Anyone else has to go through the front gate or be teleported in. For further reference, the ancient fortress was built by an ancient race that lived on Earth, thousands of years ago. Nobody knows anything about them, not even Washu. The technical prowess of that race went far beyond what most people think is possible. If you want to work on the design, think octagonal. There is a large, central support room, and eight main branches. Each branch splits into sixteen branches. Each sub-branch contains an eight-by-eight area--enough space for eight people to live comfortably. You get the basic idea. It doesn't all have to be about the fortress, of course. It's just a prop. The real story is in the development of these characters. Tenchi is becoming more and more of a proficient sword-fighter and artist. He tends to paint, although he has an interest in architecture, poetry, fashion design, hunting, and sculpture. He would probably go off to school at some point for scholarly and religious purposes, although I wouldn't linger on that. It might be a good idea to emphasize a growing sense of humor and an appreciation for patience and tolerance. Ryoko is developing along the lines of a deep love of pleasure and a cynicism in most other things. She has scattered interests, but she tends to focus on arts and philosophy. Ryoko is not as powerful in this series as she was in the trilogy. She needs Washu to teach her how to focus her mind and body as one again. Over the course of this series, Ryoko actually becomes less and less powerful. In episode 15, she is borderline suicidal but she gradually starts to improve (with episode 22 as maybe one glaring exception). Ayeka develops a greater love of Earth history--especially wherever it parallels Jurai history. She becomes more vain, but she seems to enjoy herself more. She continues sewing and knitting until the last few years--when Tenchi is actually much better at it than she is. She shares many of the same interests as Tenchi, but her main skill is verbal ability. Sasami develops in fits of angst, which she does a better job of controlling as she gets older. She continues to refine some of her cooking art, but she develops a talent for writing serial drama--which she sometimes likes to act out in bits. She grows physically for the most part the first two to three years into the series. She continues to study history and a variety of other subjects. Mihoshi continues to leap into any action, much to the chief's dismay. She continues to wreak havoc in her own unique way. It might be good to focus on her increasing ability to manipulate others while mostly unable to control herself. Mihoshi mostly has small parts, although you might want to remember that she is a very likable character--not just a prop for clownish stunts. Ryo-Ohki develops better control of her polymorphing, but the language skills are slow. She may be forming simple statements and insights by the end of the series. Yosho and Noboyuki don't change much, although Noboyuki has to travel more to keep working. He is an architect, after all. The Tenchi/Ryoko aspect of the story is fascinating to me, and I would love to see a lot of variation. Tenchi suffers from frustrated confusion, and Ryoko has a habit of trying and failing to keep from hurting his feelings about it. Ryoko is getting more and more paranoid as Tenchi becomes less interested in her. The Tenchi/Ayeka aspect of the story is difficult to describe. I see Tenchi getting yanked between admiration and contempt for her, and both of these emotions tend to get stronger as this story develops. Ayeka is even more convinced that she is Tenchi's destiny--despite the fact that destiny keeps playing the old game of 'keep away' with her. There are some other combinations that seem obvious in retrospect that I would prefer to ignore for the most part right now. Suffice it to say that there are variations on the above themes that are creative enough to work for several different situations. The alchemist is a new character for this series, a wise old man of my own creation. He seems pleasant enough in most situations but he can be downright vicious when confronted with sloth and perversion. His main character trait is his ability to manipulate others with subtle craft. At the beginning of the series, he is in need of an apprentice. Eventually, he chooses Ryoko to be his apprentice, and he begins testing her. He also has Tenchi's hidden powers in mind, and tests him at the end of the series. The alchemist doesn't meet Tenchi and Ryoko until episode 15 and he is pretty much finished dealing with Sasami. He might appear to the others in one form or another, but I can't think of any good reason right at the moment.