Clearing up a misconception about AE Invasion
It is well-known that the Honkai comics have some liberties taken in their translations. I've often seen this brought up specifically for a page from AE Invasion where Sim Siegfried speculates Kiana is gay. However, there's a lot more to this than people think.
People have pointed out that the CN version does in fact not feature these lines, stating that the translator tried to impose the narrative that Kiana is gay when no such thing was said.
This hypothesis is wrong. This wasn't just a translation error. It was censorship.
Specifically, two things happened:
* The translator changed the text in a way that makes Kiana look less in love with Mei and makes Siegfried look more pervy.
* The Chinese text was later altered for the sake of censorship. Same sex relations are often the target of sporadic censorship, hence it's a rather inconsistent process.
Current CN Version:
Siegfried:
"Mei, who is that? What else is more important to you than spending time with your dad?"
Kiana:
"Mei is the most important person to me! If you understand, then disappear! You bastard dad!"
Original CN Version:
Siegfried:
"Mei? Is that your boyfriend? Wait... this is a girl's name, right? Could it be that... after not seeing you for 4 years, you have become... a yuri!?"
Kiana:
"What gender is not important at all! Mei is the one I love the most! If you understand, then disappear! You bastard dad!"
To clarify, the way this is phrased in Chinese, Kiana is not saying gender does not matter to her. She's saying Siegfried is focusing on something that's completely beside the point, and he should just disappear so she can go save the person she loves.
While we're here, on a side note, I'll also mention that Moon Shadow was also altered in translation to make Kiana's love for Mei less pure. In the original, she doesn't say 'but I can try', and instead turns down Fu Hua completely, stating she gave her 'body and soul' to Mei.
CN texts:
