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I was watching an anime series called Steins;Gate today. [In episode 9 (around
six minutes in)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPSghWQUE-g#t=05m45s), one of
the characters proposes physically travelling through time:

> 凶真「ずばり、物理的タイムトラベルだ！」

The other characters pause for a moment (because it's so ridiculous) and then
they ignore him:

> 紅{く}莉{り}栖{す}「まゆり。麦茶、冷蔵庫にまだある？」  
>  まゆり「ちょっと待っててね」

In response to being ignored, he pulls out his phone and dramatically pretends
to talk to someone on the phone for a moment:

> 凶真「俺だ！ 機関によるラボ内の切り崩し工作が始まったようだ。この鳳凰院凶真の言葉が、ラボメンの心に届かないのだ」

And his friend replies:

> ダル「それ、前からじゃねぇ?」  
>  凶真「ならなぜ、この素晴らしい議題を **華麗にスルーする** のだ！」

I understand that スルーする is slang for ignoring someone (from _through_ ), but I
can't figure out how to make sense of 華麗に modifying it. _How_ exactly are they
ignoring him?

明鏡国語辞典 defines 華麗 as 「はなやかで美しいこと」, but it doesn't really make sense to me
here.
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2014-09-20T13:49:04.793
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2014-09-21T15:33:00.537
2014-09-21T15:33:00.537
question
words
華麗にスルーする　Ignore someone . . . how exactly?
First, one would need to understand the fact that "to ignore" is not the
primary meaning of 「スルーする」 and that it is a secondary and slang meaning of the
phrase. It is also a rather "new" meaning as well. The primary meaning of
「スルーする」 is 「[素通]{すどお}りする」, which means "to pass something without dropping
by". You just keep on walking, driving, etc. without stopping. I am sure that
you could easily see how the new slang meaning of "to ignore" was derived from
that.

This is why we have an imagery of a person walking on by without paying
attention to the things as he passes them. If you could imagine a person
physically moving, you could then describe the action with an adverb like
「[華麗]{かれい}に」. 華麗に/華麗な can be used only to describe something physical. " **One
passed by just beautifully and completely.** "

What I was implying in my comment above is "Would the word "to ignore" allow
you to have that imagery?" I thought not, which would explain why 「華麗にスルーする」
makes no sense to you but it makes perfect sense to Japanese-speakers. They
ignored the guy through and through.
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answer
The Japanese slang スルーする has significantly _positive_ nuance by itself,
compared to Japanese 無視する. People who are good at net slang consider it to be
something difficult to master. There is even a word
[スルー力【りょく】](http://internet.watch.impress.co.jp/static/uocchi/2007/04/01/kentei.htm)
or
[スルースキル](http://dic.nicovideo.jp/a/%E3%82%B9%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BC%E3%82%B9%E3%82%AD%E3%83%AB),
which is the important skill to survive the information era.

This is not surprising, because スルーする was [probably derived from succor jargon
スルーパス](http://www.paradisearmy.com/doujin/pasok_through.htm), which is another
和製英語, meaning a difficult pass penetrating the defense. You can see an example
of [typical 華麗なスルーパス](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzPop7Tgooo) at YouTube.

So ever since スルーする was born, 華麗に and スルーする have been used together very
frequently. You can safely call "華麗にスルー" a set phrase.

So what is this "art of ignoring?" When can you ignore something nicely? Here
are some examples.

> A: 掲示板にまた荒らしが現れましたよ。  
>  B: **華麗にスルー** しましょう。

In this conversation, B recommends that A should not respond to the troll. He
knows that ignoring a troll is sometimes difficult, but B expects A to
exercise his "skill of ignoring".

> A: あー、のどが渇いた。  
>  B: 冷蔵庫に昨日のカレーが入ってるよ。  
>  A: コンビニでお水買ってくるね。  
>  B: うわ、 **華麗にスルー** された（笑）！

In this case, A could have directly responded to B's joke by saying
「カレーは飲みものじゃない！」, but didn't. Intentionally ignoring B's joke made B laugh
instead. (Such "gag by ignoring gag" is sometimes referred to as ボケ殺し, and
certainly is technical if done intentionally)

> 「雨が降るから傘を持っていけ」ってあれほど言ったのに、 **華麗にスルー** された。

This is a sarcastic usage of 華麗にスルー. This 華麗に emphasizes his surprise that his
advice was totally ignored.

> 今日は新作ゲームの発売日だけど、お金がないから **華麗にスルー** する。

This is naturally-sounding (though slangy) to me, and I believe no one would
question "どこが華麗なんだ?". But now I think this 華麗に means almost nothing any more.
Because 華麗にスルー is a set phrase, such things can happen. If I must, I would
translate this 華麗に as "dare".

In the example of _Steins;Gate_ , if 凶真 had said 物理的タイムトラベル jokingly, my
second example would be the closest. But I think he said this rather
seriously, so "because スルー is frequently used with 華麗に" would be the only
explanation.

(PS. Steins;Gate面白いですよね)
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2014-09-21T13:22:23.930
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answer