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Getting into the classic era, where decisions become generally more difficult, but in a good way! Touhou 6 ~ Embodiment of Scarlet Devil Indisputably among the best compilations of ZUN's work in existence, despite its age and arguable over-exposure. Not a single track lacks some level of appreciation in the fandom, and it continues to be a standard by which to measure modern releases (though other titles might better serve the role). Septette to the Dead Princess remains in my top three, and I am officially acknowledging Beloved Tomboyish Girl as among my top ten. Honorable mention to Shanghai Teahouse ~ Chinese Tea. ZUN's Music Collection Vol. 1: Dolls in Pseudo Paradise Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this is the only instance in the commercial releases of the SC-88Pro sound. Concerning said sound: I appreciate it well enough for stage and boss themes, but the unique style ZUN utilizes in his music collection arrangements doesn't seem to be as suited to it. It doesn't help that most of these tracks are remixes of the Seihou soundtracks, both of which were already available in SC-88Pro versions and usually better. Still, I can appreciate the extended versions of some track this album provided; nonetheless, the only tracks I enjoy listening to are the originals (there are three) and Enigmatic Doll. Between the originals, I'm split between Forest of Dolls and The Strange Everyday Life of the Flying Shrine Maiden. Regardless, this is probably my least favorite collection in the franchise. Touhou 7 ~ Perfect Cherry Blossom Another classic, with a singular formatting in its progression from one track to another that makes it difficult not to rush to the end. I must recognize the masterpieces of Necrofantasia and Bloom Nobly, Ink Black Cherry Blossoms, but I will also note the vital relationship Border of Life (Revival) has with the latter. The initial piece functions as one of ZUN's best climax compositions in the series, but cannot quite accomplish the "punch" without sacrificing the subtlety that gives it its impact. The additional track is insufficient on its own, lacking proper setup; but with the motifs previously established and the mood set, the "punch" can be delivered, reinforcing one of the most memorable moments in the series! Honorable mention to Capital City of Flowers in the Sky. ZUN's Music Collection Vol. 2: Ghostly Field Club For all intents and purposes, the actual first entry in the Music Collection series, establishing their standard of equal parts uniquely styled originals and minutely tweaked remixes from the games. Of course, most fans are aware of them for the characters of Renko and Merry, whether or not they've listened to the music. This is my second favorite album of the music collections, but my specific favorites are easily Girl's Sealing Club and Strange Bird of the Moon, Illusion of the Mysterious Cat. On an unrelated note, this is one of the few times that a game track was introduced in an earlier release (Illusionary Night ~ Ghostly Eyes). Touhou 8 ~ Imperishable Night I refer to my earlier suggestion of titles better suited as the standard for the series. 6 is iconic, 7 perfects the build-up, and 10 has overall strength, but 8 manages balance in a way that has yet to be matched imo (again, I am referring specifically to the music). It's worth noting that this was the point at which ZUN settled on his sound style, which has remained consistent ever since. Retribution for the Eternal Night ~ Imperishable Night is easily my favorite from here, but thereafter it becomes difficult to decide. I remember my initial experiences with Touhou that Flight of the Bamboo Cutter ~ Lunatic Princess was an early favorite, so I'll settle on that. Touhou 7.5 ~ Immaterial and Missing Power The first fighting game, and thus the first occurrence of someone other than ZUN contributing to the official music catalogue. While I believe it bears the marks of a first attempt, I maintain that it stands up far better than the fandom seems to give it credit for. Akiyama forever established himself as the man to beat in terms of Touhou arrangements, while simultaneously establishing his own composition abilities. I will always argue for the more deserving reputation of Eastern Memory of Forgathering Dream over the similar but shorter motif of Broken Moon; while both have their merits, the former has far more range and versatility. One would think my secondary track would be one of ZUN's contributions, but while I agree Missing Power is underrated (not to mention I appreciate Night Falls and Demystify Feast as much as the next person), it is my opinion that ZUN was still developing his style for the fighting game's music, and it doesn't stand up as well as some of his other work. Alternatively, I'm surprisingly fond of Wanderings by NKZ, whose contributions to this soundtrack are possibly the most overlooked part of the entire series. ZUN's Music Collection Vol. 3: Changeability of Strange Dream From this point on, the music collections are mostly remember for a specific track or two and/or some event in the Sealing Club storyline. For this one, the track in question is Kid's Festival ~ Innocent Treasures, officially ZUN's autobiographical music theme, complete with unsung lyrics that I have yet to find a proper performance for. After that, I'm torn between Dream of Arcadia and Boys and Girls of Science Era; I'll settle on the former, and consider the latter an honorable mention for now, but be aware that my opinion keeps inverting. BTW, does anyone have thoughts on the alternative title trend that became inconsistently prevalent in the music collections starting with this one? Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red Here is one of the "complications" I mentioned; three tracks that are slightly superior versions of their Touhou 9 counterparts (if you've ever wondered why Aya's theme bears the moniker "short version", it's because the full version is from this release). For consistency's sake, I'll name Flower Viewing Mound ~ after Higan Retour, but overall its hard to judge anyone for completely skipping this entry entirely. Touhou 9 ~ Phantasmagoria of Flower View I'd be ecstatic for ZUN to do more phantasmagoria games. As a collection I prefer Touhou 3, but for individual tracks there's something noteworthy in the concept of ZUN returning to old material for little twists, not in a different stylistic context as with the music collections but purely as an exercise. Considering this specific version of Ghostly Band ~ Phantom Ensemble has remained my number one Touhou track, my bias is clearly in favour of the experiment. Not withstanding, the collection overall suffers a bit from the disjointed mixture of remixes, originals and recycled tracks. I'm going to surprise someone and make my second pick Mound where the Flowers Reflect, the atmosphere of which stands out from the typical ending theme (I know it's not the ending theme, but the comparison is there, isn't it?). Fate of Sixty Years gets honorable mention. Touhou 9.5 ~ Shoot the Bullet Ever wonder if ZUN was composing stage themes for 9 before deciding to make it a phantasmagoria game and decided to make a new kind of game for the unused music? Anyway, because the spin-off soundtracks are so short, I'll be sticking to one song each for them. For this one, it's unquestionably Sleepless Night of the Eastern Country; the other tracks are fine, but this is the only one I listen to on the regular. That's where I'm gonna cut it for now; this is taking a lot longer than I though it would.

Hell yeah brotha.

Lax regulations, big cast, girls, etc. Keep in mind this happens with literally every piece of media that exists and will exist though. Personally I used to be very anti-horny few years ago but as the years passed I just, whatever. Hell yeah booba. Also like I said in another thread big distinction between cute and/or sexy, and nsfw. The art in that fangame is just so overdone that it loops back to being funny for me honestly.

There is a lot you guys have discussed already but I'll just share my thoughts as well. I agree with Darksymphony777 on the reason for the high amount of NSFW content. This is probably due to the fact that nearly anyone can use the property as they wish. The japanese law also contributes a lot and I understand SasaMisa to an extent too. Personally, I'm not interested in any of that stuff. I'm enjoying touhou for the music and cool characters. I think my enjoyment would die if I decided to focus on the NSFW content. However, that shouldn't mean no one is allowed to check that stuff given how much there is.

Because cute girls cute

These days the term "Christian" gets thrown around a lot, to the point that hardly anyone knows what it means anymore (Acts 11:26, literally translated as "disciples of Christ", or "dedicated followers of Christ"). I refer to myself as a believer of the Bible, because that establishes to others my understood standard for discerning truth. I hope I am and strive to be a Christian, but it remains for others to see Christ in my behavior and assertions. :) To be fair, I'm only reading two of those books on my own. The others are books I'm reading to other people, but I figure it still counts (technically the last two are being read to me).

I think this point stems from the fact that historically, western art was very realistic and very much an "at face value" experience, symbolism taking the backseat most times. So now when the same idea of realism is brought to that, it isn't that much of a surprise why people think what they do. Related image