I can't believe it took me this long to read this. A brilliant essay, and I especially liked how you described Karasu as psychotic. I hate to see how some authors butcher his character, no matter who he's paired with or if it's a gen fic.

Later, while Kurama is practicing in a field, Karasu steals upon him and sneaks in a few gropes again. He’s in and out so quickly that Kurama only feels his hands and sees him as nothing more than a blur.

I had completely forgotten that scene! I obviously must watch the series again.

And definitely check some of those recs; there seems to be a few I've never even heard of. (Thank you very much for including me, too. ^_^)