Post by sasukewarrior333 on Jun 14, 2024 13:05:02 GMT -5
So a little while back I mentioned in a post that SASUKE 1 has this weird vibe to it, and this is an expansion on that. This thread is gonna be using some kinda niche terms, but I'll explain anything that needs to be. Credit to ahzoo who I had a private conversation with for a lot of these points!
So, SASUKE 1. The foundation of SASUKE itself, where this all began. Well, give or take the previous years of obstacle course history including the start of Banzuke, but regardless, this is where SASUKE itself was born. Of course, this tournament was quite different then how the show would end up being in many different way just like the tournaments immediately following it, most prominent of which was the fact that it was the only tournament in SASUKE history to be held indoors. Now being on this forum you almost certainly know this, I wouldn't be making this thread if that's all I had to say. There's something about SASUKE 1, something different, something that makes it feel distinct from every single tournaments afterwards, and recently, it clicked.
Dreamcore is an aesthetic that, as the name suggests, is based off of weirdness or surrealism, like something you would see in a dream. I believe this is the vibe that SASUKE 1 produces.
First of all, as I mentioned in my original post, SASUKE 1 FEELS dreamlike, it feels otherworldly as though you're in a universe where there's nothing but SASUKE. Why is this? Well, that's part of why I made this thread, to explore why SASUKE 1 gives off this feeling, because we've had plenty of indoor Ninja comps over the years, Ninja Warrior UK for example, and yet out of all of them, only SASUKE 1 makes me feel like this. I've thought about it, and I think there's a few reasons:
1. The age of the tournament. A vast majority of us on the forum lean on the younger side, I wasn't even born until the seventh anniversary of SASUKE for example, and most of us are either younger than SASUKE, or were young enough at the time it first aired that we couldn't remember it even if we did somehow see it. That's part of what makes SASUKE 1 seem so distant, the fact that it's so out of reach from us in comparison to recent tournaments that many of us have literally seen live. Of course there's more to it than this, as you get this same vibe with SASUKE 2, so what else is there?
2. The lighting. SASUKE 1 is all indoors, and while the course is lit up, it's the backgrounds are all very dim unlike modern indoor Ninja sets, and THIS is the kicker I think. It feels like the competitors are in a void, an endless void where there's nothing but SASUKE, and this is the point of existence.
This creates a couple different feelings. In one sense, it gives the tournament an eerie, somewhat foreboding vibe. Have you ever noticed how quiet this tournament is? Not only is there less music than usual due to the lack of a clear theme, but the announcing even feels quieter. Even the spectators feel less present, as while you do hear them, you barely ever see them, which actually adds to this feeling, as you just have these faceless observers watching all the runs, like they're dark overlords watching these impossibly small pawns who only exist for their own enjoyment.
Not only that, but almost every run is shown in this tournament, so you see SO MANY fails, 96 fails out of 100 in fact. Despite having possibly the easiest Stage 1 and 3 ever, it makes the course feels ridiculously insurmountable, like a dream where you try desperately to do something over and over, but ALWAYS get turned back. There's also the lack of emotion or focus, competitors are briefly described and set to run, and moved on from within seconds when they fail. It makes the course feel brutal and unforgiving, ridding it of the personal focuses it would gain later on down the line.
And yet, like a dream, there's also comforting aspects to it. There's something distinctly comforting in regards to how unique this tournament is. Whether is be pure blue water and soft mats instead of dirty water for the fail area, the playful digest music that comprises most of the soundtrack, or just the general low emotional stakes, there's a lot of comfort to be had in this tournament. I think this also ties into nostalgia, which in itself is a key aspect of dreamcore. Even if SASUKE 1 wasn't your first tournament, it carries such a distinct charm, a comforting one that always makes it a pleasant re-watch regardless of its flaws.
The final aspect of SASUKE 1's dreamcore aesthetics is liminality. If you're curious, liminality is referred to as the gateway between two stages, which is basis on which liminal spaces come from, and yes, I do believe this also applies to SASUKE 1. SASUKE 1 is a one of a kind tournament we will almost certainly never see again. It was not meant to last, and it's good that it didn't. Not because it's a bad tournament, but because it's a tournament that was needed for SASUKE to experiment with what worked and what didn't. It was a transition from being a Banzuke event to being it's own thing, to being something special.
Like a dream, SASUKE 1 is entirely unique. Whether you love it or hate it, it is it's own thing, something that people will always reminisce on. It is nostalgic. It is beautiful. It is... SASUKE 1.
So, SASUKE 1. The foundation of SASUKE itself, where this all began. Well, give or take the previous years of obstacle course history including the start of Banzuke, but regardless, this is where SASUKE itself was born. Of course, this tournament was quite different then how the show would end up being in many different way just like the tournaments immediately following it, most prominent of which was the fact that it was the only tournament in SASUKE history to be held indoors. Now being on this forum you almost certainly know this, I wouldn't be making this thread if that's all I had to say. There's something about SASUKE 1, something different, something that makes it feel distinct from every single tournaments afterwards, and recently, it clicked.
Dreamcore is an aesthetic that, as the name suggests, is based off of weirdness or surrealism, like something you would see in a dream. I believe this is the vibe that SASUKE 1 produces.
First of all, as I mentioned in my original post, SASUKE 1 FEELS dreamlike, it feels otherworldly as though you're in a universe where there's nothing but SASUKE. Why is this? Well, that's part of why I made this thread, to explore why SASUKE 1 gives off this feeling, because we've had plenty of indoor Ninja comps over the years, Ninja Warrior UK for example, and yet out of all of them, only SASUKE 1 makes me feel like this. I've thought about it, and I think there's a few reasons:
1. The age of the tournament. A vast majority of us on the forum lean on the younger side, I wasn't even born until the seventh anniversary of SASUKE for example, and most of us are either younger than SASUKE, or were young enough at the time it first aired that we couldn't remember it even if we did somehow see it. That's part of what makes SASUKE 1 seem so distant, the fact that it's so out of reach from us in comparison to recent tournaments that many of us have literally seen live. Of course there's more to it than this, as you get this same vibe with SASUKE 2, so what else is there?
2. The lighting. SASUKE 1 is all indoors, and while the course is lit up, it's the backgrounds are all very dim unlike modern indoor Ninja sets, and THIS is the kicker I think. It feels like the competitors are in a void, an endless void where there's nothing but SASUKE, and this is the point of existence.
This creates a couple different feelings. In one sense, it gives the tournament an eerie, somewhat foreboding vibe. Have you ever noticed how quiet this tournament is? Not only is there less music than usual due to the lack of a clear theme, but the announcing even feels quieter. Even the spectators feel less present, as while you do hear them, you barely ever see them, which actually adds to this feeling, as you just have these faceless observers watching all the runs, like they're dark overlords watching these impossibly small pawns who only exist for their own enjoyment.
Not only that, but almost every run is shown in this tournament, so you see SO MANY fails, 96 fails out of 100 in fact. Despite having possibly the easiest Stage 1 and 3 ever, it makes the course feels ridiculously insurmountable, like a dream where you try desperately to do something over and over, but ALWAYS get turned back. There's also the lack of emotion or focus, competitors are briefly described and set to run, and moved on from within seconds when they fail. It makes the course feel brutal and unforgiving, ridding it of the personal focuses it would gain later on down the line.
And yet, like a dream, there's also comforting aspects to it. There's something distinctly comforting in regards to how unique this tournament is. Whether is be pure blue water and soft mats instead of dirty water for the fail area, the playful digest music that comprises most of the soundtrack, or just the general low emotional stakes, there's a lot of comfort to be had in this tournament. I think this also ties into nostalgia, which in itself is a key aspect of dreamcore. Even if SASUKE 1 wasn't your first tournament, it carries such a distinct charm, a comforting one that always makes it a pleasant re-watch regardless of its flaws.
The final aspect of SASUKE 1's dreamcore aesthetics is liminality. If you're curious, liminality is referred to as the gateway between two stages, which is basis on which liminal spaces come from, and yes, I do believe this also applies to SASUKE 1. SASUKE 1 is a one of a kind tournament we will almost certainly never see again. It was not meant to last, and it's good that it didn't. Not because it's a bad tournament, but because it's a tournament that was needed for SASUKE to experiment with what worked and what didn't. It was a transition from being a Banzuke event to being it's own thing, to being something special.
Like a dream, SASUKE 1 is entirely unique. Whether you love it or hate it, it is it's own thing, something that people will always reminisce on. It is nostalgic. It is beautiful. It is... SASUKE 1.
