TNT: Copyrights and China

This week for Translation Necessary Thursday I’m taking a quick look at something that might confuse others. It’s all about Copyrights and China!

Copyrights in China: China has no Copyright laws, and so people are free to copy things from IPs that they like freely. It leads to interesting references or blatant copyright infringement in works I’ve read, which I find hilarious and great.

Why is it funny to me?: Because I consider copying someone else’s work as the highest form of flattery and respect. If you are going to steal an idea, you might as well do it from the best. You’ll find some really interesting references in some works like Terror Infinity and Douluo Dalu if you pay attention. If you aren’t blind you’ll immediately notice a certain character in Half-Prince that shows up in the later volumes.

Is this really a bad thing?: Honestly I personally don’t find it to be a bad thing, but others will of course disagree with me. Things like the TPP law that is trying to be passed right now annoy the hell out of me, because they will ruin perfectly good stories like Douluo Dalu in the future.

That’s it for this week’s Translation Necessary Thursday!

Light Novel Thursday: 1/2 Prince by Yu Wo

This week for Light Novel Thursday we are doing a series from Taiwan, 1/2 Prince by Yu Wo.

Plot Synopsis: Feng Lan is a 19 year-old girl who is challenged by her twin brother to play a virtual reality game called Second Life. Being the first player to log onto the game, she is allowed to distinguish her real life looks from her avatar; thus she creates an insanely handsome male elf named Prince. Thus a legend is born. 

Plot: The plot in this series isn’t all that serious until the later novels, but even than it’s just an odd plot. I won’t spoil it, but it’s got a good ending, and the standalone sequel gives us a look at the aftermath of the series.

Characters: Prince loves to steal moves from her/his favorite games, like Chun Li’s ultimate attack from Street Fighter and Kenshin’s Nine Headed Dragon Strike, from Rurouni Kenshin. However my favorite character is probably Lolidragon, the thief of the main cast. Maybe it’s cause my first character in an MMORPG was a Rogue in World of Warcraft.

Overall: If you don’t mind the blatant plagiarism used in this series, you’ll probably love it.

For those who like: MMO’s, Gaming, Virtual Reality, Gender Benders, Kick ass female leads.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above, or plagiarism.