- Ganymede

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Hi there! Before I reply, thanks for the compliments about my site!

>In my point of view, Mercury's intellect comes in the form of science and
>mathematics, while Neptune's talents lies in the arts and humanities.
>Therefore, in terms of intellect they cannot be compared as side by side
>very well, as Mercury is portrayed as one of the science and mathematics,
>and Neptune of the arts and humanities.

I do see what you're saying, but people like Ami and Michiru wouldn't be confined by things like that, I don't think. ;> What I mean is that yes, you're right, it's true that Ami is known more for the science aspect of study while Michiru is known for the arts, but you'd probably agree that this doesn't mean that Michiru can't do math or chemistry well (I cannot picture Michiru getting stuck on a calculus problem) or that Ami would be an ignoramus on the subject of art (which I also cannot picture). As my mother says, a true genius is good at ANYthing they set their mind to.

But anyway, I'm digressing - my point is that while you think one cannot compare Michiru and Ami's intellects to each other because they specialize in different things, I say that that's not relevant, because that's not what I'm comparing when I compare their intellects to each other. I don't think Michiru and Ami are necessarily confined to certain THINGS (i.e. sciences versus arts), but I *do* think that they are on different LEVELS. I'm not saying that one level is necessarily *higher* than the other; I'm just saying that they're of different flavors. Let me explain that by replying to what you said:

>Mercury indeed does work a lot harder than normal people, so does Neptune.
>Mercury's goal is to be a doctor, and thats her aim, thus she goes all out
>for it, instead of wasting her time like Moon. Neptune practices her violin
>and paint regularly as well, to work towards to her dream to be an
>artist/musician. Thus Mercury being hardworking does not make her, well
>maybe i misinterpretted, implied less intelligent than she is.

Both Michiru and Ami are hard-working, but the point I was making in my profile page about Michiru is that with Michiru, it doesn't *subsume* her to the point where it becomes her *only* thing. Even though Ami is shown in MUCH more episodes than Michiru, I personally feel that Michiru's personality is more complex, deep, and that her story is more sympathetic and interesting.

Part of the reason I feel this way is because Ami is rather... stereotypical. What I mean by that is that she is -the- stereotype of an Japanese parent's ideal child: hard-working, respectful, innocent, more interested in studying than in dating, a perfect scorer on tests, and eager to follow in her parent's footsteps by going into the same profession - the profession to be a doctor, I might add, which is one of the most prestigious professions among Asians. I'm Korean myself and my parents are/were very much the same way - you have no idea how many Korean mothers hated my mother just cause she had a "model son" (i.e., a male Ami :p) who was good at school and piano and flute and saxophone and who was the typical "nerd." ^^;;; I even have a funny joke list a Korean friend sent to me called "How to Be the Model Asian Child" and Ami fits the description perfectly. My point is that this makes Ami seem rather one-dimensional in MY eyes, as if she was the product of an overused Asian stereotype/ideal. Perhaps this image appeals to others, but as a person who lived the stereotype, I find it an overrated and tired image, just as a Southerner might find it tiring to see stereotypical Southern people on TV speaking with a really pronounced "hick" accent.

Besides, even when she is working hard, Michiru has a certain indefinable quality (in your own words, "flair") that Ami cannot achieve - in episode 99, where Michiru is standing in a deserted park at night and playing her violin under the full moon, you can see the sheer enjoyment on her face as she plays the violin, and she's not doing hard work (or at least that's the way she makes it look :p); she's just playing beautifully/expertly because she can, and because she likes it. Michiru has the ability and innate grace needed to pull that off, and you don't get that same sense of personal enjoyment when you watch Ami reading a textbook even in the company of friends or fretting about how she's only ahead ten chapters.

There's a difference between achievement that comes from busting arse all the time and achievement that comes from innate talent. You're right, Ami and Michiru both work hard, but Michiru gives off a sense of enjoyment and positive emotion as opposed to a sense of working to "be ahead of the deadline" and working with an aura of martyrdom and business. Michiru does it for the joy of it and not for the sake of a numerical measure of achievement, and she does it with an innate quality that can't be learned from hard work. Maybe that's just the way I personally see her, but that's why I think Michiru's genius is more interesting in the long run and that's why I like her "style" more; and that certainly doesn't mean that I necessarily view Ami as being more stupid than Michiru.

Wow, I ranted a lot. o.o Take care!